Episode 549

Episode 549

Yoner looked at his friend with a hint of suspicion, but he couldn’t keep it up for long.

Other undead began to sneak out of the forest.

“Spirit corruption creatures? …A dark element type?”

Lee Han frowned and muttered.

Imperial folk believed that ice spirits became active in winter, but that was only half true.

Winter was a season that awakened more kinds of beings than one might think.

For example, in regions where icy winds blew, wind-type spirits showed themselves more often, and in mining regions, rock or metal elementals sometimes roamed the land proudly.

And the most troublesome of all were the undead.

Winter wasn’t only about cold and wind. Death was also part of it.

There was nothing that frightened imperial citizens more than undead hiding themselves in the long winter nights.

Of course, Professor Thunderstep had put up protections to prevent undead from rebirthing in the surrounding forests, but there were always exceptions.

The spirit corruption creature shambling before their eyes was just such a case.

Due to the strong local flow of magical power, a spirit had run rampant or become aggressive and mingled with another being, forming an amorphous monster.

Because it was mixed with a spirit, it wasn’t a typical undead—normal preventive measures didn’t work as well.

And this corruption creature before their eyes was a fusion of a dark element spirit and an undead.

To begin with, most spirits hated undead and avoided them, even in a rampage…

“A dark element spirit?!”

Priest Siana opened her eyes wide in amazement.

Even lightning spirits were rare enough to hardly be seen; a dark element would be even rarer.

“I get that it’s fascinating, but now is not the time for that!”

Yoner shouted urgently as he got some potions from inside.

The dark, writhing spirit corruption creatures were gradually crawling out from the woods.

■■!

■■■■…

Some of the spirit corruption creatures took an interest in the cabin, while others fought among themselves.

A beetle-shaped corruption creature, big as a full-grown pig, attacked another, which batted back with its hind legs.

“Here—firestarter potion!”

“Thank you, Meikin!”

Yoner handed a firestarter potion he usually carried for self-defense to Priest Siana.

When this flask broke and met air, it burned fiercely—a useful potion anywhere in Einrogard.

Especially against dark element corruption creatures, as they were likely weak to elements like fire and light.

“Hey, Yoner? What about me?”

Lee Han, after buffing his two friends with enhancement spells, tilted his head.

Yoner had simply skipped over Lee Han.

“Huh? …Ah! Here!”

Only belatedly did Yoner remember that Lee Han could use the firestarter potion too.

He was so used to Lee Han being self-sufficient that it didn’t even occur to him his friend would need potions.

“……”

“I… I meant to give it to you… Really.”

“Yeah. Thanks.”

Lee Han turned his gaze out the cabin window.

Their numbers were increasing, and the variously-shaped corruption creatures were now a real horde.

‘This can’t be a coincidence. Did some upper year just dump dark element research waste in the woods?’

If so, Lee Han planned to show those seniors the wrath of the juniors.

Life was already hard enough! What a nuisance.

And in situations like these, it was always the first-years who suffered most.

Upper-year students at Einrogard could easily slip away even if ferocious monsters roamed the dorms or main halls.

“Let’s hold out inside until the professor arrives.”

“Will the professor come?”

“If he doesn’t, his own cabin’ll be trashed, so he’ll come.”

“……”

“……”

They almost asked, ‘Wardanaz, did you fight with the professor?’ but held back.

Regardless, staying indoors for now was the right strategic choice.

It wasn’t wise to poke your head out when mindless monsters were swarming outside.

The proper way was to wait until the monsters moved on and then carefully sneak out.

■■■■■…!

“!”

The squirrel-shaped spirit that had tried to approach the cabin earlier but turned back because of repellent stew appeared again.

Surrounded by corruption creatures, the squirrel spirit, terrified, began making snowflakes bloom everywhere to defend itself.

“No!”

“That’ll just…!”

The students sighed at the sight.

No matter how scared it was, attracting attention in front of corruption creatures was dumb.

Sure enough, the once aimless dark spirit corruption creatures instantly locked onto the squirrel spirit and gave chase.

“We have to help it.”

Yoner carefully cracked open the cabin door and prepared to go outside.

If he tinkered just a bit with the magic circle around the area, he could let the squirrel spirit in.

“It’s all right. Spirits never forget a debt of gratitude. If we save it, it’ll surely repay us.”

Lee Han mumbled as he followed his friends out to the garden.

Priest Siana thought she heard something like, ‘Can you really trust these thankless spirits?’ but decided to pretend she hadn’t.

“Lee Han. Let me do it.”

Yoner tried to send Lee Han to the back, knowing he had a lot of baggage with spirits.

If the squirrel spirit, saved at last, bit Lee Han, then it would really be irreversible.

There might even arise a future archmage with dismal titles like -Spirit Exterminator- or -Spirit Hater-…

“No, I set this up, so it’ll be faster if I help. Cover me for a second while I pause the flow.”

“Lee Han. Even if that spirit comes in and acts out, it’s just because of this situat—”

“What are you talking about?”

Lee Han looked incredulously at Yoner.

They needed to temporarily halt the magic circle and let the spirit in—why was Yoner going off-topic?

“…Never mind. Ready!”

Wooooong—

While covering Lee Han with staff and firestarter potion in hand, Yoner marveled at the magic circle changes.

He was able to stop such a large, complex area spell with such ease.

Only someone who completely understood structures and could freely channel their own mana to disrupt the flow could do such a thing.

This friend, who’d just been grumbling about spirits, was—upon reflection—truly a magical genius counted among the Empire’s best.

Priest Siana stared at the circle in awe, apparently thinking the same thing.

“Come in!”

Lee Han suppressed the circle by force and shouted to the squirrel spirit.

At last, the beleaguered squirrel spirit heard and looked toward the cabin.

“This way!”

“Hurry!”

Yoner and Siana also beckoned.

When the squirrel spirit darted over, the two sighed in relief.

Lee Han muttered,

“Even when its life’s in danger, it ignores me when I call.”

“…Well, it’s probably just a coincidence.”

“Still, it did ignore Wardanaz when he called…”

“Priest Siana…!”

Yoner glared at Siana for sabotaging things again.

But Priest Siana had her own reasoning.

“I just think if we force ourselves to cover for it, that’s not great either. Honestly, they are pretty ungrateful.”

“That’s true, but…”

“Guys. I’m really fine, you know.”

Lee Han looked at his friends and sighed.

Of course, spirits were a bit too cold compared to the effort he showed, but it wasn’t as if Lee Han was so weak as to dwell on it forever.

So what if spirits didn’t like him?

Lee Han had to walk his own path.

It was actually worse when his friends kept worrying over it like that.

“Spirits might just be wary of me. You don’t have to care so much.”

“Sorry, Lee Han.”

Yoner looked apologetically at Lee Han.

He’d only made Lee Han feel worse by his concern.

“No need to apologize. Just be honest with me.”

“Okay. I will.”

Priest Siana whispered to Yoner,

“So it really didn’t come when you called earlier?”

“Yep.”

At Yoner’s blunt answer, Lee Han’s face twitched slightly.

Thud—

Just then the squirrel spirit crossed into the circle. Lee Han quickly reactivated it.

The corruption creatures chasing it circled around, howling instinctively at the sinister aura.

“Don’t be scared. We’re not your enemies.”

“That’s right, look.”

Yoner and Siana both spread their arms reassuringly.

A panicked spirit could be even more dangerous—if startled, they might go berserk.

-……

The squirrel spirit, after looking around, climbed up Lee Han’s leg and stopped at his wrist.

Then it rubbed its head in thanks.

“…????”

“L-Lee Han!”

“This is a miracle!”

“Priest Siana…”

“W-Well, a half-miracle, maybe…?”

The conversation faded from Lee Han’s hearing. He only saw the squirrel spirit rubbing its head against him.

“You’re not crying, are you, Lee Han?”

“…No, just got dust in my eye.”

The basilisk in Lee Han’s sleeve hissed.

The basilisk decidedly did not like Lee Han doting on such ungrateful spirits.

Regardless, the squirrel spirit clung to Lee Han, unwilling to leave.

“Wardanaz, I think we should go inside now. Over there…”

Priest Siana called, pointing her finger forward.

It looked like the corruption creatures deeper in the forest were chasing other spirits.

Right now, the creatures weren’t coming inside, but if their numbers increased, some brute might smash its way through as before.

“Are those other spirits being chased?”

“Not sure? Probably, though?”

“Let’s help.”

“…Huh? Uh, okay?”

Priest Siana was flustered.

Things had changed since earlier.

Last time, the creatures didn’t care much about the trio, and they’d stealthily opened the circle. Now, the monsters were howling and eyeing the cabin.

It was much more dangerous than before.

“I can block them. Trust me, Priest Siana.”

“Well, I do, but… Isn’t this too much?”

“No, it’s fine. I can’t stand by and watch innocent spirits get reverse-summoned by corruption creatures.”

The squirrel spirit, moved, clung to Lee Han.

“……”

“…Okay… I’ll get ready.”

• * *

Professor Thunderstep, seeing the sudden corruption creatures, shouted in irritation.

“GET—LOST—!”

He blew a magic horn, and the creatures shriveled, vomiting out fluids.

“I swear on my crazy ancestor’s beard, if students summoned these, I’ll make them pay!”

The dwarf professor dashed forward on a summoned spirit stag.

With many cabins built across the school grounds, there was no time to lose.

Riding the ridge line, Professor Thunderstep checked the three cabins in the woods, before remembering his first-year students belatedly.

‘Oh no!’

Their cabin, on the opposite side, was also close to the forest and could easily be hit by this disaster.

‘No, there’s the magic circle and Wardanaz…’

Thinking of Wardanaz, he instantly felt more at ease. Professor Thunderstep swung the spirit stag around and hurried, flying across the snow.

‘Just as I thought…’

In the distance, the cabin finally came into view. If it looked unscathed, surely everything was fine…

KWAJIEJIJIJIK…

“…Did a war break out or something?!”

Seeing the front yard in front of the cabin turned into a devastated pit like it had been struck by some attack, Professor Thunderstep was genuinely shocked.

Was there any reason for such intense fighting?!