Episode 610

Episode 610

In fact, there were surprisingly few people in the imperial capital who refused Einrogard’s summons.

The people of the ancient capital had a learning ability. They had heard rumors about what happened to those who dared refuse, so there were few who could boldly say no.

But in any era, there are always unlucky people.

Those who had just arrived in the capital had not heard such rumors and often made the mistake of acting arrogantly, believing only in their own meager strength.

Surely, no matter how great a mage he was, he wouldn’t dare do anything in the capital where His Majesty the Emperor resided!

…But if there was anything they misunderstood, it was that the Skull Principal was more than capable of doing such things.

“I hope there are fewer fools like that this year.”

“I agree.”

The Skull Principal stopped in front of a mansion in the central district of the capital. It was clearly the mansion of a powerful noble family.

“The master has no appointments today…”

“The letter from Einrogard must have arrived. That letter is the appointment. Open the door.”

The Skull Principal commanded the doorkeeper with a firm attitude.

That command soon manifested as power, pushing the doorkeeper aside and flinging open the mansion’s front gate.

“M-master! The Archmage is here! The Archmage is here!”

The fallen doorkeeper gasped and shouted. It was as if someone who had long feared death had seen the Grim Reaper in person.

The Skull Principal could have stopped the doorkeeper but waited quietly.

“Shall I stop him?”

“Leave him be. Sometimes it’s easier to talk with fear spreading inside the mansion.”

“……”

Is this really someone here to invite a student?

Before long, a middle-aged noble looking pale ran out from inside.

He was sweating coldly from head to toe, so much that one felt sorry for his state of fear.

“Go-Gonadaltes, Your Excellency! Please listen to me. I never ignored Einrogard’s offer, nor refused out of disrespect for your honor.”

“I’m sure. A man like you would never behave so rudely. I trust you.”

The Skull Principal approached kindly.

It seemed he was more scared than arrogant.

Such types needed a gentle approach.

“But my child is too noble and has a character fit for the aristocracy. His bloodline is far too noble to mix with the riffraff of mage towers or magic schools!”

“Haha. I see, I see.”

“……”

Lee Han thought the noble was like someone pouring oil on himself and jumping into a fire.

Saying things like that in front of the Skull Principal was the same as saying, ‘Please give my child special trouble, hehe.’

“I understand what you are worried about. You think the mage towers or magic schools force you to mix with uneducated knights or vulgar commoners, right?”

“Sniff. Yes. And those insane priests as well.”

The noble sobbed, adding a word. Lee Han shook his head.

Certainly, in the world of mages, status or family didn’t hold much power.

Even excluding an extreme case like Einrogard, just entering a mage tower usually meant there were plenty of times you had to serve under a mage of common birth.

Among those from traditional noble families, some couldn’t bear such situations. These people often learned magic under private tutors their families specially invited.

“I even considered Baldrogard at first…”

“!”

Lee Han saw the Skull Principal’s fingertips tremble slightly with anger. An extremely dangerous sign.

To change the topic, Lee Han hurriedly asked a question.

“Why didn’t you choose Baldrogard?”

“Sniff. Even low nobles can enter if they just pay enough.”

“I-I see.”

The Skull Principal waited for the other man to finish crying and talking.

Once he seemed to have poured it all out, the Skull Principal began to persuade him with a soft and gentle smile.

“There is something you misunderstand. Do you really think Einrogard would mix nobles and commoners together? Hmm?”

“I-isn’t that how it is?”

“Absolutely not! Look at me. I am someone who inherits the purest and noblest bloodline of antiquity. Would I mingle nobles and commoners?”

‘Though you do pit them against each other…’

The Skull Principal called to Lee Han, who was thinking something different inside.

“Speak. Disciple. About the real life of Einrogard.”

“Are you his student??”

“Yes. I brought him to tell people like you the real truth about Einrogard.”

Lee Han nodded along to match him.

“That’s right. The students of Einrogard are strictly separated from each other. Commoner students can’t even look at the shadows of noble students. Einrogard is the place that enforces the beautiful old traditions most strictly.”

“Oh…”

The noble’s eyes wavered at those words.

“In these times of decadence, if he does not learn inside Einrogard but outside, he will have even more opportunities to bump into uneducated knights and vulgar commoners.”

“T-That’s right. And insane priests too.”

“Compared to that, Einrogard’s students strictly follow all the rules. Those lacking manners are sent to the punishment room.”

“Indeed…!”

Lee Han exchanged glances with the Skull Principal. The Skull Principal nodded with satisfaction.

As expected, it takes two hands to clap.

It was much more persuasive for a young student to say it directly than for the Principal himself to persuade.

Of course, most of it was a lie…

“Gonadaltes, Your Excellency. Perhaps I was just overly scared.”

“That’s possible. In times like these, where laws grow lax and the nobility’s name weakens, people as noble as you must struggle to get by. But I believe you’ve understood my sincerity by now.”

“Yes! I’ll send my child to Einrogard.”

“Yes, yes. Good thinking.”

The Skull Principal soothed the noble and ushered him inside.

Walking back out the front gate, the Skull Principal muttered.

“That family’s brat should be made to manage the manure in Black Turtle Tower’s stable.”

“That’s a great idea.”

• * *

“This boy has outstanding swordsmanship talent. If he dedicates himself to it, he could leave his name in the history of the swordsmanship guild…”

“He can hone his swordsmanship in Einrogard as well. Disciple, show them. This is the level of swordsmanship cultivated as a hobby.”

“M-my goodness!”

One from the swordsmanship guild, troubled whether to send him to learn magic or devote himself to swordsmanship.

“I’m worried that if he enters a magic school, his prayer time will decrease and his faith will weaken.”

“Thanks to the devout atmosphere at Einrogard, I was able to learn several holy spells.”

“!!”

One from the temple, worried magic would interfere with faith.

At the sight of his disciple showing flawless skill, the Skull Principal brought out a rare warm expression.

“Your skills are truly excellent! Even Prince Jowrin will be admitted!”

“Please don’t make such frightening jokes.”

“I regretted it a little as soon as I said it. Hahaha. Seems things will end faster than I thought. It’s all thanks to you.”

The Skull Principal checked the time.

Since the capital was the most densely populated place in the empire, it also had the most people wanting to refuse admission.

Once the admissions here were finished, the remaining regions of the empire would be much easier.

“Next are those mercenary bastards. Looking at the location of the guildhouse, they seem like illegal types… hmm… yes, illegal types indeed.”

The Skull Principal lightly used divination magic to confirm their status.

As the saying goes, ‘There are two kinds of mercenaries: criminals and criminals not yet caught,’ mercenaries in the empire were always tempted by illegality.

Many outfits hung up a mercenary company sign, while committing all sorts of crimes behind the scenes.

“When they’re illegal types, will you use force to subdue them?”

“No. Actually, illegal types are easier to persuade. They have a lot to hide, so they scare easily.”

The Skull Principal answered with confidence.

There weren’t only good citizens in the capital. Sinister criminals also swarmed in the shadows.

These people, because of their fear, sometimes refused Einrogard’s proposal…

But as soon as the Skull Principal visited, they immediately repented and accepted the offer.

“We’re here. This is the place.”

Just getting to the front of the mercenary company building beside a run-down inn past the slums on the outskirts of the capital, Lee Han and the Skull Principal stood out conspicuously.

People sitting in a shady alley where nobody would know if someone was killed glanced up or gripped their daggers tightly as the two approached.

But that was as far as it went.

Guild members with matching marks came running from deeper in the alley, then beat up those sitting there and dragged them inside by the hair.

-You crazy bastard. Do you even know who that man is!

-Are you trying to get us all killed! Can’t you keep your eyes down!?

“There are still some with good memories left.”

The Skull Principal spoke with satisfaction, and Lee Han looked at him with a stunned expression.

“Where are you from?”

“Are you from the Arrowhead Mercenary Company? Tell your company leader that Gonadaltes is here.”

“Don’t know him.”

The mercenary guarding the door spat between his teeth and glared at Gonadaltes.

No matter how fancy the noble’s clothes, he didn’t seem scared, faced with just two men without an escort.

“Yeah. Of course you don’t know. That’s why I didn’t say ‘Your Highness.'”

“I don’t feel like it.”

The mercenary tilted his chin arrogantly.

A posture demanding a bribe or a favor.

The Skull Principal spoke with some regret.

“Well, then, I’d better suit your mood.”

As soon as the words ended, the Skull Principal’s cold sword slipped itself from its sheath and stabbed the mercenary’s limbs like lightning.

“Arghh!!”

The moment the blade passed, the limbs froze in place. Unable to move, the mercenary screamed, frozen to the floor.

“You said these types were easily persuaded…”

“There are always a few exceptionally dumb ones. Since his mood is bad, I’d better fix the mood of the ones inside too. Go!”

The flying sword shot into the mercenary company building.

Shrill screams soon erupted from inside.

• * *

The Arrowhead Mercenary Company had only been in the capital for less than a year, but through aggressive business expansion, they had made a bit of a name for themselves locally.

Especially Ugda, the company leader, was as skilled in smuggling, kidnapping, and trafficking as he was in combat, making his underlings quite happy.

“They want me to send the kid I have to Einrogard? What are they talking about?”

“Aren’t they telling you to send him to a mage tower or something?”

“What kid do we have? Is there a kid here?”

“Come on, Boss. The youngster you bought for a hefty price last time.”

“Send him?! Do you know how much I could sell him for?!”

“Yeah, that’s right!”

“Crazy mage bastards. The real thieves are these people!”

“But there’s nothing good about making enemies with mages, is there?”

“I don’t care. Tear up the letter! Would mages really come looking for us just because of one damn brat?”

Ugda gave the rough order.

It seemed the greedy mages had sent a letter after hearing rumors, but he figured nothing would happen if he refused.

But Ugda had no idea which mage he was dealing with.

There were all types of mages, after all.

Thud!

A sword flew in from thin air. As the masterless blade drew lines at high speed in the air, the mercenaries scattered, screaming.

“A-a raid!! A raid!”

“The sword’s flying…! Mage… Ugh!”

“Feel better now, everyone?”

The Skull Principal kicked aside mercenaries into the corner and walked forward.

Mercenaries, not knowing the cause, groaned clutching their limbs.

“M-mage bastard…! What grudge do you have with us…!”

As soon as the words ended, the sword pierced through the arm again. The mercenary’s eyes turned white.

“A grudge? Watch what you say. I’m just lifting your spirits.”

“What the hell are you…”

Unable to watch further, Lee Han shot a water bead and knocked the mercenary out.

It was his own bit of mercy, but the mercenaries barely noticed it.

“M-m-monster…!”

“…Honestly, compared to you, Principal, I’m pretty merciful in subduing them, aren’t I?”

“To those bastards, all mages probably look the same.”

The Skull Principal replied indifferently as he put holes in the limbs of fleeing mercenaries.

The fresh air holes would surely make the mercenaries feel a little better!