Infinite Mana (7)
After the observation class ended, a scheduled one-on-one meeting time between the homeroom teacher and the parents was set to begin. Originally, Serpina had been supposed to attend it. Of course, since she was neither a parent nor a relative, her plan had been to just nod vaguely through it and get it over with. But Han Heerin's father had shown up. It looked like he had barely carved out time from his busy work schedule, since he only arrived around the time the observation class was ending, but he had still come. Heerin's prediction had been happily off the mark.
Serpina dumped the rest of the observation duties onto Heerin's father and headed out to the playground. The field was packed with older elementary kids in afternoon PE class, younger students focused on their after-school programs, and parents watching them all with fond smiles.
- Meow.
"Ah. Yeah. You want me to let you out?"
Heemang had let out a small cry from inside the carrier. Figuring it must be feeling cramped, she opened the door and took it out. Once freed, Heemang stretched luxuriously before racing along the edge of the playground.
"Whoa? A cat!"
"A cat? Where?"
One of the children spotted it, and a whole pack of elementary students was soon chasing after Heemang. Of course, there was no chance of them actually catching the magic beast. It weaved and dodged, leading the kids on a merry chase.
"So this is where you were."
A man approached Serpina as she sat on the stairs beside the playground, watching the scene. "Thank you for looking after our Heerin. It's really something I should be doing myself…."
The man was none other than Heerin's father, whom she had met earlier. After finishing his brief meeting with the homeroom teacher, he had wandered around looking for Serpina and finally found her here.
"Whatever. I didn't do it just to hear thanks. More importantly, are you okay? You must have worked until dawn again last night."
And the man's identity was also the restaurant part-timer she had met at ML Mart before.
"Haha… The manager let me off a little early yesterday. Thanks to that, I managed to see Heerin in class, even if I was late."
Heerin's father smiled bitterly as he spoke. His face was thick with exhaustion, but his expression wasn't unhappy.
"……."
A short silence fell. A cool breeze carried the sound of the children's laughter.
Heerin's father seemed to draw strength from those innocent voices and spoke again. "…This is shameless of me to ask, but could I trouble you to keep looking after Heerin in the future?"
"……."
Serpina didn't answer. He couldn't read what her silence meant.
Heerin's father continued. "I'm not asking you to do it forever. I'm saving up money. Enough to buy a mage initiation kit. Once I have that money… I'll be able to make as much time as I want to play with Heerin afterward."
"Why?"
"Pardon?"
"Why do you want to buy a mage initiation kit? Are you trying to become a mage yourself?"
At Serpina's question, Heerin's father waved his hands in shock. "No, of course not! It would be such a waste to use an expensive one-time kit on an old guy like me with a stiff brain and zero talent."
"Then?"
"…I've gotten older and grown used to my current life. I'm too old to start down a different path now. But… my daughter doesn't have to be the same, does she?"
"It's for Heerin."
"Yes."
Heerin's father glanced toward the school building. It was the direction of Heerin's classroom.
"One of my friends broke his leg and ended up hospitalized. I was at the scene that day too. He got caught in the crossfire during a fight between mages and was badly hurt. But when I visited him later, he believed he'd been in a car accident."
At the time, Heerin's father had already learned about the magic world through his own methods. But what if he had been an ordinary person who knew nothing about it? He would have lived on without properly remembering even the things he'd witnessed with his own eyes, just like his friend. The thought alone sent chills down his spine.
"If you don't set foot in the magic world, it's hard to live your life completely. But even if an ordinary person forces their way in, they'll only struggle at the very bottom. Like me."
That was why Heerin's father had pinned his hopes on the mage initiation kit. He wanted his daughter to become a mage and live a good life. At the very least, he hoped she could live a life that wasn't arbitrarily controlled by mages.
"Hmm."
Serpina let out a small snort. Her eyes alone shifted toward the direction of Heerin's classroom. She could see the girl sitting by the window, listening to the lesson. Her face openly showed how much she wanted class to end quickly so she could play with her dad.
"I get how you feel, but it'd be better if you just spent more time with your daughter instead."
"…Yes. I know that. I've saved about half the money now, so once I gather a little more…."
"That's not what I meant… Never mind. Do whatever you want."
Serpina stood up. She rapped on the carrier, making a thumping sound. Heemang, recognizing it, came racing back across the playground. The little beast was panting hard but looked strangely satisfied. It seemed running around the field with the kids was far more enjoyable than being stuck inside the carrier.
"Are you actually a dog?"
- Meow.
Heemang gave a small cry and climbed back into the carrier on its own. She locked the door and lifted it. The observation class was over, so there was no reason to stick around any longer.
"Please continue to take good care of Heerin."
Serpina didn't bother replying. She simply gave a vague nod and left the school.
"We've come all the way out here. Should we buy something before heading back? Hey. You need anything?"
- Mrrp.
"Nothing? Figures. Then I guess I'll grab some cup ramen."
- Meeeeeow….
Scratch scratch scratch.
Heemang clawed at the inside wall of the carrier. It looked like it had something to say, but naturally Serpina had no idea what it was.
Then a thought occurred to her.
"Does translation magic work on magic beasts too? This one seems pretty intelligent."
Translation magic still required a minimum level of intelligence for conversation to work. It wasn't like you could politely ask a cockroach to leave the house even with it. After thinking it over for a moment, Serpina decided to drop the idea. Heemang did seem unusually smart compared to the cat magic beasts Catmom had been leading around last time. The magic might actually work. But not understanding it right now was more entertaining.
Chuckling to herself, Serpina headed back under the bridge.
Night. The spine of the Korean peninsula, an unnamed mountain in the Taebaek Mountain Range. Several people were wandering through a forest where even moonlight could not reach. No, that description wasn't accurate. They were not wandering.
"May. Are your legs all right?"
"They're… fine. I can walk."
"I'm sorry. Please hold on just a little longer. I'll look for a place to rest."
"I'm sorry… We need to get out of here as quickly as possible…."
They were being pursued.
After walking a short distance, another person appeared ahead. It was the member with the fewest injuries, sent ahead to scout.
"Maengju-nim. There's a small cave over there. It looks suitable for hiding ourselves for a short time."
"Thank you. Let's head there. We need to reorganize anyway."
"Yes, Maengju-nim."
The woman who led them, the one they called Maengju, was none other than Narel Liliasen, supreme leader of the Wolha Association.
The taunt echoed through the mountain range, openly scraping at the pride of the strongest mage. Yet she could not step forward now.
"Those cowardly…! After committing terrorism as well!"
It was exactly as the person bursting with anger beside her said. After suffering both a terrorist attack and an ambush, Narel's condition was nowhere near even half of her usual strength.
"I'm fine. I know what's important right now. Is that the cave you mentioned? Let's get inside quickly."
Narel's group entered the cave. It must have once been a beast's den; a distinct animal stench filled the interior. At this rate, proper rest would be difficult.
When Narel tried to use magic to at least clear away the smell, another member stopped her.
"Please rest, Maengju-nim. We can handle this much ourselves."
"…Thank you. I'll be in your debt then."
"What are you saying? If not for you, Maengju-nim, we would all be dead already."
Narel couldn't respond properly to those words. She had to conserve even that much energy. The moment she leaned against the cave wall, the fatigue she had been suppressing crashed over her. Closing her eyes to recover her strength, she recalled how things had come to this.
To summarize briefly, the plane Narel had been on had suffered a terrorist attack. She had been on her way to Shinsi to meet her benefactor. It happened while the plane was crossing the East Sea and passing over Samcheok.
"Uh, uhh?"
The pilot suddenly cried out. When she turned to look, the co-pilot's condition was bizarre. His body began to bulge and twist… then glowed a vivid, burning red.
Narel recognized the phenomenon. It was an extremely vicious magic that turned a human body into a living bomb. Since the target of the explosion died instantly nearly one hundred percent of the time, using it on others was almost impossible. That was why this magic was typically used for suicide bombings.
And it was happening right before her eyes.
Right before the explosion, she saw the co-pilot's face. Terror. But it was less the fear of death and more the fear of not understanding what was happening. Had it been done against his will?
She had called it nearly impossible, but there was a vast difference between "impossible" and "nearly impossible." Still, there was no time to dwell on it now.
Narel instantly cast a defensive spell.
But she was already one step too late.
BOOOOOOM!!
The co-pilot's body detonated. The mana he possessed exploded like gunpowder. The shockwave tore through the cabin as sharp bone fragments sprayed in every direction.
Inside the plane that had become drenched in blood in an instant, Narel quickly assessed the situation.
"Huk… Huk…!"
Her attendants were gasping, their faces pale blue. Fortunately, they had survived thanks to her defensive magic. But the pilot who had been sitting right beside the co-pilot… aside from the part of his legs below the knees that had been tucked under the instrument panel, there was nothing left to find.
The death of an innocent man. A truly tragic thing. But something far more urgent demanded her attention now.
"The… the plane…!"
The explosion had occurred right next to the pilot. In other words, the area packed with the controls needed to fly the aircraft had been caught in the blast.
…They were going down.
Even that was not the worst of it yet.
A city was visible far below the clouds. The plane was falling straight toward it.