WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ Surviving in the Magic Academy

Chapter 139

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139.

-Blood Axe: Slaughter... Me, slaughter. Slaughter... Slaughter? Slaughter!

(A picture of a blood-red axe resting against a rock)

(A picture of metaphysical patterns being carved into the handle)

(A picture of the axe breaking the rock in one strike)

Hehe, slaughter!

└Ring of the Sky: I can feel how happy you are from all the way over here. You seem very excited. It is truly good to see!

└Tooth Necklace: I know, right! Though to be honest, it is a little funny that Blood Axe is only lecturing now!

└Blood Axe: Me, slaughter.

└Tooth Necklace: Kekeke, for all the effort you put in, are the results not a little too poor? You still cannot even speak properly.

└Blood Axe: Slaughter? Me, you slaughter!

└Tooth Necklace: It was a joke, a joke.

└Blood Axe: Slaughter... Slaughter!

└Tooth Necklace: Oh my, are you going to keep getting angry like that? If you keep this up, I will have no choice but to take my points back.

└Blood Axe: S-Slaughter....

└Tooth Necklace: Yes, that is how you should be. Since we are already talking about points, there is something I want from this lecture, you see. That thing we talked about last time....

I brewed a cup of tea and quietly held it out to Hao. Hao carefully accepted it, then savored its scent. I could see a trace of satisfaction settle in those blue eyes.

Behind Hao, who was sipping the tea, Hari was half leaning against the bed and lightly swinging her feet. Her gaze was fixed on the tea Hao was drinking. She seemed a little curious about the taste.

After drinking for a while, Hao set the cup down beside the bed. Hari seized the chance to lift the teacup and take a small taste. Hao did not seem to notice her movement and simply kept looking at me.

“The tea is good. I understand the request. But there is one thing I am a little curious about.”

“What are you curious about?”

When I asked, Hao scratched their head slightly. A little hesitation appeared on their face. After thinking for a moment, Hao glanced at the mirror bug.

“Is it really possible for Blood Axe to hold a lecture?”

“It will be hard for other people to understand, won’t it?” Hao murmured, looking entirely innocent. I let out a small laugh at the question, then lightly nodded.

It was understandable for Hao to wonder. To hold a lecture, one first had to be able to communicate well enough. That was the standard among treasures.

But Blood Axe had not perfectly met that standard. Unlike the other treasures who had already held lectures and expressed their will clearly enough, Blood Axe was still at the stage where it could not even speak properly.

“In truth, Blood Axe would have a hard time holding a lecture alone. But its will to lecture is so strong that things ended up moving forward like this. I plan to help from the side.”

I gave a light smile and shrugged a little. Originally, another treasure had been scheduled to lecture this time. But Blood Axe had suddenly pushed in, and the order had changed.

That was also why I had come to see Hao. The plan to target Blood Axe was originally supposed to proceed slowly. I thought it would take a little longer before that thing held a lecture.

But this time, Blood Axe had moved with real urgency. I did not know the exact reason it was acting like that. I could only guess that it had some kind of situation.

I glanced at Hao. I did have a rough idea of what that situation might be. It was probably points.

Blood Axe often showered Hao with points. But unlike the other treasures, Blood Axe had nowhere to obtain points. It did not lecture, and it could not properly communicate with students.

Then where had it obtained the points it spent on Hao? They would not have simply appeared out of nowhere. It might have borrowed them from someone, or perhaps it had asked another treasure for them.

Of course, even then, there would still be a limit to the points it could get. So perhaps it was rushing to hold a lecture in order to earn points. That was my guess.

Whatever the reason, Blood Axe trying to hold a lecture was not something I needed to refuse. The fact that Blood Axe was moving urgently meant its field of vision had narrowed just as much.

And once that thing was fixated on a single goal, it would be a little easier for me to guide its actions. So I had also lent my support to make sure Blood Axe could lecture.

Hao nodded slightly, as if understanding. Then Hao briefly rubbed their chin.

After thinking for a moment, Hao soon clapped softly. Then they lifted their mirror bug and showed it to me.

“Thinking about Blood Axe reminded me of something. I was already planning to leave an inquiry for Evron, but my mirror bug has been strange lately. How should I put it? It keeps filling up with odd little grains.”

Grains? I blinked slightly, then tilted my head. Was there any reason for a problem like that to happen in my mirror bug? Judging from Hao’s words, there really did seem to be an issue.

I accepted the mirror bug from Hao and turned on its screen. It began to shine, displaying several message boards inside it.

And between those message boards, I could see truly tiny grains floating around. When I lightly touched one with a finger, the grain wriggled and avoided my hand. Seeing that, I let out a hollow laugh.

Mm, I did not think these would be here. I met Hao’s eyes and gave an awkward smile.

I felt the faint fragrance coming from Hao brush the tip of my nose. It seemed that scent really was quite captivating.

A familiar sensation flowed from the tiny grains lingering in the mirror bug. Of course it did. These were all my soul fragments.

My soul fragments were like a kind of wraith. A wraith was a kind of magical life-form created when a soul was torn apart, and my soul fragments had also taken in magical power and gained a similar form.

Those soul fragments were currently taking in enough magical power and wandering freely within the domains of my tree and shadow tree. Recently, I had loosened my control over them, and it seemed they had been charmed by Hao’s scent.

I bowed my head slightly to Hao and shook the mirror bug. The grains shook lightly along with the movement.

“They are things that stay in my domain, and it seems they have taken a liking to Hao. I will handle them properly so this does not happen again.”

Inside my chest, I focused my mind on the domain of the shadow tree and moved my magical power. I felt that magical power move quietly and form a flow.

That flow headed toward the star held inside this mirror bug. Then it instantly swept over the soul fragments contained within. The soul fragments caught in that intense flow were thrown out of the star along with the magical power.

The grains floating on the screen also slowly began to scatter. I shook the mirror bug again. The last grain left the screen.

I quietly nodded. This seemed good enough. I returned the mirror bug to Hao. Hao accepted it, checked it, then scratched their head slightly.

“I feel like this happened a few times before too.... I don’t know why they keep doing this to me.”

Hao fiddled with the mirror bug for a while, then looked at me. Then Hao lightly tapped the mirror bug with a fingertip and tilted their head slightly.

“Come to think of it, there is one more thing I am curious about. Is there something else inside my mirror bug? It feels like someone keeps driving the treasures out of the tribute room.”

Hao looked a little worried as they said that. The tribute room. I understood right away what Hao was talking about.

I glanced at Hari. Behind Hao, she had her arms crossed as she nodded to me. I could see a very proud expression on her face. She was the culprit behind the act Hao had mentioned.

She raised a finger and quietly brought it to her mouth. At the same time, a weak will flowed from her. It was a request not to reveal her identity.

If she wanted it hidden, then I had to hide it. Well, of course, I had not planned to say anything either. I shook my head slightly at Hao.

“I am not sure. Perhaps, like those grains just now, there is another being charmed by Hao.”

“Is that so.... It is a little strange. I feel like someone is looking into my mirror bug. The treasures are not saying anything either.”

Hao scratched their head and looked down at the mirror bug. Hari stared intently at Hao. From her eyes, I seemed to feel a strong possessive desire. It was a desire for ownership, and also something like jealousy.

It was only natural for her to have such a desire. Hao stood at her origin. And as that clear emotion showed, she did not tolerate those treasures bothering Hao too much.

She controlled the tribute room, and had even gone as far as threatening the treasures that entered it. That was probably why the treasures did not speak up.

Like that, Hao’s tribute room had stabilized. No, it would be more accurate to say that not only the tribute room, but Hao’s entire life had stabilized.

All of Hao’s actions were being watched by Hari. Hari had become a being that belonged to the tower, so she could roughly know what happened inside the tower. In that way, Hao had fallen into Hari’s grasp.

I stroked my chin slightly. Looking at it like this, Hao somehow felt like prey caught in a spiderweb. It was as if Hao would not be able to escape from her arms unless Hari let go.

Perhaps Hao could not escape Hari’s hands even outside the tower. I had seen her leave the tower to follow Hao from time to time.

In that way, Hao was already half caught by Hari. So that feeling of mine was probably not just a misunderstanding. In that sense, she could be called the final barrier protecting Hao.

I lightly nodded to Hari. I could feel that she was working quite hard. Of course, Hao still did not seem to have noticed that she was always watching.

Hari looked at me and smiled slightly. Possessive desire. It was a very proper mindset. If there was something one wanted, should one not take it?

Mm, she was growing up very well. I held a pleased smile as I thought that. Hari could be called something like my child. So I could only support her.

Unlike us, Hao looked somewhat uneasy. But unless Hari revealed the truth herself, it was clear Hao would never notice her actions.

So there was no need to keep talking about this. I lightly clapped my hands toward Hao and opened my mouth. Then I began to explain the request I had brought earlier in a little more detail.

At that, Hao set down the mirror bug and gradually focused on my words. What I wanted was to grasp Blood Axe’s every move. Just like Hari did.

Since Blood Axe was so interested in Hao, it was sure to reveal its trail easily. So Hao needed to calmly observe its actions.

There might be more things I would ask Hao for later, but for now, the request ended there. After finishing the explanation, I looked at Hao.

Hao thought for a moment, then nodded. It meant they accepted my request. I paid Hao the points I would give as compensation in advance.

Five thousand points. It was a large amount to spend on such a simple request. Hao checked the points and smiled slightly. Since Hao had received that many points, they would do their best with my request.

After talking with Hao a little longer, I stood up. I had finished saying everything I needed to say. There was no reason to stay here any longer, so it was time to return to the workshop.

“Then I will be going now.”

“Already? I wanted to talk a little more about the request.”

Hao blinked and spoke. I gave a faint smile and shrugged. Then I bowed my head slightly and glanced at Hari. She was quietly waving at me.

“I think this much is enough. And I should not disturb time for the two of you.”

“The two of us?”

Hao glanced back, following my gaze. Hari hid herself from Hao’s eyes. I shook my head slightly at Hao, who tilted their head for a moment.

“Ah, that was a slip of the tongue. I meant Hao. So please do not mind it. You need to rest and stabilize your body further.”

I lightly laughed at Hao, who still looked confused, then turned around. Then I slowly walked to the door. Before leaving the room, I checked on Hao one last time.

As I had said, Hao was lying down on the bed. I could see Hao closing their eyes and accepting magical power into their body. And beside Hao, Hari was staring intently at that face.

I waved at Hari, then left the infirmary. As I closed the door, I slowly stroked my chin.

While talking with Hao, a fairly good idea had come to me. Blood Axe seemed to need points. Then making it earn a huge number of points would also be a fine method.

In that case, what method would be good? I knew the most effective way to earn points like that. The best way to stir people’s desires.

I sent my will into my mirror bug. It flapped its wings and flew up. Through it, I left a message for Blood Axe. I said I had something to discuss about the lecture.

-Slaughter!

Blood Axe replied right away. With a light smile, I talked with it. It seemed that thing had been wondering how to proceed with this sudden lecture.

I delivered my opinion to it. At first, that thing was half doubtful, but after reading my message, it sent me a pleased will. That was because I told it that as long as it followed my method, it could earn a huge number of points.

I watched that thing’s mood and nodded. As expected, it seemed to be in urgent need of points.

Like that, while talking with Blood Axe and going through preparations, the day when Blood Axe would hold its lecture quickly arrived. The lecture room was crowded with students.

Standing at one side of the lecture room, I quietly looked over the students. I could see thick magical power swaying from them. The magical power they gave off had grown much stronger compared to when the first lecture was held.

I gently stroked my chin. They seemed to be making very good use of the treasures’ power. And among those students, the one giving off the strongest magical power was Luciella.

I looked straight at Luciella. She had been chosen by quite a few treasures. As expected of someone from a great family, I supposed. The way she handled treasure power together with her unique flames was extremely interesting.

Like that, she had firmly built up her position. If it were her, she would surely pass this lecture and seize that treasure’s power. Of course, she could not beat Cassian, who was sitting beside her.

Luciella looked extremely irritated. It was because Cassian sat beside her and kept poking her. Cassian was treating her like a kind of toy.

Luciella became annoyed and tried to push Cassian away with magical power, but Cassian smoothly let that magical power flow past and watched with shining eyes. Cassian seemed interested in the flow of that magical power.

There was no special reason Cassian clung to Luciella like that. It was simply because Luciella could at least hold out under Cassian’s sword. The others could not defeat Cassian no matter how much treasure power they carried.

It had now been almost a year and a half since Cassian had climbed to the third floor. In that time, Cassian had gone through spar after spar, and had built up that power considerably.

Even Luciella, who had stayed on the third floor for a long time, could not overcome Cassian’s power. At first, the difference between them had been somewhat close, but it was growing wider over time.

Perhaps before the remaining three years of this course passed, Cassian might receive the examination notice to head to the fourth floor. Well, even then, it was certain Cassian would not pass that examination in one try.

That wall was sure to be even more difficult than the one leading to the third floor. I had been able to feel that while going through the third floor examination. That wall could not be crossed easily. As I was now, I did not know how many attempts it would take.

But Cassian had failed only once in climbing to the third floor. That meant Cassian’s talent was impressive. I lightly stroked my chin. If I kept dragging my feet like this, Cassian might climb to the fourth floor faster than I climbed to the third.

So I also needed to follow Cassian’s example. Three years later, that was the second chance given to me. I had no intention of missing that chance.

I would run endlessly toward that clear goal. This lecture would become its foundation. Thinking that, I smiled brightly and slowly climbed the platform. Then I faced the students.

I lightly clapped my hands and drew the students’ attention. The lecture room began to quiet down. In that silence, I quietly checked the mirror bug.

It was time. Now it was time to hold the lecture. I activated the magic circle on the platform. Then the magic circle took in magical power and began to give off a deep light.

At the end of it, one illusion slowly took form. It was an axe. Even though it was an illusion, it felt as if eerie magical power was swaying from that blood-red blade.

That was Blood Axe, who would be holding this lecture. After trembling briefly, it lightly shook its blade. Along with that, words containing its will appeared in the air.

-Slaughter!

The faint meaning Blood Axe wanted to put into that short message reached me. It was something like a welcome greeting.

But the students did not react to Blood Axe’s words and simply stayed still. Blood Axe spat out the word Slaughter several more times in writing, but the response was the same.

Blood Axe looked a little flustered as it faced them, and not long after, it drooped. It looked somewhat dispirited.

Seeing that, I smiled slightly and stepped forward. Blood Axe approached me and tapped my shoulder. It meant it wanted me to convey its words to them.

Blood Axe had stepped forward first to test whether the students could understand its will. If that had been possible, I would not have needed to step in. But the students did not seem to understand its words.

That was only natural. The students were not used to a treasure’s magical power. To interpret a treasure’s will like that, one needed to be steeped in that magical power.

In that sense, among all these people, only Hao and I could properly recognize Blood Axe’s words. Mm, maybe that was why Blood Axe liked Hao. Hao was the only one among the students who could communicate with it.

“This is Blood Axe, who will be holding this lecture. It says it welcomes all of you. Everyone, please greet it with applause.”

I interpreted its words like that and explained them to the students. At that, the students began to lightly clap. Amid that shower of applause, Blood Axe confidently flashed its axe blade.

It seemed to enjoy receiving cheers. None of its dispirited look from before could be found in it. Like that, its way of thinking was a little simple. It quickly forgot what had happened before.

That was probably why it had not properly learned a method of communication. And that was also why I had chosen it as my target.

-Slaughter, slaughter... Me, slaughter!

Blood Axe floated in the air and flew around wildly. Sometimes it landed near the students and carefully studied them. It seemed very excited. Thinking from its perspective, it was understandable.

It was one of the first treasures that had joined me. But among those treasures, only Blood Axe had been unable to hold a lecture until now. It had felt somewhat resentful about that, so now that it had gotten that frustration out, of course it would be this happy.

“It says, ‘This one is Blood Axe, a treasure that will grant you power... so worship this one!’”

With a smile, I interpreted Blood Axe’s words. As if confirming that, it shook its body slightly.

-Me, slaughter. Slaughter.

“It says, ‘This one thought long and hard about this lecture. This one watched many lectures before. Ones where people fought, and ones where rankings were set. But this one likes fairness. So this one will give all of you a chance.’”

I saw the students’ eyes begin to shine. Now every student had at least one power. Around twenty treasures had already held lectures by this point, so that was only natural.

But as with Luciella, there was a tendency for the strong to receive more treasure powers. That was unavoidable too. The treasures’ selection methods varied, but the stronger someone was, the higher their chance of seizing that power.

In that sense, the method of this lecture could be called truly fair. Anyone could have a chance to obtain that power.

-Slaughter, slaughter!

“It says, ‘What this one has prepared is a method fair to everyone, gacha!’”

At those words, the students began murmuring. It seemed they did not properly understand. Blood Axe looked at them and shook its blade grandly. It was clearly thinking of the points that would pour in later.

-Slaughter!

“It says, ‘The points needed for one gacha pull are five hundred points. Anyone can challenge it at any time, so everyone should try!’ To add to that, even after this lecture ends, you will always be able to do the gacha. Even if the next treasure holds a lecture.”

As I said that, I took out a bundle of papers from inside my clothes. They contained an explanation of the lecture being held this time, the gacha. I sent them flying toward the students.

“So you can gather points and pull all at once later, but I recommend that all of you participate this time. If you look at the paper, you will understand why.”

The students accepted the papers and slowly began checking the contents. Inside were the various prizes in this gacha and their probabilities. After checking them, the students showed interest.

-Slaughter. Slaughter! Slaughter!

“It says, ‘You have all checked the contents. Until the next lecture begins, this one has increased the winning probability of receiving this one’s power by ten times! After that, it will return to normal, so challenge it a lot now!’”

I also checked one of the papers. On it, the words “Special Event!” were written in large letters. Seeing that, I nodded.

I remembered the dream from before. That summoning magic circle I had used to draw Professor’s group. This was a method that had made that a little more concrete.

Among the various prizes written on the paper, the chance to draw Blood Axe’s power was truly awful. So awful that one might fail to draw it even after a thousand tries.

But for this one month, that probability had been raised by a full ten times. So anyone would surely think of pulling at least once before this time passed.

“You can do the gacha through the mirror bug at any time, so please press the button whenever you think of it.”

I said that and smiled brightly. This gacha contained many prizes besides Blood Axe’s power. For example, things like fourth floor access passes.

Those were prizes I had selected, things that could tempt the students. From their perspective, if they invested only five hundred points and drew those, it would be a great profit.

So they would press it casually, and points would pile up and pile up. Of course, most of them would go to Blood Axe, but I would also be able to receive a portion. I could not miss a chance to earn points this easily.

I glanced at Blood Axe. It seemed to be thinking of points, because it was lightly humming, Slaughter, Slaughter. I smiled while looking at it. What I wanted was to make that thing drunk on points like that.

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