TRPM 278

chapter 278

Let me talk a little about my neighborhood.

My neighborhood is located on the outskirts of Seoul, and it isn’t very large.

However, ever since Yeon Mirae, known as the youngest Aura Master, moved into our apartment, and word spread that I, an Aura Master, and Lee Ha-eun, a Grand Magician, lived here, more and more people started moving to our neighborhood.

“Then Ryu Ah-young and Ryu Ah-min, who became famous for their manifestation abilities, also moved here… and ever since, the population of our neighborhood has steadily increased.”

With just the existing buildings, the demand from people couldn’t be met, so several new apartment complexes began to be built in our neighborhood.

So why am I talking about this now…?

“Oh… that building must be finished already.”

A new apartment complex had been constructed right next to ours.

Although people haven’t moved in yet, I already have a rough idea of who will be moving in.

“Of course, it’ll be people with money…”

The land value in our neighborhood keeps rising. Especially near our apartment, the land price is extremely high because I, Yeon Mirae, and Lee Ha-eun live here.

There’s no way the apartments in such an area would be cheap.

“If I want to buy one of those apartments, I’d probably have to live in a high-cost-effective dungeon for at least a month, huh?”

Anyway, the people moving into that apartment will probably want me, Yeon Mirae, or Lee Ha-eun to protect them. Even though the low-frequency wave generator prevents dungeons from appearing in inhabited areas, there’s no guarantee monsters won’t attempt to venture here from afar. Of course, most would likely get caught by soldiers or awakened beings on the way and die.

“Do you want to move into that apartment?”

I asked my mother this as she was looking at the newly built complex.

Our apartment has been standing for about twenty years. My parents chose it as their first home before I was born, so that sounds about right.

It’s not like our apartment is bad—it’s made not just with concrete but with materials reinforced by various magic, giving it an expected lifespan of a hundred years. Even the paint on the exterior hasn’t peeled despite the passage of time and minimal maintenance.

Thinking about that, there’s really no strong reason to move… though a newly built apartment is certainly better than an older one.

“Hm? No, there’s no need for that.”

My mother shook her head at my suggestion. While the new apartment is better than ours, she doesn’t seem particularly inclined to move.

As we walked and talked, we soon arrived at the subway station.

“Then I’ll go to work. Geon-woo, you go to school safely.”
“Okay. See you in the evening.”

I waved as my mother headed down to the subway and started walking toward school.

“…Hmm?”

As I walked, countless construction sites caught my eye.

These weren’t newly started projects—they had been ongoing for some time—but seeing them all at once made it feel like there were far too many.

“…I knew many people were moving to our neighborhood, but did it really need this many buildings?”

Of course, not all of these buildings are for residential use, but even considering that, it’s a lot.

Sigh…

Arriving in front of the school, I noticed a familiar woman letting out a sigh.

‘The lady from the dessert shop?’

The dessert shop had moved near our school this year. I often saw the lady there, and now, for some reason, she was sighing in front of her store.

Since she’s not a stranger and we’re somewhat close, I couldn’t just leave her there, so I approached her.

“Is something wrong?”
“Huh? Oh, Geon-woo.”

She let out a sigh as she spoke.

“This isn’t something I should tell you, but the owner of this building suddenly changed. The new owner said they want to replace our dessert shop with a restaurant and told us to vacate.”
“…Excuse me?”

It’s normal for a landlord to change, but for the new one to ask them to vacate…

“Have you consulted a lawyer?”
“No, not yet…”
“The new owner shouldn’t have that right. I don’t know the exact law, but unless you’ve missed rent payments, that’s usually impossible.”

Ah, she hasn’t missed any rent payments, right?

“Of course not. We pay on time. We haven’t paid the new landlord yet, though.”
“Then it should be fine. Just in case, record any conversations with the landlord.”

The dessert shop lady let out a sigh of relief at my words. She had clearly been quite stressed about this.

Of course, remodeling a store costs money, and opening a shop only to be forced out months later would be very frustrating—if it were legal, that is.

“…Hmm…”

In dramas or movies, there’s usually a shady backstory behind being told to vacate a store—maybe someone’s targeting her. But that’s fiction; in reality, it’s probably just the landlord not knowing the law.

Assuming it’s nothing serious, I said goodbye to the lady and headed to school. She could contact me if anything happened; she knew my number, even if I’d never given it to her directly.

At lunch that day, while eating with my classmates, a staff member from the Association in charge of Kim Eun-yeon entered the cafeteria.

“Eun-yeon.”
“Huh?”
“Isn’t that your Association staff member?”

Lee Ha-eun, who first noticed the staff member, asked Kim Eun-yeon, who nodded after confirming.

“Really…? What brings her here?”

Usually, the staff member waits at Kim Eun-yeon’s lab until school ends, so why come here?

The staff member approached, apologized to us, and whispered something to Kim Eun-yeon.

“It’s about the alchemist who hired someone to steal your notebook yesterday.”

I could hear it too. Though I didn’t intend to, my senses picked it up. An alchemist, huh…

“We’re figuring out a way to hold them accountable, but it’ll take time.”
“…I’m… fine.”
“No, this is for you. You need to respond firmly for the future.”
“…Okay.”

The Korean Association intends to hold the alchemist responsible for attempting to steal Eun-yeon’s notebook. For them, Eun-yeon is far more valuable than any alchemist in the U.S. Even so, the punishment for the alchemist in the U.S. will likely just be a fine.

‘At least it’ll damage the alchemist’s reputation.’

Being someone who tried to steal another’s recipe is enough.

“Really… I’m fine…”

After the staff member left, Eun-yeon murmured quietly. She clearly doesn’t want to escalate matters with another alchemist.

“No, you should handle it firmly, just like your staff member said.”
“Huh…?”
“If you don’t act firmly now, something similar will happen again.”
“That’s right. There are more bad people in the world than you think.”

Elena added her thoughts. If Eun-yeon is seen as weak, more people could harm her. Retaliation against wrongdoers prevents them from acting recklessly.

“…Okay.”

With both the staff and Elena supporting her, Eun-yeon finally agreed.

“But Geon-woo, that’s fine, but how does Elena know this?”
“Yeah? You speak as if you’ve experienced it.”

Kang Garam and Jin Cheon-ha, along with Eun-yeon, were the only ones who knew Elena was actually a British royal; the others thought she was just a foreign student, so it made sense they were confused.

Elena spoke to them:

“My family isn’t as wealthy as Garam’s, but we’re well off. That’s why I could study in Korea.”

To a stranger, it would sound completely believable. Elena usually hides her true nature, so this small lie was effortless. Perhaps she had prepared it in advance.

“Oh, speaking of family, my family bought real estate in Korea.”
“Real estate? A Brit?”
“Yes. Though Elliot and I live in the dorm, it’s a bit inconvenient. We plan to attend both high school and the academy in Korea, so we want a place to live. When my family visits from England, they could stay there too.”

She smoothly changed the topic to avoid suspicion.

“Even so, buying real estate? Wouldn’t it be better to rent a room every 2–3 years? Live near school for three years, then near the academy for four years.”
“I considered that, but the only options nearby are studios, which aren’t ideal.”

Garam worried aloud, and Elena responded. For a royal like her, a studio wouldn’t suffice.

“We decided to live in a newly built apartment instead.”
“Wait… newly built apartment?”

I immediately thought of the new complex next to our apartment.

“Oh, it’s right next to the apartment where Geon-woo and Ha-eun live.”
“……”

Of course.