Episode 173
Episode 173
"Chase after him!"
"What?!"
"We can't lose to a Wardanaz! Do you plan to lose in horseback riding too?!"
"But..."
One of the students hesitated.
If they recklessly charged forward like that now, there would be no way to handle the aftermath.
Horses were living creatures.
If they ran like that, they'd tire out quickly...
"Tch! Let's go!"
"Me too!"
But eventually, the students, one after another, picked up their whips and urged their horses forward.
No matter which Tower they belonged to, they all had immense pride when it came to horsemanship.
Whether they came from noble families, knightly houses, or merchant guilds, none had ever heard the words "you can't ride a horse" before.
And...
'There must be a reason Wardanaz is riding like that!'
'Do you really think Wardanaz would charge ahead without any thought?'
The students unconsciously trusted Lee Han.
Would Lee Han really charge forward without any plan?
There must be a method.
If they followed his lead...
The students in the leading group began galloping forward like madmen.
Nilia, seeing her friends take off, grew restless and glanced around.
"?"
Surprisingly, Yoner remained still in place.
"Yoner? What's wrong? Are you okay?"
Yoner sat atop his chestnut horse with an extremely troubled expression. Nilia couldn't understand it.
"Let's chase after them now! If we go now, we can catch up quickly! I can even trip the others with a lasso if I have to!"
Though Nilia was casually suggesting breaking the rules, Yoner didn't point it out.
Because he had just seen something even more shocking.
"That's not it..."
Yoner wasn't sure how to explain this. The griffin, disguised as a horse, had ignored Lee Han's commands and bolted forward like a runaway!
'Is this the price I pay for trusting a monster?'
As if sensing Lee Han's distrust, the griffin snorted fiercely. Lee Han quickly reassured it.
"It's a misunderstanding. Here, slow down a bit. I'm worried you'll tire out."
Of course, Lee Han was planning to dismount and smack it the moment it slowed down.
Though the griffin didn't catch onto that dark intention, something else stung its pride.
I don't get tired!
-Neighhh!
The griffin ran even faster, as if it had been holding back years of pent-up energy from not being able to run freely.
'From now on, I should never trust a shapeshifted monster.'
Lee Han tightened his grip on the griffin. It was running so fast now that he couldn't afford to be careless.
If it got annoyed, it might even throw its rider off!
Caw!
A fierce-looking bird monster—something between a crane and a rooster—swooped down from a nearby tree like a predator.
'A Rakshasa Bird!'
Lee Han tensed at the appearance of the highly aggressive avian monster.
But the griffin just snorted once and accelerated even more.
Bam!
The Rakshasa Bird tried to follow as it flew, but it stood no chance.
Once the griffin widened the gap, the pursuing bird panted heavily before giving up and flying away.
"......"
The Rakshasa Bird wasn't the only monster that appeared.
A boulder by the roadside suddenly rose and menacingly swung a stone.
The griffin ignored it and kept running.
A bridge over the river suddenly vanished in a puff of smoke.
The griffin ignored it and leaped across.
A thick fog rolled in, dense enough to obscure the path ahead.
The griffin ignored it and charged straight through.
"...Do whatever you want."
Lee Han gave up.
At this point, he was genuinely curious how far this would go.
Perse, a third-year student of the Blue Dragon Tower, let out a sigh with a deeply troubled expression.
Her friend asked,
"What's wrong, Perse?"
"All our strikers are way too slow."
"Don't worry. Once they adjust, the horses will get faster too. You have to give the horses time to build stamina."
"It's not just the horses. The riders are the problem too."
Perse stated firmly.
In polo, where players fiercely clash, speed wasn't determined solely by the horses' stamina.
Rather, the rider's guts and skill held even greater weight.
Even when opponents came charging with their sticks raised, you had to have the nerve to drive your horse forward as if ready to die—only then could you achieve true speed...
CLATTERCLATTERCLATTERCLATTER!!!
"......"
"......"
The wind kicked up by the impossibly fast horse sent both their hats flying.
It ran so swiftly that even the monsters blocking the path hastily scrambled aside.
"Wh-what was that just now? That was a student, right? Definitely a student?"
"A freshman... looks like a freshman? The freshman exams..."
"That's the one! That's exactly what we need!"
Perse's eyes sparkled as she shouted.
That reckless courage to charge forward whether monsters stood in their path or not—that was the spirit an attacker needed to have.
"But he's just a freshman, Perse..."
"There's next year! We can recruit him next year!"
"There's no guarantee he'd even be interested in joining the polo club."
"Don't worry about that."
"?"
"With skills like that, how could he not be interested in polo!"
Ponlig finally came to a stop.
—Hwuuuufffffff!!
"Feel better now?"
Ponlig nodded. Then, shaking off his sweat, he tilted his head toward the riverbank to drink.
'We've come really far.'
Lee Han surveyed their surroundings.
He knew the magic school grounds were unimaginably vast, but he hadn't expected to end up this far away.
They had raced like mad along the foot of the mountain range.
And what stretched before Lee Han's eyes now was a desert.
"...?"
Since when was there a desert inside the school grounds?
—Hwiiin.
Ponlig, having drunk his fill, signaled it was time to go.
"Ponlig."
—Hwuff?
"If we don't make it back within the time limit, I'll be very disappointed in you."
—......
Ponlig, who had been galloping without a care in the world, seemed to snap back to reality at the chill in Lee Han's voice, glancing around nervously.
Of course, even as a griffin, he had no idea where they were. Ponlig began sweating bullets.
...Could they make it back in time?
"Let's go, Ponlig."
Ponlig took off at full speed—even faster than before.
Lee Han braced himself firmly, staring straight ahead.
"...?"
Along the path, he spotted several students sprawled out, completely spent.
'What's this?'
At first, he thought they might have been attacked by monsters, but they looked far too unharmed for that.
They had clearly just collapsed from sheer exhaustion.
'This makes no sense.'
Sure, Lee Han had been dragged here against his will by Ponlig's reckless rampage, but the other students had no such excuse.
They must have pushed themselves too hard in their greed for speed and ended up completely drained.
Lee Han gave them a pitying look.
'Can't be helped. Hopefully, they learned their lesson today.'
"...Full marks."
"Thank you."
"...Why, exactly?"
Professor Lightning Step couldn't hold back his question.
The top scorer receiving full marks was expected. He had no issue with that.
But the top scorer racing three times farther than the others—and tearing through all the obstacles he'd prepared at breakneck speed—was another matter entirely.
Why on earth had he pushed himself to such life-threatening extremes?
"Five students collapsed from exhaustion trying to keep up with you, and three fell off their mounts. At least you had the decency to charge ahead and clear out the monsters—that was fortunate. You could've just turned back at a reasonable point... Were you that desperate to set a new record?"
From what Professor Lightning Step could tell, Lee Han wasn't the type to show off.
So why go so far for a record?
Did he have such a strong sense of pride in horsemanship that he wanted to leave behind a legend?
Naturally, Lee Han gave the professor a look of utter disbelief.
"Didn't you say something that made this inevitable, Professor?"
Who was the one who'd dumped a griffin on him and then asked, "Why did you set a new record?"
This level of shamelessness was beyond absurd.
Was this how professors got away with being so brazen?
Professor Lightning Step shamelessly retorted, just as Lee Han had thought.
"What nonsense are you talking? Griffins don't enjoy running like that. Especially not when forcibly transformed into horse form. If you hadn't given the command, it wouldn't have run."
"...?!"
Lee Han was shocked by the professor's words.
What?!
'But that guy was absolutely desperate to run!'
Could it be that Lee Han hadn't given him enough opportunities to prove his abilities, leading to that outcome?
"I must have underestimated him too much. He probably wanted to prove his abilities..."
Professor Lightning Step listened to Lee Han's words with a skeptical expression.
It was hard to believe that a griffin would run so enthusiastically just for such a reason.
"...It's the truth."
"Fine. I'll believe you for now. You've worked hard—go inside and rest properly. You still have other exams to take, and you must be exhausted from running like that."
"Ponlig worked harder than I did."
After saying that, Lee Han returned to the starting line and looked at the students who were coming back.
The students, who were in complete disarray, returned one by one and stared at Lee Han with awe-filled eyes.
"Did you see that?"
"I saw it."
"That guy... might become the Empire's greatest rider...!"
"......"
Lee Han decided he should just go rest.
Though some students were suffering from muscle pain, the Magic School didn't wait for them.
"We have to gather Bone-Mending Flowers by tonight. If we waste time worrying, we'll barely make it again today."
"My thighs feel like they're on fire."
"My pelvis feels cracked..."
Before evening, the students of the Blue Dragon Tower gathered in the basement, leaning on their staffs and groaning.
The White Tiger Tower students scoffed at them.
"To complain like that just from riding a horse... You must be seriously lacking in training, cough..."
"That Wardanaz guy... Why the hell did he ride like a madman...?"
Lee Han ignored the murmurs.
"Alright. I know everyone's in bad shape. But now's the time for those taking Alchemy to work together. If we don't secure the ingredients as quickly as possible, we might all fail."
The Magic School's grueling schedule even forced students from different towers to cooperate.
Lee Han planned to gather the students, quickly break through the dungeon, collect the ingredients, and get out.
If he went in alone to gather ingredients and failed or got hurt, only he would suffer the consequences.
"Here. Everyone, take these."
When Lee Han handed out the baskets he had brought from the lounge, the White Tiger Tower students looked puzzled.
"Are these magic potions needed for the dungeon raid?"
"No. Evening snacks."
"......"
The White Tiger Tower students lifted the cloth covering the baskets. Sandwiches were neatly packed inside.
"...Huh? What?"
"What? No thoughts?"
"Wardanaz, don't give any to those who aren't hungry."
At Ashan's words, the White Tiger Tower students frantically waved their hands.
"No, no! We'll eat them well!"
"Good. If you're ready, let's head in slowly."
Lee Han lined up the students. Due to the dungeon's terrain, it was impossible for everyone to form a formation together.
To some extent, they had no choice but to group by tower and coordinate among themselves.
'They'll move faster if they organize themselves rather than me giving orders one by one.'
The Princess, curious about what kind of sandwiches they were, tried to lift the cloth from the basket.
Lee Han smacked the back of her hand.
"Eat them later."
Like Gainando, royals tended to be gluttonous. Lee Han gave her a warning and turned away.
"...?!"
The Princess stared at Lee Han with eyes full of confusion, indignation, sadness, and resentment.
But Lee Han was too busy lining up and checking on the students to look back.
"If something goes wrong, you have to form a formation and respond on your own. If it feels dangerous, send a signal and use your own judgment."
"Don't worry, Wardanaz. We're knights."
The White Tiger Tower students hugged the baskets protectively as they spoke. They truly looked like knights.
Tap—
While they were doing their final checks in the basement, someone came up the stairs leading to the dungeon.
It was Professor Voladi.
"...Isn't it fun having a picnic in the basement, everyone? Shouldn't you be heading back soon?"
"What kind of nonsense is this, Wardanaz?"