An Outing
It's their honeymoon, too. What a shame.
I glanced at the TV for a moment, then spoke.
"Let's eat."
Kang Jiye nodded.
"Alright."
Another helping of seasoned eggplant landed in my rice bowl. I passed it over to Eldrisa.
"……?"
Watching us slip right back into our routine within seconds, Eldrisa finally spoke up.
"That's it? You're all just moving on?"
I chewed on a pancake as I answered.
"What, are you worried?"
"That's not it. An S-class hunter is basically on my level. Doesn't it seem weird that someone like that just vanished?"
"If it were something we needed to worry about, the Director would have told us."
I might not know about overseas affairs, but the Director had a tight grip on everything involving domestic hunters. Visiting foreign hunters were no exception. And if it was an S-class, there was no way the Director wouldn't know.
Kang Jiye nodded in agreement.
"She's no ordinary person. Whatever we worry about, the Director will handle it faster."
Eldrisa let out a sigh.
"I'll never understand you humans."
I looked at her.
"Then go look into it yourself."
"Excuse me?"
"You're stuck in here all the time too — that has to get stifling. As long as Yena's safety isn't compromised, you're free to move around a bit. The Director would probably love having a witch cooperate."
Eldrisa replied with a look of pure disbelief.
"Do I look like someone who goes around filming detective dramas with humans?"
"Oh— you know the word 'detective drama'?"
"……."
Probably from hanging around Yena all day — she was picking up human culture surprisingly fast.
At that moment, Kang Jiye held out the seasoned eggplant toward me again.
"Don't ignore Eldrisa. She probably knows more than you do, considering all you do is sleep whenever you get the chance."
"I seeee……."
"If you don't eat that, don't expect dinner."
"……."
Seriously, she was shoving it at me with chopsticks just because I kept refusing. I was an adult, you know.
Left with no choice, I opened my mouth wide and bravely chewed. My face crumpled instantly.
Meanwhile, Eldrisa finished her meal and stood up with a thoughtful look on her face.
"Your Majesty."
"Hmm?"
"Are you really giving me free time?"
I tilted my head, chopsticks still in my mouth.
"When did I ever tell you not to go out?"
"Well, no, but of course……."
"Of course?"
"I mean, I'm a witch. Do I really have to explain this?"
I pointed at Kang Jiye with my chin.
"I don't know what you're talking about, but in this house, Mom's the boss. You don't need to ask me."
"So I'm supposed to leave my outing permission to a human……."
"If you don't want to, then don't. Do whatever you want."
Eldrisa frowned.
"What exactly am I supposed to do, then?"
"I told you, I don't know either. You've lived for thousands of years — figure it out yourself. Mom, did you tell her she couldn't go out?"
Kang Jiye answered, looking bewildered.
"No?"
"Then why is she acting like this?"
"I don't know. I just figured she hated going out, like you."
We both turned to stare at Eldrisa, equally baffled.
Eldrisa narrowed her eyes right back at us. She looked suspicious of something, but I couldn't begin to guess what she was thinking.
Then Yena piped up with a bright smile.
"Unnie, are you going on an outing?"
"……Yeah."
"Have fun!"
For some reason, Eldrisa pressed a hand to her forehead, looking thoroughly exhausted. She shook her head and retreated to her room.
A short while later, Eldrisa reappeared in casual clothes, wearing a sharp-looking coat.
"I'm actually going outside."
I nodded.
"Bring back something tasty."
Eldrisa turned to Kang Jiye as well.
"I'm heading out?"
Kang Jiye blinked.
"Yeah…… well. Have a good time."
"Ha. This is genuinely absurd."
With a sigh, Eldrisa opened the front door and stepped outside. She looked frustrated about something, but hopefully she'd sort it out on her own and come back fine.
"What a bonehead. In this freezing weather."
"Hey! I told you to watch your language."
After leaving the house, Eldrisa stopped by a convenience store first.
"Give me the strongest one."
"The strongest one?"
"I said cigarettes."
"Ma'am, you'll need to specify the brand name exactly……."
The part-timer's voice trailed off on its own.
She was taller than him — a man. Long, elegant limbs, frost-sharp eyebrows, and cold eyes. A woman who looked like an elf straight out of a movie was staring at him.
Before even registering her as alluring, he was struck by a beauty so profound she seemed like some noble being from another world.
"Can't you just give me one?"
Eldrisa's attitude as she looked down on the part-timer was thoroughly high-handed. Yet there wasn't a trace of displeasure on his face. If anything, he fretted over not being able to fulfill her request, hurriedly pulling out his smartphone to look something up.
"Ah, well, I don't smoke myself. Just a moment."
After finishing his search, the part-timer selected a pack from the display and offered it respectfully.
"H-how about this? It's called Malé."
Eldrisa looked down at the cigarettes for a moment, then answered.
"Give it."
"Yes. Four thousand five hundred won…… If you don't have money, shall I pay for it? Hehe."
"Don't be ridiculous."
She pulled a fifty-thousand-won bill from her wallet and flicked it with her finger. Tuk!
The bill floated through the air like a flying carpet, folded itself into a note shape, and slipped into the part-timer's front pocket.
"……!"
"Keep the change. Thanks."
The part-timer's mouth fell wide open.
"You're a mage! Thank you! Thank you!"
"Honestly, not even a kick to it."
She pulled out one cigarette and lit it, but the kick was lacking. Eldrisa casually tossed aside the half-smoked one, then pulled about five cigarettes from the pack and stuck them all in her mouth at once.
Snap!
Fwoosh—.
She flicked her fingers, and they all lit up at once. Only then did a hint of satisfaction bloom across Eldrisa's face.
"Ha— humans do make some things well, I'll give them that."
Surprisingly, the aroma was as good as the ones she'd made and smoked alone in the forest. She remembered decades ago, during the subjugation — how furious she'd been when the entire stockpile at her castle got soaked and ruined. That rage felt almost quaint now.
What now?
She perched on a tree branch, staring blankly ahead. It was the outing she'd wanted so badly, but she hadn't planned anything in particular. She'd just been frustrated by the complete lack of safety awareness from those people at home.
Why on earth would they just let a witch like her loose? The Queen was one thing, but even the human Kang Jiye hadn't objected. It wasn't as if they truly saw her as family. No matter how she thought about it, she couldn't figure it out.
"Cough! Cough! Ugh— what's with the cigarette smell."
"Someone must've been smoking on the street. Idiots, the lot of them."
"……."
Eldrisa briefly considered killing the man and woman passing beneath the tree, then dismissed the thought and shot upward. She raced across the vast sky on her broom.
Buzz—
The smartphone in her coat buzzed.
……An unknown number. But it wasn't hard to figure out this was someone from the Hunter Administration. Ever since she'd revealed herself last time, the surveillance around her had grown even tighter.
"Did they lose me?"
She hadn't particularly intended to shake them off. Apparently the watchers' flying skills were just that pathetic.
When she didn't reply, a call came through a few seconds later.
"Who is this?"
"It's the Director."
"Hmm... things must be pretty quiet on your end? Calling a witch and everything."
"Stop for a moment and talk. Slipping out of our sight like that isn't good."
That's right. This is the normal reaction.
A smile crept onto Eldrisa's face without her realizing it. She couldn't understand why seeing the reaction she ought to receive made her feel so at ease.
She spoke into the smartphone.
"I have the Queen's permission."
"That's why I'm asking. Please come back into our agents' field of vision."
"And if I stop, what do I get?"
"Well, what do you want?"
"How are the ones who sealed me doing these days? Suddenly curious."
"Do you truly believe I would tell you that?"
"No? Actually, Yena already looked it up and told me. Good luck."
Eldrisa tossed the smartphone behind her and dove downward.
The human world would be in an uproar now. Just thinking about it made her so delighted she burst into laughter.
"I was bored anyway — perfect. I already warned you, Your Majesty."
The estate of the great magic family Ispellen.
The former family head, Rubenhait, paused mid-stroke with his fountain pen. He slowly closed his eyes, opened them again, and exhaled a deep breath.
"Who's outside?"
"……."
"Don't just stand there — come in. Don't waste your short life like that."
Then came the sound of movement beyond the door, and someone turned the handle. A young blonde girl appeared.
"Hello…… Grandfather."
Rubenhait blinked.
"Ilaine, is it? Your mana has grown denser — I almost didn't recognize you."
His granddaughter rarely visited the annex. Her education was primarily handled by her mother, Edina, and social matters she managed on her own. And when it came to discussing magical knowledge, the gap between their levels was simply too vast.
"Um, I came because I have something to ask you, Grandfather. Are you busy?"
"No. I had restless dreams last night myself and could use someone to talk to. Sit down."
Rubenhait and Ilaine sat across from each other on the sofa and caught up. Even living in the same estate, if their spheres of activity didn't overlap, they rarely communicated — so sitting down for a private conversation like this was truly a long time coming.
"Haha, your father must have been quite shocked."
"Yes. It's been restored now, though."
"But how did Hunter Yoo subdue so many of them alone? He's strong, but delicate work was never his strong suit."
Chief Instructor Yoo Tae-hwan had learned magic from Rubenhait. As his former teacher, he knew his disciple's habits and characteristics well.
Ilaine swallowed.
"About that…… Grandfather. Among humanoid magical beasts, was there any individual that particularly stuck in your memory?"
"Humanoid magical beasts? All of a sudden?"
"Yes. It's important."
Rubenhait gazed at his granddaughter for a moment, then let out a sigh.
"Well, there were so many of them. Be more specific."
"One that was excessively identical to a human. Or one that tried to protect people."
At those words, Rubenhait slowly stroked his chin in thought.
"A human-like individual……."
"Was there none?"
Rubenhait's brow furrowed, then suddenly he smiled.
"None that tried to protect people. But there was one who made an unusual proposal."
"Who was that?"
"The Witch of the Twilight Forest said this before we fought: no insulting each other, and the winner would quietly bury the loser."
Ilaine's mouth fell open.
"Did you accept that proposal?"
Rubenhait nodded.
"I won, so I buried her myself."
"But magical beast corpses are expensive materials."
Rubenhait gave a short laugh.
"Treat her as materials? I couldn't."
"Why?"
"Because she didn't kill the wounded and fought the match honestly. Even though our side outnumbered her."
"……."
"Even the most cruel witch fought with chivalry. Of course I couldn't."
Rubenhait shook his head as he murmured. Ilaine lowered her gaze, thought for a moment, then fidgeted with her fists on her knees.
"Then… did you form some kind of connection with that magical beast, Grandfather?"
"Ilaine."
"Yes?"
Rubenhait looked at Ilaine steadily.
"I think I know what you're troubled about."
"……."
Magical beasts were things you simply killed and that was the end of it. Asking questions like this made her intent perfectly clear.
When Ilaine found herself speechless, Rubenhait gently took her hand and patted the back of it.
"I don't know what you've encountered. But in my entire life, I've never seen a magical beast that was favorable toward humans."
"Ah, about that—"
"But."
"……?"
"Just because I haven't seen it doesn't mean it doesn't exist."
"……!"
Rubenhait himself had been just as surprised in the Twilight Forest. It had been a bizarre experience he never encountered again right up until his retirement as a hunter, so he knew well that the world didn't always operate by common sense alone.
Rubenhait said,
"Don't think too deeply about it, Ilaine. No matter what you ask, I can only give you negative answers. How can I speak of what I've never met? But you might be different. So base your judgment on what you've seen and heard yourself."
Looking at Rubenhait, a spark of clarity lit up in Ilaine's eyes.
"You're right…… Thank you for your words, Grandfather."