Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 406

Professor Mortum coughed, his brow furrowed. “Why did the explosion stop?” he wondered aloud.

He was worried Lee Han might have made a mistake.

He wouldn’t worry so much about other spells, but Bone Explosion magic was risky for Lee Han.

Luckily, the practice room was fine.

The magic circles that absorbed shocks and scattered explosions were still working well. There were also many bone fragments left in the practice box.

Professor Mortum looked puzzled. “Did your magic power run out?” he asked.

“That’s not it.”

“Well, it can’t be.”

“…It’s not that, but I heard that I have to prove something during the festival…” Lee Han frowned slightly. ‘Wasn’t this all about the summoning magic lecture?’ he thought.

He knew Professor Milley’s tasks wouldn’t be easy. They would take a lot of time and effort.

Lee Han was already too busy to worry about proving the ‘pride of black magic’.

“Ah, that. Cough.”

“Professor, I have too much to do right now.”

Lee Han usually joked around with the professor, but now he was serious.

He remembered he had to care for the Basilisk egg right after this lecture.

“I know. All the professors probably know.”

“Really? It seems like there are more people who don’t know…”

Professor Mortum coughed again, as if stating something obvious. “And you don’t really have anything to do during the festival.”

“??”

Lee Han was embarrassed by the professor’s words.

He told him to prove the pride of black magic, but he doesn’t really have anything to do?

‘What? Is this a trick?’

“I don’t quite understand?”

Professor Mortum chuckled. “Knowing you, Lee Han, you’ll try to prove it yourself, even if I don’t ask. I have faith in you.”

“…No, I won’t!” Lee Han shouted in anger for the first time in a while.

Why did he misunderstand?

If there was a professor who wanted to hold onto a useful student and have them inherit the lineage of learning, there was also a professor who wanted to focus solely on their own research without such ambition.

Professor Lezhi, who taught transformation magic, was such a professor.

While the ambitious professors at Einrogard were competing fiercely for something called ‘Wodanaz’, Professor Lezhi wanted the opposite.

He preferred to avoid the spotlight.

There was no need to bring Wodanaz in. Professor Lezhi wanted his peaceful daily life to continue.

Professor Lezhi spoke slowly, his fingers linked together. “…You studied steel transformation in the first semester. You must have touched and tried to understand steel a lot during that time. Everyone probably did.”

In his professor form, Professor Lezhi carried himself with a noble air, like a lord from a powerful kingdom.

It was an unimaginable sight compared to when he transformed into a fake Gainando and was beaten by Lee Han.

“Even if you don’t understand it perfectly… it’s okay. There’s no need to feel too intimidated. It takes time to master any material.”

‘Wait, wasn’t I supposed to be good at this already?’ Lee Han thought, embarrassed.

“As you continue to learn other magics, the parts that were blocked will gradually be resolved. Don’t forget. The goal of this semester is… to find your aptitude by handling transformations of various materials.”

If the easiest and most popular steel transformation and its application were learned in the first semester, then in the second semester, various materials and supplies are handled to select materials that suit the wizard’s aptitude.

Skilled transformation wizards often carried special materials, compressed into small forms. In emergencies, they could quickly transform these materials into things they were good at using.

After transforming the compressed reagent into mercury, the volume is explosively increased and used for attack purposes, or it is transformed into compressed fine sand and used as a solid sand shield.

Transformation magic wasn’t just useful in battles. You could transform materials needed for alchemy or transform your appearance to deceive monsters.

Professor Lezhi finished his lecture, pleased with himself. He gave a dignified nod to the students and turned to leave.

…Until Lee Han followed him.

“Professor?”

“Gack.”

Professor Lezhi hiccuped, startled by Lee Han’s sudden appearance.

“Are you okay?”

“Of… of course, I’m okay.”

Professor Lezhi tried to hide his hiccups and spoke in a formal tone. Despite the surprise, Professor Lezhi quickly regained his composure.

“What brings you here?”

“I have something to ask you, Professor.”

Besides being encouraged to learn divine magic by the priests, Lee Han was also busy with other things. He had lectures to attend and chores to do, and he was also taking care of the Basilisk egg.

However, the Basilisk’s egg was as difficult to care for as the monster’s notoriety.

Building a special cabin for the egg and looking after it was only the start of the challenge.

After feeding the egg and making sure the temperature was right, he immediately faced the next problem.

He had to feed the egg a lot for days, until it stopped eating. Then, he needed to prepare a new nest, one that the egg would like. It was said that basilisks from the west liked soft bird feathers for their nests, while those from the east preferred hard rocks. But this wasn’t always true.

Ideally, you’d have a transformation wizard nearby, ready to change the nest to suit the basilisk’s needs…

At the ridiculous request, Lee Han asked Professor Voladi, who had come to the cabin.

“-Professor, I don’t have access to all sorts of materials right now. How can I figure out what the egg wants?”

“-Learn transformation magic yourself. Perfect timing, actually. I wanted to practice more transformation magic anyway.”

“-……”

It seemed crazy, but he really did need a transformation wizard.

Lee Han turned to Professor Lezhi and asked hesitantly. “Professor Lezhi, would you be able to help me with the Basilisk egg?”

“Well, I suppose I could help…”

“Thank you!!”

Professor Lezhi didn’t want to get involved, but he couldn’t refuse.

He felt responsible as a teacher, but more than that, he worried Lee Han might be angry if he refused. Lee Han was a very driven student.

Lee Han was already so capable. Professor Lezhi imagined him becoming a professor, maybe even the principal, one day.

‘He’s such a kind person.’ Lee Han was moved, unaware of Professor Lezhi’s true feelings.

Suddenly, with a ‘Bang!’, Professor Lezhi transformed. Lee Han was surprised and a little embarrassed.

Because the opponent was…

Gainando.

“Professor… why did you turn into Gainando?” Lee Han asked, confused.

Professor Lezi mumbled, “Just because,” his voice sounding strange coming from Guinan’s body.

“Ah. I see,” Lee Han replied, even though he didn’t really understand. He decided to accept it.

It didn’t matter if the professor helped, whether he looked like Guinan or someone else, Lee Han thought. Though turning into the scary Skull Headmaster would be too much. No, Guinan is much safer.

Professor Lezi, in Guinan’s form, was thinking about the other professors. He didn’t want to get mixed up in their arguments. It would be annoying if, later, in the faculty lounge, someone asked, “Where was Wodanaz today? Was he with Professor Lezi?” In Guinan’s form, no one would notice, even if they were close by.

“Hey, Guinan! Stop hanging around and let’s go,” one of his friends called. “We have loads to do. We need to finish our jobs for the dormitory today.”

“Don’t worry, don’t worry!” Guinan replied, still looking around the main building. “We can finish even if we’re a bit late!”

Guinan’s friends, two boys with tired faces, clicked their tongues. “He’s such a pain when Wodanaz isn’t here,” one muttered.

“Guinan, you’re going to get into big trouble,” said the other.

“Hmph. Wodanaz isn’t here, so who’s going to tell m–”

Guinan stopped mid-sentence, his eyes widening. He saw himself walking past in the distance!

“A g-ghost! It stole my face! A shapeshifter!?” he stammered. “When did it take my shape?”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?” one friend asked, confused.

“There! Look over there!” Guinan shouted, pointing. But Lee Han and Professor Lezi were already gone.

His friends stared at Guinan as if he was talking rubbish.

“Hey. Stop fooling around and let’s go,” one said, pulling at Guinan’s arm.

“Stop making up stories,” the other added.

“It’s true! Really!” Guinan insisted, his voice full of unfairness. But his friends just didn’t believe him.

“There was a monster! It went past and stole my face!”

“What? A monster has nothing better to do than steal your face?” one friend scoffed.

“I have a question,” Guinan, or rather, Professor Lezi, asked quietly.

“Yes. Anything,” Lee Han replied.

“Why are you looking after a Basilisk egg?” Professor Lezi asked. “Isn’t that too much for a first-year student?”

“There’s a long and sad story behind it…” Lee Han said, opening the creaky wooden door of the hut and stepping inside. He stopped talking as he sat down on a stool. The hut was small and smelled of damp earth and strange herbs.

Professor Lezi, still looking like Guinan, stared at the Basilisk egg in the center. It sat on a bed of soft moss and was bigger than a football, with swirling green and brown patterns on its shell.

Professor Lezi wasn’t an expert on rare animals, but he could tell the egg was healthy. It’s in very good condition, he thought. The Basilisk inside must be calm and happy. It has a strong bond with whoever is looking after it. Honestly, it was surprising that a first-year student had raised it so well. Blue Dragon Tower students aren’t usually good at caring for things, he mused. They are amazing at magic, but clumsy with animals and plants. Just like the White Tiger Tower students.

“You’ve taken very good care of it,” Professor Lezi said, his voice sounding strange coming from Guinan’s face. “Now, let me take a look.”

Lee Han blinked. Guinan, sounding so serious and responsible? It was really strange.

Shhhhwiiiiik! Professor Lezi waved his wand, and magic filled the air. The Basilisk’s nest shimmered and changed. One moment it was dull copper, then it flowed into wet clay, then shifted to rough sand. Maple branches sprouted and withered. A bubbling, hot liquid that smelled like burnt sugar appeared and vanished. Then, for a dazzling second, the nest flashed into solid gold, gleaming brightly.

Seeing the flash of gold, Lee Han asked without thinking, “Would the Basilisk like a nest made of gold?”

“I already checked,” Professor Lezi said. “It doesn’t. Basilisks don’t all love gold like people do. And it’s probably better that way. If gold was the best, it would take too much magic to keep it like that.”

Tch, Lee Han thought, a little disappointed. But he knew the professor was right. The rarer and more valuable the material, the harder it was to control with magic.

“Found it,” Professor Lezi said, stopping his magic.

Lee Han looked up, excited. “What is it? What material is best, Professor?”

“Mercury.”

“Ah. Are you going to do it for me, Professor?”

“I’ll do it once,” Professor Lezi said calmly, “but you need to learn. You’ll have to keep using the magic to keep it as mercury.” He explained, “Transformation magic isn’t forever. And raising a Basilisk like this needs a wizard to keep supporting it.”

“But I can’t do mercury transformation magic,” Lee Han admitted.

“That’s right. You probably haven’t even mastered steel yet.”

“Um… well…” Lee Han looked away, not answering directly.

“Then I’ll…” Professor Lezi started to offer help, but just then, the door opened and Professor Volardy walked in.

Professor Volardy raised an eyebrow, seeing Guinan. “Professor?” he asked, surprised.

“Yes… That’s right…” Professor Lezi mumbled, looking sad.

Plop! He changed back into his normal form, Professor Lezi again.

Of all people, it had to be Professor Volardy! Professor Lezi thought miserably. Professor Volardy was so strict and never changed his mind.

“What were you talking about?” Professor Volardy asked, his voice sharp.

“Wodanaz… wants to learn mercury transformation,” Professor Lezi explained quickly, “but he says it’s hard. I told him he should learn steel first, because that’s already very difficult…”

“He can already handle steel,” Professor Volardy said, looking at Lee Han.

“Is that so?!” Professor Lezi exclaimed, surprised again.

“Yes,” Professor Volardy confirmed, looking at Lee Han as if to say, Isn’t that right?

It was Lee Han’s turn to feel disappointed.