After visiting the vault with Doloren. I asked the teller to call for the bank president.
"Um... I'm sorry, sir, but the president of the central bank is a bit different from a branch manager."
I know, I know. He was the president of the central bank, after all. Not just anyone could meet him.
I said to the teller.
"Please tell him that Head of the Doloren school has summoned him."
I pointed to Doloren, who was standing behind me. The teller muttered.
"... She's real?"
The employee's face went pale. He hurriedly left his post and returned a moment later, sweating profusely.
"He'll be here shortly!"
And so, a three-way meeting was arranged. Me, Doloren, and the president of the Imperial central bank. In my past life, was this like summoning the governor of the Bank of Korea?
Scary, Doloren.
The governor, no, the president of the Imperial central bank, repeatedly wiped the sweat trickling down his forehead.
Drip, drip.
The sweat was even more noticeable as it ran down his bald head. The bank president opened his mouth.
"So... you said you're transferring this to your disciple?"
Doloren answered curtly.
"Yes."
The bank president's gaze fell to the floor. At the end of his gaze lay the wreckage of a shattered table, and in its center, the spatial distortion pouch lay scattered about. ... A little while ago, I'd placed the pouch on the table for a moment, and it collapsed, ending up like that.
I guess it's an artifact that can't conceal its weight after all. It felt awkward to start picking it up, so I just left it there. I met the eyes of the Imperial central bank president.
The corner of his eye twitched. It was a sign of panic and fear. A natural reaction.
If I took this money and started speculating on real estate in the capital, the market would crash immediately. It would stabilize in the long run, but in the process, the bank president would be torn to shreds by his superiors. The bank president clenched his fists and said to Doloren.
"Head Doloren... if you gift such a large sum of money so freely, it could affect the Empire's economy."
"So you're telling me not to give it? Can the Empire infringe upon a mage's rights so carelessly?"
"... That's not what I meant."
Drip, drip.
The light from the lamp licked at the bald bank president's beads of sweat. ... This is enough. The bank president looks too pitiful.
I cut into their conversation.
"Mr. President. I have no intention of recklessly releasing these gold coins into the market. I don't have anywhere to spend a large sum of money right now anyway."
"Then...!"
"Instead, I'd like you to agree to a few conditions while this fund remains tied up in the bank."
"Please, tell me anything!"
Given the time period, there probably wasn't anything like a sovereign wealth fund, so I had to go for something with the most similar effect.
"First, please guarantee the highest interest rate in the Empire for this fund, and waive the storage fee for my personal vault for life."
This money seemed perfect to use as the base fund for the 'Upperhills Foundation'. I'd had a steady cash cow coming in, but I lacked the lump sum to be the foundation's bedrock. This was great.
"... Is that all?"
"Yes."
"Thank you, thank you so much, Researcher Upperhills!"
The bank president, almost in tears, grabbed my hand.
"If you ever need help, please contact me anytime."
"... Yes, sir."
Since the central bank president in this world wasn't an elected official, having him indebted to me like this seemed like it would be useful later. Afterward, I signed a contract with the bank president and left the bank.
On the way back to the lab, I glanced to my side and saw Doloren pouting, her lips stuck way out. ... Is it really okay for someone who's a school head to show her thoughts so transparently?
"Is something wrong?"
"No! The mages are the ones keeping this Empire afloat anyway, so why do they stop us from spending our money however we want?"
"Professor Doloren. You allowed them to place restrictions on withdrawing your own money."
"That's different from giving a gift to my disciple!"
I'm truly grateful she's thinking of me... but the direction is a little scary. I said to Doloren, "Lady Doloren, do you know how bread is made?"
"I don't really know about things like that."
"Then what will you do if I spend the money recklessly, disrupting the price of bread and causing a food shortage?"
Doloren stopped for a moment and pondered.
"Do we just chew on raw wheat?"
".... Let's just be a little careful so that doesn't happen."
"Alright. Let's do that."
Fortunately, Doloren listened to me. For a moment, I recalled the conversation I had with Doloren when we first met. -'According to Imperial law, land transactions are limited to the 'surface'. Did you buy the underground development rights as well?'
To be so uninterested in worldly affairs, yet so knowledgeable about the law. She truly is a strange person. When we arrived in front of the lab, a strange man was waiting for us.
As soon as he saw the two of us, his eyes lit up. He was holding a piece of parchment and a pen. Beside me, Doloren chuckled.
"Looks like there are still kids who like me these days. Ha, it's been so long since I've had one of these."
However, the man walked right past Doloren and came up to me. Doloren froze like a stone.
"Sir Isaac Upperhills! I'm a fan. So much so that I followed you all the way to the Magic Tower!"
"... Why on earth would you make a choice like that..."
Doloren muttered dejectedly from behind me.
"I... I even slayed a dragon..."
Doloren wordlessly entered the lab first. I first gave the new student my autograph and asked, ".... If you're such a fan, I assume you applied to our school.
Thank you."
The freshman's eyes shone.
"That's right! Um... it's a shame I was rejected, but I like the school I've been assigned to now."
"I hope that feeling lasts a long time."
I wished for the Magic Tower freshman's happiness. Since he came all the way to the Magic Tower, it'd only be meaningful if he left with at least a master's degree.
"Ah, if you don't mind, could I ask for an explanation of the question you created for the exam this time?"
"It would be a bit much to give you the answer, but I can tell you what materials to look for."
I jotted down a few keywords and a list of reference papers for him.
"Really! Thank you so much, Senior!"
"Don't mention it."
The freshman bowed his head deeply and ran down the opposite end of the hallway. It seemed he was heading straight to the library to find the materials I just wrote down for him. He's still so pure.
It's a good time for him.
"But... why are all my fans guys?"
[School of Ideal Gas Magic] I gazed blankly at the lab next door.
Normally, admission to the Magic Tower is more common in September than in March. This is because undergraduates need about half a year after graduation to recover from the exhaustion of their thesis defenses. However, Daniel took the Magic Tower exam as soon as he graduated.
His original plan was to pursue a career as a combat mage. Most commoner mages go that route. Because even if they go to the Magic Tower, it's difficult for a commoner to rise to a high position.
But from a certain day on, rumors of one person began to linger in his ears. Isaac Upperhills. ... It was tiring to even list his accomplishments now.
This time, he supposedly erased a mountain and is building a foundation for war orphans there... I don't know how far he's planning to go. Naturally, Daniel and his commoner mage friends all became fans of Isaac Upperhills.
"Hey, we're all putting down the same first choice."
"If it weren't for Sir Upperhills, I wouldn't have even thought about going to the Magic Tower."
During a drinking session with his Magic Academy classmates, they all shared the same dream. They firmly believed that they would be able to properly assist Isaac by his side.
And now.
Now Daniel knew. There had been over a thousand people who dreamed of a spot by Isaac's side, and not a single one of them had been accepted. 'Is it actually a relief that we all failed together?'
If even one of them had gotten in, he might have been jealous. A file folder tapped and fell onto the forehead of Daniel, who was staring blankly at the ceiling.
"Snap out of it, newbie."
"Ack... I'm sorry, Senior."
It was Elara, a senior from the same school. Since they were both commoners, they were able to get close quickly. Elara asked him, "What's wrong?
Why are you spacing out like that?"
"... Well."
Daniel couldn't continue. If he said it was because he failed to get into his first choice, it was obvious he would be misunderstood as having no affection for his current school.
"Ahem. So that's what it is. You applied to the School of Magical Surveying too, didn't you?"
"No, sir! I want to bury my bones in our school!"
Pfft. Elara laughed.
"Your acting is so obvious. Hey, it's fine, man. All the other schools are in an uproar right now anyway."
"... Is that so?"
"Yeah. There are a lot of freshmen like you this semester. So..."
Elara swallowed the rest of her words. 'How can I tell him there's a rumor going around that the freshmen who ended up in their second-choice schools are ruining the lab atmosphere...' She couldn't say something like that in front of her already nervous junior.
Instead, Elara told her junior, "Actually, this wasn't my first choice either. But look at me now. I'm living well with a master's degree."
"... Thank you for your words."
"If it bothers you that much, go to Isaac's lab after work and ask him yourself."
In that moment, Daniel saw Elara in a different light. To be on a first-name basis with the hero. Elara continued, "With Isaac's personality, he'll probably be excited to tell you.
Of course, you probably won't understand it."
"Can I... really do that?"
"That's up to you."
As soon as work was over, Daniel left with a smile. And so, after his fantastic meeting with Isaac... Daniel ran toward the library with a heart full of excitement.
He was glad he didn't become a combat mage. The Magic Tower really isn't so bad after all. ... However, the shelf where the materials should have been was empty.
"What, did someone take them?"
The submission deadline for the elliptical orbit problem was long past. Did that mean there was someone who was actually studying this stuff for fun? Daniel was horrified.
Why a musty old problem like planetary orbits? Looking around, he saw a young girl in the corner of the shelves, reading a pile of the very materials he was looking for. Straight posture, an aloof attitude...
He could tell just from her aura. She was a noble.
Ahem.
Daniel cleared his throat and approached the child.
"Little lady, are you by any chance reading all of those materials?"
"Yes," the child answered bluntly.
But to Daniel, it didn't seem like she was reading them properly. The child was turning the pages too quickly. 'She just wanted to look cool.'
His opponent was a noble, but he himself was a semi-noble, so he could take over the materials if he had a valid reason. Daniel decided to test the child.
"By any chance, do you know the orbital period of Mars?"
"The orbital period is 687 days, and the synodic period is 780 days."
Seeing that she could distinguish between the two periods, she wasn't a complete amateur. More importantly, why would she have memorized a constant like that? Even Daniel, who had asked the question, hadn't expected an answer.
The child said to him, "If you're interested in this problem, you should look for older materials besides these."
".. It's just that these aren't the materials my senior told me to look for."
"Senior?"
The child's gaze shifted to the memo in Daniel's hand. The child's eyes sparkled.
"... That's my brother's handwriting, isn't it?"
"Huh? What did you say?"
"Where did you get that?"
The child's attitude changed. Should he say she was much friendlier? ... She also seemed somewhat impatient.
The child repeated, "Tell me."
"Kugh!"
"... Is something wrong?"
"No. It's nothing..."
He had almost buckled at the knees. An immense amount of mana was pulsating, centered on that child. The child seemed completely unaware, but Daniel was already breaking out in a cold sweat.
'Her mana capacity is...!' Overwhelmed by the child's presence, Daniel spilled everything. Isaac's entrance exam, the tragedy of everyone failing, and how he had shamelessly gone to get a hint.
And so, after the whole story was finished, the child said, "So no one could solve it, and no one got in..."
"Yes. That's what happened."
The child grinned.
"Then that means if I just solve it, I'll be accepted into the School of Magical Surveying."
"... Huh?"
That was absurd. The last problem was only given to applicants, and the time limit to solve it had long since passed. She seemed like a smart kid, so why would she make such a mistake... '...
Ah.
I must have left out that part of the explanation.' Just before Daniel could add an explanation, the child's mouth opened.
"I just happened to reach a conclusion."
The child handed the astronomy materials to Daniel and continued, "I'll be going now. Make good use of the materials." The child joyfully skipped off toward the Magic Tower.
She was probably heading for the School of Magical Surveying. Daniel stared blankly at the scene. He wanted to tell her that nothing would change even if she went now... but the words wouldn't come out.
'It's a bit much to say something harsh to a kid smiling so brightly...' Daniel's conscience held him back.