Episode 690

“?!”

Siana’s eyes widened in response to “all done,” and she turned around.

She had already been surprised that Lee Han claimed to be analyzing the spells he’d just seen, but it was even more shocking that he was already finished.

“Huh, you’re already done?”

Gainando, however, wasn’t surprised at all as he opened the door.

“Then anyone up for a round of wizard cards—”

“No.”

“Right? I was just asking.”

As Gainando quickly retreated, Siana felt a bit confused.

‘…Am I the weird one?!’

Maybe it really wasn’t that surprising—and she was the only one shocked.

“What’s up, Priest?”

“Well, he just said he finished analyzing the senior’s magic.”

“Gasp!”

Deorgyu nearly fell over in surprise.

Relieved, Siana sighed.

‘Thank goodness. Gainando was the weird one!’

“As I thought, it was transformation magic.”

Lee Han came out and glanced at his friends, eyeing the still half-crouching Deorgyu with curiosity.

“Why are you standing like that?”

“Um, just stretching a bit.”

“Aren’t you training a bit too hard? Anyway, it was transformation magic.”

A third-circle spell, -Lesser Box Transformation-, which turned living creatures below a certain size into wooden boxes.

Seeing the familiar and easily understood flow of magic, Lee Han figured it had to be a spell in that category.

“Feels like we’re lucky. The seniors seem to use the kind of magic I can analyze.”

‘That doesn’t seem like luck at all…’

Siana thought to herself.

From a senior’s viewpoint, it was incredibly unfair.

How could they have known that a junior who just finished first year might analyze and master a spell just by looking at it?

Nillia whispered to Yoner.

“I thought Wardanaz was always good at magic, but lately he’s just gotten insane, hasn’t he?”

“Yeah. I’d like to deny it, but I can’t…”

After quieting the chatting friends, Lee Han spoke again.

“They’re probably trying to sneak in things that’ll make noise and stir up trouble in our luggage.”

“That’s so despicable!”

“We’ve got to do it to our juniors next year!”

“……”

His friends stared at Gainando.

“Huh? Aren’t you all going to do it next year?”

“Now that we know the magic, we don’t really have much to worry about.”

Lee Han ignored this and continued what he was saying.

With an understanding of the spells involved, it wasn’t hard to counter this sort of trick.

All they had to do was find the items mixed in the luggage and either dispel them or toss them back in with the seniors’ stuff.

“All right, everyone go get ready to walk around.”

“Again?”

“’Again’—when have we even done that much?”

At Lee Han’s words, his friends sighed and got up.

When they arrived in Granden City, Lee Han had deliberately chosen the least popular, outermost city gate.

Even on the carriage, he’d thrown a rough, worn cloth over the top so no one would guess they were from a noble family.

All this was to slip by the seniors and get into the villa unnoticed. If seniors caught them arriving with abundant supplies, it could be a pain.

After safely stashing their supplies in the villa, Lee Han’s next move was to contact as many seniors as possible.

He wanted to ask about smuggling techniques and be ready in case anyone had a wicked scheme.

To do that, Lee Han and his friends had to wander around the city acting like innocent first-years who knew nothing.

“Everyone, remember: if a senior brings up smuggling or talks about Einrogard’s secrets…”

“Gasp!”

“Wow!”

“No way!”

“How could it be! That’s impossible!”

Lee Han nodded in satisfaction at his friends’ fake reactions.

“That’s right. Act like that and pretend to be fooled. Let’s go!”

• * *

The skeleton principal’s loyal knight, the Death Knight, walked the main road of Granden City, robe pulled tight.

He could have walked under the bright sun, but it was a courtesy to the people of Granden.

‘The Wardanaz family’s villa…’

The Death Knight arrived at the villa as ordered and knocked on the front gate.

-Who is it?

-I’m here on the principal’s orders. Students, please open the door.

-Aaaah! It’s the principal’s attack!

-It’s not an attack, it’s a message…

Flustered, the Death Knight tried to explain, but the students made crashing noises as they rushed to prepare.

-Lee Han! A death knight is at the door!

-What?! What did we get caught for?

-No idea!

-I’ll contact the temple. Let’s call the priests and attack!

Today’s Death Knight was less experienced at dealing with students than the others.

Unlike a veteran, he fumbled and shouted.

-There’s a misunderstanding, everyone!

-Ignore him! He’s trying to trick us into opening the door!

-He’s here to take the first-years! The first-years, you hear me!

-……

Creeeaaak—

At last, the villa’s front door opened and the students poked their heads out, wariness in their eyes.

Relieved, the Death Knight sighed.

“It’s really true?”

-I swear on my knightly honor. First-years have to go first, you know.

Although the principal had left Eandurde to Lee Han during the break, with the new term approaching, that was no longer allowed.

Now that Lee Han was entering second year, he couldn’t stay with the new first-years.

“…Is it a trap?”

Eandurde, working on equations, eyed the Death Knight suspiciously.

“It’s not a trap.”

“But… you’re a Death Knight…”

“The principal always uses Death Knights as minions.”

“?!”

Leaving the stunned Eandurde behind, Lee Han opened the gate.

He couldn’t very well leave the principal’s messenger standing outside forever.

As the Death Knight entered, he eyed the Wardanaz villa. There was a practical neatness, free of vanity.

-You’re not preparing to smuggle, are you?

“Hrk.”

“Gehk.”

Offhandedly, the Death Knight’s question caught the students off-guard, and they started coughing.

-N-no. Are you already preparing to smuggle? Even as first-years?

“Wh-what makes you say that?”

-You arrived so early, and I see you’ve piled up lots of stuff… Don’t smuggle. I say this for your own good.

At this, the students shot daggers at him with their eyes.

Realizing this, the Death Knight hastened to clarify.

-I’m not saying this just because I serve the master!

“Sure…”

-I really mean it, for your sakes. Smuggling isn’t wise. It’s tempting, but you could lose everything you prepared and end up in the punishment room. Also…

The Death Knight hesitated.

He didn’t want to stir up mistrust among the students.

-…It’s dangerous to trust the seniors too much.

“Yes.”

“Definitely.”

“We know.”

-?!!

The students’ apathetic responses flustered the Death Knight.

-Wait, aren’t you surprised?

“We’re surprised.”

-You don’t look surprised at all…

“My friends are just naturally expressionless.”

Lee Han brazenly lied. The Death Knight, still confused, could only nod.

“How’s the principal these days?”

-Thanks to you defeating all the bureaucrats, Lord Wardanaz, life’s gotten much easier.

“????”

His friends doubted their ears.

What had Lee Han ever done?

But Lee Han had no time to clear up misunderstandings. Since he had the principal’s minion here, he had to get as much information as possible.

“Is there anything specific the principal is on guard about, or especially wary of?”

-Are you asking for smuggling reasons?

The Death Knight wasn’t dumb.

He could tell what the student was getting at from the questions alone.

-But I’ll answer.

“!”

-Because once you know about Einrogard’s ironclad defenses, you’ll give up thoughts of smuggling anyway.

“Oh…!”

If the skeleton principal had been here, he might have said, “That only works on certain kids!” before scolding the knight, but fortunately, the principal wasn’t.

-For this new term, the master has increased the number of Death Knights. The knights who were out in other places are back.

‘Do you really have to go this far just to catch smugglers?’

As he noted the number of Death Knights, Lee Han sighed inwardly.

Couldn’t they make do with the usual number?

-Dimensional hounds have been summoned, too. They’ll patrol from the front gate to the mountains and catch any smuggled goods trying to get in.

“…Is it always this intense?”

-Around once every ten years. We have to recall knights from elsewhere, and dimensional hounds are a huge hassle.

‘Why did it have to be this year?’

Lee Han was enraged at having drawn the hardest difficulty during the cyclical rise and fall of smuggling challenge.

Why couldn’t it have been an easy year!

“What about the sky…?”

-A good question! There are more wyverns on patrol now. I thought it was a bit much, but our master is thorough. Maybe some students will try to get in by air.

“…!!”

That raised goosebumps.

Maybe it was a coincidence, but Lee Han felt sure the skeleton principal had targeted him.

‘Still waiting for payback at the end of break…!’

The principal had wanted to settle scores after Lee Han’s humiliating escape last year via the tower stables.

If Lee Han hadn’t learned this in advance and tried to smuggle with Amur’s help, he would’ve gotten completely busted.

‘I’m glad I found out in advance, but losing one method hurts.’

It was a route only Lee Han could use, unlike the seniors—but now it was out.

Still, there was nothing to be done. Lee Han resolved to hold off on the tower stables route until the principal relaxed his guard.

“But aren’t there lots of very skilled seniors? Is it even possible to check all their magic?”

Pinched by the question, the Death Knight hesitated.

-We… can’t catch everything. But even so, you still shouldn’t smuggle. Only a very few ever succeed a little, and is that risk worth it?

‘Yes…’

‘I think so.’

The students thought to themselves.

“Actually, hearing all this does make me feel a bit less like smuggling.”

-Does it!

The Death Knight brightened.

If he could keep even a few from making mistakes, he was satisfied.

-Good, good. When you experience it for yourselves, you’ll see—there’s nothing like it. No one passes inspection quietly. They cast magic, raise chaos, try to sneak out—sometimes there’s even a riot…

“…A riot?”

-They think if everyone goes wild, they can’t all be sent to the punishment room! But the master always does it. That year, the first week of school was taught in the punishment room.

The seniors’ stories were fascinating.

Lee Han listened intently, eager for anything he could use as reference.

-And this year, the warehouse keeper will also be helping with inspections. No matter how good the students’ magic is, it’ll be tough to get past!

Lee Han nodded.

The warehouse keeper, with his ability to sense mana, was a terror to students sneaking out at night.

Even Lee Han had had a few close calls.

‘Hold on. If the warehouse keeper is outside for inspections, then the underground…?’

-Lord Wardanaz?

“Yes?”

-Who is that?

Looking startled, the Death Knight pointed.

A tied-up senior was being dragged back inside by students after a failed escape from the villa’s annex.

-Y-you little… How did you know? Who told you?!

-Senior, please behave!

Thunk!

As the door slammed shut, Lee Han shrugged.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

-……