As the lecture ended, Professor Verduus approached Yi-Han with an innocent expression on his face.

"Do we now have time for a lesson?" he asked.

"Professor, I fear I don't have the time right now, as I am preoccupied with my final exam assignment," Yi-Han replied, pointing to his shield.

Professor Verduus, with a look of surprise, asked back, "What do you mean? There's so much to be improved in this shield!"

"Indeed, but I must fix it at my level," Yi-Han responded.

"Aha!" Professor Verduus exclaimed, as if he had just realized something.

Yi-Han felt an urge to strike Professor Verduus.

"It's challenging, isn't it?"

"Yes, isn't it?"

"Hmm... Hmm... Umm... something within your capabilities..."

After a moment of thought with his eyes closed, Professor Verduus opened his mouth and said, "How about adding a magic spell for attack reflection?"

"How is that something I can do at my level?" Yi-Han questioned.

He was still unfamiliar with enchantment magic, but he guessed that incorporating a 'reflection' attribute wouldn't be easy. The concept of returning an incoming attack in its original direction was certainly not simple, especially when compared to attributes like levitation, automation, or defense.

"That's the easiest option, though," Verduus claimed.

"Is it...?"

Yi-Han pondered whether he should seriously start studying the reflection attribute or simply paint the shield and claim it was upgraded. He thought about the potential impact on his overall grade if he failed his final exam.

As he deliberated, Professor Verduus, still with his naive demeanor, asked again, "So, do we have time for a lesson now?"

"No?"

"?!?!??!"

Professor Verduus looked at Yi-Han with a face one might make when all their collected bark had burned away.

Feeling proud, Yi-Han sat down and smiled, recalling Professor Verduus's expression.

This was, in fact, a matter of survival for him. If he had agreed to learn from Professor Verduus, the professor would not let him go until he was satisfied. He had to persist, ideally until graduation.

Yi-Han imagined telling Professor Verduus, "I'll learn from you tomorrow," on the eve of his graduation ceremony. Of course, sustaining this until then might be challenging, but

"Has anyone completed the assignment for <Basic Imperial Geometry and Arithmetic>?"

"Who could have finished that already? ...Wardanaz?"

A student from the Blue Dragon suddenly turned to look at Yi-Han while speaking.

Yi-Han retorted, somewhat incredulously, "I haven't finished either. Don't you see the pile of assignments before me?"

While his friends were choosing one or two schools of magic, Yi-Han was taking additional courses in dark magic, summoning magic, illusion magic, enchantment magic, divination magic, transformation magic, healing magic, etc.

His friends quietly looked away, their eyes downcast at the pile of thick books, afraid of making eye contact with Yi-Han and being dragged into extra study.

Yi-Han knew he should start thinking about the <Basic Imperial Geometry and Arithmetic> assignment soon.

It was Saturday, a weekend when relaxation wouldn't have been unusual, but with the final exams just a week away, a tense atmosphere hung in the tower. The next week would be the hellish pre-final assignments, followed by the hellish final exams the week after.

Some courses even combined or linked assignments and exams. The assignment for <Basic Imperial Geometry and Arithmetic> was one such case.

-Create a simple magic structure blueprint and submit it. Once you submit and it's approved, you can begin manufacturing. Efficiency and saving will be the criteria for evaluation.-

-Um Do we need to procure materials ourselves, by any chance?-

-Regrettably, materials other than those provided are not allowed. You must use only the supplied materials.-

-Thank you!!-

-??-

The assignment wasn't as absurdly difficult as enchantment magic.

However, it was still a time-consuming task.

Selecting the structure, choosing the appropriate magic for it, picking the necessary materials, estimating the costs tightly, and if approved, making it...

'...I had imagined being a mage would be a bit more mystical.'

Since entering Einroguard, the mystique of being a mage seemed to be fading day by day.

Yi-Han glanced out the window. The sun was already high in the sky.

By the time he took Niffirg to the spire stable tonight, the weekend would be over.

He had to finish as much of the assignment as possible...

"Yonaire, what's the simplest structure we could make?"

"Huh?"

Yonaire, who had been sketching a portable potion storage box, looked up.

"A magic lamp or a box? A simple trap?"

"Hmm."

Yi-Han noted down each suggestion, deep in thought.

Was there something simple, easy to complete, low on material costs, and yet could score well?

"If there was something like that, wouldn't I have done it first?"

Yonaire was worried, wondering if her friend had studied too much.

But Yi-Han was seriously engrossed.

He felt like he was onto something.

"...Yonaire, I've got it!"

"What?"

Yonaire nearly snapped her quill in surprise.

Had Yi-Han really found something that met all the criteria?

"Look at this."

Yi-Han sketched a tall, slender magic lamp.

It was a glowing structure commonly installed in cities, castles, fortresses, and village streets, brightening dark alleys and serving as a lifeline for many apprentice mages.

But this also meant there was extensive research on it.

Brighter, cheaper, longer-lasting, more efficient, more splendid, with added features - there were all kinds of improved magic lamps.

Professor Alpen Knighton emphasized efficiency and conservation as evaluation criteria, but any design too similar to existing ones would obviously be penalized.

Had Yi-Han managed to create a design that differentiated itself from the existing ones?

"?!"

Yonaire was surprised when she saw the magic lamp Yi-Han was pointing at.

It was just a long, slender pole with nothing else.

'Could it be?'

Yonaire recalled the duration of the light sphere her friend had conjured and the autonomous shield's duration.

"Could it be... you're planning to strip away all the design and just use magic?!"

A strategy only Yi-Han could employ.

It meant discarding all the power designs and distribution, and just casting the magic himself.

Others might say, 'What kind of design is that,' but it had its rationale.

As long as the magic lasted for days, even without any design, it could still be considered a magic structure!

Of course, whether Professor Knighton would accept such a stretch was uncertain, but the idea was undeniably ingenious.

"...You're talking nonsense, Yonaire. I haven't even drawn it yet."

Yi-Han looked at Yonaire as if she were absurd. Yonaire, embarrassed, blushed slightly.

"Really?"

"Really. There's no way Professor would accept such a stretch."

"Maybe he will accept it..."

Yonaire trailed off, sounding uncertain.

"What I had in mind was this, Yonaire. We overlap an amplification magic circle here to increase efficiency. It'll take some trial and error, but it should save on material costs."

Yi-Han's explanation was certainly logical.

The difficulty of creation might increase, but with enough skill, this blueprint could indeed save on materials.

However, Yonaire, still holding onto a sliver of hope, asked, "So, you're really not considering that other idea?"

"I'm not," Yi-Han confirmed.

With a burst of light, Yi-Han activated the invisibility artifact on Niffirg.

"Niffirg, be good. You need to stay quiet until we get there. Understand?"

Puheee-heee...?

Niffirg sent a worried glance at Yi-Han, wondering why its master was behaving so oddly. Compared to other students, Niffirg's master was quite unusual.

"Good boy."

Niffirg, tilting its head in confusion, followed behind Yi-Han.

The Death Knights around the main building waved as Yi-Han walked towards the gate.

-Don't wander around too late, Wardanaz.-

"Yes, I'll keep that in mind."

-Why do you even say such things? He might wander late. If someone heard you, they'd think you never go on night walks!-

-Shh, shh! Wardanaz might hear you!-

'How warm-hearted they are.'

Thanks to his previous talks with the Death Knights near the main gate, Yi-Han moved without arousing any suspicion.

Fortunately, the shortcut to the spire stable was still there.

'It's going so smoothly it's almost unsettling.'

Arriving near the spire stable in less than thirty minutes, Yi-Han felt a sense of unease.

Having been at Einroguard for a while, he had developed a habit of feeling unnecessarily anxious even when things were going well.

'I need to cover my face with the cloak...'

Yi-Han casually pulled his cloak over his head, like someone who was just about to go back after a visit.

If Amur came from outside, he would pretend to be a friend and leave with him.

'There's a chance.'

Initially worried, Yi-Han felt hopeful after observing the people coming and going from the stable.

Surprisingly, it was bustling with visitors - professors, employees from outside, merchants, and errand runners.

With the crowd bustling, shoulders bumping into each other, no one paid attention to Yi-Han.

"Mages are really too much, aren't they? Asking for the egg of a Fire Phoenix within a week! How can we bring that in just a week?"

"Hey! Be careful with that box! If it breaks, we could all die!"

"Is there a demon inside?"

"No. It's a glass statue requested by the principal."

"..."

While eavesdropping on these warm conversations, a familiar face flew in from afar.

'Amur!'

After skillfully landing, Amur filled out the entry log.

Then he looked around.

"Over here."

"...Finally!"

Amur, who had not been expecting much, was overjoyed to see Yi-Han.

"Remarkable. I didn't expect this! I never thought you'd manage it."

"It's too early to celebrate."

"Don't worry. Having come this far, it's as good as success. We'll leave with the merchants when they set off."

Yi-Han nodded.

Although he kept his expression calm, his heart was racing with excitement.

If he succeeded, Yi-Han would secure a way to periodically leave the academy.

While Amur was unloading his cargo, Yi-Han fed Niffirg a potion to remove the curse magic.

Boom!

Niffirg, returning to its original form, scratched the ground joyously.

"...I thought it was a joke, but it turned out to be true."

Amur was once again surprised as he watched the griffin, yawning contentedly in a corner of the spire stable.

It certainly didn't seem like a creature a first-year student could tame.

"The griffin is quite unique. It won't get noticed, will it?"

"There's no need to worry. There are far more unusual creatures around here than griffins."

Indeed, the nearby beasts overflowed with unique characteristics, as Amur had said.

Yi-Han tried to avoid the intense gaze of a human-faced bird staring directly at him.

"Our turn is coming up. Get ready."

"Yes."

The spire stable was so vast that one couldn't see from one end to the other. When the large creatures bumped into each other while trying to enter and exit, the vastness seemed trivial.

Naturally, there was an order for such times.

People outside waited to fly in at the entrance, while those inside sat at the exit, waiting their turn.

Yi-Han glanced around. Due to the cold weather in the high skies, many people were deeply hooded in cloaks.

-Next group, depart! Depart!-

The stablemaster didn't stop Yi-Han. He walked slowly, leading the griffin.

Pop!

The griffin kicked off a brick and soared into the sky. Yi-Han felt a tremendous sense of liberation.

"You tamed a griffin."

"...?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?"

Startled by the calm voice of Professor Boladi beside him, Yi-Han almost lost his grip on the griffin's reins and nearly fell to the ground.