Episode 1194
by CristaeBefore the enemy’s corpse had even hit the floor, Professor Voladi incinerated it, leaving no trace.
The important thing in an assassination like this was not to leave any evidence behind.
Once the steward awoke, he would be bewildered by his master’s sudden disappearance, but, combined with the commotion in the yard, he wouldn’t be able to figure out exactly what had happened.
During that window, she could take care of four or five more targets.
“!”
The professor, who hadn’t batted an eye even when cutting off an old enemy’s head, gave a surprised look downward.
Her few human connections—her disciple and friend—were entering the manor courtyard at high speed.
“Professor!”
“Speak, I’m listening!”
Professor Kirmin, moving briskly up ahead, motioned for Lee Han to follow.
“It’s a bit late to say it now, but what if Professor Baegrek runs away again?”
“……”
If the skeletal headmaster had heard this, he would have called them idiots en masse, but surprisingly, neither student nor friend had a surefire plan.
Professor Kirmin swallowed hard and replied.
“That’s the problem, isn’t it.”
“Can’t we restrain her with magic? We have Death Knights here, after all.”
‘Is he really a disciple?’
The following Death Knights wondered to themselves.
Aren’t disciples usually supposed to try to persuade or plead with their runaway teachers to bring them back…?
Then again, perhaps it was karma. Professor Baegrek’s disciple seemed to prefer solutions like her own.
‘You truly reap what you sow.’
“Normally, we could. But since that angel lost the dimension…”
“That damned angel!”
Lee Han gritted his teeth—a rare reaction.
The Shining Light-Oblivion Dimension that Apazragon had lost to Professor Voladi continued to be a nuisance.
Because it was specialized for escape, even Professor Kirmin and the Death Knights found it hard to catch her.
‘If I ever see him again, I’ll capture him and lock him in the Einrogard dungeons.’
“…But I haven’t given up on ideas entirely.”
“!”
Lee Han brightened and looked expectantly at Professor Kirmin.
As expected, the professor always had some kind of plan.
“What is it? Wait, have you been poisoning Professor Baegrek’s food all this time…”
“Wardanaz, I think you should stop reading weird mystery stories. The method I came up with is the straightforward kind: sincere persuasion.”
“The power of friendship, you mean?”
It was a bit less exciting than Lee Han had envisioned—snapping his fingers, watching Professor Baegrek fall, chaining her up and dragging her back—but as long as the goal was accomplished, he had no complaints.
“No. The persuasion has to come from you, Wardanaz.”
“Excuse me?”
Lee Han was taken aback.
He didn’t think Professor Baegrek would listen to anything he said.
She’d ignored him and just left the last time too…
“She’ll listen more to a disciple than a friend. She’s never been one to listen to friends’ advice anyway.”
“Are you sure you didn’t slip her any slow-acting poison or an illusion spell…?”
Professor Kirmin shook his head.
He wished he had such a thing, but reality was always merciless.
You had to deal with things as they were.
“I shouldn’t really say this, but under the circumstances, let me keep it short. You know Professor Baegrek bears a deep grudge against the cult, right?”
Lee Han nodded.
The skeletal headmaster hadn’t given him all the details, but he’d guessed the grudge was unusually deep.
Even as they moved, Professor Kirmin hesitated a moment before speaking.
“At the time, a strange magical trend was sweeping among the western vampire houses. It was a magic in which, if you offered blood, you’d get all kinds of rewards. Sometimes youth, sometimes power, sometimes wisdom.”
“That’s…”
Lee Han was clearly disturbed by what was obviously a suspicious magic.
Did they really believe in that stuff?
“Yes. In hindsight, it’s obviously a sinister dark god’s faith. But back then, the Sanguiros Cult wasn’t so well known, and most houses weren’t magic experts like us. It’s common for rare forms of magic to periodically become fashionable among the nobility.”
While Einrogard students would wear out at just the mention of ‘magic,’ ordinary citizens of the Empire still viewed magic as something mysterious and fascinating.
It wasn’t unusual for some old, obscure magic to suddenly become popular in high society.
“Anyway, the trend spread rapidly. Vampires were already fond of consuming blood, so it was an advantage.”
Among western vampire houses, most high houses fell quickly to the trend.
Vampire society was more insulated than other races’, so fads spread all the more rapidly within, and what began among high houses spread instantly downward.
“Don’t tell me you…?!”
Lee Han asked in shock. Professor Kirmin answered bitterly.
“No. Voladi’s family was one of the dissident houses. There were a few families that were suspicious and kept their distance, though they didn’t have much power.”
At this point, Professor Kirmin hesitated even more than before.
Eventually, he steeled himself and spoke.
“No point dragging it out, I’ll just say it. The western vampire houses actually didn’t use to be on such bad terms. The high nobles looked down on the dissident low houses, but didn’t actually oppress them—until the dark god caused an incident.”
There was no such thing as a dark god’s cult that handed out favors with no price.
At first, Sanguiros was generous even for simple sacrifices, but then began to reveal its true colors, demanding greater offerings from its closest followers.
Namely, the lives of their own kind.
“!!”
“Of course the weaker, already ostracized dissident houses were picked as targets… and one of those was Voladi’s family. I shouldn’t have to explain further.”
Lee Han nodded.
He already knew that the western vampire houses had been ravaged by the Sanguiros cult and their doings.
He hadn’t expected they’d go so far as to sacrifice their own kin.
“Voladi set out for revenge back then, but likely couldn’t get everyone involved. She might have gotten those directly involved, but those with even remote connections would have been many times more numerous. Later, a massive purge happened as well.”
No matter how vast and autonomous the Empire was, you couldn’t cover up such a case forever.
Even the skeletal headmaster had led the Imperial Army to surround the entire west in a massive purge, and under such circumstances, even someone like Professor Voladi wouldn’t have been able to go on a personal revenge spree as she pleased.
Someone like Sir Langbern likely survived only by slipping through the chaos.
“Do you think she’s hunting down every last related name she missed back then?”
“…I’m not sure, Wardanaz.”
Among those connected, plenty probably still secretly practiced the faith.
And clearing out such people was certain to get a response from the Sanguiros cult.
It was a good strategy—cutting off the enemy’s hands and feet and provoking them—but…
…Professor Kirmin wasn’t confident his friend was acting solely out of cold logic, without any personal feeling at all.
The skeletal headmaster had said to trust Voladi, but he still saw flashes of his old friend’s burning revenge in her.
“Whatever you do, just stall her a bit, by any means necessary.”
-If you can distract her for a moment, we’ll restrain her. Just keep her off guard.
‘They just told me to persuade her a minute ago…’
Lee Han was dumbfounded by Professor Kirmin and the Death Knights’ words.
Did they really believe she could be persuaded?
“What do you want? Get lost!”
The mercenaries and guards causing chaos in the yard shouted threateningly at the newcomers.
The mercs, wary that the order might be after them, were hostile; the guards, alarmed that an intruder showed up when they hadn’t even finished dealing with the mercs, held their ground.
They were already on edge because of Professor Voladi, and now these nuisances stoked the guards’ ire even further.
Professor Kirmin reached out and stopped Lee Han.
“We don’t know what’s going on inside. Let’s not escalate things. I’ll handle this.”
“A wizard! Be caref—!”
One quick-witted guard tried to draw an artifact to prepare for magic.
But his quick reaction was wasted—everyone present suddenly froze as if their souls had left their bodies.
“???”
Lee Han was shocked.
None of the illusion spells he’d learned so far had ever shown such fast and powerful effects.
What was that?
‘Small World? No, too quiet. An evil eye? But that kind of power in a magical eye…’
Sensing his disciple’s confusion, Professor Kirmin spoke awkwardly.
“Wardanaz. I figured you’d be curious, so I’ll tell you. Please don’t spread it. My mother… is a succubus.”
“!!!”
Before Lee Han could even react to the professor’s race, he was surprised again.
The race powers of a dream demon are similar to those of a basilisk—precise control is impossible.
You can’t use a petrifying gaze on one person but not on another, for example.
“You can control your race powers that precisely?!”
“To be precise, I just swept it over the whole manor, and you, Wardanaz, happened to not be affected…”
-We’re undead, so it doesn’t work on us.
Looking back, Amrek who’d come with them was staring blankly into space, lost in a trance.
Lee Han decided he would apologize as soon as this was over.
“Let’s go up.”
“Wait a moment, please.”
Having experienced her professor’s escape once before, Lee Han had no intention of approaching in an ordinary fashion.
If given even the briefest window, she’d escape in a flash.
Crunch—!
The Death Knights gaped with jaws agape.
They’d figured their successor would have backup plans prepared, but turning into a dragon was unexpected.
Let’s go!
-Oh, uh…
Lee Han, transformed into a black dragon, smashed through the walls and ceiling, charging for the fourth floor.
“!”
Normally, Professor Voladi would have escaped in the time it took the Death Knights to make their way up, but her disciple’s transformation distracted her, and she stared in shock.
The manor was collapsing, but that wasn’t important—a full dragon showing up was a much bigger deal.
What on earth had happened?
Seizing the moment, the Death Knights hiding beneath the dragon’s wings burst out.
-Got her!
-Professor Ku, put this troublemaker out! We’ll lock her in the deepest part of Einrogard until the job’s done!
“…Aren’t you going to try persuasion?”
Coughing after reverting from dragon form, Lee Han looked at the knights in disbelief.
The Death Knights looked away, hiding their embarrassment.
-Of course persuasion comes first. Yes. Please, persuade.
-We believe in you!
“……”
Getting this kind of sudden encouragement was making him feel very pressured. Professor Voladi gazed right at Lee Han.
“I told you to study on your own, didn’t I?”
“Uh… well, about that…”
As Lee Han faltered for words, Professor Kirmin cleared his throat—a gesture not to be afraid.
‘You’re the one who ran off, Wardanaz! Don’t be intimidated by your useless professor!’
“Professor. You can’t just leave school and act on your own like this.”
“I have a valid reason.”
Professor Voladi explained calmly.
It was the reasoning Lee Han already knew well: ‘With so many enemies in the cult, strike first and focus their hate here.’
“And you shouldn’t just act on your own without a valid commission, either.”
“S-sorry…”
-Hopeless.
The Death Knights shook their heads.
Teacher and disciple fundamentally had terrible synergy.
Their only resort now was to keep knocking her unconscious so she couldn’t use dimensional escape…