Episode 406
Episode 406
"Cough. Why did the sound stop?"
Professor Mortum left the students outside and went in.
He was worried that Lee Han might have made a mistake.
If it had been any other magic, he wouldn't have been too concerned, but this Bone Explosion Magic was particularly dangerous for Lee Han...
Fortunately, the inside was intact.
The prepared Shock Downfall Magic Circle and Explosion Dispersion Magic Circles were still holding up, and there were still plenty of bone fragments left in the practice box.
Unable to understand, Professor Mortum asked,
"Did you run out of mana, by any chance?"
"That's not it."
"Well, of course not."
"...Rather, I heard that I have to prove something during the festival..."
Lee Han couldn't believe it.
Wasn't this originally related to summoning magic lectures?
No matter what Professor Millay assigned, the standard probably wouldn't be easy, and it would require a significant amount of time and effort...
On top of that, carrying the pride of Black Magic was too much for Lee Han, who already had too much on his plate.
"Ah, you mean that. Cough."
"Professor. I already have too much to do right now."
Though Lee Han often enjoyed lying in front of professors, this time he was completely honest.
Even now, he had to rush to tend to the basilisk eggs as soon as the lecture ended.
"I know. All the professors probably know."
"Is that so? From what I've seen, more of them seem unaware..."
"Cough. And you don't have anything specific to do during the festival."
"??"
Lee Han was baffled by the professor's words.
They told him to prove the pride of Black Magic, but now he had nothing specific to do?
'What's this? A trick?'
"I don't quite understand..."
Professor Mortum coughed and answered as if the answer were obvious.
"Well, given your personality, you'd try to prove something on your own even if we didn't assign you anything. Cough. I trust you."
"...That's not true!"
Lee Han shouted in frustration for the first time in a long while.
Why was he being misunderstood like this!?
While some professors sought to secure talented students to carry on their academic legacies, others had no such ambitions and simply wished to devote themselves to their research.
The professor teaching Transformation Magic, Doppelgänger Regi, was precisely that kind of professor.
While the formidable madmen—no, professors—of Einrogard fought over the Wardanaz heir, Professor Regi acted in the opposite manner.
Getting too close to the sun would only melt one's wings.
There was no need to drag Wardanaz into his affairs. Professor Regi simply wished for his peaceful daily life to continue undisturbed.
"...You studied steel transformation in the first semester. I assume you've spent time handling and understanding steel since then. Most of you probably have."
Professor Regi clasped his hands together and spoke slowly.
In his professor form, Regi exuded a dignified air that wouldn't lose to even the highest nobles of the empire.
It was hard to imagine this was the same person who had been punched by Lee Han while disguised as the fake Gyeongnam.
"Even if you haven't mastered it perfectly... that's alright. There's no need to feel too intimidated. Mastering any material takes time."
'...Wasn't I supposed to master it before the second semester started?'
Lee Han, who had learned steel transformation while getting beaten by Professor Voladi, was inwardly bewildered.
"As you continue learning other magics, the parts you struggled with will gradually unravel. Don't forget. The goal of this semester is... to explore the transformation of various materials and discover your own aptitudes."
If the first semester focused on the simplest and most common steel transformation and its applications, the second semester involved handling all sorts of materials and resources to identify the substances best suited to each mage's talents.
Skilled Transformation Mages often carried compressed reagents, transforming them into materials they excelled with when needed.
They could convert compressed reagents into mercury, explosively expanding its volume for offensive use, or transform them into fine sand to create sturdy sand shields.
But these combat applications weren't the only uses. They could also transform materials needed for alchemy or alter their own appearances to deceive monsters.
Professor Lergi concluded today's lecture with satisfaction and gracefully bid farewell to the students before turning to leave.
...At least until Lee Han followed him.
"Professor?"
"Ghk."
Startled by the unexpected visit from his monstrous student, Professor Lergi let out a hiccup.
"Are you alright?"
"O-Of course I'm fine."
Professor Lergi suppressed his hiccups and replied with dignity. In his professor form, he always maintained his composure.
"What brings you here?"
"There's something I'd like to ask you, Professor."
Despite the constant urging from his fellow priests to learn Divine Magic and the workload from lectures and miscellaneous tasks, Lee Han had been consistently tending to one particular duty—caring for the basilisk egg.
However, the basilisk egg was as troublesome as the monster's infamous reputation.
Building a dedicated hut for it was just the beginning.
After feeding it and adjusting the temperature, the next task immediately followed.
Once the egg had been fed generously for days until it refused to eat more, a new nest had to be prepared according to the egg's preferences. Generally, basilisks found in the western empire preferred soft bird feathers, while those from the east favored hard rocks—though this wasn't absolute. The safest method was to have a Transformation Mage on standby to accommodate the basilisk's whims...
Faced with these absurd demands, Lee Han turned to Professor Voladi, who had come to the hut.
-Professor. There's a limit to the materials we can obtain right now. How are we supposed to cater to its whims?
-Learn Transformation Magic. Lucky you. You needed to learn more anyway.
-......
Though it was nonsense, it was true that a Transformation Mage was necessary.
Lee Han looked at Professor Lergi and asked,
"By any chance, could you assist me in caring for the basilisk egg?"
"I suppose... there's no reason I can't."
"Thank you!!"
Though he'd rather not get involved, Professor Lergi couldn't bring himself to refuse.
Partly out of a sense of responsibility as a teacher, but mostly because he feared this ambitious monster of a student might hold a grudge if he turned him down.
If he was already like this now, who knew if he'd become a professor—or even the headmaster—by graduation?
'What a kind person.'
Unaware of Professor Lergi's inner thoughts, Lee Han was deeply moved.
Poof!
When Professor Lergi transformed his appearance using his doppelgänger ability, Lee Han was slightly taken aback.
Because the form he took...
was Gainando.
"Uh... Professor? Why Gainando?"
"Just because."
"Ah. I see."
Lee Han didn't understand but decided to accept it.
If the professor was helping, what did it matter if he looked like Gainando or the Skeleton Principal?
...Though the Skeleton Principal's form might have been a bit unsettling.
'The other professors won't notice either.'
Professor Lergi had no desire to get dragged into the other professors' disputes.
If word got out later in the faculty lounge—"Where was Wardanaz that day? I think Professor Lergi was with him."—how troublesome would that be?
In Gainando's form, even if other professors saw him from afar, they wouldn't recognize him.
"Hey, Gainando. Stop messing around and hurry up. We've got a lot to do. We have to finish today's assigned tasks."
"Don't worry. Don't worry! Even if we go a little later, we can still finish!"
While they were supposed to be doing their dorm-assigned duties, Gainando kept lingering in the main building, making his friends click their tongues in annoyance.
"That guy's acting up just because Wardanaz isn't around."
"Gainando. You're gonna get in big trouble if you keep this up."
"Hmph. Who's gonna scold me without Wardanaz here—"
Mid-sentence, Gainando's eyes widened as he spotted his own figure walking in the distance.
"A g-ghost! They stole my face! A sh-shape-shifter?! When did they copy me?!"
"What are you suddenly going on about?"
"There! Look over there!!"
Gainando shouted, but Lee Han and Professor Lergi had already passed by.
His friends stared at Gainando as if he was saying all sorts of nonsense.
"Hey. Stop playing around and let's go."
"Don't make up weird excuses."
"I'm telling the truth! Really...!!"
Gainando shouted with a voice full of indignation, but his friends refused to believe him.
"There was clearly a monster stealing my appearance passing by just now...!"
"Don't monsters have anything better to do than steal your looks?"
"There's something I'm curious about."
Gainando—no, Professor Lezhi—carefully posed a question.
"Yes. Ask me anything."
"...Why on earth are you taking care of a basilisk egg? That's not something a first-year should be doing, is it?"
"Well... that's a long and sorrowful tale..."
Lee Han, who had just entered the hut, trailed off as he sat down.
Professor Lezhi stared intently at the basilisk egg placed in the center.
Though not an expert on rare creatures, the professor could roughly guess the current state of this basilisk egg.
'It's in excellent condition.'
Thanks to proper nutritional care and a solid bond with its caretaker, the basilisk was in a very stable psychological state.
Frankly, it was surprising that a first-year student had raised it this well.
'Students from the Blue Dragon Tower usually aren't skilled at caretaking.'
While they always excelled in magic-related subjects, even Blue Dragon Tower students had their weaknesses.
Whether it was animals or plants, they were just as clumsy at caretaking as the White Tiger Tower students.
"You've taken very good care of it. Now, let me examine it properly."
'Good heavens. Gainando actually looks reliable for once!'
Lee Han was startled by the sense of trustworthiness Professor Lezhi exuded while speaking in Gainando's form.
Seeing Gainando's face say such things was beyond bizarre.
Whoosh!
With an incantation, Professor Lezhi's magic began. In the blink of an eye, the basilisk's nest transformed into dozens of different materials.
Copper, clay, sand, maple branches, a hot amorphous liquid (Lee Han couldn't even begin to guess what potion this was), gold, lava...
Spotting the flash of gold, Lee Han couldn't help but ask,
"Wouldn't the basilisk like it if we made its nest out of gold?"
"I already checked—it doesn't. Basilisks don't love gold as much as humans do. And frankly, that's a good thing. If gold had been the answer, maintaining it would've drained an enormous amount of mana."
'Tch.'
Lee Han was disappointed but had to admit the professor was right.
The rarer and more valuable the material, the higher the difficulty and the harder it would be to sustain.
"Found it."
Professor Lezhi stopped and spoke. Lee Han eagerly asked,
"What is it? Which material seems the best, Professor?"
"Mercury."
"...Ah. Will you be the one handling it, Professor?"
"I'll do it once, but from then on, you'll have to maintain it yourself, so you'll need to learn."
Professor Lezhi calmly explained the situation.
Transformation Magic wasn't permanent.
And for something like raising a basilisk this way, a mage would have to consistently maintain it from the side.
"But mercury isn't something I can handle with Transformation Magic yet."
"That's true... You probably haven't even mastered steel yet."
"...Well... um..."
Lee Han vaguely dodged the professor's remark.
"Then I'll—"
Just as Professor Lezhi was about to offer to visit and help regularly, the door opened, and Professor Voladi entered.
Professor Voladi raised an eyebrow at the sight of Gainando and asked,
"Professor?"
"...Yes. That's right..."
Poof!
Professor Lezhi sulked and reverted to his original form.
Of all people, he had to get caught by Professor Voladi.
Wasn't he the most stubborn and uncompromising opponent?
"What were you discussing?"
"Wardanaz here... wants to learn mercury transformation, but he says it's difficult. Given the complexity, he might need to master steel first—"
"He already knows how to handle steel."
"He does?!"
"Yes."
Professor Voladi looked at Lee Han as if confirming his statement.
Now it was Lee Han's turn to sulk.