Nanomancer Rising: Divine Alchemist Reborn as Academy's Worst Teacher
Chapter 59: I’ve won, but at what cost?!

Chapter 59: I’ve won, but at what cost?!

"Teacher Julius!"

For the second time since his arrival, the headmaster had left his seat and stood up, assuming the form of an elegant crane and then just an ordinary peasant... only to flap his ragged clothes behind him as he locked his hands on his back.

Physically speaking, he was roughly the same height as Julius, and yet, when looking at the man, he somehow managed to look down upon him like some sort of deity about to judge a puny mortal from the height of its celestial throne.

"You brought forth false accusations backed by nothing more than hearsay and guesswork. What’s more, when unable to force your flawed logic upon another teacher, you resorted to abusing your connections and authority to condemn an otherwise innocent man. Better yet, you made sure to fraternize with the judges before the trial, setting the stage for the whole thing before anyone could even hear the first testimony or see the first evidence, if there was any."

With each word he said, the headmaster continued to move towards Julius, all the way to the point where he stood just two, maybe three steps away from him, looming over the man.

"Those were the crimes you committed against a fellow teacher, someone you were supposed merely to support and compete with yet opted to use, in your misconceptions, as a stepping stone for raising your own status."

The headmaster shook his head, his apparition returning to that of an old, white-bearded man.

"But that’s not all!"

The headmaster’s authoritative voice boomed through the hall, even causing Theo to shake on his feet for a single second.

"You organized a trial without informing the proper authorities about it, grossly exceeding your authority as but another teacher. You single-handedly assumed the role of the trial’s host, judge, and the executioner of the verdict. I’m not even gonna elaborate on how you’ve wasted everyone’s time and robbed so many students of the lessons they were supposed to be receiving from the teachers you’ve gathered..."

The headmaster shook his head, his expression full of disappointment.

"The list of your crimes extends even further, but only those are the things that shall be brought up in public. And now, it’s time for me to decide the punishment for each and every last one of your crimes."

The headmaster looked at Julius’ defeated face before rolling his eyes and making a sweeping turn, his ragged clothes turning into a long, elegant robe as his apparition changed yet again, this time to a white-haired cultivation master taken straight out of an eastern picture book.

The man remained silent during his return to the throne, not opening his mouth all the way until he firmly sat himself down on it.

"Respectable headmaster!" Sensing the time was ripe for him to make the move, Theo spoke out. "If I may...?"

"Speak up," the headmaster replied with an approving nod. "As the victim of those unfortunate and outright vile circumstances, you are more than entitled to voice your suggestions for the punishment over the crimes related to you."

Hearing this, Theo smiled a little.

"It is not punishment that I seek to impose," Theo shook his head. "That authority is not something I desire or expect. All I want is a fitting compensation along with an assurance that this man," he pointed his hand at Julius, "shall be punished."

Yet another murmur went through the crowd as Theo’s fellow teachers silently discussed his words.

"And what is the compensation you seek?"

Theo’s smile grew even wider.

"Pretty much near the start of this trial, teacher Julius admitted that this trial robbed me of all that he thought I had. But that’s not all!" Theo’s voice grew stronger, louder. "If his plan succeeded and I were to be chased out from the academy, it would only take time, very short time at that, before my brothers and sisters would happily jump on the opportunity to remove me from the equation."

Theo paused for a second. Then, he took a single step forward.

"In..." step, "a," step, "very," step, "definitive," step, "manner."

Theo moved a step ahead for every word that he uttered, not to reach some place in particular, but to put the greatest emphasis on those words that he physically could.

All of that, just to make sure no one dared to turn their eyes away, too busy locking their eyes on him and him alone to waste their attention by chatting away and discussing the situation in whispers and hushed voices.

"With that said, there was no way for him to know that," Theo, with everyone’s attention locked on him, added with a slight, somewhat merciful smile. "That’s why, while the real consequences of his actions would be much greater than what he imagined, I don’t think it’s right or fair for me to demand a compensation according to it."

Theo shook his head, reveling in the aura of respect his words created as all the other teachers suddenly took note of his mercy.

’And now, for the final blow...’ Trying not to laugh out, Theo calmed his face down before raising it up and locking eyes with the headmaster’s current apparition.

"He couldn’t know about my real circumstances because I was the one who hid those. That’s why, I only expect a compensation equal to what he tried to rob from me with this trial," Theo stated with an easy-going, almost kind voice.

The stage was set.

The contrast for what he really wanted to achieve was now in place, ready to put his final demand into an even worse light than it would normally.

All for the sake of warning everyone else to leave him the fuck alone for those last few days he was going to spend in this accursed academy.

"Since he admitted he was robbing me of everything I had, I believe it’s only fair if I will receive all that he has in compensation!"

At first, the hall filled with perfect silence as Theo’s words rang throughout the premises.

Then, some chatters started to circulate, growing in strength and volume with each passing second, soon turning into a noise that made it hard for anyone to hear even those sitting closest to them.

"That’s right! He deserves this!"

"Hell no! That’s too much!"

"This was all planned! He’s in cahoots with the headmaster to rob one of us!"

"There is no way this will..."

"SILENCE!"

The headmaster’s voice cut straight through all of this loud noise of everyone trying to over-shout the other, instantly reverting the hall back to the silent state Theo’s demand initially left it in.

The headmaster then cast a sweeping glance through the room, as if to make sure not a single troublemaker dared to raise their voice again, before finally turning his eyes back to Theo.

"Teacher Theo, I’m sorry, but that can’t be," the headmaster shook his head sideways in denial and then slightly lowered it in an apology. "While teacher Julius’ guilt is undeniable, to transfer his quasi-star rank over to you..." The headmaster shook his head again, "I’m sorry, but that’s..."

"I don’t give a crap about it," Theo replied before the headmaster could even finish, banking on the shock value of his statement to hide the fact that he not only just cussed but also cut the very headmaster of the academy off.

"I don’t care for his status, for his relationships, nor for his dreams. All I want is one... No, maybe two things. The first one being, all of his possessions."

Once again, the hall turned silent, this time without the coercion from the headmaster though.

Whether it was Theo’s actual demand or his disregard for what most of the gathered people regarded equally as important as their very lives, the young man couldn’t tell.

But honestly? He couldn’t care less.

It didn’t matter what shocked the crowd more. All that mattered was for him to get his hands on the travel funds he would need once he would finally ditch this damned place!

"That’s..." the headmaster squinted his eyes. Not even he himself managed to avoid the shock brought forth by Theo’s words, even if he was one of the very first to deal with it.

Then, however, his lips twisted into a wide smile... right as Theo noticed that his current apparition stretched for far longer than any other!

Only for the headmaster to then erupt in laughter, one so intense he even reached out and caught himself by his sides, unable to contain his amusement.

"Hahaha...!" After all the events of today, something as simple as an honest laugh was like a salve to Theo’s ears and nerves alike, finally turning this overly complex situation into something relatively simple. "To think I’ve misunderstood, ho-ho..." Wiping the tear out of the corner of his eyes, the headmaster then looked up to Theo’s face again. "And what’s that other thing?"

Hearing this, Theo merely smiled before turning to the rest of the crowd.

"I know it’s going to be abrupt, but who here would like to buy the stuff I’m about to get?" Theo asked out loud, spreading his arms wide open only to then drop his hands down on his waist. "I don’t care what it is, books, mansions, ownership titles or artifacts, as long as you have gold, I’m happy to part with them."

Theo then turned back to the headmaster.

"As long as you will allow it, that is."

The smile on the headmaster’s face grew even larger, as if someone just served him with the greatest joke of the century.

"That’s mostly fine, but..." he shook his head. "But, there are some things that cannot be sold. Things that you will have no other choice but to accept and keep."

’Should I be worried...?’ Theo thought, squinting his eyes as he tried to look for any sort of trap in the headmaster’s words.

Even though this was the moment where all his worries were about to be solved, the level of amusement the man showed was a little too worrying for Theo’s liking.

Yet, unable to find a single loophole, single trap, single sophistry ambush the headmaster could’ve prepared for him, Theo simply nodded his head.

"It’s decided then," the headmaster announced, rising from his throne again before bringing his hands up to the ceiling of the room, all the while ignoring the desperate look now appearing in its full glory on Julius’ face. "As of now, all of teacher Julius’ earthly possessions are transferred over to teacher Theo. And upon inspecting them all, he shall be allowed to sell them off as he desires!"

’And now, just conclude it,’ Theo urged the headmaster in his thoughts, staring at the man as he lowered his hand... and then matched his glare, only for the corners of his lips to twitch a little before he opened up his mouth again.

"Student Lukas!" the headmaster called, only for the very kid that Julius had called to give testimony about what he saw to raise his head in confusion. "Since one of your master’s possessions were your academic tokens, I believe it’s only fitting for you to go and greet your new master!"

’Wait, what?’

Theo’s instinctive fears suddenly materialized, taking form to haunt him in reality.

’That’s bad,’ he thought, gulping his saliva down as the kid turned his stare towards him, equally as confused as Theo himself... and most of the teachers gathered in the hall.

The stir, this time, didn’t come from the tribunes, but the small shadow cast by the now open doors where that annoying girl hid before. A stir that resulted in her sprinting over to where Theo stood with a dazed look on her face only for her to then prostrate herself before Theo’s feet.

"I humbly request, please, accept me as your disciple!" she exclaimed while slamming her forehead against the floor with a bang loud enough for Theo to instinctively worry about the safety of her skull and brain.

"And with it," pushing on, the headmaster continued with as wide of a smile as his face could contain, "since we’ve all witnessed teacher Theo not only get a first student but also get someone to voluntarily request his tutelage, I hereby proclaim his probatory process to be canceled!"

Hearing all of this, watching how the kid from before struggled to decide whether to just stare at him or if he was supposed to actually approach, staring at Tesh as she continued to mash her forehead against the floor, hearing the agitated voices from the tribune that now merged into nothing more but an annoying noise... all Theo could do was produce a single thought.

’Fuck.’