Episode 716
by CristaeVerdus’s “guardians” had a fearsome reputation among Einrogard students.
They looked like little more than bundles of wood or bronze tied together—like wooden mannequins or metal dolls—but had combat power far beyond what you’d expect from a “small golem.”
It wasn’t supernatural strength, strictly speaking.
It was just that these guardians were cobbled together from leftover parts and junk, then enchanted by Professor Verdus’s unique art.
Summons like these were always limited by the quality of their materials and reagents.
But Verdus’s magic squeezed out the absolute maximum from even the weakest base.
-Fire element! It’s a fire-immune guardian! We only brought fire spells!!
-Retreat! Pull back!
-Another guardian at the rear! Type… AoE curse! Curse guardian!!
-That bastard professor, just quit already!
Knowing the limits of his stock, Verdus never made “all-purpose” guardians.
Instead, each was highly specialized. Whatever they couldn’t do was covered by other guardians.
He made ones immune to fire, ones with reflective shields, ones that belched poison gas for fun, even ones that would self-destruct and knock you out for a trip to the punishment room…
Each carefully designed guardian would link up with the others to torment any students trespassing.
Normally, a wizard’s greatest weapon is their adaptability—but Verdus’s guardians turned that weapon against them.
The one Sevios had just spotted was the infamous mana-absorption type—easily one of the top ten nastiest.
It gobbled up all but the most potent spells with a slavering maw.
If it caught you, you didn’t just lose spells—you’d get your magic power forcibly drained.
To fight it, you’d normally retreat, inscribe rituals in the landscape, and try to lure it into a trap…
“Swordsmanship?!”
“Is that not allowed?”
“It’s not… that it’s not allowed!”
Sevios gaped at the sight of Lee Han brandishing a pitch-black sword.
Blue Dragon Tower students could wield swords, technically.
…Didn’t mean they were supposed to cut down guardians with them though!
“You take fencing lessons too, huh?”
Sevios tried a joke to lighten the tense mood.
He wasn’t confident in his jokes, but this was what seniors were supposed to do.
“How did you know?”
“…Let’s move!”
Sevios vowed never again to try jokes and kept walking.
“Verdus’s guardians are all networked—destroy one, and more will home in. If a fight breaks out, finish it fast and run.”
“Like that one?”
“Yeah. It’s coming already.”
A creaky tin golem emerged from the pile of junk, and Sevios narrowed his eyes.
“That one’s… ugh, figures we get a tough one. Severing-resistant plating and projectile-deflectors.”
It shut down most slashing attacks and deflected incoming magic projectiles—not easy to handle at either range.
Sevios began mapping escape routes using the paths he knew and the ones he’d just seen.
‘If we slip left, then head west—’
“Gather and rotate!”
While he was planning, Lee Han launched his spell, surprising Sevios.
“That thing bends projectiles! Don’t waste your—”
A wizard isn’t someone who just conjures from nothing. They’re frugal, managing limited mana efficiently.
By that logic, his junior’s barrage was pure extravagance.
Squandering precious magic at this stage—
But heavy water orbs began rotating, flying with deadly force. The guardian’s field bent their paths as expected—sending them aside.
But Lee Han just conjured more and fired again.
Again. And again.
‘A barrage?!’
Finally, one careening orb smacked the guardian, shattering it.
Rather than scolding, Sevios asked,
“Still got enough mana?”
“Don’t worry. I’m fine.”
“…Don’t tell me you took down the rock drake like that too?”
He’d assumed Lee Han’s famous earlier achievements were done by cunning—maybe some trap or ruse.
But after that display, he suddenly wondered: did this kid blast the thing head-on?
They hesitated.
“Would charging in disqualify me from the club?”
“……”
Maybe running into a guardian right away satisfied their bad-luck quota, because things got a bit easier after that.
“Here we go. -Mage’s Guide to Dodging Repayment-.”
Sevios found the book in a third storeroom and pocketed it.
With the book stashed—even if the area was damp and stank of stored slime reagents—it felt good.
“Why did Verdus leave a book here…?”
“We’ll never understand professors’ brains. Let’s go.”
“I never thought I’d miss the previous storerooms.”
Lee Han muttered in disbelief.
After being attacked by guardians and swimming half a lake, he was surprised he missed those times already.
“The next one should be fine—no guardians, no special traps. Just a regular storage.”
All Verdus’s storerooms were interconnected.
Students could use that, finding a weakly-warded door and sneaking through to other storerooms.
That’s what they were doing now.
Not a perfect plan—sometimes, to get from storeroom A to storeroom B, you had to go through C, D…
And those other storerooms could be hellish.
Was there really such thing as a normal room among Verdus’s stash?
Lee Han looked skeptical.
But—
Creak—
A new storeroom opened, and it looked like a café or coffee house in a big city.
Tables, chairs, everything was clean, no enemies about…
“This isn’t a trap?”
“I thought the same at first, but no—Verdus just forgot about this one, and students use it often. That’s saved it. Let’s rest a bit.”
He pulled up a chair for Lee Han, sat, and drank a mana potion, unrolling a map.
There were still plenty of books to find.
“You need a potion?”
“I’m good, senior, you take it.”
Lee Han demurred, thinking Sevios must find him a dutiful junior.
‘Is he a monster?’
Sevios stared in awe.
After all that magic, and this kid didn’t need a potion? No wonder he was taking every discipline.
“We’ll go cut through the poison mushroom room and use the swamp room’s path, down to floor -2. The metal storeroom’s too dangerous—we skip that.”
“What are all these X’s?”
“Spots we’ve never found a way in. Verdus forgot a bunch, but there are plenty he hasn’t. Those places are basically uncrackable.”
It was a tough reality—students could loot only the negligent ones. The rest might as well not exist.
No wonder they dreamed.
-Before I graduate, I swear I’ll crack a forbidden Verdus vault. I’m gonna see what’s in there!
-So if you fail, do you stick around another year?
-…You trying to die?
“Might look like a lot, but even these are just a fraction compared to the total.”
“……”
Lee Han, watching Sevios sigh, was dumbfounded.
To think his senior had found so many and still had regrets. How many storerooms had Verdus built and forgotten?
‘How much could one man build and forget?’
“If you ever figure out how to get into these, bring the club. Raid it together.”
“You should come, too, then!”
“I’m graduating this year, you punk.”
‘That’s this year’s goal,’ Lee Han thought sourly.
Apparently, even fourth-years got irritable.
“-Mage’s Guide to Dodging Repayment-, -Principles of Imperial Investment-, -Genius Enchanter’s Hundred Investments-, -Survey of Artifact Trends-, -Imperial Materials Encyclopedia-…”
Sevios muttered, troubled.
The only one missing was -Complete Gemology-.
He drew a silver bookmark artifact, which spun and pointed. The book was in a storeroom Sevios had never entered.
“…Looks like it’s there.”
“What now?”
“Let’s quit for today. We’ve got enough.”
Greed is the enemy of a teleport club member.
He itched to try for one more, but risking it—and the junior along—was not worth it.
“Should I at least try a workaround?”
“If we can’t figure it out right now, odds are slim. Go check if you want.”
The bookmark pointed to a door even Sevios couldn’t crack. Its defenses were that locked tight.
Any blow would be absorbed and repairs immediate.
He’d failed before. Too impregnable.
Thump, thump, thump—
His junior rapped with his staff, tried the usual tricks. Nothing happened.
Sevios caught himself smiling.
It’s frustration that hones a true thief.
This Wardanaz kid had more talent as a second-year than Sevios himself had ever managed.
Give him a year or two, he might really bust a forbidden Verdus trove.
Not that Sevios planned to stick around to see it.
“Senior!”
“What is it?”
“I got it!”
“…What!? How?! Don’t tell me you forced it…?”
Lee Han smiled sheepishly.
“I, uh, had the key.”
“……”
‘Who the hell ARE you???’