Episode 320

"Did you have a vampire friend?"

Gainando, who hadn't fully grasped the situation yet, tilted his head in confusion.

Lee Han seriously considered staying at Gainando's house tonight for a brief moment.

"You're here."

However, Professor Voladi kindly cut short such deliberations.

At the sight of Professor Voladi walking out from inside, Gainando exclaimed in surprise,

"Why is the professor here? Shouldn't we call the guards to chase him out?"

Lee Han was momentarily tempted but quickly regained his composure.

"Professor! To think you'd visit my humble abode... I couldn't be more delighted!"

"It's not so humble."

"But what does 'humble' mean?"

Ignoring Gainando's question, Lee Han put on an insincere smile and asked,

"But how did you know to come here?"

"The Headmaster told me."

'I should really kill him.'

Lee Han thought that while he was at it, he might as well slay the wicked Lich of Einrogard after defeating the Ghoul King.

"Wait. Did the Headmaster tell the other professors too?"

Professor Voladi nodded.

Lee Han felt a wave of dizziness.

'This is insane.'

The professors who might show up at the mansion now...

'Professor Garcia is fine. In fact, I should treat her well. Professor Thunderstep... well... it's not like I can't accommodate him. Professor Lightning Step probably won't come given his personality. If Professor Ingoldel comes, Alarong would be happy.'

Upon reflection, there were about two professors left who were the most dangerous and troublesome.

Professor Voladi and Professor Verdus.

And one of them was standing right in front of him.

"But why is the professor here during vacation?"

Gainando asked with an innocent expression. Lee Han ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠thought it was a good idea to have bought him cotton candy earlier.

'He's earning his cotton candy.'

"I have something to discuss."

"Couldn't you have sent a letter?"

"A letter wouldn't suffice."

"Why not?"

"There's a lot to discuss."

"Couldn't you just write a long one?"

Professor Voladi made a light hand gesture. Gainando, now silenced by magic, waved his hands angrily.

How dare someone attack a member of the imperial family outside Einrogard!

'Stand up for me, Lee Han! For the honor of the imperial family!'

'Sorry.'

Lee Han averted his gaze.

As the professor's student, how could he possibly interfere with what the professor did?

"Please come inside, Professor."

"Very well."

Lee Han carried the teacups and teapot himself instead of the servants.

"I'll take them myself."

"Lord Lee Han... you are truly noble."

Despite being born of noble blood, his admirable dedication to serving his teacher personally moved all the servants.

Lee Han nearly dropped the saucer.

'Don't take your frustration out on innocent people.'

Professor Voladi sipped the green tea he was served and slowly began to speak.

"I heard you caught a basilisk."

"Ghk."

Lee Han choked on his green tea. It felt like the scalding liquid had struck his throat.

"That's... a misunderstanding."

"What part is a misunderstanding?"

"That basilisk wasn't even fully grown..."

"A newly hatched basilisk. Enhanced by potions. Overexerted itself attempting to use its Petrifying Gaze and collapsed from the rebound. Am I wrong?"

"Ah. That's correct."

Seeing that Professor Voladi understood the situation far more accurately than expected, Lee Han felt relieved.

He had been worried about being misunderstood in some absurd way.

"I didn't know you could deflect a Petrifying Gaze with just mana."

"...Wasn't it just because it was newly hatched?"

"Hmm. The penetrating power of the gaze doesn't vary that much."

Professor Voladi carefully lifted the basket he had set down earlier.

Inside, nestled comfortably in a soft nest, was a familiar-looking egg.

It was the basilisk egg Professor Voladi had acquired during his last outing.

"I was planning to use it for second-semester lectures, but now I'm concerned."

"...You don't need to worry too much. That basilisk was overly complacent, and..."

Despite Lee Han's persuasion, Professor Voladi couldn't shake off his worry.

As he kept trying to convince him, Lee Han suddenly felt a pang of self-reproach.

'Why am I doing this as if I actually want to face a basilisk in the second semester?'

The only outcome of successfully persuading the professor would be a future where he'd have to fight a basilisk.

When he thought about it, the bitterness was overwhelming.

But if he left it alone, given Professor Voladi's personality, he'd probably bring an even crazier monster...

"You repelled the Ghoul King."

"Cough."

"Are you feeling unwell?"

When Lee Han choked for the second time, Professor Voladi raised his eyebrows and asked.

"No... I'm fine."

Lee Han coughed a few more times and regained his composure.

Just like with the basilisk incident earlier, Professor Voladi, unlike others, would have accurately grasped the truth.

In that case, there was no need to be unnecessarily frightened.

"I heard you overwhelmingly defeated the Ghoul King. Is that true?"

"Hack—cough."

"You really don't seem well."

Professor Voladi looked genuinely concerned.

"Unlike at Einrogard where you can recover even if you make mistakes due to haste, that's impossible out there. You should rein in your impatience."

"...Ah. Yes."

Lee Han wanted to say, 'I'm not someone who goes around seeking basilisks and Ghoul Kings just to become as strong as you think, Professor,' but he held back.

It would have been a meaningless thing to say.

"It wasn't an overwhelming victory. The opponent was in an incomplete state..."

"Right. You overwhelmed them because they were incomplete. But it was still an overwhelming victory, wasn't it?"

Having defeated the Ghoul King and neatly completed nearby requests, anyone would agree it was an overwhelming victory.

If it hadn't been overwhelming, he would have collapsed near the cave.

Lee Han, speechless at Professor Voladi's logic, regretted his words.

'Maybe I should have pretended to be sick.'

"There's no record of the Ghoul King."

Even if they were beings from another dimension, notable ones usually left records—but exceptions always existed.

Beings like the Ghoul King, who descended long ago and were sealed, couldn't possibly have records.

"Yes."

"Even so, it's best to be cautious. Such beings are tenacious."

Lee Han naturally knew this too.

If a novice like him had defeated such a being and forced it to reverse-summon back to its own dimension, only to have it forgive and forget, then it wouldn't be an evil being at all.

Most likely, it was sharpening its blade while recovering its strength in its own dimension.

But Lee Han wasn't overly worried.

'It's not like we'll meet again anytime soon, right?'

After taking such a blow and being reverse-summoned, it wouldn't dare attempt another descent for a while as it recovered. The only remaining possibility was Lee Han visiting the Ghoul King's dimension and seeking it out directly...

And unless Lee Han had completely lost his mind, there was no reason to do such a thing.

"That's why I've prepared a method to deal with such beings."

"...!!"

Lee Han endured the scalding tea hitting his throat and swallowed. But he couldn't stop his eyes from widening in shock.

"Such... a method exists?"

"Yes."

Professor Voladi calmly began his explanation.

The path Lee Han was currently walking—mastering and fusing all schools of magic into a perfected form of Combat Magic.

...Of course, Lee Han didn't particularly think he was walking that path, but that wasn't important.

In any case, since the perfection of each individual school was crucial for this ultimate Combat Magic path, Professor Voladi never rushed or pressured him.

The disciple, due to his talent, was naturally hasty—but Professor Voladi, as his teacher, understood.

If the teacher didn't understand, who would?

But considering the recent battle against the Ghoul King, it was safer for Lee Han to gain combat experience related to Black Magic now.

That way, even if he clashed with the Ghoul King again, he could maintain the upper hand.

"I see."

Lee Han nodded after hearing the explanation.

Though he nodded, inwardly, he wasn't convinced.

"Can't I just... avoid it?"

"If you could avoid it by trying, it wouldn't be an enemy. I heard from Professor Mortum—you've already learned the four foundational areas of Black Magic: Curses, Poison, Bones, and Necromancy."

"Yes..."

Lee Han nodded with a bitter smile.

By now, he wasn't even surprised by things like this.

'Would be nice if he coughed up some more later.'

"It's not a bad choice. It's the most fundamental foundation of black magic. But beings like the Ghoul King are tricky opponents to handle with just the areas I mentioned."

"That was certainly the case. The Lightning Element—whether it had precognition or not—dodged attacks too easily. The only thing that somewhat worked was unleashing wide-area attacks with the Fire Element."

"The powers of evil beings from the Otherworld often surpass the wisdom of mages."

Professor Voladi wasn't surprised.

Creatures summoned from other dimensions often possessed not just precognition but powers so bizarre they made precognition seem trivial.

"However, there are ways to counter them. One of them is the Dark Element."

"The Dark Element... you mean?"

Among the various elemental affinities, the Dark Element was as tricky to master as lightning or ice.

If the Lightning Element was hard to control and the Ice Element difficult to maintain, the Dark Element fell into the category of being conceptually challenging—meaning it was hard for mages to even imagine.

"Such beings frequently wield Dark Element magic based on negative energy. If a mage can handle it, they can even predict their moves."

"I see."

Professor Voladi set down a book. The title, written in a familiar script, read:

<Fundamental Dark Element Magic and Its Applications>

At the sight of the recognizable book, Lee Han suddenly realized something.

'Wait. If he's giving me a book, does that mean he doesn't plan to teach me directly?'

"You're not going to teach me yourself?"

"That's right. I have things to do. Learn it on your own."

Lee Han wasn't sure whether to be happy or dismayed.

On one hand, it was a relief to avoid Professor Voladi's "teaching method" of chasing him with a sword from behind...

But was it really okay to learn such a difficult element like the Dark Element alone?

'Well, I'll take it. Even if I can't master it, he probably won't kill me... right?'

As he accepted the book, Lee ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Han asked without much thought:

"Would it be alright if I asked what you'll be busy with?"

Professor Voladi stood up from his seat and replied:

"I'm going to meet His Excellency Yumidihus to prepare what's needed for the second semester's lectures."

"I see... Wait, Professor. Professor! It's getting dark—why don't you stay the night? The mansion has plenty of rooms!"

"No. I'll visit another time. I've been well taken care of."

Professor Voladi gave a light nod to the servants and stepped out through the mansion's main gate.

Watching his figure disappear into the distance, Lee Han couldn't shake the feeling that it was an ominous sign.

'I should've put sleeping pills in the tea!'

Lee Han turned to a nearby servant and said:

"From now on, if any professors—except the one who looks like a half-troll—come visiting, tell them I'm not at the mansion."

"Understood...?"

The servant found the order strange ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠but complied.

What in the world...?

Lee Han had a slightly late dinner with Yoner and Gainando, who had been waiting for him.

Gainando was picking at his food without much appetite.

"What's wrong? The chefs will be disappointed."

"I ate too much cotton candy earlier..."

Yoner regretted bringing him to his friend's house.

Noticing the look, Gainando pointed at Lee Han.

"Lee Han doesn't have an appetite either!"

"Do those two things look the same to you?"

Comparing "no appetite because of too much cotton candy" to "getting extra assignments from a professor during break" was absurd.

In Yoner's eyes, Lee Han could attack Gainando right now and still be innocent.

"No. Times ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like these are when you should eat well. Thanks, everyone."

Lee Han nodded and picked up his spoon.

No matter how hard or painful things got, one should always eat well.

-"Intruder! Catch him!"

-"Wait, wait! You'll understand once you hear who I am! I'm Professor Vible Verdus of Einrogard!"

"......"

Thud! Lee Han slammed his spoon down in frustration.

Startled, Gainando hurriedly picked up his own spoon.

"I-I'll eat properly."