Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 209

Lee Han stared out of the carriage window, the rolling green hills blurring past. He was thinking about his future. What kind of wizard did he want to become? The Skull Headmaster’s words from earlier echoed in his mind: *How does one find the truth? Which path should you take?*

Lee Han turned back to the floating skull. “I… I haven’t really thought about that,” he admitted. “I’ve been busy trying to survive Professor Bart’s classes and figure out which job would be best after graduation. But… truth? I haven’t really thought about that.”

Lee Han remained silent.

The Skull Headmaster was serious, and it seemed best not to reveal that he was considering official positions.

Considering the animosity some professors showed towards bureaucrats last time…

“Let me give you a piece of helpful advice. In my human days, I was a prince.”

“Eh?????!!!!!”

Lee Han was so surprised his heart nearly stopped.

“What was that reaction just now?”

“No wonder you had such an air of nobility.”

“Thank you. I was a prince of a beautiful small kingdom. Nevertheless, I had many worries from a young age. Why must I die from the moment I am born? Why do people have to suffer?”

“I… I see.”

Lee Han was surprised by how good and admirable the Skull Headmaster was when he was young.

“I then attained enlightenment and abandoned my physical body. I became a Lich.”

“…Aren’t you skipping over too much of the process?”

“What good would it do to listen to the tedious stories of asceticism in between? Anyway, the important thing is that by abandoning my physical body, I was able to overcome the limitations I just mentioned.”

“……”

“Stronger wizards need to be good people.”

It’s not just about controlling magic power and understanding spells, but also about managing one’s inner self.

Emotions were also enemies that a wizard had to fight.

If one is swayed by emotions, even the most brilliant wizard is likely to wander.

The Skull Headmaster stopped all that suffering quickly.

…Though the method was extreme: abandoning his living body.

“I’m not really into becoming a Lich…”

“I’m not telling you to become a Lich.”

The Skull Headmaster didn’t seem to care much about Lee Han’s aversion.

“I’m just telling you the path I’ve walked. Abandoning the physical body isn’t the only answer. There are infinitely many paths to the truth.”

Only the skull remained, its blue light flickering, but an undeniable profoundness emanated from it.

For the first time, Lee Han saw the Skull Headmaster as a sage.

He usually seemed like the boss monster of an evil castle…

“In my opinion, you can control yourself without becoming a Lich.”

“Why do you say that?”

Lee Han was slightly expectant.

No matter how eccentric he was, he was still a great wizard.

He couldn’t help but be pleased that such a person thought highly of him.

“It’s not easy to deliberately put yourself through hardship under various professors at your age. Such asceticism helps to cultivate the mind and body. You’ve made a very good choice. Keep doing that.”

“……”

Lee Han’s expression turned serious.

It sounded like praise, but Lee Han felt uneasy because…

‘This isn’t Philone Village.’

Lee Han was surprised to see the prosperous city outside the carriage.

Philone Village, the closest village to Einrogard, was also quite prosperous.

Villages usually didn’t have so many wizards, adventurers, mercenaries, or merchants.

However, this city was even bigger than Philone Village. Everywhere he looked, there was energy.

‘Is this Granden City?’

The city closest to the magic school.

It was the city he had heard about when he went to Philone Village, where the family members of the students had all gone.

Lee Han looked around again.

Coming from his background, he wasn’t surprised to see a big city, but it was still refreshing.

When he was in the Wodanaz family, he had only stayed in the family’s mansion and territory.

“Bring back a gift.”

“-Yes.”

“What gift? You’re visiting Ogonin’s Tower, aren’t you? It’s rude to visit without a gift.”

“……”

He thought it was already quite rude to go there to get revenge, but Lee Han said nothing.

“Oh, and buy some snacks for this iron head, too.”

“-Yes.”

A moment later, several beautifully packaged boxes of sweets flew into the carriage.

There were boxes filled with licorice candies, red bean jelly, and more. The Skull Headmaster complained after seeing the selection.

“These sweets have no class. Aren’t these the kind of sweets that children like?”

“-I bought the sweets that young people buy the most.”

“I knew it. You foolish creature.”

“-I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. Eat them.”

However, Lee Han didn’t rashly reach for the sweets. The Skull Headmaster was puzzled.

“Why? They’re not poisoned.”

“If I eat these, does that mean the reward you promised me will be gone?”

……

He was supposed to receive a reward for cleaning up the mess that Professor Verdus had made last time.

The Skull Headmaster was impressed for the first time in a long while.

Among the many disciples he had seen so far, there had never been one as cautious as him.

“That’s separate. I promise.”

“Thank you.”

“…Just don’t put the sweets in your coat pocket.”

Seeing the freshman trying to put the sweets in his pocket right away, the Skull Headmaster slightly regretted the school rules he had established.

“Come to think of it, I heard the Spire Keeper gave you a gift.”

“Ah, yes.”

“It seems like too generous a gift…”

‘Hmm.’

Lee Han recalled the bundle the Spire Keeper had given him.

Certainly, the necklace in that bundle was a decent artifact.

…Except that it was enchanted with invisibility magic.

For Lee Han, who already had an invisibility belt and knew invisibility magic, an invisibility necklace was a bit too much.

“But I’ve already mastered invisibility magic.”

“What? That’s fast. Which one did you learn?”

“The Cloak of Gonadaltez.”

At Lee Han’s answer, the Skull Headmaster showed surprise and satisfaction at the same time.

“I didn’t expect you to master it already. Your progress is quite fast.”

‘Damn it. I shouldn’t have mastered it all at once.’

“The magic I created is better than other invisibility magic. You can be proud of it.”

“I always am.”

“And even if you have artifacts with the same effect, it’s not useless. Even if you’ve already mastered the same magic. Think about it.”

” ? ”

Lee Han tried to think about what the Skull Headmaster had said, but the Skull Headmaster didn’t give him a chance.

The Skull Headmaster grumbled as he looked at the gifts the summoned creature had bought.

“What’s with these gifts? These cards are not very impressive gifts.”

“-Ogonin is also included in the cards.”

“Does that mean any card with Ogonin on it is a gift? Good grief…”

The Skull Headmaster grumbled and scattered the bunch of cards into the air, sending them flying into a corner.

“And why is Ogonin so powerful?”

“-But you said before that it’s not the card’s performance that matters, but the wizard who uses it…”

The summoned creature, who was talking from outside, shut its mouth. Lee Han was sure that the Skull Headmaster had used a silencing spell.

“Take this.”

‘I already have a complete deck.’

However, Lee Han quietly accepted it.

It was because the Skull Headmaster might cause more trouble.

“……”

The card the Skull Headmaster threw was not Ogonin.

It was himself.

“Put it in your deck and use it well. It’s a good card.”

“Oh… yes.”

Lee Han’s deck was a nimble, low-cost deck that relentlessly targeted and quickly reduced the opponent wizard’s health from the beginning of the game.

The Skull Headmaster card, which required a lot of mana to summon, was difficult to use…

Lee Han immediately put the card into his deck in front of the Skull Headmaster.

Flattery should always be sincere.

In fact, the Skull Headmaster was pleased with Lee Han’s actions.

“I should go buy it myself.”

“Yes? Are you allowed to?”

Lee Han paused.

Even though the people of the Empire were used to the appearances of all sorts of bizarre wizards, it was doubtful whether they would be able to handle seeing a Lich with only a skull floating around.

However, before Lee Han could finish his question, the Skull Headmaster had transformed into a human.

Dressed in a formal suit made of dark blue silk, and holding a cane with the unique elegant movements that only nobles could display, he looked like a nobleman from a great imperial family to anyone who saw him.

Lee Han wasn’t surprised by that in itself. It would have been more surprising if a great wizard like the Skull Headmaster couldn’t use a human shell.

What surprised Lee Han was that the Skull Headmaster’s human face was a familiar face he had seen somewhere before.

‘The statue…!’

The statue that guarded the entrance to the Forgotten Beast statue on the third floor of the main building, which he had seen when he was wandering around.

At that time, he had thought, ‘I don’t know who it is, but he’s damn handsome’…

“Why?”

“I was truly impressed by your dignity.”

“Your second greatest strength is that very heart that knows what dignity is.”

The Skull Headmaster nodded as if pleased with the flattery.

Lee Han thought to himself.

‘Black magic is really scary.’

Even though the moon wanes when it’s full, how many people would be able to look at that statue and think of the Skull Headmaster?

“Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

The two masters and disciples stepped out of the carriage.

Even in the crowded streets, the two of them immediately attracted people’s attention.

The Skull Headmaster opened the door of a bookstore luxuriously decorated with brass and bronze carvings.

It was a bookstore with a sign that read, >Icalten’s Hall of Utter Folly>.

“Welcome.”

A neatly dressed employee straightened his posture and bowed. He had guessed their status at a glance.

“Do you have any magic books?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Give me the easiest introduction to illusion magic. Nicely wrapped.”

“…?”

Lee Han wondered what the Skull Headmaster was up to.

Of course, a bookstore of this size would have at least one magic book, but the easiest introduction to illusion magic?

“Are you going to give that as a gift?”

“You’re quick to catch on.”

Lee Han decided not to say anything.

‘This is none of my business. They have to sort things out themselves.’

It was never a good idea to get involved when two wizards became enemies.

Lee Han turned his gaze and scanned the other books. Then he spotted a familiar name.

“Is this a book written by someone named Ogonin?”

“Let’s see… that’s right. It’s something he wrote when he was young, Advanced Application of Illusion Magic in Barriers… Ah, good idea. I should buy that too. I’ll read it in front of him.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“There’s no need to wrap this one. I’ll carry it.”

“……”

As the time to go to Ogonin’s Tower approached, Lee Han began to feel uneasy.

The Skull Headmaster was someone who wouldn’t regret causing trouble anywhere, but Lee Han was someone with a long future ahead of him.

If the illusion wizards held a grudge against Lee Han instead of the Skull Headmaster…

‘Should I use invisibility magic?’

After finishing the gift purchase and leaving the city, the carriage began to fly through the sky.

The carriage flew through mountains of red and grey cliffs, twisted into strange shapes by ancient magic. Suddenly, a tall, black tower, like a sharp needle, pierced the sky, the wizard’s tower of Ogonin.

The Headmaster, now back to his skull form, suddenly opened his mouth.

“Life is borrowed, death is the return.”

Even a single word spoken by a wizard had a different meaning.

And that was the case with the words the Skull Headmaster had just uttered.

Lee Han realized that those words were the trigger for a massive spell to be activated.

The world was being shaken.

A wizard was an existence that understood the order of the world and knew how to cunningly twist that order, but sometimes there were wizards who rewrote the order of the world itself according to their own will.

The Skull Headmaster was a wizard who had reached that level.

…The problem was that he was using it to cause trouble at someone else’s tower!