“Senior. Please get up!”

Lee Han’s expression turned cold.

It looked like the other person was trying to stall so he wouldn’t have to keep the five-minute limit, but Lee Han had no intention of letting it slide.

The second hand of the pocket watch was already ticking away.

“Thirty seconds have passed.”

“...”

Jarun barely managed to rise to his feet. The dwarf’s short but sturdy limbs trembled violently, and it clearly wasn’t just because of hunger.

“...How much do you know about orichalcum?”

“I know it’s an extremely rare and expensive metal.”

“That’s right.”

“The most recent official auction record in the Empire was eight years ago at the Western Grand Festival. At the time, the winning bid was...”

“...Why do you remember things like that?”

Jarun stared in disbelief.

It certainly was impressively detailed knowledge, but it had nothing to do with what Jarun was trying to say.

In the first place, a metal as rare as orichalcum wasn’t something you could buy just because you had money. Compared to the number of people who wanted it, there was practically none available on the market.

“What I want to talk about are orichalcum’s properties.”

“I know it condenses mana at extremely high density.”

At his junior’s answer, Jarun slowly shook his head.

“That’s wrong?”

“More accurately, that’s just the most common property people end up seeing. Orichalcum is technically a mineral, but it also has peculiar plant-like characteristics. In other words, it grows depending on how it’s cultivated.”

Lee Han looked at his senior with pity.

Spending too much time wandering through underground mines alone could easily drive anyone insane.

And on top of that, the man had gotten trapped inside a vein.

Noticing his junior’s gaze, Jarun ground his teeth.

“It’s true! Stop looking at me like that!”

“I’ve never heard anything like it before.”

“Well, fully matured orichalcum is already rare enough. Finding records of immature orichalcum would require digging back into ancient history!”

Most orichalcum finished developing its form and properties before humans ever discovered it.

And the vast majority of it ended up becoming the standard high-density mana condensate known to the modern era.

But true orichalcum originally possessed the ability to alter and complete its properties according to the wishes of the one cultivating it.

‘That’s incredible.’

Lee Han found himself listening with genuine interest.

There was still a possibility this was just the rambling of an insane senior, but even then, it was an incredibly fascinating story.

“So could you make metal that endlessly produces gold?”

“...I doubt it could completely violate magical laws. Probably.”

“Oh...”

Jarun ignored the lukewarm response with superhuman patience.

“Listen carefully. I found an orichalcum vein whose crystals haven’t fully formed yet. Do you know why I’m wandering around here completely naked?”

“I’m not sure. Weren’t you fleeing from trackers?”

“Because that was the only way the vein would allow me to approach.”

“!”

The orichalcum vein Jarun had discovered was still incomplete and not yet fully crystallized, but it had already developed several distinct properties.

One of them was the ability to reject intruders.

“At first, I thought the problem was ordinary metal. Every pickaxe and tool I brought melted away. So I tried using mining artifacts without metal components, but those broke too.”

“Ah. So that’s why you tried approaching with nothing on.”

It sounded deranged at first glance, but from a mage’s perspective, the logic itself wasn’t unreasonable.

You had to reach the vein before you could do anything. Jarun nodded.

“But...”

“?”

“Approaching naked wasn’t the correct answer either. By the time I came to my senses, I was trapped inside the vein. It shifted the surrounding terrain to push me away.”

Hearing that, Lee Han realized the vein’s power was even more extraordinary than he had imagined.

Plant-like traits or not, even carnivorous plants had limits.

He had seen countless creatures that moved to capture and devour intruders, but reshaping the surrounding terrain itself just to swallow someone whole...

“Could it be that the vein developed its hostility toward intruders because of you, senior?”

“...That’s... possible.”

Jarun’s shoulders drooped slightly.

It was something Jarun himself had privately considered.

Had his own greed caused hatred to take root inside the pure white orichalcum?

“That’s why I told you.”

“Yes? Told me what?”

“...In my opinion, someone like me shouldn’t approach the orichalcum. It should be someone like you instead. Someone honest and foolish.”

“...?????????”

Lee Han instinctively looked around.

For a moment, he genuinely wondered whether Jarun was talking about somebody else.

“No. Senior, are you insulting me right now just because I fed you once while you were half-dead?”

“W-why are you getting angry? That was a compliment!”

Jarun panicked at the intensity of the reaction.

For someone who almost never praised juniors, Jarun had genuinely gone out of his way to offer what he considered a major compliment.

“How is calling someone foolish a compliment? By that logic, saying I’m like Professor Verdus would also be praise!”

“T-that’s completely different! How could you compare the two!? That’s unbelievably insulting!”

Even Jarun was so offended by the comparison to Professor Verdus that he could barely speak properly.

For someone who had spent most of his life underground in mines ever since entering Einroguard, this junior with the venomous tongue capable of even knocking the Skull Principal speechless was simply too difficult to handle.

-Wardanaz! Let’s go! Gangsulgudu senior isn’t threatening you, right?

“Forget it. Just take this!”

Jarun swept one arm irritably. A map appeared across his skin before peeling away from his body.

It was transformation magic refined to such an absurd degree that even Princess Yukbeltire and the other students had failed to notice it.

“The location’s marked here, so go find it yourself later. I’ve done my part!”

As if he no longer wanted anything to do with Lee Han, Jarun abruptly turned and left. Lee Han stared blankly at the map now in his hands.

‘Wait. Should I even be going after this?’

Leaving aside Jarun’s nonsense about him being “foolish,” Lee Han didn’t think his own greed was any less than his senior’s.

If he went there himself, the vein would probably trap him too.

And honestly, the other Einroguard students might be even more dangerous than the orichalcum itself.

Those people could trap Lee Han inside the vein even if they never discovered it personally. If he ever decided to go later, he would need companions he could genuinely trust.

“?”

Princess Yukbeltire tilted her head when Lee Han kept staring at her.

“What is it, junior of House Wardanaz? Do you have something to say?”

“Haha. No, not at all.”

‘Under absolutely no circumstances can I go with this person.’

***

As they retraced their path, the group resumed the same work as before.

The enchantment magic school students brought out artifacts to illuminate the surroundings and clear paths, while Lee Han—

“I’ll handle it, so get some rest.”

“????”

Lee Han nearly jumped when Princess Yukbeltire stopped him.

In fact, it wasn’t just Lee Han. The upperclassmen were equally stunned.

“Princess Yukbeltire. Please regain your senses immediately...”

“My mind is perfectly sound. I can prove it.”

Before anyone could seriously suspect madness or some kind of mental contamination, Princess Yukbeltire immediately produced a pendant. The blue gemstone embedded inside it verified that the wearer’s mental state remained stable.

“...”

“...Understood. Everyone stay alert. Something about this feels suspicious.”

Anfargon quietly whispered to the other two.

Normally, Anfargon had little interest in other people, but things changed when the senior responsible for leading everyone back started acting insane.

“I was surprised too, but maybe she just feels indebted to me?”

After all, it wasn’t impossible for someone to feel guilty after receiving food and potions from a junior.

Unlike Professor Verdus, Princess Yukbeltire even had a kindhearted friend like Diret, didn’t she?

A mage who had placed warmth and compassion into even a tiny humanoid golem.

“Wardanaz. Are you tired? You’re saying strange things.”

“Don’t push yourself just because you have a lot of mana. Rest if you’re exhausted.”

“...”

When both seniors looked at him seriously and told him to stop talking nonsense, Lee Han reflected for a moment.

‘Well... it really is strange.’

Kindness and consideration toward a # Nоvеlight # junior.

Yes. That was undeniably strange. Lee Han immediately raised his guard another level.

While the three juniors all watched her suspiciously, Princess Yukbeltire was also observing Lee Han.

‘There’s a high probability that junior of House Wardanaz doesn’t even realize he possesses miniature world magic.’

By all common sense, there was no way a second-year student could have intentionally obtained miniature world magic on purpose.

Which meant he must have become entangled with it through some unusual circumstance.

She needed to identify the magic through careful and methodical observation.

Although she wanted to explain everything directly and question him immediately, Princess Yukbeltire restrained herself.

If the magic had attached itself forcibly, there was no telling what might happen if the junior became aware of its existence.

In the best-case scenario, he would merely suffer some damage. In the worst case, the magic itself might disappear completely, leaving her unable to study it ever again.

That would be catastrophic. Princess Yukbeltire was absolutely determined to research miniature world magic.

And to do that, she needed to deceive her junior at least a little. He had to continue behaving naturally, without realizing anything.

‘If I act kind toward him, he’ll probably lower his guard and invite me around more often. Then I can observe him quietly.’

‘...Those are the eyes of a magical criminal, though?’

Naturally, Lee Han had already become extremely wary of Princess Yukbeltire.

When someone completely unaccustomed to kindness tries to force it, the results are impossible to hide.

“Undead group ahead. More than ten of them.”

“Let’s avoid them.”

“Th— no. It’s Diret.”

“!”

Lee Han looked up in surprise at Princess Yukbeltire’s words.

Sure enough, a group of dark magic school students was approaching from the distance.

“Senior Diret!”

“...Junior! You’re alive!”

Diret shouted in obvious relief. Lee Han looked slightly taken aback.

“You were worried about me? I was with the seniors here the whole time.”

“Yukveltire said so. Junior. There was a possibility everyone exploded and attacked Yukveltire.”

“...”

Lee Han was deeply moved by their friendship.

To think even a cold-hearted golem possessed such a loyal friend.

“I’m really glad nothing happened. You’re unharmed, right?”

“It’s a long story.”

‘So a lot really did happen.’

Diret immediately understood.

After all, Diret had already started suspecting something ever since the transformation magic school students came back muttering about “no orichalcum”...

Lee Han explained everything that had happened to his respected senior.

Including the map leading to the orichalcum vein.

Diret struggled to maintain composure while listening, but eventually failed completely.

“Y-y-y-you didn’t tell Yukveltire, did you??”

“Come on, senior. Do I seriously look that stupid to you?”

“R-right...”

Diret answered with faint sadness.

To think Diret had become the kind of senior who couldn’t even earn that much trust from a junior in the same school.

‘Yukveltire, pull yourself together!’

“I’m thinking of returning later with trustworthy companions. Can you recommend anyone?”

“Hmm... No.”

“You can’t think of anyone?”

“No. I mean there simply aren’t any.”

“...I-I see.”

Lee Han quietly changed the topic.

“Come to think of it, senior. That yatcha guy explained miniature world magic to me earlier.”

“Yatcha guy?”

“Yachaowang.”

“You didn’t call him ‘guy’ to his face, right? ...No, that’s not important. Anyway, you heard about miniature world magic?”

“Yes. There are a few things I wanted to ask.”

“Should I call Yukveltire over too?”

“I’d appreciate it.”

Diret called over Princess Yukbeltire, who was suspiciously lingering toward the back. Since Yukveltire had always been strange, Diret didn’t think much of it.

“Yukveltire. The junior has questions about magic.”

“You answer him. I’m busy.”

“What could possibly be keeping you so busy? You’re just answering a few questions.”

But Princess Yukbeltire shook her head.

Right now, observing her junior took priority. The clue connected to the miniature world magic she had witnessed earlier could reappear at any moment.

“Hmph. Don’t regret this later.”

‘Typical Diret threat.’

Princess Yukbeltire dismissed it effortlessly.

What could possibly be worth regretting about something like that?