Chapter 14
“Annual salary at twice the amount proposed by the Demonic Energy Management Bureau. There will also be incentives. For every accurate forecast, a Rainbow Gem—”
“Wait, wait, waiiiit!”
Morgana shouted, completely losing her composure.
“Gerard, you do realize this violates basic business ethics, right?”
“I don’t believe this is the time to talk about business ethics.”
“Are you really allowed to shake a civil servant around like this? As Miss Rubelia said, Civil servants are people who serve the nation with a sense of duty!”
“The Mage Tower also serves the nation. Eloise’s work wouldn’t change just because she joins us.”
Gerard was openly poking at Morgana’s nerves.
Eloise thought this was her chance.
“Vice Director! I take pride in serving the continent!”
Morgana’s expression brightened for a moment.
“I knew it. Of course you’ll stay with the Demonic Energy—”
“But is there really a reason I have to stay in the Demonic Energy Management Bureau to do that?”
In truth, Eloise had no intention whatsoever of leaving the Bureau.
There are healers who need help.
And if she went to the Mage Tower, full of mages, and her awakening as a healer was discovered?
Just imagining it was terrifying.
But for the sake of negotiation, Eloise rattled off words she didn’t mean.
“I’m not asking for the enormous salary the Mage Tower is offering. Just two—no, three times what I make now! And the incentives can be very small, depending on the difficulty of the hole.”
Start high, then find a compromise.
That was basic negotiation strategy.
“Eloise, it seems you didn’t hear the Mage Tower’s proposal to the end earlier. The incentives would be paid in Rainbow Gems.”
Depending on their size and function, Rainbow Gems could be traded for hundreds of gold coins—far more than a low-ranking civil servant’s annual salary.
It was an offer anyone would be tempted by.
Eloise’s resolve wavered.
Morgana grew desperate.
“Let’s do it. Salary negotiation. We’ll negotiate on Eloise’s terms. But first, she needs to prove her ability in the Forecasting Team.”
“If that’s the condition, I can do it right now.”
“…What?”
“A Blue Hole will open at the summit of Mount Sirion in twenty minutes.”
***
“Are you sure it’s opening here?”
Morgana shouted while pulling her coat tighter.
“Yes! I’m sure!”
Eloise shouted back just as loudly.
“Are you cold, Eloise?”
“A little.”
Unlike Morgana, whose lips were turning blue as she trembled violently, Eloise looked calm.
Morgana stared at her in disbelief.
It was understandable.
This was the summit of Mount Hermon, where snow never melted year-round.
“A Blue Hole will open at the summit of Mount Sirion in twenty minutes.”
They were here to verify Eloise’s second forecast.
Morgana promised that if this prediction was correct as well, she would raise Eloise’s salary as requested.
At that, Gerard volunteered to handle the Blue Hole and teleported Morgana and Eloise to the summit of Mount Sirion.
Without giving them time to grab thick coats.
Whooooo—razor-sharp wind howled.
Every breath shook their organs, and exhaled air froze instantly.
Morgana trembled uncontrollably.
Eloise, on the other hand, was perfectly fine.
Because Gerard had secretly slipped a red gem into her pocket.
Red Gems, obtained from Red Holes, emitted heat.
Thanks to that, Eloise felt only a slight chill despite wearing a thin outer layer.
She glanced at Morgana.
She felt embarrassed and guilty enjoying Gerard’s kindness alone.
But she couldn’t bring herself to pass that kindness on to Morgana.
“Keep it a secret.”
That was what Gerard had whispered.
He had also said he would handle things himself, leaving her no room to add anything.
Morgana shot Gerard a glare.
As a mage, he could at least light a fire.
But she couldn’t ask such a trivial favor from someone about to raid a Blue Hole.
And her pride wouldn’t allow it.
They had just been raising their voices at each other over Eloise’s recruitment.
So he was waiting for a chance to poach Bureau talent.
She would rather freeze to death.
She would not beg Gerard for warmth magic.
Grinding her teeth, Morgana turned to Eloise.
“Eloise, you’re sure the Blue Hole will open in two minutes, right?”
If it didn’t, not only would the salary negotiation be canceled, but Eloise would also be held responsible for making Morgana suffer in the cold.
It might sound harsh, but that was how civil service worked.
If things went well, it passed.
If they didn’t, someone took responsibility.
“Yes. It’ll open very soon.”
As if responding to her words, the wind at the summit grew even fiercer.
Fine snow particles whipped through the air, sharp enough to scratch skin.
“A gust?”
Morgana muttered.
Gale-force wind was a typical precursor of a rainbow hole.
Was Eloise’s prediction really correct?
Before she could voice her doubt, a massive hole glowing black and blue appeared in the air.
A Blue Hole.
The moment Eloise’s forecasting ability was proven.
***
Morgana regretted her decision the moment they entered the Blue Hole.
She had followed them, thinking it would be better than freezing to death on the mountain—
But it was even colder inside.
Heavy snow fell endlessly, and an infinite snowfield stretched before them.
Jagged icicles hung from the bare branches of scattered ancient trees.
The howling wind sounded like screams.
A place that held nothing but brutal cold.
“It’s a cold-specialized hole.”
Eloise murmured.
Morgana muttered in response,
“At this rate, I’ll freeze to death.”
Ice had already formed on her eyelashes.
Eloise fiddled with the red gem in her pocket.
It grew increasingly uncomfortable to be the only one warm.
Noticing this, Gerard frowned and summoned a fireball in the air.
Morgana hurried toward the fire.
Her frozen body suddenly thawed, making her itch and sting all over—but it was better than dying.
Eloise’s face brightened.
Pulling Eloise closer to the fire, Gerard said,
“Not all blue holes are this cold.”
So even if you freeze to death, don’t blame me.
That was what his tone implied.
“Most blue holes produce environments and monsters related to liquids. Like water, they’re unpredictable.”
Sometimes they fought monsters spewing boiling steam in scalding environments.
Sometimes, water bombs fell from the sky.
There were times when torrential rain reduced visibility to nothing—
And times when they had to fight while submerged.
“I already know th—achoo!”
Morgana’s condition was deteriorating rapidly.
It would be best to destroy the Blue Hole quickly and return to the Bureau.
Eloise stared at Gerard.
She meant, “Please go destroy the core quickly—”
But instead, Gerard held out his hand.
“Let’s go together.”
“…What?”
“What if something goes wrong while I’m alone?”
Eloise looked dumbfounded, but Gerard was perfectly serious.
This Blue Hole was relatively high difficulty, but it was only the size of a small lake.
Gerard could easily handle it alone.
It was just a matter of time.
“You’re joking, right?”
“I’m serious. I haven’t been in the best condition lately.”
“But even if I go with you, there’s nothing I can do.”
Eloise hadn’t awakened as a healer yet.
She wasn’t a mage either.
If she followed him, she’d just be dead weight.
“…Do you not want to?”
Asked like that, she couldn’t refuse.
And truthfully, she didn’t want to send him alone.
Part of her wanted to see him fight up close.
Even in her previous life, she had never seen his battles firsthand.
The Disaster Response policy only allowed mages into holes—except under rare circumstances like accompanying the Mage Tower Master.
What if healers could enter holes together?
The thought led to regret.
If only I had gone with him into the Purple Hole from the start…
Would Gerard have survived?
If she had stayed by his side, continuously purifying demonic energy?
As the thought that she shouldn’t have left him alone took hold—
Eloise firmly grabbed Gerard’s hand.
