Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 566

A moment later, Lee Han drank the Red Venom of Ahrak with a serious look on his face.

“By the way, Senior, what kind of venom is this?” he asked. He hadn’t thought much about it while drinking, but now he was curious.

The magic in the venom felt strong and complicated, not like regular poisons.

Dirette raised a finger to warn him. “Stop thinking about other things. Focus on the venom. Tell me right away if you feel anything.”

Even black wizards who work with poisons can get poisoned. In fact, they can get even more poisoned because they handle them so much.

Even if they build up resistance, a small mistake can be deadly when making new poisons. Ahrak’s death showed this clearly.

“Well? Do you feel anything?” Dirette asked.

Lee Han shook his head, his eyes closed as he focused on the venom. “Hmm… Nothing. It doesn’t seem to have any effect.”

Quite some time had passed since he drank it, but he didn’t feel any of the venom’s energy in his body. The venom was too weak for Lee Han’s magic and just disappeared.

“This one too? Hmm…” Dirette frowned a little.

He had hoped the Red Venom of Ahrak would break through Lee Han’s poison resistance and poison him, but it didn’t even make a scratch.

“I’m sorry,” Lee Han said.

“It’s not your fault, Junior. More importantly, I need to teach you how to react when you get poisoned.” Dirette was trying so hard to poison Lee Han for a reason.

It was important for a black wizard who uses poison to experience being poisoned. He needed to learn how to use magic to stop poison from spreading in his body, and how to get rid of poison.

These skills were important for a black wizard’s safety and for studying poisons. The problem was that no matter what poison he gave Lee Han, it didn’t work.

“Cough. Ker-cough. Hack hack.”

“Kha-hack. Keh-heck. Keh-heh-heck.”

Gainando and Rapardiel gasped for air, their faces turning pale.

Dirette calmly warned them, “Don’t try to breathe hard just because it’s hard. You can last a minute. Stop trying to breathe and find a way to get rid of the poison.”

“Guh-huh-cough, guh-cough.”

“Grrr-luck, grrr-luck.”

The two scratched at the desk, glaring at Dirette. He didn’t care, as he had seen this before.

“Are you alright?” Dirette asked Imirgue.

“Ah, yes, yes! Thank you,” Imirgue said, waving his staff while enduring the pain in his arm. It was a good reaction.

‘I feel a bit left out,’ Lee Han thought.

Of course, he didn’t want to be poisoned, but it felt strange to be the only one standing still while his friends coughed and struggled with the poison.

“Wouldn’t a stronger poison work?” Lee Han asked.

“No. The Red Venom of Ahrak is already strong enough to kill,” Dirette replied.

“Oh… What? The Red Venom of Ahrak?” Lee Han could hardly believe it. Was it really okay to give him that?

“Well, we know you have a strong resistance now… Let’s watch you for a while longer. It will be years before you find a poison that can hurt you,” Dirette said.

“Yes. I’ll just be careful with poisons,” Lee Han said.

“You can’t just avoid it by being careful. I’m moving to the fifth year next year, so I won’t be able to check on you like this,” Dirette said.

“Good heavens. Why would you do that?” Lee Han asked.

“……”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think before I spoke,” Lee Han apologized.

“No, it’s okay to say that. Thank you,” Dirette said, then suddenly thought, ‘Wait, doesn’t he not have the right to say that?’

How could a freshman taking classes from every department worry about someone else? If he were a fifth-year student, it would be like being torn apart by ancient torture…

“Senior?” Lee Han asked.

“Huh? It’s nothing,” Dirette replied.

“?”

Lee Han was confused by Dirette’s reaction. He seemed different, like he was lost in thought. ‘Is he worried about moving to the fifth year?’ Lee Han thought. Anyone would feel that way. He understood and nodded.

“Senior, look at this,” Lee Han said.

“An egg? I told you, you don’t need to bring me things like this,” Dirette said, looking unhappy.

Of course, Lee Han was a great cook, as expected from the top student in alchemy. Dirette was shocked to hear that the soufflé pancakes Lee Han had brought last time were made with ingredients he had gathered himself in Einroguard. He almost lost a feather from his wing.

But as a senior, he couldn’t accept snacks, let alone ask for them.

“Did you not like the soufflé pancakes last time? Maybe store-bought snacks would have been better…” Lee Han asked.

“They were really delicious, but I felt bad taking them. Cohalti bought all the eggs in the school market and kept making soufflé pancakes, trying to copy your taste,” Dirette explained.

“Oh dear. I should have just made more. And this isn’t a snack; I brought it as a magic ingredient,” Lee Han said, carefully taking out an egg laid by a ghost chicken from the basket.

Lee Han was raising ghost chickens in the hut where he used to take care of the basilisk’s egg, and their eggs were valuable black magic ingredients.

“Ghost chicken?!” Dirette was surprised and took the egg. “This is really… amazing. How did you get this?”

“Please don’t ask. Anyway, I want to sell this. Is that okay?” Lee Han asked.

“It’s definitely okay, but…” Dirette looked troubled.

Lee Han asked, wondering if there was a problem. “Is something wrong? Ah, are you doing me a favor…?”

“What are you talking about? It’s not that at all,” Dirette said, staring at Lee Han as if he were stupid.

“It’s just that the other students will probably want to buy it from you directly, instead of you selling it to people outside the school. Rare magic ingredients cost much more if you buy them from shops outside.”

The law of supply and demand also applied to wizard reagents.

Finding normal magic ingredients was easy, like buying bread in a market. But the rare ones? Those were like gold! Everyone wanted them, and the prices went sky-high. Ghost Chicken eggs were already hard to find, but now it was even worse. People said the *Shadow Wizards* were hunting for them. Whenever someone found a Ghost Chicken egg, you could hear shouts of excitement – and maybe a little arguing – from those wizards.

Junior: “Hey, if you really need those Ghost Chicken eggs, I can just give them to the older students, you know, the seniors.”

Senior (Dirette): “What? Seriously? Why would you do that? You’re a first-year, you could sell them yourself and make good money!”

Junior: “Yeah, but… we’re all from Phoenix Tower, right? We should help each other out.”

*Dirette looked at the junior, surprised. He was being honest and kind. ‘But still,’ Dirette thought to himself, ‘Ghost Chicken eggs are worth a lot. Maybe too much to just give away.’ He made a quick decision.* “Actually,” Dirette said, thinking aloud, “it might be better if I handle this. I know some people outside the school who buy rare ingredients…”

Senior (Dirette): “Okay, okay, forget about the eggs for now,” Dirette waved his hand dismissively. “Let’s focus on Poison magic. It’s not as simple as you might think. You can’t just splash poison around and hope for the best. Even magic poison, even poison that can do things normal poison can’t, is tricky to use.”

Senior (Dirette) continues: “Poison isn’t like fire, bursting everywhere. It’s not like lightning, striking fast. It’s usually a small amount of liquid, so getting it *onto* someone is the challenge. They say really powerful wizards can poison with just a look, but we’re not there yet! For now, you need to be clever.”

Senior (Dirette) explains methods: “You could try making a poison mist, like a cloud of sickness. Or mix it with Water magic to shoot poison arrows – they’d be weaker, but still dangerous. Or, and this is what we’ll try first, you can combine it with something solid, like Bone magic.”

Senior (Dirette): “So, the first thing we’ll practice is…”

Junior (Lee Han): “Poison mist? Or maybe poison clouds?”

Senior (Dirette): “Actually, I was going to say Bone magic and poison… Wait. Why mist and clouds?” Dirette frowned, finally understanding what Lee Han had suggested. “Why would you think of that?”

Junior (Lee Han): “Well, I’m pretty good at resisting poison, so I thought, why not just fill the whole area with it? Even if I get a little bit sick, it would hit everyone else.”

Senior (Dirette): “Hmm,” Dirette considered this. “That’s… unusual, but not bad thinking. Still, let’s start with the Bone magic method. It’s more controlled.”

*Dirette showed Lee Han how to channel poison magic into a bone shard. Lee Han concentrated, his brow furrowed. He tried again and again. After a little while, a faint green glow appeared around the bone in his hand. It was working.*

Senior (Dirette), checking the time: “Okay, not bad for a first try. So, about this poison mist idea…”

The students in each Tower had been taking turns with chores all semester. Cleaning the huge castle of Einroguard was hard work, and everyone was getting tired, even if they didn’t realize it at first. On top of that, final exams were coming up fast, like a runaway train. Even the Phoenix Tower students, usually the most energetic and hard-working, were starting to move slowly and yawn a lot.

*Lee Han sighed as he swept a dusty corridor. Exams were stressful, sure, but something else was bothering him much more. It was the Headmaster. The *Skull Headmaster*, as everyone called him, though not to his face. Lee Han had a bad feeling. Exams were just exams, you studied or you didn’t. But the Skull Headmaster… he was unpredictable, and always seemed to attack when you least expected it, when you were tired and not paying attention.*

And lately, Lee Han thought, the Headmaster had to be furious. The first-year students had been sneaking out to the nearby town more than ever, bringing back all sorts of things they shouldn’t have. They were showing off their new clothes and treats like excited children.

Student 1 (excitedly): “Look at this! A real coat, with *pockets*! I bought it in town!”

Student 2 (admiringly): “Wow! Isn’t that a bit much? So fancy!”

Student 3 (showing off): “Fancy? Look at *these*! Real leather gloves! Keeps your hands warm when you’re casting spells!”

Student 4 (laughing): “We deserve it! After eating castle gruel all year, we deserve a little luxury!”

Lee Han wanted to tell them to be careful, to stop showing off, to not anger the Headmaster. But he knew it was pointless. After being hungry and wearing rags for so long, would anyone listen to reason when they finally had a little bit of comfort?

Priest Siana (calling out): “Wodanaz! We’re done here!”

Lee Han (calling back): “Coming!” *Lee Han flicked his wand, the tip glowing, and hurried over to where the other Phoenix Tower students were waiting.*

They were on bug duty. Not just any bugs, but nasty little *blood-leeches* that lived in the bushes around the castle. One blood-leech wasn’t a problem, you could squash it with your boot. But when dozens of them came buzzing out of the bushes, like a swarm of angry wasps, it was dangerous. So, they had to check every bush, every shadow, and use spells to get rid of them before they became a swarm. It was boring work, more about patience than powerful magic.

“Burn them all,” Lee Han muttered, waving his wand. Jets of bright orange flame shot from the tip, licking at the bushes, leaving trails of smoke and the smell of burning leaves. He moved quickly, torching every suspicious-looking patch of greenery.

The other priests were using a different method. They poured thick, green potion from flasks into puddles and around the base of bushes. The potion smelled like rotten eggs, but it was supposed to weaken the blood-leeches.

Priest Siana (pointing): “Wodanaz! Look at this!”

Lee Han (walking over): “?” *He followed Siana’s gaze.*

Behind a thick bush, pressed into the damp earth, was a huge footprint. Not as big as a giant’s, but much bigger than any human foot. ‘What made that?’ Lee Han wondered, his hand instinctively going to his wand. *He pointed his wand and whispered, “Lumos Maxima!”* *A beam of light, much brighter than the torches the other students carried, shot out, illuminating the area.*

The light revealed more than just a footprint. The ground was torn up, and deep claw marks scarred the rocks and tree trunks nearby. Something big and angry had been here.

*Then, in the circle of light, something moved. Between the trees, a creature stood, tall and hunched, like a monstrous wolf standing on two legs. Its eyes glowed red in the light, and its fur was matted with dark, sticky blood. It had clearly been feasting on the blood-leeches, and droplets of blood dripped from its jaws.*

Some of the younger priests gasped and stumbled back, feeling a wave of fear roll off the creature. But Lee Han just frowned.

Lee Han (casually): “Oh, it’s you again. Did the Headmaster send you?”

*The creature snarled, a low, rumbling growl that vibrated in the air. It lunged at Lee Han.*

Lee Han (quickly): “Dark magic, blast it!” *A thick, black bolt of energy shot from Lee Han’s wand, slamming into the creature. But the monster twisted in mid-air, dodging the worst of the blast.* *’Fast for something so big,’ Lee Han thought, already preparing another spell.* *He was always ready for trouble on bug duty. His special skills, gifts from ancient magic, made him quick and alert.*

*Suddenly, a loud horn blast echoed through the trees.* *Toot! Toot!*

*A moment later, a Death Knight, his black armor gleaming in the torchlight, came crashing through the undergrowth.*

Death Knight (shouting): “What’s going on here?! First-years, get back!” *He raised his sword, pointing it at the monster.*

Lee Han (suspiciously, wand still raised): *’Are they working together?’* Lee Han wondered, glancing from the monster to the Death Knight.

Death Knight (angrily): “What is that *thing*?! Step away from the monster!” *He blew his horn again, louder this time.* *Toot! Toot! Toot!*

Lee Han (questioning): “Isn’t that… the Headmaster’s pet?”

Death Knight (outraged): “What nonsense are you talking about?!” *The Death Knights looked genuinely shocked and angry.* “That creature is not one of ours!”