Episode 1055
Episode 1055
"P-please. I'm telling you, I'm an Evil God Worshipper! Really! Someone far worse than me..."
"You, shut up."
Giselle drew an icy blade from her scabbard and pressed it against his neck. As the freezing cold touched his skin, Toman immediately clamped his mouth shut.
"Hey. Doesn't Wardanaz seem a bit off?"
The elf friend whispered, and Gainando tilted his head in confusion.
"What do you mean?"
"...He wouldn't normally act like this."
Generally, Wardanaz was always composed.
Whether facing a duke or a monster from another dimension...
Of course, his naturally calm facial features might have played a part, but that alone couldn't explain it.
Yet, right now, Wardanaz seemed... strange.
'He seems oddly excited. Come to think of it, he's acting like he's keeping an eye on Professor Bagrak.'
At first, they thought Wardanaz was just overly enthusiastic about the bounty hunt, chasing after Professor Bagrak like this. But now, doubts were creeping in.
"Has Lee Han always been like this?"
"......"
A flicker of contempt flashed in Giselle's eyes before disappearing.
'Useless bastard, even worse than Alpha.'
Suddenly, she felt grateful for her fellow tower mates.
Still, instead of revealing her true thoughts, Giselle pretended to be impressed.
"Now that you mention it, Prince, it does seem that way. Truly befitting Wardanaz's closest friend."
"Moradi, I always thought you were the smartest and most perceptive person in the White Tiger Tower."
Gainando's face brightened, immediately taking the bait. It was so easy that Giselle was almost shocked.
'This guy... is he really acting?'
While Giselle was silently scrutinizing Gainando, Lee Han was rapidly thinking.
'Damn it. Why are Evil God Worshippers so damn diligent? Of all places, why here...?'
The reason Lee Han had cut off the dwarf mage and silenced him was simple.
1. If he let the mage finish speaking...
2. Giselle and Gainando, who had gone downstairs, would report, "Professor, there's an Evil God called the Fair Regent!"
3. Professor Voladi, eyes blazing, would beat Lee Han up and rush off to hunt the Evil God Worshippers.
4. The Skeleton Principal would show up and mock him...
That was the most likely outcome.
'Any information about the Evil God must be suppressed. He needs to be silenced at all costs.'
"Toman."
"?"
The terrified dwarf mage turned his head at the call.
The mage from Einrogard, with his sculpted features, was speaking to him in a hushed tone.
"You idiot. You almost cost me my achievement. You should've told me in secret."
"...!"
Toman's eyes widened.
So... right now...?
"If you want to make a deal, don't say a word to the others. Got it?"
"Y-yes. Got it...! But wait, aren't you from Einrogard? Why are you scheming secretly when you're from the same place...?"
Toman had, of course, heard of Einrogard.
Wasn't it one of the twin pillars leading the Empire's magical institutions?
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"Huh? N-no?"
"...That's not important. Forget it."
Lee Han was about to ask something else but stopped.
It wasn't important, and hearing more would only make him angrier.
"I... I thought you were comrades from the same Magic Academy..."
He had assumed they were close allies, yet here they were, undermining each other. Toman couldn't understand it.
Lee Han replied coldly.
"Hmph. They're just rivals I'll have to crush and climb over someday."
'That's terrifying!'
Toman shuddered at those words.
Those seemingly friendly mages were actually hiding daggers and competing behind the scenes.
Even within the Magic Academy, all sorts of schemes and plots were rampant.
'Now that I think about it, maybe all Magic Academies are like that.'
"Kukuku. I'm from a great noble family. If you break your promise, I'll destroy you."
"Ah... I understand. I understand!"
Toman surrendered completely to the evil high noble's threat. Lee Han felt a deep weariness.
'Damn it. Those Evil God Worshippers. I'll never forgive them.'
Lee Han immediately sent a Paper Bird to Professor Garcia. The message was that an Evil God Worshipper had been discovered.
Unless the opponent was a complete idiot, they would have fled upon seeing the commotion in Toman's room, but it was still necessary to report it.
After that, he called Professor Voladi, who had been waiting downstairs.
"Professor! We caught him!"
"Ah, should we not tell the one waiting downstairs?"
"I said no, you idiot. Do you want to taste the brutal retaliation of a high noble family? Huh?"
"Ah, I get it! I said I get it!"
Toman trembled uncontrollably.
Even his own teacher was secretly wary of him like this.
Einrogard was truly a terrifying place.
Professor Voladi had been waiting on the street below the inn window.
The rowdy mercenaries passing by had clearly intended to pick a fight upon spotting a mage dressed differently, but they quickly bowed their heads when they met his gaze.
'Strange.'
The original plan had been as follows:
1. Lee Han's party knocks on the door.
2. Toman, finding it suspicious, attempts to escape through the window.
3. Professor Voladi captures him.
Of course, if things went wrong, a fight could break out in the inn hallway. The drifters staying in such places weren't fond of nosy people, so that was even more likely.
But Professor Voladi wasn't too worried.
Given his student's skills, he could easily subdue anyone staying here with one hand and still have the other free to send a support request.
However, the situation unfolded in the most unexpected way possible.
As if bewitched, Toman had obediently opened the door and was subdued without any fight.
Though the height and distance were considerable, Professor Voladi had been monitoring the situation inside the room using Echolocation magic.
'Why aren't they reporting?'
Professor Voladi wondered if something had gone wrong inside.
If someone had gotten hurt...
'It must be the prince.'
Neither Lee Han nor Giselle were the type to get hurt, leaving only Gainando. Perhaps he had been injured due to a mistake during the subdual.
"Professor! We caught him!"
Thud!
Professor Voladi flew through the air and entered through the window. Toman, gagged, lay sprawled among the students.
"Toman. You are under arrest for stealing corpses from the Western Graveyard and fourteen horses from the ranch. The Empire's court will judge you."
"Mmmpfh!"
"?"
Professor Voladi felt another wave of suspicion.
The reaction of the captured Toman was odd.
Normally, he should have shown regret or fear, but the dwarf kept glancing furtively at Wardanaz, as if trying to gauge something.
'A deal?'
It wasn't easy to deceive an experienced Combat Magic professor who had seen all kinds of battles. In that brief moment, Professor Voladi guessed that Lee Han and this dwarf mage might have struck some kind of deal.
It wasn't all that surprising. This reckless student always sought trials and hardships far beyond what was given to him.
Just look at how he had secretly joined the expedition to chase monsters from beyond the dimensional void last time. There was no stopping him.
If he was trying to secretly obtain information about a dangerous criminal to capture them himself...
Professor Voladi glanced sharply at Lee Han. It seemed he would have to keep an eye on him for a while.
'He couldn't have noticed, could he?'
Lee Han felt uneasy inside.
The way Professor Voladi was looking at him carried a subtle sense of discomfort, different from usual.
"Let's take him downstairs."
"Yes. Understood."
The professor sent Lee Han down first, then questioned the weakest link—Gainando.
"What happened?"
Gainando explained everything exactly as it had happened.
The door opened, Lee Han and Giselle beat up the poor dwarf mage...
"Lee Han got angry and yelled at him to shut up because he kept making noise."
"I see."
Professor Voladi felt his hypothesis gaining strength.
If it was an attitude of monopolizing information, that reaction made sense.
"Didn't you think it was strange?"
"It was a bit odd."
"What's strange about it? Lee Han's always been like that."
Giselle and Gainando's responses diverged. At their reactions, Professor Voladi paused. Apparently, Gainando was closer to his disciple.
"Was he now."
"...Professor. You're not actually listening to the prince's words, are you? Wardanaz was acting strange. It's obvious."
"Moradi. What are you whispering?"
"I said your argument was persuasive."
"Thanks!"
Giselle beamed brightly.
His friends had said all sorts of things about this elf friend from the North who led the White Tiger Tower, but it seemed there'd been some misunderstandings.
Meanwhile, Lee Han returned. Professor Voladi stared intently at his disciple before speaking.
"Wardanaz."
"Yes?"
"Don't do anything dangerous."
"...???!"
Lee Han looked utterly bewildered.
What on earth did that mean?
* * *
This isn't good news.
The Skeleton Principal sighed after examining the dwarf mage Professor Garcia had brought in, along with the nearby inn staff (though 'brought in' was an overstatement—they'd practically trembled while accepting the request).
It was coincidence upon coincidence, but even accounting for that, it was clear the worshippers of Sanguiros were rapidly increasing.
"P-please spare me! Just spare my life! Please!"
Ah, must be their first time seeing a floating skull. It's not always an omen of death. Sometimes it's a symbol of good luck.
The Skeleton Principal comforted the young servant.
For someone with little experience regarding undead monsters, it wasn't strange to be frightened by the Skeleton Principal's smooth cranium.
"N-no, Your Excellency the Magic Tower! I saw Your Excellency enter the capital the year before last! Please don't feed me to that troll monster over there!"
"......"
Professor Garcia felt wronged.
She'd clearly asked politely!
'Oh no.' As the Skeleton Principal's voice turned icy, Professor Garcia felt a chill for the first time in ages.
That was a genuine sign of danger.
If you want to survive in this mansion, watch your tongue. One more word like that and I'll tear your soul to shreds and feed it to the hellhounds.
"H-hey now. What's gotten into you, Headmaster?"
Carve letters into that bastard's forehead and tongue. So the capital folks can see. Should've left that count hanging longer last time. These fools have already forgotten.
"Please don't actually do it. They're still young."
The servant looked at Professor Garcia with moved eyes.
At first they'd thought her a terrifying monster, but it turned out she was the kindest person in this gloomy mage mansion.
Young my ass. Old enough to kill, old enough to die.
"Now, now. So that old stablemaster disappeared, is that it?"
"Y-yes!"
"If he reappears, don't hesitate to call us. He's an extremely dangerous and suspicious criminal. Quite different quality from the mercenaries staying at your inn."
"Y-yes!"
Still irritated, the Skeleton Principal swept his blue gaze over everyone from the innkeeper to the servants before declaring:
Call the guards. Throw them all in.
"A-ah, please! From now on we'll only accept guests with verified identities!"
"Headmaster. This isn't our mansion—let's not go overboard... Strange rumors might spread in the capital."
Professor Garcia spoke while considering her disciple's reputation.
Her disciple already carried dangerous, suspicious rumors everywhere—having this happen at his villa wouldn't help.
Word might already be spreading about this terrifying mansion...
It's a Wardanaz mansion anyway, so what does it matter? What's Wardanaz up to?
"He's accompanying Professor Bagrak on the remainder of his hunt, apparently."
Good grief. How much does he love bounty hunting?
"...The Headmaster told him to go along...!"