I’ll Retire After Saving the World

Translator: FenrirTL
Editor: KYSOIWDI

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[ Chapter 35: Half-Baked Mage (2) ]

“…W-wait a minute. First… um. Yeah. Try to calm down, okay?”

Woo Hee-jae hurriedly pulled up a chair and sat in front of Park Seo-hyun.

“Why… why do you think that, Seo-hyun?”

“No matter how much I think about it….”

Park Seo-hyun roughly wiped her eyes with her sleeve. Her tear-stained face was a mess, flushed and blotchy. Her eyes were still brimming with tears.

“I… I…”

Her voice trembled.

Park Seo-hyun bit her lip and took deep breaths to steady her voice.

After a while, Park Seo-hyun finally spoke with a slightly calmer expression. Woo Hee-jae waited patiently.

“…I have no talent.”

“…….”

“I’m not qualified to be a mage. Before I cause more trouble for the others… I need to quit as soon as possible.”

“Hmm….”

Woo Hee-jae closed his mouth with a perplexed expression.

Park Seo-hyun noticed that Woo Hee-jae was carefully choosing his words to avoid hurting her.

He really is a good person.

That’s probably why he taught runes to someone like me.

‘Wow! That’s amazing! Do you think I could use magic like you?’

Hunter Training Pilot High School, where she had followed Hong Seok-young.

‘Oh, um, yeah? I heard you’re a mage too….’

‘I just awakened recently! I’ve never used magic before! I don’t even know how to!’

There were only two mages, including her and Choi Jin-woo. But even Choi Jin-woo had only recently awakened, so it was hard to consider him a proper mage yet.

Even with a simple light spell, Choi Jin-woo marveled as if he were a grand mage. Perhaps she, too, had gotten carried away with delusions beyond her capability.

I can do it too.

But she had seen it in Myeong-dong.

She had drawn runes in place of Choi Jin-woo, who wasn’t yet adept at manipulating magic. She thought she was better suited than a three-month novice mage.

It was all a mistake.

Just as her grandfather said, arrogance had ruined her. She had almost caused serious harm not only to her precious friend but also to other civilians.

If it hadn’t been for Woo Hee-jae, not even half of the survivors might have made it….

“…Student! Park Seo-hyun!”

She had a feeling this day would come. If she had given up when she first sensed it, things would have been much better.

She had come this far, driven by the desire to conjure the cluster of light her grandfather had shown her when she was young.

But now, it was time to let go of everything.

Magic she couldn’t even use. Maybe she should reveal it to the public like her teacher suggested. Let anyone, any true mage, use it properly.

That might be better for her grandfather too. Instead of being the unfortunate grand mage with a talentless granddaughter….

“Park Seo-hyun!!”

Snap!

Woo Hee-jae called out Park Seo-hyun’s name loudly and snapped his fingers.

Park Seo-hyun flinched and looked up. The tears that had briefly stopped started flowing again.

Woo Hee-jae ran his hand through his hair with a complicated expression.

“Hey…. First, stop crying.”

Woo Hee-jae fumbled around his chest as if searching for something in his pockets. Then, as if he remembered something, he clicked his tongue and grabbed the roll of tissue on the desk and handed it to her.

“Here… wipe your tears. If you keep wiping with your hands, it will hurt. Do you want me to bring you some water?”

“Sniff… No, I’m fine.”

“Are you feeling a bit calmer?”

Park Seo-hyun couldn’t bring herself to lift her head and just stared at her knees.

As she fidgeted with the tissue soaked in tears, she heard a sigh from above her head.

“I really don’t know where to start….”

Is it serious enough to warrant starting from somewhere?

“So….”

Woo Hee-jae asked in a calm voice.

“Let’s start from the beginning.”

“…Okay.”

“Why do you want to quit school?”

“Well, that’s….”

There were too many reasons. Thinking about them wasn’t hard, but actually saying them out loud made her feel utterly miserable.

Among the many reasons swirling in her mind, Park Seo-hyun spoke the most fundamental one, as Woo Hee-jae suggested, from the beginning.

“…I’m not qualified to be a mage.”

“Hmm…. I don’t understand. Are there qualifications for being a mage? Besides the Hunter license, I mean.”

“There’s nothing like that, but….”

Woo Hee-jae scrunched his face.

“Did someone say something to you? Did the others….”

“What? No!! Nothing like that happened!”

Park Seo-hyun hurriedly denied Woo Hee-jae’s words, shocked. Woo Hee-jae, looking even more puzzled, asked again.

“Then why do you think you’re not qualified?”

“Well, that’s because….”

Park Seo-hyun bit her lip.

Did he really want to hear it from her own mouth? She knew her teacher didn’t like her, but this was too cruel.

Tears began to well up again.

“No! Why are you crying again?”

“I…!”

The already soaked tissue tore. Park Seo-hyun clung to the torn tissue as if it were a lifeline and shouted.

“I can’t even use magic properly! How can I call myself a mage?”

She said it. It was out.

There was no turning back now. Even though she had decided to give up, feeling like this showed she couldn’t let go of her regrets. She had clung to this ever since her grandfather passed away, but she couldn’t help it.

Still, she had to swallow that feeling and let go. It was the last shred of pride she had left.

“…What do you mean?”

But Woo Hee-jae, seemingly unmoved by Park Seo-hyun’s heartfelt confession, responded with an astonished look.

“You’ve been using magic just fine all this time? What about those runes you used for the durability test? Isn’t that magic?”

“T-that’s just basic magic….”

“Are you looking down on basic magic now?”

“That’s not what I meant….”

“Then it’s fine. What more do you want? For someone your age, that’s more than enough. Even just knowing how to use a shield properly would be enough to make a living.”

This reaction wasn’t what she expected.

Park Seo-hyun stammered as she tried to rebut Woo Hee-jae’s words.

“Shields aren’t basic magic….”

“What? Are you trying to say basic magic and common magic aren’t real magic?”

“That’s not what I meant!”

After a brief moment of confusion, Woo Hee-jae spoke in his usual nonchalant manner.

“Isn’t that what you’re saying right now? That’s how it sounds.”

“No….”

“Then? What is it? What do you mean? You said you’re not qualified to be a mage. There must be a reason you think that way.”

Park Seo-hyun bit her lip hard.

“…Because I have no talent.”

Woo Hee-jae let out a big sigh.

“We’re going in circles here, but for your age, whether it’s basic magic or common magic, doing as much as you can is more than enough talent. Your shield casting speed is even fast. How fast was it?”

“Three seconds….”

“Your shield casting is better than most active mages. So what’s the problem?”

Problem?

How much had she agonized over this decision?

…Maybe it was because her teacher wasn’t a mage. Those who aren’t mages wouldn’t understand how important this is to a mage.

Park Seo-hyun calmed herself and began to speak in a composed manner. If she explained it slowly, her teacher might understand and empathize, at least to some extent.

“I have to become a Grand Mage.”

“A Grand Mage?”

“But I’m not qualified to be a Grand Mage, and I have no talent for it.”

Park Seo-hyun glanced at Woo Hee-jae. Seeing him frown slightly made her nervous, and she quickly lowered her head again.

“Did I make you feel pressured by saying you could become a Grand Mage?”

“…What?”

“Or is it because of Mr. Kim? Because Mr. Kim is a Grand Mage? Did it make being a Grand Mage seem too easy?”

“What? No! That’s not it at all!”

“Hmm…. Can I be honest with you?”

It seemed like he was already being honest.

Woo Hee-jae didn’t wait for her answer.

“How many Grand Mages do you think there are in the world?”

Park Seo-hyun blinked.

“In a group of a hundred thousand mages, there wouldn’t even be one Grand Mage.”

“That’s… probably true.”

“You knew that? I thought you didn’t.”

Woo Hee-jae clicked his tongue briefly. Park Seo-hyun flinched.

“There are countries with no Grand Mages at all. Do you know how many Grand Mages there are in our country?”

“T-ten.”

“Oh. There are only ten now? You weren’t trying to be one of those ten, were you? If you were one of them, there wouldn’t be ten anymore. So, you wanted to be the eleventh?”

“…….”

“Grand Mage. It’s great to become a Grand Mage. But there are far more mages who can’t become Grand Mages. Should all those mages quit? Do they all lack the qualifications? What about the lessons you had with Mr. Kim? Was Mr. Kim giving magic lessons to someone who wasn’t even a mage? Was that charity work?”

Although it was close to charity, Park Seo-hyun didn’t know that. Woo Hee-jae didn’t intend to tell her either.

Woo Hee-jae’s words cut sharply. Park Seo-hyun raised her head. Her tears had long since stopped.

Woo Hee-jae tilted his head to the side and asked.

“Or, do you still think basic magic isn’t real magic?”

“No! That’s not it!”

“That’s exactly what you’re saying right now.”

Woo Hee-jae let out an obvious sigh.

Hearing that, something started boiling inside her.

“Ah, then Choi Jin-woo shouldn’t be a mage either. Should I call him here? Look, Park Seo-hyun says you’re not qualified to be a mage.”

Park Seo-hyun clenched her fists tightly and raised her head high.

“Choi Jin-woo has nothing to do with this!”

“That’s what you’re implying.”

“Why does it have to be like that?!”

“Then? Why is it okay for him and not for you?”

“Because!”

Through her disheveled hair, she saw Woo Hee-jae sitting with his arms crossed. He leaned back in a chair that looked small compared to his frame, even crossing his legs.

His eyes, staring at her, were void of any emotion. He seemed to say, “Go ahead and try.”

His face showed irritation.

“He hasn’t even been awakened for half a year, and I’ve been at this for over ten years!”

She saw her grandfather in his place.

“And I!!”

“You?”

“I even know unique magic!”

“Hmm.”

Woo Hee-jae uncrossed his legs. He leaned forward. His previously indifferent face showed more interest now. Park Seo-hyun didn’t notice and kept pouring out her feelings.

“I know the formulas! Not just know them—I understand them!”

Park Seo-hyun shouted, her fists clenched tightly.

“What kind of mage can’t use the formulas they understand?! This was doomed from the start!!!”

“…….”

“…I can’t. I really can’t.”

She lowered her head again. The tears that had stopped started to well up again.

Feeling like a child who had done something wrong, Park Seo-hyun tried her best to hold back her tears. She hadn’t done anything right, after all.

“Park Seo-hyun.”

But there was a hand stopping her from lowering her head.

“…Huh?”

Woo Hee-jae supported her chin with his fingers. Park Seo-hyun’s eyes widened. Her disheveled bangs swayed as their eyes met.

Instead of his usual crooked smile, Woo Hee-jae gave her a gentle smile. It was the same smile that would later cause someone to accuse him of pretending to be earnest as a parachute recruit… but Park Seo-hyun didn’t know that.

“You know unique magic?”

“Y-yes?”

“How? How do you know it?”

“M-my grandfather… taught me before he passed away… along with other magic.”

“Your grandfather….”

Park Seo-hyun awkwardly rolled her eyes and twisted her body, uncomfortable with the forced position. But Woo Hee-jae didn’t notice and fell into deep thought.

“T-teacher?”

“Oh… right. What was your grandfather’s name, I mean… what was his specialty?”

“Specialty?”

“Yes, his specialty.”

Park Seo-hyun blinked a couple of times before answering.

“Light… He mainly used guide magic.”

“Light and guide magic? No wonder.”

Woo Hee-jae began to mumble something quickly under his breath. Most of it was unintelligible.

“Teacher?”

“So… hmm?”

“Could you… let go of my chin?”

“Park Seo-hyun.”

“My chin….”

“You can become a Grand Mage.”

Park Seo-hyun stopped fidgeting.

“You have talent.”

Woo Hee-jae repeated kindly in a soft voice.

“I will make you a Grand Mage.”

Someone, twenty years in the future, would accuse him of deceiving a child with such words.

Of course, Park Seo-hyun still didn’t know that.