* * *

I realized it on my way back to my room around evening, after finishing classes.

‘I’m screwed.’

I’d left Our Child’s First Magic Encyclopedia behind in the classroom.

‘I couldn’t even borrow it because it would leave a record, so I swiped it from the library’s disposal pile!’

I can guarantee that kind of luck will never come again. The very existence of a book at that level in Bedallua Academy was a miracle in itself.

‘More importantly, if anyone discovers the contents of that book, I’m in deep trouble. I can’t exactly conjure up a backstory about having a child out of nowhere.’

Checking the map, fortunately most students and staff had gone to the dining hall for dinner. I had to seize this moment to retrieve it. I quickened my pace.

The empty classroom was bathed in sunset light filtering through the windows, creating a languid atmosphere. I was about to grab the book and leave when something caught my eye.

‘Whoa, it’s overflowing.’

It was the Princess’s locker.

The sheer volume of letter envelopes stuffed inside was impressive to the point of being menacing.

Well, I suppose this is what you’d call youth. Everything that had happened lately was far removed from anything warm and fuzzy, so witnessing this kind of event made me feel a bit softened.

‘Sigh, you kids. Still, the kid said he’s not interested, so show some restraint.’

It was the moment I picked up a few letters that had fallen on the floor to stuff them back into the locker.

Suddenly, something like powder drifted across my vision.

‘Huh, fine dust? Has even this other world been infiltrated by them?’

Naturally, my nose started to tickle.

“Ah, ah, ah-choo!”

A powerful sneeze erupted from me. Ah, no matter how powerful you are, some things are simply impossible to hold back.

I’d already confirmed earlier that no one was around, so I sniffed freely without worry. I thought that was the end of it.

Until the next morning, when I encountered ‘Chris’ in the classroom.

* * *

“Huh, there are two professors…?”

Never had I been more grateful for my deep immersion in my character roleplay. Thanks to my body remembering before my mind, I could maintain my usual poker face even in this absurd situation.

In other words, I was screaming on the inside.

Think about it. I went to morning class as usual, and someone was already sitting in my seat. Someone who looked exactly like me.

From a Roleplayer’s perspective, my blood ran cold.

‘Don’t tell me it’s Real Chris?’

I couldn’t help but think this first.

‘…No. Calm down. That’s impossible. This body definitely belongs to the real Chris.’

That made sense because the dot representing the other person on the map was…

‘Red. And there’s no name attached. A hostile entity with no name.’

Just like the toad monster from before. In other words, that was the very entity I’d been afraid of being mistaken for.

A monster that mimics human appearance—commonly known as a Doppelganger.

Alright, now that I’d guessed its identity, my head cleared. All I had to do was tell the kids that I was the real one and that thing was the fake…

“What is the meaning of this?”

Excuse me?

“How dare a mere monster impersonate me. Utterly foolish.”

Hey, that’s supposed to be my line. This bastard dares to steal my thunder?

It even swept back its long hair with Chris’s signature irritated expression. I was so dumbfounded I couldn’t speak.

What is this? This feeling of someone completely ripping off the character roleplay I’d painstakingly built up all this time.

‘This is seriously disgusting.’

“A monster… You’re right! I suspected as much, but a Doppelganger monster at our Academy!”

“Though it’s hard to understand why it had to copy the professor of all people~ I wouldn’t have done that.”

And the kids seemed to be buying it, too.

Hey, you brats, I may not have treated you well lately, but if you fall for such a clumsy monster’s words, even ‘Chris’ would feel hurt!

I crossed my arms and launched a counterattack, as if the entire situation was beneath me.

“You bunch of shrews. I expected that no matter how stupid you all are, you’d at least be able to distinguish between a person and a monster. I was clearly mistaken.”

I stepped forward to the fake Chris… eh, let’s just call it the Doppelganger. Anyway, I stood right in front of it.

It felt like looking into a mirror, but I glared at its brow with full irritation. I saw that bead of cold sweat roll down just now, you bastard. Already scared?

Then, moving only my lips, I spoke.

“This is the final practical exercise of the semester. Choose the real one. Those who fail to answer correctly—”

“—need not return to the Academy next semester.”

The Doppelganger finished my sentence.

Haha, so it wasn’t just the type that mimics appearances. This was getting more infuriating by the minute. And it didn’t even bother to hide that fact.

I could hear the kids gulp in fear, but it couldn’t be helped. Given ‘Chris’s’ character roleplay, she wouldn’t suppress her temper even in front of a Doppelganger impersonating her.

But above all, the most fundamental reason was this.

‘I have to push this through before the kids start asking questions!’

Distinguishing between a person and a monster is incredibly easy. You just need to check whether they can use magic. The problem was that right now, neither the real one nor the fake one could use magic.

I couldn’t let them think, ‘Even if she’s a professor who doesn’t use her power recklessly, she wouldn’t use magic even in this situation? That’s a bit strange.’

Hence.

[Main Quest: Request of the Earth God 2-4]

[You have encountered a monster mimicking ‘Chris’s’ appearance. As the saying goes, when Doppelgangers meet, one of them must die, right? Dispose of it before it ‘completes’ itself and protect your position as Michael’s teacher. No one will help you, so you’ll have to do it yourself. Consider it a dress rehearsal.

Success Reward: Bob-haired Doll

Upon Failure: Surrender your position to it

Time Remaining: 03:00:00]

‘Sorry, my little chicks. Your teacher is lacking, so I’m putting you through this. Hang in there!’

In other words, I needed to stall for time until I could figure out how to deal with the Doppelganger.

“Close the front and back doors and block them.”

Today of all days, the Princess’s followers couldn’t be allowed to peek in. If rumors spread, everyone would come rushing, and the one disposed of might end up being me.

Fortunately, having set a serious tone earlier paid off, and the kids moved briskly. The Protagonist in particular looked like he was shooting actual lasers from his eyes.

“To target the professor of all people… I’ll kill it.”

Yikes, how bloodthirsty. You’re not saying you’ll kill the professor, right? I-I’m the real one, Protagonist! Don’t get confused!

And so, X-Class’s first class meeting—or perhaps trial—came to be.

* * *

‘She really loves taking the long way around instead of the easy path.’

Dolce Bright thought as she fiddled with her twin-braided hair. To turn even this situation into part of a lesson—rough might be one way to put it.

‘Though it does seem like things are about to get more fun thanks to that.’

Twin-braid’s leisurely gaze turned to the noisy crowd.

The members of X-Class had divided into factions, designating the one who had been in the classroom from the start as A and the one who came in later as B, each group supporting their respective candidate.

“Not a single person noticed anything was off before B entered, right? That’s because A is the real one.”

Nika of the A-supporting faction spoke with confidence, and Bell nodded.

“To add to Nika’s argument, A seems more agile than B… Thinking back to how she dodged when I tried to heal her last time, the real professor is A.”

From that sentence, Dolce read that Bell held grudges for quite a long time. Better not get on her bad side.

“That’s strange. Just look—A is obviously the monster and B is the professor. What on earth are you all seeing that makes you dare attach that person’s name to the other side?”

“Ah, seriously.”

Andante stepped in front of Michael of the B-supporting faction, who was speaking heatedly with a dangerous glint in his eyes.

“…But I feel roughly the same. I don’t know why, but A seems a bit clumsy, and B…”

Andante’s gaze drifted to the front of the classroom.

A and B sat with crossed arms and crossed legs. Their outward appearances were nearly identical, but A kept staring this way with sharp, piercing eyes, while B had an absent gaze, as if lost in other thoughts.

“Doesn’t that seem unlike the professor? That look of having absolutely no interest in us.”

Of course, that was something he could only say because he didn’t know the real Chris was lost in thought, trying to figure out how to deal with the monster. It sounded plausible enough, as the others nodded.

Dolce, who had been withholding her choice, opened her mouth.

“Instead of arguing amongst ourselves, why don’t we just ask them directly? If you want to find the real one, you ask a question only that person could answer.”

Of course, if it ended here, she wouldn’t be the great Dolce. She lifted the corners of her mouth into a grin and continued.

“And~ everyone’s had things they’ve been curious about regarding the professor, right? It’s perfectly fine to use this opportunity to sneak in a few questions.”