Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 444

The wind howled around the magical school of Einroguard, and rain lashed down, making it hard for the students to even walk. The professors felt the storm’s power too.

Of course, unlike the students, the professors were not being washed away by the flood. A professor wizard was strong enough to not be bothered by such a storm.

But there was still a problem…

Professor Lightning-Stride stared at the waves with a troubled expression.

The sea had swallowed the racetrack that the students had worked so hard to build.

Professor Thunder-Stride spoke carefully, looking nervously at the older professor. “Well… the Headmaster probably didn’t do it on purpose,” he said, but his words offered little comfort.

“Okay, enough complaining. We need to fix this. What about using your huts?”

“My huts are a bit different…” Professor Thunder-Stride replied hesitantly.

Unlike Professor Lightning-Stride, who had come from the outside world as an adventurer, Professor Thunder-Stride had spent a long time in Einroguard and knew how things worked.

Naturally, the huts scattered around were enchanted to withstand such natural disasters.

If there was a flood, instead of fighting the water, the huts, basements, and livestock pens were made to float away safely. After the flood, they could be found and moved back.

But a large racetrack was different.

To fix it now…

“We would need to call upon powerful magic to raise a barrier against the raging water, then use spells to boil away the flood that’s already here, dry the ground, and keep it that way for the exams this week.”

“Can you do it?”

Professor Thunder-Stride stared as if he’d been asked to juggle hippogriffs.

Performing magic like that was too much for one wizard.

It would take too much magic, rare items, and hard spells.

No one would do that much for just an exam.

“I have exams to watch over, too…”

“Hmph. I see. We’ll have to change the exam, then. After all that work.”

“Save this exam idea for the final exam,” Professor Lightning-Stride said.

Professor Thunder-Stride asked, “But what about the final exam we already planned?”

Professor Lightning-Stride shrugged. “Maybe they can do both exams?”

Professor Thunder-Stride suggested this calmly. If Lee Han had heard him, he might have been angry.

Professor Lightning-Stride looked interested.

“It would be a shame to waste it…”

“Exactly.”

Professor Thunder-Stride agreed quickly, trying to please him. He was happy that his boss seemed to be in a better mood.

“But, I don’t want to change the exam. The students don’t know much about sea life.”

“Nonsense. Our students are very smart.”

Professor Thunder-Stride kept encouraging him, so Professor Lightning-Stride wouldn’t change his mind and make things hard for him.

Any student at Einroguard should be able to befriend the sea creatures that showed up because of the flood.

“I heard from Professor Garcia that the students have learned spells to breathe underwater.”

“Still… hmm…”

As Professor Lightning-Stride thought, the Headmaster flew past them in the distance, spinning around.

Professor Thunder-Stride was surprised.

‘He must be very angry!’

The Headmaster, who usually flew calmly, was now spinning wildly.

He was more than just annoyed.

What had happened?

“Is something the matter?”

The skeletal Headmaster began to complain, explaining what had happened. “Ah! Professor Thunder-Stride! Listen to me! If you haven’t decided on the exam yet, make it ten times harder! Get revenge on Tanjua for me!”

“Ah, yes. That’s too bad.”

Professor Thunder-Stride answered quickly, not really listening to the Headmaster.

The professors at Einroguard didn’t feel sorry for the Headmaster’s trouble with a student.

First, it didn’t happen often…

…and second, he was probably getting what he deserved.

‘Who would gain from that?’

Professor Thunder-Stride didn’t want to change the exam. It was too much trouble.

“But how did they get the Tanjua potion? Did you spill it in the street?”

The Headmaster replied, “No! I left it in the professors’ lounge, and he took it.”

“Wow! That student is really…”

The skeletal Headmaster glared at Professor Thunder-Stride, who quickly changed his words.

“…terrible! Learning such tricks, who knows where he picked them up!”

“If you find out how he took it, please tell me.”

“Hmm… maybe he made a deal with Professor Verdus.”

Professor Thunder-Stride said the first thing he thought of.

Professor Verdus was the only professor he could imagine dealing with Lee Han.

“I knew it! I’ll get that Bible, I swear…”

As the Headmaster grumbled and left, Professor Thunder-Stride called to Professor Lightning-Stride again.

“Don’t listen to what the Headmaster says.”

“The students are riding around on Tanjua?”

“Yes? Oh. It seems so. Those fellows, really. They’re talented. I wonder who taught them, haha.”

“Hmm…”

Professor Lightning-Stride nodded as if he had decided something.

“Very well. They should be able to handle it, then?”

Professor Thunder-Stride was a little scared by Professor Lightning-Stride’s words.

Surely not…?

‘Is it fair for all the students to take a harder exam just because Wodanaaz is riding around on Tanjua?’

“Why aren’t you answering?”

“It’s perfectly fair!”

Professor Thunder-Stride quickly agreed to avoid any trouble.

The students would be the ones suffering, after all.

“Is the advanced riding training exam all that’s left for today?”

“It’s this evening, right? Let’s rest for a bit!”

The students, going back to the library, shivered and ran to the fireplace.

Even with the protection of the big spirit beast Tanjua, they still got wet.

Also, the stormy weather made the autumn air even colder.

“Hey, is it okay to burn this much?”

“The firewood is fine…”

Before he could finish, Lee Han and the Black Turtle Tower students dumped a new pile of wide wooden planks in one corner.

Their friends were surprised to see the dry wood.

“Where did you get that!?”

“We brought the desks and chairs from the lecture hall!”

Ratford puffed out his chest and announced loudly, “Look what *we* found!” Ethan felt his face heat up with embarrassment. Ratford was making it sound like they had done something amazing, when really…

“Do we really need to say where we got it from?” Ethan wondered.

Ethan could use his magic to keep the fire going for a while without wood, but magic was tiring, and he couldn’t watch the fire every minute. Besides, there were so many students. No matter how much firewood they found, it was never enough.

“Should we raid a few more classrooms?” someone suggested.

“Wodanaz, I saw something strange earlier…”

“What is it?” Ethan asked.

“A cabin was floating by. It looked perfectly intact and seemed to be protected by magic.”

“Really? That’s amazing. I guess it must be a cabin from somewhere in the school…”

Ethan made a decision without hesitation. “Let’s bring that cabin back later. We’ll take it apart and use the pieces. If it’s protected by magic, there must be a lot of useful things inside.”

“Can we bring it back?”

“Tanzua’s abilities should be more than enough.”

From afar, Tanzua mournfully spouted water.

“Wodanaz, come and eat!” The White Tiger Tower students, who had arrived earlier and were preparing the meal, called out to Ethan.

Ethan lined up with his Blue Dragon Tower friends to get the soup. The thick soup in the large tin pot bubbled, giving off a delicious aroma.

Gainando took a big gulp of the soup, then choked, sputtering, “Gack! Poison! I’ve been poisoned!” He clutched his throat dramatically, eyes wide, making the other Blue Dragon Tower students jump.

“Oi, Gainando, don’t be such a baby,” Ratford said, rolling his eyes but secretly looking at his own soup with suspicion. “It’s not poison. Just… well, let’s just say they weren’t exactly generous with the flavor, were they?”

“Yeah,” another student mumbled, taking a small, careful sip. “Tastes like… watery sadness. And everyone knows White Tiger Tower can’t cook to save their lives anyway.” He grinned, nudging Ratford.

The White Tiger Tower students glared at their friends. They had been cooking with the vision they had learned while staying in the Knights’ building during the vacation, and now they dared criticize them!

“Always so extravagant, those nobles,” one White Tiger student muttered.

“Their tongues are used to rich food. They are used to fancy meals, so they don’t like simple soup.”

“If you want to eat well, why come to Einroguard? Humph,” another added.

“Ah, no. Don’t misunderstand. Gainando was talking nonsense,” a Blue Dragon Tower student said quickly.

“We thought it tasted pretty good. Of course, it’s a bit meager, but that can’t be helped because of the ingredients.”

The Blue Dragon Tower students tried to soothe the White Tiger Tower students. They were dividing the work, and it wouldn’t do any good to fight. And above all, Gainando was in the wrong this time.

“Originally, if there aren’t enough ingredients, even the best chef can’t do anything.”

“That’s not true?” Lenzid, from the Black Tortoise Tower and a chef family, chimed in as he passed by.

“Look at Wodanaz. He makes it taste good even when he saves on ingredients. That’s what a real chef is. Excuses are…”

“Hey… you insensitive jerk!”

“Are you Gainando? Are you Gainando??” The Blue Dragon Tower students criticized him, and Lenzid was taken aback.

He was just telling the truth about cooking!

Fortunately, thanks to the two of them getting scolded, the White Tiger Tower students calmed down.

“We probably can’t cook as well as Wodanaz. Wodanaz is from a great noble family, after all.”

The Blue Dragon Tower students tilted their heads, confused.

‘We are too…’

‘From great noble families…’

‘But we can’t cook, can we?’

‘Shhh. Be quiet.’

Meanwhile, Ethan checked the barricade with the soup he had received.

“How is it, Wodanaz? They can’t come this way, right?”

“Yes. Good job.”

“…Can’t we increase the rations a bit? It’s piled up so much…”

“No. What are you saying? We don’t know how long the flood will last,” Ethan cut him off decisively.

“Instead, I’ll give you a generous meal tonight because you have to take the exam.”

The faces of the White Tiger Tower students next to Ethan brightened.

“More importantly, is the mount training exam really about the Burning Puppy?”

“Yes, it is. I’m really sure,” the White Tiger Tower students insisted strongly.

A rumor had been going around among the students since yesterday: This semester’s mount training midterm exam is about the Burning Puppy!

The Burning Puppy, which they had dealt with in the first semester. Some students had been walking around the school at night and saw Professor Lightning Gait moving a cage containing this Burning Puppy.

Of course, to be precise, it had grown a bit too big to be called a Burning Puppy.

“A horse-sized Burning Puppy was playing in the cage!”

“If it’s that big, it doesn’t seem like a puppy anymore… Anyway, I understand. I’ll keep it in mind,” Ethan said, tilting his head. Can they really have an exam with the Burning Puppy when it’s raining like this?

“Aren’t we going to do training to save the Burning Puppy that fell into the water or something?”

“That’s too cruel. What if the puppy dies?”

“…Wodanaz. Worry about us going into the water in this weather first…”

A pier had been built on the sea while they weren’t looking. It was a pier made by Professor Lightning Gait. The students disembarked onto Tanzua one by one. Tanzua mournfully spouted water.

“Everyone has worked hard.”

“Sniff…”

“Professor…” The students nodded with tearful expressions.

Of course, that was that, and the exam was the exam, so the students prepared to take out the flame resistance measures they had prepared with determined expressions. Besides, in this weather, it would be even harder for the flame monster to use its power!

“Today’s exam will be about how to handle aquatic creatures.”

“…?”

“Is the Burning Puppy an aquatic creature?”

“Ah. Were you expecting the Burning Puppy?” Professor Lightning Gait looked slightly apologetic.

“It seems a bit difficult because of the heavy rain. So the exam has changed.”

“…What do we have to do? Fishing… is it fishing?” Gainando looked as if he was begging for the answer to be fishing. He didn’t want to go into that dark water where rain, wind, and darkness were gathering.

“Fishing is a method.”

“Yes…!”

“I’ve released aquatic creatures, so catch one of them. But don’t hurt it.”

No sooner had Professor Lightning Gait finished speaking than a huge fin swept across the water. The students looked at each other with sorrowful faces.