The frozen Kim Myeongju slumped back into his chair.

“What’s wrong? What happened?”

National Intelligence Service Director Kang Haksang urged him, seeing his unusual reaction.

Indeed, anyone could tell from Kim Myeongju’s reaction that something big had happened.

“…Trainee Kim Songcheol has disappeared with a high-ranking Mage.”

Kim Myeongju explained in a disheartened voice.

At that, the shoulders of Kang Haksang and the other National Intelligence Service employees slumped.

The shock consumed the Headquarters, making everything silent.

Participation of a 6th Circle or higher Hunter.

This was no different from a machine gun appearing in a medieval battle.

Operation Truman had not even planned for a Hunter of 6th Circle or higher.

They were classified as Asymmetric Power, so there was no reason or need to include them.

“Did a high-ranking Mage kidnap Kim Songcheol, or what?”

Kang Haksang, who had barely recovered, put strength into his voice.

Kim Myeongju had clearly said ‘disappeared together’. From Kang Haksang’s perspective, it was quite ambiguous.

Because there was still a lot of room for interpretation.

“I don’t know.”

“What about the possibility that Kim Songcheol accepted the offer?”

“That, too, I don’t know.”

Kim Myeongju shook his head, repeating the same words like a parrot.

“Damn it.”

Kang Haksang bit out a curse and roughly pulled out his earpiece.

“We should have put a bug on him.”

He glared at Kim Myeongju with resentful eyes.

The National Intelligence Service had suggested implanting a location tracker and a bugging device on Kim Songcheol’s mobile phone and clothes.

It was Kim Myeongju who had stopped it until the end.

He had persuaded the National Intelligence Service Director by listing issues of credibility if discovered, and the courtesy due to a Training Institute student as an Education Director.

“…We still don’t know anything.”

Kim Myeongju repeated the same words again. But the nuance was different from the first time.

“Isn’t it already over?”

“As I said, don’t we not know the situation?”

“He’s already flown away with Teleport or whatever, so is he going to take a short night stroll and then bring him back nicely?”

“…”

“It’s already over, Education Director Kim Myeongju.”

Kang Haksang removed the communication device from his waist, threw it onto the desk, and stood up abruptly.

“Withdraw!”

The National Intelligence Service Director’s order was given.

Kang Haksang left immediately, and the employees one by one began to get up and pack up their belongings.

The sharp atmosphere of the office quickly turned chaotic.

The noise of equipment being put into boxes and documents being shredded filled the space.

The operation was over.

The emotions had already vanished from the faces of the disappointed employees.

They simply did what needed to be done calmly.

While everyone moved, only Kim Myeongju remained in his seat.

He sat with his arms crossed, staring at the screen, as if time had stopped.

The dozens of divided screens also turned off one by one.

But Kim Myeongju sat quietly. It was as if time had stopped only around him.

He was waiting.

He also believed in Kim Songcheol.

And a moment later.

His waiting and belief were rewarded.

[Director, Trainee Kim Songcheol’s Mana Reaction has been confirmed. He’s back.]

Kim Myeongju’s earpiece rang.

“He’s back!?”

Kim Myeongju replied loudly. It was as if he wanted the other employees to hear.

The employees also simultaneously turned their heads towards Kim Myeongju.

Some employees even called Kang Haksang back.

[Yes. He’s back. Confirmed.]

“What about that Hunter?”

[I don’t know yet… huh?]

Sudden bewilderment.

“Why? What’s going on!?”

Kim Myeongju asked urgently.

[Just now that Hunter… appeared in front of me, gave me the middle finger, and disappeared. For now… it seems he’s gone back.]

It was a bewildered voice.

“Did you recognize his face?”

[It was Colt Vanguard.]

A name known to anyone with even a slight interest in Hunters.

One of America’s top Mages.

Also known as the Jester.

The Asymmetric Power deployed in Operation Truman was none other than Colt Vanguard.

But even with his identity revealed, Kim Myeongju’s expression was not relieved.

Because Colt Vanguard was not someone who would move just because the Government requested it.

Why Colt Vanguard, of all people?

He couldn’t understand why at all.

***

‘Ah, I ended up not telling them.’

Kim Songcheol lay down on his bed.

It was after he had spent the entire evening with his parents.

They ate dinner, went for a walk, and watched TV together.

During that long time, they chatted, but he couldn’t say a single word about officially becoming a Hunter.

‘At this rate, they’ll see my face on TV first.’

After graduating from the Training Institute and becoming a Hunter, one’s face occasionally appears in the news or on the internet.

If he became famous before that, his picture might even pop up in short-form videos.

‘Oh, I don’t know.’

Kim Songcheol, uncharacteristically, put off this problem.

No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t bring himself to tell his parents.

Kim Songcheol just pulled the blanket over himself and tried to sleep.

Perhaps due to his complicated feelings, he tossed and turned many times.

It was when he finally drifted off to sleep.

Kim Songcheol’s eyes shot open, feeling a sudden surge of mana.

A massive surge that his senses couldn’t possibly miss.

It was a level he had never felt before.

‘What in the world…?’

He had no idea what level of magic would cause such a mana surge.

However, the mana surge suddenly dispersed like the sky clearing, and instead, he sensed a presence.

A slight breath.

The faint rustle of clothes.

He distinctly felt someone standing behind him.

Kim Songcheol was extremely tense.

The opponent was alone, but definitely a powerful mage.

Just as Kim Songcheol was racking his brain for a countermeasure.

“Relax. I’m not here to kill you, haha.”

A playful voice was heard.

Only then did Kim Songcheol slowly sit up and identify the owner of the voice.

It was a foreigner with a stylish beard. His face wasn’t clearly visible in the dark, but he didn’t seem very old for someone with such a beard.

He wore a long coat and was as tall as his coat was long.

The man walked steadily with his shoes on, then flicked on the room light.

Kim Songcheol, whose eyes had adjusted to the darkness, winced.

The man, as if expecting this, was already wearing sunglasses.

“What? He looks old, doesn’t he?”

The man tilted his head.

Kim Songcheol belatedly recognized the man’s face and unconsciously rubbed his eyes.

It was a familiar face.

“Colt Vanguard…?”

“Oh, you know me? Well, it’d be harder not to.”

“Why are you here?”

Colt Vanguard and Hanmaeum Apartment Building 105, Unit 1208 were an utterly incongruous combination.

“I was curious. You’re causing quite a stir, you know?”

“I don’t know.”

Kim Songcheol was sincere.

Honestly, the fact that Colt Vanguard was in front of him was hard to adjust to.

A 6th Circle Mage, no less.

There were no 7th Circle Mages on the entire planet.

A person who could be called the highest-level Mage on Earth had come in person.

If he had told other trainees, they might have dismissed it as a dream.

“Then I’ll tell you indirectly. America promised you a blank check. They told me to convey that when I said I was coming.”

“…Did you come to naturalize me?”

“No. I just came out of curiosity.”

Colt took a step closer and extended his hand. He was smiling brightly.

“Shall we shake hands?”

Kim Songcheol clasped his hand without any hesitation.

For a moment, Colt Vanguard’s mana flowed slightly through his palm and then receded.

“…It’s true.”

Colt pushed his sunglasses up like a headband and looked directly at Kim Songcheol with his clear green eyes.

He looked as if he had just seen the world’s largest diamond.

“Your mana affinity really is 100. How can a person be like this? Are you even human?”

“Are you going to keep holding my hand?”

At Kim Songcheol’s remark, looking at their clasped hands, Colt finally let go.

“At this rate… I can’t take you, can I? Those foolish enemies. It’s obvious what would happen if they took a mage like this. Isn’t that right?”

Colt asked with a bright smile.

“What does that mean?”

“It means that before long, the nation won’t be able to control you. Right now, they probably think they can do anything if they just bring you in… but what could those enemies do, even I struggle with you, haha. How old are you, by the way? You look old.”

“…I’m 31.”

“You’re late?”

“The affinity tester kept avoiding me in a strange way.”

“I guess they were trying to balance things out.”

Colt shrugged and took a step back.

The moment his fingers snapped.

A magic circle appeared beneath his feet.

Its complexity was immense at a glance.

At least 6th Circle or higher.

Kim Songcheol assumed it was teleportation magic.

“You’re not going to America, are you? I knew it. Well then…”

Colt babbled on and waved his hand.

It seemed like he didn’t want to take Kim Songcheol, or perhaps never intended to in the first place.

Perhaps he was wary of his own position diminishing if he took Kim Songcheol.

Just as the magic circle began to glow.

Kim Songcheol’s mana interfered with the magic circle.

“Huh? You can do something like this too?”

Colt’s eyes widened.

It was like someone grabbing another person’s wrist.

But an ordinary mage would have been repelled before even touching the wrist.

Colt could have easily shaken him off, but he stopped the activation for now.

“I have a question.”

Kim Songcheol said.

An opportunity to meet a 6th Circle Mage.

And a friendly one at that.

Such opportunities didn’t come easily.

“You’ve shown me this much, so I can’t just leave, can I? What is it?”

“Do you know about the phenomenon of affecting already activated magic?”

“Affecting activated magic? What do you mean by that?”

Colt didn’t understand Kim Songcheol’s words immediately.

It was beyond his comprehension.

“For example, changing the trajectory of a flying Lightning Spear.”

“That’s impossible.”

Colt said flatly.

“Change the trajectory of a Lightning Spear? Doesn’t that mean it has a guidance function without a Magic Formula? And for Electric Shock Magic, no less.”

“Something like that.”

“No, that can’t be. If this is a joke, this is your last chance. Say it’s a joke. Then I’ll just laugh it off.”

“Want me to show you? But not here.”

He carefully observed Kim Songcheol’s expression before speaking.

“…Come up.”

Colt pointed to his feet.

The moment Kim Songcheol stepped off the bed and onto the Magic formation, he was enveloped in light, feeling as if he was entering a Portal.

When he regained his senses, he found himself standing in a park.

A quiet late night.

Only the orange streetlights illuminated the park.

“This should be good enough, right?”

Colt asked.

Kim Songcheol nodded and stepped back.

The sand felt rough on his bare feet, but he proceeded to Cast a Lightning Spear.

First, the Magic formation was created.

Colt interpreted the Magic formation the moment he saw it.

It was exactly the standard Lightning Spear, without any other Magic Formula.

Crackling!

Soon, a long Electric Shock spear emerged from the Magic formation and shot forward at high speed.

And the moment Kim Songcheol slightly narrowed his eyes…

The Lightning Spear’s trajectory twisted, and it flew into the air.

The Lightning Spear cut through the night sky like a comet rising in reverse and disappeared.

Colt’s jaw dropped the moment he witnessed it.

“It’s real… Why is everything so real…? Please, just make one joke…”

He was still looking up at the sky where the Lightning Spear had vanished.

Kim Songcheol’s words were true.

Something he had completely dismissed as a joke.

Colt stared at the sky for a long time before slowly opening his mouth.

“How on earth did you do that?”

“I just thought I wanted to twist its trajectory. Though it does require pretty intense Concentration.”

“Insane.”

Colt laughed hollowly and continued.

“This… can’t be explained by Circle Magic. The variable ‘Will’ isn’t dealt with in Circle Magic. Unless it’s a higher Magic system than Circle Magic.”

Colt’s usually playful expression was utterly serious at this moment.