Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 726

Chapter 726

"Hmm. This is really unusual."

Barglius of the Elvali family, a 3rd year student who had been asking questions in order from the most likely possibilities written in the book, tilted his head.

Usually, at least one should have hit by now, but only negative answers kept coming.

'Thank goodness.'

Yi-Han felt slightly relieved despite not getting an answer.

By some miracle, the tree spirit wasn't angry.

...Of course, there were still many reasons left, but it was sufficiently fortunate that it wasn't angry for the reasons that had come up so far.

'But this isn't my fault.'

Anyone learning in Einroguard would end up meeting the King of Ghouls or the King of Frost Giant.

To survive meeting such beings, one had to make some contracts with evil beings and such...

"Alright. At times like this, we should try an unusual question too."

"Oh. What is it?"

"Is it perhaps because you're taking all schools?"

"..."

Of course, the answer was negative.

Yi-Han glared at the senior. The orc student adjusted his glasses with an embarrassed expression.

"It's an unusual question. You have to try things like this when you're stuck to find the answer."

"That's too unusual a question."

Barglius threw a few more questions after that.

The spirit kept denying even likely questions like 'Did you make the staff endure excessively powerful magic or mana?' or 'Did you let a dangerous monster touch the staff?'

"Wow. What could it be?"

"Could it be that the spirit actually likes me so it's not answering?"

"That's nonsense. Are you, who's taking all schools, saying something a Baldurguard student would say?"

Barglius had no compromise when it came to magic. Yi-Han nodded with a gloomy expression.

"Are you perhaps dissatisfied because you can't demonstrate your abilities... Wait, this is it! Look here!"

When an affirmative answer came, Barglius was shocked.

This question was one of the least likely, being at the very back of the book.

It was between 'Do you have political dissatisfaction due to recent power changes in the spirit realm?' and 'Did the mage perhaps have an ancestor who had a friend with a grudge against spirits?'

"Usually there's no reason they can't demonstrate their abilities? Did you perhaps abandon this staff somewhere for a long time?"

"No. I carried it around every day."

"That's strange. Hmm. Wait a moment. Let's check the spirit's abilities first."

As he majored in summoning magic, the orc senior calmly began checking despite the bewildering situation.

After casting a few magics, the abilities this tree spirit had were...

"Power of recovery, power of life, power of resilience. These three. That's amazing. For a spirit you haven't even contracted with to lend you this much power. It must have taken a liking to you."

"I was lucky. But it's strange."

"What is?"

"Professor Uregor only told me about one. That it makes plants grow well."

Clearly, Professor Uregor had briefly explained when Yi-Han received this staff.

That it would be really good when growing plants...

"That is the power of life... Well. I'm not sure. Professors usually aren't interested in students, you know."

'Is that so?'

Yi-Han was puzzled by the senior's words, but accepted it for now.

"First, the power of recovery. You've probably experienced it a few times. It's a useful spirit power for mages. It recovers mana."

"?"

He didn't particularly remember the staff recovering mana.

Yi-Han tried to recall just in case, but still couldn't remember.

"This probably isn't it. Well. Were you unable to demonstrate the power of recovery? Look. It says the power of recovery was demonstra... Huh?"

The tree spirit ruthlessly answered that it couldn't demonstrate the power.

Barglius was flustered at this.

"Has the magic effect on my glasses worn off?"

"No. I think you saw correctly."

Yi-Han said with a slightly darkened voice.

Come to think of it, even if the tree spirit had the power of mana recovery, there probably wouldn't have been a chance to use it on Yi-Han.

What recovery could it do when the power just kept maintaining itself unless mana decreased?

"Surely you used the other two?"

"The power of life is what you just mentioned..."

"Yes. It's a power alchemists like. It helps when growing plants."

"Yes. I think I used that."

"That's a relief. Were you unable to demonstrate the power of life?"

The tree spirit promptly answered that it couldn't demonstrate the power of life either.

"..."

"...Are you sure you really used it?"

The orc senior, who had maintained an intellectual attitude until now, glared at Yi-Han over his glasses with a fierce gaze.

At this rate, it seemed like he had only used the staff to dust it off once a year.

"How many plants have I grown! This is a false accusation. The spirit must be mistaken!"

"Hmm. Did the mage perhaps substitute the power of life with other means?"

The tree spirit immediately answered yes.

Yi-Han asked, thinking it couldn't be.

"Did I perhaps substitute it with mana?"

An affirmative answer.

Yi-Han felt a sudden sense of emptiness.

He had thought things were growing well thanks to the staff until now, but it turned out it was just a placebo effect.

The effect had increased when he scattered mana around because he simply believed things were growing well thanks to the staff.

"I thought I was using the staff's power."

"Ch-cheer up. Sometimes we make such mistakes. So what means did you substitute it with?"

"It seems I unconsciously scattered my mana. I believed things would grow well because of the tree spirit's help, but that..."

"..."

Barglius looked at Yi-Han as if he were crazy and subtly took a step back.

If Barglius had been a spirit, he would have answered affirmatively to the question 'Did you avoid me because you were scared?'

'What the hell is this guy doing?'

Of course, as magic was a discipline where changes were made through a mage's firm will, that could also be called a kind of primitive magic.

But why would the word 'primitive' be attached to primitive magic?

It was because it was so unstable and weak in effect that magic was now cast in other ways.

To create changes with just one's own suggestion without any particular incantation required continuously scattering an enormous amount of mana.

Barglius couldn't believe that an individual mage had scattered that much mana.

"What's the last power of resilience?"

"It's modest, but it's a useful power too. It's a power that makes the staff endure. When receiving impacts or casting strong magic."

"I really used this one."

"I think it's about time you stop being so sure. Were you unable to demonstrate the power of resilience?"

Mercilessly, the answer came back that it couldn't demonstrate it.

Yi-Han shouted in indignation.

"How can you say that when I fought so much! Have you forgotten about the King of Ghouls or the King of Frost Giant?!"

"...What kings??"

"It's nothing. Senior. Please ask again."

"The answer won't change just because I ask again. Besides, there's only one reason it couldn't demonstrate the power of resilience. Is it perhaps still insufficient?"

Affirmative.

When the answer came back that it was insufficient, Yi-Han asked, not understanding.

"What's insufficient?"

"Uh... It's saying you need to use more powerful magic for that power to be worth using."

"..."

Yi-Han looked at the staff as if it were crazy.

  *

"Well. Anyway, cheer up! At least the tree spirit doesn't dislike you. You just need to make it active from now on."

'Is that possible?'

As the lecture ended and he received consolation from the orc senior, Yi-Han got up dejectedly.

He felt like he had learned a lot but gained nothing.

To think he had practically not used the spirit's power at all until now.

"There's no need to think about it too hard. If there's no chance to use the power of recovery, you can just add and connect other powers. There should be powers that need mana recovery."

If the tree spirit wanted to recover mana, he just needed to add magic that constantly consumed mana inside the staff. It was rather welcome for a mage.

Of course, the difficulty of crafting would increase...

"Similarly, connect the power of life to other powers too."

"What about the power of resilience?"

"For that, I don't know other than you casting stronger magic."

"...Thank you, Senior. To teach me so kindly when you must be busy."

Yi-Han expressed sincere gratitude.

Everyone was busy because of their own lectures, and seniors were even busier as they had one more year.

Yet helping so diligently like this wasn't something just anyone could do.

"Haha. It's because you're a junior from the same school."

"Are you from Blue Dragon Tower?"

"No? I was talking about the summoning magic school. See you in summoning magic, junior."

"..."

Come to think of it, he overlapped in at least one school with the seniors here.

Thanks to that, he was able to receive help, but Yi-Han felt strangely bitter.

'For some reason, I feel bitter.'

"Hey, Wardanaz!"

Anglago spotted Yi-Han from far away and came running.

"Come quickly! If we don't go right now, we'll miss it!"

"Miss what?"

"How can you ask that?! Geez. Just follow me for now! Hurry!"

"No. I really don't know."

Anglago ran, almost pushing Yi-Han's back.

"How can you not know when you're a club member too!"

"Well, the clubs I joined... Never mind. What club is it?"

"Of course it's the ballgame club. What other club could it be?"

Anglago spoke with a voice full of excitement.

One of the things he had been looking forward to all last year was joining Einroguard's ballgame club.

"They say 'that' animal is in there now. Can you believe it? To think we can see it."

"What are you talking about? A griffin? A basilisk?"

At Yi-Han's question, Anglago shouted in shock.

"What kind of vicious things are you saying?! Of course not! Don't you know what the ballgame club is? You have to bring animals you can ride!"

"Griffins and basilisks are animals you can ride too."

Someone in the sleeve made a shushing sound as if agreeing.

Anglago ignored it, thinking Yi-Han was talking nonsense.

Looking around to see if anyone might hear, the White Tiger Tower friend said in a low voice.

"...They say the professor is taking care of a unicorn now!"

"Ah."

Yi-Han nodded, understanding what he meant.

Since he had rescued an injured unicorn during winter break and brought it to Einroguard, it wasn't surprising that a unicorn could be seen in Einroguard.

"That's possible."

'Does this bastard perhaps have only cold mana flowing in his veins?'

Anglago looked at Yi-Han as if he couldn't believe it.

To think a decent ballgame player would show such a cold reaction upon hearing the word unicorn.

Someone with a heart couldn't possibly react like that.

"Wardanaz. I'm going to see a unicorn with my own eyes today. And I'm going to ask."

"What?"

"If it would like to play ballgame together."

'That seems like the stupidest question a unicorn could hear.'

Yi-Han thought so, but his friend looked so excited that he only thought it inwardly.

"Sure. It's your freedom to ask. Are your lectures okay?"

"Ah. Of course."

Anglago answered with firm resolve.

"I'm just not going to attend lectures. The unicorn is more important."

"..."

Yi-Han kicked his friend and sent him back to the lecture room.

  *

The ballgame club members were watching the unicorn from afar with anxious eyes.

A short, mean-looking professor was wailing and begging the unicorn.

"Let me take care of you!"

"Professor. The unicorn seems to need us!"

"Shut up, you noisy and ugly creatures! Get lost!"

Professor Bentozol fired magic at the ballgame club members. The members quickly distanced themselves as if they had expected it.