Chapter 78
Chapter 78
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: Management Bureau Exploration
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Inside a small conference room.
Five people sat around a round table, silently watching Ian as he entered. Among them, two faces were familiar to Ian.
Kim I-seo and Park Min-ah. Management Bureau agents who had even visited his home.
They weren't close, but they had met once before. Their presence in the conference room wasn't strange at all.
The other three, however, were complete strangers to Ian.
They were probably Management Bureau agents or mages cooperating with the bureau, like Kim Yul.
Ian didn't pay them much mind and took a seat in an empty spot, turning to look at Kim I-seo. She stood in front of the whiteboard and met his gaze with a slight bow.
"Thank you for coming, Wizard. I hope you didn't have any trouble on the way?"
"Nothing notable. Though, doesn't having the building smack in the middle of downtown make deployments inconvenient?"
"For urgent missions, we use the underground routes. I'll show you those after introductions."
Kim I-seo turned to the three others as she spoke.
"Two mages cooperating with the Management Bureau and a shaman."
"......"
Ian hid his hands under the table and turned to look at them. They looked back at him.
He had heard there were three mages cooperating with the Management Bureau, but he hadn't known about an extra shaman. She must have joined recently, or they hadn't seen a need to mention her.
Either way, it didn't matter much.
The existence of real shamans was something he already knew.
Korean shamanism was a world overrun by frauds, but a few genuine shamans did exist within it. They were rare in number, but their abilities were as proven as those of the Vatican's exorcist priests.
After all, a mystical group that had existed for centuries couldn't be built entirely on lies.
The deeper the history, the more likely even outlandish claims were true. Shamans were one example, as were Africa's voodoo sorcerers. The latter were essentially mages, but anyway.
Ian narrowed his eyes and glanced at the three.
After a long exchange of looks, the old woman in shaman robes slowly rose from her seat and spoke.
"You're a frightening child."
She stared at Ian and let out a short breath.
"You're protected by an unknown guardian spirit. What sort of sorcery is that?"
"Ah, Granny. I told you not to ask mages about that stuff."
A man sitting next to the shaman responded to her words.
"Or you'll end up with a highway paved over your head."
"I'm not a mage."
"But we're not the type to care about that, are we?"
"......"
"So it'd be great if you followed our unspoken rule here. Stop calling it sorcery. It rubs us the wrong way."
"I'm not in a state today to chat amiably with a freak who handles yokai."
She clicked her tongue and glanced down at the book hanging from the man's waist.
The red grimoire labeled [Classic of Mountains and Seas] reeked of incense and blood. Proof that he had been using magic right up until coming here. Knowing what kind of magic he wielded, the shaman scowled in disgust and headed for the conference room door.
"Now that the meet-and-greet is over, I'll be going. I never planned to get chummy with mages anyway."
As she turned the doorknob, her phone vibrated with an incoming call. The shaman answered it and left the room.
"Oh dear, yes, customer. Yes, yes. Ah, a gut ritual? Guts start at two grand basic— that's okay with you? Oh ho ho."
Click.
The conference room door shut. The mage who had been talking to her shrugged and leaned back in his chair.
"That money-grubbing shaman hag. She's no fit for the Management Bureau, with its noble mission to protect humanity."
Park Min-ah let out a hollow laugh at his words, but he ignored her and turned to Ian with a bright grin.
"Namgoong Minhyuk. Owner of the grimoire 'Classic of Mountains and Seas' and a mage who's been cooperating with the Management Bureau for nearly three years."
"......"
"We're not so bad, so no need to be on edge. You're not really cooperating with the bureau out of the goodness of your heart anyway, right? It's just aligned interests."
He took a sip of the canned coffee on the table as he spoke.
"In my case, I teamed up because dodging the bureau's eyes was a hassle. My magic's a bit flashy, draws too much attention."
It wasn't particularly intriguing, but Ian listened quietly. No need to be hostile.
'Doesn't seem like a community member.'
Mages in the community weren't connected by some marker that let them recognize each other on sight, but there was such a thing as intuition.
Community mages weren't big talkers by nature. Sure, a few were chatty, but none boasted about their magic or named their grimoires like this guy. They all kept their spells secret.
Grandmother was the sole exception, openly stating hers was Lemegeton.
The others? No one had come forward like that.
So Namgoong Minhyuk wasn't in the community. Kim Yul's bug-eyed glare at him was confirmation enough.
Ian had long known there were mages outside the community.
No big surprise now. He just nodded along until the man finished.
"Whoops, I've been doing all the talking."
After a while, Namgoong Minhyuk grinned and turned to the other mage.
"Why don't you introduce yourself? We're gonna be working together."
"I've been waiting for you to shut up. How does your wife put up with that filthy mouth?"
The green-haired woman who had been sitting silently spoke in a flat tone. Minhyuk shrugged.
"My wife loves it."
"Birds of a feather."
She sighed deeply and turned to Ian.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Asakawa Mika, a mage from Japan. Been living in Korea for over five years now."
"......Japan?"
"Yeah. Japan's rough on mages. Unless you're a shrine maiden or esper, it's hard to survive. So I came here."
Mika sighed and wiggled her crossed leg.
"Their bureau treats mages like anomalies, shrine maidens try to kill us as heretics, espers work for some weird group called the Magical Girl Squad... Escaping Japan's just a matter of brains. And I'm pretty smart."
Ian hadn't paid much attention to Japanese society, but it had its own issues. He knew roughly how shrine maidens operated from dealing bikes with Miko, but the bureau and magical girls were new.
The bureau was whatever, but magical girls? If esper groups were magical girl squads, did male espers wear frilly dresses too?
"......"
The mere thought made him queasy.
Good thing becoming a mage hadn't changed his tastes. Ian nodded inwardly with relief.
"Is the formal speech because your Korean's awkward?"
"Nope. I just like when people look at me like I'm nuts. It's thrilling, you know?"
"......"
"Mm, love that gaze. A hot guy's dirty look—makes me wet."
She was a total nutcase.
A different flavor of honorifics from Grandmother's. No need to respond in kind.
"Miss Mika."
Kim I-seo called her with a blank face. Mika giggled and stood.
"Yes, yes, I'll behave. Anyway, can I go now? I just came to say hi."
"Do you have urgent business? Briefing's in a few hours."
"Yep. Debut stream today. Gotta prep hard."
"......That V-Tuber thing you mentioned last time?"
"Yeah. Lucked out on the audition. Be back in three hours. See ya. Oh, my handle's just 'Mika'—come watch if you're curious."
Mika winked and left. Soon after, Namgoong Minhyuk took a call from his wife and departed too. Naturally, he didn't return.
Who'd believe they were mages? All so self-willed. Ian wasn't one to judge, so he rested his hands on the table and turned to Kim I-seo.
"What now? Can I go?"
"......I was going to give you a tour of the bureau facilities. Care to join?"
She loosened her tie slightly, sounding a bit exasperated, and asked. Ian pondered briefly before speaking again.
"Is it safe?"
"Probably the safest place in Korea."
She stated it with confidence. Ian chuckled and nodded.
Chance to learn the bureau's layout—no reason to refuse. Useful in emergencies, like forcing routes open or warping them. Or for terrorism if they stabbed him in the back.
Better if it never came to that, but no guarantees.
They hadn't built enough trust yet, so watching closely for now was wise.
"Got it. Let's head out."
Kim I-seo nodded and came to his side. Ian followed her lead.
"Take care."
"......I-seo."
With farewells from Kim Yul and Park Min-ah, the two left the conference room. She was a head shorter than him and looked up as she handed him a small notebook from her pocket.
"Bureau manual. Follow along as you read."
"Hmm."
Ian hummed as he opened it. Kim I-seo walked toward the elevator and said,
"Let's start with the underground containment zone."