— — — — — —
"Oh, go on, Principal. Don't mind us," Kazuma said, suddenly remembering the principal was sitting right in front of him.
"Then I'll continue with the official matters. Kazuma-san, the principal of Ishiyama High already contacted me. He told me you're an excellent teacher."
"Even as a temporary instructor, you've done very well. Because of that, our school would like to keep you on. But there are a few things I need to clarify with you first."
Genma straightened up, finally getting to the reason he called Kazuma over.
"First, as a teacher, please keep your class under control. Don't let them disrupt the other students."
Genma didn't personally mind delinquent kids, but teachers and students definitely had opinions. As principal, he had to consider all sides.
"That's nothing to worry about. I gave them a 'social practice' course. They're too busy now to cause trouble," Kazuma said.
"Huh… well, that works too. Social practice can be a good form of learning." Genma actually looked surprised. He never expected Kazuma to come up with something like that. Honestly, this method was way better for Ishiyama's delinquent crowd than sitting in a classroom.
"Second, since we're a private school, we take grades seriously. Every three days there's a quiz, and every seven days a major test. And tomorrow happens to be one of the quiz days, so I'm notifying you in advance. Please prepare your class."
He pulled a notice sheet from his drawer and handed it to Kazuma. It listed all the exam details.
"Principal, come on. My students? If they took all the high school subjects combined and scored sixty points total, that would already count as cheating."
"It's fine if our class ends up dead last. Tests really aren't necessary."
Kazuma wasn't insulting Ishiyama's kids; he was simply stating the obvious. They had absolutely no talent for academics.
"I know. The Ishiyama principal told me the same thing," Genma admitted.
"That's why I had the test difficulty lowered. Only the most basic subjects remain. Japanese, math, English, and social studies. Everything else is removed for now."
He produced another set of papers. "These are sample questions that will appear on the quiz. You can teach based on these."
Genma felt he'd already done everything he could do.
"Hmm… Yolda, check it for me. Too many words. I don't feel like reading."
Kazuma glanced at it once and lost interest immediately. Ever since graduation, he swore he'd never do another worksheet. Even looking at one hurt his soul.
Yolda picked it up and carefully skimmed it. Her expression shifted. "These are… high school questions? Why do they look like elementary school problems?"
Even demon world elementary students could solve these. Had human students really regressed to demon-kid level?
"Ahem. Not elementary. They're more like elementary-to-middle-school transition questions. They're simple, but progress must be gradual." Genma coughed twice. Even if he was caught lowering the difficulty this much, he didn't want it pointed out. It was embarrassing.
"Besides those two points, there's a third. Every class must run a club."
"It can be anything. Cooking, sports, hobbies, whatever. Minimum six members, maximum twelve. But there's no rush. You can take your time with this part." After steadying his mood, Genma continued.
"A club… like… going-home club?" Kazuma blinked.
"No. It must be a legitimate club. And to prove the club's activity, we'll also hold inter-club exchanges later."
Genma rejected the idea instantly. How could this kid immediately think of something so pathetic?
Such youthful days should be spent sweating, playing, and making friends, not going straight home. If you don't enjoy youth now, when your hairline recedes and you turn into a middle-aged Mediterranean dome, you'll regret it.
"Fine, got it. One: keep the students out of trouble. Two: prepare for the quiz. Three: run a club."
"That's all, right? Nothing else?"
Kazuma paused. Honestly, none of this sounded hard. With a bit of effort he could probably manage.
"Mm… there's one small thing left," Genma added carefully. "It's about Teacher Sadohara Takumi."
"I know you don't like people meddling in your territory. But everyone has subjects they're good at and ones they're not. Teachers too. You don't have to like him, but next time, please don't send him to the hospital. Our school had to pay the medical bill. It wasn't cheap."
He gave a weak cough at the end, as if afraid to poke the devil.
"This has nothing to do with me," Kazuma said. "The kids told me he insisted on challenging one of them to an arm-wrestling match. And he was weak as fuck."
"And so unlucky. In a school full of Tyson-level monsters, he somehow picked the boss."
"The whole class was terrified by his courage. Everyone said he was a warrior."
The first time Kazuma heard the story, he laughed so hard he nearly cried. Weak and unlucky… what a combo.
"Alright… I understand," Genma said stiffly. He was holding his face so hard it might crack. He could not laugh. He was a dignified principal. He had weathered storms. He had to maintain composure.
"Okay then. If that's everything, I'll head out. Yolda, pack up. We're leaving," Kazuma said, standing.
"Yes." Yolda calmly gathered the teapot and cups, then opened a portal and escorted Kazuma out of the office.
"Demon maids are really convenient," the principal muttered at his now-empty office. "Should I hire an assistant too?"
He suddenly wanted tea, but no one was there to brew it, so he had to stand up and do it himself. For a moment, he found himself genuinely envious of Kazuma's maid demon.
----
After school that day
"Good work. We cleared about a hundred tasks today. You all worked hard," Kazuma said. "Here's your pay."
Even he was a little impressed. Compared to the Black Bullet world, the workload here was pretty average, but compared to Miko Yotsuya's side… this was amazing.
"Kazuma-san, I don't need the pay this time. Fight me instead!" Tojo Hidetora declared.
"Payment is payment. You do the work, you get the reward. That's my rule. As for fighting, save it for tomorrow morning."
Before Tojo could argue, Kazuma stuffed the money into his hands and moved on to the next student: Aoi Kunieda.
"Um, Kazuma-sensei, are you sure I can really take this…? My grandpa still—" Aoi looked hesitant. She'd only done a few tasks. Getting this much pay felt wrong.
"Your grandpa's debt is your grandpa's problem. Money you earn yourself is yours. Don't overthink it."
According to how the guild operated, Kazuma took a ten-percent fee and the remaining ninety percent went to the members.
He handed out payment to everyone, then finally dismissed the group. The students scattered, excited to enjoy their evening.
Kazuma, meanwhile, took Aoi and had Yolda open a portal straight back to the shrine.
"That ability is way too convenient…" Aoi murmured. One step and they were home. Teleportation magic really was cheating.
"I'll go start dinner," she said. With three new maids now living in the house, the food stockpile was disappearing faster than ever.
Kazuma stretched, ready to rest for a bit, but the moment he walked inside he spotted two unfamiliar faces.
"Kazuma, you're back!" Tohru rushed over, tail practically wagging. "Let me introduce my friends!"
"This is Fafnir. He's a dragon who's been guarding his treasure since forever. One of my old friends!"
"Disgusting humans," Fafnir muttered.
In human form, he looked like a stern butler in a black suit, black hair and glasses. As a dragon, he absolutely hated humans. They always tried to steal his treasure.
"And this is Quetzalcoatl. She's really strong but super timid." Tohru pointed at the busty, smiling woman beside her.
"Just call me Lucoa," she said warmly. "And I'm not timid. I just don't like fighting."
Kazuma greeted them both, then raised an eyebrow at Tohru. "So… why'd you call them over?"
"No reason! But you went back to teaching today, right? Humans call that returning to work. That's something worth celebrating!" Tohru said proudly. "So I invited my friends and planned a feast!"
She'd learned from TV that going back to work was a major event, the kind you celebrate properly.
"Oh. Well, in that case, barbecue. Yolda, go buy meat," Kazuma said. Everyone was already here, so why not?
"Yes."
Yolda materialized out of nowhere, nodded, and instantly teleported away to buy supplies.
.
.
.
The remaining chapters of the mass release will be posted tomorrow, as I couldn't finish them today.
Also, some good news: this is the last world-hopping arc. The author has decided to focus solely on Fairy Tail from now on.