Becoming a Mage of the Special Unit in Another World

Chapter 15 – It’s Too Late To Do This (3)

“Understood. Please calm down. I was merely asking to understand the situation.”
Sunal, trying to soothe Maeve, pulled out a bracelet.
Even if they didn’t know who the culprit was, if their goal was to create chaos in the hospital, it seemed they had succeeded.
They had taken advantage of the natural perception succubi possessed, along with a situation that even the succubus herself wouldn’t have noticed.
“It’s not like I… uh, it’s not that I was drunk on my own importance….”
“I understand that’s not what you meant. I just thought that what you’re feeling now is similar to what you usually sense. And of course, I wasn’t trying to point out that you didn’t notice it. I simply asked because I thought we could get a deeper understanding of the situation. I apologize if I upset you.”
As Sunal spoke politely and apologized, Maeve clutched her hair with both hands.
That’s not it.
“…So, what I mean is….”
Maeve mumbled, then closed her eyes tightly as she finally began to speak.
“I’m sorry for misunderstanding. I thought you were just doubting me. But I still don’t understand what it means that my mana changed!”
“It means someone tampered with your mana, twisting it so that the potion couldn’t block the power of your charm.”
“…So, you’re saying…”
Maeve, now understanding the situation, clenched her hands tighter around her hair.
“You’re saying I’ve been using my charm power all this time?”
She had no idea when the charm power had started to spread, but did this mean that the kindness people had shown her up until now had all been a lie?
‘Now that I think of it, people have been… much friendlier than usual…’
“Maeve.”
Sunal lightly tapped the desk and looked at her.
Seeing her dazed expression, Sunal spoke again.
“Don’t think about it. Don’t doubt anything. This isn’t something that happened because you wanted it to. Acknowledge that, and don’t blame yourself. Do you understand?”
Maeve bit her lip and nodded. She responded this way, but it wasn’t the first time something like this had happened.
Because of the power of her charm, she had always had to doubt any relationships she formed with people.
Did they really like her, or was it just because of her charm?
Since she couldn’t know the truth, Maeve honestly found herself doubting this public officer even now.
Hadn’t he become more lenient than when they first met?
“Since you might feel uncomfortable ingesting something, I thought a bracelet might be more acceptable.”
Sunal enchanted the bracelet he had pulled out.
It was a spell designed to correct the disrupted flow of Maeve’s mana.
“For now, you mustn’t take any more potions to suppress your charm. The change in your mana flow will only amplify the charm’s power. First, we need to stabilize your mana flow.”
Maeve silently stared at the bracelet Sunal handed her.
It looked like an ordinary bracelet, but strangely, it gleamed.
She still couldn’t fully accept the situation. She had been the cause of it, hadn’t realized it, and had been blaming someone else for creating this mess.
Sunal, noticing Maeve’s expression becoming more and more twisted, tried to calm her down.
“I know this situation must be terrifying, but trust me. You need to return to your daily life.”
“…Daily life?”
The words didn’t sound affectionate, and though they felt like something said to appease her, for some reason, Maeve found them oddly comforting.
“Yes. You can’t stay caught up in this uncomfortable situation forever.”
Sunal flashed a slight smile, and Maeve leaned forward, placing her hands on the desk.
Bang.
Sunal’s eyes widened as Maeve fixed her gaze on him.
“…Sunal, you’re not under my charm power, are you?”
“Of course, I’d say no, but just words wouldn’t be convincing. If you’d like, I could even curse to prove it. Would you like that?”
Even with Sunal’s lighthearted response, Maeve kept staring at him before letting out a deep breath and nodding.
It really wasn’t the case.
“No. It’s just… I had a small doubt. I’m glad that’s not the case.”
“Well, not to brag, but I can withstand most charm powers.”
Sunal explained the situation briefly, following the protocol of informing the victim of the facts.
“The second cause was the magic installed in the air purifier. That magic blocked the detector.”
“Magic…? Who in the world would do something like that?”
Maeve’s gaze turned cold. She must have been furious, as her previously wide eyes sharpened, and dark lines appeared near her eyes, like eyeliner.
“That’s something we’ll have to find out by checking the CCTV. Anyway, make sure you wear the bracelet. I’ll visit you again…”
As Sunal casually packed his bag and slowly stood up, his eyes suddenly moved.
Clang!
A stone crashed through the window.
His signature magic, a chain, shot up from beneath his feet, blocking both the flying stone and the shards of glass, protecting Maeve.
Clang!
“I’ve found the suspect.”
Sunal looked down through the window, leaving behind the shattered stone caught by his chain.
Seeing the person running away frantically, he let a smile creep up.
That smile was so eerie that it startled Maeve, causing her wings, which had spread open in surprise, to shrink.
“You can start working now. You should clock out.”
Sunal’s face couldn’t have been brighter when he mentioned finishing work.
It was a word that made him happy just by saying it.
“Well, it’s just… I’m on duty tonight…”
“That’s unfortunate. I might end up working overtime tonight too. Feels like we’re in the same boat.”
Maeve, who had spoken calmly, was shocked when she saw Sunal jump from the third floor with ease.
“Aah! S-Someone help! Police! No, wait, a doctor…!”
Maeve ran to the door and shouted, but quickly realized something was wrong.
“W-wait, I’m the doctor?”
She was the doctor.
And she had a phone.
Maeve hurriedly took out her phone and made a call.
“H-hello!”

Thud.
Before his feet touched the ground, a gust of wind blew from Sunal’s toes.
His ponytail fluttered, and the earring dangling from one ear swayed widely.
Sunal dashed forward along the pedestrian path in one swift movement.
“Throwing a stone? That makes me a little angry.”
They say that even a frog can die from a careless stone thrown, and if things got out of hand, wouldn’t an angry wizard hit by a stone die as well?
And his stomach already hurt enough as it was.
One step.
Two steps.
With each step imbued with the power of wind, Sunal quickly closed the distance, overtaking the people around him and catching up with his target in no time.
Seeing the annoying tail swaying behind him, Sunal was finally certain.
‘It’s definitely a Lizardman.’
He had caught a glimpse of the lizard tail when the window was broken, and a stone was thrown earlier.
It happened so quickly that he wasn’t sure at first, but now it was obvious, with the tail sticking out from beneath the clothes.
When the suspect turned left at a junction, Sunal prepared to catch him.
Just as he was about to snag him with magic, Sunal stopped in his tracks.
The suspect had vanished.
People continued to walk past him, but the Lizardman was nowhere to be seen, as if he had evaporated into thin air.
‘…So you’re going to play hard to get?’
Sunal’s expression stiffened.
There was no way the suspect had just disappeared. Slowly turning his eyes toward the hospital building, Sunal began walking.
[Explore.]
As he cast the spell, a red glow lit up in one of Sunal’s eyes.
Sometimes, Lizardmen could use a camouflage ability similar to chameleons, blending into their surroundings to become invisible.
Not all of them could, but it had to happen now of all times.
‘Let’s not do this. It’s delaying my clock-out.’
A wave of exhaustion hit Sunal.
He was aware that unexpected situations were always a part of being on the scene.
And he also knew it wasn’t uncommon for one incident to lead to another.
But this wasn’t the situation Sunal had been hoping for.
As he detected the faint stir of mana, Sunal’s gaze followed its movement upward.
It led back to the hospital building. Although the Lizardman couldn’t be seen, the mana was moving cautiously along the side.
“Over hereee.”
Just then, a sluggish voice came from above, and Sunal barely stifled a sigh.
A slime was cheerfully stuck to the wall. Its body, which resembled a round cushion, was covered in flower patterns.
“You must maintain a humanoid form, as per regulations. That’s a legal requirement, so please assume your proper shape immediately.”
Before Sunal could even catch the fleeing Lizardman, his bureaucratic instincts as a public officer kicked in.
While slimes naturally had no fixed shape, an agreement had been made with the other species after the war, stipulating that they would move around in humanoid forms to avoid causing any issues.
Since he was a public officer, Sunal knew he couldn’t just let this situation slide.
‘…Another issue piling up while I’m still at work.’
It was dizzying.
Sunal briefly rubbed his aching stomach.
“It’s okayyy. No one comes hereee.”
The slime wiggled and extended something that resembled a limb, which soon morphed into a hand and then into fingers.
“More importantly, this guy, I don’t like him.”
As if angry, the flower patterns on the slime’s body turned red.
“He suddenly stuck next to meee? This is my spottt. Take him awayyy. Here. Right here.”
The slime’s newly-formed finger precisely pointed at something.
The wall rippled.
Sunal, having already spotted the Lizardman there through his magic, found it amusing.
“See it?”
The slime wiggled excitedly, causing the wall it pointed at to shake even more.
“You damn slime!”
Unable to hold back any longer, the section of the wall transformed into shiny lizard scales, revealing the hairless head of the Lizardman.
As the Lizardman swung its sharp claws at the slime, Sunal didn’t just stand idly by.
[Appear, Wall.]
A magical wall shimmered into existence between the slime and the Lizardman.
Ping!
The Lizardman’s hand bounced off the soft wall, and as the momentum pulled its arm back, it lost its balance, slipping off the wall it had been holding onto.
Thud!
“Ugh!”
Hearing the cry, Sunal calmly walked over to the fallen Lizardman.
With a body as tough as theirs, a Lizardman could survive a fall from six stories high without injury. From the second floor, it probably just felt like bumping into something lightly.
“Oh dear, are you alright?”
Sunal let out a mocking laugh. It was a kind of laugh that could immediately irritate anyone.
“When you suddenly threw a rock at the third floor, I thought you were some kind of lunatic. Turns out you’re perfectly fine and all cleaned up. Do you like baseball by any chance? Though, I must say, this is a hospital, not a ballpark.”
“…What the hell is this guy rambling on about?”
“Just the words of a person.”
Regardless of the Lizardman’s growling, Sunal responded politely.
That damn occupational habit.
“Let me clarify again. This is a hospital, not a baseball field. You’re not supposed to throw stones. Do you understand?”
“Stop talking nonsense!”
The Lizardman bared its sharp, strong teeth, looking ready to bite him.
‘From a lying down position…’
Just as Sunal was about to smirk, wondering what the Lizardman hoped to accomplish in that state, its upper body abruptly shot up.
‘…A crazy core.’
Sunal was dumbfounded.
Just when he was about to deliver a hard flick on the Lizardman’s forehead, he caught a whiff of pine.
‘If it smells like pine…’
Knowing exactly who was nearby, Sunal relaxed and simply watched the Lizardman with an amused expression.
A piece of paper suddenly flew through the air, wrapping around the Lizardman’s open mouth.
Sunal stepped back a bit, and with its mouth sealed, the Lizardman fell forward, its head slamming into the ground, leaving it unconscious.
Bzzz.
As his phone vibrated, Sunal turned his head to the side and answered the call.
“”
It was Lee Rang.
He must have seen what happened as he was on his way to the scene.
Even from across the street, Sunal could see the look of surprise on his face.
“”
“No, not at all. Thank you.”
As Sunal expressed his gratitude, Lee Rang made a gesture as if drawing a star in the air with his finger. Sunal then turned to look back at the Lizardman.
As soon as the paper wrapped around the Lizardman’s mouth loosened, it swiftly bound his entire body.
“…What is this? What the hell is this?!”
“It’s a spell used by the goblin species,” Sunal answered the Lizardman’s question kindly.
Though similar to magic, their spells always required a medium. The use of materials like ‘hanji’ (traditional Korean paper) or ‘ink’ made it quite unique.
‘Hanji sure is durable.’

“That’s plenty.”

For the first time during their conversation, Sunal felt genuine sincerity in Lee Rang’s words.
For some reason, there was an odd sense of camaraderie today.
“Yes. I sincerely hope you clock out on time as well.”
Sunal wished the same for Lee Rang as he ended the call.
Lowering his glasses slightly to look at the Lizardman, one of Sunal’s eyes still glowed with a fiery red light.
‘No wonder he’s been acting so aggressive.’
Sunal snorted.
No matter how he looked at it, the force currently overwhelming the Lizardman seemed to be the result of a charm.
Just great.
Was this Maeve’s power, or was it someone else’s?
Maeve’s charm magic had recently been twisted and amplified, causing her mana flow to become unstable. This meant it wasn’t necessarily her charm affecting the Lizardman right now.
Regardless, Sunal followed protocol and gave a straightforward assessment of the situation.
“You’re currently under the influence of charm magic. You’ll need to go to the hospital for treatment.”
“What kind of bullshit is that?”
“Yes, spouting nonsense is a typical reaction of someone affected by charm magic.”
“You bastard!”
“Exactly. Once someone falls under the spell of charm magic, they all turn into bastards. Woof woof.”
Sunal mockingly imitated a dog’s bark, dripping with sarcasm.
“Just being a regular bastard wouldn’t make anyone suspicious. But the real problem is that you don’t just become a regular bastard—you become a crazy one. You lose all sense of reason, unable to control your actions.”
Before Sunal could finish his explanation, the Lizardman’s tail swept across the ground, aiming for his legs.
But Sunal, as if jumping rope, easily hopped over it and quickly landed back down, channeling magic into his legs.
[Double Gravity.]
With a heavy stomp, Sunal crushed the Lizardman’s tail under the doubled weight.
Crunch!
“Aaaargh!”
The Lizardman screamed in pain. Even with his tough physique, the tail was slightly bent.
‣Among the non-human species, Lizardmen possess the strongest resistance to magic.
Given their innate magic resistance, it had to be this intense to make any impact.
“When under the influence of charm, one becomes recklessly confident, using their strength without thinking about the consequences.”
Crackle.
Sunal sent a surge of electricity, briefly manipulating the body cams, nearby CCTV, and cell phones recording the scene.
The recent attack might have been justifiable as self-defense, but this wasn’t the case anymore.
The higher-ups, who never actually set foot in the field, spouted nonsense about handling people under charm calmly, which left Sunal no choice.
The body cams and CCTV would soon loop back to the previous footage, while the cell phones would have temporarily powered off.
Sunal lifted his leg again.
This time, it was positioned between the Lizardman’s legs. The Lizardman, realizing what was about to happen, looked horrified.
“Ah, no! Stop! Please stop…!”
Without a word, Sunal brought his foot down.
Bang!