Episode 178
Episode 178
I couldn't even begin to guess why the apprentice knights were applauding.
'And frankly, I don't want to know.'
Lee Han turned away, eager to leave the scene as quickly as possible.
To the apprentice knights, his demeanor appeared as the pride of a noble from a great aristocratic family—one who paid no mind to the glory of his own actions.
After all, a person of pride performs honorable deeds because they are honorable, not because they seek praise or reward.
Clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap!
The applause only grew louder.
Lee Han shuddered and shook his head vigorously.
"Ah. So that's what happened."
Only after Durgyu's explanation did Lee Han finally understand.
Durgyu was baffled by his reaction.
"...Why aren't you surprised, Lee Han?"
Hadn't he gone so far as to break his own sword to help an opponent who had suffered internal injuries from an overexerted technique?
"I was just trying to break their sword, and mine ended up breaking too."
"...I'll pretend I didn't hear that."
"Pretend what? I was trying to break their sword when—"
"Ah! Look, the apprentice knights are coming over! Let's go greet them!"
Durgyu cut him off.
Thanks to Lee Han's "honorable" act, the tension between the apprentice knights and the White Tiger Tower students had eased slightly.
Perhaps some truths were better left unknown.
Sizzle—
"?"
Lee Han and the White Tiger Tower students exchanged bewildered glances at the apprentice knights.
The knights had started a fire and were now roasting meat over it.
Lee Han turned to Vikalentz.
"Excuse me, but what exactly are those knights doing right now?"
"They're grilling the game they hunted themselves."
Vikalentz nodded with evident satisfaction.
Knights who traveled across the vast empire had certain customs.
One of them was serving the monsters they had hunted or slain to others.
It was a gesture of goodwill—a kind of gift a knight could offer.
"Add more spices."
"Why? This should be enough."
"They're from the Magic School. The gamy, fishy smell will make it hard to eat."
Not all hunted game was delicious, no matter how hard they tried.
In fact, tasty monsters were the exception rather than the rule.
And since apprentice knights weren't exactly skilled at butchering, bleeding, or cooking, if this meat was palatable, that would be the real surprise.
Which was why apprentice knights relied heavily on strong spices.
A generous sprinkle of a spice blend—mixed from all sorts of imperial seasonings—made it at least somewhat edible.
"Ah. We're out."
"Anyone have any left? Check around."
Meanwhile, the meat finished cooking. The waiting White Tiger Tower students began grabbing skewers and tearing into the meat one by one.
"Wai—"
"Is it done?"
"Perfectly cooked. Not bad."
The White Tiger Tower students chewed and swallowed the meat without hesitation—so aggressively it almost seemed combative.
"...!"
"!!"
The apprentice knights were stunned.
They were eating it that readily—without even adding spices?!
'We misjudged them...!'
'That's right—a knight is a knight, no matter where they are!'
With this realization, the apprentice knights reflected on their earlier attitude.
How could they have looked down on fellow knights just because they lived comfortably at the Magic School?
"...We're sorry."
"Huh?"
"We thought you were all lounging around while we suffered."
The White Tiger Tower students grimaced at the apprentice knight's words.
That's what they had to say...?
"But we've realized that doesn't matter. Whether we train in the rough, shabby barracks on the outskirts of the city or you rest in the comfortable, cozy dormitories of the Magic School—what's important is that we're all knights—"
"Do you want to get stabbed in the back right now?"
"Wha—why?!"
While the knights were bickering, Lee Han took a bite of his meat skewer.
Then he coldly assessed it.
"You didn't remove the gamy smell and impurities. Durgyu. Sprinkle some of this on it."
"It'd look suspicious if I'm the only one sprinkling seasoning..."
The quarreling knights seemed to have somehow made peace in the end. They started tearing into the meat again.
The White Tiger Tower students understood better than anyone the harsh truth that they had to eat whenever they could since entering the academy.
They finished off the meat before it even had a chance to sizzle properly over the flames.
"Wait, I have something to say."
"Go ahead. Chomp."
"Yeah. Gulp."
"......"
The apprentice knights were dumbfounded by the White Tiger Tower students' reactions.
Of course, it wasn't bad that they were enjoying the food, but shouldn't they at least listen when someone was talking?
"...It's about how we caught this Iron Boar."
It was customary for knights to boast about how they hunted their prey when serving it.
The apprentice knights enthusiastically explained their hunting process.
-So we split into tracking teams, driving teams, and hunting teams. The trackers chased it, the drivers herded it, and we even used traps to drain its stamina...
"Chomp chomp."
"Gulp."
"So? What happened then?"
"......"
But Lee Han was the only one who even pretended to listen. The other White Tiger Tower students focused on the meat with the intensity of dogs barking in the distance.
The apprentice knights were furious.
After going through all that trouble to make peace, this was their attitude...!
"...Do you guys have anything you've caught recently?"
One of the apprentice knights couldn't hold back and asked.
After a moment's thought, one of the White Tiger Tower students answered.
"A Rakshasa Hungry Ghost."
"...Stop talking nonsense! How could you possibly catch a Rakshasa Hungry Ghost!"
"We did catch it."
"That's right. We caught it."
Lee Han stared blankly at the White Tiger Tower students.
'Since when was it "we"?'
The students who sensed his gaze turned their heads away.
"Explain in detail!"
"Yeah, explain properly!"
The apprentice knights glared, determined to expose any holes if this was just boasting.
"Wardanaz cast spells at it..."
"And then?"
"He kept casting..."
"...And then?"
"He kept casting until it collapsed."
"......"
The apprentice knights were at a loss for words.
It sounded absolutely ridiculous, but...
That very fact made it feel more believable.
"Wait. Then didn't Wardanaz catch it, not you?"
"We were together, so we caught it together!"
"Let's ask Wardanaz. Wardanaz, what do you think?"
"Just shut up and eat your meat..."
Lee Han muttered wearily.
After such an intense fight in the morning, he wanted to rest.
But the other classes wouldn't wait.
When <Basic Imperial Geometry and Arithmetic> began in the afternoon, Lee Han regretted wasting his energy so pointlessly in the morning.
'Because of those damn knights...'
Only Professor Ingoldel and Bikelintz seemed satisfied, while the students groaned from exhaustion and muscle pain.
Some bold White Tiger Tower students were already asleep.
Lee Han looked at them with disdain.
"Those crazy bastards... Gainando. Wake up."
Lee Han smacked the back of his head. It wasn't right to mock another tower's students.
Gainando startled awake.
"W-who just hit me?"
"Must've been a bad dream. Nobody hit you."
"Really?"
While everyone else was frantically skimming through their textbooks and muttering last-minute, Gainando and Lee Han sat perfectly still without doing any of that.
At a glance, they might have seemed similar, but Yoner knew very well their circumstances were completely opposite.
"The difference between someone who's overprepared and someone who's completely unprepared!"
"Everyone, put away the things on your desks."
When Professor Alpen Naiten appeared, the students inhaled with expressions mixed with despair.
As his wand swung, the books and papers on their desks flew into their bags.
The blackboard began filling with the exam time and rules.
"Those who finish may leave early. Very well. Let us begin."
In less than five seconds, exam papers materialized before the students. They gripped their quills with expressions like they might vomit any moment.
'Not particularly difficult.'
Lee Han solved problems rapidly while imagining how others would have gotten ink bottles thrown at them for such thoughts.
Truthfully, mathematics and geometry problems of this level were something he could solve in one go without studying.
The magic-related problems—like "Calculate the number of mana stones required for this magic circle" or "Complete the missing part of this magic circle"—were slightly tricky, but not particularly difficult if you knew how to apply the concepts.
With swift strokes.
Lee Han quickly filled in the blanks.
The expressions of students sitting behind him turned to astonishment.
'Wardanaz...!'
'Honestly, shouldn't Wardanaz be taking exams in a separate classroom?'
Just watching him solve problems was enough to plunge other students into despair.
They grumbled internally.
Because of Wardanaz's excessive diligence, the class average would rise, professors' expectations would increase, and even family evaluation standards would escalate.
What a selfish bastard...!
"Keep your eyes on your own papers."
At Professor Alpen's warning, the students bowed their heads.
Lee Han stood up. Professor Alpen wasn't surprised.
"Finished already?"
"Yes."
"You may submit it and leave."
Without looking back, Lee Han walked out of the classroom.
The students watched his retreating back with gazes mixed with envy and resentment.
Thud!
Gainando also stood up. Professor Alpen asked with a surprised expression.
"Finished?"
"Yes!"
"...You may submit it and leave."
Gainando also sprinted out without a backward glance.
The students watched his retreating back with looks mixing pity and admiration.
'That reckless bastard.'
'You're the best, Gainando!'
"Burn away!"
Normally, someone would have shouted, "No magic in the lounge! What if you hit someone by accident?" But tonight was different.
Even Gainando was swinging his wand while practicing.
Tomorrow, Thursday, was the most hellish day of this midterm exam week.
It was the day of Professor Garcia's <Understanding Basic Magic> exam.
For other liberal arts or miscellaneous courses, mages could make excuses like "What use are such subjects to a mage?" or "As long as I'm good at magic, why bother with trivial calculations? I'll be an intuitive mage!"—but <Understanding Basic Magic> allowed no such leniency.
A core course no Einrogard student could avoid.
"Gainando, did you take Black Magic?"
"Yeah. That's why we're in this together. Ugh. It's brutal."
"I have to study Summoning Magic too. I have it worse."
This course determined next year's academic path based on how well you planted seeds and made them bloom—its importance was immense...
...and so was its difficulty.
The field you chose to focus on during lectures would have an additional exam.
"You think Black Magic is a joke?! Curses are ridiculously hard!"
"Compared to Summoning Magic, Black Magic is easy!"
"Hey, those who don't know Illusion Magic should shut up."
"Shouldn't you focus more on basic Elemental Magic? That seems the hardest."
"Wardanaz. You decide. Which magic do you think is the hardest?"
Unable to reach a conclusion, the friends called for Lee Han's judgment.
Lee Han lifted his head from the mountain of books piled around him. Tomes from every magical field lay scattered chaotically.
"What did you say?"
"...Oh, never mind."
"Work hard, Wardanaz!"
"Let's sit down and study too!"