Episode 29
Episode 29
Why... not just one order, but multiple orders?
The Skeleton Principal sensed something odd and asked.
Of course, it was possible that he wanted to hear the pros and cons of each order before choosing one.
But...
Strangely enough, the words spoken by that boy from the Wardanaz family, though surely not his intention, had sounded like this:
'I want to join multiple orders, so please pick the best ones for me.'
The Skeleton Principal was certain he must have misheard.
"Uh... is it wrong to believe in multiple gods?"
'What a madman!'
The Skeleton Principal couldn't help but marvel at the new student—something he hadn't done in a long time.
Of course, there were people in the Empire who sincerely believed in multiple gods—like worshipping both the God of Love and the God of Wisdom.
But that Wardanaz boy definitely wasn't trying to believe in gods.
It was just that his ulterior motive—to squeeze as much as he could from multiple orders—was so blatant it was almost admirable.
In fact, it was so brazen that it was oddly endearing.
Of course, the various orders probably wouldn't see it that way...
He's right. And he asked a very good question. There's nothing wrong with believing in multiple gods. But sometimes, orders get petty over things like this.
"That's correct."
Lee Han quickly agreed.
As the Headmaster had guessed, Lee Han's goal was simple and straightforward.
'Join every possible order.'
Now that he thought about it, if joining meant receiving various items, there was no reason not to do it.
Joining every order that allowed multiple memberships would only benefit him.
First, I recommend the Prisinga Order. Their god sacrificed himself to uphold the world. The order's members are quite friendly, so they'll welcome you.
"Prisinga... Order."
Lee Han jotted it down.
Next would be the Calaso Order. Their god is a mischievous deity who loves chaos and change. They don't care if you believe in other gods and will treat you well.
"Calaso... Order."
Lastly, I'd recommend the Caporeo Order. They're the god of swordsmanship and swordsmen, so they'd welcome an oddball like you.
"Caporeo Order..."
Lee Han paused mid-note.
Did he know Lee Han was taking swordsmanship classes?
'No. That's a bit creepy.'
It was a minor thing, but it felt like the Headmaster was paying too much attention.
He'd never been happy about professors—especially crazy ones—taking too much interest in him...
Learning swordsmanship is fine, but don't forget magic. In the end, the only truly great discipline is magic.
"I'll keep that in mind."
Lee Han bowed his head respectfully in response to the Skeleton Principal's words.
Of course, inwardly, it went in one ear and out the other.
To Lee Han, magic was merely a means to success, not the goal itself.
Hmm. Yes. Good.
The Skeleton Principal nodded in satisfaction at the answer.
At first, he'd been baffled when a Wardanaz family member brought up joining orders, but now he found himself strangely excited.
'He's truly no ordinary kid.'
The immense amount of mana and his ability to sense it were just secondary.
What mattered was his patience—the willingness to do whatever it took to get what he wanted.
The fact that a freshman from a prestigious family like the Wardanaz could display such patience was incredibly intriguing.
'I'm looking forward to his future.'
Well then, I should go check on the ones I locked in the Punishment Room. Do well, Wardanaz.
"Thank you. ...Huh?"
Lee Han realized something was off.
Wait, who did he lock up where?
But the Skeleton Principal had already flown far into the distance.
Though he was curious about how many White Tiger Tower students had been locked in the Punishment Room, Lee Han decided to visit the orders first.
"Where are you going?"
Yoner, who had returned with a basket in hand, asked curiously.
"Prisinga Order..."
"Ah, the Prisinga Order. You've always been interested—"
"...and the Calaso Order."
"??"
"And the Caporeo Order, maybe? Hmm. I might not be able to visit all of them today. If I'm too obvious, it might be awkward, so maybe I'll rotate one per week."
"......"
Rather than asking what was going on, Yoner decided to simply accept it.
Ah. So Lee Han just wanted to believe in about three gods!
"Here. Take this."
Yoner pulled a sandwich from the basket and handed it over.
It was a hearty sandwich stuffed with ham, tomatoes, lettuce, chopped boiled eggs, and other fillings between white bread—the kind that starving freshmen would kill each other to get their hands on if one were thrown their way.
"Thanks. Hmm. How much?"
"...It's free..."
"What? Really? Why? What's your motive?"
"It's not really my place to say, but... you know you're really peculiar, right? It's to thank you for your hard work yesterday. Here. Eat up."
At Yoner's words, Lee Han nodded and accepted it. He had been hungry anyway.
As Lee Han chewed the sandwich enthusiastically, Yoner poured him a glass of cold apple juice.
Gulp—
"But where did you get this?"
"Don't people usually ask that first? I got it from the Flemeng Order. My family has been close with the Flemeng Order for generations."
Flemeng, the god of alchemy.
All the priests of this order were outstanding alchemists.
The Maykin Family, Yoner's family, had generously supported the Flemeng Order for a long time.
Thanks to this, the priests of the Flemeng Order recognized Yoner and filled her basket with all sorts of food.
'Seriously. What has the Wardanaz Family been doing instead of supporting other orders?'
Lee Han was impressed by the Maykin Family's foresight.
This kind of support naturally brought rewards.
"...Is it a bit strange after all?"
"What is?"
When Yoner hesitated, Lee Han looked puzzled.
Was she talking about the combination of sandwich and apple juice?
"Um, supporting the Flemeng Order. I do believe in Flemeng too..."
Just like how Gainando had gotten smacked for saying, "Alchemy is magic?", there were quite a few arrogant mages who looked down on alchemists.
Occasionally, someone would sneer, "A great family of the Empire stooping so low as to support such an order?" if you mentioned supporting or believing in the Flemeng Order.
Of course, Lee Han didn't care in the slightest.
"Why not support them if you want to?"
"...Right?"
Yoner's face brightened. Beaming, she poured Lee Han more apple juice.
"Drink up."
"Huh? There's still some lef—"
Yoner thought to herself.
Though she had worried that his peculiar personality might make it hard for him to adjust in the Blue Dragon Tower, seeing the boy before her now made her think it wouldn't be as difficult as she'd imagined.
"Excuse me. I came because I wanted to learn about Lord Prisinga."
"!"
The priests looked up with delight as Lee Han approached.
"Welcome, brother! You've come to learn about Lord Prisinga? We're delighted to have you!"
"Yes. I've heard various stories about Lord Prisinga before and have always admired such an extraordinary figure."
Lee Han spoke while hiding his true thoughts.
Even if he was complaining internally, a graduate student knew how to bow his head with a perfectly reverent expression.
In this regard, Lee Han had unparalleled skill in maintaining his composure.
Naturally, the priests were utterly charmed by his attitude.
Who would have thought a noble young man from a great family would come to them like this?
"Please, come in! Dijiling, could you assist us?"
"Y-yes... I'm coming now."
"!"
Lee Han was startled. The student called by the priests looked quite unusual.
Her skin had a faint crimson glow, with two-pronged horns protruding from her forehead. Her timid, evasive eyes seemed to flicker with sparks that appeared and vanished.
'A demon half-blood!'
Among mixed-blood races, this was the rarest kind. Lee Han had only heard of them—this was his first time seeing one in person.
If any ancestor had made a pact with a demon, occasionally a descendant would skip generations and manifest these traits.
Naturally, most people found such races unsettling. Perhaps because of this, the demon half-blood girl moved timidly, as if constantly gauging others' reactions.
"Um, Dijiling is also a freshman. She belongs to the <Tower of the Eternally Burning Phoenix>."
The priests spoke with evident pride.
Though students from the Phoenix Tower rarely interacted with those from other towers, they had stepped forward to help now that the priests of their order had come.
"How truly moving. To think there would be a fellow believer of Prisinga here as well. Truly, this is Prisinga's doing."
"Brother!"
Even Lee Han's half-hearted praise seemed to greatly please the priests.
'But...'
As Lee Han stepped inside the tent, he glanced around.
There were two crucial points when joining a religious order:
What one could gain by joining,
and what one would have to do after joining.
Wouldn't it be more troublesome to join some strange order only to have to flog oneself every time attending a gathering?
'It's quite austere, as expected of an order's tent.'
The interior of the tent was spartan. A few long benches were arranged, and at the front altar lay what appeared to be the symbol of Prisinga.
It might have seemed ordinary at a glance, but something felt off to Lee Han.
'Wait... aren't there too many artifacts here?'
An unusually high number of items radiating mana were scattered throughout the tent.
Even minor enchanted items—artifacts—were expensive and rare.
Yet here they were, swarming inside this tent.
The priests didn't seem particularly extravagant, though...
'Didn't they say Prisinga was a god who sacrificed himself to uphold the world? Is he also associated with artifact creation?'
Thud. Thud. Thud.
A short, gaunt priest approached to explain things to Lee Han.
"...?"
Surprisingly, with each step the priest took, deep footprints were imprinted into the ground. Lee Han's eyes widened.
"Ah. Are you surprised, Brother?"
Noticing Lee Han's reaction, the priest smiled and spoke.
"There's no need to be alarmed. It's because of the artifact I'm wearing. This is a cursed artifact, Brother. It multiplies my weight but increases the divine power I can wield."
"Ah... Did you accidentally equip it while dungeon diving or adventuring?"
"No, I wear it in reverence of Prisinga."
"??"
"Prisinga sacrificed himself to uphold the world. Shouldn't we also make sacrifices, Brother? Every time we bear one of the world's cursed artifacts, the world's curses lessen."
The Prisinga Order.
To honor a god cursed to eternally shoulder the world's burdens, its priests willingly wore cursed artifacts.
Their divine magic didn't purify the curses within artifacts like other divine magic.
Instead, it amplified both the artifact's power and its curse to extreme levels.
As realization dawned on Lee Han, the color drained from his face.
He regretted his decision.
'I must have lost my mind. Listening to the Headmaster...'
The warm conversation with the Headmaster had made him lower his guard, but the madness radiating from this order was anything but ordinary.
An order that deliberately wore cursed artifacts in daily life?
"...It seems our brother here isn't too pleased."
The priest was no ordinary person.
Despite Lee Han's controlled expression, he keenly sensed his discomfort.
"N-No, I'm just overjoyed..."
"No, Brother. The path of devotion to Prisinga is arduous and harsh. If your heart has changed even now, you need not walk it. I understand."
The priest smiled faintly, his voice tinged with loneliness.
Lee Han felt guilty but discreetly checked the exit. The priest could turn hostile and restrain him at any moment.
"This cursed belt was meant as a welcoming gift for our new brother... But once people hear the details, they all leave. And who can blame them? A belt cursed to drain mana—what brother would welcome that?"
"...Wait. What exactly does it do?"