Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 748

Chapter 748

The giants placed the Kitchen Club members one by one on their shoulders and released the mountain-destroying goats.

The mountain-destroying goats started moving ferociously, searching for traces of magic as if trying to destroy the world.

-Find places that are stuffy and unpleasant!-

Ikurusha shouted to the giants.

Although they weren't mages, they had sharp and keen instincts no less than mages.

If it was where the Wardanaz boy had gone missing, surely evil magic would be bubbling up, so they had to find places that were difficult for giants to approach.

Rumble!

"What's that sound?"

Meanwhile, the Library Club members approaching from another direction hesitated at the roar heard from afar.

The vast Einroguard mountains were full of all kinds of dangers, so one couldn't survive without paying attention to even small noises.

"Sound, reveal your identity."

Sebius chanted a spell.

It was magic that revealed the identity of the opponent through the sound heard.

"Senior Sebius. How is it?"

"..."

Instead of answering, Sebius broke out in a cold sweat. Seeing this, the Library Club members were flustered.

Why is he acting like that?

"What is it? A mammoth?"

"The sound is too big? Isn't it a mountain-destroying goat?"

"Don't say crazy things. There's no way a mountain-destroying goat would come down here. If it came down, it would be the end of the world."

Just as the members finished speaking, a giant's head popped up from below the hill.

And a mountain-destroying goat leaped and landed in front of the students.

-You help too! A student has gone missing!-

"..."

"..."

The Library Club members tried to grasp the situation.

Giants, mountain-destroying goats, and...

Other club mages already kidnapped?

"Why are you there??"

"Looking for our junior. ...You?"

"We're also looking for our junior..."

-Hurry!-

-Is this the time for idle chat! How rude!-

The giants lost their temper.

These mages were chatting leisurely when they should be hurrying.

"We-we're sorry."

The students apologized at the giants' reproach.

It felt like they had become uncultured and rude people.

Although they didn't know why the giants were helping with the search...

Shik-

"!"

Sebius opened his eyes wide seeing a large book flying in the sky.

That was Senior Illeg's flying artifact.

And those riding together were...

'Other 5th years?!'

Although club members had come out because the newly entered junior was such a valuable talent, why had 5th year students, who should be busy with their own research, come out?

'Just how many people have come to these mountains?'

  *

"Direth. Are you listening?"

"I said I understand! I said I'd help with the research! If you say it one more time, I'll do it 100 times!"

"It's only seven times yet. Even if you say it once more, it'll be eight times."

"You two. Please don't fight."

Illeg tried to stop the fight between Yukbeltire and Direth.

There was a lot to do ahead, and if the two fought, even doable things wouldn't get done.

"Still, it's amazing. To think you persuaded Ms. Yukbeltire."

"It's not persuasion, but negotiation."

Although Illeg himself had stepped up first as he was a fellow Library Club member and had been kidnapped while researching music magic, Yukbeltire, befitting Verduus's disciple, didn't step up for rescue just because they were from the same school.

In the end, Direth was only able to bring her in after promising to help with Yukbeltire's research.

'Should I just push her off?'

"Wouldn't it have been better to bring Mr. Caten along?"

"I tried, but when I asked, they said he'd gone missing again. He's probably somewhere in the desert region..."

If there had been a 5th year friend from White Tiger Tower, it would have been quite helpful in this situation, but they couldn't forcibly bring someone who wasn't there.

Direth sighed and looked down.

The grayish-white mountains, unaware of Direth's inner thoughts, peacefully...

'...????'

Direth's eyes widened at the sight of giants rummaging around here and there with students.

"Yukbeltire. Look down."

At her friend's call, Yukbeltire also sighed.

She was focusing on searching nearby with her artifact now, but he was calling her for no reason.

Anyway, Direth was too scattered compared to her outstanding talent.

"Direth. If you're going to tell me to refresh my mood by looking at the scenery and landscape again, stop it. I'm not a child who feels better by looking at scenery and landscapes."

"Hey. Just look."

As she had a history of being told 'How does this help with magic?' after showing scenery a few times for mood refreshment, Direth had no intention of calling about pretty scenery at all.

"...!"

"Giants!"

Yukbeltire and Illeg were also surprised and looked down.

The giants were clearly searching for someone.

Moreover, several Library Club members were in a state of being kidnapped by the giants.

"Everyone. Our club juniors have been captured. We must help them!"

"Chaegla."

Yukbeltire called Illeg in a serious voice.

"Stop caring for juniors who don't match your level. It won't be of any help to your magic."

Illeg naturally ignored her.

"Miss. Direth. Can you help when dealing with the giants?"

"I can help, but those giants are... the junior's friends."

"?"

"??"

When the two 5th year students looked at Direth as if to say 'What nonsense', Direth's face reddened slightly.

"They're really friends! They're probably looking for Wardanaz."

"How..."

"Indeed."

Unlike Illeg, who was interested in and curious about the junior, Yukbeltire coolly recognized reality.

Whether the junior was friends with giants or not was actually not a very important fact to Yukbeltire herself.

There was no need to ask unnecessary questions unless she was conducting research that needed giants.

"Then let's use the giants' instincts."

No matter how great a mage cast it, there was no such thing as perfect magic.

There would surely be gaps, and if they could cleverly dig into those gaps, they might be able to rescue the junior without the great mage noticing.

Yukbeltire planned to follow the giants' sixth sense.

"Yukbeltire. If those giants and juniors find a gap in the magic, how long do you think it will take until we can enter?"

"At least 1..."

"1 day??"

"1 month. What are you talking about?"

"No. We have to resolve this within a day."

"Direth. Just because you insist, magic doesn't..."

"Do it!"

  *

"Kuk!"

Yi-Han flew backward.

This time it wasn't because the mad doppelganger attacked, but because the magic failed.

When he failed to maintain the shape, the telekinetic force scattered in all directions and sent Yi-Han flying.

'...I think I understand why people only use magic like <Lesser Control>.'

<Lesser Control> with a definite output limit wouldn't cause much harm even if it failed.

But when trying to freely wield by greatly raising the output like Yi-Han was doing now, the risk also greatly increased in case of failure.

'I can roughly manage to shoot it out in shockwave form, but maintaining and wielding it in whip form is completely...'

But it wasn't all failures.

What surprised Yi-Han himself was that, quite unexpectedly, he matched well with telekinesis.

Especially in terms of casting speed, it should be considered almost complete.

"Strike!"

Bang!

Along with the abbreviated incantation, compressed telekinetic force struck the wall.

To think he would succeed so quickly not only in the speed of drawing up mana and converting it to telekinetic force, but also in abbreviating the incantation.

'At this rate, I might really be able to do non-verbal casting.'

Although Yi-Han himself didn't notice, the trials he had gone through all last year were blooming his innate talent even more.

Moreover, the special nature of telekinesis, which had to be cast purely with the mage's mind without borrowing the power of other elements, was rather lowering the difficulty in Yi-Han's case.

Instant casting due to overwhelming mana and concentration.

If he could just overcome non-verbal casting like this, one of the most difficult hurdles in this magic...

"Who are you?"

"!"

Yi-Han turned around in surprise when an unfamiliar voice was heard from behind.

It was a mage wearing an antique outfit that couldn't be seen in the current empire, with a mask made of true silver.

Yi-Han raised his guard at the appearance of the opponent whose inner thoughts couldn't be guessed.

"He's a newly taken disciple."

The mad doppelganger answered instead of Yi-Han.

At the voice echoing inside the workshop despite having no form, Yi-Han was certain that he had indeed been monitoring to prevent him from escaping.

'Fortunately I didn't try to escape rashly.'

"Master. I dare to say a word. Although Einroguard's students are certainly outstanding talents, most of them are unpolished gems. Can they really accomplish what you desire..."

Thud!

A blade of darkness ignited in the air and pierced through the mage's body.

Antagondal coughed painfully but still offered words of apology.

"...I'm sorry, Master."

"You're climbing up after I generously loosened your title, you servant. Try babbling one more time."

The blade spun and tore Antagondal's body once more.

Yi-Han was shocked to realize that the mad doppelganger had been relatively kind to him until now.

To just stab him for saying one displeasing word.

'Even if he's a disciple, no, a servant, this is too much!'

However, Antagondal himself didn't seem to mind much.

He pulled out the blade of darkness himself, then waved his hand to drive away the evil energy and seal the wound. Silver threads tangled messily in the air and firmly stitched the wound.

After roughly treating the wound, Antagondal stared intently at Yi-Han through his mask.

"Are you alright?"

"What are you talking about?"

"The wound."

"Ah. It's not very difficult to treat if you just know what magic it is."

Antagondal's voice sometimes sounded like a young man's, and sometimes like an old man's.

It seemed masculine but also had femininity, and his race was even more ambiguous.

"Judging by your expression, it might have been too much stimulation for an Einroguard student. Why. Is it surprising to be stabbed by your master to learn magic?"

"Honestly, yes."

The great mage let out a giggling laugh from inside the mask, then cast a soundproofing barrier so the conversation wouldn't leak out.

"When it's not enough even if you offer your soul, what's so regrettable about being stabbed? It's a trade. That monster is happy to have a servant to worship him, and I'm happy to be able to extract fragments of ancient magic from that monster."

At those words, Yi-Han realized that the other party didn't consider the mad doppelganger as his master.

It was closer to a trading relationship where their interests aligned, so they joined hands.

'The way of thinking of ancient mages is really hard to follow.'

"I saw the illusion left in the forest."

"Illusion?"

Yi-Han explained the illusion where Antagondal was pleading and raging at the mad doppelganger.

Hearing that explanation, Antagondal burst into laughter again.

"You saw that? Your sensitivity is amazing, as expected of someone that monster brought."

"It was an illusion quite different from what I saw directly, though..."

"Of course. You saw the moment that monster went mad."

"??"

Yi-Han wondered what he meant by going mad when he was already a mad doppelganger.

"Sometimes that monster has moments when he becomes generous. I aimed for that and even attached a human face to appeal to emotions, but..."

The mad doppelganger basically focused only on the honor he thought of himself, but very rarely had times when he became generous.

Antagondal had aimed for that time to appeal to emotions, but didn't gain any particular results.

"Why does he become generous sometimes?"

"Haha! If there's a moment when the monster becomes weak, you should use it. Why would you be curious about the reason?"

The magic criminal was satisfied with scraping together fragments of ancient magic by flattering the mad doppelganger.

In contrast, Yi-Han couldn't help but be interested when he heard that the skull principal's mad doppelganger sometimes became generous.

'Perhaps he might have a bit of sanity left.'

From the position of needing to escape somehow, it was hope hard to overlook.

"So what did that monster order you to do?"

Yi-Han explained the task the mad doppelganger had ordered.

Hearing those words, Antagondal burst into his biggest laugh of the day.

"You're about to die!"

"..."