Chapter 1230

"Hoho. Jowrin's ability is not quite that extraordinary."

Sure enough, Jowrin was in an excellent mood.

Her mouth said it was nothing particularly impressive, but her sparkling eyes were asking them to say more.

"Gainando. That's enough praise."

"What praise?"

"...Never mind. Give me the soil."

Lee Han checked the [N O V E L I G H T] quality of the soil Gainando had dug up.

The mages of Einroguard's dark magic school often used the land around Black Dark Hall to obtain various reagents.

It was especially important for them to produce reagents used in dark magic themselves like this.

Most dark mages had no money... which was part of the reason, but it was also because the reagents used by the dark magic school generally weren't things that were readily sold on the market.

Who would sell rotten soil saturated with powerful yin mana?

"Oh. What? This is pretty good."

Lee Han was surprised after checking its quality. The purity of the mana was better than expected.

Had Gainando been devoting his spare time to tending the soil lately?

"Have you been doing extra maintenance on the soil around here in your free time?"

At the question, Gainando laughed as though Lee Han had said something absurd.

"What are you talking about, Lee Han? There's no way I'd do something like that. I'm not Diret."

"......"

Lee Han resolved to report him immediately the next time he saw Diret.

That insolent bastard!

"Professor Mortum brought in some new fertilizer from somewhere. It worked pretty well."

"New fertilizer? That's strange."

Lee Han grew suspicious at his friend's words.

Of course, Professor Mortum was fully capable of making and bringing in some new fertilizer to improve the land around the mage tower.

Professor Mortum certainly had the ability.

But Professor Mortum was absolutely not the sort of person who would waste time on something like that.

Not quite to Professor Verdus's extent, perhaps, but Professor Mortum was also fairly enthusiastic about dumping troublesome work onto students.

"Could it be..."

"Lee Han. Don't worry."

Gainando thumped his chest confidently.

"I checked the safe with the others first."

"Gainando...!"

Lee Han was slightly moved.

At some point, this Imperial friend of his had started reliably pulling his own weight.

"If the professor didn't buy it with money from the safe, then it must have been made personally. That makes it even stranger. ...Don't tell me Professor Mortum made Diret do it?"

"N-no way. Diret is incredibly busy these days."

"Einroguard professors are exactly the sort of people who can give even more work to someone who's already that busy."

Behind him, Professor Voladi's shoulders flinched slightly.

Lee Han failed to notice and continued speaking.

"This really is strange. It's not as though Professor Mortum went somewhere and kidnapped a dark mage."

Astonishingly, that was exactly what had happened, but Lee Han failed to realize it.

At present, a dark mage belonging to the Descendants of Ahrak was imprisoned in the basement of the dark magic school.

"...M-maybe that's really it!"

Something clicked in Gainando's mind at his friend's words.

Professor Mortum's behavior really had seemed suspicious lately.

Professor Mortum kept going down into the basement, personally making magical supplies the students needed and bringing them up...

"No. That last part was a joke. Professor Mortum probably made Diret do it. Your Majesty. Look at this. While Your Majesty has lost your motivation, wicked people like this are already running rampant."

Lee Han seized the opportunity to tattle to Uman.

Gainando still could not let go of the idea.

"Couldn't Professor Mortum have locked a dark mage in the basement?"

"I'm telling you, no. Gainando. Just bringing a dark mage of that caliber into the academy would be an ordeal in itself. Where would Professor Mortum even find one?"

"Hmph."

Even after being completely demolished by logic, Gainando refused to give up.

'I'll search the place tonight.'

"Indeed. You are right. Wickedness is already beginning to rise!"

Uman was outraged by Lee Han's words.

What a wicked professor!

At Uman's side, Lee Han became even more obsequious, like a sycophantic courtier.

"Hehehe. You should bring divine punishment down upon this wicked professor. The dark magic school already has an obligation to make and submit curse-neutralizing agents. Why not assign that duty to the professor?"

"Excellent! I shall do exactly that!"

Yonair and Gainando's eyes widened.

They knew their friend had effectively served as the Inspector's right hand, but actually seeing him manipulate Uman this easily was a different kind of shock.

'It's this easy?!'

At this point, wasn't he basically the shadow principal?

Flustered, Yonair asked Jowrin,

"I-is this really all right? Is it actually okay to..."

"Jowrin agrees as well. Uman takes Jowrin's contractor away far too often."

"N-no. That's not what I meant."

Anyone listening would think Lee Han was a toy. Yonair was unusually flustered.

"Gainando. If His Majesty Uman stays until next semester, I really don't know what's going to happen... Gainando?"

Yonair realized that Gainando, who had been beside them, had disappeared.

Looking ahead, Yonair saw that Gainando had already run over to Uman and started flattering him too.

"Your Majesty! The reagent-field work I'm supposed to manage—could you make the professor do that too...?!"

"......"

***

Fortunately, Gainando's attempt failed. He grumbled in disbelief.

"Why did His Majesty ignore my suggestion?"

"......"

"......"

His friends knew the reason all too well, but neither said anything.

Lee Han focused on producing <Kinis's Purification>, following the prepared reagents and the reaction equations organized by Yoanen and Professor Voladi.

No matter how difficult the magic was, when this much of the work had already been laid out for him, the difficulty naturally dropped considerably. Lee Han proceeded with the work relatively easily.

'We're making decent progress.'

Yoanen's expression had softened as well, apparently feeling that the work was proceeding smoothly. Yonair inwardly sighed in relief at the sight.

The last thing Yonair wanted was to see an older sibling erupt into madness in front of friends.

"Shall we take a short break?"

"???"

Jowrin looked around in confusion.

The work was going well, so she could not understand why they were stopping.

"Jowrin does not understand why we're stopping."

"Ah. Now that we've made it this far, we need to look into several things again."

Lee Han moved the completed intermediate product aside and explained.

Alchemy of this difficulty could not be completed all at once.

They had to divide it into several stages, establish a goal for each stage, and proceed one step at a time.

Now that they had successfully completed another stage, it was time to organize what they would need for the next one.

"What do you need?"

"We need to find a reagent that reacts properly with this intermediate product."

The mages present launched into an animated discussion.

What reagent would produce a vigorous purification effect when it came into contact with this ash-gray mass?

Professor Voladi suggested things like digitalis flowers from the snowy mountains or peyote cactus, but Yoanen replied that previous tests had shown the side effects to be too severe.

As befitted Professor Thunderwalk's disciple, Yonair suggested red sandalwood. Yoanen rejected it because its effects were weak during this season.

Jowrin, who had been listening blankly, stared at the ash-gray mass and suddenly became absorbed in a thought.

...Dragon blood seems like it would suit this well?

"Uman. Uman."

"Yes, Elder Sister."

"Jowrin thinks adding one drop of blood over there would work quite well."

"Indeed... Dragon blood is a powerful reagent. Combined with your intuition, Elder Sister, the chances are very high."

"Jowrin would like to borrow one drop of Uman's blood!"

Uman gladly drew a drop of blood and offered it. Something like this was hardly difficult.

Jowrin swiftly placed the drop of blood onto the ash-gray mass. Mana began to move with a powerful magical reaction.

"?!?"

The mages who had been discussing the matter whipped their heads around in surprise. Anyone could see that an unmistakable purification reaction was taking place.

"What is that? What did you put..."

"...Jowrin!!!"

Lee Han sensed something the moment he saw the expression of the dragon furtively watching them from the corner.

That was the expression of someone checking everyone's reaction after causing trouble on their own!

"You!"

"Jowrin did not draw even a single drop of blood! Uman did it!"

"?!???!"

Uman's eyes widened.

Uman had never imagined that the elder sister he respected so deeply would do this.

"E-Elder Sister. You told me to...?"

"Jowrin knows nothing! You can check the drop of blood and see for yourself!"

While the two dragons argued, Professor Voladi silently went to work. The professor suppressed the ash-gray mass that had begun reacting and recorded the results.

Lee Han ignored all that and berated Jowrin. Jowrin tried somehow to push the responsibility onto Uman before eventually becoming dejected.

Yoanen was simply overwhelmed by the sheer surrealism of everything happening before them.

Could it be that Wardanaz normally did alchemy like this, obtaining reagents from dragons whenever he worked?

If so, he could be called the most extravagant alchemist in the Empire.

How could anyone possibly...!

"Lady Meikin? It looks like the work is almost finished..."

"Ah. Yes! Dragon Alchemist!"

"...Pardon?"

"That came out wrong. Lord Wardanaz."

"......"

Lee Han stared at Yoanen with an extremely suspicious expression.

***

"Thanks to everyone here, <Kinis's Purification> was completed much sooner than expected. Thank you, everyone."

Yoanen spoke with satisfaction while holding the finished product and a notebook that had grown considerably thicker.

Lee Han nodded beside them, then spoke.

"And? Aren't you forgetting something?"

"...Now then. Dragons present here. No matter how useful your bodies may be for alchemy, using your own flesh however you please is never proper behavior in alchemy..."

Lee Han nodded in satisfaction. As Yoanen spoke, one thought ran through their mind.

'Using a little isn't really much of a problem.'

If Yoanen had dragons this close to them, they would have collected reagents from them every single day!

This outstanding alchemist of House Meikin never once imagined that precisely this sort of mentality was why dragons avoided alchemists.

"Now then. Both of you understand, correct?"

"I understand."

"Jowrin didn't draw any blood."

"Then..."

Yoanen was about to move on when Lee Han's hand gesture made them stop.

Lee Han quietly signaled.

-It's too short. Please lecture them longer.

"......"

'I feel like this is something an Einroguard lecture should be doing...'

Yoanen was not particularly skilled at giving lectures. Usually, Yoanen was much more accustomed to being on the receiving end of them.

Even so, Yoanen somehow began lecturing the two dragons again.

...In truth, Yoanen was afraid that their younger sibling's friend might get offended and terminate the commission midway through.

Normally, the person commissioning the work fundamentally held the stronger position.

Sometimes, however, that relationship was reversed.

For example, when the other party traveled around with two dragons and received their unstinting support.

"All right. Then the two of you should go outside."

"...?!"

"?!!"

Jowrin and Uman were deeply shocked.

"T-there is still one more left!"

"Yes. But we'll handle that one ourselves."

Yoanen choked and coughed at those words, but Lee Han ignored it.

Uman cried out with an extremely aggrieved expression.

"T-this Uman merely... merely..."

Uman was about to say that Jowrin had told him to do it, but respect for his elder sister made him hesitate, unable to bring himself to say the words.

Jowrin immediately seized the opportunity.

"Then only Uman should leave, and Jowrin will stay!"

"Elder Sister?!"