Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy - Chapter 886

However, Jowrin wisely kept those thoughts to herself.

Though she had only been at Einroguard for a short time, her social instincts had improved at a frightening pace.

Perhaps it was a natural talent unique to dragons.

Jowrin instinctively understood that if she voiced what she was thinking right now, even someone as kind as Lee Han might finally snap and throw her out of the common room.

Jowrin is smart. Jowrin should quietly endure.

Quite pleased with her own maturity, Jowrin obediently waited in silence.

***

“Your Majesty. You need to look where you’re walking.”

Mm.

“Your Majesty. Please look ahead while walking.”

Mmm.

“…”

Lee Han used telekinesis to confiscate the out-of-print Toberiz novel Jowrin was holding.

Jowrin let out a shriek and rolled dramatically from side to side, but Lee Han remained completely unmoved.

After all, if the corridors or walls of Einroguard were destroyed, the one forced to repair them would be the Skull Principal, not Lee Han.

When he still didn’t return the book even after several minutes of rolling around, Jowrin finally gave up and obediently followed behind him again.

“I’ll give it back once we return to the common room later. Or you could just stay there and read comfortably now.”

No. Following Lee Han around is more fun.

“Haha. To think Your Majesty enjoys lectures this much… you truly are gifted in magic.”

That’s not really what Jowrin meant…

Jowrin almost explained that what interested her wasn’t the lectures themselves, but the bizarre things constantly happening around Lee Han.

But she stopped herself again.

Just like before, her instincts warned her that speaking carelessly might get her sent back to the common room immediately.

Jowrin suddenly felt proud of how much she had grown.

“What did you say about lectures?”

Oh. # Nоvеlight # Um… Jowrin was asking what lecture Lee Han is going to now!

“It’s the 【A Mage’s Life with Plants】 lecture. Though technically, I’m not going there to attend class.”

At Lee Han’s answer, Jowrin tilted her head in confusion before suddenly realizing something.

Aha!

“As expected of Your Majesty. You understood immediately.”

You’re going to help make the midterm exams?

“…No…”

Lee Han began to worry that Jowrin’s understanding of Einroguard had become hopelessly warped after witnessing too many abnormal incidents in succession.

These were all unusual situations caused by layers of misfortune overlapping one another.

Normally, Einroguard wasn’t like this.

…Or was it? Maybe this actually was normal?

“I don’t usually help make exams. I already told you music magic was a special case.”

But surely the other professors also—

“Ugh. To think Your Majesty doesn’t trust me. I’m so sad I might collapse…”

Oh no! Jowrin trusts Lee Han! Sorry! Please don’t collapse!

“Thank you.”

…

The instant Lee Han recovered completely, Jowrin stared at him suspiciously.

Could Lee Han have just deceived Jowrin?

…No. That can’t be right.

Surely a kind mage like Lee Han wouldn’t lie so casually.

“I’m going there to take care of the plants. Because of the nature of the lecture, they need constant maintenance even during breaks.”

Most students at Einroguard were incredibly busy.

Even students who weren’t cramming their schedules as absurdly full as Lee Han still had little free time to relax.

Whenever they weren’t attending lectures, they were studying, preparing assignments, or gathering materials.

And this semester’s goal for 【A Mage’s Life with Plants】 was the cultivation of mandrakes.

A task that demanded constant hands-on care.

Aha.

Only then did Jowrin properly understand.

“Now you get it, Your Majesty?”

Mm.

Even after understanding, however, a new question arose in Jowrin’s mind.

…When exactly does Lee Han rest?

Meanwhile, they arrived at the sixth-floor greenhouse.

Jowrin leisurely inhaled the warm, humid air drifting from inside, then blinked in confusion when Lee Han stopped instead of entering.

Rather than going into the greenhouse, he carefully looked around before knocking on the door of an empty classroom nearby.

-Who is it?

“Someone who understands the true value of mandrakes.”

-Wardanaz. Come in.

Inside the empty classroom were Bartrek and Ratford, both apparently waiting for him.

Jowrin blinked again, even more confused than before.

Wasn’t he supposed to be tending the mandrakes?

“How’s it going? The pattern work?”

“It’s halfway done. The snowflake pattern is seriously difficult.”

“What kind of nonsense is that? After using such expensive reagents?”

Lee Han immediately pressed him furiously, causing Bartrek to hurriedly defend himself.

“I-I can’t help it! I’m only a second-year, Wardanaz!”

“Excuses are meaningless, Bartrek! Buyers don’t care what year we’re in!”

“Um… Wardanaz sir. I have a question.”

Ratford cautiously raised a hand from the side.

“What is it?”

“…Is it really okay for His Majesty to hear all this?”

Only then did Bartrek finally notice the enormous dragon peering at them through the doorway.

He nearly jumped in shock before whispering frantically.

“Hey! Why did you bring His Majesty here?!”

“I bring Gainando around all the time. Why would Prince Jowrin be any different?”

“How are Gainando and His Majesty remotely the same?!”

Bartrek shouted in disbelief.

The three of them had formed a separate alliance from the very start of the lecture for entirely different reasons than the other students.

-Apart from their medicinal properties, mandrake leaves with rare patterns sell for absurd prices. There are collectors for them…

-So during class, we secretly engrave patterns onto the leaves and sell them separately?

-…Isn’t that crossing a line a little?

-No. Let’s do it immediately!

A proper mage needed to know how to pursue practical profit.

If they could earn both grades and gold at the same time, wasn’t that the ideal outcome?

Thus, the three had begun attempting to cultivate mandrakes while simultaneously engraving decorative patterns into the leaves.

“Relax. Prince Jowrin isn’t the type to go around reporting people.”

“…Fine. I’ll trust you, Wardanaz. But…”

“What now?”

“…Isn’t the person standing behind His Majesty a professor??”

Just as Bartrek was about to move on, he finally noticed Professor Voladi Bagreg standing expressionlessly behind Jowrin.

A visiting imperial dragon was alarming enough, but a professor was an entirely different level of danger.

“Ha. Bartrek. Are you trying to change the subject because you failed? Is this truly the pride of White Tiger Tower?”

“No, no… this is a completely legitimate concern…”

“Professor Bagreg isn’t the sort to report people either, so don’t worry.”

This guy’s genuinely insane.

Bartrek shuddered internally.

He’d always known the Wardanaz boy possessed a level of madness completely separate from ordinary students, but today was overwhelming even by those standards.

Dragging Professor Voladi around while casually saying things like our professor won’t report us…

“…Fine. Whatever. Just wait until Professor Willow hears the rumors and confiscates all the leaves.”

“That’s hardly the important issue right now. The real problem is that the patterns are only half-finished despite all the reagents we poured into them. We practically used an entire crate of blue proposal stones on the fire grass alone…”

“Ugh.”

Bartrek immediately lowered his head and avoided eye contact.

Whether alchemists or enchantment mages, everyone adopted roughly the same posture after receiving funding and then failing to produce proper results.

Though Bartrek himself didn’t realize it, countless upperclassmen and professors before him had made that exact same expression.

“Sigh. It can’t be helped. Bartrek, we’ll just have to do our best with the time remaining. Let’s go finish tending the mandrakes.”

“…Got it. Sorry again, Wardanaz.”

“Then stop apologizing and finish the patterns.”

“…”

Bartrek grumbled internally.

Damn it. Next time I’m definitely securing the reagents myself.

Incidentally, this was also a thought countless senior alchemists had reached before him.

As the discussion finally wrapped up, Jowrin — who had been silently observing everything — suddenly spoke up.

Jowrin has something she’s curious about.

“What is it?”

Are you making those leaf patterns because of gold coins?

“It’s not entirely because of that…”

“We also genuinely like plants…”

Bartrek and Ratford instinctively tried to justify themselves.

Unfortunately, the attempt only made them sound guiltier.

“Yes…”

“We are trying to earn some money…”

Lee Han too?

“I’d say profit is a fairly major reason, yes.”

Unlike the others, Lee Han answered shamelessly and directly.

Jowrin rested her chin on her forepaw.

Then can’t Lee Han simply take gold coins from Jowrin’s treasure storage?

“…!!”

All three students froze as though struck by lightning.

Bartrek unconsciously blurted out:

“Y-Your Majesty would sponsor my alchemy?!”

No. Jowrin was only talking about Lee Han…

Jowrin answered awkwardly.

Bartrek immediately became awkward as well.

“Ah. Right. Sorry.”

“…No. It’s alright, Your Majesty. We can earn the money ourselves.”

Bartrek found himself slightly impressed.

That Wardanaz guy… moments like this really show his upbringing as a great noble.

Bartrek himself had plenty of pride as the son of a knightly house, yet even he had almost been seduced by the idea of taking treasure directly from a dragon’s hoard.

That was simply how legendary dragon wealth was.

But Wardanaz had firmly and honorably refused.

If he accepted something like that, wouldn’t it mean he’d only hosted the imperial guest for profit from the very beginning?

“Wardanaz. I respect you. Honestly, I was tempted.”

Bartrek patted his friend’s shoulder.

Then immediately froze.

Lee Han was staring at him with a gaze filled with murderous intent.

“…Make sure the patterns are completed within this semester. Understood?”

“…Y-Yes…”

***

“Meikin. Doesn’t Bak seem unusually hardworking today?”

Siana tilted her head while watching Bartrek sweat profusely over the mandrake seedlings.

Of course, since the Bak family was famous among the eastern dwarf clans for alchemy, it wasn’t strange for Bartrek to work hard.

But today felt different.

“Maybe because the exam is next week?”

“It feels more desperate than that…”

“Over there. Mana aphids appeared.”

“Ah. Thank you.”

Siana sprayed diluted poison over the pests.

As midterms approached, the students caring for mandrakes had naturally split into distinct categories.

Students like Siana and Yonair, who had diligently managed their plants since the beginning, remained relatively relaxed.

They only needed to remove the occasional insect or replenish water.

Meanwhile, students who had neglected their work were in complete chaos, desperately patching damaged leaves and chasing away bugs at the last minute.

Then there were students who looked completely calm for an entirely different reason.

Those students had already given up and boldly sold their seedlings to upperclassmen.

“Hehe… worst case, it’s just the punishment room.”

“Keep your voice down. That’s embarrassing.”

Bartrek belonged firmly in the first group.

So why did he look so desperate?

Siana couldn’t understand it at all.

Meanwhile, students from the second group gradually gathered around Lee Han.

“Wardanaz! Please!”

“I can’t hear anything.”

“You have to lead us! Like you did in first year!”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. People might misunderstand.”

???

Jowrin curiously watched the students surrounding Lee Han.

Meikin. Meikin. Jowrin has another question.

“What is it?”

What are those mages asking Lee Han to do?

“Ah.”

Yonair chuckled and explained.

Since the start of the semester, certain students had reached an obvious conclusion.

Mandrakes required water, care, and sunlight to grow.

So if someone could artificially replicate the sun’s power, growth could theoretically be accelerated dramatically.

-I heard there’s an artificial sun artifact stored in the Principal’s vault. If we steal that, wouldn’t it be an instant perfect score?

Students who arrived at that conclusion had been desperately trying to drag Lee Han into the scheme ever since.

Naturally, Lee Han ignored them completely.

His own mandrakes were already growing perfectly fine, so there was no reason to take such insane risks.

Would Lee Han’s mandrakes grow much better with that artifact?

“I assume they would.”

Jowrin glanced at Lee Han’s seedling once, then slowly opened her mouth wide before narrowing her eyes and staring thoughtfully around the greenhouse.

As if calculating the ideal distance for using dragon breath safely.

Meikin is truly kind!

“…Yes? Why are you suddenly complimenting me?”

Jowrin has one more question. Are there ever times when nobody is inside this greenhouse?

“There are, but…?”

Yonair suddenly felt an ominous sense of unease.

Whenever the imperial dragon suddenly started praising someone, there was usually a very dangerous reason behind it.