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Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy Chapter 945
🕑 Added 2024-10-18 11:43:50 +0000 UTCChapter 945
While Yi-Han was gathering his friends who had escaped to various parts of the city one by one, Arien and the employees were checking the warehouse building near the north gate.
"The roof. It's intact. Any missing bricks? None."
"Um... But Mr. Arien. Will this be alright?"
The trading company employee who was helping Arien spoke while watching his reaction.
No matter how he thought about it, he wondered if what they were doing now was right.
...To have those Einroguard students stay in a shabby trading company warehouse!
The value of the mage profession was so special that even wandering mages received generous treatment.
But to have mages from Einroguard, not just ordinary mages, stay in a trading company warehouse.
From the employee's perspective, it seemed too disrespectful no matter how he thought about it.
'Perhaps he had some problem with the mages?'
"Sigh. I wanted to prepare a nice place too. But what can I do when the mages stubbornly refuse?"
Arien said with a deep sigh.
The employee was surprised at those words.
"The mages chose the warehouse?"
"Yes."
'Mages are really all eccentric without exception!'
The employee jumped to conclusions, wondering if there was some magical reason.
Like their magic weakens if they stay in a soft and warm place...
"We're here!"
While they were talking, the students opened the gate to the area where the trading company's warehouses were gathered and entered.
The employee unconsciously checked the buildings again at their appearance, which anyone would recognize as mages.
'It's not that bad. No bugs, no leaks. A bit old, but... Come to think of it, there's no bed. No servants either. No bath, no reception room, no music room... Hmm... Are there too many things missing?'
The employee's confidence quickly disappeared.
Despite his resolve just now, these warehouse buildings were indeed too shabby.
Thanks to the bricks being stacked widely in the size of a two-story house, the exterior looked fine, but inside there were only wooden boxes stacked with the trading company's goods or inventory.
"Gasp!"
One of the students let out a short scream. The employee hurriedly made excuses without realizing it.
"W-well, we had to prepare in a hurry so it couldn't be help..."
"C-can we really stay in such a luxurious place???"
"..."
"..."
"Hey. Make that bastard shut up."
"He's really disgracing Einroguard."
"Mmph! Mmph!"
The goat mixed-blood student wearing a sword like a knight was dragged away with his mouth covered by his friends.
The employee, not understanding what he had just heard, asked again.
"Did you just say it was luxurious?"
"I'm sorry. My friend sometimes talks nonsense due to failed magic experiments... No! Can we really stay in such a nice place?"
"Salko. Why are you doing this too, really."
"I'm sorry..."
The students carefully discussed who would use which area while looking at the warehouse buildings.
Due to the mistakes just now, everyone tried their best to maintain face.
"Can we use this palace... no, warehouse for alchemy?"
"Since there are plenty of warehouses, that should be fine. Let's use that mansion... no, warehouse to store the supplies we'll bring in."
"Wardanaz. There are sleeping bags inside this warehouse, is this building perhaps an inn rather than a warehouse?"
"No matter what, how could there be such an inn..."
***
The Einroguard second-years, having regained their composure, gathered in the warehouse building they had decided would be the dining hall.
On everyone's faces, emotions that anyone who had escaped from Einroguard would show were visible: happiness, comfort, relief, satisfaction.
Salko, who had deeply reclined in a makeshift armchair made of straw, earth, water, and magic, opened his mouth.
"So what are everyone's plans?"
"Well."
"About that."
The friends hesitated and looked at each other.
Since none of them had really expected to be able to escape, they didn't have any particular plans.
They were excited, but...
...The blankness of not knowing what to do!
Seeing his friends at a loss, Salko felt this wouldn't do and called Yi-Han. He was the only one here who might have a plan.
"Wardanaz!"
"Hmm?"
Yi-Han, who had been organizing and reinforcing the inside of the warehouse to be used as lodgings along with summoned undead, turned his head.
"I have something to ask!"
"Oh. Wait a moment."
Yi-Han floated orbs of light throughout the warehouse and completed flame enchantment engravings on the floor.
Then he cast <Beavle's Mana Emission Enchantment>. It was an additional mana source for the magic to be maintained inside the warehouse.
Though he was wasting the secrets of artifact creation learned from Professor Verduus for the convenience of makeshift lodgings, there was no one here to point that out.
Only Adenart, who also majored in enchantment magic, was looking on with shocked eyes.
To use that magic for just this?
"Coffee? Tea? Cocoa? It's nice to have more choices now that we're out."
"Can I have an ice cream soda?"
"Sure. Here you go."
Anglago excitedly received the tin cup. Inside was boiling plain water.
"...I'll have cocoa..."
"Good choice."
Anglago learned a lesson.
The lesson that if he got greedy for ice cream soda, he might lose even cocoa.
After passing around snacks received from the trading company employee (which Yi-Han had bought with money), Yi-Han finally sat down.
"So. What did you want to ask?"
"I'm curious about your plan. You're probably the most skilled at going out among us here."
"Someone might misunderstand if they heard that. Well. First, I'm going to help Mr. Alcicle find his patrons."
"?"
The friends who were listening tilted their heads, not understanding.
What was he talking about?
"After that, I was thinking of purchasing supplies that need replenishing, buying additional needed artifacts or books, and if there's still time left, solving a few requests before going back."
"..."
"...Why did you even come out if that's what you're going to do?"
Anglago blurted out without thinking.
Wasn't what he was doing outside not much different from what he did inside Einroguard!
Yi-Han looked at his friend talking nonsense with pity and said.
"We can't easily get supplies or books inside."
"Th-that's true...! But you should spend some more time just for yourself!"
"I said I'd solve requests in my spare time."
Yi-Han sent a look saying he didn't understand why Anglago kept talking nonsense like this.
Was he acting like this because he didn't make ice cream for him?
But this time, the friends were on Anglago's side.
"That's not time just for yourself, Wardanaz."
"I don't think it is either..."
"?!"
Yi-Han was flustered at his friends' criticism.
To think even Salko, Yonaire, Nillia, and Asan would join in criticizing.
Adenart hesitated and watched their reactions. Honestly, she had thought it was a good plan.
'It seems like a fulfilling and satisfying plan...'
"What? Then let's hear your plans. How fun they are."
When the arrow suddenly turned, the friends were flustered.
"W-well, I was thinking of watching a ball game..."
"I was going to buy a new abacus..."
"Not that impressive."
Yi-Han snorted. Anglago and Asan protested as if wronged.
"Ball games are fun!"
"Each workshop has differences!"
"Nillia will probably attend nobles' balls, and Yonaire will work at a workshop."
"?!?"
Nillia pricked up her ears in shock.
That's not it!
But because her friend answered first, Nillia missed the chance to explain.
"Yi-Han is right. I actually have a few potions I need to complete too."
"Hmm. I also need to find some magic books needed for the magic I'm preparing."
The atmosphere suddenly became solemn.
It was because all the students realized their own unhappy fate.
Once they entered Einroguard, they couldn't escape that fate even if they went out midway!
"B-but we should still have some time for ourselves when we're out like this. Next semester will be busier, and the next year will be even busier. Think about the seniors. They're practically slaves!"
Anglago's words struck a chord with the students present.
Especially mentioning the seniors was very powerful.
Thinking of the seniors struggling every day as slaves to time, a sense of crisis swept over them that today might be their last leisurely day.
"Let's all find something to..."
"Oh. This is a discarded box but there are reagents inside. I should ask the employee if we can use them."
"What? Really? What's in there?"
"There shouldn't be a reason to throw away intact reagents. What's the prob..."
"..."
At Yi-Han's words, as the friends gathered around asking 'If these are discarded, can we use them?', Anglago dropped his shoulders and gave up.
'I guess I'll just find a few magic books and take them back in...'
***
The flame wood root, which looked like a red, withered tree root, was a reagent with condensed strong flame energy.
However, the flame wood roots in the discarded wooden box didn't give off that energy.
"Ah. Those reagents were discarded due to problems during transport."
"If you're going to throw them away, can we use them?"
"Huh? You can use any inventory in the discard boxes as much as you want, but you won't have any use for them..."
The employees were puzzled.
Basically, magic-related items were much more difficult to handle and transport, so the amount discarded was also large. Of course, there were quite a few such discarded supplies in the warehouse.
But there was no use for these. If there had been, the merchants here would have used them first.
"If you need reagents, why don't you use intact ones?"
"No. This is fine."
Having received permission, Yi-Han returned with his friends. Yonaire tilted her head and asked.
"It's good that we got permission, but is there a way to use these?"
"Indeed!"
Asan exclaimed with an admiring expression.
"??"
"You're going to disguise them well to make them look like they still have energy, and sell them to stupid mages! To those Baldurguard bastards!"
"G-genius...!"
Everyone except Yonaire admired this. Even Adenart admired it to that extent.
Though deception wasn't good, it might be okay if the target was Baldurguard.
"...No. That's fraud. What are you talking about?"
"It wasn't?"
"Of course not. I'm going to look for a way to restore them to their original state."
"That seems even more difficult..."
"Wait. Let me ask first. If it's not possible, we'll give up then."
"??"
The friends were puzzled.
Who was he going to ask?
Yi-Han walked alone to the back of the warehouse, then started talking to someone while holding his staff.
It might have been the friends' imagination, but they seemed to hear some coldly spat curses too. Yonaire made a disgusted expression.
After a while, Yi-Han returned.
"He says there's a way!"
"What?! Really?!"
Surprised that there was a way, the friends forgot to ask who he had talked to.
In fact, what did that matter?
***
"Alpha. The location of the scratch is wrong. You need to turn it about 10 degrees to the side."
"Ugh. I made a mistake again."
The students divided roles and got to work.
Fortunately, restoring the flame wood roots that had lost their energy wasn't too difficult.
It just required a lot of hands.
First, they had to make pattern-shaped cuts to absorb the fire energy as much as possible, then throw them into a cauldron of condensed boiling flames along with special alchemical oil.
After that, they had to prevent the flame wood roots from being destroyed or under-recovered with precise timing and incantations...
"Hmm. Maykin. Can you check the oil?"
"It seems fine... The viscosity is a bit lacking. We'll need to cast an enhancement spell. Twice, I think."
-■■ ■■■ ■■■■?-
-■■ ■■■■■.-
Nillia and Adenart inwardly admired each other's summoned fire spirits.
'Wow. How did they raise them to that extent?'
'How did they contract with so many spirits?'
And Rowena broke out in a cold sweat with a pale face.
"...Mr. Wardanaz. Do we really need this much flame?"
"Of course. We're recovering damaged reagents, so we need at least this much."
Yi-Han further strengthened the condensed flame essence boiling in the cauldron.
As blue flames were generously input, the power of the bubbling essence grew stronger.
Seeing this, Rowena realized why the method for recovering reagents had been lost.
It seemed there wouldn't have been any mage in the empire who would waste this much mana to recover reagents!
