Retire 355

355 Molting (2)

“Ugh, wow…”

As soon as I set her down, Shin Minseo collapsed onto the floor.

“I feel like I’m going to throw up…”

She was a bit unsteady, unlike Gamble, who was standing upright on her own two feet. Well, Gamble was an Awakened, after all.

“I had to run myself or it would’ve taken too long. My apologies.”

“This school is unnecessarily huge…”

Her face was still pale, but as soon as she caught her breath, Shin Minseo sprang to her feet.

“Hurry!”

We entered the infirmary. Nothing had changed since the last time I’d been here. The small room attached to the nurse’s office was filled with unfamiliar medical equipment, and only the bed in the farthest corner was hidden behind a curtain.

As soon as Shin Minseo opened the door, Gamble rushed inside. She’d been doing her best to act like everything was fine, but of course, appearances weren’t everything. With a desperate expression, Gamble called out to her friend lying in bed.

“Shan-shan!”

“…Mmm…”

And Alex Hope simply rolled over, completely unbothered.

“……”

Nothing had changed since the last time I checked. Peaceful, even breathing. Limbs shifting restlessly. Occasionally, his mouth moved as if muttering something in his sleep.

“Mmm…”

Maybe annoyed by Gamble’s touch, Hope turned his back and rolled over.

He just looked like he was sleeping. Just as he always had.

“Shan-shan?”

With a confused face, Gamble grabbed Hope’s shoulder and shook him. He looked so deeply asleep that she seemed at a loss for what to do. Gamble shook him again.

Even though she didn’t use much force, his body flopped around limply. Still, Hope’s face remained peaceful. Gamble eyed him suspiciously, then cautiously poked his cheek.

“H-he was definitely awake just now…”

As Hope showed no sign of opening his eyes, Shin Minseo began to panic. She waved her arms, not sure if she was talking to me or Gamble.

Shin Minseo looked on the verge of tears.

“I swear, it’s true. He really woke up and talked to me…”

“Shan-shan!”

Smack!

Now Gamble was slapping Hope’s cheek. Her hand was getting rougher. At this rate, she might even clench her fist.

“Uuugh, I’m telling the truth…”

While Shin Minseo sat on the floor clutching her head, and Gamble kept slapping Hope’s cheek—

“……”

“It’s not a lie…”

I let out a deep sigh.

“I’m not crazy enough to make something like this up… I have no reason to lie…”

“I know.”

“He really woke up, drank some water, talked to me, and—huh?”

“That he woke up.”

Shin Minseo’s eyes went wide.

“I believe you. He really did wake up.”

“Th-thank… you?”

“Well, if he opened his eyes, then he must really be sleeping now.”

“R-right?”

Shin Minseo nodded dumbly at my words. Meanwhile, Gamble was still smacking Hope. Was it my imagination, or was there a hint of real emotion in those slaps?

I pressed my fingers to my eyes and sighed.

“…Are you tired?”

Shin Minseo fidgeted between me and Gamble, who was now hitting Hope. She studied my complexion. I shook my head.

“No, it’s just…”

My eyes hurt. The small room with the bed was flooded with magic. The aura was so thick, I could barely see Shin Minseo standing right in front of me—a deep, crimson magic.

Alex Hope’s magic.

---

“Teacher, um, about the infirmary…”

“I know, so don’t go near it.”

“Okay.”

Kang Taewoo obediently turned away. I knew he’d be able to see it.

He already knew who was in the infirmary. With magic running wild like that, I’d have been more worried if he hadn’t asked me about it—worried he’d sneak in there.

At least that was one less thing to worry about.

Even aside from that, he still turned pale and looked like he’d throw up just from being near the greenhouse. There was no way he could walk into the infirmary, which was far worse. It had been a long time since I’d gotten dizzy just from seeing magic myself.

I was worried the magic might explode. I told Shin Minseo not to go near the infirmary either. She’d protested, saying what kind of school nurse doesn’t work in the infirmary, but she packed up the basic emergency supplies and set up in the counseling office. I’d joked that there wasn’t much to do in the infirmary anyway, but she scolded me for making light of it.

Yes. The problem was Alex Hope.

The magic was growing thicker and thicker. It was even starting to draw in the surrounding magic. Of all times, this had to happen while Kim Chaemin was away.

I didn’t think Kim Chaemin would have known what was happening either, but if she were here, she could have done something to keep things from getting dangerous.

All I could do now was keep everyone away from the infirmary and inscribe runes in the hallway. If that magic really did explode, I had to at least keep the building from collapsing.

While Hope was unconscious, I’d never seen his magic act up like this. No, even in a dungeon, magic didn’t behave this way.

The movement of the magic itself wasn’t fast. But the way that dense magic moved slowly, so thick I could barely see, was even more threatening. The crimson color didn’t help. If anything, it made things feel even more ominous.

In the end, I went back to see Gamble.

“Alex’s magic?”

Gamble, too, was banned from the infirmary. She’d protested at first, but when I told her the magic around Hope was acting strangely, she’d reluctantly nodded.

“Yes. Did you notice anything unusual about Hope’s magic?”

“Uh… no?”

Gamble answered honestly, though she eyed me with suspicion.

Still, she added, looking dissatisfied.

“Look, I know Alex seems a little… not quite human, but…”

It wasn’t just me who saw it that way. I stayed quiet so Gamble could keep talking.

“Alex is human.”

As she’d insisted many times before.

“I’m not denying that.”

But hadn’t she agreed to examine Alex Hope more closely?

“We’ve talked about this before… Hope uses abilities no human should have. If his body is definitely human, then what matters is what’s inside, right?”

“…A spirit?”

“Saying it like that makes it sound like a B-grade horror movie.”

“Anyway!”

Gamble grumbled, frowning.

“I don’t know about his magic. Actually, I wanted to ask you.”

“Me?”

“Is there a difference between human magic and monster magic?”

“……”

“And if there is, how do you tell?”

“……”

“And if there isn’t?”

Gamble sighed, sounding tired.

“In magic engineering, magic is defined as an unknown force. It defies every physical law known on Earth. But it still exerts physical force. Look at magic—can you explain it scientifically? Even magic engineering can’t explain it properly.”

“Isn’t explaining that every magic engineer’s dream?”

“It’s a dream. Whether it’s ever possible is another matter.”

Gamble buried her face in her hands. Maybe the fatigue she’d been suppressing finally caught up to her, because she stayed like that for a long while, saying nothing.

“Which would you prefer, Mr. Woo?”

“Sorry?”

“Would you rather there was a difference between monster and human magic, or not?”

“…What difference does it make?”

“Well, for now, just the feeling?”

“The feeling?”

“Imagine telling a mage, ‘Hey, your magic is just like a monster’s!’ They’d be offended, right?”

Ah. That kind of feeling.

I nodded.

“On the other hand, some people might like it.”

“Who? Noah Michel?”

“Ms. Kim would probably find it interesting.”

“Oh, that person—she’s a great mage, but she’s surprisingly cold to other mages.”

Gamble giggled.

After laughing, Gamble fell quiet for a while, then spoke softly.

“I know what you’re really asking me. Even so, I know it’s hard to call Alex a human.”

“…He says he is.”

“What, feeling guilty now after all that scolding?”

“That’s not it.”

“Now you’re being cold.”

Whatever else, I knew that Alex Hope had chosen to become human.

No matter how much I disliked Hope, I couldn’t deny that. I understood what he felt, and why he wanted to become human.

“When Alex wakes up, we’ll be able to examine his magic. Ms. Kim will have to be here, too.”

“……”

“Personally, I hope there’s a difference.”

That was unexpected.

“Why?”

“Because I’m more confident in researching magic than in researching souls.”

“……”

Gamble smiled faintly.

“So, can I go to the infirmary now?”

“No.”

“Oh, come on! I’m his only family!!”

“It’s dangerous.”

“But nothing’s happened so far.”

“We don’t even know exactly what’s going on. Better safe than sorry.”

“Ugh…”

“At least wait until Ms. Kim is back—”

“…?”

I frowned.

“Teacher?”

“……”

“Wh-what’s with that face? You’re scaring me!”

I looked toward the infirmary.

And then at the greenhouse on the opposite side.

I’d told Gamble not to go to the infirmary, but I hadn’t stopped her from watching from a distance. She was sitting on a bench on the field, with a clear view of the infirmary windows.

From the field, you could also see the school building well. The greenhouse in the back was mostly hidden, but the presence of all that colorful magic couldn’t be concealed.

Why was I sitting here with Gamble? Because it was the perfect spot to observe the magic around the infirmary.

With a grim face, I watched the magic of the infirmary and greenhouse.

Hope’s magic was slow but heavy, while the greenhouse’s magic floated lightly. At first, the magic in each space swirled separately, but gradually, they began to interact. The magic in the infirmary started to draw in the surrounding magic, and the greenhouse’s magic responded.

The greenhouse’s flow collapsed. As if a hole had opened, magic began to leak out. The sparkling magic was drawn across the school toward the infirmary. The colorful magic was being devoured by the deep red magic. Yes, devoured. The greenhouse magic that touched the red magic was slowly being dyed.

Kang Taewoo, who could see magic, and even Park Seohyun and Choi Jinwoo, who must have sensed something strange, came running toward me.

“Teacher!!”

“…Park Seohyun, Choi Jinwoo. What are you feeling?”

“Um, well…”

“The magic is moving weirdly…”

Choi Jinwoo gestured with his finger, tracing from the greenhouse to the first floor of the building where the infirmary was. He’d mapped the flow of magic exactly.

Kim Chaemin wasn’t here. I could see magic, but manipulating it was beyond me. I wanted to put off any drastic measures as long as possible. I had to calm that magic somehow.

The amount of magic pouring in increased in the blink of an eye. Now I couldn’t even see the infirmary. The mass of red magic was so thick, it looked more like a drop of blood than magic.

“There’s a mass of magic over there, and if it’s left alone, I think it’ll be dangerous.”

“Dangerous?”

“If it explodes, it’ll be a disaster. Teacher, did you do this on purpose?”

Park Seohyun tilted her head and asked.