Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 695

Chapter 695

"This way!"

Stopping Yi-Han, who was about to run to the stairs after passing through the door, Alde halted under a copper frame.

Then he stomped his foot three times and did one backward roll.

"...What are you doing?"

"Creating a shortcut!"

Thud!

Suddenly, stairs appeared under the frame.

"Only a few people in Blue Dragon Tower know about this path, so don't tell anyone about it!"

"I'll keep that in mind. But how did you find this path, senior? Was it through illusion magic?"

The stairs that had just appeared were perfectly hidden, to the point that even Yi-Han couldn't detect the mana.

Yet he knew about such a path.

Yi-Han wondered if the illusion magic school seniors had other tricks for finding secret paths.

"No. I discovered it when I stumbled after being startled by a professor while wandering around at night."

"I see..."

"...Don't be too disappointed, I've found some paths using illusion magic too."

"I'm not disappointed. Haha."

***

Ratford paused at the sound of footsteps approaching from afar.

The Death Knights, wearing heavy armor, created a distinctive heavy noise even when walking around.

However, the approaching footsteps now were not those of Death Knights.

This was...

"A-a professor is coming!"

"Which professor?!"

Yonaire asked with a tense face.

If it was a professor like Garcia who could be reasoned with or sympathized with students, it would be somewhat fortunate.

Even if caught, there would be room for compromise.

But if it wasn't such a professor...

"P-Professor Beavle...!"

"..."

Yonaire bit his lip at the appearance of an unpredictable, difficult opponent.

Wasn't he Einroguard's eccentric who couldn't be persuaded, compromised with, or threatened?

If even the principal couldn't reason with him, how could Yonaire, a student, resolve this verbally?

"He'll arrive soon. What should we do?"

"I'll handle it. Give me a signal when he reaches the front."

Yonaire stood close to the warehouse entrance.

And calmly waited.

Three, two, one...

"Aah! The cargo is collapsing! We'll need the mages' help to reorganize this! Go call the mages!"

Tap-

The footsteps outside stopped.

Then the sound of quickly fleeing in the opposite direction began.

"..."

"...Phew. We survived."

"Y-Yonaire, you're a genius...!"

Ratford marveled.

To think he could predict Professor Beavle's selfish mind and send him away like this!

"It was... lucky. I often talked to Yi-Han about Professor Beavle."

"What did you talk about?"

"That he's a crazy person."

'Isn't that irrelevant to the current situation...?'

Ratford thought inwardly.

"It's fortunate. The professor is gone somehow."

"Yes, that's..."

Knock knock-

With the sound of knocking on the warehouse door, it opened.

And a professor revealed herself.

An elderly human female professor wearing a monocle on one eye.

It was Professor Millei, in charge of the summoning magic school.

'We're doomed.'

Yonaire squeezed his eyes shut.

If it had been Professor Beavle, they might have been able to deceive him. He was mostly indifferent to things outside his interests.

But the strict Professor Millei was not someone who would fail to notice the discrepancy in the number of workers and cargo.

"Professor Beavle said help was needed, so I came..."

Professor Millei looked around.

Ratford suppressed his trembling voice and spoke.

"W-we cleaned up by ourselves."

"In that time?"

'Oh no.'

The two belatedly realized their mistake.

They should have made the surroundings more messy or something.

Insufficient number of workers and cargo. A lie that felt out of place.

Cold sweat ran down their backs.

"Yes."

"Hmm."

Professor Millei looked around the warehouse and stared at the two.

They felt increasingly anxious under her gaze that seemed to pierce through them.

After pondering for a while, Professor Millei let out a faint sigh and opened her mouth.

"Clean up quietly and leave."

With those words, the professor turned and left.

The two, who had thought it was surely over but had miraculously survived, looked at each other in surprise.

"Wh-what was that just now?"

"I... I don't know either."

"Isn't it a trap? To catch us together when Mr. Wardanaz returns..."

"...It doesn't seem like that."

Yonaire was slightly impressed by Ratford's idea.

As expected of someone from a thieves' guild, his thinking was on a different level of sophistication.

***

"Ah, beautiful..."

"You mean the boxes?"

"Aren't you too emotionally barren?"

Alde grumbled at his junior's nitpicking words beside him.

Any student who had attended Einroguard would sympathize.

That the boxes before their eyes now were far more beautiful than any beautiful poem or masterpiece!

He felt his eyes stinging and tears welling up for no reason.

"If you've finished stacking, let's go. We don't have much time."

"...Right. It's not over yet."

Alde pulled himself together.

He couldn't show such an unsightly appearance as a senior when his junior was showing such a brave face.

The job was only half done.

They had to finish the other half for it to be a true success.

"Let's go. If we succeed, you'll become one of Einroguard's legends, junior. You've never done an operation of this scale before, right?"

"I did take my friends out of school last year."

"'Friends'? Seems you took quite a few. Three? Four?"

"Almost all of them..."

"...Don't joke."

"I'm not joking."

"That's impossible!"

Alde was about to argue, forgetting the situation, but stopped.

The atmosphere felt ominous as they were about to exit through the copper frame outlet again.

"Light, illuminate the front."

With a small voice chanting, the scene beyond the closed exit began to come into view.

Currently, Death Knights were positioned on the 1st floor of the main building.

"..."

"..."

They widened their eyes in shock at the situation that had changed drastically in that short time.

-Do we really have to participate in that inspection too?-

-Yes. It's the master's order.-

-Who hasn't received the master's orders? Patrolling the desert area is also the master's order. What if a gap is created while inspecting?-

-The swamp area I'm in charge of, all sorts of troublesome creatures bubble up if I take my eyes off it for even a few hours. With so many knights here, wouldn't it be fine if just one like me is missing?-

-There are no exceptions for anyone! Wait until everyone gathers. You may leave for your duties after the inspection is over.-

-Damn it. Who are the ones that still haven't arrived?-

-Isn't it Sir Klzenberg? He often gets lost, you know.-

-That fellow again?-

-Watch your mouth, youngster! In Sir Klzenberg's lifetime, a youngster like you wouldn't have dared to say a word!-

-That's right, that's right! Sir Klzenberg gets lost because of the curse he received in life.-

-Don't talk nonsense! Why would the curse remain when he's received a new body! He's just getting lost!-

The Death Knights began to argue noisily without exception.

They seemed determined not to budge until everyone gathered.

Yi-Han checked the time with an anxious expression. It was really starting to get dangerous now.

'If we're delayed any further here, the return itself might fail. Should we force our way through? Even if we use invisibility magic, there are too many and the door itself is blocked, somehow we need to draw attention...'

While Yi-Han was pondering, Alde, who had been staring at him, tapped him and called out.

"Hey. Junior."

"Yes?"

"Do you have a way?"

"Please wait a moment. I'll try to think of something."

"Forget it. Let me give you one last lesson."

"?"

Yi-Han paused at the unexpected words.

Alde continued in a serious voice.

"You're an extraordinary guy. They say Einroguard gathers the empire's geniuses, but even among them, special geniuses like you appear occasionally. Like Senior Yukbeltire."

"Why that person of all..."

Yi-Han reflexively objected to the unconvincing example.

"When I first saw you, I wondered what kind of guy you were. Everything you said and did was strange and full of bravado, I thought what a braggart."

"I don't think it was to that extent."

"But I was the one who didn't recognize it. I've never seen someone like you in my year. It's probably the same for the years above me."

Alde's attitude was solemn.

At first, he had approached thinking of using him as bait for the smuggling operation, but that thought had long since changed.

The junior before him had the ability to lead great things at Einroguard.

"Normally, I wouldn't teach anything to a guy like you, but I do have one thing to teach you today. Sometimes, whether it's your friends, juniors, or seniors... you need to know when to abandon them."

With those final words, Alde shoved Yi-Han back, opened the exit door under the copper frame, and rushed out.

"?!"

Then he chanted a spell and ran towards the Death Knights.

"Terrible memories, arise!"

With an eerie sound, an illusion of the skull principal floated up.

The illusion with mana struck the souls of the surrounding Death Knights, making them fall into hallucinations.

-Your work disappoints me!-

-We're sorry, master... Hey. Who are you?-

-What insolent fellow is this?!-

But that was as far as it went.

Against high-level undead like Death Knights, an illusion magic prepared on the spot like this couldn't have an effect for more than a second.

The Death Knights, who immediately broke out of the hallucination, frowned at the floating illusion of the skull principal.

"It's me!"

-...Ah, no. How did you get in first?-

-Isn't this a crazy student? Why did he come in first?-

-Shouldn't we send him to the healing room instead of the punishment room?-

"I'm in my right mind, you minions! I came in early to damage the principal's reputation!"

-He's in his right mind!-

-Fortunately, he's extremely sane.-

-Student. Follow us. We'll guide you to the punishment room.-

"Hmph."

Alde snorted.

The Death Knights sensed something ominous in that smile.

Einroguard's delinquent students rarely went quietly even when caught.

-Student. Don't try any tricks.-

"The principal is the one doing tricks! Come forth, illusion corrosive!"

With the spell, a giant carnivorous plant began to appear around Alde.

The Death Knights were shocked when they recognized its identity.

-No! Don't do that!-

The illusion corrosive was a terrible two-dimensional plant that destroyed its surroundings and made them its environment by spewing out corrosive liquid mixed with reality and illusion.

If left alone, it was clear that the 1st floor of the main building would become a mess.

"Try to catch me if you can, minions!"

-Catch him!-

The Death Knights gnashed their teeth and rushed at Alde.

It seemed he had properly harbored a grudge against the principal. If they didn't catch him quickly, this chaos could grow several times larger.

Even as he was instantly subdued, Alde gestured towards where Yi-Han was.

There was only one meaning to that gesture.

"...!"

Yi-Han squeezed his eyes shut, came out through the exit under the copper frame, and headed to the rear of the 1st floor.

The Death Knights were all too busy dealing with the aftermath of the illusion corrosive to notice Yi-Han.

'...Thank you, senior.'

Hearing the Death Knights' shouts and struggling sounds from afar, Yi-Han resolved.

He would definitely succeed in this smuggling and repay this debt!