Sunday morning.
When I opened my eyes, a message appeared.
[Character ‘Ha-ryeong’ has developed curiosity about you.]
[You have earned 1,500 points as a reward.]
“What is this?”
If it’s Ha-ryeong, he’s the S-rank Magician I encountered at the underground arena last time.
But I was wearing a mask then—he shouldn’t have been able to recognize me.
Why is he suddenly interested in me?
‘…Could it be because I bet money on Liang Liang?’
It’s possible.
Thinking about it, there was no other reason for Ha-ryeong to take an interest in me.
‘But would he really become interested just because I successfully placed a reverse bet?’
Something about this situation felt off.
“Hmm…”
It had already been five days since I visited the underground arena.
The fact that this reputation message only appeared now meant that Ha-ryeong had found out my identity.
It was certain that he had investigated me.
The only fortunate thing was that Ha-ryeong’s emotions toward me weren’t ‘hostility’ but ‘curiosity.’
At least for now, it didn’t seem like I was in immediate danger.
After all, Ha-ryeong was known among the Magicians for being calm and cautious.
“Should I prepare for something?”
But would preparation even change anything?
Ha-ryeong was one of the top 20 strongest in this world.
If he seriously decided to act against me, there would be no way to stop him.
‘I should probably cut back on my activities as Kim Jinwoo.’
That was the best option.
Lately, my actions as Kim Jinwoo had drawn too much attention.
Thanks to that, I had earned a ton of points and money, but it was time to lay low.
Once things settled down a bit, I could resume my activities.
“Sigh.”
I let out a deep sigh and got up from bed.
My sleepiness hadn’t completely faded, and my body was still sore, but I couldn’t just sit around wasting time.
It was time to start my day.
After having a hearty meal, I headed to the training facility.
Normally, I would go to the magic training ground, but today, I had a different destination—the physical training room.
The reason was simple.
I needed to compensate for my lack of mana with physical strength.
Reinforcement-type magic consumed less mana compared to Manifestation-type.
Since I was currently lacking in mana, I needed to rely more on my sub-specialization, the Reinforcement-type.
[The door is opening.]
As I entered the training room, I saw various exercise machines.
The atmosphere was similar to a gym.
The space was filled with training equipment and people sweating as they worked out.
Then, someone called out to me.
“Huh? Kim Sun-woo?”
I turned toward the voice and saw a sweaty Lee Seo-jun approaching me.
“Hey.”
“Hey. What are you doing here?”
“What do you mean? I came to work out.”
“Haha, I see. I don’t think I’ve seen you here before.”
“I’ve been neglecting my sub-specialization, so I thought I should build up my strength.”
At my words, Lee Seo-jun looked me up and down before shaking his head.
“Well, yeah. Your sub-specialization is Reinforcement-type, but look at your body. You need to put on some muscle.”
“Shut up.”
“Do you know how to use the equipment?”
“Of course I do.”
“Oh, right. You were in the Reinforcement-type in your first year, huh?”
I smirked in response and started stretching lightly.
Lee Seo-jun chuckled as well and began lifting a barbell stacked with who-knows-how-many weight plates.
As I was finishing my stretches, the training room door swung open again.
A loud voice rang out.
“Yo! Seo-jun, hey!”
It was Shin Young-joon, waving enthusiastically as he made a dramatic entrance.
“Hey.”
Lee Seo-jun greeted him with a smile, and then Shin Young-joon’s gaze shifted to me.
“Kim Sun-woo, hey!”
“…Hey.”
Satisfied with my response, Shin Young-joon grinned.
“Oh, Kim Sunwoo. What brings you to the training room?”
It was the same question Lee Seo-jun had asked earlier.
I gave the same answer.
“Came to work out.”
“Oh, right. Haha!”
Ignoring his loud laughter, I resumed my stretching.
By now, my body felt warmed up.
Time to start with some running.
Just as I was about to step onto the treadmill—
The training room door opened once more.
A woman entered.
“Oh my, Seo-jun! We meet again.”
With a seductive smile, she approached Lee Seo-jun and greeted him.
At the same time, all the students in the room turned to look at her.
Her dazzling beauty captivated the attention of all the male students.
She was already a well-known figure among them.
“Hello, senior.”
“Are you training well?”
“Yes, just the usual.”
Lee Seo-jun replied with a smile.
Beside him, Shin Young-joon, seemingly mesmerized by her beauty, had his mouth slightly open.
I also stared at her.
I recognized her face.
3rd-year Rank 4, Park Minye.
“Is the person next to you a friend of Seo-jun?”
“Yes! Hello, senior! I’m Shin Young-joon, Seo-jun’s best friend!”
Shin Young-joon bowed his head.
Park Minye quietly smiled at his energetic greeting.
Then, she noticed me stretching beside him.
I met her gaze calmly.
“Is this person also a friend of Seo-jun?”
Seo-jun answered her question.
“Yes, he’s my friend.”
“Nice to meet you.”
She greeted me with a charming smile.
It felt like watching Choi Seo-yoon’s fake smile.
At that moment, I was slightly startled by the way her eyes looked at me.
For a few seconds, she stared at me with wide eyes before turning her gaze back to Seo-jun.
“We’ve been running into each other a lot lately, haven’t we?”
“Yeah, maybe it’s because I spend a lot of time in the training room.”
I quietly observed their conversation.
No, to be precise, I was staring at the girl’s face as she talked to Seo-jun.
It wasn’t because I was mesmerized by her beauty.
At a glance, she appeared to be just another eye-catching student, but I knew a secret about her that no one else did.
Park Minye.
She was a demon.
Her real name was Jang Ye.
The daughter of Jang Han, the demon who died at the Han River.
Magic Guilds.
Generally, magic guilds are organizations where skilled mages, regardless of their magical affinity, come together for profit.
About 90% of mages who graduate from magic academies join these guilds and spend their lives exploring dungeons and towers.
However, there are guilds established purely for magical research.
One of the most notable is the support magic guild, “Rune of Enlightenment.”
Founded by Jung Yoon-seul, one of only five S-rank support mages in the world, Rune of Enlightenment was a dream guild for young support mages.
At least, it was until a year ago.
“Oh? What the? Guild Leader? What brings you here?”
Inside the empty headquarters of Rune of Enlightenment.
Senior guild member Park Minhee reacted with surprise at the arrival of a certain woman.
“The guild leader visiting her own guild—what kind of ridiculous question is that?”
“Wow, it’s been forever since I last saw you. You’re still looking like a twenty-something even though you’re almost fifty next year.”
“Is that so? And you’re still looking like a fifty-year-old even though you’re in your twenties.”
“Damn it.”
The sudden appearance of Guild Leader Jung Yoon-seul after a year drew the remaining guild members to gather and welcome her.
Jung Yoon-seul was known as an eccentric among mages.
She had left all her guild responsibilities to the vice guild leader and spent over a year in the Tower of Proof, which had already become a famous tale.
She scanned the empty guild headquarters.
“Seems like we’re missing a lot of people. Where’s that brat, Jung Woochan?”
“Sigh, he quit.”
“Huh? He quit? Why?”
“Why else? Because the Guild Leader abandoned the guild.”
At Park Minhee’s words, Jung Yoon-seul cleared her throat.
“Ahem, when did he quit?”
“About six months ago?”
“…That bastard left without even telling me.”
“How could he contact you when you never left the Tower of Proof?”
“Well… that’s true.”
“And not just him. Minjin, Lee Dohyun, Jo Jungin, Emily, Park Chanhui, and Mason all left too.”
“What?! Are you insane? Those were our core members!”
Jung Yoon-seul shouted in disbelief.
The names Park Minhee just listed were Rune of Enlightenment’s key executives.
But Park Minhee simply narrowed her eyes at her.
“That’s why I told you not to neglect the guild.”
“I thought it would run just fine without me!”
“When are you going to take responsibility? Or did you give up on the 27th floor of the Tower of Proof?”
“Are you crazy? Why would I give up? That place pissed me off so much that my competitive spirit is through the roof. I’m definitely conquering it.”
“Oh, sure. Before you go back, at least officially disband the guild and give me a hefty severance package.”
“Don’t joke about things like that. It’s scary.”
“I’m not joking.”
“…”
Then, as if remembering something, Park Minhee spoke up.
“Oh, right. The Magic Academy contacted us yesterday about attending their practical exams. They asked us to send an observer. Should we?”
“Why would I go there?”
“Guild Leader, our guild is on the verge of collapse. Of course, we have to go. We need to recruit new members.”
“It’s fine. The guild won’t collapse. Just announce that I’m back. Everything will be fine after that.”
Jung Yoon-seul leaned back in her chair and yawned.
“Sigh. The people who left weren’t just the ones I mentioned earlier. A lot of regular guild members left too.”
“You’re persistent.”
“That’s how serious this is.”
“Hah… When is the exam?”
“In two weeks.”
“Two weeks, huh… Fine, submit the application. I might as well check out some promising new disciples.”
Jung Yoon-seul pulled out her phone and sent a message to Kim Yunjin.
[Hey, Yunjin. Any support magic students at your school with potential?]
Late at night.
A dark aura rose from a mountain behind the Magic Academy.
A chilling crack echoed in the air, followed by the sound of blood splattering.
Another life had just disappeared.
Jang Ye, her hands soaked in blood, picked up her phone.
“Lord Cheonhae, what do you mean by that?”
[“We are no longer targeting Kim Jinwoo.”]
“What are you talking about all of a sudden? What about avenging my father? What about Uncle Baek kang?”
[“It is an order from Lord Ha-ryeong. Do not touch Kim Jinwoo.”]
“…”
Jang Ye bit her lip hard.
To back off now—what kind of nonsense was that?
More than that, she couldn’t understand why Ha-ryeong had given such an order.
Among demons, Ha-ryeong was known for never giving out forcefull commands.
“I’m not afraid of him.”
[“Jang Ye, patience. The time will come. Wait for it.”]
“When will that be?”
[“I don’t know. But the time will come. And besides, no matter how much we investigate Kim Jinwoo, there is nothing to be found. There is nothing we can do.”]
Who exactly was Kim Jinwoo that his information remained completely hidden?
And how had he eliminated Baek kang, a B-rank demon, without a single news report surfacing?
If a normal mage had defeated a B-rank demon, they would have reported it immediately to the association for a reward.
“In that case, I need to kill someone else. Otherwise, I won’t be able to quench this fire inside me.”
[“Who?”]
“If not Kim Jinwoo, then someone else involved in my father’s death—like the first informant or the association officers who killed him.”
Jang Ye recalled the names she had seen on the news about the Han River Demon Incident.
[“Do you even know who those people are?”]
“I do. Special Operations Team agent Jung Hyunsoo and Magic Academy students Lee Seo-jun, Shin Young-joon, and Lee Hyun-joo.
I can’t take on Jung Hyunsoo yet, so I’ll deal with the others one by one.”
[“…If that will calm your anger, do as you wish. But be careful. Especially with Lee Seo-jun. He’s not to be underestimated. You know whose disciple he is, don’t you?”]
“I know. I’ll wait for the right moment. Right now, I can’t defeat him anyway. And besides…”
Jang Ye started to say something but closed her mouth and shook her head.
‘No way.’
She recalled the face of Lee Seo-jun’s friend from earlier that morning.
By sheer coincidence, that young man bore a striking resemblance to Kim Jinwoo.
For a moment, she had a ridiculous thought—
What if they were the same person?
But she quickly dismissed it as nonsense and let out a dry chuckle.
‘Impossible.’
The Kim Jinwoo she had seen on the news had fought at a level far beyond that of a student.
Even if he had infiltrated the Magic Academy, this wasn’t some spy movie—there was no reason for him to do that.
‘It must be a coincidence.’
She erased all suspicions of Kim Sun-woo from her mind.
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