Episode 1286
Episode 1286
Despite Lee Han's sudden betrayal, his friends didn't get angry or flustered.
Instead, they looked at him with pity.
'How long has he been watching Professor Garcia's mood to act like that?'
'Is the professor still angry? It's about time she cooled down.'
Since they knew why Lee Han had been locked in the Punishment Room, his friends didn't bother interrogating him.
Except for Gainando.
"What are you talking about! Lee Han, you too... Ugh."
"Shut up, you brat."
"Please keep your mouth shut."
When the two Black Turtle Tower students jabbed his side and smacked his back, Gainando groaned and hunched over.
Meanwhile, Professor Garcia came downstairs. She paused when she spotted Ivanna, trapped in ice and struggling.
"...You didn't do this, did you?"
"Absolutely not, Professor. How could we even do something like this in the first place?"
Salko hastily denied it.
It was impossible for students of their level to trap a third-year senior in ice like that.
"Lee Han could do it, couldn't he?"
"Prince, shut your mouth!"
"You should've been the one frozen instead!"
The two Black Turtle Tower students flared up at Gainando's words, which only poured oil on the misunderstanding.
Was this really the time to brag about their friend's abilities?!
Fortunately, Professor Garcia seemed to realize Lee Han hadn't done it. Frowning, she said,
"This is the Authority of a Frost Giant. How on earth did this happen?"
"It's a long story..."
"Did the King of Frost Giants come looking for Lee Han and impose some unreasonable trial on him?"
"......"
The students who were about to explain froze in place.
How did she know?
"Y-yes, that's right."
"Frost Giants are warlike and tend to obsess over challengers whose strength they've acknowledged even once. Given that Lee Han hasn't shown himself for a long time, it's not surprising the king came looking for him personally."
"I met him last year, though."
"That's considered a long time by Frost Giant standards."
Lee Han was once again at a loss for words.
What kind of bastards were these, really?
"Still, it shouldn't have been easy to approach him within Einrogard. How did you meet? Did you conduct some dimensional exploration?"
"Well... actually..."
Hesitating, Lee Han eventually explained the truth.
It seemed impossible to avoid mentioning the rumors about the portrait.
"...And there was also a Bulgasari there."
"What kind of person would bring a Bulgasari into the school? Was it the Headmaster's doing in secret?"
"Cough, cough."
Professor Garcia, who had been calmly listening, suddenly coughed.
"Are you alright? Would you like some tea?"
"I-I'm fine, Lee Han."
When Professor Garcia declined, Lee Han placed the teacup filled with black tea back on the table. Gainando stretched his arm through the bars, eagerly snatching the tea for himself.
'This place seems to have better food and drinks than the tower lounge.'
Even though the inspector had disappeared, the overall quality of life for the second-years had dropped significantly after Lee Han was locked up.
It wasn't easy to replace someone who smuggled in supplies, sold them cheaply, periodically distributed them for free, mediated disputes between tower students, helped with assignments when asked, and occasionally let them out when they rolled on the floor in despair.
Tsk-tsking, Lee Han took out a wrapped sugar cube from the shelf and tossed it to Gainando, who nearly teared up in gratitude.
"A-anyway, so you met the King of Frost Giants while searching for a portrait. Why were you looking for such a portrait, Lee Han?"
"Well... you know. Young, kind, respectable..."
Even so, Lee Han avoided saying, 'It's a portrait of the young Headmaster,' in front of his friends.
It was probably too late, but he didn't want to look even crazier in front of them.
But his friends already knew what he was looking for.
"Lee Han... You can just be honest."
"We know you're looking for the portrait of the young Headmaster. Let me be frank. It sounds crazy, but it's not like this is the first time you've done something insane. Wardanaz respects you."
"...Listen, everyone. The young Headmaster is practically a different entity from the Skeleton Principal. If you met him and talked to him, you'd understand."
Despite Lee Han's desperate explanation, his friends only gave him lukewarm looks.
Even if the Skeleton Principal was young and kind, he was still the Skeleton Principal!
'No matter how much water you pour into coffee, it's still coffee, not water!'
Professor Garcia felt a pang in her heart at her student's words.
Especially since, after the Evil God Subjugation, she had been nothing but harsh on him. She hadn't considered that her student might be missing the Young Prince.
Sniff. "Lee Han."
"Why is the professor acting like this all of a sudden?"
"She probably thinks Wardanaz has gone mad from stress."
"Hey. I can hear you."
Lee Han shot back from behind the bars.
These guys really had no filter!
"Professor. Can you free the Senior?"
"Let me take a look. Hmm, this is interesting. If the Frost Giant King were to take a hostage, I'd have expected him to choose Gainando over Ivanna."
The White Tiger Tower Senior, trapped in ice, glared at Gainando with furious eyes.
Gainando shamelessly replied,
"That king must be insane. Kings go mad all the time, don't they?"
"Well, Frost Giants are unpredictable. Let's see..."
Professor Garcia scanned the king's Authority, probing it with magic.
"Hmm."
"How is it?"
"Umm."
"Is it difficult?"
"This is..."
"So it is tough."
From outside, Ivanna desperately tried to communicate with wide, flashing eyes.
"We should talk to Ivanna first. I'll connect telepathy briefly, so don't be startled."
Professor Garcia briefly linked minds with Ivanna. The juniors, curious, asked,
"What did the Senior say?"
"...She said, 'Shut the—' No, she politely requested everyone to be quiet."
Professor Garcia relayed the message with an awkward smile. The juniors could guess the original wording.
"I've checked. It is possible to undo it, but it's better not to."
(What kind of nonsense is that, Professor?!)
"Hear me out, Ivanna. There are a few spells hidden within the Authority that I don't recognize. Frost Giants are relentless—if we recklessly undo it without Lee Han, who knows what might happen?"
"S-So, does that mean the Senior has to stay trapped there?"
Gainando asked with deep concern.
Professor Garcia was slightly moved. Perhaps from spending so much time with Lee Han, Gainando had also developed the habit of worrying about others regardless of tower affiliations.
"No. I plan to teach Lee Han how to undo it right now."
"Ah!"
"Then it's settled. I'll be going now. Lee Han, see you later."
Gainando and the others waved cheerfully before heading off. Lee Han waved back.
Ivanna, despite being frozen solid, felt her nape stiffen with rage.
Settled?! What part of this is settled?!
Still, clinging to a sliver of hope, she asked Professor Garcia:
(Professor. Roughly... what Circle is the spell you're about to teach him?)
"5th Circle. But it's related to spells Lee Han already knows, so it should be relatively easy. Don't worry, Ivanna."
(......)
Speechless, Ivanna stared at Professor Garcia, who delivered this absurd statement without changing her expression.
Easy 5th Circle my foot! There's no way a second-year could learn that!
"Even if he's a genius, it would take at least a year!"
"(Professor, could you maybe put a bounty on that blond guy who left earlier instead?)"
"What?! Why on earth?!"
Professor Garcia and Lee Han sat down for the lesson. Since they'd had several lectures here even after being confined to the Punishment Room, it wasn't particularly awkward.
"Professor."
"What is it, Lee Han?"
"Could you possibly turn that ice statue to face the other way?"
"...Understood."
The professor understood her student's feelings.
Having the senior staring holes into them while trapped in ice would make even a simple spell feel burdensome and prone to failure.
Once only the senior's back was visible, Lee Han felt considerably more at ease.
"Lee Han. What I said earlier wasn't a lie. This Authority is actually deeply connected to magic you've already learned."
"Frost Element Magic? It's true that among elemental magics, I'm most familiar with frost..."
Having studied it at school and become close with Alsicle, Lee Han was quite confident in his Frost Element Magic.
But Professor Garcia shook her head.
"Only half correct. As you already know, when magic reaches higher levels, even concepts distant from reality can become materialized. This ice doesn't exist in reality, does it?"
'Aha.'
Lee Han immediately understood what she meant.
Even in Black Magic, when creating curses or poisons at lower circles, they would combine existing curses or poisons, but at higher levels, they could create entirely imaginary poisons.
Things that existed in reality had limits, but poisons conjured by mages had none.
Such poisons were closer to concepts or notions rather than real poisons.
The Frost Giant King's Authority wasn't ordinary ice either.
If it were normal ice, it would have melted slightly just from waiting, or could have been melted with common magic.
"Then which of the magics I've learned is this ice related to?"
"Hmm. Maybe ice applied through Black Magic curses or poisons?"
"Wrong. That's a good thought, but if frozen that way, Ivanna wouldn't be so alert. She'd be paralyzed or unconscious."
"I see... Then what about Transmutation Magic? Maximizing the properties of ice as a substance?"
"Similarly, Ivanna wouldn't be able to respond telepathically if that were the case."
Professor Garcia gave him a meaningful look.
There was only one answer left for Lee Han, and she expected him to say it soon.
"Right. Then what about Summoning Magic? From another dimension..."
"......"
Professor Garcia realized her mistake.
This student had learned too many spells—if he kept picking hypotheses from his repertoire, they'd keep coming endlessly.
Realizing this, the professor quickly shouted the answer.
"The correct answer is spacetime magic, Lee Han!"
"Gasp. I see. My apologies."
"Nothing to apologize for..."
The Authority shown by the Frost Giant King was precisely spatial isolation magic.
Though it looked like ice, it was more akin to a dimensional barrier separating inside from outside.
Naturally, it couldn't be melted with ordinary heat or time. Lee Han nodded.
"I understand. Then what kind of magic should we use to dispel this?"
"Actually, you already know a similar spell. Here's a hint: Small World Magic."
"Basilios?"
"Not that one."
"Hidor?"
"...Not that."
"Dynamis? Dendrobium?"
Professor Garcia glared at her student.
It struck her anew just how unreasonably many Small World spells he had learned.
"My apologies..."
"...No need. Nothing to apologize for. Wait, what's Dendrobium?"
"I've never used it either. I just mentioned it because I'd heard of it. Really."
"......"
Professor Garcia looked at her student with suspicion.