Episode 897
Episode 897
'Still, it wasn't a meaningless request.'
First, regarding Lightning Transformation, the most dangerous figure was Professor Voladi.
Of course, Professor Yonlamo, who taught Transmutation Magic, could also become a threat, but judging from past experiences, he wasn't the type to force things recklessly.
At least Professor Voladi had agreed to overlook it...
'Well, the immediate fire's been put out.'
"To awaken such a spell and then ask us to pretend we didn't see it? I simply can't understand. I may not be a mage, but shouldn't iron be struck while it's hot?"
"I agree. To throw away a chance that comes maybe once in ten thousand attempts—no matter how top-ranked you are in your year, isn't that just arrogance? Opportunities should be treasured."
The knights listening in whispered among themselves.
Even to their magic-ignorant eyes, Lee Han's actions seemed like throwing away a stroke of luck that had fallen right into his lap.
No matter the reason, if he had succeeded in casting such a powerful high-level spell, he should have been grateful for the opportunity and thrown himself into mastering it wholeheartedly. Only then could it be truly internalized and never forgotten.
Of course, from Lee Han's perspective—who was already working on five or six other high-level spells comparable to Lightning Transformation—this was nothing but irritating nonsense.
What nonsense about "once in ten thousand attempts"!
Chances like this had come to him just by attending lectures. If the knights' logic held, Lee Han should have mastered about ten 5th-circle spells by now.
'Spouting nonsense like "once in ten thousand attempts." This is why mages dislike knights.'
Back when he first enrolled at Einrogard, Lee Han had thought, 'I should stay calm and composed, focus solely on learning magic, and avoid irrational hatred toward knights.' But after dealing with his White Tiger Tower friends and external knights, the resentment had piled up naturally.
"W-Wait, everyone. Calm down. Wardanaz has his reasons."
Perhaps sensing the flicker of hatred in Lee Han's eyes, Professor Ingoldel stepped in to mediate.
"What reasons?"
"He's already practicing several spells of similar difficulty and can't focus on mastering this one right now."
"......"
"Professor Ingoldel. Even if he is your student, that's... That's such an absurd lie..."
"......"
For a moment, Professor Ingoldel nearly swung his sword out of sheer frustration.
While Einrogard students built their own information networks to prepare for exams, Einrogard professors worked tirelessly to exploit their weaknesses.
Professor Thunderstep this year was one such professor. The green light from the lamp he held flickered and surged.
"Keuk keuk keuk."
'My nephew, but truly pathetic.'
Professor Lightning Step watched Professor Thunderstep's sneering grin and thought to himself.
"Do you really have to deceive students to that extent?"
"Deceive? What kind of nonsense is that?"
Professor Thunderstep bristled at his elder's words.
This was an essential duty for any Einrogard professor.
If they didn't occasionally poke holes in students' complacency, those students would grow arrogant and lazy.
"Professor Kim doesn't seem to do that kind of thing..."
"Professor Kim is just too soft—that's why."
"Professor Verdus doesn't seem to do it either..."
"......"
"That was a poor example. My mistake."
"Thank you."
Professor Lightning Step apologized for citing Professor Verdus as an example.
Now that he thought about it, Verdus probably didn't even consider exams at all.
"Einrogard students are more cunning and underhanded than you'd think! They band together, seniors and juniors, just to outmaneuver their professors!"
Feeling unfairly criticized, Professor Thunderstep vented his long-held grievances.
First-years, still isolated, were manageable, but once Einrogard students reached their second year, they employed unimaginable tricks to pass exams.
Asking seniors to check past exam records or predict new ones was just the most basic method.
If they prepared carelessly, they might suffer the humiliation of every student getting a perfect score.
"Couldn't that happen? So you're planning to set traps like this every time?"
"Even if that's unreasonable, you need to occasionally catch them off guard. That's how you keep students on their toes."
Once students got the impression that this professor was unpredictable, they naturally stayed tense.
That's why, even if not every time, he needed to occasionally prepare exams that exceeded students' expectations.
The trap Professor Thunderstep had prepared for this exam was none other than Nefertem.
By showing the students the Nefertem he'd painstakingly cultivated, he would induce the misconception that 'this exam must be related to Nefertem.'
"They won't even realize it's a trap—it's been prepared so cunningly."
A hidden shelter concealed beneath a cliff.
A powerful Submersion Incense blocking that shelter.
Even if they managed to break through these obstacles and discover the Nefertem cultivation pond, they'd never suspect it was the professor's trap.
"Wait. If you hide it so meticulously, isn't there a chance the students won't find it at all?"
Professor Lightning Step raised an obvious question.
His nephew's plan sounded plausible, but if the students failed to find it, then Thunderstep would have just wasted his effort all by himself.
"I've already thought of that."
"What is it?"
"There's that Wardanaz kid. He'll find it somehow."
'Annoyingly, that makes sense,' Professor Lightning Step thought to himself.
His nephew was clearly being unreasonable, yet it was strangely hard to refute.
If it was the boy from the Wardanaz family, he really might be capable of finding something like that.
"And Wardanaz won't keep this a secret from his friends. Ha! Students are truly... like reagents dancing in a cauldron."
"Enough with your damn alchemist metaphors. Seriously."
Though Professor Lightning Step scolded him from the side, Professor Thunderstep ignored it.
To work as a professor at this Magic Academy, one had to know how to find their own enjoyment.
And one of Thunderstep's joys was precisely this.
"So, you're not using Nefertem for anything at all?"
"I will use it. To test the performance of the completed exam."
"The students will love that."
Even hearing the sarcastic remark, Professor Thunderstep chuckled.
No matter what Lightning Step said, it only added to Thunderstep's amusement.
Whoosh!
The flame bursting from the lamp finally turned a deep violet. Thunderstep's Red Sandalwood Incense was complete.
The real test for this lecture, <With a Drop of Potion Instead of Complex Magic>, wasn't about brewing a potion using Nefertem—it was about neutralizing this Red Sandalwood Incense in reverse.
Neutralizing incense was a delicate task, one even skilled alchemists could easily botch. The slightest mistake would cause the incense to mix chaotically, ruining everything.
Only through precise analysis and meticulous progress could one neutralize each component of the incense one by one, achieving complete neutralization.
"I'll use Nefertem to check whether they've properly neutralized the incense or not."
"What a waste. More importantly, isn't the exam too difficult? This is for second-years, right?"
From what Professor Lightning Step knew, his nephew's Red Sandalwood Incense was quite complex and difficult, even among secret techniques. Wasn't the difficulty too high for a second-year exam?
At that, Professor Thunderstep hesitated for the first time that day.
"...There's no helping it. If I made it too easy, Wardanaz would just help his friends and render the exam meaningless."
"......"
The excuse sounded plausible, but in the end, it just meant he couldn't find an appropriate difficulty level and settled for an overly hard exam instead.
Under Professor Lightning Step's reproachful gaze, Professor Thunderstep spoke as if defending himself.
"Starting this weekend, I'll let them know the contents and give them a whole week to prepare. That's more than generous."
"I'm sure you think so..."
"No, honestly speaking, how much have the second-years benefited and coasted thanks to Wardanaz? If that's the case, then they should naturally accept that the exam becomes harder because of Wardanaz too!"
'This kid. Why is he so annoyingly persuasive today?' Professor Lightning Step found himself overwhelmed by his nephew's argument once again.
Indeed, considering the advantages the second-year students had enjoyed, they had no right to complain even if the exam was a bit difficult.
After all, wasn't it precisely because they kept relying on help that the difficulty had risen this high? In a way, they'd brought this upon themselves.
"You're right. Fine. In fact, given the second-years' average level, this difficulty might even be an appropriate consideration."
"Haha! Thank you for understanding."
"But let me ask you one last thing."
Professor Lightning Step inquired with a serious expression. The grave demeanor of the family elder made Professor Thunderstep tense up for no reason.
'What's he going to ask?'
"You said you prepared the Nefertem trap because you predicted Wardanaz's movements, right?"
"That's correct."
"And the exam's increased difficulty is also because you predicted Wardanaz's actions?"
"You could say that."
"Then why are you excluding the possibility that Wardanaz might solve this exam easily too?"
At the question, Professor Thunderstep relaxed and let out a hearty laugh.
Perhaps because the other wasn't a professional alchemist, he'd missed the mark on this point.
"Because it's impossible!"
"Hmm?"
"Of course, I know Wardanaz has formidable magic resistance. The Red Sandalwood Incense won't work on him either. But this isn't a resistance test—it's an Incense Neutralization test. It has nothing to do with resistance. You have to analyze and dismantle it step by step, which requires knowledge and perseverance. There's absolutely no way he can solve it easily."
"Hmm. I may not be as brilliant an alchemist as you, but I'm wise enough not to use the word 'absolutely.' There's no such thing as 'absolute' in magic."
Professor Thunderstep grumbled as the family elder kept nitpicking.
"Of course, nothing is absolute. If there were a powerful neutralizer, it might be solved easily. Something like a potent potion I've made, for instance."
"Do you have one ready?"
"Ha! Even if I did, I'd have disposed of it by now."
Professor Lightning Step made a slightly exasperated face.
'Did he really have to go that far?'
"What about other neutralizers?"
"Well, Equal Incense... that would take at least a year to make. Dragon Stone? That's something you'd only find in legends."
As Professor Thunderstep listed them one by one, Professor Lightning Step had no choice but to concede.
Frankly, none of those were items an Einrogard student could obtain within a week.
"Fine, you're clever. But don't get too complacent. I may not know potions as well as you, but I've seen more people. Wardanaz is a genius like the Headmaster."
"...Is that an insult?"
"Damn. I said it, but it does sound a bit like one."
"Lee Han. What are you doing?"
"Huh? I'm drafting promotional lecture descriptions so Senior Catten can take on more students next semester."
"...You know we have an exam next week, right?"
"I know that too, you know?"
Lee Han flared up in anger.
Of course, Lee Han knew about the exam.
But what could he do? Professor Ingoldel's teachings hadn't been much help to Senior Catten.
'Just fill it with plausible-sounding phrases and be done with it.'
"P-Professor Thunderstep has gone mad!!!"
"What?"
"What? What happened?"
When a student taking alchemy rushed into the lounge with a pale face, everyone buzzed with alarm.
"The midterm exam topic is out!"
"Isn't it a bit excessive to call him mad just because it came out early on the weekend?"
"Nefertem isn't in it at all! That's the only thing we prepared for!"
"That insane professor!"
The students immediately erupted into curses.
How dare he give them an exam different from what he'd hinted at (though he never officially announced it)!