I’ll Retire After Saving the World

Chapter 37: Half-Baked Mage (4)

Hong Seok-young approached me casually.

Come to think of it, shouldn’t he be the one counseling the kids instead of me?

…Based on my experience, he wouldn’t have done a proper job anyway.

Thinking like this, I felt somewhat relieved that Park Seo-hyun chose to talk to me.

Still, I couldn’t be the only one to deal with this.

“She said she wants to drop out.”

“…What?”

Seeing his shocked face, I felt a bit better.

Even though it’s a bit petty, there’s no time to waste. I need to take care of Park Seo-hyun… and also check on Choi Jin-woo while I’m at it…

It’s strange. Why do I feel like I’m creating more work for myself?

“I’ve managed to calm her down.”

“Really? What was her reason?”

“She said she feels like she has no talent.”

Hong Seok-young’s expression turned odd.

He must know how ridiculous that sounds.

“Seo-hyun thought that? I didn’t bring these kids here based on their talent… Talent can be developed to some extent. If Seo-hyun puts in enough effort…”

What is he talking about?

Doesn’t he have eyes? Are the things in his head just for decoration?

After a moment of silence, Hong Seok-young burst into laughter.

“Ha ha, so you can make that kind of face too?”

“…I was momentarily worried about the future of South Korea.”

“That much?”

“If you can’t recognize such talent, you should retire.”

Hong Seok-young shrugged.

“Anyway, since you calmed her down, I guess I don’t need to worry.”

“I’m still worried in another sense, though.”

After chuckling for a moment, Hong Seok-young spoke with a more serious expression.

“Her standards are too high.”

“Park Seo-hyun?”

“Maybe it’s because her grandfather raised her. Mr. Park was an extraordinary person.”

Park Seo-hyun’s grandfather. The Archmage who was called the Path Illuminator.

In the 80s, there were quite a few sentimental nicknames. Lightbringer. Path Illuminator. The Lantern of the Maze. The Guide.

He passed away when I was still learning to crawl, so I only heard his name while preparing for my civil service exams. But Hong Seok-young seemed to remember him fondly.

“There was no one as strict as that old man… He could march straight to the dungeon core, so the raid speed was unimaginable, but it was just as mentally taxing.”

“Did you know him?”

“I occasionally raided dungeons with Mr. Park’s guild.”

Hong Seok-young awakened at nineteen and had been a Hunter ever since. Twenty years later, he was practically a living history of modern Hunters.

It wouldn’t be surprising if he knew Park No-kyung, who was active about a decade ago when he was vigorously raiding dungeons… Maybe that’s how he brought Park Seo-hyun to this school?

Lost in his memories, Hong Seok-young began to ramble on without being asked.

“Eun-sik, Eun-sik was Mr. Park’s son.”

He is also Park Seo-hyun’s father.

Normally, I would have told him to stop reminiscing and spouting unnecessary stories… but this time, I listened quietly. It was a chance to learn about Park Seo-hyun’s past. Knowing her family background would make it easier to respond.

I definitely want to avoid getting further entangled in the whims of this teenage girl.

“The last time I saw him was when he disbanded the guild to take care of his granddaughter after Eun-sik died. I haven’t seen him since. I’ve only heard bits and pieces through others.”

Hong Seok-young said bitterly.

“He was so strict with his son… but it seemed he didn’t do that with Seo-hyun.”

“Strict with his son?”

“Honestly, Eun-sik had no talent for magic. He wanted to be a pianist to make a living.”

The following story was predictable.

A father who was so extraordinary and a son who had no talent.

A father who was so exceptional that he had an unparalleled sense of duty to save people, and a son who respected but didn’t want to follow in his father’s footsteps.

These stories usually end in tragedy. The story of the Archmage known as the Path Illuminator was no different.

It would have been better if Park Eun-sik wasn’t an Awakener, but unfortunately, Park Eun-sik was a Mage. A Mage of the same type as his father.

Park No-kyung wanted his son to follow in his footsteps. To inherit his magic, to inherit his guild…. Park Eun-sik eventually pushed himself too hard in a dungeon raid and perished along with his guild members.

Afterwards, burdened with deep regret and a sense of responsibility, Park No-kyung gave up his Hunter life for his granddaughter. While quietly raising his granddaughter in his hometown, Park No-kyung died a hero, helping citizens evacuate during a dungeon outbreak in Sangju.

Depending on one’s perspective, this could be seen as an inspirational true story!

“Why that expression?”

To me, it’s just an uncomfortable story.

“About that Mr. Park.”

“Yes?”

“When did he die, when Seo-hyun was how old?”

“It was 13 years ago… so she was about ten?”

“What happened after her grandfather passed away?”

Park Seo-hyun is one of Hong Seok-young’s dormitory members. It’s safe to say she has no remaining family.

“She has a guardian. When Mr. Park was running his guild… I believe he was a lawyer. Since he had no relatives, Mr. Park had prepared various things just in case.”

“So… Park Seo-hyun learned magic from her grandfather, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Did she have any other teacher after her grandfather passed away?”

“Not as far as I know.”

But Park Seo-hyun said she knew her grandfather’s magic. She knew the formulas and even understood them.

How could a ten-year-old child know her grandfather’s unique magic formulas? Could the formulas have been among the things prepared just in case?

Generally, Mages never document their unique magic, even under threat of death.

“Your expression is weird again. Is something bothering you?”

“Not really… I just think that the late Mr. Park might not have been a gentle grandfather to his granddaughter.”

It’s a common case in Hunter families.

Even after losing one child, a parent can’t come to their senses and forces the remaining child into a career… Something like that. In the Mage society, which inevitably revolves around bloodlines, this tendency is particularly strong. It later becomes a significant social issue, and it wasn’t resolved before I traveled back in time.

I only heard about Park No-kyung from Hong Seok-young, so I don’t know if Park Seo-hyun really went through that. I’m not an expert, so I don’t want to unnecessarily dig into possible wounds by asking Park Seo-hyun.

But knowing that such things might have happened at least allows me to avoid stepping on landmines.

…Praising her a lot was the right thing to do. I don’t know for sure, but instilling confidence in kids like her is probably the best.

“Anyway, please keep an eye on Park Seo-hyun for a while.”

“Hmm.”

“…Aren’t you worried? You should be worried.”

“From the looks of it, it seems you’ll pay attention even if I don’t.”

“…….”

It’s true, but admitting it feels like losing.

“See? The Homeroom Teacher of the Magic Class is different. I do have an eye for people.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Oh.”

Hong Seok-young’s eyes widened.

“You don’t object to being called the Homeroom Teacher anymore? Have you finally accepted your fate?”

Fate, my ass.

“…You would have made me do it even if I refused, wouldn’t you?”

“Everyone seems to think so, even if it’s not me.”

“Despite how I treated, trained the kids?”

“After all, your main job is with runes, isn’t it?”

“That’s true… No! This isn’t my main job!!”

Damn it. Being here teaching only runes drives a person insane.

I was planning to discreetly reveal the Mana Pen at the right time, but at this rate, I might be stuck here forever. It’s good that the Hunter level is rising, but I don’t want to live as a Mage when I’m not one.

Hong Seok-young smiled slyly. His silent smirk was even more annoying.

“If you’re going to make me homeroom teacher, at least raise my salary.”

“Oh, lunch break is over. You said you had individual interviews with the kids?”

“My salary.”

“Good luck with that.”

“Don’t pretend you didn’t hear me.”

Hong Seok-young continued to feign ignorance.

What an annoying old man.

“As the homeroom teacher of the Magic Class, I need to have deep discussions with the magic students. The rest of the physical types will be taken care of by the principal.”

Hong Seok-young, who was about to leave the container used as the teacher’s office, paused. Ignoring him, I passed by and exited the container first.

“Hey, wait! Teacher Woo! You can’t do that…!”

I don’t hear anything.

“Park Seo-hyun! Choi Jin-woo! You two come to me, the rest go to the principal!”

“Teacher Woo…!”

Is it mosquito season already?

I brushed off the dust from my shoulders.

* * *

Two young mages sat in front of me. Looking at their pale faces, I could immediately tell what was needed, more than runes or mana pens.

“So, do you think you can survive in the dungeon?”

“Uh… was that what we were supposed to be worried about first?”

Choi Jin-woo asked, eyes wide.

“Have you ever been inside a dungeon before?”

“The first time I saw a monster up close was in Myeong-dong….”

In this era, when dungeon breaks are as common as meals? What a blessed life.

I thought it was unreasonable to expect much from a kid who had just started using magic, so I looked at Park Seo-hyun. Her bangs, which hung like curtains, were half lifted. Though her fiery gaze was intimidating, at least I could see her eyes, which I considered a good change.

“I didn’t expect you to come up with anything grand in just an hour at your level, so let’s move on.”

“…Then why did you make us think about it? I really thought I was going to get indigestion while eating.”

“So you can realize how insignificant you are.”

It was a joke, but I wanted to see their attitude towards dungeon raids.

At the very least, it showed that they took my words seriously and thought about it, which meant they weren’t taking the raid lightly. These are the kinds of kids who don’t panic or cause accidents in the dungeon. It’s a method I often use with new raid team members.

I didn’t need to explain all this, but I did need to console Choi Jin-woo, who was pretending to cry with a hurt expression.

“Of course, you’re insignificant now. But to be a Hunter, you need to identify your weaknesses and know how to address them.”

“Address… how can we do that? I really have no idea.”

The status of mages has changed more rapidly than anything else in modern Hunter history.

Since the advent of the mana meter, dungeon breaks have decreased, but the raid mechanics themselves haven’t changed. Enter the dungeon and destroy the dungeon core. While there were many changes in the external and institutional aspects of dungeons, the fundamental task for Hunters remained the same.

But what about mages?

This is the period when the status of mages is at its peak. With the publication of the mana concealment rune and the development of the mana pen, the space for mages gradually diminished. This was because tasks that only mages could handle could now be roughly mimicked by regular Hunters using runes.

How did the mages respond to this?

Surprisingly, these already secretive individuals began to close themselves off even more tightly.

Numerous magic research associations were established and then disappeared, and all sorts of dubious activities began to prevail to pass down the same type of mana. During an era when understanding of anything other than the four major elements was low, countless minor mages were likely abandoned.

And here reappears our generous, benevolent Archmage from France.

The French Archmage freely disclosed a method to determine the type of mana by analyzing the awakened mage’s mana. This was to prevent children who didn’t match their parent’s type of magic from being harshly forced and potentially harmed.

Mages accepted the Archmage’s intention. They analyzed their children’s mana, accepting those of the same type and abandoning those of a different type.

Where to?

To the Hunter Academy.

“That’s why teachers exist, don’t they?”

…I’ll have another opportunity to tell this story later. For now, it’s time for these fledgling mages to learn the basics of being a mage.

“Alright. So, do you guys know about your own mana type?”