Chapter 45

Yoo Se-byeol would die?

Why?

I looked around, then immediately opened Channel and asked Baek-seon.

There were many branches of magic within the broad category of Black Magic, but the ones she was known to use were necromancy and Spirit-Calling.

Spirit-Calling summoned the hun—the mind/soul of the dead.

Nercromancy summoned the baek—the bodily soul, the flesh-bound essence.

Anyone who mastered both could see the paths the hun and baek would take, so Baek-seon’s offhand statement was not something I could brush aside.

『Could you explain in more detail?』

『Exactly what I said. That child won’t leave the Tower of Proof alive.』

『Why?』

『Because her name is written in Naberius’s ledger.』

Naberius, Archduke of Commanders, rank 24.

Among black mages, “having your name in his ledger” basically meant, translated bluntly, “that one’s doomed to die soon.”

More precisely, because he was Archduke of Necromancy rather than Spirit-Calling, it meant a lethal injury would strike the body, not the mind.

Fittingly enough, he was also the original master of the Gate where Yoo Se-byeol and I first met.

『The thing she carries inside is an Archduke’s vessel? It’s rare to see a single hun dwell in two baek at once.』

『……』

『If the vessel’s true owner had been nearby, the night might have fallen the moment the outer shell—her body—vanished. Fortunately, this time it looks like only that child will die. That’s good.』

So she even knew that Se-byeol was hosting an Incarnation.

At least she didn’t seem about to act on it.

I hadn’t mastered either Necromancy or Spirit-Calling, but I knew enough.

Prophecies of death were inexorable, but not absolute.

In other words, if your name was written in the ledger, you would just erase the ink on the paper.

To find the cause, I asked how Yoo Se-byeol would die.

『What’s the exact cause of death?』

『I don’t have much care to know. Looking that far gets troublesome.』

『If you tell me, I’ll grant the favor you asked earlier.』

『Truly?』

Baek-seon hesitated at my offer.

If she had joined the Tower of Proof, she was surely aiming for the win.

I didn’t know how extraordinary the Gate offered as the champion’s prize was, but she clearly needed it.

After a long moment of consideration, she finally spoke.

『Fine. I understand what you’re after. But even for me, peeking closely into an Archduke’s ledger is dangerous. All I’ll give you is the cause of death.』

『That’s enough.』

Baek-seon set the skull she’d been holding on the table.

She slid a finger into its hollow left eye socket, then brought her other hand up to her own eye.

A moment later, a sickening pop sounded as her eyeball ruptured.

She rummaged inside her socket for a while, then withdrew her finger slick with blood and bits of flesh.

I handed her the tissues sitting nearby.

“……”

“Mm, found it.”

The finger that had gone into the skull’s eye had charred black.

Wiping the blood at the corner of her eye, she said, “Poisoning.”

“Hayan, are you okay!?”

“Yes. We just talked, normally.”

After Baek-seon left.

Having watched for a chance, Yoo Se-byeol rushed over and looked me over with worried eyes.

“What did Baek-seon-nim do just now? Did she drain your life or something? Your lips are a little cracked…”

“She just said her eye was itchy and scratched it. As for my lips, I haven’t been sleeping well because I feel like someone keeps staring at me lately.”

“It’s that thing you mentioned before, right? Let’s check the CCTV when we get back to the Unit. Anyway, I’m glad you’re safe. I really can’t leave you alone for a moment.”

Good thing I brought band-aids up here—

I let her mutter that to herself and focused on the tray of food in front of me.

If Se-byeol were to be poisoned inside the tower, it would likely be by coating a trap like the one we saw on the first floor with toxin… or by mixing it into food like now.

And the most likely suspect, no matter what anyone said, was Seol Si-heon, who had reeked of suspicion from the start.

The problem was that no matter how thorough his prep, he was still just a participant.

He wasn’t even a mage—if he brazenly laced the food with poison, there was no way it wouldn’t be noticed.

I hadn’t taken my eyes off Yoo Se-byeol even while talking with Baek-seon, and to me, nothing seemed out of place.

Could the Magic Tower have collaborators too?

First, I decided to check if the food was actually poisoned.

I stood up and leaned toward Yoo Se-byeol, who sat across from me.

“Hayan? Wh-why are you suddenly—”

“You have something in your hair.”

“…!?”

“Hold still, I’ll take it off for you.”

Taking advantage of her surprise, I slipped three ordinary tentacles out from under my robe.

I had them each taste the curry, the miso soup, and the fried chicken.

The result was immediate.

The one that swallowed the fried chicken writhed in pain before vomiting blood and dying.

So they hadn’t risked mixing poison into the curry or soup, since it might have spread to other diners.

That wasn’t bad news.

When Seol Si-heon’s group joined us, I acted casual and sat them nearby.

Then I tested their reactions to see if they were responsible.

“Deputy Commander, if you’re not going to eat that, may I?”

“What!?”

“Don’t you dare touch the lady’s food!”

“I-it’s fine! Go ahead, Hayan, eat as much as you want.”

“Thank you. In exchange, please take my curry and soup.”

I cleaned my own plate in seconds, then stabbed my chopsticks deep into Yoo Se-byeol’s fried chicken.

All six of them protested, but two in particular reacted sharply.

Seol Si-heon and the swordsman who had paired with him on the first floor.

As I put the fried chicken into my mouth in front of them, their tension was practically palpable.

But even after I finished all of Se-byeol’s food, nothing happened.

The reason was awkward to admit—I had summoned the Tentacle of Digestion inside my esophagus.

‘Thanks, Digestion.’

‘Kiiiiiiek!!!’

It could dissolve anything, from rusted iron to solid diamond, so I didn’t die like the test tentacle had.

Still, whether it was Baek-seon carrying around a skull or me stuffing a tentacle down my own throat, we were equally revolting, and it screamed about it the whole time.

When I teased, ‘I’ve been inside you before, so isn’t the reverse possible too?’ it shrieked and vanished in horror.

For a tentacle, it had a surprisingly delicate personality.

“I-I’ll step out for a smoke.”

“I’ll call a friend real quick.”

“I’ll take the trays back.”

“Mm, thank you.”

With that, the meal ended without incident. Seol Si-heon left in visible unease.

Moments later, Yoo Se-byeol checked her smartwatch and rose as well.

If her name had been erased from the ledger, then there was nothing left to worry about.

I carried the trays to the return slot, then looked around for Baek-seon.

The hall was crowded, but she stood out immediately, her colors inverted compared to everyone else.

She sat on the stairs, silent, stroking her skull.

I started toward her, but just then the announcer’s voice boomed across the lounge, declaring the details of the second mission.

Basement level one of the Tower of Proof.

When reports came in that most participants had finished eating, a bell rang in the control room.

Lee Sohyun, assigned to monitor the cameras for the Blue Tower, stretched her stiff body and pulled a sandwich from her backpack.

Just as she was about to bite into the bread stuffed with ham, tomato, lettuce, and cheese, her phone rang.

“Oh, Se-byeol. I was watching. How’s it going? Making any progress with him?”

— Mm, thanks to you, I don’t think I have to worry about losing Hayan anymore.

“Of course~ You’ve already cashed in a piggyback coupon, brushed dust from his hair, and even shared your meal. At this rate, won’t I be getting a wedding invitation in a few months?”

— Wh-what kind of nonsense is that!? I’m his superior officer! I only brought him along because it would be a problem if he ended up in another division!

A flustered shout came through the line.

Maybe it was because she’d held a sword more often than a hand since childhood.

Yoo Se-byeol hadn’t realized her own feelings yet, but she didn’t seem immature at all.

She was earnest, kind to the point of naivety, and stubborn—but when she showed a shy, softer side like now, treating someone special, what man wouldn’t fall for her?

Especially since she was beautiful as well.

Right now they were only colleagues, but it might not take long for that line to blur.

The only problem was—

Her reactions whenever she saw Hayan with another woman.

Even Lee Sohyun, who had known her for years, couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

“By the way, Se-byeol, you’re going to return that band you slipped into your pocket earlier, right?”

— Wh-what band?

“I saw you sneak it while the overseer wasn’t looking. Honestly, you might want to erase the Bureau’s CCTV footage too…”

— No. I have to catch that stalker. Hayan looked unsettled, so if no one else will help, I will.

That stalker is you, you know—

But she swallowed the words. Instead, she decided to reach out to Commander Ha Yeri, partly as a check-in, partly as a warning.

Love had no single right answer, but surely there were wrong ones.

Stirring a spoonful of worry into her coffee along with a sugar cube, Lee Sohyun checked her watch.

The participants would soon be moving to the next floor.

“Anyway, I have to get back to work, so do your best in the second mission.”

— Thanks. Talk later.

When the call ended, Lee Sohyun stood to head to the restroom.

The restricted basement was filled only with busy mages moving about, no outsiders allowed during the Tower of Proof.

As she rounded a corner, she bumped into someone.

A face she should never have seen here.

“Hans-nim? Weren’t you stationed in the European branch?”

“I came through the portal. Communication’s terrible thanks to the Seed of Calamity rooted in Eastern Europe.”

His haggard features, ghostly pale skin, curly hair parted like seaweed strands, and his scorched blue robe gave him a haunted air.

It was Hans Schneider—one of the announcers for the broadcast.

“Broadcast will resume soon. Should I guide you to the booth?”

“If it’s not too much trouble, later. That must be the monitoring room.”

He was skilled enough to co-design the Tower of Proof here in Korea alongside Perez of the Yellow Tower, though his appointment had been contentious.

Because the magic he studied—“Witherman,” the art of decay and rot—was completely at odds with the Blue Tower’s pursuit of truth and insight.

Hans the Witherer.

Overseas, people called him the “Witherman.” His specialty was a kind of alchemy often practiced by the Yellow Tower: poisoncraft.

If he wanted, he could brew a toxin deadly even to a high-class monster using nothing more than ingredients from a toilet bowl.

Some in the Blue Tower had questioned whether such a man should be trusted with operating the Tower at all. But since his disciple Esma had successfully observed the reward Gate, Hans had been allowed to participate.

“Are those cameras showing real-time footage inside?”

“Yes, to broadcast the participants’ actions to the viewers.”

“And the simulacrum generators for the second mission?”

“We’ve set up 120 devices from the Red Tower all across the second floor.”

For someone responsible for guarding all of Europe against the demons, it seemed strange he would come all the way to Korea just to reduce broadcast delay.

“I see.”

Hans spoke flatly, drained of emotion, and stepped into the equipment room.

Despite her suspicions, Lee Sohyun had no choice but to follow.

“Um… may I ask why you’re looking into the site details?”

“To prepare for commentary. And also…”

Also?

Studying the cameras that had been damaged by someone’s attack, he raised his head.

“Of course, to ensure the participants’ safety. We can’t allow accidents during the mission.”