Chapter 2181 – 2181. Dark Moon
I headed to the Hytel School’s spatial garden in Neo London’s B District. Now that I was a member of the Hytel School, it was a place I had to visit at least once.
‘Being in B District, even the atmosphere feels organized.’
Everyone walking the streets was an intellectual with neat attire and manners. It truly felt like the highest echelon district of Neo London.
I confidently walked the streets wearing the coat with the Hytel School emblem. Some people glanced at me, but no one stopped me. The London Guards working in B District bowed their heads as they saw me.
It wasn’t a sincere greeting of respect, but more like they were trying to avoid getting involved in anything troublesome.
‘Not a bad feeling.’
I arrived at the Hytel spatial garden.
On the outside, it was an old mansion protected by high walls.
But in reality, it was a special space with hundreds of overlapping spaces. It was said that the entire size of the spatial garden was equivalent to one district.
I headed to a small building like a ticket office at the entrance of the spatial garden. It was where they sold admission tickets.
If a regular person entered the spatial garden without a ticket, they would almost certainly get lost within ten minutes. Once lost, it was impossible to get out without the help of a spatial mage. The ticket was also a navigator, so regular people had to buy one.
‘In the game, it was depicted like an infinitely extending backroom.’
I entered the ticket office. The Hytel School mage saw my coat and stood up from his seat.
“You must be Eugene Meyer, who recently joined the Hytel School? I heard from Orsia that you would be coming today. Here is your school ID, prepared for you.”
I received the school ID he handed over.
“Does this school ID serve as an admission ticket?”
“Yes, it does. It’s not really necessary for us spatial mages, but… you’re still a newcomer, Mr. Meyer. You might not be familiar with spatial magic yet. Be careful not to lose it. Oh, if you follow the direction the school ID points, you should be able to reach Ms. Orsia’s workshop. To receive an invitation from Ms. Orsia… I’m personally quite envious.”
“Ms. Orsia seems to be popular.”
“There isn’t a mage in the school who dislikes Ms. Orsia. She has a talent that’s on a different level, so it’s hard to feel petty jealousy. Although she has a cold personality, she is calm and fair. I’ve never seen a woman as beautiful as Ms. Orsia. With her intellect shining as well, she’s close to perfect…”
The mage’s praise for Orsia continued endlessly. I gave a brief greeting and left the building, entering the spatial garden.
“……”
In an instant, the space changed. It was a vast space with paved sidewalks. Next to the sidewalks were green flower pots. I checked my school ID. An arrow that hadn’t been there before was pointing straight ahead. As I walked forward, more than ten forks in the road appeared.
‘Come to think of it, you could capture Void Bugs in the spatial garden.’
Void Bugs weren’t a creature I needed right now. In the first place, the utility of Void Bugs was limited. I shook off the knowledge that came to mind and headed towards my destination.
Orsia’s workshop was a three-story detached house. It seemed too ordinary for a 7th-grade mage’s workshop.
‘It’s a spatial mage’s workshop. The really important place must be hidden with spatial magic. Otherwise, there’s no way she’d invite another mage to her workshop.’
Click.
The front door opened, and Orsia came out.
“Please come inside. I’ll serve you tea. Is black tea alright?”
“I like black tea.”
In Neo London, if you said you disliked black tea, you would receive scornful looks. Orsia brewed the black tea quite well. I heard the rules of the Hytel School from her. There weren’t any particularly troublesome rules. I also heard about the school’s history.
“Ah, may I go to the restroom for a moment?”
“It’s at the end of the hallway.”
I got up from my chair and headed to the hallway. In the process, Orsia moved her body as far to the side as possible to avoid me. I was a little hurt. She had been trying to keep her distance from me all day.
‘Am I dirty? Do I smell?’
I was quite confident in my cleanliness.
I checked myself in the clean restroom. There was nothing wrong.
When I returned from the restroom, four thick books were placed on the table.
Basic Major Books of the Hytel School, Introduction to Spatial Studies, History of Hytel, and The Storm of Space and Time.
“…Ms. Orsia. What are those books?”
“They are good books to read once. I’ll lend them to you, so please read them.”
“Hmm. I understand.”
I took the books, but I couldn’t guarantee when I would read them. I just didn’t feel like reading books that weren’t magic books.
“I thought I would at least greet the school head today, but it seems like the school head is not here, just like at the Leisun School.”
“It’s a time when academic conferences are frequently held overseas these days… It will be difficult to see the school head in person. I can give you their contact information if you wish.”
“No. It’s alright.”
Then, I set the mood and said to her.
“Ms. Orsia. You said you would grant me three favors last time.”
“Yes. If it’s a favor I can grant, I will.”
“My first favor is that I want to learn the basics of spatial magic from Ms. Orsia.”
Learning the basics of spatial magic directly from the official successor of the Hytel School. An opportunity that couldn’t be bought for a fortune.
“I understand. But the basics of spatial magic are vast. If you try to learn the basics without a goal, it could take years. Both you and I will be short on time, so… it would be good to have a goal.”
“The spatial magic I want to learn the most is subspace magic. Is it possible to aim for subspace magic?”
“That’s not a difficult goal. With your talent, it should be possible within a few months.”
4th-grade spatial magic, subspace.
It was a tricky magic, but with the help of a spatial mage, even an ordinary mage could possess a subspace.
“I have a second favor. I would like you to help me explore ancient ruins for about two weeks.”
“…That’s an appealing offer as a mage. But is there a reason why you need two weeks?”
“The ancient ruins are far away. We plan to take a water train. Of course, I will cover all the expenses.”
Orsia frowned and pondered. After a moment, she opened her mouth.
“…What kind of ancient ruins are they?”
“They are ancient ruins of Great Korea that have never been discovered before.”
“…Ancient ruins that have never been discovered before… That alone is attractive.”
“I will give you 30% of the items obtained from the ancient ruins. Instead, I would like you to give me priority.”
“We won’t be going alone, right? There’s a high probability of traps and monsters in ancient ruins.”
“Yes. I plan to hire an expert in that field. Since it’s a matter with huge profits at stake, three of us will explore.”
Ancient ruins exploration. If too many people gather, problems will surely arise. Especially with a hastily formed exploration team? It would be strange if problems didn’t arise.
After about three minutes of silence, Orsia replied.
“I understand. I will help you. I guess I’ll have to use the vacation I’ve been putting off this time.”
“Thank you so much, Ms. Orsia.”
• • •
I sought out Rose, the head of the X Manpower Agency, to hire the third member for the ancient ruins exploration.
Rose chuckled at my words.
“Ah, so. You want a mercenary with the insight to recognize ancient ruins traps, the ability to perform as a front-line fighter when monsters appear, and who will absolutely not betray you, at least a 5th-grade or higher?”
My requirements were a bit shameless.
A mercenary who would never betray you. In the mercenary world, they were practically a mythical creature.
Stories of mercenaries betraying their employers out of greed weren’t even gossip in this world. From a mercenary’s perspective, they could just make a big score and disappear. There were also methods of disguising the employer’s death as an accident and stealing their assets. The lost credibility would slowly recover, and they could swallow the employer’s vast wealth in one go, so it was profitable.
“Please.”
“It just so happens that there is someone who fits your needs. They can’t betray me because they have a contract with me. But the price is quite high.”
“I can afford it.”
“You can’t afford it with the money you made from the chicken business.”
“…There is a source of funds that I can’t disclose.”
“Then there’s an additional fee. I have to do the laundering too.”
“It’s okay. I saved the money to use when needed.”
It wasn’t just hiring a mercenary, but the expenses for water train tickets and other things were considerable. I had to spend more than 80% of the money I had saved so far.
It would be a lie to say it didn’t hurt. But you have to spend when you need to. It’s not like I’m throwing money away on gambling. This is a perfect investment. I can get several times, even tens of times, more profit.
“Come back tomorrow. If that mercenary accepts, I’ll let you meet them. Since it’s not a small amount of money, you’ll want to see them yourself and make a decision.”
“I understand.”
And the next day.
I faced the cyber ninja, Invisible Blade. Her face was covered with a fox mask, and her hair was tied in a black-brown ponytail. Her silver cyber suit revealed her voluptuous figure.
A ninja who was supposed to act secretly, yet her outfit was eye-catching.
“Long time no see?”
Invisible Blade waved her hand, shooting a sharp gaze at me. I was nervous. It wasn’t like we had a good relationship.
Instead, I asked Rose, who was next to me.
“Are there no other mercenaries? I can’t trust that woman.”
“I don’t know what happened between you two, and I don’t care, but she’s the only mercenary who fits your requirements. If you want to find another mercenary, it will take months.”
“……”
I looked at Invisible Blade. Would she betray me at a crucial moment?
Perhaps she noticed my concern. Rose continued.
“Even though her outfit is like that, she’s a capable ninja. She can spot most traps right away, and she’s excellent in close combat. She’s tied to me, so you don’t have to worry about her betraying you.”
“……What’s your opinion?”
I asked Invisible Blade.
“I haven’t had any requests lately, so my body was getting rusty. Ancient ruins are perfect for a warm-up. Oh, I have a condition. I’ll take some of the items obtained from the ancient ruins. Instead, I’ll cut the hiring fee by 30%.”
“…I have priority over the items.”
“Well, since you discovered the ancient dungeon and you’re covering the expenses… I’ll concede that much.”
Anyway, the members were assembled.
