Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 958

“Hey, Senior, Phonreg looks angry. Are we going to be okay?”

“That’s proof that you, Junior, are an excellent Quaffle player.”

Carnella, who was feeding Cerberus a tasty bone, answered immediately without panicking.

“Pardon?”

“Look. Look at that eager expression. It wants to soothe the Gryphon and make it wait for the game. The hearts of the owner and the mount are one. Splendid.”

Phonreg rubbed its beak together, filled with joy.

Among these mad wizards, there was at least one who understood Phonreg’s heart.

However, Lee Han looked at his senior with a dubious expression.

‘Is this bloke so mad about the game that he’s just spouting nonsense?’

No matter how he looked at it, Phonreg seemed angry, yet Carnella insisted it was waiting for the game.

That was the kind of thing only a madman would say.

Come to think of it, Carnella wasn’t exactly the best person to ask such questions.

If he asked, ‘Should Phonreg be excused from the game?’ wouldn’t he reply with something like, ‘If you, Junior, transform into a Gryphon and participate instead, I’ll allow it’?

“Junior, don’t think too much! When my dog draws the enemies’ attention and breaks through their formation, you just charge in. Got it?”

“But if Phonreg doesn’t want to run…”

Carnella placed his hands on Lee Han’s shoulders. His fingers tightened as if they were hooks on a ship’s side.

However, it wasn’t the fingers that were truly threatening, but the look in his eyes.

Carnella’s eyes gleamed with madness, not even a blink. It was the kind of look only Professor Burmough, Professor Volmough, or the alchemist Yo Moyeon could display.

“I told you, don’t think too much! Just focus on the game. Your Gryphon is very eager to run. It hasn’t been able to run for a while because of the curse. It’s probably been waiting for the stadium’s roar the whole time, hasn’t it? Maybe it’ll think the enemy players are Professor Lightning-Steps and go wild.”

“…Yes…”

Overwhelmed, Lee Han had no choice but to nod.

What could he say in front of a madman?

“Sorry, Phonreg. You can tell me later if you don’t want to.”

Phonreg stared ahead with a detached expression.

It seemed to have given up on expressing its emotions to avoid being misunderstood.

‘Please, just start already!’

Before the game started, Angalo and Salco were enjoying the pre-game festivities from their seats… or rather, they weren’t.

“That’s a Gargoyle… Blimey! That’s a Bocabat! Let’s get back to our seats, Tutanta, quickly!”

“Hmm. I wonder what metal that iron gate is made of? To safely contain various monsters…”

“Tutanta, run! What if we’re late for the start of the game!”

“Quiet. It’s not going to start for a while yet.”

Salco wandered around the underground passage near their enclosure, waving his hand dismissively as if he were bored.

Angalo almost grabbed the back of his neck.

Even though a rare mount like a Bocabat had appeared, he was only looking at buildings from a long, long time ago.

‘I knew I shouldn’t have brought him! This bloke!’

Instead of enjoying the pre-game festivities, this fake dwarf was down here admiring the buildings.

“Look at that long tail! Do you know what Quaffle players call Bocabats? Stranglers!”

“Shouldn’t they be banned then?”

The Bocabat, a strange reptile with six legs and a long, flexible tail that it wielded menacingly, was cunning and tenacious, making it perfect for targeting players in a game like this.

It was a rare creature that appeared in the eastern part of the Empire, so he never expected to see one here!

Voices of people chattering noisily came from the open seating above them. Angalo’s ears perked up.

“A, a Gryphon! Tutanta! They said Gryphon! There’s a Gryphon! We have to go back to our seats!”

“There are Gryphons in Einroguard too, aren’t there?”

“Is that the same thing!”

Salco wanted to say, ‘What’s the difference?’ but he was momentarily overwhelmed by Angalo’s desperate look and expression.

“…Alright. I’ve seen enough. Let’s head back now.”

“Quickly! Quickly! Quickly! Quickly!”

‘What a noisy bloke.’

They cursed each other inwardly as they ran up the stairs.

In the stadium, several mounts that had come out of their enclosures were already performing tricks. Among them, the Gryphon was, as expected, drawing all the attention with its innate size and majesty…

“Isn’t that Wodanaz?”

“Wodanaz has come to catch them!?”

Angalo gasped and ducked below his seat, then cast a spell. The color on his cloak changed to match the seat, camouflaging him, and the people around him murmured in surprise.

“No, you madman. Isn’t that Wodanaz on top of the Gryphon?”

“What are you talking about? Why would Wodanaz be…”

Angalo raised his head and gaped.

Lee Han was riding the Gryphon between the Gargoyles, Hippogriffs, and Hellhounds, performing tricks.

“…Something seems wrong.”

“Isn’t that the Wodanaz Quaffle Club?”

“He’s still a second-year! What kind of madmen would send out someone who’s only a second-year!”

“But Wodanaz learned magic quickly, didn’t he?”

“…Is that the same thing!”

Angalo, his logic crumbling, made a forced argument.

In fact, he himself found it hard to argue back.

He was learning magic for higher grades, and now Quaffle too…

“Wodanaz, you bloke. Why did you hide this from me?”

“It’s not that he hid it, it’s just that you didn’t ask…”

“Wodanaz! Do your best! You’re the pride of Einroguard’s second-years!”

Angalo stood up and began to cheer loudly. Salco stared at Angalo with a look of astonishment.

‘Doesn’t this bloke have any shame?’

However, such cheering wasn’t particularly shameful in the Quaffle stadium. Already, fervent cheers were being exchanged from all directions.

-Long live the Granden City Quaffle Club!

-Einroguard students, use magic! Use magic secretly!

-Where did that vile voice come from!

-Stop fighting! If you argue any further, I will banish you from the stadium!

In the seats where the boisterous spectators were gathered, they were already throwing mud and stones at each other over who would win.

The guards and knights, unable to watch any longer, rushed in to separate them.

“Tutanta, Wodanaz was forced to participate even though he’s only a second-year.”

“I don’t think Wodanaz was forced to participate…”

Salco was a little skeptical.

No matter how much they were his seniors, he didn’t think they could force Lee Han to participate against his will.

However, Angalo was certain.

Because of the Einroguard Quaffle Club’s recent dismal record, Lee Han had clearly been forcibly drafted!

“He must have been forced to go out because of the Gryphon. We have to cheer him on! Who else will cheer him on if not us!”

“…Indeed. That’s a fair point.”

Salco nodded.

If Angalo had been participating, he would have secretly made mud and thrown it onto the field instead of cheering, but Wodanaz was a different story.

If they didn’t cheer him on, who would…

-Who is that student riding the Gryphon?

-He’s a direct descendant of the Wodanaz family.

-Huh! A member of the Wodanaz family is interested in Quaffle too, you say?

-Can’t a member of a great noble family like Quaffle?

-This bloke doesn’t know what kind of family the Wodanaz family is.

-More importantly, isn’t that student from the Wodanaz family the one who defeated the magical criminal last year?

-Wasn’t it a Basilisk?

-Oh, wasn’t he an anti-magic advocate?

“…It seems like we don’t need to.”

“Quiet! It’s starting! Long live Einroguard!”

With trumpets, drums, and the roar of dragons, the Quaffle game began.

The Granden City Quaffle Club, with its solid formation across the vast stadium, made the onlookers’ breath catch in their throats.

A master exudes an aura of intimidation just by standing still.

Angalo gritted his teeth.

“How much have they trained? To form a formation so quickly!”

“Is that impressive?”

“It is impressive! If their defense is that solid, it’s hard for us to attack first!”

“Then should we wait?”

“The Einroguard Quaffle Club has a weaker defense compared to the opponent, so we can’t wait!”

“…?”

If they’re weak at both offense and defense, isn’t that just weak…

Boom!

-Student Wodanaz is charging forward on the Gryphon!

“You… that seems too reckless?!”

Angalo screamed. Not only Angalo, but murmurs were also heard from all directions.

If the opponent had no openings, they should have chipped away and shaken them gradually; charging in alone like that would only lead to being surrounded and self-destruction.

Carnella, who was trying to coordinate with his junior, was also surprised by the unexpected charge and was a beat late.

“Junior! Too fast! The rear is completely open…”

As Lee Han entered the area, players rushed in from all sides. A hulking Gargoyle with stone-like skin leaped into the open rear.

Grrrr!

Fierce sparks flew from the Gryphon’s eyes.

It wouldn’t have been this ferocious even when charging at an enemy of hundreds of years. The Gargoyle hesitated without realizing it at the majesty emanating from the king of the sky.

Wham!

The giant lion’s hoof kicked the Gargoyle away. It kicked it so far that it rolled and rolled.

…Kraaaah!!!!

Even with the brief skirmish, the Gryphon’s rage did not stop. The frightened Hellhound was sent flying by the Gryphon’s body slam. The Bocabat, watching for an opportunity to lash out with its tail, scurried away at the strike of a beak.

Lee Han, clinging to the Gryphon, was simply bewildered.

‘…Why is it doing this?’

As a swordsman who had experienced his fair share of battles, Lee Han didn’t fall off even as Phonreg rampaged. He skillfully maintained his posture and stayed close.

But inwardly, he was flustered.

Phonreg was far too motivated.

Was it angry, or did it really love Quaffle…

“Wow! I’ve never seen a Gryphon and rider work together so perfectly!”

Defender Hadakak looked at Lee Han with a mixture of fear and awe.

He thought he had completely grasped the opponent, but to think they would disrupt the formation like this from the start.

“I apologize for underestimating you. Boy of the Wodanaz family. The bond between the two of you is far stronger than my meager knowledge of Gryphons…”

“Get out of the way!”

Before Lee Han’s shout could finish, the Gryphon charged at the next opponent.

Hadakak quickly moved his Hippogriff aside. He had no intention of facing the ferocious Gryphon head-on.

“Could it be that you’re scared?!”

Hadakak, who had been observing the opponent, was startled as he looked at his own Hippogriff.

He had been so busy observing the opponent that he was late in realizing that something was wrong with his own mount.

“Remember what we trained for! We’ve met many more fearsome and stronger monsters!”

-……

The Hippogriff hesitated despite its owner’s shout.

It had met more fearsome monsters than the Gryphon, but it was the first time it had seen a Gryphon carrying so many fearsome beings like the one in front of it.

“There’s no need to collide head-on. Evade! It can’t follow your movements! It’s also very tired!”

The Hippogriff barely regained its courage.

The advanced acrobatic and feinting maneuvers it had trained with its owner were difficult for a simple-minded enemy to follow.

This feint, which involved pretending to move to the side and then changing direction using the elasticity of its hind legs, was something that the Gryphon, exhausted from defeating so many enemies, could never follow…

Wham!

As if not wanting to be fooled twice, the Gryphon, panting, stopped abruptly, chased after it, and rammed it again.

It was like Phonreg wanted to crush the enemy with pure strength, no matter what tricks they tried.

The Gryphon that Lee Han was currently riding was the most powerful Gryphon running at full force in the history of the Empire!