Episode 628
Episode 628
Giselle and her clinging friend both stiffened simultaneously.
"You're a Moradi. Didn't you say you'd crawl around on broken limbs using magic?"
"Oh dear. Giselle just has a fondness for jokes, that's all."
At her sister's shameless reply, Giselle nearly dropped Lee Han.
"But the other knights of our family—"
"That was a mistake, wasn't it? Wardanaz. Did you learn anything from watching this swordsmanship?"
"Hmm."
Lee Han, still lying sideways, sank into thought at the question.
'Honestly, I learned more from the overall situation than the swordsmanship itself.'
Having always sparred with powerful professors like Voladi and Ingoldel, who held back for his sake, Lee Han had been harboring a misconception.
The reality was that actual enemies wouldn't show him the same consideration as those professors.
The biggest flaw in this fight was undoubtedly...
'I should've prepared more thoroughly from the very beginning.'
If a knight of that caliber had truly committed to the attack, Lee Han's current firepower wouldn't have been enough to stop them.
He should've immediately brought out his strongest measures, like Perkuntra or the Bracelet of Ten Thousand Demons.
Only by buying time and restricting their movement could he have found a way to deal damage.
'If I can't match them in swordsmanship, I should've prepared magic to immobilize them. And if I couldn't prepare immobilizing magic, I should've at least used Perkuntra or the Bracelet. How could I act so carelessly so soon after leaving Einrogard?'
Lee Han deeply reflected on his complacency.
To think he'd grown this lax just because he'd left Einrogard.
If Professor Voladi had seen this, he might've said, "My student acting so recklessly? From now on, I'll teach with the intent to kill."
"I learned a great deal."
"Then I'm glad."
Jiklin's expression remained stoic, but her eyes conveyed warmth—a gaze hard to believe belonged to the knight who'd just tried to kill someone.
As Jiklin turned away, Giselle looked at Lee Han and spoke.
"Hey. Get down."
"Ah."
Lee Han hopped down from Giselle's arm and landed.
"Still, it ended well, right?"
"..."
"Yeah."
Though Giselle still felt somewhat aggrieved, she had no choice but to admit it.
This was indeed the best possible outcome.
"From now on, it'd be better to at least try blocking once with a sword."
"What!?"
Giselle stared at her friend in disbelief at Lee Han's words.
But surprisingly, Wardanaz wasn't joking.
"...You seriously plan to try blocking!?"
"If you want to survive, shouldn't you get used to blocking?"
Thinking of Professors Voladi and Ingoldel, Lee Han asked as if it were obvious.
By second or third year, those professors would gradually ramp up their intensity and beat the students senseless. If he didn't prepare in advance, he might genuinely end up crawling through Einrogard.
And in Lee Han's case, given what he'd heard, crawling might be the least of his worries—he could end up wandering around as an undead...
Giselle, who had been staring at Wardanaz in renewed realization, felt a twinge of remorse.
'Right. I shouldn't be thinking of running first.'
No matter how formidable her sister was, fleeing shouldn't have been her first instinct.
As a mage who needed to maintain distance, she should've been even more aggressive in her offense.
"Right. You might have a point."
Though the depth, breadth, and sophistication of their swordsmanship techniques would differ vastly, being able to at least manifest an aura could buy her some time to endure.
Nodding in agreement, Giselle was about to—
—when she suddenly froze.
An overwhelming ache began surging through her entire body.
"...M-magic backlash."
"What?"
"The backlash... it's coming."
"!"
Only then did Lee Han realize Giselle's condition.
Having cast multiple powerful Enhancement Magic spells, the resulting muscle pain was now crashing down on her.
"Here, drink this potion."
Having cast Enhancement Magic many times before, Lee Han quickly pulled out a potion.
Giselle hastily drank it and let out a sigh of relief as the pain subsided.
"That's impressive. Is this a potion made by Maykin?"
"We made it together."
"I thought muscle pain potions were quite difficult to brew..."
Treating widespread pain rather than simple fractures or cuts required a much more advanced technique.
"It's not a muscle pain potion—it's a pain relief potion. You should lie down before the effects wear off."
"......"
Giselle held back a curse.
Well, expecting a first-year like him to have a muscle pain potion was a bit shameless to begin with.
"...Fine. Just help me up then."
"Moradi. There's something I need to tell you, but I'd appreciate it if you didn't get mad."
"Just hearing that makes me angry already, so I don't know if I can promise that... But go ahead."
"There's a banquet tonight."
"...Stand by that cliff over there for a second. I won't push you. Seriously."
Some knights of the Empire claimed that "the straightforward and honest gatherings of knights are on a completely different level from the roundabout chatter of noble gatherings," but in truth, knightly gatherings weren't all that different from noble ones.
If noble gatherings were usually held in salons or halls, knightly gatherings took place in castles or fortresses.
If noble gatherings began and ended with balls, exhibitions, or various plays and concerts, knightly gatherings were bookended by sparring matches, martial demonstrations, or—if the alcohol was particularly strong that day—sincere duels.
If noble gatherings discussed recent events while meticulously observing etiquette and decorum, knightly gatherings did so in a rougher, friendlier manner.
As such, the northern knights gathered at tonight's banquet were overjoyed to see familiar faces they hadn't met in a long time and chatted excitedly.
"Brother! Long time no see. Isn't this the first time since the Snowflake Forest subjugation?"
"Your reputation reached even where I was, so I could keep up with your news. Hahaha!"
Here and there, knights clad in half-armor could be heard shouting.
A few knights were already red-faced, having grown impatient and snatched drinks from the servants before they could be properly served.
Rather than scolding the knights for their impatience, the others blamed the servants for not bringing the drinks fast enough.
"You should've brought the drinks quicker! You can't leave a knight who's come all the way from the northern edge thirsty!"
"My apologies, Sir."
The hardened servants of the north were no strangers to knights throwing tantrums for alcohol, so they remained unfazed and simply brought the next barrel.
"The Moradi family's influence remains strong. Damn it!"
"Lower your voice. This is Moradi territory."
"Surely they wouldn't press charges at such a joyous occasion."
Where there were people drinking and enjoying themselves, there were bound to be those who were angry.
Among the northern knight families, not all were allied with the Moradi family—some were rivals vying for supremacy.
Naturally, knights from such families couldn't help but envy this grand banquet.
After all, the banquet itself symbolized wealth, prestige, and the family's connections.
"But I've heard that the Moradi family's direct line is close with the Wardanaz family—is that true?"
"Impossible."
The skeptical knights scoffed.
Even if families boasted to flaunt their influence, there were limits.
What kind of family was the Wardanaz family, anyway?
Weren't they the most reclusive and isolated of the Empire's noble houses?
There was no way a scion of such a family would suddenly start mingling with outsiders.
"But I've heard it from multiple sources. That they studied together at Einrogard..."
"Don't dismiss me just because I'm not a mage—I know a thing or two about Einrogard as well."
A middle-aged dwarf knight spoke with confidence.
"'Just because they're from Einrogard doesn't mean they're all friends! Far from it. If their backgrounds don't align, they might as well be sworn enemies. The Moradi family is a knightly house while the Wardanaz family has produced mages for generations—how could they possibly get along? If they're actually friendly, I'll cut off my beard!'"
"Those are certainly wise words!"
The experienced dwarf knight's statement made the surrounding knights nod in agreement.
It was an undeniably logical argument.
"Shall we head inside now? My throat's getting parched from all this talking outside."
"Indeed. Whatever else may be said of the Moradi family, they certainly know how to treat their guests properly..."
As the knights passed through the entrance of the massive tent, an even louder uproar assaulted their ears.
Knights gathered around tables made from halved giant logs were roaring with laughter.
Yet none of the newcomers seemed surprised—this was a familiar sight.
When had a knightly banquet ever waited for the host's declaration to begin?
Half the attendees were usually drunk before the host even made their speech.
"Good evening."
"!"
The knights quickly bowed upon seeing the familiar scion of the Moradi family.
No matter how much they might be rivals, acting disrespectful after being invited to a feast would get them ostracized from knightly circles in the North.
"It is an honor to meet a descendant of the Moradi family, the Shield of the North."
"Thank you."
The Moradi heir staggered with every step as if gravely wounded, prompting the boy beside him to swiftly support him.
"Your reflexes are slow."
"My apologies, Lord Moradi."
"Are you mocking me? Why the formal speech? Have you lost your mind??"
"I was just trying to express my sincere remorse..."
"???"
The knights eyed the boy with puzzlement.
They had assumed he was a servant or attendant of the Moradi family, but his demeanor was far too aristocratic for that.
"Might we inquire who this young man is?"
"Ah. This is Lee Han of the Wardanaz family. He was unofficially invited to stay with us for a while."
"...?!!!"
The knights' eyes widened.
Unofficial visits to noble houses usually only happened when the guest was close friends with a family member.
There was no way the Wardanaz family would send someone for any other reason—this boy had to be that very student from the rumors.
"Moradi. Want a drink?"
"Do I look like I can handle alcohol right now?"
"Sorry. Then... cake?"
"Just stop asking. I don't want anything."
"Gainando always cheers up when he eats cake."
"...Care to explain what exactly you were trying to imply with that, Wardanaz? I'm genuinely curious."
"My bad. Even I'll admit that was a bit much."
The two muttered to each other as they walked toward the other knights.
Though their exchange was tense, to an outside observer, they appeared quite close.
"Wh-what in the world...?"
"But you said Einrogard students aren't necessarily friends!"
The stunned knights turned to the dwarf knight for answers.
The middle-aged dwarf knight, looking utterly defeated, held out his dagger.
"G-go ahead. Cut my beard."
"......"
* * *
The Skeleton Principal, who had been yawning beside the family head, suddenly remembered something and asked,
"Come to think of it, I heard you've been keeping Wardanaz around?"
"Yes. I was deeply impressed by how efficiently he improved our magic circles."
"To that extent? Ah. Using mana... What a brute."
The Skeleton Principal immediately understood.
The Wardanaz boy had access to an absurd shortcut no other mage could replicate.
"That's not all. He even restructured the positioning of our external knights to optimize their movements. He said he learned it at Einrogard."
The family head's usually cold expression faintly revealed his admiration as he spoke.
The Skeleton Principal, puzzled at first, suddenly jolted in realization.
"Wait—was it Wardanaz who made us relocate the knights' quarters?!"
"Yes."
'What kind of lunatic is this?'
The Skeleton Principal was speechless.
Among all Einrogard students, this was the first time he'd encountered one who tried to reshape the entire Empire in Einrogard's image.
Not even the Demon King would go that far!