Mariel’s secret, which I had coolly uncovered, was as significant an issue as the opening of the Gateway of the Underworld in the Great Labyrinth.
The name popping up on the second-grade wanted list from the Intelligence Department, eagerly sought and compiled by the Department.
It wasn’t just a brain used to reach the Tower Master; she was practically an accomplice in running the Forum.
So, from Mariel’s perspective, she had to do whatever it took to shut my mouth.
“Argh! Forget it! Forget about it! Get it out of your head, get it out!”
The first step was physical violence. Like a dive, she threw herself at me and hit my head with fern-like hands.
My vision shook, my head spun, but the Fragment of Mystery engraved on the flesh before me swirled, making memories clearer.
Realizing her weak physical strength couldn’t push me away, surprisingly, Mariel started using her brains.
“Oh, no…! Supervisor!”
“Yes?”
“The supervisor will beat me with this! Hurry!”
Was she trying to use the ‘Clocktower of Principle’ to go back to the past before I saw the Witch Note?
But I wasn’t one to fall for such a shallow trick.
When she tried to activate the mystery by any means necessary, I grabbed her hands behind her back, and she struggled to activate the mystery by rolling her feet.
She forced me to hit myself with the edge of the Witch Note by punching my chest, biting my chin, or pushing her body against mine.
Lips almost touched several times during the process, but whenever our eyes met, we silently stopped, preventing accidents.
“Now is the chance for you to become garbage who hits women!”
“I don’t want to be that kind of person.”
“If you just do me this favor, I’ll cut you a piece of the Death Gorge owned by Holcroft!”
“No need. It’s a desolate land.”
“Then, marriage…! Yes, marriage! Holcroft’s women have been well-reputed in society for generations for raising children and managing households!”
“…”
“How about it!? It’s a chance to welcome the only beautiful bride in your life as a supervisor! So, right now…!”
Oh, I almost really punched her at the end.
Anyway, if I attacked her, any promises would be null and void, so ignoring everything was the best option.
In the end, after a fierce struggle that left moisture on the windowsill, time passed without her being able to cover the past with her Mystery.
Mariel, caught helpless by me, sat on the floor, tears streaming down her face.
“Let’s see… the closest security office here…”
“Aaargh! Please spare me! I’ll do anything, please…!”
“Really?”
“Yes?”
Her skin was as delicate as if it were glittering as if she had put on gold leaf, and once bitten, it seemed like the mark would never disappear.
I belatedly grabbed her hand trying to hide those two things under the blanket.
“I guess now that you know I’ll listen to anything, the conversation finally gets through, huh? It would be inconvenient if your identity as the gallery manager were revealed, right?”
“Supervisor?”
“As a reward for keeping the secret, I have one request. No, it’s not a request.”
“You, no way…!”
As she lifted her arms upward, her grip on the blanket loosened.
I didn’t miss the opportunity and dug in even closer.
With my knees between her legs, I pressed my body close.
The hand that couldn’t push me away kept moving towards my chest.
Even that seemed to indicate she wouldn’t allow it, and she reluctantly opened her mouth with a red face.
“S-Supervisor. You’re too close. I-I can’t breathe…!”
“Mariel.”
“Eep! Y-Yes…!”
I reached out towards Mariel’s upper body, smelling of sugar and milk.
Then her gaze, which had been swaying back and forth, finally couldn’t withstand it and dropped down.
Eventually, her eyes, resigned but containing a bit of expectation for what was to come, turned back to me.
As our breaths grew rough, to the point where they tickled the throat, the moment our distances closed.
“I want you to produce three spells in the next two weeks.”
“Eh?”
I pointed to the fragment of Mystery engraved on her left breast.
*
Mariel was the type to squeeze out results like wringing a dry towel.
Even though she handled all of Sub-Manager’s work, she didn’t come to the Great Labyrinth with me.
After staying on the training floor, she cheerfully left the dormitory after making sure to remind me firmly to bring her the magic I would dedicate to her.
Now it was time to save the remaining two people.
‘What’s Shien doing these days?’
In the past, she used to send trivial questions or embarrassing photos, but after the Magic Festival, there wasn’t much news.
====
SuperconductorSilverHairedGirl: I have a favor to ask.
SuperconductorSilverHairedGirl: What are you doing right now?
TrainingIsTheBest: Zfdsf Busy
====
After sending a message through the Witch Note for a long time, it seemed like even though I didn’t know what was going on, it wasn’t a situation where she could reply immediately.
====
SuperconductorSilverHairedGirl: Why? Are you in the middle of a closed-tube training after being bullied by me at a Magic Festival?
SuperconductorSilverHairedGirl: But it’s not because you can’t do it properly, right?
SuperconductorSilverHairedGirl: The Haeju School is a bit of a scam.
SuperconductorSilverHairedGirl: Will the trainee who chose the Alchemy School grow up to be a proper mage? Even now I don’t know
SuperconductorSilverHairedGirl: (post-match photo of a miserable beating)
TrainingIsTheBest: I’ll kill you thirteen times over.
====
Since Shien was at least on the 39th floor, she had to come down to see her face.
I decided to go find one of the other candidates I had left marked.
While Mariel could be persuaded by coercion and Shien by friendship, the last person didn’t seem to be swayed by either.
“Are you free for a moment, Vina?”
“What’s the matter, Supervisor?”
“I have recently ascended to the training floors, and I have an urgent request to make… … What are you doing right now?”
Vina, whom I met in the Epsilon corridor, was standing in front of a vending machine, constantly pressing buttons.
At first, I thought the vending machine was broken, but upon closer inspection, I saw that it was sold out of all drinks except for ‘iced water’.
I tried not to delve too deeply into what had led to this behavior as Vina extended something to me.
It was a large suitcase, elegantly finished with luxurious leather.
“Here you go. I was actually looking for you, Supervisor.”
“Where are you headed?”
“A while ago, due to an unfortunate incident in the Labyrinth, an investigation committee was formed. The location is the ‘Void’ on the 44th floor. As a member of the Niflheim, I also have to participate in the committee.”
The fact that demons invaded the Labyrinth led to the gathering of the upper echelons of the magical families of the Magic Tower.
While it was rare for even the direct descendants of the Seven Sages to attend, this time, she said she had to go too.
“Milone-nim, the Seven Sage, personally summoned everyone. As her direct descendant, I will represent the Glesia school and enter the Void.”
“Then I guess lectures will be postponed for a while. Should I carry this luggage to the elevator for you?”
“No, just follow me with it, Supervisor. Don’t open it recklessly.”
“Follow you?”
I glanced briefly at the rows of drink bottles piled on the floor.
Perhaps excessive gall was destroying the mind of the genius pure-blooded magician.
“Excuse me, but I can only go up to the 11th floor.”
“I’m aware of that. Do you think I’m an idiot, Supervisor?”
Vina turned her head swiftly without waiting for a response and passed me by.
As I followed her quickly, she handed me two unfamiliar pieces of paper.
“It’s highly unusual for the Void to be open at this time. During the trainee reception period, most families are not prepared to go up to the middle floors. ”
“Yes?”
“Nevertheless, as many families as possible must participate in the committee to determine the future of the Magic Tower. This is an ‘Express Pass’ for that purpose.”
An ‘Express Pass’ was a device that allowed temporary movement to other areas of the Magic Tower that could only be accessed by those who had climbed normally.
Of course, once you went up, you had to take the train back down.
If you made a mistake, you could end up trapped on a floor much higher than your own ability.
But she, who was free from climbing, wouldn’t need such a ticket…
“Did you prepare this for me?”
“…I need someone to carry the luggage.”
Without turning her head, Vina increased her walking speed slightly.
“And confirming the skills of high-level magicians isn’t a bad opportunity for Supervisor, either.”
As we arrived at the platform where people were waiting to board the train, numerous magicians were waiting.
*
When it came to the Magic Tower and the magical families, there were broadly two categories: the Pure-Blooded, who inherited the lineage of the Seven Sages, and the White Families, who did not.
If you asked which side had more, it was naturally the Baekga, a coalition of over a hundred families.
There were hardly any Pure-Bloods visible on the platform waiting to board the fast train.
The only ones who seemed to shine were Vina and her friend, Christina.
“Ah! Why are you so late, Vina! It’s been a long time since we’ve seen you, Supervisor!”
“It’s been a while. Have you been using the Witch Note well?”
“Oh~ I borrowed it from Vina for a moment, but it got permanently suspended! What was the reason again? It said something like ‘-review-‘?”
“….”
“Oh dear, here’s another one for you. Try not to pass it on to anyone else.”
After exchanging pleasantries, the bell rang, signaling the start of boarding.
As I was traveling with two pure-blooded magicians, naturally, our seats were first class.
After handing over the personal luggage I had hastily prepared to the attendant, I returned with only Vina’s bag to where the two were standing.
But there was one more face I hadn’t seen before.
“It’s an honor to meet the shining members of the Glesia. If it’s alright with you, could our Celusia family accompany you to the Void?”
“Thank you, but we already have a companion here. Oh, there he is!”
The number 13 was written under the robe’s emblem, indicating membership in a White House.
The man looked my features up and down and spoke in disbelief.
“What? You’re taking just one mere user into the Void!? And moreover, this mana aura is filthy and vulgar, umm…!”
Underneath his robe, a glowing spirit mark was visible around his neck.
Clearly, the spirit users were drawn to the pure-blooded magicians, while those like me who had been active adventurers seemed to instinctively repel them.
I could explain calmly elsewhere how I had become a target for him, but there was a chance the train would depart before that.
I pulled out my Witch Note and sent a message to his account.
“Hey, you there! You look more like an adventurer than a noble, so stop being so greedy and…!”
“It seems like an urgent message has come in. Do you mind if you don’t pick it up?”
“What? Where… Aaahhh!”
As soon as he checked his Witch Note, he covered his eyes and rolled on the ground.
The relentless effects of a modified tactical hack, which stuck to the optic nerve and couldn’t be erased for at least a month, were enough to soak the platform in the tears of the spirit user.
“We should board. It seems like we’ll depart soon.”
“Really?”
“Shall I take that too?”
“Oh, thank you!”
I boarded the train with Christina’s bag in hand.
As a posthumous measure, I didn’t forget to invite him to the ‘Nuclear Fusion Board’, where scammers were lurking with venomous intent.
