Episode 305
Episode 305
It wasn't just Balgaro who was mesmerized by the firepower of the flames Lee Han summoned.
Other fire mages were also whispering in amazement.
"Who is that mage? I've never seen that face before."
"He definitely doesn't seem like an ordinary mage!"
Flustered by their gazes, Balgaro whispered urgently.
"Hey! I told you it wouldn't be good if other mages found out you're from Einrogard!"
"My apologies. I failed to control it properly."
"Artifacts aren't omnipotent. Keep that in mind. There's nothing good about relying on them too much."
Balgaro spoke with the dependable demeanor befitting a second-year senior.
Of course, when Lee Han said he'd failed to control it, he meant something slightly different.
'Fire Magic is still difficult.'
Due to his innate mana capacity, if he lost focus even slightly, the flames would scatter explosively in all directions. Because of this, Lee Han fundamentally used Fire Magic by narrowing its range as much as possible.
While others grew their flames to create arrows, spears, or shields, Lee Han kept his fixed in the form of small sparks.
But its firepower was by no means weak.
The flames summoned by his immense mana capacity possessed destructive power capable of piercing through most ordinary fire resistance.
In fact, the straw dummy that had been resilient against other spells was now burning away.
'I tried to reduce the firepower, but it seems impossible.'
Attempting to adjust the intensity of the flames proved far from easy.
Having to forcibly reduce his mana output to cast the spell...
Considering how others struggled to squeeze out every drop of mana to enhance their spells' power, this was an absurd problem to have.
Crackle...
As the straw dummy began to burn, a peculiar wave of mana spread outward.
The mana wave gently and warmly enveloped those in the temple. It carried not a hint of malice—more akin to a blessing.
"How does it feel? Can you sense the misfortune and bad luck dissipating?"
"It does feel that way."
"You'll probably have strangely good luck for a day or two. Since you burned a lot, it might last even longer."
'Oh.'
Lee Han brightened at the senior's words.
If this blessing truly had such an effect, it was exactly what he needed.
'If it's real, I should receive it right before the second semester begins.'
"Now, everyone, gather here. We'll explain the safety protocols."
The temple priests called the mages together. Lee Han followed without much thought.
But that was a mistake.
"......"
"Unfortunately, you're disqualified."
"Grrr!"
A mage at the front of the line stomped his foot in frustration.
Instead of lighting the candle, he had accidentally sent sparks flying beside it.
Watching this, Lee Han asked in confusion:
"Weren't we just supposed to listen to the safety protocols?"
"You learn by doing. Isn't experiencing something firsthand more memorable than just hearing about it?"
'This is why those knight-family bastards...'
Obtaining the temple's permit turned out to be far more challenging than expected.
The priests strictly judged whether each mage could control their flames without letting them spread in various situations.
Seeing this, Lee Han's face stiffened with tension.
This was his greatest weakness.
'If I lose focus, this entire temple will become a sea of flames.'
"Hey, what's wrong? It's not that hard. Other mages might have reason to be nervous, but we Einrogard students don't."
Balgaro spoke as if it were ridiculous.
The priests paid no attention to the power, speed, or complex techniques of the fire magic.
They only cared about one thing: whether the mage could control their own flames.
For self-taught mages, this might be difficult, but for those trained at Einrogard, it was an extremely basic skill.
Yet Lee Han remained expressionless, focusing intensely.
Watching him, Balgaro thought to himself:
'Is he not confident in his Fire Magic?'
Come to think of it, among the White Tiger Tower students, there were quite a few who lacked confidence in magic.
Balgaro decided he should encourage his junior.
"Gainando. Don't worry too much. Magic isn't everything. You'll get used to it in time. Even if students from other towers outperform you, don't get impatient. Understood?"
"Uh... thank you?"
Fortunately, Lee Han succeeded without incident.
The flames floated precisely in midair, pinpointing and burning their targets.
Balgaro, who had gone first, clapped his hands to cheer on his junior.
"Well done! Well done! What the—you're actually good at this!"
"Thank you."
Not just Balgaro, but priests from the Afha Order also approached Lee Han. The priests looked at him and said,
"Wod..."
"Thank you, honored priests! I'm always grateful for your teachings!"
Lee Han spoke first to prevent the priests from saying anything unnecessary.
"If not for the priests' guidance, I wouldn't have been able to refine my Fire Magic to this extent."
"We never expected such heartfelt words..."
The priests were deeply moved by Lee Han's sincere gratitude.
"The temple doors are always open for you. You're welcome anytime if it's to master fire control."
"...Uh..."
Lee Han hesitated.
Of course, he had no intention of slacking off during the break, but he wasn't keen on adding more commitments already.
"Um..."
"Perhaps Wod..."
"I'll definitely visit. Thank you."
Before the priest could say anything unnecessary, Lee Han firmly cut him off.
Adding another commitment felt uneasy, but there was no helping it.
Balgaro, watching from the side, gave Lee Han a suspicious look.
"You..."
'Did he figure it out?'
Lee Han tensed, wondering if Balgaro had realized he wasn't actually a White Tiger Tower student.
"You really enjoy studying magic, huh?"
"...Yes!"
"That's surprising. But why is your skill... Oops. Never mind. That's not the point."
"If I lack skill, shouldn't I work even harder?"
At his junior's words, Balgaro nodded.
What a diligent kid.
It was a shame his magical abilities didn't match his effort, but...
"Let's go. I should treat you to a meal."
"Uh... no, that's alright."
Lee Han did like free things, but accepting a meal from someone from a lesser family was a matter of conscience.
"No way! The other White Tiger Tower brats treat you like that, but as a knight—and as your senior from the tower—it's my duty to treat you."
"......"
Lee Han pondered when he could slip away unnoticed.
Whoosh—
"?"
Looking to the side, he saw the city mages who had received permits gathering inside the temple gates, casting spells.
"O fire, gather in the form of a ring!"
A ring of flames blazed in the air. Lee Han immediately grasped the principle behind it.
It was more like a heavily modified version of a 1st Circle Magic spell reshaped into a ring. Precarious and unstable, but as long as the goal was achieved, the spell could be considered a success.
'That's pretty sloppy, though.'
"Un... unbelievable! They actually succeeded in creating a ring of fire!!"
"This makes no sense! This is impossible!"
"Hahahaha! Hand over your silver coins, everyone! Didn't I say I could do it?!"
"......"
"......"
Lee Han and Balgaro both lost their words and stared at the mages.
The victorious mage puffed up with the most arrogant expression in the world.
"What did I tell you? That I could easily pull off a 4th Circle Magic spell?"
"That wasn't the case last time! When the hell did your skills improve this much?"
"Deep contemplation and enlightenment. That's all there is to it."
Lee Han sighed inwardly.
Mages who hadn't studied systematically under a proper teacher had wildly inconsistent knowledge of magic.
Enough to mistake this modified 1st Circle Fire Magic for a 4th Circle spell.
'Now I see why Einrogard students are so welcomed.'
Magic was already a rare profession, and a significant portion of mages were probably like this.
No wonder people preferred graduates from the Empire's Magic School.
"Senior, where are you goi— I mean, where are you headed?"
Lee Han was flustered.
Balgaro wasn't heading for the temple gates but was instead striding purposefully toward the mages.
"Can't just let a bunch of frauds slide."
"Wait, Senior. Didn't you say it'd be troublesome if they found out you're from Einrogard?"
'He said it wouldn't be good if other mages found out he was from Einrogard, yet now he's charging in himself.'
But Balgaro spoke with complete seriousness.
"But that bastard is deceiving other mages, isn't he?"
"...As expected, Senior embodies the very spirit of White Tiger Tower."
At his junior's praise, Balgaro looked slightly embarrassed.
"R-really? I don't think it's that much..."
The mage Otirou was originally from a thieves' guild.
After accidentally obtaining a magic tome about fire magic and bribing a retired mercenary mage to teach him, he'd managed to learn magic, but...
Progress beyond that point wasn't easy.
So Otirou changed his approach.
Toward a more profitable way to utilize the magic he'd learned!
"Now. It's not too late for you all either. You can reach the same heights as me. With just a small payment in silver, as a fellow mage's act of camaraderie, I'll teach you—"
"That's enough of your bullshit!"
Balgaro growled as he stepped forward. When a young mage approached with murderous intent, the gathered mages grew flustered.
"What did you just say?"
"Using mere variations of 1st Circle Magic to dazzle other mages—do you really consider yourself someone walking the path of magic?"
'This isn't good.'
Lee Han sensed danger from the other's expression.
The one who should've been panicking was maintaining an utterly calm face.
He clearly had something up his sleeve.
"I have no idea what you're talking about. My magic being 1st Circle? Are you saying all the mages here have faulty eyesight?"
"Stop with your nonsense tricks."
Balgaro had already figured out what the other was planning.
Without hesitation, he pulled down his coat to reveal the emblem of Einrogard.
"I'm a student of Einrogard! As an Einrogard student, I declare your magic to be fraudulent!"
"A student of Einrogard?"
Otirou's pupils trembled with surprise but quickly steadied.
"I see. You do have the right to say that. However..."
Otirou also lifted his coat.
A familiar emblem appeared.
...It was the emblem of Baldrogard.
'What the hell...'
While Lee Han was dumbfounded, Balgaro also seemed taken aback.
"I graduated from Baldrogard."
"What utter nonsense! That's fake! Where'd you get that counterfeit—"
"Ha... Enough. You're still a student, so your discernment is understandably lacking. I'll let it slide. I was the same once."
The opponent was clearly a step ahead of Balgaro.
Even if the emblem was fake, the other mages wouldn't be able to tell, and more importantly, Balgaro was outmatched in verbal sparring.
'Should I step in?'
He felt he should help since they were from the same school, but Balgaro moved first.
"A duel, you bastard!"
"......"
"......"
"Draw your magic! If you don't, I'll attack!"
'Is he actually insane?'
Challenging someone to a duel inside a temple.
Lee Han couldn't help but admire Balgaro's audacity.
Naturally, the priests came running.
"No dueling inside the temple!"
"Fine! Follow me outside!"
"Wh-what kind of barbaric—"
"Calm down, everyone. Why not settle this with magic?"
The mages and priests intervened. Balgaro, still fuming, had no choice but to relent.
"Fine. We'll settle it with magic."
Balgaro didn't seem to entertain the slightest thought that he might lose to such a fraud.
But nothing in this world is absolute.
"If it's a contest... how about a flame control match?"
A priest suggested the mediation.
It was a common game among fire mages—summoning flames to intercept and shoot down each other's.
A simple game, but it could get quite profound. You had to move your flame faster and more precisely than your opponent's to catch it from behind.
"......"
Balgaro's face turned pale. Lee Han was puzzled.
"What's wrong? Don't tell me..."
"...I specialize in Enchantment Magic."
"......"
Lee Han clicked his tongue sympathetically at the sight of his frozen senior.
"Then I'll do it."
"What?"
Balgaro looked up.
"You?"
"Yes."
"No way. You're not skilled enough for this!"
"......"
Lee Han was momentarily taken aback.