Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 666

Lee Han stopped walking suddenly. “Ah, wait,” he said. “I need to get something – snake food.”

Eandurde tilted her head, her brow furrowed slightly. The small snakes that lived in her hair never seemed to eat. “Are *you* talking about me?” she asked, looking up at him. “Am *I* alright?”

“Ah, no, not you,” Lee Han chuckled softly. “This one here.” He rolled up the sleeve of his shirt, showing the scaly tail of a baby basilisk wrapped around his arm.

The tiny basilisk hissed, a small, angry sound, and flicked its tail towards Eandurde, as if warning her to stay away.

Eandurde stared at the small snake. *It’s a basilisk!* She felt a shiver run down her spine, even though the snakes in her hair didn’t react. *Why would anyone keep such a dangerous creature as a pet?* It was strange, and a little scary.

“Wait here. I’ll buy some and be right back,” Lee Han said.

“I want to look around too,” Eandurde replied.

“You mustn’t eat anything,” Lee Han warned.

Eandurde patted her chest as if to say not to worry. Lee Han and Deorgyu exchanged glances secretly. *We have to stop her if something happens. I know, Lee Han.*

The place was called ‘Manquie Jamjam’s Stables’. It was in Flaherty. Magic made it bigger inside than it looked outside. It was like a ranch inside a building!

Naturally, it didn’t just handle horses that fit its big size. It also dealt with various rare animals and monsters of the Empire.

Lee Han looked around the inside of the stable. The stable seemed to be roughly made of roughly made wood.

-Flying one. -Walking one. -Crawling one…

Just looking at the signs written in a messy way above the doors leading to each ranch, you could tell what the owner was like.

Hmm. The owner seemed as unfriendly as the Einroguard professors.

“I’m trying to buy a horse…” Lee Han said.

“Go over there and see for yourself,” the owner replied.

“Yes. I’ve looked. But between the brown horse and the black horse, which one is sturdier?” Lee Han asked.

“They’re both sturdy,” the owner said.

“No. Still, there must be one that’s sturdier than the other,” Lee Han insisted.

“Don’t call them ‘ones’,” the owner snapped.

“Excuse me?” Lee Han asked.

“I said don’t call them ‘ones’. I can hear you,” the owner repeated.

“Hear what? The horse? What can the horse hear? Are you crazy?” Lee Han asked, confused.

The customers around him smiled and began to slowly back away.

Lee Han felt something bad was about to happen and stepped aside with Eandurde.

Wham!

One unlucky customer was sent flying out of the stable. The owner grumbled and returned.

Deorgyu muttered in astonishment, “Wow! He’s even ruder than people in the roughest towns!”

“You can say that again,” Lee Han agreed.

“Lee Han. There are quite a few people here who seem to be people who come here often. Why is that?” Deorgyu asked.

“Isn’t it because he’s skilled?” Lee Han replied.

“Even if he’s skilled…” Deorgyu trailed off.

Well, that’s true. He wrote ‘Flying one’ on the sign, but got angry when a customer called the horse ‘one’. He was just as unreasonable as those professors!

“Well, I wouldn’t be personally close to him. There’s no one like that…” Lee Han said.

Creak-

“Professor Lightning Stride! Welcome!” The owner greeted Professor Lightning Stride as if it were a lie that he had been angry until just now.

Professor Lightning Stride, wearing a leather jacket and goggles, waved his hand.

“How have you been, Skull Crusher?” Professor Lightning Stride asked.

“Professor Lightning Stride! I’m embarrassed. That’s an old nickname,” the owner replied.

“Ah. Sorry,” Professor Lightning Stride said.

The two seemed very close. The Einroguard students who saw the professor shaking hands with the owner quietly turned their heads.

However, Professor Lightning Stride’s eye for detail was very sharp.

“Wodanaaz. Choi. What are you doing there?” Professor Lightning Stride asked.

“I came to buy some pet food,” Lee Han replied.

“Go upstairs,” Professor Lightning Stride instructed.

The stable owner yawned and gestured to the stairs behind him. The food that pets liked was organized over there.

However, Professor Lightning Stride stopped him and asked, since Lee Han’s pet was no ordinary pet.

“What kind of pet?” Professor Lightning Stride inquired.

“Oh, um, can I say it here?” Lee Han asked.

The owner yawned once more and said, “This is a place where all sorts of rare animals come and go. Everyone won’t be surprised, so you can say it.”

“It’s a basilisk,” Lee Han said.

Crash!

As soon as Lee Han finished speaking, customers quickly began to flee out of the stable.

Professor Lightning Stride looked at the owner in a disappointed way.

“There’s a limit to how much you can look down on an Einroguard student,” Professor Lightning Stride said.

“Ah. No! I’ve sold animals to Einroguard students several times, but none of them had a basilisk!” the owner exclaimed.

The owner was very upset. No matter how many rare animals they brought, who would bring a basilisk!?

With all the customers gone, the owner put up a sign saying that business was closed for the day and introduced the stable.

“This meat is from a small, monster-like creature called an imp,” the owner said.

“What effect does it have?” Lee Han asked.

“It’s delicious! The basilisk will like it if you feed it,” the owner replied.

“……”

“This meat is from a water creature called a kelpie,” the owner continued.

“What kind of effect…?” Lee Han asked.

“It’s delicious! The basilisk will like it if you feed it,” the owner repeated.

Lee Han shook his head. He saw Eandurde smacking her lips next to him, so he took a piece. *I should grill it for her later.*

While feeding the basilisk small pieces of finely chopped raw meat, Lee Han asked Professor Lightning Stride, who was looking around the ranch, “Can’t we bring these animals to Einroguard?”

“Officially, it’s impossible. The headmaster doesn’t like it,” Professor Lightning Stride replied.

The Skull Headmaster was a person who hated students trying to easily solve their school life with wealth they brought from outside. He even took away special magical items, so there was no way animals would be allowed.

“Then unofficially…?” Lee Han inquired.

“It might be possible,” Professor Lightning Stride smiled.

Lee Han’s seniors were already secretly bringing in external animals for various purposes: to use for Quidditch, to get help with research, just because they were cute… Professor Lightning Stride didn’t care much. As long as it wasn’t a very big monster, it was okay to bring anything to school.

“But you already have Ponryg, don’t you? Ponryg will be jealous if you bring another ride,” Professor Lightning Stride said.

“I was asking because of my other friends rather than myself. By the way, what brings you to Flaherty, Professor? Are you perhaps going to the dueling club?” Lee Han asked.

“Why would I go to the dueling club when I’m not Professor Baegreg?” Professor Lightning Stride replied.

“……”

Lee Han closed his eyes tightly at the master’s famous strange habits among the professors. *I shouldn’t say that I was banned from entering with him.*

“The reason I came to Flaherty is… hmm,” Professor Lightning Stride said, looking over Lee Han and asking, “Do you want to work with me on something during the vacation? The pay is pretty good, but you can refuse if you don’t want to.”

“No, who would refuse when the pay is good?” Lee Han asked.

At Lee Han’s question, Professor Lightning Stride looked at his student as if he were crazy. “Usually, students want to rest and play during vacation…”

“That’s a wrong idea. My friends and I all like to work,” Lee Han replied.

“……”

Deorgyu looked at Lee Han with a sad look. *That’s not true!*

“So what is it? I’m a little worried if it’s too dangerous,” Lee Han asked.

“It’s not dangerous. It’s just a bit annoying. It’s a job that requires camping while wandering around the mountains. I have to find a unicorn,” Professor Lightning Stride said, handing over an old request.

Looking for a person! Einroguard Professor, Bendozol. Missing while searching for a unicorn in the Bitter Mountains! Reward paid regardless of life or death. -Osu Gonadaltes

“……”

“……”

“Did the professor also go missing?” Lee Han asked.

Professor Lightning Stride kindly answered his junior’s innocent question. “He tends to go missing more often than students. He’s less afraid than students and goes to more dangerous places.”

“Indeed. You’re going to find the professor,” Lee Han nodded.

When he thought about it, he had heard that the original professor in charge of the >Basic Ride Training> lecture was Professor Bendozol. However, because Professor Bendozol went missing while searching for a unicorn, Professor Lightning Stride urgently participated as a substitute. He couldn’t find it last year because he was busy with lectures, but he had some free time during the winter vacation, so he was setting out to search like this…

“What do you mean professor?” Professor Lightning Stride asked.

“Yes? Isn’t this a request to find the professor?” Lee Han asked, confused.

“Ah!” Professor Lightning Stride laughed heartily at Lee Han’s misunderstanding. “I didn’t explain it enough! I told you. I have to find a unicorn. There was a rumor two weeks ago that a unicorn was discovered in the Bitter Mountains. I came to meet the unicorn.”

“Then why did you give me this request?” Lee Han asked.

“Because the map is well drawn,” Professor Lightning Stride replied.

“……”

Lee Han checked the old request again. Perhaps because the Skull Headmaster made it himself, the map of the Bitter Mountains was better than he thought. The Empire’s map wasn’t free, and the map of a rugged and remote place like the Bitter Mountains had to be bought with money from the maps made by explorers. The error that followed by mistake was a bonus since it was made by an individual. In that respect, the map made by the Skull Headmaster was reliable.

“Aren’t you looking for the professor?” Lee Han asked.

“Professor Bendozol isn’t a child… He’ll come back on his own. He’ll get angry if I go looking for him,” Professor Lightning Stride replied.

Lee Han gave him a very incredulous look. Professor Lightning Stride protested with a little annoyance. “Really. You’re saying that because you don’t know Professor Bendozol.”

“Professor Verdus would probably say something similar about Professor Bendozol’s disappearance…” Lee Han muttered.

“That’s different! Why are you comparing me to Professor Verdus of all people?” Professor Lightning Stride exclaimed.

Professor Lightning Stride grumbled and put a pipe in his mouth. “So, are you going or not?”

“I’ll go. We just have to find the unicorn, right?” Lee Han confirmed.

“Find the unicorn, and at the same time, find the other guys who came to find the unicorn…” Professor Lightning Stride added.

“Are we cooperating?” Lee Han asked.

“Cooperating, my foot. I have to beat them up and kick them out of the mountains,” Professor Lightning Stride declared.

“……”

When Lee Han gave him a similar look to before, Professor Lightning Stride had to explain again. “Those guys are people who hunt animals illegally. Poachers who kill unicorns to get their bodies!”

Unicorns were creatures whose hunting was prohibited by the law of the Empire. Professor Lightning Stride was going to the Bitter Mountains now not only to meet the unicorn, but also to protect the unicorn from other poachers.

“Indeed. Professor. I believed in you,” Lee Han said.

“Do you know that Thunder Step sometimes swears at you?” Professor Lightning Stride asked.

The friends were immediately excited and accepted the story of going to meet the unicorn. The Einroguard students, who had gathered on the outskirts of the city with the necessary preparations, waited for Professor Lightning Stride.

“Where’s the professor? When is he coming?” one of the students asked.

“He’ll be here soon…” Lee Han replied.

From far away, a group of wyverns began to walk with a loud, rough sound. People who were surprised by it scattered in all directions.

“It’s an attack! A wyvern attack!” someone screamed.

“No, it’s not! There’s someone riding on top!” another person shouted.

“It’s an attack! Bandits riding wyverns!”

As people screamed and ran away, the hunters and guards riding on the wyvern shouted loudly. “Don’t misunderstand, citizens! We are not bandits! I belong to the Wasteland Star Catchers, and this friend here is an explorer… We have gathered here today to protect Professor Lightning Stride and the Empire’s unicorn! We borrowed this wyvern for that purpose!”

As soon as he finished speaking, the merchants began to throw tomatoes and eggs with angry expressions. The hunters and guards were horrified and hid behind the wyvern’s wings.

“You crazy bastards! Who brings a wyvern here!” one merchant yelled.

“Th, there’s a flag hanging here!” a guard stammered.

“You’re bringing a large monster here just because you put up a flag? You crazy bastards! You belong to the Shadow Patrol!” another merchant shouted.

“Wasteland Star Catchers…!”

Lee Han and his friends quietly turned their heads and pretended not to see.