Episode 1152
Episode 1152
"...Why would you make such a plan? Wait. More importantly, which evil god worshippers are you talking about? Prahgal?"
Giselle knew that the priests of this wicked life-excess cult had a long-standing feud with Wardanaz.
'Are they finally planning to draw their swords against us?'
"What? No."
"Then Ksaxarigol?"
"Obviously Sanguiros. No, why do you and Senior Catten keep bringing up other evil god worshippers?"
"......"
"Especially since you even went on a subjugation mission with him during vacation. Moradi."
"Yeah. Sorry for not guessing right."
Giselle retorted sarcastically.
"I accept your apology."
"......"
"Anyway, Professor Bagrak disappeared because of those bastards."
"He was kidnapped?!"
Giselle reacted exactly the same way Senior Catten had when he heard the news.
A professor of Einrogard being kidnapped...
"No. He went missing while trying to ambush the cultists. More importantly, Moradi, didn't you know the professor had disappeared either?"
"Yeah."
"Isn't White Tiger Tower too indifferent? To have this little interest in others..."
"...Enough. Just explain more."
Suppressing the urge to hit him, Giselle tried to listen to her friend's explanation.
Right now, what she needed was information.
A short while later.
After hearing her friend's explanation, Giselle gave a small nod.
'I see.'
Now that she'd heard everything, it made sense.
Because Wardanaz was usually so good at playing the role of caretaker, he seemed like a kind and benevolent wizard, but inside him lurked an untamable, ferocious beast.
This was someone who spoke his mind without fear even before kings of other dimensions or the Skeleton Principal's Mad Clone—why would he cower before evil god worshippers?
It was as if the other side had slapped Wardanaz across the face when he was trying to stay still...
Lee Han spoke up in a slightly worried voice.
"This is different from a normal request, no matter how you look at it. I don't know how they'll take it."
"That's true."
Giselle, who had been nodding in agreement, suddenly paused.
Huh?
'Wait. Did this punk assume I'd just accept it without question?'
Of course, as someone from a knightly family, Giselle wouldn't refuse a request to subjugate evil god worshippers, but for some reason, she felt inexplicably irritated.
It was annoying that he hadn't explained beforehand, and even more annoying that his expectations had been correct despite that.
"Hmm. No. It's better to be honest."
"What else are you hiding?"
When Giselle asked irritably, Lee Han waved his hands in denial.
"Not from you, Moradi. From the other White Tiger Tower friends. If we tell them the truth, they'll back out on their own."
"Wai—"
"Everyone, gather around! I have something to say!"
She tried to stop him, but Lee Han had already called their friends over. The White Tiger Tower students, who had been waiting nearby, quickly swarmed around.
"Actually, this request has a hidden purpose. It's to subjugate evil god worshippers."
"!"
A silent shock spread among the students.
"So if any of you want to back out now—"
"If you're going to leave me behind for something like this, you'd better stab me first, Wardanaz!"
Angrago shouted, his eyes wide. Giselle, standing behind him, let out a deep sigh and said,
"...I was going to say this would backfire."
Living in the Blue Dragon Tower, it was easy to fall into the illusion that students from other towers lived similarly.
But that wasn't the case. With differences in race and background, it was only natural their behavior would differ too.
For example, if you asked Gainando, "Want to come subjugate evil god worshippers with us?" he'd likely burst into tears (which is why no one asked him).
It wasn't just Gainando—among Blue Dragon Tower students, few would show interest or come running in shock at the mention of subjugating evil god worshippers.
But the White Tiger Tower students were a different story.
Most of them being from knightly families, such an extermination mission was an honor the White Tiger Tower students couldn't possibly pass up.
"Indeed. So that's how it is."
Catten looked at the gathered White Tiger Tower juniors behind him with an expression of understanding.
Well, if they were from knightly families, it would be difficult for them to just stand by and let such an opportunity pass.
How strong or dangerous the opponent was didn't matter. In fact, the more formidable the foe, the greater the honor of facing them would be.
'I must really be out of it lately. To make such a rookie mistake...'
Lee Han reflected.
To unconsciously think of his White Tiger Tower friends in the same way as those from the Blue Dragon Tower...
"Well thought out, junior. To gift such an opportunity to your fellow juniors."
Catten looked at his junior with gratitude in his eyes.
Having capable friends was undoubtedly helpful in many ways. Catten himself had only managed to learn magic to this extent because he had friends like Diret and Illeg.
"A gift?"
The White Tiger Tower students behind them muttered.
The price they'd had to pay was far too steep to call it a "gift."
-Oh... I see.
Lee Han belatedly realized Giselle's point.
Telling his White Tiger Tower friends that it was dangerous would be meaningless.
-Wardanaz! If you're leaving me behind, at least let me stab—
-Got it.
-Y-you bastard, you were really going to stab me!
-Nice dodge.
Lee Han muttered as he watched Angrago retreat.
Lately, he'd been frequently noticing how his friends' magic skills had improved far beyond his expectations.
Especially with the White Tiger Tower students—most of them walked around with two or three enhancement spells active as a baseline, so Lee Han had to steel himself just to try assigning them homework.
Truthfully, the rapid improvement in magic skills among Einrogard's second-years was largely due to one insane mage in their year relentlessly pushing them, but Lee Han remained completely oblivious to this fact.
Angrago, having quickly put distance between them, shouted to his friends.
-Everyone, be careful! Wardanaz's attack patterns mainly consist of psychokinesis, lightning, fire, water orbs, flying swords, spatial movement, evil eye curses, and undead summons! And don't forget he uses swordsmanship if you get too close!
-...Thanks, Angrago! Your words fill me with courage!
-Let's resolve this through dialogue, Wardanaz! Violence is unbecoming of a mage!
Though they were the students who most revered violence among all the towers, when facing Lee Han, they suddenly became more fond of decorum and etiquette than even the Blue Dragon Tower students.
Lee Han scoffed at the White Tiger Tower students' shameless argument.
-You tagged along uninvited to someone else's request, and now you want to "resolve it through dialogue"?
-Wardanaz, think about it! Wouldn't having sturdy frontliners like us be more helpful for your magic?
-I already have Senior Catten and Moradi, so it's fine.
-...Two isn't enough. You should always have more frontliners. Don't you know how knightly orders protect mages on the battlefield?
-Hmm.
Though hastily concocted, the White Tiger Tower students' argument was surprisingly plausible.
It was true that having more combat-capable members wouldn't hurt.
-Then... how about this? Only those who can beat me one-on-one can come?
-......
-...Just tell us not to come, you bastard.
The White Tiger Tower students erupted in angry jeers. Even Durgyu shook his head in refusal.
That's not happening!
Flustered, Lee Han quickly amended his condition.
-Okay, okay. Then... only those who can use aura?
-......
-...Isn't that going too far?
Faced with continued backlash, Lee Han put his head together with his friends to find a compromise.
Two-on-one, three-on-one...
After intense negotiations—and even more intense battles—the White Tiger Tower students were finally permitted to accompany them.
The students who secured permission gritted their teeth, enduring the throbbing pain from their beatings.
And he thought to himself:
'Those Evil God Worshippers... I won't forgive them...!'
"The vigor in your eyes is overflowing, juniors, and your entire bodies radiate an intense aura as if you've just come from battle."
Catten praised his juniors.
Normally, second-year students would get overly excited and let their guard down when given a chance to go outside, but today, the White Tiger Tower students carried the atmosphere of knights who had just finished fighting.
"Th-thank you."
The White Tiger Tower students were at a loss for how to respond to their senior's heavenly praise.
This senior from the Wardanaz family was something of a legendary figure within the White Tiger Tower.
While it was rare to encounter fifth-years in general, Catten was especially unique among them.
Most were either in the Punishment Room or wandering the remote mountains and valleys of Einrogard...
And the few students who knew the truth remained silent, not wanting to tarnish Catten's mysterious image.
They wanted Catten to remain the White Tiger Tower's enigmatic swordsmanship genius.
"But how do you plan to deal with the Evil God Worshippers? Do you at least have their locations?"
"We're going to try the method we used for the last request."
At Lee Han's words, Ibinta, who was driving the carriage ahead, flinched.
Was he saying they'd use that insane scorched-earth method again?!
'Madness.'
On the way to the North, they'd inevitably pass through one or two cities and four or five villages. If the same kind of extermination as last time were to happen in all those places...
Ibinta unconsciously rubbed his neck. Even after this was over, he probably shouldn't visit the western or northern parts of the Empire.
From thieves to mercenaries, they'd all put bounties on his head!
'Once I'm free, I should flee to the far east and never return.'
"It was quite effective, wasn't it, Mr. Ibinta?"
"Ah... uh... y-yes! It was effective."
Ibinta looked at the Death Knights driving the carriage beside him with pleading eyes.
He was desperately asking for help.
But the knights coldly shook their heads.
'This isn't our place to intervene.'
After the last request, what had surprised the knights most was that the Skeleton Principal, upon hearing the shocking news, had unexpectedly shown no reaction at all.
The Skeleton Principal had merely asked a few questions:
-The bureaucrats just let it slide?
-Yes.
-Those despicable bastards. When I do it, it's a reckless act that shakes the Empire's laws, but when Wardanaz does it, it's a righteous act? Understood.
-...Do you have anything else to say?
-No, why? Did you want me to say something?
-N-no, not at all.
They'd expected at least some of them to be sent to the Punishment Room for failing to properly assist and letting things spiral out of control, but when they were all released unharmed, the knights were baffled.
Why on earth?
There was no answer, and because of that, so many conspiracy theories sprouted among the knights that it was ridiculous.
Maybe the mastermind provoked it, maybe the Evil God Worshippers were also recruited by the mastermind, maybe he's still in contact with Professor Bagrak, and so on.
If the Skeleton Principal had heard them, they'd have been sent straight to the Punishment Room for such wicked slander, but the malicious speculations flowed without pause.
In any case, since they couldn't get an answer, there was only one course of action the knights could take.
'It must mean there's no problem, so we can proceed as we did last time.'
If the chaos from last time had been an issue, he would have definitely said something.
Since the Skeleton Principal let it slide, the knights took it as permission.
"So what was the method you used last time? Did you plant spies or something?"
"It's a bit different. First..."
As Lee Han spoke, a cloud of dust appeared in the distance at the end of the road, accompanied by a group of people urgently riding horses toward them.
"Are you from Einrogard?!"
"Yes, but..."
"We've already captured the suspicious ones! Please, have mercy and don't let Bepaim City happen again...!"
"......"
Giselle was stunned.
'What on earth did they do in Bepaim City?'
What could they have done to make Bepaim City a symbol of terror for suspicious criminals?