Yi-unrade silently cursed his own mouth.

No, at this point, calling it a "mouth" was too kind—it was nothing more than a trap ready to ruin him.

“If a graduate can’t trust his juniors, then how are imperial officials supposed to trust them?” Hodrong’s voice was heavy with criticism.

“Y-you’re absolutely right, sir.”

“A first-year from the Wardanas family, huh? Hmm. I’ll need to investigate this further.”

Yi-unrade nodded, then froze mid-motion. As he processed what his superior had said, a wave of realization and horror washed over him.

The name Wardanas… It was the same one from that scandal—the one that had led to the Skull Principal being summoned before the Emperor himself!

Yi-unrade’s face turned pale with fear and apprehension.

*Can this really end well? Is there any way this ends well!?*

---

“……”

“……”

I-han and Giselle walked in silence, blending into the bustling city streets as various races mingled and passed by.

Their faces were gloomy and downcast.

With a sigh, I-han finally broke the silence.

“…Let’s just forget about it and focus on getting what we need.”

“Is it that easy?”

“We don’t really have a choice.”

Giselle threw him a look, sighed as well, then reluctantly nodded.

“Fine. Let’s just get what we need.”

They stopped in front of one of Granden City’s bookstores, *Ikalten’s Treasures.*

Inside, the clerk paused mid-greeting as they entered, taken aback by the somber expressions on their faces.

*Did… something happen?*

They looked like they’d just lost a close friend.

“*Making Artifacts from Imperial Scrap,* is this the one?”

“Yeah. Heard it’ll be useful for finals prep.”

“*Basic Uses of Yellowstone.* This too?”

“Yellowstone’s often discarded, so it can’t hurt to know more about it.”

With gloomy faces, they began gathering the items they needed for their final exams.

It wasn’t just reagents and materials they’d need—final exams required courage, perseverance, and even an assortment of grim spellbooks.

Typically, students would check these kinds of spellbooks out from the library. But the clever students of Einroguard had learned it was often safer to buy these books outside, rather than risk an attack from the library’s more “aggressive” volumes.

“Wait, Wardanas, why are we buying *Commonly Confused Imperial Spelling*?”

“Oh, your Tower keeps messing up spellings.”

“……”

Giselle flushed crimson, from her cheeks to the tips of her long ears. Cursing her White Tiger Tower friends for their lack of spelling skills, she moved to the next aisle.

While skimming through *Saint Iactus: The Lich Slayer,* Giselle sensed something amiss.

“Wardanas.”

“?”

“That person… doesn’t he seem suspicious?”

“Probably not as suspicious as we look in this bookstore…”

I-han said, though he eyed the person Giselle pointed to.

There was, indeed, reason for suspicion.

It wasn’t the cloak covering the person’s body; in a big city like this, plenty of people wore cloaks, so that alone wasn’t suspicious.

What stood out was the distinctive magical aura he radiated—a subtle energy only mages carried. The space around him hummed with controlled power, in a way that differentiated him from the magicless citizens.

And the books he was selecting…

*“On Blood and ■ of ■■,” “Summoning the Devil’s ■■■■...”*

*Ikalten’s Treasures* kept a few of the more obscure magical texts—though these were typically vetted by well-known mages. However, this person seemed intent on picking up every questionable tome he could find.

“Definitely suspicious.”

“Right? He has a dagger inside his cloak, and it’s stained with fresh blood. It hasn’t even dried yet.”

Giselle whispered sharply.

I-han, now focused on the details Giselle had pointed out, noticed the dagger concealed in the stranger’s cloak.

“Oh. Right.”

“…Wait. You didn’t even notice the dagger? Then what did you find suspicious?”

“The fact that he’s a mage?”

“?”

“And the sketchy spellbooks he’s collecting…”

“That’s… actually, never mind. This isn’t the time.”

Giselle held back from pointing out that I-han himself was a mage with his own share of suspicious books.

“So what’s our move?”

“He’s suspicious, sure, but there are plenty of shady folks in the city. We can’t be bothered with all of them, and he could have any number of reasons for the bloody dagger.”

Giselle frowned, tapping her scabbard thoughtfully, then reluctantly nodded.

“True enough.”

“Let’s just mention it to the clerk, just in case.”

With their shopping complete, they left Ikalten’s Treasures and moved on to the next stop: *Fuyo’s Banyan Staffs.*

“So, how did you leave silver with him?”

“I saved some from last time we worked together.”

“…Hmm.”

Just as Giselle tried to figure out where to start lecturing him, she spotted someone familiar walking ahead.

It was the suspicious stranger from the bookstore.

“Him?”

“Probably just coincidence that he’s heading in the same direction.”

I-han said firmly, determined to avoid getting involved with anything suspicious today.

*Please, let’s not get caught up in something else!*

The stranger stopped abruptly in front of *Fuyo’s Banyan Staffs.* No one else was around.

Instinctively, I-han grabbed Giselle and whispered a spell.

“Mantle, consume us!”

The invisibility spell took effect, and their forms vanished from sight. The stranger glanced around but didn’t seem to notice anything unusual.

Then, with a sweeping motion, he produced a gnarled staff and pulled out the bloody dagger with his other hand.

He made a quick cut along his arm, causing the blade to pulse erratically with energy as it absorbed the fresh blood.

*Blood magic!*

I-han quickly recognized the ritual.

Though the spell was cruder and more dangerous than what he’d learned, the principle of amplifying magic with blood remained the same.

As his power grew, the stranger seemed to gain confidence, lifting his staff as he began chanting.

“Strength, power, come to me…”

In the middle of an empty street, casting enhancement spells like that could only mean one thing.

I-han and Giselle exchanged weary looks, both sighing.

They really were having the worst luck today.

“Strike, Perkuntra’s thunderbolt!”

“Bind to my blade, and shatter him!”

“Aargh!”

The would-be thief was struck down by their combined spells of lightning and blade.

---

“Thank you so much. Really, thank you.”

Fuyo, usually a man of few words, was so moved that he shook their hands vigorously.

“We were just doing our duty, sir.”

“Really, you don’t need to thank us.”

The city guards soon came and took the criminal away, but the two of them wanted nothing more than to grab their silver and leave.

“Wait right here. After what you did for me, I can’t let you go without showing my appreciation. I recently acquired some rare tea leaves…”

“Uh, Mr. Fuyo, we really have some urgent business…”

“By the way, how’d you manage to come out here? It’s not easy for Einroguard students to leave the grounds, is it?”

Fuyo’s curiosity piqued, and I-han quickly redirected the conversation.

“What kind of tea leaves did you get?”

“Oh, these leaves were harvested on the glaciers of the Northern Sea.”

Though Giselle shot him a look that said they needed to leave, I-han knew he couldn’t risk offending Fuyo.

They ended up having tea, inspecting staffs, getting advice on magic, and even receiving a generous gift of enchanted wood from Fuyo.

“……”

“…Feels like we messed up,” Giselle muttered.

I-han ignored her, hefting the bundle of wood onto his back.

“Let’s go. We still have a lot to get.”

“Honestly, I think we’re doomed. There’s probably going to be a bandit on the way to the next stop.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Don’t tell me you’re letting superstition get to you?”

With a sigh, Giselle followed after him.

He had a point. No matter what trials fate threw their way, they’d just have to keep pushing through.

“Yeah. Besides, the others are probably doing just fine…”

*Crash!*

“Aaagh!”

“The wall’s collapsing! Everyone, be careful!!”

“Jellin’s trapped under the debris! Damn it, there’s so much blood! Oh, Sesenza, why test us like this?!”

I-han tossed his bundle and sprinted toward the nearby construction site where a disaster had struck.

Without a word, Giselle followed close behind.

“Move aside, everyone!”

“Who are you—oh, a mage! Are you from Einroguard?”

Without bothering to explain, I-han lifted his staff and began gesturing. Giselle used her enhanced strength to kick away the rubble, clearing space for I-han to start healing.

“Bind, bind, bind, bind…”

With a crunching sound, bones began to set themselves back in place. Giselle looked on, impressed.

She knew I-han was one of the few first-years who could perform healing magic, but she hadn’t realized he could heal such severe injuries this quickly.

“…Heal!”

“All done?”

“Just barely.”

I-han nodded, panting.

Maybe Moradi had been right—today really was an unlucky day.

They’d reached the mansion only to find escapees attempting a breakout,

 captured criminals only to encounter a thief, subdued the thief only to be faced with an accident...

*Maybe we should have consulted a fortune teller about today.*

He stowed his staff with a weary sigh.

“Thank you so much, Mage! You’re a savior!”

“Please, tell us your names!”

Before I-han could answer, a passing city guard doffed his helmet and offered the explanation himself.

“The one on the left is I-han of House Wardanas, and the one on the right is Giselle of House Moradi. They’re mages of Einroguard, and we are deeply grateful for their dedication.”

“Ah! Truly, thank you!”

“Yes…”

“That’s us.”

Both of them half-heartedly nodded.

At this point, they figured they might as well just accept it.

---

“No one’s here yet!”

“Hurry, hurry!”

The students who had returned just before sunset rushed through the corridors of the mansion, hauling their goods.

Despite all the commotion, the mansion was still empty, and the portal was still working perfectly.

“Let’s go!”

“You all did great!”

The students waiting in the storeroom cheered as their friends returned.

“No one followed you, right?”

“Hey, did I hear right that Wardanas took down a bandit? What’s up with that?”

“A bandit? I thought he saved a guild’s stonemason?”

“…???”

“?????”

The students looked at each other in confusion.

“Must be rumors, right?”

“Probably. Wardanas isn’t an idiot; he wouldn’t go around doing things like that.”

“Right. Moradi was with him too. There’s no way someone like Moradi would stop to help random strangers. She’s not Angrago or anything.”

“Hey, watch it!”