Episode 837
Episode 837
Whether it mattered or not, the Blue Dragon Tower friends had completely moved Lee Han.
The White Tiger Tower students flared up and cursed.
"You think you guys can treat Wardanaz any better?"
"Unless it's Phoenix Tower, there's not much difference in your level either!"
Truth be told, when it came solely to healing magic, the White Tiger Tower students' grades were surprisingly better than the Blue Dragon Tower's.
Fundamentally, most White Tiger Tower students aspired to join knight orders or combat-related professions, where proficiency in healing magic was crucial.
Given how often they got injured from sparring and clashes, it was only natural their grades excelled.
"We'll do better than you, so don't worry!"
"Our sincerity alone is on another level compared to yours!"
The Blue Dragon Tower friends laid Lee Han down and tried to pry the twig from his grip.
But just like before, it wouldn't budge.
"It's definitely because of this twig, right?"
"Should we really remove it?"
"No way. Who knows how Wardanaz obtained this."
Every student gathered there was holding a twig of their own.
Though the timing varied, everyone had eventually received a twig as a gift from the forest.
Some, like Gainando, got theirs too quickly, while others, like Lee Han, received theirs much later...
'If we burn this, won't Wardanaz burn us when he wakes up?'
They all knew how much Lee Han had struggled to get that twig.
Even during breaks when others were resting after obtaining theirs, Lee Han had kept wandering the forest.
At first, friends had thought, 'Eh, Gainando got his right away, so he'll get his soon too,' but as Lee Han wandered the forest for nearly three days, their expressions changed, and whispers spread.
-Shouldn't we stop him?
-I tried talking to him, but he didn't respond. Seems like he's under some kind of spell.
-But Wardanaz doesn't get affected by magic?
-Looks like he cast something on himself.
While they watched him worriedly, Lee Han suddenly collapsed.
The friends, who had been waiting to see when he'd get his twig, rushed over in shock.
-Oh no! Wardanaz!!
-The forest has taken Wardanaz!
-What did I tell you? Wardanaz might be hated by the spirits—this could be a trap!
It might not exactly be fortunate, but Lee Han was still clutching the twig. It seemed he had succeeded in obtaining it.
The problem was that he hadn't woken up afterward.
"Stimulant potions didn't work. Awakening magic didn't work either..."
"Remember that old fairy tale? The princess who ate a poisoned apple and fell unconscious. How did she wake up again?"
"The dwarves brought a black mage and turned her into a lich. Hey, is this really the time for ridiculous old stories?"
When Gainando scolded his friend with a stern face, the students were taken aback.
Hearing normally eccentric Gainando say something so sensible made it twice as startling.
After various attempts failed, the Blue Dragon Tower students brought out stronger spells they had in reserve.
"Hmm. I have a scroll of <Magus Ahriman's Mana Rotation>. It needs three people to activate."
According to the recorded document, <Magus Ahriman's Mana Rotation> was a spell that forcibly accelerated the circulation of mana within a mage.
When mana circulates rapidly inside a mage, any lingering curses or negative effects are unable to endure and are either shredded or repelled.
Of course, given the spell's high level and mana requirements, three mages were necessary.
Gainando immediately raised his hand to volunteer.
"I'll do it."
"Good. Then Adenart, Dalkard, and Kirak will handle it."
"...Hey!"
Gainando jumped up and down indignantly, but his friends ignored him.
The scroll was expensive and rare—if they wasted it now, they wouldn't get another one.
"Magus Ahriman was a black mage! As a black magic practitioner, I should be the one doing it!"
"Magus Ahriman, your junior seeks your power—"
'Who's his junior?!' Gainando grumbled inwardly.
How dare these non-black magic practitioners exclude him from the casting!
Thud!
"..."
"Ugh!"
"..."
"Gah!"
"..."
"Eek!"
The three students staggered back with groans. Their faces were pale, likely from mana exhaustion.
"Potion! Bring a potion!"
"Here. Drink this!"
The spell scroll that had already been activated had turned black, reduced to ashes.
Their friends cautiously asked,
"How was it? Did it work?"
"No... Wardanaz's mana is so immense that the scroll didn't even twitch before burning up. We almost exhausted our mana for nothing."
"......"
The students of the Blue Dragon Tower stared at Lee Han with renewed horror.
'What kind of monster is this?!'
Gainando bounced up and down again, exclaiming,
"That's why you should've left it to me!"
"..."
"Lady Lagesa. Aren't you going to give us any real advice?"
The Blue Dragon Tower students turned to the old pirate woman who had been watching from the sidelines.
Lagesa, who had been about to take out her pipe, paused and said,
"I already told you. Just wait."
"......"
'That's not advice!'
'Shouldn't have asked.'
"Truly... as expected of a pirate. Ruthless and cruel."
"See? I told you investing in Professor Verdus wasn't a waste."
Gainando, who had just hurled his last insult, suddenly shrieked as he was hoisted into the air. Lagesa grumbled,
"Even if I tell you, you lot just whine. Fine, go ahead and struggle."
"Ha! We're already doing that!"
Batrek, one of the alchemy students dangling from a large cauldron, snapped back. Following his lead, Siana, the dwarf from the White Tiger Tower, also shouted,
"Once this potion is complete, it can even wake the dead, you know?!"
"Yeah, yeah. Do your best, then."
At Lagesa's sarcasm, Yoner couldn't help but feel uneasy.
'...Are we really just supposed to wait?'
She had noticed it before, but Lagesa acted eerily similar to the Skeleton Principal.
Was this some kind of convergent evolution among elderly mages? They seemed to take perverse delight in telling the truth but letting others suffer needlessly.
Nilia, her face full of worry, turned to Ratford.
"This potion... isn't it too advanced for our level...?"
"Don't worry. We'll test it before feeding it to him."
The <Elixir of Dragon Heart> they were currently brewing was an incredibly potent restorative—so strong it had once revived the dead. No matter what curse Lee Han was under, this elixir's power should be enough to purge it.
The problem was its extreme difficulty. Even fourth-years would struggle to brew it reliably. And here they were, scrambling to make it on the spot for a collapsed patient, frantically emptying their backpacks for ingredients...
"How are you going to test it?"
"Just administer a single drop."
"To whom?"
Ratford glanced meaningfully toward Gainando.
Nilia gasped.
"Th-that's too much! That's cruel!"
"Huh? Lady Lagesa is a powerful mage, so a single drop of a botched potion shouldn't hurt her... Everyone agreed on it."
"Ah."
Only then did Nilia realize she had misunderstood. They weren't looking at Gainando—they were looking at Lagesa, who was cackling while dangling him upside-down.
"How are you going to make her drink it?"
"We'll slip a drop into her tea. So keep quiet even after it's done."
The alchemy students whispered conspiratorially.
Lagesa, blissfully unaware that second-years were plotting to spike her tea, hummed cheerfully.
Giselle, catching the signal, exchanged glances with the other White Tiger Tower students.
"...While we wait, let's fetch water to boil tea."
"Bring some for me too."
"Lady Lagesa, why don't you get it yourself? You're not even helping your friends."
"This is helping! And have you forgotten? I, daughter of Torgerd, am a guest of Einrogard!"
"Understood."
After a brief glare, Giselle relented, and the White Tiger Tower students grumbled as they followed.
"Having to go fetch water is already annoying enough, and now we have to get water for someone like that too?"
"Total thief."
"'Hmm. Something's off.' Lagesa, who had been shooting bird droppings at the fleeing Gainando, suddenly paused.
Her decades of sailing the seas and battling enemies had honed her instincts, and they were now sounding an alarm.
She could smell a conspiracy brewing somewhere!
"Was it you, brat? Huh? What are you hiding?"
"Stop shooting bird droppings and go save Lee Han! You're just like those mages who invested in Professor Verdus!"
"Say what you will, but I have to admire your guts!"
Lagesa instead shot a pellet of dung and let out an impressed sigh. For a mage with no talent, his audacity was anything but ordinary.
Whoosh!
"Tutanta, what are you doing?!"
"My bad. Sorry, everyone."
The Black Turtle Tower students must have messed up lighting the fire, as smoke began spreading all around the campsite.
Lagesa coughed and gestured dismissively.
"Amateur work. Do it properly."
"We brought tea."
It seemed the White Tiger Tower students had fetched water while the Phoenix Tower students brewed the tea.
A student in priestly robes handed her a cup, and Lagesa accepted it without suspicion.
After taking a sip, she detected a faint scent she hadn't noticed before—likely due to the chaos and smoke clouding her senses.
"...Y-you brats! Did you secretly slip me the <Elixir of Dragon Heart>?! Don't tell me you're using me as a test subject!?"
"She looks fine! Quick, give it to Wardanaz!"
"You little...! And I told you the elixir is useless! Right now, in the consciousness realm, other spirits are fighting to subdue—"
Ignoring Lagesa's protests, the friends hurriedly made Wardanaz drink the completed potion.
The moment Lee Han opened his eyes...!
"H-he's awake!!!"
"Wardanaz is up! Wardanaz is up!"
"We did it!"
"Did what...?!"
Lagesa grumbled as she felt the abnormal amplification and circulation of mana throughout her body due to the elixir.
Once the effects wore off, she'd suffer from sluggish mana flow and congestion for a while.
'Still, not bad.'
Honestly, Lagesa hadn't expected second-year students to properly complete the <Elixir of Dragon Heart>, even if they pooled their knowledge.
They were students from different towers, pressed for time—a situation ripe for infighting rather than cooperation.
Yet these brats not only worked together but even those who hadn't studied alchemy played their parts.
The White Tiger Tower kids fetched water without raising suspicion.
The Black Turtle Tower kids caused a ruckus to dull her senses.
The Phoenix Tower kids, disguised as priests, eased her doubts...
'...Wait, is it even okay for priests to act like this?'
Lagesa decided to let it slide. That was a matter for the temples to worry about.
"You brat. No wonder you were shouting fearlessly. You were plotting this all along."
This Blue Dragon Tower royal had been provoking her recklessly—of course there was an ulterior motive.
"What nonsense! Let me down!"
"Alright, alright."
Thud!
Lee Han, now awake, looked around at the campsite and his gathered friends.
Seeing the branches each had gathered, it seemed he was the last one to get his.
"...How many days have we been here?"
"It's the last day the Broad-Eyed King promised. We have to leave today."
"'That long!?'"
To think they'd stayed the entire permitted duration.
Lee Han shuddered, wondering if the Broad-Eyed King had foreseen even this. Meanwhile, Yoner hesitated before whispering.
"Lee Han. You know... that prophecy. The one about royals and misfortune."
"...Huh?!"
At her words, something suddenly flashed through Lee Han's mind.
Hadn't Yukveltire touched him recently while crafting a staff?
"No wonder...! Royals are nothing but trouble in life...!"
"......"
Yoner instinctively glanced around. Thankfully, Adenart and Gainando didn't seem to have heard.
"I think I know what you're getting at, Yoner. You're saying my recent streak of bad luck makes the prophecy hard to ignore, right? Yeah, now that I think about it, I did have contact with a royal recently. No wonder things have been so unlucky."
"Um... Listen, don't freak out, okay?"
"What is it? Did Gainando carry me while I was unconscious or something?"
"Well... yeah. And... the Princess too."
"......"
"Wardanaz collapsed again!"
'What are you trying to say? Did Gainando carry me while I was unconscious too?'
"Uh... yeah. The Imperial Princess too."
"......"
"Wardanaz collapsed again!"