Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 1016

Chapter 1016

"Let's move! Upward!"

The exploration team members made a quick decision.

No matter how tempting the monster was, or how desirable the criminals' bounties were...

"Damn. If we caught just one, everyone here could have split 8,125 gold coins each."

"..."

"..."

The team members were shocked by the Einroguard mage who performed perfect mental calculations even in this situation.

Because of the empire's notorious criminals and the void monster, they hadn't even thought about the bounties.

Anyway, no matter how tempting the monster was, this wasn't the time to be stubborn.

Regardless of whether the evil god worshipper's words were lies or not, they needed to go up first to relay the information and strengthen preparations.

Crack!

The crystal on Alcicle's necklace detected danger and shattered. Having foreseen the immediate future, Alcicle screamed.

"Left side! Enemies approaching from the left passage! More than dozens!"

"Back!"

The team members immediately changed direction. Almost simultaneously, spider monsters poured down from the left passage.

-■■■■■■! -■■■■■■■!

Yi-Han didn't hesitate to summon flames and expand their form into a wall. Not stopping there, he transformed them into blue flame with advanced properties and white flame with holy properties.

Blue and white, azure-white flames!

Seeing this, one team member urgently shouted.

"Sir Mage. Don't waste mana and join us!"

A mage's mana wasn't an infinite resource. Even with support from potions or items, they shouldn't waste it from the start.

"Don't worry about him!"

Alcicle pushed the team member's back while summoning frost amulets and making others wear them.

It was illusion school magic that blocked contamination and madness.

'...How can a person be so cold-blooded!'

The team member who misunderstood Alcicle shuddered inwardly at that coldness.

How could someone with such a cute appearance be so cold!

Perhaps this mage's heart had frozen while searching for the arcane knowledge of cold.

"At least let him wear an amulet!"

"What? No! I said he doesn't need it!"

When the team member pointed at Yi-Han asking to put on a frost amulet, Alcicle refused while flapping his wings.

Like an experienced mage, Alcicle was sharply calculating his remaining mana and concentration. He had no magic to waste on someone immune to contamination and madness.

'This is too much!'

"I'm done. Let's go!"

Yi-Han, who had summoned enough fire to burn the entire passage, caught up belatedly.

The team member was startled to see him moving at the same speed as the group without even time to recover mana.

"Are you alright? Recovery?"

"Ah, I said I'm fine! Worry about yourself! Move!"

Alcicle got angry instead.

Seeing this, the team member resolved.

Upon returning above, he would definitely report to the imperial newspaper about the cruel true nature of this young genius mage!

  *

"Die!"

The giant mixed-blood warrior, Basirmack, inflated his lungs greatly then drew out mana and shouted.

The battle cry of a warrior who had reached mastery transformed into intense shockwaves that swept through the passage. The spider legion surging like clouds was crushed all at once.

However, many spiders were still coming behind them. It didn't feel like their numbers had decreased at all.

"Why are there so many?!"

"Their reproduction speed exceeds imagination."

Kitarenanoom spoke as if groaning.

No matter how he thought about it, it didn't make sense for a monster that crossed the realm barrier to boast such numbers in such a short time.

It was on a different level from ordinary asexual reproduction.

"Does it eat any surrounding material and lay eggs?"

"Is this the time to analyze magic, you spellchanter bastard!"

Basirmack pointed forward.

Of the mercenaries he had brought, only two remained. The rest had been swept away by the wave of spider monsters.

The apocalyptist mage who survived amid this was unpleasantly grinning. Basirmack regretted not throwing him earlier.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, fire arrows made of mana formed among the spider monsters and fired.

Though not very powerful, Basirmack and Kitarenanoom were startled.

They hadn't known these spiders could use magic.

"They can use magic too?! What is this!"

Basirmack shouted while knocking away the fire arrows with the back of his hand. But Kitarenanoom couldn't answer.

"I-I don't know. Was it from a realm where it could use magic? But it definitely didn't use it at first?"

"That fire arrow was definitely the magic that brown-haired mercenary used."

Kitarenanoom flinched at the apocalyptist mage who suddenly spoke up.

"What..."

"Don't you have a guess?"

-Damn it all. It has absorption abilities too!-

The great demon Esadojiqua muttered in shock.

He had wondered why demons were being swept away without a sound - this monster could absorb the abilities of those it devoured!

Even among monsters, those with such power were extremely rare.

-What if we miss it!-

-Be grateful we at least got this information, mage!-

"At least that's fortunate. The mercenaries weren't much. Even if it uses magic, it won't be threatening."

"We must consider if it eats more. If it eats a hundred mages, even absorbing just one-hundredth would give it one mage's worth of magic."

"Then you and I especially must not get eat-"

The giant mixed-blood warrior speaking suddenly realized danger instinctively and shouted.

"Duck!!"

"What..."

Kitarenanoom, who had been focusing only on the spider monsters, was slow to react.

The apocalyptist mage had somehow already aimed magic at the two of them.

'When?!'

Kitarenanoom had to admit he had underestimated his opponent.

Though they were both mages, since he was far more advanced, he had been overconfident that the other couldn't deceive his eyes.

However, the apocalyptist fellow had somehow completely deceived both their senses and summoned magic.

Boom!

"You spellchanter!!! I'll chew your heart!!"

Basirmack ground his teeth while taking the sharp vacuum blade with his body.

As always, mages were all untrustworthy.

"To ambush with such magic. How fitting for a madman."

Kitarenanoom, having regained composure, checked his defense and prepared to counterattack.

The ambush was surprising but its power wasn't very impressive. At this rate...

"No! No!!"

Kitarenanoom belatedly realized and wailed.

The apocalyptist fellow was grinning as he tried to complete his magic.

"Stop, you madman!!!"

"What is it! What's happen-"

At that moment, all the walls and floors of the surrounding passages melted. The spider monsters coming up from below leaped up with excited roars.

The monsters that came up devoured the apocalyptist first. Kitarenanoom, who barely summoned new footing, had to grit his teeth.

'Damn it! Time to switch magic...!'

"Do something! You spellchanter!"

He needed a moment to switch for preparing area magic.

However, monsters were coming from front, back, left, right, and even above and below. That brief moment just wouldn't come.

Thud!

That's when it happened.

Suddenly the monsters stopped moving. Then they tried to change direction and go higher up.

"...Storm, be released and sweep them away!"

Kitarenanoom, who barely got time to switch magic, transformed his arm into a storm. The savage wind pressure swept away the surrounding monsters.

Basirmack shook off the monster fluids and shells then asked.

"Why are they suddenly trying to go up?"

"I don't know. Did they find new prey? Something more appetizing than us..."

"Ha! You think that makes sense?"

Even in this situation, the giant mixed-blood warrior didn't let go of his arrogance.

Even in a ranking of monsters' appetizing prey, he absolutely couldn't lose.

"...Did we receive a skeleton's curse? More are coming from below. Let's move!"

Kitarenanoom shouted as if sick of feeling new monsters approaching from below.

They couldn't become prey after coming as hunters.

  *

"Sir Alcicle. Isn't something strange?"

"Huk, hukhuk... hukhuk..."

Alcicle on Yi-Han's back (he had quickly collapsed from lack of stamina) panted and couldn't answer immediately.

"What... what's strange?"

"It seems like the monsters have been targeting only me since earlier..."

"That... makes sense. You're threatening. You have lots of mana."

Alcicle wasn't very surprised.

Even to monsters, an opponent with abnormal amounts of mana who was immune to contamination would seem most threatening.

"But Sir Alcicle, your magic is more outstanding."

"...You!"

Even while being carried, Alcicle felt his eyes getting moist.

Though he didn't have many mage friends, at least he had one friend he could boast about in front of others.

"More importantly, Sir Alcicle. That team member keeps glaring... did you have past grudges?"

"Ah, no. Nothing like that. Probably because I'm being carried by you."

Being carried by a junior mage probably didn't look very good.

'Is that so?'

Yi-Han wanted to explain to the team member sending contemptuous looks that 'mages are naturally weak', but there was no time.

"To the upper floor!"

"I have something to say."

The evil god worshipper elf suddenly opened his mouth. Yi-Han, about to cast flame magic again, was puzzled.

"What?"

"It would be safer to abandon that mage..."

"Shut up."

Thwack!

Yi-Han struck the elf's mouth with his staff. Alcicle was startled by his junior mage's violent reaction.

Though beaten, the evil god worshipper elf didn't stop.

"If you don't want to abandon him, change direction. That way is already occupied by monsters."

"Which way?"

"The side path on the right. There's another closed waterway. If you go that way, there are usable tools."

"!"

Alcicle did a quick divination. Then he nodded.

"To the side path on the right!"

"What are the usable tools? Is there a watergate control mechanism?"

Yi-Han asked the elf while running.

If they could just sweep away all the monsters with such a mechanism made by ancient dwarves, he couldn't ask for more.

"No. Magic criminal Kitarenanoom and separatist Basirmack are there. Throw those cornered ones to the monsters. Then you monster won't go berserk and can escape safely."

"..."

"..."

Not just Yi-Han and Alcicle, but even the team members were at a loss for words.

What kind of bastard was this?

"Can we use them? They're notorious wanted criminals."

"They must know they're cornered like us. They'll probably accept if we offer to cooperate."

"But they're not fools, won't they know our intentions? If a fight breaks out needlessly it will become more dangerous."

When the team members quickly exchanged opinions, the evil god worshipper elf quietly spoke to Yi-Han.

"Magic criminal Kitarenanoom offered ninety-nine giant hearts to contract with a great demon. Tell this to Basirmack. Then the two will fight greatly."

"Is that true??"

"No. It's a lie. But it's effective."

"..."

Yi-Han could clearly feel why the god this person served was an evil god.

It was evil rhetoric surpassing even Einroguard students.