Episode 1022
Episode 1022
30 Minutes Later.
Alsicle barely managed to persuade Erindarbel and received a three-story mage's villa located in the capital as a gift.
Erindarbel still seemed uncomfortable and kept pressing the issue.
"But Lord Pengerin. Giving such a materialistic and thoughtless gift to a junior who will bear the responsibility of the Empire's future is far too irresponsible..."
"Wardanaz! Let's go!"
Pushing the junior mage's back, Alsicle quickly got up from his seat.
If they stayed any longer, they might have had to listen to the archmage's reprimands until tomorrow.
"Lord Alsicle. I truly admire you."
"Why suddenly?"
When Lee Han spoke with eyes full of respect, Alsicle looked puzzled.
"Thank you so much for securing the villa in the capital for us."
"...I appreciate the admiration, but couldn't you admire me for something else?"
As the two hurriedly walked away to leave, they spotted a group of students in familiar attire in the distance.
At first glance, they looked like a band of beggars in tattered clothes, but upon noticing their staffs and insignias, one would belatedly go 'Ah!'—it was the Einrogard students.
"You guys... What are you doing here?"
Lee Han asked in a surprised voice.
Considering the date, Einrogard's semester had ended, but he hadn't expected all his friends to be in the capital.
Was there some major event happening in the capital that Lee Han didn't know about? 'Maybe there's a magic competition with huge prizes sponsored by an anonymous benefactor...' "We came to rescue you."
"We heard the Headmaster took you away, so we came."
"...Ah."
At his friends' answers, Lee Han snapped out of his fantasy.
"Thanks, everyone. But it's already over. Didn't take long at all."
"What method did you use to wrap it up so quickly?"
Giselle asked, sounding like she couldn't comprehend it.
Excluding rare exceptions like Gainando's mother, persuading the Empire's furious sponsors wasn't that easy.
Especially when it came to Einrogard, many had grown to detest it.
"By any chance..."
"!"
As Giselle trailed off, Lee Han was startled. 'Did she figure it out?' That underhanded trick of the Headmaster's?
"Did you negotiate using Professor Verdus as leverage?"
"Gasp. You're sharp? I never thought of that method."
"As expected of Wardanaz!"
"...No."
Lee Han firmly denied it.
Honestly, it was a good idea, but he hadn't used that method.
That was a last resort for truly desperate times.
"Let's hear how you persuaded them later. Since we're all here, why don't we visit the villa?"
At their friend's suggestion, the students readily nodded.
Staying at the Wardanaz family's villa would be far more comfortable than splitting up to find separate lodgings. 'Huh? But did the Wardanaz family even have a villa in the capital?' Yoner tilted her head in confusion.
Unlike other great noble families of the Empire who owned mansions in every region for lodging during visits, the Wardanaz family, who rarely engaged in external activities, were said to have almost no fixed residences prepared.
Yet, a villa?
Was it an exception because it was the capital?
"Lee Han. Did the Wardanaz family always have a villa in the capital?"
"Hoho. Good question."
At Yoner's question, Lee Han flashed a confident smile.
It was the kind of delighted smile one would have if they'd been waiting for someone to ask.
"Actually, I received it as payment for this request."
"..."
Care to elaborate a bit more???"
* * *
Alsicle examined the villa's exterior and let out a low whistle.
"Oh. Not bad at all."
"......"
"......"
However, the other students didn't seem to agree.
First, the path connecting the main gate to the main building was completely blocked by thick, overgrown plants as dense as a jungle.
In a typical mansion, one would expect a flower garden, backyard garden, or greenhouse in the front or rear yard for leisurely strolls and sightseeing, but this mansion seemed to take a slightly more... proactive approach.
The paths and greenhouses were completely indistinguishable.
And the main building behind it wasn't exactly in pristine condition either. From the towering chimney rising above the third floor, black smoke intermittently spewed forth alongside pale, ghostly wraiths. The second-floor windows, once framed by balconies, were now shattered beyond recognition.
If one listened closely, eerie, unidentifiable screams seemed to echo from somewhere within the mansion.
"...Is this really a vacation mansion?"
"W-well, maybe it's because it's the Wardanaz family's..."
Not only the students of the Blue Dragon Tower but even the relatively thick-skinned Black Turtle Tower students wore expressions of disgust.
At this point, calling it a vacation mansion would be an understatement—it was practically a haunted ruin.
"What's wrong with all of you? This is actually pretty decent."
Alsicle, the only one who didn't seem to understand their discomfort, glanced at the Einrogard students in confusion.
"I haven't traveled the entire Empire, but I doubt this kind of vacation home is in fashion anywhere..."
"Huh? Sure, for a normal vacation home, that's true. But this is a vacation mansion used by a mage."
For a typical noble or wealthy merchant, aesthetics and comfort would naturally be the priority in a vacation mansion.
But for a mage, a vacation mansion was just a substitute for a workshop.
Considering that, this was actually quite well-maintained for a mage's workshop.
"First of all, the building's structure is intact, and not a single part of it—from the front gate onward—has mutated into some grotesque creature. That makes it easy to clean up. A few days of tidying, and it'll be a perfectly usable magical workshop."
The penguin beastman mage's confident attitude slowly infected the students.
The more they listened, the more plausible it sounded.
...Was that really the case?
"Well, if you think of it as a building within Einrogard's territory, it's actually pretty decent."
"That's true. Let's not say anything too harsh—Wardanaz might get hurt."
The friends silently agreed to avoid badmouthing the family's vacation mansion in front of Lee Han.
No matter how thick-skinned a friend might be, if their family's choices became the subject of ridicule, it could still wound them.
"Wardanaz. This mansion has... a very unique beauty to it."
Adenart carefully chose her words to avoid hurting her friend's feelings.
Lee Han, who had been happily surveying the mansion, blinked in confusion at the princess's sudden remark.
'Did Adenart want it too?'
Now that he thought about it, that was possible.
Adenart was a sharp-minded friend—she must have recognized the boundless potential of a mansion located in the capital.
The state of the mansion's exterior didn't matter. What mattered was its location.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness. But I didn't force it out of anyone—the Grand Mage forcibly gave it to me."
"...?"
Adenart tilted her head, not understanding what Lee Han was talking about.
"By Grand Mage... do you mean the Headmaster?"
"No? I mean Lady Erindarbel."
"...Mother gave you this mansion?!?!?"
For once, Adenart actually jumped in shock—a reaction so unlike her usual emotionless demeanor that it was hard to believe.
Lee Han felt slightly guilty at her reaction. It seemed she had wanted it far more than he'd realized.
"Actually, it's not that Lady Erindarbel irresponsibly gave it away—there was a complicated situation involving dozens of lives..."
"Why would Mother give you such a worthless gift?! I don't understand!"
"...I-it's not that bad, is it?"
Perhaps the shock from Adenart's words was greater than expected, because Lee Han reflexively dropped formal speech.
Worthless?!
But the princess refused to back down.
"But Mother has always given much more meaningful and significant gifts to junior mages. There must have been some mistake. I'll go speak to her directly. How could Wardanaz receive such a paltry gift?"
"No, no, no! It's fine! It has meaning! Everything has meaning!"
Fearing that Alsicle's efforts might go to waste, Lee Han hastily blocked Adenart's path.
Adenart widened her eyes in surprise and asked,
"You say it has meaning... What kind of—"
BANG!
"AAAAAAAH!"
Gainando, who had gone down to check the basement pantry, came flying back up with a scream.
He tumbled and rolled across the floor.
"What? What happened?!"
"T-there's a mage's ghost in the basement...!"
"!"
Adenart was utterly shocked.
Was this the meaning behind her mother's gift? 'What in the world does this mean?'
"So you're saying you opened the basement pantry door, and a mage's ghost appeared and chased you out?"
"Yep."
"An undead? A curse?"
"It could be another type of magic that resembles a ghost. Enchantment magic could mimic something similar."
"Maybe the prince just imagined it. There are mages who disguise themselves as ghosts."
"Why? Why would anyone disguise themselves as a ghost?"
Alsicle, who had been quietly listening to the students' theories, answered instead.
"It's entirely possible. If they needed gold coins, they could sell the mansion first, then secretly hide in the basement to continue their research."
"...Ah, no. Do people really do that?"
"Uh, well..."
This time, Alsicle couldn't answer and fidgeted slightly.
Then, glancing around cautiously, he muttered,
"Among some graduates of a certain magic academy... there are a few."
"......"
"......"
The Einrogard students regretted even asking.
Lee Han shrugged and said,
"Let's just finish what we came here to do."
"Right. Wardanaz, I and the others will take the front, so you... Wait, are we not checking it out?"
Salko hesitated.
At first, he thought Lee Han wanted everyone to gather and break into the basement together, but the direction seemed off.
They weren't heading to the basement but toward the mansion's first-floor kitchen.
"Huh? The basement isn't urgent right now. We should clean the kitchen first so we can eat."
"Classic Lee Han."
Gainando nodded with an admiring expression.
Come to think of it, since they weren't at Einrogard, they didn't necessarily have to get food from the basement pantry. They could just buy ingredients outside and cook in the kitchen.
Wasn't this very pragmatism why his friends trusted Lee Han?
"Ah, no...! Doesn't it bother you?!"
"If it were something truly malicious, it wouldn't stay in the basement—it would come up. Don't worry, let's take care of the urgent things first. Can you guys clean the reception room?"
"......"
His friends had a lot to say but kept their mouths shut and followed Lee Han's instructions.
Salko muttered under his breath,
"Wardanaz seems even weirder now..."
Giselle absentmindedly nodded in agreement.
He had always been bold to the point of audacity, but after a few more incidents at Einrogard, he had reached a level where ordinary reasoning couldn't keep up.
At this rate, by the time he became a third-year, he might casually sip coffee while observing a dimensional rift forming right in front of him.
Unaware of his friends' suspicious glances, Lee Han surveyed the kitchen.
The previous owner must not have cared much for cooking, as the kitchen was covered in dust and cobwebs. 'I should clean the fireplace first.'
Lee Han swung his staff, neatly clearing the area around the fireplace. Telekinesis and water-element magic followed in quick succession—few specks of dust could withstand that.
Then, from inside the fireplace, a pale mage's ghost abruptly poked its face out.
—Release the magic I left behi—
THWACK!
The ghost shattered into pieces as it was struck by a spinning Water Prison Bomb.
Lee Han winced. He had reacted too quickly and hadn't heard a word the ghost was saying. 'Oops. What was it trying to say?'