Maizen casually threw the question, and the senior alchemists in the room began to glare at Alterisha.
They had all reached the unanimous conclusion that she had stolen the paper.
"Ah..."
Alterisha bit her lip tightly.
Yes, she had considered the possibility that Professor Maizen could go this far.
But now that the situation was unfolding, she had no idea what to do or how to handle it. Her mind went blank, and her hands and feet trembled uncontrollably.
eting Maizen's gaze was incredibly cold. All the tornt and violence she had endured from him had beco a traumatic experience that clung to Alterisha like a perfu.
"Wha-what should I do..."
At that mont, her instinct led her to look at Baek Yu-Seol, as if a child searching for its mother.
"When you feel overwheld and can't handle it alone, call out to ."
He said that, convincing her to believe in him. But even with Baek Yu-Seol, could there really be a way to salvage this situation?
She didn't know.
She didn't know, but right now, she wanted to rely on soone... just anyone.
So, she closed her eyes tightly and raised her hand.
The moderator sensed the urgency in Beaurock Stoneforge's eyes and nodded in response.
Hurriedly, the moderator asked, "Yes, what would you like to say?"
"I also... I want to call upon... soone to assist ."
"Assist? May I ask who it is?"
What should she explain? Alterisha had a very valid reason to refer to him in this way.
"He is... the 'co-author' of this paper."
"Huh."
"Oh my."
To claim to be a co-author on a paper she had plagiarized...
Laughter erupted.
Baek Yu-Seol was also taken aback. 'Wait, I'm a co-author...?'
There was never any discussion about that.
Beaurock Stoneforge coolly granted her request.
"Alright! Bring him."
Eventually, Baek Yu-Seol stood up from his seat and stepped onto the platform, causing the alchemists to frown.
"A student?"
"No matter how talented he is..."
"We didn't co here to witness a child's play, what is this about?"
Alterisha trembled under the alchemists' complaints and discontent. Her appearance was pitiable, but Baek Yu-Seol didn't imdiately approach her.
Deliberately taking a roundabout path, he subtly retrieved sothing hidden inside his sleeve and casually brushed it against Maizen's forearm as he passed by.
"... No hard feelings."
Maizen shouted in displeasure, and a ssage simultaneously appeared in his mind.
[The special ability 'Resentnt' of the artifact 'Vengeance Branch' has been activated.]
[Target of Resentnt: Maizen Tyren]
"Good. Very good."
How eagerly he had sought opportunities to inflict resentnt, and finally he achieved his goal.
Then, Baek Yu-Seol approached Alterisha.
"Are you alright?"
"Uh, yeah..."
The gazes of the alchemists still felt sharp. However, when Baek Yu-Seol patted her shoulder, her heart quickly settled down.
Slowly lifting her head, she looked at his face. He remained calm and composed, as if he had anticipated this situation.
Baek Yu-Seol received the microphone.
"Professor Maizen, long ti no see."
Maizen visibly contorted his expression, but soon a smirk appeared. He realized that he could bring down the two people he despised the most in one fell swoop.
"First, Professor, your argunts seed quite plausible."
"... Plausible?"
"Yes. But don't you think there is no decisive evidence?"
"Well, that will be revealed as soon as I publicly present my esteed paper. And I, too, always carry the paper on the Delta Augntation Formula with ."
"Is that so? Well, that works out nicely then," Baek Yu-Seol said with a smirk, revealing his white teeth.
Maizen unintentionally took a step back.
"What's going on..."
It was a smile he had seen countless tis before. And whenever that smile appeared, he had always been defeated by it.
'No, no. Not this ti!'
After glancing briefly at Beaurock Stoneforge, Baek Yu-Seol turned to Maizen and spoke, "Alright. How about we solve it right here, each on our own? The five puzzles that remained unsolved for 300 years."
"Finding out whether our solution matches yours, Professor, or not. It's quite simple, isn't it?"
To solve the problem was the easiest, straightforward, and the most clear-cut thod.
"Well... then we can determine whose answer is correct, right?"
Maizen tightly bit his lips, slightly startled by Baek Yu-Seol's self-assured attitude.
'What's this? Could it be that there's a catch...?'
This was troubleso.
izen tried his best to make excuses and defuse this confrontation.
"Wasting ti with unnecessary tricks-"
"Wait a mont."
However, before his words could co to a conclusion, they were interrupted by Stoneforge.
"A showdown between the professor and the teaching assistant over the interpretation of the paper..."
He pretended to contemplate for a mont, then burst into a hearty laugh, typical of a dwarf.
"It sounds very interesting!"
A clear sign of approval.
Baek Yu-Seol, who had gone that far, turned to Alterisha.
"I, I..."
"Assistant Alterisha. You can do it. I trust you more than anyone else."
'The boy... He's still smiling.'
'Why's that?'
With such a trivial act, confidence sprouted in Alterisha's heart.
Baek Yu-Seol.
Among the students, he was jokingly referred to as the "archenemy of Professor Maizen."
It was because of his outstanding talent that he was always persecuted, yet always ca out on top and gave Maizen a hard ti.
It was satisfying.
It felt refreshing.
Being so much younger than him, Alterisha admired how he boldly confronted Professor Maizen, whom she couldn't dare to treat lightly.
'Can I do it too?'
Taking a deep breath, she filled her lungs with oxygen, as if attempting to gather confidence in her fearful heart.
"The professor and I have undoubtedly conducted different research."
In the world, there were nurous solutions to a single formula. It was the beauty of alchemy.
"In that case, the professor's solution and my solution must be completely different."
She held her head high, unwilling to show a slight weakness in front of Maizen. Then, she took off her glasses and untied the ssy hair band she had always kept.
"Oh..."
Just by removing two accessories, her impression changed in an instant, and Beaurock Stoneforge couldn't help but utter an exclamation of admiration.
"Ha!"
Exhaling deeply, Alterisha revealed her pristine smile, displaying her pearly white teeth.
That was... a smile of a true genius, full of confidence. A smile Professor Maizen Tyren had never seen in her as his assistant.
"Professor Maizen, shall we begin?"
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