The Strategy to Become Good at Magic Chapter 90

TL: I’ll see you next month for a new chapter.

Recap: The Demon General tried to recruit Sue back to the demon world as a teacher/student. After failing to threaten Sue successfully, he clapped his hands and said Sue was more indeed more interesting than the prince.

Chapter 90 – Choosing courses

[Interesting?! What does that mean?!]

Sue intensely felt like she was being mocked and had a sense of foreboding.

The Demon General explained: “To tell the truth, my clan members said that it wasn’t absolutely necessary to bring you back. They merely asked me to ‘communicate’ with you as soon as possible.”

“…… And?!” She said.

“Since the outcome of this communication isn’t satisfactory, I can only continue to negotiate with you.” He shrugged. “I have a bit of time anyway…… Also, I forgot to mention that my real mission this time is accepting the invitation from the Tobias kingdom. I’m here to protect several high-cla.s.s wizards to help cure the prince’s fatal poison.”

Black lines filled Sue’s forehead: “How long are you staying here?!”

“It depends on how much progress is made. Perhaps a month, maybe it’s a year, possibly…… Well, I’ll stay here to a maximum of six months, any longer and a new commander will take over my position. If that happens, he will visit you too.”

“……” Sue had never hoped for Fedrus to recover this quickly.

After a breakfast that did not feel digestible, Sue grabbed Lawrence and left the house to handle the doc.u.mentations for entering the school. She did not care about the rest of the people still lurking around.

She did not think about the school’s offered courses since her goal was to infiltrate the school and get closer to that a.s.sa.s.sin’s boy. She wasn’t really interested in learning knowledge, and once she was done she would just disappear if push came to shove……

[D$#@ bananas! I can’t believe I’m acting like a kid going back to school after teleporting to a different world…..]

“The Academy of Light teaches different courses, and you are free to choose any of them. However, you need to make sure that the schedule doesn’t conflict with each other, and that you have at least six courses and more…… You don’t need to have an exam for entering the school, but you must have a legal ident.i.ty and pay the school fees. The rules after entering the school are strict. Some students have no talent in magic, but they are pa.s.sionate about this mysterious profession and would attempt to advance by researching magic. However, there’s a test for all courses every three months, and if they fail to pa.s.s a certain course two times in a row, they will lose the qualifications to continue studying. If you fail 1/3 of the courses chosen at the Academy of Light, your name will be taken off the school list and expelled. If six of your courses receive high recognition within six years, you would be able to graduate. If you don’t, you will also be expelled…..”

“So admission is easy, but it’s difficult to continue staying on?!” Sue felt like this was somehow akin to a shop that scammed people!

“Yes.” Lawrence felt the description was somehow wrong, but the overall meaning was there: “Therefore after entering the school, most students will carefully choose their courses to study. If they have to change their courses halfway through and fail to graduate because of that, they are only wasting their time.”

“….. I’m highly appreciative of that fact.” Sue tugged her hair in frustration: “Let me retake a look at the list of courses, I think I want to a.n.a.lyze them.”

Leaving on one’s volition was different from being expelled. The former meant that she had the ability and did not need to continue studying. It was full of lament and regret for the innocent teachers who appreciated talent, and they might even lose sleep over it. Perhaps she could even organize some kind of fundraiser during her tenure as a student for some research, and allow her to skim off some money from it, even if it’s just a little. The latter meant that her intelligence had problems, and it was an issue of her throwing money away to other people instead……

“……” Lawrence silently handed over the information about the school. He was unable to hold himself back from interruptions when he saw her studying it seriously: “From what I saw from your past, you can at least choose to specialize in Brawling and Potions. Learning them will be good for your development. That’s two courses down and the remaining four……”

“I can also pick up Item Enchantment.” Sue selected another course and started feeling a headache coming on when she thought about the remaining three choices.

[Why do the courses feel like they are full of traps and suspicious content?! Magic Research…… Researching a small fireball can be considered as Magic Research, a Judgment Day spell is also Magic Research, so is this a simple or hard course?! Divination, is that something like using tarot cards or setting up Magic Formations of Nine Strongholds and Eight Diagrams, how far has this parallel world progressed?!]

She had to try and think of at least one more course that she was confident in and try her best at the remaining two courses, if she could not do it, she would have no choice but to switch at midway…… Otherwise, she would have to suffer the shameful possibility that she failed more than 1/3 of her courses and be expelled.

“How about Magic Sigil research?! Scribing and applying them to Magic Formations is useful in times of need. Adventuring might lead you to ancient ruins, and those places would frequently have Magic Formations. Judging from your current status, you seem to be suited as a thief.” Lawrence tried to help.

“That’s a valid suggestion.” She ticked it. “Two more courses…… Are there any courses that’s easy to pa.s.s?!”

Lawrence’s face darkened: “The basic payment every year is 500 gold pieces, and every course requires an additional 100 gold as teaching fees…… Are you paying so much money so that you can simply pa.s.s?”

“Stop trying to convince me.” Sue’s heart was bleeding inside. She was trying her best to ignore the issue of school fees, to think there was someone who stabbed her weak points so cruelly: “If I get expelled doesn’t it mean that my money has been thrown into the gutters? Hey, can you give me proper suggestions instead of telling me all these useless words?!”

“You…..” Lawrence was undecided between lecturing her or giving out suggestions, when they suddenly heard a familiar voice outside their horse carriage.

“But father, I want to be an outstanding priest…..”

“Eins, your father is a military man, and your grandfather is a military man. There isn’t anyone in the Lottfield family who stood behind the battle lines yet.”

“But father……” The young voice sounded very sad and dissatisfied.

[Oh, someone familiar!]

Sue was all smiles as she opened the carriage’s door, and waved at the chibi and his father: “Why there, cute little boy, do you still want to eat lemon candy?!”

The man looked at Sue and Lawrence in slight surprise before he quickly regained his composure: “There’s no need for that. Thank you for your candy yesterday.”

“No problem at all, no problem at all, I might attend cla.s.ses with your son in the future, and taking care of each other is better than not at all.” Sue sat further in the carriage to give the two of them s.p.a.ce: “My brother and I are choosing courses, if the two of you don’t mind, you can come into the carriage and discuss the money prospects of a warrior and priest?!”

The reasoning and invitation swayed the man’s heart, and he looked at his shy child holding hands with him. He hesitated for a while and chose to get onto the carriage.

“Then I’ll have to trouble both of you.”

He accepted the invitation, not because of Sue’s persuading capabilities, and certainly not because of her sweet talk. He accepted because he recognized Lawrence, and also because of his son.

Even though Lawrence had no idea who Eins’s father was, the latter had seen him yesterday during the negotiation of the a.s.sa.s.sination. They were allies, and it was good for him to know the a.s.sa.s.sin Guild’s men who had some capabilities. They were easy to control too, and at the very least better than getting to know useless or overly mysterious and troublesome people.

As for his little Eins…… The man wanted to sigh. Was it because of his wife died during a difficult childbirth, with him busy with military affairs, and had his child to be taken care by an old butler?! He was so shy that he did not even have a single friend…… Perhaps it would be good for him to know children of his age?!

“You’re quite silly. There’s no need to quarrel with your dad. When you attend the school, you can apply to switch to a new course. Your dad can’t possibly accompany you and attend the cla.s.s. Once you spent time and become a graduate, the deed is done, and it’s too late for regrets…..”

“……..” No. Perhaps it was a terrible idea for his son to get to know her.

Lawrence looked at the man’s darkened face and said with embarra.s.sment. “I’m sorry, mister. Sue just likes to play these little jokes.”

Eins looked at his father, a little scared, and his tiny little body shrank backward…… till he retreated behind Sue’s back. Sue laughed fearlessly and dismissed the stiff atmosphere by explaining: “It’s true, I’m just joking.”

“……” The man stared at the two children in silence. After a considerable amount of time, he raised his eyebrows and coughed lightly: “Very well Eins, you can add Holy Magic and Healing Magic to your courses, but you must ensure that you get good grades with Brawling and Military Affairs.”

“Yes, father,” the chibi’s eyes were filled with stars in an instant, and he balled his hands into a fist excitedly with a red face: “I’ll try my best.”

The man stroked his son’s soft hair and the corners of his lifted up to form the slightest smile before it quickly disappeared, then turned his head and politely nodded to Sue: “Good child, Eins is very fond of you. If it’s possible, I hope that both of you can help each other in the school.”

He would not stop Eins from choosing his own friends.

“My pleasure.” Sue smiled and bowed politely. This was her original goal…..

And thus Sue had her courses sorted out. Since she had to get close to her target, it was obviously better to get as close as possible to him.

[Military Affairs and Holy Magic. At the very least I learned basic healing magic, pa.s.sing two or three times should be okay. At the very least, the difficulty would only ramp up after a year.]

After choosing her courses and handing in her application form and school fees with the two adults, she received her dormitory slot. She shook hands with the chibi and waved goodbye, after all, she was a girl and thus would be going to the female dorm.

“I haven’t stayed in a collective even though I lived for so long.” Sue had a bit of expectation towards the future. In her previous world, her family was quite wealthy and shared an apartment with a family friend during university. She was curious about a dormitory with lots of people.

But Lawrence felt a little uneasy about her future: “Sue, you wouldn’t bully the girls at school right?! I really hope that I won’t see a parent’s notification in the future.”

“Don’t worry. I have no interest in teasing little girls.” Sue sighed: “Hey, why aren’t you worried about me who has no background getting bullied by n.o.bles?! All the novels had plotlines involving haughty groups in school picking on the innocent and adorable protagonists, which allow them to get enough motivation and fight back with increased level-ups…….”

“H-haha…..” Lawrence laughed dryly: “If there are any groups like that, I believe I will pray to the G.o.ds for their safety in advance.”

There were different cla.s.sifications to the dormitories, and the lowest standard was a room for four people, complete with a dedicated chef and guard.

[Oh, that’s a good number.]

Sue received such a standard room, 174…… (TL: 174, CN translation, Yi Qi Si, h.o.m.onym in Chinese, let’s die together.)

“Your future friends aren’t here yet, do you want me to tidy up the room for you?!” Lawrence studied the room and felt nostalgia. The time when he stayed in the Academy of Light, the female dormitory was the Holy Land in his dreams. To think that when he returned, he had taken on a guardian’s status and accompanied a young lady who loved getting into trouble.

“Feel free to do so. I’m out for a walk.” Sue did not mind, summoned her little white tiger, and abandoned Lawrence with a carefree att.i.tude.

The next month would be the time where the Academy of Light recruited students, and the entire kingdom and even other countries’ kingdoms would gather in the capital. The students would clean up their dormitories, tidy up their schedules and purchase the necessary study materials and tools for their courses.

In other words, Sue was still at a stage where she had nothing to do. She thought there was still a month before she officially drowned in the Chibis’ noise in the school…..

“Why isn’t that place open?!” Sue grabbed a random pa.s.serby when she pa.s.sed by a restricted area.

The random pa.s.serby saw it was a cute little girl and was happy to explain helpfully: “Only certain areas in the school are open to new students. You’re pointing to areas that are for intermediate or advanced cla.s.ses. Today isn’t their Rest Day and are still studying. In order to prevent the new students applying to the academy from disrupting their cla.s.ses, they are specially segregated……”

“You don’t have winter or summer breaks?!” Sue was very surprised. Schools on Earth had breaks, but to think the students in this world only received a Rest Day every week.

“Winter or summer breaks?!”

“…… I mean consecutive Rest Days like an extended vacation.”

“You are referring the Harvest Celebration and the Kingdom Festival and the likes?! These are special celebrations that have three to five days of rest, but it’s not that day yet.”

Sue’s tears flowed freely when she heard of that.

“Little girl, do you want me to show you the facilities of the advanced cla.s.ses?!” The pa.s.serby was pa.s.sionate.

“Didn’t you say they were afraid of disruption?!”

“It’s fine if the older students bring you around. It’s not because they are refusing to let you see them, but they are afraid of a disruption.”

“Let’s see them.” Sue sighed. How carefree was she to not establish an empire filled with underlings, and instead to observe the education system in this world?

“Then your guardian……” The pa.s.serby finally remembered to search. Bringing the little girl along might get some reports handed off to the administration that a little girl has been kidnapped.

“He’s currently tidying up my dorm room. Don’t worry, he’s big enough and wouldn’t get lost.”

“………” No, he was actually worried that someone else would file a missing report for her.

As an old kingdom renowned for magic, the courses offered by the schools were undoubtedly about magic. Combat Magic, Alchemy Magic, even magic used for daily ch.o.r.es and communication were available. In everyone’s heart, the highest profession was becoming a Magician. This did not mean that the people who had no talent in Magic were outcasts, but individuals who knew magic was respected more. It was just like Earth; big CEOs and directors earned more money, but they were less respected than politicians who worked for the public. It was not about the money but the respect……

Even though the Academy of Light did not particularly elevate any particular course over another, it was clear that their offered Magic cla.s.ses were the best. Other kingdoms or races would not come to a nation recognized for Magic to learn about physical techniques.

As the uppercla.s.sman, the pa.s.serby naturally brought Sue to the Academy’s prided Tower of Magic.

“This is the proud symbol of the Academy of Light. Only students who have contributed significantly and received excellent grades would be allowed to live here. They might even be awarded a medal of honor after they graduate. Currently, four students are staying in this tower, and one of them is our Tobias Kingdom’s prince.”

“The prince?!”

“Perhaps you have heard of his name, the second prince, Tegwyn.” The pa.s.serby was full of admiration: “He has not graduated yet, but he already on the level of a great wizard. He’s the most talented student at the Academy of Light as a Fire-based magician. I heard that Prince Fedrus who’s entering the Academy this year is also gifted. It seems like he’s a prodigy that only comes every hundred years?! Haha, I wonder if he’s going to stay here too.”

“Ha, ha……” Sue laughed with a flat tone: “Perhaps.”

[Bananas! The chibi’s poisoning hasn’t been disclosed yet. Even though his death curse has been solved, using magic like a genius? Lots of people are going to get disappointed quickly.]

“I’m pretty sure the prince will stay here as well, although I don’t know what type of magic he’s going to pick.” The pa.s.serby stooped down and took out a bunch of papers: “Look, the advanced cla.s.ses have another addendum. Choosing the type of magic to study, must also take into consideration of what kind of physical attributes one has. Looking at Prince Tegwyn, I think Fedrus will pick the Fire-type, then the next probable type would be Nature-type magic. After all, the Tobias Kingdom’s descendants are from the Elven Queen’s lineage……”

“If it’s me, I would suggest Wind-type or Lightning-type.” Sue glanced at the data and shook her head: “The former can increase his speed and has pretty good damage. The latter has the highest damage for singular targets, and even has the side effect of paralysis.”

Choosing to learn Magic based on elemental affinity was a mistake. At its core, any form of magic was based on Mana, and having different types of Mana Form would change the different properties.

Powerful usage of Mana was Wind Magic; explosive usage of Mana was Fire Magic; gentle usage of Mana was Water Magic……

In truth, the true quality of Magic was related to one’s understanding and Mental Energy. From a certain point of view, choosing a type of Magic affinity would indeed learn the related Magic quicker. The reverse was true as well. As an example, a hot-tempered man would find it harder to learn Water-based magic, but once they leave that part behind and reach the true nature of Mana, this shortcoming would be gone. The things that were left were improving control and strengthening Mental Energy, as well as practice and discovering the techniques of casting magic spells.

Choosing magic was not supposed to be looking at what one learn fastest, but to choose what one needed……

“Uhh.” The pa.s.serby first looked blankly at her before he laughed: “Very well, if Prince Fedrus needed someone to choose for him, perhaps we can pa.s.s your suggestion to him.”

It was clear that he was teasing the little girl in front of him for not knowing things.

Sue ignored him, walked a few steps away and took out a magic mirror: “Hey brat, have you picked out your Magic courses?”

“Sue!!!” The little prince was delighted that Sue was willing to contact him with her own initiative: “I’m choosing right now, the magician who’s testing me said I have the highest affinity for Fire-type…..”

“Tsk!” Sue looked down on the magician: “Wind or Lightning. Choose one of them. What’s the use of Fire-type magic spells? At best it will do Damage-Over-Time, but there’s no boosting effect at all.”

“Alright, then wind it is!” The little prince was just as straightforward, choosing to follow Sue’s footsteps without any hesitation, embarking on a journey on the Path of Darkness and Corruption…… Which was what the queen believed. She attempted to s.n.a.t.c.h the mirror in a fury: “How dare you influence my son!”

The little girl did not know anything about Magic, and this irresponsible decision would ruin her Fedrus.

“Mother!” The little prince grabbed the mirror and yelled back: “Sue wouldn’t do that to me!”

“Fe—…..”

Sue did not wish to see family violence happening before her very eyes, so she turned off the Magic Mirror. She believed the chibi would listen to her, and even if he was forced to do so otherwise, she was not without her means….. After all, the ones who could teach magic were not just the teachers in this academy.

Although the pa.s.serby who could not see what was happening in the magic mirror, he overheard the conversation. When the communication ended, he walked over and wanted to pat her head, but the little white tiger stood in his path and bared its fangs. In the end, he sighed.

“Little girl, were you talking to your friend?!”

“Evidently.”

“But you shouldn’t give out suggestions thoughtlessly.” He shook his head with disapproving tongue clicks. “It’s important to choose your own suitable magic, perhaps you don’t understand the importance of this, but you will likely harm your little friend’s future.”

Sue laughed: “That’s pretty clear cut. If he is unable to become good at it, then it means that the education in this academy is too lousy.”

To even not have the basic Magic theory, it looked like this world was far more backward than she thought.

“………”