-Dismissal
“Why? Did something happen?”
That was the first thing I asked as soon as I picked up.
Someone calling less than an hour after we parted probably wasn’t calling because they were bored.
But unexpectedly, Cheon Danbi’s voice didn’t sound serious at all. If anything, she sounded a little excited.
[It was such a good thing you went on the air today, Mr. Mage!]
I had no idea what she was talking about out of nowhere. It wasn’t as if she would be praising my strategy this late in the game.
“What are you talking about? What’s this all of a sudden?”
[I came home and went straight to the dwarf village. You know how the dwarves said they were digging a tunnel from beneath our shop to the village? When I got here, the basement was all cleaned up. They’d covered the entrance so perfectly you’d never know it was there. But when I moved a few pieces of furniture, I could see the entrance, so I went through that way. And then the dwarf village came out.]
I still couldn’t figure out what Cheon Danbi was trying to say.
What connection was there between the dwarf village and me being on the news?
Still, I played along for now.
“Are the dwarves doing all right?”
[They’re doing great. They haven’t restored the whole village they used to live in, just part of it, but they said there’s no problem staying there. The police are only controlling the entrance aboveground, and they haven’t come down into the village, so it’s fine.]
“That’s a relief. Still, it must be inconvenient to live hidden away like that.”
[Exactly. But I think that problem might be solved now too. When I went to the village, the dwarves saw me and started cheering like crazy.]
“What? Why?”
[Because they know I’m on Oudin’s team. Today, you revealed the black mage’s identity, Mr. Mage. The fact that the terrorist was hiding in Vanaheim, of all places.
Once that hit the news, public opinion seems to be changing completely. Until this morning, people were saying this terrorist attack was caused by the dwarves too, all that stuff. But now that talk has vanished.]
“Oh, really? That’s good.”
Now I finally understood.
To sum up Cheon Danbi’s rambling story simply, by revealing on air that the black mage was in Vanaheim, the false charges placed on the dwarves were being cleared.
[The moment they saw me, they started chanting Oudin’s name and cheering, and they were so happy that I got all choked up.]
It was a good thing. If the dwarves, who had been falsely accused for no reason, could clear their names and regain their freedom, there was nothing more gratifying.
But I felt a little awkward about taking credit for it.
In truth, I had only used the broadcast to show evidence in order to clear the false accusation placed on me.
It was fortunate that the dwarves’ innocence had been proven as a result, but I wondered if it was really something I deserved praise for.
“I didn’t do anything for the dwarves.”
[What are you talking about! How can you say you didn’t do anything? The reason you and the dwarves were falsely accused was because of rumors deliberately spread by the people working with the black mages. Standing up against those bastards is exactly how you clear the false charges. And that’s what you did, Mr. Mage.]
Well, that was true. What I was trying to do had always been to stop the black mages.
It was just that I hadn’t specifically worked hard for the sake of the dwarves in the process, and that bothered me.
Now that I thought about it, Cheon Danbi had hurried home from the scene because she was worried about the dwarves. She had gone straight to the dwarf village and was looking after them.
On the other hand, I hadn’t even thought about the dwarves—and for a brief moment, I had even forgotten about Ren.
I didn’t have the same concern for the well-being of other races as Cheon Danbi or Gil did.
Of course, I did want to set things right when they were being treated unfairly.
While I stayed silent, Cheon Danbi continued speaking.
[Anyway, Oudin is a hero to the dwarves now. So I hope you keep finishing things as a hero from now on. Public opinion is starting to change, but make it absolutely clear it wasn’t them. That the underground village here wasn’t attacked by the dwarves themselves, but by the black mage.]
Calling me a hero felt like going too far, but in any case, that was something I had to do, so I answered appropriately.
“I will. Now we have to uncover the black mages’ identities. And the identities of those who joined hands with them too. Not just Vanaheim, but the whole gang in the government and the Hall—I’m going to catch them all.”
[Ooh! That’s Oudin for you!]
“That’s enough, stop praising me. Even if you don’t butter me up like that, I know what I have to do.”
[Exactly! That’s what a hero is!]
“Stop!”
[Okay, okay. I get it.]
Only then did Cheon Danbi finally stop her barrage of praise.
Hearing myself called a hero over and over made my side itch for no reason.
Was Cheon Danbi poking me in the ribs right now or something?
I quickly turned the conversation elsewhere. Just then, I remembered something I wanted to ask.
“How many rooms does your house have?”
[Huh? What? Are you asking how many rooms my house has?]
“Yeah.”
I had been to the herb shop, but I had never been to Cheon Danbi’s house.
She had said her house was attached to the back of the shop, but I had no idea what the layout was like.
[Two rooms. Why?]
“Oh, really? That’s good. Got it.”
[Why? Why are you asking about the rooms?]
I was reluctant to talk directly about Ren over the phone.
Thanks to Yantu, I had also gotten into the habit of not discussing things that needed to be kept secure over the phone.
In any case, I felt relieved that the problem of where Ren would stay seemed to be solved.
“Earlier, did you rush home because you were worried about the dwarves?”
[Yeah, I did.]
“Then what about now? Do you have anything busy going on?”
[No. I don’t.]
“Good. Then come to my place. Let’s eat together.”
[Oh! Are you buying me food?]
“No. We’ll eat at home.”
[Oh! Are you cooking for me?]
“No. I’ll buy something outside and bring it home to eat.”
[Got it. I’ll be there soon.]
And then the call ended.
Sometimes, Cheon Danbi showed this kind of simple side.
Even while she had been questioning me curiously about why I was asking how many rooms she had, the moment I changed the subject, she followed along without hesitation and hung up excitedly at the mention of food.
I pictured her already running over with her eyebrows practically flying and let out a small laugh.
But in truth, she probably wasn’t simple—she was quick-witted.
She must have immediately understood that I meant we should talk in person because it wasn’t something to discuss over the phone.
Either way, I liked Cheon Danbi’s personality, which didn’t make things complicated.
I went down to Itaewon, entered a restaurant, and ordered various dishes to go.
As I waited, I went over my call with Cheon Danbi in my head.
Even thinking about it again, it was truly fortunate that the dwarves were clearing their names.
Not only the dwarves in the underground village beneath Namsan, but also dwarves in other dwarf districts such as Wolmido had been suffering due to the government’s groundless witch hunt.
As Cheon Danbi had said, I needed to make it clear that the dwarves had done nothing wrong.
Perhaps I had to accept a little responsibility for it too.
The reason the government had targeted the dwarves among the other races in the first place was none other than Ren.
They must have granted Vanaheim’s request. Suspecting that I had gone to Wolmido, they had caused this whole mess in order to search the place.
‘Ah! Come to think of it, I didn’t tell Yantu that I found Ren. I should at least send him a text.’
Yantu must have been worried, and I had been thoughtless.
I immediately sent Yantu a message.
[I met a cat on the road. I think it’s a runaway cat. Tell them not to worry, because we’re all doing well.]
It was a strange combination of words that didn’t quite make sense, but Yantu would probably understand.
Sure enough, a reply came quickly.
[You met the cat? That’s good. We’re doing well too. Come visit Incheon sometime.]
As expected, the contents were nonsense, but it was enough. At this point, we had exchanged all the words we needed.
Still, though it might have just been an added remark with no deeper meaning, the words telling me to come visit Incheon somehow caught my eye.
Come to think of it, there was a dwarf I worried about and thought of too.
* * *
“Thanks for the meal! It was delicious!”
“Thank you for the food!”
“It was really delicious. Thank you.”
[We enjoyed it too.]
[It wasn’t to my taste, but it was edible.]
There was one slightly picky remark mixed in, but as I listened to the general thanks for the meal and looked around at the group, it struck me anew that the number of people under my roof had increased.
The small room was packed full.
“I’m glad you enjoyed it. Makes carrying it all here worthwhile.”
I answered lightly and cleared the table.
The crows immediately fluttered outside. Now that they had been fed, it seemed they were thinking of reclaiming their freedom.
They were such free spirits that I left them be.
The humans and one other living being seemed to want to get comfortable, but the room was simply too cramped.
It seemed time to order their dismissal.
“You must all be tired, so for tonight, go home, rest, and recharge.”
“I’m not that tired. I should hurry back and train now.”
Gil said, springing to his feet.
“Then we’ll go to the herb shop and make plenty of potions and healing medicine. We have to prepare for the war to come.”
Cheon Danbi said with a bright smile at Ren, and Ren smiled back and nodded.
Had Ren already become an employee of the herb shop? I hoped she wasn’t going to lock him in the basement and make him perform forced labor brewing potions all night.
‘You have to stir this all night! You can’t stop even for a moment. It’ll harden. Got it?’
Imagining Cheon Danbi as an evil shop owner, I snickered to myself. Even though there was no way that would happen, a mischievous scene drew itself in my mind for no reason.
For the time being, Ren had decided to stay at Cheon Danbi’s house.
When I asked, Cheon Danbi readily agreed.
On top of that, she said her house was an inner residence attached behind the shop, so it was perfect for avoiding people’s eyes. She said there would be no problem whether he stayed as a crow or in his true form.
Not only that, but Cheon Danbi had placed her own protective barrier around the herb shop, and I had also checked it before and strengthened the barrier, so there was nothing to worry about.
“Yeah. Everyone’s really determined. But resting well is important too. This probably won’t be a fight that ends in a day or two.”
While we ate, I had roughly explained the situation to the team members.
That what I had done today was a declaration of war against Vanaheim and the Magic Tower. So from now on, the real war would begin.
That if we were going to catch all the collaborators planted throughout the government and the Hall, it would be a long, arduous fight.
“Yes. I know. If the black mages have built a Magic Tower in the middle of Seoul, their power must be anything but ordinary.”
“Right. And now that we’ve touched it, there’s no telling what they’ll do next. A disaster will probably come. But I’m prepared.”
“I’ll help as much as I can too.”
“I fully understand how determined you all are. That’s enough for today. You are dismissed!”
Only after I went so far as to speak politely did everyone finally leave my house and scatter to their own homes.
At last, I was alone.
It was the moment I had been eagerly waiting for.
There was still a little daylight left before evening. I hurried into the magical space.