Episode 1082
Episode 1082
"What? You came yourself?"
Diret, who had just stepped outside the mansion for a moment, frowned upon seeing his friend.
It was so typical of Yukveltire to visit in person only at times like this, when she wouldn't come even if invited otherwise.
"Is that mage someone you hired?"
"Huh? Uh... something like that. Actually, it's..."
"You should fire him immediately."
Yukveltire spoke decisively.
A mage that rude?
He was bound to act disrespectfully toward Diret too.
"......"
Diret, who had been about to explain his junior's new identity, hesitated.
...Should he just not tell her since she was being annoying?
Lee Han, standing behind him, apologized with his eyes. 'Sorry. I got too into my role.''No. It's fine.' Diret changed his mind.
Thinking about it, it might be better not to tell his friend.
That way, his junior could at least take a breather in disguise when things got tough.
"No."
"...Huh?"
Yukveltire was taken aback by Diret's blunt refusal.
Why?
"Mr. Stedal of the Nago Family here is an exceptional combat mage and a seasoned demon hunter."
"...If you need a bodyguard, there's a junior from the Wardanaz Family in the capital."
Diret was furious at Yukveltire's shameless suggestion of summoning a second-year junior to use as a bodyguard.
Lee Han felt the same. He cursed inwardly. 'I should've spat on her when she came in. Has she no conscience?'
Diret gave his junior a look—a signal that it was okay to scold his friend.
"???"
Lee Han tilted his head, not immediately understanding.
What was he supposed to do?
Seeing his junior hesitate, Diret spoke up.
"Ah. Yukveltire, it seems Mr. Stedal has something to say."
"Wh... What?"
"He seems really angry, huh? Oh dear. Feel free to speak your mind. As mages, we all value the free expression of opinions."
Lee Han cautiously spoke, unsure if he had interpreted Diret's signal correctly.
"Calling... a junior... because you... can't even... handle your own... bodyguard duties... How... pathetic..."
"!!!" 'Well done.'
Though Yukveltire's pale face stiffened slightly at the unexpected insult, Diret excitedly gestured that he had done well.
That felt so satisfying!
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
However, Yukveltire quickly recovered from the shock.
Not just anyone could become a fifth-year student at Einrogard. Such a forced criticism had no effect on her.
"The virtue of an Enchantment mage lies not in combat or bodyguarding but strictly in the purpose of our school. Do you not even know that?"
"Hmph... Maybe... you couldn't... even handle... Enchantment School magic... alone... so you called... a junior..."
"!!!"
Yukveltire's pupils trembled violently.
The jab about not being able to handle bodyguard duties had been a stretch, but this one hit right where it hurt.
She had, in fact, relied on a junior (technically, the junior's master) to complete an unfinished spell, so the blow was especially painful.
The more prideful a mage was, the more violently they reacted when their sore spots were poked.
"...Just..."
"Just?"
"...You'll see!!"
Thud!
Leaving behind words that sounded utterly petty, Yukveltire dashed back into the mansion in a flash.
Diret nodded in satisfaction at her retreating figure.
With her pride wounded like that, Yukveltire would become a well-behaved, obedient friend for a while.
He hadn't expected it to work this well—this was an unexpected success.
"Wow. Well done, junior. I just told you to scold her because she was being annoying, but I didn't think it'd work out this well."
"Sh-shouldn't you go and comfort her??"
Unlike Diret, Lee Han was in a state of utter bewilderment.
Thanks to their long friendship, Diret was confident about the other's condition, but Lee Han had no such assurance. The immediate thought that crossed his mind was, 'Did I go too far?'
"It's fine. It's fine. Yukveltire will probably overcome this by researching some magic on her own. This state actually makes her easier to handle."
"......"
Diret, who had been pleased, suddenly noticed his junior staring at him with slightly frightened eyes.
"Ah, no! I only act like this with Yukveltire! I don't do this to others!"
"I... I see."
But whether it was just his imagination or not, Diret felt as though his junior had subtly distanced himself. Perhaps the emotional gap between them had widened.
Diret hurriedly changed the subject.
"Ah, right. Junior, I have something I'm curious about."
"Yes."
"How much did you actually help Yukveltire with her magic? Judging by her reaction, it seems like you helped her more than what we initially discussed. Did you go beyond what we agreed on?"
Even as he spoke, Diret wondered if he was mistaken.
Of course, it was a bit strange that Yukveltire had suffered such a blow to her pride, but this junior wasn't a fool either.
Knowing full well how tenacious his friend could be—even more so than a leech—there was no way he would dig his own grave by helping her more than promised...
Tap!
Instead of answering, Stedal Nago hastily dashed back into the mansion.
Diret blankly stared at his retreating figure before trembling with frustration...
These people are really...!
"Senior Yukveltire. There are outsiders here—is that alright?"
Dirimpa cautiously asked, gauging her reaction.
He had once witnessed the temperamental fifth-year's fussy nature while helping Diret with a task.
-I cannot permit outsiders to observe. If an incompetent mage is present, issues may arise during the mana release.
-Yukveltire. These are mages from Kallarogard!
-So? What magic have you completed?
-Well, I haven't fully completed any yet, but I'm properly learning the orthodox methods...
-So you have nothing to prove.
-Hey. Step outside for a moment.
-That won't be possible. If I leave my post...
From that incident, the Black Magic students realized something.
Yukveltire wasn't simply disregarding other students—she was, in fact, showing this much respect only because they were Einrogard students!
If even Einrogard students received only this much consideration, they couldn't even imagine how she'd treat outsiders.
"...It's fine."
Yukveltire nodded sullenly.
Dirimpa, along with the other students, was utterly shocked.
"Why is she like this??"
"Did her invested research explode or something?"
"Even if it exploded, she wouldn't be like this. Maybe Diret Senior said something to her earlier?"
"What reason would he have?"
"Who knows? There could be a hundred reasons."
Coholti absentmindedly nodded in agreement.
Honestly, considering what Diret had been through, it wouldn't be strange if he randomly smacked his friend in the back of the head just because he thought of it while breathing.
"If there's an angel nearby, this magic can establish contact."
Once everyone had gathered, Yukveltire brought out a celestial detection artifact.
It was a hexagram-shaped artifact consisting of six candle stands.
Lee Han was astonished by the magic condensed within it.
'It locates beings from other dimensions, establishes contact, and bypasses detection to prevent tracking?'
Compared to this, the dimensional visits or approaches he had attempted in his first and second years now seemed primitive.
If the method for lower-year Einrogard students was to open a door and wander around until an otherworldly being took interest in them, Yukveltire's artifact worked by sending out magical detection signals beyond dimensions to locate entities.
Moreover, there was even a spell woven into it that prevented the target from performing counter-detection by creating dimensional back-and-forth interference. It was truly an astonishing piece of magic.
'With that artifact, I might be able to locate spirits and approach them first!'
Lee Han paused at the first thought that came to mind.
And then he was struck by deep self-reproach.
'...'
What am I even thinking? Even if I did approach them like that, it wouldn't mean much.'
Even if he concealed his form and only sent signals to summon them, the spirits would likely flee in terror upon seeing Lee Han, making the whole endeavor pointless.
Unless he forcibly captured them, that is...
Lee Han shook his head firmly. No matter what, he had no desire to become a mage whose heart resembled the Skeleton Principal's.
Whoosh!
Flames ignited atop the six candlesticks. Yukveltire chanted an incantation, opening an extremely localized dimensional passage.
It was a conduit of energy that couldn't physically allow a human soul to pass through—only magical signals could traverse it.
Suddenly, the flames flickered. Yukveltire spoke.
"We've made contact. What should we say?"
"Declare that we are mages of the Empire. Tell them we've captured the demon they're pursuing and will take custody of it."
It might have sounded impolite, but for mages, it was a perfectly natural statement. There was no reason to yield to outsiders, especially not in the Empire's own dimension rather than some other realm.
"Dlrow eht ni gninrael ton od yeht taht sdrow eht era tahw"
A Black Magic student gasped in surprise.
"Is that the language of angels?"
"No. Yukveltire set it up backward, so the letters are reversed."
"......"
"What we have here is a dangerous demon you lack the ability to manage"
After reading it properly this time, the Black Magic students exchanged cautious opinions.
"Doesn't seem like a hostile angel, does it?"
"Honestly, hostile angels are harder to find in the first place. They're beings solely fixated on their own objectives."
"Is their goal collecting demons?"
"Young Master! Please...! Don't hand me over!"
Orlach, who had been watching, pleaded desperately.
He'd rather serve as a slave under the Wardanaz Family than be dragged off by some insane angel he didn't even know.
"Young Master??"
Stedal—no, Lee Han—glared at Orlach as if he wanted to kill him.
Orlach quickly shut his mouth, sensing the mood.
Hmph.
'Did the Nago Family also command demons in the past?'
'Impressive. I've never heard of it. Then again, a mage of that caliber must come from an extraordinary family.'
Though the Black Magic students didn't show it outwardly, they were inwardly astonished.
Families with the ability to command demons were exceedingly rare.
"Let's respond like this for now: We are the Black Magic faction affiliated with Einrogard, so we have both the experience and capability to manage demons."
The reply came swiftly.
"Most mages who lose control of demons are Black Mages"
"......"
The students bristled slightly.
Of course, when it came to demon-related incidents, it was usually Black Magic faction mages who caused them. Given that they dealt with demons directly, accidents were inevitable.
But the majority of those incidents were caused by low-tier Black Mages—those with no knowledge of magic but brimming with lust for power.
"Don't they know Einrogard?"
"Well, it is an angel, after all."
"...Demon. Be quiet."
"M-my apologies..."
Orlach, thoroughly cowed, shut his mouth again.
Neither the Pride Duke nor Arsil of the Wardanaz Family had ever failed to praise his silver tongue, but it seemed these beings were immune to his charm.
"What should we do, Senior? Should we cut the connection and resort to force?"
"Wait. Let's try sending one more message."
Diret pondered deeply before taking hold of the artifact himself this time. The others wondered what message he intended to send.
What could it possibly be?
"Then we shall acknowledge it"
"!!!"
Everyone present was utterly shocked.
The group erupted into murmurs, asking what had just happened. Lee Han, his voice tinged with admiration, asked Diret quietly so only he could hear.
"What in the world did you say?"
"I told them there's also a Wardanaz Family mage here."
"......"
No...!