Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 150

“I see.”

“?!!”

A student from White Tiger Tower was shocked by Lee Han’s calm face.

“Shouldn’t you be more surprised?” the student asked.

“Not really.”

Lee Han said calmly.

He thought, “This is probably one of the easiest hidden treasures to find.”

A fiercely burning pile of firewood.

It was easy to tell how dangerous it was, even from the outside.

The really dangerous things were the traps. They stayed hidden until you were right next to the treasure chest.

Lee Han remembered the Headmaster Skeleton. He had made them cross a lake and then dug traps in the sand.

“Tutankha.”

“Wodanaz.”

Lee Han greeted the muscular, short elf.

Salco and his group were also there for the treasure chest.

The White Tiger Tower students crossed their arms and glared. They looked like they wouldn’t give up easily.

It wasn’t clear who would get the treasure. You could feel the tension in the air.

‘Are there no Blue Dragon Tower students?’

Neblen, from the Kirak family and a follower of the Princess, was there.

Lee Han asked Neblen.

“Where did our Tower’s kids go?”

“They said it was better to look for something else than to get stuck here,” Neblen explained.

“What about you?”

“I was wondering if I could offer it to the Princess,” Neblen said.

*’The royals have it too easy,’* Lee Han thought.

Lee Han was annoyed and spoke in a serious voice.

“Neblen, the Princess wouldn’t want you to offer that to her either. Why? Because treasure is only worth something if you get it yourself.”

“Is… is that so?”

Not many Blue Dragon Tower students could withstand Lee Han speaking seriously.

Neblen was unsure. He was tempted by Lee Han’s words because Lee Han was the student closest to the Princess.

“Look at Gainando. Gainando tries to get everything through his own power.”

“But Prince Gainando wasn’t given anything in the first place…?”

“Being royal isn’t just about being born royal,” Lee Han said. “It’s about what you do.”

“Now, Neblen. Do you truly respect the Princess?”

“I… I see… You’re right.”

“Yes. Don’t offer anything and live your life.”

Neblen looked impressed as he walked away. Then, someone started clapping.

Salco and his group were clapping, looking very impressed.

“…Don’t.”

“Why? Other guys need to hear it…”

Lee Han knew if he didn’t stop Salco, Salco would grab anyone walking by and make them listen to a speech.

Lee Han quickly changed the subject.

“So, that pile of firewood… did you try to put out the fire?”

“Wodanaz, are you thinking we are weak?”

A White Tiger Tower student grumbled.

“We’ve been in magic school for a month,” one student said. “Everyone can use some magic now.”

“Of course, we aren’t as good as Wodanaz,” another student muttered. “He knew ancient magic even before school and knows all sorts of powerful spells.”

“Of course, we tried. Look.”

A White Tiger Tower student summoned water.

A fist-sized lump of water was poured over the firewood and evaporated instantly.

Salco also nodded.

“I tried with earth too.”

Salco was a stonemason and famous for his earth magic.

“If Salco couldn’t put it out with earth magic,” another student said, “it must be a very strong fire.”

“You failed too? It seems like a tricky magic is on it.”

“Hey…”

The White Tiger Tower student was furious.

“Are you ignoring what I did and believing him just because he’s an elf?!”

‘How many spells are on it?’

Lee Han, unconcerned, approached the firewood.

He could feel the magic in the flames. It was complex and twisted together.

‘First, they must have cast a spell to prevent the flames from going out…’

“Move!”

Lee Han brandished his wand.

Just as he thought, there was magic to stop anyone from taking it with magic. His wand wouldn’t even work.

“It seems I have to go in directly.”

“……”

“As expected…”

When Lee Han said that, the other students sighed. They seemed ready for this.

In fact, they had somewhat anticipated it even before Lee Han arrived.

-This… don’t we have to go in and get it ourselves?

The flames couldn’t be put out, and the treasure chest wouldn’t move.

That meant only one thing.

Go in and get it yourself!

“Isn’t that practically telling us to burn to death?”

“He’s going too far because he’s undead,” someone grumbled.

Lee Han opened his mouth as he watched the murmuring students.

“I did learn a spell to grant fire resistance.”

“Indeed…”

Salco nodded with an impassive face. One of Salco’s gang members next to him asked in a surprised voice.

“Salco. Did you know? Isn’t that surprising?”

“I was just getting surprised.”

“Ah, I see.”

At Lee Han’s words, the White Tiger Tower students put their heads together and talked among themselves.

-Wodanaz says he can cast fire resistance…

-Who’s going in?

-Isn’t it a bit dangerous, no matter what?

-Wodanaz isn’t the type to lie about magic. We can’t let the Black Tortoise Tower guys go in first.

-Alright. I’ll go in.

One of Salco’s gang members tilted his head after hearing the conversation.

‘White Tiger Tower guys. Doesn’t anyone think it’s strange that Wodanaz can use fire resistance magic?’

He knew that casting fire resistance magic on someone else was even harder than casting it on yourself.

It wasn’t something a new student would just say, “I can do that.”

“Wodanaz! We’re ready. Cast the magic!”

“But can you really trust me and go into the fire?”

Lee Han asked, sounding doubtful.

The White Tiger Tower students were silent, then looked at each other.

“…We don’t trust your character, but we trust your magic, Wodanaz.”

“That’s a brave thing to say to someone who’s about to cast fire resistance magic on you,” Lee Han said, raising an eyebrow.

The White Tiger Tower students’ attitude became abruptly polite.

“No… Wodanaz… why are you being like this…”

“Just kidding. Wait a moment.”

Before casting the fire resistance spell, Lee Han decided to use water to make the fire smaller.

“Spring forth!”

He knew that even strong magic could become weaker if you kept attacking it.

A huge lump of water, different from what the other students had summoned, sprang up from the air.

‘There’s not a drop of water around, and he makes this much…?!’

The other Tower students watched Lee Han’s magic with awe.

It was easy to forget because they only saw him beating people with water orbs, but the boy before them wasn’t just skilled in magical combat.

*’He’s a master of magic, trained by the Wodanaz family, who know all the secrets!’* someone thought in awe.

Splash! Splash! Splash!

Lee Han summoned lump after lump of water and threw it onto the flames.

Then the flames of the firewood simply went out.

‘Huh?’

“……”

“???”

“!”

Lee Han was the first to come to his senses.

Thump!

Lee Han quickly jumped onto the firewood, grabbed the treasure chest, and ran off in the opposite direction.

He was so fast that even the White Tiger Tower students, who came from knight families and were trained to be quick, were too slow to react.

“Hey!! Hey!!! You bastard, Wodanaz!”

“Come back! Let’s talk calmly!!”

Salco, who had been watching Lee Han’s disappearing back with his arms crossed, said to his gang members who were gaping.

“I’m right, aren’t I? Never trade with Wodanaz alone.”

“Al… Alright, Salco.”

Lee Han used magic to move faster and confuse his pursuers. He quickly lost them.

‘No one there.’

Lee Han, having confirmed that there were no pursuers, walked with the box tucked under his arm, a satisfied expression on his face.

“Professor Garcia!”

Lee Han felt his heart already warming as he spotted the troll professor walking ahead.

He felt safe with Professor Garcia, unlike with the other professors at this magic school.

“Student Lee Han?”

“Hello.”

“That treasure chest… isn’t that the one the Headmaster put a spell on? You managed to get it out.”

Professor Garcia could guess the spells on the chest just by looking at it.

“Unquenchable flames, spells to stop anyone from touching it… It was all part of the Headmaster’s plan to make life hard for new students,” Professor Garcia muttered.

“I put out the fire and brought it.”

“?!!”

“But Professor. There’s something I want to discuss.”

“No… that’s… how… well, alright.”

He was really curious about how he got the treasure chest, but the boy before him wasn’t a student who usually asked for help.

If such a student had something to discuss, it must be a very important matter.

“Let’s hear what you have to say. Here. Sit down.”

“Professor Verdus keeps saying I’m not good at enchantment magic,” Lee Han began. “But I think I can learn it well. I’m worried about this. I want to study enchantment magic seriously. That’s why I came to ask for your advice, Professor Garcia.”

Professor Garcia lowered his fist under the table.

And he held a stone in his fist.

Smash!

The stone turned to dust.

“Don’t listen too much to what that Verdus… that person says.”

“Did you just say ‘that brat’?”

“Professor Verdus is a great magician,” Professor Garcia admitted, “but he doesn’t really care about teaching students or their level.”

“I thought so.”

Lee Han had already felt it.

That’s why he asked Professor Garcia.

Actually, it wasn’t very surprising.

Professor Garcia cleared his throat. He was embarrassed to admit that the magic school wasn’t very good at teaching.

“Student Lee Han.”

“Yes.”

“Student Lee Han has talent in enchantment magic.”

“!”

“Talent is too weak a word,” Professor Garcia said, his voice rising with excitement. “You’re a genius! You must study enchantment magic.”

“Magic to make a light dragon appear on paper. Magic to give fire resistance to someone else, not yourself.”

“This is not magic that a new student should be able to do,” Professor Garcia explained.

*’Maybe Lee Han’s huge magical power is perfect for enchantment magic,’* Professor Garcia thought.

“Usually, too much magical power causes problems in enchantment magic,” Professor Garcia explained. “But for you, Lee Han, it’s an advantage.”

“You can use your power to do things that other wizards need different methods for,” Professor Garcia continued.

“Even if your magic circles aren’t perfect,” Professor Garcia said, “you have so much power it doesn’t matter.”

“All these advantages, plus your talent, Lee Han, explain why you are so good at enchantment magic,” Professor Garcia concluded.

“Thank you, Professor Garcia. Thanks to you, I’ve made up my mind. I’ll study enchantment magic diligently.”

He was interested in it anyway, and it was also a very useful skill to have.

Having heard those words, there was no reason not to learn it.

‘The professor is a bit strange, but the professors at this magic school are all strange anyway. If the other seniors endured it, I can do it too.’

“Uh…”

As Lee Han said that, Professor Garcia suddenly came to his senses.

*’How many magic subjects is Student Lee Han planning to study?’* Professor Garcia wondered.