Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy - Chapter 558

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

Chapter 558

“…”

Hodlong silently wiped the coffee from his face with a handkerchief.

Iwunrade, who had spat the coffee he was drinking onto his superior’s face, had nothing to say even if he had ten mouths.

“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!!”

“Enough. That’s enough.”

After wiping off all the coffee, Hodlong spoke with eyes full of suspicion.

“Did Lord Gonadaltes order you to do this?”

“…No!!”

Iwunrade, who had suddenly earned a misunderstanding that would get him strangled by the Skeleton Principal, was horrified and denied it.

“Why would he do such a thing!?”

“There are many reasons. Spill coffee to create confusion and then steal my bag. Or attack while I’m away for a moment.”

Hodlong was someone who had deep-rooted distrust toward Einroguard’s mages.

In fact, not just Hodlong, but most of the Empire’s bureaucrats didn’t trust Einroguard’s mages very well.

There had been several people in the past who visited Einroguard and got caught up in unfortunate magical accidents.

Lord Gonadaltes shed tears and pleaded that it was really just a coincidence, but the bureaucrats didn’t believe him.

“Or it could be emotional revenge.”

“No! It’s really not!”

“Fine. I’ll trust you for now. But stay away from me.”

Hodlong openly suspected his subordinate and gestured. Iwunrade backed away, expressing his injustice with his whole body.

“Now. Let’s go.”

“What? Where do you mean?”

“You just heard it, didn’t you? They said an Einroguard student caught a wanted criminal.”

“Oh.”

Only then did Iwunrade remember why he had spat out his coffee.

It was because he had heard something so absurd.

‘This is trouble!’

The city people were shouting ‘An Einroguard student caught a wanted criminal!’ but Iwunrade wasn’t fooled.

After all, Iwunrade was also from Einroguard, wasn’t he?

The people must have been mistaken.

At first it was the cry ‘An Einroguard student is a wanted criminal!’ but as it spread from person to person, it changed to ‘What? An Einroguard student caught a wanted criminal?’

“Ho, Hodlong sir. Isn’t it probably just a false rumor? Cities are always full of false rumors. You don’t need to waste time on something like this!”

Iwunrade tried to dissuade his superior while lamenting inwardly why he had to go this far.

Actually, if the juniors handled things well on their own, there wouldn’t be a problem!

“Are you calling that an argument right now? Follow me. I need to see what’s happening.”

“No, no… there are many people and there might be pickpockets…”

Hodlong seemed to gain even more conviction seeing Iwunrade’s hesitant attitude.

He would see with his own two eyes what the Einroguard student was up to and stop it!

* * *

“You bastard who should have your skin peeled off and salt rubbed in, hung on a mountain peak pole to have your flesh torn by crows, worse than a broken and rusted sword fragment!”

“You bastard who should be locked in the deepest underground of the punishment room to rot forever, turned to stone unable to even blink, with Professor Verdus in the cell in front!”

The captured Garddam shed tears and flailed his hands. It was a desperate struggle to escape by crawling on the ground somehow.

He had experienced all kinds of hardships and survived even the fierce Incatan Rebellion, but all those experiences became useless before the terrifying existence called a real mage.

The two mages cursed at the fallen Garddam while dragging him.

“If you try to escape one more time, I’ll punch a few more air holes in you.”

“You could have just surrendered but you made it this big. Are you even human? Do you know how many students are suffering because of you!”

‘I don’t know, you bastards!’

Garddam screamed silently at the mages who were spouting incomprehensible words.

When he broke through the main gate and used up all his magic items to block the path, he thought he had succeeded in escaping.

-Get out of the way! Move!

Pushing and kicking the citizens filling the main road, Garddam ran.

This wall of people would prevent the pursuing mages from recklessly casting magic.

-A basilisk has appeared, citizens of Granden! We need to bind it and move it outside, so please step aside!

However, the mages chased after him while pushing people aside just as much as Garddam.

Moreover, they didn’t hesitate to use magic. Deadly spells came flying.

-Wardanaz, what if you miss?

-I won’t miss! Moradi. I’ll cast enhancement magic, so get ready!

-Got it, wait, side effects…

Though he prided himself on not losing in persistence, the two mages tenaciously chased Garddam again and again and again.

When he knocked over stacked fruit boxes to block the path, they smashed the boxes; when he escaped into alleys, they summoned creatures to chase; when he jumped into canals, they cast freezing magic until he nearly froze to death…

Even Garddam himself didn’t think he could run away this much. It was the power of fear.

But willpower alone had its limits.

As his strength drained and mana scattered, the fatigue accumulated in his muscles came rushing in.

Crack!

A leopard summoned creature that leaped out from the side bit Garddam’s ankle.

At the same time, Giselle cut off both of Garddam’s arms. The weapons he was holding flew away.

Lee Han, who was behind, threw water orbs to precisely fracture both of Garddam’s legs.

“Sur, surren…”

“You bastard who should have your skin peeled off and salt rubbed in, hung on a mountain peak pole to have your flesh torn by crows, worse than a broken and rusted sword fragment!”

“You bastard who should be locked in the deepest underground of the punishment room to rot forever, turned to stone unable to even blink, with Professor Verdus in the cell in front!”

Realizing there was nowhere left to run and trying to declare surrender, but the mages who had chased him this far were not ordinarily angry.

Garddam shouted to the citizens.

“Save me! Please save me! The mages are…”

Thud!

Lee Han cast a silence spell at Garddam’s solar plexus and quickly explained to the people who came out to watch.

“No, citizens! This man is a criminal with a bounty on his head!”

“Ah, that guy!! Isn’t that ‘Bloody Hands’ Garddam!?”

“That’s right, it is!”

‘Phew.’

Lee Han and Giselle exchanged glances and sighed in relief.

They could have been arrested by the city guard and faced an uncomfortable situation, but it was resolved well because someone recognized Garddam’s face.

“But who are you people?”

“Uh… we’re adventurers affiliated with Granden City’s Adventurer Guild. Right? Gu Bon?”

“…Ri, right.”

‘Who’s Gu Bon?’

Giselle didn’t understand but went along with it for now.

There was nothing good about being found out as students here.

“Huh? Aren’t you mages from Einroguard?”

“That’s right, it is! Those shabby and unsightly modest clothes. Plus the staffs! They’re mages from Einroguard!”

“How could wandering mages use magic like that?”

“…”

“…”

Lee Han and Giselle exchanged glances in shock.

They had covered all of Einroguard’s emblems with their coats, yet they were suspected just by the characteristic of being shabby and unsightly.

‘What should we do?’

‘Deny it. Wardanaz. Deny it!’

“…What nonsense are you talking about? Einroguard mages! No way!”

Lee Han shouted loudly.

“We are adventurers who earn our daily bread day by day, who make the dirt ground our bed and the sky our blanket…”

“Uh, you look like a noble though?”

“Aren’t you a noble?”

The city people who saw Lee Han’s face asked with very suspicious looks.

Lee Han got angry.

“I’m not! What dangerous words!”

“B-but your face…”

“Everyone, don’t judge people by their faces! Here, Mo… Gu Bon may look pretty on the outside, but inside he’s cunning and evil, a swordsman who cuts down anyone who doesn’t obey with a single stroke!”

‘This bastard…’

Giselle was furious but couldn’t ruin the atmosphere. She silently kept her mouth shut and glared at people while nodding.

“Ah! Master Mage!”

The adventurer Gu Bon was passing by with his comrades when he spotted a familiar face and greeted him warmly.

“What are you doing? Good to see you!”

“Do you know each other?”

“Yes. That person is Master Wardanaz, a mage from Einroguard.”

“…”

“…”

Giselle glared at Lee Han as if she wanted to kill him.

* * *

“…Anyway, we’re not.”

“Yes… well.”

“Understood.”

The gathered people hesitated before nodding.

Their expressions roughly said ‘They’re mages from Einroguard, but they don’t seem to want to reveal it, so let’s respect that.’

Lee Han and Giselle became dejected.

‘We’re screwed.’

‘We’re screwed.’

It felt like the time remaining until the punishment room was rapidly decreasing.

Lee Han glared at the fallen Garddam as if he wanted to kill him. Garddam was terrified and buried his head in the ground.

“Would you hand this person over to the city guard?”

“If it’s Master Mage’s request, we should do anything. But are you really okay with this? It was something Master Mage did…”

“…Never mind.”

Lee Han waved his hand and smiled sadly.

That smile seemed to say that worldly fame and wealth were utterly insignificant on the path of a mage.

The people present felt deep emotion as if it were their own affair.

“Moradi. Let’s go buy supplies.”

“…Let’s do that. Can’t be helped.”

Giselle let out a light sigh and accepted reality.

Now that things had come to this, cursing at Wardanaz wouldn’t change anything.

They had no choice but to prepare to be caught and buy supplies as quickly as possible before returning.

“Wait. Wardanaz. We didn’t stop by the manor, so what about money?”

“Could I get back some of the silver coins I left with you last time? Thank you.”

Lee Han got back the silver coins he had left with Gu Bon previously.

“The next silver coins are deposited at the staff crafting shop, so let’s use them as we go there.”

“Are you crazy?”

“Why are you cursing?”

* * *

Hodlong, who arrived late, ordered Iwunrade to stay still and then assessed the situation.

The dignified citizens of Granden provided highly reliable testimony to Hodlong, who worked for the Empire.

“So when that mercenary bastard threatened to release the basilisk, the mage went after him and grabbed him tight in his hands, right?”

“Indeed!”

“He chased so persistently, even a family enemy wouldn’t be chased like that.”

“Why do you think he chased like that?”

“Well, there’s only one reason! He was enraged seeing that mercenary bastard full of evil destroy and knock over citizens’ property!”

“Indeed!”

Hodlong exclaimed in disbelief and confirmed the testimony several times, but similar stories came out.

“So he’s a first-year student?”

“That’s right.”

Gu Bon answered with a sincere attitude.

Then the dignified citizens of Granden nearby looked at Gu Bon with distrust.

“Isn’t he mistaken?”

“You know how adventurer bastards exaggerate.”

“I don’t think he looked like a first-year. I know a bit about magic, and he seemed like a third-year.”

“N-no… he’s really a first-year! I even worked with him!”

Gu Bon shouted indignantly, but it had the opposite effect on the Granden citizens.

“Ha!”

“Sure you did.”

“Did I ever tell you about when I had an audience with His Imperial Majesty in my youth? That tall and beautiful…”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m actually a bastard son of a count family.”

“…”

Gu Bon trembled with humiliation.

What was more unfair was that he would have treated any other adventurer saying such things as ‘what crazy bullshit are you spouting.’

Regardless of what the city people were doing, Hodlong recorded all the testimony and then turned to his subordinate with admiration.

“Perhaps there might be hope for Einroguard after all.”

“Ha! How could that be possible!”

“…”

“S-sorry. It was reflexive… I’m truly sorry.”

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