Episode 814
Episode 814
While the two were whispering, Yukveltire moved to take out an item, looking quite pleased with herself.
When she untied the medium-sized blue silk pouch embroidered with a dragon, an object far larger than the pouch itself sprang out from within. 'A spatial expansion spell,' Lee Han thought, looking at his senior from the same tower with envy.
The spatial expansion spell itself was already difficult, but making it semi-permanent on an item was an even greater challenge.
If he were a Baldrogard student, he could have just bought one at an auction with his allowance, but as an Einrogard student, that wasn't an option. If he wanted one, he had to make it himself...
Or steal it. 'I need to get my hands on that someday.' Given how much Lee Han traveled around, he felt the necessity of a spatial-expanded backpack more than anyone else.
The weight of his backpack, always packed for emergencies, was so heavy that if Lee Han hadn't trained in martial arts and mana-enhanced physical conditioning, he would have collapsed from exhaustion long ago.
Thud!
While Lee Han was lost in thought, the item Yukveltire had taken out finally revealed itself.
It was a bronze golem the size of a person.
"??"
Lee Han blinked in confusion at the unexpected appearance of the item.
"Um, Senior. Weren't you researching an Artificial Dimension Artifact?"
Yukveltire stared straight at him with her blue eyes upon hearing her junior's question.
No matter how interested he was in the Artificial Dimension Artifact, did he really have to rush in so impatiently and ask like that?
Still, Yukveltire decided to be magnanimous. After all, he was a fairly capable junior.
"Impatient, aren't you? Were you that eager to see the Artificial Dimension Artifact?"
"I'm going to lose my mind..."
As Diret muttered beside him, Lee Han fell into thought.
Originally, Lee Han was exceptionally skilled at enduring nonsense from his superiors.
He had silently tolerated the ramblings of the Crazy Doppelganger, the Skeleton Principal, and even Professor Voladi—didn't that count for something?
The same went for the seniors at Einrogard.
Even though he often felt the urge to punch them or snap at them, he had endured quite a bit, given that they were practically gods in their own right.
But when he looked at this wicked senior from the Blue Dragon Tower, a different thought crossed his mind.
'...Do I really have to put up with this person?'
While he endured the Crazy Doppelganger and Professor Voladi's nonsense out of fear, Yukveltire was different.
Besides, since he wasn't close with the other seniors anyway, even if he stopped holding back, rumors like "Wardanaz has been really rude to his seniors lately, tsk tsk" wouldn't spread.
Still, he had been careful since the start of his second year, but after being tormented by all these insane mages lately, Lee Han's mindset had shifted slightly.
Shouldn't he draw the line where it needed to be drawn?
And coincidentally, his opponent was also a disciple of Professor Verdus.
In that case, maybe treating her the same way he treated Professor Verdus was the right move.
"Senior."
Lee Han raised his hand and spoke firmly. Yukveltire tilted her head slightly.
Why was he acting like this?
"Let me be honest. I have absolutely no interest in your Artificial Dimension Artifact. Please don't misunderstand."
"......"
Yukveltire froze in place. Her usually cold, expressionless face remained so still that she looked like an ice sculpture.
After a moment, she finally moved again and asked,
"But you clearly said you'd help."
"I'm helping because we're from the same tower, and since Diret Senior is helping, I'm tagging along. I really have no interest in it."
"Was that sarcasm or a rhetorical metaphor—"
"No, I genuinely don't care. Senior. Just like Professor Verdus has no interest in his students."
"......"
After a long silence, Yukveltire finally spoke.
"Well, if you don't understand the value of this magic, that's your loss."
With that, she turned away sharply and began fiddling with the item she had taken out.
For some reason, her shoulders seemed to slump slightly. Watching her, Diret wore a complicated expression.
Lee Han cautiously whispered.
"Did I speak too harshly?"
"No. There needs to be someone who speaks decisively. If you just pity her and let things slide, she'll end up like me..."
Diret suddenly stopped mid-sentence, overcome with self-loathing.
"...Anyway, it's not your fault at all, junior. The bad one here is her, who never listens to others and only thinks her own way from the start. You shouldn't feel pity. Just think of her as Professor Verdus."
"Yes. I didn't feel even a shred of pity for her anyway. I'll continue to treat her as Professor Verdus from now on."
"For a brief moment, Diret thought he understood why the Crazy Doppelganger had chosen this boy from the Wardanaz family as his disciple."
Then he shuddered in shock. 'What kind of ridiculous thought was that!'
"Yukveltire. So what's that bronze golem about?"
Diret called out to his friend in a voice slightly higher than usual.
"It's magic to persuade Lagesa."
Yukveltire explained about the bronze golem.
There were various ways to activate a golem, but true to her reputation as an outstanding Enchantment Magic practitioner, Yukveltire approached it through Enchantment Magic.
"Mobility-type magic for the arms and legs. Flexibility and joint-bending magic for the joints. Sound absorption magic for the head..."
"!"
"Normally, golems weren't directly controlled by mages but were left with just one simple command."
The more autonomous functions you tried to add, the more the difficulty skyrocketed.
Yet Yukveltire had imbued the golem with over dozens of commands to perfect this high-performance bronze golem.
It was truly an acrobatic feat of craftsmanship.
Diret asked in an astonished voice.
"Was there a reason to go this far?"
"Because it's made to serve as a servant."
A bronze golem created not as a gatekeeper or enemy repeller, but as a servant capable of following diverse instructions.
That was the magic Yukveltire had perfected.
Lee Han asked curiously.
"Can I try giving it commands?"
"Go ahead."
His curiosity piqued, Lee Han began issuing various commands to the bronze golem.
-Come here.
-Bring me the <Empire Lich> magazine from the bookshelf.
-Brew some tea.
-Can you clean this area?
-Is transcription possible?
And astonishingly, the bronze golem passed every test. 'Amazing!'
"Why did you choose this instead of the Artificial Dimension Artifact?"
"When presenting to outsiders, simple and intuitive things are more advantageous..."
"But if you're going to make it do such complex and varied tasks, wouldn't it be better to just summon and contract a being from another dimension? Like a demon."
"Lee Han, who had been marveling at the bronze golem, paused upon hearing the senior's words."
The idea of summoning a demon to do menial tasks had come too naturally.
"Beings from other dimensions can be incapacitated or reverse-summoned in certain situations. In comparison, a bronze golem sustained purely by internal magic is far more stable."
"Indeed... It must have taken a lot of effort, but it seems quite useful. How long did it take?"
"A day."
"That's longer than I expected."
"There was an odd rumor going around in the middle."
Listening nearby, Lee Han clapped in admiration, partly to steer the conversation elsewhere.
"This is incredible. Not only is it amazing that it follows such diverse commands, but you made this in just one day."
"Are you saying that even though you have zero genuine interest in this?"
'She's truly my friend, but insanely petty...' Diret squeezed his eyes shut in embarrassment at his friend, who would be a disgrace anywhere.
If you got slapped and kicked out for forcing magic on a junior, you should feel ashamed and reflect, not sulk and act like this.
But Diret was still underestimating his junior.
Lee Han had smoothly escaped even the Crazy Doppelganger's lair—such petty grumbling didn't even make him blink.
"I am interested in this. You made it well."
"The Artificial Dimension Artifact was made better..."
"No. I'm not interested in that."
"..."
"The artificial dimension artifact is more impressive..."
"I understand that, but I'm simply not interested."
"..."
"Just pour in the mana."
"Yes."
As Yukveltire turned away again, Diret felt conflicting emotions.
A virtuous thought that the two should be separated...
And a wicked thought that if he kept the junior around, perhaps this sinister friend might gradually learn some lessons!
Lee Han was diligently taking notes on the magic engraved on the bronze golem.
Diret, who had been assisting with optimization and stabilization from the side, tilted his head in confusion.
"What are you doing?"
"Ah. I thought I'd try making one myself when I return to the dorm later. It might be nice to have in the grade lounge."
"You got that idea just from seeing this?"
"Uh, doesn't it make you think that?"
The junior from the Wardanaz family asked, slightly flustered.
It seemed natural that anyone would want such a high-performance golem servant.
Especially for someone like Lee Han, whose mana overflowed—if he could make just one properly, it would be incredibly useful in the future.
"No. Never mind."
Diret smiled faintly and changed the subject.
Most second-year students would look at such a bronze golem and think, 'That's amazing,' but not 'I should try making one myself.'
Even third-years probably wouldn't think that way...
Diret shook his head vigorously. Unbeknownst to him, his junior's magical skills had risen to an astonishing level.
"Yukveltire. It's done."
"Not bad."
Yukveltire glanced over the bronze golem and nodded approvingly.
Though one of them had spouted nonsense without realizing how incredible the artificial dimension artifact was, their skills were still commendable.
"The junior did this part."
"......"
Yukveltire's eyelashes trembled slightly. She had assumed Diret had handled the optimization work, so hearing that Lee Han had done it surprised her again.
"He did well, right? What do you think?"
"Not bad..."
"Say he did well."
"But he's still not as good as..."
"Say. He. Did. Well."
"...He did well."
Only after being poked in the side three times by Diret did Yukveltire finally praise her junior.
Lee Han looked puzzled as he watched her clutch her side in pain.
"Are you feeling unwell?"
"...A rude mage attacked me. Next is Duke Icaldoren. I heard Duke Icaldoren was caught trying to steal Einrogard's treasures."
"Indeed. So?"
Only then did Diret realize why the duke had come.
No matter how much he relied on his title, this was recklessly foolish.
"I don't know why people like him keep showing up periodically. We had one when we were first-years too."
"Truly unbelievable. What an astonishing turn of events!"
Lee Han feigned exaggerated surprise.
Yukveltire silently nodded and then brought up the next topic.
"No need to bother persuading Duke Icaldoren. We'll kidnap him."
"Well, I suppose that works."
"......"
Lee Han was taken aback.
Of course, it wasn't particularly surprising that Yukveltire suggested kidnapping—she was Professor Verdus's disciple, after all.
But Diret agreeing so readily was slightly unsettling.
"Uh... is that really okay?"
"He's an external criminal, junior. The Headmaster probably let him in expecting this."
"Yes..."
Unaware of the subtle shift in his junior's expression, Diret began plotting the kidnapping with his friend.
"Other students are probably targeting him too."
"Most likely..."
"We should prepare for combat. Got anything useful?"
"I can mobilize three combat golems. Eight artifacts."
"That should be enough. You have energy-based spells, right? Lately, Einrogard has a lot of defensive magic in that category, so we should prepare."
Lee Han listened in admiration to the seniors' wise discussion.
"This should do it. Let's go."
As the conversation wrapped up, Yukveltire called Lee Han.
Not understanding immediately, he asked again.
"Where to?"
"To kidnap the duke. Unless you're under some hearing curse..."
"That's not it. More importantly, am I allowed to come?"
Since the two fifth-years had been discussing it alone, Lee Han had assumed they'd leave him behind.
"We need a combat mage like you as part of our forces."
Diret nodded absentmindedly at his friend's words, then met Lee Han's piercing gaze.
"...Uh, would you rather wait here?"