Debuting by Riding the Returnee’s Bus – Chapter 78

Author: LyraDhani

– Should I come there?

“Y-Yes, please come here.”

– Wait a…

“No! Don’t hang up! Don’t—don’t hang up!”

– The call… no… okay, I understand. Just wait a little bit, Unha.

“…….”

– …….

“You’re coming now, right? How close are you? Where are you?”

– …….

“You are coming, right? Wooyoung hyung?”

– I’m almost there.

“Huh?”

– I said I’m almost there.

‘Almost there?’

Was he just saying that? Or….

‘Is he really almost here?’

How?

It was naturally incomprehensible. No matter how fast Joo Wooyoung could run….

‘Isn’t that physically impossible?’

I knew he couldn’t have arrived this quickly. Even for a master thief, crossing that distance in an instant was an impossible feat. Furthermore, with people watching… I judged that he wouldn’t do something so reckless.

‘Did he… did he learn magic?’

No, rule that out too. As far as I knew, the only things Joo Wooyoung knew were a few spells of Divine Magic. High-level spells like Teleportation were on a completely different track from Divine Magic, so it was a wild stretch to think he was using Teleportation to get here.

Nevertheless, if Joo Wooyoung really was nearby… then maybe….

‘Did the… did the Archmage… cross over with him?’

Maybe that woman crossed over too….

They called her a genius that appeared once in several centuries. The thought suddenly struck me that the Archmage, who could throw around advanced magic as casually as breathing, might have crossed over to this world together with Joo Wooyoung.

I didn’t know for what reason or how someone from the other world was here, but… the moment I accepted that possibility, my mind began to go blank. Because if that Archmage was definitely here for whatever reason, then there was also a high chance that the Dark Mage had crossed over as well.

Yes, it wasn’t my imagination. The person I just saw might truly be that mad dark mage.

“Unha!! Unha!!! What’s wrong with you?!”

“Wait… Suhyeon. Let me try talking to him.”

“Ah, yes, hyung.”

I could hear them murmuring behind the door.

Fearful that they might break the door down, I picked up a cleaning tool that looked like it had never been used. I knew perfectly well that I couldn’t kill him with a mere plastic stick, but… it was better than offering no resistance at all.

I couldn’t go back to being his slave, prostrating myself like I did in the other world.

‘Anyway… I just have to hold on a little longer.’

He had said he was almost here, hadn’t he? The moment Joo Wooyoung opened the penthouse door, he would reveal his Stigma, summon the Holy Spear, and pierce that damn Dark Mage’s throat.

If the Archmage came with him, the Dark Mage would have his incantations dispelled before he even had time to chant, and he would die helplessly. This wasn’t a world where a dark mage could run rampant.

‘You’re… you’re dead.’

I didn’t care if my identity was revealed to Joo Wooyoung. If Joo Wooyoung really killed him, I would spit and hurl curses at his corpse.

It was right then, while I was still letting my imagination run wild.

The doorbell rang. Perhaps because it was an expensive house, it seemed to have a system built-in where you could answer calls and open the door even from the bathroom.

Ignoring the Dark Mage and Baek Suhyeon, who were startled by the sudden ringing, I immediately pressed the button to open the penthouse door. I heard the faint sound of the digital lock opening….

“Oh. Joo Wooyoung? Why are you….”

I heard Baek Suhyeon’s bewildered voice.

And then….

I heard the sound of someone opening the door.

“Unha. I’m coming in now.”

“…….”

It was Joo Wooyoung’s voice.

Was the situation already settled?

I hadn’t heard any screams….

Maybe he pierced his throat so quickly he couldn’t even scream.

What happened to Baek Suhyeon? Did he die too?

Click.

With that sound, light began to spill into the dark space. Naturally, the first thing I saw was Joo Wooyoung extending a hand toward me.

“…….”

And….

Behind Joo Wooyoung, I could also see Baek Suhyeon and that bastard’s relative looking at me.

“……?”

What on earth….

‘Why… is he alive?’

“It’s okay now.”

“…….”

“Unha. Are you okay?”

“…….”

“Are you alright?”

“…….”

“Unha. You can come out.”

“Uh… Wooyoung hyung?”

“Yeah.”

“I… suddenly… no… I… sob… no… uh….”

I didn’t quite… understand.

No, I could understand.

I just… didn’t want to.

The fact that I had made a stupid mistake.

‘Did I… did I hallucinate?’

Did I just make all those big fuss all by myself… causing a scene over nothing?

The important thing was that Joo Wooyoung showed no particular reaction to Baek Suhyeon’s brother standing before him. I thought for sure he would summon the Holy Spear and pierce his throat the moment he laid eyes on him… but I could see him treating the man like a normal human, not a Dark Mage.

“Would it be alright if I took a look for a moment?”

“Ah… yes.”

I hated to admit it, but….

I had to realize that all of this happened because of my misunderstanding.

Like a fox on a tiger’s back, I followed Joo Wooyoung out of the bathroom, and a sense of intense embarrassment welled up within me.

Baek Suhyeon looked flustered, Joo Wooyoung wore an expression that seemed genuinely worried about me… and Baek Suhyeon’s older brother was studying me closely.

“Has this happened before?”

“Pardon?”

“You’re Lee Unha, right?”

“Yes.”

“You don’t need to be so embarrassed. There’s no need to hide it… it’s something anyone can experience….”

“Huh? What do you mean…?”

“I’m saying you were just in a state of panic. Was this the first time?”

“A state of panic? This isn’t the first time I’ve had an experience like this, but….”

“So it wasn’t your first time after all? I see. I don’t know what triggered it… but I think I might be able to help. It’s not something we can really discuss here and now… and whatever happened, you seem to be wary of me as well… so I think it’d be good for us to arrange a time to meet soon. We can run a few evaluations too… and since you’re Suhyeon’s friend….”

Immediately after, he pulled out his business card and placed it in my hand.

[Baek Yuhyeon, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, OO University]

‘Psychiatry? Baek Yuhyeon?’

As I stood there blankly staring at the business card I’d just received…

Baek Yuhyeon began getting ready to leave. He seemed to be sharing a few words with his younger brother, Suhyeon. He even exchanged greetings with Joo Wooyoung. With a perfectly normal face.

Did Joo Wooyoung really not feel anything from him?

I wanted to examine his face even a little more, so I looked at him intently once again.

‘I… I definitely felt something. Clearly… I saw that mad Dark Mage in him….’

Baek Suhyeon’s brother definitely reminded me of that mad Dark Mage. His gaze, his image—they were all ringing alarm bells that he was the one. However….

‘It’s not there….’

No matter how hard I looked, I couldn’t detect the distinctive mana that always accompanied someone who had learned black magic.

The problem wasn’t just that I couldn’t see it, but that it wasn’t visible to Joo Wooyoung’s eyes either.

Deceiving my eyes and deceiving Joo Wooyoung’s were two entirely different matters, so thinking about it rationally, there was no way I could continue giving weight to the theory that he and the Dark Mage were the same person.

“Unha. Are you okay?”

“Ah… yes… thank you… Hyung. A-and I’m sorry. Calling you out here so suddenly….”

“No. I happened to be nearby.”

“…….”

‘Does he really… not know? Does he really… not feel that specific mana or presence?’

Or had the idea that that insane Dark Mage had also been someone who’d been transported from another world been absurd from the very beginning?

Then how was I supposed to explain Joo Wooyoung getting here so quickly? Had he really been nearby? Why? Because of me? Had he been worried? Or had he still not stopped suspecting me?

It had been a long time since I felt like my brain wasn’t functioning properly.

Maybe it was because I kept thinking about the worst possibilities, but I simply couldn’t make sense of the situation.

However….

‘For now, I have no choice but to trust Joo Wooyoung.’

The fact remained that he came when I called, so I had to judge based on that.

Yes, the issue now wasn’t whether Joo Wooyoung suspected me or not. The problem was whether the Dark Mage was truly here or not.

Even if that Baek Yuhyeon guy wasn’t the Dark Mage, I couldn’t ignore the possibility that the bastard was lurking somewhere nearby.

Perhaps the incident that had just happened had become the trigger, because suddenly my mind began opening itself to every possible scenario.

For instance….

‘The Dark Mage could be one of Baek Suhyeon’s other brothers.’

If my memory was correct, he definitely said he had older brothers.

Now that I looked at him, even Baek Suhyeon himself shared some resemblance with that Dark Mage. It was just hidden behind his somewhat airheaded image, but his sharp, well-honed eyes and the cold expressions he occasionally showed reminded me of that man.

If… just if the incongruity I felt wasn’t a mere hallucination…. Maybe one of Baek Suhyeon’s brothers… could be that Dark Mage.

Even I felt that my train of thought was becoming a little strange… but I figured there was no harm in looking into it.

Of course, normally, I would never do such a thing.

Just being aware that the mad Dark Mage might be one of Baek Suhyeon’s siblings made me want to throw everything away and run. In fact, hadn’t I just hidden myself in the bathroom?

But….

‘As long as Joo Wooyoung is by my side… it’ll be fine.’

Yes, Joo Wooyoung’s presence alone was a comfort. He was the sturdiest shield and the sharpest spear.

At least when I was with Joo Wooyoung, I wasn’t afraid of that Dark Mage.

And… to reach him….

“Baek Suhyeon….”

“Yeah. What?”

“You… how many older brothers did you say you had?”

“Uh… three. Yuhyeon hyung is the second… and my eldest brother is in America… but why?”

“No. It’s nothing. By any chance, do you have a photo?”

“Huh? Actually, it’s been a while since I’ve seen my eldest brother… but I do have some old pictures….”

I had to put him in the debut group. No, at the very least, I had to maintain my link with him.