WeTried Translations

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◈ Surviving in the Magic Academy

Chapter 108

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108.

-Evron: (Re-notice) Safe Tower Use Guide for All Students

Hello, everyone. I hope you have all been making good use of Professor Irian’s tower. I am posting this notice because I am concerned that unfortunate incidents may occur while using the power of treasures.

1. On the first floor of our tower, there are many statues...

2. On the first floor of the tower, a girl with purple eyes and hair sometimes proselytizes...

3. Sometimes, the “scent of the forest” can be smelled in certain training rooms on the third floor. When that happens, please leave the training room for a while and spend some time outside. If you have continued staying there, please come find me afterward.

A simple consultation and “surgery” will be carried out in the infirmary.

4. When using the stairs, always check your destination carefully. For those who have accepted the power of treasures, the path to the sixth floor storehouse may sometimes open by accident.

If you cross the stairs and arrive on the storehouse floor, ask the puppets at the entrance for help. They will move you back down.

But please be careful. You must never move your magical power. The “door” may judge you as part of a treasure and suck you in. Please remember that whatever happens beyond the door will be your responsibility.

┗ Luciella(2): I came out for a while because of rule 3 too. I have no luck today.

┗ Hao(91): Be careful. If you ignore the warning, something truly terrible will happen.

(Hao shuddered lightly. It seemed they were remembering what had happened when they broke rule 3.)

┗ Luciella(2): ...I imagine everyone except you is following it properly.

┗ Hao(91): You flatter me. ...Huh, Luciella. I think you should look behind you.

(Hao glanced at Luciella, who was resting in the third floor common area. A shadow was slowly approaching behind her.)

┗ Luciella(2): Hmph, do you think I would believe that?

┗ Hao(91): You will regret it.

(Hao shook their head. They seemed genuinely sorry for her. In Hao’s eyes, Luciella came into view, snorting at them. So did the woman standing behind her.)

┗ Cassian(1): Let’s fight again today, Luciella.

┗ Luciella(2): ...Oh my, I’m busy today.

┗ Cassian(1): You’re right in front of me, but you don’t look very busy. So play with me.

┗ Hao(91): I told you, didn’t I?

(Hao chuckled. Luciella silently glared at Hao while being dragged away by Cassian. Hao stared blankly after them for a moment, then stretched lightly.)

┗ Hao(91): More importantly, Evron, I have a question. What exactly is this? Something keeps adding explanations to my replies.

(Hao tilted their head. I did the same.)

┗ Evron: Mm, I will check.

┗ Evron: The person behind you, Hao, is entering them.

┗ Hao(91): Behind me? What is there...

(Hao slowly turned their head. Then they met my eyes. Looking at those wide-open eyes, I smiled gently. How happy I was to be able to communicate with Hao, even like this. Just like that, I tore off and ate a handful of Hao’s mind.)

┗ Evron: Please be careful. Even if only Hao can see it, traces will still remain.

┗ H#(####): (Carefully expressed agreement while holding Hao’s collapsed body. It could not share Hao with the others. Hao belonged to it, after all.)

I delicately raised my magical power and began awakening the circuits carved into the workbench. After confirming that the layered circuits had started glowing, I quietly looked down at the workbench.

On top of it, a woman lay with her eyes closed, quietly breathing out. Her white hair spread across the workbench. I lightly arranged her hair and nodded toward No. 0.

No. 0 approached and slowly manipulated magical power. Before long, the circuits on the workbench began rippling with dense magical power.

Through them, several magic circles appeared and began wrapping around the woman’s body. The woman quietly entrusted herself to those magic circles.

Even after six months of steady observation, that half-naked body still had such perfect beauty of form that I could not help but admire it. To the point that I could hardly believe I had made it.

I quietly looked down at her chest, which had swelled greatly over the past six months as it held life. Looking at the deep life force wavering inside made even my heart tense up.

No. 0 moved magical power in that state and controlled the magic circles. The magic circles on the workbench transformed this way and that under No. 0’s hands. Along with that, a fixed barrier began forming around the workbench.

Watching that, I gave No. 0 a light thumbs-up. It was perfect. This small space, created by stacking dozens of magic circles, could be called a kind of time magic meant solely to fix the state of what was inside it.

It was a result I had somehow produced by stealing and learning the tower’s magic. Of course, it was unstable enough to shatter at any moment, and it was only a very weak fixation, but it would still last long enough to perform this surgery.

“Then let’s begin. Support me well.”

I said that while looking at No. 0. After confirming that No. 0 nodded, I quietly took a carving knife from my clothes. When I breathed magical power into it, the knife responded and began holding golden magical power inside itself.

I brought that blade to the woman’s body. The blade dug smoothly into her body, as though cutting through water. After taking a short deep breath, I split her body in one go. From her collarbone to her lower abdomen, one long line was carved.

I slowly manipulated magical power and opened the gap. No blood flowed. Of course it did not. No matter how much life force she held inside, she was a puppet.

The sight beyond it was very familiar. She had the same bodily structure as a human. The first things that entered my eyes were various organs. Then came the circuits like blood vessels connecting them.

They held magical power inside and created a steady flow. The sight of those organs wriggling made it look as if she were truly alive and breathing.

At the center of those organs, I saw a heart beating powerfully. It was a pure white heart, white all over. Each time it beat, it released a fixed amount of mist.

That mist seeped into the circuits forming the body. The mist, mixed with magical power, circulated through the body along those circuits. That mist could be called her blood and her life.

I slowly examined the heart. According to Professor, there were only a few beings in the university who could oppose these treasures, excluding the professors. Just as she said, I could not grasp the power contained inside it at all.

In front of that heart, something I had not seen before was hanging. It was a small crystal attached like a lump. That crystal pulsed steadily, almost like another heart.

I carefully brought the carving knife to it. Then I gently cut the grain flowing between it and the heart. I did feel a faint resistance, but it scattered like a mere breeze within the smooth flow created by the carving knife.

I quickly removed the crystal and signaled to No. 0 with my eyes. Once it left the heart, it lost its strength and began withering rapidly. I needed to deal with it quickly before it lost all of its power.

No. 0 placed the puppet body prepared in advance onto an empty spot on the workbench. I carefully placed the crystal into that body. Then I sealed it with the workbench’s magic circles.

Inside that puppet, where everything was fixed, the crystal also lost its flow of time. At that moment, the circuits I had carved inside the puppet beforehand began to glow. They were magics made solely to accept the crystal.

Guided by those magics, it slowly began taking root in that body. The process went as smoothly as planned.

I quietly looked down at the puppet. It was very small. Only about the size of my palm. That was the optimal size for accepting this crystal.

The rest could be left to No. 0. Thinking that, I looked at the body in front of me. From now on, I had to do something more important than that. I tightened my grip on the carving knife again.

I carefully pushed the blade toward the split gap. Then I began cutting gently. What I was aiming for was a kind of grain formed inside. The knife swung without hesitation, aiming for the grain of mana and the grain of life.

Like that, every organ except the heart lost its connections one by one and began coming loose. I continued that work while checking the fixation magic making up the workbench from time to time.

How much time had passed like that? Every organ except the heart had been extracted. The organs that had fallen outside the body began cooling rapidly.

At the end of it, their appearance gradually changed. They were no longer organs brimming with life force, but stiffly hardened parts. Their connection to the body had clearly been completely severed.

I briefly inspected them. The immature traces inside them were the first thing I felt. Feeling that, I gave a slightly bitter smile. The old me had been very lacking. Of course, back then, this had been the best I could do.

But not now. I carefully collected those parts and took out the new organs I had brought. I inspected them using magical power. When the parts felt that magical power, they began wriggling as though alive.

They were perfect. I quietly nodded. These truly were living things. They were lumps of flesh I had cultivated as much as I could over the past while.

The core of this woman, Mira’s body, was Akur’s spine. Though it had been dyed by the Fog Heart, the power of change contained in that spine could not be ignored. The price alone was worth millions of points.

These organs were made by gathering that thing’s flesh and organ fragments. They were items I had obtained through the Arcana General Trading Company after great effort and by spending all my points.

After she came to hold life, the existing structure I had made could not contain that power well enough. These were what I had prepared to fix that. Of course, their performance would be worse than the original organs. But this was the best I could do right now.

I carefully placed them into Mira’s body. Then I slowly guided their movements with magical power. Following that flow, they began settling into the places where they belonged.

I brought the knife to those organs. Then I began delicately carving the grain they created. So they would suit that body, and so they would have a flow similar to the old ones.

Like that, the organs gradually adapted to the body. Then they naturally began grafting onto the circuits that had already existed in the body. Along with that, mist poured from the heart.

The mist clung to the newly arranged organs and created a steady flow. Then the murky dark-red energy wriggling inside them began consuming them. It was Wriggler No. 1, the puppet-use pill Professor On had made.

Under Mira’s perfect control, Wriggler No. 1 transformed these new things to suit the puppet’s body. During that process, they naturally came to hold the power of change.

That was also the reason I used them. They would be able to hold more power inside. Like that, the organs came to contain even stronger vitality.

But even within this connection, unsuitable parts appeared little by little. I quickly cut away the areas that wriggled as though rejecting the mist and rebuilt the connection.

It could not be helped. Change always came with resistance. Like that, I checked the rejection and connected things anew. All to create the most natural grain, flow, and form possible.

At the end of it, I carefully set down the carving knife. The surgery had gone on for several hours. I quietly caught my breath and nodded. No. 0 approached and wiped the sweat from my face.

Then I quietly looked down at the body in front of me. The new organs had perfectly adapted to it. They were darker red than before, and they were connected to the Fog Heart while holding magical power inside.

It was a success. I lightly brushed my hand over the opened gap. It was simple recovery magic. The long wound began healing quickly within the magic.

Along with that, the workbench’s magic also began fading. I had somehow managed to finish everything within the time limit. I glanced at the small puppet No. 0 was managing too. That also seemed fairly stable.

Like that, all the restraints wrapped around her body disappeared, and the woman bound inside them, Mira, opened her eyes. My reflection appeared in those gray eyes. I looked utterly exhausted.

“How does your body feel?”

I asked Mira. She raised herself up and quietly lifted a finger. Mist flowed out from its tip, then coiled around her body like a single snake. Guiding that flow, she smiled brightly.

“I like it very much. Compared to before, I should be able to draw out about thirty percent more power.”

She lightly nodded as she said that. I followed suit. Since I had matched that body’s compatibility as much as possible, I had thought this result would come out. Thankfully, it went as expected.

She released more mist and sent it toward me. From inside that mist came an even deeper rose scent. It was a bewitching fragrance.

As that puppet body came to hold more life force, the mist had clearly come to hold a stronger scent naturally. I stepped back slightly to avoid that mist.

I also sent magical power and lightly checked her body. She did not reject it and quietly accepted the magical power into her body. Thankfully, there was nothing wrong.

Just as I nodded, she looked at me with a mischievous smile. She lightly took hold of the cloth covering her body and smiled with her eyes.

“Are you planning to leave me like this? Of course, I do not mind if you keep watching.”

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

I had been thinking only of the result and had failed to consider her. I gave an awkward smile and took out my spatial pouch. Then I handed her the clothes I had prepared in advance.

I turned around and headed to the desk prepared on one side. Behind me came the soft rustling of clothes. I cleared my throat for no reason and took out several scrolls.

Then I spread them over the desk. Complex magic circles and circuits were recorded inside them. They were the blueprints for this surgery. I lifted a magical power pen and began recording the results of this experiment inside them.

How should I describe Mira’s current strength? Even excluding that spine, the points I had poured into that body now easily exceeded one hundred thousand.

If I included the points used this time, it might have gone past two hundred thousand. After confirming my completely emptied points, I gave a bitter smile.

Still, I had secured power worthy of that much. Now even mages of the ninth floor and above would not be able to ignore her. The power she gave off externally had become that great.

Of course, it was nothing more than a bluff.

The power she could stably release was only around the fifth or sixth floor. Roughly around the beginning of the Complete Tree. Anything above that would clearly be too much for her body to endure.

I quietly looked down at my hand. Even so, how incredible was that?

The fifth floor meant the realm of the Complete Tree. I was only on the second floor now. Even the third floor was still far away for me, so the fifth floor was a terribly distant place. Having such a being move for my sake was more than I deserved.

While I calmly recorded the experiment’s results, someone gently hugged my waist. I felt a soft sensation against my back. It was a little smaller than before. It was probably because the crystal that had been inside had been removed.

“I’m here. So, how did the experiment you planned go?”

She slightly poked her head out past my side and asked. At that, I glanced at the puppet entrusted to No. 0’s hands. Mira’s gaze followed mine toward it.

“Aha, it looks like it’s being stabilized right now. Will it succeed? I’m quite looking forward to it.”

“I think it would be best not to expect too much.”

I said that and quietly looked down at the puppet.

I saw No. 0 carefully manipulating magical power beside it. Normally, it should have woken by now. But it showed no movement at all.

Soon, No. 0 looked at me and lightly shook their head. It was a failure.

“Hmm, this one failed too. That’s very disappointing.”

“Still, I think something better than expected came out.”

I lightly stroked my chin. That puppet was an experimental body meant to fulfill Tiena’s request. The crystal inside it was also part of Mira’s power. I had tried to create a new “soul” through it, but in the end, I failed.

As Mira said, this was not something that could succeed in one try. A child between a puppet and a human was almost impossible. While conducting several experiments to fulfill that request, I had realized something.

Just as magical power had a grain, and just as life had a grain, the soul also created a grain within its flow.

It was the result of figuring out the traits of souls using magical beasts. Parents and children had similar but different grains of soul. And those grains connected toward each other like traces. Just like me and my puppets.

In that sense, I could also understand why Professor On could not solve this. Professor On also knew very well how to weave souls. In some respects, the professor could even create souls superior to my innate magic.

But no matter how much those created souls and puppets resembled Tiena, they did not have a grain connected to her. They were nothing more than a kind of clone, and could not be called her true child.

Creating that connection. That was the assignment we had to solve.

I approached No. 0 and patted that shoulder. No. 0 sighed and held the puppet out to me. I calmly focused my mind on the puppet that resembled Mira, or in other words, could also be said to resemble Professor.

Inside it, I felt magical power wrapped in thick mist. But it only had a body. There was no soul anywhere. Well, though it had failed, this could still be called a good body.

I let my will flow into it. Along with that, the Moon floating on my shadow tree lightly vibrated the body. One ego staying inside it began flowing into the puppet along that connection.

Toward that puppet, my tree lightly began granting magic. It was the Fake Soul magic engraved into that body. It gradually wrapped around the puppet. Inside it, the puppet slowly opened its eyes.

Mira lightly patted its head. Then her eyes sparkled with curiosity. The puppet lightly bowed its head toward Mira.

“Still, this is very interesting. How should I put it? It feels faintly as though another me exists.”

Saying that, Mira placed it on her palm. The puppet staggered slightly, then leaned its body against Mira’s finger. Then it closed its eyes and fell asleep.

I lightly felt over its body with magical power. Quite a few parts were out of alignment. It seemed unable to endure the burden produced by that small crystal. I quietly held my hand out toward Mira.

“Could you give it here? It is not complete yet. I think I will need to store it longer.”

“Is that so? Here you go.”

I carefully accepted the puppet Mira handed me. Then I signaled to No. 0 with my eyes. No. 0 quickly brought over a large glass bottle. I placed the puppet inside and tightly sealed the opening.

When I raised magical power toward the bottle, the magical power transformed like liquid through the magic circle engraved on it and began filling the inside. Soon, the puppet floated inside, surrounded by magical power.

I carefully placed the bottle against one wall where the puppets were gathered. If left like this, that body would absorb magical power and gradually grow. It would probably take a few years.

I had deliberately constructed the body only with such materials. Through that growth, it would contain the crystal’s power and come to move more naturally. Of course, even after fully growing, it would only be the size of a small puppet.

It was a small result I had produced earlier while digging into the descent ritual. Creating a kind of faint offshoot body. I had thought a new soul might be born with this.

Of course, as it had now, it failed. In the end, I had no choice but to make it my puppet like this.

Looking at the sleeping puppet, I stroked my chin. Still, this too could be called one possibility. A faint path that could open a new future. Ways to use it began coming to mind.

“Then what do you plan to do next? I do not mind if you make one more.”

Mira asked. She was lightly placing a hand over the chest where the crystal had been and smiling. At those words, I shook my head with a sour smile.

“No, I cannot cause you another loss, Mira. I am simply grateful for this alone.”

That was exactly true. This was no different from taking part of Mira’s power. Now that I knew there was no possibility, there was no need to attempt it again. It would fail anyway.

I should not think about the next experiment, and for now, I had to stop here. I also needed to solve the assignment Professor On had given me. Thinking that, I looked at No. 0.

This assignment was to “make a puppet different from existing ones.” No matter how much kinder the class had become, that assignment remained difficult. I had failed one of the two assignments too.

In that sense, No. 0 was quite amazing. While taking the class, No. 0 had broken through the limits of thought, like cracking an egg. No. 0 had even succeeded at the assignment I failed.

I looked at the puppets No. 0 had created. Those stone statues were wriggling with even stranger forms. Now, they no longer even had human shapes.

Their appearances, full of bizarre tentacles, moved grotesquely as though swaying in the wind, bewitching anyone who looked at them. No. 0 had filled the first floor with puppets like that. The treasures had cheered while looking at them too.

They were wonderful forms that made even me nod on my own. At that thought, I lightly shook my head. Then I spoke to Mira.

“For now, please rest a little. I researched another tea suited to that body. You should be able to feel a new taste.”

“Oh my, I’m looking forward to it.”

She gently leaned against me. I led her to the table placed on one side of the workshop. Then I began preparing the new tea.

That was when I was spending time with Mira and thinking about puppets with No. 0. Suddenly, the mirror bug began vibrating.

It floated into the air and approached me. I slowly read the news inside. Then I sighed and stood up. Seeing me like that, Mira tilted her head.

“Did something happen?”

“Hao caused another incident.”

At those words, Mira smiled brightly. Then she propped her chin on both hands and her eyes sparkled.

“The treasures seem to like that child quite a lot too. Only that child causes incidents every day like this.”

“Shall I come along too?” Mira said, smiling sweetly. I lightly shook my head at her.

“Please rest comfortably. You also need to adapt to that body more.”

“If you say so, I will not refuse.”

Mira said that and lifted the teacup in front of her. Leaving her behind as she savored its scent, I left the room. I had to go to the second floor, to the infirmary. Hao was waiting there.

Since the start of this month, Hao had received cleansing seventeen times. Making the fourth rule had been one result of that too. The memory of that time was still vivid in my head. I rubbed my eyes at the fatigue that suddenly began piling up.

Hao was using cleansing itself as an opportunity. That was a path I had not imagined.

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