"I'm so happy to receive such excellent potions that I might even cry... What brings you here? If there's anything I can help with, just let me know."
Yi Han then explained the hidden, vicious trap in the alchemy assignment to Priestess Siana.
Priestess Siana listened with a serious expression, then suddenly exclaimed, "Ah!" as if she had remembered something.
"I thought some of the materials looked a bit odd, so I was planning to look them up in the books later... But now that we're gathering materials to test what the issue might be, would you like to join us? We could really use your help, Priestess Siana, since your alchemy skills are unmatched."
Without hesitation, Priestess Siana nodded.
"Of course, I'll help. I'll bring the students from the Phoenix Tower with me!"
As Yi Han watched Priestess Siana excitedly run off, he thought to himself, 'If only the White Tiger Tower were this easy...'
The Black Turtle Tower was even easier.
Nilia and Ratford had brought their friends along.
In fact, convincing the students to come out was less of a hassle than dealing with the Black Turtle Tower students who had gathered at the black market.
They all lined up, thinking Yi Han had brought something new to trade.
"Wodanaz! What about this wand-sword? Even the White Tiger Tower students would want this!"
"Move aside! Wodanaz, how about this Golem Evasion Talisman?"
In contrast, the White Tiger Tower students were...
"Wodanaz!"
"Don't face him alone!"
"......"
Even when Derku stepped in to try and get his friends to come out, the White Tiger Tower students didn't budge easily.
In the end, Yi Han gave up and returned. 'Well... we should have enough people even without them.'
With students from all three towers gathered, there were plenty of leftover materials.
Yi Han and Yonell, with Priestess Siana's help, carefully measured out the remaining materials.
These were the experimental materials needed to figure out the correct formula.
"Everything's ready. We should be able to start testing now."
"Good work, everyone."
The students gathered at the site let out a collective sigh.
They had to go through all this trouble again because of Professor Thunderfoot's... traps.
"Wodanaz, by the way, I heard you're using your day pass to go out tomorrow?"
"!"
The Blue Dragon Tower students knew Yi Han had received a day pass, but the others didn't.
The Black Turtle Tower students, and even the Phoenix Tower students, were all shocked, their eyes wide as they stared at Yi Han.
"Y-you got a day pass?!"
"As expected of Wodanaz!"
"Wait, how do you even get one? Do you have to catch a golem or something?"
"That's not the point! Wodanaz, what are you planning to bring back??"
The students crowded around Yi Han.
While they were envious of him getting to go out for a day, what was more important was what he would bring back from outside.
"If I could go outside... what should I bring back? There's so much to choose from!"
"Calm down, let's think about it one by one."
While Yi Han stayed quiet, his friends were the ones getting excited. 'If I could go out, what should I bring back from outside?'
"Definitely food. Something sweet and small, as much as possible."
"Let's rent a carriage and bring it back, Wodanaz!"
"Remember when we first enrolled? They won't allow carriages."
"Food is good, but what about clothes? Honestly, the clothes we're wearing now are more like rags than clothes."
'Isn't it comfortable...?' Nilia tilted her head.
The clothes seemed comfortable enough...
"Definitely something sturdy and comfortable."
"Shoes too! And a hat and cloak! And also..."
Asan, who had been listening nearby, chimed in.
"I need books and stationery like quills and ink."
"Dalkard... what nonsense are you talking about? Can you eat books? Can you drink ink?"
"No, I mean, I like food too. But seriously, I need books."
Asan was serious too.
While preparing for their assignments, the students had started stepping into the school's library one by one.
But of course, this library wasn't the warm, cozy place where you could easily find books organized neatly.
'Who the hell organized this?' It was a chaotic, disorderly space that made you want to scream.
That was the school library.
So even when they needed to reference books for their assignments, finding the books themselves was a task.
The students couldn't help but miss bookstores outside the school.
The kind where you could just ask for a book, and the kind bookstore owner would wrap it up in paper and hand it to you like a gift.
"If we stay like this, there's a 95% chance we'll collapse before we even finish our assignments. We need to find at least the basic textbooks for our subjects."
"Hmm... that makes sense."
The students, who had just been shouting about butter cookies, chocolate cookies, caramel waffles, milk roll wafers, and maple syrup candies, nodded seriously.
"And it's not just books. We need calculation artifacts too. Calculating by hand is killing me."
"That definitely makes sense."
"I'm bored without anything to read. We need some magazines or novels. And maybe a new deck of cards or a chessboard."
"...?"
The friends nodded along but then paused.
Something felt off.
"Gainan, you brat! Is that really urgent right now?"
"It's urgent, that's why I said it! Why can't I say what I need when you all are?"
"Guys, Wodanaz went to sleep."
"?!"
Since Yi Han had to leave early on Sunday morning, he went straight to his room after finishing the alchemy assignment.
'I can't sleep.' Yi Han felt ridiculous.
It wasn't like he was a child getting excited about a field trip, but he couldn't sleep.
However, this wasn't the innocent excitement of a child.
It was more like the nervousness before a difficult exam.
'Will I really be able to do well?' Anyone watching might think he was about to take a graduation exam, but Yi Han was serious.
Even though it was a legitimate day pass, Yi Han wasn't letting his guard down.
He was sure the school had some kind of trap.
'Let's think.
What could go wrong?' Yi Han thought that using a carriage or horse would definitely be prohibited.
Just like when they first enrolled, the school wouldn't allow such things. 'Surely they'll let me bring back what I can carry? I need to bring back as much as possible...
How far is the nearest village?'
Distance was another thing to consider.
During his first escape, he had a carriage, but now he didn't.
The school might have placed the village just far enough that it would take more than a day to get there and back, just to say, "You have one day to go and come back!"
'Damn it.
I should have learned a speed-enhancing spell!' Yi Han lamented.
If he had learned a physical enhancement spell, he wouldn't be worrying like this...
Of course, that wasn't something a freshman should be worrying about.
Pralalalak!
"...?!?"
Suddenly, a book from the bookshelf flew out and opened on its own.
It was the black, coverless book that the Skeleton Headmaster had given him.
Tentacles of letters sprouted from the black book and wrapped around Yi Han.
"What...?"
Before he could finish his sentence, Yi Han found himself somewhere else.
A desolate wasteland with nothing in the sky or on the distant horizon.
Yi Han instinctively knew it was an illusion created by the black book.
Bang!
The black book appeared in front of Yi Han, fluttering in the air and revealing a page.
The spell written on the page was one Yi Han had received before but hadn't mastered yet: <Gonadaltes' Nimble Steps>.
"Are you... telling me to learn this now?"
The black book shook up and down, as if nodding in agreement.
"Did you recommend this because I was worrying?"
The black book shook up and down again.
It was kind of cute, and Yi Han felt a bit better.
It was more thoughtful than he expected.
"Wait. I don't have time to learn this now. I have to go out tomorrow. Send me back."
The black book stopped in mid-air and slowly shook side to side, as if frowning.
"......"
Yi Han regretted thinking it was thoughtful.
Of course, a book given by the Headmaster wouldn't be so straightforward.
"... Burn!"
Yi Han tried to cast a fire spell, but it didn't work.
The black book shrugged and opened its pages again, as if saying that <Gonadaltes' Nimble Steps> was the only spell he could use now.
"......"
Yi Han sighed and adjusted his grip on his staff.
Prisoner Number 24601!
"Um, Master. I'm not a prisoner, though."
Ah, right.
Sorry.
Sometimes I get confused because of my age.
"......"
Listening to the conversation between the Skeleton Headmaster and his summon, Yi Han yawned.
At this point, such conversations didn't shock him anymore.
The black book had forcibly dragged Yi Han into an illusionary training session, but thankfully, it didn't steal his sleep.
It was all in his dreams.
Of course, he was still mentally exhausted...
'I hate that I'm even feeling grateful for this.'
Congratulations on your day out, Wodanaz! This is a well-deserved reward for your achievements, so be proud!
"Thank you."
The rules are simple! Leave when the sun rises today and return to the main gate by the time the sun rises tomorrow.
If you don't return, a pursuit team will be sent after you.
"......"
Yi Han had suspected as much, but hearing it out loud made it feel even more absurd.
You can only carry what you can bear.
You can't borrow a carriage, horse, or any other vehicle!
"Understood."
Then do your best!
"...?"
Yi Han was puzzled. 'The rules are more lenient than I thought?' He had expected restrictions on the amount of money he could use, the weight of his luggage, or the volume of his belongings.
But there were none.
What's going on?
Yi Han ran hard.
Thanks to that, he arrived at his destination by the time the sun was overhead.
Philoné Village.
The closest village to the magic school.
"... So you're saying there are no noble family mansions in this village now?"
"Tsk tsk. You must be a student who escaped from the magic school. That's how it is. When the semester starts, the school tells people to move their mansions far away."
"......"
The great families of the empire didn't leave the school even when the semester started.
They bought mansions in nearby villages and stationed servants and slaves there in preparation for vacations.
It was a typical waste of money by the great families, but Yi Han had been counting on that.
He had planned to visit them with a ledger of student signatures to secure some pocket money...
But now, Yi Han was at a loss for words.
'This damn school.'
"Then where did those mansions go?"
"They went to Granden City."
"How far is Granden City...?"
"You'd have to ride for several days to get there..."
"......"
Yi Han realized why there were no restrictions on the amount of money, weight, or volume.
The school had already blocked all means for students to secure money.
If a student managed to escape and reach the nearest Philoné Village, they would realize their mistake and despair!
"... Do they really have to go this far??"
"What did you say?"
"Nothing."
Yi Han raised his head.
Now that things had come to this, he wouldn't back down.
"Where's the nearest merchant guild building?"
"Merchant guild? It's down that street... Why?"
"I need to borrow some money."
"......"
The villager was shocked.
The boy looked like he came from a noble family... 'Is he really okay?'