Episode 590
Episode 590
"A wizard never reveals their secrets, but I'm genuinely curious about this one."
Origulus asked with utmost seriousness.
The methods used by previous students were all approaches that Origulus could easily comprehend.
But the technique displayed by the boy from the Wardanaz family now—he couldn't even begin to guess what hidden secret lay behind it.
To deceive the eyes of Origulus, who had served as an Imperial Judicial Officer for 131 years—
Just how had he done it?
"Actually..."
Actually?
"Well... um, will revealing this affect my grades?"
It won't! Stop tormenting me and just say it already!
Origulus, his body burning with curiosity, shouted out loud.
Professor Roginé pretended not to care, but her ears were perked up intently.
"Uh, well... he's actually a criminal I fought and captured before."
"......"
"......"
Even Professor Roginé and the upstanding Imperial citizen Ubald standing beside her were left speechless.
Kilbedek couldn't even lift his head out of sheer shame.
Though no one in the room said a word, Kilbedek's ears rang with phantom voices—
'He got captured by a single young wizard like that? Couldn't even win against a kid?'
And honestly, those phantom voices weren't far off the mark.
'When the hell did they even fight? A freshman shouldn't have had any reason to cross paths with him...'
'Even if he is a wizard, getting caught like that at his age... Must've been a pretty weak adventurer.'
Without realizing it, Kilbedek opened his mouth to defend himself.
"Actually, there were unavoidable circumstances—"
Full marks... Full marks!!
Origulus, trembling with emotion, finally snapped out of it and burst into applause.
It was truly a surprising and moving method.
* * *
"That was a really unusual exam."
"The actor was amazing. He really seemed like an actual criminal."
"......"
Lee Han hesitated to say anything, not wanting to scare his friends.
Admitting that he had actually kidnapped criminals from outside wouldn't have done him any favors.
'Well. The finals aren't that far off anyway.'
As the numerous exams wrapped up one after another and the weekend drew closer, the students' faces brightened.
Even in Lee Han's eyes, this midterm had been the most stable of all the exams he'd taken this year.
Surprisingly, none of the students showed signs of frustration, agony, despair, or regret.
Normally, such emotions would be deeply etched into their faces like scars during exam periods.
Undoubtedly, the Great Escape incident before the finals had played a big role in this.
With warm meals, comfortable bedding, and ample study materials, they could hold onto their sanity even while studying magic!
The students were astonished to realize this themselves.
'And I was surprised too.'
Who knew that just being well-fed and warm could make them so much stronger?
Lee Han briefly considered mentioning this to the Skeleton Principal when he saw him next but quickly gave up.
'Probably wouldn't end well for me.'
"Are you there?"
-Come in! Come in!
Passing through the thick poisonous mist, Lee Han arrived at the underground warehouse where the giants resided and stepped inside.
Even during exams, Lee Han had frequently visited the giants to check on them.
With them staying for nearly a week, he couldn't predict what unexpected events might arise.
But the giants had followed his instructions far better than he had worried. The friendship he'd built with them remained unshaken, even in this underground warehouse.
'Nothing out of the ordinary.'
Some giants were snoring loudly in their sleep, some were painting murals on the warehouse walls, and others were playing Giant Chess (a variant similar to chess but using only giants and Mountain-Destroying Sheep as pieces).
"Nothing unusual happened, right?"
-Something did!
"?!"
Lee Han was startled.
"What happened... Did you run out of food?"
-No! More importantly, wizard, do you think of us as gluttons?
"How could I? You giants eat so little that I've been worried about you."
Lee Han lied without batting an eye. The giants were utterly delighted by his flattery.
-Oh? Is that so?
"Yes. Do you know that friend Gainando I mentioned last time? The amount he eats is far greater..."
-Ah! The friend who wore a stew pot on his head?
-The one who tried to put out a fire with his coat and burned all his clothes?
-The one who tried to fly from the tower and got kidnapped by a wyvern?
"The last one wasn't him, was it?"
Lee Han was puzzled.
He had never told them about the last incident.
The giants scratched their heads.
-Huh? Wasn't it?
-That's strange? Then who was it?
-I already told the others it was Gainando.
-Let's just say it was Gainando then!
While the giants reached their own compromise, Lee Han steered the conversation back on track.
"Was there any trouble? If not food, then perhaps other seniors came looking...?"
-Ah. Some mages did come here.
"!"
Lee Han tensed up.
Other seniors accessing this underground warehouse was the most likely and dangerous possibility.
Someone among them could spread rumors about the giants or even report directly to Professor Voladi. 'Hmm. No.' Lee Han immediately dismissed the possibility of anyone reporting directly to Professor Voladi.
No matter how many scenarios he considered, he couldn't imagine any senior daring to speak directly to Professor Voladi.
"Did they enter?"
-No. They collapsed on the floor while approaching.
-The others carried them away and fled.
"......"
Lee Han grew slightly worried as he recalled the highly concentrated poison and black magic traps still active here.
If the reputation of the Black Magic faction's seniors worsened because of him... 'Well, nothing to be done. I'll just have to explain later.' Lee Han resolved to make amends on behalf of the Black Magic faction seniors once he became a second-year next year.
"If not food or mages, then what?"
-A monster came here.
"There are too many monsters in Einrogard..."
Lee Han wasn't particularly surprised by the mention of a monster.
Frankly, if you counted them, Einrogard had more monsters than students.
"Wasn't a flying skeleton, was it? Those are really dangerous."
-Not that one!
-It was that vampiric monster you told us about last time.
"...!!!"
Lee Han was startled.
The vampiric monster that had been lurking somewhere beneath Einrogard, awakened, broken through the death knights' encirclement, and escaped.
He had assumed it fled to the mountains...
But to think it was found beneath the school again.
"Are you sure about this?"
-I saw it. It opened the door, came in, saw us, and ran away.
-Scared out of its wits!
The giants burst into proud laughter. 'Hmm.' But Lee Han's thoughts grew complicated.
It made sense that the creature fled upon seeing the giants. After all, giants were undeniably powerful, and fighting them would bring no benefit.
But to flee immediately...
That meant the creature was more cunning and intelligent than expected. It had clearly learned from its previous encounter with the death knights.
Nothing was more troublesome than a monster with good learning ability. 'If only I can avoid running into it until finals are over...' -Oh. That's not the important part.
"?"
-It was looking for a mage.
-Yeah. It was sniffing for a mage's scent.
"...?!?!!!!"
This was the most shocking thing Lee Han had heard all day.
"It's... looking for me? You're sure it's not mistaken?"
-No mistake. We know when something's sniffing for mages.
-Predators do that often. Even sheep, when angered, sniff out the one who provoked them and break their backs.
The giants of Einrogard's mountains excelled at herding fierce monsters, and as such, they were skilled at discerning a monster's intentions from its behavior.
Their words about the vampiric monster carried weight.
"Why is it chasing me? It's not like I... well, I didn't do nothing wrong, but the death knights were more at fault, I think."
While Lee Han had indeed attacked the vampiric monster during their fight, compared to the death knights, his contribution had been a mere drop in the bucket.
If it wanted revenge, shouldn't it be chasing the death knights first?
-What nonsense are you spouting, mage?
-Mage, you still don't understand beasts well. You need to raise more sheep.
The giants burst into laughter at Lee Han's reaction.
He still lacked experience when it came to the habits of monsters.
-Beasts chase tasty prey, not the hunters who struck them.
-Exactly, exactly. It's clearly fixated on the mage.
"!"
Only then did Lee Han fully grasp what the giants were implying. 'So that's how it is??' It was clear the vampiric monster had come to this underground warehouse following Lee Han's lingering scent.
Though it had fled upon encountering the completely unexpected giants... 'Is it because of my mana? Damn it.' The only explanation for why a vampiric monster he'd never met before would salivate over him was his mana.
-So, mage. We have something to say.
-That's right. Exactly.
The sleeping giants rose, the mural-painting giants approached, and the giants playing chess halted their game.
To be precise, the losing giant stopped. The winning giant grumbled in frustration.
Once gathered, the giants crossed their arms and declared their firm decision.
-We'll act as your escorts.
"...Excuse me?"
-No matter how you look at it, that beast will be a nuisance. Especially for a mage like you.
"...No, that's not—"
For a brief moment, Lee Han was tempted, but he quickly came to his senses.
No matter how reassuring the giants were, he couldn't possibly parade them around as bodyguards.
Setting aside Professor Voladi's exam, rumors would immediately spread that he was the insane student of the entire academy.
-"I heard that underclassman has giants as bodyguards."
-"Is he actually a complete lunatic...?"
"That won't do. You mustn't be discovered."
-Ah. Right.
-That's true.
The giants belatedly realized the situation and grew sullen.
They were worried about Lee Han, yet they couldn't go outside to protect him.
"I'll be fine. I can protect myself well enough."
-Is that so?
-Weren't you just hiding to avoid that powerful mage?
The giants weren't stupid—just unskilled in the Empire's language.
When they mercilessly pointed out the painful truth, Lee Han flinched.
"...Professor Bagrak is a bit of an exception."
-Can't even beat a flying skeleton, can you?
"The Headmaster is also kind of an exception..."
-That clever person.
-What about the troll?
"Professor Garcia is... No, really, I'm quite capable of protecting myself!"
Unconsciously, Lee Han's voice rose in pitch.
The giants were staring at him with pitying eyes.
-Mage. It's fine. Mages are naturally frail.
-Sturdy warriors protect them. Mages are meant to be guarded. That's how it's always been.
'This is unfair.' Lee Han was frustrated that his arguments fell flat because his comparison points were overwhelmingly strong.
Among mages of similar level, he was actually quite good at defending himself!
-Mage. Call us if you need help.
-We'll come to your aid.
"Yes... Thank you."
Lee Han replied with a weary voice.
"Wait. Did the Headmaster trick you?"
It wasn't until right before the final exams that Professor Paselet finally thought of the obvious question that should have occurred to them sooner.
-Is that so?
-Doesn't seem like it.
"No matter what, I doubt he'd ask for a harder exam..."
The Skeleton Principal had claimed, "Lee Han wanted a more difficult exam," which was why they prepared it that way. But upon reflection, it seemed unlikely any student would actually request that.
Something feels off...
-We'll know by his reaction! If it's a lie, he'll say something himself!
At the shout from another personality, Professor Paselet found the reasoning plausible.
Indeed, if the Headmaster had lied, the student himself would surely say, "Professor, my exam seems unusual."
There was no way he wouldn't notice receiving completely different materials from his peers.
A short while later.
The students entered.
Each took their seat and checked their exam materials and instructions.
Lee Han also checked his, then began the exam without raising any objections.
'Uh... Was it true after all?'
Professor Paselet felt slightly guilty toward the Skeleton Principal.