I Became an Unknown Professor at the Academy

“Yes~ 100 is out! Now, we’ll increase by 10 each time!”
Kang Hanna, standing on the stage with a microphone and a script in her hands, forced a bright smile and continued the auction.
“110, 120, 130… 200. Now, we’ll increase by 50 each time!”
Kang Hanna inwardly cursed as she saw the students holding up their numbered plates, even as the bids soared to 500,000 won.
‘Spoiled brats…’
She was so envious.
Born with talent and from a wealthy family.
Or, was it the other way around? Did their wealth lead to their talent?
Thinking back, it seemed that the students from the magic department had always been financially well-off since her student days.
“1,000!! Now, we’ll increase by 100 each time!”
Jayden Martel, the blonde middle-aged man sitting on the stage, waving his hand leisurely.
Kang Hanna couldn’t help but feel envious as she watched his price soar like a spaceship breaking through the atmosphere.
‘I didn’t participate in the festival as a teaching assistant because I didn’t want to see this… but now that I’ve become a professor and have a decent income, I’m experiencing the insatiable greed of humans firsthand.’
“3,400!! Any more bids?”
Kang Hanna swallowed her intense envy as she shouted at the students and faculty members gathered below the stage.
“3,400! 3,400! 3,400! Yes~ Student number 109 has bid 3,400 for our pride and face of the Magic Department, Professor Jayden Martel! Professor, say something.”
Kang Hanna handed the microphone to Jayden, who was sitting in a rose chair that she didn’t know where she got it from.
“I’ll do my best to make it a time worth that value.”
“Phew, are you going to hint at the next semester’s exam questions?”
Jayden smiled silently and stood up, and the students below the stage also chuckled in agreement.
“Yes~ Then, I hope you have a wonderful time with student number 109. Oh, and it’s still raining outside, by the way.”
“I think it’s more romantic.”
“Ugh… let’s get down quickly.”
“Haha~”
Kang Hanna pushed Jayden’s back, as written in the script, and sent him down from the stage. Alone again, she pressed the earphone in her ear when the students’ attention was still on Jayden.
“What about Professor Baek?”
-Ah, he hasn’t arrived yet!!
Kang Hanna closed her eyes at the student’s answer, who had been preparing the stage with her.
She had worked hard to build up the atmosphere, but the main attraction of the day might not show up? The mood could turn sour in an instant. The students’ complaints would be enormous, as their displeasure had already been building since the rain started in the early morning.
She had a bad feeling about this since the chairman was so flustered…
‘Aaaah!! You crazy woman!! I should have just gone for a dungeon run instead!!’
Perhaps because her time as a teaching assistant was too rough, she had decided to make some easy money, but now she was facing another bloody situation.
‘Knowing Professor Baek, it’s not even a possibility…’
The upperclassmen might not know, but at least the first-year students who had experienced Baek Woo-jin would not utter a word even if he didn’t show up today. He was never one to care about anyone’s opinions.
‘Instead of wasting time, it might be better to just wrap this up quickly…?’
Kang Hanna, who was trying to quickly wrap up the stage, flinched.
She realized that the chattering voices of the students, who had been paired up, had disappeared.
…Clack.
In the quiet hall, the sound of high heels, common yet uncommon, echoed.
Kang Hanna’s gaze naturally turned towards the source of the sound.
‘Really…’
Eight years ago, when they met in the maze, Baek Woo-jin appeared on stage without any change in his appearance, and Kang Hanna sighed inwardly. He was truly a man with a bad taste for surprises.
“Your entrance is extraordinary!”
“Shut up.”
The deep voice that always made her heart flutter was mixed with a slight annoyance, hitting Kang Hanna’s ears.
“Ha, ha~ Sit here.”
Kang Hanna began the proceedings, trying to remove as much of her playful demeanor as possible, as she instinctively felt that Baek Woo-jin was in a very bad mood.

“Yes~ The professor who will decorate the end of the festival has appeared on stage!! Let’s give him a round of applause!”
Clap, clap, clap!!
The hall echoed with applause and the occasional “Kyaak!” from female students, shaking the entire place.
Kang Hanna couldn’t help but laugh as the floor of the stage vibrated. She grabbed the microphone.
“Yes, yes~!! You’ve been waiting for this moment, and I’m sure the professors who have appeared so far will be disappointed!”
-Ahaha!!
The students and faculty members laughed, and Kang Hanna, unable to read Baek Woo-jin’s expression due to his glasses covering half of his face, continued.
“Since it’s a stage you’ve been waiting for, I won’t drag it out, as that’s not what you want either. Let’s start the auction right away!”
In fact, the script instructed her to ask simple questions and see if the professors had anything to appeal to the students, but Kang Hanna ignored the script for her survival and continued the proceedings.
“Yes~ The starting bid for the last item is also extraordinary. Professor Baek Woo-jin’s starting bid is 200!! We’ll increase by 10 each time. Please raise your numbered plates if you’re interested.”
The stage below was instantly filled with numbered signs.
“Increasing by 50. 550, 600…”
The bidding quickly surpassed 1,000 won.
“Increasing by 100. 1,400…”
It reached 2,000 won and quickly climbed to 3,000 won.
This wasn’t surprising until now. Jayden had also bid 3,400. But what really surprised Kang Hanna was that there were still dozens of signs held up even after the bid exceeded 4,000 won.
‘Ugh…!! You spoiled brats!!’
It was only for an hour at most, maybe three hours at the longest, and they were pouring out such a fortune for that fleeting moment!!
What made Kang Hanna even angrier was that most of the students participating in the bidding were upperclassmen who had never even attended her lectures…!!
“One, one billion!! Now, we’ll increase by 1,000 each time…!!”
Kang Hanna started to feel a strange sense of fear as the price kept rising endlessly.
‘These bastards… they’re completely crazy!!’
The price was still rising.
Kang Hanna continued to call out the updated price and looked at the remaining participants.
‘Najoohee… three upperclassmen, and…’
Piiiii~~!!
Suddenly, a noise that made her squint came from the speaker. It was the sound of the microphone in her hand being crushed.
‘Chairman?!’
Ahn Hyundo, standing in the corner with a benevolent smile, was participating in the bidding.
Kang Hanna quickly turned off the microphone and channeled her magic.
“Ha, ha!! Sorry, there’s a problem with the microphone, so I’ll continue like this!”
She forced a smile, trying to keep her lips from trembling, and continued the auction. Baek Woo-jin’s price had now reached 100 million won.
-Why is the chairman participating?
-Shh!! And faculty members can participate too!!
-Shut up!!
Competitors dropped out one by one, and Na Joo-hee, who finally realized who she was competing against, burned the sign she was holding and gritted her teeth.
“Eh, 100 million!! Any more bids?”
Kang Hanna looked down, hoping this damn auction would end quickly.
“100 million!! 100 million!! 10…”
Swish.
Just before she was about to call the final count, a new sign appeared at the entrance. Kang Hanna was startled and looked at the person holding the sign.
“Puhuh!”
It was Claire, known as Baek Woo-jin’s lover, with her beautiful golden hair flowing like a small sun, and a cold expression on her face.
“1,110 million has been bid…”
Kang Hanna forced down a cough and looked at the chairman.
‘That crazy man…?!’
She saw the chairman holding the sign with a smile on his face, and a thought flashed through her mind.
That the chairman had intentionally participated in the bidding to extort more money from Baek Woo-jin’s lover…
Kang Hanna moistened her dry lips and spoke.
“120 million… 130 million… increasing by 200 million each…”
In just a few dozen seconds, Baek Woo-jin’s price had reached 300 million won.
At this point, Kang Hanna decided to just enjoy the situation. After all, it wasn’t her who would be killed, but the chairman standing right there.
“500 million!! 500 million has been bid!!”
A price that could buy a top-tier artifact was being discussed at a festival created for students to enjoy.
Kang Hanna pretended to be in deep thought, frowning and fiddling with the sign, then turned her gaze to the chairman. She shot him a look, asking him not to give up on this chicken race, and said,
“500 million!! No more bids? Are you really going to give up here?!”
Perhaps her provocation worked.
The chairman, who had been pretending to think, smiled and held up the sign again.
“550 million!! 550 million has been bid!! Well…”
Kang Hanna shouted excitedly and turned her head.
“Huh…?”
It was a very foolish thing to say.
Surprisingly, it wasn’t Kang Hanna, but Chairman Ahn Hyundo, who had just updated Baek Woo-jin’s price, who said this.
“Kang Hanna.”
“Yes?”
Kang Hanna, who had been dazed, snapped out of it at the tickling voice and turned her head.
“Count.”
“Ah… 5, 550 million!”
Kang Hanna realized.
“550 million!!”
The saying, ‘there’s always a bigger fish’ was appropriate for this situation.
“550 million!!”
The chairman successfully won the bid for Baek Woo-jin’s time.
···
Drip, drip.
Chairman Ahn Hyundo stared at the raindrops falling from his umbrella with empty eyes.
“Kheuk…”
“Shut up.”
Baek Woo-jin, standing next to him with an umbrella, briefly scolded the chairman, who was covering his eyes with his thick hand.
“How can someone be so cruel…?!”
“I don’t quite understand what you mean. If someone reluctantly came out at your request, you should be grateful and bow your head.”
“Kkeuung…”
The chairman, who had been messing up his hair, eventually sighed deeply and lowered his head.
“It’s over, so let’s go and take care of business. It’s very unpleasant, but a promise is a promise, so I’ll be there on time, don’t worry.”
“I was already planning to do that.”
In front of the maze, where no one treads.
Baek Woo-jin and Chairman Ahn Hyundo were having a conversation right in front of it.
“By the way, you.”
“What is it?”
Baek Woo-jin, with his umbrella open, turned his head.
“You told that guy, Kim Sung-won, to prepare fireworks because the rain would stop, but instead of stopping, the clouds seem to be getting darker.”
As Ahn Hyundo said, the clouds, which were almost gray until noon, had now turned into a deep dark gray. But surprisingly, the raindrops falling below were still silent drizzle.
“So you were wrong too?”
Ahn Hyundo, who had been gloomy, suddenly raised the corners of his lips in a slightly annoying way. Baek Woo-jin, who had been staring at him for a moment, spoke.
“It will stop.”
Baek Woo-jin turned and left.
Ahn Hyundo, who had been watching him leave, looked up at the sky again.
The night sky was filled with dark clouds.
It seemed impossible for the rain to stop in a short time without the help of the gods above.
But the last words, heavier than any other, lingered in his mind.
‘It will stop… is that so.’
Ahn Hyundo’s gaze remained on the dark night sky for a while.