Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 753

“Why are you staring like that?”

Ihan was puzzled by Antagondalus’s gaze from behind the silver mask.

He subtly shielded the plate with his hand, as there was no more to share.

“…I’m not taking it. Do I look like I’m interested in such feed?”

“Ha! Wizards always say things like that.”

Antagondalus realized the new talent of the Wodanaz boy before him.

That boy had a talent for irritating people.

Ihan ignored the magical criminal, whether he was angry or not. He just focused on eating.

He needed to fill his stomach to escape.

Ihan took a big bite of the toast. It was thick and crispy, with fried eggs and bacon on top. Antagondalus watched him, shaking his head slowly. *How can he eat like that?* Antagondalus thought. *Right in front of *him*? A mad doppelganger and a dangerous criminal… this boy has no fear.* The smell of bacon filled the air, strangely normal in this strange place.

“Living long enough to see such a terrible sight…”

“Are you talking about Einrogaard?”

“No.”

Antagondalus wanted to explain how dangerous it was for Ihan to serve a meal to the mad doppelganger, and how astonishing it was that the mad doppelganger ate it quietly without getting angry.

But he couldn’t. The mad doppelganger was right next to him.

He didn’t know what would happen if he said something unnecessary.

In the meantime, the mad doppelganger, having finished his meal, neatly wiped his mouth and hands before lifting Antagondalus and slamming him against the wall.

“Silence! Is it too much to ask for a moment of peace while I eat? Your chattering is like garbage.”

“…I apologize, Master.”

Antagondalus then understood why he wasn’t hit earlier. It was because the Master was eating. He felt regret.

He should have gone outside while the mad doppelganger was eating…

“It was a meal fit for a slave. Commoner. Make sure to prepare a more dignified meal next time.”

“Ah, yes.”

Ihan bowed politely but cursed inwardly.

He ate everything and then acted like that; even Gainando didn’t do that.

“-Master, do you need an offering to satisfy your tongue?”

Antagondalus asked politely from within the wall.

If the mad doppelganger actually enjoyed gourmet food, that would be truly valuable information.

A new path would open for Antagondalus, who had to cater to this evil being by any means.

“Ha! I don’t need filth touched by trash.”

At those words, Ihan and Antagondalus cursed inwardly at the same time.

‘He probably can’t even tell who makes it, so why not just order something?’

‘He’s definitely showing favoritism because he’s a disciple.’

Antagondalus’s curse was slightly different from Ihan’s.

He had more information about the mad doppelganger, so he could make a more objective judgment.

You know, in the old days, only disciples could serve the master’s food…

In other words, the mad doppelganger’s answer meant that he acknowledged the Wodanaz family boy as his formal disciple, but Antagondalus could never be.

‘What’s the difference?’

Antagondalus pondered how that young boy had gained the mad doppelganger’s favor.

No matter how talented he was, it was happening at an abnormally fast pace.

But the more he analyzed, the more he felt lost in a maze.

‘Should I keep talking back impudently? What is it? Should I have approached him in a younger body?’

“I must gather songs from the mountain peaks.”

The mad doppelganger checked the time and prepared to move.

It seemed like he was only tormenting Ihan and Antagondalus while residing in the vast Einrogaard mountain range, but the mad doppelganger was quite busy maintaining the great magic spread across the territory and extending his own lifespan.

It was quite bothersome for a magical thought entity rejected by the world to resist in another great magician’s territory.

Antagondalus, who had some idea of his routine, asked with a puzzled expression.

“-Master, do you need songs from the mountain peaks?”

“It is needed for that commoner’s magic. He spews out something that sounds like a strangled chicken as magic.”

Ihan wondered what he was talking about but soon realized.

The mad doppelganger was talking about music magic.

‘Wasn’t it decent?’

Because he had a shred of conscience, Ihan didn’t say that his music magic was decent in front of a great magician like the mad doppelganger.

Instead, he waited for the mad doppelganger to leave and then asked Antagondalus.

“What does it mean to gather songs from the mountain peaks?”

“I don’t know exactly either. So much ancient magic has been lost… Maybe it’s something like a swan song.”

Antagondalus came out of the wall, looking curious too.

Among the materials used in some magic, there was also the most beautiful cry a bird makes just before it dies.

Such ingredients had capricious yet destructive power, so they were likely used in ancient magic.

“If it’s such a powerful ingredient, wouldn’t it also rapidly increase the learning of music magic?”

“It would. If you survive.”

“Pardon?”

“You really don’t know that a swan song is a deadly poison that can instantly cut off a magician’s breath if used incorrectly, do you, you little whelp?”

“I don’t.”

“……”

Only then did Antagondalus remember that the other party was a second-year student.

Something that was common sense to older magicians might not be to the other person.

“…The more beautiful and precious something is, the more deadly and fatal it is. It’s deadly because it’s the last thing a bird leaves behind, and fatal because it’s the most beautiful.”

“Is the music he’s trying to gather from the mountain peaks now just as dangerous?”

At the obvious question, Antagondalus nodded as if asking why he even asked.

It would be much more dangerous than that. If it were just a swan song, there would be no reason for the mad doppelganger to step out himself.

Ihan said firmly.

“I really have to leave now. Please prepare.”

“?!!”

Ihan had no intention of confirming a reagent far more dangerous than a swan song with his own body.

He had resisted all poisons so far with his powerful magic, but he wasn’t sure if he could withstand the mad doppelganger’s experiments.

Antagondalus couldn’t understand the boy before him.

“Don’t you know how important this opportunity is? Aren’t you curious about how precious the magic that monster will prepare with ancient secrets is?”

“I’m not curious.”

‘Is this guy really a magician?’

Antagondalus stared at Ihan with shock and contempt. Of course, Ihan didn’t care because it was hidden by the silver mask and couldn’t be seen.

In fact, Ihan would have ignored him even if he could see it.

‘If it’s so precious, shouldn’t he do it himself?’

If Antagondalus took the song of the mountain peaks, Ihan could watch with great interest from the side.

“You could realize a syllable, no, a phrase of the language magic? Are you really going to run away now?”

“Then you do it?”

“I would have done it if I could. You little whelp, a disgrace to magicians!”

Ihan became even more suspicious of the other party’s words.

Turning the words like that was usually what suspicious guys did.

The best result was that he could realize the language magic, but the worst result was death.

And in Ihan’s view, the probability of the worst result seemed much higher.

“Stop trying to trap me and just prepare.”

“……”

Just then, Einrogaard’s whisper called Ihan.

-Junior. I’m ready. I’ll start as soon as you’re ready.

-I’m ready too. Please start now!

Ihan was overjoyed at Dirette’s call.

He couldn’t trust Antagondalus’s power alone, but in the end, his senior had come to help.

“They said they’re ready outside.”

“Really? You believe that? Think again.”

“Are you doing this because you don’t want to do it now?”

“Honestly, it’s not a job I’m very keen on. But that doesn’t mean my words are false. Do you really think a fifth-year student can break the great magic of this mountain range now? Seriously?”

“Ha. You’re saying that because you don’t know my senior. My senior is not one to talk nonsense.”

“Is that so? I clearly warned you.”

Antagondalus didn’t stop him anymore.

It wasn’t his job, and it seemed quite enjoyable to watch the Wodanaz family boy get caught trying to escape.

“You wouldn’t betray me if you get caught, would you? You’re a student of Einrogaard who knows honor.”

“I might if you keep asking such ominous questions.”

“……”

As soon as Antagondalus finished preparing, Ihan quickly scribbled a letter.

This wasn’t a message to Dirette, but a letter left for the mad doppelganger.

To Master, I am leaving for a while to study magic. Your disciple.

This was an excuse for later.

The content was a bit short, but Ihan had no choice because he didn’t have time.

-Junior. Are you ready?

-Yes!

-Okay. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…

Kwwaaaaaaah-!

A blast of magic so powerful it shook the mountains vibrated throughout the mountain range.

It was an impact that felt like when worlds collided.

Antagondalus, who had been secretly sneering, was startled.

‘No?!’

Surprisingly, a crack had formed in the great magic that the mad doppelganger had placed on the mountain range.

As the collapse progressed rapidly through the gap, the mad doppelganger turned into black magic and soared into the air.

Judging from his urgent movements, it seemed like the mad doppelganger hadn’t expected the situation either.

‘Then!’

Antagondalus moved as promised with the Wodanaz family boy.

It was advantageous to get this disciple out of here if he could.

Along with the intense movement of magical power, a light burst out from between the silver masks.

As the light struck the great magic that had already cracked, a new crack formed.

One, two, three…

‘He’s coming!’

Antagondalus realized that the mad doppelganger was flying to catch him, suspecting his interference.

“Farewell here, magician. Let’s meet again on the path of evil!”

Poof!

As Antagondalus tried to get out of his seat by casting several movement spells, the mad doppelganger tried to block the cracks in the magic on one side and catch Antagondalus on the other side by any means.

Ihan tried not to be distracted by the flashy movements taking place in the air and quickly ran out.

‘…Finally!’

If he missed this opportunity, he could really be trapped in the workshop even after the semester ended. Ihan ran with desperate determination. He had to get out, before the Mad Doppelganger caught him, and before whatever chaos Dirette was causing became too much for even Einrogaard to handle.

“T, to think it’s a relic with this much power…?!!”

“Of course, it’s Saint Iactus… Ubeubeub.”

“Student Dirette. Where is Student Ihan now?”

“His current location is…”

“Ubeubeub? Ubeubeubeub?”

“Professor Bible, this is not the time to joke around! Be quiet!”

Professor Garcia, with her nerves on edge, scattered her murderous intent and threatened.

Professor Verdus, watching the situation, shrank back.

“…I’m sorry. Why are you doing this?”

“The griffin flying over there looks like Wodanaz’s griffin…”

“Why are you saying that now!”

“Cough. Cough, cough.”

Shaking his fellow professor left and right, Professor Garcia belatedly remembered Ihan’s griffin.

Come to think of it, there was a fierce beast that would quickly find its owner even in this situation.

“Did you see!? Did you see?! I told you we could break through if it was a griffin!”

Gainando shouted from the griffin with cheers.

However, the other friends all had tense faces.

No matter how much they thought about it, they couldn’t break through this level of magic with the griffin’s power.

“Why was the magic broken through?”

“I’m not sure. Did the headmaster come?”

“…Everyone be quiet. What are you going to do by worrying about that now? Just focus on finding the Wodanaz kid and getting him out!”

“Mo, Moradi. The sky is melting over there…”

“It’s Einrogaard, so the sky might melt sometimes! Shut up and look for him!”

“Ugh… Ugh, okay.”

The second-year students, pretending not to see the surreal scene of the sky melting and magic scattering in all directions, lowered their heads and stared intently at the mountain range.