Episode 1278
Episode 1278
Though the Enchantment Magic students had been freed and Lee Han had returned from the Punishment Room, Einrogard remained in chaos.
With the final exam period at the end of the semester and even the disciplinary inspector who had been keeping things in check gone, it was only natural.
"Wardanaz! Those Black Turtle Tower bastards stole all the tableware we had stored in our dorm! Because of them, I had to eat breakfast with my hands today!"
"Lee Han. I bought some strawberries cheap from a third-year senior in the 7th-floor open area today, but turns out they were stolen from Professor Thunderstep's greenhouse! No wonder they were so cheap! If I'd known they were stolen goods, I would've haggled even more!"
"Wardanaz. There's still some time left until exams are over, but we've run out of fuel for heating. Should we steal from the White Tiger Tower bastards or the Black Turtle Tower bastards?"
"......"
Maintaining his patience in the face of friends who kept coming to him for advice like this, Lee Han spoke up.
"Haven't you guys learned to handle these things on your own by now? And even if you do ask, at least whisper it!"
"Why?"
Glancing to the side, he saw Paridim, the student from Oculogard, diligently taking notes.
Feeling self-conscious, Lee Han hastily made excuses.
"Lord Paridim. My friends were just joking. Haha."
Now he understood why Professor Garcia would passionately defend Einrogard's image whenever she stepped outside.
He used to think, 'Isn't Einrogard's reputation already ruined beyond repair anyway?' But it turned out the human heart couldn't help it—you just ended up making excuses anyway!
"Ah. Huh? I was too busy taking notes to hear."
"...Never mind..."
Lee Han worried that this might further tarnish Einrogard's already notorious reputation in Oculogard's eyes.
Stealing each other's tableware and fuel in winter, selling stolen goods...
'It can't be helped. It's already too late.'
After sending some of the strawberries Gainando had brought to the next room, Lee Han sat back down.
Though his exams were finished early, magic had no end. He planned to study additional spells from Senior Diret and Professor Garcia's lectures.
Even though Lee Han had defeated an Evil God and was already receiving offers from multiple magic towers, slacking off over such minor achievements could cost him the top rank next semester.
His friends would have given him horrified looks if they'd heard such insane thoughts.
"Gainando. Why are you still here?"
Lee Han realized Gainando was the only one left and looked at him curiously.
Did he have more questions?
"Hehe. There's something I need to tell you, that's why."
Gainando flashed a confident smile. Seeing that, Lee Han's heart sank.
'This bastard... Did he cause another accident?'
Usually, when Gainando smiled like that, it almost never meant good news.
'Please let it be something manageable. Please let it be something manageable.'
Lee Han desperately hoped Gainando had only committed theft, embezzlement, or forgery.
Once it escalated to arson or explosions, repairs became a real pain...
"Rumor has it the Portrait of Wisdom has appeared somewhere in the school!"
"...What?"
Completely caught off guard, Lee Han froze.
"You didn't get caught stealing something, did you? Or maybe destroyed half a floor in Black Rock Hall?"
"Why would I do something like that?"
Gainando retorted indignantly.
He wasn't some barbarian from White Tiger Tower—as a dignified imperial descendant, he wouldn't do such things.
"R-right... Of course I believed you. So, the Portrait of Wisdom, you say?"
"Yep!"
The vast and labyrinthine Einrogard was always teeming with countless rumors.
Some insane student was attending lectures from every magic discipline while still maintaining top rank, there was a Bulgasari lurking underground, some basement held a stone tablet inscribed with answers to every existing exam...
And most of those rumors were always false. First-years might believe them, but by the time you became an upperclassman, you learned to be skeptical.
"Isn't this one of the Headmaster's traps?"
"I think it's just a rumor spread by those White Tiger Tower bastards. They're trying to sabotage us."
Though Lee Han was only a second-year, the trials he'd endured surpassed those of most upperclassmen. Naturally, he was skeptical of such rumors.
"Gainando. Are you making up weird rumors again because you don't want to study..."
"That's not it?! Besides, I already took the exam early!"
Gainando made an expression like he was dying of injustice at the absurd suspicion. After all that effort to take the exam early just so they could go out together, and now this suspicion!
"Ah. Right. Wait. But then why are you interested in the portrait?"
"Well, if we secure it in advance, we won't have to study next semester..."
"......"
Lee Han shot him a look of utter contempt, as if he'd died of disappointment.
Wouldn't it be better to put that effort into actual studying rather than chasing after unverified rumors?
Perhaps sensing his friend's gaze, Gainando quickly defended himself.
"A-and having something like that would help with studying too! When you get stuck, you can ask it questions."
"That's completely different from what you just said. And you already ask me when you're stuck, so what's the..."
Lee Han was unimpressed.
Having previously excavated a similar artifact and undergone rigorous training in Enchantment Magic, he had some understanding of how such magic mechanisms worked.
Things like that were nothing more than products of spirits from other dimensions or highly advanced magical computations.
While it might answer basic questions, the accuracy would drop sharply—and restrictions would increase—once the questions reached a certain level of complexity.
At that point, it'd be better to just ask a professor or scour the Library.
"But this one's really different, Lee Han. It's a portrait dressed like a prince, and it answers any question perfectly! The rumors even say it correctly predicted the date the inspector would leave!"
"...?!"
Lee Han, who'd been about to ignore him and turn the page, froze.
It wasn't the prediction about the inspector's departure that surprised him. Given how difficult Divination was, even lucky guesses happened occasionally. Anyone fooled by such results had no business calling themselves a Divination mage.
What startled Lee Han was the description of the clothing.
Dressed like a prince?
"Did you hear anything about the portrait's appearance or facial features? Like if it was impossibly handsome, or if it'd look sinister and annoying if only the skull remained..."
"Uh, no rumors like that?"
Gainando was flustered by the oddly specific question.
Could rumors like that even exist?
'Hmm.'
Lee Han dipped his quill deep into the inkwell, lost in thought.
Normally, he would've dismissed this as just another portrait rumor, but the "prince" detail bothered him.
Could the real Skeleton Principal have reappeared?
Unlike the fake Skeleton Principal currently ruling Einrogard, the kind and benevolent real one could only be encountered under extremely limited circumstances. Since he existed in a dimension with a different flow of time, there was no helping it.
The odds were so low they might as well be impossible—but Lee Han couldn't let it go.
Because he'd once witnessed it actually working, succeeding against all odds to summon him in painted form.
If it had spontaneously manifested somewhere deep in Einrogard's underground...
...it felt like an absurdly improbable scenario, but he couldn't just ignore it. Lee Han turned to Gainando.
"Fine. Gainando. I have a favor to ask."
"Leave it to me! ...Wait, it's about the portrait, right?"
Gainando cheered before flinching.
He was worried his merciless friend might say something like "Go study instead" after building up his hopes.
"Yeah. Find out more about that portrait for me."
"Don't worry, Lee Han! I've got plenty of time since I took the exam early!"
"......"
"D-don't glare at me like that..."
"More importantly, how's the atmosphere now that His Highness has returned to the capital?"
Lee Han suddenly grew curious and asked.
Come to think of it, he hadn't been able to properly grasp the outside situation because he'd been stuck in the Punishment Room all this time.
"Some people are disappointed that the bland meals have disappeared... and others are happy the school rules have loosened up. Right! That's why the utensil thefts happened too! They took advantage of us letting our guard down!"
Whether one liked it or not, Uman had a very different management style from the Skeleton Principal.
Though much stricter, he still looked after the students in his own way.
Now that such an inspector was gone, quite a few students actually missed him.
'He'd probably be happy if I told him later.'
Lee Han thought he should at least send him a letter.
Being summoned to the capital due to the Skeleton Principal's underhanded snitching must have been infuriating.
Of course, he had no intention of mentioning that some students were actually celebrating. It wasn't surprising—Einrogard students were mostly beast-like mages anyway.
"The Black Turtle Tower kids just found the loophole. You guys were careless. If it were me, I'd have stolen them first. Who told you to leave them lying around?"
"Ugh... Actually, we were planning to steal them the next day too... We just didn't expect the Black Turtle Tower to move so fast..."
Paridim, who had been listening intently beside them, froze.
What kind of conversation was this?
"Seems like a lot of people were holding back. Be careful for a while, Gainando. When carrying food, don't leave it outside your bag."
"I already got hit on the way here."
"Why would you do something so stupid?"
"I didn't think they'd steal the lollipop I was eating! Ugh!"
Gainando grumbled.
The Einrogard students, who had been lying low under strict school rules, all sprang into action the moment surveillance loosened.
In this kind of situation, even the lollipop you were eating could get snatched right out of your hand. They'd take it first and think later.
"Then I'll go ask around more about the portrait rumors and come back."
"Alright. I'll wait."
Lee Han was a little worried, but this time, he decided to trust Gainando.
Still, after spending nearly two years at Einrogard, he probably wouldn't fall for something ridiculously obvious, right?
"You want to find the Portrait of Wisdom?"
"Yeah."
"Wasn't that just a fake rumor?"
Salko stroked his beard, puzzled. Gainando puffed up his chest and declared,
"Nope. Lee Han seems to have a lead. He told me to gather more info."
"Hmm..."
Salko whispered to Ratford beside him.
"You don't think he's just using the Wardanaz name to scam people, do you?"
"Very possible."
"I can hear you, you bastards!"
Gainando flared up and cursed.
Back then, they at least whispered behind his back—now they couldn't even be bothered and did it right in front of him.
"We've been working hard in the black market, so we know all sorts of weird junk rolls out from Einrogard's underground. But most of that stuff is just nonsense. There's also a chance it's some artifact possessed by a demon or spirit."
"Hmph. If you're not gonna help, fine. I'll go alone."
"Didn't say we wouldn't help. The exams just ended, so why not take a look?"
"!"
Gainando cheered loudly.
"I knew I could count on you! Tutata!"
"It's Tutanta, you half-witted princeling. Huh? Ratford, don't you still have exams left?"
"It's fine."
At Ratford's confident remark, the other two gave him a look.
That was the kind of statement only someone like Wardanaz could make—"I'm confident even if I take it like usual!"
"I already gave up on that lecture because it was too hard anyway."
"......"
"So cool!"
"What's cool about that, you thick-skulled princeling?!"
Salko snapped.
It seemed like nothing was off-limits when it came to insulting other towers.
Just then, a message came through the paper artifact shared among the top students of each tower.
Salko, Gainando are probably heading your way. Take care of them.
"......"
Salko instinctively glanced around.
Was this guy really in the Punishment Room right now??