Lionel's Special Lecture
Well, at first glance it sounds like an obvious enough story, but questions like this are the kind you nod along to and say "sure" — and end up being wrong.
"In my opinion, there's probably no one stronger than Hunter Lionel among those who make such claims."
"Why do you think that?"
"Because anyone who relies on innate strength or instinct alone can never reach a high realm. They're all just puppies."
Pups are weak.
And there is no creature in this world that is born perfect.
Even monsters are no exception.
Out of the countless spawn Abaddon left behind, the reason humanity is still standing is that more than ninety percent of them were hunted down as babies.
"All that talk about following animal instincts, awakening your wild nature… honestly, it's just nonsense."
Lionel, who always wore a serious expression, burst into a wide grin at my words, showing his teeth.
"Correct."
His gaze, still relaxed from his laughter, shifted toward Katie.
"Do you agree, young Katie?"
"Best Comrade Tis is right. Even beasts learn everything from their mother. As pups, they fight and wrestle and tumble with their siblings — that's how they learn and grow."
"Yes, exactly. Humanity may be underestimating beasts more than we realize. Monsters are no different. When you think about it, Abaddon and his spawn all reached the Calamity and Special grades by surviving through countless battles and accumulating experience. Steady cultivation is the only path upward."
Lionel smiled, confirming the answer.
[Whoa…! That's… that's kind of creepy.]
Shan's face went pale white as she watched Katie and Lionel.
[Why?]
[Because… I have no idea how many of her own kin Legion devoured. That sounds like a personal experience, doesn't it? Ugh…]
Shan said that, but aren't you also Abaddon's spawn?
She really has a personality that makes you wonder if she's even a monster at all.
[Did Katie fight and wrestle with her siblings — and then eat them too?]
[I was born late, so I didn't witness it directly, but… it's very likely. Most of the siblings strong enough to claim territories were born during the Great Outbreak period.]
Shan was right. Legion was also a monster born in that era.
Unlike Shan, who was born as a latecomer, there had been an event where Abaddon's spawn were born en masse, all at once.
One year after Abaddon's death.
When spring finally arrived after enduring that year's bitter winter, abnormal monster specimens were discovered across the entire nation.
Mutants that were hard to classify — they evolved, grew, and even possessed intelligence comparable to humans.
The Great Locust Swarm Outbreak.
It was only after some time had passed that people realized all those abnormal monsters were Abaddon's spawn.
It was the second crisis to strike the cities after Abaddon.
At the time, the Hero Party still existed, so no new Calamity was born — but the experience left humanity with an extreme wariness toward Abaddon's descendants.
Lionel brought over a bottle of orange juice and handed it to me and Katie.
"Drink comfortably and listen."
"Thank you."
"I'll eat well!"
"I thought it would be intense physical training, but I didn't expect a theory lecture."
"I judged from the earlier tests that there was no need to focus on physical growth."
He'd already assessed us to that level?
On second thought, that was probably for the best.
Teachers like Lionel grant their own techniques through special training. However, which skill a student receives depends on random factors — the student's achievements, the teacher's favorability, the intensity of the training, and so on. The more conditions or the harder the requirements, the better the reward tends to be.
"Many freshmen who enter the Academy already possess abilities comparable to active-duty hunters. Those born as geniuses or from prestigious families are even more likely to be that way."
"So the question you just asked was also part of that?"
"It was a process of determining what to teach. I believe one must possess foundational stamina, strength, and intelligence before they can properly receive techniques."
It was a test very fitting of Lionel, who valued principles above all.
Lionel picked up one of the stacked dummies and planted it back into the ground.
"Then let us begin the proper lecture. It may turn out to be a somewhat boring history lesson, but I wish to first explain the background of how I came to learn such techniques, so please listen without dozing off."
"Yes. I understand."
"Understood! I'll listen while eating popcorn!"
[Where on earth did that come from?]
Katie was somehow already holding a bag of popcorn.
"I am someone who lived through the era before the Gates opened."
The age of peace.
Before the Gates, Lionel had been a martial artist.
He had been the head of a dojo and had competed in various mixed martial arts tournaments, earning awards — a fairly accomplished figure in his own right.
"It was good. A peaceful era where one could train not to kill, but for the cultivation of body and mind."
And then one day —
People began to change.
Just before the Gates opened, mana and abilities first appeared in the human world.
"And with that, the world began to spin out of control."
…
…
…
In the early days of the Gate crisis, humanity was already fractured by division.
At first, it was conflict between the non-abled and the abled.
The abled regarded the non-abled as inferior beings, while the non-abled saw the abled as uncontrollable threats.
"The conflict became even more fragmented."
As ability manifestation increased and the mutant-type — the I-hyeong-gye — appeared, chaos reached its peak.
Scholars unanimously agreed that if humanity had remained as it was, a civil war between the two groups would have erupted.
The persecution and slaughter of the mutant-type mirrored previous racial discrimination.
People fought over differences in skin color alone, so accepting the mutant-type — whose very appearance differed from humans — as fellow humans was even harder.
In the early days of the Gate crisis, those whose bodies mutated alongside ability manifestation were treated as having a "disease."
A plague was spreading. That plague was called the Monster Disease.
If bitten, you were infected and became not human but a beast — a "non-human."
Conspiracy theories even spread claiming that the mutant-type were no longer human but monsters, and that the only cure was death.
The non-abled, driven by fear, tried to eliminate the mutant-type to protect themselves, while the mutant-type bared their claws and fangs to survive.
"Many of my compatriots died. Truly many… so much human blood was spilled."
To survive, the mutant-type had no choice but to rely more heavily on their abilities.
They swung their claws and sank their fangs into throats, leaning on their beastly nature.
They chewed flesh, crushed bones, and drank blood.
In the name of revenge, they killed and devoured people without hesitation.
And the more they did, the more the non-mutant-type treated them as monsters — as beasts.
It was a vicious cycle.
"We can tell by the scent of our own kind. The scent is never wrong. There's no reason to fight. So why did we fight?"
A bitter smile lingered on Lionel's face.
"Most of the mutant-type knew this fact… but it didn't matter."
While they were barely able to defeat monsters, the horrific cycle of humans killing each other over the claim that they weren't the same species continued.
Countless mutant-types were dissected alive and subjected to biological experiments.
The vast research data on abilities that the Management Bureau now holds was accumulated during that chaotic period.
White Ghost probably appeared around that time as well.
They were the same species — merely different in the nature of their abilities — yet at the time, no one knew, and no one even tried to find out.
Even though mutant-types could be born anew among the non-mutant-type at any time, the non-mutant-type tried to kill every last one of them.
"And then Abaddon appeared."
The Insect God. After the Calamity Abaddon's emergence, the situation turned one hundred and eighty degrees.
The groups and nations that clung to petty conflicts with the mutant-type became bug food first.
Abaddon's swarm of insects made no distinction between mutant-type and non-mutant-type — it devoured them all equally.
Only after Abaddon's appearance did humanity truly become one.
The mutant-type were officially recognized as human.
And the existence of a mutant-type hero — White Ghost — within the Hero Party helped eliminate much of the discrimination.
Amid all that chaos, Lionel survived to the end.
What is a person? What is a monster?
The conflict never fully disappeared.
In the hell where everyone killed each other, Lionel fell into deep anguish.
So he let go of the simple pursuit of power.
He swung his fists because only in the moments devoted to training could he forget those conflicts — even if just to forget.
"But no matter how much I swung my fists or sharpened my claws, that alone could not fundamentally resolve my worries. The knot in my heart would remain until the question of my own nature was answered."
Where does the human in me begin, and where does the mutant-type in me end?
The path Lionel chose to avoid becoming a monster was martial arts.
"In a way, I returned to the beginning. To the days when I practiced martial arts."
He took root deeply, ensuring his mind would not waver under any circumstances.
Before the dummy, Lionel's form changed.
His bulk grew larger, his fangs sharper, his muscles rippling like waves as his tendons stood out in sharp relief.
And yet, his reason remained crystal clear.
"You still have your reason?"
"Indeed. The mind is the master of a person. Without awakening to this truth, physical strength is nothing but an empty thing."
Thud!
When the beastly power of the mutant-type merged with human technique, the dummy's chest was cleanly pierced in the exact shape of a fist — in a single strike.
"If you understand the principle of the mind, you can wield physical strength however you wish."
Without a single wasted motion, restrained power produced the optimal result.
Like an ancient tree that stands firm even as storms and winds rage around it, his mind no longer wavered.
"And so I came to understand one truth."
My fangs and claws are merely tools to protect the human within me — they are not my essence.
I am human.
What defines me as human is not my claws or my fangs.
It is the heart within me and the principles that heart follows that make me human.
"Choice carries responsibility. The responsibility of deciding whom to protect and for what purpose to swing your power."
As much as you decide how to use this power, you must follow through and uphold it.
To live as a human means to accept that responsibility and fill it with unwavering righteousness.
Lionel explained that this will was what made him truly human.
"The heart that chooses how to use this power — that is the reason I can remain a person."
He raised his fist.
"Therefore, I have no reason to waver anymore."
That was Lionel's enlightenment — Hoyeonjigi, the Noble Spirit.
"Is it really alright to bestow such precious teachings upon me?"
"Countless trials and hardships may lie ahead of you. But I hope that in every moment, you will not lose the warmth of heart and will you have now. I sincerely hope that Hoyeonjigi becomes the strength that protects your heart. So please, do not refuse — accept it."
"Thank you. I will learn with all my might."
"Good. I too will teach with all my might."
This is incredible!
I tried to keep a composed expression while fighting the urge to grin.
Hoyeonjigi was classified as the highest-tier mental cultivation skill, surpassing even the Unshakable Mind. Normally, you'd need to max out Lionel's favorability to obtain it — but I was lucky.
Katie raised her hand and called out to Lionel.
"Big Lion teacher. Katie has a question."
"Speak freely."
"If someone strives to live as a person, and works to live as a person — is that person human?"
"They are human."
"Even if they look different on the outside?"
Lionel laughed heartily and pointed to his own mane-covered face.
"Of course. No matter what you look like, if you hold that heart and act accordingly, you are certainly human."
"Thank you!"
Katie, who always smiled like a fool, bowed deeply to Lionel.
For some reason, it seemed like she was genuinely expressing her gratitude to him.
…
…
…
"I was worried it might have been boring."
"It was a wonderful lecture."
"Katie didn't fall asleep! The story was interesting!"
"Thank you. I'll go inside to prepare lunch. Rest and try to organize what you just heard."
Lionel said he'd give us time to sort our thoughts and headed into his home.
As soon as Lionel disappeared, Katie shuffled over and pressed right up against my side.
"Big Lion is so cool! The story was fun! I want to make him my subordinate and keep him by my side!"
Here she goes with something scary again.
"He's not the kind of person you can just make into a subordinate."
"Hmm… thinking about it, Best Comrade Tis is right. I guess I'll have to give up."
"Yeah, good thinking."
I reached out and patted Katie's head, and her serious expression from moments before evaporated instantly.
"Katie. I have a question!"
"What is it?"
"Is Best Comrade Tis also cultivating to become human? Is that why you haven't eaten your host?"
She caught on.
"It's a little different. Can I have your hand?"
"Yeah!"
I took Katie's hand and placed it on my right chest.
Katie's eyes widened at the steady thumping heartbeat she felt there.
"I'm Tis. This side is Shan."
[Oh, hello?]
"Oh! That's amazing! I thought it was the other way around!"
[You… that's too much.]
"I'm sorry, Shan Best Comrade! You kept mumbling and speaking so quietly that I thought you were the suppressed host!"
[Aaaagh!]
Wow, one straight shot and Shan was sent flying.
"I want to live together with Shan. That's why I'm here."
"Best Comrade Tis lives together with Best Comrade Shan?"
"That's right."
Maybe this was a chance to confirm her true feelings.
"Yeah. I want to truly coexist. That's my wish. What about you, Katie?"
"Me?"
"Yeah. What kind of dream do you have?"
If I could learn what dream she was chasing — the one that drove her to break into the Academy — maybe I could turn her heart.
"It's hard to say. I'm under a contract."
Katie lowered her head hesitantly.
Then suddenly she lifted it, her eyes sparkling.
"Best Comrade Tis! I thought of a way!"
"What way?"
"If I can't say it, I can show it!"
"Show it?"
What was she planning?
Just as I was wondering if she had some way to project her thoughts —
Pop.
A tiny clone of Katie appeared from her hand.
-Hi?
The clone waved a hand the size of a grain of rice at me.
"Eat this. Then you'll receive my thoughts."
-Please eat me!
Katie handed