Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 234

“Plea… Please save m…”

The cries of the adventurers were cut short as the Skull Headmaster chuckled, a dry, rattling sound.

“‘Kill them? Why would I do something so quick?’ he seemed to think, swallowing another adventurer whole.”

“…Thank you, Sharkan.”

Lee Han turned to Sharkan and expressed his gratitude.

In truth, Sharkan had been the most helpful in the fight.

As soon as the battle started, he followed Lee Han’s orders and summoned the Skull Headmaster.

If Sharkan had been even a little late, Lee Han could have been in danger.

-Grrrr.

“Bonehead, you’ve worked hard too.”

-■■■■…

The skeleton warrior bowed his head, overwhelmed with gratitude.

The Skull Headmaster stared at Lee Han, his eyes questioning his sanity.

Whose family name was he attaching to whom?

‘What is with this guy…’

The Skull Headmaster almost smacked him upside the head but stopped himself.

Considering his contribution, no amount of praise would be enough.

No one would believe that a first-year student had stopped the Maple Serpent adventurers.

Even the Emperor would be surprised. He might say, ‘Bonehead, are you lying for money again? Stop it!’

Stopping the Maple Serpent adventurers was a huge achievement. Because of this, small mistakes could be ignored.

“No. Bonehead. Thanks to you buying time…”

Should I really hit him?

-An intruder has been detected outside. Students are to refrain from going out except during designated times. I repeat. An intruder has been…

After a quick health check, Lee Han returned to his tower and saw how security worked when an outsider got into the school.

‘They were really letting us off easy until now.’

Lee Han looked down from the window.

A Blue Dragon Tower student, who didn’t understand the situation and opened the lounge door, was immediately teleported away.

He was probably sent to the underground punishment room.

-The intruder would be wise to come out now. The longer you wait, the longer your soul will suffer. I repeat, the intruder should come out now…

Undead were stationed throughout the school grounds, delivering chilling warnings.

Wherever the intruder was, he was probably wishing he were dead.

‘No. He can’t rashly die either.’

If he died and was discovered, he would be forcibly resurrected and sent to the torture chamber.

“Ugh, heh, hek!”

Gynan Dole, who had been standing by the window, was so startled by the sudden appearance of the Skull Headmaster that he threw a pewter cup full of hot cocoa out the window.

The Skull Headmaster casually caught the pewter cup and sipped the cocoa.

“An intruder has been detected outside, so you must be careful.”

Pop!

A flash of light burst out with his words. Gynan Dole tilted his head.

“What kind of magic is that?”

“It’s a type of detection magic. I’ll know if you guys encounter the enemy.”

“Oh…”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“No, that’s not it, I also have personal freedom, but you’re bothering me too much… Mmph, mmph.”

The Skull Headmaster shut Gynan Dole’s mouth and left marks on the other students.

This way, they would immediately recognize the intruder if they encountered him.

“All done.”

“Oh. Headmaster?”

Lee Han was taken aback.

He had marked all his friends, but the Skull Headmaster was about to skip over Lee Han.

‘What’s this?’

‘Could it be that he’s telling me to handle it myself since I fought well?’

“Ah… you.”

“You could have forgotten by mistake. You’re very busy, after all.”

“It’s not that I forgot, it’s that you’re immune because of your constitution.”

“…No…”

Lee Han was speechless.

To think he would be left to fend for himself in this situation because of his high mana.

“Take this.”

The Skull Headmaster threw Lee Han a copper ring.

“Throw the ring immediately if anything happens.”

“Oh… but wouldn’t there be no time if the opponent ambushes me?”

“Looking at your skills, you can definitely buy time to throw the ring. Trust yourself.”

“……”

Lee Han was about to get angry, but he remembered that the Skull Headmaster had saved him and held back.

“Thank… you, Wodanaz.”

Salco said with heartfelt sincerity.

The Black Tortoise Tower students were lying in the healing ward.

Unlike Lee Han, who was fine despite going through that chaos, the Black Tortoise Tower students who had been hit by the Mana Shattering Storm needed recovery.

“If it weren’t for you…”

“That’s enough, Salco. Just focus on recovering.”

Lee Han said that as he ladled beef porridge into a bowl.

Salco paused while being grateful. The other Black Tortoise Tower students also paused.

For a moment, they thought, ‘Is it okay to cook so freely in the sacred healing room?’ but no one could question it, given that they owed Lee Han a favor.

“Th… Thank you. It’s delicious.”

As Salco thanked him first, Imir hesitated.

Saying it was just as delicious seemed a bit insincere.

“The, the seasoning is just right, and it’s soft, so it’s delicious.”

“Really? That’s good.”

Then the next Black Tortoise Tower student fell into trouble.

‘What should I do?’

“Each… each grain of rice is glossy, and… uh… the beef is as chewy as if it were just caught…”

“Don’t say such nonsense. It’s canned beef.”

Lee Han scolded the Black Tortoise Tower student who was making a fuss and got up from his seat.

‘…Come to think of it, isn’t this situation because of me?’

Thinking about it, if Lee Han hadn’t been there, the Black Tortoise Tower students wouldn’t have bothered going to that area.

They went because they had strong force, but if they didn’t…

…Is it really because of me?

“……”

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing. Salco. Have another bowl.”

“No… I’m full… Hmm. Okay.”

“Lee Han, you’re already here?”

Professor Garcia came in with the sound of the door opening, carrying a fruit basket.

“I thought you might be bored lying down, so I brought this…”

“You’re the best, Professor.”

Lee Han was slightly touched.

How many professors would take care of students who were lying down?

As expected, it was Professor Garcia.

“Everyone seems to be doing well. There’s some porridge left, would you like more?”

“We’ve already eaten enoug…”

“You need to eat well to recover quickly, even if you don’t have an appetite. And your friend came and made it for you, right?”

“……”

The Black Tortoise Tower students couldn’t refuse and picked up their bowls again.

…I’m full!

“Ah. I should cut the fruit too.”

“Wo… Wodanaz…”

Did we do something wrong to you?

Lee Han left the healing room with Professor Garcia.

As they walked into the hallway, a Death Knight bowed its head.

-Greetings, Professor.

“Hello to you too, Death Knight.”

‘What a surreal sight.’

Lee Han noticed that the professor was used to this situation, seeing how Professor Garcia greeted the Death Knight without any surprise.

“Do intruders often break into the school?”

“Not infrequently. About three or four times a year? They usually get caught on the way in, but this case seems to have been particularly unlucky.”

Einroguard’s history was even longer than the Skull Headmaster’s, a sanctuary for wizards that stretched back to ancient times, its end nowhere in sight.

The countless layers of mystery were impossible for even the most outstanding archmage to fully grasp.

“We know almost all of the external intrusion routes, but the paths in the magic school are somewhat alive, so the boundary magic sometimes gets undone. New paths open up as well.”

“Even so, it’s still amazing that they managed to get in.”

“Most of them come in without knowing much and without fear. Blinded by gold. It’s a foolish thing to do. They’ll suffer for the rest of their lives for one mistake.”

‘I can understand that, though.’

No matter how many threatening rumors there were, it would be stranger if no one came in, given that they could reverse their lives with a single act of theft.

There was a reason why the saying ‘life is a gamble’ existed.

“The intruder this time seems to have been quite skilled… But now that they’ve been discovered, it’s over. Once the Headmaster decides to raise the alert level, it’s impossible to move around.”

Lee Han nodded.

The weekend had ended and a new week had begun, but the undead were tirelessly and strictly guarding the school.

Seeing that, the thought that the intruder could move around didn’t even cross his mind.

The only chance of escape was if the intrusion wasn’t discovered; once it was, it was over.

“So, is the intruder hiding?”

“Probably? There are surprisingly many places to hide within the magic school, including the main building. We can’t possibly identify all of those places… Of course, they won’t be able to hide there forever, so they’ll come out eventually. So, Lee Han, you don’t need to worry about it and can focus on your studies. It bothered you that you wanted to focus on magic, right?”

“Ah, no.”

Even if Lee Han was a diligent student, he wasn’t so crazy as to think, ‘Ah, I want to study magic, but this intruder is annoying me’ even in this situation.

‘Sometimes Professor Garcia is scarier.’

“Oh, right. I need to stop by the office before going to the lecture hall. Go ahead.”

“Okay.”

Professor Garcia praised Lee Han’s performance over the weekend once more before leaving.

Left alone, Lee Han headed to the lecture hall for his first class on Monday.

-You’re that Wodanaz.

“…Ah. Yes.”

-You’re really amazing!

“……”

-How did you subdue him?

-Our master praised you.

-Can we talk for a moment? I’m curious about how you fought.

-I heard you use black magic, so you might someday command Death Knights like me. What do you think?

“…I’m not Wodanaz!”

Lee Han had thought that it might be more annoying than usual with Death Knights wandering around the hallways.

…But definitely not in this way.

‘Why are they so talkative?!’

-Just a moment! Let’s talk…

-Aren’t you from the Wodanaz family! The first-year student with an absurd amount of mana!

“……”

Lee Han cursed the Skull Headmaster and ran.

Just then, he saw a familiar face ahead.

“Gynan Dole!”

“Wodanaz! To have lectures on Monday in this unsettling situation. Professor Garcia is too much, isn’t he?”

“…I suppose.”

Lee Han hardened his expression and approached Gynan Dole.

And then he threw a punch like lightning.

Wham!

“Kack!?”

Lee Han didn’t give him a chance and exploded with mana as he threw punches. Gynan Dole fell and was beaten.

“Wa, wait! Wait! Why!”

Thwack!

Instead of answering, Lee Han took the ring and threw it immediately.

Bang!

Then the Skull Headmaster appeared in the air.

“Intruder, you’ve lasted long! I was wondering how many pieces I should split your soul into… Wait… what are you doing?”

The fake Gynan Dole cried out, choking.

His voice was full of tears because he had been hit so suddenly.

“Headmaster. Please get this student off me.”

…What are you going to do if the person teaching transformation magic gets caught?

“I have no excuse…”

“……”

Lee Han’s expression hardened like lead as he grasped the situation.

He thought it was an intruder disguised as a fake Gynan Dole, but it was a professor.

“Professor. I’m sorry. I’ve committed a crime worthy of death!”

“Why are you going so far… The guy who got caught by a student is the idiot.”

“No! I’m really sorry!”

Lee Han apologized with a more polite posture than he had ever shown to any professor.

It was as if his forehead would touch the floor.

The only way to reverse this situation was an apology from the soul.

“Ah, no. It’s okay. It’s okay.”

He seems more polite than when he treats me…?

The Skull Headmaster muttered as if he was somewhat dissatisfied.