Over the past two years, that girl had saved quite a few people from them.

If they were all on the same side, they would surely have adored such a kind girl. But unfortunately, they were enemies. The more likable her qualities, the more easily they became a weakness.

"If you ask me, since we’re going big, we might as well go all the way," a female Witch Hunter said.

The logic was staring her in the face, plain as day. Just killing a Tier Five High-tier Wizard wouldn’t be enough to secure her current position, much less promise a better future. ’If *I* were the Vice Director...’

"I’d find a way to take down that whole town."

The crowd: "?"

"What town?"

"You’ve got some nerve."

Those not in the know had no idea what the woman was talking about.

Those who were understood just thought the woman was incredibly audacious.

She even dared to target Alola Town. Was that a place ordinary Witch Hunters like them could even touch?

Only when the large screen up front lit up and Zajik slowly walked onto the stage did the crowd finally quiet down, ceasing their discussions and speculations about the objective.

They all assumed the Vice Director had summoned them for a mission—and an important one at that.

But when Zajik finally spoke, they realized they were mistaken.

A resplendent maze appeared on the screen, looking quite grand at first glance. But once it was magnified, they saw that the walls of the maze were actually covered in math problems.

"From now on, you’re not going anywhere. You will stay here and do one thing—"

Zajik said in a heavy tone, "I don’t care how you do it, but you will solve every single one of these problems. Don’t you dare miss a single one!"

The crowd: "?" 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

’What the hell? Solve problems?’

"Tell me, what is the most important part of solving a problem?" Zajik asked.

The question seemed to flip a switch on a young man in the front row. He shot up without a second thought and answered, "The methodology."

’As long as the methodology is correct, any similar problem can be solved with ease.’

"Excellent. Sit down."

Zajik gestured for him to sit down, then turned to the crowd. "So, you won’t just be solving these problems; you’ll be learning the methodology behind them."

"I’m giving you half a month."

"In half a month, I will issue a new test. Anyone who fails to achieve a passing score in the allotted time..."

"...can forget about participating in any future operations. You can go work on an assembly line instead!"

The Witch Hunters: "???"

They never would have guessed that at a time like this—right after he’d been summoned by the Director and had just returned from the church, a time when he desperately needed to redeem himself—Zajik would call a meeting for the sole purpose of... studying.

And they were studying the most terrifying subject of all: math.

It was practically a death sentence.

’Have the internal regulations changed?’

’Since when did being a Witch Hunter require math skills?!’

To make matters worse, some blockhead had to stand up and answer "The methodology."

Now, not only did they have to study, they had to take a test!

It was just like back in school when the teacher would assign homework, and there was always that one idiot who’d complain it was too little or too easy, getting the assignment doubled for the entire class.

It was like being thrown back into their school days.

"Don’t ask me why. You’ll do as I say!"

Zajik said, glaring coldly at the chattering crowd.

This was the Witch Hunters’ code.

Obey orders in all matters. Don’t ask questions you’re not supposed to ask.

That sentence was the only thing that confirmed they were, in fact, Witch Hunters. Otherwise, staring at the countless math problems on the big screen, they would have sworn they’d been transported back to school and had somehow angered a terrifying math teacher.

But in reality, Zajik was far more terrifying than any math teacher.

In most parts of the country, schools weren’t particularly strict. The focus was on creating a good learning environment and cultivating students’ "self-motivation." If you really didn’t want to learn, no teacher would force you; you’d just drop out or repeat the grade if you couldn’t graduate.

But Zajik was different.

He was their superior, and a superior’s words were commands.

They had to study whether they wanted to or not. They had no choice.

And they couldn’t even complain, or it would be considered insubordination.

The only thing they could do was shoot resentful glares at the "star student" in the front row who had so eagerly answered the "teacher’s" question.

’Methodology?’

’Methodology, my ass!’

’Thought there weren’t enough problems on the screen, did you?’

’Are you nuts?!’

The young Witch Hunter felt terribly wronged. He’d only just graduated; it was a conditioned reflex, honestly. Who could have known the Vice Director would pull a stunt like this?

Besides, from the Vice Director’s demeanor, it was obvious he wanted to raise everyone’s overall education level and weed out anyone who’d slipped through the cracks of basic schooling. The test was inevitable, whether he’d answered or not.

And that was, in fact, the truth.

But since someone else was conveniently drawing all the animosity, Zajik certainly wasn’t going to explain anything.

"I’ve already arranged things with the cafeteria. Someone will deliver three meals a day to you. Just focus on your studies."

Witch Hunters with Magic Power, much like Wizards, typically ate only two meals a day to facilitate Meditation. But the Vice Director had arranged for three, implying that even their Magic Power Cultivation was to be put on hold. Everything had to make way for math.

"Help me, I’m hopeless at math!"

"I’ve been abandoned my whole life. My parents thought I was a clumsy oaf and had another kid for a do-over. My girlfriend thought I was dumb and left me for some other guy. My friends saw how dumb I was and sided with them... Only math has been there for me, consistently."

"If you don’t get it, you just don’t get it. It doesn’t matter how many times you look at it, you still won’t get it."

Some began to pray.

"Oh my God, could you please help me with these problems..."

"Mine too! I’ll renew my premium faith subscription for another year."

Others started to lose their minds.

Few who engaged in Magic Power Cultivation were normal to begin with, and math was a trigger point. One touch and they’d go into a frenzy.

A few, knowing there was no escape and that they had to study, had already picked up pens and paper. With bloodshot eyes, they stared at the problems on the screen, furiously copying them down while muttering curses under their breath:

"You fucking math problems, I’ll copy you ’til I die!"

"I’m gonna copy every last one of you, copy you until my hand falls off!"

Zajik, on the stage, paid no mind to the grumbling and wailing crowd. After delivering his final line, he left the conference room.

He had one more thing to do.

Before coming to the conference room, he had gone online to confirm whether these problems even had solutions. He discovered they almost all came from a single math problem book.

And so... the already popular problem book became a bestseller.

Zajik made a call, ordering his subordinates in the regions under his jurisdiction, like Holkaydo and Old Segal City, to go to every bookstore and buy up all copies of the book.

That wasn’t enough. He also contacted the publisher to request a rush print order.

Even *Moon and Knight* had to be put on hold.

It wasn’t just the Witch Hunters in the conference room who needed the book; the police departments in every district did as well.

And so it continued.

「Three days later.」 All police officers received a copy of *Joyful Mathematics* from their superiors.

The police: "???"

Suddenly assaulted by long-dead memories, many were left dumbfounded. ’Did the chief get driven mad by math,’ they wondered, ’and now he wants to share this ’joy’ with all of us?’

’Is he trying to make us go to grad school?’

Little did they know, their superiors were just as frustrated.

Because they had to study, too!

Without a doubt, this was destined to be a bloodbath.

Only this storm wasn’t stirred by clashing swords or Magic Power, but by knowledge.

Or, more accurately, by Sean.

It was currently the Day of Abstinence, so the police were already swamped. But their superiors had declared: "Live and learn." Study wherever your patrol takes you.

This "studying" even came with a deadline. The police had no choice but to carry the books with them everywhere. When they knocked on doors for late-night inspections, residents would open them to find officers solving problems on their doorsteps. This led people to believe that a new era of mathematics was dawning, prompting them to rush to the bookstores to buy the book as well.

Those with children had their kids work on it; those without did the problems themselves, all eager to ride the wave of this national math craze.

As a reporter in charge of intelligence gathering, Little Yisha was the first to get the news.

After returning to Alola Town, she relayed the news to Sean at Elvire’s suggestion. Sean, who was in the middle of drinking water, nearly choked and almost sprayed it all over Yisha’s face.

’...Seriously? They suffer one setback and they have to go this big?’

Sean had expected Zajik to come up with a counter-plan, but he never imagined he’d be this extreme.

Yisha couldn’t stop laughing. The whole bunch was ridiculous, especially Zajik, who had organized this "study movement." It really felt like Sean had driven him completely insane with anger.

But amid her amusement, Yisha also felt a sense of admiration for Sean.

She had been there that night, and she’d seen Sean conjure the problems with his Magic Power firsthand.

No wonder those orderlies had been trapped. Who could have imagined that Magic Power could be manifested in such a way?

If it had been them, the outcome likely would have been the same.

"I still can’t wrap my head around how you did it," Yisha said sincerely. "It was truly amazing."

Her math skills weren’t actually bad. Though she’d forgotten most of it after graduating, the foundation was still there; a quick review would bring it all back. But she had no idea how to integrate mathematics into Magic. The most she could do was use her Magic Power to form the characters of a formula, but they were just empty shapes, devoid of any real effect.

"You think that was amazing?"

Sean gave her a mysterious smile. "I can do something even more amazing. Want to see?"

Yisha’s eyes lit up. "Yes!"

...