Chapter 119 - Wizard May Cry (5)

Director's Office, Bureau for Abnormal Phenomena Countermeasures.

Shin Do-ryong asked in response to Team Leader Park's report.

"You're saying Si-on took Yo-han to her place?"

"...Yes. She said that since she's his handler and monitor, she'll take responsibility for keeping watch over him herself."

Team Leader Park had expected Shin Do-ryong to immediately lose his shit and go ballistic.

But Shin Do-ryong's reaction was unexpectedly calm.

"Is that so. All right."

"What?"

Just in case Shin Do-ryong realized what this meant later and threw an even bigger fit, Team Leader Park cautiously added something.

"Uh, well... From what I can tell, Si-on seems a little, just a tiny bit, interested in that Yo-han guy. Are you okay with that?"

"What's wrong with it? She can be interested in someone."

Knowing Si-on's personality, there was no way she would let someone into her private space simply because he happened to be a surveillance target.

Team Leader Park stared at Shin Do-ryong with a bewildered expression.

"...You're surprisingly open-minded about this kind of thing."

Shin Do-ryong looked down at Yo-han's photograph attached to the report for a moment and furrowed his brow, but soon relaxed his expression.

"I mean, as her father, I'd obviously be lying if I said I wasn't concerned about the guy."

He muttered in an indifferent, resigned voice and leaned back in his chair.

"It'd be one thing if she were still a kid, but there's nothing uglier than a parent obsessing over and meddling in the love life of a fully grown adult child. Besides, it's not like I was ever some model human being when it came to romance."

"Well now~ Then if Si-on brings someone home as her boyfriend someday, are you going to approve the marriage no matter what?"

"Who knows. Si-on takes after her mother in how stubborn she can be. Once she decides, 'This is the man', I get the feeling she'd ignore me even if I refused."

Shin Do-ryong narrowed his eyes and ran a simulation in his head.

'Dad! Don't butt into my love life! Si-on Punch!'

'Kraaaagh- Is this youth!?'

Of course, considering Si-on's personality, she probably wouldn't actually do that.

Do-ryong....

Shin Do-ryong's eyes sank dejectedly.

***

Sitting in a dining chair, I slowly turned my head.

I looked around the clean, neatly organized interior of the upscale Officetel, which clearly reflected its owner's personality.

".........."

Si-on's calm voice came from the kitchen.

"Yo-han-ssi, would coffee be all right?"

Resting my chin on the back of my hand, I answered while hiding how bewildered I felt.

"...Yeah, thanks."

"Of course."

Si-on prepared the coffee with a faint smile, and I quietly watched her.

I'd never imagined I'd actually end up coming here....

Yeah, I was currently at Si-on's place.

Si-on had reported to her superiors that this incident was the work of the demon Glasya-Labolas.

But, well, obviously.

Just because a Wizard suspected of the crime (who had killed a lot of people) provided information on the case while going, 'I didn't do it! A demon did it!' didn't mean the upper brass of the Special Operations Division would immediately go, 'Aah~ is that so! So it was a demon. Well, well, sorry about the misunderstanding,' and accept it on the spot.

I was still on the list of suspects in the invisible murder case.

Which meant, on paper, Si-on still had to keep me under surveillance.

And that was why Si-on had brought me to the Officetel where she lived.

".........."

And now that things had turned out this way.

How should I put this... No, it wasn't intentional, but still.

Si-on handed me coffee poured into a pretty cup and tilted her head.

"Yo-han-ssi, is something wrong?"

"No, nothing. I just had something on my mind."

"I see. I'm sorry that the surveillance has to continue."

Si-on looked at me and spoke in a calm voice tinged with warmth.

"Still, I've brought standard-issue pajamas, a toothbrush, and other daily necessities from the Special Operations Division. Please make yourself comfortable."

"Mm... thanks."

From Ellie's Cathedral to Si-on's Officetel.

'Since my house burned down, haven't I been staying at women's places a little too much?'

Well, of course, I was only staying temporarily, and this was only the second time.

Normally, I would have been under actual surveillance at the Special Operations Division office, so Si-on bringing me to her own place out of consideration was a good thing.

Still, there was one thing that bothered me a little....

"Even if it's only for a little while, I'm perfectly happy staying at your place, but are you okay with it?"

"What? Ah, I'm fine."

Si-on looked slightly flustered, as though I'd said something unexpected, then gently smiled.

"Thank you for worrying about me. You're very kind, Yo-han-ssi."

"-What?"

My face stiffened in bewilderment.

I felt like I'd heard something similar before.

'You're a good and kind person, Yo-han-ssi.'

Right. Ellie had said that.

...What was this? Were they gaslighting me by constantly telling me I was nice?

Like that whole mean-onion, nice-onion experiment.

'Bad-tempered Yo-han, grow up into a nice Yo-han.'

I'd already finished growing, though.

"Yo-han-ssi?"

"Ah, sorry."

I soon snapped out of it.

This wasn't what mattered right now. The most important thing was solving the case and clearing my name.

The coffee was ready, and Si-on and I sat across from each other at the table to discuss the current situation.

"At first, I thought Yoannis, the head of the Vampire Clan, or some other Wizard might have caused this incident to turn me and the Special Operations Division against each other. What do you think?"

"I think that's certainly possible. ...But if that were the case, the scale of the incident is too small."

"The scale?"

"...Yes. Of course, a person died, so it's a tragic incident."

Si-on lightly brought her closed fist to her lips as she thought.

"But if the goal was to cause chaos and turn us against each other, a single civilian death is too little. Instead of torturing one person for a long time before killing him, it would have been more efficient to kill as many people as possible on the spot."

I listened quietly as Si-on continued her deduction.

"Also, when we investigated the male student who was killed, he turned out to be a textbook school bully. I think personal revenge is another possibility. Or it could have been a thrill killing disguised as someone's revenge."

"...So in the end, we still need more information."

After thinking for a moment, I opened [Mephisto Market] on my laptop.

I doubted Yoannis would have written about his plans somewhere other Wizards could see them.

Still, I might be able to get some idea of what he was doing right now, so I checked the posts by Yoannis, ILovePrettyBoys.

...And I regretted it immediately.

[Author: ILovePrettyBoys]

[Title: I like alluring pretty boys who know they're pretty and cross-dress to seduce people too, but....]

[It's also so fucking hot when a cute pretty boy insists that he's a guy and doesn't do cross-dressing, but circumstances force him to dress like a girl anyway.

'......Pervert.'

He goes like that, blushing with humiliation and embarrassment while holding down the unfamiliar hem of his skirt with his hands.

Then, as time passes, he gradually starts enjoying being called cute, until he finds himself absentmindedly looking at pretty women's clothes and thinking,

'Would I look cute in that?'-I fucking love that whole process.]

My brow immediately furrowed, and my fist clenched.

No, sure, I was the one who'd clicked on it just in case I could find some useful information....

But why did I, a man trying pretty damn hard to get through life, have to read this fucking garbage?

Since I'd already clicked on it, I checked the comments too.

[TyrantKaiser – Mephi-chaaaan! I saw a shitpost! Hurry up and come delete iiiit!]

[Two-HeadedSnake – Is this... gay?]

└[WheelchairMaster – Really~ Of course it's homo!]

[FreeTheGrandMaster – Kgh~ As expected of Sir ILovePrettyBoys! You really fucking know what's hot, desuwa!]

[Dress – But if he eventually starts cross-dressing voluntarily, doesn't that mean he ends up becoming an alluring pretty boy who knows he's pretty and cross-dresses?]

└[ILovePrettyBoys – It is a philosophical conundrum. But the result isn't the only thing that matters. There's an aesthetic in enjoying the process too.]

I quietly sighed.

"Haa...."

I hadn't expected much, but this really had been a completely pointless thing to do.

[Author: WheelchairMaster]

[Title: I did a good deed recently!]

[I recently went sightseeing in Seoul, where lots of Wizards have been gathering lately! And would you believe it! A young girl! She was trying to kill herself!

So I went bam! 'Wheelchair Drift!' and made this super-cool entrance, then talked things through with her and cheered her up! (^v^)/

And once we got talking, she turned out to be such a good kid!

Hehe~ I felt like the fairy godmother from Cinderella, so I gifted her a spell that would perk her right up!

Then I was happily riding the subway back to my hotel when, wouldn't you know it, there was an adorable fairy reflected in the subway window~!?

Hwaaa~ (O_O)!!

I was so shocked I rubbed my eyes and looked again! And wouldn't you know~ it was little old me, every bit as cute as a fairy~ Oopsie!]

I skimmed through the other posts as well.

'Sightseeing in Seoul, huh.'

There were a few posts that caught my attention, but nothing stood out as clearly connected to this incident.

"Yo-han-ssi, did you find anything?"

"No, not really."

Just then, Si-on's phone buzzed.

Vmmmm-.

Si-on checked the message and spoke.

"They say they've found a suspicious-looking person in the CCTV footage they secured."

Si-on and I rose from the table at the same time.

Si-on had made lunch for me, so I'd eaten my fill, and we'd gotten some rest over coffee.

Now it was time to get back to work.

Si-on handed me a black hard case she had prepared in advance.

"Yo-han-ssi, this is what you asked for."

"Thanks."

Click-.

When I opened the case, there was a large silver-steel semiautomatic pistol, at least by handgun standards.

A Desert Eagle.

I could have bought one from [Mephisto Market], but since I was already cooperating with the Special Operations Division, I'd decided to have them supply it.

Besides, since I'd legally received the firearm from a government agency, there wouldn't be any trouble afterward.

Of course, that didn't mean I could just go around firing it however I pleased....

Anyway, the Glock I'd been issued before had been lost in combat, so I'd asked Si-on for a new handgun. Apparently, the higher-ups had approved it.

A faint smile formed on my lips.

Maybe it meant that even though I was still a suspect, they also regarded me as a collaborator.

Si-on stood beside me and explained with a serious expression.

"It's the lightweight model, but it will still be heavier than the Glock you used before. The rounds are thicker too, so the magazine can't hold as many as a Glock's."

"It's only a secondary weapon anyway, so that's fine."

I picked up the magazine and examined it. .50 AE rounds. They were definitely fat for handgun ammunition.

Then again, the only handgun rounds I'd ever seen in person were Glock rounds.

"I'd prefer that you fire it with both hands whenever possible, but with your current physical abilities, shooting one-handed shouldn't be a problem either."

Right. That was why I'd switched from a Glock to a Desert Eagle.

Now that I'd learned the Breathing Technique and could withstand more recoil, I wanted to increase my personal firepower.

My eyes narrowed.

".........."

If all I had to deal with were ordinary humans, that'd be one thing. But my opponents were Anomalies and Vampires.

"Yo-han-ssi, how did you carry your Glock before?"

"Uh, I put it in the inside pocket of my coat."

".........."

Si-on stared at me wide-eyed for a moment, then forcibly swallowed the worried lecture that had risen to her lips.

"...The Desert Eagle is larger than a Glock, so it would be better to carry it in a holster."

As she spoke, Si-on took out the leather shoulder holster that had been packed in the case with it, its straps designed to wrap around the shoulder and back.

"This will be your first time wearing one, so... I'll put it on for you."

I took off my coat and stood beside Si-on.

Si-on watched me for a moment, then reached out and moved slightly closer.

"Excuse me."

With delicate movements, she adjusted the straps to fit Yo-han's body, almost as though she were tying a necktie for him.