Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 1022

Chapter 1022

30 minutes later.

Alcicle barely managed to persuade Erindarbell to give the three-story mage villa in the capital as a gift.

Erindarbell still clung on as if uncomfortable.

"But Sir Pengerin. Giving such a materialistic and thoughtless gift to a later scholar who will be responsible for the empire's future is too irresponsible..."

"Wardanaz! Let's go!"

While pushing his junior mage's back, Alcicle quickly left the place.

If they stayed any longer, they might have to listen to this great mage's regrets until tomorrow.

"Sir Alcicle. I respect you."

"Why suddenly?"

When Yi-Han sent a gaze full of respect and spoke, Alcicle was puzzled.

"Thank you so much for getting us the capital mansion."

"...I'm grateful for the respect but couldn't you respect me for something else?"

As the two walked hurriedly to leave the place, they spotted students in familiar attire in the distance.

Attire that at first glance made them look like a group of beggars in rags, but upon seeing their staves and emblems one would belatedly go "Ah!"

They were Einroguard students.

"What are you all... doing here?"

Yi-Han asked in a surprised voice.

Though calculating the dates, Einroguard's semester should have ended too, he hadn't known all his friends would be in the capital.

Was there some big event happening in the capital that Yi-Han didn't know about?

'There might be a magic competition with huge prize money sponsored by an anonymous donor...'

"We came to rescue you."

"Because we heard the principal took you away."

"...Ah."

At his friends' answers, Yi-Han immediately woke from his fantasy.

"Thanks everyone. But the work is all done. It didn't take very long."

"What method did you use to finish so early?"

Jijel asked as if not understanding.

Apart from exceptions like Gainando's mother, persuading the empire's angry sponsors wasn't so easy.

Especially regarding Einroguard, many had sworn off supporting it.

"Could it be..."

"!"

When Jijel trailed off, Yi-Han was surprised.

'Did she figure it out?'

The principal's vile method?

"Did you negotiate using Professor Verduus?"

"Wow. How clever! I didn't know there was such a method."

"As expected of Wardanaz!"

"...No."

Yi-Han spoke firmly.

Honestly it was a good method, but they hadn't used such methods.

That was a method to save for when they were really desperate later.

"Instead of hearing how I persuaded them, since you've come all this way, why don't you all visit the villa mansion?"

At their friend's suggestion, the students readily nodded.

Staying at the Wardanaz family mansion would be more comfortable than finding lodgings separately.

'Huh? But did the Wardanaz family have a villa in the capital?'

Yonaire tilted her head.

Unlike other great noble families of the empire who had mansions prepared in each region for staying during visits, she had heard the Wardanaz family, with almost no external activities, had almost no permanently maintained mansions.

Yet a villa mansion?

Was it an exception because it was the capital?

"Yi-Han. Did the Wardanaz family originally have a mansion in the capital?"

"Huhu. Good question."

At Yonaire's question, Yi-Han smiled with overflowing confidence.

It was a joyful smile that suggested he would have mentioned it himself if no one had asked.

"Actually, I received it as payment for this request."

"...Could you explain a bit more in detail???"

  *

Alcicle looked around the mansion's exterior and gave a light whistle.

"Oh. Not bad."

"..."

"..."

However, the other students didn't seem to agree.

First, the path connecting the main gate to the main building was blocked by thickly grown plants like a jungle.

Though ordinary mansions would have flower gardens, regular gardens, or greenhouses in the front or back yards for viewing and strolling, this mansion seemed a bit more aggressive.

There was no distinction between path and greenhouse at all.

The main building situated behind wasn't particularly normal either.

From the chimney jutting up above the third floor, pale evil spirits occasionally burst out along with black smoke, and the second floor windows surrounded by balconies were shattered with no trace remaining.

If one listened carefully, strange eerie screams of unknown origin seemed to be coming from somewhere in the mansion.

"...Is this really a villa mansion?"

"M-maybe it's because it's the Wardanaz family."

Not just Blue Dragon Tower students but even Black Tortoise Tower students with relatively strong stomachs looked disgusted.

At this point, calling it an abandoned mansion rather than a villa would be no exaggeration.

"Why is everyone acting like this? This is quite nice at this level."

Only Alcicle looked at the Einroguard students as if not understanding.

"Though I haven't traveled the whole empire, I don't think such villas are fashionable anywhere..."

"Huh? Ordinary villas are like that. But this is a villa used by a mage."

For villas used by ordinary nobles or wealthy people, aesthetics and convenience were naturally important.

But villas used by mages were just substitutes for workshops.

At this level, it was quite decent for a mansion that had been used as a mage's workshop.

"First, the building's form is well maintained, and from the main gate, no part has transformed into strange life forms. This makes it easy to clean up. Just a few days of cleaning and it would make a very usable magic workshop."

The penguin mixed-blood mage's confident attitude infected the students.

As they listened, it started to sound plausible.

Is that so?

"Come to think of it, if you consider this a building within Einroguard territory, it's quite a decent building."

"That's right. Since Wardanaz might get hurt, let's not say anything too harsh everyone."

The friends decided to avoid criticizing their family's villa mansion in front of Yi-Han.

Even a friend as tough as steel might be wounded in heart if their family's choice was ridiculed.

"Wardanaz. This mansion has... a very unique beauty."

Adenart chose her words carefully to avoid hurting her friend.

Yi-Han, who had been looking around the mansion contentedly, was puzzled by the princess's sudden words.

'Could Adenart have wanted it too?'

Thinking about it, it was possible.

As a clever friend, wouldn't Adenart have realized the limitless potential of a mansion located in the capital?

It didn't matter how messy the mansion's appearance was. What mattered was its location.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness. But I didn't forcibly take it, Lady Great Mage gave it forcefully."

"...?"

Adenart tilted her head, not understanding what Yi-Han was saying.

"By great mage, do you mean the principal?"

"No? Lady Erindarbell."

"...Mother gave you this villa?!?!?"

Rarely, Adenart jumped up in surprise. It was a reaction hard to believe from a friend who usually acted emotionlessly like her sister.

Yi-Han felt slightly sorry at that reaction. She must have wanted it much more than he had thought.

"Actually, this isn't Lady Erindarbell giving it irresponsibly, there's a complicated story involving dozens of lives..."

"Why did Mother give such a worthless gift? I don't understand."

"...I-it's not that bad, is it?"

The shock from Adenart's words was bigger than expected as Yi-Han naturally slipped into informal speech.

To say it had no value?

However, the princess didn't yield.

"But Mother usually gives much more meaningful and significant gifts when giving to junior mages. There seems to have been some mistake, I'll go speak to her directly. For Wardanaz to receive just such a gift..."

"No no no. It's fine! It has meaning! Everything has meaning!"

Afraid of ruining Alcicle's achievement, Yi-Han hurriedly blocked Adenart's path.

Adenart asked with round eyes.

"What do you mean it has meaning..."

Boom!

"Aaaaahhhh!"

Gainando, who had gone down to check the basement food storage, shot up with a scream.

The bounced Gainando rolled over and over.

"What? What happened?"

"In-in the basement there's a mage's ghost..."

"!"

Adenart was greatly surprised.

Was this the meaning contained in Mother's gift?

'What meaning could this possibly have?'

  *

"So you opened the basement food storage door and a mage's ghost appeared and chased you out?"

"Yes."

"Undead? Curse?"

"It could be other magic that looks like a ghost. It could be imitated similarly with enchantment magic."

"The prince might have imagined it. There are also mages who disguise themselves as ghosts."

"Why? Why disguise as a ghost?"

Alcicle, who had been quietly listening to the students' hypotheses, answered instead.

"It's quite possible. They need gold coins so they secretly hide in the basement to continue research after selling the mansion first."

"...N-no. Are there people who do such things?"

"Uh, um, well."

This time Alcicle couldn't answer and floundered slightly.

Then looking around carefully, he said.

"Among certain magic school graduates... there are a few."

"..."

"..."

The Einroguard students regretted asking.

Yi-Han shrugged and spoke.

"Let's finish the work first."

"Right. Wardanaz. Me and the others will take the vanguard so you... Wait, aren't we going to check?"

Salko paused.

At first he thought Yi-Han meant to gather everyone to break through the basement, but the direction was strange.

He was trying to go to the first floor kitchen rather than the basement.

"Huh? The basement isn't urgent right now. We need to clean the kitchen first to eat."

"As expected of Yi-Han."

Gainando nodded beside him with an admiring expression.

Come to think of it, since this wasn't Einroguard, they didn't have to get food from the basement food storage. They could cook in the kitchen if they just bought ingredients from outside.

Wasn't this kind of cool-headedness why friends trusted Yi-Han?

"N-no...! Aren't you concerned?!"

"If they were evil, they would have come up instead of staying in the basement. Don't worry and let's clean the urgent things first. Could you all clean the reception room first?"

"..."

Though the friends had much to say, they closed their mouths and moved according to Yi-Han's instructions.

Salko muttered.

"Wardanaz seems to have gotten even stranger..."

Jijel unconsciously nodded.

He was originally bold as if his liver was swollen, but after going through several incidents at Einroguard, he had reached a level that couldn't be followed with normal thinking.

At this rate, by third year he might calmly observe while drinking coffee even if a realm rift opened in front of him.

Not knowing his friends were looking at him suspiciously, Yi-Han looked around the kitchen.

The previous owner must not have been interested in cooking, as the kitchen was full of only dust and cobwebs.

'Should clean from the fireplace first.'

Yi-Han waved his staff and cleanly cleared around the fireplace. Not much dust could withstand consecutive telekinesis and water element magic.

Then from inside the fireplace, a pale mage ghost suddenly stuck its face out.

-Solve the magic I left behi...-

Thwack!

Hit by a spinning water bullet, the ghost shattered and scattered.

Yi-Han had an 'oops' moment. Because he reacted too quickly, he hadn't heard any of what the other was trying to say.

'Oh no. What was it trying to say?'