Episode 827

Lee Han, having dragged Yukveltire to a corner of the classroom, whispered quietly.

"Why were you kind to all the other seniors but only acted like that toward Lady Lagesa?"

"?"

At Lee Han's words, Yukveltire tilted her head as if to ask what he was talking about.

Kind to other juniors?

What in the world was he saying?

"I've never been particularly kind to other students. If anything, I was only especially kind to you—Diret's junior from the Wardanaz Family."

"??"

This time, it was Lee Han's turn to tilt his head in confusion.

"When?"

"Just now, I gave you advice about the staff, didn't I?"

"...That's just part of the lecture, so it's only natural."

Lee Han wanted to smack this senior.

"If it had been another junior's question, I wouldn't have entertained such a vague inquiry. The questioner's competence matters too."

"How else am I supposed to ask without being vague? I'm only a second-year."

Right now, he needed to craft a staff capable of handling everything from powerful spirits to various Authority-infused gems, but expecting Lee Han—a second-year—to figure it all out from scratch was unreasonable.

"And you said it was interesting too, didn't you? If you hadn't been interested, you would've ignored me even if Diret Senior had spoken up."

"When did I—"

"Earlier, you said adding Black Magnetite was an interesting attempt, and you even asked where I got the Echo Stone."

"......"

Yukveltire was at a loss for words for the first time in a while.

She had taken an interest in a junior's research?

A second-year's research at that—one who had coldly rejected her own Artificial Dimension Research?

She absolutely couldn't admit it.

"No, I didn't."

"You didn't?"

"That's right. I'm not interested."

"Anyway, that's not important right now. What matters is persuading Lady Lagesa."

Lee Han didn't press further since whether Yukveltire was interested in his research or not wasn't particularly important to him.

"At the very least, you should treat her the same way you treat the other seniors."

"I don't understand... If anything, I'm respecting Lady Lagesa."

"???"

Yukveltire patiently explained ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to her clueless junior.

Unlike how she ignored juniors whose names she didn't even remember, she was properly conveying her opinions to Lagesa out of respect for her as a fellow mage...

"...You don't even know their names?"

"Why should I remember them?"

'Maybe it's better if this person just stays indifferent.'

Lee Han thought to himself.

Seeing how she meticulously answered questions from indifferent juniors while only saying what she wanted to Lagesa—riling her up—made him wonder if she should just stay indifferent.

'Then again, she's the type to grate on Diret Senior's nerves too.'

"Anyway, I'll do the talking. Just stay behind me."

"But at your level, you won't be able to explain it properly."

"Before you go tattling to Diret Senior, just shut your mouth and stay still."

"......"

Yukveltire was appalled by her junior's rudeness and closed her mouth.

How could ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠someone be this impolite?

"So, this bronze golem is this useful, and this senior is also conducting Artificial Dimension Research..."

"You mean that thing with the Pride Duke from last time?"

"How do you know about that, Lady Lagesa?!"

Lee Han was startled.

It was shocking enough that a sponsor already knew about the incidents during the Artificial Dimension Research, but he was even more curious about how she had found out.

How in the world did a pirate who roamed the seas know?

"The mages who participated sent letters and told me."

"......"

Lee Han shuddered as he realized just how closely connected the Empire's mages were.

He'd have to be more careful from now on.

If he wasn't cautious with his actions, some mage from the far eastern regions he'd never even met might say something like, "Oh! The Magic Tower's disciple has arrived!"

"But that was the other mages' mistake."

"Only by accounting for all such factors can one become an outstanding mage. Thinking you can perfectly control this imperfect world is the arrogance of young mages."

"But for certain types of magic, such meticulous control is absolutely essential..."

"As Lee Han made his excuse, he suddenly wondered why he was even doing this. 'Wouldn't it have ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠been enough to just capture a duke? Did I really need to convince Lagesa too?' Even if I succeed, she'll probably just irritate people anyway..."

Still, having come this far, Lee Han decided to see it through to the end and began enthusiastically praising Yukveltire.

She was highly respected in the Blue Dragon Tower (considering the Calendarium, this wasn't a complete lie), had excellent interpersonal relationships (she did have friends like Diret, so there was some truth to this), and was revered by juniors (Lee Han decided to temporarily revere her for this moment)...

Lagesa, who had been listening with a pitiful expression, clicked her tongue and said,

"Enough. Enough, kid. Though I must say, your skill at gilding your senior from the same school is truly artistic. If it were me, I'd have thrown you out the window long ago."

"Haha. I'm afraid I don't quite understand what you mean."

Lee Han feigned ignorance in his reply.

Though if anyone were to be thrown out, Professor Verdus would probably be first.

"Come here, Bible's disciple."

At Lagesa's call, Yukveltire came scurrying over with a triumphant air.

"Your junior's persuasion has touched this old pirate's heartstrings. Fine. The Empire's fools who were duped by Bible will laugh at being tricked again by his disciple, but I'll sponsor you."

"!"

"Yukveltire's pupils dilated slightly as she trembled with restrained excitement."

Junior of the Wardanaz family. I'll give you credit for this. You actually managed to persuade that stubborn, obstinate mage.

"Senior... Please either lower your voice or just shut up entirely..."

"Lady Lagesa. You needn't concern yourself with the scorn of those beneath even dust."

Yukveltire said while looking at Lagesa, who snorted in derision.

"You might spend your whole life holed up in a magic tower without friends, but Torgerd's daughter has a reputation to maintain, you know? Anyway, I'll sponsor you, but on one condition."

"Once the Artificial Dimension is completed, I'll let you be the second to visit."

"...Keep it for yourself. My condition is helping this poor junior here craft his staff."

"?"

"Yukveltire didn't understand."

Why would she need to do such a thing?

"?"

"Lee Han didn't understand either."

He simply disliked the idea.

"I don't want to?"

"Wait..."

Why not?

"Lagesa was taken aback that it was Lee Han refusing, not Yukveltire. She'd naturally assumed this poor junior would be grateful."

I heard you're making a staff with Black Magnetite? That's no ordinary challenge.

"Even ignoring the Black Magnetite, I'd rather not work with Professor Verdus..."

"Faced with such logically flawless rebuttal, Lagesa could only marvel."

Yukveltire looked at her as if to ask what she was talking about.

"I wasn't pointing to Professor Verdus, but to me. Junior."

"Haha. I must have misheard."

"...Still, doing it alone would be too difficult. It'd be a shame to waste this opportunity to make a good staff, and also... Ah. Never mind. You'll need help regardless, kid."

Lagesa started to speak but swallowed her words. Lee Han grew curious despite himself and asked,

"What was that last reason you were going to say?"

"I held back because I thought it might hurt your feelings too much, kid."

"Haha. That's quite alright."

"Well, fine. It's not like having one more eccentric around will make any difference to someone who's already listening to Bible and the entire faculty anyw..."

"Profound sorrow and pain welled up from the depths of Lee Han's eyes. Seeing this, Lagesa immediately regretted speaking."

Hey, that's exactly why I didn't want to say it—because I knew it'd hurt you, kid.

"Oh, no. I'm not hurt at all."

"I'm sorry. Anyway, this is a good opportunity, right? Don't miss your chance to make a better staff."

Considering the trials and tribulations this young Wardanaz would face in the future, the experience of crafting his own staff would undoubtedly prove quite useful.

If he could adapt and respond to hardships by modifying his staff, overcoming them would become much easier.

Yukveltire, who had been silently calculating beside them, finally seemed to reach a decision and spoke up.

After weighing the time wasted helping his junior against the time saved by the gold coins he'd receive from Lagesa, the benefits clearly outweighed the costs.

"I'll help."

"You stay quiet. Do you really think your opinion matters right now?"

"......"

Truthfully, Lee Han might have been the one who knew the most about the rare metal known as black magnetite.

Normally, metals with mana-absorbing properties weren't something mages had much reason to handle.

There was even less incentive since carrying such metals around would only interfere with their own magic.

"It didn't seem to cause me any particular trouble."

"You probably just overwhelmed it with your sheer mana capacity."

Yukveltire began sketching on a piece of paper.

He drew arrows representing mana flowing from a mage, then illustrated how the black magnetite disrupted the mana's direction, and finally depicted an overwhelming amount of mana crushing that disruption.

"What is this?"

"You're a mage, aren't you?"

"......"

The hideous drawing made Lee Han momentarily wonder if it was supposed to be a troll.

"Should I draw it instead?"

"Why?"

"Because the drawing is hard to understand..."

"...This should be sufficient."

"It doesn't seem sufficient to me."

"What matters is the concept of magic, not how it's drawn. Understand? And this is perfectly legible, so I made the efficient choice. Even Diret could understand it perfectly."

"Ah, yes."

Lee Han was slightly taken aback as the other suddenly launched into a lengthy explanation.

"Um...you're not upset because of what I said, are you?"

"Not at all. I have no idea what you're talking about."

"That's a relief. So about this black magnetite staff—I understand its drawbacks, but what are its advantages?"

Where there were disadvantages like absorbing surrounding mana and hindering mages, there had to be advantages too.

Lee Han wanted to hear the details before making a decision.

"You can store mana more easily, and it provides exceptional durability when casting spells. Powerful magic sometimes causes staves to snap, you see. Also, it serves as an exceptionally strong magical core."

Given how it constantly absorbed mana, its energy storage capacity was undeniable, and its durability was equally impressive since it had to withstand that absorption. However, the part about it being a powerful magical core was something Lee Han hadn't considered.

'Is that really true?'

A staff's role was similar to that of incantations.

Magic was possible without one, but having a staff amplified and controlled ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a mage's abilities.

Magic was inherently an unstable discipline since it fundamentally altered reality, and various means had been developed to control it.

Just as incantations existed to focus a mage's concentration, so did staves.

The core, the center, the origin through which the phenomenon of magic manifested—that was the staff's role.

Since a black magnetite staff would absorb all surrounding mana, its presence would be profoundly noticeable when casting particularly unstable or complex spells.

Frankly, even if you were in a coma, you'd still sense the black magnetite staff's presence while using magic...

"That does sound worth trying."

"Naturally. You want to master high-circle magic as quickly as possible, after all. It'll make casting much smoother."

"...I was just talking about the staff's durability."

Yukveltire ignored his junior's protest and continued.

"But you can't make it purely from black magnetite. You'll need another dimensional stone, magic ore, a tree spirit...something powerful enough to bind these elements together."

"Would Professor Verdus's storage have any?"

"No. Unlikely. Materials of that caliber get used up immediately upon arrival."

"Why is the professor so extravagant?"

Yukveltire quietly changed the subject, though he himself immediately pilfered and used such materials whenever they arrived.

"The best material to control black magnetite, the ideal core for the staff would be..."

Lee Han listened quietly to his senior's words. 'Please let it be something easy to obtain. Please let it be something easy to obtain.'

"A branch from a king-class tree spirit would be ideal."

"...Let's try something else."

Lee Han crumpled the paper he'd been scribbling on moments ago.