Episode 783
Episode 783
Lee Han desperately tried to escape the situation.
After receiving the map, he had hoped to comfortably get through this semester's Summoning Magic class and didn't want to increase the difficulty level in his remaining free time. 'If it's an artifact older brother was searching for, there's absolutely no way it could be a normal object.' Arsil was the collector of the Wardanaz family.
If he'd been a collector from any other family, he might have peacefully gathered beautiful artworks while laughing heartily, but the Wardanaz family's collector gathered bizarre objects from other dimensions and admired them while making "kyaaah" sounds. 'Even the gifts he gave me in the past were like that.' The presents Arsil had given in the past were utterly horrifying.
When he first received them, Lee Han had even wondered, 'Is this some kind of covert power struggle within the Wardanaz family against their newly born heir?'
But surprisingly, Arsil had no malicious intent whatsoever. He simply couldn't guess what his much younger brother might like.
Though one might argue that giving things like evil dimensional irregular polyhedrons or bizarre hybrid demons was worse than having malicious intent...
Fortunately, things had improved recently.
This was thanks to Arsil, who kept giving gifts to his younger brother, finally realizing, "Ah, perhaps evil dimensional irregular polyhedrons or bizarre hybrid demons might be a bit too extreme as gifts for a brother who hasn't even lived a century yet."
But this wasn't a prepared gift—it was an artifact he'd been searching for.
There was a chance they might catch a glimpse of Arsil's pure madness, which had been forgotten for a while.
"I really don't need it."
Arsil firmly shook his head and then pointed at the scroll, saying something.
Salko cautiously asked,
"What is he saying?"
"He says if we're not looking for the artifact, we should take the scroll. He says he can't deprive us of a learning opportunity."
"Wardanaz! Tell him we've already learned enough! Gaining guidance from others is also part of a mage's ability!"
"Older brother isn't from Einrogard, so that reasoning won't work on him..."
If he were a mage from Einrogard, he might have agreed that "stealing and snatching guidance is also part of learning," but Arsil wasn't from Einrogard.
Outsiders simply couldn't understand Einrogard's aesthetics.
As expected, Arsil spoke again.
"We believe that you, Lee Han, can become an even greater mage than Archmage Gonadaltes."
"That belief feels a bit excessive..."
Even his family brothers, who were only a century or so older, couldn't keep up with him—how was he supposed to match a skeleton principal who was millennia older?
Lee Han pointed out the reality, but Arsil ignored him and instead pointed to several parts of the map, insisting that he check them thoroughly.
"...Alright. I'll try my best."
Once Arsil said that, there was nothing Lee Han could do. The butterfly spirit beside him fluttered its wings as if urging him to work hard. 'What an annoying little thing.' Lee Han cursed the butterfly spirit in his mind.
A high-ranking spirit that stops you is always more irritating than a brother who hits you.
Arsil smiled encouragingly at Lee Han, then gathered his friends. He began pulling out gifts one by one from his worn-out backpack.
"Gainando, you already received yours last time, so he says he'll give you one next time."
"Th-that's impossible...! Is it because I lost at Wizard Card?!"
"I don't think that's it."
While Lee Han lined up his friends and translated his brother's words, Arsil conversed with the spirits, pondering which gifts would suit whom.
Eventually, as if there was a disagreement, he engaged in a deep discussion with the butterfly spirit before calling Lee Han.
"Yes, brother. Uh... that might be a bit dangerous. Won't the dormitory get destroyed?"
Arsil sighed faintly in relief, glad he had asked his younger brother. The butterfly spirit glared at Lee Han for interfering with its choice.
-That spirit is so arrogant!
"I think so too. But since it's much stronger than you, just keep that thought to yourself."
Lee Han soothed the baby basilisk and called his friends over.
The friends approached with a mix of fear and awe, carefully accepting the gifts Arsil handed them.
"Th-thank you!"
"He says it's an amulet that reduces enemy encounters while traveling between dimensions and warns of danger in advance. But you have to expose it to enough moonlight every full moon."
"This is...?"
"That's an insignia of weight reduction. If you attach it to your backpack, it'll make the load lighter. But don't get too carried away—if you overload it believing the effect, the insignia might break..."
The students who received gifts one by one were startled to find them far more intact and useful than they'd expected.
For someone from the Wardanaz family, they'd been worried, but he turned out to be much kinder and gentler than anticipated.
"Wardanaz. Sorry. I thought you'd be scary."
"Well, he is intimidating. He commands spirits at will."
"True. Someone so beloved by spirits couldn't possibly be bad."
"Did you not hear what I just said?"
"?!"
While Lee Han grumbled, Adenart, who had been standing at the end of the line, finally received her gift.
A bowl that could increase the volume of liquid contained within it once per day.
Watching Arsil present this gift, Lee Han nodded in approval.
"Good choice. Royalty tends to have hearty appetites, so an artifact like that suits them well."
Arsil and the butterfly spirit tilted their heads in confusion.
He'd chosen an alchemy-related item because she was an outstanding alchemist... hadn't he?
Professor Milley, holding a pocket watch in one hand and checking the time, rose from her seat and swung her staff.
At once, the dimensional magic circles in the lecture hall activated, gathering the students together.
Pop!
Just as deep-sea fishermen would tie ropes around their waists before diving, mages entering other dimensions often used similar safety measures.
Professor Milley raised an eyebrow slightly, curious about the students' reactions.
What expressions would they return with?
Having taught at Einrogard for quite some time, she could roughly predict how students would react.
Some would return half-dazed—a common sight among grades that lacked cooperation or preparation.
'Not entirely a bad thing.'
Summoning mages who had once tasted bitter failure tended to become far more cautious afterward. If this served as a lesson, it wasn't necessarily bad.
Others returned having performed quite well from the start—a frequent occurrence in grades blessed with luck or thorough preparation.
But even then, when informed they'd have to map the remaining areas and work on them throughout the semester, they usually grew deeply discouraged.
It couldn't be helped.
Magic wasn't something completed in flashes of brilliance or wit—it was perfected through steady research and practice.
'Likely the latter.'
Professor Milley held this year's students in high regard.
They cooperated well and were thoroughly prepared, making it highly probable they'd endure even if dropped into an unfamiliar dimension.
"...?!"
Yet the students' expressions were troubled and complicated.
At this sight, Professor Milley's rigid posture faltered slightly.
"Good work, everyone. How was the expedition?"
"It was tough, but we made decent progress."
"We all gathered and set up a campsite together."
"...!"
Professor Milley was surprised again by the students' report.
This level of achievement was remarkable—progressing this far on the first day was rare.
"...Well done. You've all performed better than I expected. But why the long faces?"
"We found Frost Giants who came looking for artifacts."
"Ugh... How are we supposed to deal with them...?"
Watching the students sigh and chatter about how to seize the Frost Giants' artifacts, Professor Milley's pupils trembled slightly.
She hadn't expected this year's class to be so bold and enterprising!
When a short cat beastman student strode briskly toward him, Gainando, who had been lying on the seventh-floor student village lawn reviewing his Wizard Card deck, tilted his head in confusion.
'Who is that? A senior?'
"Good day to you, junior."
The cat beastman senior greeted him with manners even more refined than Gainando, a royal. Removing his hat and speaking politely, the sight made Gainando scramble to return the greeting.
"Uh... um... May the Spirit of Sleep welcome you!"
"That sounds like an evening greeting...? More importantly, do you know where Junior Lee Han of the Wardanaz family is?"
"!"
An alarm bell rang in Gainando's head as he desperately tried to recall the proper etiquette.
A senior looking for Lee Han.
He was certain this couldn't mean anything good.
"Lee An of the Wardanaz family? I-I've never heard of him."
"Lee Han of the Wardanaz family, junior."
"I've never heard of the Wardanaz family or Lee Han."
"You've never even heard of the Wardanaz family?"
"No."
"By any chance, junior... are you under a memory-loss curse?"
The cat beastman senior tilted his wide-brimmed hat with a concerned look.
For an Imperial citizen—one who'd even been admitted to Einrogard—to not remember the Wardanaz family name at all suggested something might be seriously wrong with his head.
Gainando belatedly realized his mistake. 'Oops. Should've said I knew the family.'
"...I often suffer from memory-loss curses... being from the Black Magic school..."
"Ah. I see. I envy your talent, junior."
"You're from the Black Magic school?"
"I don't belong to any school."
"Huh?"
As Gainando tilted his head in confusion at what he'd just heard, a White Tiger Tower second-year passed by.
Catten called out to the junior.
"Hey, Jahan senior!!!"
"By any chance, junior, do you know where Junior Lee Han of the Wardanaz family is?"
"That guy Gainando over there is friends with him!"
"......"
Under Catten's piercing gaze, Gainando sniffled and spoke.
"...M-my memory-loss curse just lifted."
"Good for you. Tell me."
With slumped shoulders, Gainando led Catten to where Lee Han was.
Fortunately, Lee Han—who was busy smoking food with the Kitchen Club seniors in his spare time—didn't scream or run away upon seeing Catten. Gainando sighed in relief.
"Ah. Senior. Come here. Would you like some choripan?"
This dish, made by sandwiching juicy meat between soft bread, was street food sold at stalls in the city but considered a delicacy fit for royalty within Einrogard.
"No need, junior."
"Wardanaz! Senior Jahan survives on just dew!"
"Not to that extent... It's to subject my body to hardship and stimulation. Junior. Hmm. You might benefit from trying it too, junior?"
'Is this a new form of bullying?'
Lee Han was taken aback by Catten's suggestion to fast on dew when he'd gone through the trouble of smuggling in food.
A White Tiger Tower student nearby glared at Lee Han with envious eyes.
"Wardanaz. Grrr...! Just you wait. I'll definitely earn Senior Jahan's recognition within this year too!"
"Are you misunderstanding something?"
While the White Tiger Tower students thought Lee Han had been chosen by Catten for his swordsmanship, the truth was he'd been selected for his magic teaching skills.
"Is within this year impossible? Then next year... No, even if I don't make it, Moradina Choy definitely will! For sure!"
Lee Han, who'd been about to correct his friend's misunderstanding, paused.
"Does Moradina Durgyu also want to train under Senior Catten?"
"Of course."
"Oh... Well, Senior Catten's teachings are truly amazing and innovative. It's almost a shame that I'm the only one receiving them."
"W-well, not that much..."
Beside them, Senior Catten cleared his throat awkwardly at the junior's praise.
"If Moradina Durgyu could learn too, that'd be great. Would that be alright, Senior?"
"Hmm. Junior. As you know, I have much to learn myself, so I can't devote much time to teaching. Instructing swordsmen of varying levels..."
"Those two are at my level! You can teach them the same way you teach me!"
"Is that so? In that case..."
"It's settled! You should hurry and call Moradi and Durgyu! If you're late, the senior might change his mind!"
"R-right!"
The White Tiger Tower student listening nearby nodded eagerly before turning to sprint off—only to stop abruptly.
Lee Han, who'd been smiling contentedly, thought, 'Caught?'
"Wardanaz."
"...What is it?"
"Thank you. For asking for my friends."
"...Why thank me for something like this? Haha."