Episode 314. Counter-Terrorism Support

Saturday morning.

“Ughhh….”

Moon Surin opened the laboratory window, shielding her eyes from the sunlight she hadn’t seen in a week.

A week spent completely cut off from the outside world, dedicated to research.

Having achieved quite significant results in her magic research, Moon Surin decided to take a short break.

Besides, she also had to prepare for the upcoming final exams, so she had no choice but to make time.

But first.

“… I’m hungry.”

Having not eaten a proper meal for a week, Moon Surin clutched her stomach, feeling the hunger.

To avoid disturbing her research, she had even put a ban on her assistants entering, so naturally, there was no one to bring Moon Surin food.

Rummaging through a drawer for something to eat, Moon Surin suddenly felt dizzy.

Thump-

Moon Surin collapsed onto the floor.

Her eyelids felt heavy, and her legs wouldn’t support her.

She hadn’t eaten, so there was no way she’d slept properly.

“… This won’t do.”

Was she too focused on her research?

Only then did Moon Surin realize her physical condition.

Every cell in her body was screaming for help.

She wanted to just fall asleep right there, but doing so might mean she’d never wake up again.

“….”

Moon Surin picked up her smartwatch to call for help.

As she was about to send an emergency request, she thought of something more effective than just emergency rescue.

Among her acquaintances, there was only one person who could solve both her hunger and her medical needs simultaneously, and since it was prime working hours for her, she would never ignore Moon Surin’s call.

Still collapsed on the floor, Moon Surin struggled to tap on her smartwatch.

---

“Open up.”

“… Nom.”

Nom nom.

Baek Ahyoung sighed as she watched Moon Surin take the porridge she had made.

When Moon Surin suddenly contacted her asking for help, Baek Ahyoung came over wondering what was wrong, and was shocked to find her collapsing on the floor, on the verge of losing consciousness.

Holding the spoon, Baek Ahyoung pointed accusingly at Moon Surin.

“Are you crazy? I thought you were just busy when you didn’t answer for a week, but what if you were trying to kill yourself? People die if they don’t eat or sleep for a week!”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not ‘sorry’… Sigh, you need to be careful. If it weren’t for me, you would have been in serious danger.”

It was fortunate that Moon Surin had contacted Baek Ahyoung, and that she happened to be nearby.

A regular emergency rescue team might have been too slow, putting Moon Surin’s life at risk.

“Mhm. I know. Thanks, Ahyoung-ah.”

“… Right. What exactly were you doing for a week?”

“Magic research. Want to see for a sec?”

“No, no. Sol-ah, if you use magic right now, it’ll be a disaster. Don’t do it. Just eat this.”

“Nngh.”

Baek Ahyoung stuffed the spoon into Moon Surin’s mouth to stop her from using magic, calming her down.

The most tiring patient among patients is one who doesn’t realize they’re a patient, and that’s exactly what Moon Surin was like.

The type whose body is breaking down but mind is still sharp.

Baek Ahyoung sent a message to the medical team saying she’d be late and looked at Moon Surin.

“What about the work that piled up during the week? The exams are coming soon, did you finish writing the questions?”

“I’ll have to think about that starting now.”

“….”

Baek Ahyoung chuckled incredulously as she watched Moon Surin casually checking her smartwatch.

It was quite the comedy watching a friend with such a distinct personality up close.

“You’ve got a lot of messages.”

“Of course. You went completely silent for a week without a word. You didn’t even contact most of your close friends, did you?”

“It was that urgent. I had to start the research before the insight disappeared.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m sure.”

Baek Ahyoung shook her head.

From her perspective, the world of mages was hard to comprehend.

Besides, seeing Moon Surin grinning like that made her want to tease her.

“What did you see to be smiling like that? Show me too.”

“It’s nothing. Just a lot of backlog messages.”

Among the piled-up messages, Moon Surin smiled upon seeing a message from a man pinned to the top.

Seeing the greeting messages he sent once a day, even without a reply, inexplicably warmed her heart.

– Me: Is my disciple doing well? Sorry for the late reply, research just finished.

Moon Surin carefully sent a reply.

She had only just noticed the typo in the previous message.

“What is it? Show me too….”

Baek Ahyoung leaned over Moon Surin, who was lying down, and peeked at her smartwatch, spotting a familiar name on Moon Surin’s screen.

At the same moment, Moon Surin and Baek Ahyoung’s eyes met. Baek Ahyoung frowned and put down the spoon.

“I’m leaving.”

“Ahyoung-ah… I’m hungry.”

“… Sigh.”

“Ngh.”

Baek Ahyoung quietly scooped some porridge and fed it to Moon Surin.

Nom nom.

Moon Surin, who had been silently eating the porridge, chewed thoroughly, swallowed, and then spoke.

“Ahyoung-ah.”

“….”

“Ahyoung-ah?”

“Sigh. I don’t know. I really don’t know. I’m not giving up my spot, ever.”

Baek Ahyoung avoided Moon Surin’s gaze.

Even if she couldn’t completely stop other women from getting close to Lee Hoyeon, she had absolutely no intention of losing her top spot.

“I won’t just stand by either?”

Of course, Moon Surin felt the same way.

“You knew I liked him first, Sol-ah. That’s cheating.”

“If we’re going by that logic, you know you weren’t the very first one either, right?”

“… That doesn’t matter.”

What matters is the size of the love.

Baek Ahyoung believed she loved Lee Hoyeon more than anyone else.

“Wait a minute. Ahyoung-ah. We should actually cooperate. We have to compete against those younger girls, so we need to stick together.”

“What do you mean….”

“You get insecure sometimes, don’t you? Especially now….”

Baek Ahyoung wanted to express her displeasure towards Moon Surin.

She felt she needed to assert her ‘first claim’ in small things like this.

But Moon Surin didn’t see it that way.

In the end, Lee Hoyeon was her only option.

Therefore, she had to maximize her chances.

And if she had to include another woman, it might as well be her best friend.

“R-really?”

“Yeah. I’ll help you….”

And so, the alliance of adults targeting Lee Hoyeon was formed.

---

Saturday morning.

My condition was optimal.

The results from yesterday’s meditation were good, and since I hadn’t had a proper fight recently, my magic power was abundant.

As I grew stronger, I paid less and less attention to my mana pool, though.

“But what’s with you, Scarlet?”

I looked at the strange person who was supposed to be my guide but had finished preparing for battle.

“I’m definitely considered an ace member of the Iris Guild.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes. Plus, I’ve been practicing hiding my presence from Hoyeon-nim lately, so I think my skills have improved even more.”

“… That’s good.”

I sighed, looking at Scarlet.

Getting stronger just to tease me? That’s like hitting two birds with one stone, isn’t it? What a feat.

Just then, Liliana tugged on my arm.

“Let’s go, hurry! Hurry!”

“We’re ready. You just need to transform.”

“Ah, right!”

Fwoom-

I slung Liliana around my neck and followed Scarlet.

Several private jets were parked in the spacious yard, just like the ones we took last time. It seems we’ll be traveling by these.

“Are we really spending this much just to support anti-terrorism efforts?”

“Time is money for us.”

“Hmm….”

– This thing is really fast. Wow-

Pat pat-

I patted Liliana while approaching the plane.

There were quite a few unfamiliar faces there; they must be from the tracking team.

I approached Guild Leader Isaac, the one face I recognized.

“Guild Leader-nim.”

“Yeah? Oh, you’re finally here. Alice will be here soon too, so please take care of her.”

“Ah, yes. I’ll be counting on you.”

Tap- tap-

Isaac smiled and patted my shoulder.

I was a bit taken aback by the sudden familiarity, but I bowed my head in greeting.

Zzzzing-

Just then, I felt someone’s gaze from the side, so I casually glanced over.

Whoosh-

The moment I turned my head, I saw Irene’s back.

“…?”

What was that.

It felt like her head just moved slightly.

I kept looking at Irene, waiting patiently, and she casually turned her head, meeting my eyes.

Her pupils dilated, and she averted her gaze as if she had seen something she shouldn’t have.

‘What the?’

I glanced in the direction Irene was looking, wondering if maybe Alice had arrived, but of course, no one was there.

Furthermore, when I turned my gaze back, Irene had vanished.

“… Is she a ghost?”

“Hey, hey. Isn’t that Alice?”

“Oh? Great. We’re finally departing.”

“But her outfit looks a bit strange?”

Although Irene’s behavior felt a bit unsettling, I couldn’t ignore the name Alice being mentioned nearby.

I quickly turned my head in that direction and saw a person walking from afar.

She had a high-quality artifact sword she never usually carried strapped to her waist, and guards on her elbows and knees.

And a strange helmet with blonde hair sticking out.

Alice, dressed in an outfit I’d never seen before, was walking hesitantly.

“My daughter! You’re here!”

“Alice. You look so pretty.”

“….”

– What is that? Is she going cycling?

I rubbed my eyes and looked at Alice again.

Unfortunately, rubbing my eyes didn’t make those bizarre protective gears disappear.

Alice approached Isaac and started talking. I quietly whispered to Scarlet.

“Scarlet.”

“Yes.”

“Shouldn’t we try to stop her?”

“Unfortunately, the only person here who can talk to Alice is Hoyeon-nim.”

“… Seems like it.”

The Iris Guild members were avoiding eye contact with awkward expressions, while the Guild Leader and Irene, who could speak to Alice, were praising her enthusiastically.

Right. I guess I’ll have to do it.

I smiled as Alice approached me.

Up close, each piece certainly looked like a high-quality artifact.

It’s just that when they all came together, the overall look was rather questionable.

“Alice. You’ve prepared really well.”

“Yeah. Dad recommended it.”

So that’s the culprit.

Wait, that makes it hard to dissuade her.

It’s difficult to tell him to take off something he recommended for his daughter’s safety just because it looks bad.

“… It’ll certainly be safe.”

“Really? I’m glad you think so too.”

“….”

Alice smiled, seemingly pleased with my compliment.

This isn’t the right atmosphere to bring it up.

Well, fine.

It wasn’t entirely just a compliment, but if you like it, it’s okay.

Since no one here seems bothered, I decided not to voice my discomfort.

– It’s weird. It looks even weirder up close.

I averted my eyes, looking at the blonde hair sticking out from between the protective gear and the joint guards.