Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 308

“We should catch the undead *and* find herbs in the cave,” Lee Han said.

Gu Bon frowned. “That’s a lot to try at once,” he thought. Catching undead monsters is hard work on its own. And finding rare herbs like these is usually a tough job from the Adventurer’s Guild. Trying to do both might mean failing at everything, or just getting too tired.”

Lee Han listened carefully as Gu Bon spoke. Then, calmly, he explained, “The book says the land behind the cave is perfect for these herbs. If undead are inside, it might even make the herbs stronger, making them easier to find.”

Gu Bon didn’t know much about magic or herbalism, but Lee Han’s words were persuasive.

And that wasn’t all.

He even captured a rare monster, the Rapella Rat.

Usually, adventurers didn’t do that. There was a reason why they handled one request at a time.

They were cautious because they didn’t know when or if a single request would be resolved, so usually, a plan this ambitious would be argued against, but…

Gu Bon couldn’t do that.

Lee Han’s plan was just too perfect and meticulous.

If it weren’t for his young face, Gu Bon would have thought he was dealing with a ten-year veteran adventurer.

“It’s just what we’re taught to do,” Lee Han said, trying to be modest for his friends.

The White Tiger Tower students stared at Lee Han, eyes wide.

‘What is he saying?’

‘That’s something only you can do!’

“I don’t have anything more to add. I think we can proceed as is, but…” Gu Bon trailed off.

There was something he needed to ask, even if it seemed cautious.

“Are you properly prepared with travel and camping supplies for the journey?”

At Gu Bon’s words, Anglago scoffed as if there was nothing to worry about.

“No need to worry. It’s not like we’ve never camped before.”

“Perhaps that camping involved servants carrying your groceries and various camping tools?”

Anglago was speechless at Lee Han’s question.

How did he know?

Lee Han sighed and said, “You should forget camping with your family’s knights. They would have taken care of everything, from preparing the campsite to providing water, warm meals, and night watch. When traveling alone, you need to bring as much as possible.”

Gu Bon blinked, surprised again by Lee Han’s words.

He couldn’t believe he was really a first-year student.

How could a first-year student so calmly anticipate…

“Let’s take a quick look at your packs, just to be sure we have everything,” Lee Han said. “Not even a nail or hammer? Do you have a rope? What if something happens? And you need cloth too. Oiled ones would be best. Is canned pork all you have for food? It’s not enough, but it’ll do. Pack a leather water bottle too. It looks like you left out the flint and tinder because of magic, but don’t waste mana unnecessarily and pack those too.”

Gu Bon was completely overwhelmed.

Lee Han was checking the supplies more skillfully than a seasoned adventurer.

Seeing that, Gu Bon wondered why he was even there.

It seemed like they could manage perfectly well without a seasoned veteran…

“Mr. Gu Bon, I’d like some advice,” Lee Han said, unaware of Gu Bon’s thoughts. Gu Bon felt very burdened.

Lee Han was already doing better than Gu Bon.

‘I packed my bags carelessly…’

Even many veteran adventurers weren’t this thorough. Unless they were going to a really dangerous place, the basic principle was ‘Let’s save silver coins and rough it out’.

“It seems excellent,” Gu Bon said.

Lee Han urged him, “Why do you say that?”

“Yes?”

“Surely there must be something you can point out. There’s no way there isn’t.”

“Ah… no…”

There really isn’t!

Gu Bon’s colleague, Bizidek, stared at him with a look that said, ‘How can you give any more advice here?’

“Indeed. Is the color of the backpack important too? This is information I wasn’t aware of. As expected, a seasoned adventurer is different,” Lee Han wrote it down with an impressed expression.

Matching the backpack’s camouflage color to the terrain. The advice of an adventurer with a lot of practical experience was indeed unique.

Bizidek whispered, “There’s no such thing.”

“I… I just couldn’t think of anything,” Gu Bon said, lowering his head in shame.

Of course, he had never changed the color of his backpack to match the terrain.

How could they change their backpack every time when they didn’t know where they were going? Adventurers didn’t have that much money to waste.

Dergyu, who was walking in front, asked, “But isn’t it a bit strange? Changing the backpack every time seems cumbersome.”

“Maybe they camouflage it with grass or soil that they can find around,” Raphael said.

“Ah, I see.”

Gu Bon shuddered at the sight of the Einroguard student who understood ten things even if he was only told one.

What the…

“But since we can use magic, there’s no need for that. It can be replaced with the Lesser Color Change spell,” Lee Han said.

Dergyu was impressed by Lee Han’s words.

“You’re just like Lee Han, who reads all the magic books like a madman,” Raphael said.

“What did you say just now?” Lee Han asked.

“Ah, no. Sorry. It’s a habit from friends in the same tower…” Dergyu replied.

“It’s okay, Dergyu. It’s not your fault, it’s the fault of the other guys,” Lee Han said.

“W… we didn’t do it,” Anglago said.

“We didn’t say anything,” Raphael added.

Lee Han ignored them.

“But Wodanaz, if I remember correctly, the Lesser Color Change spell wasn’t taught during class. When did you learn it?” Raphael asked.

“No. I just saw it in a book. If I practice, I should be able to do it before we arrive,” Lee Han replied.

“Is that even possible…” Raphael wondered.

“Color, change,” Lee Han said.

In one go, the color of the backpack turned green. Lee Han nodded.

“It’s similar to Steel Transformation, but easier. I succeeded on the first try.”

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Lee Han asked.

“It’s nothing…” Anglago said.

The White Tiger Tower students turned their gaze away with expressions mixed with sadness and resignation.

The veteran adventurers, Gu Bon and Bizidek, whispered because they couldn’t understand.

“Isn’t the atmosphere a bit strange?” Gu Bon asked.

“I definitely think… they’re not friends?” Bizidek replied.

Rather than close friends, there was a strict atmosphere like superiors and subordinates.

They were definitely in the same grade…

‘It must be a misunderstanding, right?’ Gu Bon thought.

After passing through the gates of Granden City, moving along the Imperial Road, exiting along the road shown on the map, and passing through the thicket, they saw their destination, Bulpareun Hill.

They arrived very quickly, around early evening.

Everyone had good stamina, and they even had horses, but above all…

“…we were able to come here without getting lost thanks to the two veterans,” Lee Han said.

The two adventurers smiled awkwardly without saying anything.

‘We…’

‘…didn’t really do anything,’ Bizidek thought.

Lee Han looked at the map alone and said, ‘Is it this way?’ ‘It’s this way’ ‘Let’s turn here,’ and arrived at the destination on his own.

Even if the two who knew this area well tried to give advice, there was nothing wrong.

“Well, then…” Lee Han said.

“Let’s go in while we still have stamina,” Raphael said enthusiastically.

As someone who was learning black magic to subjugate criminal black mages, he was very enthusiastic about subjugating the undead.

Gu Bon was delighted.

The time had finally come to give advice as a seasoned adventurer.

“That…” Gu Bon started.

“Hold on, Raphael. Even though we feel good now, going into an undead cave at dusk isn’t smart. Undead get stronger as night falls. Better to set up camp and wait till morning,” Gu Bon advised.

Lee Han looked at the two adventurers and asked, “Is that okay?”

“…Y, yes. That’s a good method,” Gu Bon replied.

“Thank you,” Lee Han said.

The two adventurers were starting to feel a deep sense of futility, beyond embarrassment and absurdity.

…Did we really need to come?

“We’ll take care of the camping preparations!” Gu Bon declared firmly.

Lee Han and his friends tilted their heads.

“Isn’t preparation something we should do together?” Lee Han asked.

“No. Wizards don’t usually do these things,” Gu Bon replied.

Gu Bon was right.

The dirty work was divided in the party, but there were always exceptions.

They couldn’t assign chores to high-level personnel like wizards or priests, or those from knightly families who were worth several other adventurers. That would be a waste.

All the students here were wizards and from knightly families…

“Indeed. I understand,” Lee Han said.

“Then we will…” Gu Bon started.

“No,” Lee Han refused.

“If you two aren’t here, we’ll have to do it ourselves, and there will be a problem if we can’t do it then. We need to learn how to do it.”

“Huh?” Gu Bon asked.

“D, do we have to prepare that much?” Anglago asked awkwardly.

However, Lee Han was serious.

“Yes. Think about it. When you have to camp in Einroguard, you won’t be able to get help from other adventurers, will you?”

“Why would we camp in Einroguard?” Gu Bon asked, not understanding. The magic school students pretended not to hear and moved on.

“Okay. What should we do first?” Lee Han asked.

“First, light a fire and…” Gu Bon started to take out the tinderbox, but Lee Han immediately waved his wand.

With a flick of his wand, sparks flew from the tip, landing on the wood. Instantly, a small flame grew, then burst into a warm fire.

“It’s lit,” Lee Han said.

“…I, if there’s a water source nearby, it’s good to get water. If you secure fresh water, it’s good in many ways…” Gu Bon said.

With another flick of his wand, a huge mass of water shimmered in the air.

“I’ve brought it. What’s next?” Lee Han asked.

Gu Bon and Bizidek quietly took out a wooden bucket to fill it with water.

“The bushes around us will block the light and the cold wind, but there are still some shortcomings. Even simply piling up soil…” Gu Bon said.

With another flick, dirt rose and shaped itself into a simple earthen wall.

“Is this enough?” Lee Han asked.

“…Yes. Now, just install a simple trap that can detect intruders around…” Gu Bon said.

Lee Han took out the magic he had learned when making fireworks with Professor Verdus.

It was a magic that gave the illusion of light to paper, and if the paper was torn, the illusion of light would be summoned.

Flash!

Anglago asked, “Did you learn that while coming here too? That’s amazing?”

“What nonsense are you talking about? You know that magic can’t be learned that easily. It’s magic I learned directly from the professor during the semester,” Lee Han replied.

“…No… hey…!!” Anglago stammered, dumbfounded.

Lee Han finished his work around the area.

“How is it?” Lee Han asked.

“If we just keep a good night watch, I don’t think there will be any problems now,” Gu Bon replied.

“Did everyone hear that? Remember the order well,” Lee Han said to the White Tiger Tower students.

The White Tiger Tower students weren’t even surprised by this series of numerous magics. They nodded as if it were natural.

“Don’t worry, Wodanaz. I’ve remembered it well,” Raphael said.

“We can do this much too,” Dergyu added.

Gu Bon and Bizidek were confused by the feeling that common sense was collapsing.

What should have taken 2 or 3 hours was now over in a few minutes…

Is this kind of reaction even possible?

‘Are all wizards like this??’ Gu Bon wondered.