Two Days of Abstinence
I hadn't had sex for two days.
To think a day would come when someone offered and I turned them down.
I was pouring every empty hour into training alone. I used my ability to restore stamina and mend muscle injuries, letting me keep my body moving far longer than anyone else. Day after day I could feel my skill with weapons climbing higher because of it.
"That guy's completely insane. He's a monster."
"You thought he'd be on your level? His mana's in a whole different league."
"Ah... that oppa is so cool. I want to wipe his sweat for him."
"Kyaa—! Did you see that just now? He smiled at me!"
"No he didn't! He was looking at me!"
The crowd of onlookers grew every day. Sometimes the shrill screams of high-school girls carried over. It wasn't a bad feeling.
Senior, though, pouted at me every single night.
"Aang... Junghyeok-ah... You're really not going to do it today either?"
"Next time. I'm building my body right now."
My muscles had bulked up noticeably. Whether it was the training or the power of mana, I couldn't tell. My skin had even grown strangely smooth—maybe that was the perk of becoming one of those enviable Awakened.
Going completely without sex was impossible. Sex was the only real way to recover energy; ordinary sleep restored only a pathetic trickle. Still, the amount I actually spent was so tiny that I was holding steady above 45 percent. A mere 0.1 percent was enough to bring even total exhaustion back to full.
"This time of day feels the best."
I checked the account. Money from various companies was still flowing in steadily this week. But the number of sponsors had dropped compared to last week, and the amounts were smaller. Large corporations in particular were nowhere to be seen. All because of the Dragon Guild.
"Why drop six billion all at once..."
The gap in sponsorship money was so huge that the other companies seemed ready to write off the first two weeks entirely. Or maybe they had started colluding behind the scenes. Did they really think I was that easy to push around? Looking down on me was a massive miscalculation.
I had decided to enhance mana for twenty people per company. At the very least I ought to take a hundred million per head, right? Anything less and I would shut the business down myself first. Keep the early stage like this, then later switch to dealing with individuals instead of corporations. For now I needed to build connections with as many companies as possible. The real moves would come only after I had sunk deep roots inside the Community. Once a perfect protective veil surrounded me, the world would be mine.
For that, I first needed to get close to Ahn Jihyun.
Today was Wednesday. Among the ten from the Dragon Guild who had come yesterday, Ahn Jihyun herself had not been included. Would she show up today with the remaining ten? I had overheard that they were reviewing the matter positively.
"Ugh... the mana really..."
"Congratulations. Now hurry out and let the next person in."
I had rented a single room in a business building. Only one person was allowed inside at a time. No need to explain why I chose that method. With an opportunity like this, of course I was going to try seducing a few high-ranking female Awakened.
"Hello?"
"Please sit in front of me."
"Here?"
"Yes."
With male Awakened I simply rested a hand on their head, dragged things out a little, roughly raised their mana, and sent them packing. Women were an entirely different story.
"Aang... uh, why the shoulder...? I heard you do the head for everyone else."
"The spot where potential erupts is different for every person."
"Um... do you really have to put your hand inside the clothes?"
"That's right. You have tremendous potential."
"Kyaang..."
Some women blushed and squirmed like that.
"Heuang... right there feels good. It feels like my muscles are melting."
"How about here?"
"Haueuk... that's a sensitive place—how did you know? Haang..."
Others openly moaned through their noses, trying to seduce me. A few walked in from the start wearing outfits so revealing they barely counted as clothes. They leaned forward to flash deep cleavage and rubbed themselves against my arm. The ones who hadn't bothered with underwear at all were even better. For people who carved monsters into pieces, they possessed absurdly beautiful faces and bodies.
The most shameless of all was the woman who simply grabbed my hand and guided it straight between her legs. Roughly half of the twenty people I had handled yesterday and today were women, and several of them had tried to tempt me that way. Not my type, but it still got me hard. Instinct was instinct; my cock kept rising of its own accord. Going completely without sex these past few days was definitely part of the reason.
"I really can't believe it... mana rising this easily. You're incredible~"
After the enhancement they all reacted with the same astonishment. That level of surprise was ordinary.
"One more time... please, just one more time."
Word had already spread that I was doing business with parents as well. Knowing that mana could be raised a total of three times, they clung to me with disgusting persistence. My answer never changed.
"Additional raises cost five hundred million per stage. Going further is work hard enough to cut into my lifespan..."
That was the line I used on the men. The moment they heard it would eat my life and that each stage cost five hundred million, they quietly backed off. Of course a few still offered to pay the five hundred million.
With the women I leaked something different. I casually let them know that partners who shared a deeper, more intimate relationship with me could receive larger mana boosts a little more easily.
"This is my personal number. Call me when you have time. As long as I'm not out on a dungeon expedition, you're always welcome. Paying around five hundred million is well within my means."
"I will."
Most of the women left their numbers and walked out. Unlike my pure(?) girls, their proactive attitude made it clear they were no virgins. I added that the information was a secret and they shouldn't blab it around—but that was just the usual "I'm telling only you" act. Secrets never stay secret, and the more it spread the better for me. Wealthy female Awakened would come running, begging "please, just once..." Too many would be annoying, but I could handle that much annoyance. We were talking five hundred million, not fifty.
Once money started rolling in, it came in waves, one after another. Making this much and still not being able to found my own company? That simply didn't make sense.
While I was thinking that, the person I had been waiting for so desperately finally appeared.
It was late; the Dragon Guild's mana enhancements had just finished. We had started at six in the evening and it was already nearly eight. The vice representative of the Dragon Guild and current head of the Awakened Community—Ahn Jihyun—walked into the room, two strange hangers-on trailing behind her.
"Welcome. I've been waiting."
"Hwaaaam..."
She yawned with both hands shoved in her pockets. First meeting and she was already showing me her throat—not those breasts, the other kind. Slouched posture, lazy gait, she flopped onto the sofa without ceremony. My offered handshake was ignored completely.
What kind of woman was this? Not even a street thug acted like that.
"You are Ms. Ahn Jihyun, correct?"
"Yeah. Haaam..."
She yawned so hard her jaw looked ready to unhinge. In contrast, the two men who seemed to be her attendants were well-dressed and solidly built—exactly like yakuza underlings. Naturally they were Awakened. No ordinary person could trail after the Community head and a major corporation's vice representative.
How was I supposed to open a conversation in front of people like these? After the sponsorship amounts had been made public the other day, I finally understood why that man had evaluated Ahn Jihyun the way he did. "She lives however she wants," he had said... I had braced myself, yet this bitch still exceeded every expectation. Even Kim Isol's temper suddenly felt adorable by comparison.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Kang Junghyeok."
I extended my hand again. First I needed to gauge her strength. I also wanted the information on the two men beside her, but that would be difficult. All it took was a light touch on the body—yet using it here was awkward as hell. When she still refused to take my hand I had no choice but to pull it back.
Everything ahead was pitch black. How was I supposed to reel this woman in?
"I'm sorry for making an unreasonable request just to meet you. There's something I really need to say. Could the two gentlemen step outside for a moment?"
"No. These are my confidants. They're tight-lipped, so don't worry about it."
"Is that... so. Understood. Since you're busy, I'll get straight to the point. Actually, I..."
I laid out my demands without any padding—get the government moving. Judging by the constant yawning, dragging things out would only backfire. I could only hope she was someone I could actually talk to.
"...That's everything. If you grant my request, I will raise your mana—far more than any other Awakened. Even if it shortens my own lifespan."
"Hmm... What a bother. It's not like I'm on particularly good terms with the government side either."
A woman whose thoughts I couldn't read at all. Half-lidded eyes, clothes a mess, yawning nonstop. If I had met her on the street I would have taken her for a pretty freeloader—or a woman who had gotten drunk, collapsed somewhere, and only just woken up. What on earth had the Community been thinking when they handed the top seat to someone like this?
The core of the Awakened Community was filled with executives from the major corporations. Groups that had carried "Guild" in their names since the earliest days of the Awakened formed the mainstream. The Community itself had been founded back then and continued ever since, so of course the founding members still held the real power. Veteran Awakened ran the place. And yet their representative was this woman. I nearly let out a sigh without meaning to.
"Is it that you still don't trust my ability?"
"No. Your ability's already been confirmed. Our kids were really happy about it. I'm just lazy..."
Lazy? She had no desire for more mana? Did that even make sense? Was there an Awakened alive who didn't want to grow stronger? This was a deal—neither pure charity nor pure extraction. Was what I wanted really harder than enhancing her mana? Someone in her position only needed to make a single phone call to the government side.
"Or is there something else you want from me?"
"Um... I don't particularly want anything. Our guild wants to bring you in, though. Hwaaaam... I don't even know what they'd use you for."
"That's an honor. You've sponsored us generously and I'm very grateful to the Dragon Guild."
"Really? Then just join our guild. Starting your own company won't do you any good. Only annoying work piles up. Look at me."
I was looking. She looked like someone who slept all day. The impression of a person who sat in a high seat, dumped every task on subordinates, and did absolutely nothing herself.
"Having my own company has been a long-held dream."
"Heung... Fine."
She picked at her ear and listened half-heartedly. Even the way she sat on the sofa had zero formality, like an ajumma who had come out just to gossip.
"But you'll regret it. Offers like this from us are rare."
"Of course I consider it an honor."
"Arrogant. How dare you."
"Pardon?"
"Never mind... Hwaam..."
A chill ran down my spine. For a single instant, beneath that vacant expression, I thought I saw a flash of sharp teeth. What the hell was that just now? Fortunately I managed not to show any reaction.
"You seem to be running around cocky just because you have some weird mana ability. I hate people like that."
"Ah... haha... Is that so."
Rude, blunt speech. An unpredictable woman. Pushing my demand through against her was going to be difficult. Maybe she already believed she had trained herself to the absolute limit. Or maybe she was preparing to retire. Plenty of top-tier Awakened started stepping back in their mid-thirties. With the money they had earned by then, old age was never a worry. Working into your forties or fifties was the sort of thing only the bottom-rung lives at the company I used to work for ever did.
"So that means you're rejecting my request."
"Yeah. I hate bothersome things. It's not my business and there's no benefit in it."
"Ah... yes..."
Fuck. I almost wanted to grab her by the hair right then and strip her mana away. Wait—benefit?
"Did I mishear? It sounded like you would help if there was something in it for you. Besides the mana enhancement, is there something specific you want from me?"
"Ugh... so annoying. I already told you. Join our company."
"Ah... that. Sorry, but as I said earlier, I refuse."
"Negotiation breakdown, then."
"Seems so."
Ah... nothing was going right. But it was fine. I still had one final means left.