Necromancer Academy’s Genius Summoner - Chapter 248

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

The Necromancer’s School: Summoning Genius, Episode 248
After various back-and-forths, Simon ultimately agreed to accept the Exclusive Dungeon Conquest Right.
The Queen and the financial ministers seemed somewhat taken aback by Simon’s choice.
They had been anxious, thinking that since he was negotiating so aggressively, he might demand the conquest rights to the Kingdom’s largest dungeons—even ones currently being prepared for conquest. But Simon’s decision was unexpected.
The White Grave Dungeon.
It earned its name when a dungeon gate was discovered in an underground tomb built of white stone. Multiple conquest parties had tried over the years, but they had all failed at the very entrance.
Some special secret must have been hidden there, for no one had ever managed to pass through the gate. Conquest parties had since withdrawn, and archaeologists were now investigating to uncover the secret surrounding the dungeon’s entrance.
After ten years of this, Simon declared he would take possession of this dungeon—one the Kingdom now regarded as more trouble than benefit.
The Kingdom still harbored some lingering interest in the dungeon’s potential value, but Simon’s claim seemed reasonable enough.
However, the Kingdom made it clear that if Simon were to hold the exclusive rights, all archaeologists would be withdrawn, and the Kingdom could not provide any of the information it had gathered thus far.
Simon alone would have to unravel the dungeon’s secrets.
The Queen and officials were firmly convinced that Simon could never solve a riddle that no one had cracked in ten years, and they ultimately hoped he would rely on the Kingdom again by conceding part of the conquest rights. But—
[Khaaa! I already know how to enter it, so it makes no difference!]
Simon had Pier. In fact, Pier was the one who knew the dungeon’s secret.
In the end, Simon was promised the Exclusive Dungeon Conquest Right, signed the documents, and decided to return to Kizen.
There was no time to enter the dungeon immediately, and Magnus’s threat still remained, so he planned to prepare slowly. He also safely received the Commission Fee of two thousand gold.
‘A short but productive visit.’
That was Simon’s assessment. Of course, he had been worn out mentally the entire day, caught in the quarreling between Serne and Lorain.
That afternoon, Simon traveled back to Kizen via Teleportation Magic Circle.
After parting with the two of them and arriving at the Dormitory, room 409 was empty.
‘Looks like they both still have missions to finish.’
Since today was the third day, he figured he’d see their faces tomorrow, the final day.
As Simon was leisurely unpacking, he noticed a note stuck to the desk. This handwriting—as messy as a worm crawling across the page—could only belong to Dick.
—Emergency meeting in progress! The moment you read this, change into proper clothes and come to the address below!
Below that line was an address in Rochester.
Simon’s eyes filled with bewilderment.
‘An emergency meeting?’

* * *
The moment Simon returned to Kizen, he changed clothes and headed to Rochester.
As evening fell, Mana Light Bulbs throughout the city flickered on, illuminating the streets.
‘Plenty of people out even though it’s night.’
During the Mission Evaluation Period, curfews and other restrictions vanished, so the city’s nocturnal youth continued to thrive.
Moreover, once preparations for the BMAT Third Exam began the day after tomorrow, everyone would be buried in work, so they were making the most of their free time tonight.
“Here it is.”
Simon arrived at the address Dick had written down. It was an ordinary two-story house.
The address pointed to the second floor, and as Simon climbed the stairs, he could already hear lively chatter.
“Excuse me.”
Simon knocked on the wooden door, but there was no response. The noisy sounds from inside seemed to be drowning out his knock.
Since there was no lock, Simon carefully opened the door and stepped inside.
“Oh.”
It was a cozy log cabin. Outside, the night wind was chilly, but it was warm inside, and the feeling was pleasant.
—Meow!~
The moment Simon entered, small black and white kittens came scampering toward him.
‘What? What are they doing here?’
They were baby kittens that Kamibarez was raising in the Female Dormitory.
As the kittens pressed against Simon’s feet and rubbed their bodies against him affectionately, the accumulated fatigue seemed to melt away.
Simon crouched down and gently scratched the kittens.
“Hey! What are you doing? If you’re late, get in here quick!”
Merin’s characteristically loud bark rang out—a sound he was very familiar with by now.
“Simon~”
Kamibarez poked her head out with a bright laugh.
“Hello!”
“Hi, Kamibarez. So everyone’s already here.”
“Yes! Merin and I arrived this morning.”
Simon changed into indoor slippers and entered the room. The kittens meowed and followed him.
“You made it.”
Dick, who had been sitting at the table, grinned and waved his hand.
A fireplace next to him had logs burning, and the dining table held simple snacks and wine. On a plush sofa lay various Magic Circle drawing tools and books stacked haphazardly.
“What is all this?”
Simon looked confused, so Dick spread both arms wide and answered.
“We borrowed this place for the day to hold an emergency strategy meeting! Everyone’s staying here tonight!”
“An emergency strategy meeting? Out of nowhere?”
“You haven’t heard yet, it seems.”
Merin turned to Simon and continued.
“The theme for the BMAT Third Exam has been revealed.”
Simon’s eyes widened sharply.
“Already? It’s been revealed already?”
“Hehehehe! Who am I? Yours truly, Dick, finds out faster than anyone else——!”
“Don’t be so smug about it! Half the students know already.”
At Merin’s rebuke, Dick’s shoulders sagged and his expression fell.
“Alas, the fierce intelligence war I was hoping for turned out to be nothing like this!”
“But this information is reliable?”
“Yes! Completely reliable!”
This time Kamibarez spoke, clenching both fists tightly.
“The theme of this exam is ‘the Sea’!”
According to her explanation, a massive Magic Circle and underwater test grounds were being constructed in waters not far from Rocksum.
“The Sea……!”
Simon’s head felt oddly hollow.
An exam held at sea—he’d never even imagined such a thing.
“I dug into Kizen’s material flow, personnel resources, and every detail of their movements. It checks out.”
Dick propped his head up with one arm.
“But Kizen Headquarters is keeping access to the test site strictly controlled, so we still don’t know what kind of exam will actually take place at sea.”
“But at least we know for certain that the theme is the Sea.”
“Exactly!”
Simon thought about it for just a moment, and his mind went blank.
‘How am I supposed to fight underwater?’
Now he understood why they’d called an emergency strategy meeting. He had no idea how to fight at sea.
Simon had fought underwater once before—during his second Mission Evaluation, when he’d faced the traitor Pinch on Blue Harbor island. Though in fairness, he’d been wearing Pier at the time, and it was closer to shipboard combat than true underwater battle.
“The Sea is a Necromancer’s nightmare,” Merin explained.
She continued her explanation.
“Black Magic Circles lose cohesion in water and scatter easily. The Dark Magic you can use is severely limited, and long-range projectiles like Black Arrows slow down underwater. Most Undead creatures are vulnerable to saltwater, and Skeletons are basically unusable—bones are lighter than water, so they’d just float up.”
Simon’s expression grew serious as he listened.
“But setting that aside—how do you breathe underwater?”
“Right. Breathing is the biggest problem.”
Kamibarez spoke while cradling several cats in her arms.
“If it’s a naval combat exam fought from ships, wouldn’t that be manageable?”
“It absolutely won’t be a naval battle.”
Dick laughed darkly.
“Kizen’s been ruthless since day one. They’re the type who’d shackle us and teleport us to the sea bottom without blinking.”
“Sh, shackles…….”
Kamibarez’s face went pale. Merin pressed her finger to Dick’s forehead, cutting in.
“Stop saying ridiculous things. We have to prepare for underwater combat either way. Even if it’s a surface battle like you said, we need to be ready for falling into the water.”
“Yes, that makes sense!”
Kamibarez nodded in agreement, and Simon soon followed suit. Merin clapped her palms together sharply, drawing everyone’s attention.
“Then, as team leader, I’ll give the orders.”
She pulled one book from the stack piled on the sofa and opened it.
The title was *Necromancer, Surviving the Sea!*
“Since Simon’s here now, I’ll start from the beginning. It’s not that Dark Magic for use in water doesn’t exist at all. But all of it involves advanced formulas that senior students learn.”
Simon took the book and examined the diagrams himself. It was a Magic Circle for creating a Simple Gill—and it contained countless formulas he’d never seen before.
Skimming through, he saw that to construct this he’d need to learn a Rune Language called Glide, and there were other Rune Languages to master before he could even learn that.
“Most of the other books are the same way.”
“It feels kind of unhelpful.”
“Ha! What did you expect? That’s how Necromancers are!”
Dick suddenly interjected.
“Necromancers are fundamentally pragmatists, so they develop the best Magic Circle they can create. Outside of textbooks, it’s nearly impossible to find beginner-friendly Dark Magic, let alone underwater magic for novices!”
“So you’re saying we have to create the Dark Magic we’ll use in the exam ourselves?”
“That’s it! You catch on fast.”
“Well then.”
Merin looked around at her team members and spoke again.
“The first priority is creating Dark Magic to help us breathe underwater. Beyond that, we need Underwater Attack Dark Magic to intercept enemies in the sea, and Dark Magic to help us move quickly through water. We might be tested as soon as this week or next, so let’s get moving.”
Merin assigned each of the three a specific role and divided the work among them.
“Then let’s begin!”
Simon and Merin took on the most crucial breathing Magic Circle.
They spread out the books they’d borrowed from the Library and decided to extract only the essential formulas.
After creating the Magic Circle, they planned to run a simple test and then visit professors or teaching assistants for a stability inspection.
“Still, how did you manage to borrow these books?”
At Simon’s comment, Merin smiled with a slight huff.
“The moment I got the information from Pinch, I made a beeline for the Library.”
The three of them had swept up all the books related to sea and Dark Magic. Apparently, there had even been faster students who came and went before them.
“By now, the latecomers who arrived at the Library must be in quite a predicament.”
“You did well.”
Simon first examined the Magic Circle design that Merin had created.
“This is an air-tank style Magic Circle—it stores air within the pattern.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“But if you want to maintain the Magic Circle underwater for an extended period, shouldn’t you add formulas that reinforce the bindings?”
She shrugged.
“There’s no room for that. Look at the Magic Circle. It’s already packed as it is.”
“Then let’s simplify unnecessary structures first and create as much space as possible. For starters, we can change those complex Dark Element circuits to straight lines.”
“Are you an idiot? What kind of attack spell is this? If you make the circuit straight, it’ll just become an air-cannon spell!”
“We can disperse the circuit at the end. Hold on.”
Simon searched for relevant materials and flipped through the books.
“Kamibarez! Can you find an example related to circuit dispersal?”
“Yes! Simon!”
Kamibarez was in charge of research and attack spells.
She sat nestled among books spread across one section of the table, diligently turning pages.
“How about this?”
“Ah, you found it quickly! Thank you!”
Simon brought over the book, laid it open, and corrected the design with a Quill Pen.
“I’ll try making it right away.”
When Merin floated the Magic Circle in mid-air according to the design and channeled Dark Element through it, a leak was discovered partway through.
“It failed. The Dark Element is leaking everywhere.”
“Resistance is building up in this section, and damage keeps accumulating. Wait a moment.”
The four of them immersed themselves in developing the underwater Magic Circle.
While Merin reviewed the Rune Language, Simon, who had taken a brief rest, picked up an unopened bottle of Wine from the table.
“Is it alright if I drink this?”
“Of course, help yourself!”
Pinch nodded.
Simon poured just enough Wine to avoid getting drunk, took a sip, and grabbed some food. He hadn’t eaten dinner, after all, and was hungry.
“Hey, Simon! Take a look at this!”
“Sure.”
Two hours passed in an instant, and the night deepened. The Magic Circle development continued in the relaxed atmosphere.
“Ha-ha-ha! Look at those two!”
Pinch pointed with his fingertip. Two kittens curled up in a pot, embracing each other fast asleep.
Merin and Kamibarez clasped hands and let out delighted squeals.
“They’re so adorable!”
“Ugh, my heart can’t take it.”
“Should we take a break?”
At Simon’s suggestion, the two girls scrambled toward the kittens.
Pinch sprawled out on the sofa and closed his eyes, but Merin soon jolted him awake with a slap on the back.
“Simon! Could you look at the attack spell I created too?”
“Of course.”
What Kamibarez had made was a modified version of the Black Arrow, and she’d already named it the Black Torpedo.
Pinch approached, peering curiously, and let out an exclamation of admiration.
“Whoa—the structure’s solid! Let’s test it out.”
“Um, where should we test it?”
Pinch dashed to the bathroom and filled the bathtub with water.
“Hey!!”
Merin cried out at the sight.
“Don’t! You’ll cause an accident!”
“Huzumulgru!”
When Dick produced a woman’s voice, the pepper shaker Merin hurled flew straight at his forehead. He dodged nimbly and spoke up.
“Come on, it’s not dangerous at all—just Black Arrow magic, it’s fine! I’ll take responsibility!”
Moments later, Kamibarez slipped into the bathtub and unfurled a magic circle beneath the surface.
At first she kept failing as the dark element scattered through the water, but soon her proficiency grew and the binding became solid, and she succeeded in forming a magic circle even underwater.
“Perfect! Shoot it at me!”
Dick stood ready on the opposite side with a Defensive Magic Circle unfurled. Simon had come to watch, and Merin, pretending to ignore it all, eventually surrendered to curiosity and rose up on her toes behind Simon.
“Black Torpedo!”
Thwoom!
The projectile fired by Kamibarez shot through the bathwater and whooshed forward. Everyone gasped in admiration.
“?!”
But then the torpedo, flying straight ahead, struck Dick’s Defensive Magic Circle and instead of shattering, ricocheted into the air.
It struck the Mana Light Bulb mounted in the bathroom, and a deafening explosion crackled—Pow!
“Aaaaaah!”
“Eek!”
Dick and Kamibarez scrambled out in shock.
The Mana Light Bulb shattered into pieces and fell to the floor, and Dick, tangled in the bathtub rim, tumbled down with a splash.
“I can’t take this anymore, really! Didn’t I tell you not to, you troublemakers!”
Merin scolded them even as her mouth curved upward in laughter. Simon was the same.
Kamibarez hung her head low.
“I’m so sorry.”
Merin gave Kamibarez’s hair a light pat and glared at Dick.
“This is all because Dick made that Defensive Magic Circle too thick in the first place.”
“…Wow, and here I thought you were discriminating against people. I’m heartbroken.”
Dick said this while already climbing into the tub to examine the bulb.
“Phew, thank goodness! The ceiling’s fine—only the bulb broke.”
Dick cleared away the debris and pulled a new bulb from his Subspace, installing it.
When he activated the magic circle in the ceiling, the light snapped on.
“I upgraded it to something better than what they sell in shops! The landlady shouldn’t have any complaints now, right?”
Simon spoke with a grin on his face.
“Still, tell the landlady about it for sure.”
“Of course. Now that I’ve replaced the bulb, I’ll pressure her to knock down the room rate.”
Everyone burst out laughing.
The night of their strategy meeting grew deeper.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————