Retire 404
by Cristae404 Admission Review (2)
Six days ago.
The faculty was thrown into confusion over the new student candidate, Abel Kim—Kim Abel.
“Didn’t you see it in Marseille? The bad blood between magicians and hunters? When the magicians were fidgeting because they couldn’t get close to Michel, the hunters were looking at them with utter contempt!”
Kim Chaemin insisted, relying on what he had seen and heard in Marseille.
“I’m not saying we can trust them completely! But there’s not enough reason to suspect them without cause, either.”
I agreed with Kim Chaemin’s point. There wasn’t enough evidence to doubt someone just because they shared the same nationality. Even as outsiders, it was plain to see. Besides, judging by the magicians’ attitude during the dungeon break, their participation rate in raids seemed low.
If not for Kim Chaemin, the Marseille dungeon break would have been left entirely to the hunters, with the magicians not lifting a finger.
A magician had participated in the Toulon raid, but… in truth, the real risk for both hunters and magicians lay with dungeon breaks. The damage was always worse there.
The fact that magicians tried to offload all the dungeon breaks onto the hunters was more than enough reason for hunters to dislike them. Magicians had the same duty to protect the region.
What was the reputation of Michel again? Among magicians, it was good. Among hunters, not terrible, either. By European magician standards, Michel participated in raids fairly often.
Let’s think. European hunters only started to like Michel as much as the magicians did after the runes were revealed. Wasn’t that why this side made a preemptive move, to prevent that and take away his influence?
“On the contrary, maybe he’ll give us information about Michel and the magicians.”
“That’s not certain.”
Unlike the positive Kim Chaemin, Alex Hope objected to the new student candidate.
“We finally created a space Noah can’t infiltrate—how do we know what’ll happen now?”
“Did you get along with the hunters when you worked under Michel?”
“I never worked under Noah!”
Hope snapped at Kim Chaemin’s words.
“Anyway! My point is, do we really need to take unnecessary risks?”
While Kim Chaemin began analyzing the relationship between European magicians and hunters, Hope’s argument was simple.
But that made it easier to understand.
If you can avoid something when you don’t know if it’s safe, isn’t it better to avoid it?
“We’re talking about a sixteen-year-old kid, you know?”
“To a lunatic, age is just a number.”
“We’re not talking about Noah Michel right now!”
“We’re talking about someone who might be working for Noah!!”
Kim Chaemin and Hope glared at each other.
I looked at Han Taekyung.
“……”
Not that I was blaming Han Taekyung, no, I wasn’t, I knew I wasn’t, but…
“Yes? Why, sunbae?”
Seeing him sipping his coffee with that carefree face, as if none of this concerned him, I couldn’t help but think how unfair the world was.
Well, if the world were fair, would I be in this situation? Jean Robinson, on the other side of the globe, probably had no idea his name was being thrown around like this, under suspicion.
I didn’t know Jean Robinson personally. All I knew was that the man—or his guild—gathered his children into a single guild and then barely managed them. That alone left a poor impression on me.
…Well. He did rush over as soon as trouble broke out. I suppose he didn’t completely abandon them. Maybe, in this era, that’s how next-generation hunters are managed. To me, it looked like child neglect, but considering the times, maybe it was actually progressive.
……Who knows.
My personal feelings about Jean Robinson didn’t matter at this point. In fact, since my impression was negative, I needed to judge even more objectively.
Both Kim Chaemin and Hope had reasonable arguments, so I couldn’t make a decision easily. What if, as Kim Chaemin said, we accepted a new student and ended up planting a Trojan horse with our own hands?
But conversely, what if we rejected the new student as Hope suggested, and that only raised more suspicion? What if it made them even more convinced we were hiding something extraordinary at the school?
Even without my input, the two of them kept pointing out the flaws in each other’s arguments, their voices rising.
“Why would a hunter steal the school’s information just because a magician asked?!”
“We can’t judge how valuable the information is. What matters is what they might do with it once they have it.”
Surprisingly, Hope could be quite reasonable at times…
“And they might be completely in league with Noah!”
“In league? Like on the same boat?”
“If someone offered to replace their arm or leg, do you think there wouldn’t be hunters who’d jump at the chance? We have people like that in this school!”
“Sunbae, I didn’t run to them. I just woke up and found myself changed, that’s all.”
Even Han Taekyung got caught in the crossfire.
“Look, we’re not talking about veteran hunters. How much do you think a sixteen-year-old who’s only ever played piano understands any of this—or would cooperate?”
“Magician, why are you being so naïve all of a sudden?”
“Because we can’t do anything in this state!”
Kim Chaemin snapped irritably.
It was the first time I’d seen Kim Chaemin get so worked up. Even Hope, and Han Taekyung too, stared at him with wide eyes.
Kim Chaemin folded his arms defensively and sighed.
“Most of the Ark research labs in the country have been shut down. But what did we gain? The researchers were either already dead—”
“I didn’t do it!”
“—or disappeared. There wasn’t much to salvage from the closed labs, either. Since then, Ark activity has practically vanished.”
Kim Chaemin looked at me, not Hope, as he spoke.
“At least Atlas is easier to track. They’re still an active criminal organization. There are plenty of people who’ll move against them, even if it’s not us.”
Daniel, who’d followed Hong Seokyoung all the way to Korea for no reason of his own, was one of them.
“We have no idea what Noah Michel’s next move will be. We just have to do our best, but not knowing what he’s up to is… unsettling.”
In the end, all we had to rely on regarding Noah Michel were Hope’s firsthand experiences and my knowledge of the future.
It seemed Kim Chaemin felt a heavy burden from that fact. Maybe there were personal reasons, too… Still, if he put it like that, it was easier to understand.
“Even so, my opinion hasn’t changed.”
Convincing Hope was impossible.
No, well. I could still see both sides. Even if I was leaning a little toward Kim Chaemin emotionally, I couldn’t decide such an important matter based on that.
“What could happen with Hong Seokyoung watching with both eyes wide open?”
“Look at the great Hong Seokyoung now! He can barely stand!”
Now the sparks flew toward Hong Seokyoung.
Listening to the conversation in silence, Hong Seokyoung shifted uncomfortably, looking displeased.
“It’s not that bad…”
“But you’re still Hong Seokyoung!”
“They’ve already done all sorts of things right under your nose! Don’t you remember the student attack last year?”
“That was you!”
“Does it matter who did it?!”
“Kuh, ahem.”
Just as I began to worry they might come to blows, Hong Seokyoung finally stepped in.
“Both of you, calm down.”
Fortunately, Kim Chaemin had the decency to look embarrassed as he reflected on his words. Hope snorted and turned his head away.
“You all seem to be forgetting something.”
Hong Seokyoung scratched his head.
“This is a school.”
“…That’s exactly why I’m having this conversation with the magician. Master, say something. Isn’t safety the most important thing at a school? That’s what he’s always saying—safety first.”
Hope glanced at me and muttered. Still, he seemed a bit cowed by Hong Seokyoung’s presence.
“I’m not against the importance of student safety. But we have no grounds. What if we reject him for no reason and get criticized? We’re not going to close the school after just one year, are we?”
“Right. That’s true.”
Hong Seokyoung nodded, siding with Kim Chaemin. Hope’s face twisted in response.
Still, maybe he thought he couldn’t go against the Master’s words, so he slumped into his chair, lips pouting. But Hong Seokyoung wasn’t finished.
“It’s not for the reason Kim-saem mentioned.”
This time, the smile vanished from Kim Chaemin’s face.
I had no idea what he was about to say. Both I and Han Taekyung turned to look at Hong Seokyoung.
Hong Seokyoung spoke with a finality that brooked no argument.
“This is a school.”
I knew that tone of my father’s. He only used it for things he would never back down from.
Even if it meant trouble for himself.
Because that was Hong Seokyoung’s conviction.
“A school does not turn away its students.”
Five days ago.
“Why is there a message from Toulon’s Anchor?”
“Wouldn’t Woo-saem know better?”
“…I’m not sure, but that’s not the point. Why did they contact us through this hunter?”
“That’s—!”
Lee Miseon looked at me, her face flushed with frustration.
“The official channel for Yangseong High is the director’s office, and I’m also the official contact for Guild Mimi!”
I nodded.
“You’re working hard. Does Mr. Hong pay you a salary? Make sure you collect it.”
“…You know, sometimes you’re even more annoying than Hong-saem.”
Even so, Lee Miseon never neglected her duties. Well, even if she complained, it wasn’t as if she got nothing out of it.
Never mind Yangseong High, but as the contact for Mimi, the solo guild she’d run for so long? That meant anyone without a personal connection to Hong Seokyoung had to go through Lee Miseon, no exceptions.
If you couldn’t take advantage of that, you had no business running a guild.
Now that there were more guild members, I bet she wouldn’t like it if I offered to take over.
“Since this hunter has so much to do already… maybe it’s time we handled guild affairs ourselves? We can’t leave it to an outsider forever.”
“We’re outsiders?”
I just smiled wordlessly. Lee Miseon immediately caught my meaning and grumbled again.
“You’re really infuriating!”
Perhaps realizing that any more small talk would only bring up things to her disadvantage, Lee Miseon quickly changed the subject.
To think she’d had such an innocent side, too. No matter how many times I saw it, I couldn’t get used to it.
“It’s from Toulon’s Anchor, but they’re doing it as a favor.”
“A favor? Whose favor?”
“Jean Robinson’s.”
I frowned.
“It’s not the guild, but a personal request from Robinson. Apparently, he’s known the master of Toulon’s Anchor for a long time? Marseille and Toulon are close, after all, so it’d be odd if they didn’t know each other.”
“What’s the request?”
“The master of Toulon’s Anchor was interested, so he agreed to it.”
Lee Miseon hummed a little tune as she spoke.
“You know Dantes?”
“…In Marseille?”
“The place you lamented so much about as soon as you got back.”
I felt nothing but a sense of foreboding.
Seeing my face, Lee Miseon grinned and continued.
“He wants you to take his daughter on a dungeon raid.”
“……”
“He’ll pay you for the lesson.”
Now I understood why Lee Miseon said I was annoying.
At this very moment, I found her truly infuriating.