Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 196

It was too late to think about what could have been. Professor Voladi’s magic lesson kept going.

Professor Voladi: “Professor Verdus told me you are going to study enchantment magic as your main subject too.”

Leehahn: “…Oh, not really ‘major’. I was just thinking of trying it out a little.”

Professor Voladi: “That is a smart idea.”

Enchantment magic is useful in many ways and works well with other types of magic. It is especially good with ice magic.

People who don’t know ice magic often misunderstand it. They might think it’s all about sharp, freezing power and very hard to control.

Some think ice magic is the most dangerous and best for fighting.

But that’s not really true. If you want to destroy something quickly, fire magic is much stronger. Fire starts fast and burns everything around it.

Ice magic is different. It doesn’t freeze things instantly. A mage has to keep using magic to make things colder and colder until they freeze completely. This takes more time and effort.

‘Hmm, I need to be smarter about how I use ice magic.’ Leehahn remembered the time he quickly froze the lake with too much power and felt a little embarrassed. ‘Good thing only my friends saw that. Other teachers might have thought I was just using brute force, not skill.’

Ice magic also has some unclear uses. For example, if you want to change shapes or make something last a long time, water magic is better. If you want to break through things, earth magic is stronger. If you need speed, lightning magic is faster.

So, ice magic is not as simple as it seems, except for freezing things. It can be tricky to use in other ways. But it’s not useless! If you know how to use it well, ice magic has special strengths that other types of magic don’t have. Enchantment magic is one of those ways.

*Sound of metal sliding out of its sheath.* Professor Voladi pulled out his rapier. Leehahn watched his still posture and knew the professor was trained in sword fighting. ‘It makes sense. Someone who fights with magic would also need to know how to fight up close.’

*A rush of cold air.* Leehahn felt cold magic appear on the rapier’s blade. “Come at me,” Professor Voladi said.

Leehahn stood up quickly, trying not to look too eager. He held his wooden sword ready. The professor attacked instantly, moving smoothly and quickly. His sword point aimed straight at Leehahn. It was a fast, pointed attack, but Leehahn had learned enough in his sword lessons to see it coming easily. He pushed his wooden sword forward to block the attack.

*A sharp cracking sound!* Ice spread quickly across part of the wooden sword. Leehahn shook his arm hard to get rid of the ice, pushing the magic away. He couldn’t give up now. ‘Professor Voladi probably doesn’t know exactly how I fight with a sword. I have to hit him at least once somehow…’

“Do you understand?” Professor Voladi asked.

“Yes?” Leehahn was surprised, as if the professor had heard his thoughts. He stopped for a moment.

“Enchantment magic, I mean.”

“Ah, yes. It works well with ice magic.”

With enchantment, a mage doesn’t need to focus magic to just throw ice or cold. By putting cold magic into something, they can keep hurting their enemy. It might not be enough to win with just one small hit, but it’s still very useful.

Leehahn, who had learned sword fighting properly, understood how strong this cold enchantment could be. ‘When swordsmen fight, their swords hit each other many times. After just a few hits, maybe six or seven, they would be unable to fight anymore because of the cold.’

Professor Voladi nodded, seeing Leehahn seemed to understand. He put his sword away. Leehahn was a little disappointed inside.

“Throw it,” Professor Voladi said.

“Yes.” Leehahn picked up the iron ball, keeping his face calm. Professor Voladi pointed to it with his chin. ‘Stay calm,’ Leehahn thought. ‘Don’t let him know what I’m planning. Stay completely calm…’

Leehahn gathered magic power from all over his body and put it into the ball. Professor Ingeldel had warned him that ‘putting too much magic into a sword is dangerous,’ so Leehahn tried to be careful. But sometimes, you have to take risks. This was one of those times.

*A loud rushing sound!* The iron ball shot through the air, looking very dangerous.

Suddenly, the dagger at Professor Voladi’s belt moved on its own, like it was alive. *A sharp clang!* The dagger hit the ball exactly in the middle. The fast-moving ball slowed down right away and froze completely. It was a strange, still moment that only magic cold, not normal cold, could create.

While Leehahn was amazed, Professor Voladi was thinking about something else. The vampire professor looked interested and asked, “You didn’t let the magic flow around, you exploded it and threw it, right?”

“…Yes.”

“It might damage the ball, but for things you throw away, it’s fine. Good idea.”

Leehahn felt a wave of relief inside. Luckily, his secret plan hadn’t been noticed.

“You learned this in sword class, didn’t you?” Professor Voladi said.

“Yes?” Leehahn stopped, feeling like the conversation was going in a weird direction. Professor Voladi’s words sounded like he was saying, ‘You’re taking sword lessons just to use sword moves in magic fights.’ This felt unfair to Leehahn, who was just taking the class to get a good grade.

“I didn’t mean to…” Leehahn started to explain.

“Good job,” Professor Voladi interrupted. “Now, make an ice shield.” Professor Voladi changed the subject as if he was finished talking. Leehahn felt worried, but he couldn’t explain himself now. ‘…It’ll be okay, right? I hope so.’

The second level ice spell, the Ice Shield, was much harder than the first level spell, even though they are both in the same level. It was harder in every way: how difficult it was to control the elements, how much magic it used, how long it lasted, everything.

It almost didn’t seem fair to call them spells of the same level. But the Ice Shield was worth the effort. ‘It stops any attack that touches it!’ Leehahn thought.

It didn’t just freeze the attack, it also weakened it a lot, making it a really great magic shield.

“Now, make this shield protect you by itself,” Professor Voladi said.

“Yes… by itself?” Leehahn nodded, then his eyes widened. He had just spent the whole lesson learning how to shape ice and barely made the Ice Shield, and now he had to make it move on its own?

Professor Voladi seemed to see Leehahn’s confusion and said, “Not right now.”

“Ah. The end goal…”

“For next time,” Professor Voladi said.

Leehahn wished he had put more magic into the iron ball earlier. Would it have broken through the defense if he had used just a little more power?

“To make the shield protect me on its own… isn’t that like a level 4 spell?” Leehahn thought quickly. “To make an ice shield float in the air, spin around, and block attacks when they come? …That sounds like level 4 magic.”

“That’s right,” Professor Voladi said.

“Professor, I’m only in my first year!” Leehahn protested.

” ?” Professor Voladi looked at Leehahn, confused why he was saying this.

“…Isn’t this magic a bit too hard…?”

“To spin and throw a water ball fast, and add Azirmo summoning to it? Yes, that’s all level 4 magic.”

Leehahn was speechless. He couldn’t believe he was losing an argument to Professor Voladi about logic. ‘You did level 4 magic before, so you can do level 4 magic again!’ It was perfect, impossible to argue with.

Professor Voladi continued, still looking like he didn’t understand. “Were you joking?”

“…Yes… kind of…”

“You’re not good at jokes,” Professor Voladi said. “That’s okay. Jokes are not needed in magic fights.” Professor Voladi even tried to comfort Leehahn before leaving the classroom.

Leehahn was left alone after class, holding his head in his hands and feeling regret. ‘…I shouldn’t have been so good at ice magic right away.’ No matter how he thought about it, this whole mess started because of that. ‘One small mistake, and now this is happening…’

The school was still freezing, but Leehahn felt like he was used to it after a couple of days. ‘I should start going through the spire path soon,’ he thought.

Of course, some students, like Gainando, might say: -Do you really need to go out in this cold!? Wait until it’s warmer!

But Leehahn knew better. If you make excuses because it’s cold, then you make excuses because it’s hot, then because there’s a surprise test, then because you want to play cards… you’ll never get anything done.

“I get it, okay? Stop complaining!” Leehahn said.

Gainando, who had just shown concern once and got yelled at in return, looked upset. ‘Is ‘Do you really need to go out in this cold!? Wait until it’s warmer!’ really something to get shouted at for!?’ he thought.

*Sound of spoons scraping bowls.* It was evening. Students from Blue Dragon Tower were in the lounge, finishing their dinner. Leehahn, who had eaten quickly, took out the potions he got from the Siana priest. He was going out in the cold weather, especially at night, so he needed to get ready.

*Gulp, gulp.* Leehahn drank most of the potions he thought would be helpful and stood up.

“Okay, see you later,” Leehahn said.

“Be careful,” someone replied.

“Thanks for worrying,” Leehahn said to another student.

“…” Gainando looked very unhappy at the friendly goodbyes.

“How is that different from what I said?” Gainando asked, annoyed.

“Are you really asking that?” Leehahn replied, raising an eyebrow.

“Hey! He’s coming out!”

“Really?” Cohalti, a fourth-year student, and his friends were surprised. They didn’t think he would actually leave the tower in this weather.

“Is he really just a first-year?”

“He’s not normal for a first-year, that’s for sure.” Cohalti’s friends nodded. They still remembered him using crazy magic in the strange hallway. Normal first-years didn’t do that.

-Did I tell you? The head of the Wodanaz family made a deal with a really evil demon…

-No way the Wodanaz family would be crazy enough to do that?

-Well, my idea is that the head of the Wodanaz family is using…

-Guys, it’s okay to talk, but let’s not talk about things that could get us killed by the Wodanaz family when we’re outside.

Dirette had told them to solve the problem themselves, but Cohalti and his friends were being practical. ‘To fix the strange hallway right now, we need a lot of magic power. There’s almost no way to get a lot of magic power to the hallway without losing it. So, shouldn’t we ask a first-year student for help?’

Of course, Dirette and other older students would say they were embarrassing the fourth year, but Cohalti and his friends didn’t care. ‘-Then you guys get in trouble with the professor while you’re fixing the hallway!’

So, Cohalti and his friends were secretly waiting near Blue Dragon Tower. They didn’t really expect him to come out, but they wanted to try to talk to him if he did. And now, he was actually coming out!

“Send a message! Send a message!”

“Wait, I’ll go now!” The fourth-year students calmed down and started to cast a spell. It was risky to contact first-year students because the headmaster, who was a skeleton, watched everyone closely. But there was still a way. The fourth-year students had been through a lot at this school.

*Thump.* A paper bird spun in the air, flew for a moment, and then landed at Leehahn’s feet.

” ?” Leehahn picked up the paper, looking confused. “Brave and smart first-year student. Come to the strange hallway, Professor Mortum will guide you. If you come, loyal wizards will reward you!”

Leehahn was shocked. ‘Do they have fake letters even in magic school?’

*Rip! Rip! Rip!* Leehahn tore up the letter and threw it away right away. ‘It would be a pain if this letter had some weird magic on it.’