Abandoned by my Childhood Friend, I Became a War Hero

༺ Lecture (2) ༻

As someone walked up to the podium, the lecture hall became quiet and everyone’s attention was focused.

Marian was a little, no, quite surprised. The person who came up to the podium was a fairly young woman.

She was very different from the vague image Marian had in mind after hearing about the genius engineer. Although she wore a lab coat and had quite dark circles under her eyes, she had beautiful long curly hair and a striking appearance that was easily recognizable.

‘Could it be that the famous Dr. Brown is a woman?’

Most people in the room were shocked, and a commotion arose in the lecture hall.

Heinkel, the dean, stroked his beard and tilted his head in confusion, and Schultz frowned, making a puzzled expression.

At that moment, the woman in the lab coat, who received everyone’s attention, hunched her shoulders and picked up the voice amplification magic tool.

Then, with a trembling voice, she cautiously opened her mouth.

“Dr, Dr. Brown… has not arrived at the lecture hall yet.”

“Huh?”

“What?”

The murmuring of the people grew louder.

Marian was just as confused.

She knew that the woman in front of her wasn’t Dr. Brown, but if Dr. Brown hadn’t arrived yet, what would happen to today’s lecture? Would they have to leave just like that?

As the woman standing on the podium heard the increasing murmurs of the people, she looked extremely burdened and continued speaking with a trembling voice.

“Pl, please wait a little longer. They will arrive soon. So, please be a bit more understanding… We are also doing our best to find them….”

A student who was sitting in the lecture hall raised their voice.

“Hold on a second. Are you saying they disappeared without a word before the lecture?”

“Hah! No, no, I didn’t mean that…! I’m sure Dr. Brown has a good reason… so please wait a little longer….”

Unfortunately, despite the voice amplification, her voice was too small and unclear. As a result, most people could not focus on her words and began talking amongst themselves.

They wondered if the lecture would be canceled. Even if he was a genius engineer, this was too much. It was a problem not to keep a promise when so many people were waiting. They had made time to come here, but it seemed like they came for nothing…

The dissatisfaction turned into anger, and that anger was directed at the absent Dr. Brown.

If they were just a little late, people could have waited, but to disappear without any contact meant having to wait indefinitely for someone who might not show up at all.

As people’s reactions grew more severe, the expression on Heinkel, the Dean who organized this lecture, gradually hardened.

As a few students, including Marian, looked around anxiously, a sudden loud noise came from somewhere.

It was the sound of the lecture hall’s ceiling window opening.

“Uhuhuhu! It seems like I’m quite late!”

Along with the strange male voice, a much louder roar echoed.

The sound was like the cry of a dragon or the onslaught of a typhoon.

At the rough and loud sound, everyone’s gaze turned to the ceiling, and then they saw it.

A middle-aged man was descending from the sky, carrying a huge machine on his back. The huge noise was the sound of the motor coming from that machine.

Most people didn’t know that it was a ‘magic jetpack’ temporarily named by Dr. Brown, but they could tell it was an unfamiliar object they had never seen before.

Then, the curly-haired woman, who had been staring blankly at the ceiling, spoke belatedly.

“Dr, Dr. Brown has arrived! Please give a warm round of applause…!”

“Wow!”

At that moment, any thoughts of Dr. Brown being late completely vanished from people’s minds. Instead, they showed an even stronger reaction to Dr. Brown’s unique entrance and the never-before-seen object.

Of course, while descending, the machine repeatedly made rapid ascents and descents, and the motor trembled, even emitting black smoke, making it look quite unstable. However, in the end, Dr. Brown safely landed from the ceiling onto the podium.

“Ah, my apologies for making you wait. Uhuhu, I couldn’t help it because I was preparing for the lecture. That guy is just too stubborn for no reason….”

‘That guy?’

Marian was briefly concerned about who that remark referred to.

– Tremble, tremble!

“Ay! It’s still a prototype, so it’s causing trouble. I guess it needs more stabilization.”

Dr. Brown placed the machine he carried on his back on the floor, and sprinkled some white powder on the machine that was now emitting even darker smoke than before. Then, the trembling machine became quiet and completely stopped.

He looked around the lecture hall with a cheerful smile.

“Although I’m not too keen on it, let’s start the lecture.”

***

“Modern intellectuals are nothing but showy fools. They are captivated by superficial knowledge, losing sight of fundamental values and creativity. We must not be confined to the existing educational framework, and we must exercise creativity that is original and transcends the boundaries of thought!”

Dr. Brown’s lecture was, in a word, quite radical.

“What’s the difference between humans and monkeys if we stop thinking? The current empire is no different from a blind king’s paradise. The advancement of technology and science is the groundbreaking means to lead humanity’s true development, but most people don’t know that. What’s the point of creating amazing technology? The nobles only see money games and power games, nothing else! It’s like boiling stew with the finest fish and making milk soup with the finest tea from the east!”

Dr. Brown passionately raised his voice throughout the lecture.

It was amazing how much energy he had at his age.

“Whether it’s the royal court or the administration, there’s no difference! Their purpose in giving me money is the same! It’s not pure technological advancement, but rather, every single one of them-“

The faces of those sitting in the lecture room turned pale in an instant.

They seemed terrified that they might be taken away by the intelligence agency just for attending this lecture.

Fortunately, the curly-haired woman interrupted Dr. Brown’s words in a timely manner.

“Dr., Dr. Brown! That’s enough! You can’t say any more!”

“Huh? My assistant is getting noisy. Well, I can’t help it. Let’s leave it at that….”

Dr. Brown seemed disappointed that his enthusiasm was cut off. He cleared his throat and continued.

“In that sense, I do recognize a certain genius. A real genius with true creativity that humanity has never seen before. You, the red-haired student. Who do you think that is?”

“Me? Me?”

Marian, who was suddenly pointed out, answered in surprise.

Marian thought for a moment and spoke in an uncertain voice.

“Umm….”

To be honest, the first person that came to mind for Marian was her grandfather.

Marquis Kalshtein saved 90% of the human alliance forces from annihilation during the last war, providing a chance for a counterattack, and successfully carried out numerous operations, earning the reputation of a military strategy genius.

This wasn’t an overstatement because he was her family; it was an objective evaluation. It really was.

But mentioning her grandfather in such a place would be like putting gold leaf on her own face, and Marian had enough modesty to feel slightly embarrassed about it. So she pretended not to know and said,

“I’m not sure….”

“Heh. It seemed like you had something in mind… never mind if you don’t know.”

Then Schultz, who was sitting next to Marian, raised his hand. Dr. Brown gestured for him to speak, and Schultz nodded and opened his mouth in a calm voice.

“Are you referring to Emperor Philion?”

“Hehehe! There was a friend here who accurately read my thoughts. Yes, that’s correct.”

Dr. Brown looked around the lecture hall with a profound smile.

“The great emperor who created the empire we live in today. His breath has already touched everything we live and enjoy. The tram, radio, and airship I created… are all just belatedly realizing the ideas thought up by Emperor Philion before his death, after hundreds of years.”

That was a fact recognized by most of the people in the empire.

The history of the continent is said to be divided into before and after the appearance of Emperor Philion, as the influence he had on the continent was immense.

In addition to ending the era of chaos and establishing a single empire, he brought about significant changes to the culture and lifestyle of the continent.

During the lecture, one student raised his hand. Without being granted permission to speak, he suddenly opened his mouth and threw a question at the doctor.

“Dr. Brown, have you never thought of making weapons with such technology? With Emperor Philion’s ideas and your technical skills, wouldn’t it be possible to create powerful weapons and achieve victory in wars more quickly?”

“…Hmm. What’s your name?”

“Diamond White, 3rd year, Quel von Kaitel.”

The Diamond White student in a white cape stood up proudly and introduced himself. Marian had met him several times in social circles; he was the eldest son of a fairly prestigious noble family.

Dr. Brown stroked his sparsely bearded chin and answered with a serious face.

“Well, it could have been. Although it wasn’t made public, Emperor Philion left ideas for weapons before he died, and the royal family still holds them. I’ve read them, too.”

“But then-“

“However, I have no interest in weapons. I’ve never thought of making them, and I won’t in the future.”

Dr. Brown answered with a sullen expression.

“Guns, bombs… in the end, it’s obvious that they will be aimed at the same humans. Humanity can already kill thousands, tens of thousands of people at once with magic. All I would be doing is increasing that number to hundreds of thousands or millions.”

Dr. Brown declared firmly.

“I found true value in the process of creation. It’s much more enjoyable and valuable to challenge what humans once thought was impossible, like creating moving trains and flying ships. In that sense-“

Dr. Brown took out a video transmission device from his pocket. As he activated it, a magical screen appeared at the back of the lecture hall, and a video was displayed in the room.

“Hehehe! Today, I’ll show a special demonstration prepared for the people gathered here. My new invention following the airship, its first prototype!”

Marian doubted her eyes as she saw the familiar figure on the screen.

There, Instructor Eon was sitting on a strange iron machine with two wheels.

-“Sigh…”

In the video, Instructor Eon let out a deep sigh with a stiff expression.