Episode 49
Episode 49
In the Empire, Black Magic couldn't help but have a negative image.
For starters, its outward appearance was rather dingy, dark, and eerie, wasn't it?
Moreover, the spells it dealt with were all ominous and unsettling things.
Curses, Undead Summoning, Dark Element or Poison Element, Negative Energy, and so on.
It was only natural that people found it distasteful.
-"Greetings, villagers. I'm the newly assigned dispatched mage. My main field is Elemental Magic, specializing particularly in flames."
-"Ooh! We won't have to worry about winter cold anymore!"
-"H-hello. I'm the newly assigned dispatched mage. My main field is... well... Black Magic..."
-"Huh? What was that?"
-"Black Magic. I specialize in Undead Summoning."
-"...Someone stop that mage from entering the graveyard!"
Just as most people regarded it with discomfort, the new students here were no different.
They'd each entered the academy with their own grand ambitions, and none particularly wanted to study the persecuted field of Black Magic.
But Lee Han was looking at the professor with eyes sparkling with interest.
'Where others avoid, there lies opportunity.'
Even before enrolling, Lee Han had thought Black Magic held considerable value.
For one thing, since fewer students would flock to it, there'd be less competition, right?
And it wasn't as if taking Black Magic lectures necessarily meant walking the path of a Black Mage.
'I can just take the credits and pivot elsewhere.'
He'd be studying various other magics anyway, so there was no reason to worry prematurely.
Moreover, from Lee Han's perspective, the life of an Imperial Black Mage wasn't so bad.
While people feared them, their numbers were so scarce that once hired, they were virtually never dismissed from office positions.
The ultimate iron rice bowl!
"I expected everyone to react this way."
Professor Garcia, having sensed the students' mood, spoke up on their behalf.
"But contrary to popular prejudice, Black Magic is a field containing profound mysteries and principles. You are all still unrefined mages. To discover where your talents lie and what you should aim for, you must keep challenging yourselves and experiencing new things. I hope you'll approach learning with a mage's curiosity rather than discard opportunities due to prejudice."
Professor Garcia's words were calm yet reasonable. The freshmen looked at him with slightly moved expressions.
"Now. Would anyone like to assist Professor Mortum in demonstrating Black Magic?"
"......"
"......"
Of course, that was that, and Black Magic was still Black Magic.
The students bowed their heads to avoid Professor Garcia's gaze.
"Lee Han! Bow your head! Bow your head!"
Gainando urgently whispered while tugging at Lee Han's collar.
"If you associate with Black Mages, even after death you won't rest—you'll become an undead soldier!"
"...Are you actually a mage?"
Lee Han stared at Gainando with utter disbelief.
While ignorant commoners might believe such things, why would you, of all people, buy into that?
"I'll assist."
"!!"
Lee Han raised his hand.
The students looked at him with eyes full of shock and awe.
They knew this boy from the Wardanaz family held a leadership position in the Blue Dragon Tower.
But even so, to voluntarily step forward as a test subject for Black Magic?
Even the students from the Turtle Tower who had feared Lee Han based solely on the Wardanaz family's reputation were looking at him with changed expressions.
"Student Lee Han!"
Professor Garcia looked at Lee Han with an expression of immense delight.
Lee Han recognized that expression all too well.
It was the barely concealed desperation when you'd asked a colleague, 'Please come give a guest lecture sometime,' only to have the students sit like honey-struck mutes.
Professors went so far as to prep their disciples in advance—'Hey, raise your hand and ask questions when I prompt you.'
One could scarcely imagine how grateful Professor Garcia must feel toward Lee Han for stepping forward now.
"Ahem, ahem. Thank you. Come here."
As Lee Han approached Professor Mortum, he finally understood why the classroom temperature had dropped.
A considerable amount of mana was emanating from Professor Mortum, who stood perfectly still.
And it wasn't just ordinary mana—it was Yin-attribute mana.
This cold, sinister negative mana was practically the hallmark of black mages.
While mana was fundamentally colorless, there were many occasions when one needed to alter its attributes to suit the intended spell.
Black magic in particular often required converting mana into Yin attributes like this.
'No wonder he's unpopular.'
Even without the bad reputation, casually radiating such mana toward an approaching student was hardly welcoming.
No student in their right mind would willingly approach after sensing this—they'd recoil in fright instead.
Professors here and everywhere else really lacked finesse when it came to attracting students.
"You have substantial mana."
"Thank you."
"Good. Now take up your wand... Let me demonstrate first."
After coughing several more times, Professor Mortum waved his hand.
In that instant, the chaotic Yin-attribute mana that had been surging out abruptly aligned itself with perfect order.
"Arise, skeletal attendants!"
With a bone-chilling clatter, skeletal summons materialized among the students out of thin air.
They spun in eerie circles, dancing grotesquely. The students looked on the verge of fainting.
Professor Mortum gazed at Lee Han with satisfaction and asked in a pleased tone,
"Cough... How is it? Acceptable?"
"Pardon?"
"I prepared this thinking the students might enjoy it."
"Well... It's certainly interesting."
Lee Han tactfully avoided the truth to spare the professor's feelings. Professor Garcia shot him a grateful look.
"Of course, I won't have you attempt magic of this caliber yet. Cough. It's far too advanced."
Though obvious, Lee Han felt newly grateful for this obvious statement.
If only Professor Voladi could hear this!
"First, try converting your mana into Yin attributes."
Lee Han drew forth his mana.
Having previously converted it into light and water attributes, he already grasped the fundamentals of attribute transformation.
Visualizing the image in his mind, he focused and dyed his mana with it.
Pop!
"Quite proficient."
Professor Mortum sounded impressed by the smooth conversion.
"Thank you."
"Convert more."
Lee Han concentrated and continued altering his mana.
'Wait. He's actually good at this?'
Watching this, Professor Garcia grew slightly flustered.
Though he felt bad for Professor Mortum, he didn't want a student like Lee Han venturing down the thorny, unpopular path of black magic.
'Being too skilled can be its own problem...'
Other mages typically struggled through trial and error when conceptualizing Yin attributes.
The concept of Yin was broader and more ambiguous than most realized.
Cold?
Ice attributes were cold too.
Dark?
Darkness attributes were also dark.
Being an attribute that encompassed multiple overlapping concepts, many mages failed to grasp its essence.
But Lee Han simplified it.
'Let's visualize something like non-Euclidean geometry or imaginary numbers... bizarre mathematical imagery.'
This was Lee Han's unique advantage—the breadth of his thinking—something other mages couldn't replicate.
Luckily, the imagery seemed to fit perfectly, as his mana smoothly transitioned into Yin attributes.
More and more.
And more still.
And then even more.
"...Professor?"
Lee Han sensed something amiss.
Sssssssssss—
Despite it being broad daylight, the lecture hall darkened, and the already lowered temperature dropped further until their breaths became visible.
Yet Professor Mortum showed no intention of stopping, his expression eager as he urged Lee Han on.
The man who'd been coughing moments ago now had gleaming eyes and didn't so much as clear his throat—he seemed like an entirely different person.
"Let's see how far you can go. Keep at it."
"Um, Professor Mortum?"
Professor Garcia tried to intervene.
While it was heartening to see Professor Mortum so delighted, there were other students in the lecture hall.
A sinister atmosphere permeated the room, and the more sensitive students began hearing phantom whispers of things that shouldn't be alive.
From Professor Garcia's perspective, they needed to stop right now.
'Considering Lee Han's mana reserves...'
If he converted as much as he was curious about—as much as was possible—there was no telling what might happen.
"Why the hesitation?"
"Shouldn't we stop?"
"Let's try converting just a bit more. I'm truly curious to see how far he can go."
"You can check that under different circumstances."
"But—"
"I said stop."
"Ah. Understood."
When Professor Garcia's expression turned stern, Professor Mortum backed down like a scolded dog.
'What a waste...'
Professor Mortum looked at Lee Han with visible regret.
One of the most crucial factors in Black Magic was precisely that kind of Yin-attribute mana capacity.
Of course, there wasn't a single field of magic where mana wasn't important—but in Black Magic, having vast mana reserves opened up truly limitless possibilities.
Undead Summoning?
Mana was critical.
Curses?
Mana was critical.
The same went for Dark Element or Poison Element spells...
He had wanted to see just how far Lee Han could go, but now he was being stopped like this.
'Professor Garcia can be such a killjoy.'
"Professor."
Lee Han called out to Professor Mortum.
Since the conversion had been halted, the massive amount of mana was gradually dissipating.
"Ah. My apologies. Now, swing your wand like this and chant the spell. Say, 'Be paralyzed!'"
The Lesser Paralysis Curse.
A 1st-Circle Black Magic spell—one of the simplest forms of Black Magic.
A curse that induced a weak paralysis, like a cramp in the arms or legs.
There wasn't a single person alive who hadn't experienced numbness in their limbs at least once.
Because of that, it was easy to visualize, and the wand motion was simple too.
"Who should I target?"
"Me, of course."
Unlike other spells, curses required a target.
Lee Han was taken aback.
As everyone knew, Professor Mortum looked so frail that a strong breeze might knock him over.
'I always dreamed of the day I'd cast a spell at a professor, but not like this...'
"Are you absolutely sure about this?"
Professor Mortum answered as if annoyed.
"Of course. Go ahead and cast it."
"Don't you have any defensive magic or... something like that?"
"Cough, cough... It's just a spell to paralyze an arm or a leg. Even if something goes wrong, how bad could it be?"
'Well, he's not wrong.'
Lee Han conceded.
Now that he thought about it, a freshman like him worrying about a professor was presumptuous to begin with.
'Better focus. If I act too cocky, I might end up on the professor's bad side.'
As Lee Han closed his eyes to concentrate, Professor Mortum shrugged his shoulders as if urging him to hurry.
Mages, by nature, possessed more mana than ordinary people and knew how to control the mana within their bodies at will.
Because of this, they had strong resistance to magical attacks.
Even if hit, their mana instinctively protected their bodies.
And someone like Professor Mortum, who had spent nearly his entire life handling Yin-attribute mana, had even greater resistance to Yin-based spells.
A freshman's incantation wouldn't affect him even if he took it head-on without defending.
'Once it's blocked, he'll realize just how profound and vast the study of Black Magic truly is.'
Professor Mortum believed that when Lee Han saw his full-powered spell effortlessly blocked, he'd be deeply impressed.
-"Even after giving it my all, it had no effect at all...! I had no idea Black Magic was this incredible. I want to learn more!"
-"Cough, cough... Well, if you're willing to learn, I won't stop you."
It was the kind of optimistic thinking only a professor—or someone whose brain had been paralyzed—could muster.
"Be paralyzed!"
Lee Han pointed his wand at Professor Mortum as he chanted the spell.
The gathered mana surged forth with explosive willpower, crashing into the professor.
"!!!"
The sheer volume of mana caught Professor Mortum off guard.
He tried to resist in a panic, but the mana that had already enveloped him coiled around him like a suffocating grip.
...In the end, Professor Mortum collapsed backward, his entire body stiff and paralyzed.
Thud!
"...Professor? Professor!!"
Lee Han was horrified.
For a fleeting moment, the disgraceful title of "Professor Killer" flashed through his mind.