Kids Naturally Grow Fast (2)
Kids Naturally Grow Fast (2)
'So this is how it's normally used. A little different from mana.'
I pushed my Authority and senses as sharply as I could and observed Lee Ji-yeon. My focus was on her manipulation of vitality energy.
I stockpiled the data meticulously. I observed and recorded every single detail without missing anything.
The vitality energy Lee Ji-yeon manipulated flowed quite smoothly.
She pulled vitality energy up from the ground and circulated it through her body. Her physical abilities and regenerative power activated naturally in the process.
Lee Ji-yeon's physical abilities and recovery were already monstrous thanks to Taesan.
Charged with vitality energy to further amplify her body and clad in Taesan's armor and aura, Lee Ji-yeon was a vanguard worthy of the name "impregnable fortress."
It was no coincidence she survived stalling the Undead Two-Headed Poison Dragon by taking hits.
Even in the original work, you couldn't find a tank like Lee Ji-yeon.
'Asking for help was the right call. If I'd tried to push through alone, I never would've made it before entering the Tower.'
I admired her inwardly.
They say manipulating vitality energy is the most difficult part of Taesan's functions, but Lee Ji-yeon was handling it with real familiarity.
Even by my assessment, it was a level you couldn't reach with moderate talent and practice alone.
The basic Taesan operation I'd just observed was the same.
She manipulated the earth as freely as if it were her own limbs.
The multiple undead she pulled from the ground moved swiftly and precisely according to her commands, without the slightest disorder.
Even amid such a complex process, Lee Ji-yeon herself could still fight without issue.
Brilliant talent and bloody effort. It was a polished display only possible with both.
It was a skill that contrasted sharply with the image of her hunching over and calling herself worthless.
'Still, considering the circumstances, I guess it's understandable...'
It was only from the original story, but I could somewhat grasp the background for Lee Ji-yeon's low self-esteem.
Her two close younger siblings were praised as having unprecedented talent and shouldered the expectation of being the progenitor's second coming.
Lee Ji-yeon wasn't at that level. She certainly had talent, but judged solely on innate quality, she couldn't compare to those two.
To be precise, within the Taesan family, it wasn't Lee Ji-yeon who was hailed as the progenitor's second coming.
'At this point in time, the strongest family head was the head of Taesan.'
Lee Ji-ah, the 11th head of the Taesan family, was also Lee Ji-yeon's biological mother.
The one receiving the high praise of being the progenitor's second coming wasn't Lee Ji-yeon, but her mother.
Surrounded by two close, talented younger siblings and an emotionless mother, it was only natural for Lee Ji-yeon to rate her own abilities low.
Such evaluations are relative, after all. No matter how much others praised her, she probably couldn't feel it herself.
'Anyway, I can definitely pull this off before entering the Tower.'
Every time I accumulated more real-time data on vitality energy operation, a lightbulb flickered on in a corner of my mind.
The heap of accumulated information connected itself and produced new insights.
Soon, a vague speculation gradually solidified into certainty.
'I can change my body back to normal.'
That conviction hit me. It might be a little difficult, but this method is correct.
'Finally...'
I can escape this wretched body.
These stubby limbs and tiny frame... the inconveniences were countless.
More than anything, the way people treated me was so weird!
According to Ellia, my mind grew younger along with my body, and while I wasn't exactly... uncomfortable with that treatment... actually, I was happy... but it was still a little something.
Anyway, I can restore my body.
I was about to rejoice.
[?]
My hand was yanked. A rough force pulled my body sharply forward.
The culprit was Lee Ji-yeon, who had been holding my hand.
My body was dragged helplessly.
She pulled my hand urgently, then scooped me up into her arms.
The fuzzy texture of her clothes rubbed against my cheek, and the sensation of the soft, warm skin beneath transmitted as well.
The strength drained from my body...
No, wait, it shouldn't drain.
Having nearly gone limp out of habit, I snapped to my senses and squirmed.
[Confusion]
[Shock]
[Bewildered]
[What the—]
[What's wrong?]
I asked, flustered. At first, I was going to resist immediately, but Lee Ji-yeon's complexion was off.
It went ashen, then deathly black. It turned yellow like a sick person, then blue.
Her complexion flickered back and forth as if she were about to die.
"W-Wait. Just a moment... hold on..."
Lee Ji-yeon's lips parted hesitantly. She stammered out the request, the words cutting off abruptly as if she had trouble speaking, but her actions didn't wait for an answer.
Then she restrained me with both hands. One hand wrapped around my waist, the other pressed my head down, burying me against her chest.
The warmth pressing against me intensified. Being outside, there was no air conditioning, and with us stuck so close, my body temperature seemed to spike.
'What is this.'
It was a sudden and... incredibly awkward situation.
As I debated whether I should just force my way out, the vitality energy in the ground surged violently.
This was also caused by Lee Ji-yeon.
The vitality energy in the ground was wrung out, then welled up through Lee Ji-yeon's legs as she stood.
The surrounding ground, robbed of its vitality energy, cracked dryly like earth parched by drought. The blades of grass that had taken root and grown turned yellow and drooped.
Lee Ji-yeon paid it no mind.
As if blind to her surroundings, she frantically gathered vitality energy and circulated it through her body, then slowly began to channel it into me, held in her arms.
Even while looking extremely urgent, her control in channeling the vitality energy was exceedingly careful.
The process repeated for a while. Lee Ji-yeon drew in vitality energy and injected it into me.
Realizing it wasn't a dangerous act, I waited quietly.
"Haa, haah..."
Soon, the injection of vitality energy stopped. Lee Ji-yeon let out the breath she had been tightly holding.
Slumping to the ground as if her strength had left her, she panted heavily.
A cold sweat dripped from the ends of her hair, and her chest heaved and contracted repeatedly as she took deep breaths.
[...What is this about?]
"Huh?!"
For me, pressed against her the whole time, it was just troublesome. Plus, her breath tickling the crown of my head was itchy.
When I quietly asked after enduring it, Lee Ji-yeon flinched in surprise and stiffened.
Crush... The hands wrapped around my body tightened.
When I tapped her waist because the restraint had actually grown stronger, she finally looked down at me.
Her green eyes blinked. Her oddly unfocused gaze sharpened back to normal.
"Ah..."
Lee Ji-yeon stared at me blankly. Soon, her gaze swept meticulously over every inch of my body.
A precise search, as if checking for any problems.
Only after examining me for a long while did Lee Ji-yeon let out a deep sigh of relief.
It was a completely inexplicable reaction.
[I asked what's wrong]
"Hyak!"
Since she was silent again, I poked her waist with my index finger. Lee Ji-yeon hunched her shoulders and let out a shriek.
I was the one who wanted to shriek, honestly. Though if I did, the Curse of Silence would judge me.
The performance of the waist-poke was excellent. Lee Ji-yeon, whose mind had been elsewhere, finally looked at me.
[Explain]
At my short question, Lee Ji-yeon's eyes trembled.
"Ah, uh? That's... Ah! R-Right! It's because of the vitality energy injection!"
[What?]
Her eyes rolling as she scrambled for an answer, Lee Ji-yeon burst out with a reply.
[Vitality energy injection?]
"Yes, yes! As I explained, when drawing and sending vitality energy, the body and the target need to be in contact. Especially when exchanging vitality energy between people, there needs to be a lot of physical contact surface!"
[You just said earlier that holding hands was enough.]
"Uh-well... after briefly gauging it, I thought that alone wouldn't be sufficient..."
[Then what was the need to suddenly snatch me up?]
"Th-That's..."
I tilted my head inwardly at Lee Ji-yeon's simple-minded replies as her eyes spun circles from my successive questions.
'What in the world?'
It felt like she was hiding something, but I couldn't tell what.
I didn't feel any particular malice, and she seemed to be trying to help me...
For now, I nodded.
[Alright]
[But give me a heads-up next time]
[Doing that suddenly startled me]
"Yes, yes... I'm sorry for surprising you..."
Like a scolded puppy, Lee Ji-yeon drooped the corners of her eyes and apologized.
Then she let out a quiet sigh of relief. Though she couldn't evade my Observation anyway.
[...More importantly, could you put me down...]
"Ah...! I'm sorry...!"
I also escaped the awkward position.
Lee Ji-yeon detached me from her embrace and carefully set me down on the ground.
My feet touched the earth.
With that, I subtly dispersed the Homogenization - White Night and dozens of attack spells I'd readied, nearly at the point of triggering.
.
.
.
'My body feels comfortable.'
After parting with Lee Ji-yeon, I rented another secure external training facility.
I tapped the ground with the tip of my foot.
Perhaps because Lee Ji-yeon had injected a bit more vitality energy, my body felt at ease.
'So injecting vitality energy to stimulate it means cramming a large amount in to force a reaction? The method is a little crude.'
I rubbed my forearm with a strange expression.
My stomach felt bloated, like I'd overeaten. I wondered if I'd absorbed too much vitality energy.
'And... what was that about earlier?'
A question remained.
Lee Ji-yeon had claimed she was distracted by concentration, but her actions were too urgent and somehow desperate for that to be the whole story.
I tilted my head.
I had also filled up my vitality energy considerably before coming, mindful of the possibility that the Curse of Short Life might be discovered.
Lee Ji-yeon isn't a loose-lipped person, but there was no need to complicate her mind by telling her about the Curse of Short Life.
In the first place, I was basically keeping my vitality energy amply filled out of fear of dropping dead somewhere.
It was nothing more than pouring water into a bottomless pot, but since I could die the moment the water ran out, I was grudgingly forcing myself to keep supplying vitality energy.
'For now...'
I shook my head and sat down on the floor.
This time, I should try it for real.
I exhaled deeply, focused my mind, and operated Taesan.
I had come after thoroughly examining plenty of reference material. An idea had also popped sharply into my head.
I attempted it.
'Homogenization, Taesan.'
First, I manifested Taesan and sucked vitality energy from the ground.
I supplied vitality energy to my body, which was in contact with the ground.
From here, it was important.
I wasn't filling the contents of a bottomless pot; instead, I was plastering the walls... reinforcing the vessel that holds the contents and increasing its size.
An eerie noise echoed inside my body. Bones twisted, and muscle bundles stretched. It was the sensation of my limbs being pulled and lengthened.
- Hisss...
Steam rose from my body in wisps.
* * *
The words and actions of Lee Ha-yul slowly pieced themselves together in Lee Ji-yeon's mind as she sat slumped blankly on the ground.
- My body is fine.
- Now that I look, your wounds are all healed?
Lee Ha-yul had become a child, contrary to his claim of being fine.
- If there had been anyone nearby, even self-destruction would have been impossible—
The artifact that reveals one's inner thoughts had shown her... the mention of self-destruction.
- Traces of Taesan were discovered at the epicenter where the Two-Headed Poison Dragon was annihilated.
A strike powerful enough to obliterate the Two-Headed Poison Dragon without a trace.
Taesan, the unique ability that could manipulate vitality energy...
'Ah.'
Physical abnormality, self-destruction, drained vitality energy, and the unique ability Taesan that handles vitality energy...
The logic assembled. It was a clumsy combination, but the most fitting hypothesis for this situation.
She didn't know what he mobilized, nor if he truly manifested and used Taesan simultaneously with Calamity Flame.
Lee Ha-yul had self-destructed against the Two-Headed Poison Dragon.
Very fortunately, Lee Ha-yul survived, but in exchange, his vitality energy had dried up, leaving him with a limited time to live.
'......'
Lee Ji-yeon asked herself.
Why had Lee Ha-yul self-destructed?
The Two-Headed Poison Dragon, though weakened, was strong. Because you couldn't finish it off with ordinary means.
Why did he deliberately self-destruct?
Did Lee Ha-yul judge that he couldn't hold out until support arrived?
He had stood against the Two-Headed Poison Dragon out of a sense of responsibility, but perhaps he judged in the end that he couldn't stall for enough time.
Then why did he stand against it alone instead of enduring with Lee Ji-yeon...
'...Because even if we both fought back, it would have been hard to endure...?'
Because Lee Ji-yeon was of no help.
Because she was unreliable and a hindrance.
So he sent her far away to save her, and Lee Ha-yul alone faced the Two-Headed Poison Dragon, was overwhelmed, and self-destructed. He barely survived, but his body was damaged and his lifespan shortened.
Leaving behind Lee Ji-yeon, who had fled in fear, all alone...
"Uurrp..."
A sudden wave of nausea surged.
Lee Ji-yeon doubled over and clamped a hand over her mouth.
* * *
[Player Correction System: Affection]
Lee Ha-yul→Lee Ji-yeon
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｢Successor of Taesan｣ ｢A Good Person｣ ｢A Shrinker?｣ ｢Question｣