Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy - Chapter 962
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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 962
“…I’ll keep that in mind if there’s another opportunity next time.”
“Good. You’ll be doing this many more times in the future, so remember it.”
‘I was joking though.’
Lee Han stared blankly at his senior’s large back of the head, feeling absurd.
Where else would something like this happen?
This bizarre situation of securing donation promises just by telling stories seemed like it would be the first and last time.
“Anyway, Senior. Is this amount sufficient to some degree?”
“Puhehe. Wardanaz. There’s no set amount. Actually, we didn’t have to do this kind of work.”
“That may be true, but…”
Even if they could proceed with whatever amount they had, whether insufficient or not, wasn’t he doing this work because he didn’t like that situation?
“Don’t feel burdened and just do what you can. And Wardanaz, you’ve already done several times better than expected. It must be tough because of other club work.”
Lee Han couldn’t say that he ended up helping while avoiding Professor Garcia’s pursuit. Instead, he deflected the credit.
“If we’re talking about what’s tough, you have it harder, Senior. You’re even a fourth year student right now.”
“Uhahaha. Wardanaz. Don’t fall for other seniors’ whining too much. Only those who didn’t study in advance complain, but if you prepare regularly, being a fourth year isn’t particularly difficult.”
“…”
Looking at Palcrius speaking with a smile, Lee Han felt two emotions.
One was the feeling that ‘if Senior wasn’t that size, he would have gotten beaten up a few times.’
And the other was déjà vu.
Why did Palcrius’s words feel familiar?
‘I have no idea why.’
Since there was no mirror around, Lee Han ultimately couldn’t figure out the identity of the déjà vu.
“And I have a debt of gratitude to repay.”
“A debt of gratitude?”
“It’s an old story. From the time of the Southern Spirit Great Famine.”
Palcrius patted his thick belly as he spoke.
“Puhe. Wardanaz. I’m like this now, but when I was young, I was so skinny I couldn’t even eat a bowl of porridge.”
While farming was basically about uncertain climate and farmers fighting against it, unfortunately, the continent’s farmers had one more enemy.
Those were the magical beings that grew by feeding on the continent’s abundant mana.
To mages, spirits were convenient beings that could be negotiated with and sometimes even subjugated, but to most Empire people, spirits were fearsome and unpredictable beings.
And when those fearsome and unpredictable beings experienced coincidence and inevitability and gathered into a massive storm, natural disasters would visit the Empire.
The Southern Spirit Great Famine was a famine large enough in scale that even Lee Han had heard of it.
He had heard that the fertile and mild granary region was devastated and a large number of people from that area migrated elsewhere…
“The ones who helped me when I was wandering alone were priests from the Plemang Order. I made a vow to myself then. That I would bestow the grace I received upon others as well.”
“Senior…”
“And I also vowed never to go hungry again, but that was broken when I entered Einroguard. Uhaha.”
“…Senior.”
Lee Han felt the emotion he had just felt disappearing.
“Puhe. Wardanaz. You don’t need to worry because of my vow. My vow is for myself. You just need to worry about your own vows. Like dedicating your life to the development of Imperial magic…”
“I never made such a vow!”
“Huh? Doesn’t everyone from the Wardanaz Family make such vows?”
Palcrius was flustered.
There were so many rumors related to the Wardanaz Family that he still realized wrong information like this.
“Well, it’s probably roughly similar.”
“There’s nothing similar about it at all.”
Despite his junior’s protest, Palcrius didn’t pay much attention and moved his steps.
This time’s destination was the house of a peddler belonging to the Western Empire United Trading Company.
Thump thump thump-
“He’s a person called Jongseonun who imports wheat on a large scale, and he agreed to donate this time too. Since we have time left thanks to you, junior, we should move it in advance.”
“I see.”
“We’ll need to borrow a cart and carriage…”
“I’ll just carry it myself.”
“Hmm? Won’t that be too much to handle?”
“What’s left over, I can lift with magic.”
“Puhe. Wardanaz, you sometimes make crazy jokes.”
“?!”
What appeared before the two who were knocking on the door and waiting was a peddler who had turned pale blue.
Palcrius asked in surprise.
“What’s the matter?”
“I’m… I’m sorry. Priest Palcrius. I won’t be able to give you the wheat I promised.”
“That’s fine. But is there some kind of problem?”
“Well…”
* * *
“That damn bastard!”
Palcrius walked along fuming. It was a rarely seen angry appearance for a priest who always smiled.
Lee Han’s face was also hardened. The peddler’s plea had made Lee Han angry as well.
The one who took the wheat sacks that Jongseonun had secured was Bardan, a city noble of Granden City.
Bardan, a branch noble of the powerful Greenbel Family, had greatly lost face due to the recent attack by an evil mage.
He decided to hold a grand banquet to restore his reputation, and during the preparation process, the peddler suffered damage.
Originally, banquets were such that while nobles enjoyed themselves with laughter, their subordinates had to put in a lot of effort in preparation.
Moreover, even though he had lost a great deal of property due to the evil mage’s attack, the banquet had to be held at the same scale.
Bardan’s servants went to Jongseonun and threatened him to buy ingredients at dirt cheap prices.
Since he couldn’t ignore Bardan’s influence as long as he worked in Granden City, Jongseonun ultimately had no choice but to hand over the wheat he had set aside for donation.
“Wardanaz. There’s something you need to do.”
“Should I cast invisibility and pick the lock? Or should I climb over the wall?”
“…No. If I get excited, I want you to stop me, Wardanaz…”
Palcrius, who had been worried he might get excited and cause trouble, wondered if he had brought the wrong junior.
This Wardanaz Family junior seemed excellent at causing trouble but weak at stopping it.
“You want me to stop you, Senior?”
“Yes. I’m counting on you.”
‘Is that possible?’
Lee Han wondered if he’d have to blast magic from behind if Palcrius got excited.
“Oh right, Senior. This alley is blocked, so you’ll have to go around. When Bardan’s manor collapsed last time, the alley got blocked too.”
“Wardanaz, how do you know that?”
Palcrius tilted his head curiously. Lee Han managed his expression as he answered.
“I came out early because of other club work, remember? I heard rumors then. Some crazy mage attacked Bardan’s manor.”
“Ah. Stedal from the Nago Family? I heard about that too.”
“…”
Lee Han squeezed his eyes shut at the speed of rumors.
“Puhe, he’s not one of the Principal’s disciples by any chance, is he?”
“What????”
“Why are you so surprised? Sometimes mages who cause big trouble turn out to be the Principal’s disciples.”
“Aha.”
Lee Han inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.
He had thought Palcrius was suspecting him.
“The crazy one is Bardan who forcibly took donation wheat because of his own extravagance. A mage like Stedal isn’t crazy, Wardanaz.”
Lee Han felt embarrassed by his senior’s praise. Palcrius, who was walking ahead, didn’t notice.
“Hmm. Still, he’s a dangerous mage.”
“Huh? Why all of a sudden?”
At Lee Han’s question, Falkrious pointed his finger.
Bardan’s manor was still unable to escape from the scars left by the rampaging Water Spirit.
Even though they had called mages and craftsmen from the mason’s guild, broken places could be seen everywhere, giving an idea of how much it had rampaged.
“Look at that. He destroyed it quite thoroughly.”
“…What if the mage named Stedal just visited the manor peacefully, but the spirit guarding the manor accidentally went berserk?”
“Hahaha. Wardanaz. Why are you making such ridiculous jokes?”
‘Ugh.’
Lee Han inwardly groaned at his own words that lacked persuasiveness even to himself.
If a mage had infiltrated a manor and then devastating destruction occurred, anyone would easily think ‘Ah, that mage must have destroyed it.’
But it was truly unfair.
Lee Han had merely infiltrated and relocated the requested item.
Though he did meet the manor’s owner and knock him unconscious in the process…
‘The spirit going berserk wasn’t my fault, was it?’
“Is anyone there?”
Falkrious called out loudly to the people inside.
The chamberlain, who had been catching servants like rats for the banquet preparations, walked out with an irritated face.
“What is it?”
“We came about the wheat from peddler Jongseonun.”
“Who?”
“Einroguard’s mages and the temple’s priests are trying to distribute food to the poor this time, but there seems to have been a misunderstanding.”
Falkrious explained as nicely as possible with a smiling face.
It was wheat that was originally supposed to be donated, and there was even a promise made, but perhaps due to an error, the manor’s servants had taken it away.
They would return the money, so they hoped the wheat could be returned too…
However, the chamberlain was indifferent.
“No.”
“…Excuse me?”
“No. We’re also busy preparing for our master’s banquet.”
“We said we’d return the silver coins.”
“Then the servants would have to go around looking for and buying new ones again. We can’t waste time like that.”
Lee Han quietly took a step forward.
Just in case the other person might be crazy about Ballgame.
However, the other person only shot back sharply.
“What?”
“It’s nothing. Um, I’m from the Wardanaz Family.”
Even as he spoke, Lee Han felt a slight sense of self-loathing.
He had never used his family’s name his entire life!
But to help his senior, this level of shame was bearable.
If Ballgame didn’t work, then at least the family name…
“…Are you threatening me now? An Einroguard mage, from the Wardanaz Family? Do you think our master has no backing?”
If the actual owner Bardan had heard this, he would have reacted with ‘I’ve often threatened easy targets, but touching the Wardanaz Family is a bit…’ but originally, ignorance breeds courage.
The chamberlain, who was only accustomed to arrogantly ordering around subordinates, couldn’t properly grasp how much the difference in power was.
Thanks to that, the shame was Lee Han’s to bear.
It was shameful just to bring it up, but since it didn’t work, the rebound came back doubled.
“Get lost. There’s no wheat to fill the bellies of beggars. You should be grateful we don’t chase you out of the city.”
In that moment, Lee Han saw sparks fly from Falkrious’s eyes.
Remembering the conversation he had with Falkrious earlier, Lee Han hurriedly intervened.
“Senior! Please calm down!”
“Th, thanks. Wardanaz.”
Falkrious came to his senses at his junior’s cry. He couldn’t cause trouble in front of his junior.
“Did I stop you for nothing? Should we just attack?”
“Haha. No. Wardanaz. If we attacked everyone who acted so arrogantly, a whole year wouldn’t be enough. Let’s go back.”
Though he felt like smashing the main gate, Falkrious gave up cleanly.
Originally, when doing this kind of work, you were bound to meet such rude people. Rather, this level wasn’t too severe.
As the two retreated, the chamberlain muttered from behind the door.
“Really, these priests are indistinguishable from beggars.”
“Let’s go. Wardanaz. We don’t have time to get involved with such people.”
“Senior, please go ahead. I have somewhere to stop by briefly.”
Lee Han spoke in a cold voice.
He had tried to let it slide nicely, but the other person had just crossed the line with those words.
…It seemed Stedal Nago would have to appear once more and smash the manor to pieces.
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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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