Episode 710
Episode 710
But there was no helping it.
Currently, there were three main people connected to Lee Han's artifact notebook <Whispers of Einrogard>.
One was Diret, another was his same-year classmates, and the last one was this very opponent.
And unlike the first two, this person deserved absolutely no respect.
'That first-year seems talented in Enchantment Magic. If he takes Enchantment Magic, I plan to have him assist with my work next year.'
'Given that he's eccentric enough to hang around Ilendil and has close ties with Black Magic faction students, this Wardanaz family first-year has an extremely high chance of having narrow and problematic social relationships.'
If he'd known who it was, these would have been insults worthy of immediately blasting magic at their face.
Just what kind of person would say such rude things?
Originally, Lee Han had suspected that if any senior was going to invite him to a club first, it would be this opponent.
Though the method became meaningless since too many seniors wanted to invite him to clubs...
'No need to be nice about it.'
Sometimes, certain people need cold, harsh criticism.
Especially those who try to boss juniors around as they please.
He knew they were rude originally, but today was especially bad. Why were they acting like this?
-Did you contact me just to talk about that junior again? No matter how strange that junior is for taking multiple magic factions, it's unacceptable for a senior to harass them just to make them help with their work.
Lee Han played the role of a chivalrous Black Turtle Tower student and vigorously scribbled with his quill.
The opponent beyond the mirror slowly shook their head at the sharp reaction.
'Still emotional, I see.'
Though they'd been conversing since last year, this Black Turtle Tower (or, less likely, White Tiger Tower) student had the flaws of being violent-tempered, impatient, and stubborn.
Even considering those flaws, they'd seemed like a usable talent, which was why they'd made contact to propose this—but this reaction was unexpected.
The opponent beyond the mirror calmly decided to soothe them.
Persuading a student less intelligent than oneself was something they'd experienced countless times at Einrogard, so it wasn't particularly difficult.
That wasn't the reason.
-That wasn't the reason?
Yes. Due to personal circumstances, the proposal to that junior has been temporarily put on hold.
"!"
Lee Han was startled.
The opponent beyond the mirror had yielded to his stubbornness!
'Can people... really change?'
For a moment, he almost felt moved, but Lee Han soon cooled down.
'No. It must be because of the clubs.'
Thinking about it, wasn't the current situation that official clubs were brawling because of Lee Han?
In this situation, no one would drag a junior around to make them assist with research. Only someone like Professor Verdus would have that kind of mentality.
-I see. You thought well. As a senior, tormenting juniors is truly...
You're the one misunderstanding here. That Wardanaz family junior enjoys learning. It's not just two or three factions—they're trying to learn magic from every faction. Do you understand what it means to try learning all factions' magic like Professor Garcia Kim? It's good to care for juniors, but don't overprotect them. From the junior's perspective, it'd just be annoying.
Thud!
Lee Han angrily threw the notebook against the wall.
Then, after a moment, he regained his composure and picked it back up.
'This damn bastard.'
It felt like the opponent was deliberately trying to rub Lee Han's temper raw.
And the most infuriating part was that he couldn't refute their argument.
Because logically, based solely on established facts, the opponent's argument was correct.
'Damn it. Even I have to admit someone taking all factions seems kind of crazy.'
Lee Han gave up on arguing and decided to be satisfied that the opponent had temporarily retreated due to the club conflicts.
-Stop the noise and get to the point. So what do you want to say?
Join the club.
"...?"
Lee Han froze at the opponent's words.
He couldn't understand what they were saying.
-Are you talking about an unofficial club?
Correct.
-I'm not interested in unofficial clubs. I have no intention of joining.
This isn't the kind of club you're imagining. In fact, you're already a member.
Lee Han gripped his staff and glanced around.
Fortunately, he didn't sense any curses or magic.
'What the hell is this guy...? Who even is he?'
Spouting nonsense about him already being in some club.
-I have no idea what you're talking about.
Merely possessing this artifact means you've met the club's membership conditions. Let me show you.
No sooner had the words been spoken than the letters Lee Han had been scribbling with his quill pen began to tangle, collapse, and transform into new words.
Lee Han sensed the mana fluctuation within and was stunned.
'He remotely... modified the artifact?!'
It was unbelievable.
To manipulate an artifact from an unseen distance through sheer willpower alone—
Of course, the magic must have been pre-programmed into the artifact during its creation. Otherwise, such manipulation would have been impossible.
But even accounting for that, it was an unbelievable display of genius.
Just how many spells had been crammed into that artifact to make this possible?
Moreover, to avoid arousing suspicion when viewed externally, the spells had to be meticulously woven in while disguising themselves as entirely different magic.
While Lee Han was still reeling, the transformation completed, and new text appeared.
Yakhtus:
From what I've heard, the reason the Stonemason Club wants him is because he assisted the headmaster with repairs last year, and during winter break, members who visited the Tutanta family heard praise about him... Wait. Is he a new member?
Bakwantalana:
Yes. Since we lost one member, we need a replacement. I invited him.
'A group communication artifact!'
Just like the ones he'd shared with friends, it was clear this was a space where students gathered to exchange information.
The person calling themselves Yakhtus was the senior he'd just encountered, while the one named Bakwantalana—judging by the handwriting—was the person on the other side of the mirror who had been speaking with Lee Han moments ago.
'Named after a legendary Enchantment Mage, huh. Fitting for someone majoring in Enchantment Magic.'
Lee Han recalled that the person beyond the mirror specialized in Enchantment Magic.
It made sense they'd adopt the name of a legendary Enchantment Mage.
Bakwantalana:
We are a secret club—the Watchers of Einrogard. We don't gather for activities or socialize like other clubs. We follow only two rules...
And those are?
Bakwantalana:
Keep secrets. Share information.
"...!"
Lee Han immediately grasped what kind of organization this secret society was.
Einrogard was a place where even your closest friend might betray you.
A place where you could never know when your meticulously planned headmaster's office sabotage might be exposed.
But at the same time, Einrogard was a place where information mattered more than anywhere else in the empire.
A single piece of intel obtained just a little sooner than others could mean the difference between life and death.
The Watchers of Einrogard was clearly an expanded version of what Lee Han and Diret had been trying to achieve—exchanging information with anonymous students.
Had they gathered to share Einrogard's most guarded secrets?
Yakhtus:
Quick on the uptake, aren't you?
Bakwantalana:
Indeed.
Bakwantalana elaborated further.
To join the Watchers of Einrogard, an existing member had to extend an invitation, followed by approval from a majority of the other members.
For the club's purpose to hold, its members needed at least a minimum level of competence.
There was no room for passive members who only lurked without contributing information.
So, did I get majority approval?
Yakhtus:
No. You're a bit of an exception. One member graduated, leaving a vacancy, and Bakwantalana invited you. Bakwantalana is... special. They oversee and manage the artifacts.
Iactus briefly explained Bakwantalana's role.
Bakwantalana could obtain one end of an ordinary communication artifact and trace back through the other end to invite someone into <The Watchers of Einrogard>.
At the same time, it was also possible to expel a specific person's communication artifact from <The Watchers of Einrogard>.
If a communication artifact were to be confiscated by the Skeleton Principal, the entire club could collapse without such expulsion measures, making Bakwantalana's role extremely crucial.
'What the...!!!'
Lee Han was genuinely shocked to learn that this artifact manipulation wasn't something pre-prepared but rather achieved by tracing back through a connected artifact.
No wonder he hadn't noticed anything—there really had been no preparation at all.
'...'
Truly amazing. The seniors aren't seniors for nothing.'
He felt a renewed sense of humility.
No matter how Lee Han had taken courses from all schools at Einrogard and stood out among them, the seniors had also spent that time building their own unique magic—magic that Lee Han couldn't easily surpass.
Bakwantalana: "Let's avoid any statements that could be misunderstood. I'm just another member, after all."
Iactus: "I was just explaining honestly. It's true that you serve as an administrator, isn't it? And it's also true that everyone respects you. Anyway, congrats on the new member. We look forward to your active participation. The other members are probably busy recharging their mana right now. Thankfully, we've secured enough magic stones..."
These communication artifacts had to be placed in locations with a continuous mana supply or required a mage to supply mana directly.
Since the semester had just begun, it seemed the other members hadn't yet gathered the necessary mana.
Iactus: "By the way, what form does your artifact take? I'm lucky mine's a chalkboard, but some of the others have crystal ball artifacts. The handwriting on that one is atrocious, I tell you."
Mine's a notebook.
Iactus: "Haha! Interesting. A notebook wouldn't be enough to join this Watcher Club. Even if it looks like a simple communication artifact, this club requires a lot more mana than you'd think."
Lee Han realized he'd made a mistake out of panic.
Even if he obtained information, he needed to hide his identity—yet he had answered straightforwardly.
'Not working, huh.'
It's a mirror-type artifact.
Iactus: "Ah, a mirror? That's better at least. At least it's not round. Don't forget what I said about mana. You'll need way more than a regular communication artifact. Every summer, a few people end up unable to participate."
Iactus went on to explain the mana consumed by the various defensive and secrecy spells maintaining the Watcher Club.
Lee Han set down the notebook and quietly checked his own mana.
'Hmm. No change at all.'
The negligible impact on his mana made him feel a bit awkward—it must not have been much.
Iactus: "Speaking of which, shouldn't we decide on a name for you? It's awkward not having one."
A name... An alias, then?
Iactus: "Of course. If you don't like an alias, you can use your real name."
Bakwantalana: "I don't recommend it. Revealing your real name is dangerous."
Iactus: "To be honest, even with an alias, people can still make some guesses!"
Bakwantalana: "Unnecessary bravado only raises suspicion—it won't help you, Iactus."
Iactus: "Does it sound like bravado? I'm pretty sure I know who some of you are."
While the seniors debated, Lee Han pondered over an alias.
Naturally, he had no intention of using his real name, but choosing an alias turned out to be unexpectedly difficult.
It had to be something completely unconnected to Lee Han—names like Gainando or Moradi were out of the question.
Using such aliases would be practically handing them clues...
'Something as neutral and unguessable as possible... What could work?'
As Lee Han agonized, a prompt came.
In the end, he made a quick decision.
Gonadaltes: "Nice to meet you all."
Bakwantalana: "......"
Iactus: "..."
You crazy bastard?