Episode 872
Episode 872
After persuading the magician, the Yaksha King resumed his astronomical explanation.
It wasn't unreasonable to consider forming contracts with stars more difficult than contracting with spirits or demons. While spirits and demons were generally favorable to contracts... 'Was that really the case?' Lee Han made a dubious expression inwardly.
But generally speaking, it was a correct statement.
Spirits and demons were mostly favorable to contracts. They were beings naturally inclined to resonate with entities from other dimensions or to deceive others to gain power.
In comparison, stars were neutral.
To be more precise, stars weren't sentient beings like spirits or demons.
They were more akin to laws, much like divine magic. That was what stars were...
Because a mage had to personally discover their rules and prove their qualifications. But Os's disciple. I can confidently say that proving one's qualifications in this dimension is far more difficult than proving qualifications to a star.
"Indeed."
Lee Han considered explaining again how he'd ended up here but held back, sensing the other wouldn't listen.
In any case, the Yaksha King's explanation overlapped with things he'd heard before, making it easy to understand.
A structure where one explores and recognizes a star—not through conversation, persuasion, bargaining, or threats—then proves their qualifications according to its rules to receive power.
Even a certain Family Head and a certain Headmaster who disliked divine magic were surprisingly favorable toward celestial magic.
Since it proceeded according to laws and rules rather than faith and emotions, it was somewhat natural when you thought about it. 'Perhaps they dislike divine magic simply because they can't use it themselves.' Just as Lee Han felt inclined to disparage spirit magic, these two archmages might feel the same way.
Os's disciple. Do you know of any existing star contracts?
"I've read about a mage who contracted with the Blood Waning Moon before."
Lee Han explained the contract case he knew of.
It was a contract discovered by a wolf beastman mage. When the moon turned into a red waning moon, one had to go to the area with the strongest moonlight, float the moon on a pure silver cup, and then drink it.
At first glance, it seemed simple, but when magic was involved, even the most straightforward process could become the most difficult.
Under the red waning moon, the water in the pure silver cup would turn into a potent poison that most mages couldn't endure.
Hmm. A contract with relatively low difficulty. Even if you borrow such a star's power, it would be hard to achieve high marks.
"Is that so?"
Os's disciple. I have lived for so long that I can't even remember...
"......"
The Yaksha King exuded his authority once more to persuade Lee Han.
Lee Han grumbled inwardly. 'I get that you're impressive, but do you have to do this every time you speak?' You can have confidence. Someone like you could undoubtedly contract with a much more powerful star.
"Thank you. To be honest, I'm a bit worried because I struggled so much when contracting with spirits."
With spirits? How peculiar. Even with this much accumulated good karma, spirits refused you... Could it be you only met strange spirits? 'Maybe he's actually a good person.'
* * *
For an impromptu lecture, the content was quite extensive and difficult, but the Yaksha King was an exceptional teacher, and Lee Han was an exceptional student.
Contracts with stars consisted of countless laws, rules, conditions, and proofs. While it was impossible to memorize every case, it was good to remember some general principles. First, the principle of prior occupation.
Lee Han had heard of this one before.
Surprisingly, some star contracts operated on a first-come, first-served basis. If someone else discovered and contracted a star first, even if another person met the same conditions, they couldn't form the contract.
There was also the principle of luminosity.
"The rule that the stronger the emitted light, the more powerful the contract generally is. Am I correct?"
Indeed. The conditions also become more difficult... Of course, there are exceptions. I should mention dark elements, but I assume you don't handle dark elements?
"I know how to handle the Dark Element."
Oh. Now you're starting to resemble Os's disciple a bit. Good. Then I shall also explain about the Dark Element...
'Oh no.' Lee Han immediately regretted it as the explanation suddenly veered off course and grew lengthy.
After spending about an hour discussing celestial bodies related to the Dark Element, the Yaksha King finally returned to the main topic.
"The method I most recommend for you is to use that <Star Guide> to either discover new stars or find relatively neglected ones. Mages talented in Celestial Magic are said to intuitively sense stars that resonate with them."
"...What about the stars floating up there? Can't I form contracts with them?"
Fully aware of how difficult it is to discover new stars, Lee Han pointed at the stars orbiting the dimensional plane.
The Yaksha King spoke as if he had expected this.
'So you finally reveal your greed? I knew it. But those stars are like tyrants—a single mistake could annihilate your very existence. That's why I didn't recommend them, but since you're Os's disciple, you'd probably try to secretly form a contract even if it meant deceiving me, wouldn't you?'
"I won't. Should I take out the <Star Guide>?"
Hmm. Is this denial an attempt to evade my suspicion?
"I've taken out the <Star Guide>. Please take a look."
Lee Han swiftly pulled out a massive brass telescope from his backpack and assembled it. The Yaksha King instructed him step by step on how to use the artifact.
Then, the night sky of the original dimension—not the current one—appeared within the lens, and Lee Han's consciousness was transferred elsewhere.
When he regained his senses, Lee Han found himself floating in a dark space where distant stars flickered.
"!"
Merely visiting this dimension was already akin to having his soul displaced, and now his vision had shifted like this?
-How is this even possible?
'It's a very well-made artifact. It enhances performance by transferring the mage's consciousness into the artifact's field of view. The mage who conceived this idea was creative, and the one who materialized it was meticulous.'
-It certainly is creative.
Hmm. You're not saying anything about the latter, so I sense some resentment toward the mage who materialized this.
-......
The Yaksha King was indeed a wise and sagacious ruler.
Separate from his ability to detect Lee Han's resentment toward Professor Verdus, it was rare even among mages to explain someone else's artifact in such detail as if it were their own creation.
Not only did he possess innate wisdom, but also the power of knowledge accumulated over long years in this dimension by listening to the tales of outsiders.
That power belonged to the Yaksha King.
-Please give me the next instruction.
Of course, to Lee Han, the Yaksha King was just a strange yaksha who only said what he wanted.
Though his magical abilities were exceptional, wasn't Professor Verdus the same? Respect wasn't inherently tied to magical prowess.
'Move straight ahead. Do you see the Asteroid Belt? It's best not to interact with that area. Twelve hundred years ago, there was a mage who attempted to form a contract with the Asteroid Belt. He was quite a decent mage—such a pity.'
-......
A shiver ran down Lee Han's spine, and he quickly averted his gaze from the direction where the asteroids clustered.
-What about that red tyrant star? It's quite famous among mages.
Spotting a star somewhat renowned among mages, Lee Han posed the question.
The Yaksha King's earlier words had extinguished his desire to venture further.
'If you're going to form a contract with such an easy star, why bother using this artifact instead of just contracting with the moon?'
-...
I thought it was somewhat challenging...
'Move further ahead.'
Grumbling inwardly, Lee Han extended his consciousness deeper.
The farther he ventured into the celestial space after projecting his consciousness skyward, the more bizarre and perilous it became.
Near the continent, the celestial bodies were purely luminous, decorative presences. But the farther he moved from the continent, the more they revealed their true nature, exuding eerie magical energy.
"Can you see that dark shadow in the distance?"
-Yes.
"Dark Nebula. Just looking at it can devour a mage's soul, so be careful.-..."
"Wait... Shouldn't you have told me that first?"
'With your abilities, your soul won't be absorbed by a Dark Nebula of that level.'
'Should I just go back?' Lee Han was tempted to turn off the artifact and seek the easiest contract with the moon.
Even if it was just a contract that slightly boosted concentration under moonlight, so what? That alone would feel impressive enough.
Unaware of Lee Han's inner thoughts, the Yaksha King continued guiding him through the star chart.
Indeed, the Yaksha King was truly a skilled star guide. He warned Lee Han of dangers before the boy could even sense them.
"Wait. Gaze at that star."
-Is it a soul-devouring star?
"Os's disciple. You seem to have no talent for jokes. Hurry and gaze at it."
-Yes...
Lee Han obeyed and fixed his eyes on the star.
It shifted from blue to green, green to blue—a star that gave off a refreshing and peaceful aura.-!
A sudden sense of rejection startled Lee Han.
-I just felt something like rejection.
"Hmm. Is that so? What you just saw was one of the Spirit Stars. Mages with an affinity for spirits often resonate with them, so I wanted to test you..."-......
Lee Han felt the urge to turn off the artifact and swing it at the Yaksha King.
'I should avoid Spirit Stars from now on.'
-I do have some friendly spirits, though.
"Are they perhaps fearless or unruly?"-!
"Seems so. That makes sense. Even among spirits, not all are the same."
The Yaksha King was infuriatingly wise. Swallowing his frustration, Lee Han had to press on.
"Even if you don't feel anything, make a note of it. If all the stars reject you, we'll have to try various options based on records."
-But didn't you say stars are neutral...?
"This kind of rejection isn't the same as that of spirits, Os's disciple. Are you upset because of the Spirit Star's rejection? That wasn't rejection—it just didn't meet the conditions. In the future, if you prefer, I'll phrase it as 'conditions not aligning.'"
-Let's just call it rejection.
Lee Han suddenly missed Einrogard.
This dimension, where countless mages had perished, was merciless beyond measure.
Find a star, record it.
Find a star, record it.
Get rejected by a Spirit Star, then find another star, record it...
By the time he was too exhausted to tell one star from another—
A massive wave of light flooded Lee Han's vision. For a moment, he thought the artifact had malfunctioned.-...
"What is this!?"
"Arna! Just as I thought!"
The Yaksha King's voice rang out in admiration.
Still disoriented, Lee Han asked in confusion.
-What do you mean?
"It's the name of the Guest Star Os once contracted with. Since it chose your master, I thought there was a high chance it would choose you too."
Guest Star Arna blazed more brilliantly than any star Lee Han had seen before, then dimmed once more.
As his vision returned, Lee Han felt an intense pull from the star—the exact opposite of the rejection he'd experienced from the Spirit Stars.
"A powerful star. It's troublesome in many ways, but worth enduring. You can return now. I'll explain how to form the contract."
-Wait a minute. If you had this star in mind from the start, why make me check all the others?
"If I'd introduced this star first, I'd have robbed you of the chance to learn from the others. Now, come out."
"......"
Lee Han seriously wondered if the Skeleton Principal had hired the Yaksha King as a visiting professor.
How could a king from another dimension be so much like an Einrogard professor??