Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 132

Ihan felt a little relieved. The Aphah Order wasn’t as scary as he had imagined. He had worried they might be strict and serious, but they were not.

“Ah, so you were concerned about that. Haha. People who don’t know us get the wrong idea sometimes,” the priest of the Aphah Order said with a hearty laugh.

“We don’t set the world on fire or ignite the Empire. If we had, would the Order still exist like this?”

‘I suppose that’s true.’

It was a valid point.

No matter how tolerant the Empire might be, it wouldn’t permit an order that went around setting fires.

“Our priests merely believe in the fire of Aphah.”

“Indeed. The fire of Aphah will come for us someday, so we must live without regrets.”

Except for their belief that the world would end in fire one day, the priests of the Aphah Order were basically cheerful and kind people.

Moreover, their strong belief in the fire of Aphah brought about a considerable boost in fire magic.

In magic, what you imagine in your mind is as important as your power.

The priests of the Order, who sincerely believed in the formidable existence of the fire of Aphah, were inevitably much more advantaged in fire magic.

Thanks to this, as Ihan had guessed, there were many masters of fire magic among the priests of the Aphah Order.

To the extent that the Empire would request support from the Aphah Order when fire magic was needed.

‘That’s a relief. They’re more normal than I thought.’

Ihan was relieved.

Except for believing that the world would someday be destroyed, the Aphah Order was a very normal order.

The Order’s rules were also quite relaxed.

Aside from meditation on the fire of Aphah, there weren’t many obligations to fulfill.

At this point, it was actually better than the Priesinger Order, which forced its members to wear cursed items.

“Come this way. It’s time to check the flame within your soul.”

The Aphah priest brought a large cup made of copper. It looked old and a bit dented, like it had been used many times. The copper was dull and dark in places, but shiny where it was rubbed.

Ihan asked with a much more relaxed feeling, “How will you be checking?”

According to the explanation, that copper cup was an artifact that drew out the flame in the soul of the person who touched it, causing it to bloom within the cup.

The priests often used this cup to check how humble and faithful they were before the fire of Aphah.

‘It’s similar to a fire element magic aptitude test. The flame in the cup gets better as you get more used to magic, right?’

Ihan knew this was not a respectful thought, but it couldn’t be helped.

Ihan was not a person of faith.

Ihan could only interpret what the priests of the Order interpreted as faith as magic.

No matter how he looked at it, that was the only way!

Ihan brought his hand to the copper cup. And he was slightly nervous.

‘I hope there isn’t an accident.’

Starting with what Professor Garcia had said, and with the things that had happened until now, he couldn’t help but be nervous.

Suddenly, a flame might soar up, or burn down the surrounding tents…

Suddenly, a flame appeared in the copper cup. It was a small, bright orange flame, dancing gently. It made a soft crackling sound, and Ihan could feel a faint warmth even from a distance.

‘I don’t know much about the cup, but it seems okay?’

Ihan was relieved.

It didn’t soar up strangely, and its shape wasn’t unstable.

Isn’t this about average?

“How is it?”

“We’ll have to check now.”

One of the priests blew a puff of air. But Ihan’s flame didn’t budge.

The priest’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“Your soul’s flame is quite strong.”

The Aphah priests were delighted by the strength of Ihan’s flame.

The size of the flame in the cup wasn’t important.

What mattered was the power to withstand any interference.

To withstand the wind like that without going out. It was quite a strong flame.

Another priest took out water and poured it on the cup Ihan was holding. With a ‘Sssssss’ sound, the water evaporated.

Ihan’s flame still didn’t budge.

Another priest gasped softly, his eyes wide.

“Let’s bring something else.”

The priests, who handled flames a lot, were paradoxically also familiar with dealing with flames.

Black sand, called Black Shadow Sand, was taken out. It was a magical reagent that swallowed up most flames in an instant.

But Ihan’s flame was unmoved.

The priests fell silent, exchanging worried glances.

The first priest cleared his throat, a little nervously. “Let’s try something else,” he said, his voice quieter now.

Other methods continued to be mobilized.

Magic spells, special powders, potions, and even magical items.

And in the end, Ihan’s flame did not go out.

The faces of the priests, who had been cheerful all along, became serious.

Ihan felt his unease growing. “…Is there a problem?”

“Haha. No, not at all.”

“That’s a reli…”

Ihan was about to feel relieved.

But the priests immediately turned around and whispered.

“Can we send a message to the other priests of the Order?”

“Send a bird as quickly as possible…”

“I think we need to call the Bishop.”

Ihan began to feel uneasy at the priests’ murmuring voices.

Bishop Woosoe of the Aphah Order flew over in a hurry after receiving the call.

It was only natural, as he had heard that there was a boy with a flame in his soul close to the fire of Aphah.

Wait a moment. Wait. Wait.

“Ohsoo Gonadaltes. It’s a pleasure to meet you. But I have something urgent to attend to…”

Of course, I know what’s going on. The priests of Aphah have found a talent, haven’t they?

The Skull Headmaster knew the Aphah Order well.

Except for being a bit too pessimistic and foolish, they were quite good at handling fire magic.

The problem was that they were smitten with the boy from the Wodanaz family and were trying to take him away somehow.

Ihan didn’t seem that interested in the priestly life, but wouldn’t he be easily swayed by various temptations during his turbulent years?

Especially young students at magic school, whose hearts were weakened and could be easily swayed by external temptations.

That had to be stopped at all costs.

“Look, Headmaster Gonadaltes,” the Skull Headmaster said, his voice sharp. “This school is here to train magicians for the Empire. I expect you’re not planning to steal one of our students to become a priest, are you?”

At the Skull Headmaster’s warning, the Bishop nodded thoughtfully.

“Of course, Ohsoo Gonadaltes. We also have no intention of making a talent from the magic school a priest.”

Is that so?

The Skull Headmaster’s voice softened.

As expected, the Aphah Order was an order that knew etiquette and had commercial ethics.

“But Ohsoo Gonadaltes, the boy from the Wodanaz family is in a dangerous situation right now.”

…I didn’t do anything.

“I don’t quite understand what you mean?”

The Bishop was puzzled by the Skull Headmaster’s instinctive excuse.

“As Ohsoo Gonadaltes knows, strong talents that are difficult to control can harm their owners. Especially the attribute of fire.”

Magic was as dangerous as it was powerful.

Among them, the fire attribute was easy to harm its owner if handled incorrectly.

A boy with such a strong flame in his soul as Ihan was considered very dangerous.

He had to learn how to control it as quickly as possible.

“He must learn quickly.”

Does it really have to be like that?

The Skull Headmaster muttered.

First of all, the Skull Headmaster himself had an old-fashioned way of thinking, saying, ‘If you’re a magician, you should take care of your own life while learning magic,’ but apart from that, the boy from the Wodanaz family wasn’t so immature that he couldn’t control it.

There were many young magicians who hurt themselves because they couldn’t control their innate talents, but that was their story…

In the Skull Headmaster’s view, Ihan was the opposite.

A guy who was controlling a talent that was so strong that it was difficult to control, with an even stronger mind.

Even if the Aphah Order wasn’t so worried, Ihan didn’t seem like he would burn himself out.

If he was going to burn himself out, wouldn’t he have already done it?

Bishop Woosoe suddenly raised his voice, his face becoming very serious. “Headmaster Gonadaltes! Are you not concerned about this student’s safety at all?!”

Ah… No. No.

The Skull Headmaster stepped back at the Bishop’s cry.

A sulky Bishop was more dangerous than he thought. He could run to the Emperor and chatter about it.

And if the Bishop’s words were true, there was nothing to worry about that much.

It wasn’t like they were trying to make him a priest of the Aphah Order, it was just fire magic training, wasn’t it?

Of course, the boy from the Wodanaz family who was receiving that training might have a hard time, but that was none of the Skull Headmaster’s business.

Of course, I’m worried too.

“I thought so.”

Go! Go and teach him quickly!

“So, I’m not inheriting the fire of Aphah to set the Empire on fire or destroy the world?”

“Of course not. Ihan of the Wodanaz family. You have quite the sense of humor.”

Ihan was relieved.

The priests were having such serious conversations that he was worried, ‘What is it? Have I been chosen as the last heir of the Aphah Order or something?’, but that wasn’t the case.

It was simply because he had an incredibly powerful flame in his soul, and it was dangerous if he didn’t learn how to control it.

‘Hmm. Now that I think about it, this is something to worry about.’

He had heard it so much from people like Professor Garcia that he had become numb to it, but seeing the other priests worried made him worried again.

Is it okay?

“Bishop!”

Ihan stiffened at the word Bishop.

The position of Bishop in any order was not one that anyone could hold.

For such a figure to come all the way here.

“It’s an honor to meet you.”

Ihan automatically flattered him.

No matter where he worked in the future, it wouldn’t hurt to be on good terms with high-ranking figures from various orders.

“The honor is all mine. This is the first time I’ve heard of someone being born with such a strong flame in recent years.”

The Bishop was a gentle and kind person.

“You must have suffered from uncontrolled flames in your childhood.”

“…Oh, not really?”

The Bishop paused at Ihan’s words.

And then he understood.

“Ah, because you’re from the Wodanaz family, you must have fire prevention magic…”

‘I didn’t?’

Ihan grew up well without any fire-related accidents, even without that.

In the first place, there was no problem as long as he didn’t use fire magic.

“But now that you’ve left your family, you can’t rely solely on your family’s magic. Ihan, you must learn how to control the flame.”

Ihan nodded with a determined expression.

From the very beginning, the reason he had been hanging around the Aphah Order was because he thought he might be able to learn more about fire magic.

It might be difficult to control fire with normal methods, but divine magic might be different.

“That method may be too harsh or difficult for a first-year student at the magic school.”

“I know.”

Ihan said, recalling Professor Volardy.

There were many who said that elemental magic was easy because it was the most familiar, but it wasn’t easy to truly master elemental magic.

How many trials and tribulations did Ihan have to go through to properly control just one simple water magic?

Thinking about various things such as maintaining shape, changing movements, and sensing elements, he felt anew that he had walked a rough path.

But if he could do it once, he could do it twice.

I will!

‘If I don’t learn how to control the flame in advance, I might suffer several times more later.’

Ihan threw his coat aside and picked up his wand.

And then he took a stance.

Ihan took a deep breath, his wand held firmly. “Okay,” he said, trying to sound confident. “Throw the flame at me. I’m ready to learn.”

“…Excuse me, but what are you doing now?”

The Bishop was taken aback by Ihan’s reaction.

He couldn’t understand what kind of training the boy in front of him was prepared for.