By the time Shin Ian returned home, it was already evening.
He simply ordered delivery for dinner, then emptied the contents of his bag onto his desk.
He carefully set aside any fragile items.
Among them was the [Dying Eyeball], crafted with considerable focus.
Various other miscellaneous objects piled up on the desk.
Shin Ian paused, gazing down at them, a thoughtful hum escaping his lips.
“……Should I buy a safe to store these?”
While he didn’t expect his home to be burgled, the thought of a thief making off with his creations, however unlikely, would lead to a catastrophic incident.
Leaving them haphazardly scattered didn’t seem like a wise idea.
Who knew? A Santa Anomaly (TL Note: ‘괴이,’ ‘goe-i,’ refers to a mysterious or supernatural entity/phenomenon) might suddenly smash through his window, not to give gifts, but to abscond with every single item in his house.
The problem was that such delusions couldn’t simply be dismissed as mere fantasy.
He hadn’t known it before his awakening, but now he was keenly aware that the world was alive with the arcane.
As it happened, Christmas was fast approaching.
If anything related to Santa were to appear, now would be the opportune moment.
‘I should at least buy a storage box.’
It wasn’t just Santa he had to worry about.
It was only prudent to hide any overt evidence, just in case the Bureau of Administration decided to raid his home.
“Hmph.”
Shin Ian pushed aside his stray thoughts, took a shower, and then tucked his creations into a drawer.
He intended to leave them there temporarily until he could acquire proper storage.
While not entirely secure, it was sufficient for temporary safekeeping.
After tidying up, he lay on his bed and pulled out his phone.
There were no urgent messages awaiting him.
Only a few advertisements had come through.
He deleted them all and opened the community forum.
A message, [Solomon is opening the book], appeared and vanished, granting him access to the community forum.
[Completed today’s workout.]
[Has anyone seen a vampire noble? Do they also lack hair like regular vampires? Asking for a friend who wants to feel camaraderie.]
[My acquaintance, an Arab mage, suddenly started looking for a grimoire that disappeared in Israel? What happened?]
Amidst the usual deluge of nonsensical posts, he found one title that piqued his interest.
Shin Ian clicked on the post, simultaneously turning off the living room light.
[Title: My acquaintance, an Arab mage, told me they suddenly started looking for a grimoire that disappeared in Israel? What happened?]
[It’s hot]
JGN (TL Note: Korean internet slang, ‘je-mok-gwa gat-eun nae-yong,’ meaning ‘the content is the same as the title.’)
They say the country is being searched with a fine-tooth comb to confirm if any stored grimoires are missing.
I heard it’s because of a request from the Korean Bureau of Administration, does anyone know anything about this?
[Recommend 0][Disapprove 0]
[Comments]
-A request from the Bureau? Why are they looking for grimoires? It’s not like they’re the Clock Tower.
-It’s hot: Exactly. Ah, I’m suddenly super pissed off (TL Note: ‘jjon-na’ is a strong slang term for ‘very’ or ‘extremely’). Why are these bastards trying to meddle in mages’ affairs?
-OM: Do Hwang (TL Note: Likely a nickname for the user ‘It’s hot’, ‘Dohwang’ is a common internet nickname for a character who acts cool or goes off suddenly) suddenly getting triggered is so damn cool.
-Something related to grimoires must have happened, that’s why they’re looking. It’s connected to the arcane, after all. Maybe Moses’ Eighth Book was discovered somewhere? There must have been a recent flood caused by the arcane.
-It’s hot: Is that so? Come to think of it, didn’t these bastards also search for grimoires when something happened last time?
-When the spontaneous human combustion incident happened, yeah.
-It’s hot: Oh, right. Some crazy mage went wild then. Considering that, it’s not strange they’re looking for grimoires.
-OM: Do Hwang’s sudden change of stance is truly damn cool.
-It’s hot: Get lost, you damn bastard (TL Note: ‘ssi-bal’ is a strong Korean expletive).
Spontaneous human combustion.
Shin Ian had never heard of such an incident.
It seemed the Bureau of Administration had likely suppressed the information.
‘More importantly, they’re searching for grimoires.’
Shin Ian hummed thoughtfully, recalling the recent events in Korea.
His encounter with the Eight-Foot Ghost (TL Note: ‘Pal-cheok-gwi-sin,’ a Japanese urban legend of a tall female ghost) likely had no connection to grimoires.
While it was a fairly powerful anomaly, strictly speaking, it was closer to a mere phantom.
It wasn’t a severe enough incident to warrant the Bureau of Administration’s direct involvement.
“……Then, it must be the Monkey Dream.”
If one were to discuss possibilities, that scenario held the highest credibility.
Perhaps an even more serious incident had occurred elsewhere, but Shin Ian first tried to reason from his own perspective.
If the Bureau of Administration was a competent organization, they would surely have realized that the Monkey Dream was no ordinary anomalous phenomenon.
The presence of someone pulling the strings was so obvious that anyone immersed in the arcane would have realized it.
The individual behind it was most likely a mage, or another faction capable of manipulating anomalies.
The Bureau of Administration hadn’t requested the tracking of grimoires without reason.
And this was his first hypothesis.
The second was far simpler.
‘The survivors from the subway must have given testimonies related to me. Since I was throwing around Christian terminology, it’s not strange that they’d be searching for a lost grimoire in Israel, a place practically a holy land for Christianity.’
His original desired cover identity was merely that of a priest, but carrying the grimoire around seemed to have become the root of the problem.
While it might not be a major issue in the eyes of ordinary people, it certainly wouldn’t be for the Bureau of Administration.
In any case, both scenarios were good news for Shin Ian.
Whether they requested an investigation to identify another mage, or to discover the owner of a Christian-related grimoire.
Shin Ian, not belonging to either category, was effectively outside the scope of their investigation.
Since Lee Seoa’s magic had even disabled the CCTV cameras, he wouldn’t need to worry for the time being.
Now, the only things he needed to be wary of were resisting any detection methods the Bureau might employ, and the female agent he had seen at the convenience store.
‘When will she come looking?’
The incident had occurred just two days prior.
Perhaps because it wasn’t such a massive commotion, their arrival was taking quite a while.
What would they do if he ended up spreading rumors about meeting the Eight-Foot Ghost all over the neighborhood?
“……No, even if I told them, they wouldn’t believe me.”
Even if he recounted the events of that day with utmost sincerity, people would hardly be inclined to believe him.
Instead, they would most likely gently suggest he seek psychiatric help.
Moreover, openly discussing his encounter with the arcane would likely draw the attention of the Bureau of Administration.
Perhaps that was precisely what they were aiming for.
It could be paranoia.
It might simply be that his excessive caution had led to a bout of suspicion.
Yet, he didn’t view it as entirely negative.
The more cautious one was, the more options they had, and the more means to cope with situations.
Having become a mage, he couldn’t afford to slow down his thinking.
Perhaps once he grew accustomed to a mage’s life, but certainly not now.
“…….”
Shin Ian stretched languidly in bed, posted a message on the community forum, and then closed his eyes.
[Title: I’m going to sleep now. Send me goodnight emoticons.]
[Okay]
(Turn off the lights emoticon)
Even with a complicated mind, one still had to do what needed to be done.
****
Knock, knock, knock.
“Is anyone home?”
“……Ugh.”
Shin Ian’s eyes fluttered open at the sound of the voice.
He unconsciously checked the clock, then pushed himself up from the bed.
Eight in the morning.
It wasn’t exactly an ideal time for an unexpected visit.
Certainly not an ordinary visitor.
“…….”
He briefly ran a hand over his face, then took a gulp of cold water as he surveyed his surroundings.
The grimoire, which he was sure he’d left on his desk, was now inexplicably lying right beside his pillow.
All his other belongings were safely tucked away in the drawers.
The grimoire was the only arcane item visible to the naked eye.
Knock, knock, knock.
“Is anyone home?”
The bright voice of a man echoed once more, accompanied by another round of knocking.
Shin Ian sprang out of bed and quickly stowed the grimoire inside the boiler room.
Click.
He locked the door from the inside.
The key he placed on the bathroom shelf.
A spot difficult to find unless one deliberately reached in and rummaged around.
In the bathroom, Shin Ian ruffled his hair while looking in the mirror, then took a deep breath and firmly clutched the talisman he had carelessly left on his desk.
Then, with a grimace, as though utterly steeped in exhaustion, he trudged towards the door.
“…….”
Perhaps having heard his footsteps, the person outside the door stopped knocking.
Shin Ian peered through the peephole on his front door, casually confirming the visitors’ faces.
‘One man, one woman. Both are wearing suits, and the person I saw at the convenience store isn’t among them.’
However, their overall demeanor was similar to hers.
Which meant they were Bureau of Administration agents.
He had considered the possibility, but to think it was actually true.
Shin Ian clicked his tongue in annoyance, unlocked the front door, and then irritably pulled it open, glaring at his visitors.
“……Who are you? If it’s a delivery, just leave it out front.”
“Ah, forgive the intrusion. We aren’t delivery drivers; we’re here on official business.”
The man, one of the two, spoke.
He offered a gentle smile and pulled a business card from his pocket.
[Gyeonggi Suwon Police Station]
[Detective Division: Kim Minsu]
It was an unremarkable business card.
While the sudden appearance of detectives might be intimidating to ordinary citizens, beyond that, there was nothing unusual about it.
However, in Shin Ian’s eyes, the card’s true form was vividly apparent.
[Bureau of Arcane Administration]
[Negotiations Department]
[Agent Kim Minsu]
The true nature of the business card, visible only to those who had encountered the arcane.
An ordinary person would have immediately uttered the name of the Bureau, but Shin Ian was not ordinary.
He instantly realized this was nothing short of an interrogation trap.
A business card that revealed its true form only to those who had encountered the arcane.
Uttering the word “Bureau of Administration” would be tantamount to providing definitive proof of his encounter with the arcane.
‘This is a test, or a trial, for targets whose contact with the arcane isn’t certain. Is this how they definitively determine if someone has interacted with the arcane and then respond accordingly?’
Having discerned their intention, there was no reason to fall for it.
He maintained a nonchalant expression, calmly looking up at the man.
“Detective, why are you suddenly……”
At the word “Detective,” the man’s face momentarily softened.
It was fleeting.
He swiftly recomposed his expression, tucked away his business card as if nothing had happened, and politely clasped his hands together.
“We’d like to ask you about an incident that occurred recently during your part-time work. We require your testimony, so would you happen to have a moment?”
“Ah…… yes. Please, come in. My place is a bit small, though.”
“Ahaha, that’s perfectly fine. A brief moment will suffice.”
Shin Ian continued his act of drowsiness, carefully opening the door.
“Then, if you’ll excuse us.”
“Allow us to intrude.”
The two agents from the Bureau of Administration stepped through the front door and entered.
The man nonchalantly removed his shoes and walked into the living room, while the woman bowed slightly to Shin Ian and followed him.
“…….”
Shin Ian watched their backs with a cold gaze, then closed the front door behind them.
Creak.
Click.
The outside world and the inside were now cut off from each other.
