Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 251

It was so strange, so unbelievable, that I was more surprised than angry.

‘Such a method exists?’

There was no need to persuade students with, ‘My school of magic has these advantages.’

They could just take students and make them learn.

A brilliant solution to share with Professor Mortrum, one that Professor Mortrum would definitely like!

“P-Professor? I have no intention of learning healing magic.”

“I’m already majoring in one subject, and if I take on two… how am I supposed to keep up!”

“I’m already struggling as it is!”

“……”

The innocent protests of his friends stung Lee Han’s heart.

Lee Han offered a bitter smile.

“Quiet, everyone. I’ll explain it for you.”

Professor Garcia stepped forward.

“You all know about healing magic, yes?”

The students nodded.

Healing magic.

If one were to name the most familiar magic to the common folk of the Empire, healing magic would certainly be on that list.

It was frequently encountered, had many uses, and thus, wizards who could wield healing magic were respected.

There was hardly a need to explain how a dark wizard and a healing wizard would each be received upon arriving in a village.

As such, there were naturally many wizards who sought to study healing magic professionally.

‘Is there a reason to forcibly bring students here for something that isn’t even dark magic?’

Most of the priests from the Phoenix Tower would want to learn healing magic, and a good number of the White Tiger Tower students as well…

“There are too few healing wizards right now.”

The dark elf professor spoke in a tired, rough voice.

“So we’re increasing the numbers.”

“???”

Before the students could fall into further confusion, Professor Garcia continued the explanation.

Healing magic was a type of magic that took quite a bit of time before a wizard could truly pull their weight.

As it was related to people’s lives, unlike other magic, it was difficult to mobilize wizards who were still learning when a need arose.

Moreover, the difficulty of mastering the magic was complex and challenging, so even though many students entered hoping to learn, the dropout rate was unusually high.

“It was already a problem last year when there was an epidemic in the Pesian region and there weren’t enough healing wizards.”

So the healing magic professor, Professor Alkasis of the Lagrinde family, personally sought permission from His Imperial Majesty and the Skull Headmaster.

What should be done to solve the problem of the small number of healing wizards?

The answer was to increase the number of students learning (even if forcibly).

If the number of students was drastically increased, even if many dropped out, the overall number of healing wizards would still increase, wouldn’t it?

So today, they were simply testing the students to see if they showed even a little aptitude for healing magic…“…giving them the opportunity to learn magic like this. Does everyone understand?”

“…Um… it’s forced, so why is it an opportunity?”

Professor Garcia pretended not to hear.

Sometimes professors become cowardly.

Professor Alkasis said in a tired, hoarse voice.

“Quiet, everyone. No unnecessary questions, as we’re busy. Only ask what’s absolutely necessary.”

“Professor, I’m currently majoring in summoning magic, so healing magic is…”

The voice of one student asking a necessary question disappeared.

The students, realizing that the professor’s silencing magic skills were extraordinary, all shut their mouths.

“Isn’t that too much?”

“I know, right…”

Lee Han wasn’t very shocked. *This is just how professors are,* he thought. *They do whatever they want.*

“What time is it now?”

“Half past three.”

At Professor Garcia’s answer, Professor Alkasis blinked his dry eyes and nodded.

He had a tight schedule even after the lecture, so he needed to keep track of the time.

“What are you going out for this time? Could it be about the internal strife within the Krongdwil Guild that was mentioned last time?”

Professor Alkasis was too tired to even answer verbally. He only blinked, and Professor Garcia sighed.

“Oh dear… adventurers having a brawl amongst themselves. And in the city, no less. Truly unforgivable. Will you be alright without your hands?”

“The Krongdwil Guild fight… That’s why I’m taking the third-years. And I need some water,” he added, his voice dry.

“Here you go.”

While Professor Alkasis quickly emptied the water bottle in one go, Professor Garcia continued to ask.

“Taking the third-years as well…”

“The second-years aren’t much help even if I take them.”

“…That wasn’t a question about why you’re not taking the second-years.”

Professor Garcia said with a look of exhaustion.

And Lee Han listened with a look of exhaustion as well.

‘This place is just as much of a terrible place.’

A different kind of hell from what the Skull Headmaster, Professor Voladi, or Professor Verdus created.

This wasn’t the professors’ fault.

It was the Empire’s fault.

There were many people getting hurt and dying, but the number of healing wizards was small, so the workload for healing wizards was incredibly high.

Hearing that they were taking even the third-year students now…

“Professor. I really have no interest in healing magic…”

“There are no exceptions.”

“Professor, I’m already taking two majors! Two!”

“As I said, there are no exceptions. Be quiet.”

Professor Alkasis spoke firmly, like a rock, without the slightest wavering.

It wasn’t that the professor didn’t feel sorry for the students who weren’t interested in healing magic and were struggling to keep up with other magic.

But it couldn’t be helped.

More healing wizards were needed for the sick people of the Empire.

Professor Alkasis steeled himself once again to be ruthless.

No excuse would be able to move Professor Alkasis’s heart.

“Professor! Lee Han here is taking dark magic, summoning magic, illusion magic, enchantment magic, divination magic, transformation magic… what else is there?”

Gainando argued on his behalf, then stopped counting and asked Lee Han. Lee Han was embarrassed by his friend and pretended not to hear, averting his gaze.

“Anyway, he’s taking all of that! That’s too much!”

“Don’t lie.”

“It’s true! Ask the other professors!”

“……”

Professor Alkasis stared at Lee Han as if he couldn’t believe it.

Lee Han hadn’t done anything wrong, but he still felt uneasy.

‘Anyone would think I’m deliberately eavesdropping!’

After a few minutes of hesitation, Professor Alcacis finally said, as if it was hard for him,

“…No exceptions. Be quiet.”

“That’s too much…!!”

“Just stop it.”

Lee Han silenced Gainando.

‘I need to learn the Silence Curse quickly.’

Professor Mortuum coughed a lot, people said it was the Tower air. But Professor Alcacis was just as bad at keeping going. He would stop talking in the middle of a sentence, cough like his throat was full of dust, and sometimes even had to sit down, sweating a lot. Professor Garcia watched him, her brow furrowed with worry. Finally, she stepped forward.

“Professor Alcacis, why don’t I explain the basics?” she asked gently. “Are you feeling alright?”

Professor Alcacis just nodded, his face pale. “…Do so,” he mumbled, wiping sweat from his forehead.

Professor Garcia turned to the class, a kind smile on her face. “Okay, everyone. You all felt the magic in the little plant, right? That sprout in the pot? It’s a special plant, easy to connect with magic. That’s why healing it was quite simple. But the idea is the same for everything. Healing magic is really about fixing and putting things back together.”

Even though they had to listen, the students paid attention.

Actually, healing magic was so popular that the students would have listened anyway.

‘But adding a few more people doesn’t seem like it’ll solve the shortage of healers.’

“Of course, healing magic isn’t just about fixing things. It uses alchemy to figure out what’s wrong, like poisoning, and make the right cures. It uses enchantment magic to help patients handle treatments and visions. It uses divination magic to guess what will happen… If needed, healing magic means learning magic from other types without hesitating.”

‘Wasn’t black magic supposed to not exist?’

Lee Han almost mentioned black magic but stopped himself.

Asking would only make the students learning black magic sad, it seemed.

“Um… Professor? Do we *really* have to learn *all* of that stuff, then?”

One of the students asked, looking scared.

Professor Garcia answered kindly.

“Of course not. You only need to learn it when you have to.”

“Ah, I see… That’s a relief!”

Lee Han, who had been listening, asked, sensing something was wrong.

“But Professor, there aren’t many healing mages, and they have to treat a lot of patients. Wouldn’t it be really important to know everything you just said?”

Professor Garcia pretended not to hear Lee Han’s question.

That’s why smart students are…!

Meanwhile, Professor Alcacis, feeling better, stood up.

“I’ll keep explaining. Like Professor Garcia said, healing mages shouldn’t just focus on one thing. They need to understand everything. This is true for magic and other subjects. Imagine a patient with a broken bone. If you don’t know how that bone is made, how can you heal it?”

Professor Alcacis pretended to break a rib with his hand.

“Even if you heal it, you’ll heal it wrong, right? It’s better not to heal it at all. Healing mages need to really understand how the body works.”

The Phoenix Tower priests and White Tiger Tower students listened carefully.

It was natural since they were more interested in this.

Besides, it was about how the body works, after all.

The Phoenix Tower priests and White Tiger Tower students knew a bit about it and felt confident.

“Bring it in.”

The door creaked open, and two older students stumbled in. They looked tired and worried, their faces pale. Between them, they dragged a large, dark wooden coffin.

Bang!

When the coffin was opened, there was a person tied up inside.

“Chains.”

The two older students took off the prisoner’s chains and gag when the professor told them to. The prisoner then roared, his voice hoarse with rage. ‘Damn you, wizards!’ he spat, his eyes burning with hate. ‘Even if I’ve killed many people, to treat me like this… Kraaah!’

Lee Han was startled.

It wasn’t just because Professor Alcacis was stabbing the prisoner’s neck and limbs with swords (though that was surprising), but because he was so fast.

The way he summoned swords from the air, grabbed them, and stabbed them into the prisoner was incredibly fast.

The White Tiger Tower students murmured, noticing how amazing the professor’s swordsmanship was.

‘Does being a healing mage for a long time make you good at swordsmanship too?’

The prisoner’s body quickly turned pale. The swords had taken all the blood.

“Open it.”

The two older students opened the prisoner’s chest. The organs inside were visible.

Thud!

Several students fainted. Professor Alcacis said, sounding annoyed,

“Wake them up. I’m explaining how the human body is made. Listen carefully.”

“Ugh… Uuurgh!”

Gainando was about to throw up. Lee Han quickly used Ogonin’s Abundant Satisfaction.

“Th-thank you, Lee Han.”

“Me… Me too! Me too!”

Professor Alcacis was an amazing swordsman, taking apart the body so fast you could barely see it. He also knew a lot about the human body, but that didn’t make it any easier for the students.

When Professor Alcacis finished the lecture and healed the prisoner, the students looked like their heads were about to explode from seeing the human body up close and learning so much new information.

Professor Garcia opened the window and asked,

“Is everyone alright?”

“……”

“……”

The students looked at Professor Garcia, feeling betrayed and hurt.

Professor Garcia felt very sorry.

“We’re mostly done with the theory. Everyone, pick up the string in front of you.”

A string made of twisted plant fibers appeared in front of the students.

“Cut it and connect it with magic.”

“Done.”

“Keep doing it.”

“……”

The students felt like they were getting dumber as they cut the string, connected it, and cut it again.

Even though it seemed silly, it was good practice.

How could someone connect a cut blood vessel if they couldn’t even connect a simple plant string?

By doing it over and over, they got better and wasted less magic.

For a healing mage, who had to heal all sorts of injuries, wasting magic was a big no-no.

Using magic like this would naturally reduce waste.

“Do it properly.”

“?”

Lee Han, who was cutting and connecting the string, was confused by the professor’s comment.

Was he doing something wrong?

“…Oh, right. Professor. Can you come over here for a second?”

Professor Garcia pulled Professor Alcacis aside.

He had been so busy that he hadn’t been around when the professors were talking!