Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 417

Wodanaaz’s magical sparks flew, bright blue against the dim forest. Baldor-Orn watched, his face tight. “Surely you’re not unhappy with that?” one of the adventurers asked. “You’re being very hard on him.”

Angalo frowned, watching Baldor-Orn. *Even the professors at Einrogard would be impressed by Wodanaaz now,* he thought. *He’s really improved.* But Baldor-Orn still looked unhappy. *Am I being too critical?*

One of the adventurers, a woman with braided hair, noticed Baldor-Orn’s shoulders slumped and the deep sigh he’d just let out. “Wizard,” she asked gently, “would you like to rest for a bit?”

Baldor-Orn blinked, surprised. *Rest? I haven’t done anything.* He felt the eyes of everyone in the group on him. “I… I’m fine,” he mumbled, avoiding their gaze.

Baldor-Orn’s eyes widened. *Oh no!* He suddenly understood. The break wasn’t for *him*. It was for Ihan! Wizards couldn’t use magic forever. They needed to recharge.

“N-no, wait!” Baldor-Orn stammered, trying to correct their mistake. But the adventurers were already exchanging worried glances. “He’s even stricter than we thought,” one whispered. “Imagine being *that* demanding of yourself,” another murmured.

Baldor-Orn felt his face flush. He looked like a harsh, old-fashioned wizard, when he just felt useless.

Baldor-Orn cleared his throat, trying to sound confident. “Actually,” he said, “maybe *we* should rest for a moment before moving on.”

“Rest?” Ihan looked surprised. “But I’m fine.”

Gu Bon, the leader, stepped forward, a smile playing on his lips. “*I’m* not fine,” he said, winking at Ihan. “All this walking is tiring!” He chuckled.

“Don’t worry about me, Baldor-Orn,” Ihan said, smiling back. “I have plenty of magic left.”

Baldor-Orn just nodded, feeling even more awkward. He couldn’t explain the real reason he wanted to stop.

A group of wizards, still buzzing with energy from the recent magic festival, stood around a large black rock. They were the kind of wizards who loved puzzles – the summoning specialists, the dark arts experts, all eager to prove their cleverness. They stared at the rock, arms crossed, faces scrunched in thought.

“Hmm,” one muttered, scratching his beard. “Hrmmm,” another echoed, adjusting his pointy hat.

A nervous cough broke the silence. “Maybe… maybe we should just admit we don’t know?” a younger wizard whispered.

“Nonsense!” a louder voice boomed. “Who said we don’t know? We’re just… thinking!”

After a big magic festival, wizards often felt a strange emptiness. They’d poured all their energy into showing off their skills, and now… what? A group of these wizards had gathered in a nearby village, swapping stories and spells, trying to fill the quiet days.

Then, a rumour reached their ears, whispered in the village inn: “Something strange is happening in the Black Rock Forest… magic gone wild, they say.”

One wizard’s eyes lit up. “Magic anomaly in the Black Rock Forest?” he exclaimed. “Sounds like a challenge! Shall we see who can figure it out first?” Wizards were, by nature, curious creatures. The rumour was like a spark to dry tinder.

Drawn by the rumour like moths to a flame, the wizards hurried towards the Black Rock Forest. The forest itself seemed to resist them, with shimmering illusions that twisted the paths and hid the trees. But these were simple tricks to seasoned wizards. They pushed through the magical deceptions and soon found what they were looking for: a place in the heart of the forest where the air thrummed with raw magic. And there, in the center of it all, was a large black rock.

“The magic is strongest here,” one wizard murmured, touching the cool stone. “But… why this rock?” another wondered. “It’s just a rock, isn’t it?”

A third wizard, older and wiser, stroked his chin. “The villagers say this rock has been here forever, even before the forest got its name. Maybe it’s been soaking up the forest’s magic for centuries?”

“Perhaps,” said the first wizard, “but that still doesn’t explain *why* all the magic is flowing *here*.”

At first, the wizards had been confident. A little magical mystery? Child’s play! But hours had passed, and the black rock remained stubbornly silent. Frustration began to simmer beneath their robes. Normally, wizards would work together on a problem like this, sharing ideas and combining their knowledge. But these wizards were rivals. They came from different schools, different traditions. Just days ago, they had been competing fiercely at the festival, each trying to outdo the others. Pride kept them apart now.

*I can’t be the first to give up,* one thought, his jaw tight. *If *he* figures it out before me…* Another wizard glared at his colleagues. *Never! I’ll solve it, even if it takes all night!*

Just as the wizards were growing truly desperate, a rustling in the undergrowth announced newcomers. Ihan and his companions emerged from the trees, pushing aside branches and stepping over fallen logs. Ihan stopped short when he saw the scene before him: the black rock, glowing faintly with trapped magic, surrounded by a ring of gesticulating wizards.

“Someone’s already here,” he said, surprised.

“Oh dear!” Gu Bon gasped, his face paling. The other adventurers looked equally alarmed, even more so than when they’d faced the strange fog earlier.

“Wizard,” Gu Bon said, his voice tight, “this is… this is terrible.”

Ihan frowned, confused by their reaction. *Are they afraid of these wizards?* he wondered. *Do they think they’re dangerous?* He squinted, looking closer at the group around the rock. Wait… he recognized some of those robes, that pointy hat… *It’s the wizards from the Einrogard Festival!* *They must have heard the same rumours we did,* he realized.

“Are you worried they’re… dark wizards or something?” Ihan asked, a hint of amusement in his voice. “Not all wizards are raising skeletons, you know.”

“No, no, it’s not that!” Gu Bon said quickly, shaking his head. “It’s… it’s the request!”

Adventurers often faced monsters and traps, dangers written into the very description of their quests. But sometimes, the real problems were… other people. And right now, standing between Ihan and the black rock were a dozen stubborn wizards. Their quest was to investigate the rock, to understand the magical anomaly. But the wizards were already there, investigating for themselves. And wizards, especially when fascinated by magic, were not known for sharing. Gu Bon rubbed his temples, a familiar headache starting to bloom. *How are we going to get past them?*

One of the younger adventurers, still hopeful, piped up. “Maybe… maybe we can just ask them politely to let us take a look?”

Gu Bon sighed. “Hoo, if only it were that easy. Wizards and ‘polite requests’ don’t always go together, especially when magic is involved. They won’t budge until they’ve solved their puzzle.”

Baldor-Orn, who had been quiet until now, nodded slowly. “He’s right,” Baldor-Orn said, his voice low. “Wizards… when they get interested in something like this, they’re like rocks themselves. Unmovable.”

“Exactly!” Gu Bon exclaimed, clapping Baldor-Orn on the shoulder. “Baldor-Orn, you understand wizards perfectly!”

*Oh, please stop,* Baldor-Orn thought miserably, turning away. He felt useless and awkward. Maybe, just maybe, he could actually be helpful for once… maybe he could talk to them?

The problem was a tangled mess in Balderorn’s mind. He couldn’t see a way out.

“If I even try to talk to them,” he muttered to himself, “they’ll just laugh and send me away.”

The Empire wizards were powerful, important. Why would they waste their time on a nobody wizard like him, someone they didn’t even know?

“What could I offer them?” Balderorn thought, his eyes scanning his pouch. “Reagents… what did I have? Yellow gemstone powder? Too cheap. They’d be insulted if I offered something so common.”

Lost in his worries, Balderorn suddenly looked up. He sensed someone moving nearby.

It was Ihan. Walking straight towards the group of wizards.

Balderorn’s eyes widened. “!”

He was shocked. Even if Ihan was a student from Einrogard, would these Empire wizards just ignore what had happened? It was a big risk.

“I received permission. It seems you can investigate.”

“……”

“……”

Balderorn and the adventurers looked at each other, confused. What was going on?

*

*

“Wow, there were so many rumors that it would be difficult for you to come out, so I didn’t expect much!” One of the summoning wizards pushed past a dark wizard and approached Ihan.

“Ha. Of course, I can come out! No matter how strict Einrogard’s rules are, they can’t be that unreasonable. Students are people too.”

The dark wizard answered back sharply, trying to step on the summoning wizard’s foot.

As the wizards pushed and shoved to get closer to Ihan, he felt surrounded.

“…Everyone. Have I done something wrong?”

“Ah, no. It’s just that those dark wizards are pushing too rudely!”

“You shouldn’t listen to the summoning wizards! They’re cunning fellows!”

Ihan gently but firmly put his hands on their shoulders and moved them aside. The wizards, surprised by his strength, stumbled back.

“I’m also glad to meet you all. But it would be a shame to waste my short outing time unnecessarily.”

‘It’s not an outing.’

Angaro thought to himself.

To have such confidence even after escaping together!

Right now, Angaro was on pins and needles, terrified of being caught…

“…That’s right.”

“We showed a very unsightly appearance.”

Ihan smiled, pleased as the wizards calmed down and started to be friendly again.

“Now. Could you perhaps tell me about your investigation of that black rock?”

‘Lucky me.’

He had intended to rely on their friendship while he was here, but unfortunately, the situation was different from what Ihan had expected.

“Not yet…”

“Pardon?”

“We were still investigating.”

“…Are you all saying that??”

The wizards suddenly coughed and avoided eye contact.

They were now ashamed that they hadn’t properly exchanged opinions because they were competing with each other.

“It, it can happen. The investigation can be very difficult…”

Ihan’s kind words made it even worse. The wizards hurriedly began to share information.

-The magical power flowing through the forest is all gathering here, but the flowing magical power isn’t all at the same level. I summoned the spirit of sound earlier to find the way, right? There were paths with relatively weak illusions and strong paths. The eastern path has such strong illusions that it’s impossible to pass through, but the southern path we passed through is much easier.

-Wait. Wodanaz came from the east?

-Balderorn helped.

-Oh. Is that so? How did you get through? I’m curious…

-Could we please proceed with the analysis? Let’s talk about the story later…

-Yes? I understand. Anyway, when I saw this asymmetry, I thought that the black rock might not be the cause of the situation.

-What? Are you saying the cause is outside, and the black rock just happened to be in the place where the flow is most concentrated?

-That’s right.

-It sounds absurd… but it sounds the most plausible right now! Let’s calculate it once.

The wizards scribbled and calculated, then wore surprised expressions.

The calculations showed there was likely another cause outside the forest.

“Let’s go and check it out!”

“Now that Wodanaz is here, the problem we couldn’t solve is solved so easily. You truly are a talent who will bring glory to the dark magic school.”

“Why are you mentioning dark magic here?”

“If you have a complaint, you guys can mention summoning magic too.”

Ihan, surprised, said to Balderorn as the wizards solved everything themselves and praised him.

“They solved everything themselves and then praised me… I appreciate the thought, but isn’t it too absurd? I’m embarrassed.”

“…That’s right!!!!!!!”

Balderorn replied in a voice full of sincerity.

Few people knew that feeling as well as Balderorn did.

*

*

The wizards, who had come out of the forest in a crowd, frowned at the campsite visible in the distance.

Even if it was the same campsite, you could guess its identity based on its appearance.

If it was simple, it was a traveler; if there were traps and palisades installed around it, it was a mercenary; if it was shabby and had a murderous aura, it was a robber…

This wasn’t just any campsite. It had wooden walls, built like a small fort. Only knight orders did that. They were very organized and had extra resources.

The adventurers looked annoyed at the idea of going near the wizards. The wizards, in turn, looked unhappy about going near the knights.

“Of all people, it’s those knights. They’re not known for being clever.”

“I’m worried about asking them to let us look around their camp briefly. Knights aren’t always good at understanding complicated things.”

“……”

Angaro suddenly felt angry at the wizards’ mean words.

‘They’re not that stupid!’

“Is there a reason for knights to be around here?”

“Huh?”

“I’m asking if there’s a reason for knights to be around here. There was no news of monsters appearing.”

“…Huh? That’s right. Just… hunting?”

Ihan looked at Angaro as if he was pathetic. Angaro felt like the wizards thought he was stupid.

“As you can see from the forest earlier, there was nothing to hunt.”

“Th, that’s right. What is it?”

The answer came right away.

As they got closer, they could see the knight order’s flag hanging over the campsite.

It was the Beech Tree Knights.

“……”

Ihan stared at the flag in shock.

Could it be… had they really come all this way to Einrogard just to invite Ihan to a knight meeting?