Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 691

Chapter 691

The Death Knight stared at Yi-Han and his friends, then sighed.

-I understand. I'll pretend I didn't see anything.-

"Oh, really?"

Gainando was slightly taken aback.

He hadn't expected him to actually pretend not to have seen anything.

-It's the senior's fault for being caught by juniors.-

"..."

"..."

The friends were at a loss for words at the Death Knight's cold remark.

It was fortunate, but...!

-Well, now that our conversation seems to be over, shall we get going? Are you all ready?-

Eandurde nodded. The Death Knight spoke to the students.

-How about saying your final goodbyes? It'll be hard to see each other's faces for about a year.-

"Hmph. Yi-Han will probably ignore that and wander around. He's already made interference potions... Ugh."

Yi-Han hit Gainando in the solar plexus and then answered.

"Thank you. We'll say our goodbyes."

The gathered students looked at Eandurde.

Their eyes were filled with all the emotions one could send to a student just entering school: sympathy, compassion, pity, regret, and sorrow.

"Eandurde. I don't know what to say."

"I'm fine!"

Eandurde responded energetically to Yonaire's words.

"You're not just excited because you don't have to study anymore, are you?"

"...N-no..."

Eandurde, whose true feelings were exposed, avoided eye contact.

After Yi-Han, Yonaire had been the one who made her study the most harshly in the mansion.

"Ahem. Eandurde... Well... Argh. I don't know what to say! Just remember the edible plants and easy-to-make traps I told you about. With those, you can find some food to an extent."

"You should practice picking locks more. It's still not enough for Einroguard."

"Oh right. You need to memorize more potion recipes. They're potions you'll use often."

"I know you have brute strength and special racial abilities, but don't rely on those too much. You need skills to survive in Einroguard."

Eandurde, who had been listening attentively to the seniors' advice, tilted her head.

"Isn't it a magic school...?"

Just listening to the seniors made it sound like she was going to the worst underground fighting arena.

"...Well, you'll see when you get there!"

"That's right. Don't be too scared. Einroguard is also a place where people live... No... That might not be true, but anyway, you'll adapt as time passes. ...Probably. Gainando. You say something too. You're the only one who hasn't."

"Huh?"

Gainando, who had been standing blankly, hurriedly thought when his friends urged him.

"Uh... Uh..."

"Hurry!"

"F-find a friend like Yi-Han and follow them around, it'll be comfortable!"

"..."

"...We shouldn't have asked."

"You told me to say something!!"

Gainando jumped up and down, but his friends ignored him and called the Death Knight.

-Are you ready?-

"Yes. I think we can depart now."

Yi-Han whispered quietly to Eandurde one last time before he left.

"If you really run out of food, leave a mark in front of the Blue Dragon dormitory tower. I'll secretly bring you some."

However, Eandurde firmly shook her head.

"It's fine."

"...You...!"

"I'll take it from other students!"

"...You..."

Yi-Han slightly regretted not having given more character education.

***

Alde of the Marcan family was a Blue Dragon Tower student at Einroguard, moving up from 2nd to 3rd year this time.

His grades were in the middle range within the tower, his family was famous for floriculture in the southern empire, and he himself was very interested in illusion magic, cold elements, and numerology.

If there was anything unusual, it was that he had been caught by juniors while looking for a junior to use in the new semester's smuggling operation at Einroguard.

'Ugh. How humiliating.'

He had followed out of curiosity when the junior he was talking to entered a villa of a different family, not his own, and was ambushed by juniors who suddenly poured out.

Even if they were juniors, it was difficult to gain the upper hand against several opponents. Moreover, he had been ambushed...

Without proper magic combat training, it was nearly impossible to cast magic quickly in an ambush situation.

"Senior. You agreed to stay still, didn't you?"

"Would you stay still if you were in my place? More importantly, how did you know about smuggling? Who told you? Was it White Tiger Tower or Black Tortoise Tower?"

Alde was convinced that someone from the same year must have told the truth to the juniors.

Otherwise, there was no way the juniors could know so much about the smuggling operation.

Someone must have interfered to check Alde, who belonged to Blue Dragon Tower.

"We told you. We figured it out ourselves. Every senior we met tried to use us as bait."

"It's a misunderstanding. A misunderstanding! I had no intention of using you as bait."

Alde spouted lies without even wetting his lips.

Of course, it had no effect on the juniors. The juniors looked at their senior with indifferent eyes.

"Then did you really try to include us in the smuggling operation out of concern for us?"

"Of course! I did it because I felt sorry for you. Untie me now. If you participate in our operation, you can get enough food supplies to last a year. Think about it. Freshly baked multigrain bread and buttermilk inside Einroguard. A maple syrup dessert with a little honey mixed in. A feast like meatloaf with more than 1/3 meat!"

"...It doesn't sound that appealing..."

"?!"

Alde had proposed confidently, but unfortunately, he had limitations in his imagination.

The students' reaction wasn't very enthusiastic to the modest feast menu compared to Yi-Han's meals.

"Wh-why? If you're new students, you must have been thinking about those foods all throughout your 1st year?"

"We ate pretty well on our own."

"Don't lie! What do you mean you ate well? You probably boiled leather boots in a pot and ate that!"

"..."

The students shuddered at the seniors' 1st year diet, which was more miserable than expected.

And they reflected anew.

'I shouldn't complain about wanting to eat something from now on...'

'I thought so, but we really did eat well!'

'I should ask for chocolate cake when school starts.'

As all four tower students fell silent with guilt and gratitude towards Yi-Han, Alde misunderstood their reaction and opened his mouth.

"You probably don't know how amazing this is because you haven't experienced it! But it's really possible! If you succeed in smuggling at the beginning of the school year, you can live and eat like rich people throughout the semester!"

Creak-

Yi-Han, who had returned after seeing off the Death Knight, opened the door and came in.

Then he held up the potion he had taken from Alde and asked.

"By the way, senior. You told us to drink this when the inspection starts, right?"

"That's a potion that helps with smuggling."

"This is a mixture of berserker potion and blade bear transformation potion. Senior, if you drink this, you'll turn into a blade bear and go berserk, won't you?"

"...Wh-which bastard betrayed...?!"

When his evil intention to transform juniors into monsters and make them go berserk was exposed, Alde was visibly flustered.

The juniors glared at their senior with contemptuous eyes.

"...Someone had to draw attention."

"I'm sure that's what it was."

Realizing he was cornered, Alde sighed and asked Yi-Han.

"Sigh. Alright. Just untie my wrists for a moment."

"Senior, you just tried to escape earlier. We can't."

"This time is different. I promise on my family name. I won't run away if you untie me."

For a noble, making a promise on the family name was a promise that was difficult to break easily.

Even when captured as a prisoner during territorial wars, they wouldn't escape even if given the chance after making such a promise.

When Alde went that far, the students' atmosphere softened a bit. They judged that now the senior would stop trying to escape and stay still.

"Alright. We'll untie you."

"Haha, you fools! Senses, to the maze!"

As soon as his wrists and ankles were untied, Alde quickly pulled out a spare staff from his sleeve and cast the magic he had been preparing until just now.

Cold air enveloped his enemies, disorienting their sense of direction and bringing forth illusions mixed with reality.

It was enough magic to escape this predicament.

"You've learned one lesson today. A true Einroguard mage values a piece of bread more than family name or honor...!"

Thwack!

Yi-Han landed a hit on Alde as he tried to escape the annex, then dragged him back and sat him down.

And tied him up again.

From the start, he had understood that Alde was trying to cast magic by observing the mana flow around him.

He had just let him try once because he thought Alde would keep being annoying if he didn't.

Yi-Han swung his staff to clear away the remaining illusion magic and brought his friends back to their senses.

Then Alde reacted belatedly.

"H-h-how?!"

"Senior. You just swore on your family name."

"..."

Alde avoided eye contact, seemingly a bit ashamed of this too.

Then he muttered.

"Hmph. This is normal in Einroguard."

"We don't do that..."

"You bastards too! In one more year, you'll be selling your ancestors' names! And you, what tower are you from! Do you know more about noble honor than me?!"

"I'm from Blue Dragon Tower..."

Gainando, who was suddenly singled out, answered with an embarrassed face.

At that answer, Alde was surprised.

Come to think of it, this was the noble families' villa area. Of course there would be Blue Dragon Tower students.

But...

"Wait, what about that guy?!"

Alde pointed at Dolgyu and asked.

He clearly wasn't from Blue Dragon Tower.

"I'm from White Tiger Tower."

"I'm from Black Tortoise Tower."

"I'm from Immortal Phoenix Tower."

"...Wait, wait, wait a minute."

Alde became even more flustered.

He was more surprised than when he had been ambushed by the juniors.

No wonder the numbers seemed large and lacking in uniformity...

"How are you all together?"

"Because we're friends?"

"Blue Dragon Tower can't be friends with White Tiger Tower!"

Alde shouted firmly.

Gainando almost agreed without realizing it.

"Certainly, those bastards are really unpleas..."

"Don't you see Choi next to you?"

"Ah, no. Except for Dolgyu!"

After pondering for a while, Alde looked at Yi-Han and asked.

"Are you perhaps controlling these guys? If so..."

Sometimes, even within magic schools, charismatic seniors received respect regardless of tower.

The White Tiger Tower student before him now might be such a case.

"To think there's such a guy in White Tiger Tower..."

"I'm from Blue Dragon Tower."

"?!!!!"

"Anyway, senior. I tried to respect your honor as much as possible, but you kept deceiving us. I'll confiscate all your staffs and reagents."

Yi-Han searched Alde's body and confiscated all remaining items.

"No! Think about it. I'm your senior! Won't you see my face in the tower?"

Regardless, Yi-Han said what he had to say.

"I'll release you when the semester starts. We'll have to go to the main gate together, but until then, you'll have to stay in the annex. If there's anything you want to eat, please let me know."

"Thick pancakes, premium salted butter, southern honey, and coffee with plenty of milk."

"Ah. I didn't mean I'd just give it to you, but if you give advice or information about smuggling, I'll give it to you."

"...Are you really a 1st year??"

Alde stared at Yi-Han with shaking eyes.

To think such a guy had entered Blue Dragon Tower!