Overpowered Archmage Doesn’t Hide His Talent

Chapter 244: The New Dean

August 10th.

The Magic Department won the match, and Flan officially became a hero.

Unlike the heroes who were former knights and had nicknames like ‘Sword Saint’, there wasn’t a specific nickname for heroes who were former magicians. Flan decided to designate his as ‘Märchen’.

November 15th.

Louis, Maiev, Becky, Trixie… the early promotion and early graduation of the Magic Department members were being considered.

They had become monumental figures unprecedented in the Magic Department, and Dean Conette expressed her support for their new paths.

Two years later, January 7th.

Maiev and Trixie decided to graduate.

Maiev didn’t specifically mention what she was preparing for, and Trixie was now officially the head of the Fritz family, so she was busy with family matters.

Louis, perhaps because of his handsome appearance, was still very popular. He seemed to be the most popular after Flan.

Two years later, March 9th.

“Ahem.”

Becky closed the trivia book.

After Flan became a hero, she recorded their daily lives without missing a single day. Now, looking back on it, she felt both touched and embarrassed.

“March 9th… March 9th…”

Becky muttered the same words a couple of times.

Today was March 9th, 6 a.m., and Becky was meticulously examining the trivia book in a guest room of the Mage Tower.

Today was a very important day, so she couldn’t afford to oversleep. In fact, she couldn’t sleep at all and had to stay up all night.

“Phew… I hope I didn’t miss anything.”

Becky floated several sheets of paper in the air and carefully reviewed them. This was actually Flan’s habit, but it had somehow become her own.

[Graduate Student Support Pledge]

“I’m not sure if my choice is right.”

It’s amazing. When she first enrolled, she attended the academy out of a sense of duty, eager to graduate as soon as possible.

…Now, here she was reviewing documents like these. The saying that adults were never wrong, that one should just live long enough to see things for oneself, really held true.

As she was going through various things, the alarm rang, indicating that it was the appointed time. Becky widened her eyes and jumped out of her chair.

“It’s already 9 o’clock?!”

It was time to go.

◈

10 a.m.

Having hurriedly prepared within an hour, Becky started walking around the academy. In the past, no matter what she wore, she looked like an underclassman, but now she seemed quite seasoned, even in her academy uniform.

There were still many magicians who recognized her today.

“Wow! It’s Becky!”

“Please show us some ice magic later! No, teach us!”

Becky just smiled and nodded a few times. This was a sight she couldn’t have imagined two years ago.

The academy was bustling.

It was surprising how much the population of magicians had grown compared to before, but what amazed Becky more was the change in buildings.

The buildings had grown immensely since she first enrolled, with sleek exteriors and many new structures and expanded facilities.

Taking a deep breath, Becky headed towards the dean’s office building.

Despite the other buildings becoming more glamorous and sophisticated, the dean’s office retained its nostalgic appearance. Becky slowly walked inside.

[Waiting Room]

Becky confidently entered the room labeled as such.

Inside, quite a few magicians were sitting with their hands on their knees in an upright posture. Their faces clearly showed signs of tension.

“Becky?”

In the midst of this, someone spoke to Becky.

“Oh, hi.”

Although she greeted back, she didn’t actually remember who it was. Recently, more and more people seemed to know her.

“Becky, are you here as an overseer?”

“No, I’m here for an interview.”

“What?”

The face of the female student who had excitedly spoken to Becky turned slightly pale. After a moment, she continued, looking slightly deflated.

“Ah… Just thinking about competing with you, Becky, makes it hard to breathe. If I had known beforehand, I would have prepared something else. What a complete waste of time.”

“Aren’t you overestimating me?”

“Overestimating? You’re the one who brought the Magic Department into its golden age! Ha, I’m done for.”

The female student pointed around with her chin, indicating she wasn’t exaggerating at all. Indeed, the faces of the other interview applicants had also grown quite pale.

Then, there was a moment of silence.

No one else spoke to Becky. Instead, the interview applicants, seemingly already acquainted, started chatting among themselves.

“By the way… Flan quit being a hero, right?”

“Yeah, I saw that in the newspaper too. It’s been just over two years, and he suddenly said he would quit.”

“Why would he do that? Was the hero’s job tougher than he thought?”

“That’s impossible. Don’t just listen to rumors; read the newspapers.”

“Why, what happened? Why did he quit?”

“Well…”

The applicant who claimed to have read the newspaper paused for a moment before speaking.

“He said he experienced most things within two years. And he accomplished everything. He said there was nothing left to do as a hero.”

“…Is that really true?”

Listening to the conversation, Becky couldn’t help but clear her throat loudly. Hearing stories about someone she knew made her want to jump into the conversation, but she couldn’t just join in and start talking recklessly.

Time continued to pass, and the applicants, now relaxed, began chatting more loudly.

Becky found this atmosphere somewhat comforting. It reminded her of the days when she first attended classes at the academy.

However, this atmosphere was soon disrupted by the arrival of the dean’s secretary.

“It looks like everyone is here.”

The dean’s secretary still looked as youthful as ever, with her trademark glasses.

“As you know, Märchen Academy is currently undergoing changes. Dean Conette has retired… and it is now time for me to retire as well….”

Her statement was simple.

Conette, who had steadfastly held the position of dean of the Magic Department, had now retired, and she herself was stepping down from the secretary position. Today, among these applicants, a new secretary would be selected.

“I don’t know who among you will become the next secretary, but… I was a rather inadequate secretary. No, I hope to be the worst secretary. I hope you all become much better secretaries.”

Everyone followed the secretary.

◈

“Next applicant.”

“Next applicant.”

“Next applicant.”

As she waited for the line to dwindle down, Becky sipped her coffee. She thought she wouldn’t be nervous since she had prepared diligently, but as her turn approached, she felt a bit jittery.

Damn it.

Stop being nervous. Stop being nervous. Stop being nervous… She kept sucking on the straw even though her coffee was already gone.

“Next applicant.”

With the person in front of her now gone for their interview, Becky found herself alone in the hallway.

Well, almost alone—there was also the secretary standing by the dean’s office door to assist. In the quiet hallway, the secretary stared at Becky intently.

“…Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I just find it quite remarkable.”

The secretary looked at Becky with a very pleased expression before continuing.

“Do you still keep in touch with the other representatives?”

“Well… sort of.”

They mainly communicated in the ‘group chat’ function of Trivia now. The most talkative one in text was still Trixie.

“I’m very proud that you’ve set your sights on becoming the secretary. Was there a particular reason?”

“If I had to name one…”

Becky hesitated for a moment before answering.

“…I think you already know.”

“Hehe, yes. It’s that person, isn’t it?”

That person. That person. That person.

The secretary’s light remark kept echoing in Becky’s head. Why did it seem so profound?

The secretary burst into laughter before speaking again.

“Well… your turn is coming up soon. It’s top secret and hasn’t been revealed yet, but who do you think the new dean is?”

Meeting the secretary’s gaze, Becky smiled.

The secretary was right. Conette had stepped down without revealing who she had appointed as the new dean.

Very few people likely knew who the new dean was, and since the information hadn’t spread, many were curious about the identity of Märchen Academy’s new dean.

But Becky knew who it was.

“It’s that person.”

The person who always gave her a reason.

Flan.

Today, he would become the dean of Märchen Academy.

And Becky intended to become his secretary.