Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy
chapter-426

The summoned Professor Verduus stared blankly at the skull principal.

The skull principal sighed first at his attitude of not knowing at all what he had done wrong.

“Beavle, Beavle... How many times have I told you?”

"What?"

“To do the minimum preparation. I'm not trying to interfere with your research. I'm just saying let's do the basics. Okay?”

"I prepared diligently?!"

Professor Verduus retorted as if he was wronged.

The skull principal endured once more and said.

“Usually, when I tell you to do the minimum preparation... it doesn't mean to exploit a 1st-year disciple.”

"But the others are idiots?"

The 'others' Professor Verduus was referring to were his so-called disciples.

Yi-Han's seniors learning enchantment magic!

Originally, these seniors should have helped Professor Verduus with his work, prepared for lectures, and taught the juniors, but...

As you know, in the imperial magic world, disciples usually took after their masters.

The disciples who remained under a master like Professor Verduus to continue enchantment magic were naturally bound to be students similar to Professor Verduus.

-I don't know what the professor is doing, but I'll make my own artifact.-

-The professor went to the punishment room? No wonder there was an extra chair. Then I should use this chair.-

Since Professor Verduus didn't expect any deep respect from his disciples, their relationship should be seen as just mages using the same workshop rather than a traditional master-disciple relationship.

In fact, it was even worse. At least mages in the same workshop would show some concern if one of them disappeared.

There was no way such seniors would help with the work. If Professor Verduus called them, there was a very high possibility that they would just ignore him without any response.

“They're not idiots, it's because you taught them that way.”

"No matter how I taught them, if they're not idiots, they would have done well on their own. Look at Wardanaz."

“...”

The skull principal felt a headache coming on for the first time in a long time.

Professor Bagrak, who looked at Yi-Han and was convinced that 'my teachings were not wrong,' and Professor Verduus, who looked at Yi-Han and was convinced that 'since he's doing well on his own, it's the fault of the other idiots,' were really...

These guys should be left alone to suffer the consequences, but they were smugly meeting a crazy disciple by luck.

“Shut up and do the preparation for 2nd year and above by yourself.”

"Wardanaz is capable of doing it too..."

“I know that too. I can see it.”

"Then why?"

“I can't stand the sight of you leaving it to your disciple and getting comfortable.”

The skull principal spoke honestly.

Professor Verduus looked at the skull principal, wondering how he could have such bad thoughts.

"Professor. Don't keep going elsewhere. Do you think I'll prepare alone if you say that? Quickly, the reagents... oh. Principal. What are you doing?"

“I'm telling him not to make you do the preparation for higher-year lectures.”

"Haha. Don't joke around."

Yi-Han snorted as if it was absurd.

At that attitude, the skull principal reflected on his actions a little.

"Huh?"

"Strange?"

The students taking enchantment magic were surprised by the lecture hall's appearance, which was different from usual.

Books were prepared in advance at each seat, magic circles were prepared for indirectly experiencing magic, and reagents and metals were neatly arranged for testing magic.

Seeing that, the students logically concluded.

"Did we enter the wrong lecture hall?"

"But the professor is over there?"

Beaver mixed-bloods were not a common race. The students looked around in confusion.

"Wardanaz. Do you happen to know what's going on?"

Wardanaz was always quick to get information in such situations. His friends asked, wondering if he might know something.

Yi-Han nodded his head and answered.

"Today's enchantment magic lecture is not about engraving with magic circles, but directly enchanting with spells. As the difficulty increases, auxiliary magic circles, reference books, and practice materials are prepared."

The method of directly engraving magic circles on objects was a kind friend that reduced the effort of mages preparing complex magic.

Naturally, the difficulty of magic that was cast with spells increased greatly.

Even more so, the mage had to directly weave the mana structure that was engraved one by one with magic circles along with the spell.

"I see... Wait. Wardanaz. How do you know this?"

"It's Wardanaz. You'll know when you see it."

"I prepared it."

"..."

"..."

"I said I prepared it."

"Uh, uhh."

His friends suddenly became solemn at Yi-Han's words.

No wonder he wasn't seen...

'Is it normal for a 1st-year to prepare like this?'

'How could it be normal? Even if I'm from a knight family, I know this isn't normal.'

'But honestly, isn't it better prepared than Professor Verduus?'

The whispering White Tiger Tower students thought it was definitely the case.

Professor Verduus's style was irresponsible, to put it badly, and to put it nicely... no, there was no nice way to put it.

If Professor Verduus had prepared today's lecture, the students would have had to find the necessary books from the shelves from the beginning, rummage through the wooden chests in the material warehouse, take out usable magic circles, accidentally burn some clothes while taking them out, get scolded by Professor Verduus a bit...

"Wardanaz. Will you be preparing from now on?"

"...What do you mean by that now?"

The White Tiger Tower student who spoke with expectant eyes shrank back at the murderous voice.

"Ah, no. Just... curious."

The basics are always the elements.

Regardless of which school of magic, when teaching the basics, it was often taught in conjunction with the elements.

That's how familiar and accustomed mages were to elemental attributes.

What mage wouldn't be familiar with fire, water, wind, and earth?

Of course, there were occasionally mages who dealt more with lightning and darkness, but those were really exceptional cases...

"Watch closely. Like this."

Professor Verduus waved his staff. Then, the plain wooden board heated up. When water was sprinkled on it, a sizzling sound was heard.

Yi-Han asked.

"Professor. You didn't chant the spell."

"Huh? I don't need to chant it, right?"

"...Wouldn't it be better to let the students hear it?"

Professor Verduus made the students angry in a different way than when engraving magic circles.

The professor blamed the students' inability to even do silent chanting and chanted the spell again.

"Heat, hide your form and dwell within."

This <Latent Heat Enchantment> magic had quite a high difficulty despite its plain appearance.

It wasn't simply enchanting flames, but removing some characteristics from the fire element and leaving only pure heat.

Of course, that heat had to be made to dwell within the object.

Since all of this had to be done with a spell without a magic circle, the students couldn't help but frown.

"And once you've done all this, the next one is this."

Professor Verduus explained additional enchantment spells that could be cast instantly without magic circles.

Just like the <Latent Heat Enchantment> he had just shown, Professor Verduus preferred ones that were twisted one step further from simple element-based enchantment magic.

It wasn't out of consideration for the students' skill improvement, but simply because he abhorred boring magic due to his personality.

After <Latent Heat Enchantment> was <Light of Truth Enchantment>.

This magic, usually cast on a staff, was an enchantment magic that amplified the exploration attribute of the light element.

In other words, it was a magic that continuously emitted light that was useful for detecting hidden passages or illusion magic.

"!"

"!!!"

Scribble scribble scribble-

The students' eyes widened and the speed of their writing quills increased.

For students who wanted to go out a bit after dinner, they immediately sensed how useful that magic would be.

Einroguard had so many secret passages and traps that its name could be changed to Einrodungeon.

So much so that if the lecture hall was on the 2nd floor or above, students wouldn't go alone but together in groups.

As such, students couldn't help but covet such magic.

'The latent heat enchantment magic preparation was much more troublesome. Those annoying guys.'

Yi-Han understood their feelings but felt a bit disappointed.

The latent heat enchantment magic required more preparation materials.

After that, Professor Verduus introduced <Wind Barrier Enchantment> (a defensive magic that surrounded the equipment with a barrier of wind, deflecting weak projectiles and changing the trajectory of strong projectiles), <Purification Enchantment> (a magic that enchanted a cloth with a magic that removed toxicity from liquids), and so on.

"Mr. Wardanaz. I have a question about casting this <Light of Truth Enchantment>. Should I do the elemental conversion first and then the enchantment, or..."

"...Uh, the professor is right there."

"Ah. Have you not mastered it yet by any chance?"

Rowena was surprised as if she truly never thought of it.

She had an expression that she never even thought Yi-Han hadn't mastered it yet.

"I have mastered it, but the professor is right there."

'So he has mastered it.'

'He has mastered it, huh.'

The White Tiger Tower students practicing next to him thought inwardly.

Indeed, considering that he helped the professor prepare to that extent, it would have been more strange if someone of Wardanaz's skill level hadn't mastered it.

"But the professor is a bit."

Rowena was a relatively honorable one among the White Tiger Tower (self-proclaimed) knights.

So she didn't say any more, but everyone present could tell.

"Hmm. He is a bit like that."

Yi-Han gave up and decided to just explain.

In fact, it was true that he had become able to use it to some extent thanks to practicing while preparing with Professor Verduus.

"The method I use isn't necessarily the correct answer, so just keep it in mind. First the light element, then elemental attribute conversion, and then enchantment. This order seems to be the best. The point to be careful about when enchanting is that since you're not borrowing the power of a magic circle, the mana consumption may be severe."

"How severe is the mana consumption?"

"I don't know. I don't feel it. The book said it was like that."

"..."

"..."

The White Tiger Tower students stared intently at Yi-Han, but Yi-Han ignored them.

"So don't invest too much mana in the light element or attribute conversion. In the first place, magic cast with such spells can only have weak effects. Think of it as reducing the effect in exchange for increasing the speed and casting time..."

"Thank you."

Rowena bowed her head.

Yi-Han's teachings clearly had an effect, as progress was noticeably visible. Then another White Tiger Tower student asked.

"Wardanaz. Can I ask you too?"

"Oh. Then me too."

"...It's all good, but let me practice too."

"?!"

"?!?"

The White Tiger Tower students were startled.

Even Professor Verduus was startled.

"What?! You haven't mastered it all yet!?"

"...I might not have mastered it..."

Yi-Han held back from saying 'you brat.'

If only the White Tiger Tower students were present, it would have slipped out.

"Why haven't you mastered it?!"

"Ignore what the professor says."

"You endure it, Wardanaz."

The White Tiger Tower students desperately appeased Yi-Han.

It was their loss if Yi-Han got angry.

Asking Professor Verduus would only result in him teaching like a dog...

"But what haven't you mastered? The wind barrier magic?"

"I haven't seen Wardanaz use the wind element though."

"Is it the earth element? Wardanaz. If you have any questions, ask me."

Salko, a student from another tower, also turned his gaze as if he was curious.

"<Latent Heat Enchantment>."

"?"

"??"

His friends tilted their heads.

Professor Verduus also tilted his head.

"It's the easiest, you stu..."

"You, you might not be able to!"

The White Tiger Tower students desperately changed the trajectory of the conversation.

"It's unexpectedly difficult, right! It doesn't dwell well for me either! It's quite hard to make it dwell in a material that doesn't usually dwell..."

"It does dwell though."

"Huh?"

His friends were puzzled.

If he could make the heat dwell in <Latent Heat Enchantment>, wasn't there nothing particularly difficult?

"Then where are you stuck? Tell me, Wardanaz. I can help..."

Yi-Han waved his staff.

Then the staff started burning from the inside.

It wasn't that the flames were directly lit, but rather, the heat couldn't be endured and it caught fire from the inside.

"...doesn't seem to be."

"Ke, keep it up!"