Chapter 556
"Is everyone in? I'm going in too."
Since the number of students wanting to go was large, they couldn't all go at once.
Yi-Han divided the students and organized parties in turns. The advance party that would enter first had to be outstanding in skill and adaptable among the students.
And of course, Yi-Han was included in that.
Because he knew well that if he wasn't there, Salko and Jijel would grab each other's collars and fight.
"According to the calculations, it should be maintained continuously. If it closes, don't even come near here and go back to the dormitory and pretend you don't know."
"Wa-Wardanaz. Still, how can you..."
"The living must live. It can't be helped."
To his friends who were hesitating in shock, Yi-Han spoke firmly.
If the realm gate closed, the students who had crossed over had to find their own way back to the academy.
How could the students at the academy save them?
"Then... I'm going."
Pat!
As he stepped into the realm gate, he felt a sensation similar to entering the spirit realm or undead realm before.
A bizarre sensation of moving through a completely different realm while having the same phase.
When the moment that felt like eternity quickly ended, an unfamiliar mansion corridor unfolded in front of Yi-Han.
"Wardanaz."
"...Everyone arrived safely."
The friends who had entered first nodded their heads with tense faces.
No matter what, there was no student who wouldn't be nervous after entering the skull principal's villa.
"Everyone, stay calm."
"Ca-calm?"
"I-I'm calm too. Wardanaz."
'Your hands are shaking...'
Seeing even friends like Salko and Jijel trembling with tension, he thought he should relieve the tension.
"If we follow the plan, there's no need to worry about getting caught. Now. Everyone take a deep breath. Quickly check the structure of the mansion and change clothes, then go out."
"Are we really going to leave the items in the mansion?"
"No. That's crazy."
Ratford had a sad expression. Surprisingly, not only Ratford but also some of the other students were openly expressing regret.
It wasn't simply because they coveted the treasures in the mansion.
"But Wardanaz. If not now, we might never be able to raid the principal's mansion in our lifetime..."
"That's right. If we're going to the punishment room anyway, wouldn't it be right to raid it and go?"
The desperation that if not now, they might never be able to steal the skull principal's treasures in their lifetime.
And the determination that they were already half-prepared to go to the punishment room since they had jumped into this kind of thing in the first place.
It wouldn't be surprising if there were many students who thought, 'Since it's come to this, let's deal the maximum damage to the skull principal.'
But Yi-Han was still cold-hearted.
"No. Everyone follows the plan. Ignore what the seniors left behind. We're going in the direction with the lowest possibility of getting caught. Got it?"
As the one who had the most experience escaping here, Yi-Han knew it well.
That there was nothing more dangerous than acting emotionally during an escape.
'We need to grasp the structure as quickly as possible and escape to the city. The longer we stay, the more dangerous it becomes. Moreover, if the treasures disappear too...'
"Yeah. Listen to Wardanaz. He's the one who has escaped the most among us. No one can match his cunning."
"I'll acknowledge Wardanaz's criminal skills, if nothing else."
"Thank you, everyone. ...Wait. Did you just insult me?"
Salko and Jijel simultaneously shook their heads at Yi-Han's question.
"No."
"No. There's a misunderstanding."
"It sounded like an insult... Anyway, let's move. Everyone stick close."
After gathering his friends close, Yi-Han was about to prepare to cast invisibility magic when he froze on the spot.
Mercenaries had appeared from the opposite end of the corridor.
***
Prejudiced people in the empire thought mercenaries were no different from criminals.
During the day, they would hold weapons and listen to the client's words, but at night, they would turn their weapons around and plunder the client.
Of course, the mercenaries vehemently denied such prejudice.
-What slander against the soldiers who are dedicated to justice from the snowy mountains of the empire's harsh north to the burning deserts of the south!-
-Of course, one of my colleagues was caught attacking a client, but that's only a small minority!-
-Yeah, yeah! Last time, one of my colleagues was also caught stealing, but that's a very exceptional case!-
Unfortunately, the mercenaries caught by the Death Knights employed by the skull principal belonged to this exceptional minority.
Those who originally lived strictly abiding by the imperial law, but due to some misunderstandings and misfortunes, they appeared to have committed crimes.
Therefore, when they were caught by the Death Knights, they protested vehemently.
-If you don't release me right now, I'll tear your master apart and kill him, undead!-
-You vile spell-casting bastard, you grave-digging, thieving necromancer trickster bastard!-
Then, when the Death Knights revealed their master's identity, the mercenaries protested a bit more politely.
-...No matter what, this is too much!-
-If I have to face a mage, I can do it right now!-
Then, when the Death Knights locked the warehouse door and swung their weapons at the rebellious ones, the mercenaries' protests became much more refined.
-Ho-how much more do we have to do?-
-Do we need to prepare more than now? This should be enough for any mage. If we just shoot an arrow into their neck, a mage...-
Of course, no matter how refined the protests became, the Death Knights didn't easily release the mercenaries.
-Shut up. You're still far from ready. Among the opponents you're targeting, there are mages who are more skilled in combat than you can imagine. Keep working harder.-
-Ah, no...!-
As time passed, the Death Knights selected only the mercenaries who met the standards and moved them to the villa.
Even though they had passed the test, the mercenaries' uneasiness only grew.
-What the hell are they trying to make us do? Could it be that they want us to assassinate another mage?-
-Damn it, even if the assassination succeeds, there's no way they'll let us live!-
-The ones who failed might have already been turned to stone by the mage's curse...-
When cornered, even a mouse bites a cat.
Let alone the violent mercenaries who had been caught committing crimes.
It was only natural for them to prepare for an escape without waiting for the Death Knight's orders.
However, the escape was not easy.
-You rat-like bastard. You said you've picked more than 10,000 locks, but you can't open a flimsy main gate like that?-
-Damn it, you try it yourself! I don't know what the hell he did, but it absolutely won't open! It's like he put iron in it!-
-I-I climbed over the wall and threw myself, but it was like there was a wall and I bounced off.-
-The mage must have cast magic on the air too. That crazy bastard!-
-Let's dig the ground! Escape by digging the ground.-
-The ground is blocked too... He even cast magic underground. That crazy mage bastard!-
All the escape routes the mercenaries thought of were blocked.
As if they knew that, the Death Knights who came every evening didn't pay any attention even if the soil was dug up or there were scratches on the main gate.
They checked the mercenaries' skills and mercilessly punished them if they hadn't improved.
-Instead of doing useless things, I told you to practice. You trash!-
-Why don't you realize that with your current skills, you can't even break through the mage's summons?!-
The more they suffered at the hands of the Death Knights, the more the mercenaries became obsessed with escaping.
If we stay here any longer, who knows what will happen to us!
-Let's search inside the mansion. The mage might have forgotten something.-
-Search for anything. From behind the mirrors to under the bed. Search thoroughly!-
-Can we go in here? I think the Death Knights told us never to go in...-
-They won't be back for a while. Go in! We're dead anyway.-
The mercenaries boldly set foot in the forbidden areas of the mansion and searched.
That brave search ended absurdly.
At the end of the stairs they had climbed up, a group of Einroguard students were waiting in the corridor.
***
"..."
"..."
Both the students and the mercenaries froze quietly.
Since there were many things that didn't add up for both sides, their minds had stopped.
'Are we caught!? Who are they? Are they the principal's subordinates?'
'Are we caught!? Who are those guys? That mage's subordinates?'
The students pondered whether they should retreat through the realm gate or, since it had come to this, prepare for the punishment room and push through to escape outside the mansion.
The mercenaries pondered whether they should back off now or subdue the mage's subordinates and even stage a hostage situation.
And the one who took action first was Yi-Han.
"Attack!"
"What?"
"I said attack. Strike, Ferkuntra's thunderbolt!"
As Yi-Han's spell struck the corridor with lightning, the mercenaries realized they had made a huge mistake in their confusion.
To have the initiative taken by a mage!
'This is bad!'
"Catch those bastards and take them hostage... Ugh!"
The mercenary who tried to declare an attack a beat late was pierced by lightning and collapsed on the spot.
The way he couldn't get up, trembling all over his body, it seemed he had been hit properly.
"Shield-bearers to the front!"
"Sh-shield-bearers! Yes. Shield-bearers to the front!"
Ironically, it was thanks to the Death Knights who had exploited them that the mercenaries, who were startled by the fact that the mage had taken the initiative, were able to move in an organized manner.
Thanks to the harsh training to be able to face mages, they were able to move instinctively even in this situation.
The mercenaries carrying tough wooden shields treated against magic stepped forward and quickly formed a shield wall.
And the mercenaries behind them prepared for long-range attacks. Crossbows were loaded and poisoned daggers were drawn.
Seeing that, Yi-Han's expression also turned sharp.
'As expected, they're trained guys!'
"Wa-Wardanaz. Is it really okay to attack so recklessly like this?"
"They're criminals caught by the principal anyway. Attack!"
"What? How do you... O-okay. Attack! Attack!"
The reason Yi-Han took the initiative was simple.
He had seen those mercenaries before in the warehouse on the outskirts of the city.
The criminals the skull principal had brought to attack the freshmen.
Once he recognized them, there was no need for them to hesitate to take the initiative. Weren't they the ones they would have fought at school anyway?
"Fog, spread. Arise, warriors made of bones!"
Yi-Han quickly swung his staff to summon fog between the corridors and summoned skeleton warriors to march forward.
As the black skeleton warriors formed ranks and advanced through the fog, the mercenaries felt a strong sense of pressure.
The situation had changed once again in the blink of an eye!
"Th-this is..."
"How... how...!"
The mercenaries thought the Death Knight was making things up and abusing them when he nitpicked their tactics.
-Slow and dull. And you only have one method prepared? You're going to face a mage with just that?-
Because they were experienced mercenaries, they had also faced mages on the battlefield.
Most mages didn't show much strength in sudden combat situations.
Their casting speed was slow, their awareness of their surroundings was lax, they couldn't respond well when attacks flew in...
They thought that once they blocked a spell, they could immediately counterattack and subdue the mage from then on.
However, the mage in front of them now showed no gaps at all.
When they raised their defense and tried to buy time, he instantly matched their tactics, raised his defense, and prepared for a prolonged battle.
Seeing the skeleton warriors advancing through the fog, their thoughts became complicated.
'Should we fight? How strong are these guys?'
'Can we break through this and reach those spell-casting bastards?'
At that moment, a barrage of magic from the students began to fly in.
In the time Yi-Han had bought, the students' magic had been completed.
Boom boom boom boom!
"Ugh!"
"Ugh!"
Even though they had set up a defensive wall against magic, there was bound to be an impact when more than a dozen mages were firing magic.
Mercenaries whose shields were shattered or who were blown away by the impact began to appear.
Jijel glanced at Yi-Han as she watched the opponents fall.
'Are they really criminals...?'
She suspected that Wardanaz had simply shouted that they were criminals to make it easier to attack them.
'...Probably not. There's no way to confirm it now anyway.'
"They're running away!"
The students shouted as they saw the enemies at the end of the corridor hastily retreating to the stairs.
Yi-Han gave a cold order.
"Catch them! Don't let a single one escape!"
"...Wardanaz. Are they really criminals?"
"I told you they're criminals? Salko. Why do you keep asking unnecessary questions?"
"Ah, no. It's nothing."