Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 773

Lee Han frowned. ‘Did this senior student, Caton, ask *everyone* to teach him magic?’

If Caton went around begging everyone, ‘Teach me magic! Please, anyone!’ then it was easy to see why he might have a bad reputation.

Of course, being eager to learn was better than not caring, but everything had its limits.

Lee Han thought it was understandable if *Caton* was tired of being chased and bothered for years.

‘Oops. This is not the time for this.’

There was Caton, the senior student, right in front of him, holding a knife.

And for some reason, Caton was greatly overestimating Lee Han.

Lee Han said firmly, “I think there’s some misunderstanding, Senior. How can you decide if I’m good enough to teach you just from talking?” He really didn’t want to teach a fifth-year senior.

What he said made sense.

‘To pass me just after exchanging a few words. It’s suspicious no matter how I look at it.’

It seemed likely that Caton planned to force Lee Han to teach him no matter what.

Caton chuckled, a low, rumbling sound like a happy cat. “Ha! Junior, you wouldn’t believe how many wizards have tried to teach me! But I can tell right away if someone’s got the knack for it, just by hearing them talk.”

He said this with a strange pride, though it didn’t sound like bragging.

Lee Han managed a weak smile. He wasn’t finding any of this funny. “Oh, really? What gave it away?” he asked, trying to sound interested.

“Well,” Caton leaned closer, whiskers twitching. “All those other wizards, they started with numbers! Math, math, math! They tried to shove sums into my brain. But you, Junior? You didn’t mention a single number!”

“……”

Lee Han wanted to say, ‘That’s because Senior Dirett told me beforehand!’ but he didn’t want to *tell on* Dirett, so he held back.

‘Oops. I should have said Senior Yookvelteere told me.’

“Just from that, I can tell that you are one of the top wizards who have tried to teach me.”

“That’s quite an overstatement… Weren’t there people like that among your friends in the White Tiger Tower?”

“Hmm. They all tried to force me to learn numbers from the start.”

Lee Han thought, ‘Moradi is so clever!’ He was annoyed at Moradi (also known as Giselle), even though she hadn’t done anything wrong.

To be hit like this!

‘I should have said I would teach him numbers first.’

Caton was judging him based on what he had heard from Dirett and his experience teaching the failing first-year students.

“Besides, you suggested a different method of magic practice than the existing ones, Junior? I’ve heard the explanation for dozens of times, but you’re the first person I’ve seen who is willing to cast it with the determination to set yourself on fire.”

“……”

Lee Han thought about Professor Zorcik, who taught them about mana control. Lee Han wished Professor Zorcik would never become headmaster!

“That’s because I have too much mana, which makes it difficult to control…”

“You’ve had such difficulties!? Even better! You might really be able to teach me!”

Caton was very pleased with the pain his junior had experienced.

If Lee Han was a genius who could succeed in taking all the school’s courses despite such pain, then he might be able to teach Caton himself.

Lee Han said, half giving up. “…Don’t be too disappointed if I can’t teach you.”

He thought that if it didn’t work out, Caton would give up on his own.

The fifth-year senior smiled, stroking the long, sideways-protruding whiskers characteristic of cat beastmen.

“Disappointed! I’ve failed so many times, would I be disappointed by something like that? Don’t worry too much, Junior. Come. Come here.”

Caton bounced forward like an excited cat, pulling Lee Han along.

Lee Han asked, puzzled, “Where are we going?”

“Ah. As I said, just as you will teach me magic, I must also pass on swordsmanship to you. In my opinion, if you learn more swordsmanship, it will definitely help with your magic training.”

‘Is he telling me to stab the professor and run away?’

In Lee Han’s view, the only way swordsmanship could help with magic training was by stabbing the professor and running away.

Lee Han asked, “Can I really learn your swordsmanship, Senior?”

“I’ve heard from the tower juniors that it’s definitely possible!”

“……”

Vowing to catch the second-year students of the White Tiger Tower like rats when he returned, Lee Han moved his feet.

“You must have learned about the power of thought when you took the swordsmanship lecture last year, Junior.”

“Yes.”

In the secrets passed down orally among the old swordsmen of the Empire, there were ambiguous phrases such as ‘Put anger into the sword’ or ‘Put faith into the sword.’

This was not simply an emotional training method. Swordsmen could actually change the nature of mana through their senses and instincts.

Professor Inguldel explained this as putting the power of thought into the sword.

“When you become skilled at handling mana, fully understand the forms of swordsmanship, and finally, go beyond simply putting the power of thought into the sword and learn to condense it into a single point…!”

At that moment, the sword shone like a star.

Any magician could easily see light, but the light from the senior’s sword now possessed a mystery that was fundamentally different from such light.

It was an aura – mana made so strong and focused that it was almost beyond magic.

“Amazing! How did you realize this…”

Caton seriously pondered Lee Han’s flattery.

And then he answered.

“I think the punishment room had a big impact. Junior. As I continued to stay in the punishment room, I began to think deeply about swordsmanship.”

“…I see.”

“You can’t gather it into the sword if you don’t know how to handle mana, you can’t control it if you don’t know how to handle the forms, and you can’t condense it if you don’t know how to gather the power of thought. You can’t be lacking in any of the three.”

Lee Han nodded.

Lee Han himself knew this well, as he had once tried to create a mock aura by forcibly pouring in mana.

In the end, since this aura was all about mana condensed beyond its limit, it was impossible to create it with mana alone without enlightenment.

“You must first complete this, Junior.”

Lee Han asked, “…Um, do you have any advice for me?”

Caton seriously pondered again.

“Hmm. If you do as I did, you’ll be in the punishment room during vacation…”

Lee Han answered quickly. “I will do my best during the lecture time.”

He was overcome with the fear that if he answered wrong here, he would not be able to leave Einroguard even during vacation.

“Indeed. You are a genius enough to take all the school’s courses, so it’s definitely possible.”

‘Senior Caton didn’t really call me here to harass me, did he?’

He didn’t feel particularly happy even after hearing the words of the senior who highly valued him.

“Now, once you complete this aura, the next step is…”

With those words, Caton swung the aura towards the lava. The star-like burning sword drew a shining trajectory.

It was an attack with tremendous destructive power, and it actually ended there. Lee Han wondered what the other person was trying to show him.

“…There!”

Caton’s sword dance had only just begun.

After swinging it once and then swinging it again, the reality of the area where the aura passed began to change very subtly.

Lee Han was shocked to realize what Caton was doing now, having directly witnessed Dirett’s small world magic.

Caton was summoning small world magic by swinging his sword!

Of course, it wasn’t a small world with a precise and systematic order like the powerful magic Dirett used.

It was a simple, strange small world that was applied only at the moment of swinging the sword.

But even so, a small world was definitely a small world.

At the same time as the rules of reality changed, the aura suddenly turned into water and scattered explosively.

With a shout, Caton drew this water to create a barrier.

“Hiss… Hah!”

The water barrier did not last long enough to warrant such a shout. The barrier lasted for a few seconds before quickly losing its power and disappearing.

Unlike magic, which allows for diverse and complex processes, swordsmanship can create highly destructive phenomena at moments, but maintaining a water barrier in that way is close to impossible.

Rather, maintaining it for nearly a few seconds was a great achievement in itself.

It was amazing to not only construct an aura but also to realize a small world with it.

Caton said, panting, as the secret technique seemed to make him very tired. “Hah… Hah. Did you see that just now, Junior?”

Lee Han answered, “I saw it.”

Caton continued, “This was also… completed… in the punishment room…”

“……”

‘Is he obsessed with the punishment room?’

“Amazing. To be able to realize a small world with a sword.”

Caton asked, “Small world? What is that, Junior?”

“……”

Lee Han never imagined that a fifth-year student wouldn’t even know what a small world was.

Lee Han explained, “Um… so, it’s like magic, roughly 5 circles…”

Caton exclaimed, “…Hah! Such a thing existed in magic! I thought it only existed in swordsmanship!”

‘…He really needs to go to the Knights Order.’

Lee Han was dumbfounded by Caton but also inwardly surprised.

Every time he faced knights like Alar Long or Zicklin, he felt a strength that went beyond simply being skilled in swordsmanship or being able to use aura, and if swordsmen who had reached a certain level could do this, it made sense.

Even the Rock Wall Sword, which Lee Han had learned, had later forms that Alar Long hadn’t even taught him.

‘To be able to create even a small world with swordsmanship.’

Suddenly curious, Lee Han asked, “Senior. Is it possible to do something like this with swordsmanship?”

“Like what?”

“So, like this…”

Lee Han explained about a very special kind of magic called ‘unique world magic.’ It wasn’t just changing a small area, but changing a whole world.

As he explained the realm that the headmaster had once shown him, Caton burst into laughter.

“Magic can’t do that either, Junior! How can an individual magician stain such a wide area with their own world!”

Lee Han said, “…Senior. This is a real magic.”

“?!?!!”

Caton was startled.

Only after listening to Lee Han’s explanation could this fifth-year senior feel embarrassed and understand.

“To think there was such a great magic… Junior. I’m really surprised.”

Lee Han asked, “You’ve never heard of it?”

“I only ever ask about easy magic…”

Caton had heard about dozens of times, but he had never heard of small worlds or unique worlds.

“And as far as I know, that’s impossible with swordsmanship. Hmm. Even if you twist the area where you swing the sword… I can’t even imagine how you would change that wide area.”

Unlike a magician’s small world, a swordsman could only momentarily twist reality in the short area where they swung their sword.

It was a natural limitation since it was unfolded with instinct and senses.

Of course, from a magician’s point of view, this also felt like an amazing trick, like a quick way to do powerful magic.

“Well, that’s not important. I don’t think I’ll ever get there anyway.”

Caton asked, “Junior. What are you talking about? Don’t define your own limits from the start. You can do it. What was your mindset when you learned swordsmanship last year?”

“Um.”

Lee Han hesitated, thinking he shouldn’t bring up the fact that he took the class with the intention of getting a free grade.

Lee Han said, “I… I wanted to try harder at swordsmanship…”

“I knew it! Junior. Just as I don’t give up on magic, you shouldn’t give up on swordsmanship either.”

Lee Han replied, “Th, thank you.”

“I’ve been trying to increase these secret techniques ever since I realized this one. Hmm. Someday, I’ll be able to unfold them as diversely as magic.”

‘This swordsmanship is crazy!’

Lee Han listened in shock.

“Junior. Think about it. It was already this much with just a few magic spells you’ve learned. How many secret techniques could you create if you learned more magic?”

“It’s really scary!”

“Hmm? Scary?”

“I meant scary in a positive way. Like, the punishment room, for example.”