Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 183

Even though he was taken aback, Ethan decided to deal with the immediate problem first. If he didn’t, all three groups of students might end up in detention together.

The White Tiger Tower students and the Black Tortoise Tower students had already spotted each other and were starting to argue.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing? We were here first!”

“Being early doesn’t matter in a situation like this!”

Ethan sighed to himself. He thought, ‘These students are not acting professionally.’

He believed that if you’re going to steal something, you should at least be calm and quiet, instead of arguing like that.

“Everyone, calm down,” Ethan said, stepping forward to try and settle the situation.

“Ugh!”

“A… a thief!”

The White Tiger Tower and Black Tortoise Tower students reacted strongly when they saw Ethan. ‘As if they aren’t thieves themselves?’ Ethan thought.

Ethan found it silly that they were calling *him* a thief, since they were also stealing. But he understood why they were so surprised.

Ethan and his friends were wearing outfits that really looked like they belonged to thieves.

The White Tiger Tower and Black Tortoise Tower students had just cut up some cloth to use as masks. They might fool someone quickly, but anyone who looked closely could easily tell who they were.

Ethan and his friends looked different. They had learned from past mistakes. Ratford gave them advice. They bought good fabric. Their masks and cloaks hid their faces completely. They looked so much like real thieves that it wasn’t surprising.

“Calm down. We’re here for the same reason you are,” Ethan said.

“War… Waradanaz?”

‘No. How did they know?’ Ethan was surprised that they recognized him, even though he’d tried to hide his voice.

“The only person who would go to such lengths to steal something is Waradanaz…”

“You’re wrong. I’m not Waradanaz,” he said, trying to act cool. But the other students didn’t seem convinced. They already looked pretty sure it was him. Ethan felt unfairly accused.

“Listen. All the students here want to get inside Gaksugwan. Fighting each other will only attract attention,” Ethan said.

The other students nodded. There was no point in fighting before they even got inside.

“So, let’s work together,” Ethan suggested.

“…Alright.”

“Good.”

Everyone agreed, but the problem wasn’t completely solved. The three groups were just starting to work together.

“Who’s going first?”

“…We’ll go last.”

“That’s not fair! You think you can just sneak in at the end!” The White Tiger Tower and Black Tortoise Tower students immediately started arguing again.

Since they were breaking into a professor’s lab, going in last would be best.

“Quiet. I’ll decide,” Ethan said, but the other students didn’t agree right away.

“Who do you think you are, Waradanaz?”

“Why should we listen to you? We agreed to cooperate, not to become your servants…”

Ethan raised his wand and pointed it. A cold silence filled the space between the students.

“I’ll decide,” Ethan repeated.

“…Fi… Fine.”

“Just so you know, Waradanaz, we’re only agreeing because fighting here would be pointless, not because of your threats,” one of the students said.

Once the arguing stopped, Ethan spoke. “We’ll go first.”

“!?”

The other students were surprised. “Are… Are you sure?”

“Yes. We’re the only ones who know the way,” Ethan replied.

“……”

The other students stared in astonishment. ‘When did these guys…?!’

“You can decide who goes in the middle and at the back,” Ethan said. As soon as he finished speaking, the White Tiger Tower and Black Tortoise Tower students started arguing again.

Ethan frowned and raised his wand. “…Let’s settle it with rock-paper-scissors.”

“Rock-paper-scissors, good idea. Sounds good.”

Ethan and his friends were heading for the greenhouse on the second floor of Gaksugwan. The flowerbed with the thistle flowers was there. ‘The good thing is that we don’t have to go all the way to the third floor,’ Ethan thought.

The third floor of Gaksugwan was like a maze to anyone who wasn’t allowed to be there. Ethan was confident that they could finish quietly on the second floor, which was why he had come here.

“Eyes, pierce the darkness,” Ethan whispered.

The corridor, which was very dark, turned green, showing its hidden details to Ethan.

“……”

The White Tiger Tower student didn’t ask Ethan, ‘Where did you learn that spell?’ If it was Waradanaz, it was believable. ‘He’s the type to know all sorts of secret magic even before entering the academy…!’ the student thought.

“Wait. Where is the potion you’re looking for, anyway?” Ethan asked.

He realized he needed to think about where the White Tiger Tower and Black Tortoise Tower students were going. “I heard it’s somewhere… on the first floor.”

“Maybe it’s somewhere on the first floor…”

“……”

Ethan and Ratford exchanged unimpressed looks. They thought, ‘To come looking with so little information!’

“Well, if you didn’t have much information, it can’t be helped,” Ethan said. ‘I think they just looked down on us,’ he thought.

“Then search the first floor. We’ll go up to the second floor,” Ethan said.

“Alright. We’ll do that.”

Ethan and his friends nodded and walked away from the other students. As they climbed the stairs, they saw the familiar botanical garden. Because there wasn’t a mad bull running around like last time, the garden was quiet and peaceful.

“It’s almost worrying that nothing’s happening…” Nilia said.

“Hush. Don’t tempt fate,” Ethan warned.

Normally, things should end quietly like this. “There’s the flowerbed,” Ethan said.

The students hurried over and carefully started digging up the thistle flowers. Ethan looked around, ready for anything unexpected. ‘Professor Uregeoreum isn’t here, Professor Willow isn’t here. Nothing much will happen,’ he thought.

“All done? Let’s get out of here!” Ethan said.

Ethan and his friends quietly celebrated their success. They had finished the job almost perfectly, considering how nervous they had been. Ratford nodded, understanding the thrill of a perfect theft.

Ratford’s heart was full of pride as he watched his friends grow from novice thieves.

Boom!

“……”

However, their joy disappeared as soon as they reached the first floor. Loud roars and commotion came from both sides of the corridor. ‘Are they crazy?’ Ethan thought.

“These… These amateurs!” Ratford stuttered, looking flustered. Ethan quickly tried to figure out what was happening.

“What are you doing? Everyone, get a grip!” Ethan shouted, but the students didn’t listen. They were swaying around as if drunk, throwing chairs from the lecture room.

Crash!

“Did they drink something wrong?” Ethan asked.

“They wouldn’t be that foolish!” Ratford replied.

Even if the other students were new to thieving, they wouldn’t drink just anything. Ethan noticed a sweet, magical scent coming from the open lecture room door. In that moment, he realized what was happening.

“Everyone, hold your breath!” Ethan shouted.

“!”

He realized it was strange that potions that made you dance or play music well were so easy to find, especially on the first floor of Gaksugwan. ‘Professor Uregeoreum might have set a trap with another professor!’ Ethan thought.

It sounded crazy, but Ethan’s gut told him it was likely. This magic school was capable of anything. Yoner whispered, confused. “But… there wasn’t a trap with the thistle flowers, was there?”

“…Professor Uregeoreum might have forgotten…” Ethan said, sounding unsure.

In fact, that was what Ethan found most confusing. Why would they set traps for potions needed for other lectures but not for his own? Could it be that he really wanted them to take it? The answer was that he thought no one would steal it because time was short, but Ethan didn’t know that.

“Alright, Waradanaz. Let’s get out of here,” Nilia said urgently.

Whether it was a trap or a mistake, it wasn’t good to stay any longer. If they made such a commotion, anything could happen. “No. We have to take them with us,” Ethan said.

“Why, Waradanaz?” Asan asked, surprised. Then he clapped his hands as if he understood. “I shouldn’t have asked. Honor…”

“If we leave them behind, they’ll tell everyone our names,” Ethan said.

“…Still, there’s a bit of honor involved, right?” Asan asked.

Ethan ignored Asan, pretending not to hear. “First, we need to quiet them down,” he said.

“How are you going to do that?” Yoner wondered. The students must have smelled the scent of frenzy. They were happily running around as if drunk. In that state, they wouldn’t listen to anything.

Thwack! Thwack thwack! Thwack thwack thwack thwack!

“Done,” Ethan said.

“……”

“But… how do you plan to get them out?” Ratford asked, worried.

The rule for thieves was that even if they were friends, they would leave them behind if they fell into a trap. Going in to rescue them could put Ethan in danger. “I’ll do my best. Just a moment,” Ethan said.

Ethan tied a rope around his body and prepared to hold his breath for as long as possible. “If it looks like I’m in trouble, I’ll knock myself out, so pull the rope and drag me out,” he instructed.

“Ethan, here’s a curse-breaking potion. I don’t know how well it will work, but…” Yoner said, handing over a potion. Ethan nodded gratefully and drank it. “Alright. I’m going in,” he said.

Ethan held his breath and opened the lecture room door, then went inside.

“…!”

He knew what had happened as soon as he saw it. Magical smoke was coming from a magic circle in the middle of the room. ‘So it really was a trap,’ Ethan thought.

Ethan walked slowly and tried to destroy the magic circle. Luckily, it was easy to break. ‘The smoke stopped!’ he thought. Now he just had to air out the room and get them out.

At that moment, a magical reaction happened near the wall. A new, hidden magic circle appeared. Ethan cursed Professor Uregeoreum. ‘You’re crazy…!’ he thought.

Whoosh! Blue smoke filled the room. It was a strong smoke that went through his whole body, even though he held his breath. Ethan gripped his wand, ready to knock himself out if he felt anything strange. “…?”

But nothing changed. Ethan looked around and inhaled some of the original smoke, just in case. Still, nothing changed. It felt like something was about to happen inside, but it stopped right away.

“……”

Ethan dragged the students out one by one, looking confused. It was lucky, but… Why did it feel so disappointing?

“The detoxification potion worked!” Asan said, excited.

“I should go help. Maykin! I’m counting on you!” Asan took a drink of the potion and ran into the lecture room where Ethan was. And then his eyes started spinning.

“…Sorry, Asan,” Ethan said, knocking Asan unconscious.

Plop!

Ethan and his friends barely managed to throw the last student into the bushes. They were all covered in sweat, but for some reason, they felt strangely proud. “…Everyone, you’ve worked hard,” Ethan said.

“Yeah. Really…” Ratford replied.

‘Would it be too much to ask to search my friends’ pockets for some reward?’ Ethan thought. “We wasted so much time because of these guys, wouldn’t it be fair to search their pockets for something?”

Ratford looked at Ethan with admiration.