Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy
chapter-544

Yi-Han paused for a moment and then immediately responded.

"That's right. There are so many crazy bastards in the world."

"Could it be Gonadaltes who broke it?"

"It's possible."

"Gonadaltes has been unusually irritable lately."

Professor Verduus put down an artifact that looked like a wrench and tapped his hands.

"Last time, he even locked me up. He keeps getting angry."

"Oh my. That's incomprehensible."

"Actually, I know the reason."

"Oh."

Yi-Han was surprised.

Professor Verduus knew the reason why the skull principal was angry?

'He was able to figure that out?'

In fact, if you think about it, the real reason was that Professor Verduus's innocent disciple accidentally touched the skull principal's belongings, but there was no way he could know that...

And besides that, Professor Verduus did many things that would provoke the skull principal's temper.

But to think that the professor himself had the ability to figure that out.

Really?

"It's because it's the end of the year."

"Pardon?"

"When a year ends, the imperial bureaucrats become annoying. Why did you spend money here, why did you spend money there."

"Aha."

Yi-Han understood what he meant.

Einroguard didn't receive a single penny of tuition or class fees from the students or their families.

It was a world of difference from other magic academies in the empire that received such enormous tuition and class fees that even decent noble families would be surprised.

Of course, Einroguard's operating funds didn't just fall from the sky. As the lord of Einroguard, the skull principal had to run around here and there to raise funds. Yi-Han knew some of the hardships as he had been present at the occasion a few times.

Donations from various celebrities and great noble families, personal sponsorship from the Emperor, suspiciously dubious-looking pouches of gold coins that the skull principal took out of his own vault (usually accompanied by articles in the imperial newspapers about certain vicious criminals disappearing), and so on.

One of the largest components of that was the official support funds from the empire.

The bureaucrats tried to cut it somehow, and the skull principal tried to increase it somehow, a fierce competition!

Naturally, at the end of the year, the imperial financial officers would do their best to cut next year's budget.

'I should be even more careful.'

Yi-Han vowed to be careful not to get caught if he had to steal the skull principal's belongings.

Because he could end up in the punishment room for a week instead of a day.

"Take this."

"What is this?"

"What we'll do during today's lecture. We'll make winter-ready clothing attachments."

When he opened the chest, it was full of various reagents.

Bestowing fire attributes, deflecting cold or wind, and so on.

As the end of the year approached, the weather in Einroguard was getting colder and colder.

Students would patch rags to make their coats thicker or carry warm alchemical liquids that didn't cool easily in glass bottles, but it wasn't easy.

There were magics like <Latent Heat Enchantment>, but in a situation where they had to constantly come and go around the school, even this was close to a luxury...

At times like this, what was useful was a simple artifact that engraved magic directly into the object itself.

It could be maintained much longer without the need to cast a separate spell.

'...But can Professor Verduus think of that?'

"Did you think of this, Professor??"

"That's right? I knew you would notice if it was you!"

Professor Verduus answered as if he had been waiting. His voice was full of injustice.

"You think I would choose something this boring? Of course not. Professor Garcia told me to! She said she would break my workbench if I didn't do it. How can a person be so cruel?"

"Nah. You must have misheard, Professor. Professor Garcia couldn't even kill a fly."

"No! I heard it correctly!"

Professor Verduus jumped up and down, but Yi-Han ignored him as if he hadn't heard.

***

"...So today, I'm making winter-ready clothing attachments for you guys."

When Professor Verduus grumbled, the students were startled.

They simultaneously looked at Yi-Han and shouted.

"Did you threaten the professor, Wardanaz???"

"..."

While Yi-Han was at a loss for words, Professor Verduus explained.

"No. Professor Garcia threatened me."

"Nah. Don't lie, Professor. How could Professor Garcia threaten you."

At Anglago's words, Jijel suddenly became lost in thought.

'It's possible... isn't it?'

Although Professor Garcia was one of the most kind-hearted people, if you put aside prejudice, anyone actually had the conditions to threaten someone.

"It's true! Really!"

As Professor Verduus jumped up and down, Yi-Han calmed him down again.

"Professor. Calm down. If the students don't complete it today, your workbench might be broken."

"That's right."

Professor Verduus, who didn't bat an eye at the students studying magic 25 hours a day but cherished his workbench, immediately came to his senses.

"Now. Among the things you wear in winter, the ones you can engrave magic on are..."

Professor Verduus explained various types of clothing that magic could be engraved on, such as hats, scarves, coats, cloaks, vests, sweaters, and shirts.

"What about gloves?"

"You can engrave on them."

"Oh. Even gloves..."

As a friend tried to take notes, Yi-Han stopped him and asked again.

"Is it possible at our level?"

"Uh. What circle magic did you guys use? Can you use 4th circle?"

"Wardanaz might be able to..."

"Shut up, you idiot."

Professor Verduus, who could calculate his artifacts in 0.1 seconds mentally but had to count on his fingers to calculate the students' level, finally finished thinking.

"It won't work."

"Well, gloves are small, so it would be difficult."

"It's not difficult, you guys are just stupid."

"..."

Some White Tiger Tower students whispered conversations like, "Can't we secretly bury the professor in a snowdrift?"

Meanwhile, Professor Verduus finished explaining the possible clothing attachments and also explained the magics that could be cast on them.

"<Latent Heat Enchantment>, <Wind Barrier Enchantment>, <Cold Resistance Enchantment>, <Snow Skin Enchantment>, <Freezing Resistance Enchantment>... This should be enough, right?"

"There are some we haven't learned."

"Huh? You can learn them new this time."

"..."

Some White Tiger Tower students started advancing their plan, thinking, "If we do it well, we might be able to drop him in a snow pit, right?"

'Wait.'

Yi-Han, who had helped prepare Professor Verduus's lecture, noticed something strange first.

"Professor. Even if we're not making a semi-permanent artifact, we're engraving magic to last for a while, but can ordinary clothing endure it?"

"It can't endure. That's why you have to use special cloth or leather."

"Ah. Did you prepare them in advance?"

Yi-Han was slightly surprised.

He didn't expect Professor Verduus to have brought such things to the lecture room in advance.

"I don't have them?"

"Pardon?"

"I don't have them. You guys have to get them."

"..."

"..."

Just then, a strong cold wind blew from outside. It was an eerie sound, as if a ghost was making it.

"Where do we get them now?"

Professor Verduus, who was asked the question, scratched the back of his head.

"Your seniors all had them prepared, but you guys didn't? Anything left from what you prepared last year?"

"We're 1st-years."

"I know that too. So anything left from what you prepared last year?"

'He's not just an ordinary crazy person.'

Using Professor Verduus and the students' conversation as white noise like a phonograph, Yi-Han checked the book.

Leather or cloth that could be used...

"Professor. What about two-headed snake skin?"

"It's enough to cast the magics mentioned earlier."

"Hmm. I have two boxes, but that won't be enough, right? What about Basala cloth?"

"That works too. But only the bark of Basala stems harvested in winter."

"Ah. I heard it's a winter crop. What about wool?"

"Ordinary wool won't do."

"What about wool made from mountain destroyer goat?"

"What? There's such wool? Give it to me!"

Professor Verduus was startled to learn that there was mountain destroyer goat wool.

Such high-quality cloth was too precious to be used on the rags the students wore.

Yi-Han lightly ignored it and compared the cloth he had.

Anglago, who was listening next to him, thought hard because he couldn't understand, and then spoke to him.

"Hey. Wardanaz. Hey, Wardanaz."

"?"

"We're going to raid the principal's warehouse now, right? Let's go together."

"...No. I collected these."

At Yi-Han's words, not only the White Tiger Tower students but also the students from other towers burst into laughter.

"Yeah. Yeah. Wardanaz. You collected them. Let's pretend it's that on the outside."

"So when are we going?"

"..."

Yi-Han suddenly became concerned that his image among his friends might have become something like a robber.

"I collected them, you crazy bastards."

"No... How do you collect that much?"

"Wait. Wardanaz, could it be... I see. You were held back? Actually a 3rd-year..."

Smack!

"I worked and collected them, you bastards."

Yi-Han, who had hit the head of a friend who was talking nonsense with his staff, spoke in disbelief.

"Wo... worked?"

"Yeah."

"Professors' work? Is it possible to collect that much with that?"

The friends murmured.

It wasn't that Yi-Han was a born robber, but because it was physically impossible to have that much cloth.

If he hadn't lived alone for a few years while enrolling together for a year, how could he have collected that much?

"I got some from the seniors too."

"?"

"????"

All the students were puzzled.

Seniors.

...Can you even meet seniors?

And frequently enough to trade?

'Hey. Wardanaz, are you really not a 3rd-year?'

'But why exclude 2nd-years?'

'He seems more like a 3rd-year than a 2nd-year.'

Professor Verduus urged Yi-Han.

"If you have the materials, start quickly. You have to make them today so Professor Garcia won't break my workbench."

"I understand. Professor."

"Right. The mountain destroyer goat wool?"

"You guys, follow me to the tower to get it."

Yi-Han ignored it again and left the lecture room with the White Tiger Tower students.

***

Anglago, who was diligently carrying and moving the chest, suddenly had a question.

"Hey. Wardanaz. But why are we moving it when it's the Immortal Phoenix Tower?"

"Aren't you guys using the materials?"

"...Uh... The, the priests use them too."

"So you guys aren't using the materials?"

"...We can move them..."

Jijel silently stayed quiet while moving the chest from a distance.

When the situation was unfavorable, it was strategically right to meekly wait for an opportunity.

"Hmm. We might be a bit short on quantity. I'll have to bring more. Rowena. If you dig about 2m into the ground here, there are a few boxes. Take them out and bring them."

"Ah. Yes."

For a moment, the image of a squirrel hiding acorns here and there flashed through Nillia's mind, but she didn't say anything.

"Why did you bury them like that?"

"There's a lack of storage space. The lounge or personal rooms have limits. Hmm. I should get a warehouse."

Yi-Han understood why the seniors risked looting or theft to create warehouses in remote places outside.

When he first entered the academy, he thought the personal room or lounge would have enough space, but that wasn't the case.

Just stockpiling food and supplies quickly made the space insufficient. On top of that, for someone like Yi-Han who had many magics to study, the preparations also increased.

'The base I found last time has poor accessibility... Should I store them in the hut where I raised the basilisk for now?'

Nillia, who had gauged the quantity, tilted her head and asked.

"Wait. Isn't the quantity enough? Why more... Ah. I see."

Nillia looked at Yi-Han with a meaningful gaze and nudged him with her elbow.

"That's right. To your friends..."

"You're going to share!"

"...I have to sell them."

For a moment, silence lingered between them.

Yi-Han nodded and spoke again.

"Well, you could say I'm sharing them."

"No..."