The Three Years I Studied at Magic Academy Were the Most Unforgettable Seven Years of My Five-Year Life

Lin Lai transmigrated to a magic continent as a low-level mage, but with one twist: he was also the headmaster of a magic academy.

He packaged the magic academy as a full-dive game, summoning real-world players to work for free (crossed out) and help build the academy together.

And so a group of players appeared, dressed in beginner mage robes and wearing names above their heads like [Steal Your Underwear], [Mom Says If Your Name Is Long Enough Some Idiot Will Read It], and [Helping an Old Cockroach Cross the Street].

*

Lin Lai: "What counts as completing the quest?"

System: "The requirement for determining that the magic academy has been successfully built is having your first graduate. Until the quest is complete, the System will provide the Host with three million in construction funds each month."

So as long as no one ever graduated, he'd keep getting three million in construction funds every month.

Lin Lai, who had stars in his eyes at the sight of money, declared that graduation was a word no one at his academy had ever heard of.

Then, out of consideration for his first-year students, he arranged courses in Spellcasting, Potion Making, Wandcraft, Magical Artifacts, the History of Magic, Magical Creatures, and more.

A small exam every three days, a major exam every five, and a comprehensive review every month.

Every single one counted directly toward graduation eligibility.

To graduate from Spellcasting, students had to master every spell in the encyclopedia and publish an original paper on spellcraft with a plagiarism score of zero percent.

For Wandcraft, they had to make three top-tier wands by hand, using core materials found only as random drops in academy dungeons. The quality, attributes, and traits were all random.

Then there were the torturous courses in Magical Creatures, Magical Artifacts, Magical Sociology, and more.

Players: ? Does this game actually want us to graduate or not?

Headmaster Lin Lai: The outside world is too dangerous. He just wants every student to develop morally, intellectually, physically, aesthetically, and socially. What's wrong with that?

And so the most difficult magic academy to graduate from in the history of the continent came into being.

*

Before the academy tournament, Lin Lai was still worried:

His students spent every day cooped up at the academy, learning in theory but never putting it into practice. Wouldn't their first encounter with real mages be a crushing blow?

The players were worried too:

If they couldn't even graduate from the beginner village, how terrifying would the high-level NPCs outside be?

Their opponents sneered: "How good can a bunch of country bumpkins who've never competed be?"

Then, at the tournament, the players solemnly recited their spells, ready to fight the opposing academy's contestants for three hundred rounds. The next second

The other team was wiped out.

The players had always believed the beginner village was just a tutorial area, and that the headmaster and teachers were obviously protecting the newbies.

Until the tournament.

Players: "..."

Wait.

Was this academy really a beginner village?

People from outside: Wait, you call these first-years?

If this is the level of your first-years, how terrifying must your headmaster be?

Is this game even right?

Where's that terrifying magic continent?

Didn't they say the magic academy was a beginner village?

This is hilarious. They left the headmaster's protective umbrella and discovered it wasn't even raining outside.

Theme: Growing together.