Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy - Chapter 362

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 362

When Yoner, who had received the message, arrived at the workshop, Lee Han was still frowning and glaring at the flask.

“Still not ready.”

“Lee Han. Let’s eat lunch first.”

“No. There are still impurities left.”

“That much is fine, so just give it to me.”

“It has to boil enough to be complete, it doesn’t just become complete on its own.”

“The person who assigned the work says it’s fine, so what…!”

Yoner was exasperated, but Lee Han didn’t back down and continued glaring at the flask.

Having no other choice, Yoner sat down beside him and decided to watch what Lee Han was doing.

Lee Han shook the flask, turned it this way and that, and even exposed it slightly to fire, concentrating with stubborn determination.

Watching this, Yoner recalled what his sister Yoanen had said about Lee Han’s work performance last time.

She had praised him for doing such clean and excellent work, excitedly saying he was several times better than previous assistants.

Yoanen had said that nowadays alchemists were so impatient and lacking in persistence that even with the same extraction, the results often came out disappointing.

If the fire was too strong, undissolved sediment would make the liquid cloudy, and if the fire was too weak, the properties would deteriorate midway – she said it was rare to meet an alchemist who handled work so perfectly.

Remembering this, Yoner felt his mood soften a bit and began to regret his attitude toward Lee Han…

…but didn’t, and just got up and forcibly dragged Lee Han out.

Yoner had absolutely no intention of dancing to the tune of crazy perfectionists like his sister and Lee Han.

“Enough already. Eat first, then work.”

“No! Yoner! Just once! Just one more time…!”

“This is the Meikin Family workshop. Not the Wardanaz Family workshop.”

Yoner pulled out the workshop key that was stuck next to the furnace, put it in his pocket, and pushed Lee Han’s back.

* * *

“By the way, Mr. Wardanaz. I have something I’m curious about.”

Not only Yoanen, but other alchemists working in different parts of the workshop also had many questions for Lee Han.

Seeing her subordinates voluntarily asking curious questions, Yoanen smiled with satisfaction inwardly.

As expected of her subordinates, their working skills were extraordinary.

“Ah. I also have something I’m curious about.”

“Please ask anything.”

“I’m currently preparing ingredients needed for Dobrooke’s Jade Dream Potion, but I’m stuck in the process of melting and liquefying dark spirit silver. The impurities don’t seem to completely disappear…”

“Ah. That’s quite possible. Jade Dream Potion is quite a tricky one. The solution color is a murky mud color even after melting the silver, right? A mage’s mana has its limits, so you need to change the flame. There’s jade fire earth in the workshop – try sprinkling that to change the fire’s properties.”

“Thank you. Ah. But it’s not mud colored, it’s silver colored.”

At Lee Han’s words, the alchemist was confused.

“What? Then it melted well?”

“There were a few particles left…”

“That much is fine.”

“No. If we compromise carelessly and something goes wrong with the potion, it’ll be hard to fix.”

“…”

“…”

The workshop alchemists stared intently at Yoanen.

Though they didn’t say it out loud, their eyes carried subtle reproach saying ‘Didn’t Ms. Meikin just ruin a young mage?’

Of course, Yoanen wasn’t shaken by such looks.

If she were someone who would be shaken by such looks, she couldn’t have operated such a workshop with madness and obsession in the first place.

‘I clearly taught him not to obsess too much over completion and that doing things moderately was fine, but Wardanaz has too much of a perfectionist personality.’

Having thoughts that would have made Yoner grab the back of his neck if he heard them, Yoanen opened her mouth.

“But I’m curious, when the professors on the street…”

“Oh. Ms. Meikin. May I ask about the magic you used when making the test solution earlier? It seemed similar to solution rotation magic but different.”

“The magic I used earlier wasn’t solution rotation magic, but magic that reverses things up and down…”

While explaining, Yoanen came to her senses and realized the topic had drifted far again.

Before she could return, Lee Han grabbed another alchemist and threw a question.

“But… *gulp*. About this.”

“How are you eating all your food while talking like that? Yes. What are you curious about?”

After Lee Han asked about three more questions, all the bowls on the table were empty and lunch time was over.

The alchemists got up from their seats and stretched.

“Time has already…”

“Let’s not take a walk today and start right away.”

“Let’s go. Ms. Meikin. We need to finish the work we couldn’t complete this morning.”

Yoanen followed with a slightly sulky expression.

* * *

As work piled up, Yoanen postponed questions and concentrated on work as usual.

Seeing Yoanen obsessively making him redo work like a crazy person, Yoner was terrified.

It was the same at Einroguard, but wasn’t his friend someone who could live without laws?

Yoner flinched, worried his friend might grab someone by the collar and summon water orbs.

However, Lee Han, as if accustomed to it, resolved all the nitpicking immediately without the slightest complaint.

“Good work.”

“Thank you.”

“Oh right. You should slowly start preparing to return to school, so is there any potion you’d like to learn?”

Potion recipes weren’t something that could be easily obtained.

Of course, recipes for basic and easy potions that were widely spread throughout the Empire could be found at any bookstore in the city.

Basic potions and recipes like 【Low-Grade Stamina Recovery Potion】.

However, recipes for potions like 【Dobrooke’s Jade Dream Potion】 that involved individual alchemists’ efforts and research couldn’t be obtained even with gold coins if the alchemist didn’t permit it.

Alchemist guilds and workshops were even more thorough about this.

They considered such potion recipes more important secrets than life itself, and if you wrongly touched or copied them, assassins would come immediately.

To that extent, Yoanen teaching Lee Han various potion recipes at the Meikin Family workshop was definitely a favor.

Though it didn’t feel like a favor…

Yoanen recommended that he mention one potion needed as a student returning to Einroguard in the second semester.

When he entered school, there would be all sorts of incidents, so knowing a useful potion in advance would be quite helpful.

Lee Han asked cautiously.

“Is this really okay?”

The gift was so big without any compensation that it was rather worrying.

‘Surely she’s not planning to not pay me wages in exchange for the recipe.’

“You’re Yoner’s friend, so I can give this much as a gift. And you’ve worked well enough to deserve it.”

Yoanen’s words were sincere.

Compared to other assistants, Lee Han was qualified to receive such a gift.

“Yoner. What kind of potion do you think would be good?”

“W-well… Yoanen is thorough about these things even with me.”

No matter how much she cherished her younger brother, she didn’t tell him all the workshop’s secrets.

Business was business, personal was personal.

“You probably don’t need an invisibility potion. You have magic and even artifacts.”

“How about a thought acceleration potion?”

“That’s not bad either. I’ll write it down for now. A potion that can prevent or confuse tracking wouldn’t be bad either.”

“A magic enhancement potion wouldn’t be bad either.”

“Should I also write down a smoke potion to throw at pursuers?”

“…Lee Han. Haven’t you been talking only about potions for rather specific situations?”

“Is that so?”

Lee Han was puzzled.

They seemed like commonly usable potions…

“Can’t you recommend one, sister?”

“You’re leaving it to me?”

Yoanen smiled as if finding it absurd, yet seemed to not dislike her younger brother’s wheedling as she fell into thought.

“Mana enhancement water…”

“That’s fine.”

“It’s fine.”

“…Ri, right. If not that, then this would be better.”

Yoanen picked up a quill pen and began writing down the ingredient list and manufacturing method in one smooth stroke.

In an instant, neat handwriting filled the white paper completely.

“Here. Take it.”

“What kind of potion is this?”

“You’ll find out when you make it yourself. It uses relatively easy-to-obtain ingredients, so it shouldn’t be difficult.”

“Thank you, Meikin.”

Lee Han took the paper and fell into thought.

‘What is it? Seems like an enhancement type… but it wouldn’t be mana enhancement…’

“By the way, could you tell me about the rumor that professors fought on the street? Now that work is done, we can take our time…”

“Ah. That’s what you were curious about?”

So this was what Yoanen seemed to want to ask about earlier.

Lee Han prepared to spill the story about the crazy professors.

“Meikin! You need to come right now!! Cauldron number 7 is completely boiling over!! At this rate, we’ll have to throw away all the ingredients that went in!”

“…Let’s all meet again next time. Go!”

Yoanen quickly said goodbye and walked away following the alchemist into the depths of the workshop.

Lee Han somehow felt that her retreating figure seemed filled with anger.

“Is she angry by any chance?”

“Yeah. But you don’t need to worry about it, Lee Han. It’s all their own doing.”

* * *

“Uuuuukuuuuuuukuu…”

Nilia let out a pained groan that seemed to be drawn from deep within her body.

Gainando asked worriedly.

“Are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“Why did I have to get first place… Sorry. I was thinking about something else and didn’t hear. What did you say?”

However, Gainando had already turned away, glaring at his friend with a contemptuous expression.

‘To think she’d deceive me just to show off!’

“Were you all studying?”

Lee Han, who had returned after finishing work at Puyo’s magic staff workshop, looked puzzled at his friends rolling around in the spacious reception room.

Gainando held up his textbook to cover a magazine and said.

“Yeah.”

“Why are you always on page 1?”

“…”

“Right… just eat some snacks. But why is Nilia like that?”

“She’s suffering from getting first place. Hmph. What kind of thing is that.”

Gainando grumbled while taking a bite of cream puff.

“Ah. Did the story from the manor make progress by any chance?”

Lee Han spoke as if he understood.

Nilia’s opinion at that time was quite excellent, so it wouldn’t be strange if it actually proceeded instead of just ending with first place.

“I thought it would be like that…”

“What do you mean you thought it would be like that!”

“What’s going on?”

Yoner, who came in late, tilted his head and asked.

“Are they actually going to try Nilia’s answer?”

“Ah. That? Yeah. It seems like they’ll try it once.”

“Wow…”

“Amazing, right?”

“It is amazing.”

Lee Han, Yoner, and Ratford looked at Nilia with eyes full of respect.

Of course, Nilia was so anxious she couldn’t even sleep.

“What if it fails! What do I do!”

“The Meikin Family has a lot of money, so it doesn’t matter, right…?”

“Right. That level of failure doesn’t matter. It’s okay.”

“What if Yoner gets in trouble!”

“I won’t get in trouble. Even if it fails, it’s the fault of the people who chose it.”

At Yoner’s words, Lee Han nodded as if agreeing.

“If it succeeds, shouldn’t the Meikin Family give something as a token of gratitude?”

“That’s right. I should mention it once.”

“…I’ll shoot you both before you stop.”

Nilia’s stomach ached at the sight of her friends assuming success when they hadn’t even started yet.

Of course, the Meikin Family wasn’t rude enough to make Nilia take responsibility and proceed herself.

It was ultimately the Meikin Family’s working staff who would take Nilia’s opinion and do it directly.

There really was no need to feel burdened, but unfortunately, the anxiety didn’t disappear.

‘If it fails, it’s because of the opinion I gave… If it fails, it’s because of the opinion I gave…’

Seeing Nilia worry too much, Lee Han asked Yoner.

“Really, if it’s the Meikin Family, they would have handled it well on their own… right?”

“Yeah. Ah. There was talk about inviting an Einroguard Professor too.”

“Oh. Nilia. Did you hear? An Einroguard Professor too…”

“Huh? Then I don’t have to take one lecture in the second semester?”

“As if that would happen.”

Lee Han, who was listening to Gainando and Yoner’s conversation, paused.

‘Wait. Even if we prepare now, the work would start during the semester, so can we just leave freely? Would the Skeleton Principal give permission?’

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