I Became the Only Non-mage in the Academy

Chapter 21: Mines

TL/Editor: looloo

Schedule: 5/Week Wed-Sun

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Ideally, Saturday should be my day of rest. However, I unfortunately have revival tasks lined up.

'I find this quite irritating.'

Yawning, I took a look at the cursed items.

I had picked items with stronger curse effects instead of beneficial effects.

In case things escalated, I could throw a cursed object at my adversary to create some chaos.

"You seem too relaxed for an everyday outfit."

"What's wrong with a hoodie?"

Ersil began a dispute.

"Color matching matters more than wearing a hoodie. You shouldn't wear a black hoodie with black jeans"

I rightly ignored Ersil. All black is a perfectly fine fashion choice.

"So, you're heading out?"

"Yes, Yuhwa gave me a pass to the tower."

"The tower? You mean the Tower of Trials?"

Ersil looked at me, her eyes filled with curiosity.

"Right. There's a tower in England too, isn't there? The Tower of Proof, I think?"

"Yes, but only individuals of a certain rank or higher can enter the Tower of Proof."

"Do you wish to go?"

"I do."

"But you can't. I can only go by myself."

I jiggled the emblem that Hong Yuhwa had given me.

Ersil pulled a disappointed face.

"How about we meet on Sunday?"

"Sunday? Are you inviting me on a date?"

She chuckled, her laughter full of jest.

"Yes, I'm asking you out on a date."

I confirmed as I spoke.

The date, of course, would involve the Mines Banquet.

As I nodded, Ersil's face briefly wore a shocked look.Updated from nov𝒆lbIn.(c)om

"You shouldn't joke around with a lady like that."

I shrugged.

After all, Ersil started it.

"So, when should I arrive?"

"By 1 in the afternoon. Meet me at the Angel's Hand coffee shop in Gangnam, Seoul."

The event begins at 2 PM, so I arranged it with ample time.

"Then, see you tomorrow."

I waved at Ersil and made my way to the next room.

"What's happening?"

"I want to borrow some items from here."

I selected about 10 cursed items.

"... I told you to borrow without hesitation, and you really did."

The manager chuckled as he signed the documents and nodded.

"Just make sure to return them undamaged. All these items are cursed, so if they get broken, the curse might escape."

"Understood, I'll be cautious."

Even though I said that, I wasn't sure they'd come back in one piece.

After securing permission, I made my way to the Alchemy Lab.

Just yesterday, the Alchemy professor informed me that my laboratory had been set up.

'Right.'

On the way, I sent a message to Hong Yuhwa.

Hong Yuhwa had excused herself from the club activities for the day due to some personal matters.

-Be at the Angel's Hand caf in Gangnam, Seoul by 2 p.m.

-Be prepared.

I have a showdown with the Mines, but since I couldn't mention it directly, I kept it vague. She should figure it out.

Ding.

As soon as I sent the message, a response came.

Hong Yuhwa

-What's up?

-Can you not do something weird?

Something strange? Perplexed, I replied.

-What strange thing are you referring to?

-There's something I need to tell you. Be there by 2.

I ended the conversation there and looked at my phone.

A blank chat list stared back at me.

In my previous life, I had 300 chat contacts, but now, only four.

I got Ersil and Hong Yuhwa's numbers under the guise of club activities.

Similarly, I obtained Kim Ara's number using training as an excuse.

It was the same with Kim Seohyun.

'I wish I could contact Seo Gayeon too.'

She hasn't awakened her magic yet, so it's unfortunate she's not at full strength.

Because of this, I also invited Kim Ara to the Angel's Hand caf in Gangnam, Seoul.

Kim Ara

-?

-Oh, understood.

-She sent an emoji of a shy rabbit.

She seems to get embarrassed easily.

I put my phone back in my pocket.

The team was ready.

Ersil as a safety measure, and direct supports like Hong Yuhwa and Kim Ara.

Including Kim Seohyun in this, we weren't likely to lose to the Mines.

[Master... Are you not concerned for your life?]

"?"

Reflecting on the Heavenly Demon's words, I replied.

"I am concerned. That's why I'm preparing like this."

I said as I entered the Alchemy lab and began loading potions into my spatial bracelet.

The Heavenly Demon gazed at me oddly.

It seems that all my past masters lacked discretion but were strangely popular with women. Even when they had female bodies is this the destiny of the Heavenly Demon?

Regardless, I rifled through the ingredients in the Alchemy lab.

'This is quite decent.'

There were more ingredients than I had anticipated.

I could create a fair amount of emergency healing potions.

I grabbed antidotes and paralysis potions for emergencies.

I also picked up some poisons, an extreme poison created by slightly altering the formula, and potions that could significantly boost stats.

Despite gathering all of these, my load was lighter than I had expected, thanks to my spatial bracelet.

'Should I check my bank account?'

Initially, after purchasing the kit, I expected to have less than 50,000 won left. But since I had posted my recipes on the Alchemy Guild, I was optimistic.

Oh

I was rendered speechless.

A huge sum of money was in my bank account.

235,014,571 won.

What's alarming is that copyrights in alchemy are solid. As time passes, this money would continue to multiply into an increasingly astonishing amount.

I need to focus more on the Alchemy Guild.

I turned on a computer tucked away in a corner of the lab.

Accessing the Alchemy Guild site, I saw that my recipes had taken over the top of the bulletin board.

'All these comments...'

Beside each recipe, there were comments in the thousands. The views had already far exceeded the 100,000 mark.

Confused, I clicked on one of the recipes.

-"Oh, bringer of truth! Please grace us with your other recipes!"

-"We live in an era of truth!"

-"My light and salt. Please post at least one recipe a month."

Do they think this is YouTube?

A comment filled with excessive praise.

-Lol, an alchemist claiming to be the truth? What a conceited jerk?

-(The comment was deleted and can only be viewed by the original poster.)

-Where do you live? I'll trace your IP right now.

-That guy was boasting about being a great alchemist, but he's a bronze novice who could only come up with five recipes.

Lol, what a loser. Jealous and ended up putting his foot in his mouth, and even got a comment deleted.

There were countless private messages too.

Some were filled with threats, others were begging to be taught even just a little.

The Alchemy Guild site, unseen in the game, was quite interesting.

Then, a certain bulletin board post caught my attention.

[A question about the Elixir of Stamina.]

That was the title.

More than the title, it was the ID that piqued my interest. The name that will become famous in alchemy in the future, WantsToEscapeTheLab.

I clicked on the post.

"I'm trying to make the Elixir of Stamina, but the results are always weird.

I put in Harpas' feather, Graven's claw, the fruit of hallucination, and the whiskers of a sky whale, but something isn't right."

-Isn't it because you lack the ingredients?

-Of course, it's weird because you're using strange ingredients that don't blend well lol

-You're such a fool. Those ingredients are too precious to waste.

The comments were all ridiculing the author of the post.

Nonchalantly, I replied to them.

-Dry the fruit of hallucination in a sunny place for three days, then add the tail of a chlorine at the very end.

After giving that advice, I turned off my computer. It was about time to head outside.

Vrrrrm!

My phone vibrated. Strange, I wasn't expecting any calls.

As I curiously checked my phone, notifications began popping up, saying that comments had been posted on the site.

I disabled the app notifications on my phone and stepped outside.

---

Raei Translations

---

Guro Station.

In the center of that location, there was a structure known as a tower.

The tower.

Such things referred to as towers exist in this world.

The most famous of them is the Tower of Trials, located at the Korea Hero Academy.

As its name suggests, the Tower of Trials presents 'trials'.

If you clear the trial, you receive a reward in proportion to its difficulty.

That's what a tower is.

The nature of the tower, and the rewards it provides, are determined by the character of the person standing before it. Some towers can only be cleared at the very end of the game, while others can be conquered simply by sheer numbers. Some towers pose riddles.

In this world, there are several such towers, and one of them, the Tower of Illusion, is located right here in Seoul.

Among them all, the Tower of Illusion is particularly challenging.

But it's perfectly suited for someone like me.

The Tower of Illusion is essentially a tower of illusions.

'The nature of the trials change a bit starting from the middle floors though.'

What I need to obtain is on the lower floors.

Past the middle floors, it would take too much time.

A full month of commitment, at least.

I approached the guide near the tower.

"How can I assist you?"

"I wish to enter the tower."

"To enter the tower, you need a recommendation from the Magic Tower, or a related certificate."

The Tower of Illusion is under the jurisdiction of the Magic Tower.

'The Magic Tower isn't bad.'

The Magic Tower is known for its competent management. They capture all the Mines and villains trying to infiltrate the tower, and they ensure safety within the tower.

I showed the emblem that Hong Yuhwa gave me.

"This is the certificate of the Magic Tower."

The staff member held the emblem up to a machine and then nodded.

"Confirmation is complete. From now on, you can enter the Tower of Illusion. If you need guidance inside the tower, you can pay a fee to hire a wizard from our Magic Tower."

"I'm fine."

"Then, please use the portal over there to enter."

"Alright."

I walked in the direction indicated by the staff member.

A portal then appeared, a blue circle revealing a different space within.

Ring.

Just as I was about to enter the tower, my phone rang. I checked the screen.

Hong Yuhwa

-You said you're going into the tower?

-Just take a tour if you must. I know you're amazing, but the Tower of Illusion is high-risk.

-Don't overdo it.

A text message tinged with worry.

I couldn't help but smile.

I wouldn't normally take such risks, either.

But, it's simply inevitable that I might discover something like a 'secret room' upon entering the tower, accidentally clear it, and reap the rewards.

I can't help that, can I?

enjoy! :)

seoha is very clearly a fashionable guy

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