Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 51

Chapter 51

"Cough. Student over there, please visit my workshop during the break."

"????"

Professor Mortum, coughing, addressed Gainando.

Gainando's face looked as if he had been slapped.

Why?

What did I do wrong??

Could it be that he harbored a grudge against the royal family???

"And you, student, as well."

Professor Mortum also pointed out Yi-Han.

Yi-Han, unlike Gainando, was not shocked.

He had seriously considered dark magic as an option for grade management in the first place.

However, the students of the Blue Dragon interpreted this differently.

"Gainando, you brat! Because of you, Wardanaz is getting dragged into this too!"

"Can't you just die stupidly alone?!"

"Hurry up and say you'll go alone!"

Misunderstanding that Yi-Han was being dragged into this because of his friendship with Gainando, the students were furious.

Wasn't Yi-Han responsible for several things already and thus Gainando should go alone instead of dragging Yi-Han down like a drowning man?

"These... these brats... I will never go alone! We'll go together!"

Gainando, upset by his friends' scolding, exclaimed.

"Cancel it!"

"No!"

"Cancel it, I said!"

"Everyone. Professor Mortum has already left."

Professor Garcia looked at the Blue Dragon students with disdain.

—

A mage's workshop, put simply, was akin to a research lab.

A place where the mage's apprentices voluntarily explore various experiments and searches around the clock, without rest, on topics of interest to the mage.

Of course, saying this made it sound like a hellish place where people become worn out and torn apart, but that was actually true.

Depending on which mage's workshop it was, the experiences varied greatly, but fundamentally, the life of an apprentice learning under a mage was bound to be tough.

Yi-Han had heard quite a few stories about the apprentices studying in the workshops when he was in the Wardanaz family.

-”Once upon a time, there was an apprentice learning magic under a mage. This apprentice, smart as they were, would wake up in the morning, fine-tune their staff, prepare potions according to alchemical secrets for experiments, adjust the amount of mana for the magic circle, and then go out to gather the necessary materials before lunch. The apprentice managed to eat lunch quickly while out and about, saving time to complete the next task faster. And then…”-

-"Does this story end with the apprentice killing the mage and taking over the workshop?"-

-"Young master. What an absurd joke! Of course, the ending is the hardworking apprentice becoming a great mage."-

-”...”-

In any world, there was no paradise for learners.

Fortunately, there was no need to worry about that now.

Yi-Han was just a freshman!

Not yet assigned to any professor, there was no reason for anyone to fear.

If one felt a professor was crazy, one could just quietly walk away.

"Sniff, sniff..."

"...Are you really crying?"

Yi-Han was baffled.

Gainando's eyes were genuinely reddening.

"What did I do wrong... to be called separately to such a gloomy and remote place..."

"There's no guarantee that it's because of something wrong, right?"

"Then what could it be!! Huh! It must be because I've mastered dark magic, and he's called me separately to harass me!"

The two were now heading to the location Professor Mortum had directed them to.

And to Yi-Han, the location of Professor Mortum's workshop seemed a bit problematic.

'Too sinister, isn't it?'

As they journeyed, the path grew lonelier and more tranquil, the sound of the wind intensifying. It seemed as if ghostly whispers echoed from the forests lining the road...

Even a few graveyards came into view.

It wasn't incomprehensible, of course.

Dark magic fundamentally required dark attribute mana, and studying the undead would need corpses...

Meeting such conditions inevitably made the place feel ominous.

‘But if you do this and ask why the freshmen don’t come, it’s like a conscienceless talk…’

From a distance, they could see Professor Mortum's workshop, known as the <Darkness Chamber>.

From the outside, it appeared as a mundane four-story tower, but it was common knowledge that a mage's building could not be judged by its exterior alone.

Near the tower, there were a few hints of what lay inside.

Scattered skulls and bones rolled around.

Roughly carved gravestones were erected.

Boxes of deadly poison with warnings, "Handle with care!!! Touch and die!!"

It was somewhat apparent what kind of experiments and research were conducted in this workshop.

Gainando's face, sensing the atmosphere, had turned as pale as an undead.

"Is anyone there?"

Creak-

The door opened by itself as they knocked. Yi-Han and Gainando entered.

Gainando, shivering, tried to grasp Yi-Han's coat. Yi-Han, annoyed, brushed off his hand. Gainando's face was filled with a sense of betrayal.

"Cough, cough... You've arrived."

The workshop was filled with dark blue smoke, so thick they could hardly see a thing. Professor Mortum's voice emanated from within the smoky haze.

"Direct. Guide the freshmen."

"Are you in your right mind, Professor? The principal said upperclassmen shouldn't interact with first-years."

"Ah, right. Cough. How troublesome... Can't we just ignore that quietly?"

"I've only just been released from the cell, remember? Want me to go back?"

"Not the cell, but the punishment room... Cough. Fine, stay inside."

Professor Mortum waved his staff, sweeping the smoke outside.

Then the interior came into view.

It was surprisingly normal inside.

Perhaps it had been tidied up to lure in freshmen...

Tables and chairs, and bookshelves.

The place had the ambiance of a library.

'...Wait. Isn't that all made of bones?'

Yi-Han realized belatedly, shocked.

The furniture was entirely made of bones.

Of course, for a dark mage adept at summoning skeleton minions, using them for furniture was a cost-effective choice.

A bit eerie, though.

Unaware or pretending not to notice they were bones, Gainando cautiously sat down in a chair.

Professor Mortum, trying his best to appear benign, said,

"Cough. You already know why I've summoned you here?"

"I've done nothing wrong, Professor!"

"I called you both because I believe you have exceptional talent in dark magic. Wait, what did you just say?"

"Nothing."

Gainando clammed up.

It was different from what he had expected.

'Me, talented in dark magic?'

"Yi-Han. He says I have a talent for dark magic?"

"I have ears. I was right next to you, so I heard."

"Ah... What to do? I'm not interested in dark magic. Me, talented? Ah... What to do?"

"..."

Yi-Han couldn't help but marvel at Gainando's shallow spirit.

How could he be so easily swayed?

Professor Mortum rubbed his palms together and then produced a few candies from somewhere. They were wrapped in skull-printed wrappers.

"Help yourself to some food while you listen. Now, both of you have exceptional talent in dark magic, so I thought it would be good to explain firsthand how wonderful dark magic is. There are many misconceptions about dark magic, but they are just that – misconceptions. Cough, cough. dark magic is the most beautiful and profound field among all magic disciplines."

"..."

While Gainando looked half-entranced, Yi-Han listened with a slightly pitiful heart.

It was a story he had heard often.

Professors in popular fields were arrogant and haughty.

-”You want to learn under me? I'll consider it after seeing your talent.”-

But as there are popular fields, there are also unpopular ones.

Professors in these less popular fields were truly pitiable and tear-jerking.

-”The advantage of our department... is that it has hit rock bottom.”-

-”...”-

-”Isn't it nice to think that the only way is up?”-

-”...”-

Professor Mortum’s words exuded the typical sorrow of a professor in an unpopular field.

Unable to attract students effectively, and even resorting to offering candies...

"...And so, dark magic is the magic of all magics, the king of magic. Do you understand?"

"I've become interested in dark magic!!"

"I had no idea dark magic was such a grand magic."

At Gainando and Yi-Han's responses, Professor Mortum's face bloomed with a smile.

—

"Ah, should I study dark magic? I didn't know I had such talent. But dark magic has a certain image... But if it's necessary for me. Ah, still..."

Ignoring Gainando, who was humming excitedly, Yi-Han examined the gift given by Professor Mortum.

To the two students who had responded positively, Professor Mortum had given a carefully wrapped gift.

...It was an unidentified bone.

-"What is this?"-

-"When you return to your room, look at this bone. It will remind you of dark magic."-

-"No... what is this, really?"-

-"Ho ho. Cough, cough."-

Professor Mortum wiped under his nose with an embarrassed expression.

As if he couldn't rob the student of the joy of discovering and understanding this secret.

Of course, from Yi-Han's perspective, it was a rather creepy gift.

What kind of bone was this?

'Is there magic within it?'

Yi-Han's first guess was that it was a makeshift artifact containing magic.

Hadn't he already been tricked once by a book given by the principal in the punishment room?

Maybe it was a trend among the professors of this magic academy to gift students artifacts filled with magic without explanation.

Like gifting something sweet to a lover on a special day...

'I thought of it, but it's really a terrible analogy.'

Yi-Han decided to research it later when he returned.

"Yi-Han, Yi-Han."

"?"

"If I start learning dark magic, it's an absolute secret from Maykin, okay?"

Yi-Han realized what Gainando was thinking.

Gainando, who had mocked Yonaire for learning alchemy.

If he himself started learning dark magic, imagine the ridicule he would face.

Yi-Han answered with a smile.

"Of course."

'I should tell her right away.'

—

Elf swordsman, Professor Ingurdel, taught <Basic Swordsmanship> and <Basic Physical Training> classes.

These classes were mainly attended by students from the White Tiger.

In such classes, Yi-Han, being the only one from the Blue Dragon, stood out very, very much.

However, the atmosphere was a bit different from the previous swordsmanship class.

If everyone was frustrated because they couldn’t pick a fight in any way in the last swordsmanship class, in this class, everyone avoided making eye contact with Yi-Han.

Afraid of being smashed if they crossed him!

'It's comfortable.'

Yi-Han thought he had done well to act out.

Indeed, sometimes acting up made the difficulty of life easier.

Of course, such behavior did not reduce the difficulty of his class.

"Everyone, keep running without stopping. Don't stop! Using all the muscles in your body is important, but don't forget to feel the mana through your breathing. If you continuously circulate mana within your body, you can use your muscles much more efficiently."

While mages used mana for magic, swordsmen applied it to their bodies.

Mana, flowing and circulating like a river within the body, prevented the accumulation of fatigue and protected against external poisons.

...Of course, saying this didn't mean the young freshmen could immediately do it.

They were all just gasping and running, mana circulation and everything else notwithstanding.

"Professor, I have a question."

"What is it?"

Professor Ingurdel, welcoming the question from Yi-Han, responded with interest.

What could he possibly be asking?

"I'm planning to go into the mountains to gather some materials. Do you have any advice?"

"Hmm. It would be better if you didn't go."

"..."

"Really, it would be best if you didn't go."

Yi-Han felt uneasy at Professor Ingurdel's serious advice.