The Spirit Brings the Original Heart Method
After wrapping up the mana stone organization, I headed straight to Seoul. By the time the D.I.B. Headquarters building in Samseong-dong came into view, the area around the entrance gate was busier than usual. Investigators in uniform were straightening their clothes before scattering quickly across the floors. The lobby was usually calm, but today the entire flow felt one notch faster.
I filled out a viewing request form and submitted it. The staff member checked my identity and handed me a notice. “You may view materials until two hours from now. Please keep all documents within the designated area.”
I folded the notice and tucked it away. If there were technique manuals available only at headquarters, today might be the first day I could properly organize everything.
When the door opened, a quiet atmosphere and the scent of old paper brushed past me. The bookshelves stretched all the way to the high ceiling. The section for ancient texts was packed with faded documents and thick copies. “Wow… there’s a lot here.”
I walked slowly along the shelves. The covers were worn, and the letters were so faded they were barely legible. Even when I opened a book, it was hard to tell whether the marks were writing or drawings.
“Jihoon, hold on.” Arin flew up to my shoulder and landed lightly. “Only I can read otherworld texts. Just pull out whatever I tell you to.”
“Okay. How about this one first?” I took down the oldest-looking book from the top shelf. Arin leaned over the page, resting her chin on her hand as she concentrated.
“This is a spell formula record. Completely different from a technique manual. Put it back.”
“Really? I can’t make out anything because the writing’s all broken.” I returned the book and pulled out the next one. “This one… a mana flow map? But the core section is missing. Not this either.”
Arin shook her head. I kept pulling books from the “otherworld documents” section one by one while she leaned against my shoulder, gesturing and identifying them. The process was slow, but her judgment was accurate.
“This is a ritual ceremony compilation. Not a technique.”
“This is a monster classification chart. No need.”
“This one’s symbolic language interpretation? Pass.”
I muttered while returning another book. “Wow… I really can’t tell any of them apart. They all look the same to me—mana this, ritual that.”
Arin let out a small snort. “That’s why you can’t do it without me. Everything labeled ‘otherworld texts’ is all jumbled together. Technique manuals like sword arts and heart methods are probably mixed in here somewhere.”
“Then keep picking. I’ll be the retrieval machine.”
“Yeah… that’s your role today. Hehe.”
I ran my hand along the shelf and pulled out another book. The moment Arin saw the cover, a small flame flickered on her, and she shouted, “Wait!”
She stopped in midair and brought her fingertips close to the cover. “Jihoon, this… doesn’t feel like a copy. There’s a mark that only goes on originals. It must have gotten mixed in by mistake?”
“An original?” I ran my hand over the surface again. The material was definitely different from everything else I’d seen.
“Yeah. This pattern. Not just anyone can use it. People weren’t interested, so it stayed buried like this.”
“Whose is it, exactly?”
“The Grand Master who created the Astra Blade. It’s his. This is the real original mana heart method written by Jeron Valter himself.”
I slowly turned the pages, checking the movement of the patterns inside. The overlapping grain of the lines was on a completely different level from ordinary technique manuals.
“The sword manual already went up for auction… Once I win the bid, that’s settled. The problem is this one. I can’t take it out. Memorizing it would be impossible too.”
Arin moved closer and tilted her head briefly. “Don’t worry. I’ll take it to the spirit realm and bring it back out when no one’s looking. I can sneak it out without anyone noticing.”
I scanned the surroundings, checking for people or cameras. “Then go now. I’ll wait until we can slip away naturally.”
“Okay. I’m going first.” Arin floated beside me and raised her hand. The moment the book transferred to her, the two of them blurred like a mirage and vanished. I looked around, then quietly turned and left the D.I.B. Headquarters.
When I got home, I took a shower right away. After changing clothes and pouring hot water into a cup of ramen, I raised my fingertips as the thought occurred to me. “Arin.”
“Ta-da~!” A spark of flame burst out as Arin appeared, holding the book she had taken from the library earlier. I pressed the ramen lid down and sat down. Arin’s gaze stopped on the cup ramen in front of me.
“That… I’ve been curious about it for a while. What is it?”
“Cup ramen. Just a quick and easy meal.”
“Can I try some too?”
“Can spirits even eat this kind of thing?”
Arin straightened her back and sniffed with her nose. “Hmph! Of course. I don’t have to eat, but… I used to be quite the gourmet spirit!”
“Really? Then give it a try.” I scooped a little noodles with chopsticks and offered them to her. Arin carefully accepted them and put them in her mouth. Her face immediately twisted.
“Spicy! Spicy!! Why would anyone eat this?!”
I took milk out of the fridge, poured it into a cup, and handed it over while laughing. “I figured as much. We Koreans handle it fine, but Westerners usually can’t take the heat. Guess you’re the same.”
Arin gulped down the milk and looked miserable for a while before tilting her head. “…But let me try it one more time. There’s something… strangely addictive about the flavor?”
“You sure? There’s not much milk left.”
“Just give me one more bite…!”
Arin took another bite and let out a short breath. “Hek… ugh… It’s still spicy! But… it’s weirdly delicious! What is this?!”
“Heh. That’s the Korean palate for you. Once you get used to it, you get hooked. It’s even better with kimchi.”
“Kimchi? What’s that?”
“A traditional side dish. My mom sends some every year after making kimchi. I only eat my mom’s kimchi. It’s delicious. You can stir-fry it, make stew, steam it… basically an all-purpose side dish. Want to try some? It’s a bit spicy too.”
“Sure. You said it goes well with ramen, right?”
“Yeah. Here. Put it on top and eat it like this.”
Arin took a bite of kimchi and her eyes widened. “Huh? It’s crunchy… spicy and salty… but there’s a refreshing taste at the end too? It’s good. If it weren’t so spicy, I’d love it!”
“Oh, so you can eat it. At this rate you’ll be drinking soju too.”
“Soju? What’s that?”
“The Korean’s soulmate. Let’s try it together sometime. Can you drink?”
“Of course! I was quite the drinker, you know! Bring it on!”
“Heh. Alright. Let’s have a drink later.”
After finishing the cup ramen for dinner, I reached for the book Arin had brought. “Arin, by the way… do you think I can learn this properly?”
“Of course. It suits you well. I’ll read it to you and explain as we go. Let’s start.”
Arin placed her hand on the book. The metallic lines inside the paper reflected faintly, making the surface glow slightly. “Yeah. It’s a single heart method created by Jeron Valter. The structure flows continuously from beginner to intermediate, so memorizing it will take some time. Usually only copies circulate—originals are almost nonexistent.”
At that moment, the sword manual auction came to mind, so I opened my laptop. When I loaded the auction page, my bid was at 2.5 million won, with the auction ending at 10 p.m. tonight.
“I have to win this one. I’ll raise the amount.” I immediately changed the bid to 4 million won and submitted it. While the page refreshed, Arin pushed the book toward me and opened it to show me the contents.
“First, let me explain how this heart method works. The basic flow should match you well.”
I turned the pages and lowered my head slightly. The connected lines seemed to become clearer. “Alright. Let’s do it.”
Arin quickly cleared the desk space. “Then let’s stop here for now. We’ll apply it in practice starting next time.”
I focused on the deep point below my navel—the lower mana hole. According to Arin, that was where the mana first gathered.
“First, feel the mana spread throughout your body. That’s step one.” Arin drew a small circle in the air with her fingertip. “Step two is catching the mana that moves when you activate an ability. Step three is gathering the remaining mana into one place after the activation ends. Sensing this flow and centering it is the core of this heart method.”
I tried to find the movement inside my body, but the mana slipped away the moment I thought I had it. “It keeps scattering…”
“Everyone’s like that at first. Your body reacts before you can set the direction.”
I tried to narrow it again, but once more the flow drifted toward my waist. Arin lowered her head slightly. “Don’t push with force. Just follow the path it’s already flowing. Don’t pull—just hold on to the feeling.”
I lowered my breathing and focused on the deep point in my lower abdomen, the lower mana hole. I caught a small trembling flow gathering inside my body. This time it didn’t leak sideways and slowly gathered toward the center. After pushing it down a few more times, the pressure concentrated at one point. The lower mana hole grew heavy, and I felt a fist-sized clump of mana condensing. The point trembled faintly as an internal axis stabilized.
My body naturally aligned with the structure of this heart method. “…At this point, almost all the mana in your body has gathered in one place.”
Arin’s gaze dropped toward my abdomen. “I don’t know your world’s standards, but in my world, this level would be considered upper Sword Expert.”
“Is that a high stage?”
“Yeah. It’s plenty high for a first step. And… it took you almost a whole day to reach this.”
“A day? I thought I only concentrated for a little while.”
“That’s what I told you. When you focus, time flies. Anyway, this is really good for a first attempt.”
The window outside was turning white with dawn. I stood up and stretched lightly. “Let’s eat and go test it out.”
After breakfast, I turned on the computer and checked the auction results. The sword manual had sold cleanly for 4 million won. Arin and I confirmed at almost the same time that delivery was scheduled for three days later, then headed straight to the mountain behind the house.
The air on the mountain was clear, and the wind brushed against my face. I left the hiking trail and walked toward a rocky area where almost no one went. I sat on a rock and slowly released the mana I had gathered in my lower mana hole. As the mana moved upward, strength naturally flowed into my muscles as well. When I raised my hand, psychokinesis condensed and pushed the surrounding air briefly.
While operating the heart method, I carefully tested how far my ability had improved. “Right now you’ve only grasped the flow, right?” Arin said, following my hand movements. “You organized the power well. The mana flow isn’t deviating much either.”
I pushed the mana gathered in my lower mana hole back up to my fingertips. For a moment the surrounding air shook violently, and the psychokinesis spread widely. A feeling of power rapidly aligning inside my body followed.
“At this level, what rank would it be by your world’s standards?”
“By hunter rank… maybe around B-rank combat hunter.”
My body felt much lighter, and the reaction speed of my muscles and joints was clearly different. I stood up and took a step toward the side where the wind was blowing. The rebound from the ground connected steadily to my center without shaking. I straightened my back in the basic stance and let out a breath.
“Then let’s check movement too.” Arin floated a small flame in the air. “We need to see how mana attaches to your body’s movements first.”
I walked toward a flat ridge and tested footwork first. Pungmubo, the basic wind-attribute footwork. It worked by lightly pushing the air current with the tips of the toes. Every time I took a step, mana moved naturally to my calves, and my center didn’t get pushed back.
“The flow is good. Mana flowing from the feet is working properly.” Arin nodded.
I relaxed my wrist strength and continued the movement with a waist rotation. Imagining a line cutting through the air, I raised my right hand. Basic sword technique matching the wind flow—Cheongpung Sword First Form. The air trembled as if bursting during the short slash.
“Good. That’s it. Let’s see once more how the mana attaches when the sword line shakes.”
Arin’s flame flickered briefly. I lowered my breathing and drew the sword line again. This time the mana flow extended long along the line extending from my wrist, and the air split cleanly at the moment of the slash.
“From that state, push a little more. It’s practice mixing the power gathered by the heart method into the movement.”
I drew up the mana from my lower mana hole and pushed it straight into the trajectory of the Cheongpung Sword. The air stirred, and a light pressure wave formed around the rocks. The wind swept across the ridge, but my psychokinesis and movements didn’t falter. My body felt light, and the following postures connected naturally.
Once I felt I had checked enough, I came down from the rocks and returned home. After finishing my shower, the flow inside my body settled quietly. When I entered my room, Arin had already spread the book open. As the sun began to set, Arin opened the book again.
“Let’s review the first half one more time. The section transitioning from beginner to intermediate.”
“Alright. Then let’s move on to stage two today.”
Arin’s light gradually dimmed, and the air in the room settled. I sat down and circulated the mana flow again. The faint trembling connecting the lower mana hole and the surrounding circuits remained steady, and before I knew it, night had passed.