Magic Is Learned For Nothing [EN]: Chapter 44

The Loser’s Counterattack (1)

It turned out to be a demon from the deep abyss, seeking to destroy the world.

Everyone rushed out of the training grounds.

Sepia stood guard at the tent entrance.

-Krrr (Get in there now. I’m counting to three).

“It’s a Lich! An undead Lich is inside! We have to escape, or this place will be devastated!”

Bacon shouted, fear evident in his eyes.

-Krrr (Shut your mouth! I can beat him. So, go in there and learn magic with peace of mind).

“You mean, Lady Sepia can defeat a Lich?”

-Krr, Krrr, Krrr (See this?)

Sepia raised her mace.

It was such a large and brutal weapon that just looking at it made one’s knees tremble.

“Lady Sepia’s weapon…….”

-Krr, Krrr (That’s right. One hit from this, and he’ll be in pieces. So, go in and learn magic with peace of mind. My bro is also there, so there’s no need to worry about getting hurt. He’s a good boy who would even play dead if my bro told him to).

The exclusive servants couldn’t understand Sepia’s words.

Who plays dead? Who’s a good boy?

The Lich, known as the right-hand man of the Demon King?

Is the Lich a dog or something? Why would he play dead at the master’s command? Does that even make sense?

Logically, it doesn’t make sense.

But when they thought about it, many things related to their master were illogical. The most illogical thing of all: this enormous ogre chasing after their master, calling him ‘bro, bro,’ didn’t make any sense at all.

“L, let’s go in.”

“Yeah. Let’s go in. This is embarrassing.”

“Still, it’s a Lich.”

“He’s the master’s lackey, they say.”

* * *

The Lich Mamon wore a bitter smile.

Although his expression wasn’t visible on his skull face, he was definitely smiling. In front of him were twenty-five exclusive servants doing physical training (PT) exercises.

He had received permission from his master.

“Master, not everyone can easily learn magic. Only a super-genius like you can learn it.”

A dog bone of a super-genius [sarcastic expression].

Not a prodigy, not even average. His magic learning speed is terribly slow, even slower than ordinary folks. But the Lich Mamon couldn’t bring himself to say that.

The master believes he is a super-genius.

“No. Teach them. There’s a lot of work in the territory. If they learn for about a year, they should be able to freely use 1st Circle magic, right?”

Legion said.

“It’s not easy. It requires rigorous training.”

“As long as they can become useful magicians.”

“They might die.”

“Don’t kill them. If they seem like they’re going to die, it just means they don’t have the talent, so just send them back as servants.”

“Understood.”

The Lich Mamon nodded.

As soon as Legion left the training grounds, the Lich Mamon gave them PT exercises as a gift, as if he had been waiting for this moment.

The exclusive servants were experiencing hell.

The Lich Mamon felt like he was having the time of his life. If he could die again, that is.

It was so painful when I was on the receiving end, but being a drill instructor and training them is really fun. This is even more fun than bossing around those zombie guys.

“PT Exercise Number 5, prepare!”

“PT Exercise Number 5, prepare!”

The movements for PT Exercise Number 5 are simple. Spread your legs shoulder-width apart and place your hands on your hips. Keep your upper body straight, bend your knees at a 90-degree angle, and extend your hands forward.

Focus your gaze on your fingertips.

Straighten your knees and release your hands from your hips.

With your knees straight, bend your upper body down and extend your hands down to touch the floor. Return to the starting position while straightening your body. Repeat this. It was one of the more strenuous exercises.

“35 reps. How many reps?”

“35 reps!”

“31 reps, begin! Omit the final shout.”

The Lich Mamon really wanted to try this.

Even when doing it alone, he kept messing up the final shout. Moreover, there were twenty-five of them. He was certain they wouldn’t get used to it within a few days.

“Twenty-nine, thirty…….”

Clack!

Huh?

The servants’ shouts were perfectly synchronized.

This shouldn’t be happening.

“Alright. PT Exercise Number 8, prepare!”

“PT Exercise Number 8, prepare!”

Hehehe, there’s no way they can do this one properly. It’s so difficult. The Lich Mamon smiled bitterly. I’ll return the pain I suffered to you!

“55 reps. How many reps?”

“55 reps!”

“54 reps, begin! Omit the final shout.”

“One, two, three, one! One, two, three, two! One, two, three, four!…… One, two, three, fifty-three! …….”

Clack-

Huh? What the hell.

The Lich Mamon’s expression hardened. Why are they so good? He felt unjustly treated. But they’re doing well, so it’s hard to order them to do more…….

“Alright. Stand up.”

The servants moved quickly. They stood motionless and didn’t even breathe. Their eyes shone brightly with the determination to learn magic.

“You haven’t yet developed your dantian [energy center in the body, according to traditional Chinese medicine]. But if you master the mind technique I’m going to teach you, I believe you’ll quickly develop it. For now, I’ll just give you a taste of magic today. The spell formulas for magic are very difficult. You, there.”

The Lich Mamon pointed at Bacon.

“Yes, 1st Trainee Bacon.”

“What is 9*9?”

“It’s 81.”

“That’s right. Easy, isn’t it? The spell formulas for 1st Circle magic are very similar to this. But the difficulty increases from 2nd Circle magic onwards. Many magic workers fail to overcome the difficulty of 2nd Circle. You, 1st Trainee.”

“Yes! 1st Trainee Bacon.”

“What is 9*7*5?”

“It’s 315.”

“……Huh?”

“315 is correct.”

“Y, yes. That’s right.”

The Lich Mamon was really surprised. The master is still struggling with this, but a trainee who hasn’t even started learning magic can grasp the spell formulas in an instant.

“Then you.”

“Yes, 2nd Trainee Lotto!”

“What is 4*8*5*9?”

“It’s 1,440.”

Wh, what? These guys.

“Are you sure? Don’t you need to double-check? Even a slight mistake in the spell formulas can harm you. You must get it right in one go.”

“It’s not a difficult problem. I can do it in my head. It’s definitely correct.”

헐~ [Korean slang expressing disbelief or shock].

What are these guys, really?

“Hey, you.”

“15th Trainee, Sean!”

“What is 4*5*6/6*9?”

Even if the master died and came back to life, he wouldn’t be able to solve this problem. Could it be…… even this?

“It’s 180.”

Solved it in 2 seconds?

“Y, yes. That’s right.”

“Teacher, it’s too easy. Please give us a more difficult problem.”

“…….”

The Lich Mamon was genuinely starting to panic.

* * *

Bang!

Pairing slammed his fist on the table in the laboratory.

All sorts of objects on the table crashed down.

He couldn’t bear the anger towards Legion.

Ever since that day when he changed strangely, that foolish young lord has been messing up everything he does.

This laboratory, which he had painstakingly created over 10 years!

It’s not just about the lost items or the broken goods, but the cleaning he’s been doing for fifteen days straight shows no sign of ending.

How dearly he cherished and created this space!

To have it dragged in and ruined like this…….

“You son of a bitch, Lord.”

Yeah, you bastard, it’s really a shame, but you took all the things that could be turned into money, didn’t you? You ruined this laboratory, didn’t you? That should be enough. How much more are you going to torment me?

That map, though, that’s not allowed.

How hard did he try to get that map? He almost shat blood, overcame death five times, backstabbed his colleagues, and barely managed to get it.

How happy he was when he found it.

Even if his deceased parents came back to life, he wouldn’t be as happy.

“I’ll never let it go!”

After the ‘Hidden Dungeon’ map disappeared, he screamed.

The shock of the world collapsing—no one will ever know that feeling. He made up his mind.

He would do anything to kill the lord.

* * *

Kill the Dragon.

The mercenary group with the grandiose name entered Alexander Territory.

Although not a dragon slayer group as the name suggests, it was still a small elite mercenary group that had gained considerable recognition.

The leader’s name was Haimo.

A giant reaching 190 centimeters [approximately 6’3″], with strength as great as his size, he used a double-edged axe weighing over 20 kilograms [approximately 44 pounds] as his weapon.

His right-hand man, Steel.

A thief and assassin. He usually moved quietly and scouted, but when he judged someone as an enemy, he would secretly approach and cut their throat with excellent skill. He was said to be better than most assassin guild members.

The knight Buffalo was originally a holy knight of the Holy Kingdom.

But he ended up being chased because he messed with a priestess of the Order. The priestess was married. He really didn’t know in his dreams [idiom for being completely unaware]. Currently, he uses the alias Buffalo. No one knows his real name. He’ll be screwed if the priestess’s husband finds out. He’ll just live like this.

The archer Hailer.

This guy is also a very skilled individual.

A sharpshooter with perfect accuracy! He’s quiet, doesn’t talk much, and doesn’t talk about himself. Of course, no one in the mercenary group knew about his past.

The magician Mizset was a magician who conducted human experiments, and he was on the run after that fact was discovered. Her only wish was to develop a cure to remove armpit odor.

The people who were subjected to human experimentation snitched to the Magic Tower, saying they wouldn’t pay her more.

She had no choice but to leave the Magic Tower.

She, too, was hiding her identity and working, just like the knight Buffalo.

Although only five in number, their skills were so great that they were constantly receiving requests from clients.

“People live even in such remote places.”

The thief Steel grumbled.

This was an expression of dissatisfaction with Mizset, who had accepted this mission.

The time it took to get from the royal capital to this place was a whopping month and a half. The road was rough and treacherous. What started as a leisurely trip turned into a grueling ordeal.

The reason they were heading to the Alexander family’s territory was thanks to Pairing’s invitation.

The magician Mizset and Pairing were alumni.

“There’s no place where people can’t live. There’s even a kingdom called Iceland in the Arctic Ocean, where the average temperature is minus 50 degrees [Celsius, equivalent to -58 degrees Fahrenheit].”

Mizset responded to Steel’s words.

“Does the kingdom of Iceland really exist? I’ve never seen anyone from there. I don’t even believe that people live in such a place.”

“I’ve seen them.”

The archer Hailer replied.

“What kind of people are they?”

“They’re born that way. They wear short sleeves in minus 10 degrees [Celsius, equivalent to 14 degrees Fahrenheit], saying it’s hot. I guarantee that if a battle breaks out with them in a cold region, you have to run away no matter what. If you’re not resistant to the cold, there’s no way to win.”

“That’s quite interesting.”

“Not really. They probably developed such unique abilities because they have nothing to eat.”

“By the way…….”

The warrior Haimo stopped walking for a moment.

He looked at the road that was under construction. More than twenty men were laying stones on the hard, frozen ground.

“Hey, these stones are too heavy! Don’t you have anything lighter?”

“I don’t know. The stones nearby are all gone. I think we’ll have to go upstream to the river and get some stones.”

The man who spoke threw an incredibly large stone.

The stone was large, but the person receiving it received it very lightly and placed it on the ground.

“I think it’s time to sharpen this rock knife. It doesn’t cut well even with Wind Cutter mixed in.”

That’s what he said, but he was cutting the rock like he was slicing tofu [a common analogy for cutting something easily].

“Wind Blade.”

Next to him, a small man neatly trimmed the sliced rock.

“Didn’t you hear that you should increase your concentration instead of blaming the knife?”

He threw the trimmed rock pieces behind him without even looking.

Other men chanted spells.

“Gravity Move!”

Then the well-trimmed stones began to stack neatly in the corner.

“Damn it! If I practice this a little more, I can do the laying directly, right?”

“I don’t know, you idiot! They say you have to study for 5 more years to do the laying with magic.”

“Ah, damn it! I’m just making my body suffer more by learning gravity magic.”

He grumbled and began to pick up the stacked rock pieces one by one and lay them on the ground.

“What the hell are those guys……? Are they magicians? Or clowns?”

Haimo turned to Mizset and asked.

Mizset had a shocked expression on her face.