Episode 115
Episode 115
Pahait's series of illusion magic spells were more difficult than other types of illusion magic.
It wasn't just about creating simple illusions—since it incorporated the element of heat, the difficulty naturally increased.
<Pahait's Lesser Illusion> only involved adjusting the temperature to match the illusion, but if one progressed to intermediate or advanced levels, they could summon illusions that could actually attack intruders.
'Stay calm.'
The senior pulled himself together, realizing how pathetic his behavior had been.
Just because someone was a freshman didn't necessarily mean they would fail at magic. For all he knew, they might have been lucky enough to find a spell that perfectly suited their aptitude.
-"Looks like you have a talent for fire-element magic. Let me guess—did you show an aptitude for fire elements during Professor Garcia's class?"
"The professor banned me from using fire-element magic."
-"......"
The senior was at a loss for words.
Talent aside, what in the world had this kid done to get banned from fire-element magic?
'What kind of guy is this?'
The group moved to the kitchen for the time being.
They couldn't afford to waste too much time when there was no telling when the walking armor or the warehouse keeper might appear.
The mysterious senior waved a piece of paper and a quill, leading the group forward.
A door engraved with a teapot emblem creaked open.
-"This is the underground 'Teapot' kitchen. It's relatively easier to access compared to the other kitchens in the school. The only downside is that there's no alcohol..."
'Is alcohol that important?'
Unlike Lee Han, who couldn't understand why anyone would lament the lack of alcohol, the Black Turtle Tower students were deeply disappointed.
"No alcohol...?"
"That's really too bad."
"Can a kitchen even function without alcohol?"
Lee Han was dumbfounded by his friends' intense craving for alcohol.
'What the hell...'
Did they come here to study or to drink?
While the Black Turtle Tower students rummaged through the kitchen in desperate hope of finding even a drop of alcohol, the senior called Lee Han over.
He had shown a rather pathetic side earlier with <Pahait's Lesser Illusion>, but now was the time to act like a proper senior.
What could be more moving to ignorant, starving freshmen than revealing the school's hidden locations?
-"Alright. Follow me. And try not to scream."
"?"
-"Open that cupboard."
At the senior's words, Lee Han opened the cupboard, puzzled.
'Is there some kind of trap?'
Inside, hams and sausages made from carefully cut chunks of meat hung in clusters.
Lee Han was grateful at the sight of the sausages, either salt-cured or smoke-cured.
"Oh. Thank you."
-"......"
The senior was baffled.
Normally, freshmen would lose their minds at the sight of something like this.
Even he, back in his first year, had been overjoyed when he'd managed to snag a single sausage from a professor's lab.
He hadn't even used a fork or knife—just roughly sliced it with a pocketknife and wolfed it down in a frenzy. To this day, he could still remember the taste of that sausage.
But this freshman boy was calmly examining them with an air of appraisal, as if thinking, 'Not bad craftsmanship.'
No matter how he looked at it, this wasn't the reaction of a freshman.
Just what...?
"Wardanaz. We found the ingredients we need. Could you come help?"
"Sure. Got it."
The Black Turtle Tower students lit a fire under the cauldron and gathered the ingredients.
The senior asked, sounding puzzled.
-"What are you doing?"
"We're preparing a nutritious meal for our friend."
-"Not a bad idea."
The senior nodded in approval.
The Magic School was far too harsh a place to survive on just the meals provided. This was especially true for freshmen.
To survive, you had to fend for yourself.
-"...Wait. Hold on."
"?"
-"That's not just cooking you're doing there!"
The senior, startled, tried to stop them.
This was nothing like ordinary cooking.
The ingredients in the cauldron were undergoing a chemical reaction, emitting a unique mana.
This was a form of alchemy.
Moreover, just by looking at the preparations, it was clear the process was anything but ordinary in its complexity.
'It seems like magic incantations will be needed too...'
"This isn't a difficulty level suitable for a freshman. Make him stop!"
'Is that so?'
Lee Han asked Salko. Having heard this much, he needed to confirm.
"Tutanta. I've just been told that this dish isn't ordinary cooking but a form of alchemy with considerable difficulty. Is that true?"
"It is."
Salko nodded readily.
Seeing that, Lee Han felt slightly relieved.
'Seeing him act like that, there must be some basis for his confidence.'
Salko wasn't the type to act recklessly. If he wasn't certain, he wouldn't have gone this far.
"Seeing how you prepared all this despite knowing the difficulty, you must be confident."
"That's right."
Then Salko handed Lee Han a scroll. Lee Han paused.
"...?"
"Here. It's my family's secret technique, recorded in as much detail as possible. If it's you, you can do it."
"......"
Lee Han was dumbfounded.
While it was baffling that Salko would trust and hand over his family's secret technique, what was even more...
So the Black Turtle Tower students had been pinning their hopes on Lee Han all along?
'These guys are seriously overestimating me.'
Though the baseless rumors about black magic had already spread too far to take back, this was an entirely different field.
"I'm not that exceptional in alchemy—"
"Priestess Siana praised you immensely. If a priest of the Flemeng Order compliments you, it can't be false."
"Wardanaz. No need to be humble in front of us."
The Black Turtle Tower students spoke as if to say, "What are you talking about?"
Lee Han seriously considered whether he should tone down the flattery he received from others in the future.
'Hmm. But I don't think it's impossible.'
First, Lee Han read through the Tutanta family's secret technique.
While the ingredients were finicky and numerous, the difficulty wasn't beyond his capabilities.
He had conducted far more challenging experiments multiple times before, so there was no reason to be intimidated by something like this.
"I told you, this isn't a freshman-level difficulty."
The senior scribbled with a quill beside him. Lee Han replied,
"I think I can manage it."
"...You're going to regret this later."
The senior inwardly wished for this arrogant freshman to fail at alchemy and end up drenched in the pot's contents.
Wasn't the first year meant for learning one's limits through such experiences?!
The liquid in the pot turned golden, the bubbles gradually subsiding as it settled into a gentle simmer.
The Black Turtle Tower students gasped in awe.
"As expected..."
Salko nodded as if he had anticipated this outcome.
"Thank you, Wardanaz. I was certain you could do it."
Lee Han felt a mix of emotions seeing the Black Turtle Tower students place more faith in him than he did in himself, but he didn't let it show.
At least it worked out!
Of course, in stark contrast to the warm atmosphere among the freshmen, the senior watching from the side was so flabbergasted he was at a loss for words.
"You're not a freshman, are you?? Tell me. What year are you?"
"I am a freshman, Senior."
"Where do you find freshmen like you?!"
Ordinary freshmen didn't master [Pahait's Lesser Illusion] in one go. They didn't remain composed upon seeing the food in the kitchen, either.
And to flawlessly execute such a complex alchemical process without a single mistake?
"Wardanaz really is a freshman, Senior."
"That's right. Why are you treating Wardanaz like this?"
The Black Turtle Tower students began eyeing the invisible senior with suspicion.
Dismissing something Wardanaz was clearly capable of...
Are you deliberately interfering?
The senior couldn't miss their gazes. Struck by injustice, he was rendered speechless.
To be falsely accused like this—how absurd!
"So, Tutanta. Is it done?"
"Yeah. This is our family's secret: Beer Candy."
"???"
For a moment, Lee Han doubted his ears.
However, despite its playful name, the Beer Candy developed as a secret technique by the Tutanta family was a highly serious nutritional and preserved food.
It could be stored at room temperature for several months, and consuming just a single Beer Candy—about the size of two finger joints—provided two days' worth of nutrients.
"Try one, Wardanaz."
Lee Han cautiously placed the shriveled Beer Candy into his mouth. The sweet, smooth taste vaguely reminded him of malt candy.
Salko spoke with a face full of pride.
"Can you feel your mana recovering too?"
"...Uh, yeah."
Lee Han controlled his expression while recalling the last time he drank a mana potion.
"But why is it called Beer Candy?"
"Our ancestors, who suffered from beer shortages while trapped beneath the mines, created this as a substitute and named it accordingly."
"I see..."
Having just heard a completely useless origin story, Lee Han nodded half-heartedly, cut the Beer Candy, wrapped it in paper, and pocketed it.
Now that they had made the dish they wanted, it was time to gather whatever useful things they could from the kitchen and leave.
'Where were those sausages earlier?'
-EMERGENCY!!!
The senior hastily scribbled with his quill. He was in such a rush that the last word wasn't even properly finished.
"What is it?"
-The warehouse keeper is coming! Hide in the corner!
O flame, distort the air!
The senior chanted a spell along with his words.
This was a much more elaborate spell than before.
They needed to create a convincing illusion to cover up the mess in the kitchen caused by their cooking.
"Can we really fool the warehouse keeper with this?"
-I don't know either! Just stay quiet!
The senior's tension spread to the other students.
Lee Han and the Black Turtle Tower students stiffened their faces as they watched the kitchen door.
"...?"
However, the warehouse keeper walking down the hallway didn't open the door. Lee Han sensed the warehouse keeper casting a spell outside.
"He's using magic!"
-Magic... Wait. How did you know?
The senior, in the middle of writing, was taken aback.
He had summoned a Far-sight familiar in the hallway to see who was coming, but this freshman had no such thing.
How did he know?
"The mana moved, so he must be casting a spell, right?"
-You can sense that from here? No—that's not important right now. The warehouse keeper seems determined.
The senior paled as he looked down the hallway.
Normally, the warehouse keeper would just pass by, but for some reason, he was casting spells on every door today.
That magic...
'Spatial magic!'
The senior's face turned ashen. While other types of magic might be manageable, spatial magic was several times harder to break.
It was infamous for being the most difficult branch of magic.
And he was casting it on every door.
'Why is he doing this? Is he insane?!'
He could've just patrolled as usual and gone to rest if nothing seemed amiss.
There was no way to know why he was suddenly casting spatial magic on every single door today.
After the warehouse keeper disappeared, the senior tried opening the door to step out of the kitchen.
And immediately returned inside.
To Lee Han and the Black Turtle Tower students, it only looked like the door had opened.
"What are you doing?"
-...Try it yourself and you'll see.
The freshmen went out and came right back in. They stared at the door with the same bewildered expression as the senior.
-He twisted the space around the door. The warehouse keeper's magic.
"Do you have a way to fix this, senior?"
-No. We're doomed.
Reading the senior's words, Lee Han nodded resignedly and said,
"So we're finally going to the Punishment Room after all."
"Sorry, Wardanaz. It's our fault you got dragged into this."
"Don't worry. I was prepared for this from the start. Just keep your promises later. Even though we didn't steal anything, hide everything just in case."
-......
The senior was astonished by Lee Han, whose expression didn't change even as they were about to enter the Punishment Room.
What kind of...?
-Actually... there might be a way.
"Ah! Really?"
The senior found himself genuinely curious about what kind of situation it would take to finally make this freshman panic.