The Tower Steps In
Ye-riel stared at the principal's office door long after Sung Suho had left, her dark eyes endless and unblinking, then finally spoke.
"Who was that man?"
"An assistant instructor at the Hero Academy."
"…"
The moment she heard the principal's answer, Ye-riel closed her eyes and settled calmly onto the sofa. The principal took the seat directly across from her and bowed his head with careful humility.
"I'm sorry for making you come out here again."
"It's fine. Tell me the school's position."
"Yes… In light of the incident during the Physical Department field trip, we're considering postponing the Magic Department visit."
"…"
Most Physical Department field trips funneled cadets toward the major guilds. The Church and the Tower both kept an eye on Physical Department students, but because their core strengths lay elsewhere, the cut-off for accepting Physical Department graduates was extremely high. The Church specialized in recovery mages; the Tower specialized in mages. Which meant the Tower's real concern was never the Physical Department visits—it was the Magic Department ones. And since the Tower itself oversaw most of those Magic Department field trips, losing this opportunity was the last thing they could afford.
Yet a blunder on the Church's side now threatened to damage the Tower as well—which was precisely why Ye-riel, the Tower's representative, had come in person.
Still seated, she murmured almost to herself.
"At this point, would it be fair to take that as deliberate interference on their part?"
"…I don't believe the Church did this intentionally."
"We still haven't received any information on our end. Would you walk me through what actually happened?"
"Of course."
The principal summarized the Church's report as carefully as he could, stripping out anything that might cause further trouble. The Church's heroes had rated the cadets highly, taken them into a dungeon matching that assessment—and then been ambushed by unknown assailants.
"…Hearing only that, I don't see any clear intent."
"Exactly. The Church has no reason to deliberately damage its own standing right now."
"I understand. But please don't postpone the Magic Department field trip over it. The Physical Department cadets who visited us this time weren't the problem, were they?"
"Ahem… I have every confidence in the Tower's capabilities, but…"
The Hero Academy had been attacked. VR capsules had been stolen. And now even a field trip that had been running without incident had gone wrong. Even a principal who had once been a hero still carried responsibility. With so many crises stacking up in such a short span, even a man who normally acted boldly couldn't help but hesitate.
The attack and the theft were clearly the same people… but if the field trip incident was their work too…
There was no guarantee the next one would go smoothly either. The ones hunting you always stayed a step ahead of the ones being hunted.
"…"
Reading the principal's expression, Ye-riel made her request again, as politely as she could.
"I understand your position. But this is something that has to happen eventually. Delaying it doesn't guarantee it'll be any safer."
"Ahem…"
The truth was, what mattered most wasn't whether problems arose—it was how well you handled them when they did. Cadets had already taken their first step toward becoming heroes. The ones who'd gone to the Church had run into trouble, yes—but in the end, they'd gained experience that would serve them for the rest of their lives. And while problems reflecting poorly on the principal was fair enough, indefinitely shelving the trip under the excuse of not wanting the responsibility would almost certainly draw criticism from the government. Something along the lines of, This Hero Academy principal is a coward…
Watching him still struggle to decide, Ye-riel took his position into account and offered a proposal.
"This time, I'll lead the cadets myself—along with the Tower's Wise Stars."
"Y-Ye-riel! There's no need to go that far…"
In all his years as principal, he had never worn a look of such pure shock. And for good reason: not only the head of the Tower, but beings of equal standing to her, would be stepping forward in person.
The Wise Stars.
Those who bore the name of wise stars—equals to Ye-riel herself, the Tower's master. Six in total, each having risen to the pinnacle of the world through a different school of magic.
"Y-Ye-riel… you really don't need to go that far."
"I'm telling you this to show you how seriously we take these cadets."
Every year the Tower had to fight hard to recruit from a limited pool of Magic Department graduates. If an event scheduled for the start of the term got pushed back like this, it could throw every subsequent event into disarray as well.
To anyone unfamiliar with the Tower's internal situation, Ye-riel's behavior would have made no sense. After all, a world-renowned organization like theirs ought to sit at the top of the food chain, treating heroes however they pleased. Reality was different.
The Church, the Tower, the major guilds and the minor ones—for all of them, the ultimate resource was talent. Guilds that had once made a name for themselves, grown complacent, and neglected recruitment had more than once vanished into the history books, leaving nothing but a name behind. That didn't mean heroes were left to run wild once they joined. Good treatment came with responsibility and work. And once heroes got used to that treatment and the money that came with it, they stopped even glancing at lower-tier guilds. That was exactly why guilds scrambled so hard to lock down fresh graduates. Recruiting an active hero meant enormous costs and all kinds of political pushback—but a brand-new graduate, once scouted, could be brought into the fold cheaply and made to feel like they belonged.
"If anything goes wrong, I'll take responsibility."
"Ahem… Problems aren't the problem."
"…"
"Just please make sure the cadets don't get hurt."
As long as they didn't get hurt, he didn't mind if they were worked to the bone. The principal believed that if the cadets' safety was guaranteed, anything else was fair game. He had learned firsthand that hard, dangerous experience was what forged a hero.
"We'll do our best."
"Then I'll leave it in your hands."
"And one more thing…"
"…?"
The principal looked at her attentively, ready to listen. Ye-riel, who had been watching him with her usual flat expression, offered one more proposal.
"As long as we're taking them, I'd like to bring along a few of our people currently serving at the Hero Academy."
"…Understood. I'll call a meeting this evening and discuss it."
And so it was decided: the Magic Department field trip would go ahead as planned.
I walked down the corridor, turning my brand-new smartwatch over in my hands.
Nothing beats a fresh one.
Grinning to myself, I listened as Armonia finished her briefing.
She looked every bit Korean, though. What's with a name like Ye-riel…
Given how instantly the principal had snapped to attention and started using honorifics, she was almost certainly the same person Armonia had described. I would have liked a look at her disposition, but if she was the head of the Tower, I'd never cross paths with her again anyway. I decided not to care.
I headed straight for the dormitory and dove onto my bed.
Ahhh… I feel alive again. Like coming home after a trip abroad.
Ah, that limited-edition NTL game from Japan…
…
You cold-blooded gas can… I was about to tell you what kind of game it was.
I lay back against the pillow, staring at the ceiling, and thought to myself.
Haa… I'm exhausted.
In a single day yesterday I'd screwed over Park Huiyeon and Oh Jinho, spent the night with Yoon Jia, then gone at it hard again this morning… Everything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours had worn me down far more than touring a string of low-rank dungeons. I felt completely drained.
But I couldn't just close my eyes and rest easy.
I should at least eat lunch, right?
I wasn't particularly hungry, but if the field trip started tomorrow, I might lose any chance to see Seong Sua and Cho Seohyun.
Whatever else, I need to at least talk to the two of them.
No matter how much goodwill they already had toward me, they weren't under subjugation—and I could never afford to treat meeting them as a chore. Even if I did put them under subjugation someday, I wouldn't neglect them… but more than that, once this week was over, I'd finally be heading to Shutra. From their perspective, they'd wake up and see me like always. From mine, I might not see them for weeks. Right now, I wanted every moment I could get.
I made my way to the cafeteria—and found Seong Sua standing right outside the doors.
Glossy hair, a neat casual suit, a demure smile as she waited. Men and women of every age turned their heads without thinking as they passed her.
I was about to greet her when she beat me to it.
"Welcome back. Did everything go well?"
"Yes. Were you waiting for someone?"
Even as I'd approached, she'd been standing at the cafeteria entrance like she was expecting someone. Surely not me.
"That's a little mean, don't you think? I went out of my way to wait."
"Ah… I'm sorry."
This week and next were packed so full I'd assumed we simply wouldn't see each other—so of course I'd figured it wasn't me. We went into the cafeteria together and started eating.
"Instructor Sung Suho. Do you have time today?"
"Uh… I was told to stand by in case they call me in this evening, but until then, yes."
Well… she's probably going to suggest Animal Village, right?
What Seong Sua said next was nothing like what I'd expected.
"Do you remember Cadet Seo Jieun? The one I mentioned before?"
"Ah… the one we talked about visiting?"
A cadet who couldn't properly use magic—whether the problem was physical or mental, no one knew. Sua had suggested we visit her home once. But with the field trip, I hadn't had the time.
"Yes. It's not confirmed yet, but we might be leaving on the field trip tomorrow, and the visitor from the Tower asked me to go persuade her today."
"Ah… I'd like to come, but the principal told me to stand by."
"Don't worry about that."
Seong Sua lifted the corners of her eyes and smiled.
"I'll speak to him myself."
…
…
I was riding in Seong Sua's car, headed for Seo Jieun's house.
The moment we'd finished eating, Sua had gone straight to the principal, explained the situation, and walked out of the Hero Academy with me in tow. At first I'd assumed she'd simply pull rank as an instructor and drag me along whether he liked it or not. Hearing her explanation cleared up the misunderstanding.
"The Tower must really value Cadet Seo Jieun."
"They do. They take every Magic Department cadet seriously, but that girl had both the Tower and the Church watching her from the day she enrolled."
"Huh…"
Even Song Ara, currently considered a top student, hadn't drawn that kind of attention. She'd been treated reasonably well during the Church field trip, but nothing about the Church's attitude toward her had stood out from how they treated ordinary cadets. When I'd first heard about Seo Jieun, I'd figured she was just another honor student. Hearing this in person forced me to reassess.
I pulled out the profile of Seo Jieun I'd brought along and studied the photo carefully.
I should at least read through the profile a bit more.
Still… I should at least look like I'm reading it.
Catching a ride in a woman's car was already awkward enough; sitting there doing absolutely nothing would have been worse. I turned to the first page—
…
…
Screeeech—!
The sudden shriek of iron gates snapping open jolted me awake. I blinked and looked around.
"Hwah?"
"Hehe. You're awake?"
"Uh… where are we…?"
I forced my bleary eyes as wide as they would go and took in the surroundings. A comfortable car. Seong Sua watching me with a bright expression. A massive iron gate beyond the windshield. And Seo Jieun's profile still clutched in my hand.
…I fell asleep.
When did I drop off?
…
No wonder I felt so refreshed. I pieced the situation together at once, rubbed my eyes, and apologized to Seong Sua.
"I'm sorry. Falling asleep at a time like this…"
"I'm the one who should apologize. You've been working so hard all week, and because of me you couldn't even rest properly…"
"Not at all. Being with Instructor Seong Sua is rest."
"Oh my…"
I'd mumbled it half-asleep, the words tumbling out without filter.
"I'm sorry. That was a strange thing to say…"
"Oh, stop. It's fine."
Seong Sua started laughing—a soft, private little laugh she almost never let out.
See? Half-asleep nonsense works wonders at times like this.
While we talked, the great gates swung open, and for the first time I set foot on the grounds of a wealthy young lady's grand estate.