Episode 902
Episode 902
The test this time was to evaluate their mastery of the spells <Lesser Internal Time Dilation>, <Lesser Time Deceleration>, and <Lesser Time Acceleration> that they had learned previously.
<Lesser Internal Time Dilation> was a 2nd Circle Magic spell that extended the subjective perception of time for an individual.
Though not particularly flashy, it was an essential foundational spell in Time Magic—a field notorious for its high difficulty and computational demands.
Meanwhile, <Lesser Time Deceleration> and <Lesser Time Acceleration> were 3rd Circle Magic spells that directly affected objects.
Since Time Magic applied to living beings was already difficult enough—with the difficulty skyrocketing further—practicing on inanimate objects first was mandatory.
"Please evaluate me, Professor."
"......"
And Lee Han had flawlessly succeeded in all three.
His casting was stable—completely different from the shaky performance he had shown last time.
Professor Garcia, unable to hide her bewilderment, asked,
"Didn't you say it was difficult last time, Lee Han?"
"That's why I practiced."
"I see..."
Professor Garcia suddenly recalled her own school days.
She used to look down on classmates who envied her magical prowess, but now, looking back, she realized she might have been partly responsible.
'Did I come across like this too?'
"Professor?"
"Ah! It's nothing, Lee Han. Perfect execution. I don't understand why you were complaining so much last time when you're clearly capable of doing this well..."
"I genuinely thought it was difficult back then."
"But practicing made it easier, right?"
"Yes."
"Did you happen to gain any insights from our conversation just now?"
"That the world of magic is vast and boundless, so one must never act arrogantly?"
"...Not that. Never mind. It's fine."
Professor Garcia gave up on telling her student to have more confidence.
After all, such things were matters of personality and wouldn't change easily.
She suddenly imagined her student, even after becoming a professor in the future, grumbling about how difficult new magic was.
"Anyway, full marks. You've worked hard."
"Thank you, Professor."
"Wait. That means Professor Lightning Step must still be busy right now."
Checking the time, Professor Garcia realized her mistake.
Come to think of it, this was the time when Professor Lightning Step would be teaching his students.
"Then I'll wait for a while. Oh, by the way, Professor, do you have any advice for me? You must have a lot of experience in these matters."
At her student's question, Professor Garcia stiffened mid-turn and froze in place.
"What do you mean, Lee Han? 'A lot of experience'? Are you implying that I've illegally brought large, rare creatures into Einrogard and raised them before???"
"Huh? No... Have you done that before?"
Lee Han was slightly taken aback.
He couldn't understand why Professor Garcia had suddenly turned so serious.
"Of course not! Ha, haha. It was a joke, Lee Han. A joke!"
"Oh. I see. It must have been a difficult joke—I didn't quite get it. What I meant by 'experience' was your experience counseling students, Professor."
"Ah... that kind of experience?"
Professor Garcia's voice rose slightly, and her hardened expression softened.
Clearing her throat, the troll-hybrid professor replied humbly,
"Other professors would have far more experience in that regard."
"Who, for example?"
"..."
"Lee Han, asking about such things one by one is impolite."
Since she couldn't think of any other professors off the top of her head either, Professor Garcia resorted to authoritative pressure.
Lee Han thought to himself,
'Who could that professor be? Someone who's retired?'
"Still... I'm glad you rely on me, Lee Han. Though I'm lacking, I'll try to squeeze out some wisdom for you."
Professor Garcia rummaged through the shelves and pulled out a red book.
"Oops."
Muttering to herself, 'I forgot to erase the cover,' she waved her staff.
The words <Bulgasari Rearing Diary> faded away faintly.
"Let's see... When being stubborn, when being stubborn..."
"What kind of book is this?"
"It's a record book I obtained long ago, written by a mage while raising a large rare creature."
"Such a book exists? Could I possibly borrow it too?"
"It's still too difficult for you, Lee Han! I'll just interpret the necessary parts for you."
'An ancient evil creature manual?' Professor Garcia flipped through the book and let out a small "Ah."
"Obedience potion. They tried that method too."
"There's such a thing as an obedience potion?"
Lee Han perked up with interest.
'I wonder if that would work on Gainando too?'
"It wasn't very effective. Potions of this kind are practically meaningless against creatures with strong resistance."
"I see."
"Using electric shocks for discipline..."
"That seems excessively cruel."
Lee Han showed clear disapproval.
Perhaps because it was an ancient evil creature manual, the disciplinary methods were far too brutal.
How could anyone think of electrocuting Jowurin with lightning?
And considering her resistance, it probably wouldn't even work well.
At her student's words, Professor Garcia suddenly began coughing violently.
"Cough, cough! That's not what I meant, Lee Han. It's just recorded here. The mage who wrote this book deeply regretted it too. The large rare creature ate his research, making him furious beyond measure."
"Goodness. But His Highness Jowurin would never do such things."
"At the oddly boastful tone, Professor Garcia felt a slight irritation."
'So His Highness Jowurin has a good personality while Bulgasari has a bad one? Hmph. Just a racial difference. If Bulgasari had been a dragon, it would've been much more docile.'
"Let's move on. The cane..."
"Striking it against scales probably wouldn't do much damage."
"They used a special cane designed to inflict physical pain on large creatures. Of course, this wasn't very effective either."
Professor Garcia went on to list several more methods.
Electric shocks, caning, withholding meals, kneeling in place, copying ancient texts for moral cultivation, and so on.
"What do you think?"
"They all seem rather ineffective."
Lee Han answered honestly.
None of these methods seemed likely to work on Jowurin.
But Professor Garcia nodded as if she agreed.
"You're right, Lee Han. Reading through these methods made me realize none of them worked individually. Yet this large rare creature eventually came to understand the mage's intentions. I believe the reason was trust."
Recalling past memories, Professor Garcia realized something she had overlooked back then.
Amidst the chaos and struggles, she had only resented her counterpart, but eventually, Bulgasari matured and came to understand her intentions.
Even though Bulgasari could have easily fled elsewhere.
Bulgasari had clearly sensed the trust Professor Garcia placed in it and had reciprocated that trust in turn.
All the trouble and problems they caused each other ultimately became trivial matters in hindsight. With trust, such issues naturally resolved themselves.
"Are you dissatisfied because it's not a magical solution, Lee Han?"
When Lee Han remained silent, Professor Garcia asked slyly. But her magic-obsessed student slowly shook his head.
"No. I think you're right, Professor. I realize now that I didn't trust His Highness enough."
"It's not entirely your fault, Lee Han. Who could've predicted someone would pull out a Dragon Stone like that?"
"Exactly! I told him not to do that, but..."
"Still, you're lucky, Lee Han. At least His Highness Jowurin didn't devour all your research and wreck your private quarters."
"Why would His Highness Jowurin do such a thing? He's not some slime. How brilliant His Highness is!"
"Professor Garcia's fist clenched tightly for a moment before relaxing."
"I should apologize to His Highness when I get back. I need to say sorry for getting angry at him. And I should trust him when he says he won't do it again."
"......"
"Then, shall we go take the exam together now?"
"......"
"No? An out-of-bounds restriction is an out-of-bounds restriction. I'll keep you confined for the rest of the week."
Professor Garcia couldn't help but admire the straightforward answer.
Who could remain so unwavering even in front of a dragon?
"Thank you, Professor!"
"You've all worked hard too. Don't just rest—study for the next exam."
At Professor Lightning Step's well-meaning words, the first-year students inwardly cursed.
"Maybe the original professor was better. What was his name again? Ben... Benderzel? Professor Benderzel."
"I used to respect him since he often appeared in the Imperial Newspaper as an adventurer, but he's a total fraud!"
Amid their friends' curses, Alhidel of the Pengerin family quietly spoke up.
"We don't even know who Professor Benderzel is. Professor Lightning Step's teachings may be harsh, but they might be necessary to keep up with Einrogard's standards. Complaining is fine, but afterward, let's all strive together."
Despite being the top of the tower, this friend never let go of his books. His words made the other students feel ashamed.
If it had been someone who usually acted arrogantly, they would have swung their staffs at him immediately—but Alhidel had never behaved that way.
He was truly a respectable friend.
"Pengerin. Sometimes I wonder if you shouldn't have gone to the Phoenix Tower instead."
"I once heard rumors that Pengerin was arrogant, but I don't know who spread such nonsense. Just look at him now."
Even as their friends praised him, Alhidel shook his head.
"No. The rumors were right. I was an arrogant and haughty mage."
"This guy...! How can he be so honorable?"
"Blue Earthworms. Move aside."
At the words spat out from behind them, the Blue Dragon Tower students stiffened.
"How dare you?"
"Dare? What do you mean, 'dare'? Just move."
"Fine. We'll move. But first, try enduring this Laughing Curse—"
"Hey! Ulgan! Ulgan's coming!!"
At one student's whisper, the White Tiger Tower students turned pale.
Even though they were from the same tower, their fear was unmistakable.
"You guys! You're not fighting, are you?!"
The large friend who came running from a distance boomed loudly, and the White Tiger Tower students hastily denied it.
"W-what are you talking about, Ulgan? Us? Fighting? No way. Right?"
"O-of course. We weren't fighting."
Surprisingly, the Blue Dragon Tower students agreed. They knew all too well the danger of provoking Ulgan.
-Stop! Stop fighting!
-Get lost, Ulgan! Either fight with your tower buddies or get lost!!
-Ulgan! How can you just stand there after hearing that?! Help us!
-I said stop fighting! Please, just stop! ...
I told you to stop!!!
-Gah! Ugh!
-Agh! Oof!
The students who had started a fight in front of Ulgan—who hated fighting—received a brutal beating and learned a painful lesson.
Ah, one must never provoke someone who hates fighting!
"Good. I thought you were fighting."
"Haha."
"Hahaha."
An awkward round of laughter passed between them before Ulgan spoke up as if remembering something.
"Oh, right. Eandurde's distributing food over there. Go get some quickly."
"What? Again?! Where is all this food coming from? Did Turtle Tower find another hidden storeroom?"
"A senior from Blue Dragon Tower gave it, apparently."
"What? What kind of crazy senior gives food to juniors from another tower?"
Though puzzled, the students immediately rushed to line up. First-years were always hungry, and if they didn't hurry, there'd be nothing left.
"Hello, everyone."
"......"
"Priest Karre. Don't come any closer."
"Wh-what's wrong?"
"You'll just steal something if you get close!"
"How rude...! What have I ever done to—"
Like the beaver beastman or the penguin beastman, squirrel beastmen could manipulate people's guilt with just their expressions.
Even after being robbed multiple times, the White Tiger Tower students still felt like they were the ones at fault.
"I also brought this basket for you. Here you go."
"Th-thank you..."
"Don't mention it. It's a priest's joy to serve."
Inside the food basket, a paper-made magic beetle quietly fluttered its wings.
Karre smiled at the sight.
Finally, he could unlock the White Tiger Tower students' storeroom.