He blurted out the question without thinking.
From a certain perspective, curses could be considered a type of buff. For example, someone that wished to slim down would be delighted to have a cursed item that reduces its wearer’s weight.
In other words, depending on how they were used, cursed items could become a blessing in disguise.
Normally, mages would steer clear of items that suck away their wearers’ mana. Hell, they would chuck them out. However, things were a bit different for Yi-han.
He… had way too much mana to spare.
‘Seriously though, that belt might be worth equipping.’
He was already wearing a metal bracelet with similar properties. Wearing an extra belt or two would hardly make a difference.
“Its effect?”
“You know, its original effect.”
Action-reaction pairs also existed in the world of magic, and cursed artifacts typically had stronger positive traits than regular items.
Otherwise, no one in their right mind would equip them.
“Ah. So that’s what Brother is curious about. Let me think…”
‘You remember its curse, but not its original effect? You should really get your priorities straight.’
Yi-han became speechless when he saw the priest having trouble remembering the item’s original effect.
It was a classic example of putting the cart before the horse.
“Right, it’s a belt that grants invisibility. But that’s not what’s important. What’s important is that it’s a cursed item… As I said, Brother. You can be honest with us. We won’t blame you if you wish to turn back now…”
“What do you mean? I was born ready to bear the burden.”
Yi-han’s eyes were filled with determination, shocking the priest greatly.
Who would have thought!
The priest had expected Yi-han to give up and leave right away, but it seemed he had been under the wrong impression.
‘How ashamed I am to run my mouth and question the faith of such a devoted Brother!’
The priest no longer treated Yi-han as a naive boy that grew up sheltered in a powerful family.
The person before him was a fellow brethren who was willing to walk this thorny path together!
“Brother, my name is Mehrid. May I ask what is yours?.”
“Yi-han. Yi-han Wardanaz.”
‘Wardanaz!’
This came as an even bigger surprise to Mehrid.
Even within the Empire, the Wardanaz Family was famous for being nonbelievers.
It was no wonder that the boy seemed so dignified and majestic…
“The Order would be delighted to have you within our ranks. Now, please take this belt in honor of Lord Presinga.”
It was quite an exaggerated title for a cursed belt, but Yi-han received it with a serious expression on his face.
Ttak-
He equipped it immediately.
Mehrid stared at him with a worried look.
Whenever a new brother or sister joined their cause, they would have trouble adjusting to the burden of Presinga. After all, enduring the effects of a curse was anything but easy, especially for beginners.
Having all of one’s mana sucked away was a cruel ordeal, one which a new student might not be able to…
“So, how do I become invisible?”
“…?!?!?”
“??”
“Um, well… saying ‘I hide myself in the night’ will make you invisible. Saying ‘I reveal myself in the morning’ would deactivate it.”
“I hide myself in the night.”
His body became transparent when he recited the chant.
‘Wow…’
Yi-han was in awe.
Not all invisibility spells were of the same level.
Lower circle invisibility spells only allowed light to somewhat pass through an area. Upon closer inspection, people would still be able to tell that something was wrong.
But the invisibility spell on the belt was near perfect.
‘It was worth equipping this cursed item.’
“B-brother, do you feel alright?”
“Why, of course. I reveal myself in the morning.”
Yi-han canceled the spell.
Prior to equipping the belt, he had half-expected it to absorb enough mana so that he could control the rest.
However, it didn’t seem to have had any effect on him at all.
‘Based on how worried he looks, the curse on this belt should be rather powerful. How come I don’t feel anything?’
He had a sneaking suspicion that his mana recovery speed was faster than the speed at which his mana was sucked away by the bracelet and belt.
Craving for more, Yi-han opened his mouth.
“I wish to bear more of Lord Presinga’s burden.”
“My word…!
Mehrid was deeply moved by this praiseworthy brethren of his.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t accept Yi-han’s request.
‘His body should be under immense pressure from that belt alone…’
“You can’t, Brother. The burden that Lord Presinga carries isn’t something we can handle all at once. I understand where you’re coming from, but please be patient.”
“No, but I’m willing to take on more!”
“I understand, Brother. But you must wait!”
***
In the end, he wasn’t able to get another artifact. Nevertheless, he had gained a lot.
The belt alone was a huge haul considering it came with an invisibility function.
With that, he was going to…
‘Think of more ways to escape.’
Their previous attempt had made him realize that he had been too complacent.
The academy was a crazier place than he first thought, and its principal was outright nuts.
He might be met with more traps in his future attempts, and having the invisibility belt would surely come in handy.
“…And that’s how the first meeting in honor of Lord Presinga was held, which marked the beginning of our Order. Let’s wrap things up around here, Brother.”
Priest Mehrid had been teaching Yi-han about the rules and history of the Order.
Truth be told, Yi-han wasn’t all that interested in learning about the Order’s history, but he was a pro when it came to listening in on boring stories.
– Have I told you about that time when I was playing golf?
– What happened, professor? Please, do tell!
‘It wasn’t nearly as boring this time around.’
Though the Order’s history didn’t pique his interest, its rules and the nature of its holy power fascinated him.
As Principal Skelly had said, the Order of Presinga was very lax with its rules and was fine with its followers joining other orders.
Nothing was explicitly forbidden, and they were allowed to live as they wished.
…The only limitation was that they had to wear cursed artifacts.
‘There’s only one downside to this order. Unfortunately, it’s a big one.’
Even he couldn’t find it within himself to promote the Order of Presinga to others. The con was far too great to ignore!
Also, the holy magic that their priests used was of extreme nature…
Afraid that Yi-han would have a change of heart after learning more about the order, Priest Mehrid gave him a generous gift.
“Here, Brother. Take this. From what I heard, the new students of Einroguard are often starved, though I suspect the stories are a bit exaggerated…”
‘Trust me, they aren’t.’
Yi-han accepted a basket from the priest.
Much like the one that Yonaire had received from the Order of Flameng, his basket was also full of goodies. He could tell that it was their desperate attempt at not letting go of a new follower.
There were several bottles of jam, including raspberry jam, marmalade jam, and peanut jam, as well as round flatbreads that the Order had baked.
The basket also contained magically sealed cans of beef and pork that was popular within the Empire. It even had products such as salt, sugar, coffee powder, and tea leaves.
Priest Mehrid spoke with a kind voice.
“Please drink them when you feel parched during your studies.”
“Rather than studies, we would need them more for survival…”
“Pardon?”
“Nothing. Thank you for the gift.”
Yi-han happily bowed his head to express his gratitude.
Priest Mehrid probably prepared these so that students like Yi-han could eat while they rest after a study session. However, considering the situation inside the academy, it would be better to save them for cases of emergencies.
‘For the students to live like humans, we need these orders to visit us frequently.’
“When is the next event going to be?”
“Who knows? We’d like to visit often, but we would need the principal’s approval…”
‘Tsk.’
It was clear that the priests would not be visiting them again for a while.
Taking into account the principal’s nasty personality, there was no way he would allow it.
“Please take this as well.”
“?!”
Tijiling, the devil mixed-blood priestess from the Tower of the Immortal Phoenix, handed her basket to Yi-han, surprising the latter greatly.
‘What’s this? Is she giving this away for free? Do I need to sign a contract with the devil if I take this?’
“Why are you giving me your basket?”
“I’ve offered my body to the service of Lord Presinga. Such luxuries are wasted on me.”
“Tijiling, there’s no need to do this. This basket was prepared for you, after all.”
Priest Mehrid seemed to want Tijiling to accept the gift, but she was firm in her refusal.
‘Geez, I guess the Tower of the Immortal Phoenix really is different.’
He belonged to the Blue Dragons, and the people there had already laid down their pride as nobles.
‘Hey, got anything to eat? Nothing? Really? Like really?’
They’d ask this sort of question to each other with bloodshot eyes…
While the rest of the students were out scavenging for food, those at the Immortal Phoenix endured and tempered themselves.
Impressive!
However, though he was impressed, he had no intention of living like them.
“Then I’ll gladly-”
“Um, Brother?”
“?”
Priest Mehrid brought Yi-han to one corner of the tent.
“Brother, can you look after Tijiling for me? With your impressive background, you’ll no doubt be a great help to her. As you can see, she is very strict with herself.”
“But we don’t even belong in the same dorm…”
“Please,” Priest Mehrid offered him another basket as he said this.
‘This priest knows his stuff!’
“Here, I’ll give you one more. As for the food in Tijiling’s basket, please have them together with her.”
“You can leave it to me.”
In the end, Yi-han could only yield before the temptation of the three baskets.
After all, all he had to do was eat together…
***
“Can I call you Priestess Tijiling?”
“Yes, please call me whatever you want.”
“How’s it like at the Tower of the Immortal Phoenix?”
Yi-han was curious. Unlike the White Tigers and the Black Tortoise, the situation over at the Immortal Phoenix remained a mystery to him.
The devil mixed-blood girl, however, didn’t understand what he was asking.
“Can you be a bit more specific?”
“You know, what do you do when you have free time and stuff?”
“We remain in our rooms and pray,” Tijiling said proudly.
Yi-han, however, was horrified to hear this.
‘Hm, it sounds much more depressing than I thought.’
If he had been assigned there, he would’ve felt suffocated.
“Do you pray at night as well?”
“Yes. Some of us go outside as we have to pray in the mountains or forests. Others pray indoors.”
“I see…wait, you’re allowed to go outside at night?”
“Indeed. We’ve received permission to do so.”
“!”
This came as a great shock to Yi-han.
‘So priests and priestesses are allowed to roam around at night?’
They were forbidden from leaving their dorms at night on weekdays. That was why he and his friends tried to escape on a weekend.
However, students of the Immortal Phoenix were an exception to this rule.
When he thought about it, it made sense. If he was in the principal’s shoes, he would’ve given them permission as well.
After all, they wouldn’t cause trouble even if he left them alone…
‘Then would I be able to roam around at night as well if I was wearing a priest’s uniform?’
There was a strange glint in his eyes.
‘I just need their uniform…!’
“Can you get me a set of priest’s uniforms?”
“…”
Tijiling stared at Yi-han with narrowed eyes.
