Episode 489

"Huh?"

The hunters looked at Lee Han as if asking what he was talking about.

Lee Han quickly changed his words.

"It's nothing. More importantly, the Sea Serpent? What's going on?"

The Shadow Patrol hunters explained the situation.

Ever since Professor Thunderstep's group discovered traces of the Sea Serpent, the sailors and Shadow Patrol hunters had been closely monitoring its movements.

Large monsters like these could cause massive damage to cities if they moved carelessly.

If it approached the harbor, they had to capture it before it got too close. If it caused havoc near the port, dozens of ships could...

"But it seems to be getting closer."

"Damn it."

"Huh?"

"It's nothing. So... is its approach confirmed?"

Lee Han had to suppress a sigh.

Given how things had turned out, they needed to call Professor Voladi, alert the harbor to evacuate people, and mobilize the city guard.

Everything else was manageable, but he really didn't want to call Professor Voladi.

"It's not confirmed yet. We need to observe its movements a bit longer..."

"But we still need to prepare."

An excellent hunter always finishes the hunt before it even begins.

Naturally, the Shadow Patrol hunters intended to make perfect preparations in case the Sea Serpent arrived.

"So, cast some spells for us."

"...Wouldn't it be better to get help from other mages in the city...?"

If it was for preparations against the Sea Serpent, the other mages in the city would undoubtedly cooperate.

Of course, the Shadow Patrol didn't listen to Lee Han.

"Yes, yes. Other mages' spells are better, you say?"

"Understood. Honored Mage. Please cast some spells for us."

"...I'm serious..."

Lee Han felt wronged but couldn't convince the Shadow Patrol hunters.

It was only natural.

Telling someone who knew nothing about magic, "Look, this spell is more effective and easier to cast, but it's actually worse," would only elicit responses like, "Are all mages crazy?"

After the Shadow Patrol hunters had Lee Han enchant their equipment, they leaped back down from the terrace.

After seeing them off, Lee Han suddenly had a thought.

'Couldn't they have just used the stairs?'

Looking down, passersby didn't seem particularly interested in the hunters' antics.

Lee Han felt a bit of respect for the people of this port city.

'Just how many strange things must happen here...'

"Are they gone?"

"Yeah. Come out."

Nilia crawled out from under the table.

"Why didn't they just use the stairs...?"

"They must have been in a hurry. Nilia, the Shadow Patrol hunters are doing their best for the city's safety."

"R-really?"

Of course, Lee Han also thought, 'Why didn't they just use the stairs?' But when a friend was embarrassed, it was only right to step up first.

Nilia seemed intrigued by Lee Han's words, pausing for a moment before tilting her head.

"But what does that have to do with not using the stai—"

"Ah! The bread's here."

Lee Han quickly changed the subject as the waiter brought the brioche.

"Wardanaz."

"?"

When the Princess quietly spoke to him, Lee Han wondered why she was acting this way.

"Ah, would you like some of this?"

"...Let's talk for a moment."

Adenart decided this was the perfect opportunity to clear up the misunderstanding.

He couldn't understand why Wardanaz had this misconception, but after much thought, it was clearly because of Gainando.

Since Gainando was the royal family member closest to Wardanaz, it was only natural for Wardanaz to assume, "Do all royals obsess over food?"

Adenart did his best to explain quietly.

Gainando loves food, but he himself does not.

There seems to be some misunderstanding.

So, he hoped they could clear it up from now on!

"Ah... I apologize for this."

'It wasn't specifically because of Gainando.'

Though Lee Han thought that inwardly, he didn't say it aloud.

He was afraid of the Princess's authority.

"There's... no need to apologize."

"Then from now on, should I not call you when food comes out..."

"......"

Adelnard made a complicated expression caught between 'I don't want that' and 'But if I say I don't want it now, won't I seem just like Gainando?'

Lee Han nodded as if understanding.

"Your Highness. I believe you're the one who's misunderstanding here."

"Eh?"

Adelnard's eyes widened.

The Wardanaz's words were unexpected.

"I basically call all my friends whenever there's food. Isn't everyone at Einrogard hungry? I don't think Your Highness is particularly obsessed with food."

"I never said I was obses—"

She'd said she liked food, but never that she was obsessed...

"Perhaps you misunderstood because of Gainando. Gainando does have a bit of an obsession, doesn't he?"

That...

Is that so?

Adelnard suddenly became confused.

Had the Wardanaz just been considerately looking out for her like any other friend, while she'd been unnecessarily wary because of Gainando?

"...My apologies, Wardanaz."

"Haha. Not at all."

'Heh. Easy.'

Lee Han inwardly savored his victory.

Having never once lost in persuasion against any royal family member he'd met so far, he'd grown confident to that extent.

"Then please rest comfortably."

Noticing a waiter approaching with a tray, Lee Han spoke up.

It was a panini sandwich—a baguette drizzled with olive oil, filled with thinly sliced salami, cheese, lettuce, and other ingredients, grilled to mouthwatering perfection.

"Oh. Give that to her table. We've already eaten enough here."

At Lee Han's instruction, the waiter nodded and placed the tray before Adelnard.

Adelnard compared the number of empty cake plates in front of herself ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to those in front of the Wardanaz.

No matter how she looked, the Wardanaz had eaten far fewer.

...Then shouldn't the Wardanaz be the one receiving it?

'Why me?'

As Adelnard stared at Lee Han with a gaze mixed with doubt and suspicion, students from the White Tiger Tower approached him with expectant faces.

"Wardanaz. Uh. We're rooting for you."

"Yeah! Ability matters more than bloodline!"

"But Wardanaz's bloodline is also..."

"What nonsense are you spouting?"

Lee Han held his coffee cup, looking puzzled.

"Huh? Did you fight with Her Highness?"

"Who do you think you are to give orders..."

"...What the hell are you talking about?"

At Lee Han's reaction, the White Tiger Tower students became even more convinced.

'Seeing him play dumb like that, they must have definitely fought.'

'Could there be civil war brewing among those Blue Dragon Tower bastards?'

The thought suddenly gave them pause.

Normally, they'd have cheered, "Haha, let those Blue Dragon Tower bastards kill each other!" But recently, they'd received so much from that Wardanaz guy that they felt slightly conflicted.

'Even if she's royalty, what we've received from Wardanaz...'

"Want to get hit with a coffee cup?"

"...Ah, no. I was just asking."

When Lee Han raised his coffee cup questioningly, the White Tiger Tower students cursed inwardly.

After all their support!

"Excuse me, Honored Mage."

"?"

"Might you take a look at this book?"

The waiter held out an old tome to Lee Han.

It was a peculiar book with neither cover nor title.

Lee Han immediately began inspecting it the moment he took it.

'No unusual magic. Wait. Better safe than sorry.'

"Hold still. Don't move. Arise, O Emotions!"

Not stopping there, Lee Han cast <Ogonin's Emotion Perception> on the waiter.

The waiter asked nervously,

"Have I done something wrong...?"

"Have you ever had any connection to the Skeleton Archmage? The Lich Archmage, the Skeleton Archmage, the master of Einrogard, and so on?"

"I don't understand..."

'Hmm. No connection at all.'

Lee Han had wondered if the waiter might have been tasked by the Skeleton Principal to hand him the book.

"Maybe the Skeleton Principal prepared this to torment students who step outside!"

But apparently not.

"Why this book?"

"The customer said it was too difficult and asked me to inquire with the mage about what kind of book it is."

"Who is this person? Bring them here."

The clerk went ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠downstairs and returned with a flustered expression.

"The customer seems to have disappeared—perhaps they stepped out for a moment? Uh... Honored Mage. If it's too much trouble, you don't have to look at it. I even opened it myself, and it's nothing special..."

'Fearless, aren't they?'

Even if they confirmed there was no magic, recklessly opening it like that wasn't a good habit.

"Does it have some kind of prophecy written in it?"

Next to him, Batrek curiously flipped through the book.

"......"

Snap!

"Ow! Why?!"

"Do you just pick up and eat any food you see lying on the street?"

"Mr. Lee..."

While Batrek sulked, the clerk cautiously spoke up again.

"Um... The customer left some money for Honored Mage as a request. Should I return it?"

"No. Curiosity is a virtue a mage should rightfully possess."

Lee Han immediately grabbed the book.

<Where Lies the True Secret of Magic?>

Any talented mage would have felt suffocated by the Empire's rigid magical system at some point.

'Hmm. Maybe I'm not talented. Never felt that way.'

Though he had felt it plenty from Einrogard's professors—did that not count?

The Empire's magical system ensured even the dullest mages didn't meet gruesome deaths, but in exchange, it robbed them of the chance to encounter the great magics beyond the veil. To seek stronger magic, we must step outside the system and venture beyond the veil...

"This is just trash."

Lee Han scoffed and handed the book back to the clerk.

"When the customer returns, tell them it's a trash book and not to believe it. What kind of nonsense..."

The mage who wrote this probably didn't even know what "safety protocols" were.

Whining about not being able to learn magic because of safety protocols.

What kind of absurd nonsense was that?

'I'd rather read Professor Voladi's Blood Magic book.'

Even Professor Voladi, who wrote that radical thesis about amplifying mana using a mage's blood as a reagent, started with safety protocols first!

The mage who wrote this was beneath even Professor Voladi.

"Yes. I apologize for wasting Honored Mage's time. I'll relay your message."

"...that's what he said."

"Don't spout nonsense!"

Ianov shed his usual mysterious and dangerous demeanor in front of the mercenaries and snarled viciously.

The mercenary screamed as his collar suddenly tightened around his neck like a noose.

"I-it's... it's true! Really!"

"No mage who reads that would call it a trash book! Do you even know who wrote it?!"

Only when the mercenary's face turned ashen did Ianov regain his senses.

Come to think of it, the mercenary had no reason to lie.

"Repeat every word exactly as you heard it! Speak, damn it!"

But no matter how much he raged, nothing changed.

After exhausting his fury, Ianov sank into a hollow despair.

He knew mediocrity struggled to comprehend genius, but today, that truth cut especially deep.

He couldn't even begin to guess what was going through that boy's mind.

'Still... I can't give up.'

Having come this far, it wasn't just about Antagondals' wisdom anymore—his pride was at stake.

What could that boy possibly see that made him dismiss Ianov's accumulated magic so contemptuously?

'But if I push further, he might grow suspicious. If he senses something off before I can win his favor, Einrogard's professors will intervene...'

The mere thought sent a chill down his spine.

"Lord Ianov!"

"What is it?"

Another mercenary approached.

"You might need to step out to the harbor for a moment. A Sea Serpent has been ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠spotted approaching. The city guards and nearby adventurers are gathering there."

"What a nuisance... Wait."

A thought suddenly struck Ianov.

If it was a Sea Serpent subjugation, surely Einrogard's mages would ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠participate, wouldn't they?

A young mage like that would inevitably thirst for power.

What if he witnessed an unknown magic beyond his understanding then?

"I'll join as well."