#153: Chapter 153 — Favored by The Outer God

After being successfully bid on at the auction, I returned to my daily life and was currently living as the Master’s faithful rug.

I didn’t mind the grueling task of riding in a wheelchair instead of Seona every morning to go to work, and I even volunteered to wash the feet of her—who had limited mobility.

Surprisingly, it was a honey of a job, as I barely had to perform any missions while assisting her.

“How long has it been since the festival ended, and why is he still acting like that? Wasn’t that Talent Market just an event?”

“Hmm, Seoul’s judicial system isn’t so sloppy that human rights can be bought and sold. But it seems he’s being sincere about it.”

“Sincere or not, why is he crawling on the floor like a snake?”

“He’s cleaning every place the Commander-in-Chief walks. I think she’s coming this way soon.”

The barbaric people carrying spears and axes whispered behind my back as if they couldn’t understand my behavior, but it was the same from my end.

To be precise, it would be more accurate to say I had no intention of understanding them.

Those poor, free citizens would never be able to empathize with the pain I had struggled through to survive until now.

It was a sense of comfort as if I had deposited my brain somewhere else.

I put aside all complicated matters and only did what I was told from above; the world couldn’t have been any happier.

No, doing things even without being asked was the true role of a slave.

“The next schedule is a meeting with Deputy Commander Park Mu-cheol, my lady. For refreshments, I have prepared takoyaki baked in a waffle pan and a Tentacle Latte, which is hot at the recent Seongsu-dong pop-up store.”

“My lady? Th-that aside, you don’t have to clean the floor, so could you please stop…? All the agents passing by are staring.”

“Please, don’t worry. They are merely citizens who envy my existence as I devote myself to you, my lady.”

Perhaps because my stress had decreased, I was becoming emotionally stable as well.

In the past, I used to flood the Special Unit Bamboo Forest with posts every dawn, or I would throw Mala-nim, who was sleeping without a care in the world, around like a bouncy ball and knock over the Kandu mirror balls.

Recently, I had equipped myself with the composure not to get angry even at No Yeon-hwa’s question about whether I had eaten the wrong herbal medicine as a child.

If there was one concern, it was that my master—the Commander-in-Chief of the Special Unit and one of the Seven Immortals of Korea, a group consisting only of the dead or those with broken personalities—was not too thrilled with this change in me.

“Hey… Hayan. I’ll push the wheelchair, so you don’t have to stay behind me.”

“If that is your wish, my master.”

“Can’t you stop using that strange title? And shouldn’t you be returning to Division 3 soon? Everyone must be waiting…”

“Denied, my master.”

As time went by, her expression grew increasingly troubled.

Why on earth was this?

Was it because my loyalty to my master was a burden?

However, all I had done for Seona was wash her feet daily since she had difficulty moving, and wipe the floor with my body whenever we moved.

“You’ve arrived… I see you’re still tagging along. It’s good to have an aide, but the personnel selection doesn’t seem very good. Even inside the Bureau, the eyes and ears of reporters are always open.”

“Don’t say that, Mu-cheol. I’m serious right now.”

And I would just crawl under the table during meetings like this to serve as her footrest.

Seona bowed her head at Park Mu-cheol’s remark.

The sensation of her fidgeting feet, whether because she had placed both hands on her knees, felt even more vivid.

“I only helped because you were troubled between Se-byeol and So-baek, so how did it end up like this?”

“If you are talking about Hayan, he wasn’t really in his right mind to begin with.”

“Put other matters aside and think of a way to detach him quickly.”

“I think he would naturally fall away once he gets bored, as usual… but actually, there is a good plan.”

Afterward, the two of them whispered something among themselves.

I was under the table, so I couldn’t hear the sound clearly, but once the meeting room door opened a moment later, I knew who had been called.

There were few people in the Special Unit—an environment where the majority wore only black dress uniforms—who boasted such free-spirited fashion.

Especially the slender ankles, the knee-high socks wrapping below the knees, and the custom shoes with cats drawn on them.

And the way she tapped the ground with one foot as if she were full of dissatisfaction in most situations was an action I had seen many times.

“Why did you call me? I’m busy.”

“You’ve come well, Yeon-hwa. There is a mission in Busan; do you want to go down there for a moment?”

“A mission again? I’m busy enough as it is…”

At No Yeon-hwa’s appearance, I shrank my body even more under the table.

As if I had become one with the carpet.

Thanks to the tablecloth that I had spread out to set up refreshments hanging down long, it seemed she hadn’t noticed I was here.

Seona delivered the classified mission that No Yeon-hwa needed to carry out in Busan.

“The General Assembly of Magic Towers is being held in Busan this time, and the Bureau needs to send someone as well.”

“Why are they doing that in Busan?”

“Recently, interactions with the Magic Towers have been more active there than in Seoul.”

Busan, affected by the treaty, was a kind of safe zone and the only city that hadn’t been breached by demons during the Great Invasion.

As other Magic Towers, led by the Red Tower, had slowly settled in, people and supplies were starting to gather in earnest.

“You can just send a mage. There are plenty even if it’s not the Division 4 Commander.”

“It’s not to voice an opinion; the purpose is purely to attend.”

“If the next Tower Master like So-baek attends, criticisms could arise that the Bureau’s influence is getting involved in the Magic Tower’s decisions.”

As all the Magic Towers were gathering to determine their direction, it was clearly going to be a very important position.

However, No Yeon-hwa didn’t seem too pleased about being sent there.

“Outside of business hours, you may continue to research the treaty as you have done so far. It’s not a bad environment for you.”

“Bad or not, it doesn’t matter who you send. I told you, I’m busy?”

Unlike the Korea Meteorological Administration, which decides today’s weather with a game of tuho,¹ the forecast of a certain Special Unit member who measures No Yeon-hwa’s mood under the ID ‘Yeonhwa-cheong’ on the bulletin board boasted significant reliability.

As a result of long-accumulated data analysis, her discomfort index today was 2,700, the highest figure this year.

I immediately flooded the Special Unit Bamboo Forest with posts via my smartwatch.

Whenever an alert was issued, all Special Unit members had to immediately wear the earplugs they kept ready and proceed with their daily routines.

There were roughly three main causes pointed out for this current situation: she couldn’t enjoy the festival together with a certain agent due to standing guard, and she had her dinner plans rejected every weekend.

And, that said agent hadn’t replied for over 15 minutes to a message she had sent suddenly at 3:00 AM yesterday, which contained an annoyed-looking emoticon (｀へ´).

To quell her anger, I had to immediately detain that agent and offer them up as a living sacrifice.

If I used any excuse to lock the two of them in a room for at least eight hours, the terrible waves would soon subside.

However, this time, I couldn’t do that.

The person who provided the cause had already chosen the path of becoming a slave, having abandoned their human rights on their own.

“I’ve worked like a dog for a year since coming in here. When are you going to give me the information about my sister?”

“Yeon-hwa, that is…”

“It is difficult to obtain access to confidential documents unless you reach the executive level.”

“Then you can just promote me to the executive level. It’s been ages since I reached the same level as Kang Cho-won, so why are you rejecting my request every time I apply for a promotion evaluation?”

“That is…”

Did No Yeon-hwa have an older sister?

I feel like I saw a photo when I visited her house a long time ago, but I couldn’t remember it well.

“Yeon-hwa, calm down. It’s not that we want to hide it from you.”

“Deciding to assign you to this mission was for the same reason.”

“So, what is the reason? If you’re going to talk about useless things, I’ll just…”

“The reason the Magic Towers are holding a sudden gathering is because of the news that the Master of the Black Magic Tower has appeared.”

No Yeon-hwa, who had been throwing a tantrum at Seona’s words, paused.

“So, is that guy related to my sister’s death?”

“I cannot tell you even that much. I cannot authorize the viewing of information for you, who have barely been in the Special Unit for a year.”

“The Master of the Black Magic Tower? Not that guy called Patel or whatever?”

“His identity is also classified.”

I remembered.

It was definitely Ikseon.

The guild leader of the Wings of the Blue Sky, and one of the Seven Immortals who met an unknown death years ago, was the very person No Yeon-hwa called her sibling.

After hearing the explanation, No Yeon-hwa realized that the reason Seona was trying to send her to Busan was because she had to find the answer herself.

Perhaps that was why she softened her anger and started preparing to leave immediately.

“You already said everything. Where’s the ticket to Busan?”

“It’s here. I booked two round-trip tickets, so take this one along as well.”

“Hayan, you heard that too, right? I’ve received enough help, so now let’s go on a mission together with Yeon-hwa, okay?”

“Denied, my mas…”

“Hey, stop peeking from under the desk like a pervert and follow me!”

The Master of the Black Magic Tower.

Unexpectedly, I had already known for a long time that the veiled figure was still alive.

It was because a black mage named Jeres, who led the Hand of Oblivion, had tipped me off when the Light Mage, Sae Hayan, was making his flashy debut.

I had clearly run away with the handkerchief of the Duke of Bewitchment back then, but I wonder if they’ve become a star by now?

According to him, a senior who, like Patel, was a guide leading me, the Master of the Black Magic Tower was someone who had surpassed the realm of the Transcendent.

A while ago in Thunder Rain Valley, the Thunder Immortal had also mentioned something similar.

That if a human reached the same level as an Outer God, they could obtain the power to change the world.

However, just because one had become stronger didn’t mean they could immediately exert influence; that wasn’t the case.

Because there were already four Outer Gods occupying the Earth.

The star-embroidered sky was narrow, but there were many who wished to pierce through that hole and shine, so it was inevitable that disputes would arise.

Perhaps the reason he had appeared now was related to this.

With the Outer God of Salvation having fallen due to the Archduke of Flames, it was practically the same as a huge vacancy having been created.

Setting aside how the Master, who had died over a hundred years ago, had killed Ikseon, he should not be left to rise to the rank of an Outer God like this.

The problem was that I didn’t know how the situation was unfolding yet.

I would find out once I attended the gathering.

Just as I thought that and was about to sit in the chair, No Yeon-hwa spoke to me.

It was Word-Spirit.

“Hey, stop.”

“Pardon?”

“Why are you trying to sit there?”

Well, because that’s my seat…

I checked my ticket again, wondering if I had found the wrong seat, but it was definitely seat 7B.

“You, they said you were sold while I wasn’t looking, at the auction.”

“That’s right.”

“So that’s why you followed me. Because you have to listen to the orders of your master, Seona.”