Chapter Text
A.N. Sorry no new chapter this week. Been wanting to write that Alisa omake what if for a change of pace. The (probably) final of my Jessica-Anelace-Alisa compilation.
Septian Calendar 1199
Have you ever been in that situation where someone is throwing a lottery with everyone's name and you're just sitting there praying to whoever would hear that your name wouldn't get picked?
Well, that's me, but I didn't even know the lottery exist. Yeah…a classic victim of truck-kun, and of course, isekaid and all into a JRPG I am not familiar with, by a rather unscrupulous god, picked randomly from the people that died at roughly around the same time.
Well, I say 'me', but rather…it's more of a memory I have of a man whose name I don't even remember anymore. But what I consider my identity my 'self' so to speak is a girl by the name of Alisa Reinford, the only daughter of the Reinford Family, who owns the leading weapon manufacturer company in what is probably a fantasy not-Germany Empire, the Reinford Group, usually abbreviated as RF for short.
And…fantasy not-Germany in the worst kind, considering the Empire's name is Erebonia. That is to say, Erebos, or 'Darkness'.
German aesthetic, having a name that means darkness…and considering the Empire's history—we've been in conflict with the Republic of Calvard over who got to annex this autonomous state named Crossbell for instance.
Yeah…that's the evil imperialist faction if I ever saw one.
I do wonder does that means the Reinfords, as the main weapon manufacturer of said evil empire are basically one of the main villain groups of this JRPG.
Though honestly, considering Grandfather and Mother…we're more of a neutral or maybe even good guys?
Grandfather is still the chairman of the RF Group, and he's…uh…he definitely has his issues, hitting on girls less than half his age.
But…put on anime terms, he's basically the perverted wise sage archetype. The Master Roshis and Jiraiyas.
He's not perfect, and I did try my best to curb his perviness, but being a child, he…didn't really quite take me seriously. Well, at least he did try to not be so public about it after I pouted and threw a bit of a tantrum of 'If you keep doing it, I'm not gonna like you anymore!'
Obviously, it's a bit cruel, but that's the sort of antics only a spoiled granddaughter of 8 years old could pull.
Well, that was about 4 years ago.
Still…despite that particular antics…Grandfather is…
Well…his heart is in the right place. He cares a lot about others. The employee, his family, and just people in general. He's been arguing a lot with Mother recently, but I know that if Mother were ever in actual danger, he'd sacrifice himself for his baby girl in a heartbeat.
He's also very idealistic in how he runs the company. I'm not exactly that involved in the company management yet, but from what I eavesdropped, Grandfather has been refusing several of Mother's suggestions that could reduce operating costs since that meant they have to lay off a lot of people. Also how Grandfather refused to budge on increasing our Company Social Responsibility spending.
Lately, there have also been some heated arguments about a government project Grandfather refused to take. Apparently, it's 'too dangerous of a weapon to be made'.
People are multifaceted like that.
So yeah…as long as Grandfather is in charge I doubt RF would ever build a weapon of mass destruction and become the 'merchant of death' like the Stark Industry from Marvel.
Mother though…
"Lady Alisa. You are taking quite a bit of time. Should I help you get ready after all?"
"No, I can dress on my own, Sharon! Leave me alone!" I shout back.
…Oh right, and then there's her. Sharon Kreuger.
She's someone Mother picked up about three years ago after…
Well, after Father died…
And I don't trust her one bit. Her circumstances are WAY too weird. Also, she looks like an important character.
And considering how Mother changed after the incident…
Well, it's not like there's anything I can do for now.
I finish getting ready and open the door, as Sharon starts to escort me to the dining room.
Sharon chuckles, "Fufu…Lady Alisa is such a smart girl, aren't you? Getting ready all by yourself."
"…I'm 12 Sharon, not six. And stop being so friendly with me," I replied tersely.
She always tries to baby me. You're not fooling me!
Sharon suddenly stops walking.
I turn around, "Sharon? What is it?"
She gives me a small smile, "Not at all. I'm…well, it's nothing, my lady."
…Ugh.
She always pulls this.
Every time I act cold towards her, she gives me that melancholic smile.
I know there's more to her story, but unless she brainwashed my mother, she…probably was not responsible for Father's death?
For how cold Mother is nowadays, I think she did love Father. The only one that brought her out of her shell, as Grandfather always say. So I don't think she would hire Sharon if…
Sharon speaks again, "Oh, please don't frown like that, my lady. I apologize if I've caused you undue distress."
…Ugh…that guilty look…
I sigh, "N-No…sorry, Sharon you were just doing your job. Anyway, let's get going. I'm sure you made delicious breakfast, like usual."
She perks up immediately, "Oh, of course! I even have your favourite apricot jam this morning!"
"L-Let's go then," I say as I turn around.
Ah…what am I doing…?
Oh well, Sharon is an exemplary maid—and she makes a mean apricot jam—I guess since I don't have any clear evidence, I probably shouldn't treat her too harshly, the presumption of innocence and all that.
Yes, that's it.
Definitely not because I feel sorry for her.
It's not like I secretly like her deep down or anything!
"…So I heard you vetoed our HR head from firing Ms. Adler…"
Grandfather immediately glares at Mother across the dining table as we have our breakfast, "Oh, for the love of—Don't you start this now. I'm not firing her, and that's final."
Mother places down her utensils as she sighs, "Why? Her performance evaluations have been poor for a few months now and show no sign of improvement. She barely fulfilled any of her KPIs."
KPI…Key Performance Indicator. They're basically a metric used to judge the performances of the company on various levels, in this case, meaning an individual employee.
Those are some business terminologies I picked up growing up in this family.
Grandfather shot back, "Yes…because she's also busy taking care of her brothers now that her dad is gone and her mother is sick. She'll be fine."
"We're a business, not a charity," Mother says calmly.
She then continues, "Besides, I've seen the profile for recent hopeful applicants, there are others who are in similar financial straits but with better talent who can easily replace her."
I have to be honest, Mother has SOME reasonable points, but she just needs to explain it in a…less bitchy way for a lack of better word.
"…We can hire that one too then," Grandfather replies.
Mother frowns, "We have more than enough A-Level staff for that position, hiring more is just a waste of resources. In fact, as I've been telling you, we can reduce operating cost—"
Grandfather cuts her off, "We're hiring that guy you mentioned, and not laying off anyone. That includes Natalie."
Mother snorts in response, "Natalie, is it? Oh, is that why you won't fire her? You can do whatever you want about your proclivity, but not in my company."
Grandfather lost his temper and yells at Mother, "That's not it and you know that, Irina! And I'm the chairman and founder of this company, so that is that."
Mother looks ready to shoot back.
…Okaay…time for me to mediate…As usual.
I turn to Mother, "Mother. I think that was uncalled for. You know as well as I do for as much as a flirt Grandfather is, he won't actually do something like that in a professional setting."
Mother crosses her arms, "Nothing would surprise me anymore with him…"
Grandfather glares right back, "Bah. How'd a snake like you end up with Alisa as a daughter, I'll never know."
I sigh, "Grandfather, you too. I think you know what Mother meant was that it's also unfair to deny the opportunity to other people in need who can do the job better for someone who is not contributing enough."
Mother nods, "We have a policy to not terminate employment without advance notice. She'll have time to find a new job."
Life is a zero-sum game, after all. It sucks, but that's just how it is. There's not enough things for everyone.
"She probably only thinks of our bottom line," Grandfather retorts.
I mean, he's probably right, but…
Mother replies, "…It doesn't change the fact that a company can only push idealism in so far as it makes a profit. That is simply how things work. If you want to play philanthropist, set up NGOs or charity foundations, not a business."
She then sighs, "…And that argument had just wasted enough time that I'm almost late to my appointment. Come, Sharon."
Mother stands up and leaves, with Sharon following behind after curtsying to Grandfather and me.
Grandfather clicks his tongue in frustration before continuing to eat.
After a while he sighs, "…Sorry you had to see that, Alisa."
"It's fine…you two argued almost every day nowadays. I'm used to it," I say with a small huff.
He gives me an apologetic look, "Mmph…sorry. Your mother is just…Eh…if only Franz is still here."
I nod, "…Mother did seem happier when Father was still alive."
Grandfather smirks, "Heh…he has the charm to make your mother less of an ice queen with no heart. Pretty popular with the ladies too, he really pulled off the suave intellectual persona, especially with that voice of his. Don't know why he settled for my workaholic of a daughter."
He then adds with a smile at me, "But I guess if he didn't settle for Irina, I wouldn't get such an adorable granddaughter. You're going to grow to be a beautiful lady, the boys will—"
"…Grandfather, if you're going to be weird about it, then maybe you shouldn't come to my match today," I cut him off with a small glare.
"A-Ahaha…just a joke. Come on, let me come…please?"
I sigh, "I guess you could. As long as you behave."
"Of course, I wouldn't do anything! Now if the tennis players were a couple of years older—"
"G-R-A-N-D-F-A-T-H-E-R…."
"Of course, of course, I'll behave, I promise."
After glaring at him for a bit more, I nod, "All right. But jokes aside…are you really all right to be going? From the way Mother's been acting it seemed like a busy period for RF right now."
Grandfather shrugs, "If she wants to be a workaholic, let her take care of the work while I spend time with my granddaughter. Besides, it's too sad for a girl to be in the finals with none of her family watching."
"It's…really not that much of a big deal. It's just tennis, and it's not like it's a major tournament anyway," I say.
Right. I took up playing tennis recently. It's quite popular in Remiferia, but still pretty new in Erebonia so there are no major tournaments or anything.
It was actually a sport in the other world too. The world of ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅, I mean. He even played a bit before quitting, he's just…not athletic. But I am, and since I have his memory, might as well try it out.
But just because I'm curious, and that his memory helped me a lot. Not because I sympathize with him and want to do something he failed at or something along those lines.
▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s memory would insist that I am just being a Tsundere. But no…I'm not a tsundere, absolutely not.
So what if I think I look good with twin tails? Just because it's the classic tsundere hairstyle doesn't mean they have exclusivity right to it. I just think it looks good, not because I'm a tsundere.
"Alisa?"
"Oh! Umm…what is it, Grandfather?"
"I was just saying that if you're finished, you should grab your things and we can go. You're the one that insisted on going this early."
"Yeah! Sure, let me just grab a few things."
"Sheesh. We're going to arrive at least an hour early you know, seriously you and Irina are the same about your obsession of not being late."
Blame ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅ he's the type of guy who could arrive at a competition earlier than the committee members. I'm not THAT bad.
"I'VE HAD ENOUGH!"
"Good. Because as I said in the meeting earlier, our major shareholders also have had enough of you."
"And so you'd gone behind my back, promised them to take that government contract building a weapon of mass destruction in return for supporting you as the new chairwoman…all so you can pull this little petty act on me!?"
"Oh, please, there is no element of personal feelings here. You're simply unsuited to be the chairman any longer. Sooner or later, they will demand you step down, either way."
"YOU ICY BITCH! Why did I even bother raising—"
Sharon suddenly pulls me away and drags me upstairs, "Lady Alisa, I think you'd better go to your room…"
"…Right," I say.
Grandfather had left the match early, apologetically saying there was an urgent business to take care of.
I didn't think much of it, but after the driver/bodyguard dropped me back to our penthouse, I returned to…that.
I've seen them argue countless times, but never…like that.
I…definitely won't be able to mediate that.
Grandfather…never insulted Mother like that.
I just…
As soon as I enter my room, I feel tired. So, so tired.
Not just from the tennis match, but also…
I drop my bag and throw my first-place trophy haphazardly into the bed as I lie down.
I probably should've seen that coming. Their relationship has become worse and worse for a while now. But I…
"It's fine, Alisa. We'll still be here."
"Right…see? Even your ice-cold mother showed emotion, don't you worry. It won't be the same without Franz, but…we're still family."
They promised…
After Father died they…
And now…
I know the two of them.
They're so stubborn. This time…it won't end with just some jabbing remarks. This…
"I'M LEAVING THEN! HAVE IT YOUR WAY!" I heard Grandfather shout loudly before the door was slammed, hard.
Yeah…just like I thought.
Will I ever see him again?
I suddenly feel someone wrapping their hands around me.
"It will be all right, my lady."
"Sharon…you're still here?"
"Well, I couldn't quite leave with you looking like that."
"Looking like wha—"
Oh.
It's just then I feel something wet on my face.
Sharon dutifully unfolded a handkerchief and started wiping my tears.
"They fought a lot, yes? I'm sure before long they'll patch things—"
I cut her off, "No It's different this time. You know that."
"My Lady, I—"
"Don't…try to lie, Sharon! I don't want to hear it!"
After a while, Sharon sighs, "…It is as you say, my lady."
I get off the bed and head to the door.
"My lady?"
"I'm talking to Mother."
"My lady, I don't think that's—"
"I just want to talk."
"…I'll prepare some tea then," Sharon finally acquiesced.
I nod gratefully before heading downstairs.
Mother sat in the living room, looking over some documents, a laptop in front of her. A scene I've seen so many times.
She…acts as if nothing is wrong and she hasn't just had an intense fight with her own father.
"Alisa. I heard you won first place. Good work," Mother says curtly as if it's more of an obligation.
No…
I know her enough by now. She just doesn't do with huge expression.
Ironically, I remember ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s mother being similar. In a less exaggerated anime fashion, of course. But…she was also not too emotive with high expectations of her son.
…That's why I understand her. And got along with her more than Grandfather gets along with her.
It's not that she completely doesn't care. She's just…not good at showing it.
Though, if I don't have ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s memory, it might be a completely different situation. I guess Irina Reinford is lucky that way.
I take a deep breath.
"…Tell me what happened with Grandfather."
Mother stops her work for a moment before looking at me. She finally nods, "Very well. If you didn't look like you're ready for a calm discussion I wouldn't bother, but looks like you are."
She gestures for me to sit.
I take my seat in front of her as Sharon comes in and sets the tea.
Mother nods at her, "Thank you, Sharon. Please leave us for a moment."
"Of course, Lady Irina," Sharon says before giving me a reassuring look as she leaves.
"I'm sure you have at least gathered this much, but your grandfather is no longer the chairman of RF," Mother says.
"So I've gathered, and something about the shareholders not wanting him to stay as the chairman?" I ask.
Mother nods, "Yes. As I've said this morning, he's too idealistic. If not now, once the shareholders find out he rejected such a lucrative deal from the government, they'll start moving against him. And in the meantime of doing so, our day-to-day operations would be disturbed, and stocks would fall."
She then sighs, as a flash of irritation passes through her face, "We start losing money, and then what will fund those side charity projects of his? Not to mention other ramifications."
"You're not…thinking of cutting down on RF's CSR programs, right? We're a weapon manufacturing company, so even on a pragmatic level, CSR helps us with good PR," I ask more rhetorically than anything. Mother is not stupid.
Mother looks surprised for a bit before nodding, "Yes, exactly. I'm against Father increasing our CSR spending, but I won't be cutting down unless I have to, it's bad PR to pull off from CSR, especially for a company as infamous as ours."
She then adds, "…You've good foresight for your age."
"How can I not get at least that much with you and Grandfather arguing all the time?" I reply sarcastically.
She snorts, "Well at least something good comes out of it."
I sigh, "I'm glad you find this amusing, Mother. Well, moving on…when you say ramifications, do you mean in regards to Erebonia's military?"
Mother nods again, "That stubborn old man didn't realize we're no longer that small contractor for gunpowder weapons the military sometimes hired. We are how the Erebonian military survives now, with the mechanization of the army we single-handedly fulfil the military's demand for orbal technology. If we fall into financial troubles and have to downsize, Erebonia's military would fall behind Calvard, and that will disturb the precarious balance we have between the two superpowers. "
"…If that happens, I think the government will bail us out long before we consider downsizing, though that might cause economic troubles in the long run," I say.
Mother looks at me oddly, "I'm surprised you even know the concept of bailout. But yes, precisely. At this point, we're simply a company that Erebonia can't afford to fail so the benefits of bailing us out probably exceed the risks, but it certainly is not ideal."
She then continues, "Your grandfather likes to be an idealist, but this is the reality of the matter. In the end, a company is a profit-oriented institution. It is simply how it is. Just as the military is an institution dedicated to killing people. It's not something one could avoid."
Yeah. She's right. I'm not sure of the tone of the JRPG world this world is based on, but at the very least, judging recent events like the Hundred Days War with Liberl, they're not shy about darker themes for the world setting, at least.
"And about that weapon of mass destruction Grandfather mentioned? I thought you said you don't want to disturb the balance between Erebonia and Calvard," I ask again.
"It's called a railway gun, you can look at the proposal later if you wish. I'm not conceited enough to imagine we're the only one capable of building it. If we could, Verne Company certainly could. And Calvard is as bit as aggressive as Erebonia. If one is going to be made no matter what, I would rather have it be made by the country where I live," Mother says simply.
…Pragmatic as ever, Mother. Though I suppose…that's reasonable enough from the amoral framework of business.
Mother continues, "Besides, I do think such things are necessities in the era we live in."
"You mean as a Mutually Assured Destruction deterrence?" I ask.
"Hmm? What did you say?" Mother asks me back inquisitively.
"Oh…I just meant…since you believed Calvard would have one of their own eventually, you were hoping that if both superpowers have weapons of mass destruction, they would be deterred from going to war with each other because they fear the aftermath," I answer.
"Hence, Mutually Assured Destruction as a deterrence. That's an apt name, I suppose, but yes," Mother says.
I'm…not sure how well that'd worked, actually. In ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s memory, such things only happened when it reached nuke level. But people have tried prior to that. The Gatling guns were such inventions, I think. They simply didn't work.
I don't know if railway guns are destructive enough for that.
But again…as Mother said, 'If one is going to be made no matter what, I would rather have it be made by the country where I live'.
Ugh…
I hate this.
I hate that I think she's actually reasonable to a point once I properly talk with her.
"If there's nothing else…I have work to do. Taking over as chairwoman requires a lot of things to be settled," Mother says as she starts going back to her documents.
"…Where did Grandfather go?" I ask her.
She stops.
Mother turns to me, "I don't know. But he'll probably send letters to you. None to me, of course. Do inform me what he's telling you in those letters. I don't want him to be a bad influence, after all."
So basically, I'm too stubborn to talk to him so please be my informant, Alisa. But it's just because I don't want him corrupting you not because I'm worried deep down. Trust.
Mother...unlike me, you're something of a Tsundere aren't you?
But seriously. Corporate life/work is so complicated in the upper echelon.
Mother and Grandfather fight a lot but they care about each other deep down, I know that. For that to be torn down because of company politics…
It's…
"…I really don't want to succeed RF…" I can't help but blurt out with a sigh.
"What was that?" Mother suddenly asks me.
"Er…well…"
Damn.
Mother continues, "It's your choice, Alisa. It is a shame since I think you show promise. But it is what it is. Your life is your choice, so what is your plan?"
Eh? Plan…er…
Mother glares at me lightly, "I hope you did not say that on a whim without a plan."
Oh, come on! I'm twelve!
Ugh. But I know Mother, if I say I have no plan she'll be somewhat disappointed and be less open to such suggestions in the future, dismissing it as another whimsy.
And so I say the first thing that came to mind.
"…A medical doctor?"
"…I see. Well, I suppose you have always been rather interested in medical technology. If you can pass the entry test for the top medical school, I have no complaints."
That's…mostly due to curiosity from ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s memory. But I guess I'm off the hook for now?
Well…Thanks, ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅,I guess…
Septian Calendar 1202
…That off-the-cuff comment I made to Mother ended up becoming a bigger deal than I thought.
She ended up challenging—or is it goading?—me to actually pursue a medical career.
So, because I'm stubborn and prideful like that—kinda like her, I begrudgingly have to admit—I decided to might as well go for it to rub it on her face.
And so, I studied real hard to skip grades for the obligatory basic education by the Septian Church and entered St. Ursula Medical College at 14 years old.
Heh. Even Mother was surprised. Take that, Mother! It was such a great feeling not just surpassing her expectations but leaving her flabbergasted.
That's…probably not the best motivation to be a medical doctor. But hey, ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s motivation basically was, 'I'm smart enough to get a scholarship for medical school. And it seems like a respectable job with good pay, so…'
So yeah, at least I'm better than that guy. I mean, I actually like treating patients…I think. Well, it's my second year still, so I'm not anywhere close to treating patients yet. But we are allowed to shadow the doctors and interact with patients a bit.
And I do like interacting with patients. ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅ don't really like it. He has acceptable bedside manners because that's part of the job, but well…
Anyway…better pay attention. Dr. Belldine is one of the strict ones.
"Lytton! Can we prescribe analgesics to appendicitis patients?"
"Yes sir…?" Lytton—a fellow student—answers him.
"You can indeed, but if you're not asking me to clarify something else before that, you're in the wrong. So your answer is wrong."
Right…the answer is…
"Alisa, care to answer?"
"Before or after diagnosis is ensured, doctor?" I ask.
His lips curved into a small smile, "Before."
"You can but it's not recommended. Because it could interfere with diagnostic when doing the Pedersen scoring, sir."
Pedersen scoring is basically the scoring we use to determine appendicitis. In ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s world, it's called Alvarado score since the creator's name was Alvarado, here it's Pedersen but it's pretty much the same.
One of the prominent signs is pain. Such as the classic right lower quadrant when touched. Prescribing analgesics can dull the pain to the point you'll have false negatives.
Doctor Belldine nods, "Yes, it's called the Masking Phenomenon. As usual, I see you've been reading and keeping up with new developments. Good work."
I actually haven't read that, but…
Well, I cheat with ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s memory.
The lesson then continues.
After it ends, I then take my lunch in the cafeteria—students have free lunch!—along with two of my fellow students, Lytton and Flora.
We sat together during the orientation and just sort of became friends, I guess. Obviously, they're about 4 to 5 years older than me, but it works out, sort of.
"…Can you believe him!?" Lytton starts complaining. He then starts to mockingly imitate Doctor Belldine, "You can indeed, but if you're not asking me to clarify something else before that, you're in the wrong. So your answer is wrong."
"…He even said it's new! That's not in the textbook! If it was anyone else except our genius prodigy here, they'd probably say the same!" Lytton finishes.
"Haha…it could be worse. He was fair, your answer was technically wrong," I say with a shrug.
"Yeah, easy for you to say, Alisa."
I mean…
I shudder every time I remember ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s memory. The doctors here can be strict, but they won't abuse their privilege. ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅ had to do stuff like pick up the senior doctor's laundry or pick up their kids from school or even help them with their side businesses when he was a student/intern.
It's anime JRPG so I guess the medical school is a very idealized version? Well, thank Aidios for that.
Flora rolls her eyes, "Oh shut up, Lytton. Alisa's right, Doctor Belldine was just being fair. Maybe if you'd read more you can answer it."
Lytton turns to her, "Erm…I'm pretty sure you had a look of confusion when Doctor Belldine said my answer was wrong, Flora."
"…That's beside the point," Flora says with a sigh. She then turns to me, "But yeah…I didn't know that part about Masking Phenomenon, actually. Alisa, where'd you read that? I'd like to read it too,"
Uh…oh crap.
"Ahaha…uh…I don't remember off the top of my head. Let me check again and I'll get back to you, okay?" I say with a chuckle.
Flora sighs, "Sure…so like usual. You always pull stuff like that without knowing exactly where you read that. Well, I guess you must read a lot, so…"
"Yeah…something like that," I reply.
I mean I do read a lot but for a lot of these kinds of stuff, it's more that I inferred it from ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s memory.
As we were eating, Gwen, another student and Flora's roommate approached us.
"Uh…hey, Alisa! Dr. Guenter was looking for you."
I turn at her, "Huh? Gwen? Do you know what he wants?"
Before Gwen can answer, Lytton turns to me incredulously, "Dr. Guenter? What'd you do? It's Doctor Joachim Guenter! He's so chill he never gets students in trouble. Heck, pretty sure as long as you turn in all the assignments he'll pass you."
"Wait, really?" I ask him.
Lytton shrugs, "Well, that's…what the seniors said. He's pretty liked by students for a reason. But I mean…seemed to check out, he asked a couple of us guys to go fishing with him. That's why I didn't give much thought about that paper assignment he gave us. I just wrote what I can."
WHAT!?
"…I lost so many hours of sleep because of that paper! Why didn't you tell me!? Ugh!" I complain.
"I…uh…thought you just want to turn in the best paper or something…" Lytton replies.
I want to tear my hair out from frustration.
"I mean I do…but… never mind!"
Flora turns to me, "Oh, it's fine. You're all the better for it, I turned in my best work too."
"Yeah…and you kept me awake too because you keep the lights on while you work revising late into the night," Gwen replies sarcastically.
She then turns to me, "Well, anyway…I think it's actually because of that paper. It's not bad, I think."
I nod, "I guess I'll go see him then, thanks."
After I finish eating, I head to Doctor Guenter's office and knock.
"Dr. Guenter? It's Alisa."
"Oh, right! Come in, Alisa!"
I open the door and enter his office
Dr. Guenter smiles at me jovially as he puts away the fishing gear he's been maintaining, before gesturing for me to take a seat.
"So…I want to talk to you about the paper you submitted to me."
I nod, "Of course, Doctor."
He waves me off, "Ah…no need for that polite formality you guys give to the rest of the doctors. As you can see…I'm pretty a relaxed guy myself."
"Right…I can see that," I say as I look around his office. There are a couple of fishprints on the wall, presumably fishes he caught.
He smiles, "Oh, you like fishing?"
I shake my head, "Not really. Well, it's more that I haven't tried it."
That's more of the main protagonist thing—whoever that is, since I haven't seen anyone that fits the bill. I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to be one of the heroines though.
Dr. Guenter nods, "I see. Well, if you're interested, I'm going on a fishing trip this weekend. Feel free to join in. There'll be some other students too."
Hmm…Is he…? Nah, he looks a bit too plain for a protagonist. Not giving out enough JRPG protagonist energy.
"Thanks, Doctor. I'll…think about that. But, umm…if you can get to why you call me here…? I still have class after lunch," I reply.
"Right. Of course," he says.
He continues, "Well, first of all, I'm impressed with how detailed you've explained the methodology. It's a literature review paper, after all. Usually, the methodology is short for lit. review since it's basically, well…read some journal articles."
Oh right…out of habit from from ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s memory. I wrote it using the PRISMA protocol. That's a standardized reporting system for literature review in medical academic journals, mostly.
I answer, "Oh, I…only thought that since we're practising evidence-based medicine, an academic paper should be reproducible so people can verify the findings."
Doctor Guenter nods, "Yes. That's actually the problem with Literature Review since the methods of selecting which articles you would include differ for every writer, it's hard to reproduce and thus verify accurately. That's why most journals only accept lit. review from renowned scholars so they know their methodology can be trusted."
Yeah, so the same thing in ▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅'s world. That's part of why the PRISMA protocol was developed, so we have a standardized protocol.
He continues, "But it seems your methodology here…is very clear and detailed that I think it can be proposed as a standardized model. Did you think of this yourself?"
Well, I…stole it from PRISMA AKA Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses.
"Ah…well…I sort of had the idea from reading some of the RF group reports. They have precise templates there, so I thought about how to translate that protocol to academic paper."
I hope that's not too far-fetched.
"Haha, I see…perhaps we should call it the Reinford protocol then?" Doctor Guenter jokes.
"Uh…I think we could think of something that is more relevant to the actual protocol," I reply.
I would feel WAY too guilty to just steal that and then have it named after my family's name. At the very least, I'll try to make sure the name stays the same.
Doctor Guenter nods, "Well sure. Anyway, with some refinement I think we can publish this paper. I'll contact a friend of mine in Remiferia. She's a renowned professor, so if we have her name here too it'll definitely cause a splash in the medical academia."
"Oh…um…well, I'm flattered, Doctor. Thank you," I say.
He chuckles, "As I said…it's impressive. But the more impressive part…is one of the references you included in the review."
He then flips my paper into the reference parts and points at one of them.
That's…
'Potential applications of 'Silver Dew Orb' artefact-derived technologies in various fields: A CAPEL modelled simulation head-to-head comparisons against conventional technologies by Professor Albert Russel'
I turn to Doctor Guenter, "Well...that one is a new paper published by Professor Russel of Zeiss Central Factory. It's not strictly medical, but the medical field is included in the comparisons. What about it?"
Doctor Guenter nods, "Interesting, right? I heard a pair of bracers excavate a new artefact that can warn the users of dangers. The Church asked Professor Russel to take a look at it for a bit, and so he wrote possible new technology derived from it."
"Yes…in the medical field, he proposed a possible new diagnostic tool. If it is possible, that would be quite the breakthrough so since it's related to my topic, I included it," I reply.
He smiles at me, "Yes. And from what I see here in your paper, you actually paraphrased Professor Russel's paper instead of just regurgitating it."
"Well if I didn't do so, that'd be plagiarism," I reply.
He looks at me oddly, "Yes…but paraphrasing implies you actually understand the material. And from how you write that section it seems you do understand it."
"Yes…?" I ask unsure.
I mean…I don't quite get how it'd be feasible, but I understand enough what Professor Russel wrote.
Dr. Guenter chuckles, "Oh, you don't get it at all, do you? You're talking about the possible workings of an artefact here. The most acclaimed scientists needed PhD to understand that."
"Huh? It's not that complicated, surely?"
He shakes his head, "It's not about the level of complication. But how artefacts work is just not something our mind can easily comprehend. You know only Professor Epstein fully comprehends how an artefact works, right?"
"Well, yes but…this isn't…I mean…Professor Russel himself admitted that he still didn't fully understand how the Silver Dew Orb works. These are very rudimentary hypothetical explanations," I reply.
He chuckles, "Haha…even that requires effort. I needed a few days just to understand the section YOU wrote, I definitely can't understand Professor Russel's paper in the time I gave you to write this paper."
Huh?
Wait, what?
"So…what does that mean?" I ask him carefully.
He smiles cheerfully, "Well…I think that means your mind is just somehow able to comprehend these things more easily than the rest of us. And I find that very interesting, don't you?"
A.N. Btw everyone here are canon characters. Including the students and Doctor Belldine