I Became an Unknown Professor at the Academy

As the woman was watching the screen broadcasting the opening ceremony, she heard the sound of the door opening. She stood up from the sofa without turning around and sat down at the empty desk.

“Your Majesty.”

A middle-aged man in a brown coat entered the room. It was Eddie Holt, who had previously excused himself from Baek Woo-jin’s presence due to being busy. He bowed to his master, his every movement exuding elegance.

“How was it?” the woman asked.

Queen Eleanor remained focused on the screen, which was still broadcasting the opening ceremony.

“He was beyond my level of comprehension,” Eddie replied.

“Is that so?” Eleanor responded nonchalantly, as if she had expected such an answer.

On the screen, the narrator continued, “Arena Academy, one of Korea’s representatives, is now entering the arena.”

“It seems that the famous Executioner is serving as an associate professor there, even though she wasn’t listed on the submitted roster,” the commentator added.

“Yes, that’s right. Just a few months ago, the news caused quite a stir.”

“It’s no surprise. After all, it’s the news of the Executioner, who suddenly halted her official activities and went into seclusion eight years ago. And now, she’s serving as an associate professor, not even as a head professor!”

“Ah, as I speak, the students are being followed by the professors.”

“Except for Professor Jayden, the other two professors are completely unknown.”

“Moreover, Professor Baek Woo-jin has taken on the role of chief, surpassing Professors Jayden and Lee Hyuk.”

“Not only that, but there’s also a first-year student who proudly claimed the king’s position by defeating Yoon Iseul, who was considered a strong contender for this year’s championship after showcasing overwhelming skills at the previous festival.”

“It’s a place with many expectations.”

“Indeed. Ah, now it’s the turn of the Hwarang…”

As the focus shifted to Arena Academy, Eleanor’s gaze finally turned to Eddie Holt.

“You mentioned that he will be facing Ben Stiller at the friendship party, right?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Eleanor closed her eyes and rested her chin on her hand. “A High-Ranker in the 20s lost consciousness from a single slap…”

After a while, she spoke again. “I couldn’t sense any flow of magic, nor did I see any artifacts that could have caused it… Yet, Ben Stiller was completely immobilized.”

Eleanor’s long eyelashes slowly lifted. “We won’t change the venue.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Go now. You still have a lot to do.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. But, Your Majesty…”

Eddie Holt stood up and asked his master, who was heading towards the dressing room.

“It’s fine for you to attend the party, but please maintain your dignity.”

“I know what I’m doing.”

Eddie sighed softly as he watched the door of the dressing room close behind his master.

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“Take a short break, change your clothes, and gather back here by 7 o’clock. Got it?”

“Yes, sir!”

“Good. Dismissed!”

After the brief but impactful opening ceremony, the students returned to the hotel and quickly made their way to the elevators.

The elevator doors opened first for the one assigned exclusively to the top floor, and Baek Hana stepped inside.

The other students from different affiliations glanced furtively at Baek Hana and the three others.

The elevator doors closed, and an awkward silence filled the space. Finally, the doors opened again, and Baek Hana led the way out, followed by Yoon Iseul, Nam Seo-hee, and Na Joo-hee. The other students cautiously exited the elevator and headed to their assigned rooms.

“Wow, Professor Baek is an incredible powerhouse,” Yoon Iseul remarked as they entered their room and changed into more comfortable shoes.

Nam Seo-hee remained silent, while Na Joo-hee seemed lost in thought.

“Hehe, yes! Professor Baek Woo-jin is so strong!” Baek Hana, who had been quiet until now, giggled as if she had received a compliment herself.

Yoon Iseul thought to herself that from now on, whenever the topic of Professor Baek Woo-jin came up, she would only speak positively about him.

“We have about three hours of free time. Do you want to explore the hotel?” she asked.

“Sure!” Baek Hana replied with a bright smile, a stark contrast to her previous silence.

“I’ll just change my clothes and be right back.”

“Actually, it might be better to change later, in case our clothes get dirty.”

“It’s fine,” Baek Hana said, not even turning around as she entered her room.

“Hana?”

“Yes?”

Yoon Iseul looked at Baek Hana, who had just changed her clothes, and spoke seriously.

“Let’s go shopping right now.”

“Why? Is there something wrong with my clothes?”

“No, no. It suits you. Yes, it does…”

Baek Hana was wearing a tight white shirt that hugged her curves, a black vest, and tailored pants that made her already long legs appear even longer.

‘I want to dress her up more.’

Baek Hana looked so stylish that even other girls would be envious.

“You look great, Hana.”

“Maria picked out these clothes for me.”

“So, Maria chose all your casual clothes?”

“How did you know?”

Nam Seo-hee fastened a tie around Baek Hana’s neck, her big eyes sparkling.

“But what if they get dirty, like your senior said?”

“It’s fine. These are clothes that can get dirty.”

“That’s good then.”

Nam Seo-hee stepped back and naturally held Baek Hana’s hand.

“Let’s start from the basement.”

“Uh, okay… But what about the senior?”

Yoon Iseul had suddenly gone quiet.

“She’ll take care of herself.”

Nam Seo-hee led Baek Hana out of the room before Yoon Iseul could snap out of her daze.

It wasn’t until Baek Hana and Nam Seo-hee returned that Yoon Iseul was able to break free from her daydream.

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“This is a friendship party, so don’t go looking for trouble. Just have fun, got it?”

“Yes, sir!”

“You guys are good at following orders.”

Kang Hanna smirked, and the students laughed along with her.

“If you do get into a fight, don’t hold back. Beat them up. Don’t ever lose, understand?”

The students burst into laughter again.

But Kang Hanna wiped the smile off her face and said, “I’m not joking, guys. If any of you get into a fight and lose, you’ll be receiving special training until the start of the new semester.”

The students swallowed nervously.

The laughter subsided, and tension filled the air.

“Have fun, but don’t let them look down on you. Anyway, you probably won’t be able to communicate much with them.”

Kang Hanna continued sharing stories from her student days until the bus arrived at the Royal Academy.

“You guys can roam around freely, but gather back here after the party.”

“If you encounter any problems, you can contact me.”

Chun Ji-ho, dressed in a neat suit, stood up.

“Let’s get off here.”

Currently, only he and Kang Hanna were on the bus.

-Why does the Academy even have a party hall?

-It’s run by royalty, remember?

-What a waste of money.

-They should have distributed healing potions instead.

As the students got off the bus, they were amazed by the size of the party hall, which was even larger than their usual sparring hall.

“We’re from Arena Academy.”

“Yes, we’ve confirmed your identity.”

A man guarding the entrance handed out bracelets to each of them.

“Without this bracelet, you won’t be allowed to enter the party hall, so please be careful.”

The massive marble doors opened with a deep rumble.

“Wow…”

Baek Hana, who was standing right behind the two professors, couldn’t help but exclaim in awe at the dazzling interior.

“Hana, don’t let dust get into your mouth.”

“Ah, no, I won’t…”

Finally, the party hall doors swung open.

“Now, go and have fun. Off you go!”

Kang Hanna, who was at the front, waved her hand and entered the party hall with Chun Ji-ho.

“Should we go too?”

“Yes, let’s go.”

Baek Hana and Yoon Iseul led the way, followed by the other students.

‘They don’t seem like they’ll start any trouble.’

Yoon Iseul smiled as she observed the students from the other academies whispering among themselves while keeping an eye on her group.

“Hana, there’s a chocolate fountain over there.”

“Chocolate fountain…?”

Baek Hana, who had been admiring the party hall with its medieval-style ballroom, couldn’t help but salivate at the sight of the massive chocolate fountain.

‘Keep the guys away.’

‘Don’t let anyone get close.’

‘There’s someone in front… It’s a girl.’

‘Girls are fine.’

The students who were following Baek Hana quickly scanned the area around the chocolate fountain and naturally surrounded it.

Yoon Iseul found their actions reasonable, while Nam Seo-hee allowed it because she didn’t want any pesky flies to bother them.

Only Baek Hana, who was completely captivated by the chocolate fountain, was unaware of this.

“Hana, you can’t jump into the fountain, okay?”

“Ah, no, I won’t…”

Baek Hana, who had been considering dipping her face into the fountain, flinched and avoided Yoon Iseul’s gaze.

“Hello.”

“…”

A woman with light blonde hair that reached her waist and slightly drooping eyes approached them with a smile.

“Are you from Arena Academy?”

“Who are you?”

Yoon Iseul stepped in front of Baek Hana and asked.

“I’m from the Royal Academy.”

“I see.”

“I had some questions about the professor I saw earlier today.”

“…”

Baek Hana gave the woman a slightly suspicious look and asked, “What do you want to know?”

“I witnessed his skills earlier today, and they were indeed impressive.”

“Ahem… So?”

“I wanted to know if his character is as good as his skills.”

Character?

Yoon Iseul wanted to ask why that was important, but she knew that interrupting would be disrespectful to Baek Hana, so she stepped aside.

As expected, Baek Hana replied, “He’s a bit blunt, but he’s a very kind person.”

“I see.”

The woman, who had initially appeared cold, softened her expression and muttered, “He’s skilled, has a good character… And his face… Well, I can imagine…”

“…”

Baek Hana tilted her head, puzzled.