Youngest 094
by Cristae94
“Hello?”
“Huh? Is there another checkpoint here? I thought the last one was just back—there…”
My voice trailed off awkwardly.
The person before me was a brown-haired man. He wore no name tag, and his clothes were ordinary…
But no, that’s not it.
He’s not a judge.
I faltered and stopped moving.
‘Ma… mage.’
A chill ran down my spine.
“I got lost while out for a walk… Could you perhaps tell me where the exit is?”
The man, smiling warmly, spoke utter nonsense. A subtle magical energy emanated from his hair.
He must have used magic to disguise his appearance, probably hoping to avoid attracting attention.
‘Magic that changes your appearance only lasts a few hours.’
Of course… that’s plenty of time to disrupt the maze challenge.
I straightened myself with forced calm.
But I couldn’t stop my fingertips from trembling.
It was the moment I truly realized the Mage King had sent a mage here just to find me.
‘Don’t panic.’
I tried to calm myself, clenching my shaking hands tight.
‘It’s fine. My face is well covered.’
That was why I’d stubbornly kept my mask on, even though my cold had long since passed.
I’d prepared myself for a situation like this.
That His Majesty the Emperor would eventually open the gates, and a tracking mage would come all the way here to Ipson.
‘I didn’t expect it to be so abrupt…’
I studied the man’s face carefully.
‘But if it’s that mage, it’s not surprising.’
I knew the identity of this mage.
‘The Mage King’s Fourth.’
I hadn’t had any dealings with him, but his reputation was familiar, and there was one time—
I had seen his face in person.
At that time, I was already planning to escape the kingdom, so I made sure to memorize the faces of all the mages.
Whatever that man remembered…
“By the way… What a beautiful hair color you have. There’s a rumor that the newly adopted child of the Zevert family has dazzling silver hair.”
His lips stretched into a long, sly smile.
“It truly calls someone to mind.”
I answered with composure.
“Who are you? If you’re lost, you should try going that way. There’s a judge over there.”
He started toward me. I backed away an equal distance.
If he closed the gap and touched me, he might sense the magic within me.
‘If my identity is revealed, I’ll have to use magic.’
Whether for attack or escape.
But then what about my family waiting outside…? Should I let everything be exposed?
Confused thoughts raced, and my heart hammered in my chest.
“If you come any closer… I’ll scream.”
“Oh my. Are you frightened, young lady? You needn’t be worried. I mean no harm. I’m only…”
He curled his thin lips upward.
“A bit curious what’s under that cloth on your face.”
In that instant.
Blue magic surged aggressively toward me.
For a fraction of a second, I grasped the structure of that magic circle. A nullifying spell.
A high-level magic that cancels all magical effects on a target. The crude, abrasive force felt like a snake crawling across my skin.
I grimaced but did not resist.
I needed to see the triumphant mage’s expression twist in frustration.
Besides.
‘A normal child shouldn’t be able to sense this magic.’
I bit the inside of my cheek, enduring the repulsive, crawling sensation.
Soon after—
“…What?”
The mage’s face twisted in confusion.
“…Her eyes.”
“……”
“Why are they still blue?”
Because that’s my real eye color, you errand boy.
‘Did you think I’d used an appearance-changing spell like you?’
I swallowed back the words with effort.
Thankfully, the clues that could expose me as a mage were well hidden.
I forced myself to calm down, my heart still racing, as I spoke.
“So… Are you going to just stand there? I told you, go that way. Do you want me to show you?”
I had no intention of helping, but I tried to sound as innocent as possible.
The red-haired man scanned my face with slitted eyes, then pasted on a mask-like smile.
“No, my lady. I am the one at fault here.”
He bowed deeply and stepped away.
“I’ll go the way you advised and ask for help. Pardon me for troubling you.”
“No trouble…”
I slowly backed away.
With his nullifying spell useless, all that remained was for him to touch me directly and try to sense a mage’s crest, or probe for magical energy.
I ran over several countermeasures in my head, visualizing the worst-case scenario of him lunging at me.
‘Of course, the best outcome is for him to just walk right past.’
The garden paths here were wide—wider still near the exit. But I couldn’t hide my tension.
One step, two steps.
As we brushed past each other, in the split-second our bodies nearly touched,
I held my breath and suppressed my magic, again and again. And then—
“…What is that? This magic…”
Just then, the mage snapped his head up.
“Impossible.”
His face changed in an instant as he dashed away, not sparing me a single glance.
‘Squirrel?’
I saw a brown tail disappearing into the bushes. And suddenly, there was a surge of magic from the squirrel.
‘Khalid…!’
Overhead, a hawk had been circling since earlier. Sensing trouble, Khalid was coming to my rescue.
What? Where did he go?
As I expected, the mage’s distant voice filtered back as he chased the squirrel.
Who’s there? What are you doing here?
Along with the final checkpoint judge’s voice.
At last, I breathed a long sigh of relief.
My legs nearly gave out, but I grabbed the wall and steadied myself.
“Okay. I’m fine.”
I calmed my racing heart.
I’d expected a mage to come after me—but for him to act so quickly!
‘That was close.’
But… I didn’t get caught.
I retied my shoes and hurried forward out of there.
The maze challenge wasn’t over yet.
‘The fact that a mage came for me first is proof I’m their prime suspect.’
The Zevert family’s new adopted child.
That rumor surely reached the Mage King’s ears.
‘If only this was the end of it.’
But I sensed it wouldn’t be.
Not for a single moment while living in the north had I truly forgotten there were pursuers.
Still, actually facing the situation I’d dreaded made it weigh on me far more heavily than I’d imagined.
It felt as though the Mage King’s shadow was stepping right before me. I could barely breathe.
‘No!’
I shook my head hard.
‘I’m not the type to be taken down so easily.’
This was the resolve I’d come here with.
‘For now, focus on the tournament!’
Clenching my teeth, I forced all my attention back to the contest. I gripped my star sticker card tightly.
No matter how much I trembled in fear, nothing would change.
So, I have to do what I can right now.
“I’ll win, then think about the rest!”
After all, I’d come this far to win the herb prize!
“You can’t just barge in through the judge’s entrance. How lost do you have to be to end up here?”
“Haha, my apologies. It’s my first time here, you see.”
The mage scratched his head and bowed humbly. The judge clicked his tongue, looking annoyed, and waved his hand.
“Well, I’ll let it go this time. Please head back.”
“Yes, yes.”
He hastened to withdraw.
His hair color was changed by magic, and he’d changed into commoner’s clothes.
The presence of a mage… it seemed the Emperor was still keeping that a secret.
Honestly, it wasn’t hard to sneak around in the shadows.
‘But if I poke around too much, I’ll draw suspicion.’
The Mage King still wanted to be part of the ‘Continental Alliance.’
So getting caught wouldn’t do.
The mage slipped down an isolated path. With the disguise spell fading, his red hair reappeared.
“And still… blue eyes?”