WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ Surviving in the Magic Academy

Chapter 92

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-Evron: I will be leaving the tower briefly to attend a lecture. The message board will continue operating as usual, so please feel free to talk as much as you like without worry.

I will be away like this once every three months from now on, so if you need anything, please tell me before I leave.

└Blood Axe: Slaughter? Slaughter. Slaughter? Slaughter!

└Tooth Necklace: Aha, so that means the tower will be empty. This should be fun. Once every three months. I will remember that well. That day shall be the Day of Freedom!

└Ring of the Sky: That, is a shame. I wanted to talk, more. Still, I am looking, forward to the next lecture.

└Delicious Tongue: Need. Delicious magical beast! That, this week's request.

└Tooth Necklace: Shall I buy you one? I have been earning this thing called points lately, you see. If I use them, I can get anything I want. Are you jealous? You are, aren't you? You must be! Kkekek!

└Blood Axe: Sla, slaughter...?

└Tooth Necklace: Now, now, you cannot. That was our promise, was it not? You can only hold a lecture if you can communicate with humans. Hurry and practice speaking more!

└Blood Axe: Sla, ughter... Slaughter! I, you slaughter!

Rules had the power to guide people naturally. The notice I had written was the same. Every time the students came to the tower, they began studying the statue on the first floor. Beside them, the mirror bug spat out the day's score.

Hao dropped back down to the second floor again. That was only natural, since he had lost most of the power he had gained by devouring life. It was the result of getting greedy for no reason.

His case spread across the whole tower through the message board in no time. Tooth Necklace heard the news too, and happily rolled across the floor while clacking its teeth together.

And everyone who heard the news became much more careful when handling the treasures' powers. Even those who had used the teeth recklessly like Hao before now devoured life at proper intervals.

Watching the situation settle down, I smiled in satisfaction. Thanks to Hao, the tower had become a happy place for everyone. People would be careful when handling power, and if anything strange happened, they would come to me.

Of course, Hao had taken a slight loss. Well, even that was helpful to him. If he had kept absorbing power like that, he would have gone mad in no time, just as Tooth Necklace had said. Surviving was already a win.

The lectures were scheduled to be held once a month. The sooner they received a treasure's power, the more quickly they could grow stronger. I had written that in the syllabus too.

Of course, once all the treasures had scattered their power, the lectures would no longer be held. After that, the students would temper themselves through repeated training and duels, while receiving advice from the treasures.

In that way, the treasures prepared their lectures, and the students trained in the tower while growing stronger. They often asked me which treasure would hold the next lecture.

I did not answer them. Even if they knew, it was obvious it would not help. There was no need for me to open my mouth anyway.

Instead of me, they went to someone else. Just like Hao was doing right now.

“Yes, yes.”

Hao nodded vigorously. He sat in front of a mirror bug, both eyes shining. The mirror bug was filling up with writing.

-Yes. So in other words, there is no need to worry too much about the next lecture. That is what I am saying. If you simply stay still, it will scatter power for you. Ah, now that I think about it, that friend may prefer women over men. So how about dressing as a woman this time? Then you will stand out at once. Kkekek!

It was Tooth Necklace's writing. Hao was paying points to get advice from it. At those words, Hao nodded blankly.

Did he really believe that? I gave a bitter smile. Hao was writing down Tooth Necklace's words with an extremely serious expression. It seemed a rather rare sight would unfold during the next lecture.

Like this, I did not try to communicate with the students more than necessary. The treasures were there anyway. From now on, more treasures would talk with them, just like that one did. I had no need to insert myself into that flow.

All I had to do was keep things running so nothing went wrong. Just like when I created the new rules. The tower's structure was perfect in that way. Perfect enough to run even without me.

Another week passed like that. Nothing happened in the tower.

I quietly checked the mirror bug. The message board was silent. Even the treasures, who had always chattered noisily, were no longer talking.

That was only natural. Right now, we were far away from the tower. It had been three days since we left.

The turtle lifted its huge foot and took another step forward. The ground shook, and trees fell from the impact. The turtle kept moving straight ahead without hesitation.

The faint fog surrounding it hid its body. Magical beasts that heard the rumbling of the ground approached the turtle, but without ever getting a proper look at it, they lost their way and wandered off.

No. 0 sat quietly on the turtle's head. It kept scanning the surroundings and seemed rather excited.

Thinking about it, it had been quite a long time since No. 0 had left the tower. I had only taken it with me before when I went to Professor Heisen's tower. That had already been several years ago.

On top of that, all it had experienced there was having its body torn apart again and again. To it, going outside had been a series of such pain.

But today was different. I quietly fiddled with the card. Pure magical power flowed from the card with “On” written on it. Hwaryeong had applied for the lecture and returned it to me.

Thankfully, Professor On's lecture was being held this year. It was a small lecture with only twelve people in total. Apparently, it was only open to those who had this card. We were on our way to attend it now.

Course registration for this lecture had been private. That was why there was no syllabus either. According to Hwaryeong, it was a lecture only those designated by the professor could attend. If I did not have this card, I would not even have known it existed.

I felt grateful to Mauro all over again. Along with that, a slight doubt came to mind. Why had he given such a precious opportunity to me?

I had no way of knowing. For now, I decided to keep that gratitude deep in my heart. Either way, this was an opportunity.

There was a small hole in No. 0's chest as it looked around. It was the place where Fake Tree had been attached. I had left it in the tower for now. After all, the tower's system still needed to be maintained.

Truthfully, I had considered leaving No. 0 behind for that reason too. But it had looked at me with such shining eyes that I ended up bringing it along. It was very interested in puppetry too.

Perhaps because it was looking forward to the lecture, it had been so excited it could barely control itself since the moment we left the tower. Of course, the same was true for me. My heart was filled with anticipation.

I did not know how long we traveled like that. Soon, I could tell we had nearly reached our destination. I took out the map and checked it for a moment. The surrounding terrain almost perfectly matched the map.

“Oh my, that must be the tower. How fascinating.”

Mira spoke beside me. I looked in the direction she was staring. Its shape was not yet clear to my eyes. But I could tell that an enormous flow of magical power was heading there.

The turtle moved its feet in that direction. And then I understood why she had said that. Just as she said, the tower had a very strange appearance.

It was a gigantic sphere.

Could that really be called a tower? The sphere floated in the air a certain distance above the mountain's summit. And it continued rotating steadily at a constant speed.

I stared at it blankly. The magic circles carved into its exterior changed without pause, creating strange transformations. It looked like a boulder, like the moon, and from another angle, like an eyeball.

Magical power drawn in by its rotation flowed along the sphere, then seeped into it. In that way, it circulated magical power while drawing everything into its interior. The flow of magical power I had been sensing for a while had come from it.

I looked up at the sphere from below the steep mountainside. The turtle shrank and hung from my chest. I stroked its back after all its hard work, then slowly started walking. No. 0 seeped into the ground beneath my feet.

As I climbed the mountain, I began to feel its power more and more strongly. If Professor Irian's tower were compressed into the shape of a sphere, this was probably what it would feel like. That was how overwhelming its magical power and size were.

It did not take long to reach the summit. The place was very wide and flat. It looked as if it had been deliberately made that way. The sphere floated quietly at its center.

Quite a few figures were wandering below it. They were also staring up at the tower. They had to be people participating in the lecture. Today was the day the tower opened. At a rough glance, there seemed to be dozens of them.

Seeing that, I blinked. According to Hwaryeong, there were twelve people participating in the lecture, including me. So why were there so many people? With that doubt in mind, I approached them.

The closer I got, the clearer their appearances became. Then I realized I had been mistaken. There were not many people there. The rest were all puppets.

The puppeteers seemed to notice our approach as well and glanced over at us. Their gazes moved over me, then turned toward Mira hanging from my arm. Their eyes widened slightly when they saw her.

After examining her for a moment, they looked at me and gave a small bow. They had clearly sensed the excellence of her body. Satisfaction began filling my chest. Along with it, a smile naturally settled on my lips.

“Hehe, how cute. Getting happy over something like this.”

Mira looked at my face and said that with a laugh. Feeling a little embarrassed, I cleared my throat.

But what could I do? She was the finest puppet I had ever created. Of course, I would not have been able to construct her without Professor's help. Still, she was definitely my puppet.

Other mages could not recognize how incredible she was. They were not interested in puppets, after all. They only knew how to use my puppets and could not fully understand their delicate structure and beauty.

These people were different. As people who handled puppets, they seemed to fully understand the meaning contained in Mira's body.

To think they could recognize it at a glance. They were clearly comrades with a deep appreciation for puppetry. My sense of closeness toward them swelled all at once.

Their realms varied greatly. Some looked as though they had only just arrived at the university, while others gave off heavy magical power that made them seem to be staying on the fourth floor. They each settled into place and waited for the tower's door to open.

I glanced over their puppets. One had a sword strapped to its back, and another wore armor over its body.

Some handled magical beast corpses, and some, like me, had given their puppets human forms. Their appearances were as varied as their owners.

So how were we supposed to enter that sphere? Thinking that, I looked up at the sphere. The mirror bug lightly flew up and showed me the time. There was still an hour left until it opened.

Then we had to wait. There was no one else coming. I had arrived last, after all.

I was passing the time while chatting softly with Mira when I saw the person wearing armor take out a new suit of armor. He changed into it, then looked around.

He cleared his throat for a moment and gave a light nod. The armor was very impressive. The tightly woven circuits within it formed a huge spell and gave off magical power sturdy enough to block any attack.

He must have woven each strand of circuit like thread to create such a massive body. Even just looking at some of the circuits exposed on the outside, I could feel the effort contained within, enough to make admiration rise on its own.

How much time had he invested to make that? On top of that, the armor was not simply made of woven circuits. The techniques contained within it were so complex and varied that I could not even recognize them. It was incredible skill.

He loosened up lightly, as if showing off the armor. Then he looked around and gave a small laugh. It was a laugh with a bit of mischief mixed in. Apparently, he had gotten bored waiting quietly. Seeing that, the magical power of the others twitched slightly.

After watching the mood for a moment, they each took out their puppets and began clearing their throats. Their eyes were very sharp as they looked at one another's puppets. They seemed to be searching for flaws. But all their puppets were flawless and excellent.

In the end, they looked at one another and gave light nods. I had no need to take out a puppet. The greatest puppet I had created was right beside me.

I straightened my shoulders proudly. Their puppets were impressive too, but none seemed able to surpass Mira.

Of course, judging only by technique, a few among them were better than me. Even judging only by magic, theirs were mostly better.

But the total amount of points invested was different. I glanced at Mira. She was looking at the other people's puppets. Just how much had I invested in her? Points they could not even imagine were contained in that body.

Enough points could overcome limits.

As we were looking at one another's puppets, the sphere soon began to react. The opening time had come. Its base opened, and strong magical power began pouring out from inside.

It soon hardened transparently and began forming a long staircase. The stairs descended right in front of us. They waited quietly for us.

It meant we should climb. The puppeteers each put away their puppets and began climbing the stairs. I followed behind them as well. At the very top, a door appeared through the open base.

They passed through the door without hesitation. I slowly passed through it too. With a strange sensation as if space were being split, the surroundings rippled lightly. Then we reached the inside of the tower.

The tower's interior was filled with noise. Someone shouting, the sound of movement, and more. That bustle flowed over my whole body.

In a daze, I quietly looked around. Then I blinked. We were in the middle of a huge passage. The area around us was full of people. They were moving very busily.

I looked back. The door we had passed through remained as it was. For now, it was definitely a tower. Then what in the world were all these people? The others who had gone through the door first were just as confused.

At that moment, Mira lightly shook my arm. I looked down at her. She met my eyes and smiled as if amused.

“This place is fun. There isn't a single living thing here.”

At those words, I looked around again. The people were moving with expressions full of life.

Someone was shouting fiercely at the person in front of them, and someone else was chatting with a figure beyond a room. There was even someone sprawled on the floor as if drunk. Their movements were extremely natural.

I slightly stuck out my shoulder toward someone passing beside me. Our shoulders collided. He frowned and glanced at me, then clicked his tongue and left again.

“Tsk, I'm busy enough as it is. Watch yourself.”

I watched his back. The body I checked with magical power was made of flesh, and blood was flowing through it too. The flow was entirely natural.

“That is?”

Mira lightly touched the arm of someone passing by. Mist seeping out from her swept over the body, then returned to her again.

“As expected, I can't smell anything at all. Hmm, they are all puppets.”

I blinked. Those were all puppets? Even after checking myself, it was hard to believe. The others seemed to have heard Mira too, and they began checking the people through their own methods.

As we murmured among ourselves, a transparent carriage stopped in front of us. Only after it stopped did I realize it had been near us.

The surrounding puppets passed by naturally, as if they could not perceive it. Its door opened silently, and a voice sounded.

“Please board. Professor is waiting.”

The magical power coming from it naturally led our bodies. Once we climbed into the carriage, the surroundings began to blur. The carriage crossed over people, passed through walls, and started heading somewhere.

The place we arrived at was a beautifully decorated room. The carriage spat us out there, then vanished again. I could not sense even the slightest trace of it.

A huge table stood in the middle of the room. Two people sat close together there, eating. A gaunt man and a beautiful woman.

“Honey, the guests have arrived.”

The woman looked at us and bowed her head slightly. But the man paid no attention to us and only had his mouth slightly open. With an awkward smile, the woman placed a piece of meat into his mouth.

The man chewed and swallowed it. Then he smiled lightly at the woman and rose from his seat. Strong magical power was leaking from him. The intense flow of that magical power was enough to make me flinch slightly.

He approached us. His appearance up close was extremely strange. He looked like a skeleton covered with nothing but skin. He seemed to be Professor On.

He lightly swung his magical power. Then the room writhed and began changing shape. The beautiful room gradually disappeared, and before long, the room had transformed into something like a classroom.

Amid that change, the woman rose from her seat and came to stand beside him. The man lightly held her in his arms and looked at us.

“Mm, you must be this year's new students. Everyone, take a seat.”

Following his words, we found seats and sat down. He slowly looked us over. His gaze did not rest on the people. He was examining the puppets we had made. His gaze brushed past Mira.

“I am On, and I will teach you every three months for the next five years. A rather diverse group of puppeteers has come this time. I like those puppets very much.”

After saying that, he lightly stroked the hand of the woman in his arms. The woman held his hand back and smiled. They looked very affectionate. Mira saw that, clung to me, and whispered with a smile.

“That woman is a puppet too, you know?”

I saw Professor On lightly kiss the woman, no, that puppet. I stared blankly at the sight, then closed my eyes. Uh, mm. One had to respect people's tastes.

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