Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 937

Chapter 937

His friends were all at a loss for words, filled with shock, dismay, and confusion. Yi-Han calmly advised them.

"Manage your expressions. If you want to escape."

"You, you...!"

Though Asan, who had been about to ask a question with passionate eyes, was surprised, Anglago beside him glared at Yi-Han, breathing heavily. His eyes were full of betrayal.

"What's wrong with you now?"

"To think Mr. Setlad was a fake...!!"

"..."

Among the second-year theater club members, Anglago had been the most enamored with Setlad.

Being from a knight family located in a coastal region himself, Setlad's life story had struck a chord with him.

He had wanted to ask exactly how he had stolen the pirates' treasure map and amassed wealth, but to think it was a lie.

"Is that important right now? No, more importantly, it hasn't even been an hour since you heard about him, how did you get so infatuated?"

"Shut up! What do you know!"

"Be quiet, Alpha. That's not what's important right now."

Salko made his friend close his mouth. Yi-Han asked curiously.

"Were you in the theater club too?"

"Ah. Yes. But I don't like plays."

At Salko's words, the other students booed. Nillia even shook her thumb downwards.

But Salko didn't bat an eye.

"If there are people who like plays, there are also people who like the palaces, halls, theaters, and stages where plays are performed. It's good to see a lot of these if you want to build them later."

"Indeed. That's just like you, Salko. Well then, I guess you don't know much about plays. I'll teach you a few basics. The lovers from the Alcaramata and Ilhon families..."

"I know that, Wardanaz... I said I don't particularly like plays, not that I'm an idiot without even basic knowledge."

Salko looked at Yi-Han as if he were ridiculous. But Yi-Han was even more dumbfounded.

'This bastard. He loves plays so much, what does he mean it's not like that?'

Resolving never to believe people who said they didn't like plays from now on, Yi-Han opened his mouth.

"Now, listen everyone. As I just said, I came to help you escape."

"B-but leaving without telling the seniors is a bit..."

"The seniors gave the request."

"..."

The second-year friends gained a deep realization.

There really wasn't anyone trustworthy in Einroguard!

To think the seniors who outwardly said 'We came to watch plays honorably, what nonsense is escape' had quietly given a request behind their backs.

'We should learn too.'

"Setlad! What are you doing! Come back quickly!"

While they were talking, the nobles called for Yi-Han. It was a welcome as if greeting a friend of ten years.

Yonaire asked with a dumbfounded look.

"Why did they become so friendly?"

"As I was telling the story of how I escaped from the pirates, people suddenly started gathering. I'll go back for now. You share the information with club members who haven't heard the news yet. Don't be obvious. Be ready to leave immediately when the commotion starts."

Yi-Han, no, Setlad, left only those words and ran back to the nobles.

The remaining friends looked at each other with blank faces.

"...What kind of commotion is he going to cause?"

"He, he wouldn't cause an explosion or something, right? Even if it's Wardanaz?"

"I don't think it's a good idea to mention the name of a family notorious for magic in the empire right now..."

  *

"The pirates, you ask. It wasn't very pleasant. Hard bread or rice balls were all we had for meals, and sometimes they dug traps or raided our lodgings."

"Oh my!"

"There was a punishm-, no, a prison, and if you rebelled or made mistakes, you were locked up there."

"Goodness!"

"The pirate captain had henchmen, and these henchmen went around monitoring..."

The reason why Setlad, who was neither taciturn nor elegant, a newcomer to the city, was popular was simple.

His story strongly resonated with the nobles' hearts.

Even nobles who initially doubted, thinking 'What nonsense is this! Could he be a fraud?', were moved to tears after hearing Setlad's story directly.

To escape from such a harsh environment and even find treasure.

Perhaps divine providence really did exist.

"Setlad! Setlad!"

"Setlad. Could you perhaps come to my mansion next month? Give me a chance to entertain you with my family members!"

Once a person gains favor, even minor flaws tend to be seen as charms.

The rough and taciturn Setlad established himself as a wild noble with a fascinating and tragic past.

'Hmm. Next time I should go with a more ordinary background.'

Yi-Han regretted as he slipped away from the people holding onto him.

It was good that he had prepared diligently to avoid suspicion, but he never imagined he would be this popular.

He had deliberately given short answers and acted gruffly, so why?

'Hmm. The back gate of the palace wouldn't be good for escape. It's wide open all around, so we'd be discovered immediately. We need many places to hide nearby. I should consider using flying mounts too. Could we dig a tunnel and escape now? Salko would be good at that.'

Yi-Han, who had been checking the paths near the palace while pretending to take a walk, stopped.

Among the nobles gathered in small groups chatting lightly in the distance, there was someone who gave him a sense of dissonance.

'What's this?'

Very heterogeneous traces were settled like twigs in the other's soul.

Looking around, it seemed only Yi-Han felt this dissonance.

Well, that wasn't strange. Originally, detecting souls was a much higher difficulty task than detecting mana, and not many among mages could do it.

Moreover, the traces the other had were very faint and blurry. Such things weren't easy to notice without deep exploration.

It was already difficult enough to distinguish soul colors, let alone going deeper to detect the inside in detail...

However, Yi-Han's ability to detect souls had developed greatly after Decline.

Thanks to this, he could see through traces that would have been missed otherwise.

'It feels evil.'

Yi-Han pondered for a moment.

In fact, if he just passed by, he wouldn't have to worry about anything.

Such strange traces remaining on souls were possible for various reasons.

It could be the aftermath of investing in suspicious magic experiments or research, or the noble himself might be taking some kind of magic or potion.

Moreover, wasn't Yi-Han himself hiding something in this situation? There was no benefit in causing a commotion unnecessarily.

'Why is that bastard staring?'

Madpf felt uncomfortable at the gaze of a noble he was seeing for the first time.

From what he heard, it seemed he was a noble from the southern empire.

He thought he heard something about the Anog family...

If Madpf had been an ordinary noble, he would have just let it pass, but unfortunately, Madpf was not an ordinary noble.

'I need to spread the name of Lord Prahgal. Surely he won't interfere.'

Having come with evil schemes and plans, it was difficult to ignore even a trivial gaze.

"Are you Mr. Anog? Hello. I'm Madpf. This is my first time in Granden City."

"Hello."

Setlad's voice was rough and his attitude stiff.

Normally this would be unpleasant, but Madpf was rather relieved.

If the other was a rude person, there was a high chance that his stare earlier had no particular intention.

"Do you know much about plays?"

"I know to some extent."

"I see. I don't know much. Do you perhaps have a favorite play?"

"...You must know the story related to the Alcaramata and Ilhon families."

"I don't know well. Please tell me!"

Of course, he knew it well, but Madpf deliberately acted humbly to deceive the other.

People liked explaining things everyone knew. If he chatted excitedly, he might even develop a liking for Madpf.

"I'm not good with words, so that might be difficult."

"Oh my. That's a shame."

However, Setlad answered as if it was bothersome to speak at length and turned away.

This was also a rude attitude, but Madpf was completely at ease with this.

'It must have been my imagination. He's not the type to chatter noisily.'

  *

"He's a very suspicious and evil fellow. You should increase the security."

-Hmm!-

The Death Knights were greatly surprised.

To think the noble who was the talk of today's play gathering would come to report on another person.

-But we can't arbitrarily check or investigate guests without evidence. Was there nothing more suspicious?-

"I felt evil traces in his soul."

'He must be quite an outstanding mage.'

The Death Knights realized that this noble called Setlad was a considerably excellent mage.

To notice the dissonance settled in another's soul in this crowded and bustling place.

-Understood. We should call in the knights outside to raise the alert level and check the guests.-

"Please call in some of the knights guarding the Einroguard mages too."

-That's a bit... The students need escorts to protect them.-

The Death Knights made a shameless excuse. Yi-Han inwardly cursed.

What guarding!

"I'm not saying to bring them all in. You should leave appropriate numbers and have the rest check the surroundings."

-...Ugh. Alright. If there's a suspicious person, we should prioritize that. But Mr. Anog. I'm curious about something. Even if there are evil traces in the soul, that's not necessarily proof of suspicion, so what made you feel this person was suspicious?-

"..."

Yi-Han pondered for a moment.

If he answered that it was because the other didn't know about plays, the Death Knights might immediately put handcuffs on him and say 'Isn't this bastard a fake?'

"...I felt it the moment I saw him."

-Indeed!-

As Yi-Han finished his report and turned to leave, the Death Knights talked among themselves.

-I heard rumors, but he's an amazing person. Moreover, he has a beast-like intuition. Did you see his eyes?-

-They say he escaped from among southern pirates. He's no ordinary figure. He might have sensed the other's suspiciousness with such intuition. We should be even more cautious.-

They had only heard rumors, but seeing him in person, his magical ability and wild intuition were no ordinary matter.

Where did such a figure appear from?

-But doesn't his name sound strangely familiar?-

-You're right. It feels like I've heard it somewhere...-

  *

"The Death Knights are decreasing!"

"Shh! Manage your expressions!"

As the Death Knights approached, the students pretended not to know anything and acted nonchalant.

Adenart tried hard to whistle, which she wasn't good at. Rowena, who had come as an escort, quietly admonished her not to do it with a pitying expression.

-Students of Einroguard. We trust you, so we're going to reduce surveillance a bit. Surely you won't betray this trust?-

"Of course not!"

The students answered with feigned attitudes.

And as soon as the Death Knights monitoring the surroundings disappeared, they whispered.

"Did Wardanaz set a fire? An explosion? I don't think I heard an explosion though?"

"He might have caused a flood in another area."

"A poisonous cloud..."

"...Yi-Han wouldn't have done that."

Fortunately, Yonaire defended Yi-Han. Nillia was about to say 'He might have summoned a giant monster!' but held back at her friend's words.

"Did you pass on all the information?"

"War... Setlad!"

When Setlad, no, Yi-Han returned, his friends welcomed him gladly.

"What happened? Why did the Death Knights...?"

"It's a long story. I'm glad you passed on all the information. I've checked the escape routes. Now we need to divide roles. Anglago. Asan. You two make potions before the play starts."

"Poison?"

"Monster summoning potion?"

"...I meant calming potions."