Episode 1116
Episode 1116
Of course, such a persistent spirit wouldn't easily give up just because contact had been cut off.
Heat once again emanated from the back of Lee Han's hand. The General of Fire Heaven kept sending messages repeatedly, refusing to give up until he received a response.
The baby basilisk hidden in Lee Han's sleeve asked in confusion:
"Master. Can't you sense the spirit's energy?"
It was baffling that the mage himself couldn't sense it when even the creature clinging close to him could feel it...
"...Be quiet."
-!
The baby basilisk felt deeply wronged.
What had it done wrong!
'Did I accidentally leak poison earlier?'
The basilisk wriggled around to check if there were any holes in the sleeve.
Meanwhile, Lee Han let out a deep sigh.
The General of Fire Heaven was making him feel profoundly disillusioned.
Why did only these kinds of spirits keep coming after him?
'Nilia had kind and diligent spirits coming to her voluntarily...'
In contrast, only spirits that were insane, violent, or had histories of causing accidents sought out Lee Han.
Though extremely gloomy about this, Lee Han opened his mind to respond. If he stayed silent, this spirit would probably never stop.
"General of Fire Heaven. I know you're a powerful spirit. But don't forget you're currently severely injured. I could easily cross over to the spirit realm and exterminate you."
Of course, there was some bravado mixed into this threat. Lee Han had absolutely no intention of actually going to the spirit realm to hunt down the General of Fire Heaven.
From gathering his full strength to locating where the General was hiding—
He couldn't even begin to estimate how much time and resources that would consume.
Lee Han wasn't ruthless enough to bear those costs just to completely sever the life of a spirit that had already been expelled from the Material Plane.
You'll come to the spirit realm? That's great!
The General of Fire Heaven brightened upon hearing the threat.
He'd been pestering Lee Han precisely because he wanted to fight again, and now his opponent was offering to come to him first.
When exactly did he plan to come?
"......"
Lee Han realized he'd miscalculated.
This spirit shouldn't be treated like a normal spirit.
Since it didn't fear annihilation from the start, ordinary threats wouldn't work on it.
'I should just ignore it.'
Don't you dare ignore me. Huh?
The General of Fire Heaven desperately pleaded, having sensed Lee Han's thoughts.
Truthfully, maintaining contact like this from the spirit realm wasn't easy for spirits either.
Just as mages needed to prepare various spells and pay costs to cross into the spirit realm, spirits also had to pay a price to establish communication.
Yet the General of Fire Heaven declared his intention to keep contacting Lee Han regardless of such expenditures.
A spirit that didn't even care about severe injuries wouldn't bother with trivial costs like these...
"Keep yapping all you want, you Professor Verdus lookalike."
Not that Lee Han cared.
Now I'll really ignore you!
Wait, wait! Aren't you interested in a contract? Huh?
The General of Fire Heaven urgently shouted.
He didn't understand what this "Professor Verdus" comment meant, but that wasn't important. He needed to keep talking to this beloved individual.
While spirit contracts came in various forms, simply being able to contract with a spirit of the General of Fire Heaven's caliber would be an enormous stroke of luck for any contractor.
These weren't beings that would contract just because a mage wanted to.
Moreover, the General of Fire Heaven was willing to contract without demanding any troublesome prices or offerings.
"No. Get lost."
In a rare move, Lee Han refused.
Normally he was weak against spirits and would at least consider offers that came with benefits, but even by those standards, this spirit was too much of a troublemaker.
Having now experienced dealing with such a spirit, Lee Han found himself newly grateful for Perkuntra.
Even though he held the titles of Thunder King and General of Lightning, if that was the extent of his personality, he truly must be humble and generous.
...What the?
Perkuntra, who had been crackling in the Punishment Room, let out a bewildered spark.
Something felt off.
"D-did something happen?"
No idea. Did my contractor curse me or something?
"Did you form a contract? Who is this lucky individual..."
Don't play dumb.
The lightning spirit clicked its tongue in annoyance. A loud thunderclap boomed within the Punishment Room, startling the student sitting in front.
Who knew my scheme would be exposed.
Hurry up. Listen closely.
"...Go eat shit yourself!"
The third-year student grabbed a bowl and hurled it at Perkuntra, who lightly shifted form to dodge. When the student tried to pull out a hidden staff to cast a spell, Perkuntra activated the room's magic. Chains rose to bind one of the student's arms and confiscate the staff.
Don't you feel pathetic wasting time with this nonsense?
"And you—a Great Spirit—playing babysitter during mealtime here, isn't THAT pathetic?!"
......
Though the student had blurted it out thoughtlessly, the words struck Perkuntra right where it hurt.
Ever since the new dragon took over the authority of Lord Einrogard, Perkuntra's role had shifted slightly.
While still overseeing the Punishment Room, its duties had changed.
Before, it had monitored students trying to escape...
...but now, it forcibly stopped students from eating unhealthy, greasy meals and made them consume proper food instead.
On top of that, it also enforced regular sleep schedules over irregular ones.
Perkuntra realized, to its surprise, that it had grown fond of its old warden role.
At first, it had thought this was all humiliating nonsense because of that damn archmage brat, but after shoving meals down students' throats here, it suddenly missed the old days.
Won't shut up? Then eat!
"Keep yapping all you want. I've sat through two semesters of Professor Verdus's lectures. No amount of intimidation from you will shake me!"
Well, since he's beloved by all spirits, he might not care about a contract with one like me.
-......
Lee Han had to clench his fists tightly to suppress the urge to retort.
He REALLY wanted to argue back!
But there are things those spirits can do, and things only a spirit like me can do. You might regret this someday.
-Yeah, right.
Lee Han scoffed at the absurd claim.
He couldn't see anything the General of Fire Heaven could do that was particularly useful.
Unless it was making enemies or setting everything on fire—both of which Lee Han could manage just fine on his own.
You don't believe me? Then how about this?
The General of Fire Heaven ignited flames using its Authority.
This spirit, who had amassed countless enemies, possessed an exceptional Authority for detecting those who sought to harm it.
Within the flames that sensed hostility, the General discerned the forms of those who harbored ill will toward Lee Han.
The Ghoul King! The Ghoul King... despises you!
-No surprise there.
Lee Han wasn't particularly shocked.
Given what had happened, it would be more surprising if the Ghoul King DIDN'T hate him.
Since the Ghoul King had taken significant damage and couldn't easily manifest in reality, there was no reason to fear it now.
Taken aback by Lee Han's calm reaction—as if he already knew—the General of Fire Heaven hesitated.
Then... oh... this undead... is it the Profaner?! Do you also know this powerful undead loathes you?
-Yeah.
......???
The General of Fire Heaven grew confused.
Those favored by spirits were usually gentle and benevolent by nature, rarely making many enemies.
Yet here was this mortal who had already made multiple enemies across different dimensions.
What in the world?
'Are my eyes deceiving me?'
Do you know Prahgal and Sanguiros as well?
-Of course I know them... Wait, do you happen to know anything about the Sanguiros Cult?
Lee Han asked just in case.
This evil god cult, which had once been destroyed but recently resurfaced, was currently the enemy that interested Lee Han the most.
Especially since Professor Voladi might come charging out with his sword at any moment.
Of course! Haha! It seems you don't know who this spirit has fought. I've burned quite a few of those fanatics myself.
The General of Fire Heaven's words were true.
Flames don't discriminate between good and evil when they burn.
Moreover, evil god worshippers were relatively easier to burn. They always approached first, after all.
At first, he had been content with simply devouring the evil god worshippers who entered the spirit realm to enslave spirits.
But at some point, the General of Fire Heaven began to feel unsatisfied.
As he joyfully burned them, the number of incoming worshippers gradually dwindled...
...Eventually, the General of Fire Heaven descended directly into the Material Plane and began ambushing evil god worshippers. From their perspective, it was truly absurd suffering.
A random, insane spirit chasing them down out of sheer boredom—how ridiculous!
-You must have been trapped for a long time. I doubt anything you know is still relevant.
What! You underestimate me too much. This spirit never forgets an opponent it has fought.
The General of Fire Heaven casually uttered a chilling remark.
Of course, there might not be any survivors left from those battles. But do you know what evil god worshippers and rabbits have in common?
-Uh... What? They multiply quickly?
That's a good answer too. But the one I was thinking of is, 'They keep appearing in the same places.'
Like rabbits that always follow the same paths, evil god worshippers were obsessed with certain locations.
Unlike temporary hideouts they could abandon at any time, specific places held religious significance, making them difficult to discard.
Locations where an evil god's power had descended or where sacred idols were carved served as underground temples, and targeting these spots always yielded fresh evil god worshippers.
I used to burn so many of them by exploiting this.
-I see. So you know such locations.
You catch on quickly!
-Go ahead and name a few.
Lee Han took out paper and a quill. He then wrote down the conditions of the locations the General of Fire Heaven listed.
Once he finished writing, Lee Han sent a paper bird to the Skeleton Principal. The General of Fire Heaven asked eagerly,
So, are we making a contract now?
-No. Get lost.
Having gotten what he wanted, Lee Han was about to cut the connection.
The General of Fire Heaven panicked and shouted.
Waitwaitwait! Hold on! You seem very interested in the Sanguiros Cult—are you really satisfied with just their old hideouts?
-...What do you mean?
This is a secret, but this General of Fire Heaven not only never forgets an opponent he's fought but can also track down their successors who share deep ties with them.
-......
Lee Han was horrified. This was the first time he'd encountered a spirit whose every Authority was so unsettling.
Given enough time, I could even track down successors connected to those I've burned before...
-Then go find them and bring them here.
But the wounds I've sustained aren't trivial. Ah! I have a great idea—a contract!
-Of course.
A contract would create a resonance between our souls, and it would also make scouting the Material Plane easier since there'd be a proper channel...
-Got it. Find another contractor, make a pact with them, and bring them here diligently. Until then, don't call me for no reason.
The mortal truly stopped responding to the spirit's calls. The General of Fire Heaven made a pitiful face.