Episode 971
Episode 971
Looking to the side, it seemed the other two hadn't noticed the faint illusion of the crown.
Moreover, even Yukveltire found that if she lost focus even slightly, the shape of the crown would disappear from her vision.
It was clear this wasn't a crown that could be seen through ordinary means.
Yukveltire calmly recited an incantation.
"Pierce through."
As <Bakwantalana's Azure Eye> was cast upon her pupils, expanded information was directly transmitted to her brain.
Then, the faint illusion of the crown slightly came into focus, its form becoming a bit clearer.
It was a humble crown.
Woven from bronze, copper, and tree branches, the crown was so plain it felt more like a crown of thorns.
A crown should bestow authority and dignity upon its wearer... 'That thing looks more like it would strip flesh and draw blood instead.'
Yet despite its bizarre appearance, the power contained within was real.
That was no ordinary crown. True to her future as an Artifact artisan, Yukveltire immediately recognized the crown's essence.
An essence divided and imprinted across countless parallel dimensions.
The sum of power drawn from each individual concept!
Though it took the form of a crown, it was purely a mass of concentrated power.
Though she couldn't begin to guess which archmage had created such magic, Yukveltire felt a chilling thrill. Any mage would have felt a similar sensation.
A magic that splits existence countless times, eternally imprinting it across dimensions, then summons that power back.
When a mage attempts to summon power beyond a certain threshold, they inevitably face tremendous resistance.
Just as the world dislikes imbalance, it also dislikes powerful archmagic.
Yet that crown seemed to mock such ironclad restrictions, bypassing them entirely.
When the world tried to disrupt the extremely condensed power, it would disperse across countless parallel dimensions, only to merge back into the form of a crown...
Because of all these elements, even properly perceiving that crown was difficult. Without the senses of an experienced dimensional traveler or someone who could pierce through dimensions, it would be nearly impossible to see.
'...What's its purpose?'
Though she was equally curious about why her junior could wear that crown or what qualifications allowed him to, what intrigued her most right now was the crown's purpose.
She understood that it gathered power that would be difficult to manifest through ordinary means.
So then, for what purpose had that power been gathered?
All magic inherently has its own purpose. Yukveltire was genuinely curious about what purpose this crown's magic served.
It didn't even seem fully completed yet...
"Phew."
Her junior, who had been pouring out mana, let out a sigh and stepped back.
The ore vein imprisoning Zarun was so sturdy that even a junior overflowing with mana had grown weary.
"Maybe I should just give up..."
As her junior muttered, Yukveltire witnessed the crown above his head grow momentarily fainter.
If this incomplete crown disappeared now, further evaluation or study would become impossible. Instinctively, Yukveltire shouted.
"No!"
"??"
"You can do this. Don't give up—focus."
"...Senior. I think this is the first time you've said something so warm to me."
Lee Han was slightly moved.
It seemed the time spent with Diret hadn't been entirely wasted.
To think this small humanoid golem still had a warm heart left in him.
"Understood. I'll try again. Honestly, this level of hardship is nothing."
As the fading crown grew slightly clearer again, Yukveltire let out a sigh of relief.
"Junior of the Wardanaz family."
"I've received your encouragement, so please be quiet now."
"......"
After silencing his senior, the crown above the junior's head began to grow increasingly vivid.
Suddenly, the ground beneath their feet shifted quietly. It was a serene movement, like the flow of a stream.
Unlike the other students who were solely focused on the ore veins, Yukveltire—who had been meticulously observing her surroundings—widened her eyes slightly.
What in the world is this phenomenon?
The movement wasn't just happening on the ground. The cave walls lining the passageway also shifted. They moved as if alive, revealing the hidden ore veins within.
It was as if everything around them was aiding their junior in effortlessly extracting Zarun.
'Small World!'
Faced with this inexplicable phenomenon that couldn't be explained by mere magic, Yukveltire realized the true nature of the spell.
The crown's power didn't stop there. The properties of the ore veins imprisoning Zarun began to change.
As if determined not to waste any more of Lee Han's time by forcing him to endure, the veins transformed into a form that melted easily under magical energy.
"Done!"
Too focused on circulating his mana, Lee Han didn't notice the changes around him. Having fulfilled its purpose, the crown quietly slipped back into slumber beyond dimensions.
"...Cough!"
Zarun tumbled forward with a hacking cough. Having been trapped inside the ore vein for so long, his entire body was stiff.
"Cough, hack, hack! You... you brats...!"
"Are you alright, Senior?"
"...I never asked to be saved! I absolutely won't pay a single gold coin!"
After scanning the surrounding students, Zarun scowled deeply and shouted.
For someone who had just been rescued—especially while still stiff and vulnerable to attacks—it wasn't the best first thing to say, but fortunately, no one got angry.
The seniors from the Enchantment Magic school had no expectations of Zarun to begin with, and in Lee Han's case, his patience had been tempered to an extreme degree.
Patience honed by Verdus, little Verdus, Verdus's disciples, Verdus-like nuisances, and so on couldn't be so easily shaken by such words.
"We're not asking for gold coins. We just rescued you."
"What?"
The surly dwarf looked as if he'd been slapped across the face.
Even if the juniors had threatened him or held a knife to his throat, he probably wouldn't have been this shocked.
"More importantly, Senior. What happened to the orichalcum vein? Did you manage to find it?"
"As if."
Sigunting, standing behind them, couldn't hold back his muttering.
After freeing Zarun and giving him a once-over, it was clear he hadn't even found a copper vein, let alone orichalcum.
"Orichalcum? How the hell do you brats know about that... You—you bastards! You sneaky little rats! You spied on my application!"
"We didn't spy. It's just school gossip."
"Sneaky rats! Thieving brats! All you think about is stealing the sweat and blood of dwarves—"
"That's enough, Senior."
Sigunting cut him off, as if he couldn't be bothered to listen any longer. Anpagon nodded in agreement.
Though they'd freed him due to their junior's persistence, there was no benefit in prolonging a conversation with someone like Zarun.
Just as students from other schools hesitated to interact with those from the Enchantment Magic school, the Enchantment Magic students likewise avoided mingling with others.
Especially if that someone was a lunatic like Zarun.
"Senior Yukveltire, please."
"Got it."
Yukveltire immediately took action.
With a yelp, Zarun found himself flipped upside down and suspended in midair. His body had weakened too much from being trapped in the ore vein.
"A compass. Just a plain, non-magical item."
"A silver fragment. Isn't this something you dug up from the Healing Magic sector? When did you even go there?"
"A map. No magic, no ore vein markings."
"A moldy lump. Is this a reagent? It's weird for a reagent—"
"...That's my bread!"
Enraged by the forced search, Zarun shouted indignantly. The Enchantment Magic students finished their inspection, lowered him back down, and returned his belongings.
"Junior, we checked. There's no trace of the orichalcum vein."
"Let's just leave and go back. Staying any longer would just be a waste of time."
"Understood."
Lee Han readily conceded.
Truth be told, Lee Han had only come this far on the off chance they might find something—he hadn't seriously expected to discover an orichalcum vein in the first place.
"Ugh..."
Zarun, still stiff from the paralysis, staggered unsteadily.
Growl
Seeing the senior's gaunt appearance—as if he might collapse at any moment from missing two meals, just like Gainando—Lee Han cautiously asked,
"Would you like something to eat?"
"I don't need it!"
"...You don't have to pay. Just this once, I'll give it to you for free."
Though Lee Han normally hated giving things away for nothing, he made an exception for someone who looked like they were about to keel over.
Just this once, it was fine...
"Don't lie to me!!"
Zarun's voice grew even louder.
A member of the Kitchen Club giving away food without payment? That was absurd.
"It must be a trick!"
"......"
Fortunately, the senior was still in a severely weakened state. Lee Han quickly subdued him with magic and poured warm meat broth down the dwarf's throat.
"Ah, no! My gold! My gold coins!!"
The Enchantment Magic seniors stared at Lee Han with expressions that said, Why is our junior wasting time like this? But Lee Han ignored them and kept working.
Bread and sausage sliced with a pocketknife, pickles, canned food—a surprisingly large amount of food quickly disappeared into Zarun's stomach.
After dusting off his hands, Lee Han released the dwarf and said,
"Once you've recovered, be careful on your way back up. Don't forget to stay alert—others are still looking for you. If you see anyone, shout first that there's no orichalcum here."
With those final words, Lee Han turned to follow the other seniors.
As strength returned to his limbs, Zarun stared blankly at Lee Han's retreating figure before suddenly shouting,
"...Wait!"
"???"
"Come here for a second."
"If you want more food, you'll have to pay. You have gold coins, don't you? I'll even accept deferred payment."
"That's not it! Hurry up and get over here!"
Now that he'd eaten and regained his strength, Zarun was nothing like the feeble senior from before. Grumbling, Lee Han walked back.
"What is it?"
"Listen closely. The orichalcum vein... it actually exists."
Zarun swallowed hard.
This was the first time in his life he'd ever shared the location of a vein he'd discovered.
Even as he spoke, Zarun wasn't entirely sure he was making the right decision. Maybe being trapped in the vein for so long had dulled his judgment.
But he didn't regret his choice. It was better to clear this debt now than to keep feeling uneasy about it.
"Sure. I mean, it must exist somewhere in the world, right?"
"...It's in this mining area!!"
Lee Han's indifferent attitude made Zarun flare up.
"Or maybe it's just somewhere you think you saw—"
"I. Found. The. Exact. Location. You. Idiot!"
"???"
Lee Han stared at Zarun as if he were spouting nonsense.
Without realizing it himself, hearing Zarun speak made Lee Han realize something: I really didn't trust this guy at all!
Even though he'd suggested checking things out himself, the moment Zarun claimed the vein existed, all Lee Han could think was, What kind of nonsense is this?
His trust in the senior had practically drilled through the basement floor and kept going.
"So you found the location, yet you were wandering around here empty-handed, without a single ore in your pocket?"
The insult—especially humiliating for a Western dwarf—made Zarun's face flush red.
"That... There were circumstances."
"Senior. Have you heard the story of the Giant Shepherd? The one who tended the Mountain-Destroying Sheep..."
Lee Han's words scraped at Zarun's pride so harshly that the dwarf nearly collapsed from sheer rage and humiliation.
Clenching his teeth, Zarun growled with superhuman willpower.
"Shut up and listen, will you?! Just stay quiet! I'll explain!"
Whether the senior was throwing a tantrum or not, Lee Han took out his cracked pocket watch and checked the time.
Then, in a stern tone, he declared:
"You have five minutes."
"...What?"
"The other seniors have waited long enough. I have some sense of courtesy—I can't make them wait any longer. Wrap it up within that time. Not a second over."
Grrrrk—
Foaming at the mouth, Zarun toppled backward.
To think there was a lowly brat in this world who would treat an orichalcum vein with such disrespect...