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Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 52
🕑 Added 2023-12-30 13:11:02 +0000 UTCChapter 52
"Is it that dangerous?"
"In these mountains, there are far too many dangerous monsters. Deep within, there are even creatures unknown to the professors. As it's now spring, the number of monsters awakening will only increase with each passing week..."
Professor Ingurdel looked towards the mountains with a worried gaze.
The magic academy of Einroguard, being situated in an area rich in mana, inevitably attracted a multitude of monsters in its vicinity.
Particularly, the mountain range behind the academy appeared to Professor Ingurdel as a perilous zone where virtually every known monster could exist.
Deep within the mountains, regions seemed ideal habitats for formidable and massive monsters such as ogres, mountain giants, trolls, and wyverns...
The presence of such monsters meant that even the stronger creatures, which would normally not dwell near the outskirts, were forced to migrate outward from the heart of the mountains.
"No matter how spirited the students may be, entering such mountains is not a wise decision. Only a madman would make such a choice."
"It's not that I want to enter, but my assignment requires me to go in and gather materials."
"..."
Professor Ingurdel, with an embarrassed expression, coughed awkwardly.
He was unaware it was another professor's assignment.
"Is that so? Well, that might change things a bit."
"It doesn't seem to change much, though..."
Strictly speaking, Professor Ingurdel was not a mage but a swordsman.
Thus, his way of thinking was somewhat different from that of the other professors at the academy.
Particularly, the cool attitude of some professors who believed that 'studying magic could lead to some casualties' horrified Ingurdel.
However, disagreeing with a colleague in front of students was not something he could do.
Hiding his true feelings, Professor Ingurdel spoke diplomatically.
"If another professor has instructed you to enter the mountains to gather materials, there must be a good reason for it."
"Really?"
Yi-Han already looked at Professor Ingurdel with skeptical eyes.
It was ironic that the person who had just dismissed the idea as madness changed his tune upon hearing a colleague's name.
Strong doubts about favoritism towards a fellow professor crossed Yi-Han's mind.
Professor Ingurdel coughed again, changing the subject.
“By the way, your breathing has returned. Have you completed the circulation?"
Pleased to hear Yi-Han speaking comfortably after having been out of breath, Professor Ingurdel was delighted.
Completing the mana circulation within the body was necessary to achieve such an effect.
"Eh? Oh, this..."
Yi-Han looked sheepish.
"Sorry. I lost focus and just released the mana."
The ideal process was to extract mana from the body's core and circulate it throughout, like blood, to fortify the body without any wastage.
Smooth, uninterrupted circulation was key!
However, Yi-Han, finding the concentration too taxing, had coolly decided not to circulate the mana but simply release it after sending it throughout his body.
After all, he could always generate more mana.
"???"
Professor Ingurdel stared at Yi-Han, unable to comprehend what the scion of the Wardanaz family was saying.
—
"Hmm."
Having listened to Yi-Han's detailed explanation and recalling the incidents with the anti-magic extremists, Professor Ingurdel was lost in thought.
Ordinarily, he would have advised against such a potentially lethal venture.
Fighting with such a wasteful use of mana was akin to scattering one's own blood on the ground.
But Professor Ingurdel was known for his flexible mindset.
If there were a hundred swordsmen, there would be a hundred different sword techniques.
Considering the enormous innate mana of the boy from the Wardanaz family (though he wasn't sure if 'innate' was the right term), such wastefulness could be seen as one viable method.
After much contemplation, Professor Ingurdel made up his mind and spoke.
"I won't tell you to forbid that method. However, it would be better to focus on completing the circulation of mana under normal circumstances and use it sparingly."
"I understand."
Yi-Han nodded readily.
In truth, Yi-Han didn't harbor any grandiose ambitions like 'Haha... The most important virtue of a swordsman is strength... Even if a forbidden technique burns my life away, I will obtain great power...' If something was dangerous, he simply wouldn't do it.
"But with such an abundance of mana, completing the inner circulation of mana will be more challenging."
"..."
Hadn't he heard this before?
"So, student Wardanaz, I will increase your training amount."
"...Oh, oh..."
Yi-Han managed his expression with an iron-willed determination.
He had to pretend to be happy!
'Don't show it. Don't show it.'
Compared to the other professors who had somewhat lost their humanity, Professor Ingurdel, who still possessed a human heart, was elated by this response.
"Is that so? I was worried you might dislike it, but this is great."
"Yes... I'm overjoyed... As you know, I am sincerely committed to swordsmanship..."
Hearing Yi-Han's words, Professor Ingurdel's scarred face beamed with a smile.
"I've always known that student Wardanaz is seriously devoted to swordsmanship."
"..."
"By the way, when you go to the mountains to gather materials, I will accompany you."
“…Didn’t you say that it would be okay because Professor Uregor had thought it through?"
"Yes. But I do enjoy hiking."
Though it seemed unlikely that Professor Ingurdel, with both a prosthetic leg and arm, would enjoy hiking through steep mountains, Yi-Han had no choice but to nod in agreement.
Honestly, if Professor Ingurdel was this concerned, Yi-Han was seriously worried about what might be in those mountains.
—
Evening.
Yi-Han headed towards Professor Uregor's cabin.
There were all sorts of things happening today, but the chores that the professor originally ordered didn’t take into account such circumstances.
Of course, Professor Uregor might feel a bit wronged. He hadn't asked for daily visits, and had said it was fine not to come if busy.
And, in fact, Yi-Han had his own ulterior motives.
'I need to dig up all the information I can.'
"?"
<I have some business to attend to, so I’ll be away for a while. Feel free to take whatever you want! -Uregor>
"Wow..."
Yi-Han was surprised to see the note.
After all, Professor Uregor was a living being and couldn't be expected to always be cooped up in his cabin like a hermit. He had other students to teach and his own work to do.
Yi-Han nodded and removed the note.
He then went straight back to the tower to call Yonaire and bring her over.
“Are you asking me to find something useful in this cabin?”
“Yeah. I want to check the potions in the box we found last time.”
The potion box stolen by the professional thief Ratford from the carriage.
The identity of those potions was a mystery, and it was difficult for a first-year student like Yi-Han to figure it out on his own.
Finding something useful in Professor Uregor's cabin would be a great help.
Especially with a student like Yonaire, who was well-versed in alchemy.
‘Hold on. Isn't this Professor Uregor's cabin?’
Yonaire, having barbecued meat here previously, quickly recognized the place.
‘It should be fine.’
However, Yonaire decided to just let it be.
In a crazy academy like this, what was one more oddity?
"Wait. What's that?"
"What? Oh, the vegetable garden?"
Yonaire, walking ahead, asked in surprise, to which Yi-Han responded nonchalantly.
"I've been tending to it, but it's still a long way off. It'll need a few more months to grow."
"...Huh? Looks like it's fully grown?"
"?!"
Now it was Yi-Han's turn to be perplexed. He turned around to see what Yonaire meant.
"...!!"
Yonaire was right.
"No. What's this?"
Yi-Han was astonished to see that the vegetables he had planted were already fully grown.
It was far too quick, by any measure.
"Maybe Professor Uregor sprinkled something on them? He's quite impatient."
Upon hearing Yi-Han's explanation, Yonaire nodded.
Using a growth-promoting potion because he couldn't wait to eat.
‘He sure is a glutton.’
Thus, the absent Professor Uregor was unjustly accused.
"Now that it's come to this, we should harvest them. Yonaire, can you check inside the cabin?"
"Leave it to me."
Yi-Han, with skilled movements, began to harvest the vegetables, pulling out potatoes without a single mistake.
His actions were so precise, they could have been performed by a farmer with decades of experience.
Yonaire understood why Professor Uregor was fond of Yi-Han.
"What are you doing?"
"Ah, nothing. I'll go find something useful."
As the basket filled generously with vegetables, Yonaire busily searched the cabin.
Before long, Yi-Han's arms were full of a basket of crops, and Yonaire's were laden with a box of unidentified reagents and alchemical tools.
"All done?"
"Yes!"
"Let's go!"
The two students from the Blue Dragon left the cabin behind and ran out energetically.
A piece of paper fluttered on the cabin door, newly attached by Yi-Han.
<Thank you, Professor. I've left some of the harvested crops for you to taste. - Yi-Han Wardanaz.>
—
Yi-Han and Yonaire greeted the morning sun with dark circles under their eyes.
They had spent the night sparing their sleep, conducting alchemical tests in the freshman lounge.
"So, this is the Cantus potion?"
"Yes."
The results of their experiment were as follows:
<Western Imperial Wine (Tasty)>.
<Cantus Potion> - Enables one to sing like a beautiful mermaid for a while.
The end.
"..."
As Yonaire's expression started to droop, Yi-Han quickly consoled her.
"This is a decent result. We can't figure out everything on the first try."
"Yeah, but where would we use a singing potion..."
"We'll definitely find a use for it."
Creak-
At that moment, Asan Dargard entered the lounge. Seeing them, he looked pleased.
"Wardanaz. Are you ready to go into the mountains today?"
"More or less."
Yi-Han had already laid out his plan.
He'd leave with the other students on Friday, try to return by Saturday, and on Sunday...
'I'll use the pass to go out.'
Yi-Han tried to stay calm.
It was best to keep expectations low. Until he left, he couldn't be sure what traps might be waiting.
"By the way, Wardanaz. Do you want to stop by the black market before going to the mountains?"
"...What market?"
Yi-Han was taken aback by Asan's words.
A black market?
'What kind of academy has a black market?'
As much as he was surprised, Yi-Han couldn't quite believe Asan's words…
...and indeed, it existed.
‘I can’t believe it.’
To be precise, it wasn't a black market, but rather a small market.
The freshmen of the Black Tortoise had set up a market near their tower!
Initially, they had gathered for bartering necessities, but finding it surprisingly convenient, they began to hold it regularly.
Yi-Han was at a loss for words.
'What exactly is this academy trying to teach its students?'
"Come on, place your bets and win some bread! Find His Majesty the Emperor. He's in one of these three cards. Where could His Majesty be? Guess correctly, and you'll win double the bread... Ah, Mr. Wardanaz."
Ratford, who was skillfully shuffling three cards in a shell game, sprang to his feet upon seeing Yi-Han.
As the surrounding students who were chatting and mingling turned their heads to look, Yi-Han felt an urge to just turn around and leave.
