Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 1143

Lee Han glanced at his senior for a moment, wondering if he should pass the blame.

‘Would it be too much to make them believe Yukbeltire had beaten up Count Bouillon?’ he thought.

Even so, it seemed a bit much.

“I did do it, but I didn’t exactly beat him up…” Lee Han started to explain.

“You are my hero!” one of the Stonemason Guild members exclaimed.

Whump! The Stonemason Guild members jostled to hug Lee Han so strongly that he was pushed back.

“He beat up Count Bouillon!” they cheered.

“I didn’t beat him up. It just *looked* like he had a seizure because of… magic,” Lee Han tried to clarify.

“Where exactly did you hit him? Huh?” someone asked eagerly.

Guild members always disliked clients who were cheap, but they hated clients who tried to cheat them even more.

Count Bouillon was exactly this kind of client.

The capital Stonemason Guild members had been robbed by Count Bouillon several times, and their grudge could only be resolved by digging up his corpse and desecrating it.

“…As soon as I saw him, I punched him in the face!” Lee Han shouted, half giving up.

What was the point of explaining to these guild members that it was something he had to do? It seemed better to give them the answer they wanted to hear.

“Ooh! You were able to act so boldly because you secured the evidence!” one of them exclaimed.

“…That’s right. How could I have done such a thing without evidence?” Lee Han replied.

“Indeed. A wizard is bound to maintain composure even in moments of anger,” another added.

“I wonder if I can talk about beating up Count Bouillon during the lecture?” one of the guild members wondered.

“Even so, that would be too much. What does that have to do with the lecture?” another responded.

“How important is it to beat up a guy who ripped you off?”

The Stonemason Guild members whispered among themselves. Fortunately, the atmosphere wasn’t bad.

Lee Han, having successfully concluded their first meeting, cautiously made a request.

“I’d like to discuss the lecture content in advance…”

“Ah, I see. But there’s something I’m curious about,” one of them said.

“What are you curious about? The damage Count Bouillon sustained to his internal organs?” Lee Han joked.

“Ah, I am curious about that too. But what I just said wasn’t about that. It’s about why there’s no Professor Verdus and only two students.”

Lee Han and Yukbeltire fell silent at the same time.

Even if they were the top student of Einroguard’s second year and a fifth-year senior, it wasn’t easy to talk about a professor who was in the disciplinary chamber.

‘Senior, do something,’ Lee Han thought.

‘Uh, how do I say this…’ Yukbeltire thought, unable to hide her embarrassment.

How could she put the fact that the professor was in the disciplinary chamber in a good light?

“…The senior here is so talented that she’s taking over the professor’s lectures. You could say it’s an Einroguard tradition,” Yukbeltire explained.

It wasn’t a lie. Originally, the more outstanding the student, the more they would share the professor’s work, which was the tragic reality of Einroguard.

“That’s good,” one of the guild members said.

Yukbeltire nodded with a satisfied expression at her junior’s quick thinking. Lee Han cast a slight look of contempt.

‘Is this the time to be satisfied?’ he wondered.

“Indeed. I understand. But can I ask one more question?”

“What are you curious about?” Lee Han asked.

“Why is Wodanaz, who is still a second-year student, here, even if we consider the princess…?”

The other Stonemason Guild members nodded at the question without thinking.

Why is a second-year student talking about lecture content with them?

This time, Yukbeltire opened her mouth. Since her junior had shown his wit, it was her turn to show something.

“He’s trying to help me because he respects me. As a junior in the same school… Ack.” Yukbeltire let out a small scream as her junior stepped on the toe of her shoe.

“Ah, I’m sorry. I lost my footing,” Lee Han said innocently.

Leaving the senior who was staring at him with suspicious eyes, Lee Han took the lead in the conversation again.

“From what I heard from Professor Knighton, in the last lecture, the students directly created models of the buildings you constructed and discussed magic and materials.”

“That’s right. But…”

The capital Stonemason Guild members suddenly wore suspicious expressions, and Lee Han was flustered by the change in attitude.

‘Why?’ he wondered.

“…I know that Professor Verdus doesn’t easily hand out the materials needed for the lecture. Will you be able to prepare the materials to make the model?”

“Of course it’s impossib… Ack.” Yukbeltire screamed again as her junior poked her in the side.

This time, it was definitely not a mistake. Yukbeltire glared at her junior with tearful eyes.

“Of course it’s possible. Just tell me the list and I’ll bring it,” Lee Han said confidently.

Yukbeltire was puzzled, forgetting her pain.

‘How on earth would he bring the materials?’ she wondered.

The knights were also puzzled.

‘Surely he didn’t empty his own pockets?’

The successor did have a bit of a pushover tendency, but even so…

“Um. That is,” Lee Han said, looking at Professor Verdus’s face next to him.

Yukbeltire, who naturally didn’t care about the professor’s reaction, spoke confidently.

“I brought them from Professor Verdus’s warehouse.”

“Uuuuugh!!!!!” Professor Verdus shouted ‘Thief!’, but no one paid attention. The knights were impressed.

-Come to think of it, that would work! Why didn’t we think of that?

-Too honorable, that’s why.

“…Yes. I asked Inspector General to get access to the Holy Engraving Hall’s underground warehouse,” Lee Han explained.

-Did you bring enough reagents for the successor to use, besides the lecture materials?

“Uugh! Uugh!!” Professor Verdus protested.

“I didn’t,” Lee Han replied.

-Oh, come on! Why not!

“Should I go back and get some more now…” Lee Han offered.

“Ah. Please be quiet,” Lee Han replied to his senior, who was noisily chattering behind him, with a mixed voice of annoyance.

Of course, Lee Han didn’t dislike plundering Professor Verdus, but there was a line.

If he took more than the lecture materials, even Professor Verdus might go mad with anger.

…Besides, Lee Han felt a little guilty because he was the one who had said that Professor Verdus should be locked up.

“This should be enough for Black Shadow Sand. As for Iron Ore…” Lee Han said, examining the materials.

“The quality is a bit bad, but it can be overcome with magical processing. One minute is enough,” Yukbeltire replied.

Lee Han was slightly moved by his senior’s words that it would take one minute to process all the materials in the crate.

‘He’s a perfectly respectable person when he’s just talking about magic,’ Lee Han thought.

“This tower that controls lightning. Can it control lightning in the same way even if it’s made into a small model?” one of the guild members asked.

“If you apply the same principles, the effect will be the same. The power will be reduced, though. And anyway, it’s more important to understand the principles than to just copy them exactly from a learner’s point of view. To put it extremely, if you can only reproduce magic by imitating the materials exactly, then you haven’t learned it,” Yukbeltire explained.

Lee Han spoke in a voice filled with trust.

“Senior, I think you should give the lecture.”

“What are you talking about? I’m supposed to be giving the lecture, aren’t I?” Yukbeltire asked, confused.

“Haha. That’s right. I must have forgotten,” Lee Han said.

Now that the materials and the lecture were prepared, there was nothing to worry about, until the capital Stonemason Guild members shouted this.

“Wodanaz helped the Kudrin Stonemason Guild build Pocket Knife Fortress!? Even when he was a freshman last year?!”

“…Can’t we talk about that after the lecture?” Lee Han asked, hoping to avoid the topic.

-Indeed. The key is to create a model of the tower that controls lightning, the knights summarized simply.

Looking around, the students had each taken a generous share of the materials and were creating models of the tower that controlled lightning in their own ways.

The capital Stonemason Guild members advised on the practical problems that would arise if they were actually built, and Yukbeltire advised on the magical problems.

‘It’s so perfect that I almost feel sorry for releasing Professor Verdus,’ Lee Han thought.

But now that they had come this far, Professor Verdus had to be released. The knights warned the professor.

-If you say anything unnecessary, we’ll send you back to the disciplinary chamber.

“Uuugh,” Professor Verdus groaned.

-No complaining about the warehouse reagents, no being rude to the capital Stonemason Guild members, all of that is forbidden… No. Only talk about magic.

“Uuugh. Uuugh,” Professor Verdus nodded as if to say he understood.

The knights, feeling that they really didn’t want to release him, removed the gag. The freed Professor Verdus examined the model in front of him and began to point out every little mistake.

“What kind of moronic idea was it to put the lightning induction magic in the middle? That’s like building a house with the roof on the ground! If there’s a severe thunderstorm, it’ll backfire and damage the tower!”

“…B-but when there’s less lightning, it’s more efficient…” the student stammered.

“Why do you need this kind of tower in a place where there’s less lightning? Are you stupid?” Professor Verdus retorted.

The third-year student looked at the knights pitifully, his face seeming to ask if they couldn’t just shut him up again.

The knights shook their heads apologetically. They couldn’t interfere with the magic lecture.

Professor Verdus looked at Yukbeltire and asked.

“Why did you make them build it like that?”

Yukbeltire, who was full of pride in her magical skills, naturally became angry.

It was her junior’s fault for making it like a moron, not Yukbeltire’s fault at all.

“It’s the junior’s fault for being a moron… Ack.”

“Please think before you speak!” Lee Han, who had poked her in the side again, whispered.

The atmosphere of the lecture hall, which had been happy and harmonious until just now, was already about to be divided: Students vs. Professor Verdus.

At least Yukbeltire had to be in the former, not the latter.

Yukbeltire muttered, thinking that she should add an artifact to protect her side.

“I didn’t say anything wrong…”

“Professor, as I said just now, this lecture is not about creating a finished product, but about testing the principles to understand the magic embedded in the architecture. Naturally, there will be many free attempts,” Lee Han explained.

“Hmph. Stupid is stupid,” Professor Verdus retorted.

Having been locked up for a long time, Professor Verdus’s opinions were much sharper than usual.

He would point out the students’ magic as he saw it!

Professor Verdus thought so and flashed his eyes. He was going to criticize any stupid magic immediately.

The students, overwhelmed by his momentum, held their breath and avoided his gaze.

They had forgotten, but the most terrifying time for Professor Verdus was when he was pointing out magic. Because he pointed it out with a pure heart, the wizard who was pointed out could only feel even more pain.

‘Should I hit him now for the sake of the students?’ Lee Han wondered.

While the capital Stonemason Guild members were worried about the chaotic atmosphere of the lecture hall, Professor Verdus found a nearby prey.

“Why is the top part of this tower missing?” he asked.

“Ah, I tried to apply it with . So, it’s the magic that you taught me about airships last time, and I thought it would be much more efficient to control it by floating part of it in the air rather than on the ground,” the student explained.

Lee Han controlled the upper part of the tower model floating in the air and brought it over.

Professor Verdus closed his mouth with a sullen face at the sight of his magic being perfectly implemented.

There was nothing to criticize about how meticulously someone had taught him.

“…If you raise and lower the tower in the air, the durability will be severely compromised! How are you going to deal with that problem?!” Professor Verdus challenged.

‘When did you ever care about such problems…!’ The capital Stonemason Guild members thought, clenching their fists.

The magician, who often said that he would build walls and pillars with glass if only his magic was implemented, was now causing murderous intent.

“Knowing that you would say that, I also prepared magic,” the student replied confidently.

“…It’s perfect! Why is it perfect!” Professor Verdus exclaimed, frustrated at his unnecessarily outstanding disciple.