Episode 863

Episode 863

“Oh. Professor.”

Lee Han recognized Professor Bendozol and greeted him.

Professor Bendozol also greeted his student warmly.

“You shameless, sneaky, wicked, arrogant, and prideful brat! Can’t you get down this instant?! If you put a load on a dragon who hasn’t fully grown, the color of their scales can become dull and they can get stressed!!”

If his student had been in front of him instead of on the dragon, Professor Bendozol looked ready to strangle him as he raged.

Lee Han wasn’t particularly fazed by the professor’s threats, but he thought this was a good opportunity and nodded.

He had been feeling uneasy about riding on Joulin’s back, anyway.

“See, Your Highness. Even the professor, the greatest expert in Einrogard, is saying so. You might get hurt.”

…Waaah! Joulin is fine!!

Joulin, who had been having fun, burst into tears out of frustration when a mean magician interrupted.

Seeing that, Professor Bendozol once again clutched his chest.

“Khak!”

“Professor, are you all right?”

“S-someone stop that! Stop the dragon from crying!!”

“Ay, he’ll be fine.”

Lee Han answered as if it was nothing.

Young children often cried for trivial reasons. Joulin almost cried earlier just because Lee Han wasn’t in the lounge.

Of course, that logic didn’t work on Professor Bendozol.

“…I said stop him!”

Professor Bendozol shouted at Lee Han in a demonic manner. Grumbling, Lee Han soothed Joulin.

“Fine, Your Highness. Let’s keep playing together. What did I say?”

Upon Lee Han’s words, Joulin immediately stopped crying, grinned brightly, and shouted.

Wardanaz will play Saint -Iactus-. The servant is the evil demonic dragon!

“……”

Though his expression was hidden under the evil demonic dragon mask, anyone could tell Gainando was sulking by the way he acted.

“Ugh. I’m the evil demonic dragon. …Lee Han. Sniffle. Can’t we make the White Tiger Tower bastards do this?”

“Quiet. I’m Saint -Iactus-. I’ll defeat the evil demonic dragon.”

Wow!

Joulin clapped excitedly with his front paws.

It felt like he had become the dragon who aided the legendary Saint -Iactus-.

“What’s next?”

Hmm! By the demonic dragon’s side were evil magicians.

“The headmaster?”

Gonadaltes helps Saint -Iactus-! Right. What about assigning it to that magician?

Joulin pointed at Professor Bendozol.

Given his quirky, interfering disposition, the role of Gonadaltes suited him well.

“No matter how much you dislike Professor Bendozol, making him the headmaster is too cruel…”

“Silence! Be quiet. Leave it to me!”

“……”

Professor Bendozol cursed his student for daring to defy the dragon’s will. Joulin’s eyes widened.

D-did you just curse at Lee Han??

“…N-no, I didn’t! It—it’s a sign of friendship!”

“?”

Lee Han was about to say “what nonsense,” but Professor Bendozol looked at him with such desperate and pitiful eyes that he hesitated.

He never imagined a professor could give such a pleading gaze.

-Help me! Please!

“…Ah. Yes. We’re just close, that’s all.”

Ah! Like how you always got beaten up by Professor Baegrek because you were close to him?

“……”

Lee Han regretted sharing too many Einrogard stories with Joulin.

“It’s… a little different from that, but yes, we’re close.”

“Yes! We’re close!”

Professor Bendozol put his arm around Lee Han’s shoulder and flashed the most awkward smile in the Empire. Lee Han looked at him in disgust.

Hmm. All right! Now that the role of Gonadaltes has been decided… Next is the role of Arlmergen!

‘Isn’t that from a different era?’

Yoner thought to himself.

Arlmergen, a famous sharpshooter from the old Seven Kingdoms era, had the achievement of defeating a rampaging sun spirit.

But Joulin prioritized fun over accuracy, showing flexible thinking. He grabbed Nillia with his front paw and lifted her onto his back. Nillia’s short scream echoed.

“Wow, Nillia. Impressive. His Highness is picky about people. Of course, it’s the Shadow Patrol.”

“H-help! I’ll never doubt my friends again!”

“Sorry. I was forced up too.”

Professor Bendozol shed tears of blood in anger at the conversation between the two.

These ungrateful fledglings!

• * *

After Joulin’s playacting ended, Professor Bendozol was able to hear the full details of the situation from the second-year students.

-If you had stopped him properly, His Highness the dragon wouldn’t have come to such a dangerous place!

With that intent, Professor Bendozol glared at Lee Han. Under that murderous gaze, Lee Han immediately called to Joulin.

“Your Highness. Please look at the professor over there.”

Huh?

“……”

Professor Bendozol instantly relaxed his eyes and put on a goofy smile. Joulin was startled.

Waaah! Creepy!

“I’m sorry, Your Highness the dragon. Human beings are generally on the ugly side.”

T-that’s not what I meant, Lee Han. Joulin didn’t mean it like that!

Afraid he’d be branded a dragon who looked down on humans, Joulin grew anxious.

“More importantly, Your Highness. That’s not what’s important right now. Your safety comes before anything. You copper heads. You must protect His Highness with your lives. Do you understand? Do not leave the lounge for a single moment!”

“…But we have an exam next week.”

“We have to attend classes.”

The second-year students looked at Professor Bendozol as if asking, “What kind of nonsense is this?”

Professor Bendozol almost burst out in anger, but he held back when he saw Joulin.

“You don’t know what’s more important, being with the greatest and most beautiful living being in the Empire or an Einrogard lecture…!”

T-that’s a bit much.

Joulin was appalled.

He didn’t really see dragons as the greatest and most beautiful creatures in the Empire.

“Professor. We need to be realistic.”

Lee Han stepped in to calm Bendozol.

He needed to have a serious discussion, since he was responsible for Joulin anyway.

Professor Bendozol was crazy, but in times like this, he was the most helpful.

“That’s right. We need to be realistic. Put curse collars on those brats! Say you’ll activate the curse if they don’t obey.”

‘Should I just leave this guy out?’

Thinking so, Lee Han took out his schedule.

Right now, the only people he could trust at school were the second-year students, a few professors, and rare seniors like Direte.

Of course, since the 2nd-year students were the most numerous, he had no choice but to have them take turns standing guard.

“We’re planning to guard the lounge in shifts like this. That way, there won’t be any gaps.”

“Then I guess I’ll have to camp in front of the Blue Dragon Tower.”

The second-year students recoiled.

Did they have to spend more than a week watching a crazy magician camping outside their dormitory tower?

Regardless, Professor Bendozol’s conviction was unwavering.

“But aren’t there too few on guard?”

“It can’t be helped. The kids have to attend classes.”

“Hmph. Those damn lectures.”

Muttering curses, Professor Bendozol nonetheless accepted it.

There weren’t many students guarding the lounge, but as long as the professor himself was standing guard out front, he could prevent any crazy magicians from doing unholy things.

Lee Han. Joulin… wants to look around with you…

Noticing the atmosphere, Joulin cautiously spoke up.

Lee Han and the other second-year students were startled.

“Y-you, Your Highness. Isn’t that risky?”

“Crazy seniors might be lying in wait!”

Sniff…

“Your Highness the dragon!”

Professor Bendozol called out strongly to Joulin. The students looked on, expecting the professor to say something wise.

No matter how much Joulin wanted to explore, surely safety would come first.

“Do as you wish!”

“……”

Lee Han stared at the professor, dumbfounded. But Professor Bendozol, not caring, pulled out some paper, scrawled something roughly, and signed it.

“Take this.”

This student has perfectly passed the -Terribly Beautiful Creatures- class and exam by caring for the greatest and most beautiful being in the Empire.

-Professor Bendozol

“No need to attend the lectures or exams—just take care of His Highness the dragon properly!”

“…But missing a class doesn’t fix the problem. And can you even do this? Won’t the headmaster send you to the punishment room?”

The skull headmaster was surprisingly attentive to the professors’ teaching methods.

Rather, he was especially interested in the teaching methods of a few problematic professors. Lee Han was certain Professor Bendozol was on the ‘professors to watch’ list.

“Like I care.”

“……”

Thinking about it, someone who’s watched like that wouldn’t be bothered by the punishment room. Lee Han nodded.

“All right. Missing a class would be a relief at least…”

“Anyway, hire more escorts first!”

Professor Bendozol pointed out there would be too many gaps if Joulin was following Lee Han.

No matter how skilled a magician the boy of the Wardanaz family was, the power of numbers could not be ignored.

“Escorts? How? In Einrogard?”

“Don’t be ignorant… I meant those professors and seniors you mentioned earlier!”

“Oh. I was going to ask them to guard the lounge.”

“That’s not enough. Didn’t you say His Highness would be following you around?”

“Then what do you want me to do?”

“What do you mean, what? You all have to follow him too, of course!”

“…??”

Lee Han couldn’t understand.

Surely he wasn’t being told to attend lectures with the professors, was he?

• * *

‘So that’s exactly what he meant.’

Lee Han shuddered as Professors Voladi and Garcia followed beside him.

Was he going to have to take all his lectures this week with professors or seniors tagging along?

No matter how long Einrogard’s history was, there probably wasn’t a student who had attended classes like this.

-Hmph. Impeccable defense.

-Setting Professor Garcia as an escort… as expected of the Wardanaz family. Not just ordinarily smart.

Everywhere, seniors’ voices full of envy could be heard. Joulin, not knowing Lee Han’s true feelings, smiled brightly.

“Lee Han, hang in there. Of course the situation is awkward and uncomfortable, but you’re doing what you need to do!”

Professor Garcia, reading Lee Han’s mind, cheered him on.

Of course, if an Einrogard student walked the halls with professors to attend class, crazy rumors would spread, but fortunately, no rumor could make things any worse for the boy from the Wardanaz family.

Professor Voladi took out his pocket watch to check the time and asked,

“Professor Garcia, your next lecture…”

“I have it in two hours. What about Professor Baegrek…?”

Professor Voladi stared at Professor Garcia.

Lee Han also stared at Professor Garcia. Joulin, for no particular reason, also stared since the other two did.

“?”

“Professor… That’s a bit of a rude question.”

Lee Han whispered quietly. Professor Garcia wondered what he meant, then realized.

“I-if I don’t have a class, that’s good! I can keep following you and watching over you!”

“Thank you.”

‘That doesn’t seem good.’

Lee Han sighed.

Come to think of it, this was because Lee Han wasn’t strong enough. If he were as strong as the skull headmaster, there would be no need to bring professors to class.

Wardanaz. What’s the next class?

“-Poison, Bone, Blood-. It’s a black magic class taught by my senior.”

“Wow, sounds fun.”

“Excellent class.”

Professors Garcia and Voladi followed Lee Han into the classroom.

When one dragon and two professors entered, Direte’s wings shot up in surprise as he waited for his junior without a care.