WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Mordor
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Surviving the Frozen Dark Fantasy as a Genius Mage ◈
Chapter 51: A New Spell
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“···”
“How arrogant. Has Castlelight spoiled him so much that he no longer sees anyone else?”
“You're right, Ian. Did our Magic Tower and the school masters really seem that easy to you?”
Aside from Master Lerum, the school masters did not react well to my bombshell declaration.
Still, perhaps they had noticed my talent. Rather than throwing me out immediately, they gave me trials to prove my worth.
“So you're Ian? I heard you dared to act arrogant in front of Master Gerard.”
The senior mages who served as the masters' assistants handled the trials.
“Triple Master. There was someone like that among the people who entered the Magic Tower with me. Do you know what he's doing now?”
They didn't think much of me either.
Mastering even one spell system took a lifetime of effort and was close to impossible. I had made it sound as though I was looking down on both their hard work and talent.
“He's wiping the ass of some vulgar merchant. He was a half-baked fool who never mastered a single spell system. I'll show you that handling many affinities isn't a blessing. It's a curse.”
Unlike the other frost-filled sections, the room was as hot as a boiling bath.
Mages from the Glacier School sweated heavily as they concentrated.
A boiling pot sat in front of each of them. Inside was a clear shard of ice.
It was an experiment called Frost Flower Blooming.
You placed a special ice crystal formed from mana into a scalding cauldron, blocked the heat with mana so it wouldn't melt, then made a flower bloom from it.
You had to completely separate and control the properties of mana as the temperature rose. If your focus slipped for even a moment, the crystal would melt or explode, possibly shredding your hand.
“Ah, hot!”
“Ugh!”
It was a trial no newcomer to the Magic Tower could ever pass.
Even experienced Frost mages made mistakes from time to time.
‘The tricky part is that I can't freeze the water around the ice shard, either.’
“Do it.”
“Hmm.”
The coin spun.
[Heads/Tails]
But there was no need to throw it.
Saaaaa.
I completed it flawlessly using only my own skill.
“···”
The senior mage and the surrounding mages fell silent as they stared at the frost flower blooming beautifully in the boiling water.
“Are there more?”
Hurry up and give me something new.
That's how I get new spells!
“Hehe, arrogant, aren't you? Follow me. That was only a very basic test.”
All right!
I crushed several assignments the senior mage had clearly given me out of spite.
“How can this be···”
“Hmph. Is this all?”
[Water Mist]
Delighted by the feast of new knowledge, my Grimoire spat out another spell.
I carried that momentum through the assignments of the Arcana School and the Luminous School as well.
[Arcane Firefly]
The last one was the Astrafe School.
They told me to successfully complete a useful magical experiment, then present a short paper about it.
“Go ahead.”
Raijura folded their arms as if bored while I began the experiment under the observation of a full-fledged mage.
‘Let's see.’
This was one of the combinations only veteran players knew.
First, I coated a precision glass flask containing powdered spirit stone capable of holding mana with gold leaf inside and out. Then I placed a piece of Drake heart wrapped tightly in copper wire inside, sealed the opening, and cast a spell.
[Bolt]
Crackle!
Bluish sparks burst continuously inside the flask around the heart, the catalyst for mana.
[Study on the Accumulation and Persistent Discharge of Minor Lightning in a Mana Catalyst Within an Isolated Sphere]
I wrote a simple paper documenting the phenomenon and submitted it.
“···!”
The full-fledged mage, who had watched the experiment with a bored expression, opened their eyes wide.
“Amazing···”
“I've put lightning spirits into gold-leaf flasks before, but I've never seen anything like that. Fascinating···”
“It's a new way of thinking. The cost efficiency isn't bad. We've discovered a new catalyst!”
Other mages soon began flooding into my laboratory.
It wasn't a revolution, but the magical community was stirred up.
[Charge]
A new spell bloomed within me.
Without stopping, I spent every last coin I had on further magical research.
Thanks to that, I learned one more spell.
It was···
[Chain Lightning]
Chain Lightning.
‘Bwahahahahaha!’
A classic spell.
The ultimate classic spell.
I burst into joyful laughter at the ever-expanding world of spells.
···
“I apologize, Student Ian. It seems we were the ones who underestimated you.”
“Hmm.”
“Ha, it's been so long since we've had such a spirited newcomer. Doesn't this remind you of the old days? I acted like this in front of the master before last, too.”
The four masters acknowledged me.
I became a full-fledged mage affiliated with the Magic Tower.
* * *
“Hoho, you really persuaded those bastards.”
Castlelight clicked his tongue.
“Tch, I thought I might finally get a useful direct disciple. Now I have to share him? I've gotten too soft.”
Still grumbling, Castlelight rummaged through a drawer and handed me a dusty staff.
“Here. I brought you here, so I can't send you off empty-handed.”
This was···
“I was going to give you a spell ring, but you already have a decent one. This is something I used long ago.”
[Hundred-Year-Old Tree Staff Struck by Lightning]
A new magic staff.
As far as I knew, it was high-quality equipment that could increase the power of Lightning spells by up to thirty percent.
‘This thing is worth at least dozens of gold coins!’
Oh···
Was this what it meant to be a school master?
He was generous!
My staff had broken in the last battle, so I would've needed to buy a new one. This saved me money and made me stronger.
“Thank you, Master!”
“Hmph. Then do a good job.”
Just as Castlelight snorted, a crystal ball flashed and an angry roar rang out.
“Castlelight! Didn't I tell you not to use spells carelessly in the city?! Get up here now!”
“Making a fuss again.”
Master Castlelight waved me away.
“Ughhh!”
Outside, I stretched my body.
‘Now that I'm a Magic Tower mage, catalysts are discounted, I get a stipend, and I've learned four new spells.’
In only a few days, I had gained an incredible amount.
That was the strength of an organization that had built its foundation over countless years.
Of course, the Magic Tower wouldn't only benefit me.
For one thing, if city hall sent a request for cooperation, I would have to assist them.
That was one thing, but the real issue was those people lurking inside the Magic Tower.
‘Dangerous bastards.’
As long as I kept entering the Labyrinth, I would eventually come into conflict with them.
I had no way to stand against them yet, so I needed to take what I could and keep some distance.
“Cough, cough. Ugh···”
I had spent the past few days working in a cramped room, and now my whole body ached. I had a cough too.
I left the laboratory to get some fresh air and take a walk when a mage from the Astrafe School spoke to me.
“Ian?”
“What is it, Senior?”
The people who had ignored me after my paper presentation finally acknowledged me.
“There's an elf at the entrance causing a scene while shouting your name. Is this person an acquaintance of yours?”
An elf? And “one elf”?
Like an animal?
Those distinctive words immediately brought one person to mind.
“Elena?”
“So that's her name. Go see her. I was about to call the guards.”
I headed outside the Magic Tower.
“No, I'm telling you! He's my friend!”
“I said someone went to get him, so wait!”
Elena was arguing with Widen.
“Hey!”
“Elena, welcome.”
I waved to Elena, then spoke to Widen.
“Mr. Ian.”
“Oh, Widen. She's someone I know. Sorry.”
“But why are you speaking informally to me···?”
“I'm a full-fledged mage now, while you're still an apprentice. Didn't you hear?”
“···Ah.”
Widen's shoulders slumped.
I patted him on the shoulder to cheer him up, then spoke to the furious Elena.
“What have you been doing without even contacting me?”
“Sorry. I've been busy.”
I told her what had happened at the Magic Tower.
“So that's why you have that emblem?”
“Hehe, cool, right? I'm a full-fledged Magic Tower mage now.”
I showed her the lightning emblem of the Astrafe School embroidered on my robe.
It showed the difference between a wanderer and a full-fledged mage.
Naturally, becoming a mage affiliated with the Magic Tower was recognition in itself, so it also gave me an advantage when recruiting a party in the Labyrinth.
[Ian's prestige and authority increase.]
“Heeh, is it really that good?”
“Of course. I get a free monthly stipend and discounts.”
“What? Fuck, I should've become an Earth Mage back then!”
Elena grumbled, but she sincerely congratulated me.
As I excitedly continued talking, I turned my head.
I could feel eyes on us from behind.
Several haggard-looking mages watched us through the Magic Tower windows and entrance.
They gave off a gloomy feeling, like when Darnen used dark magic.
Wooooo.
That bastard is good at magic and even has a pretty elf girlfriend? He has everything, fuck. That was the feeling.
“Die. Just die.”
“I'll combine dark elf dark magic with vampire blood magic··· and curse him. Hehe.”
She's not my girlfriend!
‘Let's get out of here first!’
Before any strange misunderstandings could spread, I hurriedly led Elena away from the Magic Tower district.
Then I thought to myself.
‘It's about time to enter the Labyrinth again.’
The spells I could use had increased, but to use them properly, I needed to increase the spell slots within me too.
There was no better place to level up than the Labyrinth.
Charge.
Arcane Firefly.
Water Mist.
Chain Lightning.
‘I'll test the spells I just acquired, too.’
I wanted to use them.
I wanted to use them soon.
Especially Chain Lightning.
‘A classic spell!’
“Yeah, people need to move their bodies. Stay cooped up in a room too long, and you'll get sick.”
“That's true. You need to earn money quickly so you can pay back your debt, Elena.”
“Ghk.”
Elena choked, then suddenly clutched her stomach.
“I'm hungry. Let's eat. Buy me food, okay?”
Her stomach growled.
Elena had no money because she was paying me back for the Grace Stone and equipment.
No, I had left her a little emergency money, but it looked like she had spent all of it in the past few days.
So she hadn't come because she was worried about me. She had come because she was hungry?
I gave the pig elf a sour look.
“Do you think I owe you? This is going on your debt too.”
“You're so mean.”
As we were about to enter a nearby restaurant, someone bumped into me and walked past.
What arrogant bastard dared bump the shoulder of full-fledged mage Ian···
“Excuse me.”
I frowned and turned my head.
Several people wearing reddish robes were passing by.
The moment I saw their distinctive appearance, I fell silent.
They were from the fire-affinity Heide School.
“What the hell? They didn't even apologize. But··· they have emblems too. Are they full-fledged mages like you?”
“Yeah, but they're different.”
Labyrinth was more prosperous than other cities partly because of the Mana Stones found in the Labyrinth, but also because it had more fire mages, and better ones, than any other city. They kept warmth burning throughout the city.
They were indispensable to the city, and they received benefits to match.
“First of all, full-fledged Heide mages receive fifteen gold coins a month as a stipend.”
“F-fifteen gold coins?!”
Elena was shocked.
For a low-floor Expedition Party member like Elena, that was an enormous sum that would require many trips through the Labyrinth to earn.
The Luminous School had offered me eight gold coins to join, while the other schools had offered three each. I had to work my ass off to receive a total of sixteen gold coins, but they got that money with a click.
“It's payment for their labor, though.”
Also, when the guild or city hall asked the Magic Tower to cooperate with Labyrinth expeditions, they were exempt.
‘If they want power, they can even go to Castle and become close aides to local lords.’
Earth Mages from the Trowel School maintained the farmland established in the city center, along with the gardens of nobles and wealthy people's estates.
In the affluent district north of Labyrinth, even in weather like this, you could see artificial suns created by fire mages and plants growing vigorously.
That was why, like the Trowel School, they had more of an elitist attitude than other mages. They believed the city would freeze over and collapse without them.
“But you're stronger in the Labyrinth.”
Of course, when it came to fighting people, Lightning was the strongest.
But···
“Not everyone in this world is obsessed with the Labyrinth.”
The wealthy and nobles didn't need to obsess over the Labyrinth. In fact, even mid-tier Expedition Party members could earn enough, retire, and live comfortably while enjoying the city's infrastructure.
That was why the upper class needed fire mages and Earth Mages to make their lives comfortable.
Put simply, those schools were inseparable from politics. That was why fire mages were easier to develop in the game.
“Fuck, they're the establishment.”
Elena muttered something I had taught her as she glared at the fire mages.
Fair enough.
There was always someone above you.
Still···
“Water-and-Frost magic is better than fire magic.”
I'm definitely not saying that because I'm not a fire mage.
“···”
After that, Elena and I entered a nearby restaurant and ate.
The menu was simple, stew and bread.
“Huh? That's it?”
Disappointment spread across Elena's expectant face.
She sure had a lot to say for someone getting a free meal.
“I don't have money, so shut up and eat.”
“Why don't you have money? You're rich.”
“I spent it all. Now I only have the party funds for the next expedition.”
“What? You had dozens of gold coins, and you spent all of them?”
“I told you. Magical research costs a lot of money.”
I was currently broke.
I had spent all of the Magic Tower's stipend, and I barely had enough money to pay the taxes that were due soon.
“Didn't you spend too thoughtlessly?”
“Urk.”
This girl hit where it hurt.
“That's true.”
Still, wasn't it worth it because I got Chain Lightning?
“Hehehehe.”
“Crazy bastard.”
Elena shook her head and devoured ten bowls of stew and bread.
“Hehe. I'm full.”
No, you're definitely the crazy one, Elena.
I sighed as I looked at my even thinner wallet.
After we finished eating, we headed back to our lodging to prepare for the next expedition. Then a thought occurred to me.
“Should we go see Dize?”
I wondered how Dize, the member of our original orphan crew, was doing.
He hadn't contacted us or come looking for us.
Elena shook her head.
“That guy. I don't know where he went.”
“What?”
“I heard he moved out of the lodging too.”
A sense of unease suddenly came over me.
That bastard wasn't going around doing something strange, was he?
Like entering the Labyrinth or something.
“Would that scaredy-cat do that? Hehe.”
“True.”
He was probably busy with something.
Or maybe he felt awkward about seeing us.
‘Anyway, should I start planning the expedition···?’
I needed to grow stronger to reach higher floors.
To do that, I first needed to earn money and gain experience.
Footnotes:
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