Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy - Chapter 1017

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

Chapter 1017

‘But one must learn even from enemies.’

An excellent Einroguard student learns lessons even from vicious enemies.

Lee Han firmly resolved that when he encountered evil people in the future, he would try sowing discord first.

“I’ll try to deceive them.”

“Understood.”

‘Huh?’

Lee Han was slightly flustered when his fellow exploration team members gave permission so readily.

He had expected them to say it was too early or try to stop him.

“Will it be alright? If I make a mistake, everyone could be in danger…”

“How could that be?”

“We trust you, mage.”

The exploration team members answered immediately as if asking what he was talking about. Alsicle, who was being carried on Lee Han’s back, muttered in a pathetic voice.

“After seeing Wardanaz’s performance climbing up here, anyone who doubts would have been eliminated from the exploration team for intelligence issues in the first place…”

“…Be quiet.”

* * *

“Something’s strange.”

Kitarenannum looked around. The giant hybrid warrior asked with a fed-up tone.

“Are those monsters coming up again?”

“No. Something else… ominous.”

“Try divination.”

At the warrior’s words, Kitarenannum made an expression full of irritation.

“I’m not that kind of mage. How many times must I say that mages can’t do everything.”

Mages proficient in all schools of magic were extremely rare. Every mage had weak areas, and for Kitarenannum, that was divination magic.

Rather than attempt low-accuracy divination, the mage chose to rest.

Whoosh!

The mage took out a small, living, human-shaped doll and burned it.

It was a simple human sacrifice, but sufficient to recover mana and replenish magic.

‘The remaining magic… I should fill it with something more powerful. Just in case.’

Kitarenannum replaced the magic composing his arm with something more powerful.

This secret technique of condensing magic itself into bodily form was Kitarenannum’s proud specialty. It had the advantage of being able to cast powerful magic instantly and precisely, but also had the disadvantage of requiring preparation.

Preparing for potential danger, Kitarenannum prepared additional human sacrifices. If combat broke out, he planned to offer the remaining sacrifices to amplify the magic’s power.

“Enemies.”

“!”

Surprised by the warrior’s words, Kitarenannum asked.

“How close have they gotten?”

“About fifty steps above the small stairs. The vibrations are different from the monsters.”

“Do they seem like they’ll attack?”

“Well. There doesn’t seem to be hostility, but those Empire lap dogs are so stupid…”

-We request negotiation!

The two exchanged glances. Kitarenannum immediately tried to cast the human sacrifice he had prepared.

Right then, interference came.

Counter-magic, the technique mages use to identify and check other mages’ magic!

Crackle!

“???!!!”

Kitarenannum was shocked when his human sacrifice was blocked by a mage who hadn’t even shown his face above the stairs yet.

‘What?!?!?’

It was absolutely unbelievable.

Even when facing each other and showing the casting of magic, counter-magic was never easy.

To accurately interfere and disrupt someone’s magic before it was even cast required, in a way, an even higher understanding than the opponent’s.

But now, to successfully cast counter-magic based only on mana traces at such a distance where faces couldn’t even be seen. Kitarenannum felt chills down his spine.

“What? Why are you like that?”

“Was there… an Archmage among the exploration team?”

“There wasn’t.”

Kitarenannum searched his memory.

Surely there were no names to be cautious of. There was the Penguerin family mage and the Green Jade Magic Tower mage…

Was there a mage among them capable of toying with his magic like this?

The mage criminal felt humiliation and fear rather than anger.

Just like when he had directly faced Antagondals, another mage criminal and Archmage, in the past.

-Get a grip, mage.

-Shut up! Demon! You don’t even know how amazing this is.

At this level, it had to be considered almost enough of a difference for the opponent to toy with him.

For Kitarenannum, who had been somewhat confident that among the Empire’s relatively young mages, excluding Archmages, there would be no match for him, it was a terrible shock.

Kitarenannum never imagined that his opponent had already met several mage criminals and had thoroughly practiced the secrets of breaking human sacrifice techniques in advance.

* * *

“…Uh, did I choose wrong?”

“No. You did well.”

When Lee Han looked confused, Alsicle shook his head.

Not knowing what the opponent might do, they couldn’t leave human sacrifice magic alone. If it could be stopped, stopping it was absolutely right.

“More importantly, how did you manage counter-magic at this distance?”

“The Principal tormented me to learn it.”

“I can understand that. This semester must have been really hard.”

“I learned it last year though.”

“…”

Alsicle closed his beak. Meanwhile, the enemy shouted first.

“What’s your purpose! Right now there’s dimensional erosion happening here and monsters are swarming. Are you trying to die together? Huh?”

‘That must be the guy mixed with giant blood, that warrior.’

Thinking to himself, Alsicle revealed his name.

“I’m Alsicle of the Penguerin family. Is there another mage next to you?”

“Alsicle of the Penguerin family… I’ll remember that.”

Kitarenannum gritted his teeth.

He would definitely get revenge for the frustration and humiliation he felt today.

“I’ll honestly admit it. I didn’t know you were such an outstanding mage.”

“What? …No. It wasn’t me who blocked your human sacrifice magic, but my junior here.”

At Alsicle’s words, the giant hybrid warrior and mage criminal exchanged glances.

The warrior immediately said.

“Bullshit. He’s trying to shake you up.”

-Don’t fall for such tricks.

“I know that too.”

Kitarenannum raised his evaluation of Alsicle even higher. To try shaking him up in this situation, he was no ordinary guy.

In the tense standoff, Basirmac felt impatience. He didn’t know when monsters might swarm in.

“Hey! Aren’t you spell-casters friendly with each other! Rather than fighting in this situation, why don’t you cooperate for a moment? This mage here is also from an Imperial magic school! He might even be your senior!”

“Useless talk…”

Kitarenannum frowned at the giant hybrid warrior’s attitude of babbling without knowing much, but the effect was very intense.

Lee Han made an expression as if the sky had collapsed.

“Wo, Wardanaz. Calm down. It’s not confirmed that he’s from Einroguard.”

Alsicle whispered in panic, trying to calm Lee Han down. However, it had the opposite effect.

“Alsicle-nim, you honestly know it too. That’s why you said he wasn’t from Einroguard even though Einroguard’s name never came up!”

“…That’s true, but it’s not confirmed!”

Lee Han let out a deep sigh.

As a fellow magic school graduate, he felt ashamed and distressed, but now wasn’t the time to be swayed by such emotions.

‘Right. Whether the opponent is from Einroguard or not, what does it matter.’

Living his life ahead, he would encounter Einroguard-origin mage criminals as often as eggs in a basket, so he couldn’t afford to waver.

“Even if he’s a fellow Einroguard graduate, there’s no mercy in this situation!”

“Baldrogard.”

“What?”

“Not Einroguard, but Baldrogard. I’m from Baldrogard. You brats.”

“…”

“…”

An awkward and subtle silence lingered among the three mages. Only Basirmac, who didn’t understand the delicate culture unique to spellcasters, looked puzzled.

“What? What is it?”

“Shut up. You stupid bastard. This is why I didn’t want to say it.”

When dealing with Imperial Mages, the most irritating reaction wasn’t hostility, contempt, or condemnation.

It was that awkward and subtle reaction that came out when revealing he was from Baldrogard.

And that reaction was especially severe from Einroguard-origin mages.

-What? From Baldrogard? But how did he become a mage criminal?

-Gasp! He’s quite strong…! How can someone from Baldrogard use such magic?

The sight of them bleeding profusely from defeat in battle yet asking with pure curiosity ‘How can someone from Baldrogard use such magic?’ left deep scars on Kitarenannum’s pride.

Of course, pride wasn’t something only Kitarenannum possessed.

“…You spellcaster bastard. Do you want to die? At this distance, what’ll be faster – you casting magic, or my fist ripping out your tongue?”

While the two were pointlessly arguing, Lee Han and Alsicle also had a pointless conversation.

“There are criminals from Baldrogard too???”

“Of course there are… How is that even a question?”

“Ah, no. That’s true but… I see. But… right.”

‘He seems more shocked than when the Worshipper of Evil Gods attacked the palace.’

Lee Han shook his head to escape the shock.

In fact, it was natural that there were criminals from Baldrogard too, and it was also natural that there were mage criminals among them.

…It’s just too hard to accept.

“Think positively, Wardanaz. If he were from Einroguard, he would have been several times more troublesome an opponent. It’s because he’s from Baldrogard that we can face him like this.”

“I’m not sure if that’s comforting or not.”

Thanks to the sound-absorbing magic Alsicle had cast, fortunately their conversation wasn’t transmitted to their opponent.

If Kitarenannum had heard it, monster or not, he would have attempted a fight to the death.

“I’m willing to agree to temporary cooperation!”

At Lee Han’s shout, the two who were arguing also paused.

“Really?”

“Yes. You know too that the monster is stronger than expected.”

“That’s true…”

Kitarenannum, who was about to agree, had something flash in his mind and threw out a question.

“Wait. What did you guys touch? Did you perhaps steal something precious from the monster…”

At first, he thought the monsters suddenly changed priorities because they discovered newer, more appetizing prey.

But no matter how much he thought about it, it didn’t seem like they would change for just that reason.

Kitarenannum and Basirmac were also sufficiently tempting prey.

“What are you talking about?”

When Alsicle asked in confusion, Kitarenannum explained the phenomenon that had occurred earlier.

‘I’m testing them.’

If the exploration team members had stolen and secured something like monster eggs, that was something they absolutely had to steal back.

“???”

“There was nothing like that, was there?”

Since there was nothing like that, both Lee Han and Alsicle were confused.

“Hmm.”

Alsicle, like the excellent mage he was, began reasoning with only the given clues.

At the sight of the always reliable senior mage, Lee Han cast a slightly expectant gaze.

“There is one possibility that comes to mind.”

“What possibility?”

“You know the time when those guys experienced that phenomenon. If you think about it, it was when we encountered the monsters.”

“Are you saying someone in our party secretly stole monster eggs!?”

“…We moved together, how would that work. And if that were the case, they would have come much faster.”

“Then what is it?”

Alsicle stared intently at Lee Han.

If what that mage criminal said was true, there was only one most likely possibility right now.

That the monster was coveting Lee Han.

How could Alsicle completely guess the thought process of something from the Void, but considering Lee Han’s magical power, it wasn’t very surprising.

“Me? They did attack me a lot, but I thought that was because I acted so annoyingly…”

At the suggestion that a monster he’d never met was coveting him, Lee Han showed a skeptical reaction.

Then the Baby Basilisk, who had been listening with bated breath, opened its mouth with a resolute attitude.

-Master.

“Yeah?”

-I think what he said is right too…!

“…Could I ask how you came to think that and feel it was right?”

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