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Volume 5 Chapter 7.1

Translator: Reflet
Editor: Weasalopes

「……Didja just say lecture？」

「Yes.」

　Three days after deciding to ask Hiroshi to give a special lecture. The academy had finally calmed itself down, and the headmaster had come to see Hiroshi in the morning to directly ask this of him. He had made the appointment prior to this via Makoto. 

「This is a sudden and difficult request, so I fully understand if it displeases you. You have every right to refuse……」

「Nah nah, I ain’t displeased or nothin’. Relax mate.」

　The headmaster hurriedly elaborated when he saw Hiroshi’s momentary silence and exasperated expression. Hiroshi’s exasperation changed to a wry smile when he heard this, and he stopped the headmaster from trying to politely bow.

「When I was listenin’ to yer story, I just thought to myself “Wow, they’re really tryna get rid of us now…”. There ain’t no problem with takin’ on yer request. Plus I already thought that bunch would be on the move sooner or later.」

「Is…that right.」

「I mean, it sounds like Lime is causin’ a ruckus, so there’s no way they’d sit still, right？」

　The headmaster could only manage a nod at Hiroshi’s explanation and grimace. He inwardly felt strong embarrassment at making Hiroshi tag along to do so many things for their sake.

「So, well, I’m cool with givin’ the lecture ‘n all, but not anythin’ like today or tomorrow.」

「Of course. We don’t want you to rush like that either.」

「Also, so that we’re prepared, we still need ya to decide on a field ‘n subject, otherwise we won’t be able to decide on the material.」

「Very true. It would indeed be irresponsible of us to entrust you with all that. Still, we don’t currently know which fields you can lecture in, so could you initially tell us which fields are doable？」

「When it comes to alchemy, potion-makin’, or enchantment magic, I could instruct on how to make Class 1 potions and the level to accomplish that. For Magic Fundamentals or Math, Biology, meh, I guess I could prolly lecture at Intermediate level or somethin’ like that. Bro could prolly lecture a lot more heavily on Magic Fundamentals.」

「I see……」

　The headmaster was doing all he could to feign composure at this answer that went above and beyond expectations. And he knew that Hiroshi wasn’t lying. By this point, he could just tell.

　Judging by the depths of Lime’s comprehension and knowledge, there was no doubt that Hiroshi’s ability as an instructor was more than adequate. But in that case, was there even a point to Lime enrolling at Rufeus Academy？

　Unable to erase that question from his head, the headmaster couldn’t help but feel inwardly overwhelmed.

「Well, when I say that, it’s primarily just for instruction, ‘n even people who can pull ‘emselves up enough to handle makin’ Class 4 potions would take around five to ten years to reach that point.」

「Well yes, that’s only to be expected.」

「So yeah, I’ll be refusin’ that level if it’s what yer expectin’.」

「No, no, we would be on the same page as you with something that impossible.」

「Now, instead of instruction, if all we had to do was prove that Azuma Workshop can do this ‘n that, one lecture of 90 minutes would be enough, but there ain’t exactly much point to that, eh？」

「Right.」

　Seemingly understanding what the headmaster wanted, Hiroshi narrowed down the details bit by bit as he made various suggestions. Listening to Hiroshi’s suggestions, the headmaster solidified the rough outline of the lecture.

「Right. Asking you to instruct us in everything would be selfish, but then again, ending it as a simple performance would water down the intended effect. Might I be so bold as to ask if you can give an advanced lecture that could help shape research from here on out？」

「Well, if ya let me give four ninety minute lectures over the course of around 3 days or so, then I could make an intensive course. However, high class alchemy ‘n high class potionmakin’ generally can’t be taught as standalone classes, so either way we’ll need to bring out one more topic ‘n make use of enchantment magic. The enchantment magic could potentially be its own lecture, but then the potionmakin’ ‘n alchemy would get a bit thinner with their content ‘n I’d delve into things a bit too much, so I was thinkin’ that might not be such a good idea.」

「I see. In that case…yes. This isn’t fully decided yet, but I’d like you to focus on alchemy, which appears to have a wide range of applications. Would that be alright？」

「Aight. I’ll keep that in mind as I prepare.」

　The headmaster was relieved that they had been able to determine the general content of the lecture. Seeing this, Hiroshi took a memo and went into the next category.

「So we got the lecture part down, but I’d also like to ask that ya keep the number of people in the room down to a minimum. I especially have difficulty with women……」

「Should I take that to mean you cannot teach women？」

「Nah, ya know that ain’t it chief. Practically all my pupils are female. I said this simply because I don’t feel I can deal with a large amount of women due to my gynophobia.」

「Uh, uh-huh……」

「If yer puttin’ in women, keep it at a minimum of five. I also wanna avoid anyone who hurls abusive language or has a difficult personality. The overall number of people, I’d like ya to keep at around 20. Can ya do that for me？」

「All right, I shall mention it in the invitation requirements.」

　Greatly perplexed by this new detail that could lead to a conflict of interests, the headmaster could not simply brush this aside, as he was the one asking in the first place. There was also nothing he could use for leverage with Hiroshi’s weakness, so this wasn’t the happiest scenario.

「Also, about the date……」

「Right. Considering the invitees and the type of venue, three days from now is too short notice. That being said, in light of everyone’s circumstances, two or three weeks from now would also be difficult. Therefore, I’m thinking of setting this for a week from now. What do you think？」

「Well, I’m thinkin’ that’s aight for us too. But is it fine with y’all？」

「There aren’t too many people to invite, and given the content of your lecture, the intended audience will be limited automatically to those who have already been studying advanced alchemy and potionmaking, so I doubt it’ll be much of an issue.」

「Kay, then that’s what we go with.」

　The content of the lecture planned out, the headmaster breathed a deep sigh of relief. While dissatisfied with the amount of people, it should still be plenty to change the institute’s way of thinking.

「Anyhow, imma get started on the material, so once the attendees are decided can I hand ya the documents beforehand？」

「Yes, understood.」

　The headmaster nodded comfortably at Hiroshi’s question. The prep documents that would be handed out before the lecture would already have a gigantic impact on the current research field, and there would be much noise amongst the circle of instructors, but none of this would be of concern to Hiroshi.