Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 416

“What brings you all the way out here?” one of the adventurers asked, his voice a bit rough.

“Ah, right! It’s about a job,” Gu-bon said, beaming. “Oh, wait, introductions first! Everyone, this is… the Archmage! Remember? The one I told you about?”

Silence hung in the air. The adventurers just stared.

Lee-han and Ang-lago, standing slightly behind Gu-bon, both went completely still. Lee-han’s eyes widened a fraction.

“I’m not an Archmage…” Lee-han said quietly.

“Oh. Aren’t you?” Gu-bon asked, confused.

“Not…?” Beez-dek added, equally puzzled.

The adventurers wouldn’t normally meet a mage, but even Ang-lago tilted his head, making Lee-han consider punching him.

“Who are you talking about? Gu-bon, if it’s the mage you mentioned… Gasp!” One of the adventurers widened his eyes as if remembering something. Gu-bon looked at his colleague with an expression that said, ‘Do you remember now?’

“The one who joined our party, stood guard with magic, made fire with magic, summoned water with magic, cooked with magic, and conquered caves with magic, that’s who you were talking about!?”

“I thought Gu-bon was looking down on me and talking nonsense…” another adventurer mumbled.

As the adventurers buzzed with excitement, Gu-bon’s face flushed crimson, his cheeks burning with embarrassment.

Gu-bon felt ashamed. He was making a fool of himself in front of the Archmage… or, well, the mage who was almost an Archmage, the one he owed so much to.

“Why would I talk nonsense!! Are you ignoring me!?” Gu-bon exclaimed, his voice rising.

“Ah, no. Sorry. It just sounded too absurd,” one of the adventurers replied sheepishly.

“I don’t know much about mages, but I know enough to know that what you said, Gu-bon, sounds strange,” another added.

“Kuh…! In front of whom are these fools…! Surely you’ve heard of the mage who recently defeated the King of Ghouls! That’s this person!” Gu-bon declared, puffing out his chest.

“The King of Ghouls?!” The adventurers gasped, their eyes widening in disbelief.

Adventurers who traveled around the Empire often heard rumors. When they recently returned to Granden City, they had heard stories about the King of Ghouls several times in taverns, and that was…?

“No, why would a mage like that be with you, Gu-bon…?” one of them asked, scratching his head.

“I’m not dismissing your skills, Gu-bon, but you’re not the kind of adventurer who could be with an Archmage, are you?” another added, a hint of doubt in his voice.

As Gu-bon trembled, Lee-han thought he should intervene to calm the commotion.

“Ah. You’re from Einrogard. That explains it…” The adventurers nodded, understanding.

Of course, not all students at Einrogard could perform magic like Lee-han, but the adventurers didn’t know that much. They just accepted that he was a great mage because he attended a great magic school.

“As a student, I still have many shortcomings. And the story about defeating the monster is too much,” Lee-han admitted, waving his hand dismissively.

“Ah ha. So, what Gu-bon said was also mixed with a lot of exaggeration?” one of the adventurers asked, a smirk playing on his lips.

“That’s true,” Lee-han confirmed.

The adventurers were confused but accepted it for now.

“More importantly, what job brought you here?” Lee-han asked, steering the conversation back on track.

The reason Gu-bon and the adventurers had come here was because of a request they had recently received.

Reports have been coming in about strange phenomena occurring in the Black Rock Forest near Philone Village. It seems there has been a change in the flow of magic. Please check the forest and investigate thoroughly.

It wasn’t an incredibly dangerous request, but it wasn’t something anyone could do either.

The magic scattered in nature flows and gathers, causing various changes, and sometimes unexpected events occur that even experienced adventurers are surprised by.

‘The connection to the undead realm last time was also such a phenomenon.’

Experience to assess the situation and the combat ability to escape and report if something happens were essential. Gu-bon and the adventurers were qualified to carry out the request because they had that level of ability.

‘Oh.’ Lee-han listened to the request the adventurers had received and looked at them with a slightly respectful gaze.

Just from the explanation, it felt like it wasn’t something anyone could do, but a request that only experienced adventurers could handle.

‘The reward must be good too. I should have taken on a request like that.’

No matter how he thought about it, the request he had received during the vacation was a big loss. If he had known the King of Ghouls would appear, he wouldn’t have been collecting around that area.

Lee-han also wanted to do a request where he just investigated and received gold.

“But there’s been a problem… We’re debating whether we should retreat now or not,” one of the adventurers confessed, his voice laced with worry.

While investigating the Black Rock Forest, the adventurers realized that the terrain of the forest kept changing. The trees seemed to twist and move in front of their eyes. Paths that were there moments ago vanished, replaced by thick bushes.

The gathered magic was creating illusions to confuse intruders. Right now, it was just the terrain changing, but if the illusions got worse, their lives could be in danger.

The adventurers were wondering what to do.

“Ah. I wonder if we could ask the mage for help? It’s fate that we met like this,” Beez-dek suggested, looking hopefully at Lee-han.

“Don’t talk nonsense. Why would a mage be interested in such a trivial request? It would be mere pocket change for them,” another adventurer scoffed.

‘It wouldn’t be,’ Lee-han thought, almost making a serious face.

The adventurers seemed to have a big misunderstanding about mages.

“But you worked with Gu-bon last time…” Beez-dek pointed out.

“That must have been because of the King of Ghouls. Gu-bon was probably just a guide,” the other adventurer retorted, dismissing Gu-bon’s contribution.

Gu-bon was dumbfounded by his colleagues openly saying that while he was right there. But he couldn’t argue, because that was pretty much his role!

“…It’s not like I’m only interested in guys like the King of Ghouls. I’m interested in any request,” Lee-han said, trying to sound nonchalant.

“Really? Is that so?” The adventurers looked at each other skeptically.

“Why…? It can’t be because of the gold…?” one of them asked, narrowing his eyes.

“It must be because of the acquisition of knowledge,” another chimed in, nodding sagely.

“Ah ha.” Lee-han didn’t bother correcting their misunderstanding and got back to the point.

“If it’s okay, I’d like to help. I have a connection with Gu-bon here,” Lee-han offered, glancing at Gu-bon.

Gu-bon wore an expression of gratitude.

“The reward…” Beez-dek began, hesitating.

“Please accept it, Mage!” another adventurer urged.

“That’s right. Of course, this reward may not mean much to you, but it’s a principle as adventurers. You must receive a reward for helping us,” Beez-dek added earnestly.

“…Ah. Yes. Well.” Lee-han was about to say, ‘You must make sure to give me the reward,’ but felt awkward.

‘Not bad.’ To think he would get gold so easily. For the first time, Lee-han thought it was a good thing he became a mage.

Other adventurers had to build up all sorts of experience and results, but mages could participate just by their name alone. It was a good thing he became a mage!

Besides, if he traveled with the adventurers, he could also avoid the eyes of any Einrogard pursuers.

“Hey. Wodanaz…” Ang-lago, who had been listening from the side, whispered in an absurd voice.

“We’re first-years. Are you confident you can handle it?” Ang-lago asked, his brow furrowed with concern.

“Ang-lago. Do you think I would have brought it up without thinking that much?” Lee-han retorted confidently.

At Lee-han’s confident words, Ang-lago realized his mistake.

‘That’s right. This guy was from the Wodanaz family.’ Ang-lago nodded as if he understood.

“I asked a stupid question. Well, if you’re confident, it’s definitely better to take it in this situation. If we travel together, we’ll get less attention. With your skills, you’re definitely…” Ang-lago trailed off, muttering to himself.

“Yeah. I’m going to ask Baldor-oreun to come with us,” Lee-han declared, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

You weren’t going to solve it yourself?

Baldor-oreun, the illusion mage of Philone Village. Wandering around various villages, he was closer to an ordinary mage who wasn’t particularly skilled.

Those who had obtained magic books and studied on their own, or tried to find guilds or teachers to learn from but had limitations in their skills, would stop in this way and use magic as a means of livelihood.

Of course, Baldor-oreun had long lost any desire to see the end of truth and the other side of the world with magic.

Baldor-oreun had gone out without much thought when he heard someone knocking on the door, and was so surprised that his heart sank. Another familiar Einrogard student had come to visit.

-Baldor-oreun, can you help us?

-…Why… No… I understand…

Baldor-oreun couldn’t refuse Lee-han’s coercion, no, request. How could he refuse when he was making a living with magic in a village near Einrogard?

The students were being kind now, but he didn’t know what kind of retaliation he might face later.

“Baldor-oreun isn’t the kind of person who acts like that,” Lee-han said firmly to the adventurers.

“We’re sorry. We misunderstood,” Beez-dek apologized.

“We’ve heard a lot that mages are hard to deal with…” another added, looking slightly ashamed.

Baldor-oreun found it even more burdensome.

‘What if they get angry if I can’t solve the forest problem?’

Mages from places like Einrogard had a natural aura. Even if those mages made mistakes, the people of the Empire didn’t protest much.

-Ah, seeing that the mage failed, it must have been a really difficult task!

But Baldor-oreun didn’t have that kind of aura. If he misjudged even a little, this kind of reaction would come out immediately.

-Failed? A mage? Is that mage really a mage? Isn’t he a quack?

They looked like experienced adventurers with some experience. The thought of what would happen if he failed already made his stomach ache.

“It’s an illusion,” Lee-han warned first. He could feel an unusual flow of magic in the hazy fog.

“Oh dear!” Beez-dek exclaimed.

“It’s spread to the forest entrance… in the meantime,” another adventurer added, frowning.

The range of the illusion’s influence had increased to the forest entrance. It wasn’t a good sign.

“Baldor-oreun, can I try blowing it away with the method I learned last time?” Lee-han asked, a hint of mischief in his voice.

“Yes… Yes?” Baldor-oreun stammered, caught off guard.

“Then I’ll blow it away.” Lee-han, having heard the answer, didn’t hesitate and immediately swung his magic like a hammer to blow away the fog.

Instead of reading and interpreting the structure, he broke the structure itself with a powerful impact.

Baldor-oreun’s mouth dropped open at the simple but forceful solution.

‘He’s actually using that????’

It was a method that existed in theory, but it was only used for very weak or small-scale illusion magic. He couldn’t even imagine how much magic it would take to blow away the entire fog surrounding the forest entrance.

The adventurers, who hadn’t grasped the situation, were blankly watching and asked.

“Is it solved?”

“Yes,” Lee-han confirmed with a nod.

“You’re amazing!” Beez-dek exclaimed.

“…I didn’t do anything,” Baldor-oreun mumbled, feeling useless.

“You’re even humble!” another adventurer added, patting him on the back.

Baldor-oreun really wanted to go home.

After that, Baldor-oreun and Lee-han broke the forest’s illusions and found the right path with their excellent observation skills and amazing magic.

Baldor-oreun observed, and Lee-han solved.

When Lee-han asked a question, Baldor-oreun confirmed it was correct.

The adventurers could only admire their perfect teamwork.

“But why is that mage just standing still?” one of the adventurers whispered, pointing at Baldor-oreun.

“He’s saving his magic,” Beez-dek replied knowingly.

Ang-lago was also very aware of the situation.

He wanted to help, but…

‘I can’t figure it out at all!’

It just looked like he was mindlessly swinging magic around to blow away the fog. Of course, it couldn’t be that simple. There must be something extraordinary in it…

He couldn’t figure it out at all.

As Lee-han blew away another fog, Ang-lago sighed in frustration.

And Baldor-oreun also sighed deeply.

Ang-lago wondered why this great mage was acting like this.