Ch.335330 – Going Home

“Put some clothes on. I don’t have a hobby of looking at other people’s naked bodies.”

“Wooow, is this real skin? It feels squishy and soft, kind of similar to virtual reality… Does it hurt if I pinch it? Ouch!”

I threw a black tracksuit set at Adela’s face as she bounced around excitedly like a curious baby.

“Oh thanks. But what about underwear?”

“Underwear?”

“Don’t tell me you didn’t buy any?”

“Yeah, I forgot.”

“That’s not something you should forget!”

She grumbled with a disgruntled voice while zipping up the tracksuit all the way to her neck.

The inside of the tent wasn’t much different from when we first entered it.

The floor mat, damp with cold sweat, was already drying due to the dry weather.

“Achoo!”

Adela sneezed while putting on her pants and fell to the floor with a thud.

“You’re like a baby calf.”

“These pants seem a bit small for me. They’re too tight around my thighs.”

“Just wear them however.”

Meanwhile, I turned on my phone that I had tossed in the corner and checked the weather outside.

Minus 4 degrees Celsius.

Adela, with her weakened immunity, would definitely catch a cold tomorrow.

I held her hand and shared my aura to warm up her chilled body.

Now it’s time to open the tent.

The mana transmission speed from the power plant was too slow, so we spent too much time at the Akashic Record stage.

The people waiting outside weren’t the type to mind the cold, but still, making them wait too long wouldn’t be good.

“Ugh… I can’t get up. My legs have no strength.”

Adela kept trying to stand up but kept collapsing, her legs trembling.

It was exactly what those affected by Corrosion experienced.

“Just stay here for a moment. I’ll go out first. Meanwhile, prepare a greeting.”

“A greeting? What should I say? Wait, don’t open it yet! Give me a little more time!”

Ignoring her plea, I deactivated the barrier and the cancellation interference magic circle.

*Zip*

As I opened the zipper and poked my head out, a cold wind rushed in.

“NoName!”

“Child, are you alright? You really have a talent for making people worry…!”

Professor Cheon and Teacher Baek rushed over.

“It took a while, didn’t it? I’m sorry for making you worry.”

“Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Your father tried to force his way in, but I barely stopped him. Look at what you’ve done.”

I followed his gesture with my eyes.

“Ah…”

No wonder the tent was intact—the surrounding grass field had been completely blown away.

Is this because Nascientia-type magic produces an outward shockwave?

Fortunately, no crater was formed. Otherwise, we would have been digging in the middle of the night.

“The magic?”

“It was successful.”

“Really…?”

“Here’s the tax bill.”

You can check whether magic succeeded or failed by looking at the mana tax bill.

What an efficient and innovative system.

The Magic Tower was exploiting people’s taxes with technology that would be welcomed by calculating the magic’s moment-generating function to determine complete casting.

Of course, Korea Magical Power Corporation didn’t send bills via messenger.

To comply with confidentiality obligations, I showed the withdrawal details and encrypted bill by accessing my bank account.

[Withdrawal History]

<2052.03.14 08:41:38>

[Withdrawal: 21,000,000,000 won]

<2052.03.15 21:46:53>

[Withdrawal: 189,035,928,154 won]

Advance payment of 21 billion, withholding tax of 189 billion, for a total of 210 billion won.

That’s 900 million won more than the initially expected 209.1 billion won.

Add to that over 5 billion spent on mana stones, and I’m left with almost nothing.

[Balance: 49,103,948 won]

It was actually quite close.

If I hadn’t earned pocket money from advertisements, I would have been in the red.

“210 billion! Oh my god!”

Teacher Baek exclaimed and collapsed, grabbing the back of his neck.

“Well, I could still buy a car…”

I trailed off.

I just remembered I needed to pay back 500 million to the manager who lent me extra mana stones.

‘So I’m in the red after all.’

Let’s think about money later.

“Is that friend inside now?”

Professor Cheon asked, still unable to shake off his doubts.

“Yes, she’s my sister now.”

“Can I go in and see?”

“Of course, by all means.”

He must be worried I created some kind of chimera.

We pulled back the nylon tent and all entered together.

When we turned on the light, the interior brightened up.

“Hup!”

“What in the world…!”

“Adela, what are you doing?”

Adela was lying flat on the ground with her head pressed to the floor.

“Dogeza is for apologizing, right?”

“Ah! I’m sorry…!”

Adela quickly raised her head and knelt.

“Jokes have limits! How did you get in here?!”

Teacher Baek searched every corner of the tent.

He seemed to think it was a magic trick rather than actual magic, looking for tricks with fire in his eyes.

Finally, after rubbing his tired eyes several times, he broke the brief silence with a question.

“Who are you, young lady?”

Adela took a deep breath.

The anxious look in her eyes was gone.

“My name is Asaneko Adela! This is my first time in the real world, so I have a lot to learn, but I look forward to your guidance!”

Adela extended her hand abruptly.

But her fair, delicate hand soon lost its destination.

The chilling silence was colder than the winter wind.

“Hahaha… Is this not right? Why is the atmosphere like this?”

“…”

“Anyway, you’re still going to raise me, right…?”

*Tap*

That was the sound of me slapping my forehead.

* * *

“Teacher Baek, thank you for your help these past two days.”

“Oh my… this old man must be dying. I keep seeing things…”

“Take care on your way home, Teacher. Adela, say goodbye too.”

“Don’t bring that out! It’ll bring bad luck!”

Teacher Baek asked to be dropped off at a suitable intersection in downtown Gunsan.

“Do you have somewhere to sleep tonight?”

“I’ll manage! I can stay at a friend’s house!”

Considering Adela some kind of supernatural being, he left without looking back.

*Thump thump thump!*

The sound of metal being pounded came from the trunk several times.

When I opened the trunk wide with both hands, Adela, who had been crumpled in an uncomfortable position, popped out like a roly-poly toy.

“Phew, so stuffy! We passed the power plant ages ago, why didn’t you let me out?”

“We have a long way to go, so let’s get in the car quickly. It’s a two-and-a-half-hour drive home from here. We’ll arrive around 1 AM.”

“Tch, fine. But seriously, calling me a ghost? That’s too much…”

“Professor, is it okay if I sit in the back with Adela? I have several tests to run.”

I asked Professor Cheon for understanding, as not sitting in the passenger seat would normally be impolite, but this was a special case.

The car entered the highway.

I turned on the light and examined Adela’s body thoroughly.

[Casting: Diagnosis]

“Open your mouth.”

“Aaaah.”

*Tap tap*

I checked each tooth by tapping it with my fingertip.

“No cavities. Is there anything uncomfortable right now?”

“My ears are really itchy.”

“Can you describe how they’re itchy?”

“Hmm. I’d say they’re kind of sensitive…?”

“How does it feel when I touch them like this?”

“Hyaaang!”

I merely grabbed her earlobe with my fingers.

Adela fluttered about as if her armpits were being tickled, and the car bounced up and down from the reaction.

“Stay still. Why are you being so dramatic?”

“I told you I’m sensitive! Why did you touch me without warning!”

“From now on, listen to ASMR when you sleep. That’ll help you adapt quickly.”

“Okay, just stop touch—hyunaaah!”

She must not be used to her changed body parts.

“But are you okay without a tail?”

“Huh, tail? That’s right, where’s my tail! My tail!”

“No issues here.”

It seems the tail was just decorative apart from expressing emotions.

So Adela needs to practice three things:

Adapting to her new ears, regaining her sense of balance, and…

*Grumble*

“Oh my, what was that sound?”

Professor Cheon was startled by the unfamiliar sound.

Adela’s face turned bright red as she hung her head.

It wasn’t a small gurgle but a rumble.

The intensity of the thunder was different.

“Are you hungry?”

“Yeah, a little… actually, I’ve been starving to death.”

* * *

I couldn’t let Adela go outside looking like this.

Even at 11 PM, a silver-haired beauty in tight training clothes would attract too much attention.

I bought convenience store lunch boxes at the rest area and handed them to her.

She inhaled the spicy stir-fried pork while crying.

“I’m sorry, piggies! Why are you so delicious? *sob*”

Tear-soaked rice grains entered her mouth.

There were hardly any cars on the highway now.

Professor Cheon briefly let go of the steering wheel to join the conversation.

“You eat well. Is it good?”

“Yes, it’s delicious *sniff*! Thank you so much for providing my daily bread! I’ll never forget this kindness and will surely repay it!”

“It’s nothing. But NoName, what state is she in right now? Her movements are unnaturally natural.”

“State?”

“If a metal robot is 0 and a human is 1.”

“I’d say she approaches the limit of 1. She thinks, her heart beats, she handles aura—you can consider her a human just like us.”

Professor Cheon had been asking the same question repeatedly.

It must be hard to believe.

For a magic practitioner, this would be nothing short of a miracle.

“It’s not a fully decoded spell. I just peeked at what was stored in the Akashic Record. Even though a perfect human body can be implemented, I don’t know anything about individual organs.”

“Peeked? How?”

“Just because.”

Somehow “just because” had become my go-to answer for avoiding questions.

After much deliberation, he finally decided to accept Adela.

This included two ambiguous meanings: “recognizing her as human” and “accepting her as family.”

“For now, we should keep this secret from others. The magic itself is too dangerous just by existing.”

“I agree. Actually, that’s why I’m concerned about Adela’s situation…”

“Hm?”

“Never mind. Let’s not worry and eat.”

“Hehe, this rolled egg is really delicious. Would you like a bite, sis?”

“I’m good.”

I glanced at Adela’s meal from the corner of my eye.

The speed of her chopsticks had noticeably slowed.

Trying to act calm.

She must be feeling uncomfortable now that she’s facing practical issues.

“I’ll try to figure something out, so NoName, you don’t need to worry too much.”

“Okay, thanks Dad.”

It’s really reassuring to have an adult at times like this.

Feeling grateful, I gave Dad a quick hug from behind, around the headrest.

Orange streetlights quickly passed by.

* * *

*Bang!*

The bathroom door opened violently.

I had just arrived at NoName’s house, changed into new pajamas, and was happily brushing my teeth with a new toothbrush.

“Take it off.”

“What?”

“I said take off your clothes.”

“What are you saying, barging into the bathroom like this!”

“I need to remove the residue stuck in your pores before bed.”

“It’s confusing when you suddenly tell me to undress! What’s residue anyway?”

“Would you understand if I explained? It’s sediment formed when mana condenses incompletely… Anyway, let’s wash up and go to bed quickly. I’m really sleepy.”

“Kyaaaah!”

The door locked with a click, and Adela’s death scream was quickly suppressed.