Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 743

Chapter 743

"Oh. Senior."

Yi-Han, who had entered the tower, was surprised to see a familiar face.

Illeg of the Chaegla family, a bear mixed-blood student wearing glasses, was waiting for Yi-Han with a gentle expression.

Of course, Yi-Han wasn't fooled even if the man before his eyes showed a gentle and kind attitude.

The monstrous strength this priest senior had shown in the library club last time was still vivid in his memory.

"Wardanaz. Nice to see you. Are you doing well in school? Not overworking yourself?"

"I think I'm doing alright. As for overworking... well..."

Yi-Han hesitated.

He felt a bit awkward saying he wasn't overworking when he conscientiously was.

"But are you interested in music magic too, Senior?"

"Yes. I'm very interested in several characteristics of music magic."

"Music magic wouldn't be very efficient like other primitive magics, would it?"

"But it has irreplaceable advantages."

Illeg said with sparkling eyes.

Befitting a student who had moved up to 5th year, Illeg didn't easily lose interest even if there were no immediate results or efficiency.

This library club student was interested in the spatial control aspects of music magic.

It was quite attractive to cast magic on the area itself without using command magic, unique worlds, or various great magics.

"Of course, it's limited as the scores are almost lost, and the effects are weak as efficiency research hasn't been done... That's why we prepared this tower. The power of this tower will amplify the magic."

Illeg pointed to the <Echo Tower> with his arm bulging with enormous muscles.

While researching music magic this semester, Illeg planned to restore some lost scores and use those scores to cast music magic on several places within Einroguard.

The final goal was reproducing semi-permanent music magic!

'Oh.'

Yi-Han became slightly intrigued hearing the muscular senior's words.

Certainly, when the 5th year senior systematically organized and set goals, some things became a bit clearer.

Although music magic seemed too restricted and limited, as Illeg said, if they restored scores and strengthened efficiency, they might really be able to bestow effects on desired places.

'Hmm. If possible... First, a stamina recovery effect for the personal lounge. A concentration effect for the 2nd year common lounge. No. That's not enough. I should add a curse music that causes pain when doing other things. An intelligence increase effect for the base. Growth for the cabin...'

"Wardanaz. I heard you can play one music magic. Could you perhaps show us?"

Even if he didn't know how to play music magic, Yi-Han would have learned non-existent magic on the spot if a senior with Illeg's build had asked.

And fortunately, Yi-Han had one music magic he had learned.

"I do have one, but the song is a bit strange. The effect also only amplifies dark elements..."

"Wardanaz! That alone is amazing enough."

Not because Illeg was kind, but other students interested in music magic nodded as if agreeing.

As music magic was in a situation where they had to build foundations anew from the bottom up, just being able to cast one complete magic like Yi-Han was a great help to the students.

The minstrel Ipadour seemed to think so too as he encouraged Yi-Han.

"Student Wardanaz. There are no strange songs in the empire. Whether concerto or satire, symphony or madrigal, songs are beautiful in themselves."

Receiving encouragement from seniors and the minstrel, Yi-Han realized he had been thinking wrongly.

'Right. That's correct.'

Although the music magic Yi-Han had practiced during winter break might sound a bit strange, it was a sufficiently good magic.

The effect of amplifying dark elements and changing the nature of the area could be needed in many ways.

...Although it would be mostly limited to dark magic, anyway.

"Then I'll try once."

Yi-Han took out a violin to repay the warm encouragement. And he started playing a hymn.

"Praise the sacrifice of freshmen, O mages..."

"?"

"??"

"What did your seniors see? They saw the demons of hell and those demons walking..."

"???"

"????"

The lyrics were so unusual that the students couldn't focus on the changes happening around them.

Although they had clearly lit the room brightly, the surroundings were darkening and the concentration of dark elements was gradually thickening.

But the students were still whispering about the lyrics.

"What on earth are those lyrics? It sounds like music from the Three Kingdoms era..."

"Did Einroguard exist back then too?"

"The building probably existed? No. More than that, are those all experiences?"

"Surely not... Right? Unless he's the most unfortunate guy in the empire..."

Yi-Han, who had finished playing, marveled at seeing the dark elements amplified in the room, and seeing this effect not easily disappearing, and said,

"Indeed, the tower's effect is amazing! I didn't know it would maintain like this."

"..."

"..."

"Seniors?"

Illeg, who came to his senses first belatedly, started clapping loudly.

And at the same time, he signaled to the other students with his eyes.

Clap clap clap clap clap clap!

"It was a moving song!"

"Indeed, we can definitely prove the effects of music magic!"

"Wardanaz, I'm truly glad to have a junior like you!"

The seniors quickly praised their junior, burying their questions about the lyrics deep inside.

Yi-Han bowed his head proudly.

"Thank you. I didn't know you'd praise me like this."

"Then shall we all practice together?"

Illeg spoke while looking at the students.

The best way to learn magic was indeed to cast that magic directly.

Fortunately, the junior here had completed one score, so it would be even better to practice.

"Um. Junior."

"Yes?"

"Here in these lyrics..."

"Is the song strange after all?"

"No! No! Absolutely not that! I'm just curious about the meaning of the lyrics! What does it mean here where it says 'They saw the demons of hell and those demons walking'?"

"That was something I experienced last year..."

"..."

  *

-O mages...-

"Oh. They're singing."

"I wonder if music magic has practical use?"

"I'm not sure either. But if Senior Illeg decided to research it, I think it might have quite a bit of potential."

The Stonemason Club students who were about to return after finishing cleaning up unconsciously stopped their steps and listened to the music flowing out from under the <Echo Tower>.

Come to think of it, such cultured luxury was truly a rare pleasure difficult to enjoy in Einroguard.

Outside, one could listen to music recorded with magic, but who would do such a thing in here?

"It's nice..."

"If it's alright later, I'd like to ask them to play the Lich Subjugation Prelude. I like that song."

"It's a good opera. The lesson that liches get subjugated is good too."

-What did your seniors see? They saw the demons of hell and those demons walking...-

"?"

"??"

The Stonemason Club students who had been immersed in the song belatedly noticed the lyrics and raised their heads.

Darkness was ominously rippling from the window on top of the Echo Tower.

"...Shall we go back?"

"Let's do that."

Come to think of it, no matter how good the music was, it didn't seem wise to linger near a workshop doing magic research.

  *

"To think there would be results like this from the start."

The students gathered for music magic rejoiced with flushed faces.

Although the lyrics felt awkward at first because they were unfamiliar, the unfamiliarity disappeared as they kept practicing. Rather, they were lyrics any Einroguard student could relate to.

"Thank you, Wardanaz. We should practice periodically!"

"We have to let other friends hear it too. Even if the effect is weak, the song alone is enough to marvel at."

"I'm glad you say so."

Yi-Han felt joy welling up from deep inside his heart as all the seniors liked the song.

Perhaps this was how artists felt.

'I thought the lyrics were a bit strange, but I guess they're fine.'

"Well then, everyone. Would you all gather here?"

Illeg pointed to a bookshelf while pouring hot cocoa from a kettle for the students who had gathered for music magic even on weekends.

The shelves were packed with books and scores so old their years couldn't be guessed.

"These are music magic scores I collected from the library. There aren't many complete ones so we'll have to restore them, but there are a few in good condition that we can learn right away. Mr. Ipadour here will help you play and sing these scores."

At the senior's words, the students' eyes sparkled with curiosity and expectation.

As they were all interested in music magic and gathered to learn and utilize it, they couldn't help but be curious seeing the piled scores.

"Mr. Ipadour."

"Hmm."

The old turtle mixed-blood minstrel nodded and stood up. Then he took out scores in good condition one by one and started reading.

"<Lizard Calling the Rain>, seems to be a piece using pan flutes. It probably has effects related to water elements... The performance difficulty would be about intermediate level."

In music magic, performance was as important as the movements of magic, and naturally, magic with high performance difficulty had correspondingly higher difficulty.

The students carefully gauged the instruments they could handle well and the performance difficulty while listening intently.

"Next is <Iactus's Departure>. It's a piece using drums, and it doesn't seem suitable for anything but percussion instruments. It might have effects in battle..."

"I'd like to try learning that one!"

One of the seniors raised his hand and shouted.

But Illeg shook his head.

"We'll choose songs in a different way."

"Pardon? How?"

Illeg took out folded paper lots as if he had been waiting.

The students were bewildered at this sight.

"Are we doing a lottery for this?"

"Yes. Otherwise, I think everyone would just flock to popular songs. We need to practice as diversely as possible to leave records, don't we?"

Yi-Han tilted his head.

Of course, from the standpoint of researching music magic, it was advantageous to cover as widely as possible while securing information.

It was important to gather information like which scores were good, which scores weren't, which scores had special effects, and so on.

But the students gathered to learn music magic had limited instruments they could handle and set songs they could sing well.

If it was a type of music they had never handled before, wouldn't it take more time to practice?

"Won't it take too much time to practice if the song doesn't match?"

"That's right. Senior Illeg really..."

At Yi-Han's question, another senior next to him nodded and agreed. As if everyone had similar thoughts, words came out one after another.

"This is raising the already high difficulty even more."

"It's only possible within the tower to a limited extent."

The seniors who had been chattering to some extent seemed to think their opinions aligned as they all called out to Illeg together.

"Senior!"

"What is it?"

Yi-Han tensed up slightly even though he hadn't called out.

How would Senior Illeg react to the juniors' rebellion?

"Please proceed quickly! We want to see the scores we'll be playing!"

"Alright! Wait a moment."

Illeg smiled and started mixing the lots.

Yi-Han, who didn't understand the conversation just now, looked dumbfounded, and the seniors said calmly.

"We can't disobey Senior Illeg's words."

"Right. It's enough that we complained moderately among ourselves."

"..."

Yi-Han was so impressed by the seniors' excellent social skills that he was at a loss for words.