Chapter 106
Chapter 106
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 106
Chapter Title: 19. Pursuit
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Not long after that, the people who had gone to rescue Minhee burst into the room where we were, launching a surprise attack. *Bang!* We were thrilled, but then the door flew open with a forceful thud, startling us. They seemed to be looking for us, as they didn't show any surprise at seeing us there.
"Yahoo! Eunha!"
While we were momentarily flustered, someone pushed through the crowd and waved at us. It was Minhee!
"Minhee!"
"Joo Minhee!"
Our faces lit up instantly, and we rushed toward her. Inha and I hugged her at the same time.
"Urgh... Thank goodness... Really, thank goodness..."
"Yeah... really..."
Minhee hugged us back tightly, a bit flustered as she patted our backs.
"Uh, yeah, I'm fine. Actually, I don't remember much, but I heard I was kidnapped? I figured as much. Anyway, I'm back now. So it's all good."
I nodded tearfully. Inha nodded with a composed face, but I couldn't hold back my surging emotions. After all, my friend who had vanished right in front of me had returned safe and sound.
As I clung to Minhee, on the verge of bursting into tears with muffled sobs, another loud *bang* echoed. This time, it wasn't a door—it was the sound of someone punching the wall in rage. Cracks spiderwebbed across the spot where the fist had struck. I stopped crying and looked over with wide, rabbit-like eyes. It was Master who had punched the wall.
"Hey, Mina? What's with the sudden outburst? In the middle of such a heartwarming scene..."
Master glanced at Auntie Seona before approaching me. His footsteps thudded ominously as he strode over with an intimidating presence. He stood before me, looking down with cold eyes.
"Eunha, you were there?"
"W-What?"
I stammered in confusion. The air around us froze at his words, turning icy cold. Master spoke again.
"Were you there?"
I—we—glanced at each other. His eyebrows shot up at our reaction, and he bellowed in fury.
"Are you out of your mind?! Thinking of going to a place like that... Even if you're more skilled than your peers, you're still just a kid! And yet! A place like that...! Not to mention, what kind of magic was that?! How did you hide it even from us...!"
His roaring presence was so overwhelming I couldn't put it into words, forcing me back a few steps. Everyone else stiffened, looking like they wanted to scold me too. I waved my arms frantically.
"N-No! I didn't follow!"
Master scowled at my words.
"What? You think I wouldn't recognize your magic? How many unique spells like that exist in this world? And you dare lie to my face?!"
"I really didn't follow!"
I hesitated before continuing.
"...My body..."
"What?"
A flicker of doubt pierced his angry glare. I rushed on.
"It wasn't like I actually went there in person or anything dangerous. But I was worried, so... I was watching 'in my dream.'"
Master's eyes widened. The teachers who already knew about my dream magic looked stunned, while the seniors and others learning about it now were shocked, flustered, or speechless. Min Teacher said in bewilderment.
"B-But magic...!"
"Right! We were shocked too. It works for her but not us."
"What are you talking about? That's..."
Hansu's words threw everyone into further confusion. I glanced around. Some people here weren't close to me—friends' teachers and alumni seniors I'd only seen in passing. I hesitated before speaking.
"Well, I can use magic in my dreams too."
Master's eyes grew wide with dismay. I kept going.
"You know how my magic has always worked that way. I've been experimenting with using text magic, barrier magic, and illusion magic inside my mental world to navigate the dream realm for a while now. You remember, right?"
Master nodded blankly. I scratched my cheek.
"Well... it seems to work in reality too. Maybe even stronger. So, through the three-dimensional dream world, I can interfere with the one-dimensional real world or... something like that. It was my first try, but it worked."
According to Master, my mana capacity now rivaled an adult's— at least D-rank level. My magic had always been high-level to begin with. Illusion Dream is based on dreams, and Dream Reality manifests in the real world but still builds on dreams. Text magic is incantations, barriers are world creation. Yes, a world. Spacetime magic.
Thinking about it, I had all the conditions to make it possible.
Master was speechless, clutching his forehead in bewilderment.
"How is this even..."
I was amazed too. Who knew I could cast magic in a dream and manifest it in reality? Everyone else looked incredulous. Minhee's teacher, especially shocked, pressed Master eagerly.
"Without unique magic, just with willpower? I've never heard of such a precedent."
"Magic is magic. It bypasses the 'dream' itself."
"So the spells from before really were this child's... Even the dispel..."
Minhee's teacher and Master continued their serious discussion. Seeing shock etch onto their usually lazy faces confirmed it was indeed astonishing. No wonder—I was still dazed myself.
Then Minhee's teacher pestered me curiously, only to get swatted by Min Teacher and Master.
The heavy silence didn't last long. We hugged Minhee again, rejoicing. The mood lightened gradually. Some left to handle cleanup. Then Inha turned to Auntie Seona, who was watching us warmly.
"But Mom, what happened? You just showed up out of nowhere..."
"Yeah! We were shocked too!"
Still hugging Minhee, I looked at Auntie Seona. She smiled at us.
"Honestly, it was a coincidence. I was looking into my daughter's friend being kidnapped when I sensed a familiar mana signature. I wondered what brought me here—turns out it was in the middle of a fight. So I checked it out, and there was Minhee. I stepped in right away."
"You know those people?"
Inha asked in surprise. I was shocked too. Come to think of it, she had said something like that. Why are you down here? Auntie Seona nodded.
"Yeah, I know them. You've probably heard of them? Poreia Calivern, nicknamed Cali—the galaxy's biggest adventure group. Not quite an official organization, not quite dark either. They're called space outlaws or pirates. Practically a nation-sized outfit."
Space outlaws, Cali. Yeah, I'd heard of them. One of the few A-rank organizations worldwide.
"We fought once before. Back when I was still an A-rank mage. That battle pushed me to S-rank. Well... I won."
Auntie Seona huffed, puffing out her chest.
"Anyway, their leader's top 300 in the world rankings. Not S-rank, but equivalent A-rank mage. That's why no one messes with them."
Auntie Seona paused, tucking her hair behind her ear with a frown.
"I should lodge a complaint. Maybe fire off a formal protest to make them think twice?"
We listened with grim expressions. Since they kidnapped Minhee, it soured our mood. Auntie Seona sighed, slumping into a chair.
"Well, at least it was them who tried to kidnap Minhee. They're somewhat gentlemanly. Doesn't excuse kidnapping, so the outlaw name fits."
Minhee flinched. Auntie Seona covered her mouth apologetically, patted Minhee's shoulder, and said confidently.
"Anyway, it'll be fine now. The leader and I go way back. Once they know I'm involved, they'll back off."
Unbidden, I recalled that man and Han Jaeil. What was his name? Powerful mage... And Han Jaeil, who followed him giggling about it being fun.
Minhee muttered suddenly.
"Those guys... why kidnap people? They're already so powerful..."
"...Who knows."
Auntie Seona gave a wry smile, at a loss for words. Then Minhee's teacher stroked her head and whispered.
"You girls don't need to worry about that."
That was reality. We had no power to intervene yet. We were still just kids. Skill, experience—everything was shallow. Even I, with an adult mind from my past life, was a novice here. I knew so little of this world. By adulthood, it might all seem obvious.
But right now, we were kids. That was all.
Soon after, we parted from the teachers heading out for cleanup and left. Instead of going home, we decided to sleep over at Minhee's. Auntie Seona smiled brightly, promising to tell Mom, and escorted us to Minhee's doorstep.
We held hands and entered. The house was dark and empty moments ago. We turned on the lights, played for a bit, then got hungry and ate. I cooked today—nothing fancy: bean sprout soup, my favorite spicy chicken stew, and seasoned sprouts from the leftovers. It took a while.
"Eunha, you cook great!"
In my past life, living alone honed my skills. Lazy as I was, I loved food, so I'd eagerly cook whatever I craved. Good thing—I enjoy making what I want to eat.
We stuffed ourselves, watched TV, played games, chattered endlessly, and... yeah, fell asleep. I woke to darkness, friends sprawled on the living room floor without blankets. Rubbing sleepy eyes slowly, I pondered. Sleeping like this would make us sore... but setting up bedding meant getting up, and I was exhausted...
Then I heard rustling. I glanced over with just my eyes. Ah, it was Je-hyeon Brother.
*When did he get back...?*
My eyes drooped again. Soon, something soft draped over us—a thick comforter.
*Mmm... feels nice...*
I snuggled into it, wriggling. Opening my eyes again, I saw Je-hyeon Brother gently stroking sleeping Minhee's hair. He kissed her forehead lightly.
I watched quietly. He soon moved away. Only after all sounds faded did I sit up and stroke Minhee's hair.
Looking around, I saw scattered blankets and sprawled friends. Déjà vu hit me.
...Ah, right. That time.
I slipped next to Minhee. Warmth radiated from her. Yeah, just like then. When that Black Jaguar guy put me in danger, we all crashed like this.
Feeling the cozy warmth, I closed my eyes. Her heartbeat vibrated softly into my ears.
And like then, I thought:
The incident is over. Back to normal life.
That winter, I succeeded in converting mana to a few special attributes I'd wanted. Excluding solar, I got starlight, moonlight, sealing, and purification—four in total.
Solar mana didn't mesh well despite tries, so I'd take it slow.
Lately, I went out alone more. To observe as much mana as possible, wandering and zipping around. Felt bad dragging friends everywhere for my personal magic research—it wasn't fun outings anyway.
We went together sometimes, but we saw different things. What amazed me bored them. So solo outings increased.
Winter meant snow mana. One day, I hiked a snowy mountain alone. Snow crunched underfoot. Great for stamina training too—killing two birds. I didn't love hiking, but good views, mana observation, and now I kinda did.
With decent mana and stamina, summiting wasn't too hard. Stamina lagged mana, but time was plentiful. Steady training would build it.
Today was limited, though. Aiming to descend before sunset, but it was past 4 PM. I shortened the climb with teleport magic.
Thus, I reached the snow-capped peak. A few people milled about. Clouds blanketed the snowy sky, but it looked pristine—seasonal magic? I gazed up blankly.
This world was worlds apart from my previous one. Advanced science meant advanced magic, keeping nature clean. Battles damaged some areas, but far better than before. Purification fixed polluted water; mana powered everything. Skies clear, seas vividly blue, rain non-acidic. Less global warming.
Ah, purification's special attribute, but tool-engraved versions were separate. Even special attributes could combine.
I stared endlessly at the snowy sky. It reminded me of a recently unlocked spell. Partial copy success, but high-level—I hadn't used it properly yet. From Cali's sub-leader's sky magic.
Seeing it was sheer luck. His domain: the sky. Everything under it—sun, moon, stars, clouds—he wielded all. Morning, night, noon skies at will. Vacuum waves shredding wind to dominate surroundings.
Thanks to him, I grasped not just natural special attributes but time-based ones too. Sorry to Minhee, but I was very grateful.
I watched the snow awhile, then descended via teleport.
Using a teleport badge, I warped near school—to a crowded spot. Late afternoon, sky edging orange at sunset. It was Christmas Eve. Streets twinkled colorfully; I plopped on a bench. Bustling with crowds, especially here—a famous date spot for Christmas.
I sat watching people—or rather, their mana. Couples were fun to observe. Some might call it jealousy, but irrelevant to me. Spotting Eunhee Sister and Seonghu Brother arm-in-arm, I giggled. Leaning back, a voice came from behind.
"Hey."
"...!"
I froze, body icing over. Time seemed to stop.
That voice hit with devastating force. The man chuckled lightly.
"Long time no see, kiddo."
I pressed my lips tight. His presence here wasn't odd. Feud with Daehyeon or not, he was in untouchable A-rank Cali—not a fugitive.
"...Why are you here?"
"Just wandering. Spotted a familiar face, thought I'd say hi."
The noisy crowd faded; only his voice registered. Han Jaeil's alone rang in my ears.
"How's Yumin and Honey? Doing well?"
Brazenly fearless. Grim-faced, I pressed on.
"Well? You call that 'well' right now?"
"Hmm..."
"Betraying your friends felt good? I heard you screwed over Teacher Junhwi and bailed. But you were friends with Min Teacher. Betraying her felt good?"
Normally, I'd never say this. But I knew Min Teacher moped for ages after. It pissed me off. And here he was, casually asking if she was okay. As if.
Of course, I had backup: Auntie Seona-level clout.
"Well... too bad I can't take you."
Chills ran down my spine, but I played it cool, biting my lip defiantly.
"Still on about that?"
"Well..."
"..."
"Knowing they're fine is enough. I just need fun."
I startled. His voice held startling gentleness.
He stood from behind me. I whipped around. Violet-tinged brown hair, ponytail swaying below his waist.
Unbidden, he resembled Min Teacher. Her once-short hair, grown five years, now reached her waist, lightly tied.
I scowled. When we first met, his long hair was half-tied. Same in the dream. Now, single ponytail.
That resemblance meant something. Swallowing emotion, I yelled desperately.
"Wait—you came this far but won't see the teachers?!"
Traitor or not... I chewed my lip. Murky emotional hues scattered around him.
Maybe illusion. Whim. Or his usual style. But I knew how he felt about Min and Junhwi Teachers.
He turned, smirking incredulously.
"Funny thing to say, kiddo."
Maybe. But I stood earnest. His figure receded, vanishing.
Head down. Junhwi Teacher aside, Min Teacher worried about him. Cared. Called him friend—her words.
And you too.
Uncle Jeongmin said the poison he used on me only dulled pain, no lethal risk. It'd fade with time untreated.
If he'd meant to kill, I'd be dead. Same with kidnapping Minhee. Auntie Seona said Cali gives absolute trust to recruits—even kidnapped kids.
He needed Minhee, not to harm her. He cared about his friends—or ex-friends.
*...Right?*
I stood fists clenched, head bowed.
Snow flurries dwindled. I wandered aimlessly. Snapping to, I was at school.
Fountain ahead—my comfy spot, where we friends lounged.
*Step...*
I halted, spotting someone on the bench. A picturesque figure: Inha.
"In..."
*Splash*—water drowned my voice. I stopped mid-call.
Someone leaned asleep on Inha: raven-brown hair, handsome features—Hansu.
Like a painting. Similar heights. Inha gazed at sleeping Hansu, then rested her head on his shoulder, eyes closing.
I held my breath, silently watching.