Glan Natural Science Academy

At this point of time, Adva at last understood the whole matter. She glared at Enid and, after seeing her petulant appearance, her temper immediately dissipated, leaving only an expression of love. 

Adva turned her head to look at Kubo next to her and said, “Kubo, all you care about is academic matters and even more academic matters. You’ve never cared about your daughter at all. 

“Uh?”

  Kubo was a bit unsure of what was happening. 

With regards to his meticulous, gentle, beautiful wife, although the age difference between them was large, what Kubo felt towards her wasn’t merely love, but also heartfelt admiration.

Adva grumbled, “Enid grew up being reprimanded by you all the time. If she were a normal child, she would have felt inferior and secluded herself. Thankfully, our girl is a cheerful person and didn’t grow up that way. How can you, as the father, be so selfish? Now, Enid wants a junior brother to relieve the pressure in her heart and you still say those sorts of things? From what I see, this Ryger is quite good. Steady and down-to-heart, he’ll make a good fit as Enid’s junior brother 

With a couple of words, Enid found herself looking at her mother dumbfounded; she didn’t know that she felt such things. 

She Immediately realised it. Her big round eyes immediately teared and she made a sad expression. She jumped in her mother’s embrace and wept while secretly pointing a thumbs up at her mother.

Eh? 

Kubo opened his mouth and looked at Adva.

He was a fiery and stubborn person in the academy. But in front of Adva, it was like he had met his nemesis – he couldn’t really get angry and be stubborn. 

But Adva wasn’t done talking.  “What’s more, since the Academy left you in charge of this batch’s new students, it means that they’re testing you. That vice-chancellor is abdicating soon, and the battle between evolutionary secrets and dissimilative psychism is coming to a critical point now.  Can’t you think about it!”

“Hss!” 

    Upon hearing that the vice president was going to abdicate, the old man quivered. He gritted his teeth and looked at Ryger, making an expression of serious thinking.

Satro was still unsure what was happening. He saw Enid turn her head, pouting and frowning slightly, making a pleading expression. 

Although he didn’t really understand but out of love for her, Satro, after a slight bit of hesitation, timidly said, “Mentor, if you do not have the time, then I can take over and be responsible for teaching junior brother some initiate knowledge. My basic academic knowledge is quite reliable and won’t hold up his studies.”

 

“It’s the only thing that you can teach!”

Although Kubo’s words were blunt and hurtful, Satro didn’t mind and instead smiled coyly, thinking that his mentor was praising him for his firm understanding of the basic knowledge. 

It could be seen that Satro truly respected his mentor from the bottom of his heart. 

The others, seeing that Kubo was relenting, smiled. Enid tilted her head in triumph and said, “Then I will be responsible for teaching him the higher-level academic knowledge!”

“You? Why don’t you learn your’s properly first!” 

Kubo glared at Enid and was also amused by his own quirky and naughty daughter. The atmosphere in the hall eased.

    Immediately afterwards, Kubo’s face regained its serious expression and the hall gradually quieted down. 

Kubo looked at Ryger who was still standing at the entrance of the hall. Ryger did not dare look at Kubo. But as he felt the encouragement from the warm and strong hand on his shoulder and saw Peerless’ look of encouragement, he took a deep breath. Bravely, Ryger raised his head and looked at Kubo straight in the eye.  He would no longer shrink and run. 

Kubo, who wanted to make things difficult for Ryger and make him retreat, saw Ryger’s firm eyes and understood his determination to study. For lack of a better option, Kubo grunted and said, “Sit down first. The food is getting cold!”

  However stupid Ryger could be, he still understood Kubo’s meaning. He quickly sat next to Enid . 

“Heh heh heh.” Laughed Satro, seemingly thinking of the scene of him being accepted as a disciple by Kubo back then. 

Adva glared at Kubo and rebuked him, “That’s enough, look how scared you made him!” 

She then whispered to Ryger, “He was lucky back then to have taken on Peerless as a disciple when he was a class teacher. Now his temper has been spoiled by Peerless. He thinks that everybody can be as good as Peerless.” 

“Back when your second senior brother took his graduation test, he was an outstanding student who got top 30 in the Academy’s honour roll. But he was still complained about by this old brickhead who thought that Satro embarrassed him because he couldn’t dominate the 5 other academies and vie over the greatest glory for the Academy.” 

These words were of course directed at Ryger to console him. 

Ryger felt much better and couldn’t help but smile slightly. He also somewhat understood the dynamic in this family. 

Seeing how his wife is disparaging him in front of his disciples, Kubo was a bit embarrassed. But when he thought of  how excellent his disciple is, his emotions changed to joy and he looked at Peerless. 

But when he looked at Ryger and compared him to Peerless, he immediately regretted what he had just said. 

After thinking about it, Kubo looked at Ryger and said sternly, “Both you and Satro are of commoner background and have no surname. According to the Academy’s inheritance system, both of you can add my surname ‘Kubo’ behind your name. But you must remember that you must not freely reveal your surname outside and embarrass me! Do you understand?”

“Understood,” answered Ryger. 

There was a special etiquette in the master-disciple relationship of the various natural sciences academies, which was to use the mentor’s name as their surname. For example, Ryger, after becoming a Kubo’s disciple, was Ryger Kubo. 

After all, for the academies’ scholars, obtaining an academic rank would be equivalent to receiving a peerage from the principality’s royal institute. Although they won’t be given land, they will have some special privileges. 

“For now, learn the basic initiate knowledge from your second junior brother.  When you become a qualified student, I will arrange lecture classes for you. As for whether you will be able to learn my atavistic cloning, it depends on your future performance.” 

“Tch!” Enid heard the many conditions that her father set up. It was apparent to her that he was still displeased at Ryger. Angrily, she said, “Junior brother, I’ve long known what his atavistic cloning is about. When you’re done studying the basics, I’ll teach you about it. No need to ask him for it. Hmph!” 

“You?” chortled Kubo. 

Peerless said towards Ryger, “Mentor is one of the Academy’s top scholars when it comes to researching the field of evolutionary secrets and had established a research laboratory for atavistic cloning. If it succeeds, it will have far-reaching implications, enough for mentor to get the rank of royal!”

 

Hearing his eldest disciple that he was proud of praise him in such a way, Kubo made a lofty expression and made a ‘heh’ sound 

Peerless continued, “However, junior brother, mentor’s research isn’t merely in the field of evolutionary secrets. He also has significant accomplishments in the field of alchemy!  Just now, mentor only said that his atavistic cloning need to be tested, but nothing about alchemical knowledge!” 

“Ah?” 

Ryger was surprised. He looked at Peerless, then at Kubo.  

“Thank you, mentor!” Said Ryger joyfully. 

Because of the numerous compliments from Peerless and Ryger’s pleading expression, Kubo was slightly smug. “Alchemy is nothing but a sideshow. I learned a little bit of it back when I was young and toured the Finnland Principality. You could say that I’ve some accomplishments in it. If you’re interested, I can teach you some after you’ve learned the basics.”

“Eat! Eat!”

Kubo said nothing more and gorged himself on the food.

They ate the delicacies cooked painstakingly by Adva and had only praises for it. 

Looking at the happy group in the hall, thinking that he would also become one of them in the future, Ryger’s heart warmed. Though this mentor Kubo was stiff and strict, and spoke harshly, he still had his own unique charms. 

Respect the teachers; pass on the torch!

“In the future, I will definitely study hard and through hard work, obtain mentor’s acknowledgement so that he would pass on his academic knowledge to me willingly!” 

Deeply moved, Ryger accepted the caviar offered by Adva, pursed his lips, and secretly made a vow.