Episode 374
Episode 374
In the dimension, since there were no fixed rules, it wasn't uncommon for powerful monsters to appear in places where weaker ones would normally spawn.
But a Venomous Predator in the second zone?
This wasn't just about that thing appearing—it meant the entire second zone had become lethally dangerous.
"Lower your voice and let's quietly retreat. It doesn't seem to have noticed us yet."
"Ah. So that thing isn't supposed to appear here normally."
"...Of course not!"
Diret nearly raised his voice in that instant.
If monsters like that frequently appeared in this zone, how could he have brought his junior along?
And if that were the case, students wouldn't have been allowed in either.
-■■■■■...
The Venomous Predator, which had been chewing noisily, suddenly turned its head and spat something out onto the bone mound.
Then it grabbed another squishy lump and shoved it back into its mouth, resuming its noisy chewing.
"...?"
Diret was bewildered.
What the hell was it doing right now?
"Senior. From what I know, Predators devour and absorb other beings to grow their size and strength. If one like that is spitting instead of swallowing, it must be offering tribute to something stronger than itself."
"Th-that..."
Shocked by the explanation, Diret suddenly felt a pang of curiosity.
Wait, how does this junior even know that...?
"How do you know that?"
"I learned it from a professor."
"You learned that in your first year?"
"No. During an extra lecture."
"......"
Diret had to suppress a sudden wave of sadness in the middle of all this.
"Ugh."
"Why are you turning your head away...?"
"It's nothing. Anyway, if what you're saying is true..."
If the Venomous Predator was regurgitating prey to offer to something stronger, that was chilling in its own way.
It meant there were even more dangerous monsters lurking in this zone.
"Let's head back quickly and report this."
"Understood."
Lee Han and Diret quietly lowered their stances and turned to leave.
However, the path back was now swarming with new undead—a pack of Rakshasa Hungry Ghosts.
Diret frowned.
"No choice, then."
"Understood. Preparing to fight—"
"What!? No! I meant we should go around!"
"Ah, right."
Lee Han awkwardly lowered his staff.
It had become such a habit that he automatically prepared for battle first.
"Senior! You're back!"
"You guys made it too?"
Upon returning to Professor Mortum's staff marker, Diret was surprised to find his juniors already waiting.
"What do you mean?"
"The Predator. We ran into a Venomous Predator on our side. And Rakshasa Hungry Ghosts too..."
"A Venomous Predator?! That must've been really bad."
The junior's reaction wasn't what you'd expect from someone frightened by a powerful monster's appearance.
It was more like someone whose mind was elsewhere, distracted.
Lee Han whispered in surprise.
"Seeing how unafraid everyone is of the Venomous Predator, I guess you're all confident in battle..."
"Like hell we are! What's going on with everyone? Why do you all look drunk with excitement?"
"Senior! The professor found ruins!"
"!!!"
Diret was stunned.
Ruins?
Finding ruins in the intact outside world was already difficult and rare, but discovering ruins in another dimension was an exceptionally rare event.
So rare that many mages spent their entire lives without ever encountering ruins in a dimension. The scarcity spoke for itself.
"R-re... really?"
"Yes!!!"
"...Senior. Didn't you say earlier that this dimension was dangerous on the way here...?"
Lee Han was taken aback.
Diret's eyes had suddenly lit up with a strange glint.
To be specific, it somewhat resembled the look in Professor Voladi's or Professor Verdus's eyes.
"Well, dimensions are dangerous by nature."
"......"
Lee Han sighed inwardly.
Even the normally sensible Diret senior was acting strange now.
'Is Einrogard's foundation cursed? Does it corrupt even the purest of people?'
"Senior. You clearly said earlier that once we arrive, we should prepare to leave quickly..."
Diret had said this on their way here.
-With both a Rakshasa Hungry Ghost and a Predator appearing, there's no benefit to lingering here. We've gathered enough from Area 1, so it's fine to leave Area 2 alone. The gains are sufficient.
-But won't the other seniors be dissatisfied if they don't find what they were looking for?
-Don't worry about it, junior. I'll make them listen even if I have to beat them into it.
Yet here he was, completely changed.
"That was when there were no ruins. Ruins are worth the risk."
Not just Diret, but the other seniors whispered in bewitched voices.
"Junior. Think about it. What kind of artifacts might be inside those ruins."
"Admittedly, if they're Black Magic artifacts, they would be interesting, but..."
"Ah. Black Magic artifacts won't do."
The students responded firmly.
"Black Magic artifacts aren't valuable, and they're hard to sell. The professors would just use them for research. We need other magic artifacts—those are easier to sell."
"......"
"The professor will be back soon and tell us what kind of ruins these are..."
Just then, Professor Mortum came galloping from the distance on his skeletal pony. Though he'd only been gone briefly, he kept coughing violently.
"How is it, Professor!?"
"What's it like!?"
"Cough. Everyone... you can rejoice. It's a proper ruin."
"Good... heavens...!"
"To think such fortune would come in my lifetime!"
"Do we even need to return for the second semester? Can we just throw our withdrawal forms at the Headmaster's face!?"
"Let's do it together!"
Professor Mortum grinned at his students' joyous reactions.
Even Lee Han, who hadn't been particularly excited about the ruins, felt his heart flutter slightly seeing his seniors like this.
The thought of joining them to throw withdrawal forms at the Skeleton Principal's face...
Just imagining it made him happy...
"Junior. Which part of what was just said did you like?"
Diret was puzzled by Lee Han's sudden change in demeanor.
Just moments ago, he'd been worried—why the sudden shift?
"I was impressed by the idea of throwing withdrawal forms. The professor is quite generous."
"Ah."
Diret understood what he meant.
"He doesn't care much if they drop out because they're not his favored students. His favorites aren't allowed to withdraw."
"...I-I see."
Lee Han nodded, then suddenly grew curious.
'...Am I considered a favored student? Probably not yet, right?'
Even among ruins, there were differences in quality.
The kind of ruins mages preferred were the "intact" ones.
No matter the form, ruins untouched by external intrusion, plundering, or weathering always had more to offer.
In contrast, half-destroyed, dilapidated ruins were usually disappointing—the kind that made mages sigh involuntarily.
In that regard, the dimensional ruins Professor Mortum had discovered were astonishing.
Astonishingly, the ruins—in the form of an entire palace—were completely intact!
The palace, built in an intricate, unidentifiable style, stood silently within the dimension.
"Cough. From now on, you may use any magic you wish. If you sense danger, cast without hesitation."
Professor Mortum addressed the students.
Though there was a risk of provoking the denizens of this dimension, given the dangers lurking around, they had to be prepared for that much.
"O mana, relinquish thy power. Walls, expand... Let us enter."
Professor Mortum cast a grand spell to prevent the residual magic of the students from leaking outside, then took the lead.
The students immediately began preparing for exploration.
"Come forth, doggy!"
"Ulkas, protect me."
"O mist of poison, envelop me."
"O curse, detect hostility..."
Some summoned undead, while others prepared curse or poison magic.
Diret even pulled out a small crossbow.
"Poison Elemental Magic actually pairs well with... Hold on, junior."
"Huh?"
Diret, who had been busy preparing poison magic and hadn't been able to keep an eye on Lee Han, was shocked.
From the leopard monster with a body made of Beryl Solution to over ten Skeleton Warriors—he couldn't believe when Lee Han had managed to summon so many.
"Will this be enough?"
"Ah. Of course not."
"Right. If you think it's too much, you can reduce the number—"
"I need to cast Enhancement Magic on the undeads' weapons. Their movements are slow, so Enhancement Magic is essential."
"...That's not what I meant, junior."
The combat styles of necromancers varied, but the basic principle was to send the undead forward to draw the enemy's attention.
Meanwhile, the necromancers in the rear would strike or confuse the enemy in various ways.
Thud—!
-■■■, ■■■, ■■■...
"They're here. The Watchers."
"Everyone, be careful."
As soon as they passed through the palace entrance, human-sized golems emerged from the walls on both sides and attacked.
Though it was startling, the students used their summoned undead as shields, calmly steadying their breathing and preparing their magic.
A third-year student glanced at Lee Han and said,
"See? Even when enemies appear, he doesn't panic and calmly—"
Many mages often failed their spells under the tension of combat, but necromancers were different.
They could complete their spells while their summoned undead bought them time.
But there were exceptions.
Those who had undergone brutal Combat Mage training and could cast spells quickly even in such situations!
Thwack!
Lee Han fiercely spun his Water Orb, knocking down a golem and pummeling its torso. The golem, battered by repeated strikes, collapsed and revealed its core.
"Thanks for the advice, senior."
"...Y-yeah. My advice helped a lot, right?"
Diret internally cursed the shamelessness of his third-year junior.
-■■■.
-■■■■■!
One of the summoned Skeleton Champions clashed with a golem in a contest of strength and crushed it outright.
When Professor Mortum slightly waved his staff, dark element infused the skeleton's body, amplifying its power even further.
Grateful for the professor's assistance, the students immediately began chanting. A Corrosion Curse took hold of a nearby golem, causing it to lose balance and collapse.
"Bones, shoot forth! Bones, explode!"
Another necromancer student managed to embed bones into the golem's sturdy body and detonated them.
The loud noise prompted a reprimand from Professor Mortum.
"Ahem. Attacks are fine, but please refrain from overly noisy spells."
"My apologies."
The combination of bone element magic, poison element magic, and curse magic proved devastating.
Moreover, the undead summons the mages had prepared in advance left no openings.
Thud-thud-thud-thud—
"......"
"......"
Meanwhile, Lee Han single-handedly took on the golems charging from the right, knocking them down effortlessly.
No one else needed to help.
Lee Han's skeletons fired bone arrows, inflicting frostbite and poison on approaching golems.
Their slow movements didn't matter—the sheer number of over ten Skeleton Warriors was threatening enough.
"Bones, shoot forth!"
Like the other mages, Lee Han used bone element magic.
'This magic's power is...'
He could see why this was the undead dimension. Even the same bone element magic felt far more lethal here.
"H-hurry up and finish them, junior! You're taking all the kills!"
"I know! Stop rushing me!"
Lee Han wasn't even trying, but the seniors were struggling.
Under pressure, they whispered frantically, barely managing to finish before Lee Han.
When Lee Han turned to look after finishing, the seniors pretended nothing had happened, feigning nonchalance.
"Got them all?"
"Yes."
"We finished a while ago... Well, still, impressive."
"Really? You're amazing!"
When Lee Han sincerely praised them, the seniors felt slightly guilty.
...Did they really have to go this far just to maintain their dignity as seniors?!