Episode 380
Episode 380
"It seems we've reached a conclusion."
What conclusion...?!
"What the hell do you mean, conclusion?!"
Ogoldos shouted in flustered response to his junior's words.
Normally, he wouldn't have paid attention to an enemy's desperate words, but the Ghoul King's statement wasn't wrong at all.
A magic circle of that scale couldn't last long.
Judging by appearances, it seemed to be sustained solely by the mage's mana without any auxiliary devices...
"We need to escape before the magic circle collapses! I'll take over, so get out now!"
"......"
For a moment, Lee Han was taken aback by his senior's words.
No matter how he looked at it, the moment Ogoldos took over that magic circle, he'd likely collapse from exhaustion within seconds and die instantly.
"Um..."
"Hurry!"
"But that..."
"I said get out! You'll collapse!"
As Ogoldos tried to pull Lee Han out and take his place, Lee Han grew frantic.
His thoughts bypassed his brain and leapt straight from his mouth.
"...If someone like you takes over, you'll collapse immediately!"
"......"
An awkward silence fell.
Ogoldos hung his head, at a loss for words. Lee Han felt extremely guilty.
"I mean..."
"...You're right. You're a better mage than I am."
"Ah, why say that, Senior? You have years of experience I don't."
'It's just one year, you little shit...'
Ogoldos was dumbfounded.
Of course, one year at the Magic School was incomparably more intensive than a year anywhere else, but that didn't warrant such an exaggerated statement.
And it especially wasn't something Lee Han should be saying.
"Enough. I'm sorry. I couldn't even help properly and kept getting in the way... But are you really okay?"
"Yes. My recovery rate outpaces the consumption."
"......"
...Stop bullshitting!
"Aren't you rather undignified for a king?"
Lee Han shot a contemptuous look at the Ghoul King trapped in divine magic.
Even among kings, the Frost Giant King had dignity, while this Ghoul King acted like some lowlife thug.
"The kings the summons talk about... are more like titles given to the strong."
Lee Han nodded in understanding at Ogoldos's words.
"I see. So it's self-proclaimed, then."
Gainando Dodo sometimes called himself the 'Wizard Card King of the Blue Dragon Tower.'
How dare he!
Lee Han ignored that and spoke up.
"Senior, I have a request."
"Sure! What is it?"
Ogoldos exclaimed excitedly.
Then he realized how overly enthusiastic he sounded and awkwardly cleared his throat.
"I mean, go ahead."
"Could you get me some water? My throat's been parched for a while now..."
"...Sure!"
Come to think of it, this junior had been fighting his way up from the underground prison.
It wouldn't be strange if he collapsed from exhaustion right now.
Ogoldos raised his staff to summon water.
"O water..."
But the lump of water that formed in the air, no larger than a few finger joints, emitted a sour, foul stench.
Seeing this, Ogoldos belatedly remembered.
'Oh crap...! This is the undead dimension!'
The dimension itself was saturated with dark elements and negative mana, which affected all elemental magic.
This was the worst possible situation for creating drinkable water.
"Senior?"
"J-just wait a second."
Ogoldos concentrated harder than he had during his black magic final exam.
How could he purify this water?
'Which toxins can I purify... Bacterial toxins might be too difficult. Can I remove the dark elements with magic? Ah, right. The Purifying Handkerchief!'
"Senior?"
"Just a moment! Hold on!"
"Never mind. I summoned some myself."
"?!"
Ogoldos turned his head.
Lee Han had summoned a large mass of water and was drinking it.
"Don't drink that!!"
"Huh?"
"It's poisoned!!"
Ogoldos sprinted faster than he ever had in his life. So fast that he nearly lost his balance and fell.
Thud!
"...I said it's poisoned!"
"There's no poison. I checked."
"It might not be visible, but it could still be there..."
"I even used Component Separation magic to verify. This is the Undead Dimension, after all."
Ogoldos, who had been sprawled on the floor, poked at the floating mass of water.
It was pure water element—completely devoid of any trace of the Undead Dimension's sinister energy.
"Would you like some?"
"...I... I'm good."
"Aw, come on, Senior. Why are you being like this?"
Seeing Ogoldos visibly deflated, Lee Han tried to console him.
"You probably don't have water to drink either..."
"No, there's plenty."
With the ability to summon water using mana whenever needed, there was truly no shortage.
"...I'm really sorry I'm not much help."
"Ah, why are you saying that? Your help has been invaluable. Didn't you just assist me earlier?"
"...?"
Ogoldos tilted his head in confusion.
"With what?"
"You know, reducing the number of undead."
"......"
Ogoldos felt an indescribable emotion.
The fact that his junior was worrying about his feelings in the midst of all this was the greatest source of self-reproach.
'I can't keep going like this.'
Ogoldos steeled himself to preserve whatever dignity he had left.
At least let me do what I can!
"First, I'll try to find a way out around here."
"Be careful, Senior."
The area around the throne in the devastated palace was now deserted except for the three of them.
From the undead mages to the berserkers, all had been swept away, leaving only the Ghoul King trapped within the Divine Magic barrier, grinding its teeth incessantly.
While there was no immediate danger, the palace's labyrinthine layout made navigation difficult.
"Don't worry and just rest."
'I'm really worried, though.'
Lee Han, unable to leave his spot due to maintaining the magic circle, was deeply concerned.
"Wait. Senior. Just a moment."
"What?"
"Hold on..."
Lee Han pulled out a handful of colored stones from his pocket.
They were divination stones used in the first-year Divination Magic class.
'Let's be careful.'
Though Lee Han usually charged into magic with confidence, Divination Magic was different.
Every time the professor spoke of it, he instilled such fear that not feeling nervous would've been stranger.
'Using Divination Magic to find an escape route... That's too risky. Something simpler, then...'
After some deliberation, Lee Han made up his mind.
"Oh stones, is it alright to let Senior leave?"
A negative image flashed through his mind.
Lee Han looked at Ogoldos and said,
"It's a no-go, huh?"
"Th-that so?"
Normally, Ogoldos would've stubbornly insisted, but now he didn't even consider it.
Instead, something else piqued his curiosity.
"Divination Magic... Is it already safe to use? Isn't it dangerous?"
"If you're careful, it should be fine. ...Probably."
'This lunatic.'
Ogoldos was dumbfounded by Lee Han's answer.
This was the kind of madness a true magical genius had—throwing himself into magic without a care for his own life!
"Senior?"
"Y-yeah? What?!"
"I'm preparing a meal. Is there anything you'd like?"
"......"
The range within which Lee Han could maintain the magic circle was wider than expected. He wandered around the hall, surveying the surroundings.
Meanwhile, Ogoldos rummaged through Lee Han's backpack.
To his surprise, it was neatly packed with emergency rations, seasonings, and even tea leaves, coffee grounds, and sugar—all meticulously organized.
"You... carried all this around?"
"Huh? Yeah. Don't all Einrogard students do that?"
"Not to your extent... Never mind."
"Really? That's fascinating."
"......"
Ogoldos quietly sealed his lips and began sorting out the perishables first, setting them aside. The intact rations he left for Lee Han.
"Coffee? Or tea?"
"Water's enough for me."
"Senior, by any chance..."
"Wh-what?"
Feeling as if his thoughts had been exposed, Ogoldos hesitated. Without a word, Lee Han brewed another cup of coffee and handed it to him.
"If you don't drink it, I'll give it to the Ghoul King over there."
"...Thanks."
"Why are you thanking me for something like this."
Ogoldos, who was sipping his coffee, said with a flushed face.
"I'm sorry. For doubting that a junior like you wasn't serious about Black Magic."
To be honest, it wasn't entirely wrong.
Lee Han had only been interested in Black Magic because of its stable job prospects with little competition.
"Anyone could have such doubts. I'm just happy you're apologizing like this."
Lee Han answered hypocritically.
Ogoldos was deeply impressed by his response once again.
Where else would you find a junior with such magnanimity?
"...Let me know if you need help later. I don't know how much I can do, but I'll do my best."
"Oh! Then, could you maybe help carry my supplies when the semester starts and we enter Einrogard?"
At Lee Han's joke, Ogoldos chuckled.
His junior had a weird sense of humor, but this one was genuinely funny.
'That wasn't a joke.'
Lee Han cursed inwardly.
After a quick meal, Ogoldos began searching the hall more thoroughly.
Though trapped, the place they were confined in was the heart of the palace—where the throne stood.
If there were treasures, this was the most likely spot.
Of course, doing this right in front of its owner naturally enraged him.
You damned...
"Ah. So noisy."
Knowing it wouldn't work, Lee Han still picked up a stone and threw it.
The magic circle imbued with Divine Magic incinerated the stone instantly. Watching this, Lee Han suddenly had an idea and grabbed the pot.
What the hell is he...
"Ooh."
Sssss!
Pouring the leftover scraps from the pot onto the Ghoul King, Lee Han marveled.
Amazingly, even the scraps were burned away cleanly!
"Verdus... thank you."
Though the name was unfortunately similar and sounded unimpressive, the undead mage Verdus was a far greater saint than any professor.
Just look at how he sacrificed himself to complete this magic circle.
Lee Han hoped Verdus would recover soon and answer his summons.
G■■■■■■■■■■—
Ignoring the Ghoul King's creative string of ghoul-exclusive curses, Lee Han called out to Ogoldos.
"Senior. Find anything good?"
"Just a moment..."
Click!
Even pulling out the Black Magic book he carried, Ogoldos diligently searched until he opened something in the wall and let out a triumphant shout.
"Found it!!! I found it, junior!!!"
"Treasure!?"
Lee Han, who had been idly throwing scraps at the Ghoul King, jumped up in surprise.
"Yes! It's treasure!!"
"Wh-what kind of gem is it?"
Lee Han suppressed his excitement and asked.
Ogoldos responded as if the question was absurd.
"It's a bone."
"...What?"
"A bone! I really think you should take this. You'll have plenty of use for it!"
Ogoldos excitedly returned, arms full of a bone tinged with purple and black.
Though he couldn't tell exactly whose bone it was, its color and mana pattern clearly indicated it belonged to a powerful being.
For a Black Mage who frequently used bone-elemental magic, bones as reagents were invaluable.
The quality of bone fragments used as reagents didn't just enhance magic—it expanded the very limits of what spells could be cast.
"......"
Of course, such knowledge meant nothing to Lee Han. Sullen, he went back to throwing scraps at the Ghoul King.
'Well. He is a Black Mage.'
Who else but a Black Mage would consider bones treasure instead of gems?
"Thank you. I'll put it to good use."
"Yeah. This is really great. Examine it closely when we get back to Einrogard."
Forcing a bitter smile as he packed the bone, Lee Han suddenly remembered something and shouted.
"Senior!!!"
"Huh, what?!"
"If we stay here any longer, won't we be late for the new semester?!"
"W-well, yes, but is that really important right now?"
Seeing Lee Han's face turn deathly pale, Ogoldos was taken aback.
Even when the Ghoul King was rampaging, this guy never made that face...