Chapter 238: Episode 238

“It’s terrible! The Alliance is…!”

“Hm?”

Sham and I turned our heads at the same time.

“The Alliance has notified all World Guilds that their qualifications are being re-examined!”

“…What?”

I let out a hollow laugh and brushed my bangs back.

The Alliance was ordering a re-examination of the World Guilds’ qualifications. In other words, during this period, their investigative authority and all other privileges would be suspended.

’Albert, that bastard. And here he was, acting like the calmest man on earth.’

He truly was a certified rank 1 hunter. It wasn’t just that he was strong.

From his attack on the Magic Tower in Malta, it was clear every move he made was fast and decisive.

He had made the first move.

* * *

Switzerland.

World Alliance Headquarters.

“Yes, there will be no reversal. Ignore any complaints and push it through.”

After once again issuing the order to re-examine the World Guilds’ qualifications, the Alliance’s Secretary-General set the receiver down and let out a deep sigh.

“Do we really have to go this far?”

As he muttered and turned his gaze, he saw a man with wings perched on the windowsill.

Without a word, the man slipped a hand into his coat and tossed a bottle.

“…Ah!”

The Secretary-General flinched in terror and lunged forward. He barely managed to catch the bottle before it hit the floor, but he ended up sprawled on the ground.

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

“Drink it.”

He froze in shock.

The arm holding the glass bottle trembled violently.

“What, you don’t trust me?”

Albert stepped down from the window and grabbed the Secretary-General’s arm, hauling him up. With that monstrous grip, the man’s body rose like a paper doll.

When Albert rolled up his sleeve, the veins beneath were darkened, bruised-black.

“It’s progressed quite a bit.”

“…Kgh!”

“Drink it. It’s a drug that slows the progression. It should get you through the next month safely.”

“That wasn’t our agreement! The antidote!”

“I’ll provide the antidote after this is over. Just as you don’t trust me, I can’t fully trust you yet either.”

Albert pulled out another bottle from inside his coat and set it on the table.

“This one is for your wife, as promised.”

The Secretary-General shuddered with rage.

“Master of the Sky Castle! Are you even aware of what you’re doing?”

“Of course.”

Albert walked back toward the window. Staring up into the blazing sunlight, he spoke, his voice tinged with a strange finality.

“This is something that has to be done.”

* * *

—“Those sons of bitches!”

I was taking a call from Han Yoonjeong inside the shelter.

She had gone directly to the Alliance headquarters in Switzerland, and her voice was shaking with fury.

—“No matter how much I explain that the Master of the Sky Castle is the mastermind, they won’t even hear me out! They just keep hiding behind ‘insufficient evidence,’ and every one of those old fossils is playing dumb, sticking to the ‘I don’t know anything about that’ line!”

I let out a bitter chuckle.

“Albert already made his move.”

I had contacted Han Yoonjeong and told her everything related to the Master of the Sky Castle.

Since she happened to be at headquarters, she had gone straight to the higher-ups to protest, but no matter how much she argued, the Alliance had no intention of reversing its stance.

[Audits of the World Guilds are to be conducted twice a year by regulation; the reason for this audit is unrelated to the current situation.]

[There is no definitive evidence to support the claim that the Sky Castle Lord is behind this incident. The Alliance will send auditors to the Sky Castle and have them take appropriate measures.]

[During the audit period, the investigative authority of the World Guilds will be suspended.]

That was the gist of it.

—“Seriously, who the hell does Albert think he is! Even if he’s a certified rank 1, can he really jerk the Alliance around this much?”

“He must have used the antidote to get leverage on the upper brass. The demonkins originally created the antidote to exploit people this way.”

Even if it wasn’t the person themselves, there was a high chance that at least one family member, relative, or acquaintance had taken the drug.

The Alliance’s upper echelon would be no exception, and Albert had taken full advantage of that.

“There’s no need to get that worked up. The situation itself hasn’t changed.”

I tried to calm Han Yoonjeong down.

“They were afraid we’d come crashing in with the Alliance at our backs, so they made the first move. Whether their investigative authority is suspended or not, all we have to do is unite against Albert and crush his plan. Once we prove our innocence afterward, the Alliance won’t be able to say a word.”

—“Fine. But hey, that’s all well and good, but you’re talking like you’re already part of the World Guilds.”

“Am I not in already?”

—“Nope. You’re not.”

’Well, so much for that idea.’

“Anyway, the Gravekeepers are going to come after the Sky Castle too, right?”

—“We have to. I’m in the middle of tackling a Catastrophe right now, so I’ll have to convince the old geezers, but I’ll make it work somehow.”

By “old geezers,” she meant Egypt’s Council of Elders. It sounded like having an internal faction trying to keep her in check was a real pain.

“Tell them this is about the lives of hundreds of millions of people.”

—“Then those old coots will probably snap back, asking what happens to Egypt’s hundred million, huh? Anyway, I got it.”

“Okay, I’ll call you again later.”

I ended the call and set my smartphone down. In the meantime, Sham had been quietly enjoying a cup of tea.

“The way young people talk these days is utterly baffling.”

“…Haha.”

“I just contacted the Ghost Corps.”

“What did they say?”

She shook her head.

“They said they’d think about it. They didn’t sound particularly interested.”

“Hmm, doesn’t Mexico get cold in the winter? I’m sure they have some victims of the cold medicine over there as well.”

Sham stirred her teacup with a spoon.

“They’re an extremely conservative group. They might think it’s better to sacrifice a few people than to shoulder the risk of fighting Albert.”

“Well, I can’t blame them for being cautious. Let’s just see how things develop for now.”

Next, I reached out to Marcello of the Holy Knights.

—“If it involves demonkind, I will gladly come.”

Marcello accepted without hesitation, declaring his intent to join the fight.

With that, the board was set at four versus one.

The Ghost Corps’s lukewarm response meant there was a high chance they would remain neutral, but even if we lost one faction, our side’s power was overwhelmingly superior.

“I should probably head back soon.”

“Where shall I have you dropped off?”

“Oh, I appreciate the offer, but I’m fine. I’ll just warp back the way I came.”

“Being a mage is convenient.”

As Sham lifted her teacup again, Ea’s voice echoed in my head.

—Tower Master. The Magic Tower is completely out of mana. Please wait a little while until we recover enough to open a warp.

’…Ugh, we finally hit rock bottom.’

That was another problem.

Even if we managed to locate the Sky Castle, it would take a tremendous amount of mana to “transfer” from the bottom of the Mediterranean to wherever it was.

Warp magic consumed different amounts of mana depending on the distance. Opening a warp in front of the Magic Tower was simple, but moving the entire tower required an astronomical amount of mana. To be honest, coming all the way from Korea to Malta had already been pushing it.

’I need to come up with some kind of solution.’

* * *

Instead of returning to the Magic Tower, I took a warp straight to Korea.

My destination was the new headquarters of my Mage Guild in Sanggye-dong. There was an important event today.

“Aaaaaah!”

The moment she saw me, Shin Nara grabbed my hand and bounced up and down.

“Thank you so much for coming! Aren’t you too busy these days?”

“Thanks to you helping out in Malta, Nara, my schedule opened right up. Oh, by the way, has anyone around you had any problems?”

Her expression instantly drooped.

“Thankfully, my family and I are okay, but… quite a few of our employees took the cold medicine. They wouldn’t be able to focus on work anyway, so I put them on paid leave and told them to spend time with their families.”

“Ah…”

“Still, I’m not too worried. I’m sure the World Alliance will take care of it again this time. Right?”

Her eyes were shining so brightly that I decided not to tell her the Alliance was currently being jerked around by the very mastermind behind this whole mess.

“Of course.”

“Oh, this is no time for gloomy talk. Let’s go in!”

Today, along with the completion ceremony for the new building, we were holding an information session for my new Mage Guild, “Arcane.”

To put it simply, Arcane was the Magic Tower’s second team. It would be run like a guild, but with a much heavier focus on training mages. If someone achieved enough or produced good results, they would get a chance to move up to the first team, the Magic Tower.

The buzz was guaranteed. Even before opening, it was drawing explosive interest from all over the world.

In particular, countries like the UK and the Netherlands, where a magic boom had taken off, were flooding us with requests to establish second and third branches of Arcane in their own countries, offering to cover all costs.

“Hunter Kim, this way, please!”

I stepped into the auditorium where the information session was being held. Every seat was packed.

Shin Nara explained that the audience had been selected from members of the First Circle and above. The atmosphere was intense; people had their camcorders and laptops out, ready to take notes.

’All right, so where am I supposed to sit and watch from…?’

“Excuse me for a second!”

Up on her tiptoes, Shin Nara clipped a mic to my collar. I blinked in confusion.

“What’s this?”

“Oh my, you came all the way here just to sit and watch? Obviously, the man himself has to say a few words!”

“…I didn’t prepare anything.”

“It’s fine! Don’t feel pressured. Just think of it as giving your juniors a few words of advice before you head down!”

Before I could even respond, the broadcast producer came hurrying over.

“President Shin! We’re starting now!”

“Yes. I’ll be right there! Hunter Kim, I’ll put you last on the program, so please get ready!”

“…Uh, yes. See you up there.”

Shin Nara followed the producer up onto the stage, leaving me standing there alone.

“Mr. Kim!”

A hand suddenly clamped down on my shoulder, making me jump and spin around.

A woman in her forties with heavy makeup was looking at me.

I knew her. Makeup artist team leader “Isabel Kim,” the one who had done my hair when we filmed the magic lecture videos.

“What are you doing heeere? Hurry up!”

“M-Ms. Kim?”

She grabbed my hand with a rough, no-nonsense grip and dragged me to a chair, then spoke in a lilting voice.

“Girls~! We’re on a rush job here! Mr. Kim first!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

A squad of stylists swarmed in from somewhere and started pressing makeup tools to my face.

“Wait, what is all this, all of a sudd—mmph!”

“Please keep your mouth closed. We’re putting on your base.”

“Tone-up cream is next.”

It took all of five seconds to subdue me. As Isabel slathered mousse into my hair, she spoke up.

“President Shin asked us to give your styling a quick touch-up.”

“…This doesn’t feel like a quick touch-up.”

“I’m a pro. Half-assed is not in my dictionary!”

In the end, I resigned myself to my fate and let their hands do as they pleased.

My eyes drifted toward the cameras. Just then, Shin Nara was walking up onto the stage.

“Hello, everyone! I’m Shin Nara, CEO of Garam Management! I’m also serving as an advisor for Arcane!”

Shin Nara began explaining Arcane’s system.

As expected of Garam’s CEO, she was on a different level. Her way of speaking was impressive, neatly hitting only the key points. Even I felt like her words were sinking straight into my ears.

By the time she finished her explanation and my hair was done, it was time for the next speaker. It was a friend who had come over to Korea with me.

“M-My name is Na Daeyong!”

Na Daeyong had become a celebrity in his own right. He had passed the interview and become my direct disciple, and as the first mage to become a certified hunter, he was the object of everyone’s envy.

He had set a very good precedent. There were quite a few people who had taken up magic with Na Daeyong as their goal.

However…

’Daeyong is completely frozen solid.’

It must have been his first time speaking in front of so many people, because his voice was trembling.

He seemed to have forgotten everything he had memorized, sneaking glances at the notes on his palm as he forced himself to keep talking.

Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap!

“Hang in there!”

The audience responded to his nervousness with encouraging applause. Na Daeyong gave an awkward smile, but seemed to draw courage from it and gradually opened up.

He didn’t have Shin Nara’s smooth, polished delivery, but there was a strange sincerity in his voice that drew not only the audience, but even me, deeper and deeper into his story.

“My trainee days were nothing but hardship from start to finish. And then, the person who appeared before me was Hunter Kim Yusin!”

’…Huh? Why is he bringing me up now?’

“My master gave me the courage to believe I could do it! The training was brutal, but his promise that if I just followed him, he would take me to the top, left a deep impression on me!”

’…Why is he suddenly so eloquent?’

The moment he started talking about me, Na Daeyong snapped back into his usual over-the-top tension, practically spraying spit as he launched into a passionate speech.

“Follow us, everyone!”

Sparks crackled from his outstretched arm.

“I have finally found my identity. Let’s give this world, which mocks us as non-combat types with no market value, a massive wake-up call! This time, our time has come!”

“Wooooooo!”

Watching from the side, I could only give a wry smile.

This was less a corporate presentation and more like a weekend revival meeting for a cult.

“Ah! Mr. Kim, there you are!”

The producer hurried over to me.

“Please get ready. You’re up next.”

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