“Wardanaz. Drink this. It makes anger disappear.”

The friendly giants handed Lee Han a giant gourd filled with liquor, hoping to calm him down first.

The alcohol, brewed from fermented mountain-range-destroying sheep milk, was so strong and fiery that a single sip could supposedly melt away anyone’s anger.

Fwoosh!

“...Unless I’m mistaken, is it on fire?”

-Correct! Makes it hotter!

Even without drinking it, just hearing about the giants’ ridiculous drinking habits eased Lee Han’s irritation a little. He steadied himself and turned back around.

“Thank you for worrying about me.”

-That mage suspicious.

“Giants! This Intarendals would never harm Master’s disciple...”

“That person is partly at fault too.”

“?!”

Intarendals stared in shock at Lee Han’s sudden accusation.

What exactly had he done wrong?

-Throw him off cliff! Throw him off cliff!

“It’s not that serious. You don’t need to get angry.”

-Wardanaz generous! Too kind!

The giants pretended to pat Lee Han on the back—having learned from past experience what would happen if they actually did—and showered him with praise.

Right. There’s no reason to despair already. Prophecies aren’t absolute.

Lee Han firmed his resolve.

Prophecies were never absolute. If anything, blindly allowing yourself to be dragged around by them was even more dangerous.

And Intarendals was still just a mage. There was every possibility the interpretation was wrong.

For all he knew, the wandering star Arna’s orbit and laws might have shifted over time and turned into a constellation that protected hardworking Einroguard students—

Even I know that sounds absurd.

The more magic one learned, the sharper the mind became. Which also made it much harder to fool yourself.

“Lee Han of House Wardanaz. You must persuade the giants.”

Despite being unfairly blamed, Intarendals didn’t protest.

At some point, he must have failed to properly attend to Master’s disciple. Otherwise such words would never have been spoken. He needed to reflect on himself.

“Understood. Let’s persuade them together—”

-Wardanaz. Sheep had babies! Come see!

-Wardanaz. New pot finished! Come look!

-I spoke first!

-Sheep babies normal! Pot more important!

Crash! Bang!

As the giants started grabbing each other by the collar and brawling, Lee Han hurriedly stepped between them. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

“I’ll go to both! Both!”

Watching Lee Han disappear with the giants after calming them down, Intarendals {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} finally muttered in delayed panic,

“Wait... what about the negotiations...?”

***

Left alone at the giants’ encampment, Intarendals guarded the carts in lonely silence while waiting for Lee Han to return.

Then a low, rough voice called out behind him.

-Unusual guest. To think someone older than this old man exists.

‘Yaca!’

Recognizing the Yaca Old Man, Intarendals offered a polite greeting.

“Greetings. I am Chief Attendant Intarendals. I have come under Gonadaltes’ orders to conduct negotiations.”

-Gonadaltes...? Ah. I see. Then feel free to speak comfortably.

“I came under Master’s orders. I cannot.”

-Then I shall observe courtesy as well.

The Yaca Old Man quickly realized the other party served the insane duplicate rather than the Skull Principal.

None of the Skull Principal’s servants included a resurrected chief attendant like this.

-But why are you here alone...?

“Well, you see...”

Intarendals began explaining the situation, sounding almost like he was filing a complaint.

He had expected negotiations with the giants to be difficult and time-consuming. What he hadn’t expected was to spend all this time simply waiting around.

At a moment when serious negotiations should already have been underway, standing idle naturally made him frustrated.

-Ah. Giants like Wardanaz Family Boy very much. Since it’s been a while since they saw him, probably lots to talk about.

“Are giants normally such a sociable race?”

-Not really. Wardanaz Family Boy just special.

Intarendals nodded at the Yaca Old Man’s words.

Certainly, as Gonadaltes’ disciple, Lee Han was bound to be extraordinary.

...Though he hadn’t expected that extraordinariness to include being beloved by giants...

“Regardless, we still need to negotiate, and I have no idea when he’ll return.”

-Negotiate?

“Didn’t I explain already? We need guards to protect the mountain workshop...”

-Ah. It wasn’t your meaning I failed to understand.

The Yaca Old Man set down the A-frame carrier and basket he had been carrying before continuing.

-The giants will agree if Wardanaz asks.

“Haha. You have a good sense of humor! ...Wait. You weren’t joking?”

-No.

“That’s... impossible.”

Intarendals immediately rejected the idea.

Of course, after seeing things personally, he knew Lee Han got along well with the giants. But public business and personal friendship were separate matters.

Giants were not such generous beings that they would take on work for free simply because they liked someone.

-It true. Ask when he comes back—

Before the Yaca Old Man could finish, the giants finally returned with Lee Han.

-Our statue magnificent, yes?!

“Yes... very magnificent...”

-We also made one on eastern peak! Let’s go see that too!

“...Next time. Masterpieces shouldn’t all be viewed at once. It dulls the emotional impact...”

-As expected of Wardanaz! Smart!

Lately, the giants had apparently become obsessed with sculpture, erecting crooked giant statues atop every mountain peak they could find.

That part alone would have been fine. The exhausting part was being dragged around to inspect each one individually.

“Oh. Greetings.”

Lee Han spotted the Yaca Old Man at the camp and greeted him.

Before the yaca could answer, however, the giants exploded into angry accusations.

-Ooh! Yaca Old Man!

-Because of you, Wardanaz angry! Wardanaz suffered! You take responsibility!

-???

The Yaca Old Man looked utterly bewildered by the sudden attack.

Giants always spoke nonsense, but what exactly were they talking about this time?

-What nonsense is this? What did I do?

-Wardanaz met Yaca King! Suffered because of it! Yaca Old Man responsible!

-...You met the Yaca King?!

Of all the shocks he’d received today, that one hit the Yaca Old Man the hardest.

Yaca tribes were scattered across countless dimensions, but among all of them there existed only one being worthy of the title Yaca King.

The wisest yaca, revered and served by all yaca races alike.

-You met that wise king?

“What’s so wise about him?”

Lee Han grumbled irritably.

The Yaca Old Man blinked in genuine confusion at the bitterness in his voice.

-You met His Majesty the Yachaowang. What is there to complain about? That is glorious opportunity!

According to legend, the wisest of the yaca kings resided in a palace hidden deep within the dimensions, a place ordinary beings could never hope to approach, where he governed wisdom and secrets alike.

His wisdom was said to be so profound that countless people would gladly offer up their eyes or even their hearts for a chance to meet him.

-In ancient yaca legends, there is story. Lost traveler wandering at night discovers house and opens door, and inside—

“Forget the legends. It didn’t help me at all. I nearly died.”

-Woo! Terrible!

-Yaca Old Man apologize!

Perhaps the lesson was slightly too intense?

The Yaca Old Man reflected inwardly.

The Yachaowang was a benevolent ruler who delighted in granting wisdom to lost wanderers. But perhaps, for a young mage, the experience had felt a bit overwhelming.

Thinking that, the Yaca Old Man genuinely pitied Lee Han.

To misunderstand the king’s well-meaning guidance so badly...

It’s fine. Once enough time passes, he’ll eventually understand His Majesty’s intentions and feel grateful.

The Yaca Old Man nodded to himself, entertaining thoughts that would have made Lee Han immediately order the giants to grab him by the collar if he’d heard them.

-Hmm. There must have been danger involved. Still, chance like this only comes once in lifetime...

“He told me to visit again next time.”

-What?! Then of course you must go, young mage!

The Yaca Old Man flared up without realizing it.

If the king himself had invited him, the proper response was gratitude and immediate acceptance—not refusal!

“What nonsense are you talking about? I’m absolutely not going.”

-Think carefully. His Majesty—

-Wardanaz not going! Yaca Old Man quiet!

-...These youngsters really!

The Yaca Old Man swung his massive wooden staff, empowered by years of accumulated virtue. The giants yelled and scattered.

-...His Majesty taught you everything out of concern for you. Do you understand?

“For reference, the Principal’s insane duplicate also says he’s teaching me out of concern.”

-...

The Yaca Old Man suddenly realized the boy before him had far too many extraordinary teachers.

For most people, encountering even one such master in a lifetime would be a rare blessing. But for all these masters to compete over teaching a single disciple...

From the disciple’s perspective, it sounded exhausting.

His Majesty does not deserve to be lumped together with them like this!

“Um... Giants.”

Unable to endure any longer, Intarendals finally cleared his throat and spoke.

“Could we perhaps begin the negotiations now? Even if we start immediately, it should still take at least two more days, so little by little—”

-Huh? No.

-We already talked while walking around earlier. We’ll help now.

The giants answered casually before striding off toward the workshop.

Intarendals stood frozen in utter shock, barely managing to squeeze out a sentence.

“...This attendant has become too old to assist Master any longer!”

“No, why are you reacting like this again? The giants are just being nice.”

Lee Han hurriedly tried to comfort his emotionally devastated ancestral retainer.

***

The evil adventurer group known as Kangle’s Shadow had long-standing ties with Antagondals.

No matter how exceptional a mage might be, nobody could accomplish everything alone. Even a magical criminal like Antagondals was no exception.

Antagondals required adventurers capable of carrying out dirty work quietly and efficiently, and Kangle’s Shadow excelled at precisely that.

In return, Antagondals supplied the party with powerful magical support.

Every outstanding adventuring party had a capable mage backing them. For Kangle’s Shadow, that mage had been Antagondals.

So when contact with Antagondals was suddenly severed and a rescue request arrived, it was only natural for the adventurers to mobilize seriously.

It’s not just because we lost our support. This is a chance to get our hands on the magical items he owns.

To be blunt, they could always find another mage willing to support the party.

There might not be another archmage on Antagondals’ level, but replacing him wasn’t impossible.

But what about the countless treasures Antagondals possessed?

These adventurers knew better than anyone how many relics the infamous mage criminal had collected over the years. Having worked under him directly, they couldn’t help but know.

Even if rescuing Antagondals proved impossible, they still needed to recover his keys and access rights somehow.

“But would Antagondals willingly hand them over?”

“If things look hopeless, we should consider killing him. Trapped inside Einroguard, he must be severely weakened. That place softens even decent people.”

The adventurer known as the Keymaster spoke from beneath a cloak and mask engraved with shadows as black as midnight.

The members of Kangle’s Shadow disliked revealing their names or identities to one another. If something ever went wrong, that knowledge could become dangerous.

The adventurer called the Swordsman voiced another concern.

“What if we kill him from the start and simply carry the corpse out?”

“That’s only for the worst-case scenario. His treasures could become sealed upon death.”

“Damn it. To think we’d end up going to Einroguard. My grandfather used to tell stories about that place...”

“What stories?”

When the Archer muttered uneasily, the other adventurers turned toward him with curiosity.

“My grandfather once infiltrated Einroguard and got caught. He barely made it back alive.”

“Oh. Isn’t that good for us? Then he must have known a lot about the academy.”

“No. He could never say a single word about Einroguard. Not until the day he died. A prohibition had been carved into his soul. The only thing he ever repeated was for us never to go near Einroguard.”

“...”

“...”

Even these evil adventurers, hardened by countless dangers and atrocities, felt instinctive fear crawl up their spines.