I was really shocked by the news. It was so ridiculous that I started laughing uncontrollably. However, before I could even organize my thoughts, the face of the person that used such a spell on me naturally popped into my head. Based on their personality and actions up until now, the culprit was clear.
‘Jung Ha-Yan.’
It was definitely Jung Ha-Yan. Different guilds and clans popped into my head, but I was sure that they wouldn’t go through the trouble for someone like me.
The only suspects were the three women who were obsessed with me, but among them, Cha Hee-Ra was in a bit of an awkward position, so she was excluded. I couldn’t imagine her using a mage to cast a tracking spell on me and no matter how much I thought about it, there wasn’t a reason for her to do this.
The other suspect was Lee Ji-Hye, but because she had neither the time nor the ability to do that, she was excluded. No, if someone had cast a spell on me before this, then I definitely would have noticed, so basically, the culprit was the person that could cast a spell on me without me noticing it. It meant that they entered my room while I was resting or sleeping and used the spell. Of course, Jung Ha-Yan was the only person that could do that. It gave me goosebumps when I imagined her reciting a spell while watching me sleep.
‘What the hell…’
Before entering the guild house, Jung Ha-Yan would come near me every night and do different things, but thinking about it now, I had never woken up in the middle of my sleep after entering the guild house.
‘Since when?’
I concluded that it really was her. Honestly, it really wouldn’t matter if I ignored it and moved on, but after thinking that it was connected to Jung Ha-Yan, I felt strange. After thinking about whether it was really a coincidence that I never woke up during the night after I started sleeping in the guild house, I eventually found the answer.
‘It can’t be a coincidence.’
When I thought about the possibility of her casting a sleeping spell on me and doing this and that, I started clearing my throat because I couldn’t be more stupefied. Of course it was just an assumption, but if everything was true, then it meant that I indirectly provided sex education to Jung Ha-Yan after coming here.
‘Gasp…’
After hiding my embarrassment, I slightly looked up and noticed Hwang Jung-Yeon’s face turning pale as if she had made a really big mistake. If I were her, I would have reacted the same way. If I had to compare it to the modern world, it was like telling the husband that his wife was delusionally jealous and was constantly watching over him.
I wasn’t sure how pure our relationship looked to others, but for some reason, Hwang Jung-Yeon looked as if she was walking on thin ice.
After coming back to my senses, I spoke again because I felt like I needed to know a little more about this issue.
“Could you explain it to me in detail?”
“Huh? Excuse me?” she asked.
Knowing the exact details was important so I could be more careful.
“Well… that’s…” she said.
“I’d appreciate it if you could tell me the details,” I said.
“You see…”
Seeing her being hesitant made me feel even more anxious. It was because I was worried that there might be something more into this that I wasn’t aware of. I had never heard anyone say that wiretapping was possible on this continent, but if it was Jung Ha-Yan, then I was sure that she would have been able to develop a whole new spell.
“Telling you the details is a b-bit… are you sure it’s okay?” Hwang Jung-Yeon asked.
“I’ll be fine. I was a bit surprised, but… I want to know. I somewhat expected it… so I’m not too worried about it,” I answered.
“If that’s how you feel, then I guess I should tell you. I-I was really surprised too,” she stuttered.
“Please. I know that Ha-Yan is the really jealous type… I think she used that spell on me because of that,” I told her.
“Oh my. Well, it’s understandable considering the rumor about you and the Mercenary Queen. I-I completely understand,” she said.
“...”
“No wonder it was hidden away deep inside…” she said.
“Excuse me?” I asked.
“I’m sure an ordinary person hasn’t caught on. Swordsmen and people with similar jobs probably haven’t noticed the spell that was used on you, Mr. Ki-Young. The same goes for mages. It’s a very well-planned and intricate spell that if a mage isn’t sensitive to magic like me or… they’re just an ordinary mage, it’ll be difficult for them to sense it. Unless their magic stat is over 80, they probably wouldn’t notice it. The spell is very faint and it was designed so that it seamlessly blends into the wavelength of your unique mana,” she explained.
Oh…” I said.
“Even I think it’s exciting. I guess the rumors about her being a genius weren’t a lie because I didn’t even think about using magic this way. It won’t be easy to imitate it since our fields are slightly different. It’s understandable that… you haven’t noticed it, Mr. Ki-Young since you’re an alchemist,” she said.
“I see…”
“But I can tell you what kind of magic was used since the spell itself was borrowed from a basic spell,” she said.
“Okay.”
“As I’ve mentioned before, the first spell that was used on you was a tracking magic. Just like the name, it was designed to simply see the target’s location. This isn’t all that interesting. The second spell is the one that I find a bit interesting,” Hwang Jung-Yeon explained.
“What about it?” I asked.
“The spell is similar to the safety zones that are created within the dungeon. You can think of it as a spell that starts ringing when a living thing enters a certain radius. It’s probably about 50 centimeters in radius… basically, if a person approaches you within a certain distance, the spell will send a signal. Of course, I have no idea what happens after the signal is sent…” she explained.
“I see.”
“In order to cast these kinds of spells, the caster usually needs either the subject’s body part or blood to use as a catalyst… did you really not give anything to her?” she asked.
“What happens if she doesn’t have a catalyst?” I asked.
“It’s impossible to cast these kinds of spells without it. It was probably difficult to discover it because this spell was transformed to match the wavelength of your mana and when using a tracking spell, a catalyst is required. Without it… it’s impossible to activate it…” she answered.
“I do remember something…” I said.
“I see…”
“Will a strand of hair work as well? Or maybe a nail?” I asked.
“No, it’s impossible with just a strand of hair. She’ll probably need a handful of them to make it work,” she answered.
Of course, I never gave her a handful of my hair, but it didn’t mean that I couldn’t think of anything else at all. Before this, I recalled Jung Ha-Yan picking up my tooth from a dungeon, and the thought of it astonished me. I didn’t think much of it during that time, but I never imagined that it would lead to something like this. Thinking about it now, I felt like I was under a spell while I was with Lee Ji-Hye. Jung Ha-Yan didn’t catch on to the strange atmosphere between us. She simply knew that Lee Ji-Hye had stepped within the off-limits area that she had set up.
‘So that’s how...’
The reason why Jung Ha-Yan looked at Lee Ji-Hye with hostility was that she stepped within that area.
“Oh my, I don’t think she’s being too jealous… you… you must feel troubled,” she said.
Hwang Jung-Yeon looked a bit excited for someone that was worried about me. I wasn’t sure if this was the correct description, but she had the same expression that my mother had whenever she watched soap operas.
“Ahem… Did she use any spell on me that could make her either hear or watch me from afar?” I asked.
“No, she only used two spells. She’s very clever to the point that I’m surprised… I can’t believe that she was able to perfect a magic like this when she’s just a rookie that had just arrived here. I’m sure it was possible since the spell only consumed a small amount of mana… I think she can even write a thesis about this,” she commented.
I was pretty sure that the title of the thesis would be: How to Stalk Your Boyfriend.
“Ugh…’
“I think I can break it if you want me to… do you want me to try?” she asked.
“No, not right now,” I answered.
“Oh my, I guess you’re the type that wants to be tied down. It’s a bit strange but romantic in some ways,” she said.
‘Romantic my ass.’
The information was very appalling, but it was so ridiculous that I actually became calm. I already knew that Jung Ha-Yan was obsessed with me and I wasn’t sure if it was my personality that was strange, but if I could control her perfectly with this amount of sacrifice, then it wasn’t that bad. Of course, it didn’t mean that I didn’t get goosebumps from it. I felt a sense of resistance that was difficult to explain, but… I could pretend like I never noticed these.
Anyway, knowing that this kind of spell was used on me was good material and I started to become curious as to whether she had installed something in my room.
“If it’s okay with you, do you mind coming to my room?” I asked.
“Excuse me?” she asked.
I felt more embarrassed because she looked like she was on guard against me.
“I-I appreciate the o-offer, but it’s a bit… sudden and embarrassing. It’s not that you’re not charming, but… you already have a lot of women around you… and joining you in this kind of situation is a little bit romantic, but I prefer a man with a large frame that’s cozy…” Hwang Jung-Yeon said.
“That’s not what I meant,” I told her.
“Oh…”
“I was hoping you could tell me what kind of spells were used in my room,” I explained.
“Ohhh… o-of course,” she said.
Once again, I felt Park Deok-Gu’s vibe from this woman.
“Let’s head upstairs! I was actually curious about the expensive workshop that you have upstairs. It seems that today’s my lucky day,” she exclaimed in glee.
“It’s my lucky day as well,” I commented.
If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have known that such spells had been used on me. When I quietly got up, I noticed Hwang Jung-Yeon looking at me very excitedly. Unlike me who was pretty calm, this woman looked as if she was watching a drama.
The more I walked to the second floor, the heavier my steps felt, but it was better to take care of everything at once.
“So this is the place that the seventh party’s using. Just like the rumors, it’s nice,” she commented.
“It’s hard for me to explain since I’ve never been to another member’s room before,” I told her.
After looking around the place, the woman stopped in front of Park Deok-Gu’s room. I quietly looked at her face to see if she discovered something, but all I saw was her smile.
‘There’s no way…’
The only thing I could do was beg that the worst scenario I imagined wouldn’t happen.
Anyway, our destination was my room, not Park Deok-Gu’s room.
When I calmly opened the door, I saw the same room that I saw every day. There were various books on the desk and various tools and equipment were stacked in the room. I was a bit embarrassed about the fact that I hadn’t cleaned my room just yet, but it would look even weirder if I started cleaning now.
“Your room’s really clean,” Hwang Jung-Yeon said.
“I see…”
“Oh my, I think you have more books than I do…” she commented.
“They’re books that I’ve read halfway and stopped,” I told her.
“But still, studying is a good thing. Oh, what am I doing? You want me to check to see if a similar spell was used in this room, right?” she asked.
“Yes, that’s right,” I answered.
“One moment.”
It seemed like she started looking around the room after pouring mana into her eyes. I never imagined that she would take it this seriously, but it was probably because she was conscious of Jung Ha-Yan’s talent in magic.
Moments later, Hwang Jung-Yeon’s expression very subtly changed. She looked like she was holding in her laughter, but she also looked excited. I even saw her wear a surprised look, which amplified my anxiety. After looking around the room, she started talking to me in a cautious tone. “There’s something here.”
“Excuse me?” I asked.
“I can see it on the wall and on your bed,” she answered.
‘...’
Comments