Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 43

Lee Han held the permission slip tightly. He looked like he was afraid someone would take it.

Professor Garcia and Headmaster Skull both thought, “No one will take it.” Then Headmaster Skull asked Lee Han, “Are you feeling alright?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Well, you got your reward. Now for your punishment.”

Lee Han stared at Headmaster Skull, looking utterly dumbfounded.

Headmaster Skull spoke, sounding a little sad.

“Don’t look at me like that. It pains me too. But rules are rules.”

’That’s 100% a lie.’

As far as Lee Han could tell, the Headmaster was thoroughly enjoying himself.

“Just so you know, you’re not in trouble for trying to sneak out.”

“Then what is it for?”

“You’re being punished for getting caught.”

So, I was supposed to just stand by and watch Professor Garcia get stabbed?

Lee Han held back the words that had risen to his throat.

‘Keep it in, Lee Han. Keep it in.’

“The sun is just rising. Until the next sunrise, you will spend your time in the detention chamber contemplating how to avoid getting caught next time.”

With these words, Headmaster Skull tossed a book to Lee Han.

A book covered in plain, black leather. It felt cold and strange to the touch, giving Lee Han an unsettling feeling, like something was wrong.

“What is this?”

“A book to keep you from getting bored in the detention chamber. Give it a read.”

Lee Han looked like he was thinking, ‘Can I trust this?’

Headmaster Skull was pleased to see his student’s immediate suspicion.

“Take the student to the detention chamber.”

Headmaster Skull’s summoned creatures approached and helped Lee Han to his feet.

“From this morning until tomorrow morning.”

Lee Han would be spending his time in the school’s detention chamber.

Down the underground stairs, along the corridor, then down another set of stairs, and along another corridor…

It felt like he repeated this dozens of times. Even though he was blindfolded, he doubted he could memorize the route even without it.

Thud!

“Hmm.”

As the door slammed shut and he was left alone, Lee Han surveyed the detention chamber.

Lee Han stepped into the detention chamber. It wasn’t the dungeon he’d imagined, more like a slightly sad bedroom. Dusty tapestries hung on the stone walls, and instead of the bright school courtyard outside, weak, yellow lights flickered from the ceiling. The air felt still and a little cold, carrying a faint smell of old books and something else he couldn’t quite place – maybe a hint of magic, or just damp stone.

‘This is the detention chamber? It’s not as bad as I thought.’

Lee Han figured he could stay here for weeks if he had to.

As a graduate student, he had lived with several others in rooms much smaller than this.

Compared to that, this was quite pleasant.

Lee Han resolved to tell Nilia later that ‘the detention chamber isn’t as bad as you think.’

Of course, he didn’t know if Nilia would feel the same way.

-Lee Han of the Wodanaz family.

The stiff voice of an undead summoned creature came from outside.

-Receive this.

A large basket was pushed in through the opening under the door.

Freshly baked bread, salt and pepper in small bowls, roast lamb seasoned with sauce, baked apples with sugar and butter, freshly cooked fried eggs, slightly firm and still warm biscuits mixed with almonds and chocolate…

‘Huh?’

Lee Han was taken aback by the lavish meal for a detention chamber.

What is this?

-A gift from Professor Garcia.

“Ah… please convey my thanks.”

-It’s not over yet. Receive more.

“No, wait a…”

Lee Han was bewildered by the continuous stream of baskets.

How could he eat all this in one day?

Fortunately, the following baskets contained more preserved foods.

Chocolates carefully wrapped in foil, candies, peanuts roasted with salt, round and flat crackers in boxes, tea leaves, apple juice and orange juice in glass bottles…

‘I guess he just threw in everything he thought I might like?’

Lee Han was grateful for Professor Garcia’s gifts and placed the baskets aside.

He wouldn’t be bored in the detention chamber.

Sluuurp-

Lee Han brewed black tea, added milk and sugar, and sipped it slowly as he pondered.

The fight against the Imperial anti-magic activists was brutal, even thinking about it now. He wondered, ‘How did I even fight like that?’

The reason he was able to remain so calm in the fight was…

‘It must be thanks to Alar Long’s teachings.’

If Alar Long were there, he would have been bewildered and said, ‘No, I didn’t teach you that kind of magical combat or practical skill,’ but Alar Long wasn’t there.

Lee Han didn’t know it, but he certainly had a natural talent for combat. It was a fact that all the other professors acknowledged.

‘Thank you, Alar Long.’

Lee Han cast the Lesser Manipulation spell.

“Move.”

The quill pen floated gently in the air and began to move smoothly.

It was much smoother than when he first learned magic.

Lee Han put down the quill pen and cast a spell on a steel ball.

An almost perfect circle was drawn in the air.

Lee Han felt a little annoyed that Professor Voladi was right.

Sometimes, some professors annoyed students by only saying the right things instead of the wrong ones.

Who knew that Professor Voladi’s words, ‘Actual combat will improve your skills,’ would be proven like this.

He had felt it when fighting the anti-magic activists, but his skills had really improved.

‘A few more real battles and I’ll become an Archmage. If I don’t die before then.’

Lee Han put down the steel ball. He didn’t want it, but he didn’t feel bad.

‘But that swordsmanship…’

Lee Han carefully recalled the swordsmanship he had used when fighting the leader.

Alar Long had taught him to review fights to improve. He said it was important to look back at both wins and losses, not just forget about them.

‘…No matter how I look at it, it wasn’t normal swordsmanship, was it?’

At the time, the opponent was so strong that he recklessly charged without thinking, but now that he thought about it, it was definitely not normal swordsmanship.

Where else could you find swordsmanship that poured out magic like a madman and slammed it in?

It was fortunate that Lee Han had plenty of magic power; otherwise, anything could have happened.

Even the sword was shattered at the end.

Alar Long had said that a skilled swordsman could condense the magic power in his body well into the sword to create an aura, but in Lee Han’s view, what he had done was something more than an aura…

‘…I don’t know what to call it, but I should be careful in the future.’

Lee Han resolved not to do anything reckless and end up in the Imperial newspaper under the headline >People Who Died Foolishly This Year<. After finishing his black tea, one thing caught his eye. …It was the black book that the Headmaster had given him. ‘Should I open this?’ Lee Han seriously pondered. Was this really a gift from the Headmaster, or a trap? Headmaster's gift -> The Headmaster is also a person, so he knows that Lee Han fought hard to save the professor. He put him in the detention chamber according to the rules, but he can’t help but feel sorry. This must be a gift as a sign of apology.

Headmaster’s trap -> Strictly speaking, the Headmaster is not a person but an undead. He has no human heart. And the Headmaster was clearly enjoying himself while putting him in the detention chamber earlier. In that case…

‘…It feels more likely to be a trap.’

When he thought about it, it seemed like a trap.

Lee Han decided to decide later and tried to push the book away.

That’s when it happened.

Creak!

“!?”

As Lee Han reached out, the black-bound book forcibly opened.

And the letters on the opened page popped out as if they were alive, wrapping around Lee Han’s hand and digging in.

“!!!!”

Lee Han felt a shock as if someone was directly hammering knowledge into his brain.

‘What is this…!’

He was confused and in pain, but he could tell what this book was trying to do.

This book was trying to pass on a spell.

Lee Han’s mouth opened instinctively. And then he recited the name of the spell.

“Gonadaltez’s… Nimble Footwork…!”

Pop!

As the transmission ended, the book closed tightly again with a rustling sound. Lee Han looked confused and tried to open it, but it was stuck tight, like it was glued shut.

‘What kind of book is this?’

Lee Han held his head, which was hurting. He tried to understand the new magic knowledge he had just gotten.

As if he had known it from the beginning, the knowledge of the spell >Gonadaltez’s Nimble Footwork< remained vividly in Lee Han's mind. From the incantation to the movements. Of course, that didn't mean he could use the spell right away. It was up to Lee Han to realize it based on that knowledge. ‘In other words, it's a book that forcibly teaches magic…’ From the name of the spell, he could tell that it was a spell that Headmaster Skull had created himself. If it was such a spell, Headmaster Skull could have called Lee Han and taught him one-on-one, so why would he transmit it in such an eccentric way? ‘It must be because the Headmaster is crazy. Anyway, people go crazy if they spend too long as professors.’ Lee Han understood on his own. Of course, the reason why the Headmaster didn't teach him directly was because if he taught him arbitrarily one-on-one, other professors or outsiders would say, ‘That crazy Archmage is trying to ruin another young talent again!’… There was no way for Lee Han to know that. “Feet, wrinkle the earth. Feet, wrinkle the earth. Feet, wrinkle the…” With nothing else to do, Lee Han diligently recited the newly learned spell. Lee Han himself went around saying, ‘I'm not that greedy for magic,’ but objectively speaking, Lee Han was definitely crazy about magic. Usually, when freshmen have nothing to do, they play, but they don't ‘study because they have nothing to do’ like Lee Han. Thump thump thump- “…?” Lee Han paused at the sound of knocking on the wall coming from somewhere. What is it? "Feet, wrinkle the…" Thump thump thump- He hadn't misheard. Lee Han carefully brought his ear close to the wall of the detention chamber. Thump thump thump- The sound was a little louder. Lee Han knocked on the wall as well. The other person seemed to hear the sound and paused for a moment. A rough, husky, low voice was heard. "...Can you hear me?" "Yes, I can hear you." "...What year are you?" "I just entered this year." "...Iron, huh. You're having a hard time." "What about you…?" "...Gold." Gold. It was a title symbolizing the school's fourth year. Lee Han was surprised that a senior from this school was trapped in the next room. ‘What do you have to do to get a fourth-year… No, that's not for me to say.’ Lee Han quickly finished his self-reflection. It wasn't for Lee Han, who had been caught trying to escape, to say. "...What did you do to end up in the detention chamber? Did you start a fight between dormitories or something?" "No." "...No? Then did you steal something from your fellow tower friends?" "No. I was caught trying to escape." A chuckling sound came from the next room. "...This year's freshman is incredibly fast. Only a week has passed and you're already trying to escape. You must have gone to the mountains, right? Everyone gets caught going to the mountains. They don't know there's a wall there." "I didn't go to the mountains." The student beyond the wall was silent for a moment, seemingly surprised by Lee Han's words. "...Don't tell me you went underground?" "Yes." "...Amazing. You noticed the underground passage. But it's a trap. Even touching one item will set off an alarm, and the storehouse keeper guarding the storehouse is a monster specialized in exploration abilities. What did you get caught on?" "I didn't get caught." "...You didn't get caught?" "Yes. I went outside through the underground passage. I got caught after going out." The fourth-year student beyond the wall was shocked. It was surprising that he had realized the existence of the underground passage in just one week, but he had broken through the storehouse's traps and the storehouse keeper's exploration and gone outside through the underground passage??? ‘What is this guy? Is he really a freshman??’ "...Wait a minute. Then why did you get caught?" "I was riding a carriage when Imperial anti-magic activists attacked, and I got caught by the Headmaster while fighting." "……"