The Academy’s Ankle Reaper

Amy said not to worry, claiming that Elves treat wounds inflicted by demons better than the church does.

“Ugh..!”

As her hand touched her leg, Amy flinched as if feeling pain again.

When the bandage came loose, the hole in Amy’s leg was revealed.

The gaping wound was covered in something sticky, and around it were densely scrawled magical inscriptions that writhed.

This was supposedly a special technique unique to the professor aimed at regenerating the sealed wound, while the inscriptions around it were said to be an Elven method for extracting magical energy from the wound.

Whether it was effective or not, the flesh that had turned black due to magical damage had now returned to its original state.

Unlike my anxiety, Nico Praha was quite skilled.

Professor Praha examined the wound closely, then poked around with her finger a few times to check for reactions and asked,

“Did you feel any pain when you prodded the wound?”

“It happened at night.”

“… Then that’s a sign it’s healing well. You should be discharged within a week.”

I was surprised at how fast the recovery was.

With that kind of injury, one should be flat on their back for at least a month, yet here I was, being told I’d be out by next week.

After all, this wasn’t just an injury from some random demon; it was from a Great Demon.

Nico spoke so casually, but it was truly impressive.

This made me a bit curious.

From the structure I could see, it looked like she was using the inscriptions drawn on her leg to eliminate the magical energy and then filling the wound with whatever was stuck to her. It appeared distinctly different from typical medications.

“What is this stuff you’ve applied?”

“It’s a blend using Orc bone marrow. Orcs have better regenerative abilities than humans, so I extracted only the parts that enhance regeneration while removing the rest.”

The moment Nico said this nonchalantly, the hospital room went ice-cold.

“Orc bone marrow?”

“Are you referring to the green-skinned monster with a pig-like head?”

“Then it’s the same Orc, right? Is there any other kind?”

Amy looked at the mixture covering her leg with a shocked expression.

The still-soft substance was firmly stuck to Amy’s leg.

“What do I do… My leg… it’s going to be green now…”

“Uh… don’t worry! Even if it is dark green…! It won’t be that different! As long as you can move without any aftereffects, you’ll be fine!”

A flustered River was making up some nonsensical consolation.

He seemed just as confused about what he was saying.

But he wasn’t entirely wrong either.

What’s the big deal if her skin color changes a bit? She took quite a beating from that magical energy; the important thing is she can move around without any complications.

I can treat regular injuries, but those inflicted by magical energy are a whole different story.

“I used a brown Orc from the desert, not a green one from the forest, so there shouldn’t be any sense of alienation regarding the skin color.”

“It’s brown…”

“… Just kidding. It’s merely a catalyst to enhance your natural healing abilities. There’s almost no risk of pigment mixing.”

Saying something like that as a joke showed a lack of tact.

Truly, an Elf who has lived long has a very different emotional perspective than humans.

But somewhere, she looked familiar.

Orc bone… I felt like I had heard that somewhere before, and some memory was about to resurface.

Orc… bone marrow… Academy…

“Elixir of Growth!”

The paper that served as a direct catalyst for my enrollment in the Academy came to mind.

Could that Elf professor be the one who wrote that paper?

I thought they must be studying something about enhancing growth, so I assumed she’d also have been someone experiencing slow growth like me, but she just looked like a tired Elf.

I might as well ask.

“Professor, didn’t you write a paper on growth enhancement using Orc bone marrow?”

“I did write it… but how do you know about that?”

I had my doubts, but it was indeed true.

I had intended to look into it eventually, and now it turned out to be quite close at hand.

Nico Praha was the professor researching the Elixir of Growth, receiving funding from the Titan.

“Professor, there’s something urgent I need to discuss. Can you spare some time?”

———————————————

If I were to think solely with my head, I should suggest that funding for her research be cut.

Her research requires a substantial amount of money.

Even if the head of the family has passed away, causing some instability, the Titan family should be stable enough not to crumble under that level of financial burden, but if they were to reduce that amount, it would’ve helped calm the chaos.

She needed a massive quantity of ‘samples’ and the conditions of the contract stated that the research funds must be used solely for research, among other unspecified categories.

I didn’t know what this ‘other’ meant regarding the funds used.

I assumed it was not serious and considered it labor costs, but it was a very concerning matter.

I still hadn’t given up on growing.

If thinking about my family, it would be best to stop, but since I believed her research could lead to the Elixir of Growth, I thought it might just be worth believing in.

The private lab of Professor Praha, which I followed into, could only be described as having terrible taste, even when looking at it positively.

Samples of various monsters and herbs were stacked everywhere. Some were neatly contained in cases, while others retained their original form.

There were books scattered all around, most of which were borrowed from the library.

Upon closer inspection, I noticed some were nearing ten years overdue.

Indeed, Elves seem to have a very different perspective on time than humans.

This was a classic case of a relentless library villain.

She’s probably cutting down on the time spent renewing her loans to focus on her research.

All so that she can create the Elixir of Growth for me as soon as possible.

If I think of it that way, it’s all forgivable.

“Well, I’ll remember never to lend her anything now that I have the chance.”

But if she ever asks me to borrow something, I’d never consider it.

“Professor, it’s not that…”

“Shh…”

Just as I was about to speak up about how far along the research was, Professor Praha suddenly pressed a finger to my mouth.

Looking at her, she seemed like she’d smell strongly of sweat, but due to the nature of her Elf race, there was a refreshing scent of grass coming from her.

Was she shutting me up because she knew what I was about to say?

“Yeah… You don’t need to say any more. I already know everything.”

Her tone shifted slightly.

She had appeared weary and blunt in the hospital, but now she looked somehow pleased.

I could even say she looked cheerful.

Her expression changed alongside her tone.

Behind those thick glasses, her eyes were smiling.

With a slightly sticky smile on her face, she spoke.

“You… have become interested in Magical Biology?”

I felt like I had been hit on the head with a bat from her completely absurd comment.

So this is what it feels like to be utterly baffled.

Nico Praha continued speaking with such confidence.

“Searching for my thesis… With that kind of passion, I’ll welcome you anytime.

What are your aspirations? Master’s? PhD? Don’t worry. If I become your advisor… you could become the Empire’s top Magical Biologist…!!”

“Absolutely not.”

I shoved her shoulders away.

There was no way I was going through some ridiculous doctoral course.

Let alone an Elf who has a completely different concept of time as my advisor?

I might as well strap on a leash and live as a slave.

Should I ask for some guarantees while I’m at it?

“… Yeah, who would even pursue such an unpopular field? If it’s not something like that, then what is it?”

When I stated that I wasn’t planning to become an undergraduate student, Professor Praha’s mood dropped drastically.

She returned to the demeanor I saw in the hospital.

“Wait a minute… Your name is Atlas… Atlas… Right, I remember having seen your duel before. If it’s related to that, then forget it. That caused me a lot of trouble.”

“Trouble, you say?”

“Yeah, Buckingham kept whining about whether we should declare that duel invalid.”

I thought the duel had wrapped up when the newspaper club was smashed, but Professor Buckingham, who had ended up in the hospital, apparently caused quite a fuss afterward.

It was only natural for him to harbor resentment towards me.

Though it wasn’t my business how those who got smacked deserved it ended up in the infirmary.

“You should be grateful to me. If it weren’t for me, Buckingham would have barred you from entry because I couldn’t endure it, and that duel would have definitely been declared invalid.”

“So that was the case… Thank you for your help.”

“It wasn’t really to help you… it just turned out that way…”

As she seemed a little excited about showcasing her own merits, I expressed gratitude, only to see her mood plummet again.

Is she the type who gets shy about receiving compliments?

“Professor, you seem busy, so let’s cut to the chase.”

I pulled out a ring that I never carry with me and showed it to Professor Praha.

The chunky ring made from a raw stone was inscribed with a crest representing the largest mountain range in the Empire, Blade Mountain.

“What is this ring…?”

Suddenly shoving the ring in her face, Professor Praha froze.

While she probably had seen men presenting rings throughout her life, it seemed she had rarely encountered one showing a ring.

How long has she even been holed up in this lab?

It would be normal for her to have seen many men displaying rings in this world.

In the Empire, rings are most commonly used as jewelry to engrave the family crest.

This ring was given to me on my tenth birthday… in other words, the ring of the Titan family.

I noticed her pupils slightly tremble as she carefully scrutinized the emblem engraved on the ring.

Her gaze was fixed on the ring’s crest.

“Where have I seen this before?”

“Uh…”

She couldn’t possibly not recognize the Titan crest.

The letters she has received from the Titan would all be sealed with this emblem.

“Is this from a sponsor…?”

With a trembling voice, Professor Praha stole a glance at me.

“Yeah. How about we take a look at the progress of your research?”