Episode 225
Episode 225
The next morning.
The students of the Blue Dragon Tower emerged into the common room with haggard faces.
They had managed to interrogate the undead to identify which lectures would have pop quizzes, but...
...in truth, nothing much had changed.
After all, it was still the students who had to study.
With most lectures giving pop quizzes—and not just one or two—what else could they do?
They had no choice but to pull all-nighters to study.
"...Wait a minute. Lee Han. What are you eating?"
Yoner sensed something odd and asked.
Lee Han was eating the snacks the undead had brought.
"Don't tell me—?"
"You mean the snacks the undead brought? Yeah, that's right."
Lee Han answered nonchalantly.
Of course, it would have been best not to eat such snacks and just throw them away, but reality rarely worked so ideally.
With supplies scarce, wasting these snacks felt like a shame.
Besides, the snacks had no effect on Lee Han. He had already confirmed that yesterday.
'Unnecessarily delicious.'
Whoever had baked them, the Skeleton Principal's snacks were absurdly tasty.
"Wardanaz... You gave us proper snacks... while eating spoiled ones yourself..."
Other students behind him sniffled as they stared at Lee Han.
Those raised in high noble families all their lives weren't accustomed to someone eating spoiled food on their behalf.
"They're not spoiled. They're delici—"
"See, everyone? This is how we repay Wardanaz's devotion."
"Gainando, too. Study! Stop fiddling with those cards!"
"Huh? I already finished?!"
Watching his friends encouraging each other on their own, Lee Han shrugged and picked up another snack.
<Basic Imperial Geometry and Arithmetic>.
Professor Alpen Naiten was slightly surprised by the Blue Dragon Tower students' enthusiasm.
Of course, fervent passion and actual grades were two different things.
-"Gainando. I understand you're close with Wardanaz. You'd do better to study separately with him and retake the exam."
-"Uh... Can't I just study without retaking it? I'll do well on the finals. I promise!"
<Basic Imperial Language and Logic>.
Professor Logine Flüwerk cheered the students on.
-"You're all doing wonderfully. To have such outstanding students—the Empire's future is truly bright. Richmond. 37 points? Splendid. Jojeon. 33 points. Excellent. Wardanaz. Hmm. Well done."
-"?"
-"Why isn't Wardanaz's score being..."
The Blue Dragon Tower students, puzzled, glanced at the three-digit score written on Lee Han's test paper and quietly shut their mouths.
Sometimes, the fact that a friend studied too well could be painful.
'Let's keep this between us.'
'The other towers should be thanking us for our consideration.'
Evening.
Professor Ingoldel, who had been waiting for the students while watching the sunset, grew puzzled at the sight of them running toward him with bright faces.
"Did something happen to all of you?"
"Not at all, Professor!"
"Please proceed with the lecture!"
The White Tiger Tower students gazed at the professor with affectionate eyes.
After suffering through pop quizzes all day, seeing Professor Ingoldel—who didn't give exams—almost made them perceive a halo around him.
"Hyah! Hyaah!"
"Huuaaap!"
As the White Tiger Tower students enthusiastically swung their wooden swords, Lee Han asked Professor Ingoldel:
"By the way, Professor. There's something I wanted to ask..."
"I knew it. You want to ask about the Rock Drake's weakness, don't you?"
Professor Ingoldel spoke as if he already knew.
"...No."
Lee Han nearly scowled.
Anyone would think he had some personal vendetta against the Rock Drake!
"It wasn't that?"
"Why would you even think...?"
"The Headmaster said that if it were Wardanaz, you'd probably try to hunt it alone next time..."
"......"
"Guess not. What did you want to ask?"
"...While facing the Rock Drake..."
Professor Ingoldel gave him a look that said, 'You denied it, but you were right after all.'
Lee Han quickly explained what had happened.
"...I realized I could alter the nature of my mana. But I'm not sure if this is actually a good thing..."
"It's absolutely a good thing!"
Professor Ingoldel rejoiced as if it were his own achievement.
Even if one learned their family's secret techniques from childhood, such a change in mana nature was impossible without innate talent.
Yet this young swordsman had independently grasped how to alter the properties of his mana.
It was a promising sign—he might even develop his own unique swordsmanship someday.
"Geniuses who dedicate their lives to the sword always forge their own unique styles. A perfected swordsmanship isn't just technique—it becomes the swordsman's pride and self-respect."
"Uh..."
Lee Han hesitated.
The conversation was getting way ahead of itself.
'I'm not particularly interested in creating my own swordsmanship.'
Lee Han had no grand ambitions of carving his name into the empire's swordsmanship history by establishing his own style.
He'd only taken the swordsmanship class for an easy grade, after all.
The Azure Rock Sword he'd learned from Alarong was already more than sufficient, and he had no intention of modifying or reinterpreting it.
"Wardanaz student. Try blending that mana alteration into your swordsmanship. Naturally, you'll begin to see a sword style unique to you."
Forced to suddenly incorporate mana alteration into his training, Lee Han grew even more flustered.
His swordsmanship, the Azure Rock Sword, was already at a highly refined level—unsurprising, given how long he'd practiced it since childhood.
But now, if he mixed in this newly realized mana alteration, he'd face considerable confusion until he adapted.
Of course, Lee Han didn't want to do this.
He'd only asked to understand what this phenomenon was and how to use it effectively...
"Professor. I haven't even fully mastered mana circulation yet. Wouldn't it dull my sword if I greedily pursue alteration on top of that?"
"Don't worry, Wardanaz student. The path of the sword isn't that narrow, and your talent isn't that lacking. You can handle both just fine."
"......"
Gritting his teeth, Lee Han nodded. Then he turned away, shoulders slumped.
Durgyu spoke up beside him.
"I heard. Lee Han, you're trying to apply mana alteration to your swordsmanship? Impressive. Most students in our tower don't even think about alteration—they struggle with mana circulation alone."
"Well, I've always been serious about swordsmanship."
"Of course I knew that. Students as dedicated as you are rare even in our tower. By now, your friends must've sensed your sincerity too."
"......"
Lee Han sighed inwardly at Durgyu's earnest response to what had been a joke.
Well, it wasn't Durgyu's fault...
"I'd appreciate some sparring help. It'll take time to get used to this, and I doubt the others will go easy on me."
"Of course, Lee Han. But I think your friends would understand if you explained."
'Unlikely.'
Lee Han clashed wooden swords with Durgyu.
Now that Professor Ingoldel had said those words, he'd undoubtedly ask, "How's your swordsmanship evolving?" every time they met. Lee Han had to show results.
'First goal... disrupting balance.'
Fortunately, he had a reference.
When the apprentice knights of the White Poplar Order had visited, he'd seen a knight using the Absorbing Sword.
Labda of the Enge Family had coated his blade with mana that pulled subtly, disrupting his opponent's balance with each clash.
Of course, higher mastery involved more complex techniques, but Lee Han didn't need that yet.
The important thing was reaching a level where he could tell Professor Ingoldel, "Look, I've been practicing like this!"
"What are those two doing?"
"They say Wardanaz is practicing the Absorbing Sword."
"What? Isn't that a sword technique only the Enge Family uses?"
"That Wardanaz bastard..."
The White Tiger Tower students stared at Lee Han with astonished eyes.
He already possessed sword skills that placed him firmly among the upper ranks, yet instead of resting on his laurels, he was diving into research to develop new techniques.
Truly, he was a man insatiably greedy for swordsmanship.
"We can't fall behind either!"
"Wardanaz. When it comes to passion for swordsmanship, you can't beat us!"
'I want to punch each of them once.'
Lee Han, staggering awkwardly under Durgyu's attacks, seethed inwardly.
He was already frustrated to death dealing with unfamiliar sword techniques right now...
It felt like he'd been thrown back to his earliest days of swordsmanship training.
"Lee Han. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. Let's continue."
Regardless of his feelings, Lee Han wasn't one to hesitate when something needed to be done.
Though he felt stifled, what could he do if Professor Ingoldel wanted this?
He just had to produce results and show them.
'When the attack comes, stop it. When the next attack comes, stop it again.'
Instead of executing fluid sword movements, Lee Han focused solely on defense.
Since altering the nature of his mana was challenging enough, he needed to abandon other aspects.
His goal was singular:
When the opponent attacked, use suction-type mana to pull and halt their movement.
Clang, clang, clang, clang—
Durgyu's rapid strikes rained down on Lee Han's blade until suddenly, mid-swing, his sword stopped dead in the air, unable to return to position.
"Did you see that?! Just now?!"
"Yeah. I saw it."
Lee Han exhaled a sigh of relief inwardly.
'At least I managed to succeed once.'
There was a world of difference between mindlessly flooding his hands with mana without concern for waste, and carefully channeling just enough to prevent the wooden sword from shattering.
Swordsmen who hadn't reached the level of extending mana through their blades like an extension of their bodies had to squeeze out and pour mana into their swords with each strike.
The mana waste was severe, but it was an unavoidable sacrifice.
But someone like Lee Han faced a different dilemma.
The constant worry that too much mana might shatter the sword!
Executing the Absorbing Sword required pouring mana with each clash, demanding even greater focus.
"Lee Han, your swordsmanship belongs to the heavy, powerful greatsword lineage. If you can disrupt balance just by blocking attacks, your counters will become even stronger."
"Thanks, Durgyu."
"Now. Let's continue."
"...Can't we take a short break?"
"Lee Han. What are you saying? If you don't practice right after an epiphany, the technique won't stay in your hands."
Durgyu looked astonished that Lee Han, who should know better, would say such a thing.
Professor Ingoldel chimed in too.
"He's correct, Wardanaz. You should continue."
"Actually, my mana..."
"?"
"?"
"...Never mind. Let's continue, Durgyu."
"Right. Got it!"
Lee Han abandoned his excuse about low mana and sighed.
'Damn it. I just wanted to rest a bit...'
Both Durgyu and Professor Ingoldel knew Lee Han too well—that was the problem.
Knowing full well what he was capable of, they pushed him relentlessly even when he wanted a break.
The next day.
Lee Han massaged his stiff muscles as he headed to Professor Voladi's classroom.
His entire body ached from yesterday's unfamiliar swordsmanship training. Normally resilient enough to avoid collapsing, today he felt ready to drop dead.
'I'm afraid to open the door.'
Meeting her at full strength was intimidating enough—facing her while impaired was unthinkable.
With these thoughts, Lee Han opened the door.
"Good morning."
Professor Voladi, standing statue-still, spoke as Lee Han took his seat.
"Have you completed the floating Frost Shield?"
"Huh? Uh... not yet."
"Prepare."
"Wait a moment."
"?"
"About the Rock Drake..."
Lee Han immediately regretted speaking.
Why had he dug his own grave when Professor Voladi hadn't even mentioned it?
"You wish to know the Rock Drake's weakness?"
"That's not—"
"It seems the Headmaster was correct. As I said before, you're far too impatient."
"......"
Lee Han felt utterly wronged.