Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy

Professor Boladi continued speaking to Yi-Han, who felt wronged, in a consoling manner.

"Rock Drake is not a monster that should be brought down at this moment."

'Then, is Colossal Hungry Ghost supposed to be captured now?'

Yi-Han swallowed his words internally.

He felt doubly aggrieved by the person who had forced him to defeat Colossal Hungry Ghost.

"As I said before, impatience can ruin a mage."

"Yes, I understand."

"Your goal should not be pursued with impatience. Remember that."

"Yes, I underst... My goal?"

Yi-Han hesitated.

His goal?

'Have I ever told Professor Boladi that I wanted to become an imperial bureaucrat? Or that I wanted to be the richest in the empire?'

No matter how much he thought about it, there had been no such conversation.

If it was another goal...

'I did want to hit the skull principal once.'

"Excuse me, but what do you mean by my goal?"

"Weren't you trying to complete the perfect form of combat magic through multi-magic training?"

"…!"

When one hears something too absurd, even a simple 'yes?' becomes difficult to utter.

That was exactly what Yi-Han was experiencing.

Magic as a field was inherently dangerous, but those who used magic in combat, like battle mages, faced risks that were rare even among mages.

Their dilemma was always the same.

-How can magic be refined to fit better in combat?-

Ironically, magic seemed the least suited for combat.

To kill someone up close, you swing a sword; from afar, you shoot an arrow. Spending years training to create blade-like hands or wind arrows seemed highly inefficient.

Of course, the destructive power of high-circle magic was undeniable.

...But using such magic on the battlefield came with significant constraints.

The preparation, the reagents, the concentration...

And if one tried to cast such magic, the enemy wouldn't just stand there. They had eyes too and would try to kill the mage first.

As if focusing on casting high-circle magic wasn't enough (failing such magic could kill the caster), one also had to be wary of enemy attacks.

Battle magic was difficult for a reason. Even skilled mages could be useless on the battlefield without specialized training.

Thus, combat mages always consciously worked on their weaknesses and thought of ways to compensate.

-I have trained in fire elemental magic all my life. But in the last battle, I was hit by an arrow from behind and started to worry. What should I do?-

-Cast a wide-range fire spell to prevent others from approaching.-

-That's not feasible. I move with companions.-

-Then learn to create a firewall or shield.-

-I tried, but it consumed too much mana, and arrows with special treatment couldn't be blocked.-

-Well, then. Take this robe.-

-Is it a robe with protective magic?-

-No. It's a robe typically worn by earth elemental mages. Wearing it, archers will target others first. Earth elemental mages are mostly known for their strong defenses.-

-...-

However, as anyone who has studied magic would know, resolving one's weaknesses with just a single school of magic was not easy.

Enchantment magic had its unique capabilities, as did summoning magic.

Once a mage reaches a certain level of expertise, they could potentially resolve issues using magic from a single school through application, but such proficiency was usually only within the realm of a great mage...

The simplest solution was to learn magic from other schools of magic.

Of course, there was a reason why other combat mages did not opt for this seemingly easiest method.

-To block surprise attacks on the battlefield, I could learn foresight magic, summoning magic to call forth a protective shield, enhancement magic to reduce damage if I'm hit, and lastly, healing magic in case of injury. What do you think about trying to learn all these?-

-Don't you feel something off about this, even upon reflection?-

...Mastering a single school of magic was challenging enough, let alone learning from multiple schools.

Even the students of Einroguard, who were the cream of the crop in the empire, did not train in more than two or three schools of magic.

Though learning them together might synergize well, the human body and mind had their limits.

“Wait. I understand your explanation, but why are we discussing this?”

Yi-Han, who was listening, asked in confusion as the conversation seemed to veer off course.

“Weren't you trying to become a battle mage who masters all schools of magic?”

At Professor Boladi's question, Yi-Han firmly replied, his expression serious.

"It's a mere coincidence!"

"A coincidence, is it? I see."

‘Does he believe me?’

"Intuition can sometimes be a better guide than reason, especially when you have an aptitude for divination magic."

“...”

‘This is infuriating.’

Yi-Han realized that Professor Boladi was not one to dwell on the reasons or causes behind actions, he only saw results! Seeing that Yi-Han was attending classes on various schools of magic, the professor must be thinking, 'Then it would be great if he becomes a battle mage who utilizes all these schools of magic.'

"Professor, learning all schools of magic to create a flawless battle mage might sound ideal, but isn't it realistically difficult?"

Yi-Han tried to persuade Professor Boladi.

It sounded ideal, but wasn't it an impractical method of training?

Professor Boladi nodded.

‘Does he understand...?’

"But in your case, it's different. You have received high evaluations in all your classes."

“...”

Yi-Han felt anger towards the professors.

Why were they all so indiscreet?

Shouldn't a student's aptitude and grades be kept confidential?

"Then it's not unlikely."

Professor Boladi's philosophy was as follows:

Currently, Yi-Han had completed the 'basic' elemental training without delay.

He still needed to train in some advanced techniques (like evaporation, spinning, or an autonomous cold shield)...

...but if Yi-Han was aspiring towards the grand goal of multi-magic training, that deserved respect.

Therefore, Professor Boladi was preparing to help him apply and combine the magic learned from other schools of magic.

"We'll be progressing with magic from other schools of magic soon."

"Excuse me, but how exactly?"

"Didn't I ask you to bring books from the library?"

“...”

How did all that connect?

Yi-Han internally lamented.

He should have set fire to the library!

'Wait. Maybe it's not all bad.'

On second thought, even if they started progressing with magic from other schools of magic, it wasn't entirely negative.

Since Professor Boladi would try to apply and combine what was learned, the progress might slow down a bit.

And the training in these other schools of magic might not be as grueling as Professor Boladi’s.

'While learning to apply and combine different types of magic, this class will become peaceful and warm.'

Yi-Han, who was trying to find the positive aspects of the situation, heard Professor Boladi's voice.

"Prepare."

"..."

A storm of Magic Missiles, ready to strike from all directions.

It occurred to Yi-Han that Professor Boladi had promised to help apply other schools of magic in combat, but he had never said he would stop teaching the advanced courses he already taught.

Naturally, he was expected to do both.

"...Freeze!"

Professor Boladi was truly disappointed.

It was because of the urgent desire to capture the Rock Drake that his student from the Wardanaz family had failed to perfect the autonomous cold shield spell.

It wasn't a complete failure, though.

Yi-Han had managed to summon the cold shield and even keep it afloat.

However, he hadn’t fully succeeded in making the cold shield autonomously move and block attacks.

Due to his still-developing skill in enchantment magic, the cold shield moved erratically or collided with objects, indicating there was still a long way to go.

Nevertheless, this was an incredible achievement, especially considering that he was a first-year student.

But neither the teacher nor the student in the classroom thought this achievement was extraordinary.

‘Strange. Why is it so hard?’

Yi-Han exhaled roughly.

His mana was fine, but his mental strength was severely depleted.

Summoning and maintaining the cold was much harder than usual.

It hadn't been like this last time...

“Ah.”

Realizing the reason, Yi-Han paused.

“What's wrong?”

"Professor. Unlike last week, the academy currently lacks the King of Frost Giants, making it an unsuitable environment for cold magic."

“I see. I’ll ensure the classroom is imbued with coldness next time.”

“...”

Yi-Han was at a loss for words at Professor Boladi's nonchalant admission of forgetting.

'...A born teacher indeed. Truly.'

"Yi-Han. I think there was something in the snack..."

His friends worried about Yi-Han's somber expression.

He had eaten the snacks from the skull principal, but wasn't there actually a trap?

"It's just that the class was hard."

"Oh, if that’s the case."

Gainando, relieved, overheard other friends whispering.

-Is it really okay?-

-The additional class Wardanaz is currently taking is tough…-

But what could they do?

Their friend was already on that path.

The students of the Blue Dragon forced smiles.

"Still, today's summoning magic class should be okay!"

"Right. Wardanaz, you’re especially good at summoning magic. It shouldn’t be too hard..."

However, as soon as the students settled in their seats, Professor Millei adjusted her monocle and spoke firmly.

"Since everyone has brought books from the library, today's class will cover some difficult content."

“...”

“...”

Yi-Han shook his head with a bitter expression, making his friends feel heartbroken.

"Wardanaz...!"

"Hang in there! You can’t fall now!"

To the other tower students, this scene was incomprehensible.

"What are those from the Blue Dragon doing?"

"Why are they worried about Wardanaz? Unless Wardanaz worries about them?"

"Quiet."

Professor Millei silenced the students. Without the need for forceful magic like the skull principal, this veteran professor knew how to quieten her students.

"Until now, you have all been casting summoning magic using magic circles. This is because summoning magic is difficult."

Professor Millei swung her staff as she spoke.

With that motion, stone fragments rose from the ground, collided, and transformed into metal, then finally into a sword.

The professor's movement didn’t end there. She swung her staff once more, casting an enchantment.

Then, the sword began to dance as if it were alive.

"Do you all see this dancing sword?"

"Yes!"

"To complete this dancing sword, I cast several spells."

Yi-Han, who had done something similar in the morning, nodded in agreement.

Professor Millei threw a dodecahedron-shaped potion bottle from her pocket and swung her staff.

Then, another identical dancing sword was summoned.

"There are dozens, even hundreds of ways to replicate the same phenomenon. Among these, summoning magic is a sort of shortcut."

Summoning a dancing sword in one step was much more convenient than creating a sword from nothing, and then enchanting it to complete the dancing sword.

"However, summoning magic is complex, requires extensive preparation, and is difficult, whether summoning a living being or an inanimate object."

The students, who had heard this several times, nodded in understanding.

"Just like the dancing sword I just demonstrated, it's impossible to replicate with your current skills using dozens or hundreds of methods. This means it's also impossible to replicate using summoning magic."

"…?"

Yi-Han tilted his head slightly in confusion.

'Hmm. I guess I should just stay put.'