Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy

'Let's just think of it as consideration.'

The inner conflict was severe, but Lee Han accepted it for now.

At least thinking that way seemed like it would put his mind at ease.

I can sense magical energy from the swamp. Disciple of Osu. Don't rashly destroy everything. Check it first. There may be something to learn.

"Ah, yes."

Lee Han brushed it off.

What was there to learn in an ominous dimension like this?

If anything moved, he planned to attack first. After seeing the dead earlier, he had gotten a rough idea of the average level of the enemies inhabiting this area.

There might not even be any need to question them or talk to them one by one...

I can also sense powerful vitality. Hmm. Perhaps there are other enemies as well.

"Ah, yes... Yes?"

Lee Han stopped short.

That last statement was difficult to simply brush aside.

Other enemies? What did that mean?

"What do you mean by that?"

Disciple of Osu. Considering your House and status, surely you don't think we're the only ones who would visit a dimension like this.

The Yaksha King was right.

There were many enemies who knew at least something about the nature of Sanguros and coveted its power and domain.

Mages, demons, evil-god worshipers, and so on.

It would not be particularly surprising to encounter other visitors like that here.

Even so, there must be some reason you're asking this. In my view, your reason is...

-The Successor has already left.

***

The priest with a snake pattern engraved on his forehead spoke suspiciously.

"Something is strange... Something is strange."

The current priesthood was divided into three groups.

Ordinary believers whose faith was not particularly deep and who were therefore correspondingly less consumed by madness.

Mad priests who commanded those believers, boasting powerful faith and Authority.

And lastly, the Undying One, the bishop who commanded those priests.

Of course, the Undying One had not come here in person.

This bishop, who dreamed of eternal life, was just as suspicious and thorough. The Undying One was not the kind of being who would personally enter an unfamiliar dimension simply because of a deal with the Devil Hag.

At present, the Undying One was borrowing the body of the priest with the snake pattern engraved on his forehead to command the group.

The power available to the bishop had been greatly reduced, but if something happened, escape would be easy.

"What exactly seems strange?"

A believer who had once been an apothecary asked the Undying One a question.

The priests did not ask unnecessary questions, but the believers were different. They continued asking questions while watching the bishop's mood.

That was because they were still at the stage of weighing faith against profit while believing.

The Undying One did not bother to mock or intimidate them.

Most believers of the Frahgal Order came after being seduced by the sweet dream of eternal life.

But only a tiny fraction among them could truly enter the stage of eternal life.

With such a half-hearted attitude, they would soon fall away. They were insignificant scraps, not even worth the Undying One's effort to dispose of or devour.

"Was there anyone in the Sanguros Order capable of managing a domain of this scale?"

The Undying One was puzzled.

At present, the Undying One had followed Sanguros's power here in order to honor the deal with the Devil Hag.

Yet there was somehow something off about this domain. More power than expected could be felt from its source.

The old bishops of the Sanguros Order should all have been wiped out during the Empire's previous subjugation, shouldn't they?

'Has a new bishop-level powerhouse been born? But is that possible?'

Given the nature of the Sanguros Order, for a new bishop-level powerhouse to emerge, an entire small region would have to be offered as a sacrifice.

That might have been possible with the old, insular western vampire Houses, but it would not be easy under the current circumstances.

Unless there was some strategist capable of displaying skill beyond the Undying One's expectations...

"I can feel the power, yet the domain isn't being managed properly. Is it someone who only recently obtained that power?"

"The level of those extortionist bastards is obvious, isn't it! They're insignificant!"

The believers shouted flatteringly. At the sight, the Undying One concealed contempt and gave an order.

"You're right. Go! Go and bring me their heads. Let's see the face of this new bishop!"

As soon as the order was given, the believers moved boldly.

The Frahgal Order had various Authorities, but if one were to name a general characteristic, its distinctive overflowing vitality would be a prime example.

Authorities that allowed them to regenerate rapidly from any wound and even reattach a severed head were one reason this evil-god order remained consistently popular.

Wriggle-

And these Authorities did not end at simple regeneration.

To endure their overflowing vitality, the Order's believers would often transform into more complete forms. To unbelievers, those forms might appear disgusting and grotesque beyond comprehension, but within them existed perfect internal laws.

One believer transformed into a chimera roughly the size of a medium-class golem. It had a physique that would not be pushed back even if it collided head-on with a troll.

The dead were swept away by the believers' charge.

Watching the scene, the Undying One heightened every sense to its limit. If the enemy was going to counterattack, this was the moment.

But no counterattack came.

It was almost as if this place had been abandoned.

'What in the world is going on?'

Even though they were winning, the Undying One's unease only grew. The bishop could not tell what the enemy was thinking.

"...If the enemies won't move, then we'll simply burn more. Harvest their heads. Let's see whether they remain still even after every servant in the domain has fallen!"

The Undying One split the priests and believers into separate groups and sent them moving.

Dividing their strength in a place like this was not a good choice, but it was advantageous for provoking the enemy.

Surely they wouldn't remain still even after this?

"Priest!"

"!"

Sure enough, the enemies had taken the bait.

When those who had gone to the swamp came running back in a hurry, the Undying One's eyes gleamed.

"Did the enemies appear?"

"Th-that's not it..."

"?"

"There seems to be another mage in the domain."

"Don't talk nonsense!"

The Undying One denied it firmly.

Many evil-god worshipers established themselves in remote dimensions that Imperial pursuers would have difficulty finding.

Naturally, this domain where Sanguros's power could be felt was the same.

The Undying One was able to track it because the bishop was also an evil-god worshiper and had clashed with Sanguros's people before, but an ordinary mage could not do the same.

Unless they had received an invitation from a bishop, how could they possibly find this place?

"I-it's true. The others saw him too."

But the believers all said the same thing. The Undying One thought carefully before asking.

"Could it be someone who got lost and drifted in?"

That was possible.

Every so often, some foolish mage would fail to understand their own limits, get greedy, and become lost between dimensions.

"No. He was sweeping away the dead."

But the believers denied it again.

If the mage had been lost, the natural response would have been to avoid conflict and search for a way out, but the mage they had seen was far too proactive and combative.

"...Follow me."

The Undying One moved the priest's body and began walking.

The bishop could not tell whether the mage was an enemy or an ally, but intended to confirm it personally.

'They were telling the truth?!'

The Undying One's eyes filled with surprise upon spotting the mage in the distance.

Just as the believers had reported, there really was a mage in the swamp.

The mage was definitely not someone who had simply gotten lost and drifted in. For that, the mage was far too aggressive.

Apparently well trained in water-element magic, the mage was sweeping away the dead before they could even approach, despite using water-element magic, which was comparatively lacking in destructive power.

'A dangerous one. Who in the world is that?'

A powerful mage was a threat to evil-god worshipers simply by existing.

Even if the mage was not an enemy now, no one knew when that might change.

The Undying One carefully observed the mage once again.

The other party was not using high-level magic, but that alone was not enough to determine the mage's level. It was possible there was simply no need to cast any.

And that possibility was probably the more likely one. The mere fact that the mage had found this place made it highly likely that this was no ordinary mage.

'That mana... What in the...?!'

The Undying One, who had been observing, belatedly realized the amount of mana the other party possessed and was horrified.

The bishop had missed it while wondering about the mage's identity, but the mage had continued fighting without stopping for even a single moment!

"!"

The mage finished the battle and turned their gaze.

It seemed the mage had noticed their approach.

Well, the mage had probably noticed them from the moment the believers first discovered him. There was no way a mage of that level would have failed to notice.

Instead of launching a rash surprise attack, the Undying One spoke with a measure of respect.

Such an attitude was extremely rare from this dogmatic bishop.

"Greetings, mage."

***

"Aren't those bastards from the Frahgal Order?"

-Looking at the marks carved into their foreheads, yes. And with several priests here, they seem to have put quite a bit of effort into this.

"...We have a contract, so it should be fine."

Lee Han recalled the deal with the Devil Hag.

The Devil Hag had definitely stepped in and arranged a temporary alliance with Frahgal.

The hamster squeaked in agreement.

-A powerful being like the Devil Hag carries weight in their words and doesn't speak nonsense lightly. If the Devil Hag said the deal was done, then it's done.

"Phew."

-But are you sure those bastards know about it?

The hamster's point was sharp.

Even if the higher-ups had formed a temporary alliance, those below might not know about it. Lee Han frowned.

"Shouldn't you have said that part first?"

-......

The hamster ground its teeth at Lee Han berating it over a difference of only a few seconds.

-If they don't know, then they're probably not particularly high-ranking, so there's no need to worry.

"You can say that after looking at those numbers?"

Lee Han was deeply unconvinced.

The memory of Frahgal Order priests sacrificing themselves to summon a powerful undead heavyweight was still vivid.

Surely they weren't going to summon something like that again here?

"Greetings, mage."

The priest who appeared to be the leader greeted him. Lee Han let out a sigh of relief at the polite attitude.

It was possible they were merely trying to lower his guard, but at least they did not seem intent on attacking for now.

"It seems you know about the Devil Hag's agreement."

-Seems that way.

"I would like to ask your name."

At the priest's question, Lee Han tried to use an alias as usual. He was not stupid enough to give his real name to an evil-god worshiper.

"St..."

Lee Han, who had been about to say Stedal Nago, suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

Come to think of it, wasn't that the alias he had used while robbing the Frahgal Order?!

"St?"

"We're merely passing acquaintances. What need is there to exchange names?"

Lee Han quickly changed direction. A strange light flickered in the priest's eyes.

'Something is strange.'

It was as though that priest was both himself and not himself at the same time. Lee Han focused and strengthened his soul sight.

Then an astonishing sight entered his eyes.

There were two souls inside the priest's body.

"Can there be two souls in one body?"

-What? Ah... A method befitting an evil-god worshiper. They value their own life, so they've planted a fragment of their soul inside a subordinate and are controlling them through it.

The hamster smacked its lips as it spoke.

It did not particularly like such methods because of the side effects and aftereffects, but considering that it was currently living as a hamster, maybe that would have been preferable...

The hamster, distracted by that thought, shuddered at the ominously surging mana.

-Be careful! That bastard is using an evil Authority!

"What Authority is it?!"

Power from a wicked evil god burst from the eyes of the priest marked with a snake pattern and attempted to wrap around Lee Han.

It was a force meant to pierce through the target's defenses and spy on what lay within.

But the power was lightly repelled and vanished into nothingness.

Blood flowed from the snake-marked priest's eyes and nose.

-...Well, that worked out.

"Could you tell me a little faster? Please concentrate!"

The hamster ground its teeth.

Ever since they had left Einroguard, this bastard had become especially sharp-tongued.

-I am concentrating. That bastard just launched a surprise attack, so...

While the two whispered, the Undying One stopped the body's bleeding.

It was the backlash from the failed Authority.

The fact that the Authority had been repelled was shocking enough, but the mage's indifferent reaction was even more shocking.

To remain that calm even after being attacked!

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