Episode 93
Episode 93
"You seem to be mistaken—"
"So you did use lightning magic."
'Damn.'
There was no way Professor Voladi wouldn't notice the traces.
The professor quickly assessed the situation from the monster's fallen remains and the faint residual echoes of lightning spirits lingering on Lee Han's arm.
"Interesting..."
Professor Voladi's slight nod and muttered words frightened Lee Han more than most monsters could.
"Wait. Hold on."
Professor Garcia intervened.
Lee Han felt his heart swell at the sight.
Professor!
"Professor Bagrak, why are you asking about lightning magic? What are you planning to do?"
"It's necessary for instruction."
"Instruction? What kind of— Wait. Student Lee Han, you're taking... I mean, you're attending Professor Bagrak's class!?"
Professor Garcia had been about to say 'that professor' but quickly corrected himself.
However, Lee Han could easily guess what he'd been about to say.
"Yes..."
"......"
Professor Garcia pressed a hand to his forehead.
While Professor Garcia was a truly respectable person who treated everyone at the Magic School with dignity, the same couldn't be said for all lectures.
Certain classes taught by certain professors always unsettled Professor Garcia whenever he saw them.
Professor Voladi Bagrak's class was precisely one of those.
From Professor Garcia's perspective, it was an excessively harsh and brutal course!
No matter how he looked at it, it wasn't a class suitable for freshmen.
Rather than teaching how to avoid fights, it focused on maintaining composure and casting magic in extreme combat situations—for freshmen, no less...
The only saving grace was that students didn't actually attend that class.
Given its notorious difficulty, every year students would try it once before fleeing.
So Professor Garcia had reassured himself, 'Someday even Professor Bagrak will realize and change his curriculum...'
Yet astonishingly, there was a student actually taking it.
Professor Voladi spoke as if wondering why this was surprising.
"I believe you saw it last time."
"Saw what?"
"The fight against the Anti-Magic Zealots. I mentioned then that I'd been teaching him."
"...!"
Professor Garcia felt as if a lightning bolt had struck his mind.
The iron pellets Lee Han had used back then.
At the time, he'd been too preoccupied with the Imperial Anti-Magic Zealots to deeply consider the method behind controlling those pellets...
...Now that he thought about it, that was Professor Voladi's style!
-He has talent for magical combat. Professor Voladi, were you the one who taught him? Impressive.
-Not particularly impressive.
Come to think of it, even the subsequent conversation between the Headmaster and Professor Voladi had been highly significant.
He'd assumed Lee Han had just coincidentally received a few pointers, but it turned out he'd been receiving intensive instruction in class all along!
"Are you okay????"
"......"
Lee Han hesitated at Professor Garcia's question.
That "Are you okay" carried far too much meaning.
How should he respond?
"He's fine."
"......"
Professor Voladi answered for him. Both Lee Han and Professor Garcia stared at him with bewildered expressions.
"The Wardanaz is successfully keeping up with the instruction."
"...Keeping up?"
At first, Professor Garcia was shocked—then understanding dawned.
Occasionally, exceptional talent could become a curse.
That applied even to this situation.
Lee Han's outstanding talent was precisely what had driven him to persist with the class rather than give up!
'Such tragedy...!'
Professor Voladi, in his own way, tried to be as considerate as possible.
"I trust you now understand why I needed to confirm his lightning magic manifestation."
"Wait, hold on. I get that he's keeping up."
Professor Garcia made one last attempt at resistance. It was genuine kindness.
"But even if his control over basic telekinesis spells has improved considerably, isn't jumping straight into lightning elemental magic too rushed? At least let him master other safer elemental magics first..."
Professor Garcia stopped mid-sentence with a horrified expression.
Professor Voladi was smiling ever so faintly.
What the hell???
"That's why I had him learn water elemental magic first."
"...Already?"
"Indeed."
Professor Voladi's 'indeed' carried an extremely faint sense of conviction.
As a fellow professor, Garcia could recognize that emotion.
-'Since there's a student keeping up, it seems I wasn't teaching wrong after all.'
...That was the conviction behind it.
'No!!'
Professor Garcia screamed internally. Why, of all things?!
Even if they could correct Professor Voladi's distorted worldview later, they had to protect this outstanding student in front of them first.
Refusing to give up, Professor Garcia continued.
"Actually, don't most students find it relatively easy up to the point of giving form to water?"
'Was that the case?'
Unaware of Professor Garcia's inner thoughts, Lee Han was surprised.
No wonder...
"Wouldn't that be due to the inherent properties of the water element?"
"I wouldn't particularly say that's the..."
"Considering that point, rather than immediately advancing to the next stage after successfully giving form, shouldn't one expand the scope in different ways to become more familiar with the element?"
Professor Voladi nodded.
"That's why I also had him realize the Water Shield spell on his own."
"......"
Professor Garcia stared at Lee Han with horrified eyes. For some reason, Lee Han felt apologetic.
If he hadn't just learned the Water Shield spell but realized it on his own, it was practically equivalent to having mastered elemental form manipulation.
If he'd contemplated the principles and logic himself to reach that realization, he could create any other forms just as easily.
That level of self-realization was significant.
"B-but... even if one masters form manipulation, the path to elemental control is endless... At the very least, one should be able to manipulate formed water elemental magic as naturally as controlling iron pellets before..."
Mid-sentence, Professor Garcia's heart sank as he saw Lee Han bow his head deeply.
No way?
"I've already had him learn what you just mentioned. I stopped him when he tried to apply the Rotation Attribute."
Professor Garcia had never imagined, even in his worst nightmares, that Professor Voladi would ever say something like 'I'm considering the student like this.'
This was more terrifying than any nightmare.
And the most horrifying part was that Professor Garcia now had no means left to persuade him.
In a despondent voice, Professor Garcia said sorrowfully,
"...Please take good care of Lee Han..."
"I always teach with unwavering consistency, Professor Garcia."
As the conversation between the two professors concluded, Lee Han also snapped back to reality.
"...?!!"
That's it?
Aren't you going to stop him any further??
"Professor...!"
"Lee Han. Do your best."
Lee Han suddenly felt like a cow being dragged to the slaughterhouse.
He didn't know what would happen next week, but...
This was ominous!
'...I should tell myself to check if there are other professors around when asking a professor for help from now on...'
Ashan walked toward the black market with his friends.
"Let's treat everyone this weekend."
'Do we really have to?'
Gainando wanted to complain but had to keep his mouth shut. He'd already complained once and received back-to-back scoldings.
The current food situation for the magic school freshmen was roughly as follows:
The Blue Dragon Tower, where thanks to Lee Han who secured massive supplies from outside, they could enjoy the most luxurious and abundant meals.
The Phoenix Tower, where students quietly accepted whatever meals were served without complaint from the start.
The Tower of the White Tiger, aggressively wielding weapons as they roamed nearby forests, fields, and mountains, gradually succeeding in their hunts.
And the Tower of the Black Turtle, supplementing their insufficient food supplies through periodic foraging, occasional hunts, and bartering with other students.
Among these, the Blue Dragon Tower students were acutely aware of how absolutely dependent they were on Lee Han's help.
Though Lee Han had considerately told them not to worry and that they could just pay a pittance, they couldn't just sit still.
The students of the Blue Dragon Tower were also searching for food through various means.
One of those methods was the current black market.
A bartering spot set up by the students of the Tower of the Black Turtle near their tower!
"Last time I went, there wasn't much to eat..."
"No way. I went a few days ago, and the goods had increased a lot. There was quite a bit of food too."
"From what I heard, it seems they made a deal with the kids from the White Tiger Tower."
Ashan nodded at his friends' words.
"As time passes, the market can't help but grow. It's not for nothing that I'm going. And..."
Ashan carefully pulled out glass bottles from his pocket.
They were the spoils obtained from conquering the dungeon called the Thunderstep Laboratory this time.
All the participating students had divided the potions and reagents among themselves.
"...The guys from the Tower of the Black Turtle probably know how precious these are right now. It's better to trade the extras now before they become less valuable."
"Dalkard, you're the best!"
The students of the Blue Dragon Tower headed to the black market, grinning from ear to ear.
The expression of the Tower of the Black Turtle student standing at the black market entrance changed as he recognized them.
"Good to see you. Can we come in?"
"Um... sorry."
"??"
"There's a new rule. You guys can't enter."
Ashan felt more bewildered than surprised.
"You're only going to trade among yourselves? The market will shrink!"
"We don't care."
Along with a deep, resonant voice, someone appeared from behind the Tower of the Black Turtle student.
He had a short stature like a dwarf and a more muscular build than even the students of the White Tiger Tower.
It was impossible to hide even under a loose coat.
'Wait... that's not a dwarf?!'
Ashan was taken aback. He'd thought it was a dwarf, but upon closer inspection, it was an elf.
A short, extremely muscular elf!
"I am Salko of the Tutanta Family."
The Tutanta Family.
A well-known stonemason guild family even within the empire.
He had thought they were a family of outstanding dwarf craftsmen...?
"Tutanta. Why are you blocking us? Because we're from the Blue Dragon Tower?"
"No. Though it's true that I don't particularly like you Blue Dragon Tower students..."
"......"
"......"
"...I wouldn't mix my personal feelings into rules like this. You can't enter because of the rule."
"What rule?"
"No entry unless you bring goods earned through your own labor!"
More Tower of the Black Turtle students gathered behind Salko.
From rough-looking guys to well-groomed ones, they were all different, but it was clear Salko had leadership.
Ashan bristled and pulled out the reagents he'd brought.
"What we're carrying now was earned through our own labor too!"
"Oh? Where did you get them from?"
"......"
Ashan became as silent as if he'd swallowed honey. He couldn't exactly say they came from Professor Thunderstep's laboratory.
Gainando stepped in to explain instead.
"We gathered them outside!"
"You gathered that much from the fields? You must've stolen them. If you can't disclose the source, I'll consider it stolen goods. And as long as I'm in the Tower of the Black Turtle, I won't allow stolen goods in the market. That not only tarnishes people's sweat and effort but also disrupts the market."
The Blue Dragon Tower students were left speechless by the undeniable logic.
Gainando shouted indignantly.
"But then where are we supposed to trade stolen goods! What are thieves supposed to eat to survive?!"
"Hey... Gainando... lower your voice, it's embarrassing...!"
The Blue Dragon Tower students, realizing the shame, covered Gainando's mouth.
Just then, Lee Han appeared carrying a basket.
He looked puzzled to see his friends gathered at the entrance.
"What are you doing? Why aren't you going in?"
"Lee Han!"
Ashan spilled out everything that had happened.
After listening, Lee Han asked Salko,
"I grew these myself in a garden. Can I go in then?"
"...!?"
Salko stared at Lee Han in surprise, then nodded.
"See you later then."
Watching Lee Han enter, the Blue Dragon Tower friends belatedly came to their senses.
"?!?"