Episode 925
Episode 925
"What's that? If you're trying to trick me right now, just stop! It won't work!"
Beaver
Penguin
Fox: "This is driving me crazy, seriously."
Gonadaltes: "Hold on. Everyone, calm down."
Lee Han first tried to settle the confused club members.
Since they couldn't let the newcomer leave before Bakwantalana arrived anyway, it was better to coax information out of them about how they'd gotten in.
Iactus: "Aha! So you're finally showing your true colors!"
Beaver
Penguin
Fox: "Staying calm in this situation... Even your alias is a bit..."
Gonadaltes: "Can we just cancel the request we got?"
As Lee Han's expression darkened, BeaverPenguinFox flinched.
Come to think of it, the one at a disadvantage here was them, not the other party.
Beaver
Penguin
Fox: "What I meant was, staying composed in this situation is impressive."
Iactus: "Wow. I hate to say this, but that's kinda pathetic."
Beaver
Penguin
Fox: "Shut up."
Gonadaltes: "Alright, everyone quiet. New Baldrogard wizard. This is a secret club where students from the Empire's Magic Academy gather to have dignified discussions."
"Wow!"
At Lee Han's words, the Baldrogard student gasped in surprise.
A secret club where students from the Empire's Magic Academy gathered?
This was the kind of wizardly place they'd never seen in their life.
Baldrogard was a good school, but honestly, it wasn't the most wizardly of places.
"To think I'd get to enter such a place—what an honor! How many Baldrogard students are here?"
Gonadaltes: "Prying into each other's identities isn't very wizardly behavior."
"Ah! My apologies!"
Iactus and BeaverPenguinFox were inwardly baffled.
What kind of ridiculous lie was this?
'Well... It's not entirely false...'
Come to think of it, even if it was a club for Einrogard students, it could still be called a gathering of the Empire's magic school students.
And now that a Baldrogard student had joined, even more so.
'Maybe it's better to deceive them like this and then send them away.'
Rather than pointlessly revealing that this was a place only for Einrogard wizards...
"So the aliases in front of each of you are to hide your identities?"
Gonadaltes: "That's the idea."
"That's such a cool alias!"
Gonadaltes: "Thanks for the compliment."
Iactus: "......"
Beaver
Penguin
Fox: "......"
At the immature outsider's praise, the other members squeezed their eyes shut in exasperation.
This was why new members were the worst!
Gonadaltes: "So... how did you get in? You'd need an artifact to enter."
"I have a blackboard I got from Senior Zandanni... Oh, Senior Zandanni is—"
Iactus: "Not interested."
Beaver
Penguin
Fox: "Nobody asked."
'They're all so cold.'
Yet despite the chilly reception, the new Baldrogard student remained completely unfazed and even seemed excited.
"Ah, I see! You're all hiding your identities and keeping secrets! That's so cool!"
Gonadaltes: "It's just basic etiquette."
Iactus: "Wow. You're really—"
Gonadaltes: "Really what?"
Iactus: "Never mind..."
Lee Han fell into thought.
Zandanni was a Baldrogard student Lee Han also knew. Hadn't they gotten involved before because of that bag artifact incident?
'Did they figure out the artifact's value and gift it to a junior?'
It didn't seem likely, but just in case, Lee Han asked.
Gonadaltes: "So did that senior gift you the blackboard to join this club?"
"Ah, no. The senior just sold it to me. There was a donation event, and originally, they were trying to sell some usable furniture. But after buying new ebony furniture, there wasn't any space left in the reception room for a display cabinet..."
"......"
The Watcher Club's silence was terrifying.
Lee Han could feel the boiling hatred of the Einrogard students through the paper.
Gonadaltes: "..."
"Let me remind you again—don't forget to hide your identity."
"Ah! Yes! Understood!"
The moment this Baldrogard student's identity was revealed, they would seriously have to worry about being attacked.
Beaver
- Penguin
- Fox: "So you just happened to obtain that Blackboard by chance?"
"Yes. The senior said they inherited it from an even older senior. Senior Ipelldrem, I believe..."
Iactus: "Not interested."
Beaver
- Penguin
- Fox: "Nobody asked."
"Aha! Understood!"
'Wait?' Unlike the other members' harsh treatment, Lee Han grew increasingly intrigued.
If it was Ipelldrem, he was the creator of the <Hexagonal Backpack> that Lee Han currently possessed.
He was also a mage renowned for his achievements, having collaborated with an Einrogard student despite being from Baldrogard.
The fact that such a person had owned a Blackboard was quite fascinating.
'Could he have used it to communicate with that Einrogard student? Then perhaps that Einrogard student was also a member of this club.'
"By the way, is there anything you'd like to ask me?"
The newcomer seemed so delighted to have joined this prestigious mage club that they remained unshaken despite the harsh treatment.
Iactus: "Which family are you from? Can you tell us where to find you during the holidays?"
"Ah! You're testing me! I understand. It's a secret!"
Beaver
- Penguin
- Fox: "Do you happen to have any Snow Sulfur? I need some."
Snow Sulfur was a reagent that controlled ambient moisture, a rather expensive and rare material.
The other members naturally assumed the newcomer would refuse and watched closely.
"I do! I bought a whole box last time. If you need some, I can give you as much as you want!"
"......"
Beaver
- Penguin
- Fox: "Hold on. Let's talk privately."
Iactus: "Hey! You can't trick a new member into giving you stuff!"
"What are you talking about? I just wanted to give it as a gift."
Lee Han realized there was one unexpected advantage to this Baldrogard student.
Namely, the vast financial resources they could freely use outside the academy.
Just moments ago, the members who had been desperately searching for Bakwantalana were now scrambling to win the newcomer's favor.
'Oh no. This isn't the time for this.'
Lee Han quickly grabbed his quill.
At this point, he had to eliminate the competition and make them trust him. Lee Han loaded his pen with disparaging remarks about Iactus and BeaverPenguinFox.
Bakwantalana: "..."
"What in the world is going on?"
Bulgasari: "What's happening here? Can someone explain??"
The latecomers were baffled by the chaotic state of the club.
Beaver
- Penguin
- Fox: "It's nothing."
Gonadaltes: "Right. You're both busy, so go back to your own work."
Bakwantalana: "A Baldrogard student joined? This... this is unexpected."
Bulgasari: "Wait! You can't deceive the Baldrogard student! Everyone, stop!!"
"I just wanted to give it as a gift..."
Bulgasari: "If you're equals as mages, there's no reason to give gifts. Unless it's a fair exchange! Stop right now! If you don't, I'll block this place!"
Bakwantalana: "What are you talking about, Bulgasari? You don't have administrative authority over this club—"
Before the sentence could even finish, the paper darkened as if drenched in ink, rejecting and repelling any further writing.
The members panicked and tried to manipulate their artifacts, but no method worked.
Bulgasari: "See? Stop!"
Beaver
- Penguin
- Fox: "What the—? What kind of magic is this?"
Bakwantalana: "How is this interference possible??"
Bulgasari: "Figure it out yourself if you're curious. I won't tolerate exploiting a new member!"
Once control was restored, Bulgasari issued a stern warning.
"P-please don't fight because of me! Alright, I won't give any gifts."
'Damn it!' Though unseen, Lee Han could almost hear the collective sighs of the other members.
And the sound of Bulgasari's popularity dropping further...
'At this rate, there's nowhere left to fall. More importantly, who the hell is this? A senior I don't know about?'
The other members were upperclassmen in their own right, yet even they couldn't guess the nature of this magical interference.
Either it's a senior Lee Han doesn't know... 'It can't be a professor. No professor would be free enough to come here, no matter what.'
Bakwantalana: "Fine. We'll figure that out later ourselves. That's not what's important right now."
"What's going on?"
Bakwantalana: "It's related to you. We need to vote on whether to accept a new member."
Though Bakwantalana acted as the club's administrator, he didn't make decisions arbitrarily.
Even if the new member was a Baldrogard student, it would be decided by majority vote.
Whether this member could keep secrets, act honorably, or whether they were just a pawn of the Skeleton Principal...
"Please trust me! I swear on my family name that I'll keep the secrets. And I'll uphold my honor!"
Beaver
- Penguin
- Fox: "Agreed."
Bulgasari: "I agree too."
Gonadaltes: "Then I also..."
Bakwantalana: "Some seem motivated by personal greed... but rules are rules. Fine. Let's welcome the new member."
"Wow! Thank you so much!!!"
Bakwantalana: "Now, let's decide on an alias."
Wardanaz: "How about this one? It's someone I respect..."
Gonadaltes: "That's garbage. Pick another alias."
Iactus: "Hey. Do you even have the right to criticize someone else's alias?"
'Phew. That's a relief.'
Lee Han let out a sigh of relief and closed the book.
Fortunately, he managed to break through their stubbornness and suggest the new alias <Ipelldrem>.
Wardanaz: "Garbage?! You don't even know! He's a mage from Einrogard—"
Gonadaltes: "Not that great of a mage. And if you're a Baldrogard student, you should use a Baldrogard name. How about Ipelldrem?"
Ipelldrem: "..."
"Fine. I'll concede. But Gonadaltes, you're really rude!"
Though he did earn a bit of the new member's dislike in the process...
Originally, the role of the unpopular club member belonged to Bulgasari, so Lee Han was slightly worried.
'They won't leave me out when handing out gifts later, right?'
Having dealt with the urgent matter, Lee Han headed toward Black Rock Hall.
With exams over, it was time to tend to the back cemetery. The Black Magic students were already gathered, swinging shovels.
"Wardanaz is here."
"Yes. Should I till this soil?"
"Yeah. But be careful. There's been noise coming from below for a while now."
The soil favored by Black Mages was naturally rich in Yin energy, so wicked and twisted beings often crawled out of it.
Gainando muttered with a disgusted expression.
"It's not a banshee, is it?"
"I wouldn't mind if it was a banshee."
"......"
"Just kidding."
"That didn't sound like a joke at all."
The banshee's most threatening attack was its eerie wail, but it was unlikely to work on Lee Han.
Having endured far worse status effects before, he wasn't particularly concerned.
"There's a hole down there. Small. We should send a summon in."
"A spirit?"
"Spirits hate places like that. They'd refuse."
There weren't many places in a Black Mage's domain that spirits would like, and a small cave dug deep beneath a grave was even worse.
"Gainando. Send an undead."
"My Thorn Revenant can't fit in there. I already reinforced its size..."
"...Gainando... Just making your summon bigger doesn't solve everything..."
Lee Han gave his friend a pitiful look.
Some Black Mages recklessly enlarged their summons, but they always regretted it soon after.
A summon needed to be flexible enough to adapt to situations. If it could only do one thing, it was just inconvenient for the mage.
"Whatever. I'll call Sharkan."
Lee Han summoned his leopard undead.
He had other undead summons, but given the small hole, the agile quadrupedal Sharkan was the best fit.
But Sharkan didn't appear.
"...???"
He tried summoning again. Same result. Gainando shouted as if he understood.
"It's sulking because you don't call it often! Just like that griffin!"
"Gainando. Griffins don't sulk. And neither does Basil."
-?!
The baby basilisk, who had been sitting quietly, suddenly bristled at the insult, raising its tail stiffly.