âWhy is that? Yoner?â
âAh⦠nothing. sister. really. Weâre going to go out nowâ¦â
Yoner slurred. Then Joanenâs eyes shone through the amethyst glasses.
âAre you going out?â
âYes.â
âWhere are you going?â
âTo see my friends.â
âWhen are you coming back?â
âWell⦠wellâ¦?â
âWho is this friend of the Wodanaz family here?â
âLee Han is busy⦠why?â
âYou seem interested in alchemy.â
âOh no. Iâm not that interested.â
âI heard you are the head of alchemy?â
ââ¦â¦â
Yoner glared at Yihan and Ratford.
Did you say that again in such a short time!
âsorry.â
Ratford bowed his head.
I just wanted to show Yonerâs sister that Lee Han is a great personâ¦
âYoner⦠did you really think I would treat your friend like the other alchemists in the workshop? Isnât it like that?â
âOh no.â
âyes? I canât do that.â
Lee Han wanted to ask, âHow do you treat the other alchemists in the studio?â but couldnât bear to ask.
âIf youâre a student at a magic school, youâll study during vacation⦠Isnât my workshop a good place to learn alchemy?â
âOh no. Unniâs workshop is the best in Granden Cityâ¦â
âThank you for saying that.â
âBut Yihan is really busyâ¦â
When Yoner held out, Joanen turned his arrow at Yihan.
âWhy donât you visit the studio once?â
âthank you.â
âWhen would you like to visit?â
âYou really are Professor Verdus!â
Lee Han had no choice but to admit the skill of trying to schedule in detail.
Joanen turned to the carrot as if he had noticed Lee Hanâs vigilance.
âI donât know what Yoner said, but thatâs a bit of an exaggeration. There are times when I am busy with work, but thatâs when Yoner came to the studio and looked around.â
âThatâs right.â
Anyone else would have been fooled by Joanenâs kind expression, but not Lee Han.
Originally, the devil always smiles kindly.
âMy workshop is not a bad place to study alchemy during vacation. Quality materials can be used generously, and those who work receive generous wages. The cityâs outstanding alchemists often come to visit, so it would be good to build a network.â
âItâs all here. Han Lee. If I refuse a little more, my sister willâ¦â
Yonerâs desperate wish was useless, and Lee Han reacted immediately.
âAre the alchemists getting paid too?ân/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
âSure. aha. Are you interested in salary? As much as he is a student of Einrogard and a friend of his brotherâ¦â
Joanen secretly spread three fingers. Lee Hanâs heart pounded at the fingers wrapped in white gloves.
three times.
âLee Hanâ¦!â
Yoner whispered as if he was sorry, but Joanen smiled as if he knew what Yihan wanted and extended another finger.
ââ¦I really wanted to learn alchemy during vacation.â
Joanen gracefully took Lee Hanâs hand and shook it.
âWelcome. Come anytime. really. Can I talk to you and your brother for a moment?â
As Lee Han and his friends left first, Joanen turned his attention to Yoner.
Yoner said with a grim face.
âIf you lose a friend, itâs unnieâs responsibilityâ¦â
âIâll make sure you donât collapse. promise. He was a rather peculiar person?â
âah. huh. He is an unusual person.â
âI thought you would decline, but you accepted because of the salary. Itâs probably not because theyâre from the Wardanaj family and they like gold coins. Are you in debt?â
âno. I just like gold coins.â
* * *
âIâm a little worried about going to see Guyan as well.â
Lee Han also had a status that could be visited by a fairly large aristocratic family, but the story was a little different with the imperial family.
Basically, there is nothing good about being entangled with each other.
The nobility of the empire was divided into three categories.
Loyalists who support the outstanding members of the imperial family.
The aristocratic faction confronted with more than 100 members of the royal family laughing at how great they were.
And neutrals who do not fall into either category.
The Wardanaj family belonged to the representative neutral faction. In fact, the Wodanaz family left the neutral faction and could be called a secluded faction or a loner.
However, when Lee Han officially visited the royal residence, it was perfect for rumors to circulate, saying .
âare you okay. If you go with a group like this, all your school friends will be visiting together.â
Yoner understood Yihanâs concerns.
In this case, the proper justification was important.
âActually, it was a matter of going with you guys, so I wasnât too worried. More than that, Iâm worried about the people in the Kainandon mansion.â
After visiting the Dalcard family and the Meikin family, I found out.
The difference between the mansions of aristocratic families was greater than expected.
Now, it seemed that it wouldnât be too surprising if anything strange happened in the Cainando Mansion.
âHow is the atmosphere at the Kainandonâs mansion?â
âKainandoneâs Mansion? Itâs normal. There is no exam like our family. The number of guests is also small.â
The guests who visited Kainandoâs mansion were more likely to come because of Kainandoâs mother rather than to see Kainando, the royal family.
First of all, the Kraha family, the family of Gainandoâs mother, was an incredibly wealthy family in the empire.
If you have that much wealth, you will have abilities that you didnât have. Of course, it was frustrating that guests couldnât come.
However, there were not that many guests at Gainandoneâs mansion.
âCainanâs mother doesnât really like to welcome guests.â
âWhy? A lot of guests must visit to promote the reputation of Gainan Island⦠well. no.â
It is said that you need to greet guests often to spread rumors and increase your family reputation, but sometimes the opposite happened.
The more often you meet, the more bad rumors may spread.
Lee Han changed the topic.
âWhat kind of person is Kainandoâs mother?â
If it was another good Professor Verdus, the visit could have been delayed.
âHe is kind and gentle. Andâ¦â
âAnd?â
âYou are truly incredibly beautiful.â
âThatâs right.â
Lee Han was taken aback by the sudden remark.
âWhen you first meet, you probably wonât be able to look directly at them.â
âwhy?â
âItâs so beautiful, a halo emanating from the back. So much so that I canât even look at it.â
ââ¦Isnât that just a mixture of blood from spirits and angels?â
âthatâs right. I heard that you have mixed blood from the spirit of light.â
Lee Han wanted to ask, âHow do you know whether you are beautiful or not when you canât see your face because of the light?â
what would be so important
âreally. Do you really give me pocket money if I get along well with Kainando?â
âhuh.â
âLooking at it objectively, am I the closest? What do you all think?â
Ratford and Nilia looked at Lee Han in amazement.
* * *
âPlease wait thirty minutes.â
âah. Are the guests here first?â
âThat⦠Iâm sorry. Please wait thirty minutes.â
â??â
Lee Han and his friends tilted their heads in front of the front gate of the splendid Gainandone mansion.
If a guest had arrived first, they could have waited for a while, but it wasnât common to wait outside the front door.
Unless thereâs something in the mansion that shouldnât be shownâ¦
âWhat is it?â
Boom bap bap bap-
Boom! Puff puff puff!
Magic firecrackers lit up the sky with the sound of a gigantic wind instrument choir.
Passers-by cast a startled look, wondering if there was some kind of festival going on.
âWhatâ¦â
âWhat the hellâ¦â
âWelcome to the mansion!â
âWelcome to the mansionâ¦â
âWelcomeâ¦â
âWelcomeâ¦â
âWelcomeâ¦!â
The chorus sounds from within.
Lee Han suddenly wanted to go back to the mansion.
âWhat kind of commotion is this?â
âIt looks like the prince is welcoming guests at the Kraha family mansion.â
âoh my god. Is it necessary to make such a fuss?â
âI guess they are friends I havenât seen in a long time.â
Lee Han and his friendsâ faces turned red at the sound of people talking interestingly.
ââ¦Cloak, swallow me.â
âCome in together! me too!â
The four went inside using the magic they had learned at Einrogard.
Guinando, who was on top of the huge marble steps, waved his hand as soon as he saw the four of them.
âHere! here!â
âStop the song quickly!â
âuh? why? Only one movement has been played yet.â
âNoisy and stop singing!â
âStop it quickly!â
When his friends got angry, Kainando waved with a dumbfounded expression.
Then the musicians who were waiting on the grounds of the mansion removed their hands from their instruments.
âwhy? Didnât you like the song?â
âItâs not about the song. Letâs go inside quickly.â
Lee Han and his friends dragged Gainando into the mansion.
Gainando grumbled and was dragged away.
âYou can listen to the performance and go in.â
âIâll hear you later.â
âreally?â
ââ¦someday. More than that, Cainan Island. How are you? Is there anything wrong?â
Lee Han turned the topic. Gainando said after thinking deeply.
âI did have a problem.â
â!â
Lee Han was surprised.
Could it be that Gainando was also persecuted by the proud imperial family just as Asan was persecuted by the prominent brothers of the Dalcard family?
âWho made a fuss?â
âno. I put in a new wizard card yesterday, but I lost.â
ââ¦â¦â
ââ¦â¦â
Yoner raised his hand to strike Gainando in the back of the head.
If Nilia hadnât hurriedly grabbed her wrist, there would have been a âClapâ sound.
Lee Han nodded as if he understood and asked again.
âAnything other than the wizard card? Didnât someone come and argue with you?â
âhuh? No one came.â
ââ¦â¦â
When he said that no one came, that made him feel a bit sad.
Lee Han secretly exchanged pitiful glances with his friends.
âItâs okay because we came here.â
âSo I prepared a performance, but you guys cut it off in the middle.â
Gainando grumbled again.
When Yoner raised the other free hand, Nylia hurriedly grabbed it as well.
âMore than that. Letâs go play together during vacation.â
âWhat are you planning to play with?â
âWandering around the store, buying some new cards, looking around for some toys, and buying magazines piled up while I was in schoolâ¦â
Lee Han shook his head.
To live such an extreme consumption-oriented life.
It was a good life to be a beggar if you were picky.
âCainan Island. Thatâs good, but thereâs something more fun.â
âwhat? really?â
âFollow me and you will find out. Letâs go together later.â
There was nothing more enjoyable than silver coins earned by sweating. Lee Han decided to share the pleasure with Gainando.
Yoner whispered.
âI donât think Gainan would like to do that kind of thing, too.â
âare you okay. You just have to tell me in a situation where you canât escape.â
ââ¦â¦â
âOh no. I have to pay back the money I borrowed.â
Gainando called for a servant. Lee Han was surprised by his unexpected appearance.
âI didnât know you would remember it first.â
âMy mom said if you donât pay it back, youâre trash.â
âThatâs right.â
Gainandoâs room was large enough to accommodate several wagons. Everyone spread out moderately, grabbing something that looked interesting and playing.
While reading a serialized novel in a magazine with interest (Torberiz, a dog-beast detective, was looking for the culprit with his foresight magic), Lee Han noticed that it was noisy outside.
âWhat are you planning today?â
âuh? uh, ah. Thatâs right. They said other members of the royal family were visiting.â
ââ¦â¦â
ââ¦If thatâs not a big deal, then whatâs a big deal?â