Episode 653
Episode 653
After Prince Gainando was dragged off to the punishment room, his friends were each shown their guest quarters...
"Lord Wardanaz shall reside in the Azure Crane Hall, Lord Maykin in the Scarlet Spirit Offering Hall, and Lady Nilia in the Righteous Cloud Hall..."
One by one, they were each assigned their own separate mansions to stay in.
Surprisingly, the massive building they'd assumed was the Kraha family's main residence turned out to merely be the reception mansion near the front gates.
Lee Han spoke with a lovestruck expression, as if he'd fallen for the Kraha family itself:
"Should we go rescue Gainando right now?"
"Hold on, Lee Han! Lady Kraha would probably appreciate us treating this normally rather than coddling him like she does!"
Yoner and the others quickly grabbed Lee Han by both arms.
Judging by the look in his eyes, it wouldn't have been surprising if he'd actually rushed off to save Gainando immediately.
"Haha. Just kidding. I'm joking."
"That didn't sound like a joke at all."
Nilia muttered in a horrified voice.
She'd never seen Wardanaz make such a blissfully happy expression before.
While a despairing Wardanaz was terrifying, a happy Wardanaz somehow felt even more bizarre and unsettling.
"The Kraha family's wealth is truly astonishing. Lee Han, there aren't any families like this up north..."
"The Moradi family isn't bad either, right?"
"Haha. Lee Han. Even if the Moradi lands are vast, compared to this place they're practically a prison! There's nothing up there!"
"......"
Lee Han, who'd tried to cheer up Durgyu, grew slightly flustered at his cold response.
When it came to harsh assessments of the Empire's frigid northern territories, no one was more brutally honest than northerners themselves.
Nilia paled when she saw the size of her private mansion.
Having to live alone with servants in such an enormous residence—it already reminded her of the nightmare when she'd first visited the Maykin family.
The only difference this time was that Yoner would be staying in a separate mansion too!
"Nilia. Are you going to be okay?"
"W-what are you talking about? I'm totally fine! The Maykin family was way more demanding! This is nothing!"
"......"
"......"
Not only Lee Han who'd asked the question, but even Yoner stared at Nilia in disbelief.
Flushing red, Nilia hastily clarified:
"Not that the Maykin household was difficult or anything!"
"Yeah, we know."
"Calm down, Nilia."
Lee Han shot Yoner a look, silently pleading with him to visit often.
Yoner nodded, then suddenly paused.
"Lee Han, what are you planning? You're not thinking of going to rescue Gainando, are you?"
"...Ah, no. I was just going to meet him and come right back."
It took two full days before Gainando was finally released, plopping down sulkily among his friends.
Since the family's grounds were so vast and their respective mansions so far apart, the group mainly gathered in the gardens near the reception mansion.
"Only one of you came to see me the whole time?!"
"What are you talking about, Gainando? Everyone went to visit you. We just had to turn back because they said we were coming too often."
"Huh, really?"
Yoner nodded solemnly as if confirming this. The others exchanged puzzled glances.
'When did we ever go visit him?'
Aside from Lee Han, no one had gone...
"What did you guys do while I was gone? Play Wizard Card games? Discuss magazines?"
"Some walks, meeting other guests staying at the mansions..."
"Lady Nilia was truly remarkable."
Priest Siana gazed at Nilia with admiration. The others nodded in agreement.
She'd been so eloquent that rumors spread among the guests—"When will Lady Nilia appear next?" "I'd love to meet her too."
"I never want to see them again..."
But Nilia's ears drooped exhaustedly.
Every fifty meters during her walks, some noble she'd never met before would approach to strike up a conversation.
Her mind went completely blank—she couldn't even remember what she'd said to them.
"Didn't you run into anyone on your way here today? There must have been people strolling the paths hoping to meet you."
"I drank an invisibility potion and crawled through the bushes. Why?!"
"...Ah, right. Sorry for asking."
"Kkh... I should've been there instead."
Gainando shot Nilia a jealous glare, resentful that she'd stolen all the social attention at the mansion.
Nilia was dumbfounded.
'Can this punk not see I literally crawled through bushes to get here?'
"Anything else?"
"Everyone taught Eandurde various things."
Seeing Lee Han mentoring his junior, the other friends also felt compelled to teach something.
Yoner shared basics of herbology, Nilia gave tips for navigating mountains, Durgyu demonstrated simple combat techniques...
Eandurde sat slumped in a corner, utterly deflated. Noticing this, Gainando clapped his hands in understanding.
"Ah! You've finally realized how incredible our seniors are!"
"No. He's just suffocating in those new clothes. Eandurde. You need to learn to endure wearing fancy attire too."
"Grrr."
"Use proper words to respond."
"Understood..."
Amid the chatter, Alsicle appeared. The penguin beastman mage looked even more exhausted than when he'd arrived.
"What's wrong?"
"The people here kept inviting me places... I don't even know how much pickled herring I've eaten."
"Tsk. You should've refused."
"Can't. My research requires substantial funding. You never know when or how patronage might come, so I can't afford to be rude."
Alsicle plopped down heavily.
The junior mages looked mildly impressed by their senior's haggard appearance.
A mage's greatness shines not only when researching profound magic, but also in enduring hardships to pursue that research.
"Oh right. I heard Baldrogard students are visiting, so I came to tell you."
"...Lord Pengerin!!!"
"You can't do this to us!"
"We were just respecting you! Traitor!"
Alsicle responded to the juniors' outcry with a weary voice.
"I'm a guest here too—how could I refuse their visit?"
"You should've threatened to summon a blizzard if Baldrogard students came! It's your family's mansion!"
'It's your family though...' Alsicle was flabbergasted by Gainando's tantrum.
In all his years, he'd never met someone who demanded he summon a blizzard at his own family's estate.
At least Lee Han regained his composure first and asked,
"What's the reason for Baldrogard's visit?"
"They probably heard rumors. That Einrogard students are staying at the Kraha family mansion."
"Naturally. Their goal must be to score cheap victories against rival magic school students to bolster their shallow pride."
"...Ah, no. That's not it."
Alsicle grew flustered as even Lee Han joined in.
"They're likely just coming to greet fellow mages from another school. Building connections is never bad among mages. I doubt they have ulterior motives."
Despite his explanation, the students remained unconvinced.
"What if Baldrogard students come with shady intentions?"
"Given their caliber, they'll probably just boast about themselves..."
Baldrogard students were essentially hothouse flowers—mages who didn't devote themselves deeply to magic.
Even if they came to show off, their skills wouldn't be particularly impressive.
"So they're coming to boast, is that it?"
"Well, as magic school graduates, they'll naturally want to showcase their abilities..."
"Unforgivable!"
At Priest Siana's words, the others nodded vehemently.
If they came to flaunt their magic at the mansion, they wouldn't get away with it!
Eandurde tilted his head and asked Lee Han,
"What's Baldrogard?"
"Haha. The name of our enemy."
"Enemy!"
'Should I have actually stopped this...?' Alsicle began regretting not summoning that blizzard after all.
"Look over there! It's the Baldrogard students!"
"Such honorable mages of Baldrogard! How impressive!"
Hearing the voices from the roadside, Ingsen and Basiu smiled with satisfaction.
They could feel that Baldrogard's reputation had spread not just through the western region but across the entire empire.
"So it's true that Einrogard students are at the mansion?"
"Indeed!"
"I'm curious about their magical skills. After all, Einrogard is said to rival Baldrogard as one of the empire's top magic schools."
"Exactly! The twin pillars leading the empire's magical arts!"
The two students casually spouted such outrageous statements that, had the Skeleton Principal heard them, he would have instantly transformed them into insects.
But it couldn't be helped.
These were students who had spent barely a year at Baldrogard—what could they possibly know about the empire's magical circles? The second and third-year Baldrogard students were gradually realizing there was quite a gap in how the two schools were evaluated among true mages, but they never shared this with their juniors.
It was to preserve Baldrogard's dignity and honor.
And since ordinary citizens of the empire, excluding actual mages, viewed both schools similarly, it wasn't entirely wrong either.
"Basiu. Keep this between us. I plan to exact some light revenge for our seniors."
"Revenge?! What do you mean?"
"Remember the seniors who visited Einrogard last time?"
At Ingsen's words, Basiu searched his memory.
There had indeed been seniors who visited Einrogard's festival last year.
"Ah. Right. That happened."
"Back then, the Einrogard mages shamelessly sent out upperclassmen to humiliate our seniors."
"That's right! How could they stoop so low...!"
The two grew indignant.
The Baldrogard students who had visited Einrogard last year were merely second or third-years.
Yet, to disgrace such guests, Einrogard had cowardly deployed a fourth-year student.
Worse, that fourth-year was ruthless and underhanded—according to the seniors who recounted the story—lulling the Baldrogard students into complacency before ambushing them with Water Elemental Magic.
"An ambush? That's new."
"No, it was an ambush. They said some kind of trick was involved."
"Come to think of it, it was strange how easily they lost despite being thoroughly prepared!"
The more they heard, the more it seemed like foul play had been involved.
Otherwise, no matter how senior their opponent was, they wouldn't have been so completely overwhelmed.
"And it was a fifth-year."
"What? Really? I heard it was a fourth-year."
"No. The seniors looked into it again—it was a fifth-year."
"A fifth-year?! That's even more cowardly!"
Ingsen seethed at the insult to noble honor. Not just a fourth-year, but a fifth-year.
What despicable Einrogard students they were.
"I think it's because Einrogard accepts all sorts of riffraff, not just nobles. From knights down to slaves!"
"Basiu. Don't say such undignified things. Even the professors warned us. A great mage deserves respect regardless of lineage."
"That may be true, but look at us now. Baldrogard is honorable, while Einrogard has fallen. What else explains the difference?"
Ingsen couldn't argue with Basiu's point.
No Baldrogard student would ever disgrace a guest by sending out a fifth-year.
"But Ingsen, how will you take revenge? Anything crude wouldn't suit your honor."
"Simple. As mages, we'll use magic for revenge!"
Gripping his staff, Ingsen made his declaration.
Though they didn't yet know the Einrogard students' capabilities, Basiu wasn't worried at all. Ingsen's skills ranked among the top first-years at Baldrogard.
"I've prepared several spells for this very day. Not the common ones spread throughout the empire—spells even Einrogard students won't recognize. Let's see how they react when I unleash them!"
"Ingsen, your magic is as magnificent as your honor!"
The two exchanged solemn smiles and nodded.
Now was the time to reclaim the tarnished honor of their seniors from those Einrogard students.