Clatter A steaming cup of milk was placed in front of me. As expected of the Red Tower’s Wizard, she had heated it in an instant with just a swipe of her hand.
“Here.”
“Ah, thank you.”
“It’s hot, so make sure to cool it down before drinking.”
“Eueum⋯⋯.”
Selvier wasn’t some inexperienced Wizard who couldn’t control the strength of her magic. If she wanted to, she could have heated it to the perfect temperature right away. The fact that she deliberately made it too hot meant there was some intention behind it.
Was it like placing a floating leaf on water?
I gently blew on it and took a cautious sip. It seemed cool enough, but it was still slightly too hot, and I felt the brief sting of my tongue being scalded. I had misjudged it.
“Hot, hot, hot.”
As I stuck my tongue out to cool it down, a scolding came flying in from Selvier.“I told you to let it cool down first, didn’t I?”
“I thought it had cooled.”
“Everyone becomes like that when it’s their own problem. When it’s someone else’s business they can see perfectly clearly, but when it’s their own they end up making simple mistakes—like not even being able to tell if it’s hot or cold.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
I felt a weird sensation, and I glanced at Selvier.
That tone of speech… It was a style that I used often.
It was the same way I often talked—starting with some unrelated, absurd topic and then steering it toward the real issue I wanted to talk about. It was extremely familiar.
I hadn’t spoken much with her, so that meant she hadn’t picked it up from me⋯⋯ Maybe she got it from her ‘childhood friend.’ Or so I thought.
“Take your time and let it cool down. Then you can tell me. What happened, and what’s bothering you?”
What was bothering me? It wasn’t something I could easily put into a neat explanation.
I wanted to save Yuri Lanster, who was in danger. But Yuna was concerned about me when I became like that. Should I give up? Should I choose Yuri, or should I choose Yuna?
When I tried weighing it in my heart, both sides felt equally heavy. So, I spilled everything to Selvier, without holding anything back.
She listened quietly, and then⋯⋯ suddenly launched a personal attack.
“Are you an idiot?”
“What is it this time⋯⋯.”
I shrank back at the 2-hit being-called-stupid combo. Was my indecision really that pathetic to look at?
Selvier looked at me, drenched in my own confusion, crossed her arms, and said bluntly.
“You’re focusing on the wrong thing.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯?”
“There’s no absolute right or wrong when it comes to following your heart. If you want to save her, then save her. If you want to protect what you’re sure will stay, then do that. If you want to do both, then go ahead. Who’s going to stop you?”
People hold different values. Some choose to save, others to protect. In the realm of value judgments, there’s no incorrect choice. That’s what she and her ‘childhood friend’ believed.
However.
“There are right and wrong answers when it comes to your approach. Trying to enter a dungeon filled with traps without any preparation? Are you out of your mind?”
“Ah.”
“A wizard anticipates, plans, prepares, and equips themselves to deal with the traps before ever setting foot inside. Your dilemma isn’t the issue. The problem is that you’re rushing in recklessly, head in the clouds, without thinking.”
“Ahh⋯⋯.”
The temperature of the milk was entirely your choice—you could drink it cold or warm, but drinking it while it’s still boiling was definitely the wrong answer. So…
Selvier’s eyes seemed to say: Let it cool before you drink.
Selvier rested her chin on her hand, her gaze drifting upward as if recalling an old memory, and continued speaking.
“You know, before Envers left for his family estate⋯⋯ he used to go around saying something. That even if he failed, he would at the very least make sure to leave without regrets.”
That’s right. Namgung Cheonghwi, who had grown so much throughout that session, had spoken those words to himself as he gathered his resolve.
“To live without regrets, you have to give your all and complete the task perfectly. If you had dived in as you were, you would have regretted it later. You’d definitely be thinking, ‘I wish I had been better prepared before going in.’”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
“Just running ahead with enthusiasm doesn’t mean you’re doing your best. How badly did you screw up that even I’m trying to stop you, of all people?”
What is that supposed to mean?
“You’re a genius. Even though we’re around the same age, you’re a professor, and your illusion magic skills are so good that you could practically toy with all the Academy students at once—Niolle, Bennet, Envers, all of them. When your name comes up, their expressions become strange.”
“⋯⋯For example, how?”
“It’s as if they believe you can do anything. I can sense that kind of faith from them, especially from those who know you well. So, if even they were trying to stop you, it must have been because you appeared that unstable.”
Was that true?
Had I really made Yuna feel that uneasy?
Did I seem like someone on the verge of dying, to the point where her past trauma resurfaced and she kept casting illusion magic at me?
Selvier stood up and strode toward me. She grasped my cheeks in both hands, her fiery eyes locking onto mine, and said.
It felt like she was imparting age-old wisdom.
“Keep your heart fiery, but your head cool. Use your emotions to fuel you, but never let them take control.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
“Go. Go devise a proper plan and convince your fellow wizard, who is barricading herself in the lab. If you come up with a decent plan, she will trust you again.”
Is that so? Yes.
Even now, my chest tightened with anxiety. Every time I thought of what the Pink-Haired Lesbian might be enduring, my hands trembled, and my heart raced with worry.
But Selvier was right. Anxiety is inevitable. In fact, this very unease is proof of how much I care about Yuri Lanster. But I must not be controlled by it.
It was because I let my emotions control me that I made Yuna feel anxious as well. If I had kept my composure⋯⋯ if I hadn’t wavered. She likely wouldn’t have fallen into such a deep panic.
I have to accept my emotions, confront them, and overcome them.
As I gathered my resolve, even if only slightly, Selvier smiled like a mischievous child and spoke.
“When you manage to pull it off and come back⋯⋯ you can brag all you want about that glorious victory to me. Then, I’ll take back calling you an idiot.”
Should I say that she looked like the sun at that moment?
Had Selvier always been this good looking? I found myself speaking, almost in a daze.
“⋯⋯Can I please call you Noona?”
“Ew, what are you saying to your student as a professor⋯⋯?!”
“Selvier Noona.”
“Gross! Get out! Go and just do what you have to do!”
I was kicked out with a bang.
For the second time today, I was thrown out of Selvier’s dorm room amidst a flurry of swats and kicks.
But my mood was the complete opposite this time.
It was as if her flame had sparked something within me, like a candle being lit. I had been lost in the dark, but now I could see a path ahead. Yes. I knew what I had to do.
I stood outside the door, piecing my thoughts together.
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
I recalled the clues, arranging them one by one in my mind.
Soon, I had come up with a feasible rescue operation and sprinted toward the lab Yuna had holed herself in. There was a way.
There was a way to beat the Succubus Queen!
===============================================================
Back in the room, after the Crazy Wizard had left, Selvier, now alone, rested her chin on her hand and murmured to herself.
“⋯⋯Were we always this close?”
No, not really. There was no reason to feel close to a womanizer juggling two women at once.
She had learned a lot in his classes, but had also suffered plenty of headaches, so overall, it balanced out to zero.
Maybe it was his familiar black hair, or because his drenched appearance looked pitiful⋯⋯.
Or perhaps it was because they both shared a common desire—to reclaim what was precious to them—that she felt a sense of belonging.
Selvier’s eyes wandered to the mug of milk the Crazy Wizard had left behind, lingering on the spot where his lips had touched, and then she snapped out of it, slapping her cheeks repeatedly.
“What on earth am I thinking⋯⋯!”
She pulled open a thick grimoire. Focus. Study hard. She had to meet her childhood friend again, didn’t she?
Selvier scribbled down some magic. She had given all the advice she could, so her part in this was over now.
Yet, she found herself occasionally wishing the Crazy Wizard good luck. She didn’t want anyone in this world to lose a precious person.
===============================================================
I knocked on the tightly shut door of the laboratory, then spoke in a calm tone.
“Tower Master, are you in there?”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
I could sense someone’s presence. It wasn’t hard to picture Yuna, quietly listening from the other side. I thought for a moment, then whispered.
“⋯⋯Hail Hydra.”
“⋯⋯Hmp.”
There was a sound of laughter being suppressed.
“Could you open the door? I’ve come up with a brilliant plan that would even make Irid slap his knee in approval. I think you’ll be quite impressed when you hear it.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
The door creaked open just a little. As I carefully stepped inside, I saw Yuna, her face still painted with anxiety, looking up at me.
She was clearly on guard, wary of when I might try another reckless stunt. I raised my hands, signaling no ill intentions, then hugged her tightly.
“First, hear me out. And if⋯⋯ after hearing everything, Yuna still opposes it, I won’t go. How does that sound?”
Yuna nodded while still in my arms. I awkwardly patted her back. What I had shown her earlier was too pathetic.
“I’m sorry for what happened before.”
“⋯⋯Me too, I’m sorry.”
“I was so desperate that I couldn’t see the bigger picture. I acted too rashly. Thank you for stopping me, Yuna.”
“⋯⋯Next time, don’t do that. I was⋯⋯ really scared.”
In that short moment, we made up. The tension in her body began to dissolve, and it seemed her mood had lightened, even if just a little.
I moistened my lips and began explaining the plan.
“Alright, listen. No matter how I look at it, the main goal here seems to be either to consume me or the Tower Master, right⋯⋯?”
That was the critical point. There’s always a vulnerability in whatever the enemy desired the most. I whispered the details of the plan to assassinate the Succubus Queen⋯⋯.
Yuna hesitated for a moment, then seemed to accept that there was a chance of success and nodded in agreement.
===============================================================
Together, Yuna and I placed the Pink-Haired Lesbian on the magic circle, and began our in-depth analysis. Before entering, we would gather every piece of data we could from the outside.
Working within the boundaries that wouldn’t harm her, we carefully used our techniques. We threaded a camera through the gaps in the Queen’s magic, or we shot out mana and read the echoes that bounced back.
“It looks like a multi-floor structure, right?”
“Eung. First floor is a modified version of Yuri’s mental barrier, and her inner self is on the second floor⋯⋯.”
“And in the second basement, there’s likely a wedge connected to the 『Nest』.”
“⋯⋯Just like with『Step into a Door, Ascend into a World,』the Succubus Queen is probably manipulating things remotely.”
Exactly. That was the most dangerous part.
Yuna sketched a rough diagram on a sheet of paper, illustrating the structure.
The outline of the operation was simple.
I would detach only my consciousness and infiltrate alone, while Yuna would manage the emergency escape system from the outside. This system was the linchpin of the entire operation.
It was like tying a lifeline to a diver. When I gave the signal, Yuna would pull on the rope and extract me.
She promised to trigger it without delay in case of any danger.
My plan was to carry information bombs to dismantle the Succubus Queen’s traps from the inside. I would plant these bombs at key points and detonate them, targeting only the parts that didn’t belong to Yuri Lanster.
At the same time, I would protect Yuri Lanster’s mind, which was currently under siege.
As I carried out these tasks, I would pierce through the first layer of consciousness and descend to the second.
Surely, there would be an entrance to the『Nest』embedded there. Our mission was to sever that connection—ensuring no one could come in or escape.
Once that passage was cut off, the operation would essentially be a success.
With the Succubus Queen’s interference gone, even if the traps were left behind by her great-grandfather, it wouldn’t be scary. We could dismantle them with time.
I finished my preparations for entry. I lay down on the magic circle drawn beside Pink-Haired Lesbian. Yuna gazed down at me, her face etched with worry.
Full of worry, but also⋯⋯ full with the same amount of trust. Trust that if anyone could pull this off, it was me.
“⋯⋯You have to come back. Understand?”
“Of course. I’ll come back with Yuri who ran away, so don’t worry.”
“I’ll begin.”
Tak.
Yuna snapped her fingers.
Light flared from the magic circle, and I felt my consciousness sink as though melting into the ground. As I detached my consciousness to infiltrate, I applied the TRPG technique, wondering whether this was how TRPG players felt during their sessions.
I plunged deep into the swirling sea of the unconscious and arrived at the point where I could see Yuri Lanster’s mental barrier.
I observed from above before infiltrating. And I was surprised.
The structure was similar to a session. In fact, calling it a session wouldn’t be an exaggeration. A world had been constructed from Yuri Lanster’s memories, with some storyline being woven through it.
The stage was⋯⋯ the Imperial Defense Bureau, Extermination Squad. It was a memory from when Pink-Haired Lesbian had just joined the Extermination Squad—her younger days.
But something was off. It wasn’t exactly the same as the original version. Parts of it had been twisted, maliciously altered. Especially the characters—someone had been deliberately erased from the memory.
That’s actually even better. I would infiltrate that ‘blank space’.
I braced myself and touched the shell of the mental barrier.
The Queen’s magic, which had polluted and taken control of the barrier, as well as the strange foreign object, instantly sucked me in as if welcoming my intrusion. There was no resistance.
While I managed to gain entry without difficulty, it seemed the foreign magic didn’t like my lifeline.
It kept trying to sever my emergency extraction system⋯⋯ my lifeline. However, the Arch Wizard of the Purple Magic Tower was reinforcing it in real time from outside.
There was almost no chance of it being cut.
I had entered easily. Now, it was time to begin
Time to awaken the princess, cursed by the Queen, from her deep slumber.