Episode 1151
Episode 1151
After all, he could just take it and head down to the basement—that would be the end of it.
"Giving something like this to me. What's the reason?"
Zarun, having regained his composure, looked at his junior with eyes full of wariness once again.
Lee Han answered calmly.
"You're a fourth-year, Senior."
"!"
Zarun was greatly surprised.
Who would have thought that a junior would gift him such an artifact for that reason alone?
It was a reason he had never anticipated.
"The other seniors from the Transmutation Magic school were worried about you. They kept saying things like you might not graduate, or that you'd become a wandering ghost of Einrogard haunting the basement."
"Wait. I have every intention of graduating—"
"Of course, I didn't agree. No matter what, there's no way Senior Zarun would fail to graduate. It's not like you're Gainando."
Lee Han spoke with trust in his voice.
Of course, this dwarf senior was an extremely eccentric and difficult person.
But regardless of that, no one could deny his magical prowess.
A spell that continuously transmutes connected dimensions to scrape out gold—that wasn't the kind of magic anyone could easily attempt.
How could anyone believe such a senior would fail to graduate?
'Those seniors are really overreacting.'
Lee Han thought the other Transmutation Magic seniors were making a fuss.
Even as exceptional as Lee Han was, his imagination had its limits.
Before reaching the fourth year, one couldn't fathom the abyss that was the fourth year.
Who would have thought there were people who would genuinely choose to abandon graduation and become wandering ghosts of the school...
"...Ah, no. Graduation isn't absolutely necessary, is it?"
Zarun found himself retorting without realizing it.
If it had been any other junior, he wouldn't have cared what they said and just gone to the basement, but strangely, this junior in front of him made him inexplicably flare up and argue back.
What was so important about graduating from Einrogard?
What mattered was continuing to walk the path of magic he pursued.
"Graduation isn't absolutely necessary, no. But becoming a wandering ghost of Einrogard haunting the basement is a bit..."
"......"
Truly befitting the top student of his year, the junior had sharp logic.
If one were to drop out of Einrogard midway, that would be one thing, but to become a ghost haunting the grounds because they lacked the confidence to pass graduation—what kind of nonsense was that?
That wasn't the path of magic; it was a muddy swamp of magic.
"You'd have to avoid the eyes of the Death Knights, the professors, and the juniors. You wouldn't be able to receive support or take on commissions. What kind of waste is that?"
Zarun, a dwarf from the West who usually kept walls between himself and conversation, couldn't refute this.
All he could do was kick a pebble in front of him in frustration.
Lee Han, who had been laying out his argument, suddenly sensed something off and asked,
"Senior. Were you really considering abandoning graduation and fleeing?"
"Wha—what nonsense! You brat! What do you take me for?!"
"I knew it."
Lee Han nodded as if he had expected this.
'I shouldn't believe anything Senior Hormasi says from now on.'
Perhaps because rare creatures, including the Griffin, seemed to favor only Lee Han, he could feel this senior grumbling more than usual.
"Anyway, I hope this helps. Oh, and if Professor Verdus finds out, this wasn't from me."
After delivering that final sharp remark, the junior quickly left.
Zarun, standing there dumbfounded, scratched his head and thought.
'...I should prepare and submit something now...'
It definitely wasn't because of that damn junior.
Giselle Moradi, from the Moradi family, checked the edge of her sword, Frostbloom, and meticulously inspected her magic.
She could feel the pleasant pulse of the northern chill flowing from the blade to her hand. Giselle smiled faintly. Few things brought her as much joy as her sword.
"Quiet, loyal, and doesn't make unnecessary mistakes."
"Moradi. Did your friends stay out of trouble today?"
Palga of the Ukim family, a senior from the same tower who was passing by, asked. As a member of the Duel Club, this senior was well aware of how much Giselle suffered among her fellow second-years.
"Yes."
"Good to hear."
As Palga walked away, another senior, Ivanna, appeared this time.
"Moradi. Your friends didn't summon any extradimensional monsters like last time, did they?"
"...No. Please forget about that."
"Haha. I already have. But your friends might want to remember. This is the third time they've made the same mistake."
"......"
Giselle swallowed her humiliation.
At times like this, she couldn't help but compare the White Tiger Tower students to those from other towers.
Of course, the other towers must have their own struggles.
Since most incidents within the White Tiger Tower didn't leak outside, surely the other towers were causing similar trouble...
'Heh. The Blue Dragon Tower probably isn't like this.'
No matter how much she thought about it, the image of Blue Dragon Tower students being diligent and steady refused to leave her mind.
Giselle frowned.
Somehow, she couldn't shake the feeling that her current situation was quite different from what she'd expected before enrolling.
She had planned to bring not just the White Tiger Tower students but also those from other towers under her control to use as stepping stones for the future...
...But the current situation felt different. Even putting aside the other towers, the White Tiger Tower students were—
Wasn't this more like being a caretaker than a ruthless ruler?
Not that she disliked or was dissatisfied with the current situation, but she kept feeling somehow deceived.
'It's probably because that Wardanaz kid keeps looking after everyone indiscriminately, and the mood just got swept up in it.'
If he had planned this all along to weaken her influence, he'd be a terrifying strategist indeed.
'...No. That's absurd.'
Giselle snapped out of it.
People had their limits.
It made no sense for him to go that far just to undermine her control over the tower.
He was just like that by nature.
"Moradi. How do you think this coat would fare in the North?"
"The material is fine, but you should remove the metal decorations. They'll just be a nuisance if they touch your skin."
"I see. Thanks."
Batrek of the Bark family, a fellow second-year, bowed slightly as he passed by. Giselle nodded back but felt a growing sense of unease.
'Why is he asking about the North?'
Of course, Einrogard did have areas with cold, harsh environments similar to the Empire's northern regions.
There were no starving bandits, but starving students roamed instead, so it was roughly the same.
But when going to such places, people usually just said they were heading to the glacial zone or blizzard region—they didn't specifically mention the Empire's North.
What's going on?
"Moradi. Do you think your family's knights would like this <Knight's Delight> liquor?"
"...They all like strong liquor, so..."
"Perfect!"
This time, it was Angrago of the Alpha family, clinking bottles inside a crate as he walked past. The crate was labeled 'Thunderstep.'
Giselle's unease deepened.
Knights who trained their mana by using their bodies as staves could sense danger even without divination magic.
Right now, Giselle definitely sensed danger.
"Moradi. About this northern request—the Moradi Family Head said it's fine to bring anyone, but is it really okay to take everyone like this?"
The last one was Durgyu of the Choy family. His question, coming from one of the few sane second-years in the White Tiger Tower, shocked Giselle.
"What northern request? And what Family Head?"
"Huh? The request invited by the Moradi Family Head. The one you and Lee Han and Moradi accepted..."
"...I never said anyone could come along? What in the world are you talking about?"
If it hadn't been for the Family Head's direct order, Giselle wouldn't have participated in this at all.
Considering what Wardanaz had done in their family territory last year, there was absolutely no benefit in going together this year.
In fact, wasn't it Wardanaz who had advised the Family Head that 'to improve the apprentice knights' skills, they should be trained like Einrogard students'?
Just thinking about how much the knights in their territory had suffered because of that advice, Giselle honestly wanted to tell even Wardanaz not to come this time.
If word got out that he'd given that advice, assassins wielding knightly swordsmanship would mysteriously keep visiting his room at night...
'But what nonsense are these idiots spouting?!'
One troublemaker was headache enough—why was the entire White Tiger Tower trying to come along?!
"...Wait, wasn't participation open to anyone?"
Durgyu spoke with an utterly bewildered expression.
Clearly, someone had spread conversations like 'Moradi got a family request to go out,' 'Really?', 'I heard participation's open,' and 'Oh, I should go too.'
"This isn't some street polo match! Since when is it open to anyone?! Of course not! This is Wardanaz's request! I'm just the guide!"
"Gahk."
It was truly rare to see Durgyu so flustered that he'd make such noises.
The other students who heard this also gasped and began whispering among themselves.
"B-but someone definitely said participation was free? Which bastard...?"
"Was it Angrago?"
"No, you lunatic! Batrek's the suspicious one!"
"Rowena's staying quiet—she must be the culprit!"
"I wasn't even planning to participate in the first place! Never even considered going!"
The White Tiger Tower students huddled together, trying to trace the rumor's origin.
But the culprit remained elusive. In the end, they concluded it must have been 'a collective hallucination born from everyone's subconscious desire to go outside.'
"How mysterious. Truly magical."
"Shh. Shut up. Moradi's about to draw her sword."
"......"
The White Tiger Tower students quickly clamped their mouths shut. Giselle asked in an icy voice,
"Since you're all prepared like this, I assume you've already reported to the professors."
"...Yeah..."
"If you want to persuade anyone, take it up with Wardanaz yourselves."
"M-Moradi! P-please...!"
"Please what?"
"...Couldn't you at least come along and watch our backs?"
Reading the mood, the White Tiger Tower students swiftly changed tactics.
Durgyu covered his face with both hands, utterly embarrassed by his friends.
"What?! Everyone's coming along?!"
Lee Han was utterly shocked.
Angrago spoke with complete dejection:
"Actually... I even prepared gifts to give the knights when we visited the territory. Isn't there any way...?"
"No..."
Lee Han, deeply perplexed, glanced back at Giselle standing stiffly behind them.
Giselle's eyes said:
'Tell them to get lost.'
"...Moradi. A word."
Realizing eye communication wouldn't suffice, Lee Han pulled his friend aside.
"Let me be clear—I never invited them. Having even one person visit the territory is troublesome enough, let alone a whole group."
"No. The visiting part isn't the problem... It's just... Ugh. Fine. Moradi. Since it's come to this, I'll be honest. I actually had separate plans for this outing. I even made preparations."
"?"
Giselle was puzzled.
She couldn't imagine what Wardanaz would go to such lengths for.
For any other student, she might have suspected they were scheming to attend a ball or social gathering, but as everyone knew, Wardanaz was the last person to care about such things.
'Smuggling? Too trivial for Wardanaz. Is he trying to buy some forbidden dark magic tome?'
"What were you planning to do?"
"I was going to hunt down some Evil God Worshippers. That's why I invited Senior Catten too."
"......"
No amount of time would have let her guess that answer.