Episode 105
Episode 105
"You've made students miss a precious learning opportunity due to your arrogance—"
The students of the Blue Dragon Tower cut off the Skeleton Principal's nonsense mid-sentence and shouted.
"Wardanaz!!"
"You're alive! We thought you'd been kidnapped!"
"Kidnapped?"
Angrago, who had been following behind, asked back in confusion.
Who would dare kidnap a Wardanaz?
"Hands up! Don't move. If you move, I'll cast a curse!"
Upon spotting Angrago and Duke Mar, the Blue Dragon Tower students immediately pointed their wands.
"Why—why are you doing this?!"
"These meticulous bastards... If they'd kidnapped him near the school, evidence would remain, so they must've dragged him to the lake!"
Gainando, an avid reader of the Empire's popular detective novel 'Toberiz the Dog Beastman Detective,' showed sharp deductive skills. Even Ashan found it plausible.
"We weren't kidnapped. We were exploring the lake together and got stranded."
"Oh. That's what happened?"
"No wonder."
"Honestly. Be more careful next time."
At Lee Han's words, the Blue Dragon Tower students quickly lowered their wands.
The White Tiger Tower students were so dumbfounded they could only gape.
'What kind of shameless bastards...?'
For nobles from the Empire's great families to be that brazen...
They hadn't been like this at enrollment. No one could figure out what had changed them.
"Aren't you going to apologize!? You accused us of kidnapping and just move on?"
"No. In this happy moment of reuniting with lost friends, must we really argue over who's at fault? Aren't you being too harsh?"
"You lowlifes worse than street rats...!"
A few White Tiger Tower students grumbled and argued, but most were more concerned about something else.
"Angrago, are you okay!? Any broken or injured parts? Did Wardanaz cast any strange magic on you?"
"Duke Mar. How many fingers am I holding up? Do you remember your family name? Say it."
The White Tiger Tower students were deeply worried about Angrago and Duke Mar, who had spent the night with Lee Han.
What if they'd fallen victim to evil Black Magic...?
"Everyone, don't worry. It was chaotic, but... nothing much happened with Wardanaz. In fact, we owe our lives to Wardanaz."
"Wardanaz defeated a Summon hiding in the sandbar. Without him, we'd all have been dragged under."
Angrago and Duke Mar shared their experiences with the gathered students.
The Skeleton Principal's wicked scheme and Wardanaz's crushing victory!
The story was so fascinating that students from other towers came to listen.
"...That's too absurd. Are you sure Wardanaz didn't brainwash you?"
"Even so, this is too much..."
Some White Tiger Tower students tilted their heads in disbelief.
So the Skeleton Principal built a Dungeon under the island's sandbar, summoned creatures there, then assigned homework to naturally guide students there?
It was too unbelievable.
But soon, the students learned the story was true.
Because the Skeleton Principal himself started confessing from behind.
Well done! Well done. Wardanaz, because of you, other students missed a learning opportunity! But well done!
"...My apologies."
Though dumbfounded, Lee Han apologized.
Antagonizing the sulky Skeleton Principal wouldn't do any good.
Petty grudges were a professor's basic virtue.
The Headmaster, seemingly deeply aggrieved and disappointed, kept complaining while revealing his preparations.
Hearing what he'd prepared under the sandbar turned the lake-crossing students pale.
He'd prepared THAT!??
"Shouldn't we report him to His Majesty the Emperor..."
"Shh. Quiet. You want to get dragged under the sandbar?"
After grumbling for quite some time, the Skeleton Principal seemed to have finally vented his frustrations and spoke to Lee Han.
"Anyway... To have obtained an Outing Pass entirely through your own efforts. That deserves nothing less than praise."
As he spoke, Lee Han's broken arm was completely healed. Lee Han bowed his head.
"Thank you."
'Though thanks to you, next year's freshmen will face even harsher trials.'
"How truly regrettable."
Of course, Lee Han didn't actually feel particularly regretful. It wasn't really his fault, after all.
"And it wasn't entirely through my own efforts."
Lee Han pointed to Angrago and Duke Mar.
When committing illegal acts, one was supposed to generously share the spoils with accomplices.
Now that they had created a fake Outing Pass together, the two were practically accomplices.
However, the two White Tiger Tower students shook their heads.
"We didn't do anything."
"In truth... Wardanaz did everything."
'I know. Do I look blind to you? I never had any intention of giving you two special points in the first place.'
"......"
The Skeleton Principal had an exceptional talent for making even the simplest words infuriating.
They hadn't expected him to say something like, 'Your friendship and honor are admirable! I shall grant special points to all of you!' but...
Hearing it put that way still made their blood boil.
'Just wait until after graduation.'
'Let's really settle this after graduation.'
After making two White Tiger Tower students into sworn enemies, the Skeleton Principal turned his gaze back to Lee Han.
And spoke.
"Lee Han of the Wardanaz family. As a reward for accomplishing a special task that none of the other iron-headed fools could achieve, I shall grant you special points. Now. Take out the Outing Pass."
Lee Han took out the Outing Pass and placed it on his palm.
A flash of light shimmered in the Skeleton Principal's eyes, and the Outing Pass immediately vanished—teleported to one of the Headmaster's storage spaces.
"...???"
"???????"
While the swindled Lee Han remained still, the other students were utterly shocked.
Even students who usually kept quiet out of fear of the Headmaster found this too much to bear and shouted.
"Headmaster! This goes against your promise, doesn't it?!"
"No matter how you look at it, how can you break your promise to us so easily?! Have you forgotten honor?!"
"When did I break my promise?"
Instead of getting angry or intimidating them, the Skeleton Principal simply countered with a question.
His brazenness was so absolute that the students were momentarily taken aback.
Was the Skeleton Principal trying to act shamelessly like Gainando right now?
"Headmaster... You said... if we accomplished this task... you would give us the Outing Pass."
"Tsk, tsk... It seems all of you wasted your time in <Basic Imperial Language and Logic>. What exactly did I say?"
The Skeleton Principal's exact words had been:
-There is an island on that lake. I've hidden an Outing Pass there. Work together and bring it to me.
...which, upon review, contained not a single mention of actually giving them the Outing Pass.
He had only told them to bring it to him!
Seeing the students' faces, the Skeleton Principal seemed to cheer up a little and spoke kindly.
"Now you understand how crucial every single word is in a contract, don't you? It's truly fortunate that you've all learned such a valuable lesson!"
"......"
"......"
Lee Han couldn't even begin to guess how many of the students present would return after graduation to assassinate the Headmaster.
If looks could kill, the Skeleton Principal would have already collapsed.
"You dragon bas—... Ahem. Wardanaz. As the primary party involved in this Outing Pass matter, tell me. What do you think? Do you feel deceived by me?"
'Did he just almost call me a dragon bastard?'
Lee Han wasn't fooled by the Skeleton Principal's gentle tone.
When a professor asks, 'Do you have any complaints?', the proper response is, 'The fact that you even have to ask is my greatest regret, Professor.'
Pushing further with complaints here would only risk getting buried under the sand pit.
"Not at all, Headmaster. From the very beginning, I had no desire for the Outing Pass whatsoever. Why would I have any complaints?"
The Skeleton Principal looked at Lee Han with a gaze mixed with pride and regret.
He was an astonishingly outstanding student.
Not just in magical talent, but in non-magical abilities as well.
Magical talent and self-control were usually inversely proportional. Those with talent tended to become arrogant.
Students with even half of Lee Han's talent would typically act insolently, trying to challenge the headmaster as freshmen.
After being sent to the Punishment Room about three times, they'd learn a sliver of humility...
But somehow, this boy from the Wardanaz family possessed both talent and self-control to an unbelievable degree.
While it was admirable and fascinating, as the Skeleton Principal, he couldn't help but feel some regret.
It was no fun!
'He's not taking the bait...'
The Skeleton Principal wasn't disappointed.
There was plenty of time—another opportunity would come eventually.
"Very well. Everyone should follow Wardanaz's example. Understood?"
"Yes..."
"We understand..."
Even without learning mind-reading magic, Lee Han could practically hear the students' inner voices.
Right now, the important thing wasn't about future wizards who might kill the Skeleton Principal.
'I never expected the Skeleton Principal to pull something like this. What a relief.'
Lee Han internally sighed in relief.
He hadn't anticipated the Skeleton Principal would try to confiscate the Outing Pass either.
But luck was on his side.
He had improvised by placing a fake Outing Pass, and whether the headmaster noticed or not, it had disappeared just like that.
Angrago and Duke-ma were staring at Lee Han with shocked expressions, as if they couldn't believe what they were seeing.
'D-did you... prepare for this situation?!'
'Just what kind of Wardanaz are you?!'
Of course, Lee Han hadn't actually anticipated this situation and prepared a fake Outing Pass, but the two had no choice but to misunderstand.
"Wardanaz... how did you...?"
"Shh. Keep quiet."
Lee Han raised a finger to his lips.
The Skeleton Principal was still nearby.
If he sensed something suspicious and decided to check his storage for the Outing Pass, Lee Han would be headed not to the underground sand pit but to the Punishment Room.
"C-can we really accept something this precious?"
Angrago and Duke-ma quickly tucked the fake Exit Permits deep into their robes, afraid someone might see.
Lee Han hadn't just made one for himself. He had used what little spare time he had to forge fake permits for Angrago and Duke-ma as well.
Though it was just a single sheet of lightweight paper, it felt as heavy as a thousand gold pieces.
"Use it carefully. Especially when the headmaster is on campus—if you use it then, you'll get caught immediately."
"O-of course."
"Got it, Wardanaz."
The two White Tiger Tower students took Lee Han's warning seriously and began to walk away.
Lee Han grew curious.
'But will the fake Outing Pass even work?'
Though he had made the fakes, he wasn't entirely sure whether they would pass or not.
If they used it while the Skeleton Principal was away and convinced another professor, it might work...
The real problem was dealing with the aftermath once they returned.
'They won't get locked in the Punishment Room for a month, right?'
For now, Lee Han planned to observe how his White Tiger Tower friends fared with the fake permits before deciding.
Though he had the real one, using it while the Skeleton Principal was around still felt uncomfortably risky.
Following the path that had formed over the lake, the students began making their way back as they had come.
Lee Han also hurried to leave. Though he doubted the Skeleton Principal would do it, he feared being left behind—what if the headmaster pretended not to notice and removed the ice?
The water spirit waved at Lee Han, as if bidding him farewell.
"Thank you. Without you, I might still be wandering around that island."
The water spirit seemed almost bashful.
Seeing that, a sudden thought struck Lee Han.
'Wait. Isn't this what getting close to a spirit is like?'
Now that he thought about it, this felt much more natural than shouting at each other like with Perkuntra.
Lee Han opened his mouth.
"Would you like to form a—"
Before he could finish, the water spirit dashed away, rolling around in front of Nilia as she prepared to leave.
It was almost as if it was begging her to form a contract instead.
"......"
Lee Han felt a deep sense of betrayal.