Greetings, Mister Principal

Chapter 208: The Fall of a Genius

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“Sirius was once a talented mage, but he went astray, indulging solely in mathematics that yielded no benefits. In his fourth year of school, he still hadn’t submitted a graduation thesis that could pass in any academic journal, and later, he left the school.”

Vice Principal Bodoro sighed, glancing at Reiner with some regret.

“In the world of mages, such examples are too numerous. Every year, many young mages show their potential, but in the end, only a few manage to advance to intermediate level.”

“So, Sirius’s thesis was about mathematics?”

Reiner caught the implication from Vice Principal Bodoro’s words, but he didn’t mind and persisted in asking.

“Yes, I don’t remember the specific content of that thesis anymore. After all, it’s been ten years, but I know it was about mathematics. Although the proof process was very comprehensive, the final result was too absurd, so I didn’t pay much attention to it.”

Over the years, Vice Principal Bodoro had supervised hundreds of students and reviewed thousands of theses. Naturally, it was impossible for him to remember the specific content of Sirius’s thesis, which he had only glanced at once.

“In fact, I saw Mr. Sirius’s thesis cited in a graduation thesis, but unfortunately, that thesis was cleared and destroyed in the school’s archives a few years ago because it was entered into the archives through monetary transactions.”

“Monetary transactions?”

Vice Principal Bodoro frowned slightly.

“I’m aware of the archive’s cleanup a few years ago, but Mr. Ian Gray, are you suggesting that Sirius paid to have his thesis included in the school’s archives? That’s beyond my expectations.”

“Why?”

Reiner pressed on. His interest in Sirius Odman now surpassed that in his thesis. Although he had some guesses about Sirius’s research content, Reiner was still curious about what had happened to make Sirius, once hailed as a genius by Vice Principal Bodoro, fall to the point where he couldn’t even graduate.

“Uh, Sirius is actually a rather upright and stubborn fellow. Once he’s decided on something, he won’t change his mind. Logically speaking, he wouldn’t resort to backdoor means like paying money to get his work included.”

Vice Principal Bodoro said, having once trusted Sirius’s qualities, which was why he had entrusted his daughter to him. Unfortunately, the two young people eventually parted ways.

“He’s more of a scholar than a mage. Even if he lived in a world without magic, he would still maintain an attitude of constant exploration of knowledge throughout his life. Money, fame, those things aren’t important to him. So, I find it strange that he would pay to have his thesis included in the archives.”

Of course, Vice Principal Bodoro couldn’t deny that after Sirius fell into that wrong path, his personality changed a lot. If he used to be a dedicated and serious mage, then many of his behaviors afterward seemed somewhat paranoid, including his swift rejection of Vice Principal Bodoro’s kind suggestion to switch to the elemental department to quickly improve his magical abilities. This was also one of the reasons why Vice Principal Bodoro was disappointed in him.

So, it wasn’t completely incomprehensible for Sirius to spend money trying to get his thesis preserved in the school’s archives.

“Let’s put that aside for now, Mr. Ian Gray. Do you really think Sirius’s thesis has practical value? In my opinion, it’s a paper full of delusions and absurdities, attempting to prove the non-existence of things in this world. It’s a pity, considering how perfect the proof process was.”

Vice Principal Bodoro sighed, Reiner’s visit reminding him of unpleasant memories.

“Whether it has practical value or not, we may need to find the thesis to determine.”

Reiner said, then added.

“But Vice Principal Bodoro, I believe practical value is not the only criterion for judging the excellence of a theory.”

His words made Vice Principal Bodoro frown slightly, as if he saw Sirius’s image from back then, arguing with reason.

“You and he are so alike, both young and talented, both with the same pure and straightforward view of the world.”

Vice Principal Bodoro wanted to say something, but in the end, he sighed softly and spoke in a low voice.

“Vice Principal Bodoro, I want to know, where is Sirius Odman now? According to the school’s records, his whereabouts are unknown, but the staff told me I could inquire with Sirius’s mentor, which should be you.”

Reiner didn’t say much about Vice Principal Bodoro’s evaluation. He asked, looking into the old man’s eyes.

But Vice Principal Bodoro shook his head.

“I don’t know either, Mr. Ian Gray.”

He took a sip of the black tea on the table, then continued.

“Sirius disappeared after leaving school, and he’s been missing ever since. He hasn’t contacted me in the past ten years.”

Perhaps to some extent, Vice Principal Bodoro felt guilty for Sirius. He hadn’t been able to pull him out of that quagmire, so after Sirius left school, he subconsciously didn’t inquire about Sirius’s whereabouts. Gradually, he buried Sirius in the corner of his memory until today, when Reiner rediscovered him.

“I guess he may have found a place to continue his research, because if he were going to give up, he probably would have done so a long time ago.”

Thinking of some things, Vice Principal Bodoro sighed.

“So, Vice Principal Bodoro, do you know anyone who knows Sirius’s whereabouts?”

Reiner asked again. Since Sirius had spent four years in school, he must have had some classmates or friends who might know his whereabouts.

“Well…”

Vice Principal Bodoro pondered for a moment, seeming to have some clues, but hesitated for a moment before falling silent.

After a while, he answered.

“Sirius doesn’t have many friends, and his relationship with classmates isn’t very good. The only one who might have some contact with him is probably Lord Percival.”

“Lord Percival?”

Reiner leaned forward, somewhat surprised by the coincidence of things.

“Yes, Lord Percival was also my student in the past. He and Sirius entered the academy at the same time, but Lord Percival only began to rise gradually after Sirius faded away.”

When Vice Principal Bodoro mentioned his son-in-law, his voice became noticeably brighter.

“These two had some exchanges when they were studying under me. Perhaps he knows, but in all these years, I’ve never heard Lord Percival mention anything about Sirius.”

“Is that so…”

Reiner nodded slightly, but his doubts grew stronger.