Chapter 23: Do you need a porter

How one chooses to live life likely varies depending on individual perspectives.  

Some might prefer to live affluently and peacefully, like a building owner.  

Others might live fiercely, as if on a battlefield.  

For Aris Severus, she wanted to live desperately, without a shred of regret.  

With talent and skill that seemed impossible to surpass, and growing up in an environment where such things were commonplace, it would have been easy to live in frustration.  

But she hated the idea of giving up prematurely and regretting it later.  

So, she had burned herself out researching various magics up until now, achieving the rank of a high mage and even becoming a professor at the Academy of Supernatural Abilities.  

She secretly prided herself on having attained both skill and fame.  

“I hope you recover quickly.”  

“…Ah.”  

And now, she was lying in a hospital bed.  

A result she couldn’t have imagined just a few days ago.  

Or perhaps, she was still in the process of falling into ruin.  

“Uh, Professor?”  

Professor Aris, lying in the hospital bed, looked with trembling eyes at the handsome male student, Shin Yuseong, who had come to visit her with a fruit basket in hand.  

She felt grateful to this student who had taken time out of his personal schedule to visit her, but inwardly, she screamed at the sheer audacity of him showing his face here.  

It was an embarrassing story, but her vaunted magical prowess had been shattered—twice—by a student.  

If he had figured out how to counter her spells or barely endured them, she might have thought, Oh, this student is exceptional.  

But the way her spells were blocked so effortlessly made her thoughts spiral in a bad direction.  

Wait, is my magic actually pathetic?  

Suddenly, self-doubt began to bloom in her mind.  

Had she unknowingly grown arrogant by only casting spells on students for so long?  

What if her magic, which she thought was advancing, had not only stagnated but was actually regressing?  

What if everything she had prided herself on was, in fact, nothing more than a hollow sandcastle?  

As these endless doubts consumed her, she realized that a mage must constantly seek knowledge while maintaining unshakable confidence—  yet her resolve had faltered.  

“Wait, but didn’t our Yuseong get hit by magic? I don’t think he did. Right? I really like that guy—his mana barrier is impressive, but the effort and passion he put into reaching that point are what’s truly cool.  Oh, right, I want to hear whether our Yuseong withstood the magic…  Uh, Professor Aris? Are you listening?”  

On top of that, the mental assault from Professor Shin Arin, whose voice came through the phone like a rapid-fire rap, dealt her an additional blow when she could barely even gather her strength.  

Suddenly, an unbearable wave of nausea hit her, disrupting her energy flow.  

“Ugh, uuurgh…!”  

The memory of that moment resurfaced, and Professor Aris grimaced, quickly covering her mouth.  

***

[The Goddess says with a regretful expression that it seems he shouldn’t visit anymore.]  

“…Yeah.”  

Normally, he wouldn’t immediately agree with the Goddess, but this time, he couldn’t help it.  

The patient’s condition in the hospital room was just too severe.  

It wasn’t a situation where he could crack jokes or make light conversation.  

Is this my fault?

I went to visit out of guilt, and now she’s even nauseated…  

Ugh.  

How should he even describe this?  

“It’s not easy.”  

He started to think it really might be his fault.  

[The Goddess nods, comforting the Hero by saying that some people just don’t get along well with each other.]  

“Hmm, yeah, the compatibility was bad.”  

For her, more than for him, in a way that was overwhelmingly unfortunate.  

It seemed like everything had gone wrong for the professor, hitting her with one misfortune after another.  

It was a pity, but strictly speaking, it wasn’t his fault, so he decided to just erase it from his memory for the time being.  

If visiting her triggered a rejection response,  he couldn’t exactly blame his curse resistance or magic resilience, could he?  

So, he sincerely wished for her swift recovery.  

Heh, what an unfortunate turn of events…  

Muttering to himself like a chanting monk, he walked down the hallway.  

Then, he spotted a familiar face coming from the opposite direction.  

A somewhat cold expression.  

Hair tinged with sky-blue hues and piercing blue eyes.  

A woman with an aura as cool as her blue tones— none other than Seol Yeonhwa, the genius of the Blue Magic Tower, nicknamed “Frostbite.”  

[The Goddess frowns and whispers that her name is Seol Yeonhwa, not Frostbite.]  

“I know.”  

But the nickname “Frostbite” just had such a strong impact.  

She’d used more slang in their chats than she had in their face-to-face talks at the café, hadn’t she?  

Still, compared to the casual outfit she’d worn when rushing out for a real-life confrontation, she looked different now—more put-together.  

She’s a cold beauty, huh.  

Would she even welcome him if he brought her medicine later?  

Her aloof, refined face made him suddenly feel hesitant about meddling.  

Maybe I shouldn’t bother making the medicine.  

[The Goddess, shocked by the Hero’s thoughts, asks if that’s not usually the opposite reaction.]  

Normally, introverts avoid interacting with people out of fear of rejection.  

If he’d gotten along with everyone so well, he’d have been one of the popular kids back in the day.  

Still, it was about saving someone, and he’d been thinking of heading out to a dungeon anyway.  

“…Uh, hi.”  

“?!”  

To his surprise, Frostbite—no, Seol Yeonhwa—greeted him first.  

Caught off guard, he froze for a moment.  

Seol Yeonhwa, her brows slightly drooping, whispered softly,  

“I figured we should say hi since we keep running into each other.”  

“Oh, I know. I was just wondering whether to call you Frostbite or Seol Yeonhwa.”  

“…Just call me Seol Yeonhwa.”  

“Then you can just call me Yuseong too.”  

“Hmm, I’ll try.”  

The conversation felt… ticklish, somehow.  

Wait, what’s this feeling?  

It was like extending a hand to a wild animal and being moved when it reached back.  

Having this cool, aloof friend initiate a conversation felt refreshing—and a little exciting.  

Hold on, I think this is the first time someone’s talked to me in the hallway.  

There were all those people on the school forums saying they wanted to “lick his neck,” so he’d assumed he was well-known.  

Sure, strangers were one thing, but had he really not had anyone to chat with in the halls until now?  

If so, then this girl in front of him was his first.  

Feeling a strange sense of closeness, he smiled and said with determination,  

“Then let’s keep seeing each other for a long time.”  

Her eyes wavered for a moment before steadying, and she nodded.  

“Sure, sounds good.”  

It seemed like he might just have made a friend to hang out with during college.  

A lunch buddy, a chat buddy, a karaoke buddy— and since this girl even played games, she was a rare find.  

I’ve got to keep her alive.  

Realizing how valuable she was, he added,  

“Let’s play a game sometime when you’re free.”  

“…Uh, games? Not really.”  

“…?”  

Wait, why’s she so against that?  

[The Goddess sighs at the clueless Hero, wondering if he really doesn’t know why.]  

What?

Why?  

Sure, she’d turned down his gaming buddy request, but he wasn’t petty enough to sulk over something like that.  

That kind of childishness was more the Goddess’s style.  

As a Hero who’d saved the world, he resolved to maintain a mature attitude.  

Making some helpful medicine for a future hangout buddy wasn’t a crime, after all.  

So, he decided to gather materials for a potion to aid Seol Yeonhwa’s constitution.  

He wasn’t an expert in alchemy or pharmacology, but as long as he had a recipe, it’d be easy enough.  

Where do I get the stuff?  

He checked an online info site and found that most of the materials could be gathered from D- and C-rank dungeons—nothing too tough.  

With his pass privileges, he could access most of them, which was reassuring.  

Getting into the dungeon and collecting a few materials would be a hassle, but luckily, he had a reliable ally for that.  

“I’ve finished the dungeon and equipment rental applications. All that’s left is picking up the pass and gathering the herbs in the dungeon.”  

Imir, a fellow group member from the magic game experience and crafting class, and a student from the Hunter Support department, spoke up.  

As the name suggested, his major focused on supporting hunters, making him perfect for handling administrative tasks and prep.  

Sure enough, when he took charge of the tedious paperwork, he breezed through it like it was nothing.  

During class, he’d mentioned needing to rack up some achievements for the semester’s end, so they’d hastily agreed to go together.  

Now, it was clear that had been a great decision.  

Convenient.  

[The Goddess shakes her head at the Hero sucking up the sweet deal.]  

Either way, his real-life friend count had doubled—from one to two.  

Naturally, the first was Seol Yeonhwa, whom he’d met in person after an online spat.  

Guess Frostbite’s claimed a lot of my school-life spotlight.  

I’ve really got to keep her alive.  

Nodding to himself with that thought, he suddenly felt a gaze from the side.  

Turning his head casually, he saw—  

“…Ugh, ughh.”  

The former Golden Goblin Battle Mage staring at him wordlessly with longing eyes.  

Her face even started flushing red as their eyes met.  

What’s going on?  

As he kept staring, trying to figure it out, Maho, the pink-haired beauty and Japanese exchange student sitting next to her, suddenly leaned forward with a bright smile.  

“Hey, need any porters?”  

“Uh, porters!”  

And just like that, he’d somehow picked up two more porters (mages).