Retire 252
by Cristae252 The Archmage’s Disciple’s Disciple (3)
“…Huh?”
Park Seohyun sat up from her dormitory bed. She sensed a surge of mana that shook her entire body.
No, strictly speaking, it wasn’t all that strong. It was a faint ripple, like a breeze so gentle you could barely tell if it was blowing at all. Yet Park Seohyun’s expression grew grave as she looked out the window.
How often does one sense an artificial wave of mana on a peaceful afternoon?
…Not never. If you’re unlucky, you might even encounter one just walking down the street—that’s what a dungeon break is. No matter how skilled a mage is, getting caught in a dungeon break can be fatal all the same.
Mages who don’t want to die throw themselves into resolving dungeon breaks, if only to save their own lives. Park Seohyun had felt the desperate magic of such mages before.
But that was always because of a dungeon break, wasn’t it?
To feel such an artificial mana wave at a peaceful school?
Even if it was faint, the very fact that a vibration starting from far away could be felt so clearly was no trivial matter. Besides, while her own abilities weren’t anything special yet, she was still a mage. Her dorm room wasn’t exactly a proper domain, but she’d taken care to make it her own space, and now it was shaking.
“……”
Her body shuddered again. This time, the wave of mana was even clearer.
Every hair on her body stood on end. Someone else’s mana drifted in the air. It was a calm yet chilling wind, like the stillness before a typhoon. Was this a real wind, or was it a sensation only a mage whose territory had been invaded could feel?
Wuuuuung.
“……!!”
Her phone, left on the bed, buzzed. Park Seohyun jumped and checked the screen.
[What was that just now?]
A message from Choi Jinwoo.
Park Seohyun clenched her teeth. A chilling sound escaped from between her tightly shut teeth.
Her pride as a mage whispered that she shouldn’t show weakness to her disciple.
But the nineteen-year-old girl inside her said it was okay to confide in a friend.
[You felt it too, right?]
[Seohyun?]
[Park Seohyun?]
Reassuring a disciple was a master’s duty.
…But it felt strange to be fussing about who was master and who was disciple just to comfort a frightened friend. If she’d cared about such things, she wouldn’t have brought up teaching her grandfather’s magic in the first place.
Park Seohyun shook her head lightly.
[I think it’s probably Teacher Chaemin’s mana.]
Choi Jinwoo was silent for a moment.
[Teacher Chaemin?]
Park Seohyun looked out the window again. The mana in the air was still trembling softly.
If the ripple remained, tracking it wouldn’t be hard. Besides, whoever caused it didn’t seem to be hiding it.
She narrowed her eyes. It was the school building. Even if mages were more sensitive to mana, the fact that none of the teachers at school had come out…
A faint scent of grass tickled her nose.
That was enough. She didn’t need any other evidence.
[You’ve felt Teacher Chaemin’s mana plenty of times before. Calm your mind and focus. You’ll be able to sense it.]
Choi Jinwoo quickly recognized Kim Chaemin’s mana.
[You’re right.]
[It’s Teacher Chaemin’s mana. Did he cast some kind of spell?]
[He always told us when he was planting something around here.]
Choi Jinwoo sounded intrigued. After exchanging a few more messages, Park Seohyun found she couldn’t focus anymore and put her phone down.
For the past few days, Kim Chaemin’s afternoon magic classes hadn’t gone as usual. With a nervous look, he would poke his head in, tell them to self-study, or send them to join other classes, then disappear.
It wasn’t strange, since afternoon classes were flexible for both teachers and students. At first, Park Seohyun had thought nothing of it—she just trained on the field with friends or attended monster lectures by veteran hunters.
But she noticed Kim Chaemin slipping into the counseling room, looking preoccupied. Not just once, but the next day, and the day after that…
‘Teacher Woo is in the counseling room.’
Park Seohyun had gone there herself a few times.
‘And I heard Teacher Chaemin say he wanted to become Teacher Woo’s disciple…’
It wasn’t the kind of thing you easily forget—a great mage declaring he wanted to become the disciple of someone who wasn’t even a mage.
She figured there must be a reason, but she couldn’t imagine what it might be. Park Seohyun thought of her late grandfather. No matter what happened, he would never have become someone else’s disciple… In fact, while he had accepted her and her father as disciples, he himself had never been anyone’s disciple.
She trusted that Teacher Woo wasn’t that kind of person, but if Woo Heejae had pressured Kim Chaemin to become his disciple by invoking Hong Seokyoung’s name, she would have found it more believable. But it had definitely been Kim Chaemin who volunteered to become a disciple…
Her thoughts spun on and on. Come to think of it, Woo Heejae wasn’t even a mage, yet he was skilled with runes. And he was strangely free of ambition.
Remember what happened in Myeong-dong. Woo Heejae had handed out runes to high schoolers he’d just met, without a second thought. Later, Hong Seokyoung had told them to keep it secret, not to tell anyone else, but a mana-shielding rune wasn’t some ordinary item! It wasn’t something you should just hand out so easily!
‘Could Teacher Woo… actually be a mage?’
Park Seohyun found herself seriously considering the thought that had popped into her head.
He sparred with the principal sometimes, so it wasn’t as if he lacked combat skills… And being a mage doesn’t mean you can’t fight. She and Choi Jinwoo were also learning basic weapon skills, just in case.
Most mages barely had time to practice magic, let alone train with weapons, but Park Seohyun didn’t think the school’s approach was wrong. Even a mage could die if hit by a monster.
Yes. That would explain everything.
A sword that shoots fire? That might exist, but you could also disguise magic by using a sword as a cover.
Before Kim Chaemin arrived, Woo Heejae had taught rune classes. There were subtle hints of magical knowledge in his lectures—yes, even the method for identifying magical attributes.
All of it made sense if Woo Heejae was actually a mage!
Teacher Kim Chaemin must have realized this and asked Woo Heejae to accept him as a disciple! Everything was clear now. Park Seohyun jumped to her feet.
Should she use her shadow? She’d been found out last time, but at first, she’d managed to fool them. If she was just a bit more careful…
“……”
The intermittent waves of mana finally ceased. Her hair, a mess from lying in bed, fell over her eyes. Park Seohyun fussed with her hair, then pouted.
“…He said he’d make me an archmage.”
“…Well?”
Kim Chaemin asked cautiously.
The waves of Kim Chaemin’s mana, which had surged like a tide, had finally subsided. But their lingering traces still hovered in the air.
The scent of damp earth, as if touched by morning dew, the fresh smell of grass, and, floating lightly above it all, the rich fragrance of roses.
I barely managed to collect myself.
“…You’re saying this is what happens when you apply Park Seohyun’s theory?”
“Yes! I combined domain declaration with magic, and the effect is good, isn’t it?”
“…This isn’t just ‘good’—it’s on another level.”
“Really?”
Kim Chaemin couldn’t suppress his grin. He knew just how extraordinary the magic he’d just performed was, and his delight leaked out in spite of himself.
“…At this point, isn’t this a unique magic?”
“Even you think so, Teacher?”
“Would you please stop calling me that…”
Whether I clutched my head or not, Kim Chaemin just laughed all the harder.
Kim Chaemin manipulated his mana again. This time, the spell was smaller than before. Rose vines bloomed around him, climbing the walls of the small counseling room and covering the ceiling. At first glance, it didn’t seem so different from his usual magic, but in essence, it was completely unlike anything he’d done before. It only looked this way because Kim Chaemin’s magic was plant-based. Park Seohyun had created a space where shadows swallowed everything, and if Choi Jinwoo learned this, he would create a space filled with light.
In other words, it was a domain.
A domain where Kim Chaemin could reign as an absolute.
Kim Chaemin smiled gently as he released the magic. This time, the mana truly faded away.
“If a mage is skilled at adapting, I think they could imitate unique magic to some extent.”
“…To that degree?”
“It’s just that the difficulty is high.”
I tilted my head. For something so difficult…
“But you did it right away, Mr. Kim.”
“Don’t you think I’m that great of a mage?”
I wanted to retort, “Are you really that full of yourself?” but since Kim Chaemin really was that good, I just nodded.
“Ah, this is fun! Don’t you have anything else like this? Another spell or theory created by the archmage?”
It’s not as if I don’t…
“Could I ask you a favor?”
“A favor?”
“Could you organize the magic or theories I mention from now on?”
Kim Chaemin blinked.
“I only know the theories—I don’t fully understand the underlying principles.”
“But you seem to understand them well when you explain.”
“That’s a different matter.”
You can solve a math problem, but proving the formula is another thing altogether.
I frowned.
“Runes are the same, but magic is a double-edged sword. Honestly, I… was trying to raise the level of the Hunters.”
“The level of the Hunters?”
Kim Chaemin mulled over my words and soon understood.
“You said all the dungeons would break at once, right? Is that why?”
“Yes. It’d be best if we could stop it before then, but we have to prepare for the worst. The mana-shielding rune was part of that. To increase survival rates.”
In truth, the greatest result of all this might be Kim Chaemin’s survival. I couldn’t let my guard down yet, but at least the direct cause, the Siren, was gone now.
Kim Chaemin nodded.
“The mana detector? The device that measures dungeon stability. The person who made that is here too…”
“And you need to surpass Noah Michel in influence. That’s why your role as a mage is so important, Mr. Kim.”
“But this isn’t something I did.”
Sandra Gamble had said the same thing.
It’s not that it’s better than just taking things without permission, but… I didn’t know if I should call this conscientious or just stubborn…
“I can’t just ask you to do it, can I?”
“Maybe if I were one of those shameless beggars who don’t even want to be called a mage, but I’m not.”
Kim Chaemin refused firmly.
But then, hesitating, he added,
“…But I get what you’re saying, Manager Woo. About it being a double-edged sword. You’re worried that if we publish this, Noah Michel will use it too, right?”
Noah Michel was already an incredibly powerful mage. My intention to raise the Hunters’ survival rate would be just as useful to Noah Michel. No, it certainly would be.
“Still, there’s a clear reason why we need to increase our influence… It’s a headache. Should I just publish it under Seohyun’s name?”
“Are you insane?”
“Right?”
“Yes.”
“……”
“……”
“Still, calling your disciple insane is a bit much.”
Kim Chaemin pouted.
But then his eyes widened.
“How about this?”