Magic Academy's Bastard Instructor

Chapter 88: Irregular [3]

Chapter 88: Irregular [3]

A new thesis submission had just arrived, and one of the scholars, Tristan, began reading it. It had been a while since they'd received a new submission.

"...."

As he read, his expression changed several times. When he finally finished, his eyes went wide.

"This… is this real?"

"What's wrong, Elder Tristan?" another scholar asked.

"Just read the first page and you'll see."

Tristan handed the paper over. The other scholar read the first page, then kept going until the end. When he finished, he turned to Tristan, equally stunned.

"I see what you mean. If the rest of the contents are similar, we need to do a cross verification."

"Exactly." Tristan nodded.

A cross verification meant they had to summon the author to verify that the thesis was truly their work.

"Who's the author? I don't see a name anywhere."

"It's on the last page," Tristan said.

The scholar flipped to the final page and read it carefully.

"Vanitas Astrea?"

"....Yes."

The name wasn't entirely unfamiliar. 

Vanitas Astrea had submitted a thesis two years ago, but it wasn't anything groundbreaking. It was published mainly because it explored a single new idea.

This new submission, however, was filled with concepts that could shake the entire academic world.

For someone with barely any credentials in the Scholars Institute, a thorough verification was essential to ensure the work's integrity.

"I'll go meet him myself."

***

"Call."

"I fold."

The chips clinked as one of the men pushed his stack into the center. Irene sat across the table, her fingers lightly tapping her cards.

"Your move, miss," one of the men said.

Without a word, Irene slid a neat stack of chips forward. 

"Raise."

"...."

The man hesitated. His hand hovered over his cards before finally tossing them down. 

"Fold."

The others at the table exchanged glances. One of the remaining players chuckled nervously, pushing his chips forward.