30. Don't Worry. I'm a Thief.
30. Don't Worry. I'm a Thief.
30. Don't Worry. I'm a Thief.
Han Yu-wol and Angela.
The two of them walked ahead, guiding me.
'...What am I supposed to do.'
The object.
Whatever trick I tried, the item NAVI was protecting was going to be stolen regardless.
A byproduct of a gate.
Not from Korea, but from Russia.
A Magic Stone taken from the boss of an S-rank Gate that appeared in Moscow, the capital.
And it wasn't merely an S-rank Magic Stone—it was practically a living Magic Beast.
A Magic Stone is called the core of a Magic Beast.
If you separate it from the body, the beast dies.
But the S-rank Magic Beast known as 'Fenrir of Moscow' was the exception.
That wolf-shaped creature.
In an episode that takes place later, the resurrected Fenrir attacks cities in South Korea.
An incident I can't prevent right now.
Since I can't stop the worst-case scenario of Fenrir, I settle for the next-worst: kidnapping Ban Ha-na.
Therefore, my current objective was to escape with Ban Ha-na.
"Huh? Si-jun. Why are you staring?"
"No reason."
As I watched Han Yu-wol walking ahead, I kept a close eye on Ban Ha-na.
A pure, carefree face.
'This feels kind of like luring a kid away with candy...'
Maybe that's just me.
The faint sense of guilt was probably only in my head.
Clack. Clack.
Our footsteps echoed on the marble as we arrived at an elevator on the outskirts of the building.
"You're not supposed to be here—"
"Shut up."
Han Yu-wol's hand touched the man who looked like a security guard, and he collapsed unconscious.
"Huh...?"
Angela voiced her confusion at the sight.
She seemed unable to understand Han Yu-wol's actions.
After pushing the man aside and stepping into the elevator, Angela immediately questioned Han Yu-wol.
"Deputy Leader. Why didn't you kill him? That's not like you."
"It was boring. And the kids get startled, you know?"
"Ugh... Kids, she says..."
Angela had probably never seen Han Yu-wol spare anyone before.
She glanced back and forth between us and let out a dry laugh.
"Hah. You just want to look good, right? Isn't that it? Pretty boy?"
"..."
Han Yu-wol held back from killing someone because she was conscious of my gaze? Did that even make sense?
Not a chance.
Would someone like Han Yu-wol really care about what I think?
It wasn't worth replying to, so I said nothing.
"Well, I get that you two have some kind of thing going on, but don't interfere with the mission. Too bad today's your last day, huh?"
"Wh-What kind of thing...?"
"There is no 'thing.' Miss Ha-na. Don't mind her."
Han Yu-wol's voice came out in an icy whisper.
A hint of anger had slipped into it.
"Si-jun. What's your relationship?"
"Kidnapper and kidnapped."
What else could it be?
Ding!
As we talked, the elevator we had called announced its arrival.
The banquet hall was on the 32nd floor.
The floor we stepped out on was the 50th.
After ascending roughly eighteen floors, the dark interior of the building greeted us.
In that space lit only by small lights, a human figure approached.
'Doesn't look like an enemy.'
The person coming closer was An Da-il, whom I'd often seen in the study.
She appeared to have already subdued the guards on this floor.
'Or killed them.'
There was no blood visible, so I couldn't say for certain.
"...Follow me."
"Still as rude as ever."
An Da-il spoke a single word and then listened to Angela grumble.
Seeing things like this, it's no wonder Ban Ha-na didn't grow up normally.
It was a moment that solidified my opinion on her upbringing.
The hallway was silent.
There were many rooms, but no sound came from any of them.
If this was where the S-rank Magic Stone was kept, all these rooms were probably filled with weapons, armor, and artifacts.
'...I think I understand now.'
Walking through that quiet hallway, I began to grasp why they had taken me as their hostage.
The absence of a mana core.
The security was embarrassingly lax for a place run by NAVI Enterprise.
If the S-rank Magic Stone was being stored here, they never would have posted such a thin guard—assuming the thief was an ordinary person. Every person has magic power, and NAVI built its fame on technology that reads the properties of magic.
"Here. We're here."
Angela spoke with a smile instead of her usual finicky expression.
She stood in front of a certain door and gestured.
"Go inside and bring out the rock at the very end. Your task ends there."
The theft of an S-rank Magic Stone.
That was why they had kidnapped me, someone who doesn't register on mana detection.
'The CCTV was most likely neutralized with hacking.'
When they raided Hero Academy, they knew exactly where every camera was installed in the testing grounds and smashed them all.
A crime where the only trace left behind is the fact that it was stolen, with no one being caught.
"Hurry up. We don't have time."
Angela rushed me because they were currently blocking the CCTV.
I glanced at Ban Ha-na standing beside me, then pushed my body toward the door.
Sssssh...
A chill washed over me.
No, it was probably mana.
A residual mana field meant to confirm whether an intruder had entered.
So long as I didn't wake the Golem Core slumbering inside my body, there was no risk of detection.
And the bigger reason they needed me here was.
'That's horrifying... It won't just fire on its own all of a sudden, right...?'
Dozens of firearms installed for security. They all seemed to discharge mana, and each muzzle was about the size of a cannon.
A room full of barrels aimed at me.
I approached the palm-sized Magic Stone that sat in the center.
The Magic Stone of an S-rank Magic Beast.
'...It's immense.'
Not its size—the quantity of mana. It pulsed as though it were still alive, and it puzzled me why NAVI possessed such a thing in the first place.
'Perhaps they didn't trust the Association.'
They were a corporation hardened by experience. They probably knew about the Association's corruption well enough, so they might have taken custody themselves.
"Still, their security was way too lax."
The more you trusted in magic power, the steeper the price.
Coerced as I was, I placed my hand on the Magic Stone of that S-rank Magic Beast—the core of Fenrir.
—Grrrrr...
"Wh-What the?"
A wolf's growl suddenly rang out.
Startled by the abrupt noise, I pulled my hand away, and the sound ceased. Could it have come from the Magic Stone? I placed my hand on it again.
—Grrrrr...
...It's real.
The Magic Stone was growling as if to say, 'I'm still alive in here!'
I don't get it.
While that was happening, among the growls, comprehensible speech flowed into my ears.
—Human. What.
"What...? I'm here to take you away."
—You. Not. Qualified.
"The hell do you mean, qualified... You're just a rock."
What nonsense.
I ignored Fenrir's words and simply picked up the Magic Stone.
BWEEE-EEENG...!!
The moment I lifted the Magic Stone, a siren blared.
A quiet exit was apparently impossible.
They must have decided the convenience during the process was good enough.
Now Black Dawn only needed to use Ban Ha-na's ability and run.
—Qualified. Weak. Still. Rude.
"What are you on about? Hey, wait—!"
The wolf's speech mixed with the siren.
And at the same time, the Magic Stone began to writhe and gush out mana at a terrifying speed.
"What the hell—!"
A curse escaped me automatically.
The mana that poured from the Magic Stone was sucked into my heart, where the Golem Core resided.
And then, as if nothing had happened, the flow stopped and the stone ceased its activity entirely.
"...What?"
An incomprehensible situation.
But there was no time to mull it over; the siren kept blaring.
'Ah, forget it.'
Let's just get out first.
Think after we're out.
I stepped out the door and faced the waiting members of Black Dawn.
"You're late! You idiot! Give that here."
Angela, irritation and all, snatched the Magic Stone from my hand and tucked it into her coat.
I decided not to mention what had happened in the room. If I did, they'd probably kidnap me again and hold me responsible.
After securing the Magic Stone, Angela gave me a parting greeting.
"Hope I never see you again. Be grateful I let you live."
"...Whatever."
I ignored the grumbling Angela and looked at Ban Ha-na.
"...Okay!"
Ban Ha-na nodded as if she had made up her mind.
She activated her unique ability, the Space Rift.
'...So that's Black Dawn's escape method.'
Ban Ha-na could create rifts in space and use them at will. Any place she had visited once, she could reach again through those rifts.
In V. AGE, it was an utterly heinous ability that could tear a whole city through the rift and drop it into the ocean.
Ban Ha-na used those rifts to send her comrades away.
"Si-jun."
"...Yes?"
In that moment, Han Yu-wol approached me.
She had returned to her usual demeanor and whispered into my ear with a smile.
"We'll see each other again, won't we?"
"That's... probably not going to happen?"
"Hearing you say we will makes me truly happy. Well then, see you next time."
Goodbye.
At the same time, Han Yu-wol pressed her lips to my cheek.
"Wh-What? What's wrong with her?"
Is she actually interested in me?
If it's that woman, I sincerely decline.
While those thoughts were spinning, Angela and An Da-il had already departed through the rift, and Han Yu-wol was the last one about to leave.
"Um... Yu-wol...! Give my regards to Grandpa...! I'll come back a little later...!!"
"...?"
Han Yu-wol cocked her head and stepped into the rift.
With that, the small spatial rift that had been swallowing people disappeared.
"...You really did stay, Ha-na."
"Yeah! I'm going to attend school with you!"
Yes, that innocent cheer suits you.
"Hehe..."
I stroked her hair for a moment.
Several dozen seconds after the Black Dawn members vanished, armed people came swarming toward us.
"Freeze! You're under arrest!"
"Yes, please arrest me."
"Under... Under arrest...? Si-jun, we're not escaping? We're getting arrested...?"
Ban Ha-na grabbed my sleeve. I left behind her shout of 'You tricked me!'
And with that, the uncomfortable cohabitation with the villains, both brief and long, came to an end.