Episode 656

Bashiu urged his friend.

It seemed like there was nothing to gain from clashing further with that arrogant prince who only knew about magic.

“Ingsen, let’s show the spell we prepared.”

“To who? That prince?”

“…Anyone but the prince.”

Bashiu forced himself to say, swallowing his pride.

It was embarrassing, but there was no way around it. He couldn’t imagine beating that prince.

Ingsen felt the same.

‘Dammit. Just wait and see!’

Ingsen resolved that when he returned to Baldrogard, he would study magic even harder.

Intensely! For maybe two days a week, he’d study and one day teach that arrogant prince a lesson.

“What about the Wardanaz one? He seems kind.”

“The Wardanaz family would be respectable enough to show magic to.”

Their pride wouldn’t allow them to show magic to just anyone.

It had to be someone with obvious talent, a good family name, and, above all, mannerly enough to have a serious conversation about ‘what is magic?’

That was Lee Han of the Wardanaz family.

“Um, Mr. Lee Han of the Wardanaz family.”

“?”

Lee Han, who had been covering Gainando’s mouth, gave the others a look to keep it closed, then turned around.

“Is something the matter?”

“I prepared a spell… I’d appreciate it if you could have a look.”

Ingsen and Bashiu didn’t realize, but without noticing, their attitude had grown much more respectful.

It was a total reversal from their attitude at the front gate: ‘I’ll trample their pride!’

Even if they hadn’t realized consciously, they’d felt it instinctively.

The Einrogard mages were somehow different from all the Baldrogard mages they’d met so far!

“A spell? Please, show me.”

Lee Han nodded readily.

Even though he’d said, ‘don’t lose to the Baldrogard bastards,’ even for that, Gainando’s provocations had been a bit much.

Thanks to that, Lee Han was just a little kinder right now.

‘I’ll have to console them a bit.’

He braced himself to praise whatever magic they showed, putting on a practiced smile.

That smile gave Ingsen courage.

Unlike that rude prince earlier, the Wardanaz family mage was showing true noble courtesy despite his reputation.

“Alright! Here I go. First, we place the outer bark of pine here. Then the corundum powder here. Then…”

“Ah. You’re trying to summon a fire phoenix.”

Lee Han beamed his artificial smile and praised.

Summoning a fire phoenix was a second-circle summoning spell—a fairly high-level spell.

The base difficulty was one thing, but for Lee Han, using pure ruby powder as a reagent made this spell feel harder than forbidden spells.

But if you could manage that, it was a decent spell. You could summon a helpful fire phoenix without any contract.

“…H-how did you know?”

Ingsen was flustered.

He’d planned to summon the fire phoenix and surprise the Einrogard students.

The ingredients alone made it hard to guess what spell it was, and the brilliant appearance of the fire phoenix would dazzle everyone, so he’d prepared carefully…

…And yet, before he even began, Lee Han had guessed the precise spell.

“It’s a good spell, but actually it’s better not to use outer pine bark and corundum powder together. Both are powerful reagents, but their compatibility is poor, so they clash. And your spell circle is off too. If you introduce these kinds of errors, your casting speed drops and the effect gets weaker.”

“……”

And that wasn’t all.

Lee Han kindly started pointing out Ingsen’s spell, step by step.

With every pointer, Ingsen’s eyes trembled, his face turned pale, but Lee Han didn’t even notice because he was absorbed in the magic.

“Wait. What is this powder made from?”

“I-I had it made by a gem-cutter myself…”

“That’s not good enough. The mage needs to grind it himself. Laziness is the enemy of magic.”

“It’s… there’s not much difference, right?”

“What are you talking about? That’s nonsense.”

Lee Han, incredulous, took the gemstone powder.

Then, carefully and minutely, he began grinding it again.

“Fire phoenix, materialize and protect!”

Fwoosh!

As soon as he sprinkled the powder and chanted, a bird made of fire tore through the air.

Ingsen could only blink, seeing a familiar yet many times faster casting speed and a far stronger summon.

How was that even possible?!

“See? This is the magic using finely ground reagent. Now let’s try with the gem-cutter’s powder.”

Lee Han sprinkled more powder and chanted again.

Another bird of fire appeared.

“?”

“…Doesn’t look that different?”

The friends watching from behind tilted their heads.

They couldn’t see any major difference between the two fire phoenixes.

Both were powerful, full of mana.

Annoyed at the reaction, Lee Han answered,

“Look closely! This one moves far more smoothly, while this one is slow and clunky. Don’t be fooled by the mana—observe the subtle movements inside!”

“……”

‘They really don’t look any different…’

The friends could only draw the lesson, ‘High-purity mana can overcome poor-quality reagents.’

The difference in powder hardly showed once Lee Han poured in his magic.

Luckily, in his shock, Ingsen didn’t dare argue the two fire phoenixes looked the same. He just nodded as if hypnotized.

“Y-yes… I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Now, have a look at your spell circle.”

‘It’s not over yet?!’

Lee Han wasn’t finished. Next, he critiqued Ingsen’s spell circle.

“Why do you have this shape here?”

“It… was in the book…”

“You can’t just copy it like that. You have to understand it when you draw it. This sigil gathers ambient mana, but if you already have enough mana from your reagents, you just get overflow and interference.”

“I… I didn’t know.”

“You can’t not know!”

Lee Han shouted, out of habit.

Gainando next to him instinctively straightened his posture. He wasn’t the target, but his body remembered the drill.

“Oh, excuse me, that was just habit… Haha. Not knowing is normal. Learning from now on is what matters.”

Realizing belatedly what he was doing, Lee Han apologized. But Ingsen was already frozen solid.

“Go ahead.”

“Yes?”

“Your fire phoenix summoning. You wanted to do it, right?”

“Uh, w-well, I think it’s fine…”

Ingsen, and even Bashiu, quickly shook their heads.

Attempting the fire phoenix here would only lead to further humiliation.

They could feel it instinctively.

If they cast magic here, they’d be humiliated even worse than before!

“What are you saying? After preparing all these reagents, you’re not going to? Hurry up. You don’t want to waste the materials, right?”

“Um…”

“Hurry!”

Lee Han was strict.

His stern gaze allowed no excuses.

Completely frightened, Ingsen nodded and raised his staff.

“F-fire, fire, fire phoenix…”

“Keep your posture correct when reciting a spell, and speak in a clear, strong voice.”

“Fire phoenix…”

“Synchronize your movements! Don’t let your motions and chanting go out of sync. Eyes forward. Focus. Focus. FOCUS! How many times must I say focus! That’s why you keep failing!”

To help the Baldrogard students succeed and soothe their pride, Lee Han relentlessly coached them on their magic.

Subjected to a kind of Einrogard teaching unheard of at their own school, Ingsen and Bashiu’s eyes brimmed with tears.

The polite but yelling Wardanaz boy was terrifying.

“My mana… I’m running out…”

“You’re not out yet. Again!”

“This should be enough…”

“You were late by a beat. Again!”

Watching the students get hellishly drilled, Gainando looked at his friend with dread.

“Wow, I never thought I’d feel sorry for the Baldrogard bastards…”

The friends nodded silently.

• * *

Fwoosh!

Much faster than usual, Ingsen managed to bring out a fire phoenix.

The cute little firebird flitted woozily around Ingsen, looking as exhausted and worn-out as its master.

“Everyone, a round of applause.”

“…Wow! Amazing!!”

At Lee Han’s order, the friends clapped as one. Nillia hurried to wake the dozing Siana.

“Thank you…”

Ingsen and Bashiu, drenched in cold sweat, managed to thank them.

They got applause, but felt no joy—just mental exhaustion and a desperate wish to escape.

“Did you bring another spell to show?”

“Yes.”

Bashiu answered absentmindedly.

Then he panicked.

‘Oh no!’

“Oh. Let’s see that, too.”

Ingsen glared daggers at his friend.

It was a murderous intent he’d never felt back in Baldrogard.

“It… it’s not much of a spell…”

“Come on, show us.”

“It’s a trivial spell…”

Ingsen realized that as a noble, his pride meant less than he’d thought.

It was endlessly disposable.

But Lee Han simply ignored him, rifled through his reagent pouch.

“Ah. You’re trying to cast fire barrier wall magic.”

“…Ugh!”

Within seconds, his magic was exposed, and Ingsen burst into tears in despair.

“Why are you crying?”

“Uhuhu… sniff, sniffle…”

Lee Han was surprised as Ingsen and Bashiu started sobbing.

“Why are they crying?”

“Don’t let them fool you, Lee Han. It’s just an act. I faked tears when I didn’t want to study, too.”

Gainando was cool-headed, but the other friends still had some warmth in them.

“Should we let them rest a bit? I’ll go get some tea.”

“Here, let’s give a little restoration potion.”

Gainando grumbled at their kindness.

To indulge kids who cry because they don’t want to study!

‘You shouldn’t fall for those tears.’

“Ugh… I just wanted to be good at magic…”

“Oh, you wanted to be good at magic.”

Lee Han did his best to comfort them.

“But I keep messing up… and none of the finished magic feels great…”

“Then you just need more practice. Don’t cry.”

“Lee Han, why don’t you step out for a bit?”

The friends decided Lee Han should leave for a while.

If he stayed, the two Baldrogard students might have a total mental breakdown.

• * *

When Lee Han returned after about 30 minutes, Ingsen and Bashiu had calmed down, wiping their eyes with handkerchiefs.

“We’re… sorry about that display…”

“It can happen.”

“Um. What family are you from?”

“I’m from the Shadow Patrol of the North Mountains.”

Nillia replied indifferently.

Ingsen was shocked.

“Sorry—I thought you were from a noble house…”

‘What a brat,’ Lee Han thought.

“They’re so rude,” Siana just muttered. Lee Han was startled.

“Did you just say that out loud?”

“Huh? Oh, no. I just figured, what are they going to do even if they hear…”

“……”

Lee Han shook his head, thinking perhaps his Phoenix Tower priest friends were just getting rougher in temperament.

“Nillia, let’s show them some magic too.”

“Huh?”

“They showed magic, so we should show ours too.”

“Wouldn’t it be better if Wardanaz did it?”

Nillia scratched her cheek.

This kind of thing should be the school’s top student’s job. It’d be embarrassing if she messed up.

“No, I believe in you.”

“…Alright. I’ll give it a shot?”

Encouraged by her friend, Nillia grinned and Lee Han nodded, handing her a bow.

“Let’s start by enchanting this weapon.”

“…W-wait a minute.”

Who’s she planning to shoot?