SRS 147

“If you want to go to the Island of Phantasmal Beasts, come find me.”

“Are you leaving, Professor?”

“Yes. Yohan Herse, it’ll be impossible for you to move with that body, so I’ll contact the dormitory. Rest here until tomorrow. Also, since you’ve graduated, if the divine beast returns, bring the fellow to my lab.”

Professor Joel left after mentioning that he had a schedule to attend. While Yohan and his friends stared at the angel professor with weary eyes, Arun, who looked used to the professor’s attitude, saw him out formally before immediately taking Yohan’s hand.

“I’m so glad to hear you’ll recover in three days at most.”

The display of worry made Yohan feel awkward. The torn wallpaper and half-destroyed cabinets visible over Arun’s shoulder stung Yohan’s conscience.

Even though the shop ended up like this, he’s still worrying about me.

Yohan wondered if the true priest might actually be the man before his eyes. Everything happened because he asked Arun to protect the corrupted divine beast, yet Arun didn’t show a single hint of resentment despite his injuries. Feeling moved, Yohan pushed aside his awkwardness and expressed his gratitude.

“Thank you for giving me a place to lie down.”

“Ah, that’s nothing. The professor used divine power to create a place for you to rest, Yohan.”

“…What?”

Yohan was appalled.

He thought something was strange. He had wondered why there was such a soft, pure white bed that remained clean despite the chaos inside the restaurant, but it was a bedroom the angel professor created after the commotion.

“…Is it really fine for a place like this to be inside the shop?”

“It’s the storage area, so I’m thinking of renovating this part into a lounge. There are two more storage rooms. Haha!”

“Mr. Arun is…”

Arun, who could still smile even after the priest had joined in destroying and altering the shop, was truly first-class. Yohan sighed with a mix of apology and gratitude as he looked around the shop. The Professor of Divine Studies was a cold-hearted angel. It would’ve been nice if he’d restored the ruined shop while he was busy making the bedroom.

Yohan would’ve helped if he had any divine power visit our siteleft, but in his current state, he couldn’t use even a single ounce of power. It was then, while Yohan was groaning with an apologetic face.

“Return to the way you were before.”

Mikael pulled a staff from his robe and recited a spell. Then, the interior of the Griffin Lovers Club, which looked worse than if it had been hit by a gang of robbers, began to mend itself.

Broken bookshelves returned to their original form, shattered picture frames were fixed, and torn wallpaper regained its former state. Arun exclaimed in admiration.

“I thought you were a divine power user, but you’re a mage.”

Just like Yohan, Mikael possessed an appearance that looked holy even from a distance, so anyone would’ve mistaken him for a priest if he didn’t say otherwise. Arun was no exception, and after honestly confessing his misunderstanding, he checked the repaired items.

“Thank you, Mikael.”

“Don’t mention it. It’s the mess we caused.”

No matter how talented Mikael was in magic, using a spell of this scale couldn’t have been easy. If he were a true first-year instead of an eternal one, he might’ve lost consciousness from mana depletion.

“Wow, if you can use magic like that, can you fix broken weapons and stuff too?”

When Suhyeok asked with sparkling eyes, Mikael shook his head.

“I can only restore things that were broken or damaged within the last 24 hours. Also, if the range is too wide, or if I feel a life response, mana response, or divine response in the object I’m trying to fix, I can’t restore it.”

“In short, you can’t fix magic tools, divine tools, or things like Ego Swords that have life in them.”

“Right.”

“That’s a shame.”

Suhyeok clicked his tongue, thinking he might’ve been able to make a fortune, then turned back to Yohan.

“How about you, Yohan? Do you think you can get up within three days?”

“I’m not sure.”

One thing was certain: he wouldn’t be able to get tomorrow. He would definitely have to spent Sunday in bed, and Monday looked like it would be a struggle too. As Yohan sighed, Suhyeok leaned his head against the wall, lost in thought.

“…Do we really have to go to the Island of Phantasmal Beasts?”

“You don’t have to do that, Suhyeok.”

Three first-year students going to the Island of Phantasmal Beasts was a suicide mission. Furthermore, Yohan had to stay in bed, so he couldn’t go with them. As Yohan earnestly tried to dissuade them, not wanting his friends to do something so reckless because of him, Arun cleared his throat.

“Hmm… Then how about I go with you? I might not look like it, but I’m a tamer and a summoner, so I went to the Island of Phantasmal Beasts often during my school days.”

“…Ah.”

Only then did Yohan remember that Arun was a graduate of Fantasiademia. He wasn’t just any graduate; he was a graduate who had opened a shop in the commercial district. Since this was the Nameless Realm where strange things happened often, Arun had likely stayed here a long time and experienced all sorts of hardships. He was a great asset who could be a huge help to Yohan’s group, for whom the Island of Phantasmal Beasts was a new path.

Yohan’s and Suhyeok’s expressions brightened simultaneously.

“It would definitely be a huge help if you went with us.”

As Yohan made the request with a smile, Mikael and Kylus also bowed their heads to ask for help. Arun waved his hands, refusing the excessive gratitude, saying he’d help if he could even without all that.

“Umm…”

Suhyeok rubbed his chin.

“It would be great for us if you helped, senior. However, I wonder if the professor will allow it. By any chance, were you close with the angel professor when you were a student?”

“If I were, the professor would’ve recognized me.”

Arun shook his head, saying he’d only seen the angel professor in passing and that this was the first time he’d faced him in the same place for such a long time. At that, they fell silent. They couldn’t predict how the angel professor would react if they asked to take Arun to the Island of Phantasmal Beasts. He might just be indifferent and say ‘Go ahead,’ or he might despise them for using a loophole. In the worst-case scenario, they might lose the chance to enter the Island of Phantasmal Beasts altogether, so they were hesitant to act. Then, Arun called Pinpin. The giant griffin immediately realized its role, fluttered its wings, and lowered its body so its master could climb on.

Arun hopped onto Pinpin’s back and reached out to the juniors.

“If things are uncertain, it’ll be faster to ask him directly. We’re going to the angel professor’s lab. Want to hop on?”

“……!”

It was a decisive move.

When the juniors hesitated to join in, Arun smiled.

“Don’t worry. If anyone gets penalized, I’ll take the responsibility. I’ll talk to the professor properly so no harm comes to you.”

“…Is that actually possible?”

“Well, I’m a graduate. Students who have graduated from the school can write petitions to complain about school rules or school life. I heard that if a graduate’s petition isn’t processed immediately, it gets reported higher up.”

“Higher up?”

The students from Room 304 blinked at the unfamiliar term. Then, Arun tilted his head back and looked at the ceiling. His gaze landed on the ceiling, but Yohan and the others could sense where Arun was actually looking.

“…The heavens?”

As Suhyeok began to speak, Arun’s smile deepened. The first-years marveled and looked at Arun with renewed wonder. His status as a graduate seemed different from just moments ago.

“A graduate only has one petition they can use, but the professor and the principal have to act a bit more leniently toward a graduate who holds a petition stolen contentthat can reach the heavens. That’s why most students who choose to stay in the Nameless Realm tend to keep their petitions without writing them.”

“Is that so?”

Yohan replied and looked at his friends. Eyes of various colors met as they exchanged glances.

In the early days of enrollment, the first-years who suffered daily from the antics of the Fantasiademia professors constantly had two things on their lips.

What are the ghosts doing? Why aren’t they taking the professors away?

Argh, can’t we report these professors somewhere? Isn’t there a place to send a complaint?

However, the ghosts were too busy avoiding the professors to take them away, and in a dimension where the principal served as the lord managing the Nameless Realm, there was no place to send a complaint.

It was like an environment where all the students’ wishes were bound to be discarded, but that wasn’t the case.

The school’s higher institution was in the heavenly realm, and upon becoming a graduate, one could submit a petition to demand an audit from them, which forced the principal and professors to be considerate of the graduates’ circumstances.

It was a sweet proposition.

‘I will definitely graduate.’

Yohan and his friends gathered in a circle around Yohan’s bed, exchanging glances and making a resolution for graduation.

They had one more reason to graduate.

“Then, we’ll be off. Please look after the shop, Yohan!”

It would’ve been rude to refuse when Arun was stepping up to help. Since all his friends decided to visit the angel professor’s lab with Arun, Yohan remained alone in bed to guard the shop and get some more rest.

Coo coo.

Well, technically, he wasn’t alone. Fantasiademia’s divine beast was protecting Yohan.

Yohan looked at the admirable pigeon. When Mikael, Kylus, and Suhyeok worried about leaving Yohan alone, this divine beast sat on Yohan’s stomach, spread its wings proudly, and claimed it would protect its master. Even if it looked small, a divine beast was still a divine beast. Furthermore, since it was a divine beast with ‘Fantasiademia’ attached to its name, Yohan’s friends could leave with peace of mind.

It was all thanks to the pigeon divine beast.

Why did the principal say such a creature was abominable?

Yohan looked at the good divine beast with endless pride and then yawned. Once the surroundings became quiet, his eyes started to close bit by bit again.

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He wondered how much time had passed since he’d fallen asleep.

Boom!

In the late night, Yohan awoke to a sudden, loud noise.