Episode 410
Episode 410
Even if you were being particularly fussy, I can't fathom what Professor Mortum was trying to accomplish.
"Ah. About that..."
Lee Han hesitated.
When Lee Han had said, 'Haha, the undead were acting a bit strangely and wouldn't obey, but reducing their numbers made them easier to control. I guess controlling over ten at once was too much,' Professor Mortum had stared at him like he was insane...
"It seems I got greedy with controlling undead and increased their numbers, only to hit a snag. You were so focused on that, you must have forgotten."
Focused on that? Right. What advice did Mortum give?
"He told me to reduce the number of undead I control at once..."
The Skeleton Principal marveled at such an obvious statement.
What incredibly useful advice. Why, are you planning to present this at the Black Magic Society or something?
"If you'd assist me, Headmaster, I'd prepare for it."
If controlling a dozen undead is hard, just reduce it to one.
Grumbling to himself, the Headmaster imagined the Society turning upside down if this were presented.
Of course, reducing the numbers would make control easier... Ah. So that's why you were practicing Bone Explosion Magic.
Using Bone Explosion Magic on skeletons summoned from the undead realm could get you stabbed in the back, but those summoned through ancient necromancy were different.
They could be combined with all sorts of bone magic to create intricate techniques.
Fine. Mortum must be busy these days anyway. I'll teach you myself.
"Is something the matter?"
Nothing major. Just avoiding Professor Garcia... I'll have to keep dodging him until his temper cools, so there's no helping it. Take out the bones.
Lee Han fumbled as he pulled out the bones.
There were two types of bones he'd retrieved from the Palace of the Undead Dimension.
One was a bone engraved with strange patterns of purple and black—a bone Senior Ogoldos had found in a corner and handed to him.
The other was a white bone—given by the Ghoul King.
This one's easy to identify. It's roughly at the level of a Count.
"...Huh? How do you know that?"
Lee Han was stunned when the Skeleton Principal immediately recognized the purple-and-black-marbled bone.
Wait, is collecting the bones of Imperial Counts your hobby or something?
Surely you're not thinking of an Imperial Count right now? I meant a demon.
"Of course, that's what I thought too. Why would an Imperial Count's bones be here?"
Lee Han inwardly sighed in relief.
Demons emerging from other unstable dimensions adhered to a strict hierarchy and fiercely competed to climb its ranks.
The bones of a demon ranked as a Count would be quite valuable.
Impressive. To think you'd keep such bones as spoils.
"If you'd like to have them..."
Hmph. Trying to make me out as some petty villain?
The Headmaster scoffed and returned the bones to Lee Han.
A great mage might drive their disciple mad, but they never steal their magic.
"...I was going to offer to trade them for gold coins?"
'Why is that kid so obsessed with gold?'
The Headmaster couldn't understand it.
A mage of Lee Han's caliber wouldn't hoard gold just to live comfortably, and a first-year wouldn't need funds for guild or school operations...
Is he preparing for some grand magic experiment?
Under no circumstances are you to sell these. That's an order.
"Huh? No... I understand."
I'll check on them every month, so don't try anything shady. Don't claim you lost them. Don't say someone stole them.
"......"
Lee Han was shocked.
How did he know?
These bones are the reagents you need right now.
Why do black mages obsess over bones?
Because high-quality bones are the easiest way to amplify a spell's power.
There's a world of difference between summoning a skeleton with some random bone scrap found on the roadside and summoning one with the bones of a high-ranking demon Count.
Especially for a black magic practitioner like Lee Han who was learning ancient necromancy, it was essential to become accustomed to handling strong bones.
If he adapted early, wouldn't it be easier to handle even stronger bones later?
Bones that are too powerful wouldn't be easy to control, so this level is just right for you now.
"I see... A demon count, you say?"
Lee Han nodded, then felt a sense of dissonance.
Was it really appropriate for a first-year black magic student to summon using a demon count's bones?
'Is there a problem?'
"Well... I understand. So, what kind of bones are these? Around the level of a demon centurion?"
Hmm.
The Skeleton Principal examined the plain white bones with no markings.
Lee Han didn't have high expectations for them.
They had no patterns, were just plain white, and compared to before, the quantity was lacking...
He even suspected the Ghoul King might have pulled some trick.
"A demon decurion? Or a demon hound?"
"Quiet. This... I'm not sure."
"Are they that insignificant? Where is the Ghoul King now?"
No. They're not insignificant bones.
The Skeleton Principal's voice grew serious.
For bones to be unrecognizable even to the eyes of the Skeleton Principal, who prided himself as the empire's foremost bone expert—they couldn't possibly be ordinary.
They were undoubtedly the bones of a powerful being... yet he couldn't identify them. Had their power been sealed and erased...?
After some thought, the Skeleton Principal spoke to Lee Han.
I'll take them for further examination.
"Wouldn't it be faster to interrogate the Ghoul King directly?"
Hmm. Given his level, I doubt he'd know what these are... but I'll ask him. After the torture—no, the interrogation—is over.
Lee Han pretended not to hear that last part.
"Take them, then."
Good. Practice with this count's bones... Oh, right. How was the Bracelet of Ten Thousand Demons? Did any of them react?
The bracelet contained all manner of demons imprisoned within the palace.
They wouldn't respond easily to ordinary stimuli, but the Skeleton Principal had expected Lee Han to awaken at least one relatively quickly.
Given how violently he lived his daily life, it was only natural...
"Nothing happened."
Oh. Really? Understood.
As he saw Lee Han off, the Skeleton Principal wrote a letter behind his back.
To Voladi Bagrak:
Lee Han Wardanaz is feeling frustrated after losing to a golem using teleportation magic. You should help him.
- Osou Gonadaltes
Watching the letter fly off to Professor Bagrak, the Skeleton Principal smiled brightly.
How fortunate a student must be to have such a teacher!
"Do you happen to know a student named Wardanaz?"
"...We don't know anyone like that!"
"Do you happen to know a student named Wardanaz—"
"Who's that?!"
The students of the Blue Dragon Tower feigned ignorance at the inquiries from the visiting mages.
And immediately sent a paper bird to Lee Han. Though they couldn't make it chirp, they could still inscribe a few words on it.
Danger. Outsiders. Questions.
Lee Han, who was attending a summoning magic lecture with other students, frowned.
"I really don't get why visiting black mages are looking for me..."
"......"
A student from the White Tiger Tower hiccuped, but Lee Han didn't notice.
"Everyone, do me a favor. If anyone asks if Wardanaz is around, just say you don't know."
"Not a problem. Wardanaz."
"Don't worry, Lord Lee Han."
"Y-you can trust us. Wardanaz."
"?"
The White Tiger Tower students answered far too readily, making Lee Han suspicious.
"What's wrong with you guys?"
"W-what do you mean?"
"Normally, you'd be like, 'Why should I help you?' and throw a fit."
"H-how dare you assume that! When have we ever done that?"
The nearby Black Turtle Tower students chimed in.
"You guys have always been like that."
"Yeah, you totally have."
"...When outsiders come, we Einrogard students should stick together."
The White Tiger Tower students were growing increasingly adept at improvising excuses.
It seemed to work well enough, as the students from other towers stopped prying further.
"Does anyone know why my Paper Bird keeps spinning in circles to the right?"
"Paper Bird, please, just fly straight for once. Paper Bird. Paper Bird. ...Damn you, you little shit!"
There was a more urgent task at hand.
The summoners' festival (which included some Black Mages) was coming up soon, and to earn Professor Millay's approval, they had to demonstrate something with their Paper Birds.
By now, any student taking summoning magic could summon a Paper Bird...
But improving it was no easy feat.
Most students opted for 'Command Recognition.'
Normally, a Paper Bird summoned via magic circle would only follow preset commands, but with this function added, it could respond to additional orders.
A smaller number of skilled students chose 'Voice Integration.'
They embedded voice transmission into their Paper Birds, allowing for long-distance communication.
...And then there was Lee Han, who was researching the Far-sight spell alone.
The trick Professor Millay had demonstrated last time using a Paper Bird.
Though it seemed simple—moving the Paper Bird and sharing its vision with the caster—the underlying principles were absurdly complex.
First, summon the Paper Bird. Then, grant vision to a paper construct with no eyes. Then, the mage had to connect their consciousness to perceive that vision. At that point, it was easier to just control it directly, so they had to add control functions too...
"Wardanaz. Isn't that too difficult?"
"You sided with the professor last time when I tried to add voice integration, didn't you?"
"......"
A friend who had misspoken and earned Lee Han's murderous glare quietly shriveled up.
The sin of agreeing when Professor Millay suggested doing something harder had not yet been forgiven.
'I only agreed because the professor said so...!'
"I-I didn't do anything, right?"
When Nilia whispered beside him, Lee Han nodded approvingly.
"But, Nilia."
"Yeah?"
"You should redraw that line in your magic circle. It's crooked—if you cycle mana through it three times, the line will probably break."
"......"
Nilia muttered under her breath, 'You're definitely the type to tackle the hard stuff,' as she fixed it.
Meanwhile, a few visiting Black Mages hesitantly approached Professor Millay.
Mid-conversation, the professor pointed at Lee Han. The Black Mages bowed repeatedly in gratitude.
"Thank you! Thank you!"
"Damn it. I thought Black Mages wouldn't dare ask about that."
"??"
Nilia was baffled by what he meant.
Even if Black Mages weren't sociable, surely they could still ask questions... right?
...Right?
"Are you Student Wardanaz!?"
"Uh... yes...?"
"We'd like to ask you about Golems!"
"Ah... is that so?"
Lee Han began to guess why the Black Mages had sought him out.
If they were talking about Golems...
"Wait. You came to me about Golems... Did those guys with wooden swords at their waists mention me?"
"Huh? Uh... I think they might have, yes."
"......"
"......"
"Hey. Let's go prepare somewhere else."
"Get up. Wardanaz is about to beat up the White Tiger Tower guys."
"Priest. Get up now."
"W-wait! Where are you going?!"
The White Tiger Tower students desperately tried to hold onto their friends from other towers, but they coldly shook them off.
Fortunately, Lee Han didn't unleash bloody vengeance—only because the Black Mages were still standing in front of him.
"That Golem—I just repaired it. I didn't make it."
"Huh? We know."
"...??"
Lee Han was slightly taken aback by the Black Mages' response.
Huh?
"If it's just repairs, that's not really impressive, right?"
'It is impressive, you lunatic...'
A nearby student thought to themselves.
Even just repairing it was impressive.
Perhaps the Black Mage thought so too, because they immediately replied.
"That's impressive in itself... but what we're curious about is Golem control."
"Golem control?"
"Yes!"
"I only used it for menial tasks, though..."
"Yes. But most mages can't even use Golems for menial tasks."
"......"
Ah!