“How can one person be a fourth-year, fifth-year, and sixth-year all at once? Don’t you think that’s strange?”

“Hm. Indeed. Rumors truly can’t be trusted. A refined noble would never...”

“This has nothing to do with refinement. It’s about intelligence... No, forget it.”

Galar cut himself off halfway through.

He still hadn’t fully shaken the habits he’d developed back when he belonged to a mage tower.

He needed to reflect on that.

I’m no longer a tower mage. I need to let go of my pride.

Hadn’t that very pride caused him endless suffering already?

—Excuse us, Mister Mage. We’d like you to leave the party.

—Wh... what did you just say?! Do you really think your pathetic party could find another mage like me?! What nonsense are you spouting?

—That attitude right there is exactly the problem! Every time we do something, you mutter “idiots” under your breath. How are we supposed to trust you with our lives?

—I was merely stating facts...

—Enough. This is our new mage. We met him at the inn yesterday. He can cast two whole first-circle spells.

—That’s not even a proper mage! A magic parrot would be more useful! No, even a magic parrot—

—Anyway, please leave quietly. If you refuse, we’ll call the guards.

Several painful experiences had enlightened Galar.

Earning gold with your own hands was difficult.

“So he’s a sixth-year after all?”

“I think so. Though maybe there’s a slight chance he’s a fifth-year... Wait. Where are those guys going?”

The students from Valdrogard belatedly realized something was wrong.

The students from Kalarogard, who had been standing there moments ago, were already retreating into the distance.

“Where are you running off to?! The duel isn’t over yet!”

It’s been over for a while now, you idiots.

Galar grumbled inwardly.

Anyone with eyes could tell the fight had been decided from the beginning.

One of the fleeing Kalarogard students stopped long enough to shout back,

“I can’t stand you Valdro bastards, but as fellow students of Imperial magic schools, let me give you one warning. Run!”

“What?”

“Wait, did he just call us Valdro bast—”

“Run! That’s ancient forbidden magic! Nobody knows what’ll happen if you stay near it!”

After shouting those final words, the Kalarogard students fled without looking back.

Lee Han hurriedly tried to explain. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

“I have it completely under control! There’s nothing dangerous about it!”

The students from Valdrogard might have lacked magical talent, but they weren’t fools in every area.

The fact that they’d chosen not to enroll in Einroguard already proved they possessed excellent instincts when it came to surviving as mages.

And right now, those instincts were screaming at them.

“Does that really look under control to you? Considering the rumors about House Wardanaz and everything we’ve heard about that student, this situation seems incredibly dangerous.”

“...I agree. That spell looks deeply unstable.”

When even Galar sided against him, the students from Valdrogard made their decision immediately.

“Retreat!”

Lee Han watched them scatter like a receding tide and called after them regretfully.

“Everyone! I told you it’s under control! If you’d just listen to the explanation, you’d understand! I didn’t even cast this because I wanted to—”

“Hah! That only makes it more suspicious! Don’t stop moving, everyone!”

I underestimated the Valdrogard students...!

Lee Han had assumed he could at least persuade them, even if the Kalarogard students were hopeless.

Apparently not.

For all their lack of magical skill, the students from Valdrogard knew exactly when to run.

“Ugh.”

Lee Han sighed inwardly.

He had a bad feeling strange rumors were about to spread everywhere.

No. The Kalarogard students are antisocial lunatics, and the other schools hate the Valdrogard students anyway. The rumors probably won’t spread too far.

Lee Han somehow managed to reassure himself.

Of course, that still left rumors inside Kalarogard and Valdrogard, but he deliberately chose not to think too hard about that part.

You let those pieces of trash escape so easily. Even with royalty giving orders, this is disgracefully slow.

Unaware of Lee Han’s thoughts, the insane duplicate scolded him lightly.

“...”

Lee Han glared at the staff.

Come to think of it, if the insane duplicate hadn’t insisted on “teaching them a lesson” with forbidden magic, this would’ve ended with nothing more than a normal fight between Kalarogard and Valdrogard.

“Understood. Please go back inside now.”

One characteristic of the Black Imperial Coffin is its authority over nearby undead. Especially against dark mages specializing in undead summoning—

How do I turn this thing off?

While the insane duplicate continued proudly explaining the properties of the Black Imperial Coffin, Lee Han quietly examined the <Echo Stone> embedded at the tip of the staff.

The insane duplicate abruptly stopped mid-explanation.

You won’t be able to grasp the internal structure with your senses yet, so don’t touch it carelessly—

Pop!

The illusion vanished instantly.

Lee Han stared blankly at the <Echo Stone>.

He had only cautiously threaded a strand of mana into one section of the structure as a test, and somehow the spell had shut down immediately.

The insane duplicate already held Lee Han’s talent in extremely high regard.

Even so, there were moments when Lee Han’s bizarre instincts surpassed expectations.

...I should probably leave it turned off for now.

Lee Han decided not to touch the staff again.

Later, he could just pretend he’d accidentally dispelled it.

***

Iactus: Hey. I heard someone used ancient forbidden magic on students from another magic school today?

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Excellent.

Iactus: What part of that is excellent?!

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Why? Don’t tell me you wouldn’t want to do the same thing, Iactus.

Among Einroguard upperclassmen, using ancient forbidden magic on students from rival schools inspired admiration, not criticism.

Once they graduated, students from the other magic schools would become competitors anyway.

Everyone would eventually end up clawing at each other over funding and influence within the Empire’s magical world, so establishing a terrifying reputation early was considered smart.

It was a perfect preemptive strike.

Given the chance, any student at Einroguard would happily use forbidden magic if it meant spreading their name across the Empire.

So why was Iactus reacting like this?

Iactus: Because I should’ve been the one to do it!

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Ah. I see. It’s too early in the semester, so you didn’t have enough preparation time. How did they manage to cast something like that?

Iactus: They must’ve been preparing since last year. Whoever did it is a crafty bastard.

Unbreakable One: Wait. Shouldn’t we all reconsider this a little? Sure, using ancient forbidden magic might earn temporary fame, but isn’t a truly great mage someone who steadily researches magic and builds accomplishments through proper publications?

Iactus: No.

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Definitely not.

“...”

Lee Han watched the conversation in <Einroguard’s Watchers> with a complicated expression.

Leaving aside the fact that Unbreakable One had instantly frozen the atmosphere, the rumors seemed to be spreading much faster than expected.

Fortunately, since the incident involved students from another school, nobody seemed to have connected it to Lee Han yet...

Iactus: So who was it? This enviable bastard?

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: From what I heard, people are saying it was either a fifth-year or sixth-year...

“!”

At that moment, a wicked inspiration struck Lee Han.

Gonadaltes: Heh. I know who it was.

Iactus: Ooh! My sinister friend! Who was it?

Gonadaltes: Normally I’d charge for information like this, but I’ll share a little for free. It was Yukbeltire. Fifth-year from Blue Dragon Tower. Top student of the enchantment magic school. Descendant of a great bloodline.

Iactus: !

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: !

Unbreakable One: !!!!!

Iactus: Unbreakable One. One exclamation mark is enough. I’ve wondered this before, but why do you always use so many?

Unbreakable One: ...It’s just... emphasis?

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: That’s not important right now. Yukbeltire? She’s definitely a fifth-year. That part fits.

Gonadaltes: What’s strange about it?

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: From what I heard, she’s supposedly good at dark magic too.

Gonadaltes: That’s «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» easily explained. Yukbeltire is close with Diret, the fifth-year from the dark magic school.

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Close?

Iactus: Really? I don’t think so. Professor Verdus doesn’t have friends, and neither does Professor Verdus’s disciple.

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Agreed. Their relationship feels more like Professor Garcia and Professor Verdus. Professor Garcia is kind enough to look after Professor Verdus, but if you called them close friends, even Professor Garcia would probably punch you.

Unbreakable One: Professor Garcia wouldn’t actually do that though...

Lee Han grumbled inwardly at how absurdly picky everyone was being and changed tactics.

Gonadaltes: You’re missing the point. What matters is that they know each other. That’s enough to explain the dark magic.

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: I see. Then Yukbeltire probably stole the spell.

Iactus: Or extorted it from someone.

Unbreakable One: Maybe she barricaded herself inside a workshop until they surrendered it...

Did Senior Yukbeltire beat all of you up or something?

Of course, Lee Han had just shoved his own infamy onto his senior’s shoulders, so he wasn’t exactly innocent either.

Still, their reactions were colder than expected.

But there was no helping it.

I’m sorry, Senior. But this is Einroguard.

Lee Han was simply putting into practice what Yukbeltire herself had taught him.

Baquantalana: What are you all talking about? What do you mean “barricaded herself inside a workshop until they surrendered it”?

Baquantalana had apparently joined late and only seen the tail end of the conversation before the earlier messages vanished.

Lee Han kindly explained.

Gonadaltes: We were discussing the person who showed forbidden magic to the visiting magic school students. It was Yukbeltire.

Baquantalana: ...That’s wrong though? What are you talking about?

Iactus: What? It wasn’t? Then who was it?

Baquantalana: I haven’t confirmed who it was yet, but it definitely wasn’t Yukbeltire.

Damn it.

Lee Han panicked internally.

Who would’ve thought someone actually knew the truth?

But even while panicking, Lee Han immediately launched a counterattack.

In situations like this, hesitation meant defeat.

Gonadaltes: Well, believe what you want. I generously shared information without even charging for it, and now I’m getting attacked for no reason. Honestly, it’s pretty upsetting.

Iactus: Whoa, whoa. Calm down, friend. I’m sure Baquantalana didn’t mean anything by it.

Gonadaltes: I think Baquantalana’s just jealous of Yukbeltire. Watching Yukbeltire gain glory like this must be frustrating. But denying it outright feels a little excessive, doesn’t it?

Baquantalana: Wha—! That’s not it at all!

Gonadaltes: Everyone, think about it carefully. During club week, here at Einroguard, how many people could realistically intimidate outside magic school students with forbidden magic? Hm? Doesn’t my theory sound convincing? It’s obviously Yukbeltire.

Lee Han smoothly shifted the conversation toward emotion instead of logic.

And as expected, the other members—who clearly had complicated feelings toward Yukbeltire—immediately bought into it.

Iactus: I’m siding with Gonadaltes. The theory sounds extremely plausible.

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Same here.

Baquantalana: Believe whatever nonsense you want, idiots. The fact that you people are members of <Einroguard’s Watchers> is depressing.

Unbreakable One: Everyone, stop fighting!

Iactus: Unbreakable One, quit sitting on the fence and pick a side already. Gonadaltes’s theory or Baquantalana’s?

Unbreakable One: I-I... well... I did think it might’ve been another student...

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Who? Stop speaking vaguely and give us a convincing name.

Unbreakable One: Well, if I had to guess... maybe Lee Han of House Wardanaz, or...

“!!”

Goosebumps prickled across Lee Han’s skin.

As expected, Einroguard upperclassmen were never to be underestimated.

How had his name even come up here?

Iactus: Hey. He’s a second-year.

Beaver-Penguin-Fox: Are you stupid?

Gonadaltes: Good grief. What ridiculous nonsense.

Iactus: Gonadaltes, try to be patient. There’s been a lot of insane talk flying around today.