Episode 733
Episode 733
Diret found herself puzzled by her junior's sudden behavior.
Hadn't the Headmaster always been slightly unhinged from the beginning?
It was also a bit strange that her junior—practically the Headmaster's foremost disciple—was only realizing this now.
"I saw this vision."
Lee Han hastily explained the vision he'd just witnessed.
Knowing full well that a vision seen by a mage—especially one trained in Divination Magic—wasn't something to dismiss lightly, Diret listened with a serious expression.
"How tall were the trees?"
"Pardon?"
"In the vision, how tall were the trees here compared to now?"
"There was almost no difference, but... I think they might have been slightly shorter. Wait, could it be...?"
After meticulously confirming details like the height of the trees, the length of shadows, and other scenery from her junior's vision, Diret fell deep into thought.
Having observed the Dark Forest since her enrollment, even minor discrepancies allowed her to gauge the passage of time.
"Judging by this, it must have happened not too long ago—no more than two or three months at most..."
"...!"
Lee Han's face stiffened upon hearing that his vision depicted events from just months prior.
"If this happened two or three months ago, we're in serious trouble, Senior. We need to return immediately."
"Return to do what?"
"We must send a petition to His Majesty the Emperor and contact the Family Head to prepare for the Headmaster's subjugation."
The oddly specific plan that sprang forth made Diret suspect her junior had contemplated such measures frequently.
"First, calm down, Junior. There are a few strange points here."
"Are you asking why the Headmaster would devise such a plan? Doesn't he enjoy scheming like this?"
"That's not what I meant... It's odd that you saw this vision in the first place. You didn't foresee the future—you witnessed an illusion left behind by another mage."
Diret already knew from last year's experience that her junior had strong resistance to poisons and illusions.
This suggested it wasn't a hostile magical attack but more like an intentional memory residue left by a mage—something meant to be seen by a qualified individual.
If the Headmaster were truly plotting something evil, why would he leave such evidence behind?
"I think I understand now."
"What is it?"
"The Headmaster enjoys that kind of thrill."
"...Junior..."
Diret frowned, but Lee Han only grew more frustrated.
"The Headmaster is brimming with madness! He might reveal his plans to others while scheming precisely because he enjoys it!"
"Couldn't it be someone who resembles the Headmaster?"
Though she knew the possibility was slim, Diret threw out the suggestion to calm her junior down.
Lee Han paused.
"Wait... Now that you mention it, I have heard rumors about the Headmaster's insane doppelgänger."
"What? Really?"
"But that itself might be part of the Headmaster's wicked scheme—a lie fabricated to excuse himself when he causes trouble later..."
"Junior. I think it's the insane doppelgänger."
"...Is that so?"
Unable to argue further when his senior spoke so firmly, Lee Han reluctantly backed down. If Diret was that certain, it might truly be the doppelgänger.
'Though it could just be a false rumor spread by the Headmaster...'
"But why would such an insane doppelgänger associate with Magic Criminals? And why would Magic Criminals revere that doppelgänger as their master?"
"Junior, that's urgent too, but... aren't you even slightly curious about why the Headmaster's insane doppelgänger exists in the first place?"
Of course, confirming the motives of the Magic Criminals and the doppelgänger took priority, but Diret was still amazed that her junior, as a mage, showed no curiosity about it.
Didn't he feel even a shred of curiosity?
"Probably from breathing wrong or sneezing too hard."
"...My guess is that it likely manifested when the Headmaster was ascending to a higher realm of magic."
Having inherited fragments of the ancient Gonadaltes magic from Professor Mortum, Diret had some insight into the Headmaster's arcane arts.
The Skeleton Principal's magic was rooted in esoteric secrets developed during the Kingdom era—an age so ancient it belonged to the distant past of the 'Elder Days.'
As a prince of a minor kingdom, the Headmaster had been an exceptionally gifted mage even among his peers, relentlessly pursuing higher magical realms without mercy.
Delt couldn't possibly know what kind of powerful and extraordinary magic had been involved in that process. No matter how exceptional a student he was, grasping that was beyond his capabilities.
However, he had heard that among those spells was a grand magic capable of severing one's own Seven Emotions and Six Desires.
"There are Liches in the Empire, aren't there? Some dark mages who legally obtained permission to become Liches."
"I've read about them in the newspapers."
It wasn't exactly a secret that dark mages who'd reached higher realms would transform their own flesh into undead to pursue even greater heights.
But surprisingly, not many chose that path because the penalties of lichdom were far more severe than one might think.
If merely changing your wand required an adjustment period, imagine how long it would take to adapt to an entirely new body.
There was no shortage of Liches who'd embraced lichdom with hope, only to end up despairing and going berserk.
"Didn't a mad Lich contaminate the southern granary region last time?"
"Let's not digress, junior. As you've probably guessed, Liches aren't inherently perfect beings. But the Headmaster—though a Lich—is nearly flawless."
Though the Skeleton Principal often boasted about the golden-ratio beauty of his skull's curvature, the perfection Delt was referring to now wasn't about aesthetics.
To have survived from the ancient past until now, he couldn't have been an incomplete being like ordinary Liches.
"So you're saying there must have been grand magics on an entirely different level from ordinary lichdom, and it's no surprise if a mad doppelganger appeared during that process."
"Exactly. I suspect the grand magic that severed the Seven Emotions and Six Desires might be the direct cause. I've never seen such magic described in any book. Given the results, uncontrollable side effects like a berserk doppelganger wouldn't be surprising."
'That makes sense.' Lee Han deeply agreed with Delt's hypothesis.
Judging by how proudly the Skeleton Principal often proclaimed having severed his Seven Emotions and Six Desires, it clearly wasn't ordinary magic.
If even the Headmaster boasted about it, it must have been an exceptionally remarkable ancient magic among ancient magics—and unexpected side effects occurring during its casting wouldn't be strange at all.
"I'd like to support your hypothesis, senior. But if that doppelganger was created through such a process, what purpose would it have for coming to Einrogard?"
"That, I don't know either."
Delt lightly furrowed his brow.
There seemed to be more than one or two mad doppelgangers, and not only was it impossible to know which one this was, but its motives were even harder to predict.
The sane Skeleton Principal was already hard enough to anticipate—let alone a mad one.
"But I can guess the magic criminal's motive. They probably came to learn magic."
"By disguising themselves as an Einrogard student?!"
Lee Han was flustered, thinking they seemed far too old to pass as a freshman.
"Not that. From the Headmaster's doppelganger."
"Ah. Right. It was a bit different from the usual master-disciple relationship."
Normally, masters would pester their disciples to study by following them around, not coldly ignore them like that.
'Your idea of master-disciple relationships is a bit odd too...' Delt thought privately upon hearing Lee Han's description.
The junior was already pitiful enough as it was.
"If it's the Headmaster's doppelganger, it'd be more than qualified to teach magic. I can see why a magic criminal would seek its infamy."
"And if it's the Headmaster's doppelganger, it makes sense that it'd teach capriciously. It wouldn't be strange if it acted on whims whenever bored."
"Junior... you haven't fought with the Headmaster recently, have you?"
"Huh? No, why?"
Lee Han grew puzzled when Delt looked at him with concern.
They'd been having a perfectly rational analysis—why the sudden question?
"J-just asking."
"I can't fathom why the Headmaster's doppelganger brought magic criminals to Einrogard. Maybe they're planning to assassinate the Headmaster."
"That's certainly possible."
Delt's expression hardened.
He decided he'd report everything to the Skeleton Principal the moment they returned.
"But senior."
"?"
"Shouldn't we catch the Dark Snail? You seemed quite intent on chasing it—it must be quite useful..."
"It is useful, but not important enough to chase after right now. Just things like dark element mana recovery, general black magic amplification, undead summon enhancement or reagent enhancement..."
"......"
Lee Han clenched his eyes shut as if berating himself.
He'd brought up the Skeleton Principal's clone for no reason.
The Dark Snail was far more important!
'Damn it. To lose it because of this pointless conversation...'
Just as Lee Han was mentally kicking himself, a sudden sense of unease washed over him.
At the same moment, the bracelet Dilette was wearing jingled, emitting a warning sound. Both mages' expressions changed instantly.
"Senior!"
"Hold tight!"
Dilette reacted immediately like the battle-hardened fifth-year she was.
Any enemy that could trigger her defensive artifact without registering on her senses was definitely not weak.
She bit her left thumb, drawing blood, then flicked it into the air.
From her sleeves, bone fragments imbued with magic shot out, activating spells simultaneously.
-What the hell is that? Utterly ominous!
These were summons on an entirely different level from the temporary shadow summons earlier.
A massive monstrous bird—
one possessing enough spirit to speak human words—appeared and pointed behind them.
But Dilette's magic wasn't finished yet.
With each bone fragment igniting midair, powerful black magic spells activated one after another.
Golems emitting green light grabbed hold of massive bone barriers and slammed them forward like battering rams.
"!"
Lee Han's expression also changed when he saw the enemy's form.
A massive, black, viscous lump of sinister mana was surging through the forest like a tidal wave.
That was absolutely no naturally occurring forest monster.
'Is it the Headmaster's crazy clone? Or a magic criminal?'
Whoever had left it behind didn't matter right now.
Lee Han immediately prepared various spells to counter the threat.
Whoosh! Crackle!
3-Circle frost and lightning spells flew like bullets in rapid succession.
Seeing this, Dilette couldn't help but smile faintly even as she urgently prepared her own spells. Such a reliable junior was rare indeed.
"The hits..."
When the enemy quickly regenerated after taking damage, Lee Han frowned.
Enemies with such powerful regeneration were difficult to defeat through physical attacks alone. It would just become an endless battle of attrition.
They needed either overwhelming firepower or to strike at its weakness...
"Blood within my bones, transform into venom and become a vicious curse!"
Meanwhile, Dilette completed her spell.
'A curse spell?!'
A curse that damaged the enemy's very existence would indeed be effective.
But curse magic was easily blocked with minimal defenses—honestly, it was more commonly used among mages for suppression.
Seeing it enhanced to such a vicious degree, Lee Han couldn't help but admire it as a fellow black magic practitioner.
"...Weak!"
But Dilette clicked her tongue upon realizing the curse hadn't dealt a critical blow.
-Danger! Dilette! Danger!
The monstrous bird carrying them shrieked a warning.
Despite the golems and bone barriers restraining the enemy, it was gaining speed.
'...'
Preemptive strike!'
With a sinister incantation, Dilette drew out a darkly pulsating sphere from her chest.
The mana was so densely compressed that space distorted around it the moment it appeared, screaming in protest.
'A Small World!'
Lee Han instantly understood what spell his senior was attempting.
Thanks to the Skeleton Principal's forced lessons, he'd studied this in the meantime.
Though he didn't recognize the sphere itself, it undoubtedly helped temporarily activate a Small World.
Yet even with such compressed mana, it seemed insufficient—Dilette gripped the sphere and began channeling more power into it.
Her face paled instantly, blood trickling from her nose.
In desperation, Lee Han grabbed the sphere to assist.
"I'll help too!"
"...!!!"
Unlike himself, who was carefully gathering ambient mana to channel, his junior recklessly poured raw energy in with bare hands. Dilette's eyes widened in shock.
"...You damn brat...!"
Lee Han pretended not to hear and averted his gaze.