Retire 356

356 Molting (3)

What?

Did she just ask if I made this on purpose?

I almost retorted—why would I ever create something like this?—but stopped myself.

Because I immediately understood the line of reasoning that led Park Seohyun to ask such an innocent question.

I’d left most of the management of the mage students to Kim Chaemin, only teaching the occasional rune class. Still, Park Seohyun would sneak over to me during after-school study hours. That started after she found out I was… something like Kim Chaemin’s mentor.

At this point, I know Park Seohyun’s magic better than she does herself. It would be foolish not to use the answer key I already have, so I’d given her some hints here and there. She was smart enough to glean answers even from my offhand remarks, and her magic had improved by leaps and bounds.

And because of that, it seemed her opinion of me had only risen higher and higher… at least, judging by her eyes.

It was both gratifying and a little burdensome.

“Teacher?”

And now, I didn’t know what to say.

But if Park Seohyun was right, then leaving things as they were would clearly be a disaster. Even if she weren’t, it was obvious that this wasn’t a normal flow of magic. I had no intention of just standing by.

It would be best to evacuate the building, just in case.

“Where are the other kids?”

“Huh?”

“They’re over by the greenhouse…”

“All right, then…”

Now, let’s consider the worst-case scenario.

The kids can be evacuated. The Dasun Hunters at the school as well. If it comes down to it, I can take Gamble and get out, so I don’t have to worry about casualties.

…Well, I can’t guarantee what will happen to Alex Hope, but at least I can prevent anyone else from getting caught up in this unawares. That’s only possible because this is private property, not a public place.

Aside from Alex Hope, the worst possible outcome is the destruction of the school building. I don’t know how big the explosion would be, but the school is protected by Kim Chaemin’s defensive magic.

Normally, “protection” means blocking attacks from outside, but Kim Chaemin, ever cautious, had strengthened the spells. Any shock would be contained within the field, unable to spread beyond the boundaries of the field and parking lot. I owe a debt to the archmage’s foresight.

Yes. I can’t guarantee Alex Hope’s safety, but if we can keep it to property damage, we’ll be lucky. It might be a blow to Im Miseon, who helped build the school, and to Hong Seok-young, who put his name on it…

But couldn’t I just blame it all on Hong Seok-young?

“Gather the kids and bring them to me.”

“The kids?”

“Don’t tell the other Hunter teachers. Got it?”

“……”

Park Seohyun just looked at me without answering.

Kang Taewoo, who knew what was in the infirmary, actually regained his composure at my words. I didn’t avoid Park Seohyun’s gaze. She nodded, still holding Choi Jinwoo’s arm.

That was enough. I nodded back at her.

“Grab anything important if you have it.”

“……”

“I’m not joking, so hurry.”

“Should we come here?”

“Yes.”

While Park Seohyun and Kang Taewoo ran off to their friends, Choi Jinwoo stood rooted to the spot. This time, it was Park Seohyun who was held back by Choi Jinwoo, not the other way around.

Choi Jinwoo looked at me, eyes full of anxiety, worry, faint curiosity, and fear.

“…This magic, teacher, you didn’t do this, did you?”

Choi Jinwoo was becoming a mage.

I didn’t answer, but said something else.

“We’re just preparing for the worst.”

“Jinwoo, come on.”

Park Seohyun shook his arm. He didn’t look satisfied with my answer, but he didn’t insist.

As I watched the three kids hurry off, I spoke to Gamble as well.

“Go with the kids.”

“Huh?”

Of course, Gamble jumped up. Judging by the look on her face, she wasn’t going to listen as obediently as the children.

Before she could protest, I spoke first.

“I tried calling this Hunter, but she didn’t pick up.”

Gamble, at a loss for words, sat back down on the bench.

I was starting to figure out how to handle her.

“She might have gone into the dungeon with Ms. Kim.”

“Uh, right.”

“It’s a delicate issue to tell the other Hunters about. Please go and speak to this Hunter directly.”

“What should I say?”

“Tell her to send Ms. Kim back to the school immediately.”

Gamble swallowed.

“…What if she’s not there?”

“Then tell her to call Ms. Kim right away. Say it’s urgent, that something important has happened at the school. Only tell this Hunter and Ms. Kim what’s going on. Understood?”

Gamble isn’t stupid. She was flustered, but she understood exactly what I meant.

She’d handle the rest on her own.

I took out my phone and called the Dasun Hunter who was surely working hard in the director’s office today.

—Mr. Woo? I heard from Ms. Shin that we’re not supposed to go to the infirmary.

“Yes. I’d like you to evacuate the school with the kids right away.”

—…Evacuate the school?

“Please take Dr. Gamble to this Hunter. She’ll explain everything in detail herself.”

Now, let’s think about the worst that could happen.

There’s still no major change in the magic. The greenhouse’s magic is just flowing into the infirmary.

If I can just get everyone out of here quickly, that’s the first step done.

Then I can focus on watching Hope without worrying about anything else.

I have the dog tag my father gave me. Even if there’s an explosion and the school collapses, I have a way to survive without a scratch.

The damage would be limited to a single building.

As for the aftermath? I’ll just use Hong Seok-young’s name. You can smooth over almost anything with that name.

If it comes to it, I’ll just say a dungeon appeared at the school and exploded. The witnesses are all school people, so we can fabricate the story however we want, and again, with Hong Seok-young’s name, everyone will just chalk it up to another strange event. The world isn’t leisurely enough these days to care about a dungeon break with no casualties.

Good. I feel a little lighter.

No need to overthink it. Even if Kim Chaemin were here, I doubt she could do anything in the face of this unprecedented flow of magic. Trying to control it would be risky, but cutting it off might be just as dangerous.

“Dr. Gamble, do you have anything important to take with you? Just in case.”

“…Oh! Wait, what about the equipment in the lab? What did that mage student say earlier?”

Gamble practically shrieked as she jumped up.

“An explosion? The lab will explode too?”

“Well… I don’t know.”

“No! My babies!”

I just stared at her.

See, now I get it. I know how to handle her.

Despite seeming to have completely different personalities, Han Taekyung and Gamble actually got along well. Maybe it was because they both had something they were obsessed with.

I thought of the pink cat on Gamble’s phone.

“What’s the point of having a rich master? If your equipment gets destroyed, he’ll buy you new ones, so don’t worry.”

“…Really? Our master is that rich?”

Gamble, knowing the price of the equipment, looked at me suspiciously.

“If he doesn’t have money, he can just lend his services abroad and get some.”

“Aha?”

“Do you know how much a Hunter of his caliber earns for a dungeon raid?”

“…I’m really curious, but at the same time, I don’t want to know.”

I smiled.

“So don’t worry, just grab whatever you need and go. Is there any data or anything else you need to take?”

“Of course there is!”

“Then what are you waiting for? Go get it.”

At my words, Gamble snapped out of it and hurried off toward the lab.

The kids, having heard Park Seohyun’s message, scattered.

I touched the dog tag hanging around my neck. The cold metal quickly warmed to my body heat.

---

“……”

The school was quiet.

Could it really get this quiet just because a handful of people had left?

It was strange.

Out of habit, I dragged my spear along the floor as I walked, then clicked my tongue. It would be fine anywhere else, but not inside the school building.

I looked back at the hallway I’d walked down and saw a long scratch. Damn. I should take better care of this.

I slung the spear over my shoulder and walked quietly down the corridor, careful not to let the tip hit the ceiling. Still, as I passed the infirmary door, I made another scratch. It wasn’t too noticeable, so it should be fine.

The infirmary was unchanged.

Only the magic crawling along the floor was unpleasant. I cut through the swirling magic and entered the inner room.

The magic was much thicker than when I’d come with Shin Minseo and Gamble. It was only natural, with so much magic being dragged in. The magic, clumping and surging, looked almost like a single, organic mass—like a slime.

I approached the bed Hope was occupying.

‘What did he say when he woke up?’

‘Huh? Oh…’

Shin Minseo, not even an Awakened, couldn’t sense magic and had no idea why I was being so sharp. But given the situation, I didn’t have the luxury of being gentle.

Shin Minseo stammered.

‘He didn’t say much… Just asked where he was, how long he’d been unconscious… Then he asked if Sandra was here.’

That sounded like something Hope would check.

‘He asked if Hunter Hong or you were at the school.’

‘He asked about Mr. Hong and me?’

‘He also asked if the archmage was here… That’s Ms. Kim, right?’

‘…That’s all he asked?’

‘When I said only you were here, he seemed…’

‘Seemed?’

‘He said it would be tough, then asked me to call you.’

The scene atop the bed was even more grotesque.

If Hope had just been sleeping there with that infuriatingly calm face, it would have been better. I wouldn’t have liked it, but at least I could have woken him up and demanded he explain this mess.

But Hope was in no condition for that.

A mass of red magic, clumped together like a slime—or rather, like a lump of blood—was swallowing him whole. His hair and limbs sprawled across the bed only made it look more like something out of a cheap horror film. The magic crawled up his pale arms and legs from the floor, joining the bloody mass. It looked almost like veins.

The magic writhed as if it were a single organ. Thump, thump, thump, in a steady rhythm. The magic crawling slowly over his skin looked less like it was climbing upward and more like it was dripping downward. Drip, drip, drip. Just like falling blood.

I stood before Hope.

Should I touch him? If I removed Hope, what would happen to all this magic?

“……”

Thump, thump, thump.

The magic twitched.

“This is really troublesome.”

And from inside the organ-like mass of magic, Hope spoke.

“Hey, I can’t move my hands right now.”

His voice was perfectly calm.

“Could you help me out?”

I gripped my spear tightly.