Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 313

Ihan couldn’t believe it. Could this really be the end?

A terrible scream suddenly filled the cave.

The Ghoul King thought everyone would be scared of him. He was wrong. This attack hurt him, and it hurt his pride.

Because his borrowed body was destroyed, the Ghoul King himself was now weaker.

Foolish wretch… Because of you… I have lost so much…

The Ghoul King, filled with hatred for the dead mercenary, gathered his remaining strength.

If that greedy mercenary had just done his job quietly, the Ghoul King could have taken over the body without any trouble.

Wasn’t it the mercenary’s fault that he had to rush the possession and get hurt like this?

Black smoke rose from the spot where Buldahak had been. It twisted and grew, forming a dark shape.

“Descend, the lightning of Pergunta!”

The Ghoul King’s voice echoed, laced with static and fury. “You think that will work again? Foolish wizard!”

The Ghoul King scattered his form, dodging the lightning just in time.

Rage filled his voice as he reformed. “As the Ghoul King, I will be generous. One last chance. Surrender. Kneel before me. Become my servant. And I might let you live.”

“Don’t listen to his lies, Ihan! With that body destroyed, he’ll be sent back where he came from soon!” Raphaël shouted, drawing his sword.

Unlike other knights’ swords, the Gral family’s sword was made with silver and light spirit stone.

It was a trick passed down in a family that had fought the undead for a long time.

“Go back to the darkness where you belong, monster!”

The Ghoul King sneered. “An insect. Daring to flail about. Wanting to be trampled.”

Raphaël’s sword hit the Ghoul King, and the shadowy form crackled where it touched.

But it wasn’t much damage.

The Ghoul King didn’t care and swatted Raphaël away.

Wham!

With a loud crash, Raphaël went flying.

“Unfold!” Ihan shouted.

Ihan used water magic to catch Raphaël, then pulled out his sword.

A sword made of black obsidian. Dawn Star.

It absorbed magic, so it was good against beings from other dimensions.

‘Lightning magic won’t work!’

Ihan knew it from their fight just now.

The Ghoul King could sense the magic coming.

Plus, he could scatter his form to dodge attacks.

Magic that shot or launched wouldn’t hit him.

‘Then…’

Pow!

Ihan shot forward.

Magic burst from Ihan’s feet, making him incredibly fast. He launched himself more than ran.

The Ghoul King didn’t see that speed coming. Dawn Star sliced right through him.

Ugh.

‘The attack hit!’

The Ghoul King seemed weaker.

But he was still strong.

Even with the borrowed body destroyed and Dawn Star taking his magic…

It was hard to believe.

This strength reminded Ihan of powerful enemies he had faced before. He quickly changed his plan.

“Theorgy, we need to retreat! Get ready to move, now!”

“…Don’t leave us behind, Ihan!”

“Don’t worry, I’m not leaving you. Just get ready to go when I say!”

The Ghoul King’s voice was even colder and scarier. The cave got so cold they could see their breath.

And ghouls started coming from everywhere.

Even if the plan takes longer, I will crush you insects today.

“Shut up, monster! How dare you talk like that in front of the Wodanaz name!”

“……”

Ihan was confused by his friends’ outburst as he thought about what to do.

Are these crazy guys trying to make him even angrier…?

Beings from other dimensions, especially evil ones, want to stay in this world as long as they can.

The desires and pain of humans are like sweet nectar to them.

Of course, humans don’t let these evil beings stay for long.

As soon as they hear about them, they try to send them back or seal them away.

The Ghoul King was an evil being sealed a long time ago, before the Empire.

He should have stayed sealed forever, but the seal broke after many years, and the Ghoul King woke up.

The Ghoul King hated the enemies who had captured him, but he knew it didn’t matter.

Humans don’t live long, and his rivals were already dead.

So, the Ghoul King focused on getting his power back.

The seal was broken, but he had lost his strength and was weak, stuck with the artifact that had sealed him.

If that artifact was destroyed, he would be sent back to his dimension.

The Ghoul King used his weak powers to summon ghouls and sent them out at night to eat the life force of travelers.

But it didn’t work well.

He needed a lot of power to show himself, and a few travelers weren’t enough.

The Ghoul King thought it would never end and changed his plan.

He decided to let some travelers live and spread rumors.

If they heard about treasure, greedy adventurers would come looking for it, right?

If he could trick them and take their bodies, he could leave the cave without getting his strength back.

But…

A wizard, stronger than he thought, had come looking for him.

Wodanaz, was it?

“That’s right. You should be scared of that name!”

Vizidek, who had been sweating nervously at the White Tiger Tower student’s shout, finally understood.

The Wodanaz family!

The Empire’s greatest magic family!

“…Why are they here!?”

“Vizidek! What’s wrong with you? Get yourself together!” Gu Bon grabbed Vizidek’s shoulders and shook him.

As someone who had been in the party for a long time, he had to step up when something unexpected happened.

He had to find a way to break through the enemy’s defenses.

“Th… That’s right. I’m sorry.”

The Ghoul King didn’t care about their reputation. “Such reputation is meaningless to me.”

The Ghoul King was going to destroy all the intruders today, even if it used up all his power.

Letting him go might give us help later, but his power was too tempting to ignore.

The Ghoul King thought, ‘If I could take over *that* body, it would be much better than that weak adventurer from before.’

“Capture him!” the Ghoul King commanded. “Attack!”

Suddenly, the most chaotic and fierce battle of the day erupted.

Ghouls poured from every corner of the cave, swarming towards them.

“Won’t you compromise, King of Ghouls!” Lee Han shouted, firing spells to blast a path through the ghouls.

The Ghoul King sneered. “King… lie? You think… work?”

‘Damn it! How did he know I was lying?’ Lee Han thought angrily. He was ready to promise anything to escape, but the Ghoul King wasn’t listening.

“Cloak of Steel!” Lee Han yelled. His cloak turned hard as metal, and he swung it, knocking ghouls aside. He shouted again, “This is your last chance, King of Ghouls! If you don’t let us go, we have other options!”

‘Bluffing,’ the Ghoul King thought, still not worried. ‘My real body is safe, far from here. And I can see his magic before he even uses it.’

‘Fighting weakens me, but he’s just a mortal. He’ll collapse before me.’

“Very well,” Lee Han said, taking a deep breath. He didn’t want to do this, but running away was now even more dangerous than fighting. He had to take a risk and bluff. “Burn!”

‘What is he doing?’ The Ghoul King was confused as Lee Han started chanting. ‘After all that talk, it’s just… fire?’ It was a simple fire spell, nothing special. ‘I can dodge lightning, this is nothing.’

*FWOOSH!* But the flames Lee Han unleashed were wild and huge! The Ghoul King stared, shocked. The fire roared upwards, licking at the cave ceiling high above.

‘What?’ Even the Ghoul King, who had fought many powerful wizards long ago, had never seen fire like this. ‘Low-level magic… but so wide? So strong?’ It made no sense, but it was real.

Lee Han waved his staff again, feeding more magic into the flames. “Burn, burn, burn!” he chanted. The flames roared, growing bigger and hotter, pushing against each other, becoming a raging inferno.

Suddenly, Lee Han realized with horror – the flames were out of control! He had made them too big, too powerful. ‘Oh no!’ he thought. The Ghoul King’s voice echoed in his mind, mocking. “What are you doing? Think you can escape now? You will burn. First.” He laughed. “A wizard who can’t even control his own fire? You are even more foolish than I thought!”

Lee Han kept his face calm, even though panic was rising inside him. Then, the flames twisted and turned towards *him*! ‘Damn!’ Lee Han thought, quickly pushing magic around his body to protect himself. If they realized he couldn’t control the fire, everything would be worse.

Then, a warm power surged through him. It was the phoenix mark on his skin, glowing. Lee Han gasped. He felt the phoenix power pushing back against the wild flames, taking control. ‘Thank goodness for that phoenix,’ he thought desperately. ‘I need this power now!’

‘I don’t know how long this will last!’ Lee Han thought. Quickly, before the phoenix power faded, he waved his staff again. The flames roared outwards, blasting ghouls away. “Behold, undead scum! This is Wodanaz!” Lee Han yelled. “The power of the wizard!” shouted the students and adventurers, their weapons wet with ghoul slime. They were amazed by the flames, not knowing Lee Han was barely in control.

‘I need to clear the rest of these ghouls and make a path to escape, fast!’ Lee Han thought. He waved his staff again, sending more fire at the ghouls. The Ghoul King hesitated, and many more ghouls were burned away.

Lee Han didn’t want to actually fight the Ghoul King. Making a huge fire to trap everyone and have a deadly battle? That was something Professor Voldadi would do, not him. Lee Han just wanted to get out of here. He had hoped to talk his way out, but since the Ghoul King was hesitating, he had to use that chance to escape.

‘Yes! That’s it!’ Lee Han almost cheered. While the Ghoul King was watching the flames, he had burned away all the ghouls behind him. Now there was a clear path. Escape time.

“Wodanaz, I get it!” “Raphael, I don’t care what you get, just be quiet…” “No, listen! It makes sense now! Why he’s so strong even without a body right here! And why he’s not just leaving the cave! It’s obvious! He’s a fake! A copy! His real body, the artifact, it must be somewhere else!”

Raphael charged like crazy through the flames, deeper into the cave. Angaro ran after him. Dergeu just stared at Lee Han and Raphael, completely lost. Lee Han sighed heavily. ‘Bringing those White Tiger Tower people was a mistake.’

“Sharkan, go! Help those fools… help them!” Lee Han yelled. ‘Daring fools!’ the Ghoul King thought angrily. “See, King of Ghouls, maybe you should have let us go!” Lee Han shouted, gritting his teeth. “Flash!” He unleashed a bolt of lightning. It felt stronger than before, crackling with even more power.