Episode 1272
Episode 1272
The students fell silent as if they were dead mice. Lee Han internally debated whom to throw under the bus.
'Professor Verdus? Or Senior Yukveltire?'
But surprisingly, the Skeleton Principal spoke as if he couldn't care less.
Fine. I'm not curious about the reason, so just hurry inside.
"?!!!!!!"
Everyone present was startled.
Without realizing it, Lee Han blurted out,
"What kind of trap are you setting?!"
"W-Wardanaz, sir."
Paridim tried to stop him in a panic.
The headmaster of Einrogard was a figure as lofty as the heavens within the academy and held boundless prestige outside—how could someone be so rude to him?
The Skeleton Principal stared silently at Lee Han. A first-year freshman might have been nervous, but Lee Han wasn't fooled.
Do you really want to know the reason?
"Yes."
Do you really want to hear it?
"Ah. I said I do."
Because an enraged Professor Garcia is flying here right now. She'll arrive in five minutes.
No sooner had he finished speaking than Lee Han's group scattered. The Skeleton Principal clicked his tongue in disapproval.
Why do fools always doubt the words of a prophet?
BOOM!
The prophecy came true in less than five minutes.
Professor Garcia, who had arrived at the front gate, leapt down from her broomstick, which was blazing fiercely.
She had pushed her speed so recklessly that her artifact had overheated and caught fire.
The Skeleton Principal briefly pondered whether driving herself to that point was madness—or if casting protective barriers while still burning and continuing to charge forward was even more insane.
"Headmaster!!!"
Good afternoon, Professor Garcia.
"Headmaster, did you plan all of this?!"
Professor Garcia shouted, panting. It was hard to tell whether it was from anger or from flying too fast.
Rather than provoking his furious subordinate, the Skeleton Principal decided to simply answer the question.
I don't know what you're talking about. What exactly did I plan?
"You didn't send Lee Han to intimidate people from other magic academies and force them to participate in the festival to fight void monsters?!"
......
The Skeleton Principal stared at Professor Garcia in disbelief.
Professor Garcia was baffled, but at the same time, so was the student who wasn't even present.
He knew Lee Han had gone outside, but he never expected him to pull that kind of stunt.
'What the hell did that kid do?'
At most, he thought Lee Han might have helped Professor Garcia with her work—what was this nonsense about a festival?
Professor Garcia. Don't you find it strange even as you say it? Would I really assign such a task in the current situation?
"...Well, that's true."
Professor Garcia's momentum faltered. Even she had felt something was off while saying it.
Even if it was the Skeleton Principal, it was hard to imagine him ordering something like that.
Frankly, it was questionable whether such a thing was even possible to orchestrate.
"But Headmaster, you've pulled so many tricks while pretending not to be involved."
Baseless slander wounds me, but I suppose such defamation comes with the position. Now, Professor Garcia. Why don't you explain what happened? That way, I can help.
Killing time until the punishment room prisoners properly entered and checking what had transpired, the Skeleton Principal kindly suggested.
Hesitating, Professor Garcia finally spoke.
"Well, you see..."
-Please accept this gold coin.
-Why are you acting like this?! If you don't want to cooperate, just say so!
-I'm being completely sincere! There's no trick here!
-We've never even heard of Dekarogard wizards gifting gold coins in our lives!
The magic academies' excessive—and unnecessary—kindness sent shivers down Professor Garcia's spine.
Normally, these were the kind of people who would wear others down with endless refrains of "Do we have to?" "Why should we?" and "Can't we do it later?" Yet now, no matter what she said, they responded with flattery like, "We agree!" "We definitely agree!" "Could you note this down in the records?" and so on.
"Wait, are you bragging right now?"
The Skeleton Principal asked with a puzzled expression.
Professor Garcia was recounting it like a horrifying experience, but from the listener's perspective, it didn't seem relatable at all.
In fact, it made his heart race with excitement.
If the Skeleton Principal had met other magic academy headmasters and they kept flattering him with 'We agree!' at every word...
Just the thought was delightful.
"...I'm not joking, Headmaster. It was genuinely a spine-chilling experience."
Being suspicious of unusual situations is a good trait for a mage. But there's no need to be so fearful just because mages from other magic academies suddenly became cooperative.
While sensitivity is an excellent quality for a mage, being overly suspicious of things that don't warrant it is pointless.
Frankly, it was entirely plausible for mages from other academies to suddenly change their tune and start flattering.
The Empire's officials might have strongly requested it, or perhaps something unfortunate had happened internally.
"You didn't orchestrate this, did you, Headmaster?"
Professor Garcia, I could swear on all the administrative paperwork you'll have to handle for Einrogard over the next ten years.
'Gasp. So it really wasn't him.'
The Skeleton Principal's unexpectedly serious condition convinced Professor Garcia.
It seemed the Skeleton Principal truly had nothing to do with this matter.
"So, Professor Garcia, do you think Wardanaz was pulling the strings behind the scenes?"
"...A little."
The Skeleton Principal let out an exaggerated chuckle.
Even so, isn't that being a bit too suspicious?
Though inwardly, he was shuddering.
'This kid...!'
To threaten and persuade those magic academies so quickly in such a short time.
He'd known from traveling with him during the break that his administrative skills were impressive, but this surpassed even his expectations.
Truly astonishing!
"It's not—it's not just because of that. There were other things too."
What else happened?
Having successfully placated the mages from other academies and ended the discussion on a good note, Professor Garcia stepped outside with a lighter heart.
Though still a bit uneasy and suspicious, it was true that he felt somewhat pleased that the other academies had agreed to cooperate so enthusiastically.
'Right. Let's not be too suspicious. The mages from other academies might have genuinely wanted to help with good intentions...'
-"Did everyone hear? Lord Wardanaz has arrived outside the city gates! They say he's at Oak Hill!"
-"I should go see! You, come along too! To become a great mage, you must see a great mage!"
-"Wow! Then can I get into Einrogard too?"
-"I said to become a great mage, not to get into Einrogard! Go join another magic academy!"
'???'
Professor Garcia doubted his ears as he heard the chatter of the crowd rushing past.
What did they just say?
-"Excuse me, you said Lord Wardanaz has arrived... Are you perhaps referring to Lord Hierdan?"
-"Huh? I'm not sure about that. I just heard a mage from the Wardanaz family came personally for the festival."
-"Th-thank you."
Professor Garcia instinctively sensed something was off.
A mage from the Wardanaz family was outside the city gates right now?
Of course, logically and sensibly, it could have been Hierdan.
But...
But if, against all odds, Lee Han was here...
Then even the bizarre behavior of the mages from other academies could be explained—shockingly—in one fell swoop.
"So? What happened?"
The Skeleton Principal felt slightly nervous inside but didn't show it.
He absolutely couldn't let it slip.
If he got caught here, given Professor Garcia's personality, there was a high chance he'd be held accountable too.
Even though it was clearly those shameless, honorless Death Knights who had orchestrated the escape!
"...We couldn't find Lee Han."
Then it must have been Hierdan.
"We couldn't find Lord Hierdan either."
Did he leave already?
"......"
Ah. Why?
When Professor Garcia gave him a suspicious look, the Skeleton Principal protested as if he'd been wronged.
'Can't I even say anything?'
"I heard that two Black Dragons appeared at the scene."
......
The Skeleton Principal nearly cursed out loud in earnest.
'What kind of multi-layered lunatic is this?!'
If he'd gone to help secretly, he should've just done his job and returned quietly—what's this about transforming into a dragon?
And to transform into a Black Dragon in front of Jowurin, no less...
'Crowds are prone to seeing illusions. It could've just been a doppelganger spell like Uman's.'
"How did you know it was His Highness Uman?"
Professor Garcia pressed sharply, but her opponent was a step ahead. The Skeleton Principal answered nonchalantly.
'Ah. The news must be delayed. Uman was dismissed from his post and returned to the capital. So you saw him there?'
"...!"
Professor Garcia, who had planned to use Uman's presence in the Punishment Room as evidence for the 'Lee Han's Escape Hypothesis,' faltered.
"R-really? Why?"
'Well. He made quite a few mistakes. And he was also getting along too closely with Wardanaz in front of His Highness Jowurin.'
"Ah. Of course."
Professor Garcia immediately understood.
'Now that I think about it, I always suspected Uman might get stabbed in the back someday.'
One should maintain a proper distance from other Dragon Contractors.
"...But witnesses at the scene claim they saw Lee Han. They insist they saw him transform from a dragon back into a human."
'As I said, crowds are prone to seeing illusions. They might've mistaken Hierdan for him, or Uman. Both have black hair, don't they? From a distance, they could look similar.'
"......"
Before coming here, Professor Garcia had been 99% certain Lee Han had escaped. But after talking to the Skeleton Principal, her confidence dropped to 95%.
She decided to check for herself. Asking the Skeleton Principal had been a waste of time after all.
"I'll just go confirm it myself."
'Professor Garcia. Pray do not disregard the words of a sage.'
Regardless, Professor Garcia turned toward the Punishment Room.
Since she'd already secured the time she'd initially aimed for, the Skeleton Principal let her go without stopping her.
He had other business to attend to.
'Time to give the students some celebratory news for their final exams.'
-What news would that be, sir?
'Tell them their Headmaster has returned. Surely that will lift their spirits.'
Lee Han nonchalantly played a Wizard Card.
Though his eyes were fixed on the card, his ears were trained on the entrance above the stairs.
"Wardanaz."
"Yes, Professor."
"You played the wrong card."
"...Th-thank you."
Even in this situation, Professor Voladi's cold precision in pointing out his misplayed card made Lee Han click his tongue inwardly.
'With Professor Garcia about to storm in any moment, how can he be this composed?'
'Is it because he's fooled Professor Garcia a few times himself?'
Creeeak—
"!!!"
The door opened with an eerie sound, and Professor Garcia peered inside.
Maintaining his composure, Lee Han asked with an innocent, cheerful expression:
"Is something the matter, Professor?"
"......"
Without a word, Professor Garcia scanned the Punishment Room.
With Uman and Jowurin gone, this Professor's Punishment Room floor felt oddly empty.
Other than that, nothing seemed amiss. There was a large hole between Lee Han and Professor Voladi's cell, but...
"Professor, would you like to join us for a game of Wizard Cards—"
"Lee Han?"
"Yes??"
"Thank you."
With those final words, Professor Garcia left again. Lee Han winced inwardly.
'...Did I manage my expression properly just now?'
As soon as the act was over, Professor Voladi put away the Wizard Cards and pulled out a thick stack of papers.
Curious, Lee Han asked:
"What's that, Professor?"
"Eandurde's final exam grading."
"Oh! Would you like me to help?"
When the student tried to crawl over, Professor Voladi yanked the bookcase to block the hole.
"......"
'Isn't that too harsh?!'