"Sigh..."
Yi-Han exhaled deeply.
His face then turned serious as he spoke, "I cannot go into details about that."
"..."
Professor Uregor internally cursed his student.
'To think he would say such a thing with such a grave expression...'
Had it been another student, say Gainando, he would have scolded, 'Stop the nonsense and prepare for the exam!'
But Professor Uregor didn't do the same with Yi-Han. The student before him was too earnest and burdened with too many responsibilities.
"Fine. Then drink this."
If a barley potion wouldn't work, there were grape and rice potions.
Professor Uregor pulled out a grape potion, no, a grape and a rice potion from under the table and offered them to Yi-Han.
Yi-Han shook his head, "Getting drunk is dangerous."
'Is this kid really a freshman?'
To refuse a potion... rather, alcohol during such a joyous festival was indeed an iron will.
"If you need to break through an ambush, you'll have to increase our numbers."
"Hmm."
Yi-Han pondered upon hearing Professor Uregor's words.
Yi-Han wasn’t the only one who had an outing pass. Judging by the current trend, it wouldn't be strange if other tower students had three or four top students.
What if they joined forces and prepared for an ambush, breaking through the traps?
'Hmm. They won't listen to me.'
Students from the Blue Dragon or the Immortal Phoenix might, but those from the Black Tortoise or the White Tiger were unlikely to heed his words.
Should he attack and subdue his friends first and then coerce them?
'Perhaps that's not a bad idea.'
If all other impossible methods were excluded, the remaining option, no matter how absurd, might just be the right one.
He had to attack his friends first, but...
"Thank you, Professor."
Unaware of Yi-Han's wild thoughts, Professor Uregor smiled slightly in pleasure.
Receiving heartfelt thanks from a student, especially one like Yi-Han, was a joy for any Professor.
"Glad to help. So, you really won't drink?"
"It's fine. But for a magic academy festival, isn't it enough with just potions... not alcohol?"
At Yi-Han's words, Professor Uregor shrugged.
"What do people know about alchemy? Even if I show them a potion transformed through a thousand changes, only fellow alchemists will understand its value. People will just think it's a potion and move on. But if we make something like this..."
"Everyone seems happy."
"Exactly."
A skilled alchemist knows how to brew good alcohol.
Yi-Han listened with interest to Professor Uregor's speech on 'How an Alchemist Manages Connections.'
Alchemists, often antisocial and confined to their chambers brewing potions, needed to create good alcohol to maintain smooth social relations.
'It's certainly true.'
Yi-Han resolved to closely observe how Professor Uregor made his alcohol in the future.
Not everyone knew how to offer a bribe effectively.
"I'm impressed, Professor."
"Alright then."
"May I take some of this potion?"
"...Are you planning to not drink it now and sell it later?"
The skull principal looked over the assembled guests with a bored gaze.
Then, he cleared his throat.
"To the distinguished personages of the empire and our proud students who bear the future of the empire, thank you for attending this gathering."
‘It's despicable.’
‘I must avoid any association with the Lich after graduation.’
Despite the guests applauding in admiration, the freshmen glared at the skull principal.
What is he up to now!
"The festival is nearing its end. To take a brief respite and engage everyone here, I'd like to present some simple riddles."
Exchanging riddles was a favored pastime among both nobles and commoners while relaxing.
Furthermore, given that the riddles were from the skull principal, a renowned sage in the empire, the guests looked on with interest.
What kind of riddle would he pose?
"Ah, yes. If our esteemed guests from outside and our proud students guess correctly, they will receive an exit permit as a gift."
"The principal really knows how to jest... What would we do with that?"
"You're quite the joker!"
"..."
Contrary to the cheerful mood of the guests, the students who hadn't secured an exit permit were seething with excitement.
Some, however, still hadn't grasped the situation.
They were guests from Baldurguard.
"This is an opportunity."
"Yes, a chance to showcase our abilities to the mages of Einroguard."
'Are they clueless?'
Yi-Han looked at the students from Baldurguard with pity.
If anyone from the Baldurguard correctly guessed a riddle and obtained an exit permit, the freshmen of Einroguard would view those from Baldurguard as sworn enemies until graduation.
Yet they were eagerly seizing this opportunity, unaware of the consequences.
"Now then... Guess my age."
"?"
"??"
The attendees were dumbfounded by such an absurd riddle.
That's not even a riddle!
'He's redefining the concept of riddles.'
-Grrr.
"Why so?" Yi-Han was puzzled as Sharakan tugged at his sleeve and gestured for him to follow.
Sharakan seemed anxious and was signaling to follow him.
'Could it be?'
Yi-Han was not foolish enough to ignore the warnings of his faithful undead summon.
Crouching and moving quietly, Sharakan led the way. Together with his summon, Yi-Han headed towards the secluded back of the main building.
A massive pile of items covered with cloth caught his eye.
Although covered, Yi-Han had a hunch about its contents.
"...Fireworks."
Peeking through the gaps, he spotted familiar magic fireworks.
Yi-Han didn't bother asking why they were piled up like this behind the main building.
Such things were only for amateurs.
'Should I avoid the riddles and head to the tower?'
But before Yi-Han could decide, rustling sounds emerged from the pile of fireworks, revealing someone he had never seen before.
"A damnation, I can’t believe I got caught! What are you doing here!"
"!"
As the stranger swore and raised his staff, Yi-Han instinctively reacted.
"Sharakan, attack! Paralyze him!"
Yi-Han's training at the magic academy taught him to resist anyone trying to overpower him, no matter who they were.
Even if it were an underling of the skull principal!
'It's not the punishment room yet! Subdue and then leave...!'
Yi-Han focused intently, determined to overpower his opponent.
He would bring him down and prove his innocence in this situation!
The mage, Ogonin, was not an underling of the skull principal.
He was one of the rather renowned mages of the empire.
...Of course, being famous didn't mean he wasn't a thief.
This time, Ogonin was indeed a confirmed thief.
Mages unfamiliar with Einroguard were prone to assumptions.
Unfortunately, Ogonin, despite his fame and skill, knew little about Einroguard.
Thus, many people fell into a common misconception.
Inside, they believed, lay countless mysteries and secrets waiting to be discovered!
It wasn't a wrong assumption.
The difficulty lay in entering, finding them, and then safely returning.
However, mages, ever like moths to a flame, would dive in if they believed something they sought was there, no matter how impossible.
Ogonin was one such case.
Despite numerous thieves and adventurers entering the festival and getting caught, Ogonin paid no heed.
He disregarded the risks to his reputation or the consequences of being apprehended.
-I must enter and obtain the mysteries at all costs!-
Ogonin's skills were as notable as his reputation.
This allowed him to successfully disguise his identity to enter and then evade detection while inside.
But his luck only lasted until he found the pile of fireworks.
Upon discovering the pile (which Ogonin initially failed to identify), he was thrilled by the powerful magic aura it emitted.
-Aha! They must be conducting some research here!-
To conduct a thorough investigation, Ogonin cast a barrier.
-Let the will of the forgotten ones repel any who approach!-
It was a high Circle mental spell, far more potent than any amateurish invisibility or refractive barrier, designed to deter and turn away anyone approaching.
After setting up the barrier, Ogonin was about to examine the fireworks.
...Until a freshman unexpectedly breached it and entered.
'How did he bypass the barrier!?'
Ogonin couldn't believe that a freshman had simply ignored the barrier with immense mana.
He thought it was a ridiculous mistake on his part.
'Is it because I'm not used to thievery that I'm this nervous... Such a mistake...'
Ogonin knew he had to escape this situation.
If the freshman caught him and word got out, the embarrassment would be immense.
"May the illusion of another consume you!"
Ogonin cast a powerful illusion spell, intending to directly manipulate the freshman's mind and make him see hallucinations.
The unsuspecting student wouldn't even realize what he had witnessed amidst the unexpected illusions.
"...?"
However, Yi-Han remained unshaken even after being hit by the illusion spell.
He felt a wave of magic force strike him, but...
'What's this?'
Not understanding why his opponent was doing this, Yi-Han decided to take advantage of the mistake.
He had learned this from his numerous encounters with professors.
Don't be complacent.
Subdue when you have the chance!
"Flash forth!"
Lightning flashed and struck towards Ogonin, who, in shock, rolled to the side.
He was surprised by the unexpected speed of the lightning spell from a freshman, but more so by the fact that his illusion spell had no effect.
'What's happening here?!'
Ogonin wondered if he had mistaken the opponent for a freshman.
Perhaps a 4th or 5th-year student...
But even then, it didn't make sense. A 4th or 5th-year student shouldn't be able to deflect his illusion spells like this.
"May the illusion of another...!"
"Flash forth!"
'Ugh!'
The opponent's magic was undeniably strong, deadly in its force, and incredibly fast in execution.
Normally, Ogonin would have acknowledged this peculiar being resistant to illusion magic and changed his strategy.
But his pride got in the way.
After all, he was renowned in the empire for his illusion magic.
Struggling to overpower a mere student was an unbearable humiliation for him.
"I shall dominate your mind!"
'No. He fights too well!'
Once again, he deflected a powerful illusion spell, but Yi-Han himself was unaware of doing so.
Instead, he marveled at the other's skill in evasion.
It seemed the opponent had considerable experience in magic combat, judging by how he rolled and dodged every time Yi-Han attempted to cast a spell.
But why did such a person keep using ineffective magic?
'Is he trying to subdue me?'
If he were an underling of the skull principal, it wouldn't be strange for him to try to subdue the students without harming them... It was unusual, but plausible.
Yi-Han gratefully decided to use this apparent consideration to his advantage.
'I can't afford to end up in the punishment room!'
Yi-Han brandished his staff, furiously gathering mana.
Dozens of water beads rapidly formed in the air. It was then that Ogonin, finally terrified, exclaimed.
"Wait, wait!"
"Forgive me, Professor!"
"No...!"
