Episode 1079
Episode 1079
'That's too harsh.' The cruel combat mage's heart was slightly wounded.
Of course, because of Lee Han, people were buying poisons and curses they normally wouldn't even consider purchasing, but wasn't that just the nature of business?
If they weren't buying poisons and curses here, they'd probably be wasting money on useless things elsewhere.
"By the way, Senior. Who is that dwarf senior over there?"
"Dirimpa? Ah, you probably haven't met him. He usually spends most of his time underground."
"Ah."
Lee Han understood what that meant.
While there were active dwarves who enjoyed drinking, singing, and exploring outdoors (like Professor Lightning Step and other eastern dwarves), there were also dwarves who obsessed over mining and minerals while staying indoors (with Senior Zarun from the Steel Shoe Family being a prime example of western dwarves).
Dirimpa was undoubtedly a western dwarf.
"The Black Magic department wouldn't need that many minerals or gems, so what's his main focus that keeps him underground?"
"What are you talking about?"
Diret tilted his head in confusion.
Minerals or gems?
"Uh... When you say he lives underground... isn't it to save time searching for minerals or gems?"
"No. He's looking for buried bones."
"......"
As Stedal Nago—no, Lee Han's expression turned slightly peculiar, Diret hurriedly explained.
He couldn't just stand by and let his junior's reputation be tarnished.
"Junior, just so you know, digging up bones buried under Einrogard to use for black magic isn't illegal at all."
"That's not the issue with imperial law, but..."
A mage who constantly searches for gems underground still has a relatively decent image, but a mage who digs around underground looking for usable bones is a bit...
Is this why the Black Magic department is unpopular?
"Dirimpa does it purely for academic reasons."
Worried that his junior might misunderstand Dirimpa as some evil necromancer, Diret kept explaining.
"And do you know how many rare ancient creature bones are buried beneath Einrogard? Leaving them there would be a magical waste."
Though it was still terrifying regardless, Lee Han decided to pretend he understood.
He felt sorry seeing his respected senior trying so hard to explain.
"I understand. Indeed. I'm ashamed of my prejudice."
"That's a relief. You should talk to Dirimpa sometime. He often gives away good gems for free."
"!"
Could he actually be a good person?
Lee Han couldn't believe it. That such a person existed in this world.
"He just gives them away? No matter how you look at it, why would he—?"
"Well, um, you see..."
Diret hesitated.
He could already predict exactly how his junior would react to this.
"...Dirimpa is very interested in bones but doesn't care about gems, so sometimes when he finds them underground, he just throws them away because of space issues. So if you're lucky, you might get them before he tosses them..."
'He's insane. I should stay away from him.' Lee Han coldly assessed.
Why was someone who belonged in the Enchantment Magic department in Black Magic instead?
After finishing their business, the Black Magic students checked their earnings with teary eyes.
"Sniff... With this, we can afford a new chimera corpse for the second semester."
"Shouldn't we fix the leaking water on the second floor of Black Rock Hall first?"
"......"
Diret's heart ached at the sight. 'I'm sorry...!' While his juniors were struggling like this, he—a so-called senior—had been focused only on his own magic research.
Even Professor Verdus wouldn't be this bad.
"Senior, at Einrogard, everyone handles their own business. You're not thinking something weird like 'I'm worse than Professor Verdus,' are you?"
"...Are you using mind-reading magic?"
Diret was slightly startled by his junior's sharp observation.
Come to think of it, wasn't this junior the top student in the Illusion Magic department too?
"I'm not at that level yet."
'Not yet?'
"And from what I heard earlier, Senior Dirimpa spits on and throws away any gemstones he finds, so strictly speaking, it's his fault. Hmph."
"...I never said I spit on them...!"
Diret shuddered at the malicious description.
'Did I speak out of turn?'
Given his junior's temperament, it was highly likely he'd view a mage who discards gemstones as more heinous than a magic criminal.
He'd find out eventually, so it was better to tell him now, but...
"Ah, Senior. What were you talking about?"
Just then, Dirimpa showed up. Diret shot his junior a 'don't say anything unnecessary' look and explained.
"We were discussing the request."
"I was asking about curses to defeat evil magic criminals."
"......"
Diret glared at him again with a 'I just told you not to say anything unnecessary' look.
Lee Han felt slightly wronged.
Wasn't this actually relevant information?
"Indeed. But wouldn't curses be ineffective against magic criminals? No, wait—since you're a senior, you must have a way."
Curses were generally difficult to use as a primary offensive method against fellow mages.
They were the easiest to block with magic resistance, and there were many countermeasures.
But Dirimpa trusted Diret.
Surely, as a genius of the Einrogard Black Magic School, he must have devised some secret method to bypass such conventions.
'There's no such thing...'
Diret was flustered.
He wasn't even a combat mage—why would he have researched such methods?
The dwarf mage with fiery red hair that reached his shoulders glanced around hesitantly.
He seemed to have something he wanted to say.
"Dirimpa. If you have something to say, go ahead. Mister... Mister Stedal here is tight-lipped."
"Right. Well, the thing is... I heard something about a demon. There's a demon summoned to the surface without a contract."
"!"
Not only Diret, but even Lee Han's eyes lit up.
A demon?
Though they often appeared as pitiful slaves in Einrogard or certain family territories—making them easy to overlook—demons were fundamentally one of the Empire's greatest threats.
Beings from another dimension who sought to corrupt and torment mortal souls.
No matter how convincingly they wore their disguises, they were ultimately closer to natural disasters.
That said, no mage could deny a demon's usefulness.
The ancient secrets of other dimensions.
Demons possessed knowledge of countless lost spells and hidden mysteries.
And beyond that, as mere labor, demons were excellent summons. Among all summonable beings from other dimensions, few races were as capable as demons.
"A demon..."
"As members of the Einrogard Black Magic School, we can't let this opportunity slip. We should capture it and put it to work."
"??"
Dirimpa was taken aback by the other's blunt phrasing.
Despite the aggressive tone, the content of his words made him sound like someone well-versed in the Black Magic School's ways.
"Are you... a friend of the professor?"
"No. No. Don't worry about it."
Diret subtly kicked his junior's heel in an invisible motion.
Knock it off!
'Ugh.'
"You're right, Lord Nago. It would be great to have a useful demon. The last one we summoned returned after its contract ended."
There were two main ways to control demons.
One was summoning them directly from their dimension through strict magical contracts.
Though cunning and wicked mages often tricked demons into servitude even during this process, it wasn't something just anyone could do.
The other method was to subdue and dominate a demon that had descended upon the continent.
Unlike the former, this had far fewer restrictions and allowed for much easier exploitation.
"But for mid-tier or lower demons, there's not much need to go that far. Their capabilities are limited..."
"They say this one might be above that."
"What?"
Diret's eyes widened slightly.
The demon his junior was referring to seemed more powerful than expected.
"If a demon like that is roaming around, shouldn't we report it to the knight order?"
"Technically, it's not exactly roaming."
Dirimpa explained the story he'd heard from a nobleman he met in the hall.
-Ahem, esteemed members of the Black Magic School... Might I trouble you for a brief consultation regarding a demon...? -??
-You see... I recently acquired an expensive ancient artifact... through a secret auction...
It wasn't uncommon for demons to lurk within ancient artifacts.
Fools blinded by dreams of sudden wealth were as much a favorite prey for demons as they were rare.
But there was one thing the demon hadn't anticipated—over time, people's ability to respond had improved.
Noble mansions across the Empire were now densely warded with protective and barrier magics cast by mages.
Especially nobles who frequently purchased ancient artifacts—they made sure to thoroughly implement anti-demon magics as well.
Those precautions saved the noble. Instead of escaping the mansion, the demon released from the artifact found itself trapped within the mirrors inside.
Though dealt a blow, the demon refused to give up, continuously manifesting in different mirrors to persuade its would-be master.
-Don't you desire power? Hmm?
-I told you no! What need does an Empire administrator have for power?!
-Don't you crave authority? Hmm?
-I'm retiring next year, for heaven's sake!
-What about wealth? Don't you want to multiply this mansion tenfold? Youth? Revenge? Free me and make a proper contract!
"Wow. They handled it better... than I expected."
Diret was mildly impressed.
Perhaps it was because the person worked as an administrator—they were more thorough than anticipated.
Of course, the best approach would've been not to purchase ancient artifacts from shady places like secret auctions in the first place...
But completely ignoring the demon afterward without engaging in any conversation was undoubtedly the right move.
"They're not calling the knight order because they don't want to escalate things."
Lee Han spoke up as if he understood.
Since the demon was summoned due to an artifact bought through dubious channels, they probably didn't want it publicly known.
If trustworthy Einrogard black mages could handle it and even take the demon away, wouldn't everyone be happy?
The noble would be happy with their worries gone, Einrogard Black Magic students would be happy to acquire a demon, and the demon would be happy to get a master...
"Hmm. It would be nice to get our hands on a demon. Should we go check if it's one we can subdue ourselves?"
"That does sound best, doesn't it?"
Dirimpa nodded in agreement with his senior.
A demon like that might prove more useful than expected. Especially since coming from an ancient artifact piqued his curiosity.
With exceptional luck, it might even be a powerful high-tier demon!
"Probably not. A demon like that would've likely escaped before being constrained."
"That does make sense."
"...?"
Dirimpa stared pointedly at the hulking combat mage.
Huh?
"...Are you... coming with us?"
This was a request given to the Einrogard Black Magic School.
Even if he came along, there was no money to share nor any demon to split...
Stedal nodded.
It wasn't about money or the demon.
A far purer reason drove Stedal to action.
"Of course. A fight with a demon? I could never pass that up. I can already feel my blood boiling."
Faced with the other's battle-hungry demeanor that lived up to rumors, Dirimpa panicked and whispered to Diret:
"Is this really okay, Senior? You know relying just on brute force when subduing demons makes things more dangerous."
"...He's not the type to act recklessly..."