Chapter 1110
For some reason, Saratan felt wronged, but still gathered itself again.
In truth, with this mage bastard, a kind of hateful affection had built up in its own way.
If one put it concretely, Saratan had only ever been beaten, but emotions were originally sometimes illogical, were they not?
The fact that Lee Han had personally stepped forward last time to save Saratan when it had fallen into danger had remained quite deeply in this spirit’s heart.
Saratan decided that, as the more superior being, it would endure and inform him of the danger.
'I’ll endure it. You little bastard.'
-Mage sir. Please listen to what I have to say. If a strong spirit appears, would Mage sir not also be in danger!
“Hmm?”
Lee Han glanced once at Professor Garcia, who had become gloomy beside the lake.
Then he glanced once at Professor Voladi, once at Jowrin, and then looked at the Magic Tower mages gathered in a crowd.
'Can I be in danger?'
Honestly, with the forces here, it felt like they could have a go even if a devil duke appeared.
He thought that, but Lee Han at least pretended to listen attentively.
Since this spirit had started speaking after such a long time, if he kept scolding it, it might become twisted.
“Indeed. If a strong spirit appears, it could become dangerous. Spirits are terrifying beings, after all.”
-Hoo! You have finally understood!
‘?’
The baby basilisk, which had been listening to the conversation from inside the sleeve, tilted its head.
Judging by its experience until now, if asked who was more terrifying between its master and spirits, of course it was the master.
Had he not frightened almost all the spirits he had met...?
“So which terrifying spirit are you talking about?”
-It is probably one of darkness, lightning, or flame.
Saratan carefully conveyed what it had sensed.
Even though its existence had not fully recovered, and moreover it was in a situation where it was trapped inside the mage’s staff, the fact that it could sense this much information about another spirit meant that Saratan was that outstanding a spirit.
It had not received the barbaric title of “Fighting Green Tree King” among spirits for nothing, after causing a series of violent assault incidents. A fighter had to be smart as well.
Of course, from Lee Han’s perspective, it was an absurd report.
'What the hell. This bastard?'
If it was one of darkness, lightning, or flame, was that not essentially meaningless information?
It felt like even Lee Han could say that much.
“I-I see. Thank you for telling me. Is there anything else I should know?”
Lee Han’s voice was already faintly overflowing with disappointment, but Saratan did not notice.
Rather, thinking that the mage was listening to its information, it spoke excitedly.
-It is probably an exile.
“Exile?”
-A spirit that wanders around without being able to settle in any one realm.
Basically, spirits were beings from other dimensions, like angels or demons.
Nevertheless, the reason they approached the people of the Empire as familiar beings was because, among beings from other dimensions, they had a relatively friendly and amiable attitude.
Of course, sometimes they were wary of people who possessed excessively overbearing mana, but excluding such exceptions, spirits tended to behave quite amiably.
However, not all spirits were this friendly and amiable. Had Saratan itself not been sealed for the crime of being excessively violent?
Usually, an exile spirit had a very high possibility of having committed many crimes like Saratan and being chased out by other spirits.
-It probably has not been completely released yet, so quickly find where it is hiding and finish it off!
“Huh? Finish it off?”
Lee Han was slightly flustered.
In truth, Saratan was just as flustered.
-Then what are you planning to do?
“Persuasion or... a contract...”
-How do you contract with an exile spirit? What did you hear my explanation as... S-sorry.
Because it was so dumbfounded, Saratan’s original personality came out. Lee Han made an uneasy expression.
“You’re contracted with me right now too, aren’t you?”
-...That is not a contract, but...
If trapping it inside a staff and torturing it was called a contract, that was an insult to spirits.
To compare the great magic of sharing each other’s true names and resonating souls with that kind of imprisonment...!
“All right. All right. I just need to attack and exile it, right?”
-I am ready.
Saratan growled belligerently.
No matter whether the opponent was a spirit of darkness, lightning, or flame, it was prepared to clash and land a blow.
“Good. Thank you.”
After answering, Lee Han immediately went to the professors.
Saratan, who had thought the mage would take it outside, stared at him with a blank face.
No...!
***
The Empire’s adventurer party, <Guardians of Shadow Valley>, hurriedly drove their pegasi.
They had belatedly heard that the relic they had been searching for had happened to fall into someone else’s hands.
The mage leading the party, Jute, a dark mage from Kalarogard, shouted in an anxious voice.
“Miners, honestly! If it’s a magical object, they should call a mage. Why call knights?!”
“Calm down, Jute. Other knights I don’t know about, but the White Poplar Knight Order won’t do anything that reckless.”
Iliane, the orc warrior in charge of guarding the party, soothed Jute.
Everyone in the Empire knew that knights were ignorant of magic, but even so, when it came to experienced and seasoned people like the White Poplar Knight Order, the story was a little different.
Surely they would not make an absurd mistake out of greed for achievements.
“They actually said they were heading to the Magic Tower right now.”
“That is a problem in its own way. We did the tracking, and you’re telling me to watch with my eyes open while the Magic Tower bastards eat it for free?!”
Jute shouted as if absolutely unable to accept it.
Deciphering an old ancient book, moving by following a hidden secret map, dealing with several groups of plunderers and bandits encountered along the way, and after finally arriving at the destination, some miners had happened to excavate the ruins and take it out?
No matter how unlucky, this was too much. Jute kept grumbling.
“What kind of dark mage is this? It’s the same as being cursed from the start. There’s no way things will go well. I knew it from the time at Kalarogard.”
“......”
“......”
The adventurer companions of the party exchanged glances.
Jute, who led them, was objectively an excellent mage, but had one flaw.
It was that whenever things went even a little badly, Jute began blaming oneself, saying, “This is all because I learned dark magic.”
Of course, dark mages were not a welcome school in the Empire. In some secluded rural areas, people even showed sensitive reactions like, “Eek! Stop the mage from approaching the graveyard!”
However, for a mage who had accumulated as much skill and achievements as Jute, there did not seem to be any need to regret choosing the dark magic school at this point.
Jute was already a sufficiently excellent mage...
“Jute. Calm down. I’m telling you, it’s just a minor coincidence.”
“That’s right. Becoming unlucky because you learned dark magic is just a rumor. You said so yourself.”
“...Maybe. For now, let’s try persuading the Magic Tower bastards.”
Jute, who had barely calmed down, nodded.
In truth, the situation was not completely the worst. Even by custom, mages often yielded to those who had been chasing first when this sort of situation occurred.
Besides, the one holding the relic was the White Poplar Knight Order, was it not?
The White Poplar Knight Order was not a minion of this Daylily Magic Tower, and since they could earn the grudge of this adventurer party, surely they would not deliberately hand it over to that side.
However, the response waiting for the party when they arrived at the Magic Tower was entirely different from what they expected.
“...You are busy right now?”
“Yes. We apologize. If you could wait just a little...”
The Magic Tower mages bowed their heads repeatedly and apologized.
They had not yet fully brainwashed, no, persuaded the guest.
Until that persuasion was finished, even if another guest came from outside, they had to make them wait for now.
“Wow. What’s going on?”
At the sight of the orc friend speaking peacefully, Jute became enraged.
“Say something that makes sense! There is no way all the mages of a Magic Tower on the level of the Daylily Magic Tower are busy! It is not as if some archdemon was summoned!”
“Then?”
“Daylily Magic Tower...! I didn’t see you that way, but you are playing this trick to swallow the relic whole?!”
Jute trembled.
Jute had disliked Magic Towers since long ago—more precisely, since graduating from Kalarogard and still not receiving an invitation from any Magic Tower.
When the mages of the Magic Tower made the excuse that all of them were busy without even telling a reason, the suspicion hardened into certainty.
“We’re sneaking in! Even by force, we have to meet the knight order and persuade them. These cowardly bastards. Did you think you could fleece me because I’m a dark mage?”
The companions were unsure, but for now, they trusted their leader and moved along.
Jute grumbled a lot, but when it came to magic, Jute had never been wrong!
***
After meeting the professors, Lee Han asked for a moment’s excuse and left the banquet area.
Of course, that process was not easy.
-Are you perhaps leaving?
-No. There is something I need to check briefly...
-Did we perhaps make a mistake or do something wrong...
-It’s not that. I really just need to check something briefly...
-Please do not just leave! There are still eight more events we prepared!
-......
Lee Han and the professors fell silent. A heavy silence flowed between them.
Saratan asked in confusion.
-If you are that afraid, why not take me out?
“No. It’s not the spirit I’m afraid of, it’s the Magic Tower people.”
-......
Saratan cursed inwardly.
This mage bastard was thinking about something else after it had gone to the trouble of telling him?!
However, not only Lee Han, but the two professors as well were having similar thoughts. Professor Garcia carefully spoke up.
“Um, Professor Bagreg. A thought just occurred to me. What if the commission... did not actually exist?”
Could it be that the Daylily Magic Tower’s commission had been nothing more than calling Student Lee Han, feeding and treating him well, and tempting him?
It was a commission so novel that Professor Garcia had never heard of anything like it in Einroguard’s long history, but the professor’s suspicion was gradually hardening.
Lee Han spoke in order to deny reality.
“Could the spirit Saratan just mentioned perhaps be that commission?”
“I hope so...”
Professor Voladi, beside them, checked the next time slot regardless of what conversation they were having.
'I should be able to teach for about thirty minutes.'
Craaaack!
“?”
With the sound of a wall collapsing, a group of adventurers appeared in front of Lee Han.
'Huh? Are they thieves?'
Lee Han thought that for an instant, then immediately reflected on it.
This was not Einroguard, so what was he doing suspecting people the moment he saw them? It was a very rude thing to do.
“Oh. That is a mage from Kalarogard.”
Hearing Professor Garcia mutter beside him, Lee Han reflected even more.
To think he had suspected a Kalarogard mage, not even a Valdrogard one...
'It’s a Magic Tower. They can break a wall or two.'
“Do you perhaps know where the White Poplar knights are?”
Jute asked without showing panic, as befitted a seasoned adventurer.
If one showed signs of panic here, that instead made one look more suspicious.
“The White Poplar knights? I do not know. Are knights here at the Magic Tower?”
“...Understood. Let’s go this way!”
“Ah. Wait! That way is...”
Lee Han tried to stop them in alarm.
From the look of it, they seemed to be guests from outside, but the place they were heading toward now was the lakeside where the meditation-rest gathering was taking place.
Lee Han also could not know how this event would look to outsiders.
But considering that the Magic Tower mages were not deliberately calling outsiders and revealing it...
'It might feel very unfamiliar or strange!'
“You must not go!”
“Aha! I understand! The knights are here!”
“No, that place is not a guest area...”
Before Lee Han could finish speaking, Jute turned back together with the companions.
And a moment later, returned with a soul-drained face.
“W-why are the mages all lying there and resting?! Have they been hit by illusion magic???!”
“...It is a n-new event. Something the Magic Tower is holding.”
Unable to keep watching, Professor Garcia made an excuse on their behalf, but it was not very effective.
Jute fell into thought, wondering whether the entire Daylily Magic Tower had perhaps fallen into faith in an evil god.