WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ Surviving in the Magic Academy

Chapter 15

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We arrived at the mountain with four hours left.

The mountain we had barely managed to reach towered high into the sky. At its summit, a flag fluttered as if welcoming us. We had arrived far later than expected.

We had passed through countless obstacles on the way here. The monkeys had only been the beginning. The magical beast attacks were on the easier side. It was actually simpler to deal with something whose intent was that obvious. The most annoying obstacles were the ones I could not even tell were traps.

The worst of them had been the mirror illusion. I thought we were simply moving forward, but at some point, the path of magical power split into several branches. By the time I noticed, the mountain had appeared in every direction. It was a strange illusion that had even copied the flow of magical power with frightening precision.

We had been trapped inside it for almost three hours. Everyone tried different ways to escape. I sent puppets far ahead to scout the surroundings, but the puppets only circled the same place endlessly, as if they had been trapped in a maze.

In the end, there was only one method.

Break this unknown illusion.

For that, the group cooperated for the first time. First, the large-scale curse Shaking Rope unleashed ate into the illusion.

Then the hidden mirror briefly revealed itself. It was the source of this strange illusion. Ailey and Hongryeong struck it hard with their respective magic. Their attacks shattered the mirror, creating a tiny opening.

I sent puppets through that opening to find a safe path. In the process, many puppets vanished and never returned. The path kept changing. Only after burning through countless puppets in that tension were we able to escape the illusion.

After passing through several traps like that, the turtle was covered in all kinds of wounds. Its shell had split so badly that the damage nearly reached my workshop. Even though I repaired the turtle as best I could at every moment along the way, worse wounds kept appearing. By the time we reached the mountain, it looked like there were fewer uninjured parts than injured ones. It really had suffered a lot.

The mountain path was too steep for the turtle to climb. I secretly took out my pouch and put the turtle inside. That was only possible because the others had already started climbing the mountain. I began slowly climbing after them. I had no idea what might be waiting on this mountain either, so I moved while checking my surroundings.

Thankfully, we found nothing strange all the way to the summit. What stood out was the tremendous magical power that continued to surge from the mountain. All the flows of magical power we had seen on the way here had started from this place.

The huge flag waiting for us at the summit scattered into the air as soon as we arrived. At that moment, everyone let out a deep sigh.

The second task was over.

An object appeared where the flag had been. It was a huge hourglass. As if it had only just started, the sand began falling slowly to the bottom.

“I suppose this is what we’re supposed to protect.”

Hongryeong said. Meaning, this was the important item we had been told to protect during the task. Looking at the amount of sand, it seemed to match roughly two weeks. During the fourth task, we clearly had to protect this hourglass until all the sand ran out.

It looked like the third and fourth tasks would take place at the same time.

I looked around. On the way here, we had each learned a little about one another. But no sense of camaraderie had formed at all. All I felt was a sense of danger that the others had gotten a better grasp of me. Cooperating with people like this for two weeks? Impossible.

The person who made this task probably had not expected that kind of cooperation either. Was that why they had decided to make the third task an individual evaluation?

“Let’s divide the mountain into five zones and build our own fortresses.”

Hongryeong said.

He was right. Rather than sharing control of my fortress with strangers I could not trust, taking responsibility for it from start to finish felt far more mage-like. Since everyone here was a mage, they would all be used to establishing territory.

And so, the five of us scattered and began exploring the mountain. A small agreement was reached, and each zone was decided. Some zones were wide, while others were narrow.

Hongryeong declared that he would take the wide cliff terrain in the southeast. It was about a quarter of the entire area. Probably because it was the best place to use his magic. Next, Ailey settled in the north. It was a valley with flowing water. Other than that, there was nothing unusual about it.

Sieger took his position in the eastern rock wall area. It was a choice that fit his magical power perfectly. Shaking Rope chose the western forest terrain we had come through. Made up of gentle slopes, the area received the mountain’s magical power and was filled with trees that held far more magical power than the forest below.

I took the area between Shaking Rope and Hongryeong.

In truth, I did not care which zone it was.

More important than which zone I chose was who I would be next to. I had considered choosing the east, between Ailey and Hongryeong, but Sieger strongly insisted that it was his zone first. I also decided on this place because being wedged between the strong did not necessarily seem like a good thing. It was somewhat steep terrain with a decent mix of trees and rocks.

After roughly deciding the zones, we gathered again in front of the hourglass. Everyone seemed pleased with their own zone, their faces bright. Hongryeong naturally took out a map. The mountain was roughly drawn on it. He marked the zones we had just divided on that map.

“From now on, this will be each person’s territory. Let’s do well together for the next two weeks.”

Hongryeong said.

He drew a circle around the center where the individual territories overlapped, around the hourglass.

“Each territory must be defended properly. If even one person dies, everyone will suffer for it.”

I nodded without meaning to. I did not particularly care if another territory was breached. What mattered in this task was protecting that hourglass and making sure no one died. I glanced at Hongryeong and Ailey.

What if they subdued everyone else and simply continued the exam? There was no clear way to stop them. That was the biggest problem. But they did not seem to have any particular intention of doing so. Was it because they were wary of each other? That was a relief, at least.

“Mm, you needn’t worry about that!”

Sieger said powerfully.

It must have been very familiar to him. For someone who had spent a long time on the border, building and defending a fortress was probably just an extension of the battles he had fought until now.

“Even if we each complete our own fortresses, we’ll also need to protect the hourglass itself.”

Hongryeong said with a smile. Sieger crossed his arms.

“Hm.”

“We’ll each build our own fortresses in our own ways, but we should also invest some of our capacity into the hourglass. We can designate it as a kind of shared defensive zone, so even if one person is breached, it can hold out long enough.”

It made sense.

Of course, it would be best if everyone blocked everything, but there could be a case where someone “unavoidably” let magical beasts through. If that happened, the hourglass would be in danger. He was saying we should prevent such cases in advance.

So you already have no intention of trusting us.

I thought that inwardly. Still, everything he said was understandable. Even if each person’s fortress was an individual evaluation, if that thing broke, everyone failed. Hongryeong was already proceeding on the assumption that someone would be breached.

Mm, maybe the one he has in mind is me. After all, I had not fought on the way here. Everyone else had shown their own capabilities. The fifth task might be a little dangerous. Thinking that, I scratched my chin.

“Then let’s disperse and get moving. If there’s anything we need to discuss, we can gather here again.”

Hongryeong vanished like the wind.

“He sure is a talkative young master.”

Ailey said, stretching. Ailey also rose straight into the air. She looked at me and winked.

“Puppeteer friend, if you want to visit, you can come anytime.”

She had not let go of her teacup the whole way here, so it seemed she had taken quite a liking to it. I smiled and nodded. Shaking Rope also bowed politely in farewell, then left. Sieger stood with his arms crossed, staring at the hourglass.

“Mm, two weeks, is it...”

He muttered.

After watching the falling sand for a good while, Sieger headed to his own zone. I turned as well and started descending from the summit. Unlike the others, I did not head to my own zone. Instead, I headed southeast, toward Hongryeong’s zone.

It did not take long to reach him. I did not place much value on building a fortress that relied only on my own ability. People each had their own talents. Why should I suffer alone? There was no need to fight in a field that was not my specialty.

On the way to the mountain, I had seen plenty of the power Hongryeong possessed. The reason I had been worried earlier was that I could sense in him the power to protect this mountain alone. This task was probably very easy for him. There was no need for me to bare my teeth and keep someone like that in check.

What I needed was thorough service and cooperation.

With that mindset, I approached him. Hongryeong had made the mountain’s highest ground and cliffs his territory.

The protruding hill-like sections and the deep cliffs extending from them created powerful winds. Below them, in the gentler area, wind had pooled with great force. It was a zone that suited the wind magic Hongryeong had shown so far.

I stood before the light barrier spread over his territory and quietly raised my magical power. It was to let him know I had come. Hongryeong was engraving a huge magic circle into the cliff. Only after taking a long time to engrave it perfectly did he come find me. He greeted me with a smile.

“What brings you here?”

“I came to propose cooperation, Hongryeong-nim.”

I said, bowing politely. Hongryeong narrowed his eyes, and his smile deepened.

“Cooperation. How interesting.”

“Since my zone and Hongryeong-nim’s zone are adjacent, I thought we could handle the task more easily if we linked them together.”

Hongryeong smiled, showing interest. He raised wind, shaped it like a chair, and leaned back on it. I ordered a puppet to make a table. The puppet selected a rock and carved it into a round table.

Seeing that made me think I needed a spell for making tables too. Something simple and comfortable to use in the wild like this. In that case, would magic for setting up an entire cozy living space be good as well?

I pushed that thought to one side of my mind and took out coffee to grind. It was a very precious item, and I had brought only a single handful. We had drunk a lot of tea on the way here. Since we might be getting tired of it, I prepared the coffee I had been saving.

Though it did not contain the same perfection as tea, since Professor did not like bitter things, it still held delicate magic inside. Hongryeong savored a sip, then spoke.

“In that case, would you first explain why I should cooperate with you?”

His question was natural. Since he was already confident enough to handle this task, he had no real need to cooperate.

“I will write Hongryeong-nim as the First Contributor.”

I directly offered the most valuable thing I had.

The moment someone was selected as the First Contributor, they would gain 10 extra points, so it should appeal to Hongryeong as well. He probably already thought he would pass, but this would make that passing even more certain. Besides, he was from a great family. He might want more than simply passing.

Given the nature of the species called mages, the others were highly likely to write their own names as the First Contributor. If I wrote Hongryeong’s name, the chance of him becoming the First Contributor would rise much higher. From Hongryeong’s point of view, it should be a fairly interesting proposal. Perhaps he had not thought of it, because Hongryeong’s eyes opened slightly wider.

“Mm, interesting.”

After drinking his coffee and thinking for a moment, Hongryeong nodded. Success. I smiled inwardly.

“Let’s do that. How will the cooperation proceed?”

“Thank you.”

I bowed deeply and expressed my gratitude. It was sincere gratitude. My entire strategy from here on out was based on Hongryeong. I had been steadily set on this from the moment I first saw the mountain. Of course, I had thought of several other plans in case he refused, but leaning on this powerful strength was the safest and most comfortable choice.

“This is the fortress I have planned.”

I revealed the entire structure of the fortress I had been designing to Hongryeong. It was a kind of maze. It was also the method I liked most. Create deadly traps and make the magical beasts reach them. That was the core of this fortress.

“What an interesting fortress.”

Hongryeong smiled.

“It’s a place meant to slaughter weak magical beasts in large quantities, is it not?”

It was.

That was the purpose of the fortress I had shown him. In truth, that was also my limit. The attacks I could use did not come from magic, after all. For someone like me, who was clumsy with attack magic, using powerful physical force through traps was the best option. Against magical beasts beyond that, the cost-effectiveness was poor.

“Yes. I will take charge of all low-grade magical beasts up to Hongryeong-nim’s zone.”

This fortress had the advantage of being reusable. Keep pushing magical beasts in, and keep killing them. A magical beast slaughterhouse. That was its only goal.

It was a design that took Hongryeong’s personality into account. Until now, he had not stepped forward easily for bothersome work. He did what he could properly, but he always used only the minimum amount of strength.

That was also why I had stayed beside Hongryeong after debating between him and Ailey. I still had not figured Ailey out properly. On the other hand, Hongryeong did not seem very interested in hiding himself, so he was easy to understand.

Even the magic he had been laying down in his zone so far revealed that personality. He was constructing a powerful wall of wind across this wide area. It would push away or blow away approaching enemies. It felt similar to when he had dealt with the monkeys earlier. If anything forced its way through, the wind pooled below the cliff would probably brush past like blades and tear it to pieces.

It was a method designed to have great power while barely consuming his own magical power. He had also made it simple enough to complete in a very short time. And beneath that, there were surely things hidden that I had not grasped.

“We divide the territory into upper and lower sections. I will take charge of the low-grade magical beasts below, and Hongryeong-nim will only handle the magical beasts that break through and climb up.”

I carefully took out a map. It was a map of the mountain I had made through my investigation. I drew my zone and Hongryeong’s zone, the whole of it, then divided it according to the terrain. I would take the flat area below, while Hongryeong would take only some of the steep upper sections.

As I had figured out in advance, the upper part of my zone was also formed with cliffs like Hongryeong’s, so this structure was possible. If we divided the zones like this, it would be very convenient for Hongryeong. He would only have to deal with a few magical beasts that broke through and climbed up.

“Hehe, you chose that spot on purpose, did you not?”

Hongryeong smiled. I simply bowed deeply. The reason I had even taken out the map was to reveal that intention. I had to show him exactly what intent I had in cooperating with him. If there was nothing hidden, he would trust me more.

“Very well. Let’s proceed that way.”

Hongryeong nodded. He waved his hand and partially altered the magic he had just been setting up. It no longer covered everything down to the bottom of the cliff as before, and instead blocked only the cliff itself. Its force became stronger and sharper.

I let out a sigh of relief inwardly.

The cooperative relationship had been successfully established. After bowing to Hongryeong once more, I quietly left. Within this cooperative relationship, the zone I was responsible for was nearly a third of the mountain. Since I had no idea when or what kind of attack would come, it was now time to do my best and build my fortress. I had to remodel that entire wide area.

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