Episode 98
Episode 98
"I thought it was a well-made boat."
"...Hmph. Don't flatter me."
Angrago had to force a gruff tone to hide his pleased expression.
Lee Han sighed inwardly.
'The fact that this rickety boat is currently the best option available makes me sad.'
Since he couldn't learn Enchantment Magic right away or befriend the ice spirit, this was the only method left.
Even if it was unreliable, what choice did he have? He had to at least test it once.
"How many people can it carry?"
"It can easily hold twenty people!"
Angrago's confidence only backfired on Lee Han. Hearing such bold claims about a boat that looked like it could barely carry ten made Lee Han even more uneasy.
"Perfect timing, Wardanaz. Get on!"
Lee Han tried his hardest to remain composed. His already cold expression grew even frostier.
Seeing this, Angrago flinched involuntarily.
'...Was I too rough with my words?'
"Before that... I'd like to see you row first. When others are on board, you won't be able to maneuver as freely as when you're alone."
Angrago responded to Lee Han's words with great enthusiasm.
He threw off his coat and immediately climbed onto the boat.
"Alright, watch closely!"
Angrago grabbed a pair of well-carved oars, one in each hand, and began rowing skillfully.
The small boat, lacking even a sail, glided smoothly across the calm lake surface.
Angrago's friend, who was watching, exclaimed in admiration.
"Amazing, Angrago!"
Angrago moved with such fluidity, as if the lake belonged to him, radiating pure freedom.
The White Tiger Tower student felt a sense of liberation he hadn't experienced in a long time while watching Angrago row.
It almost felt as though this wasn't the Magic School but some peaceful, beautiful lake elsewhere.
'No leaks.'
While his White Tiger Tower friends were lost in romanticism, Lee Han remained coldly analytical.
First and foremost—the boat wasn't leaking.
And even after rowing around the lake for over ten minutes, neither monsters nor the Skeleton Principal had appeared. That meant it was reasonably safe.
"Well, Wardanaz? Will you acknowledge Angrago's skills now?"
"Sorry. Not yet."
"Why not?!"
"Anyone can row well when they're alone. But can you really maneuver like that with an extra person aboard?"
Provoked by Lee Han's words, Angrago's friend shouted angrily.
"Angrago! Wardanaz is asking if you can still show the same skill even with me on board!"
"Hmph. Of course I can!"
Angrago immediately steered the boat back to shore.
Then, after helping his friend aboard, he yelled,
"Watch closely, Wardanaz!"
"I wonder. Rowing the same way with an extra person seems impossible."
Lee Han deliberately egged him on. Angrago responded very effectively.
"Just watch!"
Angrago cut through the water even more fiercely than before, racing across the lake. He rowed so hard that sweat poured down his face, and his arm muscles bulged.
For over twenty minutes, Lee Han "cheered" Angrago on with remarks like, "Still can't tell," "Anyone can do this for a few minutes," and "Maybe your true skill will show soon."
Having roughly confirmed everything he wanted, Lee Han nodded.
'Unlike what I initially thought, I might actually be able to get along with these White Tower guys.'
"Hah... hah... hahhah... See... this... is my... skill..."
"Fine. I admit defeat."
Angrago wanted to cheer at Lee Han's words, but he was too exhausted to even do that.
He just lay sprawled on the grass, panting heavily.
Only after resting for a long while could Angrago recover enough strength to stand.
"Then I suppose it's my turn to board."
"...Again?"
Angrago let out a weak groan without realizing it.
The several rounds of forced labor had instilled fear in him.
Seeing his hesitation, Lee Han gave a simple encouragement.
"Don't tell me you're not confident—"
"I'll do it!"
Angrago sprang up abruptly and boarded the ferry. His friend Duke asked with a worried expression:
"Should I get off instead?"
"Duke! Don't you trust me?"
"...Forgive me, Angrago. I've insulted your honor!"
"Let's depart already."
Lee Han spoke in a disinterested tone. He couldn't care less whether the two knights bonded over friendship or not.
'First, I'll confirm the island's location.'
Now that he knew the boat was reasonably safe, his plan was to locate the island and secure a viable route.
Gritting his teeth, Angrago began rowing. The ferry slid across the lake once more.
Lee Han furrowed his brow and focused his gaze on the lake's surface.
'A telescope would've been useful.'
It would've been much easier if he could use artifacts or magic.
Suddenly, Lee Han recalled something Alarong had told him:
-"A swordsman who has reached mastery uses mana to activate and enhance their physical body. Though not as refined and systematic as magic, it's more than sufficient in life-or-death battles."
If that were true, perhaps even eyesight could be enhanced with mana.
Lee Han drew upon his mana.
He hadn't yet reached the level where he could freely control and circulate mana within his body to strengthen individual organs.
But what he did have was an inexhaustible supply of mana to waste.
Lee Han simply released his mana outward, as if expelling it through his entire body. The mana concentrated in his eyes temporarily enhanced his vision as it surged forth.
"?!?!"
The two students beside him flinched in alarm when Lee Han suddenly emitted a murderous aura.
Come to think of it, they were in the middle of a lake.
The perfect place to dump a body if someone died...!
Thud!
The two White Tiger Tower students frantically grabbed their wooden swords. They couldn't just die like this.
At that moment, Lee Han shouted:
"Found it!"
"??"
"I found the island."
"What?! How?!"
Angrago was stunned.
Neither while building the ferry nor after launching it had they spotted any trace of the island.
He had thought it impossible unless they went much farther...
"Got lucky. But why are you holding your wooden swords?"
"......"
"...Y-you startled us by shouting suddenly... force of habit."
"You're more timid than I thought."
The White Tiger Tower students seethed.
You're the one who suddenly started radiating mana, you bastard!
Lee Han meticulously noted the direction.
"Let's head back for now. Now that we've confirmed the direction, we can return another time."
"Right. Understood."
Angrago was secretly relieved.
His muscles had been screaming in protest for a while now.
"Ugh."
Exhausted, Angrago fumbled with the oar.
'What was that?'
Startled by the slip, Angrago flinched when he felt something squishy being pierced by the oar.
Splash—
"...???"
He soon discovered what he had struck.
A shifting, bulging mass of water emerged from beneath the lake's surface.
The unmistakable presence of a spirit.
A water spirit.
Whoosh—!
The water spirit shot out sharp water spikes. Lee Han kicked Duke's back, sending him tumbling to the deck.
The water spike narrowly grazed past Duke's head.
"S-sorry! Wardanaz! I-I must've provoked the water spirit!"
"Angrago! What did you do?!"
Duke, who had fallen forward, shouted in horror.
Angering a water spirit in the middle of the lake—it was an unthinkable mistake.
'No... It doesn't seem angry.'
Unlike the panicked pair, Lee Han calmly observed the water spirit.
Though its momentum was fierce, compared to the oppressive aura emitted by a spirit like Perkuntra, this water spirit was far weaker.
Given its lack of proper communication abilities, it clearly wasn't a high-ranking spirit.
And the emotion radiating from the spirit was...
Fear!
Lee Han couldn't understand why the water spirit was afraid of them.
Did it make sense for it to be terrified just from getting poked once by an oar?
'...Damn it.'
Lee Han clicked his tongue in realization.
He had figured out why the water spirit was acting this way.
The culprit wasn't Angrago—it was Lee Han himself.
Earlier, in his search for the island, he had recklessly released his mana, terrifying the spirit lurking beneath the water.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
The frightened spirit launched water spikes to drive Lee Han away.
The eerie attacks made the White Tiger Tower students scream, but Lee Han didn't even blink as he swung his staff to counter.
With dull bursts of sound, water orbs surged from the lake, precisely intercepting the spikes.
'At a glance, they seem threatening, but in reality, they're not that strong.'
The White Tiger Tower students had been deceived by appearances, but if they had remained calm, they could have dodged or blocked the attacks easily.
For Lee Han, who had repeatedly defended against Professor Voladi's assaults, the spikes shot by the spirit were no longer a threat.
'Th-this guy...'
Angrago was more shocked by Lee Han than by the enraged spirit.
It was hard to believe they had entered the academy together and learned the same things.
Just what kind of training did the Wardanaz family put him through to forge such an emotionless combat machine?
Lee Han turned his head and stared down at Angrago with an impassive expression.
Despite the eerie water spikes flying toward them, he didn't even glance at them as he deflected them effortlessly, making Angrago's heart plummet.
"Pull yourself together and get up. I need your strength."
"Y-you're not blaming me?"
"......"
For a moment, Lee Han wondered what he was talking about.
'Ah. He thinks it's his fault.'
Angrago seemed to believe the water spirit was acting this way because he had poked it with the oar.
What a misconception.
"It is your fault. But anyone can make mistakes."
In that case, there was no need for Lee Han to correct him.
"What matters is what you do afterward."
Angrago found himself inexplicably moved.
Who would have thought the day would come when he'd be touched by a Wardanaz's words...?!
"Right. Leave it to me!"
Angrago drew his sword and stood up.
Then Lee Han spoke as if questioning what he was doing.
"What are you doing?"
"...Wasn't I supposed to deflect the spikes? With my swordsmanship?"
"No. Row the boat."
"......"
Angrago sat back down and grabbed the oar.
Meanwhile, the water spirit realized none of its attacks were working against this monstrous being.
Trembling uncontrollably, the spirit made a different choice.
"...Wait!"
Lee Han noticed too late and tried to stop it urgently, but the water spirit had already begun calling for its friends.
"Shield, unfold!"
Instead of water orbs, Lee Han expanded a wide shield.
The frightened water spirits had started targeting the boat instead of Lee Han.
'Cowardly little spirits.'
Lee Han vowed never to let his guard down around water spirits again.
Maintaining his composure as he thickened the water shield, Lee Han remained calm, but the White Tiger Tower knights continued screaming as spikes flew and embedded themselves into the barrier.
Beyond the opaque shield, the vicious spikes could pierce through at any moment.
The fact that Lee Han looked completely unbothered made it even scarier.
Aren't you scared?!
'Professor Voladi would shed tears if he saw this.'
Lee Han was dumbfounded by the spirits' mindless, straight-line attacks.
By now, they should have realized they couldn't break through the water shield—why keep repeating the same futile assault?
Amid the fierce exchange, the boat gradually picked up speed.
They were putting distance between themselves and the frightened spirits.
"...Wait. Where are we heading?"
Lee Han realized the boat was now racing toward the opposite shore.
In his frantic rowing, Angrago had unwittingly steered them toward the island.