What did I ever do to my junior?

Diret thought about it for a moment.

Of course, there had been that small misunderstanding last week where Lee Han had ended up learning <Skeleton Golem Summoning>.

But Diret had done it with good intentions. Surely someone as kindhearted as his junior could understand that.

...Right?

“I’m sorry, Senior.”

Lee Han hurried over and lowered his voice.

He could already imagine how shocked Diret must have been.

After all, he had brought two professors into the lecture hall with him...

“You must’ve been surprised when the professors walked in.”

“Uh. Honestly, the dragon surprised me more.”

Diret stared at him in disbelief.

The fact that Lee Han considered the dragon normal was far more shocking.

Lee Han awkwardly tried to explain himself.

“Sorry. I figured the professors would be the bigger issue.”

“Is that person His Majesty?”

“Yes.”

Lee Han carefully explained why Jowurin had come and why the professors had accompanied the dragon, watching Diret’s expression as he spoke.

Unexpectedly, Diret accepted the explanation easily enough.

Having a dragon wandering around Einroguard unsupervised definitely wasn’t a minor issue.

“...Well, I suppose it’s safer if the ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ professors stay with His Majesty.”

“I thought they might be overreacting a little.”

“Huh? Not at all. There are way too many lunatics around here. Going together makes perfect sense.”

“...”

Lee Han was briefly left speechless by Diret’s absolute lack of trust in the underclassmen.

Meanwhile, a conversation was taking place behind them.

A dark magic lecture! Jowurin is excited!

“That’s right, Your Majesty. Contrary to common misconceptions, dark magic is a lineage that has been passed down since ancient times. You could even call it the orthodox tradition of ancient magic. And Student Diret here is one of the most talented students in all of Einroguard.”

Professor Garcia smoothly raised expectations even higher.

Jowurin’s enormous eyes sparkled like stars.

Wow! Like Gonadaltes?

“That’s right.”

“...”

Sweat beaded down Diret’s back.

Professor Garcia was one thing, but why was Professor Voladi Bagreg saying things like that too?

What do you mean, ‘like the Principal’...

“Senior, hang in there. I’ll help.”

“Yeah. Thanks. But junior.”

“Yes?”

“Go sit down over there.”

Diret looked genuinely dumbfounded.

Lee Han had positioned himself beside the podium like an assistant instructor preparing to support the lecture.

But Lee Han was supposed to be attending the class, not helping teach it.

Why was he standing there ready to assist?

‘Oops.’

Realizing his mistake, Lee Han quietly returned to his seat.

The moment he sat down, Jowurin scooped him up between her front paws and hugged him like a stuffed doll.

Watching his junior silently suffer, Diret apologized inwardly.

Sorry, junior. I’m just an ordinary student.

Diret simply didn’t have the courage to tell two professors and a high-ranking member of the Imperial Family to stop bothering his junior.

“First, the <Poison, Bone, Blood> lecture is... an advanced course covering several elements frequently used in dark magic, despite how often their importance gets overlooked.”

“Student Diret, don’t mind us. Just continue naturally.”

“Pretend we aren’t here.”

“...”

Diret nearly felt wronged.

If they really wanted him not to notice them, the three of them should’ve stayed outside!

“...Last week we learned skeleton golem summoning, junior.”

“Skeleton golem summoning?”

Professor Voladi Bagreg glanced toward Lee Han.

Trapped between Jowurin’s front paws with barely enough room to breathe, Lee Han nodded with difficulty.

“Yes.”

“I see.”

What do you mean, ‘I see’?

Lee Han flinched when he heard the scratching of Professor Voladi Bagreg’s quill pen.

If he hadn’t been pinned in place, he would’ve immediately checked what was being written down.

“You taught skeleton golem summoning in the first semester? Student Diret, even if your student is Student Lee Han, that’s far too harsh.”

“No, that’s not...”

Diret felt unfairly accused.

He hadn’t intended to teach it at all. He had merely tossed it out casually to buy himself some time to rest, and somehow his junior had actually mastered it within the class period...!

“...You’re right. I think I may have been a little too harsh on my junior...”

What exactly was that supposed to mean, even if your student is Student Lee Han?

Jowurin tilted her head curiously.

Professor Voladi Bagreg answered kindly.

“Exceptional students require instruction appropriate to their level.”

Ah! Like how Professor Bagreg used to hit Lee Han all the time?

“That never happened.”

“...”

Professor Garcia stared at Professor Voladi Bagreg in disbelief.

More importantly, how did Prince Jowurin even know about that rumor?

Einroguard already suffered from enough absurd false stories as it was. Professor Garcia suddenly felt worried the rumors would spread even further.

“Ahem. Anyway, Student Diret. Midterms are next week... How is the <Poison, Bone, Blood> course progressing?”

“Ah. About that.”

Diret hesitated.

The truth was that he had planned to let each student choose a topic for the midterm and learn one spell of an appropriate difficulty level related to it.

The problem was that <Skeleton Golem Summoning> was already more than difficult enough to qualify as a midterm assignment.

Diret had originally intended to let Lee Han summon one again at a reasonable level and simply pass him with that.

...but now that two professors and a dragon were watching him, he suddenly felt self-conscious.

Still, Professor Garcia should understand, right?

Even if the other two didn’t, surely Professor Garcia would sympathize.

Wasn’t Professor Garcia also someone who had taken courses across every school?

“So this was my plan.”

Professor Garcia listened carefully with a serious expression as Diret explained.

Unexpectedly, Professor Garcia did not immediately agree.

Naturally, he knew Lee Han was suffering under an absurd workload, but that was separate from whether Diret himself might get blamed later.

With the Skull Principal’s personality, there was a real possibility the man would seize on this as an excuse to throw Diret into the punishment cells.

Diret ending up in the room next to Professor Verdus.

The thought alone was ridiculous.

“Sounds fine to me.”

“...”

Professor Garcia once again looked at Professor Voladi Bagreg in disbelief.

This professor really is unbelievable!

“Professor!” 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

“?”

“What are you going to do if the Principal decides to make an issue of it later?”

“I doubt that will happen.”

“...Well, I don’t think it’s likely either... Student Diret, I think it should be acceptable.”

Professor Garcia suddenly found himself wondering something.

Maybe Diret wasn’t worried because Diret wasn’t Professor Voladi Bagreg’s disciple.

Someone who’s never had a disciple before becomes even scarier once they finally get one...

Then it’s settled, right? Lee Han, Lee Han! Show Jowurin the skeleton golem!

Jowurin excitedly urged him while casually crushing the telekinetic barrier Lee Han had wrapped around himself for protection.

Watching this, Lee Han once again appreciated how fortunate it was that he had learned telekinetic magic.

The insane duplicate really was helpful after all. ...Wait. Is this Stockholm syndrome?

“Please wait a moment. I’ll summon it.”

For Lee Han himself, reducing even one midterm assignment ahead of time was wonderful news.

At first, he had genuinely wondered how he was supposed to survive all these lectures.

But if he could clear them away one by one in advance like this, things might become much easier.

If <Advanced Illusion Magic and Spirit Theory>, <Wand Materials and Magical Amplification>, and <Viciously Beautiful Creatures> get removed from the exams, and now <Poison, Bone, Blood> too... Then there’s Professor Garcia’s class, <Understanding Intermediate Combat Magic>, <Elemental Magic and Its Linkages>, <Divination Spells Perfect for Going Mad>, <A Drop of Potion Instead of Complex Magic>, <Sword and Life>, <Imperial Languages That Become Flesh and Blood>, <The Tragic History of Ancient Relics and Summoning Magic>, <From Caterpillars to Dragons>, <A Mage’s Life with Plants>, <Practical Healing Magic>, <Spirit, Energy, Mind>...

...No. I should stop thinking about this.

Lee Han abruptly cut off the calculation.

He had a terrible feeling that if he continued counting, his soul would suffer irreparable damage.

“...Rise.”

After pulling out the bones of a large monster reinforced with dark and blood elements, Lee Han completed the process, recited the incantation, and issued the command.

The bones twisted together and assembled into a massive summoned creature.

A medium-sized skeleton golem strengthened through dark and blood elements.

Jowurin clapped enthusiastically.

Magnificent!

“Well made.”

“Not bad.”

Hearing praise from both professors and the dragon, not only Lee Han but Diret as well quietly relaxed.

Since there was only one student in the lecture, the entire evaluation of the class depended entirely on that one student.

Lee Han! Lee Han! Make it walk forward!

“Yes, yes.”

Ancient dark magic summoning relied on directly constructing commands instead of forming contracts, which made it particularly suited for handling this sort of miscellaneous task.

Jowurin was delighted as the skeleton golem moved while radiating dark crimson energy.

After spending so long surrounded only by creatures much smaller than herself, she had finally found something large enough to properly play with.

Lee Han! Jowurin will defeat the bad guy!

“Oh my. I place my full trust in Your Majesty.”

While flattering the dragon, Lee Han carefully manipulated the skeleton golem.

Under absolutely no circumstances could he allow Jowurin to get hurt.

That meant the golem had to look threatening while simultaneously losing in a convincing manner.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The skeleton golem swung exaggerated punches through empty air while Jowurin beat her wings and darted around them effortlessly.

Lee Han was too focused to notice, but Professor Voladi Bagreg quietly added another note.

Reaction speed — top grade.

Dragons were an exceptionally rare species within the Empire, and each individual varied enormously.

They could undergo dramatic growth and changes practically overnight, which meant their condition needed constant evaluation.

Only then could his disciple avoid accidents while fighting one in the future.

Jowurin’s strike!

Jowurin shouted the attack name dramatically and swung a front paw.

Deciding the timing was right, Lee Han deliberately exposed the golem’s chest instead of blocking or dodging.

Even reinforced with dark and blood elements and built from large monster bones, the construct could never withstand a dragon’s claws.

Crack!

With a loud shattering sound, the skeleton golem collapsed.

Jowurin flapped her wings excitedly and shouted.

Lee Han! Jowurin defeated the bad guy!

“Your Majesty truly is the future of the Empire!”

My junior is way too good at flattery.

Diret silently marveled.

Professors were one thing, but Lee Han somehow managed to charm even high-ranking royalty.

Diret genuinely couldn’t imagine what Lee Han planned to do in the future.

Was he aiming to become the next Principal of Einroguard?

Apparently satisfied after wrestling with the skeleton golem, Jowurin looked at Lee Han and spoke carefully.

Jowurin wants to do it again...

“Shall I summon another one? It’s not especially difficult.”

Really?!

As long as he had enough mana, repeatedly summoning them wasn’t particularly hard.

The moment Lee Han nodded, Jowurin squealed with delight and tried to hug him again.

Ugh. I seriously need to strengthen my telekinesis more.

Lee Han’s barrier creaked pitifully under the dragon’s happily increasing strength.

Oh! Can’t you make the bad guy tougher?

“Hmm. Not with my current level.”

The large monster bones Diret had provided were already reinforced close to their limits after Lee Han infused them directly with dark and blood elements.

Enhancement like that couldn’t continue endlessly.

In the end, everything depended on the quality of the materials.

Either he needed better reagents than large monster bones, or he needed to learn more efficient enhancement methods.

After hearing the explanation, Jowurin’s eyes sparkled once more.

Jowurin has a good idea!

“What is it?”

Here!

Jowurin proudly stretched out a front paw.

Resting on it was an unfamiliar material.

“What’s this?”

Jowurin’s tooth!

“...”

Lee Han’s face immediately turned pale.