Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy - Chapter 828
At those words, Princess Yukbeltire grabbed Lee Han’s wrist in rare agitation.
“What are you doing?”
“Trying something else.”
“Why? Don’t tell me you’re running away.”
In her urgency, Princess Yukbeltire tried to provoke Lee Han’s pride.
Though she would never admit it out loud, the obsidian staff had genuinely caught her interest.
…I want to see it completed.
Unfortunately, she still didn’t understand her junior very well.
Lee Han had no pride to provoke.
“Yes.”
“…”
Princess Yukbeltire was so dumbfounded that she fell silent.
“A mage’s pride… self-respect… and you’re Diret’s junior… shouldn’t you at least…”
She’s terrible at provoking people.
To provoke someone properly, you needed to understand what they actually cared about.
But Princess Yukbeltire’s understanding of Lee Han was so poor that her words came out scattered and incoherent.
“Senior Diret would praise me for running away.”
“That’s true. Diret is unnecessarily soft.”
“You say that like Senior Diret isn’t soft with you too…”
“?”
Princess Yukbeltire looked genuinely confused.
Diret was soft with her?
“How rude Diret always is to me…”
“Yes, yes. Of course.”
“…”
Watching her junior answer with the same level of disrespect as Diret himself made Princess Yukbeltire’s fingertips twitch again.
“The king-level spirit you mentioned earlier… that means a Spirit King, right?”
“That’s right.”
“And how exactly am I supposed to obtain a branch from a Spirit King?”
“Wasn’t the lightning spirit you contracted with also a Spirit King?”
“…”
This time, Lee Han was the one left speechless.
That…
That was true.
Perkuntra really did call itself the Thunder King.
Among beings from other dimensions, titles like king or duke were proof of power.
On the continent, royalty came from bloodlines. Spirits were different. A spirit could only claim the title of king if it possessed overwhelming strength itself.
“So… right. I understand. But since I contracted with a lightning spirit, could it give me a branch or something?”
“No. You’ll need a wood-aspect spirit. Ask for an introduction.”
Do I really have to send Brother Arsil a letter…?
Lee Han reluctantly considered the possibility.
Honestly, though he hated admitting it, Arsil would probably be able to casually introduce him to some absurdly powerful spirit with a title like Forest King or Sacred Tree King.
“I understand. I’ll ask the lightning spirit first, and I’ll try sending my brother a letter too. Though who knows when it’ll actually reach him.”
Ordinarily, sending letters outside Einroguard was a tremendous hassle.
For Lee Han now, though, this much barely counted as difficult anymore.
He had already smuggled dozens of people out. Sending one letter was nothing.
“Then I suppose we’ll have to wait until we secure the materials.”
“Tell me more about the Echo Stone.”
Princess Yukbeltire spoke casually, as if the thought had only just occurred to her.
It wasn’t as though communication artifacts of this sort were unheard of, but the Echo Stone’s structure was unusually distinctive. As a member of the enchantment magic school, she couldn’t help being curious.
And from what she’d heard, it seemed tied to some ancient existence…
“I already explained everything earlier.”
“I mean the stone’s origins.”
“Why does that matter?”
“It’ll help improve the staff’s completion.”
“How?”
“…Forget it if you don’t want to answer.”
“…Are you angry right now?”
“I’m not angry. It’s simply unpleasant to be accused of irrational emotional reactions.”
She really is interested in the obsidian staff.
The suspicion Lee Han had brushed aside earlier now hardened into certainty.
***
After the lecture ended—Lee Han had eventually explained the Echo Stone’s origins—he started to stand, then suddenly remembered something.
“By the way, Senior.”
“What?”
“Does this lecture have pop quizzes?”
“No.”
“I see.”
If Professor Verdus’s weakness was a complete lack of interest in students, then that same indifference was also a strength.
Lee Han smiled faintly at the thought of a class with no surprise quizzes.
“Then what about midterms?”
“There aren’t any.”
“…What? No midterms either?”
At that point, Lee Han started feeling uneasy.
No midterms was dangerous.
The Skull Principal might suddenly throw Professor Verdus into the punishment cells halfway through the semester, then arbitrarily add exams afterward.
“This lecture is about crafting a staff. As long as you complete one and bring it, that’s enough.”
“I see…”
Lee Han nodded at the brutally simple grading system, then suddenly paused.
“Wait. If we finish early, what do we do for the rest of the semester?”
“Don’t attend. Go work on whatever research you want.”
“…!”
At first it sounded absurd.
But the more he thought about it, the more reasonable it became.
This lecture didn’t even check attendance in the first place.
If I finish early, I really can use the remaining lecture time however I want…?
Lee Han immediately began mentally reorganizing his schedule.
He could preview <Poison, Bone, Blood>, prepare in advance for <Viciously Beautiful Creatures>, or spend more time maintaining the vegetable garden before <A Drop of Potion Instead of Complex Magic>.
…Why does imagining this somehow make me less happy instead of more?
“Anyway, I understand. Senior, thank you. I’ll contact you as soon as I learn anything about the materials. Please give my regards to Senior Diret, make sure you eat properly, and stop tormenting innocent people…”
“Are you done? Let’s go.”
Ragesa called from behind him.
Lee Han immediately cut himself off and bowed.
“Then I’ll see you next time.”
“I never tormented any—”
But by then, Lee Han and Ragesa were already halfway down the corridor.
“What’s our next lecture? Please tell me it’s something interesting without Professor Bivle involved.”
“<Magical Algebra and Arcane Geometry>…”
Ragesa screamed like a pirate taking a blade through the chest.
Of all things, mathematics.
Then Lee Han realized he had misread the schedule.
“Ah. My mistake.”
“…”
“It’s <Spirit, Energy, Mind>. Professor Ingledel’s class.”
“Oh!”
Ragesa brightened immediately at the mention of a combat lecture.
Then she frowned.
“Wait. Why is a Blue Dragon Tower brat like you taking a White Tiger Tower exclusive lecture?”
“…Easy grades?”
“Kihihihit! Good one.”
“I’m serious… Raphaedel. Anglago!”
Lee Han waved toward the friends he spotted ahead.
The two White Tiger Tower students stopped their serious conversation and turned toward him.
“Oh. Wardanaz.”
“I missed the previous lecture. Did I miss anything important?”
“…Here.”
Anglago handed him a note containing the assignment.
Visit the most dangerous place possible, survive there for at least two days, then submit a journal recording the experience.
(Weekends recommended. Locations with differing time axes recommended.)
—Professor Ingledel
“…”
“Ho. As expected of Professor Ingledel. Excellent teaching.”
Ragesa looked thoroughly satisfied.
As expected, Ingledel understood how to temper students into steel.
Lee Han and his friends glared resentfully at the evil pirate, but Ragesa only scoffed.
“What better assignment could there be for sharpening a swordsman’s abilities?”
“Can’t we just do something normal? I want to participate in the Imperial swordsmanship tournament.”
“Eh. That’s for greenhouse flowers. Now, an underground illegal fighting-pit tournament—that’s different.”
“…”
Lee Han apologized to his friends with his eyes.
An apology for bringing Ragesa along.
Anglago groaned.
“At this point I wish she’d just pick the location for us. I can’t tell what counts as dangerous enough. What if we suffer through something awful only for the professor to say it was too easy?”
Worst-case scenario, they could nearly die for nothing, only to hear:
What? You only went there?
“Finding and choosing the location is part of the test too, brats.”
“…We’ll figure it out ourselves!”
Raphaedel finally snapped.
Ragesa burst into laughter as though she had been waiting for exactly that moment and swung her °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° staff.
Raphaedel tried to react, but the pirate crone’s spell was far faster.
CLANK!
Chains wrapped around Raphaedel instantly, leaving him dangling upside down in midair.
“Put me down!”
“If you want out, free yourself with your own strength! Brat. Consider it a lesson. This is what happens when you mouth off to a mage stronger than you.”
Then Ragesa casually turned to Lee Han.
“Oh right. Why not take your White Tiger Tower friends there with you for the assignment?”
“Huh? Wouldn’t that be dangerous?”
After this lecture, Lee Han had planned to head down to the punishment cells to meet Perkuntra.
He needed to ask about the branch, so he had no choice but to go personally.
Now that Professor Ingledel’s lecture had become an assignment, the timing worked out anyway…
Still, isn’t that dangerous?
His friends might be second-years now, but dragging them down into the punishment cells—especially to meet Perkuntra—felt a little excessive.
“What are you talking about, Wardanaz?”
Anglago’s eyes gleamed.
Come to think of it, there probably wasn’t anyone among the second-years who knew more “dangerous places” than Wardanaz.
And the fact that Wardanaz looked reluctant somehow made it even more convincing.
Just how dangerous was this place?
“I’m ready. You don’t still think of me as last year’s Anglago, do you?”
You are last year’s Anglago. What else would you be? Some alternate-dimensional Anglago?
Raphaedel thought bitterly while hanging upside down.
Still…
Following Wardanaz really did sound promising.
The guy had an unbelievable talent for stumbling into horrifying places.
“Well… fine. Let’s go together.”
“You should bring even more friends. Kihihihit.”
Ragesa offered the suggestion to Anglago.
Anglago immediately looked conflicted. He clearly didn’t want to share the dangerous location he had finally discovered.
“There’s no need for that many people…”
“What? A knight planning to monopolize glory all for yourself?”
“…I’ll go call them right now!”
Watching Anglago get manipulated so effortlessly, Lee Han suddenly felt uneasy.
They’re not going to resent being tricked into this later, are they?
***
“We’ve been deceived!!”
Anglago shouted before he could stop himself.
Beside him, Giselle and Dergeu stared at him like he had lost his mind.
“Deceived how?”
“Wardanaz didn’t trick you, Anglago.”
“Ah… no. I just didn’t think we’d be going this deep into the punishment cells…”
“What, did you expect Wardanaz to bring you to a cozy study with a fireplace?”
“You were the one begging to come along, Anglago.”
Anglago had no response to the criticism from his two friends.
This is unfair…
“The punishment cells themselves are honestly pretty mild.”
Giselle glanced toward Lee Han as she spoke.
To tell the truth, she had mentally prepared herself for somewhere far worse.
“Hey. Moradi. I need to tell you something privately.”
“…That sounds ominous.”
The moment Lee Han called her aside, Giselle felt a chill run down her spine.
Good news rarely began with I need to tell you something privately.
“So. The reason we’re going this deep into the punishment cells isn’t actually because we’re staying in the dungeon below.”
“Then why are we here?”
“I need to ask someone for a favor.”
“A prisoner?”
“No. A high-ranking spirit. It oversees the punishment-cell guards here.”
“…Wow. Somehow that’s not surprising at all.”
“Really? That’s a relief.”
“That was sarcasm, you bastard…”
“Anyway, I need to request something fairly valuable from it. So things could get dangerous. I figured you should know in advance.”
“Why the hell did that idiot drag all his friends here, then?”
“I really did try to stop him.”
“…”
Giselle gave Lee Han a suspicious look.
Honestly, with Wardanaz’s abilities, it felt entirely possible that he had secretly brainwashed Anglago while restraining him somewhere.
