Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy - Chapter 590

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

Chapter 590

They say mages never reveal their secrets, but this is truly intriguing.

Oripulas asked seriously.

The methods used by previous students were ones Oripulas could fully comprehend.

However, he couldn’t even guess what secret was hidden in the method the Wardanaz family boy had just shown.

To deceive the eyes of Oripulas, who had served as an Imperial legal officer for 131 years.

By what method exactly?

“Actually…”

Actually?

“Well… but if I reveal this, will it affect my grades?”

It won’t! Stop keeping me in suspense and tell me!

Oripulas shouted, his body burning with curiosity.

Professor Rozine also pretended not to care, but her ears were perked up.

“Well, actually he’s a criminal I fought and captured before.”

“…”

“…”

Both Professor Rozine and the good Imperial citizen Ubal beside her were at a loss for words.

Kilbedek couldn’t even lift his head from shame.

Though no one present said anything, Kilbedek could hear the phantom words ‘You couldn’t even beat one young mage and got captured?’ ringing in his ears.

And in fact, that phantom voice was roughly correct.

‘When on earth did they fight? Normally there wouldn’t be any chance to meet a new student?’

‘Even if he’s a mage, he’s still young, yet he got captured like that. Must have been an adventurer without much skill.’

Kilbedek unconsciously opened his mouth and began making excuses.

“Actually, there were unavoidable circumstances…”

Perfect score… perfect score!!

Oripulas, who had been trembling with emotion, finally came to his senses and applauded.

It was truly a surprising and moving method.

* * *

“That was really a unique exam.”

“The person acting was good. He really seemed like a real criminal.”

“…”

Lee Han was about to say something but held back, not wanting to frighten his friends.

There was nothing good about them learning that he had kidnapped criminals from outside and brought them here.

‘Right. The final exams don’t have much left anyway.’

As those numerous exams ended one by one and the weekend gradually approached, the students’ faces also brightened.

Even from Lee Han’s perspective, these final exams were the most stable among all the exams they had taken this year.

Surprisingly, emotions like frustration, pain, despair, and regret were not visible on the students’ faces.

Normally, during exam periods, such emotions should have been carved deep like scars.

Indeed, the great escape incident before the final exams had a big impact on this.

With warm meals, comfortable bedding, and ample educational materials, one could maintain their sanity to some degree while studying magic!

The students who realized this secret were amazed at themselves.

‘And I was surprised too.’

Who would have thought his friends would become this strong just from having full bellies and warm backs.

Lee Han considered mentioning this to the Skeleton Principal when he met him later, but gave up.

‘I probably won’t see anything good come of it.’

“Are you there?”

-Come in! Come in!

After passing through the terrible poison fog and arriving at the underground warehouse where the giants stayed, Lee Han went inside.

Even during the exams, Lee Han often came to check on the giants.

Since they had to stay for nearly a week, he didn’t know what variables might arise.

But the giants listened to Lee Han’s words much better than he had worried. The friendship built with the giants didn’t waver even in this underground warehouse.

‘Nothing unusual.’

Some giants were sleeping while snoring loudly, some were drawing murals on the warehouse walls, and some were playing giant chess (a variant chess similar to regular chess but using only giants and mountain-destroying sheep as pieces).

“Nothing happened, right?”

-Something did happen!

“?!”

Lee Han was startled.

“What happened… did you perhaps run out of food?”

-No! More than that, mage, do you think of us as gluttons?

“How could that be? You giants eat so little that I’m worried about you.”

Lee Han lied without batting an eye. The giants were overjoyed by Lee Han’s flattery.

-Really? Is that so?

“Yes. Do you know that friend I mentioned before named Gainando? The amount that friend eats is much more…”

-Ah! That friend who wore a pot with stew on his head?

-The friend whose clothes all burned up trying to put out a fire with his cloak?

-The friend who got kidnapped by a wyvern while trying to fly from the top of the tower?

“The last one isn’t right though?”

Lee Han was puzzled.

He had never told them the last story.

The giants scratched their heads.

-Huh? Wasn’t it?

-Strange? Then who was it?

-I already said Gainando. I told the other giants too.

-Then let’s just say it was Gainando!

While the giants reached their own compromise, Lee Han steered the conversation back on track.

“What kind of incident happened? If it wasn’t food, did other upperclassmen perhaps visit…?”

-Ah. Mages came here before.

“!”

Lee Han tensed up.

Other upperclassmen approaching this underground warehouse was the most likely and dangerous possibility.

One of them might spread rumors about the giants being here, or even tell Professor Boladi directly.

‘Hmm. No.’

Lee Han excluded the possibility of telling Professor Boladi directly from the dangers he had just considered.

No matter how he considered all possibilities, it didn’t seem likely there would be an upperclassman who would tell Professor Boladi directly.

“Did they come in?”

-No. They collapsed on the ground while approaching.

-Other friends carried them away and fled.

“…”

Lee Han felt a bit worried thinking about the poison and dark magic traps still spread at high concentration.

If the image of the dark magic school upperclassmen got worse because of Lee Han for no reason…

‘It can’t be helped. I’ll have to explain later.’

Lee Han resolved that when he became a second-year next year, he would definitely make excuses on behalf of the dark magic school upperclassmen.

“If it wasn’t food or mages, then what was it?”

-A monster came here.

“There are too many monsters in Einroguard…”

Lee Han wasn’t very surprised even hearing about a monster.

Honestly, if you looked at it by numbers alone, Einroguard had more monsters than students.

“It’s not something like a flying skeleton, is it? That would be really dangerous.”

-Not that!

-It’s the bloodsucker monster that mage told us about before.

“…!!!”

Lee Han was shocked.

The bloodsucker monster that had awakened somewhere in Einroguard’s underground, broke through the Death Knights’ encirclement, and escaped.

He naturally thought it would have fled to the mountain range…

To think it would be discovered again in the school’s underground.

“Is that really true?”

-I saw it. The thing opened the door and came in, then saw us and ran away.

-With its tail between its legs!

The giants burst into proud laughter.

‘Hmm.’

However, Lee Han’s thoughts became complicated.

It made sense that the creature ran away after seeing the giants. Giants were powerful beings that offered no benefit to fight against.

But to run away immediately.

It meant the opponent was more cunning and intelligent than expected. It had clearly learned from being beaten by the Death Knights before.

There was nothing more troublesome than a monster with good learning ability.

‘I just need to avoid encountering it until final exams are over.’

-Wait. That’s not the important part.

“?”

-That thing is looking for the mage.

-Right. It was sniffing for the mage’s scent.

“…?!?!!!!”

Lee Han was most shocked by this story he heard today.

“It’s… looking for me? You’re not mistaken?”

-Not mistaken. We know it was sniffing for mage scent.

-Wild beasts often do that. Even sheep, when angry, will sniff out the person who angered them and break their back.

The giants here in the Einroguard mountain range were skilled at herding fierce monsters, and were equally capable of inferring monsters’ intentions from their movements.

That’s why the giants’ words about the bloodsucker monster carried weight.

“Why is it chasing me? I didn’t particularly do anything wrong… well, not nothing, but I think the Death Knights did worse.”

When fighting the bloodsucker monster, Lee Han had attacked a little, but it was nothing compared to the Death Knights.

If it wanted revenge, shouldn’t it chase the Death Knights first?

-What are you talking about, mage?

-Mage, you still don’t know beasts well. You need to raise more sheep.

The giants burst into laughter at Lee Han’s reaction.

He still lacked experience with monster behavior.

-Beasts chase after tasty prey, not the hunters who hit them.

-Right, exactly. It’s definitely fixated on the mage.

“!”

Only then could Lee Han fully understand what the giants were talking about.

‘Was that it??’

The bloodsucker monster coming to this underground warehouse was definitely following Lee Han’s remaining scent.

Though it had fled after encountering the completely unexpected giants…

‘Is it because of mana? Damn it.’

The only thing Lee Han could guess for why a bloodsucker monster he’d never met before would drool over him was his mana.

-So, mage. We have something to tell you.

-Right. Exactly.

The sleeping giants woke up, the giants drawing murals approached, and the giants playing giant chess stopped their game.

More precisely, the losing giant stopped. The winning giant got angry.

All the gathered giants crossed their arms and firmly declared their decision.

-We will provide you with an escort.

“…Excuse me?”

-No matter how we think about it, that beast will be troublesome. Especially for the mage.

“…No, no.”

Lee Han, who had been momentarily tempted, immediately came to his senses.

No matter how reliable the giants were, he couldn’t take them around as bodyguards.

Aside from Professor Boladi’s test, rumors would immediately spread throughout all grades that he was a crazy student.

-That junior goes around with giants as escorts.

-He must be really fucking insane…

“That’s impossible. You mustn’t be discovered.”

-Ah. Right.

-That’s true.

The giants belatedly realized the situation and became dejected.

They were worried about Lee Han but couldn’t go outside.

“I’m fine. I can protect myself.”

-Is that so?

-Weren’t you hiding to avoid that powerful mage right now?

The giants weren’t stupid, just poor at the Empire’s language.

When they cunningly wielded facts to poke at his sore spot, Lee Han flinched.

“…Professor Bagrek is a bit of an exception.”

-Can’t you beat the flying skeleton either?

“The Principal is also somewhat exceptional…”

-What about that smart person-troll?

“Professor Garcia is also… No, really, I’m quite good at protecting myself!”

Lee Han’s voice rose without him realizing it.

The giants were looking at Lee Han with pitying eyes.

-Mage. It’s okay. Mages are originally frail.

-Strong warriors protect them. Mages are meant to be protected. That’s how it is.

‘This is unfair.’

Lee Han was frustrated by the fact that his opponents for comparison were too strong, making his argument unconvincing.

Among mages of similar level, he really was good at protecting himself!

-Mage. If you need help, call us.

-We’ll come help you.

“Yes… thank you.”

Lee Han answered in a tired voice.

* * *

“Wait. Wasn’t I deceived by the Principal?”

Professor Paselette only thought of the doubt she should have had much earlier, right before final exams.

-Is that so?

-I don’t think so.

“No matter what, he probably wouldn’t ask for a harder test…”

The Skeleton Principal had said ‘Lee Han wants to take a harder test,’ so she had prepared accordingly, but thinking about it carefully, no matter what, a student wouldn’t want that.

Wasn’t something strange…

-We’ll know from his reaction! If that’s a lie, he’ll say something himself!

Professor Paselette thought the other personality’s outcry made sense.

Indeed, if the Principal’s words were false, the student himself would say ‘Professor, my test is strange.’

There was no way he wouldn’t notice when he received completely different materials from what his other friends were getting.

A moment later.

The students came in.

The students who arrived at their respective seats checked the materials and exam content.

Lee Han also checked and started the exam without raising any particular objections.

‘Oh… was it real?’

Professor Paselette felt slightly sorry toward the Skeleton Principal.

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