Chapter 140

The cold winter had passed, and the season was now fully imbued with the warm scent of spring.

I was spending an elegant morning with Mala-nim on the terrace of the rooftop garden.

Mala-nim—my younger sister, or rather, now officially Alexei’s younger sister—was finally able to roam freely within the Bureau in her incarnation form, as her residency papers had been formally registered.

The visitor’s pass hanging around her neck shimmered in the sunlight.

—Keep up the good work, Commander Ha Yeri.

—Was that logistics truck parked at the main gate brought in by Division 6?

—No, ma’am. We didn’t receive any notice about supplies arriving today.

—It’s blocking the entrance and getting in the way. Tell them to move it.

—My apologies. Security personnel are spread thin lately due to the Thunder Martial Arts Assembly… I’ll have it dealt with immediately.

“Are you enjoying yourself?”

“Yes.”

Mala-nim seemed to find it quite entertaining to look down through the transparent glass floor at the people scurrying about like ants below.

I served her the buttered bread I had prepared for brunch. Simultaneously, I held the wine I had just retrieved from the truck up to the sunlight.

It was a masterpiece that had taken over half a year of painstaking effort—from planning and production to sourcing ingredients, packaging, and delivery. Though it had nearly collapsed several times in the middle, it had finally seen the light of day.

It was a truly touching moment.

“I’ll have to thank Albireo. Without his help, contacting the winery in Europe would have been impossible.”

“Albi?”

“Albireo, Albireo. My disciple who took Digestion away after the summer semester ended.”

I wondered how Digestion was doing.

The last I heard was that she had significantly contributed to protecting the European Magic Towers from the demons during the Great Invasion. Since then, strange rumors had been rampant—stories of an Extra-grade monster born that surpassed Gargantua, or a new religion worshipping tentacles being founded and attacking existing prayer houses, plunging Europe into a vortex of war.

“Come to think of it, the amount of the special ‘additive’ included in the raw materials for this wine feels a bit smaller than when I first sent it…”

“Grrit.”

“Probably just a small error. They do call it the ‘Angel’s Share,’ after all.”

In this case, I suppose it should be called the ‘Tentacle’s Share.’

If Digestion had secretly siphoned off the Star Scars mixed into the grapes stepped on by Yoo Se-byeol, that could lead to a massive incident. She might truly gain power rivaling an Outer God, but for now, I decided to just watch and see.

As I removed the cork with a tentacle, a fragrant grape aroma wafted up. At the same time, the scream of a security guard echoed from outside.

—Ack!

—What happened?

—Don’t touch it! It’s covered in layers of defensive magic!

—What are you all doing, crowding around here since morning?

—Ah, Commander Cheon So-baek!

—Hmm~ this is some pretty dangerous magic. It looks like it’s set to explode if an unauthorized person touches it, just to prevent the contents from leaking.

—Is that for real?!

“Hmm, the tannins are still strong, but it has aged quite well. The finish is getting smoother; in a few more months, it will be a magnificent wine.”

“Yes.”

“By the way, when do you plan on returning the finger you took last time?”

“…?”

She was playing dumb.

Since she seemed to be in a good mood, I tried to poke her about it, but she clearly had no intention of giving it back. Mala-nim probably didn’t realize that among humans, having a different number of fingers than others could be a hindrance to hiding one’s identity.

It was an issue I could solve by ordering a fake finger next time I went to Ground Zero, but one thing bothered me.

“Personally, I don’t want to get deeply involved with the Black Serpent’s Shedded. I’m already a VIP there.”

“V-I?”

“VIP. If my rank keeps going up like this, the Black Serpent might start taking a personal interest in me.”

They might ask what I’m doing outside since I seem so busy, or suggest working together if I have free time. Knowing the biology of criminal organizations better than anyone, I could easily predict the coming storm. I still didn’t know the identity of the leader of the Black Serpent, but if they revealed themselves to me first, I would undoubtedly be caught up in something troublesome.

It didn’t look like that time was far off, as I was already known as a ‘Big Spender’ in the industry. It was only natural, considering I’d commissioned numerous tasks that an ordinary citizen couldn’t handle—like hacking the Bureau’s network or creating secret passages within the headquarters.

“Even Ah-rin doesn’t know about my alias as the ‘Light Mage’ that I’ve been pushing, so why does my rank in a criminal organization go up just from me breathing?”

“Do… not… fear…”

“Ah, you just said three syllables!”

To think the effects of consuming the Star Scar would show so quickly. I felt like today was going to be full of good news.

—It says the blast radius is 100 kilometers? At this rate, the collapse of Seoul is certain.

—Then what do we…

—There are two ways. Either give up everything and move the capital to Busan, or enter the security code shown on the panel.

It’s exceptionally noisy outside. Did an accident happen?

Following Mala-nim’s gaze downward, I saw a crowd of people gathered in front of the parked wine delivery truck. The bomb I had installed was active and on the verge of exploding.

—Let’s see, the hint… says to enter Commander Ha Yeri’s height?

—Commander Ha Yeri’s height is…

—I know it! I saw her update her profile recently!

—You idiot! That was during the mana corruption—that wasn’t her real height! She’s way shorter than that now!

—What did you just say?

—Gasp, Commander Ha Yeri…!

Ha Yeri, who I thought had left after giving her warning earlier, reappeared at the main gate. She pushed the surrounding people aside and quickly entered her height to deactivate the security.

After a brief sigh of relief, the numbers she had just pressed echoed through the truck’s built-in speakers. Ha Yeri, who froze like a statue for a moment, immediately raised her wrist and began frantically manipulating her smartwatch.

A moment later, an urgent notice was posted on the Special Unit Bamboo Forest.

“Demon.”

“Was the prank a bit too much?”

“Sae Hayan.”

“Oh, that’s my name, but it’s not synonymous with ‘demon.’ It seems you still need to study more Korean, Mala-nim.”

It was great that she could now say my full name as her limit increased to three syllables, but it seemed she was still confused by word meanings. I should set up a study session with Alexei later.

I began packing the tea set and wine glasses from the table into my sleeve. Since the crowd below was growing, I judged that I’d have to leave soon if I wanted to survive.

—What is all this commotion about?

—G-good work, Vice Commander Yoo Se-byeol—no, Commander.

—You’ve arrived at the right time, Commander Yoo Se-byeol. Where is Hayan right now?

—Hayan? Today should be his day off…

—He must have made a preemptive move, knowing this would happen.

—But he’s probably nearby? That guy always clocks in before noon even on his annual leave just to mess with the other agents.

—…….

—It’ll be lunchtime in an hour, so how about checking the cafeteria? He might be there.

—Understood.

—More importantly, what on earth is this notice… Commander Ha Yeri?

The probability of escape was gradually narrowing.

However, there was still plenty of time.

A true Apostle must constantly push himself into a corner to prove his own limits.

After packing all my belongings, I finally tucked Mala-nim—now in tentacle form—into my sleeve.

If I utilized the escape route I had prepared in advance to exit through the Bureau’s back gate, I would be able to vanish without a trace.

By the time I reappeared in three days when my vacation ended, Ha Yeri’s anger would have subsided significantly.

But just as I, having finished all my calculations, was about to rise from my seat—

“Found him. Hayan is right here.”

Someone had spotted me first.

Spear of Thunderclouds, Kang Ha-neul.

He was a Middle Level Awakened who had recently been promoted to Vice Commander of Division 3.

Since he hadn’t been seen much within the Bureau lately due to a heavy mission load, I had lowered his priority on my watch list—but was it all for this moment?

I had been caught off guard because I let my guard down.

“What kind of trouble did you cause this time?”

“It’s all stems from a minor misunderstanding.”

“Maybe for anyone else, but I bet there’s never been such a thing as a ‘minor’ misunderstanding when it involves you.”

“Ahem. That aside, what brings you here?”

Kang Ha-neul wasn’t holding a weapon.

His pants pocket was just bulging slightly.

No doubt he had come up to the rooftop to have a smoke while taking a break from work.

For the record, all areas inside the Bureau were strictly non-smoking.

“There’s no way you don’t know that smoking is prohibited here… You shouldn’t be doing this, especially now that you’ve become a Vice Commander.”

“Oh? Are you threatening me right now?”

“Threatening? Not at all. I just thought we might be able to resolve this situation through dialogue.”

I cautiously eyed the door behind him.

If I could just get inside, I could escape using the secret passage I had finished constructing. To do that, I had to win Kang Ha-neul over before the others reached the rooftop.

He pulled an unlit cigarette from his pocket and showed it to me.

“I haven’t lit it yet, have I?”

“I expected you to say that, so I’ve already collected every single cigarette butt on this rooftop beforehand. I’m sure at least one will turn up with your DNA on it if we test them.”

“Why the hell are you even doing that?”

“Because the rooftop gets messy.”

It was merely a simple beautification activity.

Seeing the cigarette butts I had preserved in a Ziploc bag, Kang Ha-neul shook his head and spoke.

“I really don’t know how I’m supposed to understand you.”

“That doesn’t really matter. Are you still going to try and deny it?”

“Whew…”

After hesitating for a moment, he eventually lit the cigarette.

Was the negotiation a failure?

If so, all that remained was a blood-soaked struggle.

There was nothing to fear.

I would simply finish the match we couldn’t settle during the promotion exam right here and now.

He couldn’t call me unfair for having no weapon.

After all, I only had nine fingers.

Just as I was about to draw up my mana and prepare to form hand seals—

Kang Ha-neul stepped aside and spoke.

“Fine, just go.”

“Really?”

“Like you said, I just came here to smoke, so just get lost.”

After reporting to his smartwatch that he had been mistaken, he headed toward the chair I had been sitting in just moments ago.

Seeing him pull a portable ashtray from his pocket, it seemed he didn’t intend to throw the butt away.

I stood on the upwind side so the cigarette smoke wouldn’t reach me.

“What is it now?”

“Is something bothering you?”

“No, I told you to go!”

“You looked like you had something on your mind. If you’re okay with it, I’ll listen.”

“Ah, seriously! Just piss off!”

Now that he had given me permission to leave, I found myself not wanting to go.