ETHTKE chapter 27

Ken’s words, which pierced right to the heart of the matter, momentarily made my mind go blank.

“The day you called me a ‘traitor’… did I really say that?”

I don’t think so. I only thought Ken was a traitor back then… or did I say it out loud?

Come to think of it, it seems that my thoughts might have accidentally slipped out…

“Ahem, did I say that…? I don’t really remember.”

Of course, I remember it vividly now.

‘Wow, isn’t that traitor Ken?’

‘…What?’

‘Oh, sorry. Still a secret, right?’

I could even recall Ken’s earthquake-like brown pupils as he looked at me at that moment.

Avoiding Ken’s gaze, I glanced over at Baek Yigang with pleading eyes.

Baek Yigang, what are you doing?

Are you just going to watch?

Can’t you see I’m in trouble here?

“Ken, you may leave now.”

“…Yes, Your Highness.”

I don’t know if Baek Yigang actually understood my complex expression, but he intervened just in time to stop Ken’s interrogation with a slight smirk.

Ken, looking quite disappointed at not getting a clear answer, left the office with a sulky expression.

I should probably avoid Ken for a while.

Come to think of it, he’s actually pretty obsessive.

“Cheong Dowoon, now I’ll ask you this. What happens after the statue is destroyed in the future you know?”

Hearing the question, I instinctively held my breath. Is he really asking me to recount the entire 1,499 chapters of the novel?

“It wasn’t something anyone expected, so it was seen as a terrorist act. As a result, the rebel forces grew stronger, and eventually, a civil war broke out within the royal family. Suspicion of betrayal within the ranks grew.”

Deciding to only mention the immediate aftermath of the incident, I answered briefly.

But Baek Yigang still didn’t seem satisfied.

“And after that?”

“Well… there were some disturbances, but things soon settled down and returned to normal.”

In truth, according to the original story, there was a catastrophe where the Second Prince, who had overthrown Baek Yigang, was stripped of his crown prince title.

The corruption at the top trickled down, causing a wave of low-level crimes among the citizens of the empire.

And it was the main protagonist, the Third Prince, who eventually resolved the situation.

Anyway, it wasn’t exactly a pleasant development, but this much should suffice, right?

After all, I wasn’t lying.

Besides, Baek Yigang wasn’t involved in the original disaster.

He had already been exiled to the cold northern region as a dark Wizard by then.

The stage where he reappears under the control of dark forces is quite limited.

Still, his presence as the hidden mastermind is significant…

“How much do you know about this world?”

Did Baek Yigang ask me if I came from the demon realm when we first met?

Thinking about it, I must seem that way to a character in the book.

Knowing the future like some omniscient being, it’s no wonder.

“I’m not a god. But I know what’s going to happen, and I can tell you. I might even be able to help.”

So, could you at least show some gratitude when I’m trying to help you out, you ungrateful Baek Yigang?

“…Alright.”

With a peculiar expression, Baek Yigang closed his mouth without saying anything more.

As usual, I was dozing off on the couch in Baek Yigang’s office when suddenly, I received a message from the person in charge of the Magic Department, asking me to come to the meeting room for a magic power measurement.

“Magic power measurement? What’s that about?”

“I’m not very familiar with the specifics, but if you’re a registered Imperial Wizard, it’s probably the first test you have to pass. They need to know your magic power level to assign you the appropriate tasks.”

Anna added that they’d appreciate it if I could come as soon as possible and asked me to try to make it today.

“Yigang, I have somewhere to go for a bit.”

“I’ll be in your room later, so don’t move around unnecessarily.”

“Okay, I’ll be back!”

It was a rather sudden summons, but I had no reason not to go.

Now that everyone acknowledged my abilities, I could walk around confidently.

Without waiting for a response, I hurried out of his office after tossing a quick word to Baek Yigang.

Not that it mattered, but I bet he would’ve just gotten mad and told me not to bother anyway.

But why is the Magic Department calling me now?

“It’s been a while since I was registered as a Imperial Wizard, and now they want to measure my magic power? Was I really that disliked…?”

I had thought they were just avoiding me because of my reputation as a parachute appointment, but to think they were actually excluding me!

If what Anna said is true, the magic power measurement is supposed to be the very first thing you do as a Imperial Wizard!

Come to think of it, before we parted ways, Blue had said something to me that day in the royal forest when I was fixing it up.

‘Our brave new recruit, make sure to go easy on the magic power measurement, okay?’

Go easy? Was he telling me to hide my power?

At the time, I didn’t really understand what he meant, so I just let it slide, but now it seems like a strange thing to say.

But I had other worries on my mind right now.

And that was… the fact that the meeting room was filled with all those ‘things’ Blue and Reggie had made.

Do I really have to get measured there? Why of all places…?

I soon arrived at the Magic Department’s meeting room, where I took a deep breath and cautiously opened the door.

“Hello, I’m here for the magic power measurement… huh?”

Wait, where did everything go?

When I entered the meeting room, all the items that had cluttered the table—whatever they were—had disappeared without a trace.

There’s no way they could’ve sold all of that stuff in such a short time. How strange.

“Welcome, you must be Cheong Dowoon. Please, come this way.”

As I looked around in confusion, a person with black hair, whom I hadn’t seen before, called out to me in a friendly voice.

He was probably the one who summoned me.

He seemed like the most normal person I’d met since ending up here.

“Um, excuse me, sir. Have you seen…?”

“Pardon?”

“Those… strange devices that were here before? You know, the ones that vibrated? There used to be a lot of them.”

Pointing at the table and hesitantly asking, the man tilted his head in thought before finally exclaiming, “Ah!” as if he understood.

“Oh, those? I heard someone bought the entire lot.”

“…What? They bought all of that? Everything?”

“Yes, that’s what I heard. Apparently, someone who really liked them bought the whole batch as gifts.”

What did I just hear? Stunned, I asked again, and the man shrugged his shoulders and answered kindly.

Gifts, he said. I could hardly believe it.

Moreover, it’s not just that someone ‘likes’ me—it’s that they ‘really’ like me…

That guy must be quite the pervert.

“Alright, we’ll start the mana measurement now. Please relax your body and place your hand on this.”

The mana measurement was brief but intense.

All I had to do was place my hand on a small orb, and the results would be available in two days.

“Measurement complete. We’ll send you the results once they’re ready.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

The measurement ended quicker than I expected, leaving me with some free time.

I thought it would be a good idea to go back to my room and rest a bit.

After a short rest, I’ll go help Baek Yigang with his work.

“…?”

Excited by the thought of resting, I arrived at my room, only to freeze as if time had stopped.

“So… that pervert… was me?”

I could hardly believe the scene before me as I returned to my room after the mana measurement.

“Wh-Why is this in front of my door?!”

Panicking, I hastily gathered up the things piled in front of my door and rushed inside so no one would see.

“Could that pervert really be me?”

Who the hell would do something like this?! There’s no way I could possibly like this stuff!

Wait, didn’t Baek Yigang say he was going to drop by my room earlier?

He definitely told me before I went to the Magic Department meeting…

‘I’ll be coming to your room later, so don’t go wandering around unnecessarily.’

…I think that’s what he said.

“Oh no…”

Damn it, where am I supposed to stash all this stuff?

Why did he have to say he’d come to my room out of nowhere?

And at the worst possible time, too, with all this suspicious stuff piled up in my room.

I swear, whoever did this is going to regret it. I’m dead serious.

No matter how desperately I looked around the room, there wasn’t a single place where I could hide all this stuff.

Minimalism is trending even in fantasy worlds! Seriously, why did they have to be so realistic about this?

“…Why don’t I just get rid of it all?”

Forget about gifts or whatever; I don’t need any of this. If I can’t hide it, I’ll just destroy it all. Isn’t that what magic is for?

Resolute, I quickly gathered my mana to make everything disappear.