Look at Those Mana Pockets (2)

My vision turned blood-red. It felt like every capillary in my eyes had burst. At the same time, something metallic surged up from my stomach. I couldn’t hold it back and coughed violently. I only came back to my senses after Dohwa barked. - Ding. [Your summon ‘Dohwa’ has….] “Kyaaang!!!” Tick. The sound of a clock brushed past my ears. The pain melted away like snow. When I regained my focus and looked around… I was right on the verge of using a trait on Serin. Dohwa must have used her three-second regression. ‘Stop right now!!’ “Hup!!” I immediately pulled the mana back from my hand. The mouth that had been about to shout Usurpation clamped shut. Ding—! The notification popped up belatedly.

Fatal damage nullified… “Kyaaang!! Kyang, kyeuuung!!!” “Dohwa? What’s wrong all of a sudden… Oppa?” Dohwa came running over, whimpering as if asking if I was okay. And my little sister, staring straight at my face. I looked back and forth between the two of them and forced the corners of my mouth upward. “D-Dohwa must be really hungry. She’s begging for food.” “Aww, I thought it was something serious… You can’t bark in the hospital, Dohwa~.” “…Kyeuuung?” “Sorry, sorry. Oppa will scold her and be right back.” Grab. I scooped Dohwa up from the floor. Then I headed for the corner of the hospital room. With my back to the bed so Serin couldn’t see… -Pat pat pat pat. ‘Dohwa, nice!!!’ I ruffled her fur like crazy. Contrary to what I’d told my sister, I had zero intention of scolding her. I was insanely ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠grateful. “Kyeuuung…?” Dohwa still looked worried about me, but— -Whisper whisper. “I’m fine.” ‘I have a fatal damage prevention trait, you know.’ My mythic-grade trait, Protection of the Guardian Dragon. It nullifies fatal damage and completely heals the wound. Add in Dohwa’s three-second regression? Just like that green-haired swordsman, I could pull off an ‘Absolutely… nothing happened!!’ Thanks to that, my sister hadn’t noticed what had just occurred. Only Dohwa and I knew. Squeeze— I hugged Dohwa tight and muttered under my breath. - Mumble. “Self-damage from a stigmata… that shit is no joke.” A critical hit out of nowhere. From the situation, it had to be the self-damage from Usurpation. So that’s how much it hurts. Now I get why other Awakeners don’t take on that kind of penalty. ‘I thought I’d be fine…’ Of course I hadn’t been crazy enough to take on such a dangerous restriction on purpose. I already had a trait that reduced damage by 80 percent. On top of that, the first clear of the scenario and the EX+ achievement reward had multiplied the power of any penalty by eight times. In other words, the actual damage I took was only about 2.5 percent. That was why I’d thought I’d be safe. So why had this happened? ‘Too much mana.’ When I absorbed it earlier, I realized her body was overflowing with mana. At least a thousand times more than mine. And I’d tried to suck ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it all in at once? From nearly three meters away, remotely? It was like trying to fill a teacup by blowing up a dam. Instant-death-level damage was inevitable. The way to solve this problem was… ‘I can control the absorption rate, so I just need to take it slowly over a long time.’ Water doesn’t make you sick if you drink it slowly. I just had to stay close and absorb it at a leisurely pace. Serin hadn’t even hit puberty yet, so there shouldn’t be any immediate problems. ‘But why does she have so much mana? A thousand times mine is basically an infinite mana cheat key, isn’t it?’ That thought led to another question. Still holding Dohwa, I slowly turned around. Then I looked my sister up and down. “Hmm? Oppa, why…?” “Just thinking my Serin has grown up so much.” She’d been tiny before she got sick, but in just a few years her body had exploded with growth. Even the doctor had freaked out, asking what kind of symptom this was… ‘All of that was because of her mana pockets.’ A thousand times my mana. Her body had grown just to hold it all. So that’s what happens when you have Hyper-mana Syndrome. “What kind of disease even is this… Serin? Does anything feel uncomfortable?” “Hmm? Other than feeling sleepy, not really~?” “You don’t wish your chest would go back to being flat like before?” “I actually like it! It makes me feel like an adult!” “Then that’s a relief.” Fortunately, she seemed pretty satisfied with the side effects of Hyper-mana Syndrome. I decided to count it as a good thing. It was way better than seeing her ribs sticking out from being skin and bones. “Then Serin, can Oppa hug you for a bit?” “If it’s Oppa, of course~.” “Thanks. I’ll be gentle.” After setting Dohwa down, I brushed the fur off my clothes and approached her. Squeeze— I carefully wrapped my arms around Serin and whispered softly. “Usurpation.” “Kyeuuuuung….” Dohwa, who had been watching me with worry, prepared herself for the worst again, but… ‘This time it’s really fine.’ Did she think I’d make the same mistake twice? I started with the tiniest amount and slowly increased the absorption rate. Just enough that I could endure it without showing any pain. Little by little. Thanks to that, there were no more critical hits. - Ding. [Time remaining until complete Hyper-mana Syndrome activation: 4 months, 13 days] “Oppa, my body feels so much lighter. The sleepiness is gone too.” “Good, that’s great.” Just an hour ago it had been 4 months and 8 days until recurrence. In one hour I’d bought us five whole days. At this rate, discharge would come quickly. A little sprout of hope peeked out. ‘…But a full cure will still take a while.’ Of course, that was only about getting discharged. I had no idea when the day would come that my sister would be truly safe from Hyper-mana Syndrome. In fact, it might never come. That thought even crossed my mind. Even though I’d burned through an hour’s worth in her place, there was still a ton of mana left. ‘For now I’ll keep this up, then head to the fifth floor and make a new stigmata. One that burns through a ridiculous amount of mana.’ Squeeze— I pulled my sister a little closer. “Serin, from now on let’s hug like this for an hour every day.” “Hmm? I’d like that~.” “You’re not going to ask why?” “There doesn’t need to be a reason~ You’re my oppa.” “Yeah. Thank you.” We didn’t share blood, but she was still the person I cherished more than anyone—Ryu Serin. I would do anything for this child. I renewed my resolve once more. -Throb. “…….” ‘And why is the ring acting up at a time like this?’ Out of nowhere, my artifact, the Dragon’s Ring. Ever since Protection of the Guardian Dragon had activated, it had felt strangely uncomfortable… ‘Is it some kind of cooldown notification?’ That ring really does have every function under the sun. I brushed it off lightly. Since the discomfort disappeared after a day, I figured it really was just telling me the cooldown. * * * Serin’s discharge was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠set for three weeks later. I decided to stay with her until then. She would still be confused, so having a guardian around would be best. That was what the doctor had said. “Serin. Do you remember the promise I made to Mom and Dad?” “…Yeah. That when Mom and Dad aren’t here, Oppa will take care of me instead.” “I can’t replace them, but… Oppa is an Awakener now. I’ll make sure you never have any inconvenience in daily life.” I hugged her often and reassured her. “If you want anything, just tell me.” “I only need Oppa.” “Oppa will stay by your side forever, so don’t worry about that.” “…Hehe.” Maybe because of that, my sister never fell into depression. Whenever I came, the corners of her mouth would lift. When I summoned Dohwa, they lifted twice as high. She smiled every time I left, so it made me happy too. Thanks to that, the first week flew by. [Breaking news. Cheonghwa Group announces South Korea’s first climber to clear the fourth floor of the Tower of Pilgrims….] One week ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠after I cleared the fourth floor. The Cheonghwa Guild dropped some good news. It was the story of the third-generation chaebol heir who had bought Baekri-hyang’s soul orb from me—Hyeon-seo’s escape. ‘She still hasn’t revealed her identity. Is it because of the military?’ For some reason her photo and real name weren’t shown… Well, she’d reveal it when she wanted to. For now, I’d just congratulate her. “…Hmm.” ‘I was being sincere with the congratulations. Why are they like this?’ The public’s reaction was basically ‘anyone below Cheol-gang-min is trash,’ and “Oppa, if you fought that person, who would win~?” “Oppa would win. He probably couldn’t even beat Dohwa.” “Aww~ You’re joking~.” “…….” ‘It’s true, though.’ In reality Hyeon-seo was nothing compared to me, but anyway. Thanks to that, the second week passed enjoyably. Serin loved Awakeners, so the conversation never ran dry. “Serin, when you get discharged, do you want anything else as a present? A luxury bag or something?” “Teenieping cards!!” “Those are discontinued… Never mind, I’ll get you every single kind.” And then the long-awaited third week. With discharge right around the corner, I moved to gather the ‘gift list’ I had accumulated so far. Of course, I didn’t run around doing it myself. “Baekri-hyang, did you get everything I asked for?” [Indeed.] Baekri-hyang’s short reply came with a click. A major Korean conglomerate had done all the legwork and gathered everything for me. “What about the gate?” [One has been secured by the one called Hwang Hee-chan. It should be sufficient for you to enjoy yourself, my lord.] The gift pickup and the gate I had requested were both ready. All I had to do was go and collect them. “Serin, Oppa’s going for a quick walk.” I stood up lightly. Then I equipped my gear piece by piece. My sister, seeing me fully armed for the first time in three weeks, clapped like a seal. -Clap clap clap. “Oppa looks so cool! Just like a real Awakener!” “Kiiing….” Dohwa wagged her tail excitedly too. She had gotten much stronger, yet for three whole weeks I had only used her cute-acting trait nonstop. She seemed eager to go out and show off her power for once. Well, I might as well take her for a walk. We should go together. “Dohwa, let’s go for a walk~.” “Kyeuuung~.” I held Dohwa in my arms. Then I pulled a hat down over my head. It was the Legendary-grade Dragon Slayer’s Hat, Tarnkappe. I still didn’t like the item very much, but “Be careful out there… Huh?” “How is it? You can’t see Dohwa either?” “Y-yeah!! It’s super amazing!!” Invisibility worked on anything my mana touched directly. Not only the Moonlight Sword, but even Dohwa disappeared. The effect was so good I used it even though I didn’t want to. “If anyone asks where Oppa went, tell them I went to the bathroom for a bit.” “Got it~.” “Good. I’ll be back soon.” I stepped out of the hospital room while invisible. I poured plenty of mana into the stealth artifact, the Necklace of Seclusion. When I dumped all the surplus mana I had absorbed from Serin into it, the effect was much stronger than usual. -Poke poke. ‘…They really can’t notice me even if I touch them now.’ I poked the back of a nurse’s hand while she was working, and she didn’t react at all. No chance of my identity being exposed at Cheonghwa. Feeling reassured, I headed to the meeting place. ‘Should be around here… Huh?’ And then I— Took another critical hit. Not physically. Mentally.

“…….” ‘The nightmare from the fourth floor!!!’ Please, I’m begging you, don’t give me a hairstyle that looks like the Sword Tomb.