Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy - Chapter 524
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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 524
“Finally!”
“Good work.”
When Lee Han succeeded in changing the color of his hair, Professor Yonramo clapped for him.
Lee Han tilted his head at the applause.
‘Is this something worth clapping for?’
The other friends had already changed their hair color, and fast learners like Yoner were trying to draw pictures on their nails…
Perhaps noticing Lee Han’s bewilderment, Professor Yonramo quietly stopped clapping and said.
“Just because you’re late now doesn’t mean you need to worry. Think about it carefully. You’ve transformed other substances.”
Lee Han’s talent for transformation magic was beyond doubt.
Just looking at metal transformation alone, hadn’t he somehow managed to succeed at mercury transformation, which was said to be so difficult?
Even if external transformation was different from transforming the mage himself, the principles were ultimately the same…
Bang!
Professor Yonramo hesitated when he saw Lee Han turn one strand of his hair into blazing flames.
…Maybe it would take a little longer?
* * *
While his friends were desperately trying to cut off the strand of Lee Han’s hair that had turned to steel, Professor Yonramo coughed once and said.
“This final exam will be transformation magic. I know you’re all having fun transforming your hair and nails, but this is actually just the beginning.”
He didn’t want to ruin the students’ cheerful mood, but it couldn’t be helped.
He couldn’t make the final exam about changing the color of hair or nails.
“S-surely we don’t have to transform completely?”
“Of course not to that extent.”
Professor Yonramo smiled slightly and swung his arm.
Then Professor Yonramo’s arm changed to look like an ogre’s arm.
“You just need to transform up to one arm.”
“…”
‘It’s difficult anyway…’
The faces of students who had expected something like one finger joint became dejected.
Professor Yonramo was slightly flustered by that reaction.
‘Huh?’
Surely one arm was generous compared to other professors, so he had expected reactions like ‘Wow, our generous professor!’ or ‘We’re so lucky to be taking transformation magic!’
‘Strange?’
“Is one arm difficult?”
“…”
“N-no?”
“It’s not difficult!”
Quick-witted students hurriedly spoke up.
From their experience at Einroguard, they instinctively knew that nothing good came from going against a professor’s mood.
“Whether it’s inanimate or living, it’s good to choose something that suits your aptitude well. Remember the characteristics of whatever it is, and start with what you’re familiar with. In Shailes’s case, his closest animal would be good, and in Yoner’s case, reagents you’ve handled a lot would be good. As for Lee Han…”
Professor Yonramo looked Lee Han over and pondered slightly.
“…Well, do whatever you want.”
“?!”
Lee Han was flustered by the overly casual words.
‘Hmm. It’s more confusing when he says it like that.’
Being told to choose something familiar to him made it harder to choose.
Right now…
‘Lightning, water, or darkness elements… don’t seem good.’
Changing his arm into amorphous elements like lightning, water, or darkness elements was among the very high difficulty levels of transformation magic.
Since he had to maintain form by making irregularly pulsating elements into his flesh, there were more than one or two parts to pay attention to.
‘Professor Boladi would shed tears of joy.’
Professor Boladi, who was already consistently pushing for advanced lightning elements, would be delighted and suggest doing it right away.
For his own safety, Lee Han had to choose a slightly safer option.
‘Wood or earth aren’t things I’ve handled much. Steel… steel?’
Lee Han, who had been pondering, wondered if he should turn his options from inanimate to living things.
“Hmm. Living things I’m familiar with… Sharkan, griffin, basilisk, skeleton…?”
“…”
Yoner, who was contemplating brass transformation nearby, cast a horrified look at his friend’s muttering.
“Lee Han. You know that if you mistakenly transform into a dangerous creature, you could be attacked in return, right?”
‘More than that, skeletons aren’t even living things.’
Shailes, who was nearby, thought to himself.
The dangerous aspect of biological transformation lay in its unpredictability.
Mages who transformed their hands into parts of monsters only to be attacked by those monsters were common cases.
“True, Sharkan, griffins, and basilisks are violent.”
-?
The baby basilisk, who had been listening quietly, was confused.
Sharkan and griffins aside, it couldn’t understand why basilisks were included there.
“Hmm. Should I practice while thinking of Sharkan’s front paw…”
Starting with Sharkan’s claws and gradually increasing the similar parts, Lee Han thought he should finally summon Sharkan’s front paw as he swung his staff.
“Arm, become a beast’s front paw…”
Bang!
One of Lee Han’s arms suddenly changed into a skeleton’s arm, then simultaneously transformed into a troll’s arm.
It didn’t stop there. Next it became a giant’s arm, then Sharkan’s front paw, then a griffin’s front paw, then a basilisk’s head, then a dragon’s front paw…
The arm that had been continuously changing uncontrollably finally returned to normal.
The friends nearby had already backed away in shock.
“…I should practice more calmly.”
Lee Han resolved to practice after preparing more.
It seemed like the method of gradually increasing transformable parts like other friends didn’t suit Lee Han.
* * *
“Haha. Today let’s just lightly run a hundred laps around the courtyard, touch that mountain peak and come back down, then specially cross the river wearing these weights I prepared.”
“…”
“…”
As the final exams gradually approached, Professor Ingoldel’s lectures were becoming increasingly harsh.
Lee Han wasn’t sure whether this was the original curriculum or if Professor Ingoldel had been influenced by Einroguard’s atmosphere.
Actually, Professor Ingoldel’s lectures weren’t wrong.
While mages might explore phenomena through theory and academics, swordsmen had no choice but to learn through their own bodies and senses.
Want to learn difficult and profound swordsmanship?
You had no choice but to throw your body into direct experience.
Want to learn the secret techniques hidden in swordsmanship?
Likewise, you had no choice but to throw your body into direct experience.
Want to awaken aura?
Even more so, your body…
“That’s why you shouldn’t regret the sweat you shed.”
Professor Ingoldel tapped his wooden sword and spoke in a stern voice.
Since Einroguard students’ main focus was magic, even those from knight families often lacked training.
While it wasn’t incomprehensible, Professor Ingoldel thought his role was to prevent that.
“Do you all understand? The sensation that comes from a trained body helps in controlling mana…”
“Huff, gasp.”
“Kh-gasp.”
“P-Professor.”
A White Tiger Tower student, drenched in sweat with bloodshot eyes, threw out a question.
“Why isn’t Wardanaz running?”
“…”
Lee Han glared at the White Tiger Tower student.
‘This bastard.’
Professor Ingoldel had said ‘It would be better for Wardanaz to rest today’ and he had quickly replied ‘Thank you!’ and sat down, but now this guy was trying to drag him down like a drowning ghost.
He should be happy that his friend survived, but what a spiteful bastard.
“I’m not from a knight family ori-“
“Wardanaz hasn’t fully recovered yet due to the chaos he caused at the festival.”
Professor Ingoldel stretched his arm muscles and spoke as if it were obvious.
Lee Han, who thought he was being excused for not being from a knight family, hesitated.
“Oh. You knew about it?”
“Of course it reached my ears. Wardanaz. How could that not reach me.”
The elf swordsman looked at Lee Han as if it were absurd.
Right now, the White Tiger Tower upperclassmen were already whispering among themselves.
-Such talent in our tower!
-Professor. Do you happen to know which family this junior is from? Just which family could it be…
Professor Ingoldel couldn’t bear to disappoint the excited White Tiger Tower students, so he couldn’t say anything.
“I heard from the Principal that you lent your body to a demon?”
“Ah. That. Actually, the demon forcibly took it.”
Lee Han subtly shifted the blame to Anfursas, thinking he might get scolded.
Since Anfursas was a demon anyway, he probably wouldn’t mind taking some blame.
“The Principal said Wardanaz lent it to him though?”
“…He was essentially tricked.”
“Ah. Is that so?”
Professor Ingoldel didn’t really care much about it.
Whether he was tricked or not, whether it was taken or not, that wasn’t what mattered.
“So when can you summon that demon again?”
“Uh… I wonder? Why are you asking?”
“It would be good if you could summon him again as soon as possible.”
“…”
Lee Han doubted his ears.
‘Did the Skeleton Principal threaten him with a sword? No, did he possess his body?’
However, contrary to Lee Han’s suspicions, Professor Ingoldel was speaking with pure good intentions.
“Wardanaz. All swordsmen in the Empire value the opportunity to learn from a swordsman superior to themselves more than gold. But Wardanaz has gained the opportunity to directly perform the swordsmanship of a superior swordsman with his own body!”
“…”
Professor Ingoldel spoke more passionately than usual, but Lee Han’s eyes were as cold as the abyss.
‘Did the Skeleton Principal possess his body…’
Of course, Professor Ingoldel’s words had some logic to them.
But logically speaking, Professor Boladi’s words about how going into the giant mountain range and fighting giants would improve magical abilities also had logic.
Wasn’t Lee Han’s life more important than logic?
Lee Han was about to say something harsh but remembered the other person’s status and pulled himself together.
“Unfortunately, the demon doesn’t obediently listen to me, so even if I tell him to come out, he probably won’t.”
“Oh my. That’s unfortunate.”
Professor Ingoldel sighed and felt sorry.
It was such a good opportunity!
“Huff, P-Professor. But is Wardanaz really not feeling well?”
“That’s what I said.”
“…Don’t lie, you bastard! You played polo just fine!”
One White Tiger Tower student shouted while collapsed on the ground.
Lee Han said without changing his expression.
“Professor Lightningstep made me drink a numbing potion and play the match.”
“…”
“…”
The White Tiger Tower students got back up and quietly started running again.
Professor Ingoldel made a disgusted expression from the side.
No matter how important the match was, to go that far?
* * *
“Huff, gasp. Kh-huff.”
“Cough, cough.”
The returning White Tiger Tower students looked at the professor with resentful eyes.
Professor Ingoldel paid no attention and opened his mouth while looking at the collapsed students.
“The reason I gave you such light training today wasn’t just to improve your stamina in preparation for final exams, but because I have something to teach you all.”
Professor Ingoldel surprisingly didn’t teach swordsmanship itself.
If a student asked about techniques, he wouldn’t avoid answering, but he rarely taught students new swordsmanship or techniques.
This was largely because the White Tiger Tower students were each from knight families.
They had all grown up learning their family’s swordsmanship, and even if other swordsmanship looked better, they wouldn’t easily change.
With such students, Professor Ingoldel also gave teachings that would be generally helpful rather than interfering with the swordsmanship itself.
For such a professor to have something new to teach them. Despite their exhaustion, the students looked on with interest.
“It’s the method of imbuing intent into the sword. Wardanaz. Do you have someone you usually resent?”
“Pardon?”
Lee Han hesitated at Professor Ingoldel’s question.
There were too many.
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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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