Episode 774
Episode 774
Though it sounded utterly ridiculous, Catten nodded in agreement as he positively viewed the Punishment Room.
"Well, I suppose. It's possible to find something positive even in something as fearsome as the Punishment Room."
"Ha, haha."
"Now that we've roughly covered the lecture, it'd be best for us to start learning from each other, Junior!"
Catten smiled brightly and patted Lee Han on the back.
Though it seemed like a light tap, Lee Han felt the shock reverberate violently through his body. 'Ghk.' Even the simplest movements carried a terrifyingly destructive force hidden within them.
And so, the lecture officially began.
"So, you cast this flame resistance spell and then practice <Low-Grade Flame Barrier>... Hmm. I think it'd be more effective if you attempted it without any resistance spell at all."
"Excuse me?"
"Ultimately, casting a flame resistance spell is to protect the mage, but there's no need to dull the mage's instinctive senses, don't you think?"
"But I could get seriously hurt."
"Hahaha! Junior. Just dodge properly! By the way, didn't you say you struggled with mana control because you had too much mana? How about you try casting without the resistance spell?"
'...Is Senior Voladi paying him off or something?'
Lee Han was horrified at the cheerful suggestion from the cat Beastman senior.
Making things more dangerous to adapt faster?
This was exactly Professor Vol's logic!
"I'd rather just practice with the resistance spell on."
"No, Junior. If it gets dangerous, I'll help you. Trust me."
"No... I'll eventually master it even if I practice with the resistance spell."
Lee Han's situation was different from Catten's.
Catten was in a position where he truly had to learn magic purely through instinct without any calculations, hence his obsession with sharpening his senses. But for Lee Han, all he needed was to learn how to control his mana capacity.
Moreover, this <Low-Grade Flame Barrier> wasn't so much a spell Lee Han couldn't cast—he could cast it, but it was closer to a spell where he struggled to precisely control the flame's power.
So why insist on such recklessness...?
"Junior."
Catten called out to Lee Han in a serious tone.
"Junior, unlike me, you're what you'd call a prodigy."
"...And?"
"For a prodigy like you to waste time training magic could, in a way, be seen as an insult to slowpokes like me."
"That's not what I—"
"So let's do it together! I may not be much help with magic, but if it looks like you're about to get hurt, I'll definitely step in. Come on, Junior. Watch me first! Flames, rise as a barrier!"
Catten confidently chanted the incantation.
But contrary to his will, the mana distributed itself completely chaotically, and instead of forming a flame barrier, sparks merely hissed and sputtered in all directions before fizzling out.
Though it was a failure that didn't even come close to succeeding, Catten paid no mind and immediately prepared to try again.
"Your turn, Junior!"
"...Flames, rise as a barrier."
Lee Han carefully cast the spell.
Flame magic always demanded caution.
The moment he lost focus or poured in even a little too much mana, the flames would swell uncontrollably and burn everything around him.
Unlike Catten, a near-perfect flame barrier rose before him.
Worried he might lose control of his mana, Lee Han concentrated even harder.
Whoosh!
In an instant, the flame barrier thickened and threatened to spew fire in all directions.
Before Lee Han could react, Catten dashed over, knocked him away, and swung his sword to dispel the flame barrier.
"Are you alright, Junior?!"
"...I was fine until you knocked me away."
"Good to hear. Let's practice again, Junior."
"I think I need to recover some mana first."
"I heard your mana is infinite?"
"......"
Lee Han decided he really needed to attack the White Tiger Tower students when he got back.
Catten pulled Lee Han up from where he sat and immediately prepared to challenge the spell again.
When it came to magic, Catten possessed an unshakable spirit of inquiry—never tiring, never wavering.
"Alright. Again!"
"Ugh."
Every time Lee Han lost control of the flame barrier or it threatened to go berserk, Catten would hit him and send him flying.
There were even times when he got hit and sent flying just because the shape wavered slightly.
-Why did you send me flying just now?!
-Wasn't it going berserk?
-It was just a slight wobble in the shape!
-Ah... My apologies, junior. I'm not very knowledgeable about magic...
By this point, Lee Han started thinking Professor Voladi's lectures were better.
At least Professor Voladi taught while knowing what kind of magic he was instructing.
In contrast, Catten, who didn't even understand the magic himself, drove Lee Han relentlessly without mercy.
He pushed on solely with the belief that his junior could definitely do it, no matter how tricky the flame barrier was.
"Huff, huff... Junior. Let's take a short break."
Fortunately, Catten didn't have infinite mana.
Since even small amounts of mana are inevitably consumed with repeated failures, Catten—who had attempted the spell quite a few times—was panting heavily.
"See, Senior. Mana doesn't recover that easily. I think it'd be better if you just took a proper rest."
"Hah. You're right, junior."
Catten agreed with Lee Han.
Lee Han felt slightly disappointed that he couldn't push back and get revenge, but he let it go.
Rather than stubbornly insisting and depriving both of them of rest, it was better to take a break like this...
"Then draw your sword."
"Huh?"
"Junior! While you can't use magic, we can save time by training in swordsmanship!"
"...Shouldn't you also be careful with swordsmanship when you're low on mana...?"
"Hahaha. Junior, that much is fine. Even with low mana, I can still teach you properly!"
Unfortunately for Lee Han, Catten wasn't lying.
Despite having almost no mana left, Catten deftly deflected Lee Han's attacks, redirected them, and occasionally even used limited Small World techniques to block them like an impenetrable fortress.
Even without mana, by altering reality through Small World, he could compensate for what was needed.
Catten was quite satisfied with Lee Han's heavy and fierce swordsmanship, but he still believed that completing Aura required even greater focus and determination.
"Hmm. The Punishment Room really is a good space for concentration."
"I'd prefer any method other than the Punishment Room, though..."
Lee Han trembled, still gripping his sword.
Among his friends, he was considered one of the best in swordsmanship, but Catten's skill was on an entirely different level.
Compensating for his lack of mana with swordsmanship, Catten fought back fiercely, forcing Lee Han—who had intended to overwhelm him with sheer mana and brute force—into prolonged battles again and again.
"Hmm! My mana seems mostly recovered. Let's prepare for magic again."
"......"
Lee Han realized he didn't need to search for hell in another dimension.
This was hell itself.
"Flames, rise as a barrier."
Whoosh.
-Unlike before, a flame barrier with a stable form bloomed forth.
Despite being the one who cast it, Lee Han was slightly taken aback by how perfectly stable the completed spell was.
'...'
Huh?'
Catten, watching from the side, asked in surprise.
"Eh? Junior, this seems complete."
"...You can't really say that, Senior. In truth, the criteria for 'perfectly completing' a spell varies from person to person."
"But this seems like it would generally be considered complete, no? Junior, look. There isn't a single wobble."
"It might start wobbling over ti—"
"No! I'm reading the mana of this barrier, and there's no instability at all! Junior, you've learned another spell today! Congratulations!"
"......"
"Seeing this, I have even more faith in your methodology! I must train harder too!"
On his way to attend the <Languages of the Empire: Blood and Flesh> lecture, Angrago spotted Lee Han and waved.
"Wardanaz. Honestly, I envy you."
"...Why?"
"Don't play dumb. Senior Jahan chose only you. If you're asking whether I'm jealous—yes, I am. Everyone wanted to learn from Senior Jahan."
Angrago made a thoughtful "Hmm, hmm" sound as he nodded his head.
Excluding the fact that his magical skills were slightly lacking, Catten of the Zahan family was someone fully deserving of the White Tiger Tower students' respect.
It was already astonishing that a student had mastered Aura, but to go beyond that stage and even use Small World magic—albeit in a limited capacity...
Though Professor Ingoldel was also an incredible swordsman who surpassed Catten, it was natural for students to admire a senior from their own tower more than a professor.
Angrago, too, wanted to learn swordsmanship from Catten.
"I plan to work harder this semester and ask for his guidance again next semester. Wardanaz, don't get complacent. You're just holding that spot for now. Who knows which one of us might take your place... Ack! Ack!!!"
The students walking behind them looked puzzled as they saw Lee Han mercilessly whacking Angrago's back.
"What's wrong with Angrago?"
"Don't tell me he's making another ridiculous excuse like last time—that he ate his homework in his sleep? It's not like there's that much homework yet..."
"H-Help me, you bastards!"
Angrago called out to his White Tiger Tower friends, but they ignored him and walked into the classroom.
If an external enemy attacked the White Tiger Tower, they'd fight to the death for their fellow tower members—but when it came to Angrago and Lee Han like this, the odds were far higher that Angrago was the one at fault.
"G-Gah! Slip away, from the enemy's grasp!"
Even as his back was being pummeled, Angrago barely managed to chant a Slipperiness spell and wriggle free from Lee Han's grip.
The drastically reduced friction of his clothes allowed him to escape his foe's clutches.
"W-What did I even say... Just you wait, Wardanaz!"
Shouting this, Angrago dashed into the classroom—only to freeze on the spot when a massive wyvern blinked its eyes and stared straight at him.
"...D-Did I come to the wrong classroom?"
"Ah! No, you're in the right place. Everyone, take your seats! Sit down!"
Professor Rosine was one of the relatively sane professors among Einrogard's mad faculty.
Perhaps it was because she had once been an imperial bureaucrat.
But even Professor Rosine seemed to be revealing her true colors now that they were second-years, and the students in the classroom wore deeply troubled expressions.
'Wait, didn't the professor carry around a demon last year too?'
Lee Han thought this to himself as he took his seat.
The students had just wanted to believe otherwise, but in truth, Professor Rosine had always been pretty strange...
Beside him, Gainando was crouching as low as possible, desperately trying to escape the wyvern's gaze.
"L-Lee Han. That thing seems to be staring only at me."
"Ah. Wyverns do tend to prefer blondes a bit more."
"T-That rude monster...!"
Once all the students were seated, Professor Rosine cleared her throat and began speaking.
"Alright! You might have been startled by the wyvern today! But don't worry, everyone. You won't need to ride one or hunt one. The reason I brought a wyvern to class is because I wanted to show you how to converse with one."
After saying this, Professor Rosine began conversing with the wyvern in an extremely complex and bizarre series of cries that the students couldn't understand.
After several exchanges, the professor nodded.
"Gainando, could you move to the very back, please?"
"......"
Pale-faced, Gainando scrambled to the back in a flash.
"Monster Language is far more useful to mages than you might think. Mastering it can sometimes yield even better results than high-level spells. I've listed recommended Monster Languages for each of you—take a look!"
As she spoke, Paper Birds flew toward the students.
After receiving his and reading it, Lee Han raised a puzzled question.
"Professor, I have a question."
"Yes, yes. What is it?"
"Monsters like basilisks are rare in the Empire—wouldn't it be better to prioritize learning other Monster Languages first? I'm not sure there's much need to study theirs."
"...T-That basilisk in your sleeve..."