Chapter 60. But You Don't Have a Home
A suddenly decided trip to the Hamelin Great Forest.
Originally, we were going to go during break, but it had become impossible to delay any longer.
Thanks to that, I had to stay up all night and get ready, but fortunately, Senior had already prepared most of what we'd need.
A few hours later.
Back at the hideout we'd gathered at again.
Senior showed up a little late, lugging a bunch of things wrapped up and bundled, then sat down in front of me.
As if even breathing time was a waste, he went straight into the main point.
"This is a Warp Gate ticket. If you show this, you'll be able to use the gate immediately without delay."
A ticket lavishly decorated with golden tassels.
Seeing the ticket Senior held out, I let out a faint exclamation.
'First time I've ever seen a Semi-Royal Ticket.'
Something issued only to people recognized by the imperial family—something even the Heads of House of prestigious families can't possess.
And that wasn't all.
"This is a robe."
"I can see that, but…."
"It's not just a robe. It's an Artifact with protective magic embedded in it. And this is…."
What on earth did he pack and bring like this.
A small Subspace was stuffed full—clothes for the journey, common medicines, assorted odds and ends that could be useful in the great forest.
On top of that, emergency rations that looked like they could last several days.
There was no way he'd gathered all of this in just a few hours.
It looked like he'd prepared some things in advance, and I stared at Senior blankly at that.
"…You're the same person who said I didn't have to go, right?"
For someone like that, the preparations were far too thorough.
Senior answered without an awkward expression, without changing his face at all.
"Just in case. If you wait until something hits you to prepare, it's always too late."
Well, it's not wrong.
But even so, Senior's preparations were thorough beyond normal thorough.
"Sign here."
"…This is?"
Something thrust onto the table.
"It's a class approval certificate in my name. I filled out the form. So your person-to-person combat and final exam scores will be recognized, too."
"…Ah. Yes."
He'd brought documents to replace the academy's insufficient attendance days, and even exam scores….
And in case of petty disputes, he even made and handed over an identity certificate bearing the academy Headmaster's name.
By the time I'd received the bulk of the items, it was already three in the morning.
Grrrk, grrk.
Breakfast No. 1, who had woken up at some point, swooped onto my head and settled there.
"Senior."
"What is it."
"About the emergency rations…."
"…No."
I hadn't even said what I was going to use as emergency rations, but he cut me off instantly.
Maybe it wasn't only the owner who was quick on the uptake—Breakfast No. 1 fluffed its feathers and let out an angry cry.
'Tsk.'
What a shame.
Of course, I didn't actually plan to use it as emergency rations.
I just wanted to teach this ill-mannered bird the dignity of humanity.
Anyway, as I smacked my lips over that trivial disappointment….
That was when Senior took something out and showed it to me.
"Take this."
"…This is?"
I looked at the item in Senior's hand.
How should I put it.
A mask that reeked of heavy use.
Scorched here and there, scratched up, with patches of dark, dried stains peeking through.
Even at a glance, it had been drenched in blood more than once—yet despite that, it was still well maintained.
As I stared at the mask, Senior spoke.
"It's the token of Sakwol (朔月)."
"Sakwol, if you mean…."
"If you don't know, fine. Either way, take it. Looking at you, you'll probably try to hide your identity—throw on some perception-hindering magic or slap on a mask. If you do that, my friend will kill you without anyone ever knowing."
"…Mm."
Right on the mark.
At this point, you'd think there'd be no need to hide anything, but Senior's colleague would be joining the academy once the matter was resolved.
If possible, it was better to hide my identity as much as I could.
It wasn't absolutely necessary, but I wanted to avoid annoying things whenever possible.
"So if I wear this, he'll leave me alone?"
"Yeah. And don't wear it in the city. Wear it after you enter the great forest. It probably won't happen, but… if you're unlucky, you never know what the wraiths might do."
"…Ah, yes."
Just looking at it, you can roughly guess.
This mask itself was probably a mark tied to the old war.
An item with complicated ties of grudges and debts, you could say.
Normally, I wouldn't take something like this, but I quietly accepted the mask Senior held out.
Because watching Senior made it painfully clear just what kind of monstrous existence an old war mage is—and how twisted the inside of such a person can be.
By the time I'd tucked away even the token of Sakwol in my chest….
"Alright, looks like you're mostly ready. What will you do about departure? If you want, I can give you until tomorrow."
Senior asked.
A cigarette already between his lips.
Whitish smoke rolled and swayed, and through it, deep-set eyes reflected me.
I watched him for a moment, then answered like there was nothing to think about.
"We have to go right away."
"What about Brando? I took care of the academy, but if they find out you vanished, Brando will raise hell. You might not know this, but…."
"They did seem to care about me quite a bit."
At my words, Senior nodded quietly.
"It's the first time I've seen Brando show this kind of goodwill to an outsider with no price attached. If it goes wrong, it could even lead to a political dispute with the academy. Do you have any good idea?"
"Hmm…."
Arms crossed, I sank into thought.
Like Senior said, it's true Brando values me more than expected.
But I was a bit skeptical about the idea that it could escalate into a political dispute.
What kind of group is the academy?
What kind of group is Brando?
And they'd cause a political dispute just because some Black and White Zone vagrant went missing?
'Unlikely.'
But.
'That doesn't mean I can just vanish without a word, either.'
More than anything, if that happened, the one truly put in a difficult position wouldn't be me—it would be Senior.
Of course, it seemed he was fully prepared to bear that….
"Well, whatever. I'll handle this part."
Senior didn't dwell on it.
Or rather, he didn't have room to dwell on it, and he probably thought, "Whatever happens, happens."
Even if the worst came, he'd already steeled himself to endure it somehow.
"Senior, then I'm going."
Senior just looked at me without speaking.
Between Senior and me, no flowery farewell words were exchanged.
No "See you again," no "Come back safe."
Because we both knew.
Even though we were taking steps away, they could be footprints that would be erased without meaning.
Still, even without words, we understood.
The worry, anxiety, and guilt in Senior's eyes—emotions he couldn't hide—held more than a hundred spoken lines ever could.
Morning, with the sun fully risen.
The academy students greeted the day like always.
No—things weren't exactly the same as usual.
Person-to-person combat was coming soon.
To prepare, students woke early and headed to the training grounds, and some paired up to practice combat.
Some were even already preparing for final exams.
So while there were students preparing for the near future, there were also those greeting the morning as usual.
Demian and Chenbi, for example.
"Haaam."
Demian sat on the dorm lobby sofa and let out a huge yawn, while beside him Chenbi was checking a textbook.
It wasn't exactly preparation for final exams.
He'd simply gotten interested in studying lately.
How should I put it.
Before, he studied magic while being chased by obligation, but now it was purely enjoyable.
Thanks to Brando's sponsorship, the worries that had sat in one corner of his heart had disappeared.
But.
"…Mm."
After being absorbed in the textbook for a while, Chenbi lifted his head.
"Demian, what time is it?"
"Right now... 8:17:13. 14. 15…."
"No, you don't need to tell me down to the seconds…."
"…24. 25. 27…."
Maybe he'd started finding it fun, or maybe habit had kicked in—Demian updated the seconds every time the second hand moved.
Chenbi watched him for a moment, then turned his gaze away like he was used to it.
He'd gotten far too used to it to react every single time.
Anyway.
"Mm. That's strange."
Chenbi tilted his head at a sudden sense of déjà vu.
"…41. Why?"
Only then did Demian stop what he was doing and show interest.
Looking at Demian, Chenbi said,
"Aster, you know. Why hasn't he come down yet? If it were normal, he would've come down already by now."
Aster.
A vagrant from the Black and White Zone, and the first friend Chenbi made after coming to the academy.
He didn't show much enthusiasm for academy life overall, but if you looked at his daily routine, it was so regular you'd tell model students to step aside.
Especially….
'When it comes to eating.'
Except for a few days after the Hall of Trials, he ate breakfast, lunch, and dinner without fail.
Every day at the same time, in exactly the fixed amount.
Something about needing to eat well during this period.
Whenever he did that, he looked like some elderly man with years on him.
So every day, exactly at eight, he'd come down and head to the student cafeteria to start his routine….
"Demian, do you think Aster's sick or something?"
With a sudden worry, Chenbi looked at Demian.
Even if learning mana makes your body healthier than a normal person's, it doesn't mean you can avoid every illness.
No—if anything, when mages get sick once, they often suffer worse than ordinary people.
So he asked with concern.
"…3. 4. 5."
Demian had already returned to his original interest.
Chenbi stared at him for a moment, then looked back at the clock.
'I'll wait thirty minutes, at least.'
Class was at nine anyway.
Even if Aster simply overslept, going up to wake him around then wouldn't be too late.
Skipping breakfast was a bit disappointing, but one day didn't really matter.
So he waited.
Tick-tock.
Before he knew it, 8:30 p.m.
"Mm."
Chenbi let out a low sound.
Demian was fully awake now, fiddling with a shape using transformation.
Blood-Sweat-Tears No. 2, was it?
Now it had completely taken on a dragon's form.
And his transformation was so skilled it even moved like it was alive.
He was briefly impressed without realizing it, but then—
"Demian."
"Hm?"
"Aster's really not coming down. Want to go up together?"
No matter what, it was worrying.
Aster had never once broken his mealtime like this.
And as if Demian noticed the oddness too, he nodded—but that was when.
"…So you were here."
A shadow approached them.
"You're…."
"Neck Pola!"
"…Pola."
It was Pola.
But why was Pola here?
Chenbi tilted his head at Pola's sudden appearance.
He'd known for a long time Pola was Aster's roommate, but it was the first time Pola had acknowledged them like this.
Then Pola held something out.
"This is…."
"A guy with goblin eyes told me to pass it along. Thanks to that, I couldn't even sleep properly at dawn."
Waking him up while he was sleeping, like he'd somehow heard Pola was a mercenary.
Then he shoved three copper coins at him and called it a request.
He said there would be guys waiting in the lobby in the morning, and asked him to deliver a letter.
Thanks to that, Pola greeted a very irritating day.
'I miss when he was staying in temporary lodgings.'
He wanted to pretend he didn't know, but still—three copper coins are three copper coins.
To deliver a single letter.
"Anyway, I'm leaving."
Pola finished saying what he had to say and walked away.
Chenbi watched his back for a moment, then unfolded the crumpled parchment that had been folded eight times.
And on it….
I'm going to train. Don't look for me.
"…What."
A single line with no context.
Training?
'Aster, you don't have a home.'
So where exactly was he going to train?
Was he saying he was going to skip the academy?
Stunned by the situation he couldn't understand, Chenbi only stayed that way for a moment.
Then he felt a strange current again.
"…Training."
"Demian?"
"I want to go train too! We're going outside!"
"…Going back to your family?"
"No?"
Chenbi thought.
'…I have to stop him.'
If Demian is allowed to go outside the academy, some kind of disaster will definitely happen.
A confusing situation.
But the one who was truly in chaos was someone else.
"Aster, that bastard, he really went through with it!"
It was Purion, after hearing that Aster had gone off to train.
Someone was jealous, someone felt dizzy, and someone felt like they were going to go crazy over Aster's "training trip."
But the only one who knew the full story was a single person.
"Hoo."
Schwartz, still in the hideout, cigarette in his mouth.
'…I'm sorry.'
Originally, he hadn't been sure even when bringing it up.
He didn't have confidence, you could say.
No matter how short on hands you are, pushing a frighteningly young junior into a death trap….
If it were the war era, you'd treat someone by skill rather than age, but Aster wasn't a mage of that war era.
But.
Schwartz recalled.
Kwa-ga-gang! Bang!
In an instant, countless hongok (紅玉) exploding in midair.
He hadn't shown it in front of Aster, but how many times did his force field tremble?
It was unbelievable.
His force field trembling from the magic of a mage barely around fourteen?
'…Even if he only buys time, it'll be fine.'
Just until his disciples arrived.
In one corner of Schwartz's chest, a feeling as heavy as a rock settled down with a dull weight.