Episode 934
Episode 934
Meanwhile, Professor Garcia, who was staying at the Inn of Ten Thousand Schemes, grew increasingly restless.
Originally, the students were supposed to gather every evening to discuss the day's events, but one second-year student had been absent.
Of course, depending on the circumstances of their assigned tasks, absence was understandable—but this time, things felt different.
"Long live the Righteous Thief! Down with that upturned Uap!"
"Who knew Granden City had such a hero?!"
"......"
Watching the adventurers behind her clinking beer mugs in excitement, Professor Garcia wore a troubled expression.
She had hoped the rumors would die down over time, but instead, they only seemed to gain momentum.
"Did you hear? The captain of the western district guards got so scared he doubled his escort."
"Too late for that now. The Righteous Thief will come for him!"
"But who exactly is doing all this? I heard it might be a mage?"
"Could they be from Einrogard? It's close by."
"What? Einrogard mages might be skilled, but they're all eccentrics. Not the type to do something like this."
"Actually, because they're eccentrics, they might just be the type..."
"...In my opinion, this doesn't seem like something an Einrogard mage would do!"
"Whoa!"
The adventurers startled at the troll-hybrid mage suddenly joining their conversation.
Simultaneously, they checked themselves, making sure they hadn't made any mistakes. Antagonizing a mage was never a good idea.
"Apologies. We must have been too loud."
"No, no. The rumors were just so interesting that I couldn't help but join in."
"See! Even the mage is curious!"
The adventurers beamed.
They had been curious themselves, but now a respected mage was engaging with them—what luck!
"So the thief must be a mage, right?"
"Ah... I suppose so."
Professor Garcia sighed inwardly.
The adventurers weren't fools. There was no point in stubbornly denying it now.
"Bypassing powerful magical defenses so effortlessly... Even if an adventurer had an artifact, it wouldn't be easy. The most plausible explanation is that they're a mage themselves."
"Exactly, exactly!"
"Everyone hear that? The Righteous Thief is a mage!"
At the adventurer's shout, the entire first floor of the inn erupted in cheers and applause. Someone even stomped their feet loudly in excitement.
"In honor of this, we'll name our newest batch of wine The Righteous Thief of Granden! One round for everyone!"
"Woooh!"
Professor Garcia shot a resentful glare at the inn servant, Mapara.
Normally, he was smooth and attentive, reading guests' moods with uncanny precision—but today, that very skill was working against her.
This would only keep the rumors spreading!
"Professor Garcia, have a drink!"
"Thank you..."
Forced to smile, she accepted the tin cup filled to the brim with fine wine as Mapara poured generously.
"What's going on?"
"Hey! The Inn of Ten Thousand Schemes is giving out free drinks today—The Righteous Thief of Granden!"
"Long live the Righteous Thief! Long live the wine!"
Even passersby outside, hearing the commotion, began flooding in.
Unaware of Professor Garcia's inner turmoil, the adventurers pressed on with their questions.
"So, Mage, what kind of mage do you think the thief is? Definitely Einrogard?"
"No way!"
"Yes way!"
"...I don't think it's an Einrogard mage. As you all know... they're a bit too eccentric."
"......"
Mapara, who knew the truth, gave her a bewildered look, but Professor Garcia firmly shut her mouth.
The servant shook his head vigorously before sneaking away to the counter, where he began ladling thick meat stew into bowls one after another.
'Einrogard mages really are all eccentrics.'
"Yeah, Einrogard mages are a bit eccentric."
"Shh! Aren't you scared? Don't you know that adventurer who insulted Einrogard got turned into a toad?"
"That's just a rumor! Do Einrogard mages have nothing better to do than chase after adventurers like us to turn them into toads?"
"...Anyway, we all agree it's not an Einrogard mage, right?"
Everyone nodded at Professor Garcia's words.
Truth be told, with everyone slightly tipsy, there were few people in Granden City twisted enough to oppose a troll-hybrid's words.
"I think he must be at least a hundred years old."
"Right! They say mages grow stronger the longer they live."
"And he must have an extremely destructive and violent temperament."
"That makes sense! Just look at what happened to those guys today."
Professor Garcia let out a sigh of relief.
At this point, it seemed people would never guess the Righteous Thief's true identity.
"Then who could it be? A hundred-year-old, destructive, violent mage?"
"Maybe someone from the Lava Bird Magic Tower? You know, that mage whose head is always blazing with fire."
"Gargajun? He's over a hundred and fits the description."
"Wasn't he locked up in the Empire's prison?"
Behind the heated debate, additional wine orders, and the innkeeper's happy smile, the inn door opened to reveal a noble-looking boy.
Lee Han scanned the frenzied atmosphere inside before whispering to Professor Garcia:
"Is today some kind of festival?"
"...Come upstairs right now!"
"Why didn't you stop them?!"
"......"
Hearing his shameless student's first words after the explanation, Professor Garcia had the urge to pinch both his cheeks.
"Stopping them at all was a miracle, Lee Han!"
"Why are they so excited anyway?"
"Guess the people of Granden City found it cathartic... Just never mention you were involved."
While the citizens might be pleased, there was no telling what grudges the victims might hold.
A still-developing mage like Lee Han didn't need to accumulate enemies this early.
"Understood. My apologies."
"No, it's just bad luc— wait, was it good luck?"
"......"
Muttering to herself, Professor Garcia noticed the thick stack of books Lee Han carried and laughed.
"Studying magic even outside school, Lee Han? You should relax sometimes!"
"Ah, these aren't magic books. They're about famous imperial plays and related legends, folktales, and stories."
Professor Garcia let out a short scream and dropped her tin cup.
Lee Han swiftly stopped the falling cup with telekinesis before asking in surprise:
"What's wrong?"
"I'm just shocked Lee Han is actually playing around for once!"
"......"
Lee Han grumbled internally as he returned the cup to his teacher.
"That's not it—it's for a m... I mean, mission prep. I need to infiltrate somewhere."
"You still have missions left after that beating you handed out?"
Professor Garcia looked puzzled.
Were the seniors bullying Lee Han?
Lee Han pretended not to hear. The Theater Club runaway mission wasn't something to discuss openly.
"I need to convincingly pretend I know about theater, but it's tough."
Lee Han pulled out a thick, well-bound leather book titled <Imperial Theater for Nobles>.
"Ah, that one. Professor Krinval helped with the binding too."
"......"
Typical of a renowned socialite dancer.
"I contributed too."
"You know about theater too, Professor?!"
"Huh? Oh, yes. Professor Krinval and I occasionally attend performances together."
'Impossible!' Lee Han was stunned.
Of course, Professor Garcia was cultured, but she was fundamentally someone who'd devoted her life to magic.
'How can they even watch plays together?'
'Is it possible because she's mastered Time Magic?'
Unaware of her student's confusion, Professor Garcia asked,
"Where did you read up to, Lee Han?"
"Here, to <The Beginning of Ancient Theater>."
"...That's the first page."
Professor Garcia was dumbfounded.
For the progress to stop at the first page of this thick book—could it be that he just received it?
"Kgh. The book is difficult..."
"It's not difficult at all."
She couldn't comprehend how he could say such a thing when he learned magic a hundred times more difficult in an instant.
Professor Garcia urged her student.
"Go on. Read it now. You said you needed this."
"Understood. Then..."
Lee Han turned the first page as if flipping through a poisoned page, struggling all the while.
And then he stopped.
"...Lee Han. Can't you turn the page faster?"
"Kgh. Understood."
Thanks to Professor Garcia, Lee Han learned about the current trends in imperial theater, which plays were popular, what magic actors learned for performances, and how mages profited from it all.
"Now. Tell me about the plot of the most popular play."
"The heirs of two feuding families fall in love but, unable to overcome opposition from those around them, ultimately choose death."
"Correct. And then?"
"A great lich appears and revives them... Wait, wouldn't it be cleaner without this part?"
"What nonsense. Lee Han. That's the highlight. The lich's solo aria here is truly magnificent."
'Ugh. This is why art...'
Lee Han felt that art was far more difficult than imperial magic.
With his ordinary talent, it was hard to keep up with the emotional depth.
"But at least this much should keep me from being treated as a weirdo anywhere."
"Thank you, Professor."
Lee Han expressed sincere gratitude to his teacher, who had diligently helped her incompetent student.
Without Professor Garcia, he might have truly failed his infiltration.
How could he have crammed this absurdly vast amount of information into his head otherwise?
"Then I should get going."
"I'll cheer for you, Lee Han!"
Lee Han nodded and stepped out of the inn. Outside, waiting people approached him.
"Are you Stedal Nago?"
"Yes. Let's go!"
"......"
Couldn't you have picked a better alias...?!
Arian spoke sternly.
"This time, you really must not beat up the other party."
"...Why would I do that?"
"I know, young master. But you really must not beat up the other party."
'You clearly don't know at all.'
Lee Han thought.
Though Arian outwardly claimed to trust Lee Han, inwardly, he seemed slightly doubtful.
From Lee Han's perspective, who had been forced into fights due to sheer misfortune, this was truly unfair.
"Now. Repeat it for me again."
"Meet the nobles, introduce yourself, and befriend them. Go to the palace together to watch a play. Finally, make contact with the Einrogard students."
"Good. What kind of noble is Stedal Nago?"
"A noble who was captured by pirates in the southern Empire, then rescued by Lagesa, daughter of Torgerd, who leads the Privateer Fleet. While captured, he found a treasure map and amassed great wealth. Afterward, he devoted himself to alchemy, created several potions, and further increased his fortune..."
"That's too detailed, and how he amassed his wealth isn't really necessary... Well, it can't hurt to be prepared. It seems fine."
Arian was slightly taken aback by Lee Han's unexpectedly elaborate backstory but eventually nodded.
He had imagined something like "a noble from a certain region and family," but...
'Still, such detail can't hurt.'
"During the Empire's Bone-Reviving Flower Speculation Frenzy, Stedal Nago remained unshaken and further increased his wealth."
"That's enough. You can stop now."