However, Rowena didn’t dwell on it too much as there was something more urgent afoot.
They had to think of a way to deal with the earth golem in front of them.
“So it attacks if we cross the line.”
“Then aren’t we trapped in here!?”
“Let’s not jump to conclusions too fast. Why don’t we attack it together?”
“Don’t! We might land ourselves in further danger if we act rashly.”
The students discussed what they should do, each giving their own opinion.
As they were in a state of panic, their voices grew, and they refused to back down.
Fearing that the argument would devolve into a worthless quarrel, Nilia quickly walked up to Yi-han.
Since they didn’t listen to her, she had to get the help of someone that they did.
“Wardanaz. Wardanaz.”
Meanwhile, Yi-han was deep in thought with a frown on his forehead. She had to shake his arms and call him to get his attention.
“Wardanaz!”
“Oh, sorry, what was that?”
“What’s wrong with you? Those brats… I mean our friends are acting up again. It’s your time to shine.”
Yi-han nodded.
“By the way, what were you thinking so hard about?” Nilia asked curiously.
“Oh, I was just analyzing our situation.”
“!”
This boy from the Wardanaz Family was very astute and often noticed things that others didn’t.
Not only did he appreciate the skills of the hunters and scouts of the Shadow Patrol, but he also thought highly of their wisdom and was willing to be friends with her.
Could he have figured out a solution to this predicament?
“Did you figure something out?”
All the students including Nilia looked at him in anticipation.
“I think this is a trap from the professor.”
“….”
“….”
The unexpected bombshell left everyone speechless.
***
“Let me go.”
Calm yourself, Professor Ingurdel.
Principal Skelly soothed Ingurdel as he released the professor from the binding magic that he had cast.
Professor Ingurdel stared at Principal Skelly and Professor Uregor in disbelief.
He had been wondering what was going on after suddenly finding himself in the dark. It turned out he had been kidnapped by the two.
These mages were nuts!
There’s a reason for bringing you here. Let me explain.
“Go on.”
With a skilled swordsman like yourself standing guard, the students won’t be able to grow when they’re confronted with danger.
“…..”
Professor Ingurdel was dumbstruck by this bullshit explanation.
Thinking they’d managed to convince him, Principal Skelly and Professor Uregor nodded.
“I’m glad Professor Ingurdel understands.”
“But I don’t! There should be other ways to facilitate the students’ growth! For example, have them train and battle each other, or teach them the proper mindset…”
Principal Skelly shook his head when he heard this, as if to lament speaking to a swordsman.
That’s not how mages grow.
“He’s right, Professor Ingurdel. Mages aren’t nurtured that way. If they already know what to expect, we can’t stimulate their creativity.”
“….”
Professor Ingurdel barely held himself back from brandishing his sword. He had to remind himself that this was a magic academy, not a knights’ school.
‘I’d rather be back at knights’ school.’
Professor Ingurdel might not agree with my methods right now, but one day, you’ll understand why I’m doing this.
“…Fine. Let’s suppose you’re having students roam the mountains for hours in terrible rain and making them come across an ‘unexpected danger’ to train their awareness…”
Uregor acted as if he was embarrassed.
“No need to praise me like that.”
“I wasn’t praising you. There are lots of monsters in the mountain range, and the paths are such that they may get lost if they aren’t careful. How do you plan on saving them if something unexpected happens and they’re attacked by a powerful monster?”
Principal Skelly and Professor Uregor acted as if they couldn’t understand the point of his question.
They should do something about it themselves, no?
“Why would we intervene?”
“…..”
Professor Ingurdel’s shoulders drooped.
‘Right, I shouldn’t have even attempted to reason with them…’
The more skilled a mage was, the more likely they were to be in an abnormal state of mind.
A mage skilled enough to be appointed a professor at Einroguard would have to be at least half-crazy.
Professor Ingurdel gave up on arguing with them.
“I give up… Please notify me if a problem arises later on and the students need rescuing.”
Alright. It seems we’ve finally managed to change your mind.
“No, I still stand by what I said.”
Professor Ingurdel let out a deep sigh.
In an attempt to pacify him, Professor Uregor poured him a warm cup of tea.
“There’s nothing to worry about, Professor Ingurdel. What I prepared for them isn’t that dangerous. They’re just bulls that have been strengthened by potions.”
Professor Uregor had prepared them with care for this particular assignment.
Just like before, he had placed them near areas where they could find the materials for the potion.
The students might curse him now, calling him a bastard, but in the far future, once they become established alchemists, they would sing his praise in gratitude.
“I guess you’re right. If it’s just bulls, the students should be able to manage somehow.”
Professor Ingurdel was a little more at ease now.
The bulls might have been strengthened by potions, but there were quite a few talented students among the group that entered the mountain range, so they should have no trouble dealing with them.
Do they spew fire?
“No, they don’t.”
Do they teleport?
“No.”
Can they perform element-based attacks? Are they infallible against blades? Do they have a deathly aura that instils fear, roars that could paralyze their opponents?
“How much money do you expect me to invest in some bulls?”
The questions were getting so ridiculous that Professor Uregor had to cut him off.
Raising their strength and speed would be enough for this activity. If he tried to apply everything that the principal had mentioned, he would need to invest several mansions’ worth of money, and even that might not be enough.
Principal Skelly was disappointed to hear this.
How boring. Let’s hope a different monster appears.
“Monsters don’t spawn out of nowhere, you know?”
***
At first, Yi-han’s opinion seemed like nonsense, but as time passed, it began to make more sense.
This was due in part to his credibility; had Gainando made the same claim, they would have disregarded it without a second thought.
However, because it was Yi-han, they felt that there might be some truth to it.
Also, Professor Uregor had a history of doing something similar.
The students thought back to their first lesson.
That crazy professor had unleashed several boars to go after them!
It wouldn’t be strange for someone like him to use earth golems as well.
“Then where’s Professor Ingurdel?”
“They must be on the same side.”
“How could he!”
“Those damn professors! None of them are trustworthy!”
The students were enraged, to say the least.
Even Professor Ingurdel, whom they trusted, had betrayed them.
Yi-han carefully processed what happened once more.
‘It’s too much be to a coincidence.’
The moment they arrived where they could gather the herbs and materials, Professor Ingurdel went missing, rain began to pour, and an earth golem appeared…
It was too farfetched to call it an accident, which was why he had begun to suspect the professors.
“Wardanaz, if this is really a part of the professors’ ploy, what should we do in this situation?”
“Nothing’s changed. We just have to get rid of the golem somehow.”
Yi-han replied matter-of-factly to Asan’s inquiry.
Yi-han sensed that the students were discouraged and tried to boost their morale.
“Why the long face? Since it’s a trap that Professor Uregor has laid, there’s got to be a way to solve it.”
“Y-you’re right!”
He was right. If the earth golem was something the professor had prepared, there had to be a method of defeating it.
After overcoming the fear of the earth golem’s appearance, the students began discussing a solution to their problem.
“How about attacking it with fire magic or corrosive potions?”
“That’s only effective against Garci… err, trolls. Since it attacks if we cross the line, let’s try erasing it.”
“It can’t be that simple. We should try covering its eyes. Rob its vision and sneak away while it’s confused.”
“We should shoot it with arrows!”
Asan, who had been listening to their conversation, felt that Yi-han should step in again to organize everyone’s opinion. Otherwise, all sorts of trashy suggestions would be thrown out.
Rowena stepped forward and opened her mouth.
“Her Highness has suggested using her spirit to distract the golem…wait, where’s Wardanaz?”
“Huh?”
Asan looked around in a panic as Yi-han was nowhere to be seen.
“Did anyone see where Yi-han went?”
“W-was he kidnapped?”
“We must break through the golem and retrieve him!”
They were much more alarmed than when the golem first appeared.
However, Yi-han hadn’t disappeared in the first place.
Yonaire was surprised to see that Yi-han had suddenly appeared behind the earth golem.
“!!”
“Wardanaz?!”
The students couldn’t believe their eyes. Yi-han had somehow managed to cross the line and appeared behind the golem, and the golem wasn’t attacking him.
“How’d he do it!?”
“He must’ve used an invisibility spell.”
While the others were engrossed in their discussion, Yi-han had conducted an experiment to determine whether he could use the invisibility spell on his belt to go past the golem.
As a result, he discovered that the golem couldn’t detect those that were invisible.
He also learned that it wouldn’t attack anyone that had already crossed the line. This was why he was safe even after disabling the spell.
This was a huge finding.
“He knows how to cast invisibility spells…!”
“No, I simply borrowed the power of an artifact.”
“He knows how to craft artifacts already…!”
“…I never said I made it.”
The Black Tortoise were dumbfounded.
‘Huh? Was there such an artifact among the ones that we sold?’
“Where’d you get the artifact?”
“Oh, this one’s not from the school. It’s something I received from an order.”
“Which order was it?”
“The Order of Presinga.”
“…..”
“…..”
Students from both towers grimaced when they heard the name, leaving Yi-han feeling slightly hurt.
***
Yi-han had somehow slipped past the golem, but the situation hadn’t changed much as the golem still trapped the rest.
“Wardanaz, call a professor!”
“Someone should go with him! What if he betrays us and—”
“Nonsense! You think he’s Gainando?”
“R-right. Sorry…”
Yi-han ignored them.
Since this was a trap set up by Professor Uregor, calling for help would be a futile endeavour.
‘We must find a solution ourselves.’
Given that the golem was prepared by the professor, it had to be something that the freshmen could defeat one way or another.
“Move!”
He took out his iron orb and waved his staff, making the orb revolve midair.
‘First, I must find where its core is.’
Yi-han’s plan was to strike the earth golem until he discovered its core.
“Will it work? It’s a golem after all,” Yonaire said worriedly.
Even if it was made of dirt, it didn’t change the fact that it was a golem. Its body had to be extremely thick and robust. She didn’t think a spell from a freshman would be effective.
However, Yi-han nodded to reassure her.
Against a wild golem, he would’ve had his doubts as well. That said, this was an assignment from Professor Uregor.
‘In that case, it shouldn’t be that robust!’
With a wave of his staff, the orb struck the golem.
