Chapter 77
“…….”
Ian studied the woman who had introduced herself as a mage. She met his expressionless gaze without flinching.
Overall, she was a gloomy-looking woman. Her hair was a mess, as if it had never been cared for, and a thick, inerasable dark shadow hung under her eyes. Her skin was clear, but so pale that she looked like a sheet of pure white paper.
At the very least, she wasn't the kind of face that inspired affection. Even so, she didn't feel ugly; objectively, she was closer to a beauty. Most men would probably have their hearts racing just because she spoke to them.
Ian wasn't one of them. Once he realized she was a mage, what he saw in her was less a woman than a mage. Gender was meaningless.
‘Bluffing?’
It was hard to tell a mage from an ordinary person at a glance. Unlike fantasy novel mages, they didn't store mana in their bodies or wear eye-catching outfits like robes or pointed hats. To realize someone was a mage, you had to see them actually use magic.
The same was true for other mages. They didn't have telepathy or some sixth sense for recognizing their own kind. Eyes and ears were all they could rely on.
In that sense, her appearance was closer to an ordinary person's than a mage's. She didn't have a single feature that screamed, "I'm a mage." Maybe she was even impersonating one to gauge his reaction.
“…….”
Honestly, whatever she was didn't matter. What mattered was that she'd mentioned the word mage, that this was a Management Bureau building, and that she had recognized him.
If she knew who he was, there was no need to keep the mask on. Ian casually averted his gaze, looked at the Management Bureau building, and parted his lips.
“You seem to be the guide. Don't wander off anywhere else—go straight in.”
“……You're pretty forceful from the start. I don't dislike that.”
She grinned and walked slowly ahead of Ian. Then she shot him a sidelong glance, as if telling him to follow.
Ian idly tapped the cigarette pack in his coat pocket and followed after her.
“Why is a mage handling the escort?”
“I heard it was so they wouldn't offend you. They figured it'd be better for another mage to greet you than for a Management Bureau employee to come out.”
“That's a judgment from someone who knows nothing about mage society.”
“Right? Mages are basically clannish and proud. We’re not exactly fond of our own kind.”
She continued in a tone that sounded vaguely familiar from somewhere. Ian felt a strange sense of déjà vu.
“But I’m not like that. I like mages. Watching them is fun, isn’t it?”
“What a bizarre hobby.”
“I hear that a lot.”
Kim Yul smiled faintly. The awkwardly twisted corners of her mouth trembled, and Ian looked down at her and said casually.
“You’ve got a community account, right?”
The sense of familiarity wasn't just his imagination.
They had never spoken directly, but her way of speaking was oddly familiar. Even her voice, which he was hearing for the first time, somehow felt known. If she really was a mage, there was only one place that feeling could come from: the community.
“Oh?”
As if he'd hit the mark, a brief flicker of delight crossed Kim Yul's face. She stopped walking, looked back at Ian, and licked her lips.
“You do it too?”
“Not for very long, but yeah, I do.”
“Just to be safe, you're not talking about an ordinary community site, right?”
“I mean the mage community.”
As they walked, Ian spotted the smoking area right beside the entrance of the Management Bureau building and took out his cigarette pack. Kim Yul followed behind him with light steps, hands clasped behind her back.
“Mm-hm. I knew it. Good, I'll guess your nickname.”
“……Hoo.”
“First, exclude the people who’ve face-verified. Also exclude the ones who’ve revealed they’re women. Then, hmm... that leaves about ten people.”
“You know quite a lot.”
“I told you, I like mages. I even made my own list. Figured I’d greet them warmly if we ever met.”
Every word she said made her sound like a total weirdo. Ian shook his head and exhaled cigarette smoke into the air. Kim Yul stood a little ways from him, tapping her chin with a finger as she pondered.
“Hmmm... who could it be? Ah, I’m talking to myself, so don’t answer. I’m going to figure it out.”
“…….”
“The scent you give off is... strangely, there’s almost no cigarette smell, just a sweet body scent. Did you use magic? It’s actually a pretty nice smell.”
“...That’s kind of gross.”
Ian muttered as he watched her sniffing away. But Kim Yul didn’t pay him any mind.
“No bugs or dirt smell means you’re not tied to nature. But there’s no water smell either. That means you’re not a derivative mage, but a ritual- or thought-form-type mage... Though your body scent is good, so maybe you’re a spirit user? Those guys are sensitive to smells, after all. Or maybe puppetry?”
She said that and glanced back at Ian.
“Dolores? Is that you?”
“That’s the first time I’ve heard that name. Is there a nickname like that?”
“Wrong, huh. Hmm, then who could it be? Mmm, who is it?”
Kim Yul seemed to enjoy riddles and deduction, because she kept tilting her head from side to side with a rather delighted expression.
Since there was no reason not to indulge her while he was smoking, Ian sat down on an empty chair and flicked ash from his cigarette.
“Want me to tell you?”
“Shh. I’m trying to guess it. Don’t ruin the fun by showing me the answer sheet.”
Kim Yul put both hands on her hips and said this with a deliberately stern expression. Then she wiggled her hips back and forth.
“A mage who joined the community not long ago. Ritual- or thought-form-type. Not a spirit user, and the body scent is pretty good. Hmm...”
“Leave the body scent out of it.”
“Come to think of it, you carry a bag? That’s the opposite of ordinary mages, who try to keep their baggage to a minimum.”
Her black eyes sparkling, she circled around Ian as he flicked away his cigarette butt.
“A mage who carries a lot of luggage? That’d be an alchemist, a necromancer, or a mystic... Ah.”
Then, as if something had just occurred to her, she raised a finger and continued.
“You’re that newbie who bragged about making that sword!”
Ian gave a small laugh and stood up instead of answering her.
“And you’re DeepSeaAngler. Right?”
“Yep, that’s right. You figured it out pretty fast?”
“The way you talk there is almost the same as how you speak in real life. I was unsure at first, but the more I listened, the clearer it got.”
The two of them chatted as they went deeper into the Management Bureau building. Since he'd realized she was a member of the community, Ian's attitude toward her had softened a little.
If they had no connection, he would have let it slide, but the mage known as DeepSeaAngler was someone he was grateful to, having generously offered advice in all sorts of areas, including setting up a workshop. So his attitude toward her naturally softened.
He'd already known that she was cooperating with the Management Bureau, so he'd figured they might cross paths someday. The timing just happened to come a little earlier than expected.
Well, it wasn't a bad thing.
If they were going to meet anyway, sooner was better than later.
As long as she didn't make a hostile move first, Ian had no reason to react sharply either. For now they were business partners, and while they were cooperating, it was best to keep the relationship good. That way he wouldn't end up taking a knife in the back over a grudge.
“What’s your name? As I said earlier, I’m Kim Yul.”
“Shin Ian. Call me Ian.”
“Ian? That’s a pretty unusual name. Sounds a bit foreign. Is it an English name?”
“It’s Hanja. The character for ‘different’ and the character for ‘peaceful.’ I’m a true-blue Korean.”
“So it means other things are at ease around you. Even if you hadn’t become a mage, you’d have been tangled up with the supernatural someday. Your name’s packed with mystical meaning.”
Kim Yul grinned and clasped her hands behind her back.
“Come to think of it, maybe becoming a mage was the bigger gain?”
Ian agreed with that in his heart.
If this had been back when he was ignorant of the supernatural, maybe it would have been different. But now that he knew there were monsters out there in this city that devoured people, he had no desire whatsoever to go back to those ignorant days.
It was only natural. Once you realized there were murderers lurking everywhere, how could you keep your sanity walking around barehanded with no means of self-defense?
Becoming a mage had been a pretty big gain, after all. At the very least, he now had a means to protect himself.
‘Though it’s a little weird that my means of doing that is a grimoire written by a god out in space.’
Still, since it wasn't causing any real harm yet, it wasn't a big problem. Ian tapped the grimoire tucked inside his coat with his finger as he followed Kim Yul.
They arrived at the first floor of the Management Bureau building.
Employees moved briskly about, taking calls and preparing to deploy while exchanging pre-mission briefings. Office workers wandered around looking half-dead, clutching coffee with drained faces.
Fortunately, no one was paying them much attention. A few people tossed them a glance, then quickly went back to their work.
“They’ve probably already arranged everything.”
Kim Yul said as she walked with light steps.
“They probably told them, ‘A mage is coming today, so don’t provoke her for no reason—just let her through.’ It was the same when I came here the first time.”
“Really?”
“Yep. Back then I’d actually prepared a whole lot to kill anyone who even so much as touched me, but in the end I went home without using a single thing. I was a little disappointed.”
“That happens.”
Ian gave a vague answer and reached into the inside of his coat where he used to keep his revolver.
He'd thrown it away during the fight with the captain, so he no longer had a firearm. It seemed about time to get a new one.
It had been an object he was attached to, but since he'd discarded it himself, he didn't really have any lingering regret.
Now that he had some financial breathing room, buying a decent automatic pistol wouldn't be a bad idea.
As he thought that and kept walking, before long they arrived in front of a small conference room on the third floor. Kim Yul grabbed the doorknob and turned back to Ian.
“Everyone’s waiting in here. Are you going in right away?”
“Is there anything else I need to do?”
“I don’t think so?”
“Then let’s go in. If you can, keep the fact that I’m an alchemist under wraps.”
Ian said as he readjusted his bag. Kim Yul grinned as if to tell him not to worry.
“The third unwritten rule among mages: unless you’re hostile, don’t go around blabbing what kind of magic another mage uses. I know that very well. Don’t worry.”
With that, she pushed the handle down.
With a clack, the firmly shut steel door opened, and the interior came into view.