Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 887

Yoner asked, “You’re not asking just because you want something else, are you?” He watched Jourin closely. *If this was Gainando,* Yoner thought, *he’d be easy to read.* Yoner wondered if Jourin was hiding something too.

Jourin looked confused. “Other intentions?” he asked, pretending not to understand. Jourin was getting better at hiding his feelings. Yoner didn’t expect Jourin to learn so quickly. Being around Ethan in Einrogard had changed him. Jourin lied easily, and Yoner believed him.

“It’s usually quiet here in the evening,” Yoner said. “Mandrakes don’t need as much care after sunset.” He chuckled softly.

“Your Highness?” Jourin asked. Yoner blinked, as if waking up from a thought. “Hm? Did you call me?” Yoner looked closely at Jourin. Something felt strange. *Wait,* Yoner thought, *he’s looking at that fruit.*

“That’s not a fruit,” Yoner explained. “It’s a trap. If you touch it, it will grab you.” Jourin’s eyes widened. *Why would they have a trap like that here?* he wondered, surprised by Yoner’s sudden explanation.

“Hmm,” Ethan said, looking at his Mandrake. “Not bad, but not amazing either.”

His friends stopped walking. They stared at him as they left the greenhouse and headed towards the Blue Dragon cafeteria. *If any Mandrake was growing well, it was Ethan’s,* they thought. He had worked hard, and his powerful magic helped it grow fast, just like the plants in Professor Uregeoreum’s garden. So, when Ethan said “not amazing,” his friends looked at him like he was crazy.

Siana walked beside him as they reached a path that split in two. She whispered, “Do you think Wodanaz has finally lost it?”

“He’s just been studying too much!” Yoner whispered back. “Don’t say things like that!”

“I can hear you both,” Ethan said, rolling his eyes. Lately, his friends acted like he was a little bit crazy. It was quite annoying.

“I’m not saying anything strange,” Ethan explained. “I just changed my wand.” He held out his wand. One side was black and shiny, like obsidian. The other side was made of pale wood, from the Spirit King’s sacred tree. And it wasn’t just any tree. A powerful spirit was trapped inside – the King of the Hornbeam Battle Trees. *It must have the power of life,* Ethan thought.

“Ethan?” Yoner asked, tilting his head. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you use spirit magic?” *Ethan is taking so many classes,* Yoner thought, *maybe he used it when I wasn’t looking.* But Yoner had never seen it.

“Don’t wizards usually have to call a spirit, make a deal, and tell it what to do?” Yoner asked.

“I didn’t call it or tell it anything,” Ethan said. “Shouldn’t the power just come out?” His friends blinked, confused. This was new idea about spirit magic.

“Maybe Siana is right,” one friend whispered. “Maybe Wodanaz is just tired.”

“No, listen,” Ethan said. “Normally, yes, you have to do all that to control a spirit. If it was any other spirit, I would just summon it and ask,” Ethan thought. “But this spirit is trapped inside the wand. I can’t just call it out. I have to pull the power from inside.”

“But you said it complained last time,” Yoner remembered. “About you not using its power right?”

“You said you fought it last time,” Siana added. “If it attacked you, the seal must be a little broken, right?” His friends nodded. Even if the seal wasn’t fully broken, the spirit had attacked Ethan in his mind. *So, it’s awake,* they thought. *Maybe Ethan should talk to it, not just force its power out.*

“…” Ethan thought about this. Yoner and his friends were right. He had made a mistake. *Why did I do that?* Then he realized.

“Wait,” Ethan said. “This spirit hasn’t talked to me at all, even though it’s awake.” His friends looked at each other. They looked away from Ethan, not wanting to be the first to speak.

“Well?” Ethan asked. “What do you think?”

“Um…” one friend started. “Well…” another mumbled. *Maybe the spirit… forgot? Haha,* someone thought nervously. They all knew Ethan and the spirit didn’t get along. They didn’t want to tell Ethan the truth directly.

Finally, Yoner spoke. “Ethan,” he said carefully. “Maybe the spirit is… a little angry.”

“Yes,” Ethan agreed. “And I’m angry at this spirit too.” He grabbed his wand and magic flowed into it. The magic went into the wooden part, not the black obsidian. Power spread out from the wand. If the wand was made of normal wood, it would have broken from so much magic. But the Spirit King’s tree was strong. It didn’t even shake. Ethan’s magic was just as strong as the tree. He kept pouring magic in. Finally, the wooden part glowed with power. Inside the wand, the hornbeam spirit, Saratan, who was pretending to sleep, couldn’t take it anymore. He screamed.

“-Ouch! Ouch! Stop!”

“You were awake!” Ethan said angrily. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“-I don’t know what you’re talking about!” the spirit yelled back.

Ethan sent more magic into the wand, without mercy. He wouldn’t be nice to the spirit that had attacked him in the Black Book. His friends watched, shivering as the magic swirled around Ethan. It looked like he was tearing the spirit apart.

“Ethan,” Siana whispered, “Is this safe?”

“Don’t worry, Siana,” Ethan said. “The wand is strong. And this spirit is too proud. He needs to learn a lesson.” Professor Voladi nodded, looking pleased. Siana thought, *That’s not what I meant!* Siana and some other students still had their own spirits summoned. Ethan’s friends just shivered, but the other spirits were terrified. Ethan looked like a scary magic tyrant to them. Low-level spirits were trying to hide. *If rumors spread about this,* Siana worried, *Ethan will be even more feared.* Siana wanted to say something, but she stopped herself. *Ethan is a bit scary when he’s angry,* she thought. It was better to be quiet.

“-Ouch! I was wrong! I was wrong! I give up!” the spirit cried.

But Ethan didn’t stop. Saratan, the hornbeam spirit, felt like he was burning inside from the magic.

“-I was wrong, Wizard! I was wrong!” he begged.

“Now you understand a little,” Ethan said.

“-Yes! Yes! Please stop!”

“Why were you quiet?” Ethan asked.

“-Wizard, you didn’t call me!” the spirit said.

“Haha,” Ethan laughed coldly, and sent more magic into the wand. Professor Voladi smiled slightly, happy to see his student deal with the spirit firmly.

“-Gaaaaah! I was wrong! I was wrong!” the spirit screamed again.

“What did you do wrong?” Ethan asked.

“-I… I should have spoken first! It’s my fault for just staying quiet!”

“You’re starting to remember,” Ethan said.

“-Yes! Yes!”

When the pain stopped, the hornbeam spirit trembled. Even trapped in the wand, it was hard to hurt Saratan directly. But Ethan had done it easily. *He’s wasting so much magic just to hurt me!* the spirit thought. *He’s a crazy wizard! If he gets stronger, he’ll be the worst tyrant ever!*

“I couldn’t grow the Mandrake because of you,” Ethan said. “How will you fix that?”

“-I-Isn’t it growing fast enough?” the spirit asked weakly.

“So, you were watching it grow?” Ethan asked, raising an eyebrow. *Oh no,* Saratan thought. He should have pretended he knew nothing. But he had been caught watching.

“-Kraaah!”

Ethan sent another wave of magic.

“Now,” Ethan said. “What are you going to do?”

“-Huh? Kraaah! Kraaah!”

“I’m asking what you will do to help the Mandrake!”

“-Ah! Ah! I know! I’ll make it grow more! I’ll use my power!”

“Finally, a good answer,” Ethan said, taking his magic away. Saratan groaned in pain, cursing Ethan in his mind. *I should have crushed him when I had the chance!*

“Good,” Ethan said. “Let’s go make the Mandrake grow.”

“-Wait!” the spirit cried.

“Why? Do you want more pain?” Ethan asked, sounding dangerous. *Crazy wizard!* the spirit thought.

“-That’s not it! Mandrakes need good soil power. It’s hard to grow them with normal magic. Give me one day. I’ll make a special bud with my power in it! If you plant that, it will grow fast!”

“Hmm,” Ethan said, thinking. “You’re not lying, are you?”

“-No! Please believe me!” the spirit begged.

Ethan nodded. “Okay,” he said. “I’ll believe you. But do you know how to make the patterns on the Mandrake leaves?”

“-Huh? Why do you care about that useless stuff… Aaaah!”

“Never mind,” Ethan said. When the spirit didn’t seem to know, Ethan decided to stop asking. He sent a little more magic into the wand.

“Thanks, everyone,” Ethan said to his friends. “If you hadn’t told me, I would have kept being tricked by that sneaky spirit.”

“Y-Yeah,” one friend mumbled.

“Ethan,” Yoner said, “We’re your friends no matter what. Don’t worry.”

“Right! Even if the spirit tells stories about you, don’t worry!” another friend added quickly.

“Huh?” Ethan was confused by their strange reactions. “The spirit is stuck in my wand,” Ethan said. “And he caused the problem. He can’t really tell anyone anything, can he?”

“Oh… right… that’s good! Haha!” one friend said, sounding relieved.

“How boring,” Ethan said, rolling his eyes. He started to walk again, then stopped. Something felt a little off. He looked around. His friends’ spirits, who had been following them since they left the lecture hall, were gone. *Did they send them back already?* Ethan wondered. It wasn’t important. He shrugged and kept walking.