Chapter 920. Sera (20)
“Is Ha-Yan getting disciplined by any chance?” I asked.
“Not yet. We’re not in the situation to do that right now... I have received a general report, but the guild is still in the middle of making a decision,” Jo Hye-Jin replied.
“I think it’s best if I take care of it,” I told her.
“I think so, too. You seem to have a better understanding of it, but the situation isn’t that great right now... Personally, I think it will be better to lower the level of her punishment,” Jo Hye-Jin suggested.
“I think I understand what you’re saying,” I said.
‘I do need to start taking care of her mental health.’
“She gets kind of sensitive when other guild members try to deal with her,” Jo Hye-Jin added.
“I know,” I said.
‘I’m sure it’s difficult.’
I wasn’t discriminating against Jung Ha-Yan and the other guild members, but Ha-Yan was above the guild’s rules.
Sun Hee-Young, Hwang Jung-Yeon, and Jo Hye-Jin were higher in rank than her and had more authority than her, but they couldn’t discipline her at all.
Actually, it was more like they respected her.
Jung Ha-Yan had more authority than the Tower Master of the Magic Tower, and she was so strong that she was second to none throughout the continent.
I thought about making a role for her, but at the time, I had no idea what trouble she'd cause, so I put it aside for now.
Jung Ha-Yan was in that state for a long time, so she ended up being untouchable in the guild. She was an official guild member, but no one could actually deal with her except Kim Hyun-Sung and me.
If I had to pick one more person capable of dealing with her, I'd pick Jo Hye-Jin, but Jung Ha-Yan wasn’t wary of her at all.
It was up to her whether she wanted to take on a task or participate in a quest, and she didn't really receive any guild tasks. She’d either focus on a research task I had requested her to do or do things she wanted to do without gaining attention from others.
Well, Han Sora would take care of these tasks on her own, so technically, there wasn’t anyone in the guild capable of making her do whatever they wanted her to do.
‘And an assassination attempt on the Saint of Light has just taken place...’
It wasn't like the guild had a reason to delay things when they were known for taking care of things right away. I was sure the guild members and staff were on edge. Even Miss Kim Mi-Young had yet to contact me, so I assumed she was trying to take care of it.
“Where did that report come from? Was it from Miss Sora?” I asked.
“Yes. I heard she used up most of her mana upon conducting a magic experiment. It was a pretty big experiment, so it’ll take her some time to recover.
"The reason she didn’t submit a separate report is just as you expected and Miss Ha-Yan had apologized privately as well,” Jo Hye-Jin answered.
“What?”
“She said she was sorry for causing trouble,” Jo Hye-Jin replied.
‘That’s rare.’
“Then... we just need to deal with the part where she didn’t report it to the guild in advance.” I pointed out.
‘But she lied on her report...’
Since I was the one getting the report, she had to have asked Han Sora to lie on the report.
‘Stop saying such ridiculous things.’
'You recover a ton of mana every second. You can do anything with a little bit of mana.'
“Then, I’ll bring her here right now. I assume... you’ll be handling it in your room,” she said.
“Yes, I’ll take care of it out of other people’s sight. Don’t let the other guild members know that Ha-Yan is getting disciplined. I don’t want people to think she didn’t get the discipline she deserved,” I instructed.
“I’m sure no one will feel that way,” Jo Hye-Jin commented.
Yeah, she was right.
“Also, are you really okay, sir?” Jo Hye-Jin asked.
“You heard the priests. I simply lost consciousness out of shock. I feel perfectly fine. I know what you’re worried about, but it completely disappeared after my revival. You don’t have to worry about it anymore,” I reassured her.
“That’s a relief,” Jo Hye-Jin said. She then smiled and left the room.
‘She worries a lot about useless things.’
I could still remember how she had written a post on Benigoa Net's main forums while crying upon hearing that I had fainted for no reason.
She already knew that my health conditions had disappeared upon my revival, but it seemed that the recent incident still brought a great deal of shock to her. I was sure she reacted that way because it was a pretty big incident, but she was overreacting in my eyes.
“Ah! Don’t forget my request,” I reminded her.
“Okay.”
‘I need to see what our informants will bring.’
Restoring Jung Ha-Yan’s self-esteem was more important than waiting for them.
The effect of the potion was going to disappear today, and if I were to drag this any longer, she could experience side effects.
‘I’m sure she’s really scared.’
She had to have been struggling these days. More importantly, she definitely thought that she needed to hide this from me.
Naturally, she was worried about getting caught, and I was sure her anxiety was amplified to the max right now, as she knew that she was about to get caught. The fact that she had mentioned performing a large-scale magic experiment that was unknown to me meant that she was becoming desperate by spinning lies.
‘People need to live an honest life.’
Or they ought to stop being nervous about lying. One would feel better by not thinking about getting caught at all. My words were proven by a nervous Jung Ha-Yan entering the room.
“D-D-Did you call for me? O-Oppa?” Jung Ha-Yan asked.
Jung Ha-Yan was definitely sleep-deprived. She looked tired and mentally unstable.
Perhaps it was because of Han Sora, but she wasn't biting her nails, and her hair wasn't in a mess either. However, I couldn’t deduce her feelings from her appearance alone. I could also see an unknown sense of resolve in her eyes.
Jung Ha-Yan probably thought that there was no way she'd allow herself to get abandoned. She was resolved to make sure that she wouldn't get caught and that she had to endure what was coming.
She looked like a lawyer preparing her final defense of a lifetime.
“Sit here, Ha-Yan. Do you want something to drink?” I offered.
“No, I’m okay,” Jung Ha-Yan replied.
“How about a cup of tea?” I suggested.
“O-Okay, I’ll drink it,” Jung Ha-Yan answered.
Han Sora wasn’t here to defend her, so I was sure they ran through several simulations and thought of excuses against the questions I could ask her.
“You know why I called you here, right?” I asked.
“Y-Yes,” Jung Ha-Yan replied.
Jung Ha-Yan was a bad liar.
“I received the report from Miss Hye-Jin. About the magic experiment...” I trailed off.
“Y-Yes! I-It was a really important experiment. I-I didn’t tell you because I wanted to keep it a secret from you. I-I... wanted to surprise you... b-but the experiment... failed. Still, it was really amazing. I want to tell you more about it...” Jung Ha-Yan trailed off.
“...”
“B-but I can’t use my spells right now... b-because of the side-effects from the experiment... I mean, I can use it... b-but I want to recover faster... s-so... I don't want to use my spells for the time being,” Jung Ha-Yan continued.
“Oh yeah? What kind of experiment was it?” I asked.
“It was an experiment involving the assimilation of several conflicting spells. I-I was trying to fuse it directly into my body...” Jung Ha-Yan responded. She was still stuttering, but it wasn't that bad, and it was all because her answers were prepared beforehand.
“I-I did it with Sora. S-She can tell you if you ask her,” Jung Ha-Yan stuttered.
Jung Ha-Yan immediately mentioned a witness.
“When did you do it?” I asked.
“B-Before you joined Rafael’s party. It’s all written in the experimental log,” Jung Ha-Yan replied.
There was even an alibi.
‘She’s more meticulous than I thought.’
I was sure they went over the answers several times, as Han Sora was the one who came up with that alibi.
“I-I normally don’t make mistakes, b-but I probably wasn’t in my best condition back then. I-I think I was sick. I honestly thought that it wasn’t a big deal. I’m sorry for not letting you know ahead of time. I-I also apologized to all the other guild members with Sora,” Jung Ha-Yan said.
“Oh yeah? Then...”
“I-I-I need to get disciplined... Ah! Ah! I caused trouble, so of course, I should apologize. I’m sorry,” Jung Ha-Yan said. She even showed me her mature side by acknowledging her mistakes.
“If possible, I want to avoid punishing you as well, but I have to worry about other people as well. You understand, right?” I asked.
“Y-Yes!” she replied.
“As a guild member, there are rules you must follow. This is for your safety, not for the safety of others. I hope you understand that,” I added.
“I see...”
‘She definitely thinks that I haven't noticed it yet.’
'Why does she look so cute?'
I was talking about the look of success on her face. She looked cute when she clenched her fist. She was bad at lying, so I could easily see through her lies, which made her appear even more innocent in my eyes.
I really wanted to end things here...
“Are you... telling the truth about the experiment?” I questioned.
“What?”
“I checked the logs a few days ago because I check your logs almost every day. I remember not seeing any mentions of an experiment before I left for Rafael's party. Am I remembering it wrong?” I asked.
“Ah... w-well I forgot to upload—”
“I double-checked with the guild staffers and the guild members of the Magic Tower Guild,” I interrupted her.
“...”
“I don’t know what kind of experiment you were doing, but if it was that dangerous, then I'd already be aware of it. And you don’t look normal right now. Are you really speaking the truth? You’re not lying to me, are you?” I questioned.
“I-I-I-I wouldn’t... dare. I-I would... never lie... to you,” Jung Ha-Yan stuttered.
'Why won’t you look at me?'
Her hands were no longer clenched, and I could see her cowering before me. I could see cold sweat on her forehead, and she was biting her lips. She was looking away, clearly afraid to look at me.
“I-I-I don’t... feel so good...” Jung Ha-Yan said.
'Are you saying you want to adjourn this meeting?'
Jung Ha-Yan wanted to go back to Han Sora and figure out a way to counter my questions, but I wasn't going to let that happen.
“I’m fine with everything else, Ha-Yan,” I told her.
“Huh? W-What... do you mean...” Jung Ha-Yan asked.
“I’m really fine with everything else, but I don’t like it when you lie,” I said.
“I...”
“Especially when it’s about her health or the condition of your body,” I added.
Obviously, I looked at her warmly and touched her cheek as if I was telling her that she was the most precious person in the world to me.
Hyun-Sun and Jung Ha-Yan had seen this unique expression on me before.
‘You know I like you, right?’
“Really...”
‘You know you’re the only one for me, right?’
“Ahhh... ah...”
‘You’re the most important to me. I have no one else.’
The situation was serious, but I smiled. Of course, I didn't really smile on the outside.
The thought of her alone was making me smile.
'You’re that special to me.'
“I-I-I... so...” Jung Ha-Yan stuttered.
'The thought that something bad had happened to you or that you got hurt is unbearable for me.'
‘I want you to stay by my side.’
Forever...
‘I really want you by my side forever.’
“Ah... ack... O-Oppa...” Jung Ha-Yan muttered.
But...
“When did you lose your magic?” I questioned.
“...”
“...”
Jung Ha-Yan's face instantly turned pale.