Chapter 1221

After recovering from the shock, Lee Han barely managed to shout.

"Professor, you were in the cell next door?! Why?!"

Instead of answering, Professor Kirmin took down the sign from the neighboring cell and brought it over.

A criminal who ignored every word from the principal, colleagues, and disciple and escaped on their own accord (not particularly dangerous)

'What the...'

Lee Han felt dumbfounded and wronged at the same time.

He knew there was no point competing over signs like these, but being treated as a more heinous criminal than Professor Voladi still felt deeply unfair.

"No. Why am I the more heinous criminal?"

"It's the difference in your usual behavior. When someone who's normally good does something bad even once, it's more shocking."

A diligent student repeatedly doing whatever he pleased was a tremendous shock, but Professor Voladi escaping on their own was honestly not all that shocking.

That was simply the kind of person they were!

Lee Han naturally could not accept such an absurd explanation.

"This really makes no sense."

"Wardanaz. Are you perhaps a new student at Einroguard? Why are you acting surprised now?"

Professor Kirmin mocked him while hanging the sign back on their friend's cell.

Lee Han called out to Professor Voladi in the next room.

"More importantly, Professor, why didn't you say anything when you were right next door?"

"You didn't call me."

"......"

At the calm voice coming from the neighboring cell, Lee Han was speechless.

If they were awake, couldn't they have explained something when he was trying to talk to the Prison Keeper?!

"Is that really what you say to a disciple who went through all kinds of trouble for you?"

Unable to stand it any longer, Professor Kirmin picked up a piece of fruit they had brought and threw it to their friend.

Wardanaz was irritating too, but he still could not compete with the original. This vampire friend definitely had a special talent for infuriating people.

"I see. Let me express my gratitude once again."

"There's no need... I did it because I wanted to."

As master and disciple exchanged a warm conversation through the wall, Professor Kirmin looked at them as though the sight made them sick.

After making everyone else worry themselves sick, the two of them were now having a cozy little conversation in a punishment room. Professor Kirmin wanted nothing more than to throw cold water over both of them.

Their wish was soon granted. After finishing the discussion about defeating the evil god, Professor Voladi immediately got to the main point.

"I heard you used <Microcosm, Dunamis>."

"Ah."

"Oh."

At the unexpected turn of events, Professor Kirmin's eyes lit up with anticipation.

Could it be?

Just as hoped, their friend began grilling the disciple.

Professor Voladi went through every single instance in which the disciple had used Dunamis, demanding to know why each one had been reckless and what he had been thinking when he did it. Before long, the disciple whispered to Professor Kirmin.

"Professor. Is there any way to change cells?"

"If that were possible, it wouldn't be a punishment room. It would be a private room, Wardanaz."

"I think Professor Bagreg may be misunderstanding something..."

Professor Voladi seemed to think their magic-obsessed disciple had become completely captivated by Dunamis, which allowed him to use magic beyond his current level.

But that was a misunderstanding.

He had only used it repeatedly because the situation had left him no other choice. Under ordinary circumstances, Lee Han had absolutely no intention of using a dangerous microcosm like Dunamis...

'Is it really a misunderstanding?'

Professor Kirmin thought to themself.

In the past, they had wondered whether their friend was misunderstanding Wardanaz, but lately they were starting to think their friend might actually have seen him clearly before anyone else.

He put on an act and said things like, 'Haha, I'm not that kind of person,' but...

Judging by his actions, this disciple really was a mage obsessed with magic.

"Yes, yes. Clear up the misunderstanding with Professor Bagreg."

"Professor! Don't do this!"

When Professor Kirmin tried to leave, Lee Han became desperate.

If Professor Kirmin left like this, he would be alone with Professor Voladi and forced to keep listening to the lecture.

"Oh, right. I have good news, Wardanaz. Professor Bagreg will be released when the semester ends."

"...This is truly unjust!"

"You should have ignored Professor Garcia less. I'm leaving. I'll bring you lecture materials next time."

"Professor! Professor!"

***

Contrary to his fears, Professor Voladi did not torment Lee Han twenty-four hours a day.

After finishing the lecture about <Microcosm, Dunamis>, Professor Voladi advised Lee Han to rest.

Judging by his condition, the aftereffects had probably not fully faded from either his body or his soul.

'Phew.'

Lee Han had never imagined he would feel so grateful to be injured.

If he had his way, he almost wanted to claim he was injured until the end of vacation.

"Lee Han!!!"

"!"

When familiar friends from the Blue Dragon Tower came to visit, Lee Han sat up on the bed with a startled expression.

He had never expected his friends to find this place.

"How did you find me? Is this place that easy to locate?"

Unlike an ordinary punishment room, this was at least a fairly special one.

Yet they had found it so easily.

Had they perhaps received help from the seniors?

"We went to the punishment room and called your name, and the spirit drew us a map."

"Ah."

Lee Han thanked Perkuntra inwardly.

Although it could not get him out of this professors' punishment room, it had still done its best to help him.

'Good. So it isn't sulking.'

Lee Han nodded, thinking that if the Lightning Duke heard that thought, it would become offended with absolute certainty.

"Thank you all for coming."

"Take this. We brought you some food."

Yonair opened the lid of the basket they had brought, then began taking preserved foods from inside and passing them through the bars.

When various canned foods, tea leaves, coffee grounds, sugar, chocolate, and more came flying over without pause, Lee Han asked in surprise,

"Where did you get all this?"

This semester, because of Inspector Uman, students had found it difficult to obtain extra food. Luxuries like these were especially hard to come by.

"We got some help from Professor Thunderwalk."

"Professor Thunderwalk? I didn't know the professor thought that highly of me."

Lee Han spoke with a slightly moved expression.

To think that the dwarf ranger professor, who was always grumbling, would secretly look after him like this.

No matter how much Professor Thunderwalk complained, it seemed the professor still could not simply abandon a disciple.

"I said we got some help from Professor Thunderwalk. I didn't say Professor Thunderwalk helped us."

"......"

At Yonair's words, Lee Han shut his mouth.

He had a fairly good idea what had happened.

'They robbed the professor's storeroom!'

He felt a little sorry, but it could not be helped. Lee Han would be staying here for quite some time.

And Professor Thunderwalk had probably built an external storeroom like that while accounting for the possibility that students might loot it.

'Right. The professor will understand once they hear what it was used for.'

"Lee Han. Here. I brought books."

"You brought grimoires?!"

At Gainando's words, Lee Han was extremely surprised.

He had never expected Gainando to bring grimoires.

Had Gainando finally started taking magic seriously?

"Th-they're not grimoires."

"...Right. Even if they're not grimoires, bringing books at all is something. What books are they? Maybe <Introduction to Basic Reagents>, the one I recommended last time? That's worth rereading."

"<Toberiz Goes to Prison>, <Toberiz Escapes the Fortress>, <Toberiz Gets Off the Island>..."

"......"

Holding the books, Lee Han looked toward the fireplace inside.

Gainando immediately understood the meaning behind that look and shouted in panic.

"Don't burn them! If you're going to burn them, give them back!"

"Gainando. A fireplace doesn't keep burning on its own."

"You can keep the fire going with mana anyway...!"

Since Gainando knew very well that his friend could maintain flames with mana without any firewood, he desperately begged Lee Han not to burn the books.

In the end, Lee Han gave up and put the books on the bookshelf. Only then did Gainando sigh in relief.

"Read them when you're bored. They might help."

"R-right. Help... I don't know about that."

"Wardanaz. I brought tools that should be useful while you study in there."

Asan began taking out various items.

There was already a desk, ink, quills, and paper inside, but the supplies did not look particularly abundant.

Even for ordinary writing, using high-quality ink, quills, and paper was much more convenient.

"Did you perhaps bring a small alchemy cauldron too?"

"Of course. Here."

As if he had expected the question, Asan took out a small cauldron. Adenart beside him cast transformation magic to reduce its size, then tossed it through the bars.

"Hmm. An armillary sphere would be useful too. I suppose you didn't bring one of those?"

"No. I brought one."

Asan immediately took it out. Then, before Lee Han could even respond, he began producing more items.

"Here are a copper still, an ethereal balance, a dimensional map, magical chalk and a blackboard, a measuring compass..."

"......"

The amount was so much greater than Lee Han had expected that he looked bewildered.

They had brought this much?

"You brought all of this?"

"Wardanaz, don't you need it?"

Asan instead asked back as though Lee Han had said something obvious. The friends beside him nodded as well.

Considering their friend's reputation, even this seemed insufficient.

Wasn't he supposed to stay inside the punishment room until the end of the semester? They almost felt as though they should go into his private room and scrape together every last piece of equipment and every tool he owned.

"...Right... Thank you..."

Lee Han skillfully arranged the tools he had received inside the cell for the time being.

At this point, it was becoming difficult to tell whether this place was a prison cell or a laboratory in a magic tower.

"Here you are, Wardanaz."

When her turn came, Adenart quickly held out a small tin case.

Written on the tin case were the words <House Meikin's Incredible Butter Biscuits>.

When Lee Han saw the lettering, he nodded inwardly as though it was exactly what he had expected.

'Giving dessert as a gift. That's certainly very Adenart-like.'

"Thank you. I'll enjoy them."

"?"

Adenart looked at her friend with puzzled eyes.

"...Are these not biscuits?"

"They aren't... They're grimoires."

Lee Han hurriedly opened the case and checked what was inside.

Instead of butter biscuits, there really were books inside.

"Why are there books inside a biscuit tin?"

At that question, Adenart hesitated slightly.

Seeing that, Lee Han nodded as though he understood.

'The biscuits must have been really delicious.'

She had eaten all the butter biscuits, but because she still felt reluctant to throw the tin away, she must have ended up storing books in it.

Didn't Gainando sometimes refill a tin cup that had once held hot chocolate with water and drink from it?

"Those books... actually belong to the seniors, so I couldn't bring them openly."

"...What?!"

Lee Han was horrified by the answer, which completely exceeded his expectations.

Looting canned food or tea leaves from Professor Thunderwalk was one thing (actually, it was not), but he had never expected them to go so far as to steal grimoires from completely unrelated seniors.

'Why?'

"Did you get into a fight with the seniors or something? Why in the world?"

"Uh, Wardanaz. We helped too."

Asan hesitantly raised a hand. Yonair joined in as well with a slightly embarrassed expression.

"...Wait. Don't tell me the tools you brought were stolen from the seniors too, Asan?!"

Lee Han realized it belatedly.

Come to think of it, Asan had brought far too many tools.

Even if they had taken everything used in the common lounge, there should not have been this much...

"That's right."

"......"

"Where else would we have gotten all this?"

The students of Einroguard's Blue Dragon Tower possessed cool heads and brilliant intelligence.

Where could they obtain equipment, tools, and grimoires useful to their friend?

There were various methods, but one of the easiest and fastest was simply to loot the seniors' belongings.

The seniors would have all kinds of equipment and tools, as well as grimoires one level above theirs!

"...Thank you, everyone. Really."

Lee Han started to say something, then gave up.

His friends had taken risks and robbed their seniors for his sake. What could he possibly say to that?

Lee Han flipped through the grimoires Adenart had brought, then suddenly stopped.

'I think I just saw Princess Yukbeltire's name...'

Surely he had imagined it.