Chapter 60
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: Guest (2)
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Garam snatched two gold coins before Tae-jin could change his mind and vanished straight into his room.
The only person who might come back at this hour was old man Richer. Everyone else was already home.
'He went out in the morning and is only coming back now? How much did he drink?'
But when Tae-jin opened the door, the first thing that caught his eye was a pair of breasts about the size of his head.
No explanation or reason was needed. They were truly magnificent.
After that momentary appreciation, he looked up and saw red curly hair. It was the War Mage he had met in Merka City.
'Last time he talked with old man Richer, it sounded like it would be a few days before they set out. Was her vacation shorter than expected?'
Anyway, it was good news. When opening the door, a stunning beauty who made his eyes light up was far preferable to the musty old man.
Of course, Richer had called this woman crazy, but she didn't seem like the type to cause trouble right away in the home of someone she knew.
"Oh, hello. Your name is... Ariete, right?"
"It's Ariete. Nice to meet you."
She greeted him with a bright smile.
"What brings you here, by any chance?"
"I came to see my master."
"Your master?"
"Yes. Uncle Richer."
Ariete must have been the first disciple that old man Richer occasionally mentioned.
"He's out meeting someone he knows right now and hasn't come back yet."
"Is that so? Hmm, what should I do? I wanted to see him even briefly today."
Ariete looked troubled. From her expression, it seemed like urgent business. In a situation like this, there was only one sensible response.
"If you're going to wait anyway, would you like to come inside?"
She hesitated, not accepting right away. It wasn't that she disliked the offer; she seemed tempted but holding back out of concern. Tae-jin took her wrist and led her inside.
"Come on in. We can't just leave a guest standing outside."
The two sat in the living room and talked. They were the only ones there.
Pavilion had taken Renata into his room the moment he heard Ariete's voice, and Garam had gone straight to his room without even glancing at her.
Garam wasn't the type to sweetly chat up strangers.
The more they talked, the clearer it became that Ariete had plenty of common sense and manners.
She smiled radiantly at every moment and spoke in a kind, cheerful voice.
'Did I leave a good impression?'
Last time, Ariete had been a bit prickly because she thought he was an imposter posing as Richer's disciple.
But since he'd responded calmly and composedly back then, her impression of him probably wasn't bad. She might even feel a little guilty for being sharp.
It was a good sign. The two continued chatting for a bit longer.
But a hazy memory lingered of Richer warning him not to get close to Ariete, so Tae-jin couldn't boldly show his fondness.
Maintaining a minimal distance and treating her like a friendly fellow disciple seemed appropriate. That felt like the safest approach. If things went well, great. If not... well. Still, it would be nice if they did.
As their conversation flowed naturally, the topic turned to old stories.
"You must be the first disciple that old man Richer talked about."
At the mention of Richer, Ariete's expression bloomed even brighter.
"Did Uncle Richer talk about me?"
"Not often. But he mentioned it once or twice while drinking."
"What did he say?"
"He didn't go into detail. Something like, she was a kid who deserved to be happy, but he couldn't do enough for her."
Now that he thought about it, it felt a bit odd. 'A kid who deserved to be happy'? Didn't that imply Ariete was unhappy now? It was a pretty definitive statement. But she seemed bright and lively at the moment.
Ariete gazed at Tae-jin wistfully and happily after hearing that, staring at him intently.
He wasn't sure exactly what she was thinking, but a woman staring at him like that had to be a sign of interest.
As he pondered what to say to improve the mood, someone knocked at the front door.
"I'm back!"
It was old man Richer. His voice carried a faint hint of alcohol.
Before Tae-jin could stand and open the door, Ariete rushed to the entrance and opened it.
"Uncle... Richer! Master!"
In that moment, Tae-jin caught a glimpse of Richer's face over Ariete's shoulder. For a very brief instant, his expression twisted strangely. A complex look that was hard to describe.
Richer's following voice was stiff.
"Ariete. Why are you here?"
"I heard you had arrived."
Richer let out a deep sigh and spoke.
"Ariete. I have no right to blame you. I don't know what you think, but I've come to that conclusion. But you shouldn't have come here, at the very least. You know why."
Ariete bowed her head deeply. If she had a tail or ears, they surely would have drooped.
"I'm sorry."
"I don't know when, but when the time comes, I'll come find you. Leave now. Right away."
Their conversation was calm, but Richer's voice had an edge. Yet Ariete stepped out the front door without a single word of complaint.
As she left, Richer blocked Tae-jin's path.
Before the door closed, Ariete gazed at Tae-jin with her large green eyes.
Ariete had left, but Richer's expression didn't soften.
"Didn't I tell you last time? Stay away from Ariete."
"I heard you. But you didn't explain why. I couldn't just send away a guest who came knocking."
Richer took a deep breath.
"Ariete is mentally unstable. Very much so."
Was isolation necessary just because of mental instability?
It was hard for Tae-jin to understand easily. He wasn't born on this continent, and Korea was a world with thorough analysis of mental illnesses.
Besides, if she were truly severely unstable War Mage, wouldn't the Empire have locked her up?
"What the mentally unstable need isn't scorn, but protection and treatment. It's not like she's possessed by evil spirits or anything."
"No. That's not it. I've lived by the Gate and picked up basic knowledge from the researchers. The mental instability I'm talking about isn't seizures or split personalities. Ariete is psychologically twisted. Very much so."
"Was she always hot-tempered and violent since childhood or something?"
"No. She was a kind, gentle child."
"Then breakdowns from stress? I don't know much about it myself."
"Stress. Can't deny that. But it's not the whole story. I spent a long time with that child and thought about her a lot. I can piece together how she became twisted."
Tae-jin understood even less. It sounded utterly bizarre.
If he knew how the knot formed, why not untie it?
"If you know what the problem is, couldn't you be the key to her treatment?"
Richer thought silently, then let out a deep sigh.
"Maybe. But that's not for others to meddle in. Let's not talk about it here."
"Alright, fine."
Tae-jin nodded. Raised by a single mother, Richer was like a father to him. Ariete was pretty, but he had no intention of clashing with Richer over her.
Until Tae-jin stood up, Richer stared into space, lost in thought.
"Tae-jin. Let's change the plan."
"What plan?"
"Tomorrow at the earliest, the day after at the latest, we'll get the documents. Once we have them and pick a destination, let's leave the capital right away."
"Why so sudden? You said escaping the Empire on our own would be tough."
"Forget the Empire for now. At least we'll be away from Ariete. Who knows what that child might do."
"Don't worry. I won't hit on Ariete."
"No, it's not that. If Ariete gets the chance, she'll kill you without hesitation."
Tae-jin thought it was nonsense at first, but Richer's expression was deadly serious. Eerily so.
"Why? Any reason for that? She was friendly earlier. We talked fine."
"Ariete was cautious because she wasn't sure of my reaction. If I'd welcomed her warmly, she might have been nothing but kind to you."
It was an incomprehensible master-disciple relationship. Layers of complex stories had been omitted.
Tae-jin felt both baffled and wronged. What did I do wrong?
"What? So because you were cold to Ariete just now, she's going to kill me?"
"...Something like that. Sorry."
"Then next time we meet, if I'm nice to her, it'll be fine, right?"
"I can't explain everything. But I'll tell you one thing."
"What?"
"Ariete killed Mira because she wanted to have me all to herself. I've partially forgiven her, but I can't fully accept it yet."
This was incomprehensible too. The few lines of dialogue were packed with dense stories, with countless omissions.
Why follow around a widowed man nearing sixty? Richer wasn't even handsome.
And yet, he'd forgiven Ariete for killing his wife?
He couldn't even guess at the tangled mess. Tae-jin decided not to pursue it. He just sighed lightly.
"Old man, let's go to the Magic Tower tomorrow and sell the camera. Time to splurge."
Richer grinned.
"Yeah, let's do that."
By the time their talk ended, Garam had silently appeared beside Tae-jin, moving like an assassin.
"Dream interpretation might cost more than you think. Around 10 gold."
"Cut the crap."
Garam tried to 'prove his innocence' by poking again, but Tae-jin ignored him.