Chapter 138
The Administrative Assistant for a Magic Investigator.
The job mainly involved organizing, sorting, and checking the daily influx of documents.
It was a monotonous routine, offering no involvement in actual investigations.
Adela regretted signing up as an administrative assistant rather than a field assistant, but nonetheless, she was already at work early in the morning, wiping down the window sills.
Like most prophets, Han Si-hyuk had a particularly fastidious nature, and if the office wasn’t spotless, she would inevitably hear about it.
Adela hung up Han Si-hyuk’s coat, which was draped over a hanger.
The stiff, neatly pressed outerwear was almost as compulsively maintained as Professor Grint’s attire.
She chuckled to herself, recalling Han Siha, who always wore ragged clothes.
At the academic conference, he was practically walking around like a zombie, his clothes all burnt and tattered.
His confident attitude, as if just wearing something was enough, had left her speechless.
“How are they so different?”
They were brothers, after all, even if they only shared half of their blood.
But looking at their personalities and behaviors, they seemed to have nothing in common.
“I wonder what he’s up to.”
Adela was swamped with work, and Han Siha seemed to be holed up in Professor Ernst’s lab, as she hadn’t seen him around lately.
She thought about making time to meet up with him over the weekend when she opened the hallway door.
“Oh, hey!”
Han Siha was standing right outside.
Adela’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Han Siha…?”
“I’m starting work here today.”
“You? Here?”
“Yeah.”
“Wow!”
It was an official statement. Adela couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise.
This was a welcome piece of news, especially since she was getting bored with the monotonous administrative tasks.
Her eyes sparkled with excitement, unable to hide her joy.
“Seriously? You’re starting today?”
“Yeah, as a field assistant. It’s only for about a month, but I think our schedules will overlap.”
“I didn’t expect the investigator to hire you…”
Adela tilted her head and muttered in amazement.
From what she knew, Han Si-hyuk was more likely to keep his brother at a distance than hire him, even if they were related by blood.
In all honesty, it seemed like Han Si-hyuk outright disliked Han Siha.
That such an investigator would personally hire Han Siha was surprising, but not impossible.
After all, blood is thicker than water.
But then…
“Huh? The guy didn’t hire me.”
“What?”
“If he knew, he definitely would’ve rejected me.”
Han Siha grinned, lowering his voice.
The person responsible for hiring field assistants wasn’t Han Si-hyuk.
Han Si-hyuk was the type to focus solely on investigations, shoving off any bothersome administrative tasks to the Ardel Academy’s administration office.
Adela nodded in agreement after hearing Han Siha’s explanation.
“Your previous year’s grades, participation in the academic conference, and being a third-year or higher in the magic department—those requirements fit you perfectly. You got hired fair and square, though someone doesn’t know that yet.”
“Hold on a second.”
Adela blinked.
“So, does that mean he still doesn’t know…?”
“Of course not!”
Before Adela could even finish her sentence.
“Oh, here he comes.”
The door burst open.
The subject of their conversation, Han Si-hyuk, entered the office, maintaining his usual stoic expression.
His face twisted the moment he saw Han Siha.
“…!”
Han Siha grinned and spoke up.
“Wow, what’s with that face? Did you just swallow something sour?”
Watching the usually emotionless person’s expression change was pretty amusing.
Adela had no way of knowing that the relationship between the two had gotten even colder since the academic conference.
But she could sense that the atmosphere was tense.
Han Si-hyuk furrowed his brows, his words faltering.
“Why are you here… Don’t tell me…”
He had been informed that a new field assistant would be arriving today.
Han Si-hyuk’s eyelid twitched.
A prophet’s intuition is usually accurate.
Han Siha folded his hands politely in front of him.
“Investigator Han Si-hyuk.”
“Wh-what?”
“I’m Han Siha, your new field assistant. I look forward to working with you.”
Using the same overly polite tone he reserved for Professor Ernst, Han Siha spoke with exaggerated deference.
Han Si-hyuk felt goosebumps all over his body.
Han Siha was grinning right in front of him.
“Thank you for hiring me.”
“When did I… When did I ever hire you…?”
“I’ll do my best to meet your expectations as a field assistant.”
“You… you…”
Adela knew this much.
Han Siha was talented in many areas, but…
“Should I leave?”
“Get out!”
…he had a special talent for getting under people’s skin.
* * *
Han Si-hyuk was clearly pissed off.
No, more like absolutely furious.
“This is your first investigation. You handle it.”
“You handle this one, too.”
“And that one.”
“Get all of these done by the end of the week and report back to me.”
Being a field assistant to an investigator. In other words, being an intern.
When you’re an intern, you have to do as you’re told.
Hmm.
I think I used to push back at my seniors when I was an intern.
“I really was a difficult bastard to deal with.”
Still, I don’t want to push back at Han Si-hyuk right now.
I’m here to figure out the source of his mysterious strength, so I need to play along for now.
I saw him pulverize Achent’s head into dust in the blink of an eye.
If I keep pushing his buttons, he might just smash my head with that nameplate of his.
So, for now, I accepted the investigations Han Si-hyuk assigned to me.
Adela, who was an administrative assistant, joined me today, acting as a temporary field assistant.
I sighed and read through the case file I had received.
“This is the first case file? The title alone is something else.”
“Case of the Sewer Creature”.
“They say they hear something living in the sewer, but it’s too deep to see.”
“Yeah, that’s what they say.”
“Couldn’t we just use basic telekinesis to pull it out?”
“Yeah.”
“Do they handle these kinds of minor cases too? What is this, a complaint center?”
“The boundaries can get… a bit blurry.”
“Since when has checking sewers been part of an investigator’s job?”
This really feels like he’s trying to mess with me.
The “Sewer Creature” Case, “Professor Ernst’s Lab Light Repair” Case—and a pile of other miscellaneous complaint files were stacked up.
It was enough work to keep me busy for days, even if I didn’t sleep.
“Ha…”
I was already exhausted.
It seemed like Han Si-hyuk had dumped all his work on me and then made himself scarce.
“Adela, let’s go.”
Anyway, I had to do the work.
* * *
The first task was repairing the lights in Professor Ernst’s lab.
“Phew, sir, it’s been a while since these lights were replaced, huh?”
“I’m not sure. They’ve probably been like that since we moved the lab…!”
“I’ve replaced them now, so you shouldn’t have to worry about them for a while.”
I don’t know why I’m doing this kind of work as a so-called field assistant, but at least it didn’t take long.
Senior Betty was thrilled with the newly brightened lab.
“Wow… But does the administrative office usually take care of things like this?”
“No, it’s from the investigation office.”
“Huh? The investigation… office? Oh, right, you said you started as a field assistant in the magic investigation office…”
“Yes. But here I am, changing light bulbs. Isn’t it fun?”
Betty seemed to be looking at me with a puzzled expression, as if she couldn’t quite grasp what was happening.
Honestly, I can’t blame her. I mean, why am I the one replacing light bulbs?
Well, anyway.
“Next time, just call Solia for things like this. She’s like a human light bulb and can probably handle it better.”
“Solia…?”
“Yeah, she’s a light mage. She should be pretty good at lighting things up.”
“Oh… really?”
Betty tilted her head, still processing the idea.
“So, where are you heading next?”
Since there were only the two of us in Professor Ernst’s lab, we’d grown somewhat close, despite what it might seem.
For a senior who was extremely shy, the fact that she was now speaking to me without hesitation was a sign that she felt comfortable around me.
I mentioned my next destination.
“I have to investigate a case about a sewer creature.”
“Sewer creature?”
Last year, when a drake had appeared in the school’s basement, it had caused a major uproar, especially among the students who had previously felt safe within the academy grounds.
For those who remembered that incident, the term “creature” was enough to send chills down their spine.
Betty, her voice trembling with concern, asked cautiously.
“A sewer creature near the academy? Is there… a monster down there?”
“No. It sounds like it’s just a cat.”
*The Sewer Creature Case.*
The report mentioned strange noises coming from the sewer, as if something was living in it, but it was too deep to see.
—Okay, sure, I can see how that could be scary. I can see why they’d call the investigation team.
That’s what I initially thought.
But the sound turned out to be a simple “Meow.”
Meow.
Damn it.
I’m about to go rescue a lost cat.
“A… a cat?”
“Yes.”
Betty stared blankly at me for a moment before asking the question I had been asking myself.
“Why… does the investigator need to handle this?”
“I have no idea. Want to come along?”
* * *
At the sewer behind Ardel Academy.
We stood quietly in front of a wide sewer opening, large enough for a person to crawl through.
“This is the place?”
“According to the report, yeah.”
The report stated that the mysterious creature had been spotted around this area.
Betty approached cautiously, her curiosity evident.
“It won’t bite, right?”
“It probably will.”
“…!”
It wouldn’t bite like a drake and rip your head off, but it could still bite.
I crouched down skillfully.
To rescue one cat, we had three of Ardel Academy’s top talents on the case.
It felt like an enormous waste of talent, but whatever.
I pressed my ear against the sewer wall.
“I hear something.”
Adela lowered her voice.
A faint meowing sound could be heard. It was a sound I recognized immediately.
It was definitely a cat.
“So what should we do? Should we just pull it out with telekinesis?”
In a world where magic doesn’t exist, we’d probably send a camera down there and have someone crawl through to rescue the cat. But here, we have the convenience of telekinesis.
“Betty, can you handle it? As gently as possible.”
Adela’s telekinesis was rather… forceful. She would probably yank the cat out as if she were pulling a rock from the ground.
The cat looked like a kitten, and if it got too stressed and died, it would be on me.
Betty, though she excelled in theory, was more adept at basic magic than us, so it was better to leave it to her.
“I just need to slowly… pull it out, right?”
“Yes.”
“Okay… I’ll give it a shot!”
Betty crouched down in front of the sewer and began casting basic telekinesis.
A delicate wave of magic flowed along the sewer walls. It was a calm, steady flow, matching Betty’s quiet personality.
In the unseen darkness, the meowing echoed.
Meow—
“It’s panicking.”
We could hear the cat struggling, trying to back away.
I couldn’t help but chuckle.
Yeah, it’s probably terrified, being pulled along by some invisible force.
But it’s better than freezing to death in that dark sewer.
Meow— Meow—
“It’s okay, just a little more. Just come out a bit more!”
Betty, who had come along just to watch, was now more invested in the rescue than anyone else, pouring all her magic into the task.
She distributed the magic as evenly and slowly as possible.
All to avoid scaring the small, young creature.
“Just a bit more! Oh, I see it…!”
The kitten had been pulled close enough that it was now visible.
It looked like it hadn’t been born long ago; its fur was still soft and fluffy despite its short time living on the streets. Its bright, curious eyes darted around nervously.
Struggling.
It tried to scurry back into the sewer, but Betty’s telekinesis was faster.
With a gentle pull, the kitten was brought right to the sewer’s edge, where it hesitated.
“Oh!”
Adela, who had been about to shout in excitement, quickly covered her mouth.
It might get spooked, so it was best not to startle it. Instead, she added anxiously.
“Betty, if we don’t catch it now, it’ll run away, right?”
“Probably. Wh-what should I do? Should I let go? Should I grab it? Oh no, I shouldn’t let it go!”
“Betty, I’ll catch it!”
As the two of them fumbled around, unsure of what to do.
I crouched down and locked eyes with the kitten.
It must have been terrified, being dragged out by some strange force just moments ago.
But sometimes, a young creature’s curiosity can overcome its fear.
Meow—
The kitten let out a small, plaintive meow and turned its head toward me.
Its paws, now free from the telekinetic hold, could easily retreat back into the sewer.
But I waited.
“Hey.”
“…!”
“Come here.”
As if responding to my voice.
The kitten, which had been frozen in place, took a step forward.
Adela, who had been ready to pounce, quietly stepped back.
Meow—
The small creature, its curiosity piqued, sniffed the air and sat down in front of me.
Instinctively, I reached out my hand.
Gently.
The soft, fluffy fur met my hand. The kitten, having abandoned its earlier wariness, nestled into my hand.
Sniff, sniff.
It even started sniffing me.
Rubbing against me.
It was practically using my hand like a towel.
Betty, who had been watching quietly, widened her eyes in surprise.
The same kitten that had tried to escape even basic telekinesis was now calmly lying down.
Adela, stunned, blurted out.
“Did you… tame it?”
“How did you do that?”
“Hmm.”
It seems like I’ve been chosen.
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