Becoming a Mage of the Special Unit in Another World

Chapter 4 – Honestly, Tuesdays aren’t that different.

Jong-chul opened his eyes wide.
In order to distinguish between mages and non-mages, all mages were required to wear a red earring on one ear.
‘…A mage?’
Jong-chul couldn’t understand.
What kind of mage, who wasn’t a fool, would give up the privileges granted by the Wizards’ Association just to become a government official?
There was no advantage to becoming a public servant as a mage.
What could the government possibly offer in support?
A mage was always supposed to be studying, but if they became a public servant, they wouldn’t even be able to easily access the common research papers because they wouldn’t be recognized as an official mage.
“Did you think I came here without knowing anything?”
Sunal pointed at the magical tool Jong-chul was holding.
“But you’ve made our client look like a liar, haven’t you? I’d like to ask if you forgot that I came as their representative.”
“If you’re a mage, shouldn’t you know better? That this tool must have experienced a huge impact…”
“No. You sold a magical tool that wasn’t properly made from the start.”
“What are you talking about?”
Sunal wanted to mock Jong-chul.
Even though this wasn’t the headquarters, how could someone in charge of a branch not be able to tell whether the magical tool they sold was genuine?
“You should have just said you couldn’t fix it.”
“The magic circle was destroyed. This couldn’t have happened without some sort of shock from the beginning…”
Sunal gathered mana at his fingertips and wrote in the air.
[Reveal the magic formula.]
With Sunal’s spell, the magic formula of the magical tool appeared in the air, as if it had been projected by a beam.
Jong-chul, his mouth agape, stared at Sunal’s magic.
“…What is this?”
That public servant had just completed magic from nothing.
There wasn’t any tool containing a magic formula, nor did he use a magical weapon that stored one.
He simply moved his fingers and made it appear right away.
“Can you see the magic formula?”
Despite Sunal’s words, Jong-chul felt his thoughts spiraling into confusion.
He had seen this somewhere before. This absurd magic.
“From the beginning, you repeatedly overlapped symbols that should never have been combined.”
Sunal circled the unstable parts of the magic formula that had appeared in the air with his finger.
Jong-chul’s mouth fell open even wider.
Displaying shapes in midair required a fairly complicated magic formula.
But that man had done it effortlessly, with a mere flick of his fingers.
‘…Where have I seen this magic before?’
Jong-chul kept thinking.
“Your claims are invalid. Or would you prefer to believe me if I restored this magic formula?”
Old, worn-out.
Sunal swallowed those words inwardly.
He had thought through several possibilities on the way here. What should he do if evidence came to light?
Based on Jong-chul’s actions, Sunal had decided to “dig deeper.”
He planned to expose the discrimination within the Wizards’ Association that had been concealed until now and prevent cases like today’s from happening again.
His job involved resolving conflicts and discrimination in various forms to help different races integrate into this society.
“This magic formula cannot be restored.”
Jong-chul gritted his teeth as he spoke, but Sunal paid no attention to his words.
“Soon, an investigation will begin. Whether this becomes a long-term or short-term matter, the police will be contacted shortly. I’d like to inform you in advance that even if you intentionally delete the data, I can recover it.”
Things were likely to get noisy for a while. This wasn’t just any place; it was the Wizards’ Association branch they were shaking up. He didn’t know how many times he’d have to come and go from here, but it didn’t matter. He thought of all this as a necessary sacrifice to push things in a positive direction.
‘That can’t be.’
Sunal’s words didn’t fully reach Jong-chul’s ears. It was impossible.
“…Did you hide the magical tool?”
Jong-chul was convinced that Sunal had concealed the magical tool. There was no way that magic could be created with just a wave of the hand. Whatever trick he used, the intention behind it was clear.
‘How dare he try to slander the Wizards’ Association?’
“No.”
Sunal immediately showed his open palm. There was nothing in it.
“I simply moved mana. You can see it, can’t you?”
Jong-chul felt as though he was being mocked by Sunal’s words. See what, exactly?
‘Wait. Is he really saying there’s no trick?’
Jong-chul simply couldn’t believe it. He hadn’t sensed any mana at all, and from the start, he hadn’t even realized Sunal was a mage.
‘Who is he?’
Sunal appeared increasingly imposing to Jong-chul. He had never heard of or seen a mage like this before.
‘No…’
Suddenly, a memory surfaced in Jong-chul’s mind, and fury quickly boiled within him.
“…It was you!”
Jong-chul shouted impulsively, driven by the memory that flashed through his head.
“What are you talking about?”
“Sunal Heseo! Yes, it was you.”
Jong-chul pointed his finger directly at Sunal.
“You fraud who appeared out of nowhere! Did you think I’d forget how you tried to shake the foundations of our magic?”
“Me, you say?”
Sunal scoffed at Jong-chul. It looked like things could escalate into a physical confrontation any moment, though Sunal had no intention of letting that happen.
“Well, I don’t recall anything like that. The only thing I remember is saying that this outdated and decrepit magical system was wrong.”
“You were never supposed to be a mage again!”
Jong-chul’s eyes darted around, still searching for the hidden magical tool, and Sunal thought to himself how pathetic it was.
“Are you talking about the curse?”
The Wizards’ Association had placed a harsh stigma on those who failed to become mages. They imposed a restriction, ensuring that these individuals could never use magic again.
That was the same for him as well.
“Of course, I broke it. Easily.”
Sunal chuckled.
The so-called curse sounded terrifying, but in truth, it had been effortless to break. It hadn’t even taken him a minute.
“What nonsense is that? You broke the curse? The curse is…”
“Yes. The curse is a measure endorsed by the state to prevent those who fail the mage exams from practicing magic.”

It had only been about thirty years since peace had returned after the war between different races. In other words, the country, fearful of another war breaking out, had placed severe restrictions on the most dangerous types of magic. One of these restrictions was the acceptance of the curse imposed on those who failed their mage exams.
“But there’s no rule saying you can’t break the curse, nor is there anything stopping you from trying something after breaking it, is there?”
Sunal stated the facts.
The country had already received heavy criticism just for permitting the curse, but applying pressure on someone who had broken it seemed too risky. After that, the responsibility was handed over to the Wizards’ Association.
“That’s because no one has ever broken the curse!” Jong-chul shouted.
“Even if you’re upset, you should at least be accurate. You all placed the curse on those who couldn’t break it, so naturally, it worked as intended. That’s why there were no follow-up measures.”
If someone had been capable of breaking the curse, they likely wouldn’t have failed the mage exam in the first place.
“Oh, but there was some follow-up, wasn’t there? Word did spread about not helping those under the curse.”
Sunal manipulated the magic circle using his mana.
“But I’m different.”
The magic formula, which had been deemed irreparable and which even Jong-chul, the person in charge of the Wizards’ Association branch, had said couldn’t be fixed, was now being rewritten by the new magic following Sunal’s fingers.
[Restore.]
With just a simple spell, the magic formula was reassembled before Jong-chul’s eyes. He stood there, dumbfounded. The way the magic formula rebuilt itself and the mana swirling around it were awe-inspiring.
“They treated me as a freak and cursed me, so of course I had to break it easily, don’t you think?”
Sunal extended his hand, and the repaired magical tool settled into his palm.
“How long did it take? If I remember correctly, not even a minute.”
As Jong-chul stood there in a daze, Sunal opened the magical tool and handed it back to him.
When the mirror reflected Jong-chul’s face, his entire face, which hadn’t been concealed by any magic, appeared red. It was proof that the tool was functioning perfectly.
“So, you should really be careful about lying, and especially who you lie to.”
Sunal’s lips curved into a smirk.
“I can fix it. Easily. I just proved it. Surely, you’re not saying you’re less skilled than a failed mage who was under a curse, right?”
“…That’s impossible.”
“What was that law again? There are so many that I can’t remember exactly, but I think there’s a punishment for providing false information during the course of official duties. But first, there’s the investigation, isn’t there?”
Sunal folded his fingers.
“Violation of a mage’s duty, racial discrimination, obstruction and interference with official duties, and, of course, the concealment of various instances of discrimination and neglect of a mage’s responsibilities.”
There would probably be more, but Sunal didn’t mention them. Once the investigation began, the branch would be forced to close.
Now, his fingers pointed toward the CCTV.
“I’m sure the CCTV captured me using magic quite clearly. So, hand it over as well.”
Sunal made sure to secure the CCTV footage, just in case anything else came up.

When Sunal returned home, he laid down absentmindedly on the sofa.
Although he had become a public servant because he couldn’t become a mage, this was the first time he had faced the Wizards’ Association head-on.
‘It feels strange.’
Overall, he felt good. He had been lucky enough to get a case where he could strike back at them, so why wouldn’t he feel pleased?
The Wizards’ Association would likely take some kind of action after this, but Sunal wasn’t worried in the slightest. However, there was a bitter taste left behind.
Even after all this time, the Wizards’ Association hadn’t changed one bit from when he had tried to join them.
‘In fact, it looks even more rotten now.’
The buildings had grown taller, but the discrimination and contempt toward non-mages seemed to have deepened.
‘Well, I’ve finally shaken up the Wizards’ Association for the first time.’
From now on, he would have to keep his eyes wide open and watch how this case unfolded.
Sunal glanced at his watch, feeling as though he had just taken a refreshing drink of soda.
There were about two hours left until the end of his shift.
‘I’m already off work.’
Sunal finally started laughing to himself. He was filled with a feeling as if he owned the world.
When the notification sound came through, Sunal grabbed his phone from where it rested above his head.
[Team Leader: That was amazing. You really caught a big one!]
A message from Edina Ross came in, accompanied by a smirking rabbit emoji.
[Team Leader: I can’t even remember the last time we had a case this big. It feels so good to bring those mages down a notch! Sunal, you were incredible today!]
A thumbs-up rabbit emoji moved on the screen.
[Team Leader: Thanks to you, I’ll have to stay late tonight, but still, great job today. See you tomorrow.]
[Me: Yes, Team Leader. Please take on all the extra work for me.]
Sunal couldn’t stop smiling. After all, he had already finished work.
[Team Leader: 🖕]
[Team Leader: Ah, that was a mistake. I swear it wasn’t because I’m annoyed. You know that, right, Sunal?]
[Me: If overtime turns into a late shift, mistakes like that are understandable. Keep up the good work.]
With a victorious grin, Sunal placed the phone back by his bedside. Today just might have been the best Monday ever.

“…Ha.”
Sunal let out a sigh.
‘Best, my foot. I forgot that the next day is Tuesday.’
He had only closed his eyes for a moment, but time had flown by, and suddenly it was already Tuesday. When he boarded the subway that morning on his way to work, he had half a mind to just throw himself off the platform.
“Good morning, Sunal!”
Edina cheerfully greeted him, plopping a stack of paperwork onto the desk beside him.
Thud.
She added another stack, grinning widely.
“This one’s for Terisha.”
Next to Edina, a fairy named Terisha floated in the air, her four blue wings fluttering and leaving a trail of sparkling dust behind her. The fairy, who was only about the size of Edina’s torso, greeted Sunal calmly.
“Good morning. Did you get home alright yesterday?”
The dragon horn-shaped headband Terisha wore wobbled slightly as she spoke.
“Uh, good morning. Yesterday… there were a lot of clients.”
Lee Rang, from the goblin race, added the final pile of documents on Sunal’s desk, emanating a dark, brooding aura.
“What’s the reason? Why…?”
As Sunal raised his voice slightly, Lee Rang flinched.
‘Why, though?’
Sunal just couldn’t understand. Why had the paperwork piled up this much? Why did this stack of paperwork even exist? He didn’t know the reason, but somehow it had outstripped the work he’d already done yesterday.
Looking at the growing stack, Sunal’s frustration boiled over.
“Well, you know, people get really worked up on Mondays, don’t they? Maybe they just needed to vent some complaints,” Lee Rang said with a faint smile as he subtly edged backward.
“Please.”
“Please, Sunal.”
“We’re counting on you.”
The three of them politely asked for his help as they hurried to their seats. Lee Rang and Terisha, sitting on either side of him, were so focused on their monitors that their determination not to look at Sunal was almost palpable.