Chapter 1120
'...This is more fun than I thought.'
Lee Han, who had been giving various pieces of advice beside Uman, trembled at the sweet taste of power he was feeling for the first time in his life.
So this was the power of authority?
He could not even imagine what could be done if he had this power.
He could make Gainando study all day, and he could make Professor Verdus do only lectures instead of research. It was truly mighty power that could shake the Empire from its very foundations.
'Oops. I was too intoxicated by power.'
Lee Han shook his head.
As a mage, one had to be careful with powerful strength. History had several mages who had ruined themselves after becoming intoxicated by strength they suddenly obtained.
For now, let us focus on inspecting Professor Verdus!
“Let us go, Your Majesty!”
“Good! Professor Verdus...! Hmm. Are you sure this is really all right?”
“Please trust only me.”
Even while following Lee Han, Uman agonized deeply over whether this was truly all right.
***
The students listening to the third-year lecture, <Dangerous Artifacts Seen in the Empire and Safety Management>, yawned. A few even dozed off.
However, Professor Verdus stubbornly did not change the approach. After throwing a large chest into the middle of the students, Professor Verdus repeated the same words.
“Figure out how to safely dispel it yourselves.”
“...Could you at least give us a hint?”
“No! Have you ever seen dangerous artifacts give hints?”
The students cursed the professor inwardly. A few cursed openly.
“I wonder if someone will collapse that person’s dam.”
“Why even teach a lecture if this is how it will be?”
“More importantly, why is that person crawling on all fours?”
If it had been a lecture only students of the enchantment magic school listened to, they would rather have had fewer complaints.
Students who were already used to Professor Verdus ignored their teacher whether the professor abandoned them or talked, and did their own work.
However, this <Dangerous Artifacts Seen in the Empire and Safety Management> was a lecture that students from other schools also listened to.
Professor Verdus’s behavior of throwing them one dangerous artifact and ordering them to figure out how to safely dispel it made the students furious.
Was that not openly saying the professor would just get a free ride!
“Can’t we just pick it up and throw it at the professor?”
“That is genius. I will block the left arm, so who will block the right arm?”
“Am I the only one bothered by Professor Verdus crawling on all fours? Why is no one else bothered?”
Bang!
While the third-year students were whispering seditious plans, the door opened with the sound of being smashed apart.
Uman whispered, slightly flustered.
“There was no need to go so far as breaking the door...”
“You must show the dignity of the inspector, Your Majesty.”
-This knight does not know much about the inspector’s work, but agrees with the words that dignity must be shown.
At some point, the Death Knights who had followed Lee Han joined in agreement.
Among the many things the inspector could do in Einroguard, inspecting Professor Verdus would be among the very best.
Even so, when Uman hesitated, Lee Han quickly shouted.
“Professor Verdus! By the sacred authority of the inspector bestowed by His Imperial Majesty, your lecture and work will be inspected again!”
“What?! Why?!”
Professor Verdus was greatly startled.
Why a mage who had done nothing wrong, like Professor Verdus, and not a wicked mage like the Skull Principal?
Instead of answering, Lee Han instructed the Death Knights.
“Drag Professor Verdus away! After locking the professor in a small room, we will have Professor Verdus do Professor Garcia’s backlogged work!”
-We were planning to drag Professor Verdus away even without being told. Hehe.
“No! Drag Gonadaltes away instead of me!”
Professor Verdus was dragged off with a scream. Seeing that, Uman still asked as if worried.
“If we suddenly lock Professor Verdus away like this, who will teach the students?”
“Ah. Please do not worry. Senior Yukbeltire will lecture instead.”
From the point of view of Yukbeltire, who had been quietly immersed in research, it was like a bolt from the blue, but Lee Han did not care.
Originally, it was right for fifth-years to sacrifice a little for their juniors. One only needed to look at Senior Diret to know that.
“I-I see...”
“Now. Then, by the authority of the inspector, I will send a letter to Senior Yukbeltire. Everyone. Have a good day!”
The inspector and the inspector’s right hand, who had stormed in like a tempest, disappeared again like a tempest.
The students in the lecture hall were so shocked that no one could open their mouths until Yukbeltire came running in with an angry face.
“Professor! I absolutely cannot tolerate you pushing a lecture on me as you please... Wait, where did Professor Verdus go?”
“Dragged... dragged away.”
“?!!”
***
Rumors of the inspector’s changed appearance spread quickly.
Iactus: What a vile inspector!
Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Isn’t this a good thing?
Iactus: What do you mean, good! This kind of appeasement policy divides the students and makes them weak!
It was enough that this matter was talked about even in the Watchers Club.
Ipheldrem: But I do not really know what is wrong with the inspector who came to Einroguard...
Iactus: Shut up!
Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Shut up!
Ipheldrem: S-sorry.
Iactus: They said the one lending wisdom to the inspector is definitely Wardanaz, right? This bastard. To think he would collude with foreign powers as an Einroguard student.
Ipheldrem: Wardanaz?!
“......”
Lee Han quickly sent a private message to Senior Ilendil.
Gonadaltes: Senior. Senior. Please make an excuse for me.
Beaver-Penguin-Fox: ...Aren’t you working me too hard?
Still, perhaps because they were in the same boat, Ilendil stepped forward in defense.
Beaver-Penguin-Fox: The inspector must have threatened him.
Iactus: Ha! Does being threatened solve everything?! If he gets threatened twice, he will sell Einroguard to Valdrogard!
Ipheldrem: Wow. Can it be purchased?
Bulgassari: U-um. Ipheldrem. Saying it like that does not look very good...
Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Instead of just getting angry, why not think of a way to use it? If the inspector listens carefully to that junior, that means we can control the inspector by controlling the junior, does it not?
“......”
Lee Han was dumbfounded and sent another private message.
Gonadaltes: Senior. What are you doing right now?
Beaver-Penguin-Fox: S-sorry. While making excuses, my hand moved without thinking.
When he told this person to put out the fire, was Ilendil pouring oil on it?
Beaver-Penguin-Fox: But now that I think about it, this seems like a good opportunity... Could we perhaps use a little of Einroguard’s budget for the spirit forest?
Gonadaltes: I will be going now.
Lee Han quickly closed the book.
Power was truly a frightening thing. To think a request would come in already like this.
'I will have to be careful for a while.'
When he thought that not only his seniors but even his friends might try to borrow the inspector’s power, he became alert.
Lee Han firmly resolved himself.
He would step forward without personal desire, no, with only a little personal desire, and with the rest as a pure heart of helping Jowrin’s younger brother!
“Ah. Senior.”
A gloomy four-story tower located far away in the west of the main building, <Darkness Hall>.
It was the headquarters of Einroguard’s dark magic school, and also the headquarters of tombstones, graves, filth pits, swamps, and the like.
When he met Ogoldos, his senior from the same school, in front of it, Lee Han showed a slight wariness.
'Senior might perhaps covet the inspector’s power that I possess.'
“...Wh-why are you looking at me like that? Did something happen?”
Ogoldos, rather, became more wary of the junior’s gaze.
Considering the combat strength of this junior, who was receiving hellish combat mage training, it might be better to keep some distance.
“It is nothing. By any chance, Senior, if you want to wield the inspector’s power, I will absolutely not allow it.”
“What... what are you talking about?”
Ogoldos became even more bewildered.
Ogoldos knew that an inspector had come to Einroguard, but wanting to wield power?
What on earth did that mean?
'Huh?'
Lee Han paused.
The senior’s reaction was a little different from what he had expected.
“By any chance, Senior. Did you not hear that Professor Verdus was taken away?”
“Professor Verdus was taken away!? As expected. I knew it. If it is the inspector, Professor Verdus should be taken away first.”
Ogoldos was startled, then immediately understood.
In fact, it was strange that the inspector had not said, “Professor Verdus, I will arrest you!” at the banquet as soon as the inspector arrived.
“...Senior. What did you do today?”
“Today? I checked the state of the filth pits, looked after the mushrooms, and summoned undead to check their condition, I suppose.”
“What about yesterday?”
“I looked after the mushrooms, checked the state of the filth pits, and summoned undead to check their condition. Ah. Also, this time, a dark-magic reagent purchase commission came in. Hehe. A southern farm purchased ten barrels of Ankle-Grabbing Poison. With this, this semester should be comfortable.”
“......”
Lee Han felt his eyes grow needlessly hot.
Why did his heart ache like this whenever he came to the dark magic school?
“But why did you ask?”
“It is nothing. Khk.”
At the very top line of the list of personal desires in his heart, Lee Han wrote something new.
-Support the dark magic school
While the two of them were talking, Senior Dirimpa appeared from above.
Usually, Dirimpa was always underground, so Lee Han had no chance to see this senior, but because he had met Dirimpa during this vacation, he greeted politely.
“Hello, Senior Dirimpa.”
“Who are you... Ah, are you perhaps the junior from House Wardanaz?”
“Yes.”
“Wait, have you met me before?”
Dirimpa tilted the head.
The senior had heard a lot about the junior, but had no memory of meeting Lee Han directly like this.
'Oops.'
Lee Han thought he had made a mistake.
Now that he thought about it, when they had met during vacation, he had been under the identity of Stedal Nago.
“I heard so much from Senior Diret that I was able to recognize you immediately. Senior Diret is always praising you.”
“...Did you see that, Ogoldos? This is respect.”
Dirimpa was greatly satisfied.
Senior Koholti had said this junior was completely insane, but meeting him in person, Lee Han was far more polite than expected.
'As expected, Senior Koholti is not someone to trust.'
“By the way, Senior. By any chance, do you know about the inspector’s power?”
“I know an inspector came, but what do you mean by power?”
“...By any chance, what did you do today and yesterday?”
The dwarf senior tilted the head and counted on the fingers.
“Today, I looked for bones underground, and yesterday... I looked for bones underground.”
“......”
“You came out well, didn’t you?”
Ogoldos asked as if finding it strange.
This senior stayed underground so much that even Ogoldos rarely had reason to see Dirimpa.
“I heard a new demon came into the dark magic school, so I came to look. I was going to ask whether it knows anything about bones.”
“Ah.”
Orlach, the curtain-clown demon and Duel Banner Bearer of the Pride Duke, whom Lee Han had rescued from the angel’s grasp during this vacation.
This demon had made a contract to work in Einroguard’s dark magic school in exchange for escaping persistent pursuit.
'I should warn Orlach to pretend we are meeting for the first time.'
Lee Han thought inwardly.
That demon had no tact, so if Lee Han did not give instructions beforehand, there was no knowing what nonsense Orlach would say.
“What is this? Everyone is gathered here?”
Diret, who arrived last, looked at the juniors with surprise.
Because the numbers were few and each person was busy with their own work, the students of the dark magic school rarely gathered like this.
Lee Han asked one last time to confirm.
“Senior Diret. Do you know about the inspector’s power?”
“What is that?”
“I see. It is nothing.”
Lee Han smiled.
It seemed he would be able to be at ease in front of the people of the dark magic school, regardless of this frightening power.
“Everyone came to check the demon, right? I will just open the lock and then go. I have work to do.”
“What work is it?”
“They said quite an old dark magic was discovered in the eastern region, and the principal told me to analyze it and submit a report.”
Everyone nodded, but Lee Han felt a sense of incongruity.
Huh?
“Not Professor Mortum, but you, Senior?”
“The principal did assign it to Professor Mortum, but if Professor Mortum is busy, I do it.”
Diret said it as if it were nothing special.
By the fifth year, one’s skills were outstanding enough to half play the role of a professor in Einroguard.
That meant that if a professor was busy, one did the work as a substitute.
Lee Han nodded.
“I will go somewhere briefly. Please look at the demon first.”
“??”