Chapter 43

Chapter 043

Lee Han carefully tucked the permission slip into his chest. His movements suggested a cautiousness, as if he was afraid someone might snatch it away.

Professor Garcia and the Skeleton Headmaster thought simultaneously in their hearts.

'No one's going to take it...'

Are you feeling well?

“Yes.”

Right. Since you’ve received all the rewards, it’s time for the punishment.

“......”

Lee Han looked at the Skeleton Headmaster with a bewildered expression.

The Skeleton Headmaster said with a pained tone.

Don’t look at me like that. I’m hurting too. But rules are rules.

‘100% lies.’

To Lee Han, it was clear that the Headmaster was enjoying it.

Just to clarify, he’s not being punished for attempting to go out without permission.

“Then what for?”

For getting caught.

“......”

So, you should have watched Professor Garcia get stabbed?

The words rose to Lee Han’s throat, but he held them back.

After all, it had never been good to talk back to a professor.

‘Hold it. Hold it.’

The sun is just rising. Until the next sunrise, think about how to avoid getting caught next time in the punishment room.

With that, the Skeleton Headmaster threw a book to Lee Han.

A book bound in plain black leather, giving off a strange and eerie feeling.

“What is this?”

It’s a book to keep you from getting bored in the punishment room. Try reading it.

A fleeting expression of doubt crossed Lee Han’s face.

The Skeleton Headmaster was pleased by the student’s initial skepticism.

Move the student to the punishment room.

The Headmaster’s summon creatures approached and helped Lee Han to his feet.

From morning to the next morning.

Lee Han would spend his time in the school’s punishment room.

* * * *

Descending the underground stairs, walking down the corridor, then down another set of stairs, and walking down another corridor...

It felt like he had repeated this dozens of times. Even if he hadn’t been blindfolded, he doubted he could have memorized the route.

Bang!

“Hmm.”

The door closed, and alone in the punishment room, Lee Han looked around.

It didn’t seem much different from a personal dorm room.

Instead of natural sunlight, artificial lights flickered, giving it a dim feel?

‘This is the punishment room? It’s not as bad as I thought.’

Lee Han figured he could handle a few weeks in here.

As a graduate student, he had often lived in much smaller rooms with others.

In comparison, this was quite comfortable.

He resolved to tell Neillia later that the punishment room wasn’t as bad as he thought.

Of course, he couldn’t be sure if Neillia would agree.

-Wodanaz family, Lee Han.

“?”

A stiff voice from outside, belonging to an undead summon creature.

-Here.

The door at the bottom opened, and a large basket was pushed in.

Freshly baked bread, a bowl of salt and pepper, seasoned lamb roast, baked apples with sugar and butter, freshly cooked fried eggs, slightly hard and still warm biscuits with almonds and chocolate...

‘Huh?’

The meal was so good for a punishment room that Lee Han was taken aback.

What is this?

-It’s a gift from Professor Garcia.

“Oh... please thank him.”

-It’s not over yet. Take more.

“No. Wait...”

Lee Han was flustered by the continuous influx of baskets.

Could he eat all of this in one day?

Fortunately, the next baskets contained more preserved foods.

Well-wrapped chocolates, candies, salted peanuts, flat and round cookies in a box, tea leaves, apple juice, and orange juice in glass bottles...

‘Did he just put everything in, not knowing what I like?’

Lee Han was grateful for Professor Garcia’s gift and set the baskets aside.

He wouldn’t be bored during his time in the punishment room.

Sip—

After boiling some tea, adding milk and sugar, Lee Han sipped it slowly, lost in thought.

The fight with the imperial anti-magicians was still vividly terrifying. He was amazed at how he had managed to fight like that.

His composure during the fight...

‘Thanks to Alarlong’s teachings, I guess.’

If Alarlong were there, he might have been bewildered and said, “No, I didn’t teach you tactics for magical battles or actual combat,” but Alarlong wasn’t there.

Unbeknownst to Lee Han, he had a natural talent for combat, a fact recognized by all the professors.

‘Thank you, Alarlong.’

Lee Han cast the <Lower Control> spell.

“Move.”

The quill pen floated gently in the air and began to move naturally.

A smooth movement he couldn’t have imagined when he first learned the spell.

Lee Han put down the quill pen and cast a spell on an iron ball.

A nearly perfect circle was drawn in the air.

‘Professor Bolladi was right, which is a bit frustrating.’

Sometimes, professors only say the right things, which can make students angry.

Bolladi’s words that “actual combat will improve your skills” were being proven.

During the fight with the anti-magicians, he had felt a significant improvement in his abilities.

‘A few more actual battles and I might become a high mage. Or die before that.’

Lee Han put down the iron ball. It wasn’t intentional, but he wasn’t in a bad mood.

‘But that sword technique...’

Lee Han carefully recalled the sword technique he used against the leader.

As Alarlong had taught, whether he won or lost, reflecting on the fight helped improve his skills.

‘...It wasn’t a normal sword technique, no matter how I look at it.’

At the time, the opponent was so strong that he had attacked recklessly, but now, it was clear that it wasn’t a normal sword technique.

Pouring so much mana into each strike was unheard of.

Lee Han’s mana was abundant, but it could have led to any number of disasters.

Even his sword had broken at the end.

Alarlong had said that skilled swordsmen could condense their internal mana into a sword to create an aura, but to Lee Han, what he did felt more like...

‘...I don’t know what to call it, but I need to be more careful in the future.’

He resolved not to end up in the imperial newspaper’s <People Who Died Stupidly This Year> section.

After finishing his tea, he noticed the black book given by the Headmaster.

‘Should I open this?’

Lee Han seriously considered it.

Was this a gift from the Headmaster or a trap?

Gift from the Headmaster -> The Headmaster, being human, must know that Lee Han fought hard to save a professor. Although he put him in the punishment room according to the rules, he must feel guilty. This is a gift to show his guilt.

Trap from the Headmaster -> The Headmaster is technically an undead, not human. He lacks human emotions. And he clearly enjoyed putting Lee Han in the punishment room. So...

‘...It feels more like a trap.’

It seems like a trap no matter how you look at it.

Lee Han decided to think about it later and tried to push the book aside.

That’s when it happened.

Swoosh!

“!?”

As Lee Han touched the black book, it opened forcefully.

The letters on the opened page leaped out as if alive, wrapping around and penetrating his hand.

“!!!!”

Lee Han felt a shock as if someone was directly implanting knowledge into his brain.

‘What the...!’

Confused and distressed, he knew what the book was trying to do.

The book was trying to teach him a spell.

His mouth opened instinctively, and he recited the spell’s name.

“Gonadaltess’s... Agile Steps...!”

Snap!

The book closed firmly with a click. No matter how hard Lee Han tried to open it, it wouldn’t budge.

‘What kind of book is this?’

Lee Han, with a throbbing headache, reviewed the spell knowledge he had just received.

Like reading a book, the knowledge of <Gonadaltess’s Agile Steps> was vividly imprinted in his mind.

From the incantation to the movements.

Of course, that didn’t mean he could use the spell immediately. He needed to understand and internalize the knowledge himself.

‘In short, it’s a book that forcibly teaches a spell...’

The spell’s name revealed that it was created by the Skeleton Headmaster.

If it were such a spell, the Headmaster could have taught it to Lee Han directly. Why use this bizarre method?

‘The Headmaster must be crazy. They say professors go mad after teaching for too long.’

Lee Han convinced himself.

Of course, the Headmaster didn’t teach it directly to avoid criticism from other professors or outsiders, like “That crazy high mage is ruining another young talent!”

But Lee Han had no way of knowing that.

* * * *

“Feet, tread the earth. Feet, tread the earth. Feet, tread the...”

Lee Han, with nothing else to do, diligently recited the new incantation.

Despite his claim that “I’m not that greedy for magic,” objectively, Lee Han was obsessed with magic.

Unlike typical new students who play when they have nothing to do, Lee Han studied.

Thump thump thump—

“...?”

Lee Han paused at the sound of knocking on the wall.

What is it?

“Feet, tread the earth...”

Thump thump thump—

It wasn’t a mistake. Lee Han carefully pressed his ear to the punishment room wall.

Thump thump thump—

The sound was louder.

He knocked on the wall in response. The other side paused for a moment.

A rough, husky voice came through.

“...Can you hear me?”

“I can hear you.”

“What year are you?”

“I just started this year.”

“Iron, huh. You have a tough road ahead.”

“And you...?”

“Gold.”

Gold.

The title symbolizing the fourth year at the school.

Lee Han was surprised to learn that a senior was in the adjacent room.

‘What did he do to be a fourth-year... No, that’s not my place to say.’

Lee Han quickly reflected on himself.

It wasn’t his place to comment, given his own recent capture.

“What did you do to end up in the punishment room? Did you start a fight between dorms?”

“No.”

“Not that? Did you steal something from your dorm mates?”

“No. I tried to escape and got caught.”

Laughter came from the next room.

“This new student is impressive. Just a week in, and you tried to escape. You must have gone to the mountains, right? Many get caught trying to go there. They don’t know about the walls.”

“I didn’t go to the mountains.”

The student on the other side was silent, clearly surprised.

“Did you go underground?”

“Yes.”

“Impressive. Noticing the underground. But it’s a trap. Touch anything, and the alarm goes off. The warehouse keeper is a monster specialized in detection. What did you get caught on?”

“I didn’t get caught.”

“...You didn’t?”

“Yes. I went outside through the underground passage. I got caught on my way out.”

“......”

The fourth-year on the other side was shocked.

It was surprising enough that he had discovered the underground passage in just a week, but to have bypassed the warehouse’s traps and the keeper’s detection to get outside...

‘What is this guy? Is he really a new student??’

“Wait. Then why were you caught?”

“I was in a carriage when the imperial anti-magicians attacked. I fought and was caught by the Headmaster.”

“......”