Episode 451
Episode 451
'Have I adapted to Einrogard too well?'
The lone wolf hunter from the Shadow Patrol was nowhere to be seen—only a seasoned Einrogard student remained in her place.
When Nilia stepped back, the students of the Black Turtle Tower looked deeply disappointed.
"Ah... I really thought it might work this time...!"
"Would silver coins have worked better?"
"We're not from the Wardanaz family—offers that fail because of money wouldn't have worked anyway."
"I thought Nilia had a good chance since she's close with the Blue Dragon Tower kids."
Gasp!
Lee Han clearly saw Nilia flinch and glance nervously at her friends.
"...Nilia. Hold on a second."
"Huh? What? What is it?"
"The Blue Dragon Tower kids were looking for you. Seems like they're struggling without you."
"...Huh? Really↗?"
No matter how hard she tried to hide it, the rising pitch of her voice and the slight twitch of her ears gave her away.
"Of course. I heard half the Blue Dragon Tower kids would starve without you. I know you're busy with your Black Turtle Tower friends, but try to spare them some attention."
Nilia nodded with as much dignity as she could muster.
"Ha! Oh no! I hadn't even considered that."
"That's understandable."
Behind her, the Black Turtle Tower students gazed at Nilia with admiration.
Nilia, whom even the noble-born students of the Blue Dragon Tower relied on and respected, was an object of envy among her peers.
A noble huntress descended from the distant northern mountains, a former member of the Shadow Patrol—she was on a completely different level!
Hearing this conversation only deepened their respect.
"Remember how she didn't even blink at the ball? Didn't flinch once."
"To someone like Nilia who's seen everything, a ball must've seemed like child's play."
"......"
Nilia's ears twitched as she listened before whispering to Lee Han.
"But... did the Blue Dragon Tower kids really ask for me?"
"Well..."
"...Thanks anyway."
Nilia nodded as if she'd expected as much and thanked Lee Han.
Wednesday morning.
After helping Angfang wrap up the Enchantment Magic midterm exams for the students, Lee Han stepped outside to prepare for the next test.
"Hmm..."
"What's up? Something happen?"
"Something the professor said was a bit weird."
Lee Han explained the situation to Yoner, who was casting a fishing line beside him.
Since everyone knew he'd been assisting Angfang in supervising the Enchantment Magic exam, that part wasn't surprising—but what Angfang had said afterward was odd.
"What'd he say?"
"He told me, 'If word gets around among the other professors that there's an outstanding junior, it might become troublesome, so you should be careful...'"
Lee Han didn't get it.
For one, he'd already made a name for himself among the seniors since the first semester.
Just from what Senior Diret and Senior Ogoldos had said, it was clear quite a few seniors knew his name.
'Isn't it already too late? Wait... or is it not?'
"Maybe only the Black Magic department seniors know about me?"
Lee Han voiced a slightly hopeful guess.
The Black Magic seniors were generally unfortunate in their social lives, so it wouldn't be strange if they hadn't mentioned him to others.
'Hmm?'
Yoner, who had just caught a trout and tossed it into his creel, looked puzzled.
From what he'd heard, the Enchantment Magic seniors didn't seem much better off in the friendship department.
To Yoner, the Enchantment Magic seniors seemed even more socially isolated than the Black Magic ones.
At least the Black Magic seniors had the social skills to collaborate with other departments to summon the Frost Giant King at school.
Not that that was necessarily a good thing...
'Maybe the Enchantment Magic professor was mistaken?'
"Yoner. Yoner. You listening? Seems like only the Black Magic seniors know. That might mean the others don't care much."
Lee Han was delighted.
He didn't want to attract any unnecessary attention for no reason.
"Mm... yeah."
Yoner couldn't bring himself to voice the thoughts in his head upon seeing his friend's happy expression.
"Wardanaz! Get down here quick!"
"?"
Lee Han, who had been sitting atop Tanjuer, turned his head.
The White Tiger Tower friends who had left earlier to take the swordsmanship exam were splashing around in the water, swimming frantically.
"Why are you all doing that over there?"
"What do you mean? We have to take the exam!"
"...??"
Lee Han was momentarily bewildered.
'Shouldn't swordsmanship exams be taken on solid ground?'
Given the nature of the subject, he had naturally assumed it would be conducted on firm land.
"Are we seriously taking the exam in the water?"
"Yeah. We have to steal a boat."
"Hurry up and get in here! It's tough without you!"
"You need to clear away Tanjuer or any other boats first. Get rid of them and come in."
"...How do I know you guys aren't tricking me?"
At Lee Han's suspicious glare, the White Tiger Tower students bristled and shouted.
"Do you really think we'd all be out here like this just to trick you?!"
"Just hurry up and get in already!"
A few of the White Tiger Tower students, who had been shouting in anger, suddenly thought to themselves.
'Huh? If we could trick Wardanaz just once, wouldn't it be worth a shot?'
Now that they thought about it, it seemed like a pretty good deal.
The knights of the White Poplar Knights, who had come to assist with the exam, were stunned by the sight of Einrogard completely submerged in water.
"Shouldn't we stop the rain and drain the water first?"
"Unfortunately, the headmaster said it's too difficult."
"Excuse me? That can't be right. I've heard that Lord Gonadaltes once dried up an entire sea, so surely a flood of this scale..."
Professor Ingoldel quickly changed the subject.
Dwelling on this topic would only lead to the knights badmouthing Einrogard.
"Turning crisis into opportunity is also a knightly virtue. There's no need to worry. The exam can still be conducted even in these conditions."
"Ah, I see. So you'll hold the exam indoors?"
The knights looked at the professor as if it were a brilliant idea.
Holding it indoors would allow them to properly assess swordsmanship skills despite the flooding.
"The indoors are also flooded right now... So we've prepared a boat here."
Professor Ingoldel pointed behind him.
A sleek, nimble-looking ship was waiting in the distance.
"Ah! So the students will duel each other on the deck...!"
"I'm thinking of having the students swim and try to seize this ship."
"......"
The knights were momentarily speechless.
The younger squires behind them whispered among themselves.
-Isn't this a bit too harsh?
-Asking them to swim in this weather and steal a ship is a bit...
Unbeknownst to Professor Ingoldel himself, from an outsider's perspective, he had already become a perfectly respectable Einrogard professor.
"...Let's all come up with a plan first."
Lee Han floated on the water as he discussed with the White Tiger Tower students.
The exam was simple yet unbelievable: form groups of three, swim without using magic, and seize one of the designated ships.
'Has Professor Ingoldel finally been completely corrupted by Einrogard?'
Lee Han felt a pang of regret.
Even though the professor had once been someone who upheld principles...
"Wait, what? Why is everyone in the water?"
"Get in. Hurry up."
Students who arrived later than Lee Han were baffled upon hearing the exam details.
"Where's the ship?"
"See those reefs and peaks over there in the water?"
"Those aren't reefs, those are stables, and those aren't peaks, they're towers..."
"Anyway, if you go around that way, there's supposed to be a ship."
"Then why are we all here?"
"...To hear Wardanaz's plan?"
"What are you talking about?!"
Duke-ma exclaimed incredulously.
"Of course it's every man for himself! Why would we take orders from Wardanaz?! He's a competitor too!"
"Hey, wait! At least hear them out—"
"You guys stay here if you want! Let's go! We'll be the ones to plant the flag first!"
Dukma began swimming vigorously with his teammates in tow. Lee Han watched their retreating figures with frustration.
'I hadn't even figured out how to use them yet, and they just charge off like that!'
As Dukma and his friends rounded the stables—no, the reef—and disappeared, a brief silence hung in the air.
Swish-swish-swish-swish-THUNK!
Then savage water spears began hurtling across the water's surface.
"!!"
"Gahk! Ugh! Blub! Blub-blub!"
Though not finely honed, the thick water spears packed enough force to send students plunging deep underwater with each hit.
Dukma and his friends screamed before being forced into a deep dive, only to resurface moments later, scrambling back to their companions in panic.
"What the hell was that??"
"The—the knights on the ship... Cheating bastards...!"
They'd expected interference once boarding the deck, but being bombarded by ballista-fired water spears before even getting close was beyond their expectations.
Dukma's group coughed violently, expelling seawater.
"Thanks, Dukma. Your sacrifice showed us what we're dealing with."
"...Wardanaz."
Dukma felt a twinge of regret.
This Wardanaz brat—despite not being from White Tiger Tower—had set aside petty rivalry and focused solely on the immediate challenge. Meanwhile, he'd let his defiance get the better of him and ended up like this.
"Well, since we're ahead, let's try again. This time, the three of us will split up and—"
"...Shut it!!"
Dukma snapped, turning away with a huff. Lee Han sighed.
"Was I too pushy?"
"Y-yeah, kinda."
Even Durgyu couldn't bring himself to side with Lee Han this time.
With Lee Han failing to produce a viable strategy, the students began murmuring restlessly.
"Wardanaz. Seriously, no plan?"
"Without magic, this seems impossible."
"Really?"
"...Just because I can't use magic right now, you think I can't beat you all up?"
Lee Han's dead-serious question made the White Tiger Tower students flinch and retreat.
"Damn. Even Wardanaz is stumped..."
"Well, it's a competition after all. Fine. Let's break through on our own."
As the students scattered across the water, Lee Han sank into thought.
'No underwater breathing, no Illusion Magic, no Frost Magic... This is tough.'
He realized just how heavily he'd relied on magic—far more than he'd thought.
Maybe Professor Ingoldel had thrown them into this extreme situation precisely to teach them that lesson.
Or maybe, like most Einrogard professors, he just enjoyed watching students suffer.
"Wait. Durgyu, where's Moradi?"
"You're only asking that now?"
"There were too many White Tiger Tower students earlier—I didn't notice."
"Moradi said she'd scout ahead before you arrived."
No sooner had he spoken than a small splash sounded from the opposite direction, and Giselle surfaced from the water. Lee Han's eyes lit up with realization.
"She circled around the other side to approach? She exploited their complacency—thinking the distance was too far to come from that angle! But even then, there should've been watchers... Ah. Got it. Circling around puts her near the Lumberyard Tower, where debris floating in the water is abundant. She could've disguised herself among the wreckage to approach undetected. Brilliant, Moradi! Let's move out!"
With the other students flailing conspicuously at the front as a distraction, this was their chance.
Lee Han began swimming toward Giselle's approach vector without wasting a second. Durgyu hesitated before awkwardly following.
"......"
Giselle, who had just swum all the way back at full speed and was catching her breath to explain, gaped at the two in utter bewilderment.
This bastard...
...What the hell is he??