Episode 390
Episode 390
"I understand. I'll forgive you."
"Phew!"
The White Tiger Tower students let out sighs of relief.
At least until Lee Han spoke again.
"Then let's go."
"?"
The students exchanged bewildered looks.
"Go where?"
"The warehouse. Since you half-assed the job, we're doing it again."
"......"
"......"
Finally comprehending Lee Han's meaning, the students stammered:
"W-we have to do this too?"
"Right. You can come back later to finish it. You can come during the day."
"But it's not just us who cut corners—others did too..."
"Even better. Call them over too."
"......"
The White Tiger Tower students glanced at the nearby stream, then at Lee Han's staff.
The weather was getting cold enough that falling into the stream would be unpleasant.
"You came all this way to help...?!"
The priests were astonished when the White Tiger Tower students arrived to assist.
"You didn't have to go this far."
"Indeed. This is our responsibility."
The priests failed to notice the students' gloomy, miserable expressions.
Lee Han whispered from behind:
"Hey. Control your expressions."
"......"
"Upon reflection... the workload seemed too much for the priests alone... so we came to help..."
"Exactly... If we'd... done properly last week... the priests wouldn't be struggling now... sniff!"
"No wonder White Tiger Tower is the knights' dormitory."
"We're truly moved."
As the priests expressed genuine gratitude, the White Tiger Tower students wept internally.
They'd rather be exploited outright—this kindness made it impossible to stay angry.
"I told you we shouldn't hide the trash. Getting caught means punishment detail."
"We didn't get caught! That Wardanaz bastard sniffed us out."
Chop-chop-chop-chop—
Moving with practiced efficiency, as if they hadn't pointlessly worked ahead for a week, the students began clearing the piled-up trash.
An eight-legged chair (two legs unmistakably octopus tentacles), a half-burned magic tome (its cover read "Cooked Through! Drop Dead!"), a coat stained with three blood colors (not just red but also green and blue), and so on.
"Impressive. Angrago."
"Huh?"
Angrago responded sullenly to Lee Han's praise. Being dragged out on a night meant for rest left him in no mood for compliments.
'What's this punk scheming now?'
"About the warehouse cleanup. You're incredibly efficient. Got any tips to share?"
Lee Han's admiration was genuine. Despite the priests being neither lazy nor incompetent, the White Tiger Tower students' speed dwarfed theirs—a testament to accumulated know-how.
"Hmph... Well... I guess I could share a thing or two."
Though grumbling, Angrago didn't seem entirely displeased as he launched into an explanation.
"First—know what to prioritize removing?"
"The relatively lightweight trash?"
With the piles mountain-high, reducing volume quickly was crucial. Start with light items, then tackle the heavy...
"Wrong. We thought that too at first."
"?"
"Priority goes to trash that doesn't look dangerous. Those you can just grab and haul out. The truly risky ones are either obviously hazardous or completely unidentified. The obvious ones are easier—just strike first. But the unidentified... those are the real nightmares..."
Angrago exhaled deeply, the mere memory exhausting him.
"With those, no choice. One person advances with a shield while others provide backup."
"......"
Lee Han was speechless.
'Well... school tasks were never meant to be easy.'
When magic interacts unpredictably, a warehouse crammed with thousands of such volatile items staying intact would be the real anomaly.
Of course, among this week's first-year assignments, this warehouse cleanup ranked among the most challenging—but that offered Lee Han no comfort whatsoever.
"There's no helping it."
Lee Han waved his staff and tossed bone fragments. Sharkan leaped out, and Skeleton Warriors rose in a swarm.
"At this rate, it won't be enough. We'll have to combine them."
Following what he'd learned in the Ghoul King's palace last time, Lee Han merged and compressed the Skeleton Warriors together.
Having sheer numbers alone wouldn't be particularly helpful for the current cleanup.
"And... I should summon Gonadaltes too."
"WHAT?!?!?"
"Ah, don't be startled. That's my summon's name."
'Is this guy insane?'
With eerie mana, undead creatures manifested inside the storage room.
At the sight, some priests coughed uncomfortably with displeased expressions.
"Oops. My apologies. I just needed extra hands."
"Not at all. We're well aware that Black Mages aren't actually trying to insult death but rather understand it and comfort the departed."
"???"
Lee Han tilted his head in confusion.
Was... was that the case?
'Doesn't seem like it.'
The priests attending Einrogard, aside from learning Divine Magic, also formally studied magic, making them less prejudiced than other priests.
Naturally, rather than blindly despising Black Magic, they made an effort to understand it.
...But misunderstandings still existed, especially since they didn't practice it themselves.
"Alright. Now that preparations are done, let's divide the work. White Tiger Tower students, over here. I'll cast Enhancement Magic on you."
"Whoa...!"
The students brightened at Lee Han's words.
Regardless of their dislike for him, no one could deny his magical prowess.
With Enhancement Magic applied, the work would become several times easier.
"Thanks, Wardanaz."
"Don't mention it. We're working together—we should help each other."
"...Wait, Wardanaz. Why aren't you casting it on the priests?"
"The priests will be handling moving the pulled-out items outside."
"...Then what about us??"
"You guys will be cleaning up that pile of unidentified junk over there."
"......"
"......"
The White Tiger Tower students glared at Lee Han.
"I'll be going in there with you."
"That doesn't change the fact that you're treating us poorly."
"...Should I treat you to something after we finish?"
Thinking that offering tasty food would solve everything, Lee Han asked, making Angrago snap back.
"Is that even a proper thing to say—"
"Gasp! What will you give us?"
"......"
"S-sorry, Angrago."
"Honestly, the stuff Wardanaz makes is delicious. I've been eating nothing but jerky for two weeks—it's been rough."
Lee Han tilted his head in confusion.
"Can't you just trade with Black Turtle Tower? What were you even doing all this time?"
"Last time we went to their black market, a fight broke out..."
"And those bastards refused to apologize first..."
Lee Han stared at the students in disbelief.
No matter what, wasn't it a loss for both sides to keep fighting for two whole weeks?
'Are these guys seriously not willing to reconcile unless I step in?'
The White Tiger Tower students looked at Lee Han with hopeful eyes.
Suffering from depleted supplies themselves, they secretly hoped he would mediate.
"Fine. Got it. Let's clean up."
"Wardanaz...?!"
"Th-that's it?! Don't you have more to say?!"
"I don't think so."
"What the hell is this even used for?"
Holding a pair of wings that looked like a hang glider, a White Tiger Tower student muttered in confusion.
"Probably meant to be used like bird wings. Might've been decent for gliding from high places."
"Why would anyone need this?"
"To escape?"
"Ah..."
The White Tiger Tower student gazed at the unknown senior's attempt with a mix of awe.
"Think we can repair and try using this?"
"You... want to ride it?"
"Huh? Is it dangerous?"
"You think it wouldn't be?"
Lee Han almost told him to go ahead and test it but held back, worried the guy might actually do it.
"I see. So it's okay to try?"
'Should I hit him?'
Thud. Thud. Thud.
"!?"
As if reading Lee Han's mind, a Golem's hand suddenly burst from the trash pile and swung down at the White Tiger Tower student.
'Good thing I pre-cast Spatial Perception!'
Lee Han read the trajectory of the golem's swinging arm and urgently shouted.
"Transform into steel, oh cloak!"
Though he was worried since it wasn't his own cloak, fortunately, the White Tiger Tower student's cloak turned into solid steel.
Lee Han immediately threw the student backward. The student rolled over the trash pile, groaning as he tumbled.
"Everyone, combat prep! It's a golem! How did we deal with it last time?"
"Go...golems never appeared before!!!"
"What?"
"There's never been a golem before, you crazy bastard! Why would a golem show up?!"
The White Tiger Tower students shouted in panic.
No matter how many unidentified trash piles there were, a golem had never appeared before.
Only then did Lee Han belatedly realize and awkwardly said,
"I see. I just assumed they'd appeared before."
"If that were the case, we wouldn't have come even if beaten to death...!"
Golem, <Desperately Flying Skull> activated. Executing commands.
"......"
"...Definitely something the seniors made."
The students present couldn't help but marvel at the golem's name, which clearly carried someone's hatred.
The golem, made of granite, basalt, two unidentified rocks, and birch wood, was half-destroyed but still moving slowly.
"Sharkan. I'll enhance the Skeleton Warrior. Let's attack together."
Lee Han prepared for battle just like last time.
Explosively strengthening the Skeleton Warrior before bombarding with Elemental Magic.
Though the golem's durability looked formidable, since it was already half-destroyed, they had the advantage. Continuous attacks would inevitably hit its core weakness.
Commencing cleanup.
However, instead of preparing for Lee Han's attacks, the golem silently began picking up trash and throwing it outside.
Angrago, startled by the sudden flying trash, threw himself sideways.
"It's attacking!!"
"It's... it's cleaning though?"
Lee Han and the White Tiger Tower students stared in astonishment at the golem suddenly doing their work for them.
Despite having lost one leg, the golem cleared the trash at remarkable speed.
'But it won't last long.'
Lee Han sensed the mana emanating from the golem's body.
The mana expenditure with each movement was substantial, and the damaged parts were leaking significant amounts.
It would need additional recovery or repairs, but seeing how the golem's mana was gradually weakening, it likely couldn't operate much longer.
'Well, if it could last long, it wouldn't be stuck here like this.'
Clearly, it had only reactivated by accidentally triggering something.
"You... you're amazing! Wish we'd met you last week!"
Unable to comprehend.
"Don't need to comprehend!"
Executing commands. Explosive potions detected. Please step back.
"Th... thanks."
Contrary to Lee Han's expectations, the White Tiger Tower students quickly warmed up to the golem.
"Can't we use this to remake its leg?"
"Rather than that, let's find its missing leg. It might still be somewhere in the trash."
The same students who had been whining about not wanting to clean earlier now rummaged through the storage without hesitation.
"Working hard is good, but time's up. Let's finish the rest tomorrow."
"Has it been that long already?"
"What if the golem cleans everything while we're gone?"
At the White Tiger Tower students' words, Lee Han responded as if they were talking nonsense.
"That won't happen."
"Why not?"
"Because it'll shut down in about half a day?"
"......"
"......"
The White Tiger Tower students stared at Lee Han with looks that said, 'How can you say something so cruel?'
"No... it's damaged and losing mana, so it can't operate for long. Look. If it were intact, would it be moving like this now?"
"E-even so, you shouldn't say that in front of the golem!"
"Wait. Is that the issue here? Wardanaz. So can we fix it? There's a way, right? If we fix it, it'll be fine."
Though the White Tiger Tower students pleaded desperately, Lee Han couldn't claim the impossible was possible.
He was just a first-year like them—how could he repair a golem?
"Can you do it?"
"Sigh. He says he can."
"What a relief."
"As expected from a Wardanaz."
"......"