Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 1007

Chapter 1007

The nobles present were even more shocked than before.

Haidan was one thing, but even Lady Kraha?

It was unbelievable. One noble gulped down hot tea trying to regain his senses (it didn't help much) before asking a question.

"L-Lady Kraha. You clearly said that even though His Excellency Gonadaltes dedicates himself to the empire, you wouldn't let this pass easily this time."

"How harsh."

Though the skull principal spoke as if hurt from beside them, none of the nobles reacted or paid attention.

"I did say that."

"Then why?!"

"Well... I'm greatly indebted to Young Wardanaz here. So I have no choice."

'The Wardanaz family?'

The nobles finally turned their attention to the skull principal's disciple.

Actually, though they were too shocked by Haidan and Lady Kraha's statements to notice, the skull principal introducing his disciple wasn't something to pass over lightly.

It was essentially introducing the future great mage, the most outstanding and most brilliantly mad among Einroguard's numerous students.

Moreover, if that disciple was of the Wardanaz bloodline, even more so. The nobles tried to digest the information they had just heard.

"So."

"If it's the Wardanaz family..."

"I heard he subjugated the King of Ghouls last year? I naturally thought it was a graduate..."

"I think I heard about basilisk and sea serpent subjugation too, wait. If he's 2nd year now, that means he was 1st year last year?"

The skull principal quickly signaled the Death Knights.

It was a signal to change the topic quickly before the nobles realized Einroguard's evil secret.

"Wait, could this be the person the dragons mentioned..."

"Dragons?"

"It's nothing."

Among the reacting nobles was even a family head who had received the letter from dragons.

The family head immediately understood as he recalled the memory.

'Indeed.'

He could understand why outstanding calculators like Haidan and Lady Kraha had responded so softly.

It wasn't simply because he was the skull principal's disciple.

Though being the skull principal's disciple was certainly impressive enough, this was actually a reason to keep distance rather than get close.

There was rarely anything good about getting close to either the skull principal or his disciple.

Getting close only meant having resources plundered and being forced to make donations when things like this happened. For a peaceful and comfortable life, keeping distance was right.

But if he was someone who had contracted with a dragon, that was different.

For a contractor who hadn't appeared for such a long time, it was worth showing goodwill even at risk, even if he was the skull principal's disciple.

'As expected, they're both extraordinary.'

"I too will accept if it's the disciple's request."

"I will do the same."

One after another, nobles who had heard various rumors about the Wardanaz family's youngest and were thinking of investing, or family heads who had received letters from dragons, or those who read the atmosphere and turned accordingly, agreed.

However, quite a few people still hadn't given up.

Nobles who were ignorant of rumors or too greedy, or those who wanted to somehow get Professor Verduus instead of gold coins this time, couldn't give up easily and clung on.

"Lady Kraha. Please reconsider. To defer such a huge sum just because of being indebted..."

'How foolish. Would Lady Kraha do this for such a simple reason?'

The sharp-witted nobles thought inwardly.

Though it was actually entirely for that reason, the nobles couldn't imagine it.

"It's not me who is indebted, but Gainando."

"Just because he's your son's friend?"

"It's not just at that level, really..."

Despite Lady Kraha's explanation, the nobles still couldn't understand well.

What debts could one incur after entering a magic school with another friend?

Slaves and servants would handle meals and cleaning, and professors would teach magic.

Haidan's explanation was equally incomprehensible.

"Thinking of my sibling's changes, I don't regret it at all. It would be worth investing several times the Dargard family's gold."

"?!?!?!"

The nobles wondered if the skull principal's disciple might be a professor rather than a 2nd year student.

It couldn't be explained otherwise.

Including what he had done last year...

"If Young Wardanaz asks, I could even erase the Kraha family's debt completely."

Lady Kraha spoke with abundant affection.

Looking at what the Wardanaz family boy had done for Gainando, she could actually invest several dozen times more.

"Is that true?!"

The skull principal shouted in surprise.

Similarly surprised, the Death Knights finally seemed to understand how their master's successor had persuaded the bureaucrats.

Just going and talking to them would have been enough!

'I lacked faith!'

'This might be true magic.'

However, Yi-Han refused.

"No... that would be too much. I'm grateful just for the extension."

"Come here for a moment."

The skull principal, who had been about to rejoice, turned serious. He immediately took his disciple to a corner.

"Why are you doing this? Did those Baldurguard fellows secretly invite you?"

"Pardon? Is transferring to Baldurguard possible?"

Yi-Han asked with pure curiosity. A Death Knight answered instead.

-He's asking if you received a professor offer.-

"Quiet! When the lady shows goodwill, why do you refuse it? That too is discourteous!"

"Well, it's also Gainando's wealth, so we shouldn't just write it off."

"..."

The Death Knights clapped silently. They were moved by the friendship.

Of course, from the skull principal's perspective, it was just infuriating.

"Looking at the Kraha family's vault, it would be an amount that wouldn't even leave a mark...!"

"Can't you just treat Gainando well and make separate requests to the lady?"

"That would violate Einroguard's sacred rules."

The skull principal firmly refused, but Yi-Han threw a suspicious look.

Though he said it was for equality, Yi-Han suspected he just wanted to torment students.

"Anyway, I've accomplished what you asked. Isn't an indefinite extension good enough?"

Instead of answering, the skull principal grumbled in ancient language. Thanks to what he had learned under the mad doppelganger, Yi-Han could understand the words 'raising a disciple is useless' among them.

"Then I'll go persuade the rest..."

"?"

The skull principal momentarily didn't understand his disciple's words.

Persuade the rest?

Of course, there were still nobles stubbornly holding out, but these people couldn't be persuaded separately.

He had thought they would just push through with the current number of agreeing nobles to make them accept...

The knights seemed to think the same as they wondered.

-How is he planning to persuade them?-

-Is he going to hand over Professor Verduus?-

-Maybe... but if that's really the plan, I kind of want to see it.-

"Everyone. Though the principal made an unreasonable request, I never intended to just ask."

"!"

The nobles stirred at Yi-Han's words.

"You could just ask..."

"Be quiet please, Lady Kraha."

Yoanen covered Lady Kraha's mouth. She was curious what kind of story he was going to tell.

"Then?"

"Actually, I happened to meet an ancient undead and learned the locations of various families' lost ancient burial grounds. If you're willing, I'll tell you, so could you generously show mercy..."

"Come here for a moment."

The skull principal turned serious again. Though the startled nobles tried to hear the rest, the skull principal was one step faster.

"What are you saying? How do you know the locations of lost ancient burial grounds?"

"The head servant wrote them down for me."

'Intarendals!'

Realizing the culprit, the skull principal closed his eyes tightly.

Since pledging loyalty to the doppelganger of honor during the Three Kingdoms era, the head servant had been showing outstanding talent in turning the skull principal's stomach.

Regretting that he should not have accepted him in the distant past, the skull principal opened his mouth.

"Disciple. Haven't you perhaps thought this? Do those who don't even know where their ancestors' ancient tombs are have the right to tend them? Such thoughts."

"I haven't."

"The ancient evil artifacts inside... Isn't it a mage's responsibility to control such artifacts? Such thoughts?"

"For that, you can just come along as a reference when we enter together."

"..."

When disciples were smart, they often turned their master's stomach.

When disciples were both smart and good-natured, it was doubly so.

Yi-Han spoke honestly.

"Actually, the head servant wrote something separate that I couldn't tell you."

While flipping through the mad doppelganger's book, Intarendals had organized and passed on the reagents and items remaining in the workshop to Yi-Han.

Among them were notes he had written himself.

Various families' old tombs that might help the disciple, the Dargard family's old tomb (the head servant gave permission to just take and use this), and so on.

And at the end was written:

...Return these to the descendants of each family rather than giving them to Einroguard's lord...

"..."

The skull principal sighed deeply.

Then he asked the knights as if truly unable to understand.

"Was I that harsh to Intarendals? Is refusing continental conquest something to take revenge for until the end of the world?"

-We, we don't really...-

The Death Knights avoided his gaze.

This really wasn't something they could comment on.

  *

Eulangdam, the tower master leading the Day Lily Magic Tower and a great mage, narrowed his eyes at the skull principal's request to visit.

"For what reason is Lord Gonadaltes coming?"

"Could he be coming to apologize for his rudeness last time?"

When the Day Lily Magic Tower's mages had visited Einroguard's territory for confining the thought entity, he had suddenly gotten angry and chased them away telling them to get lost.

For the mages who had urgently completed harsh training for the great magic, it was an utterly bewildering treatment.

Now that the skull principal was visiting with his disciple, they wondered if he might be coming to apologize.

"His Excellency would never do that."

Eulangdam, who looked like a village elder except for his clothes, lit his long pipe while deepening the wrinkles carved in his face.

Befitting a great mage, Eulangdam made cold calculations unlike his subordinate mages.

"He probably wants to delay his debt. Mages are always tight on money after all."

Actually, madmen weren't only at Einroguard.

Magic tower mages had many madmen too, and because of that they always struggled with budget.

It's just that Einroguard's scale was overwhelmingly larger!

"How dare...! Even so, he can't do this after giving such an insult!"

"That's right."

Eulangdam puffed smoke. The old great mage, staring at empty space with clouded eyes, asked as if unable to understand.

"But he's not one to come without any scheme, I wonder what he's thinking."

"He said he's coming with his disciple... Could he be trying to use the same method as with Professor Kim?"

At those words, the complexion of all mages present changed.

The Professor Garcia incident was a painful memory for everyone.

They had all fallen for the skull principal's rhetoric and gone crazy giving things away thinking 'That mage might come to our tower!'

"...Surely not. His Excellency wouldn't use the same method twice. Not unless he takes us for fools."

"But I heard his disciple is an outstanding mage..."

"Enough. Be quiet. I don't even want to hear it."

At Eulangdam's warning, the mage bowed his head.

A moment of silence.

The great mage who had been pondering asked softly.

"How outstanding a mage is he?"

'...Maybe we really are fools...'