Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy
chapter-464

"Wardanaz is a bit different in this regard since he's from a high noble family."

Salko spoke bluntly.

Upon hearing those words, the siren looked at Yi-Han in amazement.

Would someone from a high noble family of the Empire usually grab a siren by the back of the neck and drag them up?

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

At Yi-Han's question, the siren slightly averted its gaze and started writing again.

According to what it said, this swamp was originally a lake with clear water flowing.

It was one of the resting places for the sirens wandering through Einroguard's underground waterways, but this time, it had turned into a swamp due to the spirit flood.

On top of that injustice, the tapir, which should have been deep inside the library, suddenly got angry and crawled out, destroying and roaming around.

Marking its territory in the swamp, which was originally the siren's lake, was an added insult.

"..."

"..."

The Black Tortoise Tower students looked at Yi-Han with a lukewarm gaze.

That gaze contained the meaning, 'Could it be angry because we broke the library furniture and made a fortress to occupy it?'

Yi-Han answered firmly.

"It must be angry because of the spirit flood."

"..."

'The flood wouldn't affect deep inside the library, would it?'

While the students were flustered, Yi-Han immediately continued with what he had to say.

"I didn't save you to show off, but you won't forget today's favor, right? I heard the honorable descendants of spirits are always clear about favors and grudges."

'I'm so embarrassed.'

Salko suddenly felt his face burning up.

Even Salko, who had learned that 'you have to learn to be shameless' as someone from a stonemason guild, had to admit that he was still far behind when he saw Yi-Han.

The next time he got a construction request, he was thinking of definitely using what he had learned from Yi-Han.

"Let's go, Salko. We need to check how far the creature's territory extends."

As long as the skull principal was suspicious, they couldn't leave it like this.

Yi-Han was planning to chase it to the end and check how far the tapir's territory extended.

"But Wardanaz... If the tapir is angry because of the fortress, the story is different. Moreover... I don't think the tapir has the ability to secretly kidnap a student. Especially in such an enraged state."

Although his head was full of worries, Salko was also thinking of a similar point as Jijel.

The tapir was far from a being that would quietly and secretly kidnap someone.

"It can't be helped, Salko. Actually, I suspect that the tapir might be instigated by someone."

"Wh, who?"

"None other than the principal. But it's not certain..."

"I knew it!"

Salko shouted with fiery eyes. Yi-Han was slightly startled.

"Ah, no. This is just a possibility, and there's no proof, so I'm saying we should chase the tapir to the end and check..."

"Wardanaz. Do you know a dwarf's intuition?"

'You're an elf though...'

"That intuition is telling me. The principal is the culprit. It can't be anyone else. If he was going to take someone, he would have taken the White Tiger Tower guys!"

"...Anyway, you agree that we should chase and check, right?"

"Yeah. Sorry. For taking your time."

-♪♩♩♩...-

"Again, revealing your true colors!"

Yi-Han shouted and spun his body. And he pointed his staff.

Then the siren angrily slapped the ground with its hand.

Tap tap tap!

It had been writing and calling them for a while, but the students had been ignoring it, chattering among themselves.

"Ah. Sorry."

The siren glared at Yi-Han with a fierce gaze, all the gratitude from earlier gone.

It looked like it wanted to sing several songs of anger in a row if it could.

The siren's suggestion was simple.

It said it would help track the tapir.

The recently changed swampy terrain had many places where one could sink deeply if they stepped wrongly, and the paths were complicated, so even if they followed the tracks, there was a high possibility of losing it.

"Indeed... Wait. You're not thinking of repaying the favor with this, are you? I'm asking just in case."

"Wardanaz... Couldn't you just say that later..."

"Salko. What are you talking about? Originally, important things should be said in advance."

The siren shook its head vigorously, pulled an old raft, and put the students on it.

Then it started swimming while pushing the raft. The raft quickly gained speed and traversed the swamp swiftly.

'Sirens had this kind of ability.'

Yi-Han inwardly admired.

He thought they were only good at singing, but in this kind of underwater terrain, they served as a reliable means of transportation.

Meanwhile, Sharakan skillfully jumped on dry land and took the lead. Finding the tapir's tracks first while not slowing down was not something any summon could do.

The siren looked at Sharakan with renewed amazement.

It was unbelievable that a young student was controlling it.

It wouldn't be strange if mana exhaustion hit right away...

-Grrr!-

Sharakan, who had been running well, suddenly stopped moving, extended its claws, and showed wariness.

"...!"

The students widened their eyes.

A small island located in front of the swamp was covered with a black, undulating curtain as if a curtain had been drawn.

-♪♩♩!!-

When the siren sang a short song, Yi-Han immediately turned his gaze. The siren hurriedly stopped singing and wrote.

Although it was really terrible handwriting like Gainando's, Yi-Han frowned and caught it.

"...Ah. The tapir's ability is activating?"

The siren hurriedly nodded.

The tapir cherished the nightmares it fed on, but occasionally, when it really needed to, it would spit out the swallowed nightmares to threaten others.

The pitch-black curtain spread over the island was a sign of that.

The curtain of nightmares spewed out by the tapir!

"No way. Why would the tapir do that?"

-...-

-...?-

The siren and Sharakan looked at Yi-Han simultaneously.

Although they were different species, their eyes were saying, 'Because you chased it...'

Yi-Han retorted firmly.

"It's strange for a creature to do that just because a 1st-year student chased it. And in the first place, I didn't chase it with bad intentions. I came to check what happened."

The siren tried its best to write, 'That's not important right now, just tell the tapir directly,' but the tapir's reaction was one step faster.

It began to expand the curtain.

"Light, reveal the truth! Thin fog, spread!"

Yi-Han quickly cast <Light of Truth Enchantment> and <Ogonin's Light Fog>.

The former was to counter the spreading nightmare.

The latter was to stop the spreading nightmare.

However, the tapir's nightmare curtain was more powerful than expected. It surged like water, swallowed the light and fog, and directly hit the students.

"Ugh!"

"Kuh...!"

Groans flowed out among the students.

They had fallen into the nightmare that the tapir had gathered and spewed out.

"...Uh."

Yi-Han was slightly puzzled.

Not because of the nightmare, but because the nightmare had no effect at all.

He knew his resistance was strong due to mana, but he thought he would at least see an illusion for a moment...

Seeing the nightmare curtain just brush past without being able to see anything was a bit embarrassing.

'This is not the time.'

He had to stop the tapir as quickly as possible.

Although the appearance of being caught in this kind of illusion attack didn't look that dangerous, the damage accumulated inside was considerable.

The longer they were held, the more dangerous it was.

'To approach, I need to wake up the siren. Can I wake it up? Will it wake up if I give it a strong shock?'

Yi-Han looked at the siren, pondering what magic to cast.

However, the siren was staring at Yi-Han with a blank gaze.

"..."

-...-

Come to think of it, it was natural for the siren to have strong resistance to such nightmares, as it had the powerful blood of a spirit that enchanted other beings with its song.

Yi-Han slowly lowered his staff.

The siren looked at Yi-Han suspiciously.

"Hurry! Guide me to where the tapir is! We need to save our friends!"

At Yi-Han's shout, the siren hurriedly nodded and started pushing the boat again.

The tapir roared even though they broke through and entered after it had spread the nightmare.

■■■■■...

"What is it saying?"

The siren hurriedly wrote on the boat.

Whyareyoubotherme...

"...It's absurd for it to say such a thing after tormenting innocent people first! But let's take a step back as the good ones. If it stops the nightmare and the attack right now, tell it that the students will leave the library as soon as the flood is over!"

-???-

The siren wanted to ask what it meant for the students to leave the library, but there was no time for that.

For now, the siren conveyed it as it was.

-♩♩♩♪...-

"How dare you!"

Yi-Han instinctively reacted when he heard the singing voice.

And he realized that all his friends had fallen into the nightmare and it had no effect.

"Ah. Sorry. Keep singing."

-...-

The fingers of the siren holding the raft tightened.

■■■■...

The siren diligently interpreted.

The tapir was asking, 'Is that true?'

"I swear on my family's name."

The siren was greatly surprised by Yi-Han's sincerity.

He's even swearing on his family's name.

Isn't that a bit much?

"But tell it that I need to check too. In case it received instructions from the principal."

Whatnonsense...

"...Anyway, tell it to let me check! If we both want to avoid a fight!"

The students freed from the nightmare cautiously approached the tapir's nest.

Surprisingly, there was not a single trace of the skull principal.

No traces of death knights or other magic.

Salko whispered with a serious expression.

"Could it be a disguise?"

The tapir looked down at Salko with contemptuous eyes.

Yi-Han spoke with a disgruntled expression.

"A student suddenly disappeared and we're looking for them, do you know anything?"

■■■■■.

The siren hesitated and interpreted.

"...At this time, the professor often takes students for the divination magic exam? What kind of absurd slander... There's no way Professor Krair would do such a thing, let alone the principal...!"

Yi-Han, who was speaking, hesitated.

Come to think of it, there was no law that Professor Krair couldn't do such a thing.

'What do I know about Professor Krair?'

The one principle to keep regarding professors was solely 'Do not underestimate them'.

■■■■■■■...

Itsaiditdirectlyexperiencedithelpingprepareforthedivination magicexamlastyear...

"...Let's accept that opinion for now. I'll check."

Yi-Han immediately took out paper and a quill pen.

"Tell me the details. When and where did you help prepare for the illusion magic exam? Did you help this year too? And if it's for the divination magic exam, where did they keep the students? Tell me."

The tapir hesitated.

The professor didn't forbid it, but it wondered if it was okay to say such things.

Yi-Han pressed strongly.

"Tsk tsk! Do you want to see the students continue living in the library?"

Tears welled up in the tapir's eyes.

In the end, the tapir gave up and spilled out the information it knew.

■■■...

The siren's expression gradually became subtle as it interpreted next to them.

Clearly, the tapir who had barged into their territory and caused a commotion was the bad guy, but strangely, it felt more and more like it was the villain.

Objectively, it would be a good result for the tapir to return to its territory and the sirens to reclaim their territory, but why...

Amidst the flickering light, the sculptural face of the young mage boy seemed to flash even more wickedly.

'...It must be my imagination!'

The tapir's

ability is

activating!