Episode 317. Counter-Terrorism Support (4)

Upon the communication that a Centaur had appeared, the pursuit teams were gathering again.

The location, naturally, was where we were.

The Guild Master, Team Leader 1, and Alice are here, so what else could we do? We had to come here.

As time passed, familiar people began to gather one by one. It seemed to take time for everyone to gather immediately, as some guild members had gone quite far. I saw the people who looked displeased with me this morning as well, but since it wasn’t my problem to worry about, I stayed right next to Alice. Irene had stepped away for a moment, and Sebastian and Scarlet had gone to greet the guild members. The only people I knew were Alice and the Guild Master. I stuck close beside them and listened to the father and daughter’s conversation.

“That was Lee Hoyeon’s doing.”

“Oh, really? All those corpses of Mind demons are Lee Hoyeon’s work….”

“I was fortunate.”

My name came up in their conversation, so I immediately chimed in.

“A man sometimes needs to show off rather than be humble. Especially in front of a woman… cough.”

“Please, stop saying weird things.”

– This human is a proper male. Hmm!

Liliana seemed to agree with Isaac, but Alice didn’t seem to. Isaac, who had been hit in the side by Alice, said his ribs felt broken and left, saying he’d be right back.

What’s with that old man?

Watching Isaac’s retreating figure as he ran off somewhere, I spoke to Alice.

“We’re about to go meet the Centaur soon, you’re not nervous, are you?”

“…Not at all.”

“Oh, really?”

“You’re the one who should be nervous. You said you had a way to track the Centaur.”

“Alice, just a moment.”

I carefully approached Alice and whispered in her ear.

“Actually, that was a lie I told to bring you here.”

“…What?”

Alice glanced around, then grabbed my arm and replied with a serious expression.

“Seriously? Are you an idiot? If you told a lie like that, Dad….”

I only meant to tease her for a moment, but she seemed quite startled. I smiled playfully and pressed down on Alice’s hand.

“No. It was a joke. Of course, I prepared it. What kind of trouble would I get into by lying to your father?”

“… Haa. Annoying.”

Alice, whose expression had been startled, narrowed her eyes at my words and started glaring at me. Then she turned and started walking away.

“Alice. I said it was a joke? Alice?”

“I’m going to check the surroundings for a bit. Don’t follow me.”

Alice replied coolly and walked towards Sebastian, who was visible in the distance.

Tsk. Can’t a guy play a little?

– Finally, I’m alone! I was bored!

“…Okay.”

Only after Alice left did Liliana excitedly start talking to me. Liliana had been talking to herself since earlier, but I only answered now. No matter what, I couldn’t answer Liliana when people were around.

– Now we’re going to see the Centaur, right? How are you going to catch it?!

“Hmm? Well, tracking and capturing it with the pursuit team is the best option. I need space to talk with you, you know.”

– Oh. Oh! Great! Let’s go!

My plan is to use the pursuit team’s strength to capture the Centaur alive, get Isaac’s cooperation, and arrange a meeting between Liliana and the Centaur. If we want to have a conversation, not just a simple meeting, that would be the best way. Because Liliana shouldn’t be seen by others.

“First, I need to meet the Centaur….”

While talking with Liliana and looking around, I spotted a group looking this way. They were members of the pursuit team, and the guy who looked displeased earlier was staring at me.

“Looks like genius mages talk to themselves these days?”

“Hey… stop it. She’s Miss Alice’s guest.”

“What? If they have a problem, they can come argue with me directly.”

– Who’s this crazy bastard! Should I kill him?

Even with a guild member trying to stop him nearby, he was smiling and looking at me. Wow. This guy didn’t show anything when Alice and the Guild Master were around, but as soon as no one else was here, he starts picking a fight? What a scary world.

“I’ve got nothing else to do, so this works out nicely.”

– Are you really going? Is that okay?

“Yeah.”

I looked straight at the face of the guy who mentioned my name and approached him. He seemed to have never imagined I’d actually approach, flinching slightly, but seeing his confident smile afterwards, I actually felt pleased. There’s a type of person I haven’t been able to meet since I got stronger: thugs. Thinking back, they were not bad friends who served as my emotional trash can during tough times. Actually, I wanted them to pick a fight just one more time, but after I got stronger, they wouldn’t even make eye contact, which was disappointing. But after going in circles, I meet thugs again in a far-off foreign land.

I approached the man with a friendly smile.

“Do you have any complaints about me?”

“No. Not really? What brings the genius mage here?”

Hmm. Unfortunately, he didn’t pick another fight with me. I can tell what these kinds of people are thinking just by looking at their expressions now. They were born with decent talent and even joined the pretty decent Iris Guild, but compared to true geniuses, they feel inferior. Yet, they don’t have the courage to actually cause trouble – a typical loser’s life.

– This kind of person is pathetic. They don’t know their own place.

“I know, right? Just a bundle of inferiority complex.”

“…What did you say?”

“Ah, sorry. It slipped out by accident.”

Hearing my words, the man put on a menacing expression. He seems to be provoking me because no one’s watching, but actually, the same applies to me.

“This brat thinks he’s hot stuff just because I’m going easy on him….”

“Hey, hey, just stop it already!”

Perhaps his pride was provoked, the guy activated his magic power. It was just as I thought. Usually, these kinds of people care more about the eyes of their colleagues around them.

‘It should be okay to fight a little, right?’

‘A situation where someone from the Iris Guild is picking a fight with me.’

‘It might be inconvenient for a moment, but in the end, they’ll be the ones at a disadvantage.’

‘Wouldn’t it be more beneficial for my image if I handled it coolly?’

Just as I was about to activate my magic power to match him.

“Kuhk!”

Kugung-!

The man approaching me had his head slammed into the floor in an instant.

“…Huh?”

*

Isaac, whose ribs had been hit by Alice, limped away from her line of sight.

“Oof. My daughter’s fists really pack a punch, just like her mother.”

Isaac lightly leaped onto the rooftop of a nearby building.

Tak-

“Hmm.”

At the same time, he channeled magic power into a nearby building.

‘I definitely felt magic power.’

There was no way he could have sensed it incorrectly. There were no mistakes in the senses he had honed over decades of fieldwork. While talking with Alice, he had detected unfamiliar magic power in this vicinity. Isaac manipulated his magic power more closely and finally detected a very faint trace of magic power on a nearby rooftop. Only upon getting closer could he discern its nature. It was a barrier. If it was this difficult for a powerhouse like Isaac to notice, there must be quite a strong barrier mage inside. He couldn’t leave potential threats near the operation site, so Isaac broke through the barrier and entered.

Inside the barrier, he saw the profile of a woman with attractive red hair. Even at a glance, she was quite beautiful.

Ahem.

Isaac cleared his throat. One must not be rude to a beauty.

Isaac slowly closed the distance and spoke.

“My lady, what are you doing in a place like this….”

Ttuk-

“Oh my, did I make the barrier too weak?”

Sensing the beautiful woman’s magic power, Isaac stopped his advancing steps.

“…Who are you?”

Isaac’s senses were in turmoil. It was similar to Lee Hoyeon’s combat sense, a wild instinct honed through actual combat. Isaac did not ignore the instincts he had built over a lifetime. Seeing Isaac standing stock-still, Rebecca gave a slight, knowing smile.

“Why act like this when we’re in the same position? I’m a guardian too.”

“…Are you Lee Hoyeon?”

“Yeah. So I’d prefer if you didn’t make a move. I have a lot to do.”

“….”

Isaac swallowed. It was still bright outside, and night was still far off. He couldn’t guarantee victory if he fought her right now.

‘Damn it, was I too hasty….’

There weren’t many strong individuals who could defeat him, and he naturally had memorized the magic power of all such people. And yet, a hidden master of this caliber was behind Lee Hoyeon. He had already stepped into her territory. Once inside the barrier of such a powerful barrier mage, there was no escape. However, Rebecca smiled as if she could see Isaac’s intentions.

“Don’t worry. I don’t intend to fight. I’m just here to look after the kid, um. Hoyeon.”

“How can I trust you?”

Rebecca intended to let Isaac leave, but Isaac couldn’t retreat like this. He couldn’t leave potential dangers near where his daughters were. At the very least, he needed to know her objective for sure.

“Hmm, if I had intended harm towards you, you wouldn’t be asking such questions right now. You can trust me.”

“….”

Jiiing-

The barrier behind Isaac opened, creating an opening.

“If you still don’t trust me, you can ask Hoyeon and come back later, but I’d prefer if you left now.”

Rebecca turned away after saying that. It meant she could handle you even if you attacked, so just leave quietly.

“….”

Isaac quietly slipped through the gap in the barrier, and the barrier closed again as if nothing had happened.

“…Well, I’ll be.”

He couldn’t even remember the last time he had shown such weakness. Emerging from the barrier, Isaac let out a disbelieving laugh.

“Still, she was pretty. Hmm. Maybe I should ask Lee Hoyeon.”

But since she was indeed beautiful, he didn’t feel too bad. Two things bothered him. Where on earth did such a powerful person come from, and why was she watching Lee Hoyeon’s back? Raising his assessment of Lee Hoyeon one notch in his mind, Isaac returned to the place where the pursuit team was gathering. And there, he saw a guild member activating his magic power while looking at Lee Hoyeon. He quickly assessed the situation, grabbed the guild member by the back of the head, and slammed him to the floor.

“Kuhk-.”

“…Huh?”

Lee Hoyeon blinked, seeing the Guild Master who had suddenly appeared. When did this person arrive? If he had targeted me, my [Combat Sense] would have activated and blocked the surprise attack, but since it was a guild member, I didn’t even feel him approaching.

Isaac looked at me while holding the guild member’s head.

“Sorry, Hoyeon. I’ll have this scoundrel expelled from the Iris Guild immediately. We don’t need someone who attacks without knowing their opponent.”

“… Uh, yes. Thank you. I didn’t like the awkward situation either.”

– What the heck! I would have won even if he attacked anyway.

‘What a shame….’

I had found a place to vent my frustrations for the first time in a while. Lee Hoyeon suppressed his disappointment and calmed the magic power he had raised. Usually, one would ask for the whole story, but since he just slammed the guy’s head without any explanation, I couldn’t get angry.

Isaac got up, brushed his hands, and looked at me.

“Lee Hoyeon. I apologize for this incident, but I need to ask….”

“…What’s going on!?”

“G-Guild Master! What is happening?!”

Just then, Alice and Sebastian came running from a distance. Scarlet was following behind them, and the three who approached saw the guild member’s head stuck in the floor and looked at me simultaneously.

“Hey, why are you all looking at me?”

Your Guild Master did it.

*

– There are too many people now! Ugh.

I petted the pitiful Liliana. Since the time for conversation disappeared, I had to pet her at least.

“You’ve caused trouble again.”

“I told you I didn’t do it.”

Saying that, I glared at Scarlet standing beside me. I’m the victim here, the victim. Can’t you see the victim’s tears?

Alice and Sebastian were listening to the explanation from the guild members. Seeing Alice look at the guy stuck in the floor like trash, she seemed displeased too. Is it because he’s a guest she brought, or is it because it’s me?

‘I hope it’s the latter.’

Just as I was about to move closer to check Alice’s status window.

The Guild Master approached me.

“Lee Hoyeon. I have something I want to ask.”