Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 612

The Skull Headmaster grumbled, but Ethan did not listen. He had something much more important to think about.

Aeinrogard was known as a place with great chances for wizards, but Ethan knew that not everyone wanted to be the best or most powerful. Some people wanted other things.

“…Aeinrogard is a place full of violence, struggle, blood, and pain. You need to know that before you choose it.”

‘Bit of an exaggeration, isn’t it?’

The Skull Headmaster was very surprised that Ethan was exaggerating.

If you heard this, you might think Aeinrogard had no laws at all, not even from the Empire.

“Fight and eat! Fight and eat!”

Ehandurde’s eyes gleamed as he pounded the table with both hands.

Ethan’s explanation had only excited Ehandurde even more.

Full of strong enemies, struggles, and meals!

“Well, alright. If you’ve decided… but shouldn’t you think about it again? Just one more time?”

“Real good advice you’re giving him there,”

The Skull Headmaster sneered from afar.

A senior should be confident and say, ‘If you don’t come to Aeinrogard, you’re a loser and a failure!’ Instead, he’s acting like he was not sure of himself.

“But isn’t Aeinrogard a bit harsh?”

“Only those raised in greenhouses would consider it harsh. It won’t be particularly harsh for a fellow like him.”

Ethan had to admit the Skull Headmaster had a point.

Compared to the life this junior had lived, Aeinrogard might not be so difficult.

“You’re right.”

“Seems like you finally understand. Then order him some food and give him some education. He needs to at least be able to read and write his own name.”

“…Er, am I doing that?”

“The Death Knights usually do, but if you don’t want to, I can assign them.”

Ethan looked at his junior, who was staring at the empty plate with an innocent expression.

He looked every bit the part of a junior who had learned nothing about the Empire and had only known struggle.

Was it a good idea to let knights who died long ago teach someone new? They might not know how things are now.

“I’ll just do it.”

“Wasting time because of sympathy.”

‘You’re the one who told me to…’

Ethan was very surprised, but the Skull Headmaster was already preparing to go out and walking towards the entrance.

“Where are you going today?”

“Going to persuade the fellows who have new students. I won’t need your help today, so play with your junior.”

“Ah. Are there only places that are easy to persuade?”

“No. There are only fellows who don’t need persuading.”

The Skull Headmaster reached for a white coat, hesitated for a moment, and then put it down.

“Hmm… too much trouble if blood splatters on it.”

Ethan looked away and looked at his junior as the Skull Headmaster put on a black coat.

“Alright. Let’s start with spelling.”

The junior was quite clever.

It didn’t take long for him to completely learn the Imperial letters and be able to write his name.

“Alright. Write after me. Aeinrogard.”

“Aeinrogard.”

“Osu Gonadaltes.”

“Osu Gonadaltes.”

“Madman.”

“Madman.”

“No, forget that last one. It just came out of habit. Anyway, you did really well. I’ll get you some food.”

Ethan headed to the villa’s kitchen.

The kitchen pantry was quite plentiful, except for the too many sardines.

Potatoes, canned sardines, carrots, dried sardines, cabbage, frozen sardines, chicken, pickled sardines…

‘I should probably put the sardines aside.’

It was too simple to prepare a fancy meal, but to the eyes of a skilled Aeinrogard student, this was enough for a feast.

Ethan prepared the meal, thinking about how his junior probably hadn’t had a warm meal in a long time.

Grumble-

“Wait a moment.”

“Understood.”

First, he put a chunk of meat over the fire for his starving junior, stir-fried it with vegetables, and then seasoned it simply with pepper and salt before serving it.

However, the junior didn’t eat right away and waited.

“You can eat, you know?”

“Didn’t win yet?”

“…From now on, you can eat even if you don’t win. And you memorized the spelling well just now. That’s winning.”

“!”

The junior seemed to think Ethan’s words sounded right and began to eat the food quickly.

Seeing the plate being emptied in an instant, Ethan immediately served more food.

Cheese-stuffed potatoes baked golden brown in the oven, potato soup cooked slowly with onions fried in butter, sardine dish stir-fried with cabbage and lots of spices…

‘Oops, I used the sardines.’

He didn’t intend to make a sardine dish, but there were so many that he ended up using them.

However, the junior ate it deliciously. Ethan looked at his junior with a satisfied expression.

“Oh, were you eating?”

Alsicle walked out yawning.

Alsicle had been through a lot following the Skull Headmaster and Ethan, so recently he had been focusing on his magic research again.

And strangely, magic research tended to go better at night.

Alsicle, who had stayed up all night and woke up during the day, was delighted to see a different table than usual and said,

“Wow, did you make this yourself? Can I have some too?”

“Of course.”

Alsicle excitedly tried to take some of the sardine dish…

Whack!

Grrr!

Ehandurde smacked Alsicle’s wing and growled.

“Why, why?”

“Hey! You can’t do that to Mr. Alsicle. Apologize.”

“??”

The junior tilted his head as if he didn’t understand Ethan’s words.

Within Ehandurde, a hierarchy of ‘Ethan > Himself > Penguin Suin’ had already been established.

“Sorry…”

“No, it’s alright. He must like sardines. I’ve had a lot of sardines, so I’ll have this meat dish…”

Whack!

Grrr!

Alsicle was very surprised to see the Gorgon hybrid growling once again.

He had heard from the Skull Headmaster that he had ‘picked up a rather rough fellow,’ but he didn’t expect it to be this extreme.

“…I’ll just prepare my own meal.”

It wasn’t right for someone from the Pengaerin family to argue over food with a young wizard who hadn’t learned properly yet.

Alsicle opened a can of sardines and held it in his beak.

Ethan stared blankly, like he was in a trance.

People even gave money to watch Alsicle eat fish. Nobles paid because it seemed like magic to see him swallow a fish whole.

Eandurde was puzzled by the way Lee Han stared intently at Alsicle eating sardines.

Then he opened a can of sardines himself and tried to swallow it whole.

“Wait! You don’t have to do that!”

“??”

“You can just eat normally.”

‘So, I wasn’t eating normally?’ Alsicle grumbled inwardly.

Alsicle was a penguin beastman, and for people like him, being popular was normal, but the enthusiastic reactions from the side whenever he swallowed fish sometimes got annoying.

“Have you had your meal?”

“I’m about to have it now.” Lee Han was planning to make a sandwich or something.

Then the junior hesitated and offered the plate in front of him.

“No… you eat it. I’m okay.”

“Are you saying the winner gets to eat? Why aren’t *you* eating then?”

“The real winner doesn’t steal other people’s meals, but sometimes takes care of them instead. Here. Let’s finish eating and study next.”

Eandurde didn’t understand everything, but nodded and ate the remaining meal.

Alsicle watched the scene and said,

“I think I need to teach him dining etiquette.”

Hmph!

The junior glared at Alsicle again and growled. Alsicle was flustered and explained,

“No, dining etiquette is important. You need to learn it.”

“Junior. You need to learn dining etiquette too.”

“I understand.”

“……”

Alsicle was shocked by the reaction of that Gorgon hybrid kid.

Alsicle understood then how this beast-like student had become the boss.

‘That guy?!’

Lee Han started intensive training with Alsicle’s help.

“First of all, I think you need basic Imperial common sense. Like, you shouldn’t just take what you need without permission.”

“But in Einrogard, don’t you just take what you need by force?”

“Alsicle, where did you hear such rumors?”

“Gonadaltez told me.”

“…Besides that, simple customs for each region of the Empire, basic arithmetic.”

“Etiquette. Be sure to teach him etiquette.”

“I understand.”

“Etiquette to observe at noble gatherings too.”

“That far?”

“It’s useful to learn everything.”

Alsicle strongly insisted on an in-depth etiquette learning course for the cheeky Gorgon hybrid kid.

In Alsicle’s view, that fellow was severely lacking in basic Imperial morality.

He needed to learn advanced morality to feel deeply how great and dignified the nobles of the Empire were, and to realize how rude his actions had been.

“Hmm. I understand.” Lee Han was puzzled but agreed for now.

Lee Han himself had learned it in the Wodanaz family, so it wasn’t too difficult to teach.

“Oh, and I think I need to teach him how to control his strength too.”

Eandurde’s most powerful weapons were his petrifying eyes and his hair that turned into snakes.

A veteran and experienced warrior could control this on their own, but he couldn’t expect that from his junior.

“You don’t have to worry about that. The headmaster will take care of it with an artifact.” Alsicle said, shaking his wings.

The skull headmaster had dealt with students with tricky origins or backgrounds more than once or twice.

That level of racial ability was beyond easy; he could solve it while yawning.

“Oh, but I have a lot of magic power, and they didn’t do anything for me.”

“Wow. There are two sardines in this can?!”

“……”

Lee Han grumbled that he shouldn’t have said anything and organized what to teach his junior.

‘I’ll have him read a few more letters before going in, um. Just in case, should I have him learn how to make useful alchemical potions? Edible grass and herbs would be quite useful too. This guy has no hunting experience, should I teach him how to hunt…?’

“Be silent and still. Be silent and still. Nod and smile. Nod and smile.”

Eandurde made ‘mmm’ sounds and recited the etiquette.

It seemed like that was all he needed to do for now at the place he was going.

Don’t attack first, but retaliate when attacked, behave politely usually, show utmost respect if you meet the boss along the way, and don’t eat anything you receive as a gift from school without thinking…

Lee Han was pleased to see what his junior had written down.

“Show utmost respect when you meet the headmaster. He’s very smart?”

“What is a headmaster?”

“…Wait. Then who is this boss…”

Bang!

The door opened, and the skull headmaster returned with a tired look.

“What a bunch of annoying guys.”

“Oh. Mr. Gonadaltez. You have blood on you.”

“Not my blood.”

“……”

Alsicle regretted pointing it out.

“Still, you killed them all!”

“Pardon?”

“Ah. It’s all over. I meant I persuaded them all.”

“……”

“……”

At that moment, a paper bird flew in through the window. The skull headmaster frowned deeply upon receiving the letter.

“What kind of letter is it?”

“A fellow who said he would enroll is suddenly changing his mind. I thought it was all over, but how annoying…”

Alsicle asked, intrigued,

“That’s unusual. There aren’t many people who say they’ll enroll and then change their minds. Who is it?”

“Your family.”

“…!”

Alsicle thought about those in his family who were old enough to enter Einrogard.

“Ah. I think I know who it is. Probably someone who thinks they can study on their own with their talent, even if they don’t enter Einrogard…”

“Why are all your family members so very confident?”

“It’s not just my family…”

“Never mind. I know how to deal with people like that.”

“Are you going to beat him up?”

“No. Wodanaz. Get your coat. Let’s go.”

“……”

Alsicle had no choice but to acknowledge the skull headmaster’s special medicine.

The effect would surely be terribly good!