The Way to Save the Crazy Returnees Chapter 39 - An Uncomfortable Meal (3)

 

 

“CEO!”

 

Kang Ye-seong shouted urgently, but I had no time to respond.

 

“Yoon-hoo hyung! It’s dangerous!”

 

Lee Yoo-seong also cried out, but I didn’t stop running.

 

Because right now—

 

“You…!”

 

What mattered was confronting the man I had just grabbed.

 

“What are you doing here?!”

 

“…Huh?”

 

“I asked you—why are you here?!”

 

The man with light brown hair tied back blinked rapidly, flustered, as if he couldn’t understand why I was acting this way.

 

“CEO, what’s gotten into you all of a sudden?!”

 

Kang Ye-seong rushed over to stop me.

 

“Yeah, Yoon-hoo hyung! Calm down!”

 

Lee Yoo-seong tried to hold me back as well, but I couldn’t.

 

Because the man I had by the collar was none other than the returnee, Lee Man-deuk.

 

A twenty-eight-year-old mage—Lee Man-deuk.

 

He was a returnee who could wield a rare power known as “magic” without any restrictions. He could teleport to any location instantly and alter the surrounding environment at will.

 

To think that someone with such a dangerous ability could be present at the accident site—

 

And yet, despite that friendly smile, he was the kind of man who wouldn’t hesitate to stab someone in the back.

 

Of course, the chances that he had caused the accident involving my grandfather were slim.

 

But I couldn’t be sure.

 

Lee Man-deuk was the type who regarded anyone outside his circle as nothing more than a pebble by the roadside. And in his eyes, I was just another “pebble.”

 

Something to be kicked aside without a second thought. I knew that’s how he saw me—but I still couldn’t calm myself.

 

Especially with Lee Yoo-seong standing right beside me. No matter how powerful a mage Lee Man-deuk was, I had once submitted to his power.

 

Still, would Lee Yoo-seong always step in for my sake? Or had I simply lost my fear this time?

 

“You. It was you, wasn’t it? You caused this accident!”

 

I shook him hard by the collar, demanding answers.

 

“W-what are you talking about?! How could I have caused it?!”

 

Lee Man-deuk shoved my hand away and shouted back.

 

“Ask the people around! I was just standing here, waiting to cross the street when the accident happened!”

 

The bystanders quickly stepped in to defend him.

 

“That’s right. The truck just suddenly crashed into the van.”

 

“It looked like the brakes failed or something.”

 

“This man really was just standing here the whole time!”

 

At those words, Lee Man-deuk raised his voice, sounding wrongfully accused.

 

“I don’t know why you’re pinning this on me, but I swear I had nothing to do with it!”

 

My lips trembled as I forced out a low voice.

 

“…Is that true?”

 

“Yes! How on earth could I cause an accident? It’s not like I’m a mage or anything!”

 

You are that very mage, I wanted to say.

 

But I swallowed the words rising to my throat and gritted my teeth.

 

“CEO, wait a second!”

 

Kang Ye-seong hurried to intervene.

 

“Hey, don’t you remember me?”

 

“…Huh?”

 

At his confused look, Kang Ye-seong pulled down his mask.

 

“You saved me once.”

 

Lee Man-deuk’s eyes went wide.

 

His lips worked soundlessly like a goldfish before he took a step back, clearly shaken. After a moment’s hesitation, he made up his mind and swallowed hard.

 

It wasn’t hard to see why.

 

Whether Kang Ye-seong went astray or not, Lee Man-deuk had always cheered for him. He claimed to love every member of Victory, but his fondness for Kang Ye-seong was something else entirely.

 

And now, he was standing face-to-face with him.

 

This was the dream of a fan come true.

 

His heart must have been pounding. Soon, he couldn’t hold it in.

 

“Kang Ye-seong, catch him!”

 

“…Huh? Ah, okay!”

 

“Yoo-seong, you too!”

 

“Got it, hyung!”

 

That was when he finally used magic.

 

A sudden floating sensation—then I crashed face-first into the ground. I wasn’t the only one—Lee Man-deuk and Kang Ye-seong were also hurled down.

 

“This crazy bastard—!”

 

Lee Man-deuk scrambled to his feet and pointed furiously at me.

 

“Do you have any idea what you just did?! You can’t interrupt someone mid-cast! Especially teleportation! If you’d disrupted it, we could’ve lost a limb!”

 

Just moments ago he had sworn he wasn’t a mage—and now he was shouting like this. Still, his anger didn’t last long.

 

“Cough…!”

 

Kang Ye-seong staggered to his feet, coughing.

 

“Aaah! Oh no!!”

 

Lee Man-deuk panicked and rushed to him. Unlike us, Kang Ye-seong had landed near the fountain, soaking him completely.

 

“Are you okay? What should I do? You’ll catch a cold!”

 

He fretted, quickly drying Kang Ye-seong’s drenched body. But the fountain suddenly burst again, drenching him all over.

 

“Why won’t this thing stop?!”

 

Thud!

 

With a single stomp, Lee Man-deuk made the fountain evaporate in an instant. The square turned into something like a dry desert, leaving Kang Ye-seong stunned with his mouth agape.

 

Meanwhile, Lee Man-deuk continued fussing.

 

“Muse, are you alright?! What if you catch a cold? That would be terrible! Aaahh!!”

 

Not only did he dry Kang Ye-seong, but the frantic mage also conjured towels, blankets, and all sorts of things. The sight was nothing short of madness.

 

Lee Yoo-seong must have thought the same, because he tugged me aside and whispered,

 

“Hyung, that man’s weird. Stay close to me.”

 

Clearly, he was shaken by Lee Man-deuk’s wild display of magic. I soothed him, assuring him it was fine, then called out to the mage.

 

“Mr. Lee Man-deuk.”

 

We couldn’t just leave things as they were. Thankfully, no one else had shown up yet, but someone could appear at any moment and witness his antics. Of course, Lee Man-deuk could simply erase their memories in an instant…

 

“Mr. Iz Kallion!”

 

…but that wasn’t a solution either.

 

The fussing expression on Lee Man-deuk’s face froze instantly.

 

“You—how… how do you know that name?”

 

“Because I’m the same as you, Mr. Lee Man-deuk.”

 

Swallowing hard, I spoke firmly.

 

“May I have a word with you? I’d like to apologize for my rudeness earlier.”

 

“If that’s all…”

 

“Please, let me ask this as a personal favor too.”

 

Kang Ye-seong clasped Lee Man-deuk’s hand and gave him a polished smile—the kind idols flash on variety shows when told to act cute.

 

But for Lee Man-deuk, that alone was enough.

 

“Yes, I understand,” he nodded to Kang Ye-seong.

 

Even though I was the one who needed to speak with him.

 

***

 

“Then, I’ll get going first.”

 

Kang Ye-seong stepped aside before I could even start a proper conversation with Lee Man-deuk.

 

Lee Yoo-seong had already left earlier—I’d made sure to send him away. Not home exactly, but most likely to the hospital where my grandfather had been taken.

 

In any case, Kang Ye-seong said,

 

“Mr. Lee Man-deuk, right? I’ll definitely reach out personally. Thank you so much for helping me back then.”

 

“No, no, not at all!”

 

Lee Man-deuk jumped up, flustered, waving his hands.

 

“Just getting your autograph like this is more than enough!”

 

He insisted until he finally managed to get Kang Ye-seong’s signature on his own clothes. He even declared he’d never wash them, planning to treasure it forever as a keepsake.

 

But Kang Ye-seong only smiled and replied,

 

“No, if it weren’t for you, I would’ve been kidnapped without a chance to resist. So please, let me repay you properly. Understood?”

 

“If… if you put it that way…”

 

Lee Man-deuk muttered hesitantly, while Kang Ye-seong turned to me with a polite bow.

 

“Then, CEO. I’ll see you next time.”

 

“Yes, get home safely.”

 

The moment Kang Ye-seong left, Lee Man-deuk twisted his lips—his face shifting from regretful to sharp in an instant.

 

“So?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“What do you want to talk about?”

 

Maybe it was because of his naturally harmless face, but I could never get used to how suddenly his demeanor changed.

 

Either way, I answered,

 

“First of all, I owe you an apology. My grandfather happened to be caught in that accident.”

 

“And what does that have to do with me?”

 

“You said it yourself, didn’t you?”

 

That you weren’t a mage. That there was no way you could have caused such an accident.

 

Seemingly recalling his own words, Lee Man-deuk flinched. Pretending not to notice, I smiled lightly and went on.

 

“I suspected you because I knew you were a mage.”

 

Then I added,

 

“And if you’re planning to deny it now, I wouldn’t recommend it.”

 

It wasn’t something he could cover up anyway.

 

“Even erasing my memory won’t do you any good.”

 

“And how can you be so sure of that?” he shot back sharply.

 

I answered with a calm smile.

 

“Because you’re the Archmage, Iz Kallion.”

 

That was the name of the protagonist in The Great Mage Is None Other Than Me—the very character Lee Man-deuk had possessed.

 

He had many titles, but one of the most common was Archmage.

 

“And that wasn’t your only epithet.”

 

I began to list them off one by one.

 

“Savior of the World. Great Tower Lord. Noble of the Slums. Punisher of Trash. Mage of the Stars…”

 

“Stop! Please, stop! That’s embarrassing!”

 

Lee Man-deuk blurted out in a panic, his face turning bright red.

 

When I finally paused, he shifted awkwardly, fidgeting like a prickly hedgehog.

 

“How on earth do you know my true identity? Does Muse know too?!”

 

“No. Muse doesn’t know.”

 

By now, Lee Man-deuk had probably realized that I’d experienced something similar to him. I hadn’t told Lee Yoo-seong about the idea of a “returnee” either, but I figured he would eventually piece it together.

 

Me. Seo Do-hwan.

 

And even Kang Ye-seong—we were all returnees.

 

“Anyway, wiping my memory won’t help you. I’ve already recorded everything about you.”

 

Even if my memories disappeared, I could just read through those documents again and recover them.

 

“I also hope you won’t try following me or sneaking into my mansion. There are two more people like you.”

 

Including Kang Ye-seong made three, but since he didn’t live with me, I left him out.

 

“And you asked how I knew about you, didn’t you?”

 

Lee Man-deuk narrowed his eyes in suspicion and gave a slow nod.

 

“I’ll tell you when we meet again. Which will probably be soon.”

 

Even if it wasn’t.

 

“If you ever find yourself in trouble, use this business card.”

 

That would guarantee another meeting.

 

The real reason I avoided going into detail now was because our encounter had been so sudden—

 

‘Grandpa…’

 

—and because my grandfather had just been taken away in an ambulance. I didn’t think I could hold a proper conversation in this state.

 

Still, Lee Man-deuk accepted the business card I handed him and blinked in surprise.

 

“WF Entertainment?”

 

“I’m Kwak Yoon-hoo, the CEO. Since you’re such a big fan of Victory, I assumed you already knew.”

 

Especially since Kang Ye-seong had been calling me “CEO” right in front of him.

 

Flustered, Lee Man-deuk stammered,

 

“O-of course I know!”

 

But judging by how he hadn’t recognized me earlier, it seemed he’d been too distracted by Kang Ye-seong to notice.

 

“Well then, I’ll be going.”

 

I stood up from my seat.

 

“Wait a minute!”

 

Lee Man-deuk grabbed my arm.

 

I wondered what he was about to say, and then—

 

“When is Victory’s follow-up promotion starting?! And the MV? I heard the next track is Cheol-i—is that true?!”

 

His eyes shone as he bombarded me with questions about Victory’s upcoming activities.

 

I couldn’t help but smile at the sight.

 

“You’ll have to wait for the official company announcement.”

 

“What?! No, just tell me now!”

 

That was absolutely out of the question.

 

Ignoring his desperate pleas, I walked out of the café.

 

Just then, a message from Seo Do-hwan popped up.

 

[Seo Do-hwan]

Your grandfather’s been hospitalized.

Come to AMA Seoul Hospital, VVIP room.

 

‘Hospitalized?’

 

He hadn’t seemed seriously hurt…

 

Biting my lip, I flagged down a taxi.

 

That was why I missed it—the look on Lee Man-deuk’s face after he’d bombarded me with questions about Victory’s future activities.