Episode 307. To the Iris Guild (5)

Alice sank into the bed at her family home after a long time.

Although there were good beds in Korea, this bed, which she had used for 20 years, suited her the most.

“Hoo-eut….”

Rubbing her body against the fluffy bed and yawning, Alice hugged the blanket tightly.

The feel of soft cotton touching her body always felt good.

There were many things bothering her.

Her Unnie, seen after a long time, was the same as ever.

Her tendency to covet things she liked was the same as when they were young, and the unpleasant words she casually threw were the same, too.

Lee Hoyeon was also a problem.

Alice recalled what Lee Hoyeon had said.

– I didn’t say anything. Just talk about the Centaur? They were very worried about you.

Unnie still opposed me joining the Centaur tracking team.

Surely, just like Dad, they’ll say things like ‘it’s for your safety’ and try not to take me.

“Ah, Aagh… No.”

Alice grabbed her head and spun her head around.

I thought everything would be resolved if Lee Hoyeon came to Iris Guild, but only my frustration grew.

Of all times, to meet Unnie when I briefly took a wrong turn.

“….”

The words ‘I want to join the Centaur operation’.

Perhaps because I had been overprotected since I was young, I couldn’t speak confidently to Dad.

Honestly, my first real mission is a little frightening.

Alice had no real combat experience despite being an adult, and as it kept getting delayed, she developed a fear about her first real mission.

I wanted to overcome it with this chance, but…

I felt pathetic that I couldn’t bring myself to speak up first.

– If you don’t believe me, want to come along too?

Alice recalled what Lee Hoyeon had said before coming to France.

– You wanted to leave Dad’s embrace and go too, right? If it’s safe, you can go along on the tracking team too.

– It’ll be a good experience, so you can thank me in advance.

That demeanor, so full of confidence, unlike hers.

It was a short conversation, but of course, he had definitely said he would take me along too.

Even though I knew it was just politeness, I found myself getting my hopes up for no reason.

“…That doesn’t go as I please. Haaah.”

Alice erased the hope popping into her head.

Expecting something that won’t happen will only make me more annoyed.

“Playboy….”

Alice forcefully erased the man’s face lingering in her mind and buried her face in the pillow.

*

Wednesday.

It was the morning of the second day since arriving at Iris Guild.

Last night, I took Scarlet and Liliana to a restaurant, and indeed, French food was delicious.

Liliana also received rave reviews, and I was satisfied too.

Next time, I should go out with just the two of us.

Knock knock-

“Yes. Who is it?”

While touching Liliana’s body and lounging around in bed since morning, someone knocked on the door.

When I opened the door, Scarlet was standing there.

“Good morning. Hoyeon-nim.”

“Yeah. What’s up? Scarlet.”

“You need to go see the Guild Master-nim. Lady Alice is waiting too.”

“Ah… Right. Just a moment.”

We didn’t come here just to play.

I quickly got dressed.

While getting dressed, I nudged Liliana with my foot; she had collapsed and was sleeping on the bed.

“Ugh, Ueor… Master. Since morning….”

“It’s not like that, so wake up. We have to go.”

After eating delicious food last night and getting excited, did I torment her too much?

Liliana just wouldn’t wake up.

“Hey. You can sleep, but for now, change into the necklace. We have to leave right away.”

“Eeeek….”

Poong-

Liliana transformed into a Chrome Hearts necklace embedded with red jewels, enveloped in smoke.

I quickly washed my face, tidied my greasy hair, put Liliana around my neck, and opened the door.

“Let’s go. Scarlet.”

“You’ve changed in an instant this morning too.”

“It’s not like you’re seeing it for the first or second time.”

“Please come this way.”

*

“Sorry I’m a little late?”

I met Alice, who was waiting outside.

“It’s okay. Considering you came in a hurry, you came quickly. Let’s go.”

“Has the Guild Master-nim arrived?”

“Yeah. As soon as he arrived, he said he wanted to see me, so while I’m at it, I decided to bring you too. If I’m not there, I don’t know what else he might say to you.”

“Oh. Thanks for the consideration. Actually, meeting him alone is a bit scary.”

The memory from our first meeting with that guy is still so vivid.

He was so scary.

“Don’t be nervous, let’s go.”

Alice took the lead and walked ahead.

Looking at her back, I thought.

‘In reality, she herself seems more nervous.’

Alice, telling me not to be nervous, seemed more nervous than I was.

Is she nervous because she’s meeting her father after a long time?

I greeted Scarlet, who was waiting behind, and then followed Alice.

Because I had wandered around yesterday and roughly learned the layout, as I walked through the guild, we soon arrived at the Guild Master’s office, and after getting permission, we went inside.

“My Ellie… What? Why did you come too?”

“…It’s been a while since I last saw you.”

Isaac, the Guild Master of Iris Guild and Alice’s father.

With a handsome appearance that could make anyone believe he was in his 30s, he looked at me with a displeased look.

Bows.

I bowed my head in greeting, and Alice answered instead of me.

“I came along to watch Hoyeon, worried that Dad might do something strange to him.”

“Alice. He’s got some ability, but he’s still far from being fully recognized. He needs to pass at least three more of my tests…”

Alice, seeming familiar with the Guild Master’s office, offered me a seat.

“Sit here.”

“Ah, thank you.”

We sat down, leaving Isaac, who was talking to himself, alone.

Isaac looked at Alice with a slightly uncomfortable expression, then cleared his throat, looked at me, and spoke.

“Ahem. First of all, I welcome you to Iris Guild. I apologize for yesterday; something suddenly came up.”

“It’s alright. I received a warm welcome from the guild members.”

“Right? The guild members really like Korea, you see. Even though I don’t tell them to, they’re always like that. Ah, if by any chance you want to join Iris Guild, anytime…”

Isaac looked at me and smiled contentedly, while Alice sighed ‘Haa.’ looking like she couldn’t understand, then quickly returned to a blank expression.

After boasting about the guild for a while, Isaac seemed to snap back to reality a few minutes later and clapped his hands.

“Ah. I got too sidetracked. Getting back to the original topic, you said you wanted to see the Centaur, right?”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

“I don’t know the reason, but… there’s no reason it can’t be done. Let’s proceed like that. I’ll put you on the next Centaur tracking team.”

“…Can I bring Alice too?”

I mentioned Alice without forgetting.

If possible, I should let her gain experience by taking her along.

“Bringing Alice along wouldn’t be bad either. Since you came here for field experience together.”

“…Dad. Really?”

“Yes. It’s time for you to gain real experience too.”

Alice bit her lip, trying to hide her expression, but in the end, the corners of her mouth turned up slightly.

She seemed happy at the words ‘first real mission’.

Seeing Isaac, who gave permission more easily than expected, I recalled what Irene had said yesterday.

– Your father will just pretend to let you join, even for Alice’s sake. The Centaur tracking team is very dangerous.

‘It’s exactly like that.’

Of course, Alice didn’t say it first, but Isaac’s intention seems to be correct.

That doting father would never suggest dangerous work to Alice first.

If it’s fortunate, it’s that I already have a plan.

I promised Alice a good experience and made such a big deal about it, so I can’t not take her.

“Guild Master-nim.”

“Yeah. What?”

Isaac still had a contented smile on his face.

He seems to think he can get away with this, but that’s not happening.

I dropped a bombshell right then.

“I have to confess now, but actually, I have a way to track the Centaur unconditionally.”

“…What are you talking about?”

“When the Centaur disappears, it creates a sinister, dark magical energy. Professor Im Sol and I analyzed it together and derived the results. I feel sorry for telling you this now.”

I threw Professor Im Sol under the bus without a shred of guilt.

I’m becoming quite famous as a genius mage too, but I still haven’t reached Professor Im Sol’s reputation.

What’s the point of a good teacher-student relationship if not for times like this?

Anyway, the Professor is in seclusion training, so there’s no way to check.

Even if I get caught later, I won’t get scolded. Probably.

Isaac widened his eyes at my sudden words, and Alice grabbed my arm and whispered in my ear.

“You. What are you talking about? Researching with Professor Im Sol?”

“Sorry. I intended to keep it a secret, but I felt I had to say it now.”

“So why did you….”

“Why are you telling me this now? If you had told me earlier, I would have treated you properly, and you could have used the wish token elsewhere.”

Isaac interrupted our conversation.

Fortunately, perhaps because Alice was next to me, he wasn’t angry.

What Isaac said was a natural question.

Of course, because it was a natural question, I had already thought of the answer.

“At first, I intended to handle it quietly. There was no need to reveal my abilities to others either. But observing today… it seemed like I wouldn’t be included in a proper tracking team, so I told you. That is different from my goal.”

“You, you. What are you talking about right now?!”

“Alice. The Guild Master wouldn’t take you to a truly dangerous place. Don’t get excited and calm down. Didn’t you forget we decided to have a good experience together?”

Alice looked at me in surprise from the side, but I calmly looked into Isaac’s eyes.

“Why do you think so?”

“Although I haven’t known you long, Guild Master-nim, you seem to cherish Alice greatly. You don’t seem like the type to send your daughter on her first real mission in a dangerous place like the Centaur tracking team.”

“…Dad?”

What I believe in are two things.

My abilities and Alice next to me.

I am the only person who can fix Alice’s disability, and a talent whom Iris Guild wants to recruit.

They can’t easily dismiss me just because I’m a bit cheeky.

Besides, Alice might not have noticed because of her excitement for her first real mission, but now she must have felt something was strange.

Her father wouldn’t take his daughter on her first real mission to such a dangerous place.

Alice carefully looked at Isaac and continued speaking.

“…That’s right. Now that I think about it, it’s strange. You never sent me to dangerous places until now. Even though you said the Centaur was so dangerous, you’re taking me?”

“That’s not it. My daughter. Since this is your first tracking mission together, I just intended to do it a little more safely. I wasn’t trying to deceive you. Lee Hoyeon. If you really want to, I’ll include you in the proper tracking team too. That’s your choice. But Alice isn’t ready yet.”

Isaac looked at me after persuading Alice with words mixing truth and lies.

His eyes seemed to say, ‘So what are you going to do now?’

‘I’ve said everything I needed to say.’

Alice next to me mumbled, unable to speak clearly.

Couldn’t she think of any words to refute him?

Or is she lacking confidence?

I laid it all out for her, but she’s not taking the bait.

‘Well, if he gives me a chance to build my image until the very end, I’m grateful.’

I grabbed Alice’s wrist.

Alice looked at my face in surprise, and I looked at Isaac and spoke.

“Guild Master-nim. I would like Alice to join the proper tracking team too.”