It took Lee Han nearly thirty minutes to deal with the crowd that had gathered around him.
Naturally, he didn’t deal with them using force or magic.
He had to sign autographs for every single person.
“Do you have plans to join the Imperial Jousting Association after graduation?”
“No.”
“Then you’re planning to join before graduation!”
“No.”
“If your great noble family’s traditions are shackling you, cast them aside boldly!”
“I’m simply not that interested in becoming a jousting player...”
“That’s impossible! Don’t deny your true feelings! Surely there’s passion burning somewhere inside your heart...!”
“Puhuh. If you’ve gotten your autograph, then move along.”
Palcrius shoved away the jousting fanatics with his thick arms.
The spectators who had been deeply moved by the match kept insisting Lee Han should join the teams they supported or were affiliated with.
“Good grief. What are they even talking about?”
“Exactly.”
“Wardanaz, you’re going to become a professor.”
“...What???”
“Put the disguise back on. We’ll remove it again once we enter the manor.”
“What did you just say?”
Lee Han pressed him for an answer, but Palcrius was too focused on other matters to notice.
“It might be better to visit the Greenbel family later... Hmm? What was it you asked?”
“What did you just say earlier...”
“Ah, right. Wardanaz. How exactly did you win the match badly enough that people are chasing you through the streets?”
“I just got lucky.”
“Puhuh. If luck strikes twice, the Jousting Club upperclassmen will cry tears of joy.”
Palcrius laughed loudly.
As fellow official Einroguard clubs, he had developed a certain reluctant affection toward them, so hearing the Jousting Club had finally scored a massive victory after so long genuinely pleased him.
Palcrius mentally made a note.
Double event prices for the Jousting Club for a while (excluding Wardanaz)
“What did I do wrong?”
“Hm? What are you talking about?”
“Why am I the only one excluded from the double event prices...”
Lee Han looked bewildered.
He had assumed the club intended to celebrate by doubling the food portions.
Instead, the “double event” referred to doubling the prices!
People with thick coin purses would be charged twice as much.
Palcrius truly possessed the instincts of a veteran upperclassman when it came to exploiting opportunities like this.
“We’re here, Wardanaz. Do you know whose residence this is?”
“I’m not sure.”
Since the central district was lined with luxurious estates, Lee Han could at least tell it belonged to some noble family, but he wasn’t originally from Granden City.
Even local nobles often relied on servants or chamberlains to remember who lived where. There was no way Lee Han could recognize every estate.
“It belongs to Lord Zolbavden.”
That name sounds strangely familiar.
“Puhuhuh. Lord Zolbavden is famous throughout Granden City as a socialite, a hedonist, and a miser. If even someone like Lord Zolbavden donates food supplies, the other misers in the city will feel pressured into donating as well.”
“I see. So who’s threatening him? Me or you, Senior?”
“...Wardanaz. We came here to persuade him, not extort him!”
Palcrius stared in disbelief.
If they threatened nobles with magic whenever they refused donations, they ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) would need ten lifetimes to survive all the punishment-cell sentences.
“Ah. Understood.”
“Puhuhuh. Good. I’m counting on you.”
“Honestly, I can’t think of any method besides magical threats.”
“No, no. Looking at the way those people swarmed around you because of the jousting match earlier, Wardanaz, you clearly have talent for charming people.”
“If I really had that kind of talent, I wish my friends would listen to me more often.”
Lee Han grumbled as he removed the disguise and called over the gatekeeper.
The gatekeeper became visibly cautious after seeing the two unusual visitors.
“What business brings you here...?”
“Please inform the lord that mages from Einroguard have arrived concerning a grave magical problem affecting this estate.”
“...Y-Yes! Right away!”
The gatekeeper panicked and hurried inside.
Palcrius nodded approvingly and offered some advice.
“Puhuh. Whenever you come to negotiate business like this, never reveal your real purpose immediately. Otherwise they’ll either claim the lord isn’t home or run away entirely.”
“Should I send in a paper bird first to confirm whether he’s actually inside?”
“...Wardanaz. Have you been associating with particularly violent upperclassmen lately?”
As they waited, Zolbavden came rushing out while hastily fixing his clothes.
The moment he saw Palcrius’s massive figure in the distance, his face twisted into an expression of despair.
Since they had met before, he immediately realized he had been tricked.
“...Student Palcrius. Didn’t you say there was a severe magical problem affecting this manor?”
“Yes, Lord Zolbavden. There truly is a grave magical problem here.”
Palcrius pointed toward the manor’s storage buildings.
“Namely, large amounts of food that should be feeding the poor are currently trapped inside those storerooms.”
“...”
Zolbavden looked utterly dumbfounded, but restrained himself.
First, because people who openly antagonized Einroguard mages rarely met good ends — and as a passionate gossip enthusiast, he knew countless examples.
Second, because Palcrius looked fully capable of killing someone with his fists even without using magic.
“The student beside you is... No way! Lord Wardanaz?!”
“...!!!”
The moment Zolbavden recognized him, Lee Han’s memories also resurfaced.
This man was...
“Aren’t you Lord Zolbavden? The one who spread rumors throughout Granden City about my fight with the basilisk last year?”
“Hahaha! That’s right! No need to thank me!”
“...”
Lee Han stared at him coldly.
Palcrius suddenly grew worried.
My junior isn’t actually going to punch him, is he?
Fortunately, Lee Han restrained himself.
Though several curses did pass through his mind.
I should’ve petrified him back when the basilisk first appeared.
Lee Han had originally considered the incident relatively minor, but afterward he learned painfully just how quickly rumors spread among Granden City nobles.
If there was one thing faster than spatial magic, it was gossip.
“...Since we share the bond of surviving a basilisk incident together last year, please make a donation.”
“Ghk!”
Zolbavden let out a wounded groan after being struck directly in his weak point.
At that moment, the nearby chamberlain approached and whispered something into his ear.
“Puhuh. This feels ominous.”
Palcrius watched uneasily.
Nobles like Zolbavden cared little for dignity or prestige. It would not have been strange for him to suddenly clutch his chest and pretend to collapse.
“...Is that true?”
“Yes. I heard it personally.”
The moment the chamberlain finished speaking, Zolbavden’s eyes sparkled brilliantly.
“Excellent! Student Palcrius! I shall donate!”
“You’re serious?!”
“However, I do have one condition.”
“...What kind of condition?”
“I would like Wardanaz to personally recount today’s jousting match.”
“...”
“...”
Only then did Lee Han realize what the chamberlain had been whispering about earlier.
No wonder the man had been making motions as though swinging a jousting mallet while speaking...
***
Unlike Lee Han, who emerged from the manor looking exhausted, Palcrius was laughing joyfully.
“Well done, Wardanaz! Hahaha! We secured food supplies just by talking a little. That’s an excellent bargain!”
“I didn’t expect to be exploited like this, though.”
Zolbavden possessed deeply held convictions regarding the rapid spread of gossip.
If hearing the story firsthand from Lee Han was the price, he would gladly empty entire storage buildings.
-So what you’re saying is that despite never practicing jousting before or showing any interest in it, once Wardanaz mounted the griffin, he instinctively understood the movements of every opposing player and naturally grasped the path to victory! A genius born for the sport!
-...Not a single part of that matches what I actually said.
-You shouldn’t concern yourself with tiny details. Stories naturally become embellished over time.
-Did you embellish the basilisk story this way too?
Lee Han felt increasingly uneasy about how badly the rumors might spiral out of control, but seeing his senior smiling so happily made him reconsider.
Well... if it helps gather more food donations, then a few rumors aren’t worth complaining about.
Palcrius was working this hard to help feed people.
Complaining over a little gossip would only make Lee Han feel petty.
Once again, he found himself thinking about the young Skull Principal.
If Lee Han had only been surrounded by people like Professor Verdus, he probably would never have developed much of a conscience.
But with unusually decent people like the young Skull Principal and Palcrius constantly around him, even Lee Han was gradually being influenced.
...Maybe I should try acting slightly more virtuous.
Finally abandoning his concerns over rumors, Lee Han asked:
“Where are we going next?”
“Next is—”
“Wardanaz!”
“...?”
A nobleman who seemed acquainted with Zolbavden leapt down from a carriage.
Palcrius immediately recognized him.
“Isn’t that Lord Brodon?”
“Yes. The noble who bought a basilisk egg and hatched it in front of an audience.”
-He must be insane.
The baby basilisk muttered darkly.
Honestly, Lee Han agreed.
Granted, he himself had been tricked into buying one by a merchant, but even considering that, it was difficult to view the man favorably.
“Heh. If he’s rich enough to buy a basilisk egg, won’t he donate a lot of food too?”
“If he’s foolish enough to buy a basilisk egg, I’m not sure he has any money left to donate...”
Oblivious to Lee Han’s muttering, Brodon hurried over excitedly.
Then he shouted:
“Wardanaz! Is it true that if someone donates food for charity, you’ll personally tell the story of today’s jousting match?!”
“...”
Lee Han slowly turned to stare back toward the manor with a shocked expression.
How had the rumor spread this fast already?!
Do these people have communication artifacts or something?!
“Oh? Is that not correct? Did I misunderstand?”
“Well... technically it’s correct, but...”
“That’s wonderful! After hearing the story, I immediately arranged a tea gathering. Every guest attending will make donations! Would you honor us with your presence, Wardanaz?”
“...”
CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP—
Applause sounded from beside him.
Palcrius was staring at Lee Han with deep admiration.
“Wardanaz... I should’ve brought you along last year too!”
“Senior. Is it really acceptable to collect donations this way?”
“Heh. Why wouldn’t it be? This is infinitely better than chasing carriages around for three straight days begging nobles for food!”
Unlike his doubtful junior, Palcrius was genuinely moved by the efficiency of the method.
Instead of desperately pursuing nobles around the city, the nobles themselves were voluntarily gathering and offering donations.
The younger students absolutely needed to learn this technique.
Maybe nobody’s interested in stories about making soup from stones and dirt inside Einroguard...
“Let’s go, Wardanaz. At this rate, we might manage to feed every hungry person in Granden City.”
“If the guests at this tea gathering become furious after realizing they were deceived, I’m denying all responsibility...”
***
Contrary to Lee Han’s worries, every noble attending the tea gathering was thoroughly satisfied.
Some even asked him to visit other salons and clubs they belonged to and tell the stories there as well.
“Could we perhaps hear the basilisk story directly too?”
“...If you donate double, I’ll personally come tell it.”
“Excellent! Agreed!”
“...”
Lee Han had spoken casually without expecting immediate acceptance, so the instant agreement left him speechless.
Palcrius leaned closer and whispered:
“Wardanaz. Next time, charge more.”
