Last Gun Alchemist

Chapter 293: Orientation Week X

Cyrus’ eyes widened slightly.

"Isn’t the study of life and death considered part of the forbidden fields of Alchemy?"

Unlike his usual relaxed attitude, his expression turned serious as he looked directly at Professor Nine.

Ezra quietly glanced at Cyrus before shifting his attention back to the professor.

Professor Nine simply snorted.

"And what does a child like you know about forbidden studies?"

He waved his hand dismissively as though brushing away a meaningless concern.

"Even the Alchemy Path followed by House Derlis is classified as a dangerous path by many scholars."

He adjusted his glasses before continuing.

"As long as they don’t cross the established boundaries, they are permitted to continue using it."

His tone was firm.

"The same principle applies here."

Cyrus slowly looked toward the preserved organisms resting inside the glass containers.

"So... You aren’t trying to create a new life?"

Professor Nine immediately shook his head.

"No. The practical application is what has been prohibited. What we study here is theory."

He pointed toward the specimens surrounding them.

"We study the principles behind life. The structure of living beings. The relationship between life and death and the changes that occur between both."

His eyes gradually became brighter as he spoke.

"That knowledge is valuable far beyond biology, because it has enormous value in craftsmanship. Many technological breakthroughs can only be achieved by understanding how life functions...and how death changes it."

Ezra silently listened.

He’s not wrong.

His thoughts naturally drifted elsewhere.

From the memories of my previous life...

There were machines capable of making decisions without human control.

Artificial Intelligence.

Even advanced aircraft...

Artillery systems...

And autonomous weapons relied on it.

Unfortunately...

The memories I inherited only tell me what AI is capable of.

They don’t explain how it was truly created.

Neither the Book of Memories nor my previous life’s knowledge contains enough information to reproduce it.

I already have a good idea on the concepts, and I understand parts of its operation.

But understanding something...

And recreating it...

Are completely different matters.

His eyes slowly wandered toward another shelf filled with preserved nervous systems.

Perhaps...

If I study this field...

I might gain another perspective.

A firearm capable of acting on its own judgment...

Would no longer remain impossible.

Then another thought surfaced.

Now that I’m remembering AI technology...

I think I should also dive into the study of Nanotechnology too.

Ezra quietly returned his attention to Professor Nine before his thoughts drifted too far.

"When I first became this club’s supervisor..."

Professor Nine continued.

"...everyone here was only doing ordinary club activities."

He frowned.

"They were so boring. So, I changed everything."

He clenched his fist.

"We will study life. We will study death. And through that knowledge... we will create inventions capable of benefiting Britannia."

His voice echoed throughout the boot.

For a brief moment...

Nobody spoke.

Then...

Clap.

Clap.

Clap.

Latisha enthusiastically applauded.

Her face practically lit up.

"Beautifully said, Professor!"

She smiled with genuine admiration.

Ezra quietly looked at Professor Nine.

Cyrus remained silent.

Lucy also stared at the old professor without saying anything.

Only Professor Nine awkwardly cleared his throat.

"Ahem..."

He slowly stretched out one hand toward Latisha.

"That’s enough."

His expression became completely serious again.

Latisha immediately stopped clapping.

"...Sorry."

She smiled awkwardly.

Professor Nine nodded proudly.

"You may not know this... but most of the awards you’ve seen displayed throughout this club..."

He casually pointed toward the shelves behind him.

"...were earned because of my research."

His tone carried unmistakable pride.

Cyrus tilted his head.

"Wait... I thought you said..."

He subconsciously turned toward Latisha.

Latisha’s eyes immediately widened.

She repeatedly waved both hands.

"Shhh!"

Professor Nine slowly turned toward her.

"What’s that supposed to mean?"

He asked suspiciously.

"N-Nothing!"

Cold sweat appeared on the side of Latisha’s forehead.

She immediately lowered both hands.

Professor Nine narrowed his eyes.

After staring at her for several seconds...

He eventually snorted.

"Hmph."

He decided not to pursue the matter.

Instead...

A smug smile slowly appeared.

He turned back toward Ezra and Cyrus.

"So..."

He stretched out one hand toward them.

"What have you decided?"

His eyes carried obvious expectations.

Ezra quietly raised one hand.

"If I may ask something first."

Professor Nine nodded.

"Go ahead."

Ezra calmly looked around the club boot.

"The number of non-nobles in this club... is significantly higher than the number of nobles."

His eyes shifted toward Latisha.

"Isn’t that correct?"

Latisha hesitated.

"...Yes."

She admitted somewhat awkwardly.

Professor Nine folded his arms.

"Those noble children are simply cowards."

His voice carried open annoyance.

"They’re afraid their reputation will suffer merely because of what we study. When we aren’t even crossing the forbidden line."

He snorted.

"I have no use for cowards."

Lucy quietly blinked and Cyrus also smiled helplessly.

No wonder those two first-years were chased out earlier.

Both of them reached exactly the same conclusion.

After thinking quietly for a moment...

Cyrus slowly raised his hand.

"I’ll join."

Professor Nine’s eyes immediately brightened.

Ezra looked at him.

"You don’t mind becoming the center of attention after joining this club for the wrong reasons?"

Cyrus smiled faintly.

"I’m a researcher at heart."

He shrugged.

"And honestly... Being able to study something most people avoid... is an opportunity you don’t get twice. Also, I already suffer from negative attention, so adding another one doesn’t change much."

A trace of mischief appeared in his smile.

Professor Nine laughed loudly.

"Excellent!"

He lightly slapped Cyrus’s shoulder.

"That’s exactly the curiosity an Alchemist should possess!"

He spoke passionately.

"Alchemy exists to uncover mysteries. Yet the Alchemists of a few generations before and of this era..."

He sighed heavily.

"...only care about repeating knowledge that already exists."

His disappointment was obvious.

"In the glorious past..."

Professor Nine slowly walked across the laboratory, his hands clasped behind his back as though he were lecturing a classroom instead of speaking to only a handful of people.

"Long before the Duke Houses established their Alchemy Paths as the dominant Paths of Britannia..."

He glanced at the shelves lined with preserved specimens before continuing.

"Alchemists from every background, whether noble or non-noble, constantly sought to create new Alchemy Paths."

His voice carried a hint of nostalgia.

"Some of those Paths were dangerous, and a number of them brought disaster upon the Kingdom itself."

He gave a small shrug.

"Even so... Many of them contained extraordinary knowledge."

He paused for a brief moment before letting out a quiet sigh.

"Unfortunately, after the Duke Houses rose to full power, many of those Alchemy Paths were condemned. Some were sealed away. Others disappeared completely during the purge."

Ezra calmly continued where Professor Nine stopped.

"Only Rogue Alchemists still practice most of those Paths."

Professor Nine immediately turned toward him.

"Oh?"

His eyes lit up with surprise.

"So, you actually know something, kid."

A broad smile slowly spread across his face.

"I honestly thought you were another young craftsman whose entire world revolved around Steam Power Technology, Novarite Energy, and Crytalix Technology."

He chuckled softly.

"It seems your knowledge reaches much farther than I expected."

Ezra remained silent with his expression not changing in the slightest.

However...

His thoughts had already drifted elsewhere.

Well...

I did encounter a Rogue Alchemist who walked the Path of Bone Alchemy.

Ezra silently reflected on the battle.

Although Bone Alchemy isn’t officially regarded as a forbidden Path...

It remains one of the most feared Alchemy Paths in Britannia.

Its grotesque appearance alone was enough to make most Alchemists reject it.

Then there was the pain.

The suffering required merely to ignite the Alchemy was something very few people could endure.

However...

Those weren’t the true reasons it frightened people.

The real danger lay in its potential.

As a Bone Alchemist advanced through the ranks, their control over bones continued to evolve.

At the higher levels...

That control no longer remained limited to their own body.

If their Bone Manipulation reached its peak...

They could potentially influence the bones of another living being from a considerable distance.

Ezra quietly imagined such a scene.

An opponent standing dozens of meters away...

Only for every bone inside their body to suddenly twist out of shape without warning.

Just thinking about it made a faint chill crawl down his spine.

It wasn’t difficult to understand why the High Powers of Britannia had eventually chosen to ban the Path.

The philosophy behind Bone Alchemy itself was simply too dangerous.

Even so...

None of those thoughts reached Ezra’s face.

His expression remained as calm and unreadable as ever.

Professor Nine suddenly smiled.

"Since I happen to like the way you boys think..."

He proudly folded his arms across his chest.

"I’ll tell you something most people in the club don’t know."

His smile widened even further.

"I’m also a practitioner of an uncommon Alchemy Path."

Lucy’s eyes immediately widened.

"What?"

She looked at the professor in disbelief.

"And the Royal Academy still allows you to teach here?"

Even Cyrus looked genuinely surprised.

Before Professor Nine could answer...

Latisha stepped forward with a helpless smile.

"Hmm... Hmm... That’s simply how respected Professor Nine is within the academy."

She proudly gestured toward him as though introducing an honored guest.

"If you take the time to look into his achievements... You’ll discover that Professor Nine is one of the lead researchers at Britannia’s Research and Development Base."

There wasn’t even the slightest hint of exaggeration in her voice.

She genuinely admired him.

Professor Nine merely waved one hand.

"Don’t make me sound that impressive."

He laughed quietly.

"The path I follow isn’t particularly dangerous."

He adjusted his glasses before speaking again.

"I’m a Bio Alchemist."

The room became quiet.

Lucy only looked more confused than before.

She glanced from Professor Nine to Ezra, then toward Cyrus.

Unlike her...

Neither Ezra nor Cyrus appeared surprised anymore.

Instead...

Several things finally clicked together.

The preserved organisms.

The countless biological samples.

The research on life and death.

The strange atmosphere surrounding the laboratory inside the club boot.

Everything suddenly made perfect sense.

Lucy tilted her head.

"Bio Alchemist?"

She blinked curiously.

"What’s that?"

Professor Nine smiled faintly.

"You don’t need to trouble yourself with those details just yet, young maid."

His tone was much gentler than before.

"For now... We should stop talking about me."

His eyes shifted toward Ezra.

"What about you? After everything you’ve heard... Are you interested in joining this club?"

The laboratory fell silent once more.

Ezra quietly looked back at Professor Nine with his usual calm, black eyes.

His thoughts naturally began organizing themselves.

Hmm...The Craft & Research Seekers...

It’s an average-sized club.

Not too small.

Also, not among the largest either.

The club membership is balanced.

They have enough members to remain competitive without becoming overcrowded.

More importantly...

The number of highly influential members isn’t large enough for internal competition over Academy Points to become exhausting.

Speaking about academy Points...

His thoughts paused.

His eyes unconsciously drifted toward Lucy for only a brief second before returning to Professor Nine.

I need to properly organize my strategy for how I want to live my academy life.

Every decision I make from now on should move me one step closer to graduating amongst the top ranks.

This club possessed research opportunities unlike any of the others.

Plus, its philosophy can help me with many of the ideas stored inside the Book of Memories.

That alone makes it valuable.

Although...

His gaze rested on Professor Nine once again.

Bio Alchemist...

Is that truly his main Alchemy Path...?

Or is it only his secondary one?

Someone capable of researching life and death while holding such an important position inside Britannia’s Research and Development Base without any consequences...

The thought lingered for only a moment.

Then Ezra quietly dismissed it.

There would be plenty of opportunities to learn the answer later.

He looked directly at Professor Nine.

"I’ll join."

His answer remained as flat and straightforward as ever.

Latisha’s eyes immediately lit up.

"Wonderful!"

She clapped her hands together happily.

"Our club actually recruited two members from Duke Houses."

Her excitement became impossible to hide.

"The others are going to be shocked when they hear this."

A bright smile spread across her face.

Professor Nine also looked pleased.

"You’ve made the right decision, young nobles."

He gave a satisfied nod before casually turning around.

Without another word...

He walked back toward the laboratory table where the preserved organism and microscope waited for him.

His attention immediately returned to his research.

He lazily waved one hand behind him.

"Now that everything’s settled... You children can leave."

Although his voice sounded serious...

His eyes had already returned to the specimen beneath the microscope.

Latisha couldn’t help laughing softly.

"Come on. I’ll get both of you registered."

She quickly led Ezra, Cyrus, and Lucy back toward the reception area near the entrance of the club building.

There, she handed Ezra and Cyrus a Starlix Tablet.

Using the academy application developed specifically for the Craft & Research Seekers Club, the two officially entered their student details and completed their membership registration.

The process didn’t take long.

Once everything had been confirmed...

Latisha looked at the updated member list displayed on the tablet.

The smile on her face grew even wider.

"Our club..."

She looked up at Ezra and Cyrus with obvious excitement.

"...just gained two additional very interesting new members."

The moment those words left her mouth...

Ezra...

Cyrus...

And Lucy...

All turned toward her with curious expressions, waiting to hear what she meant.