I made up magic and taught a world-destroying witch?

"Um."

Joseph stood with his hands behind his back, as if he were making some carefully considered teaching arrangements.

"You've been staying in the academy all this time, so your understanding of the world is ultimately too limited."

Magic shouldn't just exist in whiteboards, books, and training rooms.

Appropriate off-campus training can help broaden one's perspective.

This phrase sounds much better than "take you out for fun," and it's also more respectable when it comes to expense reporting.

If it were written as a student appreciation activity, the administration office might frown.

However, if it were written as a course on social environment observation and cognitive expansion in the basic stage of new magic, its nature would immediately be different.

When the time comes, expenses for transportation, meals, refreshments, and necessary observation equipment can all be tucked into the project budget.

If we were to be even bolder, we could categorize even the old magical parts that Mia had her eye on, the reference materials that Grace wanted to buy, and even the snacks that he casually bought himself, as field sample collections.

As for when to go?

That depends on when he's in a good mood and really has nothing else to do.

In any case, the core focus of traditional skills like making empty promises and issuing blank checks has never been whether they can actually be fulfilled in the future, but whether they can stabilize morale at the moment they are made.

Joseph was even a little moved when he thought about this.

This other world is wonderful.

At least the administration won't scrutinize whether he took the students to observe the magical natural environment or to eat honey apple pie.

Mia, who was walking behind, was completely unaware that she had just been given a huge empty promise by her unscrupulous mentor that might be postponed indefinitely.

She suddenly became much more energetic.

"Where to?! Shall we go to the Grey Pigeon Market?"

I heard there's a really delicious kebab roll place on Black Crow Street!

Mia became more and more excited as she spoke, and she almost couldn't resist taking out her hands, which were originally hidden behind her back, and gesturing in the air.

"There are also tool shops run by dwarves! And flea markets selling old magical parts!"

My dad said that sometimes you can find old-fashioned magic bearings there. Although nine and a half out of ten are broken, you can still find good stuff in the remaining half!

Just be careful not to buy an automatic wrench that might bite!

Grace instinctively wanted to remind her to be more composed, but she paused before she could finish the sentence.

She has been to many places since she was a child.

She knew the places Mia had mentioned, and even how much business tax they paid to the royal family each year, but as a caged princess, she had never actually set foot on those vibrant streets.

Joseph waved his hand.

"We'll see about the schedule later."

  

Just keep putting it off; procrastination is the core wisdom of all project management.

Mia, however, had already completely entered into a fantasy of off-campus study tour.

"Could we go to the mechanical carriage exhibition outside the Ministry of Works Square? I heard that a dwarf merchant guild is showcasing their new magic axle in the capital these days!"

As she spoke, it was as if she were already standing in front of the booth.

"And also, could we go to White Dove Wharf to see the airships?"

Although the airships don't fly very high now and are prone to tilting in strong winds, I've never seen one up close before!

"The Dwarf Merchant Guild?" Joseph asked.

"Yes!" Mia nodded immediately.

"They're really good at making gadgets! My dad says the things dwarfs make look like toys, work like traps, and are like curses."

Upon hearing something she understood, Grace immediately added:

"The Dwarf Chamber of Commerce has had a lot of contact with us over the years."

As large magical devices declined in popularity, they shifted their focus to small machines and low-magic-powered structures, becoming renowned for their transportation, timekeeping devices, and automatic writers.

She thought for a moment, then said:

"The Imperial Palace Archives purchased a batch of automatic dwarf copying machines last year, but they were later returned because several of them would copy menus on their own in the middle of the night."

Mia opened her eyes wide.

"There's such a good thing?"

Grace glanced at her.

"It copied a menu from several years ago."

Mia sighed sincerely.

"At least it can actually write by itself!"

Grace paused for a moment, unsure how to respond.

Joseph listened thoughtfully.

"Would the Dwarf Merchant Guild be based in the capital?"

"rare."

Grace shook her head and said,

"Most dwarf craftsmen don't actually like to stay in human territory for long. The rules of the capital, the guilds, the taxes, the various unreasonable demands of humans, and the after-sales disputes are all very troublesome for them."

Moreover, with the large teleportation arrays of the old era failing, the cost of inter-race travel has become much higher than before.

Therefore, those currently responsible for coordinating trade with the Dwarf Merchant Guild in the human capital are usually not pure-blooded dwarf artisans.

Mia asked curiously:

"Who is that?"

"In the capital, it's a person named Penny who's in charge."

Grace said:

"She is of mixed race, half-dwarf and half-dwarf. Her mother is said to have come from a merchant guild, and her father was a mechanic."

Such hybrids are rare nowadays, as there is far less interaction between different races compared to the old days, and many races are less willing to allow their offspring to remain in human cities for extended periods.

She paused, then continued:

"But precisely because of this, she is very suitable to be the Chamber of Commerce's agent in human territory."

She was responsible for delivering and returning the batch of automatic transcription machines to the Imperial Palace's document room.

Mia's eyes lit up as she listened.

"So, if we want to see the dwarf's new magic wheel, we can see her?"

"Theoretically, yes."

Grace said:

"But her appointments are usually full. The Dwarf Chamber of Commerce recently had a showroom outside the Ministry of Works Square, and all the things you mentioned should be on display."

If you do arrange for off-campus training, I can have someone send a letter of inquiry in advance.

Joseph's eyes flickered slightly.

Low-magic-driven structure? Small mechanism? Automatic writer?

Isn't this just a magical prelude to industrialization?

More importantly, the Dwarf Merchant Guild doesn't sound as rigid as those old fogies from the Academy.

As long as the name is written formally enough, it seems that anything like a spell position stability auxiliary recording device or a mechanical teaching aid for students' cognitive expansion can be stuffed into the project budget.

The world seems a little more interesting than he imagined.

After the decline of old magic, the various races did not simply lie down and die, but instead filled the void left by the decline of magic in different ways.

The dwarves turned to more sophisticated forging structures, while the gnomes began working on low-magic machinery.

Meanwhile, the Human Academy is still burning through 800,000 gold coins to install solar streetlights.

Compared to this, the old guys at the Royal Academy do seem a bit disappointing.

Of course, these can be studied later.

The premise is that he can survive and get through today's demonstration lesson.

"We'll talk about that later."

Joseph quickly steered the conversation back on track.

"Let's confirm today's schedule first."

Grace and Mia immediately composed themselves.

Although Mia was still thinking about the mechanical carriage exhibition, she tried her best to look like a serious student.

"Just like the schedule, Grace first talked about the basic structure of spell slots."

Grace nodded seriously.

"Yes, sir."

"Focus on the construction process, model embedding observation, and failure analysis. Don't disrupt your rhythm by responding to external questions."

After all, if she loses her rhythm and something uncontrollable happens on stage, he wouldn't know how to handle it.

If Grace just stands there and explains the concepts honestly, at most a few professors in the audience will yawn.

Grace felt a slight jolt in her heart upon hearing this.

The gentleman was giving her a heads-up that someone would definitely question the new magic during the demonstration class.

It's even possible that someone deliberately used the standards of old magic to force her to show off her results.

She cannot be swayed by those voices.

What she had to do was to steadily demonstrate the gentleman's new magical ideas.

Even without light, it cannot be shaken.

"I understand," Grace said solemnly.

Joseph then looked at Mia.

"Mia, don't be nervous."

Mia immediately tensed up.

"I'm not nervous!"

Joseph glanced at her.

Her face practically screamed, "I'm so nervous I could die!"

But he didn't expose it.

"You just need to describe your feelings in the same way you usually practice."

Explain truthfully how the framework was constructed, where leaks are likely to occur, and what deviations might occur during model embedding.

He added at this point, "Don't be afraid if sparks appear."

"gentlemen……"

Joseph waved his hand.

"Failed samples also have observational value."

This statement was, of course, meant to give her a way out in advance.

If Mia actually manages to conjure up a handful of air on stage, that would be a failed example.

If she manages to create a string of sparks, that's called a biased sample.

If she accidentally sets something on fire, that's called a high-risk model boundary test sample.

In short, as long as you change your words quickly enough, failure won't catch up with you!

Mia nodded vigorously, her eyes reddening again.

The gentleman even thought of the sparks that she might emit.

As expected, the gentleman never considered it a mistake from the beginning.

She absolutely cannot let her husband down.

Even if we fail, we must make sure the failure is worth observing!

Joseph felt a little more at ease seeing the sudden determination in the eyes of the two students.

Great, everything looks safe and secure.

He turned around and led the two of them toward the assessment tower.

The assessment tower appeared at the end of the road not far ahead.

It was a tall, gray-white tower with thicker outer walls than the main tower complex of the academy, and obsidian rings embedded in its body to absorb magical impacts.

Protective runes from the old era climb up the tower walls, but most of them have become ineffective due to their age.

The tower doesn't look like a teaching building; it looks more like a prison specifically designed to hold dangerous spells.

In fact, that's pretty much what it's used for.

Every year, the Royal Academy has a few overly energetic geniuses who believe themselves to be once-in-a-millennium magical prodigies, and then attempt to challenge spells that are clearly beyond their control during practical training assessments.

The final result is usually that the student is removed with a single click, and it's hard to say where they're taken.

At this time, a number of people were already standing at the entrance of the assessment tower.

Several professors huddled together in small groups, talking quietly, their badges and cuff insignia gleaming in the sunlight.

Administrator Marco stood by the steps, holding a thick stack of documents. When he saw Joseph in the distance, he immediately showed an expression of admiration.

Closer to the tower gate, Professor Maurice Brewster, dressed in his crimson mage robes, leaned on a cane, a familiar, tea-cup-twisting smile on his face.

His two small mustaches gleamed in the morning light.

Joseph paused for a moment.

Brewster saw him too.

Their eyes met across the open space in front of the assessment tower.

Brewster slowly raised a hand and greeted him with great elegance.

Good morning, Professor Grantham.

I hope your presentation today will be as excellent as your report.

Joseph had a bad feeling as soon as he saw this man.

For some reason, this person started clashing with the original owner of the body.

Logically speaking, one is a practitioner and the other is a theorist; at most, they would just dislike each other at college meetings.

But after going through the original owner's memories, Joseph discovered that the feud between the two seemed to have been going on for quite some time.

Two years ago, after the original owner published his paper "The Cycle of Magic Decay," he became incredibly famous, and the association exceptionally awarded him the title of Grand Magician.

Brewster was also applying for a promotion at that time.

The difference is that Brewster earned his reputation through countless real battles on the training field, through student assessment scores, through his records of handling dangerous spells, and through his solid resume.

Although these practical training sessions were no different from playing house after the decline of magic, a more agile knight would be sent away before he could even cast a small spell.

But it's still magic!

The original owner relied on a thesis.

In order to promote the idea that theory and practice should go hand in hand, the association decided to hold the awarding ceremony for the two individuals on the same day.

One was a trainee who had worked hard for more than ten years and finally got promoted; the other was a young theoretical genius who emerged out of nowhere and was granted a title.

At the ceremony, the association president publicly praised Joseph as the last spark of old-age magical theory and the hope for new-age magical research.

As for Brewster, all he received was a statement that his practical teaching results were solid.

From then on, Brewster never liked the original owner of the body.

Since transmigrating, Joseph has been trying to avoid dealing with this weasel, adhering to the principles of speaking less, making fewer mistakes, keeping a low profile, and hiding until he can escape.

Unexpectedly, this person still seized the opportunity to bite.

However, from Brewster's perspective, it's not entirely incomprehensible that he's unhappy.

A practical practitioner who actually knows how to cast spells was overshadowed by a theoretical practitioner who can't even ignite a flame.

This would easily raise blood pressure in anyone.

The problem is, understanding is one thing.

Joseph still really wants him to shut up.

Joseph immediately put on an impeccable smile.

"certainly."

He nodded.

"I also hope that Professor Brewster's students can perform as consistently as usual today."

After he said that, the expressions of the professors around him changed slightly.

After all, Brewster has been a student for the past few years...

His performance has indeed been consistently stable.

The name is consistently recorded in the maintenance log of the test tower.