Chapter 139

When I got flicked on the forehead by Flauros, I saw it clearly: another me, wearing a mask, wailing and begging for his life.

Truly, too many sacrifices have been made by now.

Clutching my stinging forehead, I finally reached the topmost floor of the Magic Tower.

What awaited me in the Tower Master’s room was a familiar sight.

It was a room that looked exactly like the two-person dormitory provided to rookies joining the Special Unit.

Upon opening the door and entering, a worn iron bed—the one Alexei and I used—sat on the left, while a small desk, chair, and cabinet stood on the right.

It was a familiar layout I could recall even with my eyes closed.

If there was one difference from the original, it was that the objects displayed in the cabinet weren’t Kandu’s disco ball, but heads that looked exactly like mine.

Naturally, there was exactly one empty spot right where I was standing.

Looking around, I noticed tufts of snow-white hair sticking out from the second bunk I usually occupied.

It was Mala-nim.

“Mala-nim?”

“Grrit!”

The moment I called her name, the sound of grinding teeth immediately echoed back.

“Come down. Let’s come down and talk.”

“…”

“If you don’t come down, I’m coming up.”

“Kishaaaah!!!”

The moment my hand touched the ladder, an indescribable shriek rang out.

Simultaneously, the dormitory ceiling was torn away, revealing the vast expanse of the universe beyond. Within the darkness that had begun to swallow the stars of the night sky, I felt a sinister purple eye staring down at me.

Soon, Mala-nim’s voice was heard.

『Fear not?』

“…”

She’s definitely sulking—and quite deeply, at that.

Having no other choice, I began to take out the items I had gathered on my way here to persuade her, one by one.

“I’ve reflected quite a bit as well. I’ve brought some gifts, so please accept them and let go of your anger.”

“…?”

At the mention of gifts, the top of the bed squirmed.

Mala-nim’s true form, which had been looking down from space, retreated into the darkness. In its place, the top of a small head and a pair of beautiful purple eyes peeked over the safety rail.

Her reaction was essentially: Fine, let’s hear what you’ve got.

If I disappointed Mala-nim again here, the continued existence of all humanity might become uncertain.

Steeling my resolve, I rolled up my sleeves.

I brought over the cabinet, cleared off the top shelf, and gave it a few spritzes from an alcohol spray bottle. After wiping it down with the hem of my robe, I had a cutting board that wouldn’t look out of place in a high-end sushi restaurant.

The “cuisine” I was about to present was a sort of omakase.

To satisfy Mala-nim’s fastidious palate, I had to maintain the proper level of prestige, so I poured my soul into every single menu item.

First, I brought out the appetizer to signal the start of the course.

It was a single sheet of paper.

“This is the ‘Adoption Contract’ I obtained from Alexei during our duel in the last promotion exam.”

“Grrit—”

Mala-nim immediately expressed her displeasure.

As we both know by now, even if Mala-nim became Alexei’s younger sister, marriage with me remained impossible.

However, that was only according to the laws of Seoul, the only democratic city governed by the rule of law in South Korea.

“Please calm down and look at the writing at the bottom. See the signature of Mayor Park Mak-rye here? I’ve had it notarized in Busan.”

Busan Metropolitan City, Suyeong-gu, Gwangan-ri Community Center.

Right above the Busan Mayor’s official seal was a bright red smudge—a thumbprint where the lines had been completely blurred.

It was my thumbprint.

Legally, she had simply become Alexei’s younger sister, and marriage was another story entirely, but she seemed significantly appeased by my effort. She recreated the ceiling and held the paper up to the fluorescent light to inspect it.

While she savored that, I pulled a snow-white plate from inside my robe.

Next was the main course, the one Mala-nim would be looking forward to the most.

“This is the finger dropped by Trishy, the Chairperson of the Council, during the last Great Invasion.”

It was etched with lightning marks from the Spear of Thunder, and the fingernails were dyed a turmeric-yellow hue from Seona’s judgment. Grilled to a crispy-outside, juicy-inside medium-rare by the flames of the Archduke of Fire, the cross-section of the finger was dusted with golden Star Scars like gold leaf.

“I’ve procured the Star Scars recovered by the Special Unit. The white garnish sprinkled on top is thread made from feathers I secretly plucked from the wings of the Saint of Salvation, Moon Ah-rin.”

“Gulp…!”

“You don’t have to share any of the Star Scars with me this time. Please, enjoy it fully.”

As I placed the plate on the bed, a single tentacle whipped out and snatched the finger away.

Judging by how the mattress was bouncing up and down, she seemed quite satisfied.

“Did you enjoy it?”

“Chyu—”

“I’m about to wrap up the meal, but there is still one thing left.”

All that remained was the course’s finale: the dessert.

I knelt on one knee before Mala-nim, whose eyes sparkled with anticipation for what I would offer this time.

“While we were apart, I thought long and hard about what Mala-nim desires most in this world. Eternal life? Mountains of wealth? Or perhaps Holy Water made from the distilled runoff of Commander Yoo Se-byeol’s footbath, sealed to never rot for a thousand years?”

“…Ugh.”

“I knew none of those would truly satisfy you. Then, it suddenly occurred to me.”

The one thing Mala-nim had yearned for ever since coming to Earth.

I unfastened the smartwatch from my wrist and handed it to her. On the small 1.9-inch display was the “Universe” she had craved so much.

“It is the new character from Monster Wars, the Special Grade Monster Kitten Gargantua (EX), sired by Gargantua!!”

How long had I anticipated this since hearing the news last summer that the offspring of the Gargantua destroyed in North Korea had been discovered near Mount Kumgang? I had even gone to a cafe near the 38th parallel every weekend with No Yeon-hwa to secretly observe their growth through a telescope. It had been half a year since I started sending anonymous tips and threatening emails to the developers of Monster Wars.

Finally, my—no, Mala-nim’s—sincere wish to raise them had come to fruition.

“It was truly difficult. I had to open a hundred boxes of Choco Pies to get the Blue Mana Stones, and I cleared the entire story on my way here just to unlock them.”

“……”

“Look at them using the ‘Squirming Tentacle Magic Tower’ in the newly opened ‘Ground Zero Sector 4’ as their cat tower. Is this level of cuteness even allowed to exist in this world? I have no doubt that this will appease Mala-nim’s heart—”

“CRRRRRRRRRRIT!!!”

A sound echoed that wouldn’t have been out of place if Mala-nim’s teeth had all been ground to dust. It was the moment all the favorability I had built up was completely reset.

I frantically strapped the smartwatch back onto my wrist and shouted.

“I have no doubt, but! But surely you’d prefer something else!”

“Tui!” (Spit)

“Let’s see, what else is there? All I have on me is some red pepper paste I bought recently and a photo of Digestion that I received as a gift from Albireo…”

“Tui, tui!!”

The ceiling of the Tower Master’s room opened once more. As the Outer God’s eye opened, I felt Mala-nim’s presence on the bed begin to fade. If she abandoned her incarnation and ascended back to the heavens now, I might never see her again.

I desperately tried to persuade her.

“I will give you anything I can offer!”

“……”

“So please, don’t go. If Mala-nim is not inside my sleeve, I have no reason to live.”

How much time had passed? A small voice drifted from beyond the railing.

“Really?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Anything?”

“As long as it’s within my power. Ah! But I can’t act as a guarantor for a loan! Even for you, Mala-nim, that much is…”

“Hand.”

“Pardon?”
“Haaand.”

Did she want my hand? I cautiously extended my left hand toward the bed, and soon, I felt a warm, soft sensation. I couldn’t see it, but it felt as if Mala-nim had intertwined her fingers with mine.

“Hayan.”

“Yes, I’m here.”

“Mine.”

Just two syllables. That was all the current Mala-nim could convey with her own voice.

“Of course. I am always yours, Mala-nim.”

But that was enough. As I spoke, I felt the warmth spread to my wrist. I lowered my arm and checked inside my sleeve; there, as always, sat a snow-white tentacle.

『Fear not.』

“Mala-nim…”

Finally, her anger subsided, and she returned to her usual self. I let out a long sigh of relief.

『Fear not, fear not, fear not.』

“Yes, yes, I understand. I won’t ever eye those ‘stray cats’ again.”

『Fear?』

“The stray cat feeding station? Tearing that down is a bit much…”

The long “running away from home” incident had finally come to an end.

“So, you found your lost tentacle at the top of the Magic Tower?”

“Yes, what a relief. Thanks to that, I was able to resolve everything without needing Ah-rin’s help.”

A few days later. I was talking alone with Moon Ah-rin in the meeting room.

After the nationwide mana corruption incident was resolved, the Purple Magic Tower underwent a large-scale demolition. I had been worried about what would happen to the orphans or Velada if they were chased, but fortunately, it seemed they had all evacuated before the contractors hired by the Bureau arrived. The report stated the tower had lost its self-sustaining power and was no longer a threat.

“No matter how much I think about it, there are too many suspicious points. From a demon being inside to you losing the item you received from Commander Ha Yeri.”

However, Moon Ah-rin, who had been the person in charge of the raid, looked at me with suspicious eyes after I had descended from the tower alone.

“I explained that already. I definitely put it in my pocket, but when I came to, it was gone.”

“But to write it all off as a coincidence…”

“You’re being too much. Are you really doubting me, even though I raided the tower at the cost of getting injured?”

“That ‘injury’ is exactly what’s most suspicious.”

Moon Ah-rin pointed at my hand, which was wrapped in bandages.

“How on earth can someone trip on the stairs and have a finger cut off?”

“That’s…”

“And it won’t even regenerate with magic. Anyone can see that wasn’t a simple accident.”

Actually, there was a deep story behind that.

While I was coming down the stairs with Mala-nim in my sleeve, I had accidentally let it slip while we were catching up. I mentioned that I was scheduled to become Flauros’s subordinate when the next Council meeting was held.

Mala-nim, who had been acting like a “sealed black flame dragon” inside my sleeve, lunged out in her fury and swallowed one of my fingers whole.

Coincidentally, it was the ring finger of my left hand.

Since I formed hand seals using tentacles, it wasn’t a fatal injury like it would be for other mages, but since she refused to give it back even when I asked, I had no choice but to file it as a workplace injury.

“I don’t understand a single thing you’re saying, Hayan.”

“The ones who really don’t make sense are the seniors from Division 3. Do you know what they said when I told them I lost a finger?”

“What did they say?”

“They said they were proud of me, saying I’ve finally become a true warrior. They claimed that when you live by the sword, it’s only natural to lose an arm or a leg.”

It seemed that the part of the body most commonly injured when living by the sword was definitely the head.

“Anyway, I’ve given you the full explanation, so please report to Commander Ha Yeri for me.”

“You’re not doing it yourself?”

“Well, you were the one in charge of this raid, Ah-rin. And…”

“And?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

If I saw Commander Ha Yeri’s face now that she had shrunk back to her original height… I knew I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from teasing her.

I barely swallowed those words and stood up from my seat, ending the conversation.