Jin Ye-Seul and I were sitting opposite each other.
While her Mana Marks were checked, Lee Yu-Na suddenly developed a high fever.
Professor Grossman hastily took her to the infirmary, and because of that, the class ended naturally, so we were spending time in the café like this.
"Yu-Na, will she be okay?"
Jin Ye-Seul muttered in an indifferent voice.
However, I could easily notice the subtle worries contained in it.
Lee Yu-Na was now the only friend she met apart from us.
If I had to put it bluntly, it seemed she didn't even want to make friends with anyone except Lee Yu-Na.
I could only guess that Jin Ye-Jeong's death must have changed a lot of things inside her.
“Fortunately, the professor said she knew well how to deal with it. You don't have to worry."
Jin Ye-Seul nodded and stared at me.
“Ji-Hyuk, you also know what it is, right?"
Come to think of it, Jin Ye-Seul was a member of a wizard family.
Then it wasn't strange that she knew about Mana Marks, even though it was a rare symptom.
"I know. It's Mana Marks.”
"As expected, it was that."
She nodded softly.
Then she muttered quietly, with a gloomy expression on her face.
“It’s an incurable disease, but at that age already….”
"Yes?"
Ah.
Come to think of it, was Mana Marks known as an incurable disease in this world?
There was no need to keep it a secret even from Jin Ye-Seul, so I told her the truth as it was.
“I can fix it.”
"Huh?"
“I can fix it, Mana Marks. It's not an incurable disease, it's a cure obstinate disease.”
Jin Ye-Seul gave a startled look as if she couldn't believe it, then soon nodded.
“Hmm… if you say it like that, Ji-Hyuk, then it must be so."
Then, seeing her touching the inside of the cup with a straw, I naturally smiled.
"Do you want me to tell you? How to fix it?”
“Uh, um. I'd appreciate it if you did....”
"The way to cure Mana Marks is….”
It was when I opened my mouth to explain to her.
“Uhh, Ji-Hyuk and Jin Ye-Seul-ssi?”
It was Ivan.
He had his arms full of coffee cups.
“Group Leader?”
“Oh, Ivan.”
Jin Ye-Seul nodded in her seat.
I stood up and greeted him.
“The professor said he'd feed the kids, so he asked me to run an errand for him."
Saying so, he shook the coffees he was holding with both hands back and forth once.
"By the way, why are you here? Don't tell me you guys are done with class already?"
"Well… yes."
I said with a nod.
“Rather, do you want me to help? It looks heavy.”
"No, I'm fine. I'll be fine on my own."
Ivan burst into laughter.
Then he sneaked a glance at where Jin-Ye-Seul was and said.
“Besides, I don’t want to hear words of resentment from a group member for acting tactlessly for no reason.”
When I turned my head at those words, Jin Ye-Seul had an expression on her face as if she knew nothing.
Ivan burst into laughter once more.
“Anyway, I’ll get going. Everyone must be waiting for me to come.”
As he was about to leave after saying that, he looked at me, making an oops sound.
"Right. Ji-Hyuk, can you spare me some time later?”
"Why?"
“That… Mother keeps bringing you up."
I tilted my head as he spoke as if he were uncomfortable.
“I think it would be rude to say this, but… you're the first person Mother has ever shown interest in that way, and when Mother does, something important has always happened….”
“… Belluna-ssi?”
Ivan nodded.
There was no reason to refuse.
“I'm, well, fine at any time. If you tell me, I'll spare you some time.”
"Okay, then I'll get back to you later."
Having said that, Ivan disappeared, walking in a straight posture as always.
When I sat down, Jin Ye-Seul was staring at me.
“… why?"
“… come to think of it, Ivan’s mother was very beautiful.”
“What?”
When I looked at her, speechless, Jin Ye-Seul also put on an 'I think I went a little too far' expression on her face.
Then she looked away and muttered in a low voice, as if asking, what's wrong?
"No, it's just.… She was very beautiful... if you only look outwardly, she honestly looked a little older than our age group."
It's because she's a spirit.
It was a situation where I couldn't answer like that.
I lifted my half-drunk cup of coffee for no reason.
"Come to think of it, where was I earlier? It was about how to cure Mana Marks, right?"
“Ah, yes.”
"It's simple. The way to cure Mana Marks is....”
Money.
Jin Ye-Seul tilted her head at my words.
"Money?"
“Yes, money. To be exact, it costs a lot of money to prepare the materials needed for the treatment."
“Umm….”
Jin Ye-Seul muttered quietly.
“Then I can’t help you now.”
Jin Ye-Seul, who had spoken up to that point, covered her mouth for a moment with an oopsie expression.
What, what's wrong?
As I was thinking like that, she rolled her eyes around and soon let out a small sigh, as if she had given up.
"… I didn't mean to keep it a secret.”
She muttered, as if grumbling.
"Just. Ji-Hyuk, you seem to have a lot to worry about these days, so I didn't want to make you worry about more for nothing.”
“What the hell is going on?”
“That, um….”
Jin Ye-Seul glossed over the words for a moment.
"I was disowned in the house."
“… what?"
Disown.
It was a word I had never thought of at all.
When I asked her, speechless, she smiled bitterly.
“I roughly expected it, but I didn’t expect it to happen so soon.”
Jin Ye-Seul, who said that, looked rather relieved.
"Well, Mother wasn't the kind of person who would change her mind just because I encouraged her, so she probably had it in mind from the start. She may have just done so with the heart of reducing one of her worries at this opportunity."
Jin Ye-Seul, who had spoken up to that point, suddenly rolled her eyes as if she were anxious.
Then, staring at me, she muttered quietly.
“That, Ji-Hyuk. I really didn't mean to keep it a secret from you. But if I say I've been disowned... Ji-Hyuk, I'm sure you'll worry about it, and....”
She closed her eyes tightly.
"I was afraid I'd perhaps be abandoned by you....”
"Wait a minute."
This time, it was a word I had never thought of at all in a different sense.
"What do you mean? Why would I abandon you?"
When I asked back, she answered in a crawling voice, muttering.
“That, now I don’t have a decent family or background, and… I can't help you like I used to whenever you needed me, and... I thought you might be annoyed by me."
“Haa….”
I was speechless seeing that, so a deep sigh naturally came out.
Then Jin Ye-Seul flinched and trembled as if she had been beaten by someone.
She will be extremely dependent on you for a while.
Recalling Svengali's words, I began to soothe her in the softest voice possible.
"From the beginning, I went with you because of who you are, and never once did I go with you because of your background or family. You know that well, don't you?”
"That's true, but....”
“No but. And you heard that, too, right? That, when your father... said those things about you, I immediately refused and chose you.”
Jin Ye-Seul nodded silently.
I carefully reached out and grabbed her hand.
“I won’t abandon you. No, it's funny to even say the word abandon in the first place... So don't worry about such useless things."
"Still….”
"I'm telling you the truth."
I let out a small laugh.
"To put it bluntly, if I was going to abandon you, I would have abandoned you then."
I moved my neck to show the nape of my neck, which still had a small scar.
So don't worry.
I was about to say this, but I was startled.
“……!”
It was because Jin Ye-Seul's complexion had become extremely pale.
She immediately lowered her head and muttered quietly.
“… yes, right. I even did such a thing to you... I had nothing to say not only now, but even when I got abandoned. But If I, I get really abandoned even by you....”
“…….”
What the hell should I do with her?
It was when I was thinking about how to calm down her, who had a momentum that seemed like she would really be digging into the ground if I left her alone.
“Excuse me for a moment.”
Someone naturally sat down at the table where we were sitting.
I looked up and saw it was Ivan.
[It is that blonde girl from last time.]
Svengali muttered so.
I stared at her and asked.
"What's going on? Don't tell me you found them already?"
“… not even surprised.”
Esmeralda, disguised as Ivan, muttered, clicking her tongue.
Then she nodded and looked at me and Jin Ye-Seul alternately.
“I found one of the two you asked for.”
"Who?"
“Lee Chul-Min. One of Isaac McDowell's aides."
She took out a picture.
The picture showed a man who looked to be in his late twenties.
"You said Dmitry, didn't you? That man hasn't been found yet. But this one is definitely....”
"Good, because either way, it was a matter of finding first."
I looked at Esmeralda with a nod.
"Now that I know where he is, I don't have to wait."
“What, are you planning to go right now?”
"Yes. And since you're here, I'd like some more help."
“… that wasn't in the contents you asked for at first, though."
“Shall I contact Lydia, then?”
Then Esmeralda glared at me as if she was going to kill me.
After a while, seeing her barely nodding, I said.
“I’m going to go get him right away, as you said now. So, disguise yourself as Ye-Seul and me, walk around and make an alibi. And… go there with us and just guide us.”
I won't even tell you to fight together.
At those words, she nodded as if she understood.
I carefully touched Jin Ye-Seul's shoulder, who was still depressed.
“Ye-Seul.”
“… yes?"
"Let's go together."
It's a matter where I need you.
At those words, her eyes, which had been droopy, immediately began to glow slightly.
But there was a slight shaking.
"Me?"
"Yes. No one else, only you.”
At my words, she nodded.
It was when I was desperately feeling the need to contact Jin Ye-Jeong soon because of her desperate appearance.
“Youngsters are annoying….”
Esmeralda muttered, as if she didn't like the way we were.
I looked at her like that and asked.
“By the way, where the hell was he?”
“…….”
Esmeralda was silent for a moment.
Then she said in a really bad voice, as if she were swearing.
"Where you and I first met."
Esmeralda muttered that, looking like she was in a really bad mood.
* * *
The archive I visited for the first time in a long time was deserted.
Still, it was always a place where fifteen or so people lived, but now it was not only deserted but also locked up tight with a sign saying that it was forbidden to enter except for those who were concerned.
“… what's going on here?"
It was something I really, really couldn't have expected.
As I muttered blankly, looking at it, Esmeralda explained.
“The director, the deputy director, and the head of the management have died, and due to a combination of financial difficulties and various other things, it has been temporarily closed. I think it's already been a month?”
“A month… Then what about the materials or things that were inside?”
"Well. It isn't easy to move materials of that scale.”
She waved her hand, saying she didn't know.
“They are probably there as they were. Well, then again, they probably took all the expensive items and computerized data with them."
"Yes….”
If so, there was a high possibility that Shadow Walker's book, where Henir's shadow was hidden, would still be there.
Even if it was moved somewhere, all the records would remain, so if I sold my feet a little, I would be able to find it quickly.
“… anyway, he's hiding here."
Esmeralda lifted her head and stared at the archives.
“There are records of him buying food and daily necessities in the area several times, and most of all, the security company was called as many as eight times because of human noises coming from the closed archives. Although it was all for naught."
“That's enough. Do you, by any chance, know the approximate location?"
"Probably the director's office. It’s the cleanest place, and it’s a place where you can live like a human being.”
Esmeralda, who had said that far, stepped back as if she had nothing more to do.
“Then, I’ll get going now.”
"Okay. Good work. Tell Lydia I said hello."
She stopped her steps at the words I said without thinking.
“… you, I'm advising you sincerely."
Esmeralda said, grinding her teeth.
“If you keep involving that person like that, one day I will really kill you…!”
It was then.
Esmeralda's neck was broken with a crushing sound.
It was kicked by Jin Ye-Seul.
"Ah."
Jin Ye-Seul muttered, straightening her posture.
“Should I have not done that, by any chance?”
"uh…… right?"
I muttered as I watched her disappearing alter ego.
I was just a little surprised because I knew it was her alter ego that came all the way here in the first place.
“… but, well, it doesn't matter because it was an alter ego."
Next time she'll swear at me again, but she always has.
I muttered so and stretched my shadow towards the lock.
I said to her, carefully removing the lock, which had split cleanly in half as if it had been cut with a knife.
"But it was a little too much just now. Next time, make sure you get permission from me. Got it?"
"Yes."
Jin Ye-Seul nodded deeply, like a child.
Good, then....
“Let’s go in.”
We pushed ourselves into the archives without hesitation.
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