Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 69

Magic school was supposed to be a place of learning, but everyone knew it wasn’t safe.

It wasn’t just the teachers you had to worry about; accidents happened all the time.

Even new students, trying their best, made mistakes with magic.

The monster crashing through the school grounds right now was a perfect example.

It turned out older students were training summoned beasts for experiments. But they lost control.

Lee Han listened to Professor Garcia and thought, *This is crazy! How can they let monsters loose in school? Is this normal here?*

Lee Han asked, “But… other beasts escaped too? Will they catch them quickly? This is supposed to be the best magic school in the Empire!”

Professor Garcia nodded. “Of course, they will be caught.” Lee Han felt a little better. “But,” Professor Garcia added, “it might take about a month, student Lee Han.”

Professor Garcia wasn’t trying to be mean, but his words were clear: with monsters loose in the school, everyone was in danger.

Professor Garcia moved his hands quickly. Wind whipped around the monster, vines snapped, and in a blink, the student was safely on the ground. It looked easy, but Lee Han knew it was magic of the highest level.

Watching Professor Garcia, Lee Han was amazed. His movements were like a dancer – graceful, powerful, and impossible to look away from.

“Ugh, Sobbing!”

The White Tiger Tower student was so scared he could only sob.

This school was full of surprises. Every time they thought things couldn’t get stranger, something new happened.

Lee Han stirred the stew, thinking about his garden. Fresh vegetables made everything better. Maybe he should plant more at the cabin.

Lee Han knocked again, but there was still no answer. He shrugged and went back to the others. Maybe she was really tired.

Derkyu said firmly, “Lee Han, you didn’t need to do that for me.” He explained, “A real friend understands. You did what you had to do.”

Although he returned safely with the flag, the expressions of the Blue Dragon Tower students were subtle.

Before they could even be happy, a voice was heard from outside.

“Summoned beasts have escaped within the school, so students should be careful. I’ll say it again. Summoned beasts have escaped within the school…”

The students were speechless now.

It was a school that gave them new shocks every week.

A school where something new appeared every time they thought, ‘There can’t be anything newer than this, right?’

How were they supposed to stay tense even inside the school?

“…Didn’t one of the professors release them?”

One of the Blue Dragon Tower students muttered.

If it had been the first week, there would have been reactions like ‘No way,’ but now everyone was giving serious looks of suspicion.

“It’s clear that a professor released them. I think it’s the headmaster…”

“No! Professor Thunderfoot is suspicious!”

“More than that, why can’t they catch them right away?”

Lee Han, who had been listening quietly, thought to himself.

‘Isn’t it because the professors are too lazy?’

Thinking about it, it was a bit strange that it would take about a month.

How many wizards were there in this vast magic school?

If such outstanding professors were mobilized and set up a siege, it would be normal for things to be resolved quickly, whether a summoned beast or a dragon had escaped.

But basically, professors didn’t move easily in the first place.

They would have their own disciples solve their own mistakes, and they would have their disciples solve the mistakes of their disciples even more.

As such, there was no way they would move themselves in this summoned beast escape incident…

‘Everyone will be shocked if I say it, so I should keep my mouth shut.’

Lee Han kept his mouth shut out of consideration for the students.

“They should at least tell us which ones escaped! Aren’t the seniors being too much?!”

“That’s what I’m saying!”

The anger was directed at the seniors they didn’t know, past the professors.

The freshmen were seething and cursing the seniors.

Wasn’t it because of the incompetent seniors that they were suffering?

“Stop talking and have breakfast. Everyone worked hard last night, so I paid special attention to it.”

Lee Han lifted the large pot hanging in front of the fireplace.

The red color of the tomato beef stew made the Blue Dragon Tower students happy.

The amount of groceries he had brought from outside was considerable, but Lee Han had no intention of wasting them. He didn’t know when he would be able to go out again.

But in a situation like this, he might as well be generous. Everyone had worked hard.

‘I need to grow more vegetables.’

Lee Han was thinking of expanding the cabin’s garden.

Not only sweet potatoes and potatoes, but also planting wheat, and some fruit trees around…

‘I want to increase the number of chickens too. If I raise pigs, will Professor Thunderfoot treat me like a crazy person?’

What he felt while managing the garden was that fresh vegetables were quite important in human life.

Just being able to get fresh vegetables changed the quality of the meal.

That was the case with the tomato beef stew he had brought now. The savory taste and aroma were from the tomato sauce and spices, and the visual impact was from the large chunks of beef, but…

It was the vegetables—onions, garlic, carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, etc.—that helped to give this stew its rich and deep flavor.

Because he had stir-fried these vegetables and prepared them in advance…

‘No, what am I thinking right now?’

Lee Han stopped as he was gaining enlightenment.

How was it that he was gaining more enlightenment in other fields than in magic after coming to school?

The Blue Dragon Tower students, who had worked hard at night, filled their bowls with stew and enjoyed breakfast with bread.

Eating a warm breakfast with the sunlight coming through the stained glass of the lounge made them feel like they had returned to their own homes.

“Summoned beasts have escaped within the school, so students should be careful. I’ll say it again. Summoned beasts have escaped within the school…”

“…It’s ruining my appetite…”

“Then shall I eat it?”

“Can’t you take that hand away? I’ll challenge you to a duel.”

Lee Han got up, took the bowl, and headed to the princess’s private room.

He was now used to it without being asked by other students.

” ? ”

However, the door did not open as usual. Lee Han gave up and returned after knocking on the door several times without the princess answering.

“What’s wrong? Did Her Highness say she wouldn’t eat?”

“No. There’s no answer.”

“Ah. I guess she’s sleeping. She must have been tired yesterday…”

The students who served the princess nodded with convinced expressions.

Well, considering what happened yesterday, it was understandable that she was tired.

Lee Han felt a little guilty.

‘She wouldn’t be holding it against me for threatening her as a hostage, would she?’

Unlike Gainando, Adenarte had ability and many students who worshipped her.

Even if it wasn’t now, it would be quite annoying if Adenarte said during the vacation, ‘Wodanaz grabbed me and used me as a hostage.’

That’s why he put a lot of beef in the stew…

“Then let’s not wake her up for nothing, Wodanaz. Thank you. Her Highness doesn’t eat much, but it seems like she can’t refuse because of your sincerity when you bring it to her yourself.”

” ? ”

Lee Han tilted his head.

‘Was that so?’

‘She seemed to eat very well…’

Gainando, who was scraping the wooden bowl with a spoon and eating stew next to him, asked.

“Isn’t it better to wake her up early than to starve? You can sleep anytime, but eating is…”

“Don’t say such nonsense, Gainando! Do you think Her Highness is like you?”

“That’s right! She’s not that obsessed with food!”

In fact, Lee Han had similar thoughts to Gainando.

You can sleep anytime, so it would be better to wake up, eat, and then go back to sleep…

‘Okay. The followers are right.’

“But Lee Han.”

” ? ”

“Will you be okay for this morning’s class?”

“Morning class… Ah.”

Lee Han checked the paper at Yoner’s words and paused.

“I’ll probably be okay.”

“…”

Yoner’s eyes were saying, ‘I don’t think you’ll be okay no matter how I think about it.’

“…”

“…”

Basic swordsmanship class.

As it happened, the White Tiger Tower students were glaring at Lee Han with very, very uncomfortable expressions, as they had suffered such a thing last night.

The only one who spoke to Lee Han was Derkyu.

Derkyu said strongly.

“There was no need to do such a thing out of consideration for me, Lee Han.”

The moment he was hit in the chin and fell, Derkyu realized.

That the honorable Lee Han had volunteered to play the villain for Derkyu.

After waking up, the White Tiger Tower students were angry, saying, ‘Do you know what that bastard said to you?’, but Derkyu did not waver.

“If I can’t do what I have to do because I’m conscious of other friends, that’s not a real friend. A real friend should be able to understand both honor and friendship.”

“That’s a touching statement, Derkyu.”

Lee Han thought to himself, ‘Wasn’t me coming in to steal the flag yesterday not really related to honor?’, but he nodded to respect Derkyu for now.

When the person who was hit in the chin forgives you, you have to shut your mouth and listen quietly.

“So you don’t have to volunteer to be the villain in the future.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Of course, Lee Han was planning to act similarly if similar things happened in the future, regardless of what Derkyu said or didn’t say.

Derkyu might not care, but the other White Tiger Tower friends wouldn’t not care.

Even now, the White Tiger Tower students were glaring at Lee Han.

“Derkyu is being fooled again…!”

“Don’t let him make contact with that guy!”

Some students were even gritting their teeth and making a wall with their bodies to prevent him from approaching.

Anyone who saw it would think Derkyu had been brainwashed by Lee Han.

“Good morning, everyone.”

The elf swordsman and professor, Ingerdel, appeared, leaning on his sword like a cane. The students, who had been standing separately until just now, straightened their posture and greeted him politely.

Professor Ingerdel continued in a soft voice that was unlike a swordsman.

“When I woke up, I found that released summoned beasts were wandering around the school. I thought it was a truly absurd place.”

“…”

All the students nodded. It was a statement that anyone from any tower could sympathize with.

“But since the students have to continue living here… I also thought about it. What method would be helpful?”

” ? ”

Lee Han suddenly became uneasy.

There weren’t many cases where good results came out when a professor worried about the students.

“So I caught one of the released summoned beasts. Let’s practice by fighting it together.”

“…”

Lee Han seriously began to worry that Professor Ingerdel was becoming tainted by the school.