Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 65

Lee Han’s words surprised Valdor Oren. He worried, *Did I give him the wrong idea? I shouldn’t have said anything about breaking spells like that.*

This way of breaking spells was very dangerous. If a wizard made a mistake, it could even kill them.

To break a spell with force, you needed a huge amount of magic. And if a student who wasn’t very skilled tried it and failed, they could be in serious trouble.

However, Lee Han did not give up easily.

“I promise I won’t try it without thinking. Please tell me the method.”

“But…”

“I paid for the consultation, didn’t I?”

“Yeah, you did. Alright then, fine.”

Valdor Oren agreed.

Having received the fee, he couldn’t refuse to share the information.

“First, you need a huge amount of magic. Your own magic won’t be enough. Use a magic circle and magic stones.”

Magic circles and magic stones.

Wizards used these to get more magic power when they didn’t have enough themselves.

Stronger magic needed more power. A wizard couldn’t always do everything with just their own magic.

They amplify the magic by drawing a magic circle and gathering it there, or use jewels charged with magic as extra batteries.

“Have you learned how to draw a magic circle?”

“I’m learning, yes.”

Lee Han remembered the Basic Imperial Geometry and Arithmetic class he was taking.

Drawing a magic circle was like solving a hard math problem.

It needed math skills and hard work, not just a good feeling.

The students were having a hard time.

It was like asking students who only knew simple math to solve very difficult problems. It was hard to tell if the class was about geometry or the students’ screams.

“Alright. If you can gather magic that way, stand in front of the magic circle’s power and control the magic.”

Once the magic was gathered, it had to be controlled and used to hit the spell.

Hitting it sounded easy, but it was harder than gathering the magic.

You had to control the magic, but more than that, you had to release all the gathered magic at once to make a big impact.

He needed to release the magic all at once, like a sudden flood, not a slow river!

This was not normal for wizards.

They usually released magic slowly, and they didn’t need to release it all at once like that.

“Hmm… It doesn’t seem too difficult.”

Valdor Oren sighed at Lee Han’s words.

Even though he warned him, this freshman was not taking him seriously.

Arrogance.

It was a common weakness for geniuses.

Why did talented wizards die young? They trusted their talent and did dangerous experiments, thinking, ‘I’ll be fine.’

Having entered Einroguard and escaped in his first year, it was natural that this freshman had the weakness of arrogance.

‘Nothing can be done.’

Valdor Oren decided to show the talented boy the reality.

It was a bit embarrassing to be teaching a future archmage, but what could he do?

“I covet the moon and draw its water!”

Valdor Oren took out a handful of powder made from Moonlit Stone, waved his wand, and drew swirling patterns in the air. Silver light flowed from the tip of his wand. The air around them shimmered.

And he raised his magic while saying a long spell.

It was the 3rd Circle magic Lunarian Moonlight Maze.

An illusion magic that anyone learning illusion magic would want to learn, to stop midnight intruders.

It was one of Valdor Oren’s prides.

“!”

Lee Han was surprised.

Suddenly, the room seemed to stretch and twist. Valdor Oren, just across the table, looked like he was miles away, seen through a thick fog. A cold feeling of unease settled over Lee Han, a warning that something was very wrong.

Valdor Oren, who had cast the spell, said,

“Don’t move without thinking. It looks fine, but…”

“If I step in, I’ll fall into a maze?”

“……”

Valdor Oren was surprised.

He wondered how the boy knew.

At first, he thought he knew the magic, but that wasn’t the case.

Then there was only one reason.

This boy could tell something was strange just by looking at the magic.

It was an amazing sense of perception.

“…That’s right. I used this magic to show you how hard it is to break a spell with force.”

“I see…”

Lee Han was impressed by his kindness.

This wizard, Valdor Oren, seemed like a better teacher than the professors at the magic school.

He explained everything clearly, showed him what to do, and explained why it was important…

Having been scolded by Professor Volardi and then taught like this, Lee Han felt grateful.

“Now, try it carefully. Take your time. But stop if it seems dangerous.”

“Thank you.”

“?”

Valdor Oren felt something was off.

Lee Han was looking at him with respect.

Why…?

Clang!

The sound was silent, but Valdor Oren heard it clearly.

It was the sound of magic breaking.

‘No way!’

Valdor Oren was shocked.

Just once.

It was just one try.

And it wasn’t even serious.

The boy didn’t draw a magic circle. He raised his magic briefly and then lightly touched the illusion, as if testing it. But that was enough to break Lunarian Moonlight Maze.

Then, something incredible happened. A wave of raw magic, like a sudden explosion of light, shot from Lee Han’s hand. It slammed into the shimmering illusion. There was a silent *crack* – a sound only felt, not heard – and the maze of moonlight vanished as if it had never been there.

Baldooreorn frowned. He didn’t get it.

The student, Lee Han, was good, yes.

But magic needed time. Gathering power so fast? It shouldn’t be possible.

“Thank you!”

Lee Han didn’t notice Baldooreorn’s confusion and expressed his gratitude.

“Excuse me…?”

“Thanks to Baldooreorn’s excellent guidance, I was able to realize this.”

For a moment, Baldooreorn wondered if Lee Han was making fun of him.

This was crazy! Was Lee Han a mad professor in disguise? Maybe he was here to cause trouble, pretending to be a student.

However, Lee Han’s eyes were too pure for such a thought. They were filled with sincere gratitude.

“No, I really didn’t do much. I didn’t teach you anything…”

“No. You’re the first person to teach me so easily and accurately, like Baldooreorn.”

“Don’t go around saying things like that!”

Baldooreorn frantically stopped him.

If the mad professors at the magic school heard that, they might get angry and turn Baldooreorn into a frog.

Lee Han bowed deeply, sincerely.

“If I come out again, I’ll visit Baldooreorn again and ask questions.”

“No… no… no. I have nothing to teach you.”

Honestly, Baldooreorn wanted to say, ‘Don’t come,’ but he couldn’t bring himself to say that since he had received a consultation fee.

He merely said, timidly, that he had nothing to teach.

However, that attitude only appeared as humility in Lee Han’s eyes.

‘So humble!’

Like rice that bows its head as it ripens, Baldooreorn’s attitude only seemed more dignified.

Seeing that, running a workshop in a corner of the village somehow seemed cool.

Originally, the more outstanding a wizard, the more they enjoyed eccentricities. This wizard, Baldooreorn, must have set up the workshop as a kind of hobby.

“I’ll see you next time!”

Lee Han, grateful for this meeting, went outside.

Baldooreorn sat heavily on his wooden stool, his mouth slightly open in dumbfounded surprise. Dust motes danced in the single ray of sunlight that slanted across his cluttered workshop. He slowly got up, the stool scraping against the stone floor.

Then, he changed the sign hanging on the workshop door from ‘Open’ to ‘Closed’.

After that, he reopened the illusion magic book he hadn’t read for a while…I don’t know how much this will help, but I felt like I needed to study something, anything.

“…Headmaster. I can be alone here…”

Professor Garcia said, looking at the skeletal Headmaster floating beside him.

Professor Garcia was in charge of the main gate at this time. There was no need for the skeletal Headmaster to be here.

The only reason the skeletal Headmaster, who never interfered in matters that weren’t his responsibility, was here was simple: Because he was enjoying it!

‘He’s just waiting for Lee Han to be late!’

At Einroguard, students escaping the school were rarer than students going out with permission.

Students who received such a rare opportunity were overjoyed to go outside, but in reality, the school didn’t let students out with such pure intentions.

All sorts of traps awaited the innocent students.

The students who went out happily usually realized the reality, despaired at having no money, wandered around the village, and were dragged back with tearful faces.

And such students were not given a second chance. Receiving a second outing pass was much more difficult than receiving the first.

“I think it would be nice to give out outing passes more generously as a reward…”

Still a long way to go, Professor Garcia. If you teach students with such easygoing and soft hearts, the students will become weak and complacent.

“…”

True wizards are forged in trials!

“Okay, okay, just stop it.”

Professor Garcia cut him off, sounding fed up.

He had heard the skeletal Headmaster’s theory of ‘True wizards are born from trials’ so many times that he was tired of it.

Oh, that ancient wizard!

Your expression is quite expectant.

“…It might be better not to expect too much. Lee Han is unusually clever, isn’t he?”

Indeed, that was true.

Surprisingly, the skeletal Headmaster readily admitted it.

He did indeed rate Lee Han that highly.

But this had nothing to do with magical talent or a tough spirit. He needed to find money, but there was nowhere to get it, and even if he did, the amount he could take was limited… Moreover, time was running out! The smarter he thought he was, the harder it would be for him to come easily because of his greed. I hope the time comes quickly so I can go catch him.

“Think to yourself.”

Professor Garcia answered curtly, but he admitted that the skeletal Headmaster’s words made sense.

Why else would students who used their outing passes usually get caught and dragged back?

It was because of that greed of ‘If I just have a little more time, I might be able to do something!’

As soon as they arrived in the village, unexpected situations arose, so they needed the ability to recognize this and give up on certain things.

If they tried to get everything they needed, they would fall into the skeletal Headmaster’s trap…

?!?!!”

Thud!

A huge figure appeared on the hill in front of the main gate.

For a moment, Professor Garcia thought it was a giant porter or a troll porter.

It wasn’t.

It was Lee Han, carrying a mountain of luggage.

“…”

The two wizards were speechless at the ignorant solution that one would never expect from a wizard.

But that was just the beginning.

As Lee Han fully ascended the hill, boxes floated behind him, chasing after him.

The skeletal Headmaster had no choice but to admit it…Professor Voladi taught him disgustingly well.