Episode 949
Episode 949
The Two Returned to the Warehouse First.
Fortunately, it seemed Wardanaz and Maykin had found good buyers.
"Who knew the Maykin family's workshop would purchase them at such a high price? Amazing."
"I was surprised too. How were the other places?"
"Every alchemist I visited today was drunk for some reason. Must be some special occasion."
"...?"
Lee Han and Yoner tilted their heads in confusion.
Alchemists in the city being drunk in broad daylight?
"What kind of nonsense is that?"
"Are you sure you two weren't the ones drinking?"
At Ashan's suspicion, the two grew furious.
"What kind of nonsense is that! Do I look like Alpha to you?"
"Do I look like some thug like Tutanta?!"
'Note to self: Never let these two be together again.'
Lee Han calmed them down by saying he understood.
Anyway, since they'd secured a good deal, all that remained was to work hard and deliver the goods.
Though Lee Han was still slightly puzzled about why Yoanen had so naturally emerged from someone else's workshop...
"Right. I should also ask the teacher if any of the other reagents can be reproduced."
"Wardanaz, you're really diligent, aren't you?"
Their friends chuckled.
Thanks to their anticipation of the gold coins they'd earn, the students didn't mind the additional work at all.
And compared to keeping up with lectures back at Einrogard, this was hardly any trouble...
"Teacher? Teacher? That's strange. Why aren't you answering?"
"..."
After the exhausting work and transportation (the Crazy Doppelganger eventually gave up and answered Lee Han's questions), the students felt a true sense of liberation.
"Here. Your share."
"With this much, we might not even need to go back to Einrogard!"
"...You're not actually planning to desert, are you?"
"N-no, it was just a joke."
'That look in your eyes was dead serious.'
With their heavy pouches of gold coins divided among them, the students began making plans to buy whatever they wanted.
Normally, they'd have been limited by lack of funds, but with this much, they could afford pretty much anything.
"A new racket would be too big and noticeable, right?"
"Is there any way we could hide it?"
"Even if inspections are lax, getting too greedy might... Wait. You're not planning to pull the same stunt as earlier this year, are you?"
"...No way they'd do that again. The Death Knights must be busy with their own things."
The students seriously deliberated, considering everything from price to concealability.
At first, they had been at a loss about what to do outside the Magic Academy, but now that they had gold coins and more purchasing options, they became completely absorbed.
Seeing this, Lee Han also started thinking about buying some things in advance.
Though his timeframe was much more generous than his friends', it was better to prepare early.
Since the herb work was now finished, Lee Han recalled the request he'd received from his senior.
'Two bundles of Purple Round Wood, a Swan Song preserved in a sealed crystal, and three bottles of Fairy Mead.'
Inside Einrogard, they'd have had to buy them from the Black Market or make them themselves, but in Granden City, all they had to do was look around.
The senior had promised to pay five times the price if they just delivered them. There couldn't be an easier request.
When he asked the trading company, they had stock of both the Purple Round Wood and Fairy Mead, so those would be easy to acquire.
As for the Swan Song preserved in a sealed crystal...
"It's at <Greenbell's Rare Artifact Shop>?"
"Yes. I heard they purchased a few there."
"Perfect! Let's go together!"
Hearing that their friends with heavier coin pouches were visiting a high-end artifact shop in Granden City, the others eagerly tagged along.
Even Adenart timidly gave them a look that said, "I want to come too."
But Lee Han remained coldly rational.
"Guys. That place jacks up prices with useless designs and decorations. Instead of buying there, we should just buy the materials and make it ourselves..."
"What should we buy when we get there? Yoner, weren't you interested in the <Alchemist's Glasses>? Those glasses made from tiger's eye from the Ikansel Mine."
"They're way too expensive. A hundred imperial gold coins? Seriously."
"I can lend you some. If that's not enough, we can ask the others to chip in too."
"......"
As his friends ignored his words and burned with determination to follow him no matter what, Lee Han shook his head in exasperation. 'I shouldn't have given them the gold coins all at once. I should've doled them out in portions.'
"Fine. Don't come crying to me later."
"By the way, Wardanaz. As a token of gratitude for this whole thing, we wanted to pool our gold coins and buy you something."
Angrago spoke with sincerity.
Offering gold coins as thanks to a friend from a great noble family might seem crass, but a heartfelt gift was a different matter.
And since the shop they were heading to was a high-end artifact store, it was the perfect place to express their gratitude—
Thwack!
"Ow!"
"Did you not hear me just say they rip people off with overpriced junk? Are you doing this on purpose?"
"N-no! It's just that high-end places are all like that... And the others all agreed too—"
Angrago looked at his friends with an expression of utter betrayal.
But they had already averted their gazes. Angrago trembled with indignation. 'We discussed this together!'
Now he understood why Moradi had warned him not to trust anyone outside the White Tiger Tower. They were all rotten to the core.
"If you spout nonsense like that one more time, I'm confiscating your coin pouch and handing it to Moradi. Got it?"
"Y-yes..."
Angrago couldn't fathom why he was the only one getting scolded—and why he was getting scolded at all!
"...Wait. Something's off."
"What is it?"
When Lee Han suddenly stopped in front of the shop, his friends tilted their heads in confusion.
Nilia shot him a suspicious glance. 'Is he trying to stop us from going in?'
This Wardanaz family friend hated wasting money himself, but he hated it even more when his friends did.
If it meant enforcing his will, he wouldn't hesitate to block the door and prevent them from entering.
"The door's open, but there's no clerk."
"Maybe they stepped out?"
"No. That can't be."
Located in the central district of the city, this <Greenbell's Evaporation Furnace> shop catered to city nobles and the wealthy, so their standards were meticulous.
Just last time he'd visited, a flawlessly dressed clerk had greeted him inside the shop, where pure mana light radiated without a speck of dust in sight.
For such a clerk to abandon their post like this was unthinkable.
"Can't we just go in and check?"
"Salko, if it's a trap, it could be dangerous."
"......"
Salko exchanged a glance with Angrago.
The meaning in their eyes was simple.
—Don't you think Wardanaz has gotten a little too paranoid after all the tough situations he's been through lately?
—Yeah, he's gotten a bit more short-tempered too.
Angrago nodded, recalling the smack he'd received earlier.
"W-Wardanaz, I don't think anyone would set a trap in a place like this..."
Adenart, seemingly sharing the others' thoughts, cautiously spoke up. The other students nodded in agreement.
But Lee Han remained firm.
Hadn't he let his guard down only to run into Yoanen? 'Just because we're outside the school doesn't mean we can relax. Outside is still Einrogard.'
Lee Han pulled out a crystal spinning top for divination. <Bagrak's Instant Foresight> was too short-term for this kind of check.
As mana drained from him, the top began spinning on the back of his hand. But when Lee Han tried to step inside, it stopped.
"It stopped spinning. That means there's danger."
"Or maybe it's because you moved while spinning it on your hand... Wardanaz, we're starting to look suspicious."
Angrago pleaded.
Even if they were disguised, a group of nearly ten students loitering in front of a shop would draw unnecessary attention.
"Quiet."
"Ugh..."
"...Obey your master's command—freeze solid!"
The elemental ice clone flung the door open and charged inside.
His friends watched with bated breath. At this point, they could only pray there was actually something wrong inside.
After all, creating an elemental clone and throwing it into a perfectly normal shop would be incredibly rude and bizarre behavior for a mage!
'Are we about to get banned for trespassing?'
-Intruders. Capture them!
A rough, hostile voice boomed from inside before a mercenary came bursting out from the back of the shop.
The students watching through the window were stunned.
What the—!?
But no matter how shocked the students were, the mercenary was even more startled.
When the mercenary attempting to subdue the intruder realized the crude figure before him was just an ice elemental clone, he shouted in horror.
"It's a trap! Trackers!"
-Escape!
As sounds of frantic movement came from the back, the mercenary hastily pulled out a pouch of powder from his coat.
It was an item meant to block visibility with dark smoke.
But Lee Han was one step ahead. From the moment he'd sent in the clone, he'd been aiming a spell through the open doorway.
Boom!
The silently arced Water Prison Bomb detonated, slamming into the mercenary with enough force to feel like his spine might snap.
Despite wearing thick armor, the direct hit left him gasping for air.
'Th-this is no ordinary mage. Is he a combat mage from the knight order? How far has the pursuit reached...'
"Wardanaz! The others are fleeing. Let's chase them!"
"Forget it. Don't act recklessly when we don't know the enemy's full strength."
Lee Han stopped his eager friends.
Truthfully, he'd been slightly worried about the fight escalating without proper preparation, but it seemed the enemy had gotten cold feet first.
And they needed to check on the others' safety.
Inside, they found employees and unfortunate customers alike tightly bound and groaning.
"Are you all right?"
"Th-thank you! Those barbarians, those madmen! To do this in the heart of Granden City! I'll never forgive them!"
The students checked the area and handed calming potions to the coughing customers.
Once somewhat recovered, the shopkeeper angrily recounted what had happened.
"They barged in demanding the Swan Song. When I said we didn't have it yet, that the shipment sank, they tied us up and ransacked the place."
"The Swan Song isn't here?"
"Huh? Y-yes. We were supposed to receive it, but the transport ship sank."
'What kind of people are we dealing with?'
Lee Han instinctively knew this wasn't ordinary.
Given the value of items this alchemy shop handled, the backing forces behind it were no joke.
To raid such a place—this wasn't the work of common street thugs or delinquents.
Moreover, their professionalism showed in how they hadn't touched any artifacts, clearly avoiding unknown defensive or alarm spells.
"!"
While pondering, Lee Han felt someone calling him through the Whispers of Einrogard artifact.
BeaverPenguinFox from the Watcher Club had sent a private message.
Beaver
-Penguin
-Fox: Gonadaltes. Situation changed. Cancel the request. Don't approach the Swan Song.
Beaver
-Penguin
-Fox:Dangerous players involved. Just the confirmed mercs include Vilein from Garam and even Three-Fingered Akdin.
Beaver
-Penguin
-Fox:Gonadaltes. You reading this?
Gonadaltes:Is the merc Akdin missing three fingers by any chance?
Beaver
-Penguin
-Fox:Curiosity's good but now's not the time! Yes. Hence the nickname.
Gonadaltes:Think I just captured him...
Beaver
-Penguin
-Fox:...
Don't talk nonsense.