Episode 381
Episode 381
"No, of course it's important!"
Lee Han said with a stern expression.
Until now, no matter what nonsense Ogoldos spouted, his junior had always maintained proper etiquette. So when that same junior suddenly turned serious, Ogoldos couldn't help but feel as if he'd made some colossal mistake.
"Uh... is it?"
By Ogoldos' standards, wasn't it better to enter Einrogard later?
If you got in early, the Skeleton Principal would just torment you more.
"Ah. Is it because of the Punishment Room? Of course, since you're a first-year, I understand being overly afraid of it, but the longer you stay at Einrogard, the more you'll get used to it. The Punishment Room isn't as bad as you think. Once you're accustomed to it, it can even be more comfortable than the dorm."
First-years tended to fear the Punishment Room more than necessary, but that was all part of the Skeleton Principal's deception.
If you were too afraid of the Punishment Room, you wouldn't survive at Einrogard.
"I've been to the Punishment Room a few times already. What I'm worried about is missing lectures."
"......"
"I suppose there's no helping it. Senior."
"Huh? Wh-what?"
"Please help me study."
When Lee Han pulled out a book, Ogoldos was horrified.
'This lunatic...'
Here they were, trapped in the depths of the Undead Dimension alongside the Ghoul King, and his junior was already fretting about second-semester grades. Ogoldos shuddered violently.
He'd seen plenty of people at school who seemed crazy, but they weren't actually crazy.
The real madman was standing right in front of him.
"How many days do you think have passed?"
"Hard to say. Time perception is unreliable in other dimensions. A week, maybe?"
"I should still be able to catch up in a week, right?"
"For someone like you, that's plenty."
"Plenty?! Don't say that so lightly!"
Lee Han flared up in anger.
Then immediately apologized.
"I'm sorry, Senior. I shouldn't have gotten angry at you."
"N-no, it's fine. I don't mind."
Seeing how his junior, who was usually polite even in the face of outright insults, became razor-sharp when it came to lectures made Ogoldos shake his head inwardly.
Just what kind of first-year had Einrogard admitted?
"So, Senior. Getting back to Bone Elemental Magic..."
At first glance, Bone Elemental Magic seemed to have less potential for advancement compared to other elemental magics, but if one delved deep enough, there was no limit to how far it could be taken.
Beyond simply summoning bones to fire or bind opponents, one could reinforce, transform, and fuse the bones themselves—areas that overlapped significantly with Alchemy and Enchantment Magic.
"One of the defining traits of Bone Elemental Magic is that the more preparation you do in advance, the stronger it becomes, right?"
"Exactly."
If you preemptively reinforced the bones with curses, poison, or Dark Element, the magic's power would amplify dramatically.
"You can think of Bone Elemental Magic as essentially corpse-handling magic. Since the core of a corpse is its bones, a mage who masters Bone Elemental Magic could turn a single withered corpse into a monster capable of taking on several imperial knights."
"Right. What I'm curious about is—I want to imbue bones with Frost Curse, Engraving Poison, and Dark Element beforehand, but the bones can't withstand it. Is there a way?"
"......"
Ogoldos felt like crying. His junior had just casually asked a question so advanced that even if he asked fourth-year Diret, the response would be, "Hold on, let me fetch a professor for you."
The most painful part was that the junior was asking purely out of genuine curiosity, without a shred of malice.
"I... don't really know that much."
"Is that so? What a shame."
Lee Han sighed regretfully and flipped the page.
Ogoldos glanced at the book.
The Black Magic textbook definitely said, "Additional magic can be used to reinforce bones," but it certainly didn't say, "Let's reinforce them with Frost Curse, Engraving Poison, and Dark Element."
'What if this guy summons a Bone Dragon when I tell him to try summoning an undead?'
"Senior."
"Huh? Yeah?"
Now whenever Lee Han called him, Ogoldos felt slightly afraid.
"By combining these bone elemental spells, you can enhance summoned undead, right?"
"That's correct."
Equipping summoned undead with additional bone armor or weapons was the most basic method, and experienced mages often strengthened them in various ways using blood, poison, flesh, or wraiths.
"I was wondering if I could observe how you personally go about it to learn..."
"...Wait. I think I need to search this area more thoroughly."
Ogoldos hastily rose from his seat.
Having seen how Lee Han had previously merged skeleton warriors into a single entity, Ogoldos feared his own undead summons would be severely disappointing in comparison.
"You're going to search again? Isn't that too much for you?"
"What's so difficult about that? Don't worry."
As Ogoldos stood up, Lee Han regretfully closed his book.
'While he's searching, I should read another book first.'
Lee Han pulled out "On Basic Lightning Elemental Magic and Its Applications" and studied how to increase the power of lightning elemental magic.
Unlike Perkuntra's claim that "lightning element possesses the most destructive power," Lee Han had recently been feeling its lack of potency.
...Do you plan to stay trapped here forever?
"The more I condense the lightning... It doesn't make sense. I've condensed it quite a bit already. Do I need to compress it further?"
...You must feel it too. The fear rising from the depths of your heart.
"Next chapter... No. Shape transformation?"
Lee Han was surprised.
Contrary to the common misconception among mages, shape transformation of lightning element wasn't impossible. Of course, he wouldn't deny that it was more difficult than with other elements. The most frequent mistake novice mages made was attempting lightning shape transformation clumsily and exhausting their mana...
Professor Voladi was surprisingly kind in his book. Instead of forcing overly difficult magic, he emphasized building a solid foundation.
As he read, Lee Han suddenly grew puzzled.
'Why is someone who can write like this so different toward me?'
In any case, lightning shape transformation theoretically involved compressing lightning with intense mana to give it mass, then transforming its shape like other elements.
Given the mana consumption and difficulty, it made sense why mages avoided lightning shape transformation.
Magic was a miraculous, all-purpose tool, but mages always pursued efficiency.
Don't deny it! Your fear! You must feel it too!
"Like this... Oops."
Zzzap!
"Harder than I thought."
The uncontrolled lightning bolt flew toward the Ghoul King. Lee Han clicked his tongue and refocused.
According to the book, Professor Voladi would likely demand they "succeed or die trying" in the second semester.
Do you think pretending not to hear will change anything!
"Hmm?"
Lee Han set down his staff and turned his gaze.
"Ah. My apologies. You were so noisy I unconsciously ignored you. So. Why did you call me?"
Though the Ghoul King had slaughtered countless foes in the undead dimension and brought them to their knees, never before had he felt such humiliation from a mere fledgling mage.
The Ghoul King was choking with rage.
Fear! You! Will be trapped here forever! Compromise now before it's too late...
"Still going on about that?"
Lee Han looked at the Ghoul King with disbelief.
"You seem to be misunderstanding something—my situation is different from yours."
How is it different?!
"If I stay here quietly, there are people who will come to drag me away."
Not "rescue" but "drag away"—though the Ghoul King was too enraged to notice the distinction.
That's your delusion. Does my palace look that pathetic to you? This palace, located in the depths of the dimension, can never be easily...
'You're really full of hot air.'
The Ghoul King was speaking sincerely, but it didn't resonate with Lee Han.
Honestly, the Skeleton Principal seemed far more intimidating.
If Professor Mortum couldn't find him, he'd report it to the Skeleton Principal, and once the Headmaster heard, he'd come looking himself.
And then there'd be the Punishment Room...
"Just thinking about it pisses me off."
Lee Han threw the snack wrapper he was holding straight at the Ghoul King.
Come to think of it, wasn't this bastard the reason this whole mess started by sitting cluelessly on the throne?
If it weren't for this guy, he could've peacefully explored the palace and sold the loot for a fortune...
'Finally showing your true colors. I know you're desperate too!'
"Think whatever you want."
Compromise. We must compromise. Stop denying it!
"Compromise means handing you over to the Headmaster and negotiating how many days to reduce my Punishment Room sentence... Ah. Wait."
Lee Han suddenly grew curious.
The Ghoul King currently had nothing to offer him.
What exactly was he trying to pull?
"Hmm. Go on. What kind of compromise do you want?"
Obviously, releasing me from this magic circle.
Thinking Lee Han was finally showing interest, the King's voice softened and grew cunning.
Though he rarely used it after gaining power, the Ghoul King was fully capable of such deceitful schemes when necessary.
"What reason do I have to trust you?"
Of course you'd say that. But think carefully. If we keep arguing like this, we'll just run in parallel forever. If you don't want to be trapped here for eternity, you'll have to trust me to some degree. Of course, blind trust isn't easy. I swear on my honor as King! Even if I escape, I'll never lay a hand on you!
'Not even Gainando would fall for such a cheap trick.'
Lee Han looked at the Ghoul King with utter disdain.
What meaning did swearing on his honor as King even hold? From what he'd seen earlier, the guy didn't seem to have much honor to begin with.
As the top student of his year—and someone who'd readily stake his family's honor if needed—Lee Han wasn't fooled in the slightest.
But still...
"W-well..."
Lee Han pretended to seriously consider it.
There was something he wanted to ask.
"Really?"
Yes!
"But it's hard to believe..."
Trust me!
"Then... if you showed a little more sincerity, maybe I could believe you."
What do you want?
"Got any more treasures hidden here?"
......
The Ghoul King instinctively felt uneasy but deliberately ignored it in his impatience.
"Don't tell me you're hiding something? After preaching about mutual trust?"
...Fine. I'll tell you about one.
"Good. That's more like it. I'm starting to trust you."
'Hmm. Still need to find something, though.'
Ogodoth carefully studied the wall patterns. He regretted not taking more ancient script classes at Einrogard—he should've known this would happen.
'Who knew the professor was right about all studies being useful someday.'
"Senior!"
"I-I'm looking right now! Just wait a little longer!"
Ogodoth hastily shouted back.
He couldn't tell if Lee Han was about to ask another Black Magic question, and the thought made him nervous.
"Let's check behind the third pillar on the left."
"What?"
Ogodoth was baffled.
"Why?"
"The Ghoul King told me."
"Wait—you talked to him? Without me?!"
Ogodoth was shocked.
Lengthy conversations with powerful interdimensional beings were never a good idea.
Inexperienced young mages could easily be tricked into making grave mistakes.
Even trapped in a magic circle, the Ghoul King was still a dangerous beast—perhaps even more dangerous because of his confinement.
He'd be even more desperate to persuade them...
"...Though I guess you'd be fine."
'Did he just hesitate before answering?'
Lee Han eyed Ogodoth suspiciously.
He felt like he'd just had a pointless thought...