WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ Surviving in the Magic Academy

Chapter 167

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167.

I looked around at the association heads. The faces they made as they stared at me were strange beyond words. They looked at me as if they were staring at a madman.

Meeting those gazes, I lightly smacked my lips. All the association heads were on the university’s advanced track. In other words, they were puppeteers of the ninth floor or higher. Yet even association heads like them could not understand my method.

No, maybe that was exactly why. They were puppeteers, and therefore mages. Since they understood more deeply than anyone how difficult it was to build up a realm, they must have looked at me that way.

The association heads began looking at one another and whispering. Facing them, I quietly glanced around. Since this was called an interim evaluation, I had thought everyone would be gathered here, but I was the only one present.

It looked like they would be holding individual evaluations. I silently stroked my chin. That also meant the process would be that much stricter. These twelve mages were going to pick at every possible flaw.

I sat down in the chair placed before the platform and leaned back comfortably. I did not know how this interim evaluation would proceed, but for now, I needed to wait until they spoke first.

“Mm, the way you make puppets is quite unusual... Is there a reason you do it that way?”

One of the association heads asked. He was a man with a scar across his face. The puppet standing beside him had a sword at its waist.

I did not know his name yet, but I knew very well who he was. The only people who made puppets like that were the ones from Canyon City. When the association heads had gathered before, I had at least memorized his face.

Even a simple question like this needed my best answer. I lightly bowed my head to him, then stroked my chin and sank into thought.

The reason I cut off part of my tree and put it inside. I knew very well why he was asking that.

A mage’s tree was not simply a medium for magical power. It thought on its own, and it also took root in the soul. In that sense, a tree could be called the crystallization of what a mage had achieved.

And cutting it away and planting it in a puppet, as I did, was the same as shaving down one’s own realm. For those who pursued advancement, it was only natural that they could not understand my method at all.

I had once thought the same way. Even so, the reason I first began tearing off parts of my tree to make puppets was simple. I had no other way.

The memory from that time was still clear. It was when I had been selling puppets to the students and ended up tripping over my own feet. I had become unable to do anything because I had to keep filling the puppets with magical power.

Putting my tree inside them was something I found while desperately trying to solve that crisis. Back then, I had no time to think about my realm or anything else. I tried it because it was the clearest solution.

Based on shadow magic, I wove my tree stem into the puppets. With the mana heart created that way as their foundation, the puppets gained egos and magical power. In doing so, I gained a little freedom.

Yes, at first, I tore off my tree simply for survival and efficiency. But now, it was a little different. I slowly placed a hand on my chest.

Beneath the domain of the shadow tree flowing inside it, I could faintly feel the sensation of the moon rippling. That came from the turtle.

Since I had come out of the competition arena, my connection to the turtle was returning as well. Of course, perhaps because time flowed a little differently here too, that connection was still faint.

Even so, the reason it could connect to me like this was because it was practically the crystallization of belief and love toward me. Feeling that, I gave a faint smile.

“It is because I love them.”

The association head from Canyon City tilted his head. I glanced at Mauro.

“Professor On once gave me an assignment. Mauro, our association head, also gave me a little help. And in the process, I came to understand something. Puppets love me, their creator. If that is the case, then I need to love them too.”

I felt the puppet standing right behind me release a faint will. From it, I could sense agreement. I slowly tapped my chest and continued.

“This can be called proof of that love. A puppet that receives my tree will gain an ego and walk the world. And while interacting with me, it will slowly grow. That is why I plant my tree.”

And in that sense, this one could be called a little different from my puppets so far. I lightly stroked the monkey puppet in my hand. I could feel it making a slightly awkward face under my touch.

Perhaps the one who had asked the question understood my sincerity, because he quietly nodded. That must have been because he also knew how Professor On handled puppets.

His face showed a little acceptance. Of course, he still did not seem to understand. That made sense. As a puppeteer, it might be possible to accept, but as a mage, it was hard to even imagine.

Then the sound of someone clicking their tongue rang out. When I looked that way, I saw Gaon. He was resting his chin in his hand and showing a little hostility. Magical power leaking from his massive body began pressing down on me.

“Tch, your words sound plausible, but who knows if they are true. Making that puppet could just be a way to create the impression you are giving us now. How are we supposed to know that one alone is special?”

Gaon looked around at the association heads. I saw several of them nod. Well, it would be hard to accept with only this brief explanation.

“I do not think that is the case.”

Just as Gaon was about to add something, someone cut him off. It was Aronia. When she lightly waved her hand, magical power leaked out and began flowing.

It blocked the magical power Gaon had been pouring toward me, then flowed all the way into the puppet behind me. I glanced at it. The puppet, which had taken a liquid form, was wrapped in Aronia’s magical power, its body rippling.

After examining its body for a moment, Aronia stroked her chin. Then she gave the others a small grin and quietly crossed her arms.

“No wonder it was hard to understand. Now I know why your puppet gives off such a strange feeling. I think I can roughly infer the method you showed before for creating clones too. ...Though there are still parts I do not understand.”

“I feel like I would know if I tore it open once.”

She murmured that and smacked her lips. My puppet flinched in surprise and began melting beneath my feet. It was trying to imitate a shadow and escape her gaze.

Meeting Aronia’s eyes, I let out a slightly bitter smile. A little greed was rippling in her eyes. It was the face of someone who wanted to know how this was done.

The way I made my puppets seemed to have left a deep impression on her. I lightly shook my head and refused her hidden demand. How could I hand my puppet over to someone else?

Besides, as she said, even if she dissected it, she would not be able to easily understand its structure. This was based on my unique magic and the special nature of my soul.

She frowned slightly, then nodded. It did not seem like she planned to pressure me into giving it to her. Instead, as if trying to obtain more information, she drove her magical power deeper into my hidden puppet.

Soon, Aronia withdrew her magical power with a satisfied look. My puppet trembled and sank even deeper into the shadow. She looked at me with shining eyes.

“From the look of it, you tore off quite a lot of your tree and put it into your puppet too. To create clones, it would need to have at least more than half the amount of the main body. I cannot make one, but I roughly understand the structure.”

I could not help admiring her words. Hearing her say even that made it seem she had truly understood the method behind creating my offshoot bodies. As expected of an association head. I nodded, slightly surprised.

“Yes, this is a friend into whom I planted the tree stem I have steadily gathered over time. As you said, if we only count the amount that went in, it is probably larger than my current tree. Thanks to that, even a mere rookie like me could pass the first round of the competition.”

I lightly tapped my shadow. Then I sent my puppet a will telling it to be at ease. But it rose out of the shadow in my shape and shook its head.

It seemed the association heads’ gazes stung too much. The others were also making their magical power ripple, just as Aronia had. Gaon clicked his tongue slightly with his arms crossed. Since everything I had said was true, it seemed he could not pick at it any further.

After that, several more questions followed about the process by which I made puppets. I carefully answered them while stroking the monkey puppet. These questions could be called a kind of scouting.

Before properly examining the puppet I had made, they were trying to build up prior knowledge. As if to prove that, the sound of clapping soon rang out. Mauro had done it.

He smiled slightly at me and looked around at the association heads. Then he gestured toward me. It meant I should send the puppet up.

“Now, then, we should examine the puppet. I will step out of this. I ask all of you to judge it well.”

Perhaps because he was my association head, it seemed he was excluded from judging my puppet. I carefully placed the monkey puppet on the floor. It still seemed unused to its body, so its movements were awkward.

Drawn by magical power, it rose onto the platform. Each association head began carefully observing it with magical power. I also watched that process closely.

There might be an attempt to break my puppet, after all. I glanced at Gaon. He was releasing magical power toward my puppet with a bored expression.

But contrary to my worries, I did not feel any trickery meant to tamper with the puppet. It seemed Gaon had not forgotten that this was an evaluation either.

I blinked quietly. His attitude followed the rules more than I expected. Then why had someone like that let Ugo run wild in the first round of the competition? I still could not know.

After examining the puppet like that, they slowly withdrew their magical power. Then each of them showed a reaction. Someone sighed, someone clicked their tongue, and someone smiled.

The one smiling was Gaon. He looked down at my puppet and let out a faint sneer. As his attitude suggested, the mood among the association heads was not that good.

“I say fail.”

Gaon stroked his chin and said. He glanced at me, then jerked his chin at the puppet.

“Well, the way it was made was unusual. But in the end, its foundation is no more than a puppet stolen from someone else. No matter how plausibly you dress it up, I do not think it can be called your own puppet.”

I quietly nodded. He was right. This could not be called entirely my puppet. So I quietly waited for the others to speak.

Following Gaon, the association heads split their judgments into pass and fail. Perhaps if I received more than half, I would be allowed to continue making the puppet. Like that, they analyzed my puppet while giving their own reasons.

Finally, Aronia, who remained last, looked down at the puppet with her arms crossed. Soon, she clicked her tongue lightly and shook her head.

“Looks like I am last.”

Aronia stared down at the puppet. Then she slowly continued.

“I wondered if there would be something special since you planted your tree in it, but except for the fact that you formed an ego, I do not feel anything. If anything, it feels like something that should not have been put in there is getting in the way.”

It was an extremely cold evaluation. I scratched my head. I had not expected to hear this from her, when she had been showing interest in my puppet until now. That meant my puppet was that much of a mess.

Mauro was only quietly blinking too. He looked at Aronia with a flustered face. Aronia glared at Mauro, then shook her head slightly.

“You evaluated our children very thoroughly before, did you not? I will do the same. Fail. What a shame.”

A little bloodlust rippled in her eyes as she looked at Mauro. It seemed there had been people who underwent the interim evaluation before me. And judging by her attitude, quite a few from her association must have failed.

Facing the result, I gave a bitter smile. Only three people had said pass. Everyone else had chosen fail. I nodded. Well, I had thought it might go this way.

I quietly studied the association heads. They were not saying fail in order to keep me in check. As Gaon had done, they were making only objective evaluations.

In that sense, the evaluation they gave my puppet was very accurate. It could also be called a kind of advice. I engraved those words deep in my heart and nodded.

The biggest reason they had said fail was clear. It was because that monkey puppet had been made by Jugang. The puppet had a distinct individuality, so I had still not fully grasped the magic and structure inside it.

Since I had forced a puppet like that to rise, it was only natural for a kind of discord to occur. They must have recognized that point.

I knew well that it would become a problem too. Even so, there was a reason I had made a puppet like this. I saw Mauro blinking at me. Facing him, I gave a slight smile.

My elimination had not been confirmed yet. Then all I had to do was persuade them. Thinking that, I slowly raised my hand. The association heads’ gazes gathered on me.

“I will take the points you have raised deeply to heart. But may I have time to persuade you? It would be a shame to be eliminated like this. I believe I can persuade you.”

I slowly looked around at the association heads. A very cold light rippled in their eyes. Soon, they spoke among themselves and nodded.

They seemed curious about what I would say. At the center of that was Aronia. She looked at me with her arms crossed.

“Then we will give you a little time, so persuade us quickly. If you cannot, we will hand down a suitable punishment.”

Aronia narrowed her eyes and said. I quietly nodded. That was natural. And I was confident I could persuade them. I spread both arms toward them and smiled.

“What I will present from now on is artificial life. An existence born between a puppet and a person. This was the foundation puppet for that. So naturally, it had no choice but to be incomplete.”

As soon as my words ended, the association heads looked startled. Mauro could not even hide his unease and sprang up from his seat. It was the first time I had seen him that surprised.

“Do you know what that means?”

Mauro stroked his beard and asked. I nodded. This was no different from declaring that I would resolve Tiena’s request.

They must know Tiena’s wish well too. The fact that they had risen to the position of association head meant their talent was outstanding. If so, they must have all faced her request at least once. And its difficulty as well.

“Ha, something even we failed at, and a mere thing like you is confident?”

Gaon snorted. The other association heads also showed disbelief. Aronia lifted the monkey puppet with a frown. After quickly scanning it, she jerked her chin at me.

“I do not feel that from this. If you are spouting lies just to escape your immediate crisis, we will not let it pass, so be careful what you say.”

Ferocious magical power began rising from Aronia. I could feel a trace of expectation and suspicion mixed in her eyes. How could I lie in a place like this? I was only revealing the truth.

“Of course, it will be difficult for someone like me to immediately complete Tiena’s request. I do not expect that either. What I wanted to make was a puppet based on that possibility.”

I looked at the monkey on the platform. Amid the association heads’ magical power, it had a somewhat tired face. Pointing at it, I smiled softly.

“That is why I made that form. The puppet I made did not need to be perfect. Also, to explore that possibility, I needed an object that was not my puppet.”

I quietly placed a hand on my chest. My connection with it felt very faint. It had no choice but to. I had not made that puppet’s body.

That was an object restored exactly from what Jugang had made. That was why the puppet was still connected to its owner. Even if it had been forcibly taken away, that connection could not be severed.

For a puppet to turn toward its owner was like an instinct engraved into its body. In the end, a puppet was bound to love the puppeteer who made it.

In that sense, even though I had planted my tree and forced it to rise like this, it was still lacking if one tried to call it my puppet. My connection to it was also faint beyond belief.

Of course, resolving that was simple. I only had to break the puppet and use it as material for something else. But that was not the method I wanted. I wanted that puppet’s individuality to come alive even more, just like this.

I quietly searched my clothes and took out a jewel. It was the object I had used to make the puppet. I sent it up before the association heads. Gaon frowned slightly. It seemed he immediately realized what it was.

“The ego engraved into that puppet, and the soul as well, did not originate from me. They are based on the soul inside that jewel. Please check it.”

I had originally considered using my own soul. But this could be called better material than even my soul. It was an incomplete yet powerful soul.

This was something Ugo had prepared for me. So I needed to respect that intention. Aronia sent out magical power and swiftly snatched up the jewel.

Her magical power quickly dug into the jewel. As she scanned its inside, she soon furrowed her brows and clicked her tongue.

“To handle a soul like this. With a soul in this state, it would be difficult to bring back to life. Really, what a nasty hobby.”

Aronia raised a finger and stabbed it straight into the jewel. The finger filled with magical power naturally dug inside. Then she reached out toward the monkey puppet as well.

It was sucked into her hand. Just as she had done to the jewel, she stabbed a finger into its chest too. The puppet seemed unable to feel any pain and only quietly looked down at its own body.

I could tell right away what Aronia was doing. She was comparing the soul inside the jewel with its Fake Soul. Soon, her eyes widened. She seemed a little surprised.

“This structure... Did you graft the soul? No, that alone would be impossible. The soul is different. How did you make this composition? As expected, I need to dissect it....”

Aronia murmured and grasped both souls. She seemed to like their structure. Watching that, I let out a small smile. It seemed one more person would cast a vote in favor.

As expected of an association head. To touch souls that easily was a very trained skill. I had not thought she would sense the difference between the two in such a short time.

As Aronia continued examining them, the two souls proved very similar. Yet at the same time, they were divided as separate beings. I glanced down at my shadow.

That could be called similar to the relationship between me and my puppet hiding there. Of course, there was a very clear difference.

If that puppet had possessed the traits of my soul, it would not have budged when Ugo’s woman puppet screamed before. My soul had been sufficiently trained in pain.

But that one had collapsed as it was. Like that, it had originated from me, but existed as a soul separate from me. It did not have the traits of my soul.

In that sense, I could not describe it as my child. It was different from the direction Tiena wanted. But that was different.

That monkey puppet had not been made by me, but had its origin in another person. So even the tree stem I put inside it had not fully mixed with the puppet.

In that unstable environment, I flowed part of the woman’s soul into my tree stem. Amid the clash with the body, they mixed that soul together in order to survive. It could be called a new being created through the fusion of a puppet and a soul.

Of course, it was not a successful work. I quietly scratched my head. That thing was also connected to me. In that sense, it ultimately could not escape the limit of being a puppet. It was not an existence that could be called life.

What I pursued was a single life. A puppet, yet an existence beyond the frame of a puppet, a Fake Life that surpassed a Fake Soul. In that sense, that too should ultimately be seen as a failure.

Still, I had been able to confirm enough possibility to move forward. Aronia must have known that too, which was why she was focusing so much. I looked at her with a relaxed smile.

After examining the puppet for a long time, she handed it over once the others urged her. Like that, the others also began examining my puppet one by one.

I saw the association heads sink into thought as they examined my puppet. All of them were clearly conducting a kind of thought experiment about the possibility I had created.

They had trained in puppetry for far longer than I had. Their realms were also so high that they could not be compared to mine. In that sense, they might each try to make puppets based on the possibility I showed.

Just as I had stolen knowledge from others’ puppets, they could also steal knowledge from mine. But that did not matter. Even if they saw it, they would not be able to easily copy me.

I placed a hand on my chest. I felt soul fragments flowing along the tree. That puppet had been completed not only with my tree stem, but also with the soul fragments dwelling inside it woven together.

Incomplete things had gathered and made one. In that sense, this could be called a method that a complete existence could not carry out. It was magic that could not be accomplished with a single soul alone.

So it did not matter if I revealed all this knowledge. Rather, I revealed it precisely because I knew its value. I needed to root myself more deeply in this association. This could be called a kind of trade to buy their favor.

Besides, I was confident. Confident that even if I revealed this, I would be the first to resolve Tiena’s request. Like that, I looked over the association heads.

The mood was gradually changing. I could feel those who had cast opposing votes starting to look at one another. Among them, the first to reverse her position was Aronia.

“Ha, this is interesting. I want to see the finished product. You had a reason to be confident. Pass.”

She narrowed her eyes at me. Her face was filled with deep satisfaction. I gently bowed my head in thanks. Starting with her, the others also began changing their opinions one by one.

“Did I introduce myself? I am called Jorowood. Come visit our city sometime. Looking at the puppet you handle, it seems similar to the things used by swordsmen. I think we will have much to discuss.”

The association head from Canyon City, the scarred man, said while stroking his chin. My eyes shone and I nodded. To think there was another mage besides me who called swordsmen swordsmen. It was very surprising.

Amid the changing opinions, there was one person whose face had stiffened. The man who gave off the smell of blood, Gaon. He had a hardened face and was quietly lost in thought.

After agonizing for a long time, he changed his opinion and cast a vote in favor. That was unexpected. Did he acknowledge the puppet separate from his hostility? I also bowed my head slightly to him.

Yes, in the end, wasn’t making good puppets all that mattered? Like that, the votes in favor quickly passed the majority by a wide margin. And at the end, all eleven association heads declared that I had passed.

The interim evaluation had ended successfully.

Facing Mauro, whose expression had brightened, I smiled slightly. Presenting the jewel later like this had also been revenge toward him. Payback for not giving me proper information.

It was also to leave a deeper impression on the other association heads. It seemed that intention had worked well. They had started holding great expectations. If so, I needed to meet those expectations.

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