“Oppa!”
‘How can I talk to his about it?’
‘The place is within the city.”
For others, they were just coming after hunting as usual, but this meant a lot to me. Kim Hyunsung’s return meant that the changes would make themselves known soon.
“Is it true, what Deokgu said?”
“Okay.”
Those who were each bringing a piece of the puzzle hadn’t yet returned from their expedition, so there was nothing I could do right now.
‘When are you coming back, guys?’
As he spoke, Haitian averted my gaze, his confident façade now torn apart. he really didn’t have a talent for lying now, did she?
Honestly, it was also because I had nothing to do at the moment. I either spent time with Marlin Young-ae and Cho Hyejin or busied myself with managing the guilds and clans that had agreed to sign a contract with me.
Of course, I didn’t forget to manage each key character continuously.
‘Why is he locking the door?’
I knew I should sort this out after seeing this. Though Jungwook was loyal to me now, there was no guarantee that she wouldn’t backstab me when it came to Marlin Young-ae.
“Here, like this…”
In any case, I tried to organize and calculate the status of Castle Rock’s troops while considering the appearance of raid monsters, and it was a simple everyday routine where I was constantly checking goods and supplies.
It seemed that I was the biggest obstacle in her plans to become a noble. Of course, even if I were not in the way, there was no guarantee that Marlin Young-ae would choose him, but…
‘It’s not something I should care about.’
Unlike Marlin Young-ae, Song Jungwook’s value was slowly decreasing over time. Once I had taken everything I needed, I would drop him immediately.
‘Good. Good
Spending my time with Jungwook was proving to be wasteful at this point.
“I’m not trying to blame you. Stop crying.”
“It’s here!”
Besides that, in my spare time, I exchanged letters with the Strategic Planning Teams of Blue and discussed Castle Rock’s defense system and siege battles, and I didn’t stop talking with Cho Hyejin about this topic. It was also an opportunity for me to learn battle tactics from her.
“Lee Kiyoung-nim! Kim Hyunsung-nim just came back.”
Although I wanted to make fun of his a little more, I had to get this over with. At this, I began to stroke his hair.
“Yes. It’s actually no big deal. By any chance…”
“Then I’ll be heading out for a while.”
“Okay.”
Using catalysts to track locations was also a magical idea that hadn’t yet appeared on the continent. Jung Hayan’s tactics had slowly become more sophisticated over time. It would indeed be difficult to notice the karate on me unless another Archmage was in the vicinity.
‘She is really….
“Yes. Y-You’re right.”
“Hayan.”
Monster Wave (2)
Of course, the information that Kim Hyunsung would bring would also be expected. The puzzle I had been solving this entire time would soon be finished. The whole reason why I couldn’t complete it by myself was that I couldn’t fit the last piece in.
“I’ve been doing well!”
I could see that he was definitely relieved, bouncing back immediately. I didn’t know if it was due to his intelligence, but he seemed to have realized that he could be of help to me now.
“Well, I don’t know if it should be called anything special or not, but I guess what our Hyung-ssi salad last time is true.”
“What she said?”
“You know, about a monster wave or something.”
“Yes. It has been difficult to make accurate judgments, but I could get some strands with this expedition. First of all, it would be nice to meet with Count Castle Rock. As soon as I get back, I’m sorry, but I’ll have to head to the office first. Perhaps…”
“Ah, so it is true…”
“Yes, Kiyoung-ssi. It would be nice to tell the details later.”
Although we went through an unknown location where one’s karate might stop working, I think that the location tracker would not have stopped its function. This was the whole reason why I waited for Jung Hayan.
“Did something special happen during the expedition?”
“N-No. It is only natural for me to do so.”
“Ah, Hayan. How have you been?”
A whole meeting would ensue later on. For now, it would be nice to have a casual conversation with Jung Hayan.
“Come with me for a minute, Hayan.”
his face had reddened as if he had been expecting something.
“I’m sorry to do this as soon as you came, but I have to ask for Hee-young-ssi and Jeong-yeon-ssi to check the supplies and place an order for items to be requested separately from Lindel. Hyejin must know.”
“Yes, Kiyoung-ssi.”
As soon as they left, Jung Haitian went to follow me. I didn’t know what he was thinking, but he seemed to be in a good mood. As he went to hold my hand, I smiled.
There’s the thing with Hyejin, too.’
“I’m sorry?”
“Ah… Okay!”
Of course, I couldn’t guarantee that he wouldn’t lie again.
“I have a question.”
At this, Haitian came in, shutting the door with a click.
“Ah…”
I didn’t know what he was thinking, yet I still went to sit down, gesturing for his to sit beside me.
“Your method is a little wrong, but I know that Haitian did it thinking of me, so I can understand.”
“Come in.”
“Ah. A-A question?”
“One. Two.”
A location-tracker was the most reliable insurance for me, who was continuously exposed to external threats at any time due to my poor specifications. Though there were some problems regarding personal privacy, it more than made up for my safety.
“Are you hiding anything from me?”
“Ah. Alright.”
“W-Well. I don’t…”
“I’m asking because it’s about something absolutely necessary. Hayan, do you know where I went the day you left for the expedition?”
As of now, Jung Haitian was not aware that I knew about his secret. It would not be good if he tried to hide it, so I had to approach his as positively as possible. When I opened the door to my room, she started to smile like a kid receiving his Christmas present.
“The day the party members left for the expedition, you know where I went. Am I right?”
“Yes… Oppa, …”
“I’m not trying to blame you, Hayan. You know that.”
It felt disturbing to see his lying to me so confidently. Now would be the right time to talk to his a little more directly.
The big event about to unleash onto the city would be a golden opportunity for a person like me to move easily. Waiting for it proved to be a hard feat, given by impatience.
As expected, you brought in the information I needed.’
“I-I’m not sure. R-Really…”
‘You’re so obvious…’
“Hic.”
With this, I was able to realize that everyone had experienced a very tough schedule.
“Ah… yes?”
Actually, I was worried about the possibility of the guards discovering a location tracker’s presence on me. However, I knew there was a good chance that it would stay hidden. After all, the karate used was of a type that even Hwang Jeong-yeon, someone considered as a high-ranking wizard, could not notice properly.
The representative one was Song Jungwook of Little Rock. The man in question still seemed to love pestering Marlin, but her anxiety about things not going as planned was evident.
“Can you point it out with your finger?”
“You did it because you were worried that I would be attacked.”
“This was a karate power freeze area. Still, that can’t block the karate I put on Oppa. It’s stronger compared to before.”
“Good. Then, shall we look at the map together?”
he even started to hiccup.
“Hic.”
I thought he would be a little scared, but his reaction was a little harsher than I thought.
“I know everything. You can speak comfortably. I’m not trying to condemn you. I’m asking because it’s really necessary.”
“You knew where I went, right?”
“I’ve known about your location-tracking karate for a long time now, Hayan.”
“Yes. I will join you in a little while.”
“Yes…”
As soon as I gave a small threat, he had immediately admitted to it. Though it hurt to see his crying, I’d be lying if I salad I didn’t find his reaction fun.
“Yes. Thank you so much for coming to tell me, Marlin Young-ae.”
“I’m not angry, so don’t worry. I didn’t like it a little at first, but I know that Haitian did all of this while thinking of me. Am I right?”
“Of course, Oppa…”
“You put that spell in case it would become scandalous for me, right?”
“Ah, yes, I also did it because of that…”
“T-That…”
With these in mind, I headed out to meet the rest of my party members. Jung Haitian automatically ran towards me, and Park Deokgu greeted me with a wave of her hand. Kim Ye-ri, Sun Hee-young, and Hwang Jeong-yeon definitely looked tired.
“W-Why did you call me?”
“Ah…”
‘It’s actually helpful and…’
“I hate people who lie the most.”
Though she had sworn her allegiance, it would not be strange for him to betray me when the right time came, given her characteristic.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. How would ….”
“Alright.”
It was around this time that Kim Hyunsung returned to Castle Rock with our party members.
It felt like we would get nowhere if this continued, so I decided to exert a little more pressure.
“Yes.”
“Hic.”
I even thought about whether I had done this correctly upon seeing his so happy, but I also pinpointed that he was wrong, so the result wasn’t bad overall.
“Yes, Oppa.”
“Everything else is fine, but I really hate people who lie.”
“I-I don’t know the exact location. I don’t know the geography of Castle Rock.”
“It’s okay.”
“However, it is definitely about 500 meters to the left from this side…”
Even though he didn’t know the exact location, the fact that she had managed to track down all the roads I had taken was creepy. Looking at his so focused on finding the way with a smile even before his tears had completely dried, I couldn’t help thinking that this was so like her.
Am I right, Hayan?’
Of course, seeing his shivering didn’t sit well with me at all. Tears had even begun to pour out of his eyes, much like a child who had gotten caught lying by her mother.
“Ah… Yes…”
“This must be a closed space, but it’s strange. You definitely went this way… And… After stopping here for a while, it seemed like you went underground.”
“Don’t worry about the road that was blocked. Just keep pointing.”
“Huh? Of course not, Oppa. What’re you talking about?”
“It’s okay, just don’t lie. Of course, this doesn’t mean that Hayan’s actions were good… You know it wasn’t good, right?”
“A-Ah, of course!”
“Like this…”
“Yes.”
‘Even if it were me, I would want to do that…
As soon as he finally pinpointed the exact location where we had gone, I couldn’t help but smile.
“Yes?”