Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 639

While everyone was quiet, touched by Arsil’s kindness, Ethan was a little surprised when Arsil spoke.

“Wait, you want to give gifts to *my* friends?” Ethan asked. “Really? No, Brother, don’t be sad! It’s just… these gifts, they’re a bit dangerous, right? You promised to give them something safe. You said that to me last time too! You knew it was dangerous, but you still wanted to give me something amazing. Hey, what are you doing now?”

Ethan felt a rush of frustration. *Why does he always give me these strange things when all I want is something normal and safe?*

“Ethan, I’m curious about you using spirit language…” Yoner wondered what kind of person Ethan’s brother was.

Mixed in with that curiosity was a hint of wicked anticipation.

Just as Yoner was embarrassed by his crazy sister, he wanted to see Ethan embarrassed by his crazy brother!

“What gifts?”

“Wait. Gainan too. Spirit language…”

“Is spirit language important? You said gifts! You did say gifts, right?” The unaware relative rushed to Ethan, asking questions.

The thought of receiving a gift from someone who seemed so mysterious was too tempting to resist.

“If he said gifts, you should be careful, Gainan. Most of the gifts my brother gives are strange.”

Arsil became a little sad as he made his excuses. Of course, his ungrateful brother didn’t even pretend to listen.

“Does Gainan like the Wizard Card Game, you ask? He does, but… No, Brother. Don’t give him any Wizard Card Game-related gifts. He’ll do nothing but that all day.”

“What? He’s giving away Wizard Cards?!”

Gainan, despite not hearing the spirit language, listened closely to the conversation.

“Me! Me! I want to receive one! If you give it to me, I’ll cherish it for life!”

Arsil smiled with satisfaction and handed over a pencil case made of tough leather. Gainan received it with a puzzled look.

“Oh, is this supposed to make me study?”

“No. Apparently, it’s not a pencil case but a case for storing Wizard Cards?”

“A leather case, then!”

Gainan happily put his cards into the case. Then, Arsil explained.

“It’s not an ordinary case, apparently? It’s supposed to give advice when you play the Wizard Card Game.”

“…!” Gainan was shocked.

Among magical items, those with self-awareness or intelligence were extremely rare.

Especially if it was exclusively for the Wizard Card Game.

Who would spend a fortune to create a magical item that advises on the Wizard Card Game?

“Re-really?!”

“But isn’t it a game where luck decides everything? Does advice even matter?”

“Don’t say things you don’t know, Ethan! Skill is so important in the Wizard Card Game!”

Nilia looked puzzled at Gainan’s exclamation.

“Doesn’t he always lose to Wodanaz?”

“Leave him be. I guarantee he won’t win even with advice.”

Despite his friends’ insults, Gainan didn’t care.

He believed that the reason he lost so often was not only bad luck but also the occasional mistake.

If he could avoid those mistakes with advice, he could definitely win!

“Heh heh. Now, no one can stop m…”

“My brother is asking if you want to play a light game. How about it?”

“Great!” Gainan’s face lit up as he took the cards out of the case.

Arsil also smiled as he took out his cards. Seeing cards like >Wandering Bookseller> or >Raging Wind Spirit>, Gainan smiled triumphantly.

They weren’t particularly rare or expensive cards.

And 10 minutes later…

Gainan blinked, shocked by the five losses in a row.

He didn’t just lose; he lost far more completely than usual.

“E-Ethan, isn’t this wrong advice?!”

Ethan replied casually.

“My brother can hear the voices of the spirits.”

“So what?”

“The spirits are telling him all your cards. It’ll be hard to win.”

“!?”

Gainan stared at the spirits in astonishment.

Sabotaging a sacred card game!

“H-How could the spirits do this…! How?!”

The spirits, regardless, giggled and spoke to Arsil. Arsil laughed along and responded to the spirits.

“Brother, are you perhaps making fun of me?!”

“He’s just saying the sunlight is nice today.”

Gainan, dizzy from the shock of defeat, changed his target.

“Ethan. Just one game!”

“Alright. Alright.”

Normally, he would have immediately smacked him on the head and told him to study, but today he was being nice because he was a guest who had come from far away.

Besides, the coachman had disappeared…

*If I lose on purpose, he’ll be happy.* Ethan thought about losing on purpose to make Gainan happy.

In fact, if Ethan won, he would have to play several more games, so it was an easy choice.

Fortunately, the leather case Arsil gave him seemed to be an ordinary magical item without any special side effects (boring and uninteresting from Arsil’s point of view).

“So, you’re saying I should play this >Palm Tree Knight Order> here?” Gainan muttered, talking to the leather case.

“But Ethan has already played three >Swift Skeleton Warriors> on the field? If I don’t play a card to protect myself here, I might die next turn? It’s okay? He can’t kill me? Alright. Then I’ll trust you and play the >Palm Tree Knight Order>!”

Gainan confidently played the Knight Order card. With a dazzling light, the Knight Order moved within the card.

And Ethan commanded the >Swift Skeleton Warriors> to end Gainan’s remaining life points.

“N-No!!! You said it was okay!!!” Gainan shouted at the leather case.

“What do you mean, I was unlucky! What kind of advice is this! My judgment was right!”

“You played one game, right? I’m done.” Ethan and his friends quickly turned away while Gainan was arguing with the leather case.

If they got caught here, they would have to play several more games.

Arsil gifted Nilia a comb made of jade.

“Th-Thank you! But what kind of magical item is this?”

“When you comb your hair, enemies can’t find you for a while… No, Brother. It was this kind of item!? You could have just told me…!”

Arsil waved his hand as if it were an uninteresting item. Then, he gifted Yoner an inkpot filled with ink that constantly changed color.

“This is ink that writes letters that the owner’s enemies can’t see… Brother. Please don’t give me gifts like this in the future?”

Yoner picked up a quill and wrote ‘Gainan is an idiot’ on the paper.

“Gainan?”

“What?” Gainan, who was angry from arguing with the leather case and losing, turned his head.

“Can you see this?”

“Huh? It’s just paper.”

Yoner nodded in satisfaction.

“Thank you.”

Arsil greeted them casually, as if it were nothing.

After the greetings, the friends, as guests who visited the mansion usually did, looked around the mansion and talked with Ethan’s new junior (Gainan was kept away).

Then, they all sat together in the study and started studying magic. Not because they particularly liked magic, but because there wasn’t much else to do in the mansion.

After about three days, Gainan begged with a look that made it hard to tell whether he was in Einrogard or outside.

“L-Let me see the territory, even. Ethan… I might die if I stay here any longer.”

“Quiet. Study quietly.” Yoner scolded his relative and flicked his quill.

Even though Einrogard didn’t give homework for vacation, they still had to study a lot to keep up.

If they didn’t prepare for the weak areas in the first year, they would have to make up for it when they entered school in the second year.

*Hmm. Nilia seems to want to rest too.* Ethan looked at Nilia. Nilia awkwardly tried to open her mouth but froze.

She must have been about to agree with Gainan but stopped after seeing Yoner’s reaction.

“Sightseeing wouldn’t be bad either. Is there anywhere you’re curious about?”

Usually, even if a great noble family’s territory was far from the city, it wouldn’t be so boring.

Since many guests constantly visited and stayed, new balls, banquets, plays, and performances were constantly held.

The new guests could easily spend the whole day just responding to these invitations.

But the Wodanaz family’s territory was the most unique and strange among the great noble families’ territories.

There wasn’t much to do since even the people in the mansion weren’t often seen, let alone guests.

The only thing possible was territory patrol.

Looking around the family’s territory, getting some fresh air, and sightseeing, a pleasant pastime that any family could enjoy…

“Ethan, sir. You are currently not allowed to approach the west garden of the mansion. The golems have revolted, and it will take some time to stop them.” Alarron politely spoke and walked down the hallway. Ethan said as if he couldn’t help it.

“Oh dear. The west garden is off-limits.”

Gainan regretted speaking up, but he couldn’t stop now.

It seemed like the golem revolt garden would be better than continuing to study here.

“Then the north! To the north!”

“There’s a lake maze in the north… Kyung! Is it okay to enter the lake maze now?”

“I do not recommend it, Ethan, sir. The currents of the lake maze are very strong right now, so it’s dangerous if you enter incorrectly.”

“That’s what he says.”

The three wanted to ask, ‘What the heck is a lake maze, and why is it in the territory?’ but they kept their mouths shut, fearing that Ethan would explain and take them there.

Fortunately, Ethan wasn’t the only one in the mansion. Arsil, who was passing by, heard the story and said kindly.

“My brother says he’ll guide you to a good place?”

“The lake maze?!” Gainan shouted in surprise, and Ethan said as if he was talking nonsense.

“The lake maze is dangerous, Gainan. Just endure it.”

“N-No… I don’t want to go to the lake maze…”

Arsil gestured for them to follow him.

He wanted to give his younger brother’s friends a pleasant experience since they had come to the mansion like this.

“Hmm. I don’t know if it’ll be okay.” Ethan was worried, and his friends asked in confusion.

“Why?”

“The places my brother usually recommends are all a bit strange and dangerous.”

“It’ll be fine.”

“That’s right, Ethan. We went to Einrogard too, remember?”

Ethan felt reassured by his friends’ confident appearance.

He could feel that they had become much stronger together thanks to going to Einrogard together.

“Alright. You’re right.”

As Arsil walked forward, spirits came out one by one, clearing the stones on the dirt path and pushing away the bushes.

The spirits were clearing the way on their own, worried that Arsil might get hurt.

He didn’t know it well before, but now that he knew something about spirits, he could see how amazing that was.

*I mustn’t be envious.* Ethan repeated to himself and tried not to look.

In fact, it was natural that Arsil didn’t learn magic.

If he was so loved by the spirits, why would he need magic?

People like Ethan, who weren’t loved by the spirits, needed magic…

*Oops. What am I thinking.*

Arsil’s speed gradually increased. The group following behind Ethan also sped up.

The spirits were pushing them from behind.

“Is it here?” Ethan was puzzled by Arsil’s words as he stopped. There wasn’t anything particularly special around.

Rumble-

The earth spirits made a heavy sound and created an entrance.

An ancient tomb appeared before their eyes, so old that it was impossible to know how long it had been there.

Gainan muttered without realizing it.

“I-Isn’t this much more strange and dangerous than I thought?”