episode_0141

Recipient: Yoo Jin-hyeon, 1st year magician, 1st wizard training specialized higher education institution (hereinafter referred to as ‘cradle’)

(via) Yoram Academic Affairs Office

Title: Request for cooperation based on special enforcement ordinance for nurturing human resources for important purposes

1. I hope your magical talents expand infinitely.

2. We are sending this nomination request based on Article 1, Paragraph 8 of the Enforcement Decree. We would appreciate your cooperation.

Attachment: Part 1 of the detailed case summary. end.

Masada Metropolitan Administrative Office Special Crime Intensive Investigation Bureau Director

***

Time flows by itself. Whether I’m worried or not.

On Wednesday, the external request period officially began again.

I briefly cleaned up my appearance and headed out to campus. The idea is to put aside thoughts that cannot be resolved right away and get on with your work.

I thought I left fairly early, but the place was already packed with students trying to leave the crib to receive requests.

They were standing in groups or alone, waiting for the entrance screening at the main gate.

Those who leave for a distant place to fulfill a request briefly say goodbye, creating a lively atmosphere.

Next two weeks. Except for some of those eligible for supplementary classes, the remaining students gain external performance and field experience through referrals instead of lectures. In the process, you will encounter dangers big and small, but this is rather what Yoram intends. In the first place, they were the ones who changed the curriculum to say that in today’s world, ingrained experience is more important than knowledge held in one’s head.

However, with the exception of a few timid ones, it seems that more often than not, smiles bloomed on the faces of the students. The proportion of students who became calm when dealing with witches and criminals was gradually increasing.

Does it mean that it is better to be able to leave the stuffy cradle and freely engage in outdoor activities than the fear of enemies?

I also sympathize with that feeling to some extent.

But since they are cowardly…

“… Is it Yena?”

“Hot.”

Sneaky. I called out my name at the sound of very familiar footsteps approaching.

Then, a small sigh is heard from not far away.

As I turn, I see a female student standing tall with her back to me in the corridor illuminated by the morning sunlight.

Shiny brown medium hair. Eyes of the same color as his. A few freckles are scattered around the nose like grains.

The impression of a typical innocent country girl with a clear good and optimistic personality. A small and delicate appearance that sufficiently stimulates the desire for protection.

Yena looked at me and opened her eyes.

“How did you know?”

“Can you hear everything?”

“… Hmm. I tried to surprise you… ”

Yena slightly opened her mouth and did not hide her disappointment.

Then, he naturally comes next to me and matches our walking pace.

I was just thinking about Jena. Because Yena was the most timid person I knew. Have you overcome your fear of demonic beasts?

It was like that during the Celestial Basin training, and I saw his face turn pale every time he practiced killing monsters in the Demonic Science lecture.

“Were you on your way out because of a request?”

Yena was wearing simple civilian clothes instead of her white school uniform.

“Yes. It’s better to start early. I have to finish it quickly so I can do other things.”

Something else? Is there anything more to do? Unlike me, who is just barely there, Yena has excellent written grades, so I don’t think there are any supplementary classes. The request is not a designated request, but a normal request.

“Where are you going?”

“Shhh. Of course it’s a secret.”

Yena pretended to put her finger to her mouth and gave me a sideways glance.

“Didn’t you hear what the professor said? You said that there are cases where you may be disturbed if you give information carelessly.”

Then he suddenly blocked my path.

“Still… If it were you, Hyun, I think you could tell me. That’s ‘my favorite friend’. how is it? Should I tell you… ?”

“… ”

Between the slightly disheveled bangs, a pair of brown eyes are watching me intently.

That refreshing gaze feels a little suffocating today.

… what.

Unlike others who took quite some time, I was able to become close friends with Yena right from the first day of school.

This is because they had similar backgrounds and, unlike others, had a unique calmness that made people feel comfortable.

There was a strange sense of familiarity that only Jena could feel, as if she was meeting an old hometown friend.

I could still clearly feel that feeling.

But today’s Jena is somehow different.

Speech tone, gestures, eyes.

Even though I can’t say for sure, I feel like I’m feeling something foreign…

Come to think of it, I don’t usually do pranks like before. Isn’t it true that when I say hello first, it’s only then that he responds?

Are you trying to change your timid personality because you don’t like it? But I’m more comfortable with my old self.

It is true that it feels quite burdensome to suddenly become like a different person.

“… are you okay. You can listen to it later, okay.”

“Chi… ”

Yena pouts again as if she is disappointed and walks away. He still had a gentle smile on his lips.

After that, we walked without saying a word.

Yena waved at me only after reaching the front door of the cradle.

“Hyuna. I’m this way. See you later then?”

“… Yes.”

Yena disappears in an instant, buried in the crowd of people lining up at the front gate.

I looked at where she left for a moment and then headed to the other gate.

A strange sense of heterogeneity still lingered in the empty space Yena had left.

***

Not long ago.

There was a time when the body of a dead man was discovered in the middle of a pig farm and became a hot topic.

The reason why the death of an unremarkable lower-class person suddenly became a topic of gossip was simple.

Not only was the body found naked, but the direct cause of his death was determined to be intestinal rupture.

Before long, a newspaper had allocated a few pages to reveal the results of the investigation to the world, and people were busy activating their wild imaginations and adding their own thoughts about the dead man’s sexual preferences.

Even I, who is not particularly interested in popular topics, knew this incident very well.

Because Sarah, who brought the rolled up newspaper, made all the fuss with a mischievous expression.

‘this! Look at this! ‘What’s going on in the world?’

‘why… ? What’s going on… ?’

‘therefore… Ugh… ‘

‘Hehe… Well, stop listening… !’

‘Stop listening! It’s just getting started! This next one is real! therefore… ‘

I still remember Yena’s face turning bright red after being shamed for asking for me.

but… I never imagined that my nomination request would be related to that case.

“Huh… It can’t be… When I had a physical examination recently, there were no abnormalities… ”

A slum on the outskirts of the capital.

Unlike the main street where the lights don’t go out even at night, this place is full of old shacks. A place where there is no electricity or running water.

A place so remote that the hauntings of evil warlocks and crazy mutants who commit cannibalism and kidnapping are taken for granted.

In the middle of it. In a shabby little house that seemed ready to collapse at any moment, I encountered a widow dressed in black.

“I only went on business trips to places near the capital… How could one possibly be exposed to high concentrations of particles? Black… ”

The widow was on the verge of fainting when she saw the mask on her face, but after learning that I was a student at Cradle who had come to fulfill the request, she changed her attitude and began pleading earnestly.

I recalled the results of the analysis of the body’s composition that I had received in advance.

Abnormally high particle susceptibility levels were recorded on the body of a man who died naked after breaking into a pig farm. However, he is a complete ordinary person with no spring or enlightenment.

The Special Crimes Bureau’s conclusion was simple. The widow’s deceased husband was exposed to a high concentration of particles and developed an acquired psychological mutation in response.

After engaging in such strange behavior, he died from intestinal rupture and excessive bleeding.

However, the widow vehemently denied the results of the investigation.

“Never, absolutely not that type of person… There’s something more… Black… ”

The Special Crimes Bureau does not consider this case to be that special. Depending on the terrain and atmospheric conditions, there are many places in the Republic where Bessel particles are concentrated at high concentrations.

The Heavenly Basin, where we went for our first training, is one of those places.

Additionally, it is already a frequent occurrence that insensitive people unexpectedly exposed to such environments mutate mentally and physically.

The wizard can control particles stably by creating a fountain and even gain more vitality. However, the encounter between an insensitive person and a particle is likely to cause unexpected mutations.

This is common sense that even I already knew. In a situation where there is not enough manpower to deal with vicious criminals, there is no room to invest resources in uncovering the cause of death of perverts. The cause of death for lower-class men is probably a good thing.

However, the widow was refusing to accept the decision. As a citizen, it goes without saying that I file complaints every day, and I noisily pester the media, saying things are better than me.

Moreover, the area where she currently resides was scheduled for redevelopment, and this is a problem directly related to the legacy of the current head of the administrative office.

However, if this uproar continues, future redevelopment reviews may also be affected.

Since it was more important than the death of an ordinary man, they delivered the request to Yoram.

And they only wanted one thing from me. shew.

Rather than fully re-investigate the case, they are simply asking us to pretend.

He pretends to look into the matter appropriately, but in the end, he comes to the same conclusion as the first time and asks the widow to give up on his own.

Relying on the authority of Cradle and Wizard.

“… ”

The position is extremely difficult.

I cannot bear to judge the impurity of the motive for the request… Anyway, I couldn’t find any flaws in that logic.

Unless they tampered with the evidence of death, they were just doing their job. It’s just that the widow can’t accept him.

However, the thought of carrying out their request made me quite nervous, as if I were carrying a burden on my mind towards the widow.

Give up on the request… Of course it makes no sense to do so. How many points are at stake?

“Please… Please help me… I’m saying I’m definitely not the type of person to do that… ”

I was still listening to the story without coming to a conclusion.

Suddenly. Something sparkles on the wrist of the widow who is kneeling and talking.

Without realizing it, I looked towards it.

It is a bracelet that sparkles in silver. It is made of thin metal string and has a decoration made of the same material in the middle.

A cross-shaped sculpture surrounded by a circle. Something that looks like a religious symbol. Unlike the ordinary crosses you usually see, the upper part looks oddly long.

A shape that at first glance feels like it has been turned upside down.

However, it can never be said that it looks particularly precious, and in some ways it may feel ordinary.

“… ”

But the moment I saw it.

Suddenly, a feeling of déjà vu envelopes my body.

Although it’s slight, it’s enough to make you feel a distinct sense of anxiety.

I was able to recall the reason without difficulty.

I’ve seen something exactly like that before.

He is none other than Yeon Sang-ha’s father, and is now called one of the worst criminals in the Republic.

From the neck of Yeonjeongmun.