The Mage Tower's Representative

Seong Sua glanced over at me with a smile as she drove.

"Thank you so much for coming with me."

"I was worried I might've stuck my nose in and made things awkward for you."

"Not at all. If it hadn't been for Instructor Sung Suho, we might never have convinced Cadet Seo Jieun."

She told me they'd barely managed to talk the girl into enrolling in the first place. As for the field trip, the debate over whether to go at all had already been tilting toward cancellation when the attack happened — and after that, the decision had nearly been made for them.

"I always think this, but… Instructor Sung Suho, you're really something."

"Pardon? Me?"

"Hehe… how do I put it… Sometimes you seem like a little kid, and other times you feel like a teacher who's lived through everything."

"Uh… that's a compliment, right?"

"Of course!"

Seong Sua laughed brightly — then fell suddenly quiet. I figured the silence had grown awkward and was fishing for a new topic when she spoke again, her expression subdued.

"I'm sorry about earlier."

"Sorry for what?"

"Well… I kind of cornered you over something weird."

Only then did I remember how she'd grilled me about my relationship with Park Huiyeon. I hadn't cared enough to hold onto it, so I'd completely forgotten.

"There's nothing to apologize for. Did something happen between you and Hero Park Huiyeon?"

"It's just… she was one of the more aggressive seniors back in the day, so I got worried."

Rough around the edges and a little self-centered, sure — but calling her aggressive felt like a stretch. Then again, I had no idea what she'd actually been like as a cadet. Still, it was the first time I'd heard Seong Sua speak so critically of someone else.

I nodded and said,

"My smartwatch happened to be broken that day, so I never got to give her my contact info… Looks like you were imagining something else entirely."

"Th-that's a relief! She's not a bad person, but… getting close to her can get a little exhausting."

What a hell of a warning shot…

That put an end to the Park Huiyeon talk, and we steered the conversation back to what had happened earlier.

"His name was Lee Sehyeong, right?"

"Yes."

"I was pretty startled when he suddenly turned on us."

The butler who'd snapped at Seong Sua so harshly. Even if I'd wanted to forget him, I couldn't.

"He's usually a decent man. It was probably… because of Jieun. Please don't take it to heart."

"Hmm…"

I wanted to let it go. I really did. But a man using an alias, a demonic disposition, a personality that flipped on a dime — and that strange master-servant dynamic…

Well, after living with the family so long, he might just be something like a private tutor.

A butler isn't a mere servant. They're more like a chief of staff — the ones who keep a household running. The kind of people who can push back hard even against the master of the house.

…Hopefully I never have to see him again.

That argument hadn't exactly left a glowing first impression.

One last thing crossed my mind.

Armonia — are Seo Jieun's parents famous?

Right. I'll look into it later. If they really are famous, not knowing could become a problem.

It wasn't urgent, but if people were calling Seo Jieun someone to look up to, her parents had to be well-known. No harm in finding out.

"I apologize for calling everyone in on a weekend. I'll get straight to the point — the Magic Department field trip will proceed as planned."

At the principal's words, the Magic Department instructors and assistant instructors packed into the conference room began to murmur. A few voiced their concerns, but Principal Oh Jin-ho made his resolve unmistakably clear.

"I understand your worries. But I ask you to remember that the safety of our cadets today does not guarantee their safety tomorrow."

"…"

"Furthermore, the Tower has contacted us. The Wise Stars themselves will personally instruct the cadets this time."

"!"

The principal's announcement hit the room like a shockwave. Even Seong Sua, who'd been sitting quietly until then, went wide-eyed and asked if he was serious.

"And more importantly, this time the Magic Department instructors will…"

The principal was about to continue when the conference room door opened and someone walked in. Standing near the entrance as I was, I locked eyes with the newcomer the moment they entered.

Huh? It's that little kid from last time.

The one they'd called the head of the Tower, or something like that. She spotted me the instant she stepped inside and began staring up at me without blinking.

I was about to ask Armonia to pull up her disposition when every single person in the room shot to their feet, staring at the little girl in stunned disbelief.

"Y-Yeriel?!"

"Ah… sorry. I was just passing by and overheard talk about the Tower, so I decided to come in."

She glanced at me once more, then approached the principal.

"Forgive me for barging in."

"It's quite all right."

"Since the matter I requested was just coming up, I thought it best to deliver it myself."

The little girl called Yeriel began calmly addressing the Magic Department instructors.

"I take it you've already heard the field trip is going forward… and you all know that because the Magic Department has so few cadets, every single one of them will be attending."

Unlike the Martial Department, the Magic Department saw its numbers drop sharply with each advancing year. Injuries, talent shortfalls, crushed spirits — for any number of reasons, the gap between incoming freshmen and graduating seniors routinely exceeded a factor of ten. There was no need to cherry-pick the top students, and no need for a lottery either. Every Magic Department cadet was already an elite.

"And… to get to the point, I've come here in person because I want all of you to participate in this field trip yourselves."

"Ah…"

Among the Magic Department instructors, Seong Sua was about the only one who looked relieved. Everyone else wore faintly awkward expressions. Teaching cadets was already enough of a chore — babysitting them on-site for a field trip was hardly what any of them wanted. Still, none of them let that dissatisfaction show on their faces.

When the group chairman walks in, claps you on the shoulder, and hands you a project, nobody's crazy enough to talk back.

I snickered inwardly and looked at Yeriel.

Armonia, show me her disposition.

Hmm… more people using aliases than I expected…

Unlike Go Chungshin or Gi Cheolho, though, this one had a strangely cute feel to it.

Her blank expression and quiet demeanor made her personality hard to read from appearance alone, but her traits painted the picture of someone born with a sage's temperament. Then again, mixed in among them were things like [Suspicion] and [Piercing Eyes] — enough to make you wonder if this kid was actually a battle-hardened old woman wearing a child's face.

And then…

Why is she staring a hole through me like that…

No way! Some little brat ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠just challenged me to a staring contest — I'm not backing down!

Yeriel closed her eyes, and the staring contest was mine. As my prize, the meeting finally wrapped up.

"All right, that concludes today's meeting. Please prepare for tomorrow's field trip."

With the meeting over, I stepped out of the conference room and immediately fell into conversation with Seong Sua.

"Looks like we'll be stuck together all week."

"I look forward to working with you."

The Magic Department field trip would be handled by each class's instructor paired with their assistant instructor. No reason to mix things up — the natural arrangement.

I was about to ask Seong Sua what kind of preparations the field trip required when a voice cut in.

"We keep running into each other."

"Ah! Yeriel."

Yeriel walked over and started boring holes through me with her eyes again.

Don't tell me she came back for revenge because she lost the staring contest?!

…Wait. Was that a dig at me?

Seong Sua read the room instantly and began introducing me.

"Ah, Yeriel — this is Instructor Sung Suho. He co-manages the Magic Department with me."

"Hello. Assistant Instructor Sung Suho."

"That… Instructor Sung Suho…"

"…?"

Seong Sua was giving me a look of mild distress when Yeriel extended her hand for a handshake.

"I'm Yeriel. Nice to meet you."

"A pleasure."

I reached out and took her tiny hand — and the moment our palms met,

Fwoosh!

"!!"

"Huh?!"

"Hm?"

The instant Yeriel shook my hand, her face twisted into an expression of pure shock I'd never seen from her before. She tore her hand free and yanked her arm back against her chest at lightning speed.

She wasn't the only one startled. I was stunned too — and Seong Sua, catching the whole exchange, looked back and forth between us in alarm.

"Did I… somehow give offense?"

"…"

Yeriel didn't answer. She simply stared at me with raw wariness in her eyes. After several long seconds of that guarded look, she kneaded her palm, then set her face back to neutral.

"Sorry. I suddenly got a jolt of static…"

"…Right."

Had ten million volts just shot out of my hand like I was Pikachu?

While I stood there looking thoroughly bewildered, Yeriel glanced between Seong Sua and me, then spoke to her.

"Could I speak with you alone for a moment?"

"Ah… yes, of course."

"Then I'll take my leave. Excuse me…"

I bowed to both of them and made my exit. Even as I walked away, Yeriel's eyes never left my back.

Holy hell… over a hundred years old?

According to Armonia, the little girl called Yeriel was roughly a hundred and thirty. At that point she wasn't preservative-treated skin — she was the preservative itself.

Huh? What do you mean? Isn't that in the records?

I'd better watch my mouth, then.

On top of that, something about her put me off. It wasn't that I disliked Yeriel — it was the way she was watching me far more carefully than she should. Getting close didn't look like it would end well.

I thought back to the payback I'd dealt Park Huiyeon and Oh Jin-ho.

I'd better not pull any of that reckless crap this time.

Back then I'd done it out of pure spite. This time, even if something rubbed me ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the wrong way, I needed to keep myself in check.

Those Wise Stars?

According to Armonia, they were a group of mages with formidable skill. If I went around doing anything half as suspicious as I had with Park Huiyeon and Oh Jin-ho, I wouldn't skate by nearly as easily.

Fine. I'll be careful… Might as well go grab some food.

It was dinnertime, and I was heading for the cafeteria when —

Poke. Poke.

"Hm?"

Someone jabbed me in the side from behind. When I turned around, the person standing there was —

"Where have you been all day?"

Cho Seohyun.

"…So you're telling me that the second the field trip ended, you went straight to a cadet's house, came back, and walked right into a meeting?"

"Yes."

Cho Seohyun speared a piece of pork cutlet with her fork, sighed, and started muttering to herself.

"What an idiot…"

"Pardon?"

Why? Why am I an idiot…

"You need to learn how to say no sometimes. You can't just take every single request that comes your way. You've been exhausted all week, and now you're going out of your way to make it worse…"

"Haha… but it's a cadet issue. If one of my Martial Department students had the same problem, I would've done exactly the same thing."

"…"

Cho Seohyun's mouth twitched, and she let out a snort.

"Well… I'll give you credit for working hard."

She smiled, then stuffed the pork cutlet into her mouth and started chewing. Eating with her felt a bit like having dinner with a kid.

She caught my gaze, fidgeted, and opened her mouth.

"Come to think of it… this week… after the field trip ends, do you have any free time?"

"…? Yes. Once work is done, I'm free whenever."

"Then this weekend…"

Cho Seohyun was still hemming and hawing, trying to get the words out, when —

"Hello."

"…Wh-what are you doing here?"

Yeriel set her tray down beside her, grunted her way up onto the chair, and spoke.

"You think I came here for fun?"

"Ugh…"

Yeriel looked at Cho Seohyun's tray, then started needling her with a perfectly blank face.

"You still love pork cutlet, huh?"

"Hey! Liking something isn't a crime!"

"I only said, 'You like pork cutlet, huh?'"

"Argh…"

After thoroughly teasing Cho Seohyun, Yeriel turned and locked her stare onto me once more. The very person I'd just resolved to avoid was now sitting down to dinner with us.

I'm going to need a lot of water.

Her gaze was so intense my throat went dry. I made several trips to the water cooler just to keep drinking.