How to Survive at the Academy
Chapter 58

Glast’s Subjugation War (7)

[ You have acquired a new magic engineering combination formula. ]

Claw Hand ( Common )

A magical tool capable of instantly pulling objects or enemies at a short distance towards you. Single-use.

Craegl Magic Ink ( Common )

Special ink needed to inscribe particular magic formulas. Single-use.

Bright Orb ( Common )

A magical tool that emits light for a certain duration, serving as illumination. Single-use.

Oniya’s Ghastfire ( Rare )

A fire attribute trap installation tool. Cannot be used indoors or in certain terrains.

Telos’s Frosty Blessing ( Rare )

Temporarily skyrocketing physical defense. Be wary of the side effects leading to an exhausted state.

Lightning-Struck Millennial Tree Staff ( Very Rare )

Amplifies the sensitivity to all attribute spirits. Increases the magical efficiency of spirit-based spells.

Glast’s Eye ( Legendary )

Temporarily massive increase in proficiency for all sensing abilities. Halves the efficiency of curse-based magic. Prevents use of defensive magic. Immunes to elemental magic.

Delheim’s Hourglass ( Legendary )

Rewinds the physical state to several seconds prior and eliminates all damage and injuries. Single-use.

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Magic engineering skills are so difficult to master that even creating a single rare item can boost proficiency sharply. The items of even higher tiers are truly useful tools to the end.

Based on the scenario of <sylvania’s failed="" sword="" saint="">, if you managed to create two or three legendary-grade magic engineering products before clearing, it means you have trained quite diligently.</sylvania’s>

Such is the prestige of legendary-grade magic engineering tools. Each component is hard to procure, and the labor involved is immense, so the more experienced individuals do not invest in magic engineering lightly.

“I suppose I’ve managed to gather quite a haul…!”

Stuffing scrolls enough to fill my bag and slinging Lucy over my shoulder, I dashed for the exit of the lab.

Once you’ve broken through the Soul Library, the rest is easy. The creatures guarding the path to the sewer exit are mostly light magical beasts. They’re not even worth researching, and after escaping, the researchers wouldn’t bother capturing them.

After all, my physical strength is well-trained—enough to rival that of most men. I sprinted through the ranks of magical beasts with Lucy on my back, blowing away enemies that blocked my path with elemental magic.

– Boom! Bang!

I crossed marble-laden corridors, dashed through countless intersections without hesitation, running towards the exit.

– Growl!

– Screech!

The vampire bats hanging from the nearly invisible, high ceiling spread their wings and dove down, emitting cries of delight at discovering new prey, attempting to sink their teeth into my skin.

– Whoosh.

Needless to say, they all burnt to a crisp.

Neither the bizarre looking test subjects nor the escaped gremlins were any match for me.

At the start of the first semester, I might have struggled with basic magic, but now, nearing the end of the second semester, I have trained so rigorously, leading an unbelievably tough routine, that no low-ranking magical beast stands a chance against me.

[ Your proficiency in elemental magic has increased. ]

[ Your proficiency in magic sense has increased. ]

Is this the true joy of a sweeping hunt? The unique experience point bombs of magical beasts poured down on me. Sorry Taely…! I’ll just take a little…!

I managed to reach nearly the exit without disturbing the magical beasts as much as possible.

As I was sprinting with all my might, a huge iron door came into sight.

It looks imposing from the inside but would appear merely as a stonewall from the outside, hidden as it is by camouflage magic.

Opening this door leads to the sewers. Of course, it cannot be opened just like that. One must use the decryption magic shared amongst those who know of this lab’s existence.

If unable to decrypt, one must break it down completely.

Taely would’ve been able to slice through the door entirely using the Sword Saint technique, but I lack such a skill.

Originally, my plan was to hide nearby and slip out through the open exit when Taely arrived. However, it seems there might not be time for that now.

Still, I possess the master key. I pinched and pulled on Lucy’s cheek, who was softly breathing behind me.

Her cheek stretched out like mochi as Lucy woke up from her slumber.

* ‘Preparing for battle…?’

The immense flow of mana spreads through the sewer passages.

Lortelle Keheln can sense that something has happened on the side of Yenika. Perhaps he met a magical golem wandering the sewers, but a low-tier magical golem would not be capable of summoning such powerful mana.

Lortelle himself has encountered a few magical golems while strolling through the sewers, though they’re troublesome since direct magic doesn’t work on them; they’re not mightily strong opponents. It’s easy to defeat them by breaking the inner walls with magic and applying external physical force.

Lortelle Keheln once faced Yenika at her full power during a combined combat exercise.

Even if senior students were to attack her, it is almost impossible for anyone, other than the faculty, to overpower Yenika when she is at her full strength.

Especially if it’s first-year students, it’s not even worth discussing.

However, it appears that time is dragging on. Although it’s unclear what’s happening, if issues have arisen in the search for Ed, it presents an opportunity for Lortelle.

Indeed, Lortelle has found a clue within the sewer that leads to a secret research lab.

‘Somewhere nearby, there is a magic that’s been concealed.’

Lortelle is particularly sensitive to magic sensing, so much so that even Professor Glast acknowledged her and placed her in class A.

She never misses even the slightest mana reaction within a few meters radius. Yenika, who is specialized in spirit magic, might be a bit numb to these sensations.

It seems there might be an entrance leading to an even more secretly hidden facility nearby.

If that’s not the case, then this structure, which always leads back to the same place, makes no sense. Without proper navigation, you would endlessly circle around; this structure would not function properly as a sewer.

Though called a sewer, it’s merely mimicking one while also serving another purpose.

‘It’s not the time to be naively daydreaming…’

Suddenly, Lortelle looked down at his reflection in the water.

His hair, neatly combed to shine at its best. The calm auburn color enhanced the beauty of his fair skin. Blue rose-shaped hairpins added for style and the gold-trimmed semi-robe, made him look like a girl dressed up for a date.

Words are easy for a girl caught in romance, but now that he’s here in this place, it feels childish.

Lortelle sighed deeply, removed his hairpin, and let his hair down. He took a string out of his uniform pocket and tied it to one side as usual. He put on the robe hat he hadn’t been using, in case his hair got messy, and stuffed his expensive accessories into his pockets.

Now somewhat plain, but back to his usual dignified appearance, Lortelle nodded his head and flexed his arms.

No matter how much you want to look good, it’s a clear crisis.

You can’t weigh the life of your beloved in the balance just because you don’t want to lose out to a competitor.

He has lived all his life weighing all values on a scale, but there must be something that should absolutely never be weighed.

What it is will be the measure of that person’s value, he believes with no doubt.

Thinking this far, Lortelle started to worry genuinely about Ed.

Ed Rothtaylor feels like a mysterious person who would somehow resolve any crisis. The solid and trustworthy image of Ed has slightly eroded the sense of urgency.

However, one must not forget the severity of the situation by relying on such ‘feelings.’

Professor Glast is a very meticulous person.

If he’s been kidnapped by such a person, Ed would not be in a good state.

He must be trapped somewhere, in distress.

Panic, distress, difficulty, crisis. Words that seem to have nothing to do with him, but at this point, it’s highly likely that he is in desperate need of help.

Putting aside any debts owed to Ed, if you truly care about him, you must reach out and help.

Because of living life as a merchant, always converting human relationships into debts, he had forgotten that obvious truth.

Suddenly, Lortelle realized that he truly wanted to help someone out of pure goodwill.

Living a life on the merchant’s path, judging people’s value solely by money, he now feels a new light in his winter life.

It seemed he saw the beginning of a new relationship, one that money couldn’t buy, filling his heart with elation.

“That’s right…”

Lortelle made up his mind.

Ed is… definitely in a crisis needing help. Now is the time to help Ed…

– Bang!

At that moment, the wall about five steps behind him exploded.

Though the security was tight like a fortress, with intermediate-level concealment and sealing magic, it was like a candle in the wind before high-level explosive magic.

– Boom! Bang! Kaboom!

The solid steel plate, glowing red-hot, was slammed into the sewer and sent up smoke.

High-level magic that even the faculty had to concentrate to chant properly.

The magic, casually triggered with a wave of one hand while carrying Ed on his back, unforgivingly tore open the entrance to the secret lab.

“….”

Ed Rothtaylor emerged from the smoke.

Startled, Lortelle momentarily forgot to breathe.

“Ed, senior?”

“Oh, Lortelle. You were here.”

There are a few scratches on his face, but otherwise, he looks fine.

The first emotion that rises is relief. The fact that the kidnapped Ed is alive and well is a great comfort.

And following is… perplexity, or rather, disbelief.

“Um… Ed, senior…? What…?”

“I was kidnapped.”

“That.. I know, but…”

Ed, readjusting Lucy on his back, shook his arms. He was filled with all sorts of parchment rolls in his arms and the pockets of his robes.

“It’s good timing Lortelle. Take some of this. It’s too much for me to carry alone.”

“Uh… Yes?”

As Ed strode towards him and dumped a pile of parchments in front of Lortelle, he reflexively caught them and was astounded by the contents.

‘What is this…? They’re all high-quality crafting formulas…?’

Lortelle has the skill to convert anything into monetary value.

The formulas that Ed nonchalantly flung out were all very rare finds. Some were even legendary-grade magic engineering formulas… It’s bewildering where Ed could have gotten them.

Before that, the question is… How come he’s so unscathed?

“Senior. That… Weren’t you in a dire crisis?”

“Hm? Yeah, I was. But I resolved it somehow.”

Only then did Lortelle’s gaze shift to Lucy, carried on Ed’s back.

Lucy Mayrill.

The ridiculously strong first-year top student who made the first move.

Numerous magicians may boast of their prowess, but they are all but children before Lucy, making it a competition they were bound never to win from the start.

In that moment, Lortelle’s intuition sounded an alarm.

The heart that would always turn cold in a crisis now reminded him of a newly arrived rival’s presence.

Lucy, sound asleep on Ed’s back, breathing softly as if uninterested in anything else.

No matter how one looked at it, Lucy did not harbor any romantic feelings for Ed “Rothtaylor”. Indeed, the thought of seeing any potential rival was utterly out of the question.

Yet it wasn’t as if they were simply strangers; rather oddly, Lucy seemed to constantly wander the area around Ed.

Even more, she had quickly come to Ed’s rescue when he was cornered, startling given Lucy’s usual avoidance of others’ touch. Yet while carried on Ed’s back, she slept soundly, drooling in a blissfully comfortable slumber.

The exact nature of the distance Lucy kept from Ed was baffling.

At present, they might simply share a comfortable camaraderie, but should their relationship begin to develop in any other direction… This distance could rapidly accelerate and become uncontrollable.

This was dangerous.

Truly dangerous…!

Like a ticking time bomb, one must snip the bud of trouble early to prevent inevitable regrets!

And yet… it’s infuriating…!

…

The inherently shy and gentle-hearted Yenika “Faelover” could not express her feelings properly, being a coward when it came to making advances.

On the other hand, how about Lortelle himself?

Despite what anyone might say, he was the one most actively advancing their relationship.

He had stolen a kiss first, blatantly confessing his feelings, and generously took care of things without any intention of hiding his darker desires.

Who doesn’t feel a little shame!

The day he first stole a kiss in the camp, he was so breathless on his way home that he nearly caused a forest fire by dropping his torch.

On days when he was to meet Ed, he would wake up early, throw a fit, and obsessively dress himself.

He might bait with a fox-like face, play push-and-pull, lightly ruffling the heart of the other, but more than anything, it was his own heart that was truly being scratched red with embarrassment.

Isn’t it about time… to be affected even a little by this…??

Shouldn’t they at least be aware?

At least around oneself, shouldn’t they avoid displaying affection or closeness with another woman…?

Lortelle bolstered his resolve.

By now, it was time to take bolder steps. At this rate, one could truly become a fool in an instant.

As it looked, there seemed to be no significant harm to Ed’s body, and the major issues appeared to have settled. No serious crisis seemed imminent.

Lortelle was a merchant.

The essence of commerce is give and take.

If he can’t push back strongly now… if he can’t seize control from Ed at once, he’ll truly have grave regrets.

“Then, Senior Ed…”

…

“Please take care of that parchment scroll. If there are materials available in the guild inventory, please prepare them accordingly. I’ll come to collect it at Elte Guild later. And if there’s anything you’d want to purchase, let me know. Aside from the legendary scrolls, everything else is up for sale. You’ve helped me with various things, so I won’t mind selling at a slight discount.”

“Really? But this is…”

“I’m asking you. Who else can I trust besides you, really?”

…

Lortelle lifted his head sharply.

“Really?”

“As for my relationship, well, you know it’s pretty straightforward. Most aren’t reliable. You’re the only one I consider a solid guy, so this request is only natural from my side.”

You’re the only one I can trust – only you – only you.

Though the line carried great significance, it echoed within Lortelle’s heart.

“Is… is that really the case?”

“Why would I lie…?”

…

Lortelle scoffed. Even so, this was crossing a line.

After all that was done out of unrequited affection, now to demand this was absurd. There’s a limit to treating someone like a fool. Even if one has grown insensitive to the thrills of affection in the cutthroat world of commerce, there’s a limit. That’s professionalism, that’s the merchant way.

…

Lortelle swallowed hard, tensed his throat, and looked straight at Ed. Speaking with the coldest tone he could muster, it was time to make a stand. Senior Ed, this seems to be going too far now.

“Would you require a receipt as well?”

I am such a fool…!!!

…

As Lortelle let out a vacuous sigh, as if unloading heavy burdens.

While Ed and Lortelle were discussing various matters concerning the parchment scroll, a man burst in from the waterway on the other side.

…

An ordinary man without significant combat abilities had penetrated the dangerous underground water channels. Seeing him chop through the water and run towards them appeared quite urgent.

…

It was bright. There should have been no sources of light in these underground water channels.

…

If one sought the origin of the light, it would lead to various forms of elemental spirits.

Fire, water, wind, earth, grass, ice.

Eagles, rabbits, lions, wolves, sparrows, lizards.

…

Among those spirits, a girl was standing adjusting her skirt, holding an oak staff diagonally.

…

She was simply standing there, an innocent picture amidst the multitude of protective spirits.

In the current situation, Taely stood no chance against such a force.

Taely had realized this fact several times over and couldn’t help but concede defeat.

…

Yet there was a reason to fight. They had to rescue Aila.

For his life’s companion Aila, he would stake his very life, countless times over.

…

“What’s going on? Why is the mood like this?”

Zix looked back and forth, confused by the standoff between Yenika and Taely’s group.

…

The fear ingrained in Taely towards Yenika, and Elvira recognizing that fighting image, immediately assumed a battle stance.

Collapsing Dorothy, destroyed magical golems, the unconscious Professor Claire. All signs pointed to Yenika engaging in some destructive activities.

…

To act with hostility in a closed environment, without witnesses, was reasonable, but Zix and Adelle were puzzled.

Yenika held a stronger image as a loveable and innocent young scholarship student.

…

“It’s okay, Taely. Calm down!”

It was unlikely they stood a chance.

…

One can’t easily oppose such a sweetheart.

…

Having experienced battle alongside Yenika during the Ophelius Hall incident, Zix knew better. Having her on their side was a relief.

There was no guarantee that the first-year group could overcome Yenika, considering all they had been through. It’s unwise to waste one’s strength unnecessarily.

…

It would be best to settle matters with words if possible.

Considering Yenika’s personality, there was a greater chance she had no intent to fight.

Zix thought it best to mediate as he raised his voice.

“That will do.”

…

From the west corridor of the waterway, a familiar voice sounded.

The gaze of Taely’s group and Yenika shifted in that direction.

…

Emerging from the darkness of the passageway, a blond boy appeared, carrying a petite magician girl on his back. His clothes were slightly torn, and his body bore quite a few cuts and scrapes.

“Ed-!”

“Ed Rothtaylor…!”

The boy’s name was called twice.

Yenika’s expression blossomed like a blooming flower as she called out the name.