Noble was later than she intended when arriving at the Awakened Academy.
What else was new?
Actually, she hadn't been late the entire past week! That was because she had never left campus…
'Still, it was a good track record while it lasted.'
Without delay, Noble exited her dormitory and headed to her office. The nice thing about being in charge now was that she was never really late. Being the boss meant she arrived exactly when she was supposed to, at least that is what someone had told her once.
So Noble walked across the campus with confidence, greeting everyone she saw with a dignified smile and dip of her head.
In truth, this journey was unnecessary. Noble had discovered that the provost's position came with a small living quarters attached to the office. But Noble was reluctant to use it. So much change had happened recently, and she wasn't quite ready to give up another piece of comfort, even if it was for something more comfortable.
Plus, she liked the walk across the campus grounds, especially now that spring was so near.
It seemed the previous provost had a similar mentality about not living and working in the same place. The quarters looked minimally used and basically new. So unless Alden had renovated it for Noble's use, it had never been someone's true home.
'That makes me a little sad. Maybe I should live in it…'
Noble shook off the thoughts as she finally reached her destination.
The lobby outside her office smelled heavenly, like spring had already come. Noble inhaled deeply as she entered.
The man responsible for the fragrance was sitting behind the desk with the same clothes he had been wearing the day before. He glanced up at her.
"There you are, Provost Noble!" Const stood. "I had been expecting you earlier, but I guess I was mistaken. I will get a better handle on your schedule soon, I promise!"
The provost frowned, not only because Const had stopped calling her Professor, but also because he had inadvertently pointed out her tardiness.
"I am not sure you will ever get a handle on my schedule, Const. I certainly can't! I had some business in the Dream Realm this morning, but I still thought I might beat you to the office…did you leave it last night when I dismissed you?"
Const furrowed his brow. "How could I go when there was so much to learn and so many ways I could help you?"
"Oh my," Noble covered her mouth with her hand. "While I appreciate your commitment, we will have to have a discussion about work-life balance. Did you at least eat?"
Const grinned. "Of course. The cafeteria will deliver to the office any time, day or night. Fuel for the body will fuel the mind, after all."
"Food delivery?" Noble blinked. How did she not know about that?
Alden had seldom been seen in the staff cafeteria, but Noble had assumed he either didn't eat or went out for meals. In hindsight, having food brought to the provost while he worked made much more sense.
"It's all here in the manual. I read it overnight." Const nodded. "I can order you anything you like as well, ma'am."
"Manual?" Noble was beginning to feel like a parrot.
Const opened the desk drawer and pulled out a large book.
"Someone named Miss Mabel left it for her successor."
"Oh…" the new provost hadn't thought to look through the secretary's desk for help, but now that she thought about it, it made perfect sense.
The elderly woman had kept things running flawlessly for years. Alden could give big picture information, but the nitty-gritty procedures were all carried out by his wife.
"What else have you learned?"
Const opened the book and flipped through the pages.
"Miss Mabel had a very intricate system for bookkeeping. I will be able to take up where she left off, but I was wondering if I could update and change it to fit my style?"
"Such as?" Noble didn't want to agree to what she didn't understand.
"Look here. Miss Mabel alphabetized these forms for students who want to travel to the Dream Realm before the solstice, but it makes more sense to organize them by case number and recency. I can look up the name in the system and find the numerical match in a fraction of the time. This system will also let me know which cases require my most immediate attention because they will be at the top of my pile. See?"
The young man demonstrated by looking up an application to Awaken early and then pulling out the form with ease.
"This one is the oldest application that has not yet been approved. I can check in the system to see where it is and notify the proper authorities to get it back on track."
"That's very impressive. Well then, as long as the system makes sense to you, I am more than willing to give it a try. Just make sure you record any changes you make in case we decide they don't work later on…and lend me that book when you get a chance." Noble was very satisfied with her new assistant's work, but she also had things to attend to.
There was no time to sit and marvel at all she didn't know.
"Will do, ma'am. I have a few more things I would like to check on, and then it is all yours." Const smiled as he patted the book lightly.
Noble looked at it once more. It was an impressively sized book. 'Miss Mabel must have been preparing that for a while in hopes that her husband would retire. It's a shame he simply moved to a new position.'
She sighed. "I'll be in my office. Please let me know when you order lunch."
"Understood, but uh, Provost Noble?" The assistant's address stopped Noble in her tracks.
"Yes?"
"I really did expect you to be here earlier. I will not plan things so close to your expected arrival again. You can be sure of that." Const held up one hand as he promised.
"Const…" Noble resisted the urge to tap her foot in the air.
"Yes, ma'am. I will get to the point. I finished the tasks you gave me and even looked through and selected who I think will be a prime candidate to take up and continue your research." The assistant nodded happily.
"You've found an associate for me already? This is excellent news! Have them stop by my office at their earliest convenience." Noble wondered what made this person special. She was looking forward to finding out.
"He's already here, ma'am." Const scratched the tip of his nose.
Noble glanced toward the sofa in the corner of the room. No one was there. She furrowed her brow.
"Oh? I didn't see anyone waiting in the hall." The only person she knew who could successfully evade her detection was Ray, and he was in Ravenheart at the moment.
"He isn't in this office." The assistant's smile became strained. "He said he wanted to interview in the place where he would actually be working. He is waiting for you in your classroom."
"WHAT?!"