WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ Surviving in the Magic Academy

Chapter 110

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A girl with long golden hair spilling down her back leaned against the table and looked out the window. Her emerald eyes were unfocused, staring blankly into empty air.

It was Professor Irian. Her stomach was visibly swollen. She stroked it, and the magical power around her rippled lightly, brimming with happiness.

This was the result I had created. Pride welled up in my chest, and I nodded in satisfaction. Today’s lunch seemed to have suited Professor’s tastes perfectly as well. She had finished three bowls, after all.

All that time I had invested had truly been worth it. As a chef, and as an underling, nothing was more joyful than seeing my master happy. With that pleased feeling in my heart, I looked at Professor.

That was when Professor turned her gaze toward me. Unlike before, her eyes felt completely new. Somehow, it almost felt as though all the principles of the world were contained within them.

She seemed to want tea. I quickly prepared refreshments and presented them before her. When I tilted the teapot over the empty teacup, the fresh fragrance of the tea spread through the air.

It was a scent that calmed the mind. Her face relaxed even further within it. She closed her eyes and savored the fragrance.

But she could not move her hand. It was probably because of all the food filling her stomach. Since she had eaten far more than usual, her fullness was preventing her from moving.

My eyes flashed. In that case, I had to help her. That was the proper attitude for an underling chosen by their master.

I carefully lifted the teacup with magical power and brought it to her lips. Professor naturally opened her mouth and accepted it. Then she slowly began to savor the taste.

Soon, she gave a small nod. It seemed she liked it. Her body sank deeper into the chair. As a light palate cleanser for her, I placed a translucent piece into her mouth.

It quickly melted on her tongue. Her face grew even more dazed. It was a kind of ice cream made by gathering clouds together. Blending with the fragrance of the tea, it gently cleansed her mouth.

Watching that, I nodded quietly. I had been mistaken all this time. To think I had dared make Professor move her own fingers. That was wrong. Even simple service like this had to be handled thoroughly by me. That was the duty of an underling.

With that noble thought in mind, I naturally placed the refreshments into her mouth. She ate them blankly. I put my utmost effort into every single motion, all so she could be even more satisfied.

At the same time, I drew several circuits over the chair. The magic dwelling in the chair linked together as one and wrapped around Professor’s body. It naturally massaged her and began melting away her fatigue.

In that comfort, her face relaxed even further, and a faint smile naturally began to form. Seeing that, I smiled with satisfaction as well.

Now, ice cream this time. Then a sip of tea. Like that, Professor kept steadily working her mouth without a pause.

How much time passed like that?

Her swollen stomach gradually began to settle back down. Then Professor, who had been accepting only what I gave her like a baby bird, gave a small shudder.

She looked around blankly. She looked down at herself, then at the things I had been offering her through magical power, and blinked a few times.

Soon, intelligence returned to her eyes. She looked at me and frowned slightly. There was a hint of displeasure in her gaze. Seeing that, I carefully opened my mouth.

“Have I done something wrong? For trash like me to put wrinkles on Professor’s noble face, if you tell me, I will correct it at once.”

As I said that, I lightly placed a hand on my chest. The sour look on her face deepened. It seemed she had not understood my sincerity. I closed my eyes for a moment in sadness.

“...I think this kid really ate something wrong.”

Professor muttered. She lightly pushed away the teacup held out before her with one finger and glared at me.

“What is this? Why have you been doing things you never used to do lately? If you want something, just say it.”

Was she worried about me? How grateful I was. I lightly shook my head.

“What could I possibly want? I am merely even more grateful for the grace Professor has bestowed upon me.”

Professor looked at me with a slightly fed up expression. It seemed she did not believe me. To think she would suspect me over only this much. I reflected on my own actions. On how negligent I had been toward her until now.

Even so, every word I had spoken was sincere. Because I had realized her true identity. And how great an opportunity I had seized. So I had to respect her even more.

I was no longer afraid of the mages of the university at all. The wandering mage of the past was gone. The current me had advanced to a higher dimension. Who would dare come at me? I had a dragon behind me.

Yes, she was a dragon. And I was the storehouse keeper personally appointed by her. Who was I? A dragon’s trusted retainer.

As I repeated that to myself, fierce pride welled up in my chest. Professor felt different to me now. No, saying she felt different was wrong. That could not be.

I had always held deep respect for her. Yes, my memory was not wrong. She was my teacher and my master. My intense loyalty had not changed since the very first time I met Professor.

“What is this, seriously...?”

I saw Professor clutch her forehead. One day, she would understand my sincerity too. Believing that, I quietly closed my eyes.

There was no doubt that Professor was no ordinary mage. That was something I had thought even before coming to the university. Both her appearance and her magical power were extremely special.

But I had not bothered to dig into what kind of being she was. Whatever her identity might be, I only needed to keep the contract properly. That was what I had thought.

In that situation, what brought me closer to Professor’s identity was nothing grand. It began with a very small question.

After classes began anew, I fell into a slight unease. Because Professor no longer used violence. Instead, she had become far too kind.

I wanted to know the reason behind that change. So I gathered clues one by one, and soon, I found the answer. It was because of the treasure’s magical power that my body had begun to contain.

Then why was she kind to treasures? I grew curious about that as well. If it had been before, I probably would not have wondered. I would have stopped there.

But I simply could not suppress my curiosity about Professor. Just as she had become kinder, I too had begun to be drawn to her more strongly. It was the natural flow created by the treasure’s magical power.

As I continued investigating like that, at some point, I began to get a sense of Professor’s identity. It was about a week ago that I finally became certain Professor was a dragon. I still remembered that day clearly.

That day, Mira took out the carving knife I had entrusted to her. Then she lifted it with both hands and smiled lightly.

“Yes, it is exactly as you said. This belongs to Professor Irian.”

“Is that so?”

I nodded quietly. The reason I had entrusted the carving knife to her was simple. I had felt a grain of mana similar to Professor’s from it. I was probably the only one who could perceive that.

For the past six months, she had handled it at my request while searching for its origin. She used her sense of smell to connect Professor’s scent and the carving knife’s scent as closely as possible.

“It is very interesting. It is full of the distinct scent of a scaled one. If Evron had not told me beforehand, I would never have thought it belonged to Professor.”

A scaled one. That was an accurate expression. This was an object made from a single transformed scale. And as she had figured out, it belonged to Professor Irian. That meant Professor Irian was a scaled one.

“I knew she was not human, but to think she was a dragon. How interesting. I did not expect all of Evron’s guesses to be true.”

She returned the carving knife to me as she spoke. I tucked it away in my chest and smiled bitterly as well. I had not expected this to be real either.

Even so, I was certain now. There was only one scaled one loved by treasures and who loved treasures in return. A dragon. Professor Irian was clearly that dragon.

The fact that she was at the university was proof of it. Nonhuman species were forbidden from entering the university. No, in the Empire’s terms, magical beast would be the correct expression.

There were many nonhuman species on the continent. Some had human forms, while others looked as though they had been mixed with something else.

And in the Empire, such nonhuman species were thoroughly treated as magical beasts. Their entry was forbidden, contact with them was forbidden, and their magic was forbidden.

But there was no way all of that was obeyed perfectly. The continent was far too vast. The same was true of the Empire, which occupied half of it.

Because of that, nonhuman species could sometimes be found within the Empire. They wandered the outskirts beyond the cities. I had encountered them a few times myself.

Through interacting with them, I came to understand why the Empire treated them as magical beasts. Every nonhuman species was born containing magical power. Just like magical beasts.

Their way of thinking differed from humans. Their innate abilities also differed from humans. In a society where most mages even treated swordsmen as magical beasts, there was no way such nonhuman species would be accepted.

Because of that, the Empire strongly rejected them. And this university, which could be called the heart of that Empire, had an even stronger atmosphere of that sort. Nonhuman species could not even take the entrance exam.

But even then, there were a few nonhuman species the Empire did not treat as magical beasts. The turtle I had once dreamed of creating was one of them. Dragons like Professor were another.

They had only one thing in common. Overwhelming strength. Dragon. My heart trembled at the intense aura of magical power contained in that word.

“Hehe, are you that happy? It is written all over your face.”

Mira said that with a smile. Looking at her, I lightly scratched my cheek. Happy, was I? That might have been true. The moment I became certain Professor was a dragon, my heart had been drawn toward her even more.

“Yes, I suppose I can half feel it too. It is a strange feeling.”

As I said that, I repeatedly clenched and unclenched my hand. In many legends, and in many stories, the existence known as a dragon always appeared as a symbol of absolute power. They also appeared as masters of treasures.

As those stories proved, dragons had a power that drew treasures to them like this. It could be called an instinct and bloodline inherent in their blood.

“I feel the same. I have begun looking forward even more to what that person’s heart looks like. When I one day hold her heart in my hand, what expression will Irian make?”

Mira placed a hand on her chest with a dreamy face. She seemed to be feeling the heartbeat beyond it. Her face gradually began flushing red.

Even after hearing Professor was a dragon, she was not giving up on targeting her? I smiled bitterly at that indomitable desire.

A heart. Come to think of it, there had been such a rumor. The story that a dragon heart existed at the center of the university.

It was quite believable. There were not many things that could emit enough endless magical power and strength to maintain this enormous dimension. It would take something on the level of a dragon heart to make that possible.

Dragons were beings born complete like that, beings that naturally continued to grow with the passage of time.

And that was exactly our Professor. I now understood the source of the bottomless magical power she possessed.

I quietly sank into thought like that. Then I blinked. Huh, had I risen quite a lot in status? Not just within the university, but in my life as a mage too.

She had appointed me as storehouse keeper. She had also entrusted her treasures to me as she did now. Yes. I was the one in charge of the dragon’s treasure vault. In other words, I could be called her trusted retainer.

To think Professor thought so highly of me. Gratitude rose within me for her entrusting such a heavy duty to me. Feeling the loyalty and pride filling my chest, I nodded.

Yes, that had been a week ago.

Since then, I had devoted myself to Professor with all my heart like this.

“Tell me why you’re acting like this.”

At the voice in my ear, I slowly opened my eyes. Professor was looking at me with a sour expression.

I quietly scratched my cheek. It seemed my feelings had been a little too much. I felt a bit wronged too. I was doing all this for her, yet her first response was suspicion.

Professor stared hard at me. I cautiously watched her expression. The magical power around her was gradually rippling with a fierce edge.

It seemed she intended to clearly find out the cause of my change. Today, she seemed to have firmly made up her mind. Until now, she had simply let it slide somehow.

“...Then, if it would not be rude, may I ask one question?”

I met her eyes and spoke quietly. After hearing my words, Professor slightly eased the pressure created by the magical power around her. Then she gave me a small jerk of her chin. It meant I should ask.

I lightly swallowed. Then I carefully opened my mouth. Thinking about it, there was no real need to keep what I had discovered a secret from her. Rather, asking her directly was the surest method.

“Professor... are you a dragon?”

At that question, Professor coughed. The cough that began lightly did not stop easily and gradually grew louder. I took out a handkerchief and slowly wiped around her mouth.

Then I was about to wash the handkerchief with cleansing magic, but I stopped. I quietly looked down at the handkerchief.

Mm... could this also be called saliva spat out by a dragon?

Interest suddenly arose within me. Would it not be fine to research it once? I might discover something special, after all. Thinking that, I quietly sealed the handkerchief with a barrier and put it into my chest.

Then, looking at Professor’s flustered eyes, I quietly nodded. As expected, there seemed to be no mistake. A strong satisfaction filled my chest.

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