Retire 475

475 Doll (1)

At that moment. Korea. Gyeonggi Province.

Pharos Research Institute.

Was it a subsidiary of Guild Mimi, a lab funded by Guild Dasun and the Dayeon Group, or an affiliated facility of the Hunter Training High School?

No one knew for sure, and even the institute’s sole researcher had long since given up trying to distinguish between them.

“AAAHHH!!!”

That sole researcher had half-fallen from her chair and was now sprawled on the floor, flailing her arms.

Her hands, which had been covering her face, dropped limply to her sides. Her haggard face was fully exposed under the pale fluorescent lights. Sandra Gamble lifted her head slightly, glanced at the mess of her desk, and then collapsed back to the floor, drained of energy.

One thought dominated her mind.

‘Why do I have even more work again?!’

She’d definitely taken care of the most urgent tasks. She hadn’t expected secret documents to magically appear just by registering a mana pattern. Secrets are called secrets for a reason.

The security format from the future had been awkward, but once she got the hang of it, things moved quickly. After unlocking it, she understood why such elaborate security measures had been used, just by reading the document’s contents.

And she realized this was information that needed to be sent immediately to the people currently on assignment in America.

She could have sent the document as-is, but they were probably flying somewhere over the Pacific by now. Since she was at it, she organized it to be easier to read. Information on fairy dungeons from the future. In any case, since most of the monsters returning from the distant future were fairies, it could only help, not hurt.

Besides, she wanted to avoid sending guild members into a fairy dungeon in America without any knowledge at all.

She made sure the security was tight before sending the document. She even used a method she’d discovered while analyzing the mana clock, so anyone living in this era would have a hard time cracking it.

With the most urgent job done, it was time to return to her real work. Or so she thought. Gamble realized, belatedly, that this was a hopelessly optimistic idea….

‘Investigate a rune that looks similar to this.’

‘Pardon?’

‘I drew it as best I could from memory, so I can’t guarantee its accuracy. But you can do it, can’t you, Doctor?’

‘Excuse me?’

‘Just check the database. It should find something close enough… But it’s not foolproof. Anyway, it’s urgent, so do it quickly.’

‘W-wait….’

‘I’ll contact you again.’

‘Wait…’

‘Oh. It might be a rune that isn’t in there.’

‘Then how am I supposed to— Hello? Hello? Did you really hang up?! You little—!’

That person—boss or nemesis, who could say—had hung up the phone the moment their business was done!

They must think she’s some kind of vending machine that spits out inventions at the push of a button! Otherwise, who would dump work on her like this…!

“…Ughhhhh…”

In the end, a groan escaped her lips.

Her childhood friend, as young as she looks, might not understand, but Gamble was well aware of her own situation.

Let’s set aside all the conspiracy theories about being a world-ending archmage. Forget for a moment the monsters and the beautiful blueprints from the future.

Sandra Gamble had talent.

It couldn’t be described as mere talent. Gamble knew that better than anyone.

‘I’m a genius.’

To deny what’s plainly true would be an insult to herself. Gamble knew her own abilities better than anyone.

That’s why she’d meticulously planned her future. She had no choice, not with such a troublesome childhood friend.

Those plans had all gone into the trash at this point, but it wasn’t a hopeless situation. She’d found someone to share the burden with. Not just anyone, either. In fact, things felt more hopeful than when she’d been alone. It would have been better if her childhood friend were a bit more reliable, but…

‘So this is why people say you should choose your friends wisely.’

Gamble looked up at the ceiling and let out a hollow laugh.

Her future might not have turned out as she’d dreamed, but that was all right. She had a boss who would buy her expensive equipment without a second thought, and an annoying but attentive supervisor who made things as easy as possible whenever she could.

After she’d brought it up, she’d been so busy that she’d half forgotten about the tour of the mana engineering lab, but in the end, she’d gotten to do it.

‘What did you say?’

‘Why? You said you wanted to visit that university lab.’

‘Well, yes, but…’

‘Dayeon funds that place, so it was easy to arrange. I sent them your paper, and they said they’d love to meet you.’

‘Gasp.’

‘Don’t want to go? Then—’

‘No! I definitely want to go!!’

‘Didn’t you say you were too busy to go anywhere?’

‘I can sleep when I’m dead!’

‘If you live like that, you really will die young.’

‘Then give me less work!’

‘Good luck.’

She was annoying—so annoying she wanted to smack her upside the head—but…

In the end, she was the only one who could do this work. Gamble knew that better than anyone. So even if she grumbled, she diligently locked herself in the lab and got to work.

She couldn’t ask Imiseon to do this kind of thing.

“…But there’s a limit.”

Gamble frowned.

“Runes aren’t even my specialty…”

If she were a mage, she could at least draw them herself and experiment. But she wasn’t. Sure, she could draw runes with a mana pen, but theory was another matter.

Gamble had only started studying runes after coming here. And with all the work her boss dumped on her, she hadn’t had much chance to really dig in. It was a little embarrassing, given how close she was to the subject.

“…Wait.”

A thought struck her, and she sat up straight.

“If it’s just the runes, I don’t have to do it myself, do I?”

Where was she?

At a school.

What kind of school?

A place that trains hunters.

And here, there were not one but two talented, trustworthy mages!

They might be minors, but these days, students do all sorts of things to build up their résumés. Wouldn’t it be perfect to give the mage kids some experience with runes? And these were the very students being taught by the great archmage Kim Chaemin!

Gamble was about to run straight to the school and drag the two young mages…

“……”

But she didn’t.

The research institute and the school were under different jurisdictions. Even if the person in charge was the same.

“…Better get permission first.”

She might get chewed out for dragging the kids into this. Gamble obediently reached for her phone and sent a message.

---

“Do you think all of this was orchestrated by Henry Lehmann?”

At last, Daniel had taken the bait.

“If it were only Henry, we’d be lucky.”

Well, maybe “bait” was too dramatic a word. Honestly, anyone would want to know if everyone but them seemed to be in on some secret. Especially if, like Daniel, they worked in a job where they learned a bit more than most.

…Even if that weren’t the case, most people pretend not to care about conspiracy theories, but their ears perk up all the same. Of course, this wasn’t a conspiracy theory, but it certainly sounded like one.

The world’s most famous archmage is actually a psychopathic maniac who wants to wipe out humanity?

Who would believe that?

“He’s got some issues, sure, but he’s not the type to think, ‘Let’s kill all humans!’”

Hope grumbled, his face sulky.

“That’s why you have to choose your friends carefully. Henry and…”

“Alex.”

Father quietly called Hope’s name.

That was more than enough of a hint that there was someone besides Henry Lehmann.

Daniel looked at Father’s face and wisely fell silent. After days of similar conversations, he knew there was only one answer he’d get if he pressed further.

‘Want to know more? Then join our guild.’

Daniel was certainly a talent they wanted, but not enough to force him if he didn’t want to come.

The reason for wanting to bring Daniel wasn’t the Ark, but for the sake of the academy. Or for what comes after. Whether Korea needed a regulatory agency yet was unclear, but seeing America’s situation, it was obvious that a proper authority to handle Awakened crimes would be needed before things got worse.

Daniel was the perfect candidate for that. Even if not, to establish the academy like the ones he knew, they’d need a top-notch healer. In the end, kids grow up by getting hurt.

“……”

Hope wasn’t the only one who fell silent at Father’s warning. Daniel, sensing the unnatural hush and the glances exchanged, still couldn’t quite suppress his curiosity.

But Henry Lehmann and Noah Michel, both already infamous as criminals, were in a different league. Lehmann was a topic you could bring up easily; Michel was not.

If only Noah Michel could be described as simply a talented mage. But was that really the case?

The youngest archmage? A genius mage?

Nice titles. But if that were all, things wouldn’t have gotten so complicated.

Noah Michel was a mage beloved by France and all of Europe. Young, with an unassuming appearance, and always willing to help others.

A hero. He was a hero. Just as Hong Seok-young was Korea’s representative hunter, Noah Michel was France’s representative mage. Even now, the number of medals Michel had received was probably beyond counting.

Kim Chaemin’s public rune research and other activities that drew Michel’s attention were also done to counter such a figure. Michel was already wary of Father. Regardless of whether there were people from the future, Michel would have constantly opposed Father.

That was why they’d sent a warning as well—by stealing the rune Michel should have published. To show that they knew his true identity, and that he shouldn’t try anything reckless.

Who knew how Michel had taken it? Judging by the magic that had pursued Woo Irok… Well, considering the events in America, maybe that was him showing restraint.

“…Do you know Henry Lehmann?”

After some calculation, Daniel avoided the more complicated questions. He was finally starting to understand what kind of person this man was.

Surprisingly similar to Han Taekyung. He avoided trouble and shirked responsibilities that would fall on his shoulders. It was an instinct that developed in anyone who’d worked in society for a long time.

He’d be perfect as a middle manager—say, a teacher at the academy.

“Him? Mm. A little, I guess?”

Hope grinned at Daniel.

After being holed up in the lab watching dramas, he’d finally learned how to poke at people. In the past, he’d have done it out of sheer cluelessness, but now there was at least some intent behind it.

Hmm.

I recalled why Hope had ended up holed up in the lab in the first place.

He basically had to keep out of sight of the kids, but his range of activity had shrunk dramatically… after Daniel came to the school.

Was this his way of getting even?

He really had become human.

“Ahaha, I’ve been all over the place. Ended up friends with Henry by chance!”

“…Friends?”

“Well, that’s just a figure of speech. Henry wouldn’t see it that way.”

Hope burst out laughing, falling over backward.

“He absolutely hates me! To the point he’d want to kill me!!”