Episode 315
Episode 315
After hearing the explanation, Lee Han nodded in understanding.
"'Dark mana acted as a repulsive force, draining the vitality from your hands... Why did you swing it so recklessly?'"
"'We were too focused on breaking it to think straight,'" Durgyu replied.
At Durgyu's words, the other two friends reluctantly nodded.
They had plenty to say, but now wasn't the time.
"'Well, at least it's not a serious injury. Let's just treat what we can.'"
Lee Han cast [Lesser Laceration Heal] on Angrago's hand—then paused.
'Oh no.'
Come to think of it, without a trustworthy professor nearby, there was no good reason for Lee Han to recklessly use healing magic.
If the healing spell failed, the aftermath could be far worse than leaving the wound untreated.
"'Thanks, Wardanaz.'"
Unaware of Lee Han's inner turmoil, Angrago expressed gratitude as his torn wound healed. Lee Han averted his gaze slightly.
"'Raphael... um... do you really need healing magic?'"
"......"
Though Raphael didn't say it out of pride, Gaïnan—who had lost in the card game—wore the same expression.
A look of fresh indignation and misery!
Lee Han sighed inwardly.
"'Don't regret it.'"
"'????'"
Once the spell was complete, Raphael tilted his head in confusion as he examined his perfectly healed hand.
What was he not supposed to regret?
"'Durgyu.'"
"'I'm fine, Lee Han. You must be exhausted—stop using magic.'"
"'No, it's not about the magic...'"
Lee Han lowered his voice so only Durgyu could hear.
"'...It's incomplete.'"
"'What?'"
"'The spell is incomplete. I only realized it belatedly because I was distracted.'"
"......"
Durgyu stared at Lee Han in shock, then glanced at their friends' hands.
Had luck not been on their side, their skin might have fused with the bandages.
"'So just endure it a little longer and heal with a potion.'"
"'...No... If our friends got healed, but I...'"
"'Those bastards got lucky, so it doesn't matter. Just play it safe and use a potion.'"
"'What are you two talking about?'"
Raphael asked, puzzled.
For a moment, he wondered if some lingering evil presence remained in the cave.
"'Nothing. Oh, right. Raphael, I almost forgot—thanks for reminding me.'"
"'What?'"
Thwack!
"'Who said you could just charge out like that?'"
"'Ghk... That was... Ugh...'"
From the scorched remains where the flames had swept through, Goo Bon let out a sigh of relief as Lee Han returned with his friends.
It seemed everything had ended well.
"'You've worked hard! Truly, what a relief.'"
"'We all worked hard, didn't we?'"
At Lee Han's words, Goo Bon and Bizdek couldn't help but feel moved.
To receive respect from a mage who had demonstrated such incredible magic—what adventurer wouldn't be thrilled?
The mercenaries, too, seemed to share the excitement as they came forward to express their gratitude.
"'Magus, thank you!'"
"'We owe you our lives!! If we'd followed that bastard Buldahak, we'd be dead by now!'"
"'I really thought I was going to die...'"
Flesh-ripper ghouls, a ghoul horde assault, the Ghoul King's descent, and flames that raged with enough force to incinerate the entire cave—
In any other request, any one of these alone would have been life-threatening. Yet they had faced them all at once.
It was no wonder they felt surviving was nothing short of a miracle.
"'Thank you, Magus!'"
"'We sincerely thank you. Please accept our gratitude!'"
Goo Bon and Bizdek were astonished anew by the mercenaries' heartfelt loyalty, despite having known them for such a short time.
Not that it was hard to understand—even Goo Bon and Bizdek felt a sense of devotion toward the young mage.
But who would have thought even these greedy mercenaries, little better than criminals, could be so moved?
Perhaps this was the true essence of magic.
"'Very well. I accept your thanks with respect. Now, lend me your hand for a moment.'"
One of the mercenaries near Lee Han quickly extended his hand.
He was fully prepared to carry out any task without a single complaint.
Clack!
"...???"
When bone restraints clamped onto his wrists like manacles, the mercenary blinked in confusion. Ignoring his reaction, Lee Han summoned more restraints for his ankles and even called forth a Bone Hand to coil around his neck.
During the battle earlier, he had dismissed all his summons due to the urgency of the situation, but now that it was over, it was time to reapply them.
"Alright. Next."
"Uh... Wait... Honored Mage..."
"Quiet. Next."
Lee Han firmly bound the mercenaries, arranging them in formation just as they had been before.
Gubon cautiously asked,
"Um... Did the mercenaries do something to offend you?"
"Huh?"
"If not... why suddenly...?"
"Ah. I'm taking them in to collect the bounty."
"......"
Gubon was at a loss for words.
Aside from maybe one or two who were actual hardened criminals, the rest of these mercenaries were essentially petty offenders.
At best, he'd get a few coins for them—was it really worth going to such lengths to capture them so thoroughly?
Just...!
'Is this what a real adventurer is like? Have I been doing my job too carelessly all this time?'
The insane thoroughness displayed by this first-time adventurer made Gubon suddenly reflect on his own lax approach.
"Outside!!"
Though bound and dragged out, the mercenaries took deep breaths of the open air, overjoyed.
No matter how much light there was, the damp, oppressive atmosphere inside the cave had been exhausting.
Lee Han stretched his limbs before turning to Gubon.
"Could you keep an eye on these mercenaries for a moment?"
"Huh? That's not a problem, but... is something the matter...?"
Gubon was worried about Lee Han.
After such an intense battle, even the most formidable mage wouldn't be unscathed.
His coat alone was already in tatters, making the concern even greater.
Was he heading somewhere secluded because of some sinister side effect from dark magic?
"Ah. I'm going to capture a Rapella Field Mouse."
"...I... see."
Lee Han headed into the forest with Sharkan in tow.
As Gubon blankly stared at his retreating figure, Bijidek suddenly exclaimed in a startled voice.
"Wait! Didn't I tell you?! That honored mage is from the Wardanaz family! That legendary magic lineage!"
"What did you just— No. Wait. Wait, WHAT???"
Earlier, he'd been too overwhelmed to catch it, but what Bijidek just said was even more shocking than the Ghoul King appearing inside the cave.
Who did you say he was?!
Blanche, the elven clerk at the Granden City Adventurers' Guild, was first surprised by the sight of mercenaries being marched in single file.
Then, she was doubly surprised by the exhausted expressions of the Einrogard students making their report.
"Wha... What did you just say?"
"There was an evil entity from another dimension in the Burnt Hill cave. It called itself the Ghoul King and seemed to have been sealed away long ago."
Blanche quickly jotted it down before yanking open a drawer and pulling out an urgent message Paper Bird.
The Paper Birds shot out through the guild window, flying swiftly—carrying news that would send the Imperial Bureaucrats in Granden City scrambling over in a panic.
"I'm truly sorry. A subjugation squad will be assembled immediately and dispatched there."
Blanche spoke with genuine remorse.
To have unknowingly sent Einrogard students—on their first request, no less—into such danger...
Even if unintentional, the guild couldn't escape responsibility.
If something had happened, just how much hell would Einrogard have raised—no, how fiercely would they have protested?
It was nothing short of a miracle that they had made it out safely.
'If anything, it's a good thing they were Einrogard students.'
Being sharp Einrogard students, they must have sensed the evil entity's presence and escaped—otherwise, they might have been wiped out due to clumsy mistakes.
"The extermination squad, you say?"
"Yes. Even if an evil entity from another dimension appears weak, we absolutely cannot leave it be."
"Ah... about that. We already took care of it ourselves."
"Excuse me?"
"We handled the extermination ourselves. It was an urgent situation, so we had no choice—"
"What do you—"
BANG!
The door burst open as the first heir of the Dalkard family, whom Lee Han had seen before, stormed in.
Struggling to suppress his agitation and concern, he spoke with forced composure.
"I am Daihal, Imperial Special Administrator from the Dalkard family. I came immediately upon hearing reports of an inter-dimensional entity. Let me get a precise account of— Wait, what are you all doing here?"
Daihal was startled to see Lee Han seated among the adventurers—his younger sibling's friend from the Wardanaz family.
"I was the one who discovered it."
"Is that so? For an expert to have found it... That's fortunate amidst misfortune."
Daihal took a seat across from Lee Han and calmly retrieved his quill.
"How did the entity refer to itself?"
"It called itself the King of Ghouls."
"The King of Ghouls... I can think of three beings with that title off the top of my head, but none are reported to be active at the moment."
"That makes sense. The one I encountered seemed like an ancient being. It wouldn't be surprising if the Empire had no records of it."
"I see."
Talking with Lee Han helped Daihal regain his composure.
Unlike the rambling adventurers, this young friend of his sibling from the Wardanaz family was remarkably easy to converse with.
An adventurer who could recount events methodically, covering all the essential details without omission—what a rarity.
'Ashan has truly found an excellent friend at Einrogard.'
Daihal resolved to advise Ashan to learn from this friend once they returned to the mansion.
Ashan would surely appreciate such meaningful counsel.
"So it attempted possession, you say? How troubling..."
"Yes. And it kept summoning ghouls continuously."
"We must dispatch the extermination squad immediately—"
"E-Excuse me, Administrator?"
The clerk Blancse tried to interject.
It seemed the Special Administrator Daihal was missing something crucial.
"Could you wait a moment? This is an urgent matter, so allow me to gather all the information swiftly before giving you the floor."
"But—"
"My apologies."
"No, I—"
"So what other abilities did this self-proclaimed King of Ghouls display?"
"Physical dispersion, negative energy emission, and possibly inter-dimensional connection—though I'm not certain about the last one."
"That alone is sufficient. I'll send specialized experts right aw—"
BANG!
"They already killed it!!!"
Unable to hold back any longer, Blancse kicked a chair and shouted.
Daihal, bewildered, asked again.
"What do you mean?"
"I said they killed it! They killed it! They already took care of it!"
"What in the world—"
"It's true, we did eliminate it."
Lee Han produced the shattered crystal skull.
The eerie aura emanating from it made Blancse and Daihal instinctively realize what kind of being had once resided within.
"It was an ancient sealed entity. It likely escaped through a breach in its confinement."
"So... you truly exterminated it?"
"Yes."
"......"
Daihal was at a loss for words.
The flowing tip of his quill came to an abrupt halt.
BANG!
The guild doors swung open violently once more as a knight from the Granden City Order entered.
"Administrator Daihal! I've gathered all available knights upon hearing the news. We've also contacted the temple—the priests will join us shortly. We'll depart immediately and receive updates en route."
"Ah, no. It's been dealt with."
"Pardon?"
"It's... already been exterminated...?"
The knight had never seen Special Administrator Daihal so hesitant and lacking in confidence before.
It was truly a shocking sight.
And the shocks didn't end there.
"Wait. You lot—"
The knight noticed familiar faces among the adventurers seated before Daihal.
Young students from other knightly families.
"...Why are you wearing those around your necks?"
They had placards hanging from their necks that read: <We will never disobey orders again>.