“Phew… Fortunately, it was resolved easily.”
I wiped the sweat off my forehead and leaned against the wall to rest.
Sitting on the floor opposite me, Choi Seo-yoon stared at the fallen Park Jinsu for a long time.
At that moment, Lee Seo-jun, who had been on a phone call somewhere, approached us.
“The association’s investigators are on their way.”
“Yeah?”
I glanced at Park Jinsu.
He was stronger than I had expected.
His mage ranking was at least B-tier.
Since Choi Seo-yoon’s combat ability exceeded my expectations, we were able to defeat him before Heart of the Great Nature wore off.
Of course, if we had taken mana elixirs together, we could have taken him down more easily. But looking back at the situation, his attacks were relentless, leaving no chance to take an elixir.
“Hmm.”
The development was slightly different from the original storyline, but we defeated the villain and resolved the incident, so it was satisfactory.
One thing that slightly concerned me was whether my involvement would cause Lee Seo-jun to lose Choi Seo-yoon as a powerful ally.
I just hoped this wouldn’t lead to a situation where he had to shoulder all the burdens alone and end up dying.
Maybe I was worrying too much.
I pondered what to do with the remaining time and decided to check the results of the battle.
[B-rank villain, Park Jinsu, has been defeated.]
[Causality increased by 0.8.]
[You defeated a villain alongside a key character.]
[Additional 0.2 causality obtained.]
[Character ‘Choi Seo-yoon’ feels grateful to you.]
[Reward: 1,000 points acquired.]
[Character ‘Lee Seo-jun’ harbors strong suspicion toward you.]
[Reward: 1,000 points acquired.]
A total of 1 causality and 2,000 points.
The point gain was a little underwhelming, but earning a full 1 in causality was significant.
What puzzled me was that, despite Park Jinsu not being that strong, I had gained a whole 1 in causality. That was 0.2 more than when I had single-handedly taken down Jo Seong-hoon.
It made me wonder—what exactly determines the amount of causality granted?
They say it depends on the level of involvement and the changes made to the storyline.
If that’s the case, does that mean this incident caused a major shift in the story?
“Um, senior.”
As I was lost in thought, Choi Seo-yoon’s voice called out to me.
“Hm?”
“I received your help again. Thank you.”
“…Oh, yeah.”
At my response, Choi Seo-yoon gave a faint smile.
Then, after staring at my face for a while, she spoke again.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
“No. You?”
“I’m not hurt either. Though I think I might have twisted my ankle a little.”
I simply nodded in response.
“Sorry… You got caught up in trouble because of me.”
“No, why would you apologize?”
Choi Seo-yoon wasn’t at fault for this incident.
To be precise, she had merely been dragged into the consequences of her father, Choi Jae-hyung’s, actions.
“That’s not true. If things had gone wrong, both you and I could have lost our lives.”
It was dangerous.
I hadn’t expected him to attack so abruptly.
Thinking back, purchasing the Killing Intent Detection trait was one of the best decisions I had made.
It had saved my life multiple times now.
—Nyaaang.
At that moment, the sound of a cat’s meow reached my ears.
I shifted my gaze slightly and saw the pure white cat that our client had been looking for slowly approaching us.
It must have been hiding somewhere safely amidst the brutal battle.
“So pretty.”
Choi Seo-yoon lifted up the cat into her arms.
Surprisingly, it was quite comfortable with human touch, as it closed its eyes while snuggling into her embrace.
9:30 PM.
After finishing our investigation with the Mage Association, we stepped outside.
The questioning had taken longer than expected.
The association found it suspicious that Choi Seo-yoon and I had taken down a B-rank mage like Park Jinsu without sustaining any injuries.
But after a long investigation, everything was settled, and we were able to leave with a reward of 10 million won.
“Phew.”
As we exited, the cold night air hit us.
Choi Seo-yoon checked her smart student notebook and muttered,
“The mercenary request was completed successfully. The client was overjoyed.”
Good.
I nodded and continued walking down the long sidewalk ahead.
“It’s gotten late.”
“Yeah, they really dragged out that investigation.”
“Well, whatever. We got ten million won out of it.”
“That’s true. Hehe.”
Our destination was a hotel not far from the Black Flame Mercenary Corps headquarters.
Since the mercenary experience lasted three days, we had to stay at the hotel for two nights.
Lee Seo-jun and Lee Hyun-joo should already be waiting there.
“Senior.”
“Yeah?”
“There’s something I’m curious about. Why is your school ranking so low?”
Choi Seo-yoon looked at me with curiosity-filled eyes.
She must have found it strange, considering the disparity between my ranking and the abilities I had displayed today.
“Why do you think? I did poorly on the exams.”
“Come on, that doesn’t explain it. Your mana control skills are way too refined for that.”
“Shut up. I don’t know, so don’t ask.”
“…I’ve felt this for a while, but you’re really full of secrets.”
Choi Seo-yoon grumbled.
Just then, her smart student notebook pinged with an alert.
As she checked the message, her expression stiffened slightly.
“What’s wrong? Something happened?”
At my question, she looked at me with a tense expression.
“My father is here…”
“Seo-yoon.”
At the sound of a deep male voice behind us, we turned around.
A tall, handsome man in his forties was looking at us.
He was Choi Jae-hyung, the head of the Choi family—one of the Five Great Noble Houses.
“…D-Dad?”
“Are you okay? You’re not hurt anywhere, are you?”
With concern written all over his face, Choi Jae-hyung approached Choi Seo-yoon.
She glanced at me, seemingly embarrassed by the situation.
“I’m fine.”
“…Is that so? That’s a relief.”
Choi Jae-hyung let out a deep sigh of relief.
It seemed he felt guilty, worried that his actions had brought harm to his daughter.
As I watched them, Choi Jae-hyung’s gaze shifted to me.
“…And you are?”
“I’m Kim Sunwoo, second-year student.”
I bowed my head slightly in greeting.
“Kim Sunwoo?”
Choi Jae-hyung repeated my name and seemed to think for a moment before tilting his head slightly.
“Hmm… It’s not a name I recognize. What’s your student ranking?”
“I’m ranked 72nd.”
“Hmm…”
Choi Jae-hyung nodded.
He didn’t show it outwardly, but he seemed a little disappointed.
Not that I cared.
“Regardless, I heard that thanks to you, my daughter wasn’t seriously hurt. Thank you.”
Despite his stern reputation, Choi Jae-hyung’s tone was polite and composed.
Of course, that was just his outward demeanor—his true nature was far more ruthless.
“It was nothing.”
At my response, Choi Jae-hyung nodded before looking at me as if hesitating to say something.
Sensing his hesitation, I spoke up.
“Would you like me to give you two some space?”
At that, Choi Jae-hyung smiled faintly.
I parted ways with Choi Seo-yoon and arrived at the hotel arranged by the school.
Since the support funds for the experience program weren’t particularly generous, I had to share a room with Lee Seo-jun.
“You’re here, Kim Sunwoo?”
As I opened the door and stepped inside, Lee Seo-jun greeted me. I gave him a brief look and looked around the room.
It was a reasonably spacious area with two large beds placed inside.
“The room’s nice.”
“Well, it is a hotel specifically for mages.”
I walked in and plopped down on the bed. After experiencing so much today, fatigue was rapidly catching up to me. Lee Seo-jun, having already showered, had slightly damp hair.
“Should I wash up too…?”
“Go ahead.”
“Yeah, I should.”
Since I hated feeling sticky, I headed straight for the shower. After a quick rinse, I stepped out again. Lee Seo-jun was looking at his smart student notebook.
“What are you looking at?”
“Online news. Apparently, magical crimes have been rapidly increasing.”
“Yeah, they’ve shot up a lot in the past few weeks.”
Magical crimes would only continue to rise.
Even if it wasn’t necessarily Jaun or the demons, villains like Park Jinsu from today or Jo Seong-hoon from the previous Incheon terror incident were still lurking throughout the world.
“…By the way.”
Lee Seo-jun, still staring at his smart student notebook, turned his gaze to me.
“Where did you learn magic?”
“Magic?”
Why was he asking that? Was it because of today’s fight?
“Where else? I learned it at school.”
“Do you have a mentor?”
Some students at the magic academy had personal mentors who taught them outside of school.
Lee Seo-jun was no exception—his mentor was none other than Kim Jin-Cheol, the man hailed as the strongest mage in the world.
“No, I don’t.”
“…Really?”
“Why?”
“…Never mind. It’s nothing.”
Lee Seo-jun muttered as he lay back on his bed. Then, almost too quietly to hear, he mumbled to himself.
“Is it just talent…?”
…What’s he going on about?
I stared at him briefly before reclining on my bed as well. As I absentmindedly scrolled through the internet on my smart student notebook, I wondered:
What would happen tomorrow? Would today’s events cause another butterfly effect?
“Kim Sunwoo.”
Lee Seo-jun’s voice pulled me from my thoughts.
“Hm? What?”
“I seriously don’t get it, so can I ask you something?”
“What is it?”
With a serious look in his eyes, Lee Seo-jun spoke.
“Why do you always pretend to be mana-deficient?”
“…What?”
His unexpected question made me frown.
“What are you talking about?”
“I thought something was off during the last dungeon raid, but after watching your fight today, I’m convinced.”
“Convinced about what?”
“You’ve been hiding your true abilities.”
“…What nonsense.”
I wasn’t hiding my abilities.
I was genuinely born with a low mana capacity, which forced me to appear weak.
If I had the choice, I’d rank higher and rack up points like crazy.
“Don’t try to deny it… You have plenty of mana, but you act like you don’t at school.”
“That’s not true.”
“Then what is it?”
“Whatever you’re thinking, it’s a misunderstanding.”
Lee Seo-jun fell silent for a moment.
“…Kim Jinwoo.”
“…What?”
“…Kim Jinwoo?”
“Huh? What? …No, wait.”
I froze for a moment and looked at Lee Seo-jun. His eyes were also wide with surprise as he stared at me.
“What the hell? Why did you respond to ‘Kim Jinwoo’?”
“Uh…? Our names sound similar. I got mixed up for a second.”
Lee Seo-jun narrowed his eyes. He stared at me, seemingly deep in thought, then shook his head as if dismissing the idea.
“…No way. That’d be ridiculous.”
Why was he acting so creepy all of a sudden?
And why did the name ‘Kim Jinwoo’ suddenly come up?
“But seriously, you really don’t know a Kim Jinwoo?”
“Nope.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah.”
Lee Seo-jun held my gaze for a moment before nodding.
“…Alright.”
Then, as if he had nothing more to ask, he lay down.
“Let’s get some sleep. We have to head out early tomorrow.”
“Oh? Oh… Yeah.”
“Goodnight.”
“Yeah, you too.”
I pulled the covers over myself and lay back.
Beep.
The lights turned off, and darkness filled the room. I stared blankly at the dark ceiling.
Just as I was about to close my eyes—
[The character ‘Lee Seo-jun’ feels a slight sense of competitiveness toward you.]
[You have earned 2,000 points as a reward.]
[The character ‘Lee Seo-jun’ has increased their interest in you.]
[Lee Seo-jun’s interest level in you: Lv. 2]
[You have earned 2,000 points as a reward.]
A bright system window popped up before my eyes.
For a moment, my mind went blank.
‘Lee Seo-jun feels competitive toward me?’
Competitiveness. The desire to surpass another. It was one of the most common emotions humans could have.
But to me—someone who had read the original novel and knew Lee Seo-jun well—it felt different.
Lee Seo-jun was a character who had almost never experienced competitiveness throughout the story.
Among his peers, he had no rivals. Even Yoo Ara, who was considered another once-in-a-century prodigy, fell short compared to him. Like the saying “geniuses are lonely,” Lee Seo-jun had always been his own competitor, constantly battling himself.
And now, he was feeling even a little competitiveness toward me?
Having followed his story to the very end, I couldn’t shake the strange feeling that crept over me.
“……”
I slowly turned my head to look at Lee Seo-jun.
He was sleeping with his back turned toward me.
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