Friends: The Prodigy's Strategic Deal
Kang Seojun stared out the window, sketching a golden future in his mind.
< ding! >
A crisp text-message notification chimed.
Kang Seojun glanced at the sender.
It was Jin Serin.
**[Jin Serin: When you have time, I’d like to meet. Just let me know a convenient time and I’ll send someone to pick you up.]**
“Hm.”
The call he’d expected soon.
With only two years of stagnation left, it was only natural that he had questions once everything suddenly changed.
**[Kang Seojun: Then how about two o’clock this afternoon? Let’s meet at the nearby café.]**
He’d chosen the place himself to keep Jin Serin from staging anything elaborate.
No need to reserve an expensive restaurant just for ceremony, or let Sungjin Group’s security team turn a casual meet into a long-winded ordeal.
After yesterday’s marathon of pointless formalities, he wanted something simple today—something that would still be easy on his recovering body.
The reply came back in under three seconds.
**[Jin Serin: Yes! Confirmed.]**
Kang Seojun tossed his phone onto the bed the moment he saw the reply.
It was nine-thirty in the morning.
He still had four and a half hours until their appointment.
The plan for those remaining hours had already been decided.
If the meeting hadn’t been arranged, he would have spent the entire day training mana anyway.
But right now, he knew almost nothing about it.
He had spent his whole life in a world without mana, and the lowest-grade debuff—Mana Insensitivity—still clung to him.
So he needed to prepare ahead of time.
First, he opened the Dimensional Shop and stepped into the skill shop.
He scanned the countless options and checked the mana cultivation filter.
A flood of famous mana arts scrolled across the screen, ignoring the world they came from.
─────────── 《Skill Shop》 ───────────
◆ Heavenly Demon Divine Art — A cultivation technique that swallows heaven and earth alike and stores absurd amounts of true power. ※ Cannot be purchased yet. [Reason: Dimensional currency insufficient, required stats insufficient, prerequisites unmet.]
◆ Circle Meditation — A meditative method that inscribes rings in the heart to efficiently accumulate pure mana. ※ Cannot be purchased yet. [Reason: Dimensional currency insufficient, required stats insufficient, prerequisites unmet.]
◆ Absorbing Technique — A skill that drains an opponent’s aura to fuel one’s own power. ※ Cannot be purchased yet. [Reason: Dimensional currency insufficient, required stats insufficient, prerequisites unmet.]
───────────────────
Every single one of them was legendary. Yet most were grayed out.
Dimensional currency was too low, or his stats were still too weak, or the conditions hadn’t been met.
Kang Seojun scrolled down.
A few unlocked skills occasionally appeared, but he ignored them and kept scrolling.
He already knew exactly which mana art he wanted.
At last the scroll reached the bottom.
Kang Seojun selected the lowest entry in the entire mana cultivation list.
[◆ Basic Mana Cultivation.]
It looked cheap, but there was simply no better option right now.
Every other cultivation method he could afford carried fatal flaws.
Either it had a hard growth ceiling or it destroyed the body outright.
This one promised steady growth even in the early stages, and even in the late stages it would still serve a purpose.
Most importantly, completing this skill to a higher tier was the prerequisite for learning anything stronger—whether Heavenly Demon Divine Art or Circle Meditation.
This was the key that would unlock the door to mana training.
[Skill purchased! Skill 《Basic Mana Cultivation Lv. Low》 acquired!]
— Ssshhh…
New knowledge flooded in like a sudden, vivid memory he had long forgotten.
Even though he had never once felt or used mana, the path ahead suddenly felt clear.
‘Time to start.’
Kang Seojun sat down on the edge of the bed.
The proper posture was seiza, but his twisted body made that impossible.
He closed his eyes and focused on the faint mana leaking from the Mana Slime inside him.
[Due to the debuff 《Mana Insensitivity Lv. Lowest》, mana cultivation efficiency is severely reduced.]
He couldn’t feel the mana at all. It was like trying to read braille while wearing thick gloves.
But with thirty Willpower, he gritted his teeth and pushed through.
There was definitely mana inside him.
If it existed in the air, it was fine. Even if it only existed inside his body, he could still move it somehow.
[Unexpected awakening granted by overflowing luck! Mana cultivation efficiency rises dramatically!]
Fifty Luck lent him an extra hand.
[Awkward mana cultivation yields a tiny amount of mana experience.]
Bit by bit, responses began to trickle in.
[Awkward mana cultivation yields a tiny amount of mana experience.]
.
.
[Awkward mana cultivation yields a tiny amount of mana experience.]
[Lucky bonus! Enormous luck activates and grants inspiration! Mana experience rises dramatically!]
.
.
Intermittent system messages flashed as experience climbed.
Kang Seojun used the notifications as markers and focused harder.
He manipulated the minuscule mana flowing through his body, gathering scattered fragments into one solid mass.
Eventually.
[Correct perseverance brings forth a harvest! Mana stat +1.]
In less than three hours, his mana stat had risen.
It was still early; growth was fast. Even so, the pace was impressive enough that he might reach normal cadet level before long.
[Mana stat increased, weakening the debuff 《Mana Insensitivity Lv. Lowest》.]
The debuff was easing up.
In truth, mana insensitivity couldn’t be cured that way. It was like trying to grow a forest by watering a desert.
But even a barren desert bloomed when every day brought rain. The Mana Slime constantly produced mana; that was why he could push through.
Kang Seojun opened his eyes and checked the clock.
He still had time.
He sat quietly, eyes closed, and kept training until the appointment.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Exactly at one fifty, someone rang the doorbell.
It was the driver sent by Jin Serin.
Kang Seojun climbed into the car and arrived at the nearby café.
A quaint little café tucked into a quiet corner of the park, tastefully decorated.
Jin Serin was already waiting on the outdoor terrace, sipping something she had pre-ordered.
She was drinking a plain smoothie. Kang Seojun ordered an iced Americano.
— Slurp!
He took a sip of the iced coffee and asked,
“So, why did you want to meet?”
“Ah… yes. That…”
Jin Serin looked like she was struggling with where to begin.
There were so many things she wanted to ask, but she didn’t know where to start.
Kang Seojun watched her quietly for a moment, then spoke.
“You have questions, right? Just ask. I’ll answer anything.”
The reason growth had stagnated for two years, or the nature of the nightmares she kept dreaming.
Information he didn’t need to hide anyway.
Whether she believed him or not was up to her.
“Th-thank you. There really are a lot of things I want to ask…”
“But asking so casually might be rude again…”
“Don’t worry. Just ask.”
Jin Serin twisted the condensation-covered glass in her hands and glanced at him.
He was staring into the distance with a dazed expression.
Jin Serin tapped the glass lightly, took a silent breath, and asked,
“Then… first… if you already know something about my problem, please…”
Kang Seojun nodded.
“Let’s talk about the details later. But before we start, I need you to promise me one thing.”
“…What promise?”
“Whether you believe me or not is your choice. Just don’t suspect my intentions.”
Everything he was about to say would be hard for Jin Serin to believe. He needed to lay the groundwork now.
Believing or not was her right, but if she assumed he was hiding something underhanded after he’d already told her the truth, things would get complicated.
Jin Serin blinked rapidly, clearly not understanding the full meaning of his words.
“…That’s… of course… I understand.”
She had agreed.
That was all she needed.
“Good. First.”
Kang Seojun folded his hands, leaned back in his chair, and continued.
“If things stay like this, you’re going to die.”
— Eek! Pfft!?
Jin Serin, mid-sip, sprayed her plain smoothie across the table.