The day after she discussed magic with Amelia and put the grimoires through the wringer all through the dawn hours, Amelia finally took her first step in the process of becoming a mage.
As soon as she woke in the morning, she showered with a reverent heart, then sat on the living room sofa and began meditating. Outside the window, the sun was only just about to rise, and the dim light, like a shadow, began to slide in at a slant and illuminate the living room, where the lights had not yet been turned on.
Thirty minutes later, Ian’s bedroom door opened, and he appeared looking disheveled. Ian glanced at her sitting in the middle of the living room, washed up lightly, then came out and gulped down cold water. As the chill water ran down his throat, the last traces of sleepiness were blown away.
Clack.
He set the empty cup down in the kitchen and took out his phone to check the time.
March 21st, 06:30 a.m.
It was far earlier than he usually woke up. Normally he tended to get up after nine, but given what day it was, his eyes had opened early on their own.
Well, ever since becoming a mage, he had never really felt much fatigue from lack of sleep, so it did not matter much. It was not that he had no fatigue at all, but if he put a little caffeine into his body, it would disappear on its own.
“Mm.”
Since it had occurred to him, Ian took the coffee he had put in the fridge and poured it into a cup with a glug-glug-glug. The distinct smell of sweet yet slightly watery instant coffee drifted up faintly.
When he drank a mouthful, he felt as if his head had snapped awake.
Of course, that was not actually the case; it was just the placebo effect. Still, it felt good, so Ian sat down in a suitable empty spot and sipped his coffee while browsing the community.
[Hawawa, baby mage-bungie woke up earlier than usual today. The weather is better than expected…….]
[Yeah]
Still, everyone, please be careful not to catch a cold, and I hope you have a peaceful day…….
[Likes 2][Dislikes 5]
[Comments]
-Fuck, why do I have to see a post like this first thing in the morning? What did I do wrong to have to see a post from this psychopathic murderer insane mentally ill mage bastard during my miracle morning?
ㄴYeah: You have been blessed~
ㄴFuck.
-★Godmother: What a heartwarming post to see in the morning. I hope you have a good day as well.
ㄴTaming Master: Heartwarming? It’s getting hot enough to burn. My boiling heart is screaming at me to kill this bastard right now.
ㄴ★Godmother: What a pitiful young man, unable to accept a person’s good intentions…….
ㄴTaming Master: ?
ㄴ★Godmother: A young man who really, really loves getting blocked…….
ㄴTaming Master: Hawawa, actually, I’m in a good mood too. Everyone have a happy day!
ㄴ★Godmother: (Mage Beaming Con)
-Isn’t this bastard an Outer God? He’s spreading mental contamination like crazy.
[Honest opinion) I think Godmother’s tyranny has gotten too severe lately;;]
[It’s Hot]
(AI photo of a cat raising its middle finger)
She blocks everyone and deletes posts just because she doesn’t like them. If this isn’t tyranny, what is?
[Likes 1][Dislikes 0]
[Comments]
-★Godmother: 124, 56, 23.
ㄴIt’s Hot: ?
ㄴ★Godmother: The number of shitpics, gore pics, and humblebrag posts I deleted as soon as I woke up this morning. And among them, there’s one you wrote as an anonymous user. Want me to expose it?
ㄴIt’s Hot: I’m sorry. I won’t act up. I’ll shut up.
ㄴ★Godmother: (Do Not Stand Before the King, Mage Con)
“What are you looking at?”
Amelia approached from behind Ian, who had been browsing the community for quite a while. He calmly turned off his phone screen and shook his head.
“Nothing much. Are you done meditating?”
“Yes. Though honestly, rather than meditation, it was closer to preparing myself mentally…….”
Her voice trailed off as she exhaled, and Ian rose from his seat.
“Still, it’s way better than shoveling dirt into your mouth like someone.”
“Th-that’s true…….”
The two of them walked toward the kitchen together. Amelia stuck close beside Ian and murmured in a small voice.
“Still, when I asked Grandfather at dawn, he said eating soil really is more effective than receiving help from spirits. The difference isn’t that huge, but since it’s a traditional method, some modern mage families still use it! And he said it’s normal for mages who don’t belong to a family to learn magic the way you did, Oppa!”
“Yeah, thanks for the consolation…….”
Ian smiled faintly and stroked Amelia’s hair. She smiled brightly.
“Now, then…….”
Ian took out the vegetables he had put in the refrigerator and set them up in the kitchen. High-quality vegetables—round potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, and so on—were neatly laid out. He silently stared at them, not a speck of soil on them, then turned to Amelia and opened his mouth.
“To be honest, there isn’t much you need to worry about during the first week. You just have to eat dirt…… mm, eat these for three meals a day for a week.”
“Understood. Then I’ll start right away.”
“Cooking?”
“……I can’t. I can rinse them with groundwater, but if I wash them with other water or cook them with fire, all the blessing disappears, so I have to eat them raw.”
“Ah.”
Ian gazed at Amelia with pity in his eyes. Wearing a tense expression, she picked up a cherry tomato.
“Fortunately, I think this one will be fine to eat…… yum…….”
She popped the tomato into her mouth. The tomato crushed between her molars spread a sweet taste.
“Mmm…… it’s delicious…….”
“It’s delicious? Then it’d be better for you to just keep eating tomatoes for the time being.”
“Um…… I can’t keep eating only the same thing…… I have to keep switching between different things…….”
Amelia replied gloomily, then took some raw cucumber, carrot, and a few cherry tomatoes and sat down at the dining table. Then she began crunching away at them. Ian looked at her with pity, then grabbed the leftover chicken box from yesterday and sat down beside her. Then, with a melancholy expression, he tore into the soggy chicken.
“My disciple can only eat vegetables, so I should at least eat something like this…….”
“…….”
Amelia gnawed on her cucumber and stared at Ian with cold, dead eyes. Whether she did or not, Ian bit into a cold piece of chicken breast.
It was then. The phone in his pocket vibrated once.
It was far too early an hour for a message to arrive. He wiped the sauce from the corner of his mouth, took out his phone, and checked the text.
[Gim Iseo: Good morning, Mage-nim. Would you happen to be available to talk right now?]
*
After receiving the message, Ian headed straight to the Administration Bureau building. Having visited several times now, he entered the building’s entrance, which had become fairly familiar, and the first thing that spread through the air was a faint smell of water.
As far as Ian knew, there was only one person in the world with that kind of body scent. He turned his head toward the source of the smell.
“……Oh, newbie?”
Right beside Ian.
Gim Yul, who had been leaning against the wall near the building entrance, spotted him and smiled radiantly. Ian confirmed that she looked not much different from the last time he had seen her and let out a small laugh.
“You seem to be in pretty good shape. I’m glad it looks like you didn’t get hurt during the festival.”
“What’s this, what’s this? Is it okay for you to talk like a boyfriend just because we haven’t seen each other in a while? You’re making my heart flutter.”
Gim Yul came pattering toward Ian like a rabbit. Dressed, as always, in a black T-shirt and a white tennis skirt, she pushed her face against Ian’s chest and sniffed.
“Mmm, you smell good. As expected, smelling you makes me feel better…… We must be a good match…….”
“I don’t feel better just because I smell water.”
“This is when you’re supposed to play along, idiot.”
Gim Yul tapped Ian’s shoulder with her fist and clasped her hands behind her back.
“More importantly, what brings you to the Administration Bureau? Were you called here like me?”
“That’s right. They said they’d give me a reward, so there’s no need to refuse.”
The promised reward for clearing the art museum.
Seeing as they had called him directly to the Administration Bureau building, it did not seem like ordinary monetary compensation. He figured they might give him a tool used by the Administration Bureau or some special information.
For Ian, that was a much better reward than money. After all, more than three billion won was sitting in his bank account right now, so he did not particularly need quick cash.
Gim Yul did not look like she particularly needed money either.
She unwrapped the lollipop she had kept in her pocket and kissed the round candy with little smacks. A drop of saliva fell from between her parted lips.
“Mmm, sweet. Want some too?”
She held out the candy, which was covered in saliva and tint marks, toward Ian and smiled mischievously.
Ian suddenly wondered how she would react if he really ate it, but soon shook his head and slipped his hand into his coat pocket.
“You eat it.”
“Heheh, acting shy. Oh, for reference, I only do this to you, okay? To begin with, you’re the only man I know.”
“I see.”
“That’s right~”
Slurp.
She sucked on the candy with an overtly suggestive sound. Ian looked down at her with a displeased gaze, then noticed Gim Iseo getting off the opened elevator and turned his head.
Gim Iseo, who had been walking with her pink hair fluttering and an expressionless face, also spotted Ian and Gim Yul and changed direction. Wearing a faint smile, she gave the two of them a slight bow.
“Thank you both for coming despite the sudden notice.”
“Coming here wasn’t a big deal. More importantly, your hand……”
Ian trailed off as he stared at her hazy left hand. She let out an “Ah,” and raised her left hand, which was trapped in a strange frame.
“It’s still recovering. But it has improved a lot, and it should be fully recovered in a few days, so it’s all right. Thank you for your concern.”
“That’s a relief.”
At Ian’s words, Gim Iseo smiled softly. Gim Yul poked Ian in the side with the stick of her lollipop.
“At times like this, you’re supposed to worry only about me. If you pay attention to other women too, you won’t be popular, you know?”
Instead of answering, Ian flicked Gim Yul’s forehead. It was a blow with a fair amount of sincerity behind it, and she let out a shriek.
“Ah. It huuurts……!”
“Mm…… You two are closer than I expected.”
Gim Iseo said, awkwardly scratching her cheek. Then she cleared her throat and stepped aside slightly as she continued.
“Then I will begin guiding you. Would you follow me?”
“Where are we going?”
“To the Administration Bureau’s underground storage.”
She tilted her head slightly to the side.
“The Branch Director is waiting there.”