Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Mommy!
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“Yeah, I told you just calling would be enough, so why bother tracking me down?”
“Ah~ It's exciting just thinking about meeting you. Hehe.”
“...”
Well, long story short, I got caught. Or rather, it was a game of hide-and-seek I had no chance of winning. She's an active hero, after all. I'm just a trainee candidate with no mana to speak of.
Even if I hid, she'd sniff me out with her unique mana ability, Psychometry.
It was a total mismatch. Yeah. Still, let's chalk up my attempted escape to some desperate denial of reality.
By the way, since Raphael said she could head back, I'd entrusted Lachesis to her and sent them both to the dorm ahead of time.
“Yes. So you two were summoned as victims. No need to worry—just give your statements about the incident.”
“Got it.”
I glanced at Isia, who was nodding along beside me. She sensed my gaze and flinched when our eyes met!
“You got dragged in too?”
“Huh? Oh, no? I came because they called me...”
At her words, I turned to Julia. Her pink hair swayed as she averted her eyes. She was whistling, only to drop her pipe.
Why keep chomping on a pipe that doesn't even smoke?
I knew if I asked, she'd just say, “It makes me look like a detective.” She wanted me to bite, so I ignored it.
“Our interrogation team managed to pull a few details out of Park Shin-woo. Nothing crucial—important stuff's shielded by magic—but we did learn a bit.”
The sharp, nameless assistant flipped through his files as he spoke. Even I was curious about this.
Why had the incident been moved up? If it wasn't because of me, I'd regret yesterday's mess forever.
“Uh, um. Can I really say this?”
“What is it? I haven't seen it yet either. Just brief me like it's a report.”
“Ah, yes. Understood. According to Park Shin-woo, Isia's kidnapping was originally planned to be more elaborate.”
Right. It was supposed to happen later, with more buildup than this rushed job.
“But on the first day of school, he got beaten by some no-name scrub he didn't even know—and not content with that, seeing her turned into a maid made him worry her value as a hostage would drop if he waited longer—”
“...”
“...”
I had nothing to say, so I hung my head. For real? Seriously? If that's the case, I have no face to show. No words at all. I tried to look away, but the piercing glare from beside me stung.
Still, you know? I'd planted the seed, and I'd reaped it? Credit to my efforts?
If you think about it, wasn't it Isia's fault for losing to me?
Yeah. I did nothing wro—
“I'm sorry.”
“Yeah.”
—ng. Of course not~.
Nothing special happened. I just answered their questions.
How'd I avoid the sleep spell?
No idea. People around me suddenly dropped.
How'd the Cooking Club on the opposite side rescue you?
I was scoping things out when I ran into them by chance.
Etc. I stuck to my prepped answers, and it wrapped up quick. Isia, who'd gone first, was already gone, and the assistant typing my statement smiled and said we were done.
I bowed and tried to slip out fast. But.
“Seong-hoon.”
Pink hair blocked the exit, beaming a smile. So that's why she'd let Isia go first.
Julia.
She was a detective who showed up mid-story in the original. Meaning, whenever Kim Tae-hyun got tangled in some case, she'd drop the clues to solve it.
A side character so vaguely helpful I'd made her up for convenience. Now that convenience was anything but.
Arms crossed, holding that smokeless pipe in one hand.
Classic detective pose—but no smoke from the pipe.
Getting on this girl's radar was bad news. Once something piqued her interest, she'd bulldoze through anything and pester people relentlessly.
A grown woman who was totally self-centered and thought only of herself. In a word: troublemaker.
That was Julia.
That's why I'd avoided her as much as possible. Where the hell had her interest in me come from? No way she'd seen me hop on that [Portable Warp Device], right?
Cold sweat dripped as that thought gripped me, but what came out of her mouth was something else entirely.
“Department store.”
“Pardon?”
She grinned. That smile sent chills down my spine.
“Why'd you vanish from the department store all of a sudden? Hm? The other trainees think you held them off from the opposite side~”
Ah. Then it clicked. She must be handling the department store raid case.
In the original, the building was supposed to collapse, but since it didn't, they assigned her instead of the damage control team.
Should've told Benia to just wreck it after all.
Her eyes probed me, still smiling.
What now. How much did she know? Even with Psychometry, she couldn't trace my meetup with Benia.
Annoying woman I'd dodged, and now she shows up with even more hassle.
“I ran.”
“Ran? Heh. The guy who took down a drake that easily?”
Looked easy, huh? I dropped a few steel beams! Must seem simple to outsiders. I was risking my neck dropping them.
“I'm ranked 1028th. After bagging one, I realized I didn't belong there—”
“Pfft! Ah, sorry. No, go on.”
Damn, this woman annoyed me. I'd tripped her infamous 'gut feeling'.
She'd pegged me as connected to the incident and was probing. No idea who designed her, but her skills were legit.
Still, I couldn't just blurt, “I snuck off and nabbed the ringleader.”
Sorry to Julia's triumphant grin, but I knew her playbook.
Her Psychometry could verify truths, backed by killer intuition and brains—but it wasn't foolproof.
Tell her what I did at the store, and she'd sprint from floor 1 to 100 checking every inch.
So use that against her.
“I ran. Floor 50, I think? The girl I was with had flight powers, so she pried open an elevator and we escaped through the shaft.”
“Huh?”
She faltered at my unexpected reply, but I pressed on.
“Went all the way down to the basement, waited till things quieted, then slipped out. Reasons are personal; can't share.”
Weave lies artfully into truth. Basic misdirection, but it worked best on her.
My Benia meetup was in her created space, the [Lair]. No Psychometry there. Everything else actually happened.
“So don't hassle innocent folks.”
I shot her a smug look. Payback for earlier—she knew I don't take hits lying down.
“Wait, hold on—”
“And.”
I halted her grab, pointing a finger. If I left it like this, she'd dig deeper out of spite.
And if she somehow sniffed out Benia.
If word of Benia reached the 'villain's' ears.
My life was toast. If the villain came gunning for real, even Lachesis couldn't save me—I'd last ten seconds tops.
So, countermeasure time. Simple: keep Julia swamped. Too buried to obsess over me.
“Dig into the up-and-coming nightclubs in Seoul real good.”
With that, I left the interrogation room, ignoring her stunned face. That'd keep her busy for months. She'd forget the store naturally. About me... hopefully.
—Where you going?
—To Psychometry the department store!! Made that face right in front of me?! If it's a lie, you're dead!! Pull every nightclub list in Seoul!!!
Ah. Sorry, assistant guy. I silently mourned him and his overtime as the yelling echoed behind.
I got back to the dorm and flopped onto the bed. Yesterday wrecked me physically; today was all mental fatigue.
“What's up with you, Erayoung?”
“Nothing much. Just yesterday's stuff.”
Ahang. Raphael gave a half-hearted reply while munching snacks, legs kicking in the air as she watched TV.
Beside her lounged a silver-haired girl with cat ears—she'd been sticking to human form lately.
Reason? Easier snacking or whatever. I left them be and opened [Menu] for the first time in ages.
Predictably, [Skills]. A flood of blue windows assaulted me.
Points piled up huge. Miscellaneous bits added on, enough for a skill purchase with change.
Somehow, it felt like reward for all my past suffering—my chest swelled with emotion.
Total: [2,754,500P]. No urgent buys now, but time for something new.
Namely.
「Heaven's Blessing (EX)」 「Scythe Mastery (A+)」 「Empty Slot」
[Mindmap expansion available for certain skills.]
Mindmap expansion time. Honestly, I'd bought 「Scythe Mastery (A+)」 and barely used it. Handled most with steel beams.
But from now on, I'd need it. Ranking matches soon, lots of PvP training—no smashing people with beams.
No hesitation—I tapped 「Scythe Mastery (A+)」.
「Scythe Mastery (A+)」
[Increases understanding and proficiency with scythes. Wield like an extension of your limbs. Bonuses to specific actions.]
[This skill supports mindmap expansion.]
[Expand? Y/N]
Obviously YES. A new window popped up.
Tons of bonus types. Pick one? I got the gist. Mulled options, then moved my finger.
[Bonus: Decapitation - 10,000P]
[Expand mindmap?]
YES, no doubt. Not because 'decapitation' sounded cool. Absolutely not.
After buying it, other options turned blue.
[Initial mindmap allows up to 2 purchases.]
Focus and specialize, huh? Nodded and grabbed [Bonus: Throw] next—seemed solid.
Remaining options went red: [Purchase Locked].
Then.
Bought a few branches from [Bonus: Decapitation] and [Bonus: Throw]. Not too many—skills pop up anytime. Wanted points spare.
Satisfied with my shopping spree, I checked Benia's status via Inventory.
There, an unbelievable line.
Mommy!