Ashamed? I'm Great!

"Teacher Gale, they're slandering you!" 

Teacher Gale?! Fatty Zhang dropping his name was akin to throwing napalm onto a straw castle. It started a wildfire! 

"Teacher Gale?! Holy shit: it's really him!" 

"Wait, you mean the guy who cheated into becoming a Teacher?!"

"Fool, are you blind?! He didn't cheat; it's written right there. He kissed ass!" 

"Both of you got it wrong. He is a very lucky and even more shameless opportunist!"

"That makes no sense. It's one thing for Old Red to agree, but why would the school also give him such a position?!"

They happily commented, not caring one bit that Gray was still here. But just as things were getting intense, a glowing silhouette appeared. 

"Students, calm down, will you! There's no need to cause such a ruckus." The newcomer wore the Teacher robe and seemed quite renowned, for he was instantly recognized… 

"Assistant Teacher Allan, you're here!"

"Assistant Teacher Allan, did you see this?!"

"Assistant Teacher Allan, it's a fake teacher!" 

He waved his hand, calming them down with a smile, Gray shuddering. Glowing light? Check. Apostles? Check. Did he think himself Jesus or something? He was the fake! 

"Now, now, settle down students. Let me see what the commotion is all about." He quickly read the board before turning to Gray with a benevolent smile. 

"I see what happened. After you helped Old Red with his garden, he made you a Teacher. I can understand the students' anger, even if it doesn't solve anything..." He kept going. 

"Now, Gray. Do you agree that the Academy is vital to Hellrand? Do you also agree that the youths here are its future? Finally, do you consider yourself a good man? If yes, you should resign while you still can!"

"No. Also no. And definitely no." 

The man had been smiling annoyingly when Gray suddenly interrupted him, his voice sounding almost bored. No? What kind of madman would say no?! 

But Gray didn't stop there. He went into a monologue of his own! 

"It's the other way around. Hellrand's vital to the Academy; without youths to train, what's the point of an Academy? To have mages circle-jerk all day long?"

"As for the youths here being our future? If they'd rather trust a random board than their own ears and eyes, then I fear such a future." 

"Finally, do I consider myself a good man? I sure am handsome, but a good man? Never! What about you, Mister Allan? Do you consider yourself a good man?" 

"Of course! A teacher should always be a beacon of righteousness. Else how can we guide the next generation!"

"That so? But didn't you hear? Good guys finish last— or in your case never, I guess." 

Gray sighed, even giving the poor man a pitying look. Hearing this, a few students furiously blushed. This Teacher was a baddie! But that wasn't even the full extent of it… 

"But cheer up, Assistant Teacher Allan. You can still make something of your life! Who knows, one day, you might even be a Teacher like me!" 

"Y-You bastard, you're not fit to teach anyone! Just wait!" The man scoffed as he seemed to… run away, leaving the crowd utterly baffled. 

"…"

"…"

"…" 

Debate? Nope. This had been a murder! 

"Pfft— Hahahahaha! You tell them, Teacher Gale! You all, did you see that?!" Fatty Zhang completely obliterated the silence, giving the crowd a gutsy look as he continued. 

"Does Teacher Gale look like someone who'd score 33 points? The board's obviously wrong! Let me tell you, he even finished the exam in—" Gray stopped him, turning to the expectant crowd. 

"Hehe, I appreciate the vote of confidence, but…." 

The silence was palpable, all awaiting his next words. That's when he showed them the most confident smile and added: "…But I really did score 33."

What?! After all this, he was actually admitting to it?!

Of course, he was! Why would he deny the rumors when he could use them instead? He glowed with pride as he mysteriously added: 

"Hehe. There are things more important than exams in this world. What you should be asking isn't why the score is low, but why I became a Teacher nonetheless."

"T-Teacher, isn't that because you healed Old Red's—"

"That meager Sakura tree? Funny!" 

Wait, that wasn't it?! At that moment, they completely believed him! Their brains even unconsciously filled the blanks, picturing countless possibilities. 

Seeing how they had been bamboozled, Gray left, hands behind his back as he walked evenly. It was his turn to have the crowd part for him! 

Like a phoenix, he had turned from a useless fake Teacher to a mysterious expert that the Academy couldn't keep down, EVEN after he had half-assed their test.

Thus, he happily returned home, a fanatical Zhang by his side. 

"Teacher, that was AMAZING!"

"Hehe, what did you expect? I'm the genius who completed the exam in three hours! Ah, but only reveal that info if you get bribed, alright? Now, tell me all about Personal Disciples..." 

Turns out there were three types of students: 

Regular Students → They could ONLY attend public classes! 

General Disciples → They could also attend their Teacher's private classes! 

Personal Disciples → They received one-on-one training from their Teacher on top of it! 

Accepting General Disciples was vital to ensure one's classes were lievely. Then, the worthiest could become Personal Disciples and represent their Teacher's Legacy!

"I see, so it's a race for disciples. Then, as a new teacher, my rival's Aldor. Here's the plan: first, very aggressive recruitment, then a mighty showcase! I'll need a map to plan it all!" 

"Teacher Gale, you actually want to go against Teacher Henrich?! But he's—" 

"About to lose his #1 place. Now, I have a mission for you..." 

"YES, Teacher!" Never had anyone departed that quickly. 

Left alone, Gray smiled, focusing his mind. Today was technically a new day, right? He eagerly closed his eyes, the world around him changing once more. 

[Ding! Successfully Signed in to the Soul Pond!] 

[Obtained 3 Fishing Attempts!] 

Only fishing attempts and nothing else, eh? It seemed Day 1 had really been an exception. Taking place next to the pond, he began yet another intense fishing session. As for the results… 

[Ding! Obtained Broken Doorbell!] 

[This doorbell seems broken but is inhabited by a vengeful spirit. When pressed, instead of making a chime, it will silence all sounds in a small area. May you miss all your deliveries!] 

What kind of useless item was this?! Wouldn't it mean ringing this doorbell would also render old-school knocking useless? Talk about petty! Either way, he kept going. 

[Ding! Obtained Ectoplasm!] 

[What happens when a Soul is crushed so much that it becomes unusable? It becomes ectoplasm! Congratulations—you now own 1/50 of a Soul!] 

"…." 

As for the last one… 

[Ding! Obtained Lovesick Poet Soul!]

[He spent five years wooing his dream girl, reciting poetry by her window at night. But one day, moonlight shone on his face. "Monster!" she screamed as she smashed him dead.] 

Gray wasn't sure what to admire here. The poet's persistence? His ugliness? Or perhaps the girl's power? Either way, he observed a minute of silence for the poor poet before sighing. 

"This Sign-In pond doesn't seem too reliable. I'm probably better off collecting souls and unlocking the Library. Still, there has to be a better way for that than fishing…" 

After all, if he relied on the soul pond, it would probably take at least two months. He didn't have that kind of time. Perhaps he could find info about "souls" in the Academy? 

Shrugging, he returned to the real world and awaited his friend's return. Luckily, the latter didn't take long, and he wasn't alone either. Behind him, there was a train of students! 

They almost seemed like pilgrims, as for their destination… his house! They had all come for the mysterious new teacher. Scoring a 33? So what! 

"Good. There's so many of them!" Gray awaited on his balcony, casually taking in the sun, seemingly not a care in the world. Then, they all stopped right in front of his place, bowing. 

"Teacher, please accept me as your disciple!" (X50!) 

"Teacher, please accept me as your disciple!" (X50!) 

"Teacher, please accept me as your disciple!" (X50!) 

It wasn't that there were 150 of them. They were just really insistent. As for Gray, he had to force himself hard not to grin.

They had taken the bait…