Episode 132
Episode 132
Fortunately, the Afha Order wasn't the kind of religious group Lee Han had been worried about.
"Ah. So that's what you were concerned about. Haha. People unfamiliar with us sometimes misunderstand."
The priest of the Afha Order let out a hearty laugh.
"We don't go around setting the world or the empire on fire. If we did, do you think our order would still exist like this?"
'Well, that makes sense.'
It was a fair point.
No matter how tolerant the empire was, it wouldn't be lenient enough to allow an order that went around starting fires.
"We priests simply believe in Afha's flame."
"That's right. Afha's flame will come for us someday, so we must live without regrets."
Aside from their gloomy pessimism—believing that a world-ending fire would one day consume everything—the priests of the Afha Order were generally cheerful and kind people.
Moreover, their strong faith in Afha's flame granted them a significant boost in fire magic.
In magic, one's mental imagery was just as important as mana.
Since the priests genuinely believed in the terrifying existence known as Afha's flame, they naturally had a considerable advantage in fire magic.
As Lee Han had guessed, many priests of the Afha Order were masters of fire magic—so much so that the empire would even request their assistance when fire magic was needed.
'That's a relief. They're more normal than I expected.'
Lee Han felt reassured.
Aside from their belief in the world's eventual destruction, the Afha Order was a perfectly normal religious group.
Their rules were also quite lenient.
Apart from meditating on Afha's flame, there weren't many obligations to follow.
In fact, compared to the Prisinga Order, where members were forced to wear cursed artifacts, the Afha Order was far more tolerable.
"Come here. It's time to examine the flame within your soul."
An Afha priest brought out a large, roughly crafted copper chalice.
Feeling much more at ease, Lee Han asked,
"How exactly will this work?"
According to the explanation, the copper chalice was an artifact that drew out the flame within a person's soul and made it bloom inside the cup.
The priests often used it to confirm how humble and devoted they were before Afha's flame.
'It's similar to a fire elemental magic aptitude test. The more skilled you are with magic, the better the flame inside the chalice becomes.'
If the Afha priests had heard him, they would've reacted with outrage—'This is why mages are like this! It's about the flame in your soul and faith, not...'—but there was no helping it.
Lee Han, like the head of the Wardanaz family, was far from being devout.
What the priests interpreted as faith, Lee Han could only understand in terms of magic.
No matter how he looked at it, that was the only way!
Lee Han placed his hand on the copper chalice. And he felt slightly nervous.
'It won't cause an accident, right?'
Given everything he'd heard from Professor Garcia and his past experiences, it was only natural to be tense.
What if flames suddenly erupted or burned down the surrounding tents—
Whoosh!
A flame bloomed inside the chalice. It wasn't particularly large. It flickered steadily without overflowing.
'I don't know much about the chalice, but this seems fine?'
Lee Han relaxed.
The flame wasn't surging abnormally, nor was its shape unstable.
Wasn't this about average?
"How is it?"
"Now we'll have to examine it."
One of the priests blew a sharp gust of wind. Yet Lee Han's flame didn't waver in the slightest.
"Oh..."
"The flame in your soul is quite strong."
The Afha priests were delighted by the strength of Lee Han's flame.
The size of the flame inside the chalice wasn't what mattered.
What mattered was its resilience—the ability to endure any disturbance.
To withstand such a gust of wind without flickering? That was a remarkably strong flame.
Another priest took out some water and poured it over the cup Lee Han was holding. With a hiss, the water instantly evaporated.
Lee Han's flame remained completely unfazed.
"Ooh...?"
"Let's try something else."
As priests who frequently handled flames, they were ironically also well-versed in countering them.
Black Shadow Sand—a magical reagent known for devouring most flames in an instant—was brought out.
Yet Lee Han's flame didn't even flicker.
"......"
"...Next."
They continued to employ various methods.
Magic, reagents, potions, items—everything they could think of.
And in the end, Lee Han's flame still refused to be extinguished.
The previously cheerful expressions of the priests grew increasingly grave.
"...Is there a problem?"
"Haha. Not at all."
"That's a relie—"
Lee Han was about to sigh in relief.
But the priests immediately turned their backs and began whispering among themselves.
"Can we send word to the other priests of the Order?"
"Dispatch a messenger bird as quickly as possible..."
"I think we should summon the Archbishop."
Listening to their hushed murmurs, Lee Han began to feel uneasy.
Archbishop Woose of the Afha Order flew over in a hurry upon receiving the news.
It was only natural—he had heard reports of a boy whose soul harbored flames akin to Afha's sacred fire.
Wait. Wait. Wait.
"Archmage Gonadaltes. It's an honor to meet you, but I'm currently in the middle of something urgent..."
Of course I know what's going on. The priests found a promising talent, didn't they?
The Skeleton Principal was well acquainted with the Afha Order.
Aside from being somewhat—no, extremely—pessimistic and foolish, they were quite skilled in fire magic.
The problem was their apparent obsession with taking the Wardanaz boy away by any means necessary.
Lee Han didn't seem particularly interested in priesthood, but during one's rebellious youth, wasn't it easy to succumb to temptation?
Especially young students at the Magic School, whose hearts were fragile and easily swayed by outside influences.
That had to be prevented at all costs.
This school was founded by His Majesty to nurture the pillars of the empire. He refused to believe they would forcibly turn a future mage into a priest.
The Archbishop nodded understandingly at the Skeleton Principal's warning.
"Of course, Archmage Gonadaltes. We have no intention of turning the Magic School's talent into a priest."
Is that so?
The Skeleton Principal's tone softened.
As expected, the Afha Order was a well-mannered and principled institution.
"However, Archmage Gonadaltes, the Wardanaz boy is currently in a dangerous situation."
...I haven't done anything.
"I'm afraid I don't quite follow?"
The Archbishop looked puzzled at the Skeleton Principal's instinctive defense.
"As you know, Archmage Gonadaltes, an uncontrollably powerful talent often harms its owner. This is especially true for the flame attribute."
Magic was dangerous in proportion to its strength.
And among all attributes, fire was the most prone to backfiring and injuring its wielder.
A boy like Lee Han, whose soul contained flames of such intensity, was at great risk.
He needed to learn how to control it as soon as possible.
"He must learn quickly."
Is that really necessary?
The Skeleton Principal muttered to himself.
For one, he personally held the old-fashioned belief that a mage should learn to protect their own life while mastering magic. But beyond that, the Wardanaz boy wasn't so immature that he couldn't control his own power.
Sure, there were plenty of young mages who hurt themselves because they couldn't rein in their innate talents, but that was their problem...
To the Skeleton Principal, Lee Han was the exact opposite.
A boy who controlled an overwhelmingly powerful talent with an even stronger will.
"It seems the Afha Order needn't worry so much—Lee Han probably won't burn himself to a crisp."
If he were the type to do that, wouldn't he have done it already?
"Archmage Osru Gonadaltes! Are you not concerned for your student's safety right now?!"
Ah... No. No.
The Skeleton Principal took a step back at the bishop's outcry.
An offended bishop was more dangerous than one might think. They could go running to the Emperor, chattering away.
And if the bishop's words were true, there wasn't much to worry about anyway.
They weren't trying to make him into an Afha Order priest—it was just fire magic training, wasn't it?
Of course, the Wardanaz boy undergoing that training might have a tough time, but that wasn't the Skeleton Principal's concern.
Though I suppose I am a little worried too.
"I knew you'd feel that way."
Well then! Go and teach him quickly!
"So what you're saying is... I'm not inheriting Afha's flames to set the Empire ablaze or bring about the world's destruction, right?"
"Of course not, Lee Han of the Wardanaz family. What an absurd joke."
Lee Han felt relieved.
The priests had been discussing things with such grave expressions that he'd started worrying—'What? Have I been chosen as the Afha Order's final successor or something?'—but it turned out to be nothing like that.
It was simply because he possessed an immensely powerful flame within his soul, and without learning to control it, he'd be in danger.
'Hmm. Now that I think about it, this is still pretty concerning.'
He'd grown somewhat numb to such warnings after hearing them so often from Professor Garcia, but seeing the priests so worried made him anxious all over again.
Would he be okay?
"Bishop!"
"!"
At the mention of a bishop, Lee Han stiffened.
In any religious order, the position of bishop wasn't something just anyone could attain.
He hadn't expected someone of that stature to come see him personally.
"It's an honor to meet you."
Lee Han instinctively resorted to flattery.
No matter where or how he worked in the future, making a good impression on high-ranking figures from various orders couldn't hurt.
"The honor is mine. It's rare to meet someone born with such powerful flames in recent times."
The bishop was a gentle and kind person.
"You must have suffered greatly from uncontrollable flames in your childhood."
"...Uh, no, not really?"
At Lee Han's response, the bishop paused.
Then he nodded in understanding.
"Ah. The Wardanaz family must have surely used fireproofing magic—"
'We didn't, though?'
Lee Han had grown up just fine without any fire-related accidents, even without such measures.
As long as he didn't use fire magic, there hadn't been any real issues.
"But now that you've left your family, you can't rely solely on your household's magic. You must learn to control your flames, Lee Han."
Lee Han nodded with a determined expression.
The whole reason he'd approached the Afha Order in the first place was to learn more about fire magic.
While conventional methods made flame control difficult, divine magic might be different.
"The method might be excessively harsh or difficult for a first-year magic school student."
"I know."
Lee Han thought of Professor Voladi as he spoke.
Many said elemental magic was the easiest because it was the most familiar, but truly mastering it was no simple feat.
Just how many trials and hardships had Lee Han endured to properly control a single water spell?
Recalling the countless challenges—maintaining form, altering movements, sensing elements—he realized just how arduous his path had been.
But if he'd done it once, he could do it again.
He would do it!
'If I don't learn to control my flames now, I'll suffer ten times worse later.'
Lee Han tossed his coat aside and gripped his staff.
Then he took his stance.
"Release the flames. I'm ready."
"...Pardon me, but what exactly are you doing?"
The bishop was baffled by Lee Han's reaction.
He couldn't comprehend what kind of training the boy before him was preparing for.