Episode 840

“Ah, no, that’s not it.”

Because his conscience was pricked, Lee Han’s lie came half a beat late.

Professor Garcia grumbled, as if she knew everything anyway.

“You don’t have to cover for her, Lee Han. Lagesa’s always been like that. If she can’t torment students, she says she finds lectures boring.”

‘Seriously.’

Lee Han was speechless.

Without Professor Garcia, what other value did the Einrogard faculty have?

This was a dangerous thing to say, but it could have been worse than Baldrogard.

“Just ignore such nonsense.”

“I’m trying, Lee Han. Now, shall we have a test?”

“…Yes.”

“Just kidding. No test.”

The class -Understanding Very Advanced and Difficult Esoteric Magic (If You Lack Confidence, Don’t Attend)- did not have pop quizzes.

In Professor Garcia’s view, a separate quiz wasn’t necessary for this class at all.

“Professor!”

“You’re happy, right?”

“Uh, I am, but I’m worried about you. Won’t the principal send you to the punishment room?”

“……”

Seeing her student, who was already so mature for a second-year, Professor Garcia felt a pang.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going.”

“Really? Professor Verdus gets sent to the punishment room if he skips quizzes, though.”

‘Ugh.’

Professor Garcia cursed Professor Verdus under her breath.

He was teaching students all the wrong things.

“As you know, Professor Verdus has his… um… objectives…”

“You mean how he just wants to abandon students and do his own research?”

“…Thanks for putting it so bluntly, Lee Han. Anyway, Professor Verdus has a record, so he gets sent to the punishment room often. I don’t have a record.”

No matter how the Skull Principal enjoyed sending people to the punishment room, he didn’t just do it for no reason.

Especially not for the faculty; if one left, it immediately created a hole in the lectures.

So the Skull Principal made that decision with cool judgment.

If Professor Verdus skipped quizzes: For Verdus, it must be a wicked motive, so punishment room.

If Professor Garcia did: For Garcia, it must be out of goodwill, so no problem.

“That’s how it is.”

‘Surprisingly fair, huh?’

Lee Han was a little impressed.

No wonder he was the principal—he was really fair about these things.

“And if I go to the punishment room, there’s a big empty spot in Einrogard’s duties… That’s why even fifth-years rarely get sent.”

“What about Professor Verdus?”

“If he skips, no one even notices.”

“……”

Lee Han was stunned.

Just how little did he contribute…!

“Thank you, Professor.”

“Oh, Lee Han, no need to thank me. I just decided there was no need for a test. You’re probably busy enough this week—at least take it easy for today’s class.”

Professor Garcia handed him a cup of freshly brewed coffee.

Today she intended to ask more about how Lee Han had been than just lecturing.

“Come to think of it, Lee Han. I heard you all visited the Spirit King’s domain?”

“Cough.”

Lee Han sputtered, causing Professor Garcia to panic.

“Are you okay!? Was the coffee too hot?!”

“N-no. I was just surprised. The professors share information so fast…”

“Ah. Teaching students is important, after all.”

It didn’t seem like the kind of thing one could just brush off.

Calming his raw throat, Lee Han set down the cup.

“Is that your new staff?”

“Yes. It’s not finished yet. I have to process obsidian to fit it.”

“Lee Han, this is a very old-fashioned magic staff style, isn’t it? Did the principal tell you to make it like this?”

Professor Garcia looked puzzled at the half-caduceus shaped staff.

In the current empire, most staff designs consisted of a special core wrapped in a stabilizing material.

This allowed for efficient and stable magic use.

But a design with just two materials twisted together and no separate core would be far less stable.

The magician would have to exercise a lot more caution in return for output.

Plus, using obsidian and the Spirit King’s sacred wood—unbelievable…

“Yes.”

Still blaming the Black Book inwardly, Lee Han agreed immediately. Professor Garcia raised her voice in indignation.

“I can’t believe the principal is even recommending old-fashioned staff styles! You’re already using dangerous enough magic—no need for even riskier ones!”

‘…That’s what I thought too.’

Lee Han tentatively asked,

“Is it possible to change the shape?”

“If there’s a powerful high spirit inside, it’s hard. You’d have to wake it and subdue it again…”

It had been hard enough just waking it, but subduing it would be even more so.

Lee Han remembered how the Ironhead Beech King had rampaged.

He might have been cowed for now, but if he recovered his strength, he’d charge Lee Han again.

‘I’d better just give up and make do.’

“Well… If there are downsides, there are upsides too. I’m just going to be happy with the good.”

Lee Han said this, trying not to grit his teeth. Professor Garcia nodded as if she understood.

“Then I suppose you’ll need Professor Verdus’s he—well, favor.”

“What?”

“Processing obsidian. Professor Verdus is good at that.”

“Is that possible? Ah, for something in exchange?”

Professor Verdus would never do anything he didn’t want to, but he was surprisingly open to barter.

If Lee Han offered labor in exchange for processed obsidian, he’d likely accept.

“In exchange? What in exchange, Lee Han?”

“Helping out with something…”

“No need. I helped Professor Verdus before, so now he has to help me, too.”

“…Professor…!”

Lee Han was moved by his teacher’s generosity.

She was going to have Professor Verdus repay a favor she did for him, for Lee Han’s sake.

“After class, let’s go together—no, it’s probably better to go alone.”

“Let’s go together? Wouldn’t it be better for me to show the staff directly?”

“Mm.”

Professor Garcia hesitated.

If they went to see Professor Verdus, several rough exchanges were bound to take place, and she didn’t want her student subjected to that.

-Professor, I covered your patrol, graded your tests, did your prep, made artifacts for criminals, and handled materials, so could you look at Lee Han’s staff?

-Uh? No.

-Hey!

…She didn’t want a second-year hearing such back-and-forth.

But Lee Han was no pushover, either. He already anticipated this.

‘Professor Garcia is so good-hearted she might get taken for a ride by someone like Verdus.’

If Professor Verdus took his debt and left Professor Garcia with more work instead, Lee Han might clutch his neck and faint.

Suddenly, Lee Han thought of Direte, who used to get mad whenever she saw him.

‘…Was this what set Senior Direte off every time?’

Pondering, Lee Han shook his head.

He was not like Professor Garcia.

Unlike the good-hearted professor, Lee Han was plenty selfish.

‘I really am different.’

“Ugh. All right, Lee Han. We’ll go together after class. Anything else?”

“Hmm…”

Lee Han recalled the conversation with the Mad Clone just before coming here.

There was the Skull Principal’s old memories, his hour-long barrage of nitpicks, and more.

-So, wretch. You say you cast Personal Worlds?

-Yes, Dendrobium and Basilios…

-Then you can use them now.

-No?

-……

-Sorry. But I can’t even use fifth-circle magic right now…

-Wretch, do you think apologizing will make impossible magic possible? Hurry up. When will you gain at least the minimum honor as my disciple?

‘I’ll never get there, even if the world ends.’

The Mad Clone had advised using the Black Book and trying to cast Personal Worlds several more times.

For someone with Wardanaz blood and talent, letting the Black Book forcibly inject upper-level magic into his brain until he coughed blood often led to sudden blossoming.

-But if I fail, I’ll go mad, won’t I?

-Concerning yourself with madness before you even cast?

-Oh, yes…

After thinking it over, Lee Han decided not to mention any of this to Professor Garcia!

‘If she heard, it might shock her into fainting.’

“Lee Han. Are you trying to edit out all the dangerous stuff so I don’t worry right now?”

‘Gasp.’

“No, why would I?”

“I just had a feeling…”

“Not at all, I was just remembering something else. Professor, do you know much about the principal’s past?”

“It’s so much, I don’t even know what you mean.”

“…Uh, I mean when he was alive. Did you know he was a prince of a small country?”

“Of course.”

Lee Han was surprised.

“Oh, historical records?”

“No… The principal just talks about it whenever he’s bored, Lee Han.”

Come to think of it, that was true.

Students might not, but professors had a lot more contact time and had probably heard endless stories.

“Then have you heard this, too?”

Lee Han explained the Mad Clone’s proclaimed goal: to use magic to purge the world’s poison.

Professor Garcia listened with a serious face.

“No, I’ve never heard that one.”

“What do you think?”

“Most magicians with that sort of ambition turn into magical criminals…”

“……”

“Ah, no. Sorry, Lee Han. I should have thought before I spoke.”

“Thank you for being honest…”

It wasn’t an entirely unreasonable impression.

A magician aiming for the unattainable would likely become an eternal Sisyphus, or go mad and become a magical criminal.

“If it were any other magician I’d ignore it, but seeing the principal’s clone talk like that is worrying. It’s impossible, so why act as if it weren’t?”

“Is it really impossible?”

“I don’t know, Lee Han. It’s not like I know everything about magic. But the more I study magic, the more I realize how little I actually know. Maybe it is possible. But more important than whether it’s possible or not is whether the method is right or wrong, don’t you think, Lee Han?”

“That’s a fair point.”

Lee Han agreed with Professor Garcia.

It wasn’t whether it was possible or not, but whether the path was right.

“The clone even asked me to keep walking the path in his place. I guess that’s why he still lingers—because he can’t let it go.”

“…You should have said that first!”

Professor Garcia scolded him, upset.

She could be shouldering that karma at this very moment, and how could he just keep chatting so nonchalantly?

“Ah, no. It’s not set in stone. He could still give up on me from frustration!”

“That… doesn’t seem… likely…”

From the professor’s point of view, the least likely thing was the Mad Clone giving up and going back out of frustration with Lee Han.

Finding another disciple like Lee Han could never be easy.

“Ugh. Fine, then, Lee Han. There’s no point telling you to stop. You’ll just find him and try to learn more magic, won’t you.”

“I mean… not exactly.”

Lee Han was flustered by the clear look of disappointment in the teacher he’d always trusted.