Subscriber of the Gods Chapter 89 - Parent Observation Class (2)

At the same time, Ivecar Academy Grand Plaza.

Numerous carriages gathered in the plaza. During the parent observation class, the square was always crowded with people, and there was never enough space for carriages.

As a result, the plaza had become a temporary place for parking carriages.

“Ahem.”

“Hmm.”

Dressed in attire that unmistakably revealed their high noble status, nobles exited their splendid carriages. The descending nobles glanced around to see who had arrived.

“Isn’t this Marquis Stendhal?”

“Hehehe. Count Roland, it’s been a while. You look much younger than before. Did you eat something good? If you have, let’s share it!”

“Hahaha! There have been many good things happening in my territory lately, so it seems that way!”

Nobles who knew each other exchanged greetings, and even those who didn’t took advantage of this opportunity to open the door to conversations. It seemed like a social gathering among parents, but the time for socializing would not last long.

As they attended the class, observing their respective children, various complex emotions would undoubtedly arise.

“Parents, please come this way!”

“You can receive information about today’s observation class over here!”

At these words, each parent’s accompanying attendants moved quickly.

“Count Garcia, Teacher Chen’s class will be held in Wing A, Room 3005.”

“Hmm, I’m worried.”

“Since he was scolded severely once before, he will work hard in this class.”

Garcia, the father of Chen Garcia, recalled the recent incident. In his opinion, Chen, his second son, still seemed dazed.

“Well, now that the teacher has been properly disciplined. I’m very curious about Teacher Ethan’s class!”

Having had a brief taste of Ethan’s education, Garcia was looking forward to Ethan Whiskers’ public class.

“I heard that not a single student has left the class since the beginning?”

“Yes, it is said that a new teacher receives excellent reviews even if only half of the students attend the entire class.”

“Back in my day, it was the same.”

When Count Garcia attended the academy, new teachers were full of enthusiasm but rarely taught something substantial.

Even teachers who came from outside with a good reputation would initially struggle.

“I can actually see the teacher that Count praised, Ethan, in person. I’m really looking forward to it.”

“Surprised? I was too when I found out. Right away, I checked the Whiskers family and found out he has a brother, Nathan Whiskers.”

“Oh, Nathan Whiskers…”

“Saw him last year? A promising mage we saw at Freya Academy.”

Count Garcia made an expression that said, “If you say so.”

“They may not be famous now, but the Whiskers family will likely grow significantly thanks to the two of them. When that happens, our Chen will also benefit.”

No matter how much of a troublemaker his son might be, he was still his son.

“I would like to bring the eldest one and put him back in the academy, but…”

“Aren’t you making too much of an expectation?”

“Just go and see. Whether my words are exaggerated or not.”

Count Garcia laughed heartily.

A little ahead, there was a prominent noble from the continent.

“Duke Yeld.”

“Are those his sons beside him?”

“Even with mana constraints, why is there such a sharp aura?”

Among the Twelve Houses, the most challenging opponent to find, was Duke Yeld, wielder of the sharpest sword in the Holy Empire.

Duke Yeld and his two sons also participated in this observation class.

Among the twelve essential families that could be considered the core of the continent, Duke Yeld, one of the Twelve Families, boasted the most powerful influence in the Holy Empire.

“To make it worthwhile for the head of the family to come, the youngest one must do well.”

“He’s already in the third year. Last year was really beyond words.”

At a young age, he inherited the title from the previous head of the family and solidified the position of Duke Yeld as one of the Twelve Families. Next to him were two sons of the Duke.

The two were receiving quite favorable evaluations as heirs.

As the successors, they were managing the knight and magic corps, the main force of the Yeld Duchy, maintaining a prominent position within the empire.

“This is the last year. There won’t be a need to come next year.”

When Duke Yeld said so, the expressions of his two sons subtly brightened.

With this, the succession issue was almost settled.

Even though they had come for the observation class last year and the year before, Mason, the youngest brother, did not show grades befitting the name of Yeld.

This opportunity was the end.

Anyway, today would be the same.

“Karlson, have you looked into the teacher who is instructing Mason?”

“Ah, yes. He was once a well-known examiner called the Sickly Count in the Whiskers family in the western region. Besides that, there is nothing special, and even though he was called a sword genius, that was just a local affair. There’s no proven achievement.”

“Jason.”

When the Duke called, his second son, Jason Yeld, began to speak about Ethan.

“Yes, recently, he has been running a workshop through collaboration with the David Merchant Guild. It is a workshop specializing in lightweight craftsmanship, and thanks to this, the Whiskers territory is said to be growing most rapidly in the West. Ethan Whiskers led all of this, so there is certainly some merit. However, there is no proof in his swordsmanship. The only achievement is his position as a teacher at the Ivecar Academy.”

“What do you think? Do you see him as a talent worth considering, even if it means giving up a position?”

“His abilities seem fine, but the background is the issue. He has innate talent. If we recruit him, it might be acceptable to create a position in our Merchant Guild and utilize his talents.”

After Karlson, Jason spoke.

“I disagree. There are no long-term achievements, and the current merits we see are also greatly influenced by the support of the David Merchant Guild.”

“Are you just opposing because your brother approves, Jason?”

“No!”

“Then speak up. Is the David Merchant Guild just a charitable business, huh?”

“….”

“That’s right. Pathetic fools.”

Duke Yeld clicked his tongue.

Claiming to be the successors, they didn’t even know the basics of the Yeld.

Both had decent swordsmanship and magical abilities, but their abilities as the heads of the family were lacking.

“If they have talent, use them. What do you know about innate talent? If someone is embraced by Yeld, they become Yeld’s sword and shield. Whether it’s a local sword genius or an outstanding merit, if they have talent, they should be embraced. If you want to lead Yeld, you should have such thoughts.”

Currently, half of those working in Yeld Duchy did not have an impressive background.

They secured their positions with their abilities alone and continued to work for the Yeld family.

“I apologize, my lord.”

“I apologize.”

“What are you apologizing for? You should feel sorry for yourselves, not me. If you have my blood running through your veins, your brain should apologize to your body for making such judgments!”

Although it was harsh, the two sons couldn’t offer any excuses.

“Let’s go, it’s time for the final disappointment.”

Anyway, there was no one among the three sons worth expecting.

In the lecture hall where 75 people gathered.

Students had gathered here early before the class.

The students were nervous.

Especially the freshmen were even more so. It was their first parent observation class since entering, and despite pretending otherwise, their pupils kept shaking.

This wasn’t an exception for the enrolled students either.

Among them, many students had experienced parent observation classes several times, but they, too, kept wiping their hands full of sweat on their pants.

‘They seem excessively tense.’

Some level of tension was good.

There should be some tension in the body to naturally exhibit swordsmanship. However, excessive tension could lead to a blank mind, and such a rigid state could soon lead to accidents.

“Concentrate for a moment.” 

Ethan said loud enough for everyone to hear.

“It doesn’t matter if you mess up today. What’s important in today’s class is showing what you’ve learned at the academy. All your strengths and weaknesses. Think about it. You are students, and the parents who came to see you are already accomplished individuals. Everyone’s standards are high. No matter how perfectly you perform, it may not be enough in their eyes.”

This occasion was about seeing potential.

Since it was a chance to see the latent potential of the student, no one expected perfection.

So, the emphasis was on strengths rather than weaknesses.

Weaknesses could always be improved, but strengths that didn’t exist couldn’t suddenly appear.

“No matter how perfect you are, it may seem insufficient to them. So, abandon the idea of hiding your weaknesses. Focus solely on maximizing your strengths.”

When Ethan, who had been cold, offered words of encouragement, his sincerity was even more felt. He also smiled at the students and made eye contact with them one by one.

“Of course, those who perform immaturely won’t be accepted from the next class onwards.”

“What!?”

“You said it’s okay to fail!”

“It was a joke.”

“Oh, no, such a stern joke…”

“Is your tension a bit relieved now?”

“No…”

Students felt that they had unknowingly released some tension.

Before long, people started to enter the room.

“I finally get to watch.”

The first to enter the classroom were the teachers.

Teachers generally couldn’t attend each other’s classes unless there was an opportunity like this. Therefore, they were quite curious about Ethan’s teaching style.

How did he conduct lectures to generate such explosive reactions?

“How does a new teacher manage to fill the 75-seat class? Isn’t it Teacher Ethan’s first time? What’s the secret to satisfying the students? I’m so curious. What teaching method is he using? Normally, the students here don’t even blink an eye. Huh, well, I can’t ignore this.”

Several teachers with similar thoughts sought out Ethan’s classroom. There were especially many Swordsmanship Department teachers.

Teachers who had classes at the same time as Ethan couldn’t attend, but those who didn’t were all there, to say the least.

Of course, it wasn’t just teachers who were curious about Ethan’s class.

Following them, students who were eager to see Ethan Whiskers’ class started coming in.

“Wow, why are there so many people?”

“It’s the first time so many people have come for a parent observation class.”

“How many people exactly came to see this?”

Students were buzzing with excitement. Not only students but also teachers seemed to be quite numerous.

“Even though the parents haven’t arrived yet, this number?”

“Wow, I’ve never seen anything like this.”

“Isn’t this more than last year during Teacher Claudie’s observation class?”

“Oh, come to think of it, it’s Teacher Claudie’s class time now.”

Ironically, Ethan and Claudie conducted parent observation classes at the same time.

Of course, since Claudie conducted parent observation classes for all four classes he currently taught, this was his third class this time.

“Is it right next door?”

“Teacher Claudie’s class also has a considerable number of people, so I guess it makes sense. Many people will come to see it. There will be a lot of parents too.”

As they chattered, parents arrived. While teachers and students were naturally part of Ivecar Academy, parents were different.

Seeing powerful figures gathered in one place was not a sight easily seen.

“Marquis.”

“Oh, isn’t it Count Libre?”

“Thunderbird!”

Students sent admiring glances while calling out the nicknames of each noble. The well-known nobles emitted an overwhelming aura, just like their nicknames.

Calmly surveying the surroundings, the noble figures sat in the parents’ seats.

Some nobles, even though they were parents, were the first to confirm where their children were.

After checking the familiar back of the head, they sat down directly.

“There are really a lot of students. When I first heard about the new teacher, I didn’t have high expectations.”

“Looks like, aside from us parents, there are other teachers and students, so everyone must be expecting a lot from the class, right?”

“I’m really looking forward to it.”

“Me too, my lady.”

Shortly after, the last noble arrived.

“It’s Duke.”

“It’s Duke Yeld.”

As the parents of the students took their seats, the enormous classroom was now filled.

At that moment, Ethan, who had been waiting at the back of the classroom, opened the door and entered.

All eyes were on Ethan.

Perhaps an unimaginable level of anticipation and pressure was directed toward Ethan.

However, Ethan stepped lightly to the podium.

“We will begin the class.”