I’m Not Becoming a Graduate Student! – Chapter 37

“I’ll do it properly… right? Then, I’m definitely not going to do it.”

Sion scrambled out of the training hall.

He hid among the crowd, glancing around at the Judo Club’s promotional booth.

Was that a shout of ‘Where did you go!!’ that I heard, or is it just my imagination?

…No, it’s definitely not my imagination.

“They’re looking for me?!”

Dressed in a judogi, Misako was scanning the crowd with hawk-like eyes.

She was twisting her head back and forth, searching for Sion among the throngs.

The madness contained within her bright red eyes was frightening.

Yet despite it all, Sion had absolutely no intention of rematching her.

“I got lucky. I won because she was completely off guard.”

Sion’s victory was solely due to Misako’s carelessness.

She had lunged at him with a technique right away.

The instant the technique locked onto him, Sion used a skill, countering her move like flowing water.

Winning with a counter skill, and now she wanted a rematch?

Could he defeat Misako if she wasn’t caught off guard?

Of course, he couldn’t. There was no reason to fight in the first place.

Sion had already gotten what he wanted.

“That silver coin is all mine…”

Next to the training hall sat a transparent container.

The shiny silver coins inside were incredibly tempting.

It was the ‘victory’ prize for the event that Misako had boasted about.

– If you can win against me in a 2-minute match… you get the silver coin as an event entry fee. All the money collected here goes to you.

The event entry fee was one silver coin.

Collecting and stacking those coins, Sion had become the new owner of the container.

So, after the promotional event was over, if he slowly collected his money…

“…!”

From a distance, his eyes met Misako’s.

She stared intently, as if she had spotted her prey.

Those red eyes were quite intimidating.

Immediately, Sion spun around.

“Stop right there!!”

The high-pitched shout sounded far off.

He dashed through the crowd.

Escaping wasn’t going to be easy.

“Excuse me, I need to get through…!”

“Oh my!”

“Don’t push me…”

“Ah! Who’s that!”

The event attracted not only new students but also academy students visiting the promotional booths, and even outsiders.

With the crowd pressing in, Sion’s escape was anything but simple.

In the midst of all this, the distance between him and Misako was rapidly shrinking.

“Using magic here is… dangerous. What should I do?”

There were too many people, making it impossible to use magic.

If someone got hurt, it would be Sion’s responsibility.

Stuck in such a dilemma, he contemplated ducking into a promotional booth, when suddenly—

– Is it a difficult situation?

“…!”

A beguiling female voice seemed to resonate directly in his mind.

Startled, Sion looked around.

The people nearby paid him no mind at all.

Who was speaking?

– If you’re in trouble, I could help. Do you want it?

The voice continued.

He had no idea who or where it was coming from.

But… if someone really was extending a helping hand…

“Ple, please help me…”

Sion nodded earnestly. Meanwhile, Misako was steadily making her way closer, her expression now clearly visible.

She looked like she could tear him apart at any moment.

– Very well.

Whoosh!

Before Sion could finish his sentence, his shadow began to slither unexpectedly.

Just as Misako’s hand reached out for him—

– The deal has been accepted.

“Uh…?”

“Gotcha, boy! …Boy?”

Sion was engulfed by dark shadows and vanished without a trace.

*

“Where am I…?”

Sion opened his eyes in the dark.

Just a moment ago, it had felt like the bright sun was shining down on him.

Now, everything around him was pitch black.

To be precise, there was only a sliver of light entering the dark, which was illuminating the walls.

‘…A curtain?’

The light was coming from sunlight streaming through a window.

Looking outside, he saw that the club promotion event was in full swing.

This meant he was in an academy building, but… where exactly?

As he attempted to pull back the curtain for a better view:

“Wait, stop that!”

“…Huh?”

Just as he pulled it halfway, a sharp voice rang out.

It was a familiar voice.

Of course, it was…

The one who had been whispering in his ear just moments before.

Swoosh!

Sion yanked the curtain open entirely.

Only then did he see which building he was in.

‘…Is this the club room? Or a storage room…?’

He found himself in a cramped little room, no bigger than a small studio.

From what he remembered, the promotional booth was set up outside the dedicated club building…

So it was highly likely this was the club room.

The only problem was, it was far too small for a club room.

“Didn’t I tell you not to open the curtain?!”

“…W-who are you?!”

“Hurry, close the curtain!”

It was a woman.

From her attire, she was definitely not a student.

She could be a student in casual clothes, but her outfit was rather peculiar.

‘…Gyaru fashion?’

With gray hair and clothes, a prominent black ribbon, garter belt stockings, and oversized boots that might as well be called ugly shoes.

She looked like a gyaru character straight out of a past life in Japan.

‘Who on earth is she? Was there someone like this at the academy?’

It was the first time he had seen her in person, but one thing was certain—

The woman before him was wearing fashion he had often seen in creative works.

“Hurry and close the curtain!”

“Y-yeah, okay…”

Swoosh.

Following her command, he half-closed the curtain.

If he closed it all the way, he wouldn’t be able to see anything at all.

She seemed indifferent about it, though.

“Ahem, ahem! Let’s get started then.”

“Huh? Start what?”

“3… 2… 1… Now!”

Fwoosh!

Immediately following the abrupt countdown,

Suddenly, a dark blue will-o’-the-wisp appeared in the air.

An application of 1st-circle magic ‘Fire.’

In front of the eerie light, she sat crossed-legged on a chair.

With a seductive smile, she gazed at Sion.

Her lips slowly moved.

“Hehe, nice to meet you. My name is Granshar von Herzorne III…”

“…”

“I am a professor of the Magic Department at Byzantium Academy and here… the guiding professor of the Black Magic Club!!”

With a brilliant flare, the dark blue will-o’-the-wisp brightened the surroundings.

The mystical atmosphere and her outrageous gyaru outfit matched perfectly.

If Sion had been an unsuspecting freshman at the academy, he might have gazed upon her in awe.

“…I see.”

“W-what’s with that stiff reaction?!”

“Huh? Why do you say that?”

“Shouldn’t you be a bit more… ‘Wow, black magic, that’s amazing!’ or ‘Professor…! You’re so young and pretty, it’s incredible!’ What kind of reaction is that?!”

“…??”

Granshar, pointing her finger and speaking passionately, displayed no shame on her face.

Instead, Sion found it quite impressive.

‘Is she really a professor at the academy…?’

Universities in his past life had various eccentric professors, but he’d never encountered one like this in his lifetime, which threw him for a loop.

In Sion’s accumulation of big-data experience…

There had never been a professor who dressed in gyaru fashion, said she was pretty, and delivered monstrous lines.

“Is this really a club room, then?”

“Y-yes! This is the humble Black Magic Club’s room…”

“If you’re a club, where are the members?”

“…We’re actively recruiting!”

Well, ‘actively recruiting’ sounds good.

On the flip side, however, it also implied there were no actual recruits.

With each of Sion’s questions, the expression on Granshar’s face grew increasingly distressed.

“Is it formally recognized as a club by the academy?”

“That’s… when we gather members, we plan to apply…”

“So, this isn’t actually a club room, or you’ve rented out an empty club room, or maybe this is a storage space you rented out. Am I correct?”

“Ugh….”

Granshar shrank back at his accusations.

Sion decided to press on.

“And if you’re a professor from the Magic Department, you should be lecturing black magic, why bother with a club…?”

“…!!!”

Indeed, if she were truly a professor of the Magic Department, she should be lecturing on black magic.

Instead of creating a club for recruiting members.

Not knowing how to respond, Granshar just moved her lips helplessly until she finally—

“Uwaah—!!”

“…Huh?”

“That’s so mean, sob, that’s so mean!!!”

She wailed.

Crying like a child.

The sincere tears of Granshar von Herzorne III, a professor at the academy’s Magic Department, left Sion flabbergasted.

‘…What should I do in a situation like this…?’

Even after living a long time as a graduate student,

It was his first experience to witness a university professor crying right before him.

At a loss, Granshar, still sniffling, managed to say:

“Do you think I want to cry like this? Huh…”

“Then why…”

“The Black Magic Department has been disbanded!!! Waaaah!!”

“Ah…”

A major department he had taught in was gone.

It was a common occurrence even in universities from his previous life.

Due to declining birth rates leading to fewer students, non-popular programs being shut down, or cancelling programs that didn’t generate income…

The Black Magic Department was likely the second case.

First off, the name of the department itself was something no one wanted to associate with.

‘…What do I do now?’

It wasn’t appropriate to just ignore the sobs of a full-grown woman right in front of him.

Still, joining a club with a name like ‘Black Magic’ was hardly a good idea either.

What should he do, stuck in this dilemma.

Suddenly, Granshar clasped Sion’s wrist tightly.

With tears glistening in her eyes, she looked up at him.

Her index finger trembled pitifully.

“Can… can you please… teach me just once?”

“……”

“Just once… okay? Huh… Black magic is really fun! It’s not dangerous… well, it’s somewhat dangerous, but I promise I’ll only show you the safe stuff and teach you, so please…”

Just once.

Granshar pleaded with those innocent eyes while gripping his wrist.

Sion couldn’t resist the pitiable look and eventually covered his eyes with his hands.

“…Alright.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll just listen to what black magic is about…”

“R-really?!”

“I’ll only listen.”

“Yay! Of course! Hehe, yay!”

She beamed at him, still on the verge of tears.