How to Live as a Mage in the Murim World

Chapter 14 – Episode 4: Lovesickness (3)

After attaining his first Ring, Allen kept himself busy.

“Now that you’ve become a mage, you need your own wand,” Laurent said as he led Allen into the forest.

Among mages, there was a tradition of carving one’s own wand.

“It’s important to have a wand that matches your level. There’s no need or reason to wield something too advanced from the start. You can gradually create or find your own as you progress.”

The area around the Magic Tower was saturated with mana, so the trees in the forest were also imbued with it.

Laurent broke off a branch and shaped it using mana. What emerged was a wand that naturally preserved the curves of nature.

“This wand might seem simple, but it helps with spellcasting. You can imbue a spell into it to enhance your magic.”

“Can I use 2nd Ring spells with it?”

“Not quite, but it can produce a similar effect. Try it yourself.”

Zhuge Hyeonmong watched as Allen carved his wand.

He couldn’t refine it with mana like Laurent did and his teacher didn’t expect his to. It wasn’t something just anyone could do.

But even without magic, Allen’s skill with a knife in carving wood was remarkable.

Talent aside, it took him some time to get used to it.

Afterward, Allen received various types of training with that wand.

‘It seems this isn’t a single-line transmission system,’ Zhuge Hyeonmong thought as he watched Allen rushing around different parts of the tower for lessons.

(TL Note: What he means is that Allen isn’t his master’s only disciple. The spells he inherited from his master isn’t unique only to him or restricted to him.)

Rather than learning everything from one master, he was receiving teachings from multiple mages.

Naturally, Allen wasn’t the only student. In fact, Allen was considered as the weakest among them.

In the Magic Tower, magical prowess equated to power.

‘So, he is Master Laurent’s new disciple?’

‘Damn, why would he take such an idiot as his disciple?’

‘Lucky bastard.’

The whispers, though quiet, were clear to Zhuge Xianmeng in his dream-bird form.

His eyes narrowed.

For some reason, he didn’t like seeing Allen being disrespected.

The problem was that, just as they said, Allen was slow at learning.

While not completely stupid, Zhuge Hyeonmong found him frustrating.

He has countless pointers to give.

If this were reality, he wouldn’t be able to, considering social niceties, but this was a dream, wasn’t it?

‘I should help him.’

From prior experience, he knew he could influence dreams to some degree.

Zhuge Xianmeng absorbed the knowledge in Allen’s place and like a mother bird feeding its chick, he passed on the knowledge.

How to build Formations.

What auxiliary magic to use to strengthen spells.

The structure of spell formulas and how to reverse them.

What spells existed to enhance a mage’s body, and so on.

Honestly, it wasn’t just to help Allen—it was also for Zhuge Hyeonmong’s own benefit.

Thanks to this, Allen not only shed his reputation as a lacking student but also achieved quite good results…

Then came the confrontation.

“You. What underhanded tricks did you use? There’s no way a dimwit like you could create such an advanced formula.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Can’t you even understand simple words? This isn’t a formula you could possibly create at your level. You must have cried and begged Master Laurent to write it for you.”

Allen’s expression turned cold and heavy.

He was originally a street thug.

Regardless of truth, he wasn’t the type to let someone who challenged him get away easily.

He didn’t back down, and after some back-and-forth, a duel was agreed upon right there.

They decided to settle it in the magic practice session a week later.

Zhuge Hyeonmong was excited.

‘This is my chance!’

He was curious to see how mages fight each other.

Allen also harbored the same question.

“Master, I have a question. Is it possible to fight with just 1st Ring spells?”

Laurent immediately understood his disciple’s intention.

Allen had lost all his relatives to bandits.

Although Laurent had dealt with those bandits, the pain remained.

Therefore, Laurent didn’t immediately dismiss it as impossible.

“It’s not impossible. Alcandra, Ragna, Serenia, Asteran the Stargazer… They’re all known to fought on the front lines when they just had their 1st Ring. Being a mage isn’t just about wielding powerful and destructive magic. It’s about controlling the situation. If you can control the battlefield, you can fight.”

All those Laurent mentioned were great mages who had left their mark in history.

Laurent’s hidden meaning was this: strive to be like them.

But Allen and Zhuge Hyeonmong interpreted the meaning differently.

‘So it’s impossible.’ Allen took it as a no. But Allen actually smiled at that fact.

Meanwhile, Zhuge Hyeonmong didn’t know who those people were, latched onto the word possible. Even if it’s just in theory, Zhuge Hyeonmong widened his eyes in excitement.

‘Oh? So it’s possible. I’m looking forward to this.’

He was really looking forward to how Allen would fight.

Of course, Zhuge Hyeonmong was ready to help Allen.

Although Allen was still lacking in constructing and utilizing magic—able to barely construct one spell while others could manage two or three. If Zhuge Hyeonmong guided him, he could indirectly experience a magical duel.

And the next day.

Zhuge Hyeonmong was left speechless by what he witnessed right after the duel began.

As soon as the duel started, Allen used exactly one spell.

It was Body Enhancement.

Then he charged in.

“Wh-what? Slip and fall!”

The opposing mage cast a spell in panic.

‘Slow. Unnecessary incantation too. Moreover, the formula structure is sloppy.’

Zhuge Hyeonmong analyzed the opponent’s formula and clicked his tongue.

Apparently, the opponent wasn’t particularly talented either.

But the spell succeeded, creating a slippery surface under Allen’s feet.

Allen slid, but instead of falling, he expertly maintained his balance and accelerated, practically gliding across the ground towards his opponent.

“Wh-what the?!”

Before the opponent could react, Allen’s fist, carrying all his momentum, connected with his face.

The mage spun halfway around and crumpled to the ground, unconscious. Not dead, thankfully.

Drip. Drip.

Allen, his fist dripping with blood, cracked his neck and stared blankly at the stunned onlookers.

“Next?”

At that sight, Zhuge Xianmeng’s jaw dropped, and he woke up from his dream.

* * *

“That… that idiot…!”

So dumbfounded was he that Zhuge Hyeonmong shouted those words as soon as he woke up and rose from his bed.

And right after, he sensed a presence.

“He’s awake!”

“Damn it, put him back to sleep!”

A chilling sensation ran from the top of his head to his toes.

He saw one of the men reaching for his nape.

In that short moment, Zhuge Xianmeng constructed a spell and activated it.

Whoosh!

A gust of wind erupted, sending dust swirling into the air.

“Wh-what’s this?”

While they rubbed their dust-filled eyes, he rolled out of bed, his mind already calculating his escape route.

“He’s running! Catch him!”

‘They know martial arts.’

His instincts screamed.

Several options flashed through Zhuge Xianmeng’s mind, and he chose one.

Zhuge Hyeonmong cast a slipping spell.

The target was himself.

Slip!

He felt the grip on him loosen, broke through the door, and fled.

Crash! Bang!

“What the hell? Did that guy oil himself up before sleeping?”

“Who cares?! Get him!”

Zhuge Hyeonmong ran.

He even cast Body Enhancement as he ran. He’d regret the muscle soreness later, but survival was paramount.

He needed time to think.

‘Who sent them?’

There were several possibilities.

Someone who held a grudge against him, the bandits he fought from the recent mission…

One thing was certain.

‘I can’t outrun them. I have to fight.’

If possible, he needed to win.

But it didn’t seem impossible.

Hadn’t Laurent said so?

That there were those who entered the battlefield even while just having their 1st Ring.

Crack.

He broke off a suitable branch from a roadside tree and quickly carving pathways for mana to flow.

Just as he finished his makeshift magic wand, a voice rang out.

“Stop right there!”

Zhuge Hyeonmong really did stop.

When he turned around, he saw the two men pursuing him.

A bald man and a man with a mustache.

Both had menacing faces, but they were looking at Zhuge Xianmeng with strangely bewildered expressions.

‘What is this fellow plotting?’

It was the first time they’d seen someone actually stop when told to stop.

That unexpected move actually made the two men pause and gave Zhuge Hyeonmong the chance to caught his breath and spoke.

“Did Master Ma send you?”

“…!”

His simple question sent shivers down their spines. They hadn’t even exchanged a single word yet, but he’d immediately guessed why they were here.

They felt something uncanny about this man, a palpable pressure emanating from this seemingly harmless scholar.

Perhaps that’s the reason why the two immediately lunged at him.

The bald man charged forward, the mustachioed man close behind.

And from their reaction, Zhuge Hyeonmong became certain that Ma Jin-gwang had indeed sent them.

‘So it really was him…’

He felt a pang of disappointment but didn’t show it and spoke while feigning composure.

“Did you think I’d be unprepared, knowing you’d come?”

Zhuge Hyeonmong thought.

‘The bait is set.’

Anything that happened from now on could be attributed to his supposed “preparations.”

‘They’re definitely masters.’

He didn’t have an eye for martial arts, but there was no way those with such movements were ordinary.

He wouldn’t bother with a slippery surface as no masters worth their salt would fall just because the ground is slippery.

After seeing what Allen did, he was even less inclined to do so.

So he thought in reverse.

‘If I can make things slippery, I can do the opposite too.’

The reversal of formulas learned in the dream.

Using those principles and formulas, he dismantled the original formula, reversed it, and reconstructed it.

Zhuge Hyeonmong flicked his makeshift wand in reverse.

After constructing the formula, Zhuge Hyeonmong concentrated all his nerves on his eyes.

‘Now!’

The very moment the bald man kicked off the ground to move.

Thud!

In the narrow alley.

Amidst their continuous pursuit, the bald man at the front felt a strange sensation. His foot seemed stuck to the ground, refusing to budge.

Before he could understand why, an impact overwhelmed him.

Because he stopped without warning, the mustachioed man collided with the bald man’s back.

“Ugh!?”

In an instant, the two men tumbled and fell in a heap.

“What’s this!?”

At that moment, Zhuge Xianmeng flicked the magic wand back to its original direction..

The reversed formula returned to its original state as if rewinding time, and the ground became slippery again, causing the men to become entangled in a sweaty mess.

“Argh!?”

“…Damn it!”

The mustachioed man was relatively better off. Even in the slippery situation, he somehow managed to try to push off the bald man’s back to rush at Zhuge Hyeonmong.

Honestly, it could only be described as instinct that he realized it.

Though surprised by the unexpected action, Zhuge Hyeonmong responded quickly as if he had known it would happen.

‘Stick together!’

“Ugh!?”

Just as he had made his own body slippery before.

He made the mustachioed man and bald man’s bodies persistently stick to each other.

Because it spread in the form of a surface rather than a point, the adhesion was much stronger.

As a result, the mustachioed man couldn’t separate from the bald man and instead began experiencing the unpleasant sensation of increased adhesion.

‘What the hell is going on?!’

The mustachioed man shuddered, unable to comprehend this horror-like situation.

What had Zhuge Hyeonmong done?

He simply stood there with a composed face, merely flicking a branch.

Yet, they were completely incapacitated, as if controlled by an unseen force.

‘Does he see through everything?!’

A wave of terror washed over him as realization dawned upon him.