Chapter 462
"...Could it be that he’s using 'persuade' in a different sense?"
Ogoldos whispered to Coholti.
Originally, there were quite a few words used in a different sense at Einroguard.
For example, 'Let's go borrow something from the principal's warehouse' meant...
"It's possible."
Coholti nodded his head.
Indeed, Ogoldos's point was sharp.
"Ju, junior. Did you perhaps attack the professor..."
Thud!
Direth, who had returned at some point, swung a reagent bag and smacked Coholti.
Coholti screamed and fell into the hole.
"Is that something you should say? Is that something to say? To the junior who went around getting reagents for you?"
"Th, that guy also suspected..."
"No, I didn't!"
Ogoldos desperately denied it, but Direth mercilessly swung the reagent bag.
With a dull sound, Ogoldos also fell next to Coholti.
'Hmm. So that's why they were in the hole.'
Yi-Han realized the truth after seeing the seniors enter the hole.
And he thought to himself,
'I shouldn't let my guard down even when breathing in front of Senior Direth.'
Without even realizing that she was considered the scariest senior in the dark magic school, Direth looked at Yi-Han with very apologetic eyes.
"...I'm sorry for making you hear nonsense. I mean it."
"No. I always consider the seniors' words as golden rules."
The two in the hole had a satisfied expression.
How could he say the same thing so nicely?
"Don't value it too preciously, there are words like trash rocks... So, you persuaded and received this? Did the professor make any unreasonable demands?"
Direth was worried about Yi-Han.
As you know, the professors at Einroguard were not kind enough to show kindness to students without any compensation, just by persuasion.
'Did they take your blood or something?'
Considering the mana possessed by the junior in front of her, it wouldn't be surprising if some crazy professor did something crazy.
"No. I'm also learning under Professor Uregor."
"Ah."
Direth finally realized.
She had forgotten because it felt so natural for him to talk with the dark magic school seniors, but come to think of it...
'He was taking several lectures.'
Well, if it was a disciple of this caliber, it was understandable for the professor to grant a request.
Even if professors didn't pay much attention to their disciples, it still depended on the disciple.
If they didn't grant a request and the disciple went to another school, how bitter would it be?
"I see..."
"And this is from Professor Garcia, this is from Professor Knighton, this is from Professor Fluerwerk, this is from Professor Millei, this is from Professor Ku, this is from Professor Krair, this is from Professor Reuji, and this is from Professor Lagrinde."
"..."
Direth covered her face with both hands.
At the moment when she was trying to accept reality, her head felt dizzy.
"And this is borrowed from Professor Verduus."
"?"
Coholti, who was in the hole, felt something strange.
'Didn't he say Professor Verduus went to the punishment room?'
"Are you okay?"
When Direth silently lowered her head without saying a word, Yi-Han asked in a worried voice.
"Did I make a mistake..."
"No... no. What mistake? Junior. You really, truly, I swear on all the meals and outings of the students learning dark magic, you did an amazing job. I'm sorry that you did too well."
Direth pulled herself together and lifted her face.
Although she had already committed all kinds of disrespect as a senior, she had to do her job as a senior now.
She couldn't make a junior who had achieved such a feat worry.
"Thank you so much."
"No. I just did what I had to do."
"And I can't accept this..."
"No!"
"Please reconsider!"
When screams burst out from inside the hole, Direth poured dirt on top of the hole.
Yi-Han unconsciously distanced himself from Direth. Direth didn't notice.
"...Uh. How can we accept this when you worked so hard?"
"But senior. Now that I've received it like this, I can't return it to the professor, and I can't use it either."
"That's right. He's saying this much. Direth."
"Please reconsider just once more."
At the words of Coholti and Ogoldos, who had dug through the ground and crawled out from the other side, Direth sighed and kicked them, saying,
"...Thank you. Really. I've never been more embarrassed while learning dark magic than today. I mean it."
"Nah. It was more embarrassing when you caused a zombie incident in the capital the year before last."
Direth covered the hole she had put the two in again, summoned a summon on top of it to completely block it, and then said to Yi-Han,
"Thank you so much for joining the dark magic school. And..."
Direth hesitated and carefully said,
"If it's hard or you don't think it's right, you don't have to take it. I mean it."
"I understand. Thank you."
"...Don't tell the professor that I said this."
"The professor won't withdraw his trust in you over something like this."
"No, he will."
Direth said very firmly.
Although Professor Mortum trusted Direth, the issue of Yi-Han's affiliation was a major matter that could not be forgiven even for his top disciple.
"I, I see."
Yi-Han was slightly flustered by Direth's sharp answer.
—
Yi-Han, who had returned with a snack basket packed by the seniors, realized that the atmosphere at the camping site at the entrance of the library was chaotic.
There were no students sitting, and everyone was gathered here and there with serious expressions, whispering.
"What's going on? Did something happen?"
"Wardanaz!"
The students who spotted Yi-Han ran over with urgent faces.
"Why are you coming so late?! Something big happened!"
"The dark magic sch... no. Nevermind. What happened?"
"There must be a monster outside the palisade. A student from the Black Tortoise Tower was kidnapped."
"!"
Yi-Han was startled and turned his gaze.
Currently, the camping site at the entrance of the library was quite solidly protected by a deeply dug moat, a palisade, and temporary towers.
Moreover, above that, there were lights that the students had made, no, mainly Yi-Han had made, placed here and there, shining beams of light in all directions even in the darkness of the library.
It was a situation where it was difficult to intrude or approach, but to break through that and take away students.
"Are you sure they were kidnapped? Could they be somewhere else..."
"No. They were on watch but disappeared. The next shift came and no one was there."
Deep wrinkles were etched on Salko's forehead.
The exams weren't even over yet, and now this happened.
Thinking about how the Black Tortoise Tower students would be too scared to focus made his stomach ache.
Jijel was similar.
Seeing the White Tiger Tower guys, whose concentration was already low, muttering things like 'Let's send a search party' and 'Let's hunt and see what kind of monster it is' and subtly closing their books, she wanted to hunt her friends more than the monster.
"We need to organize a search party and send them out, Wardanaz."
"What is this, your family's front yard? A search party, really."
Jijel coldly cut off Salko's words.
The library was a labyrinth, which the students were fortunately forgetting due to their current luck.
If they messed around trying to search this area, who knew what would happen?
"Are you interfering because the White Tiger Tower guys didn't disappear, Moradi?"
Salko growled, but Jijel didn't even blink an eye. Rather, she glared coldly and retorted.
"I would have said the same thing even if the White Tiger Tower guys had disappeared. Of course, the White Tiger Tower guys didn't disappear."
"Moradi. I should tell you that I suspect you."
"What kind of nonsense are you spouting so confidently?"
"If you listen, it will be convincing. You White Tiger Tower guys have very bad heads. Guys like that can only think of one thing, right? Dragging down and holding back others."
"Ah. So you're saying our tower did this?"
Jijel answered as if she couldn't even breathe. Salko nodded.
"Who would benefit if the Black Tortoise Tower students disappeared?"
"Then why is the Blue Dragon Tower out of the line of suspicion with that logic?"
"There are two reasons, Moradi. One is that the Blue Dragon Tower guys are young masters who can't do anything properly without Wardanaz."
"..."
Yi-Han, who was listening, looked at Salko with a dumbfounded expression.
"No..."
"What if Wardanaz led it?"
"Look at Wardanaz's daily schedule."
Even Jijel, who usually wanted to trick Yi-Han, had to admit that this was a strong piece of evidence that was honestly hard to refute.
"Indeed. What's the next reason?"
"The Blue Dragon Tower guys have better grades than the Black Tortoise Tower students. No idiot would keep the ones below them in check for no reason."
"Aha. I see. Why? Are you going to draw your weapon and charge at me?"
"I'm already thinking of doing that. If you keep interfering with the search party."
As the representatives of each tower glared at each other, openly emitting murderous intent, the priests fidgeted and looked worried.
"Wa, Wardanaz. Can't you stop them?"
"Uh, wouldn't it be easier to let the winner choose?"
Yi-Han pondered who would win between the two and was puzzled by the priests' words.
Isn't it honestly intriguing?
However, the priests didn't seem interested in such a duel.
"Please!"
"They won't listen to me anyway..."
Yi-Han muttered like that, but surprisingly, the two called out to Yi-Han.
"Wardanaz. You judge."
"Wardanaz. What do you think?"
"...Since when did you two respect my opinion so much that you're calling me?"
Yi-Han looked at the two with irritated eyes.
The guys who usually ticked him off were now asking Yi-Han to be the judge at a time like this.
They could just fight each other and hate each other...
"If we don't send a search party now, the remaining students will become more anxious. The next student to disappear could be from the Blue Dragon Tower."
"It would be better to raise our guard. You want to push more people into a place we don't even know where it is? Do you know what they call that in the north?"
"A brave and noble act?"
"They call it the act of a moron and an idiot, but if you want to call it that, go ahead. Should I call it the nobility of the brave family from now on?"
'If I leave them like this, will they fight and make a decision for me?'
"Wardanaz. Hurry up and answer."
"What are you doing? Answer."
Yi-Han originally didn't want to get involved in their fight.
It was more convenient to make them fight and then clean up afterwards.
The winning side would be satisfied, and the losing side would harbor resentment towards the winning side if he comforted them separately, so Yi-Han could be the good guy.
But now, if Yi-Han made a decision here, the responsibility and resentment would fall on him.
He didn't want to go through such hardship dealing with the guys from other towers who didn't listen and grumbled anyway.
'I'll buy time. I need to make them decide on their own.'
"I think you're both wrong."
"?"
"??"
The two looked at Yi-Han with surprised eyes.
It was a completely unexpected answer.
"Why, Wardanaz?"
"Do you have another good method?"
"Think about it carefully. This monster broke through such thorough defenses and kidnapped a friend. What does that imply?"
Of course, Yi-Han didn't really know the implication either.
How could he know what kind of monster it was with just the current clues?
It wasn't even certain if it was a real monster.
However, when Yi-Han spoke with such weight, Salko and Jijel stopped what they were doing and became lost in thought.
Yi-Han wasn't the type to make empty words in this regard.
"Hmm. It's difficult, Wardanaz."
"Just say it directly."
"No. Both of you think about it more."
Bang!!!!!
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a sound of the outer fortress gate being shattered.
And the student who was on watch on top of it screamed.
"It's an attack!! The monster is attacking!!"
"...!?"
"Th, that's right! Monsters are generally arrogant. Having easily succeeded in such a thing, they will look down on us and attack again!"
"...That's exactly it. That's what I was talking about."
"?"
Jijel felt something strange and asked.
"But why didn't you say that and told us to think about i..."
"Everyone gather at the main gate!! The monster is attacking!!"
Instead of answering, Yi-Han ran towards the main gate and called the students to gather.
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