Episode 15
Episode 15
'But this is quite difficult.'
Controlling the orb with willpower was no ordinary task.
Just like the student who had been hit by the orb he was controlling earlier, the orb would dart off on its own the moment you lost even a bit of concentration.
It felt like growing a third arm—an entirely unfamiliar sensation.
The only silver lining was that Lee Han didn't have to worry about running out of mana and collapsing.
In fact, even after levitating the orb and continuously drawing circles with it, he didn't feel his mana depleting in the slightest.
"......"
Professor Voladi didn't say a word and simply stared intently at Lee Han.
'Is he staring because my mana isn't running out?'
Lee Han wondered why the professor was watching him so closely.
It couldn't be because he was controlling the orb too well (even in his own eyes, the circles were a bit wobbly), and he doubted the professor was amazed that he hadn't tired out after controlling the orb for so long.
'No. He's probably just staring at me because there's no one else here.'
But then it belatedly dawned on Lee Han that the professor was just staring blankly without any particular thought.
If he were genuinely surprised by Lee Han's mana capacity, he would've just asked!
Well, with Lee Han being the only one in the lecture hall, the professor had nowhere else to look. Whether the professor was staring or not, Lee Han focused on diligently spinning the orb.
He wasn't entirely sure what the point of this was, but...
'Let's just assume that working hard will earn me good grades.'
A magical orb that granted grades if you spun it diligently.
Thinking of it that way made it bearable.
Lee Han was already far too accustomed to enduring unreasonable tasks under professors.
'Fascinating.'
Professor Voladi was deeply intrigued.
Of course, his expression gave nothing away, but inwardly, he was experiencing a rare sense of wonder.
The freshman before him was the reason.
Every year, students flooded into Repetitive Training in Basic Magic Combat like the tide, only to disappear just as quickly.
Last year, not a single student had stayed.
But Professor Voladi didn't care in the slightest.
His agreement with Headmaster Osso Gonadaltes had been to teach the course every year, not to gather a large number of students.
In fact, even if not a single student showed up, Professor Voladi would sit in the lecture hall at the appointed time, place an orb on the desk, wait, and only rise once the lecture period was over.
Others might not understand, but this was simply Professor Voladi's principle.
Years of repetition built upon repetition.
And today, that repetition had been broken by an unusual freshman.
A handsome boy with sharp, sculpted features.
One glance was enough to tell he was from the Blue Dragon Tower.
Judging by his mannerisms and accent, he was likely from one of the empire's great noble families.
And yet...
He was focused on spinning the orb without a single complaint.
Even students from the lowest-ranked Turtle Tower would curse, "Why the hell are we doing this?" and storm out, so a Blue Dragon Tower student quietly concentrating like this was unusual.
Not to mention, he showed no signs of fatigue despite continuously spinning the orb.
He clearly had an innate abundance of mana.
Had Professor Voladi been on friendly terms with other professors—had he ever spoken to Professor Troll Garcia Kim—he might have had some idea of just how much mana Lee Han possessed.
But Professor Voladi didn't bother mingling with other professors.
His contract with the headmaster didn't include anything of the sort.
Thus, while he could guess that Lee Han had considerable mana, he had no way of knowing exactly how much.
'I hope he stays.'
For the first time in his teaching career, Professor Voladi wished for a student to remain.
If this student continued attending, Professor Voladi could, for the first time in the history of this course, move on to the next lesson.
"I told you I found a really good lecture, didn't I?"
Lee Han spoke earnestly.
Normally, Lee Han wasn't the type to extend such kindness, but Yoner and Gainando were exceptions.
Yoner could potentially become a business partner in the future, and Gainando might have his mother pay for friendship fees later.
After all, there was no harm in treating well-connected friends nicely.
"Trust me, I don't think any other students will sign up for this. If you take it, an A+ is practically guaranteed."
"...Uuuh..."
Yoner's face clearly showed her struggle—'How do I politely turn down Lee Han's suggestion?'
A lecture that no one attends? Just the thought of it made her want to run. But Lee Han was recommending it so enthusiastically—it'd feel rude to refuse. What should she do?
"...No. If you don't want to take it, that's fine."
Lee Han said to Yoner.
He had no intention of forcing her.
He'd only recommended it because it was an easy way to breeze through one class per semester...
"Hmm. Tell me more."
In contrast, Gainando seemed intrigued.
"What do they teach?"
"The professor made these orb artifacts. You pour mana into them and make them float."
"Oh. And then?"
"You practice drawing circles with them."
"I see. And after that?"
"There isn't anything after that."
"......"
"......"
Yoner and Gainando stared at Lee Han in disbelief.
"Uh... is this professor even real?"
"Who cares if they're real or fake? The important thing is they're giving me grades."
Yoner was impressed.
Back when she first enrolled, she'd thought:
—Surely, I'm one of the most pragmatic students here, right?
Given that most students from the Blue Dragon Tower came from prestigious families, their way of thinking tended to be rigid—something Yoner had noticed many times.
But talking to Lee Han made her realize just how vast the world was.
This boy from the Wardanaz family was on another level when it came to pragmatism.
Even she couldn't keep up!
"Well, if you guys don't want to take it, that's fine. Next up is Basic Swordsmanship."
"...W-wait, you're seriously taking that too??"
"Wardanaz. This is getting a bit much..."
No matter how much his friends tried to dissuade him, Lee Han wouldn't listen.
If it wasn't a mandatory course, he'd choose based solely on his own standards.
That was the rule of Einrogard, the magic school!
'Should we actually stop him??'
Gainando seriously considered running to the headmaster for advice.
The Basic Swordsmanship lecture had far more students than Repetitive Training in Basic Magic Combat.
At a glance, over ten students had gathered in the southern courtyard of the main building, waiting for the professor.
'Huh. There are more than I expected.'
Surprised, Lee Han quickly realized why.
These students were from the Tower of the White Tiger that Bites Lightning.
The White Tiger Tower housed students from imperial knightly families who had come here to learn magic.
Naturally, being from knightly families, they were skilled in swordsmanship and took it far more seriously.
Students from other families might have learned swordsmanship, but they wouldn't come here specifically for it—unlike the White Tiger Tower students.
'Well, Repetitive Training in Basic Magic Combat was too much of a freebie anyway.'
Lee Han was slightly disappointed, but on second thought, being the only student in a class was the unusual case. This wasn't bad at all.
Besides, Lee Han had been consistently training in swordsmanship himself.
"...What the?"
"Isn't that a Blue Dragon Tower student?"
Just as Lee Han was surprised, the White Tiger Tower students were murmuring among themselves in shock.
They hadn't expected a student from another dormitory to show up.
"I—I know who that is. He's from the Wardanaz family."
"The Wardanaz family...! The imperial magic nobility?"
"But why would someone from that family take this class?"
"Did you come just because you learned a bit of swordsmanship from a private tutor at home?"
"Looking down on swordsmanship has its limits."
Most students showed strong disapproval.
Though there were individual differences, the White Tiger Tower students were fundamentally those who took pride in swordsmanship and trained seriously.
In contrast, nobles from other families learned swordsmanship merely for self-defense or as a cultural accomplishment—just skimming the surface at a superficial level.
Coming to the lecture with that attitude was bound to invite rejection.
Lee Han noticed those reactions.
'Who cares?'
And of course, he didn't pay them any mind.
He wasn't foolish enough to get caught up in the petty mind games of a bunch of teenage brats and react to every little thing.
"Hey."
When Lee Han ignored their reactions, one of the students finally stepped forward.
He had the trained physique befitting a knightly family.
Combined with the orc race's natural musculature, even the shabby, patched-up school uniform couldn't hide his imposing build.
The orc stood in front of Lee Han and looked him straight in the eye.
Lee Han met his gaze as if asking what he wanted.
Though the orc had a rather intimidating appearance, Lee Han had far too much experience to be scared by something like that.
"Got something to say?"
"Yeah. You're from the Wardanaz family, Blue Dragon Tower. Right?"
"That's right."
"You must've come here by mistake. This is a serious swordsmanship lecture. Not some class where they teach you flashy swings for show."
"I see. Thanks for letting me know."
"......"
Even when spoken to politely, Lee Han's dismissive attitude made the orc's expression darken.
"Seems like you still don't get it. Real swordsmanship isn't just swinging a sword like you high nobles do for fun. We'll be sparring in pairs later, and if you mess up, you could get seriously hurt. The other students here won't hold back."
"Right. If I end up facing you, I'll be careful not to hurt you. If that's what you're worried about."
"......"
The orc was a beat slow in processing Lee Han's words. When he finally understood, his face flushed red with anger.
Just then, a small, deliberate cough sounded.
The professor teaching the lecture had arrived.
"Now, everyone. I'd appreciate it if you could gather around."
The professor's voice was gentle and kind, but his appearance was the complete opposite.
Despite being an elf—a race born with inherent beauty—his outward demeanor exuded intimidation.
The scars and wounds covering his entire body, starting from his face, created an overwhelming presence.
One arm and one leg were prosthetics, and one eye appeared different in size from the other due to scarring.
"I am Professor Ingoldel. I'll be teaching you swordsmanship this semester."
The elf professor leaned on a long greatsword like a cane as he continued speaking.
"Given that you've all chosen to learn swordsmanship here at Einrogard, I assume each of you has some prior experience. You're likely here to refine your skills or keep them from rusting."
Lee Han felt slightly called out. While that wasn't entirely wrong, his main reason for being here was the credits.
"Therefore, I won't be teaching swordsmanship from the basics. It'll be more productive for you to polish the swordsmanship you've already learned."
The students from knightly families listened intently to the elf professor's words, their eyes shining brightly.
They were likely still unfamiliar with magic.
For students like them, talk of swordsmanship would naturally sound far more appealing than magic.
Tap-tap.
"?"
Lee Han turned his head. Someone was lightly tapping his arm.
Though of the same elven race as Professor Ingoldel, this person was the polar opposite in appearance.
They had short golden hair that reached their nape, delicate features, and a strikingly androgynous beauty.
'Looks like he'd be popular with the girls.'
"What is it?"
"You're from the Wardanaz family, right? I was just curious why someone from the Wardanaz family would want to learn swordsmanship."
Their tone was lighthearted yet not frivolous.
Unlike the student who had picked a fight earlier, this one clearly had skill in dealing with people.
"Looked like an easy way to score points with low enrollment."
"......"