Episode 456
Episode 456
The idea that midterm exams were absolutely mandatory was actually a kind of fixed notion.
If there were unavoidable circumstances or if the professor had other plans, the midterm could be replaced with a different assignment or combined with the final exam.
Of course, the Skeleton Principal wasn't one to grant such permissions easily.
Fundamentally, most professors at Einrogard were such unscrupulous bastards that if given free rein, they might come up with exams like, "Ugh, too lazy. Should I just throw a wand and give an A+ to whoever it lands farthest from?"
But in a situation like this, there really was no other choice, right?
The prepared dungeon had flooded!
"Truly unfortunate, Professor."
"I suppose so."
'What do you mean, "I suppose so"?'
Professor Voladi seemed to genuinely believe that Lee Han was also suffering.
Of course, Lee Han wasn't particularly distressed.
But if a student looked happy while their professor was in agony, it would be no different from declaring, "I have the audacity of a swollen liver!"
Lee Han did his best to put on a pained expression.
'Imagine losing the top rank in your year. And the Skeleton Principal laughing beside you.'
"How's the basilisk doing?"
Clack!
The basilisk egg inside the bag Lee Han had set down trembled in fear, making a rattling sound.
Lately, it had needed a lot of care, so Lee Han had been carrying it around in his bag—which was how he'd ended up running into that insane mage.
"...I think it'll take a bit more time?"
"I consulted Professor Lightning Step. He said there's a potion that accelerates growth."
"But it has side effects—increased aggression and erratic behavior, doesn't it?"
Being close to Professor Lightning Step, Lee Han had heard about it before.
"You handle animals well and are skilled in alchemy, so you might get this idea later."
"I handle animals well?"
"You terrify animals well and are skilled in alchemy, so you might get this idea later."
"......"
"Buying rare animal hatchlings cheap, pumping them full of growth potions, and selling them off..."
"Such methods! Truly, magic is amazing!"
"...Listen to the end. Magic is about altering the rules and order of the world. If you recklessly mess with it, things won't end well."
Professor Lightning Step had once told him about a foolish dwarf alchemist who tried mass-breeding manticores to sell to knight orders.
Feeding growth potions to monsters already brimming with savage instincts was dangerously excessive.
If those monsters ever snapped, where would their rage be directed?
"Wait... are you Professor Thunder Step?"
"...No! Is that how you saw Thunder Step!?"
Anyway, precisely because it was so dangerous, Lee Han had no intention of feeding the basilisk any potions.
The basilisk egg clung tightly to Lee Han. It clearly sensed who its protector was.
"Wouldn't it be better if it became more aggressive and erratic?"
Professor Voladi tilted his head in confusion.
Weren't they going to fight it anyway?
"......"
......
Lee Han had the distinct feeling the egg was glaring at Professor Voladi in fury.
He couldn't be sure, but it definitely felt that way.
"A calm and composed opponent would be more formidable, wouldn't they?"
"Is that so... Do you prefer that kind of fight?"
"It's not that I prefer that kind of fight— Damn it. Fine, I do."
Lee Han admitted it, unable to bring himself to abandon the basilisk egg.
The poor thing was just too scared.
'I need to change the subject.'
"Don't despair too much, Professor. There must be plenty of solutions. Like casting Underwater Breathing Magic and going down..."
"I did consider it."
At Professor Voladi's blunt reply, Lee Han felt his heart plummet.
He'd just been joking without thinking!
'If I fail to control my tongue one more time, I'll curse myself.'
Lee Han reflected deeply on his mistake.
"But the damage was too severe."
"Oh dear."
Once again, Lee Han felt profoundly grateful to the water spirit.
If it hadn't been for the great flood, he would have had to endure that with his own body.
"Does that mean today's lecture is over?"
Lee Han asked with a slightly expectant voice. If it ended early, he was thinking of catching up on his backlog of studies.
Though the Skeleton Principal and White Tiger Tower students spouted nonsense like 'You don't need to study anyway,' Lee Han wasn't fooled by such talk.
They were clearly trying to keep his grades in check.
"If we're done, I'll take my leave—"
Professor Voladi slowly shook his head. Then he walked across the water and boarded Lee Han's ferry.
Suddenly robbed of his own boat, Lee Han was flabbergasted but couldn't say a word.
'Good heavens, a stick-wielding highwayman.'
Unperturbed, Professor Voladi swung his staff.
Then, as if pushed by an invisible force, the ferry began moving swiftly.
Whoooosh—
"?"
At first, Lee Han sat there without much thought, but as the ferry gradually moved away from the main building, he grew slightly flustered.
'What's going on?'
If they kept heading north like this, they'd reach the Hell Mountains (though they were just ordinary mountains, Lee Han and his friends called them the Hell Mountains), which Einrogard took pride in.
Since the dungeon he'd prepared was gone, he thought they'd just do some simple practice or training and call it a day...
Thud—
Even with the great flood, the entire mountain range hadn't submerged. As they approached, dry land and dense forests came into view.
Professor Voladi looked at Lee Han. It was a signal to disembark.
"Professor. I have a ques—"
Instead of answering, the professor raised a single finger. It meant 'be quiet.'
Suddenly, Lee Han felt a sense of foreboding.
Professor Voladi might be a mad mage, but he was the kind of mad mage who still answered questions.
Why was he suddenly refusing to answer?
'Is this a situation where making noise is dangerous?'
Lee Han quickly ran through the monsters that appeared in the mountain range in his mind.
Having attended Professor Lightning-Step's lectures on 'What Lurks in Einrogard's Back Mountains?' during his spare time, countless monsters came to mind.
'Damn. There are too many.'
Come to think of it, there were far too many monsters that would be dangerous if he made noise.
Lee Han tensed up, wondering if he should memorize spells in advance.
Memorizing spells beforehand would be good, but in a situation where silence was required, even chanting incantations could be risky.
-Have you arrived?
The voice came from above.
Lee Han instinctively looked up. Among the tall, densely grown forest trees, a familiar giant's head was looking down at him.
His hair was shorter than last time.
It was Ikurusha, the mountain giant who had lost his hair in a bet with Lee Han.
"Lord Ikurusha!"
-Good to see you again. But keep your voice down, would you?
Ikurusha gestured for silence.
-The other giants are currently pairing up the mountain sheep. It's a sensitive time for them.
"?"
Lee Han didn't understand for a moment.
What did it matter if mountain sheep were sensitive? They were still just sheep, right?
-Ah. My apologies. Mages don't call them mountain sheep, do they? The name's a bit different.
"What are they called?"
-Mountain-Destroying Sheep? Mountain-Devouring Sheep? Mountain-Collapsing Sheep?
"......"
Professor Voladi answered for him.
"Mountain-Destroying Sheep."
-Ah. That's right.
Mountain-Destroying Sheep resembled sheep but were massive monsters, comparable in size to giants, capable of breaking through bedrock.
Calling them 'mountain sheep' was as shameless as calling Tanjuer a goldfish.
Ikurusha guided Lee Han and Professor Voladi to a newly built house.
The cave house looked crude, as if the giants had punched it into shape, but the interior was truly cozy.
As soon as Lee Han and Professor Voladi sat down, Ikurusha brought out a chessboard.
-Since we're meeting after so long, how about a game?
"Ah. Sure."
Lee Han was nonplussed but set it up anyway.
The opening began with d4 and Bf4, building a solid defense before castling queenside and launching a powerful push on the kingside—until Ikurusha hopelessly self-destructed.
-"Damn it!"
"Mr. Ikurusha."
When Professor Voladi called him, Ikurusha pleaded desperately.
-"Just one more game? I'll play fast this time—a blitz match."
The professor nodded.
Ikurusha, reinvigorated, quickly reset the pieces.
Watching this, Lee Han had an epiphany.
'Wait. If I stall...!'
He still didn't know why Professor Voladi had brought him to Ikurusha, but if they just played chess until time ran out, he could leave without any trouble.
Last time, he noticed Ikurusha preferred openings like e4, Nf3, Bb5 when playing white.
In that case, Lee Han could place his knight on f6 and build an impenetrable black fortress.
'Drag it out. Force a draw.'
Neither Ikurusha nor Professor Voladi noticed Lee Han's devious thoughts.
Unaware, Ikurusha hammered away at Lee Han's defenses, lost in deep thought.
"Mr. Ikurusha."
-"Ah. My apologies. I should stop now."
"......"
Lee Han was speechless as he watched the giant, now at a disadvantage, abandon the game without hesitation the moment an excuse presented itself.
In every other aspect, the man was a gentleman—so why did chess turn him into... this?
'After all the effort I put in. Should've made a bet.'
-"You should know, after that impressive match last time, I've mentioned you to the professors a few times."
"Excuse me??????"
Lee Han shouted in shock before he could stop himself.
Why would Ikurusha commit such an act of betrayal?
'Are all giants shameless bastards??'
Maybe people needed their heads cut off, not just their hair, to stop betraying others.
-"Why so surprised?"
"...Spreading baseless rumors is embarrassing for a mage."
-"How modest."
Ikurusha glanced at Professor Voladi approvingly. The professor remained expressionless but nodded in agreement.
-"A few professors showed interest. Professor Bagrak, for instance, asked if you could assist with lectures, so I agreed."
"Oh..."
Lee Han barely suppressed the urge to yell, Why would you do that?!
-"Unlike other giants, I try to fulfill requests from Einrogard's mages. Living in these mountains, you inevitably owe them favors... Speaking of which, is the Grand Magus doing well?"
"He is."
-"Good. Please convey my gratitude again for last time. Giant hunters are vicious brutes—had the Grand Magus not stepped in, the damage would've been severe."
The professor nodded.
After enduring this heartwarming exchange, Lee Han cautiously asked,
"But what kind of assistance are we talking about?"
-"They requested simulations of various combat scenarios a battle mage might face. Honestly, even if these giants are a bit dull, they're perfect for that kind of thing."
BOOM!!!!!!!!
The moment he finished speaking, an earth-shattering roar erupted outside—as if the world were ending.
It sounded like the mountains were collapsing.
-"Ah. One of the mountain goats escaped. Should probably catch it before nightfall."
"......"
-"Where were we? Ah, right. Assisting with lectures. Giants can handle it, but the issue is... these lads are a bit dense. They might not grasp concepts like restraint or testing. So I thought we should call you first."
Telling giants, "Test this mage without killing him—adjust the difficulty accordingly," would've been too complicated.
Better to build rapport with them in advance.
If the giants considered him a friend, they'd naturally hold back.
-"Besides, no matter how skilled the mage, throwing them into danger without any preparation seems reckless. They need time to adjust, don't you think?"
Ikurusha shrugged.
"It's fine."
-"Is it?"
"If you don't believe me, we can try it right now."
"Professor. On second thought, a flooded underground dungeon might actually be quite fulfilling."