Chapter 330: Psychologist for a Day
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 330: Psychologist for a Day
“...What did you say?”
“Just your top should be enou-”
Thwack!
Before I could finish, a cushion flew at my face.
I blocked it and looked at Han Seoah. Her face was flushed bright red, looking like it was about to explode.
“Y-You pervert! Weren't Hyena and my sister enough for you? Are you trying to get your hands on me now, too?!”
“I-I think you're misunderstanding something...”
“Shut your mouth!" Han Seoah shouted, her voice trembling.
It was obvious she was too worked up to listen to anything I had to say.
“Something felt off from the start! I could accept you becoming the matrilocal son-in-law of the Seongbuk Choi family with your outstanding talent, but for that nasty woman to suddenly act like a girl in love, eating all lovey-dovey with a man in the middle of Ambrosia Hall for everyone to see!”
Han Seoah crossed her arms over her chest and glared at me.
“I knew it! You subdued Hyena with pleasure and trained her, didn't you?!”
“...?”
“Don't you dare play innocent now! I've figured it all out!”
“...”
Pleasure? Trained?
What on earth does she usually watch for a direct descendant of the Jinryu Han family to say things like that?
'What a... peculiar taste.'
A dry laugh escaped me.
I was about to retort to Han Seoah's scathing accusations, but I decided to hear her out first. It didn't seem like she was in any state to listen to me anyway.
“You must have done the same to my sister! Lured her in with sweet talk, made her lower her guard, and then pounced on her...! Otherwise, there's no way my sister, who was always so cold and never let anyone get close, would fall head over heels for some guy who just rolled in from god-knows-where!”
“...That's harsh. Calling me someone who 'rolled in'.”
I walked in on my own two feet.
“Be quiet!”
A little tired from her outburst, Han Seoah caught her breath and glared at me. A faint trace of the hostility that had barely vanished now lingered in her light gray eyes.
I let out a small sigh and raised my hands.
“So, what is it you want?”
Seeing her state, it was clear that neither excuses nor persuasion would work.
My personal training already left me short on time; if I had my way, I'd ditch this lesson and everything else and just walk out.
But I couldn't do that.
'Tens of billions isn't exactly chump change.'
I had to endure it, if only for the custom staff I was planning to get soon.
Besides, compared to the nightmare customers I dealt with during my convenience store days, Han Seoah was a saint. I once had some guy who spent three hours drunkenly demanding I play Rock-Paper-Scissors with him in the middle of the night.
“If you're that uncomfortable, we can try it over your clothes for now...”
“M-My first time!" Han Seoah cried out urgently.
Her eyes were brimming with tears, looking as if they would spill over at any moment.
Her lips trembled several times before she finally lowered her head and mumbled, "...I-I want to give my first time to someone I love, so no matter what, penetration is off the table... B-But anything else...”
Rustle-
With faintly trembling hands, Han Seoah slowly began to take off her top.
The thin knit fabric revealed her pale skin and light blue underwear.
Caught off guard by the unexpected situation, I found myself staring blankly for a moment.
“...I'll do whatever you say, so please, help me-”
“Stop.”
Grab.
I caught Han Seoah's hand as she naturally started to remove her skirt.
An anxious look immediately crossed her face.
Somehow, I felt like I'd become the bad guy.
“Hoo...”
I clutched my throbbing head.
It goes without saying, but I had no intention of becoming a sex offender who strips his student naked on the first day of class.
How could I face Sister Lael if I did that...
'...Then again, would she even care?'
Honestly, I felt like she wouldn't care much even if I banged Han Seoah.
Of course, I had no intention of doing so.
“Why are you suddenly...”
Tap.
I gave Han Seoah a light chop on the head with the side of my hand.
“You just need to take off your top. Stop with the weird fantasies and sit down.”
“...Huh?”
A brief silence passed, and an undeniable, deep bewilderment filled Han Seoah's eyes.
*
Was she embarrassed for voicing such dark delusions herself?
“If you're ready, sit on the cushion in a meditative posture.”
“...”
Even after changing into comfortable clothes, Han Seoah remained silent.
I decided not to bring up what had just happened either. All I had to do was my job.
Slide-
“Hk...?!”
I placed a hand on Han Seoah's pale back. To be precise, it was on the opposite side of her left breast, the spot closest to her heart.
I slowly infused my magic power into her to check her condition.
As expected, impure energy had built up in her meridians, at a level similar to Choi Hyena's.
And yet, her physique was as straight and solid as that of a seasoned martial artist.
'...What kind of life does she lead for a mage to be like this?'
There were signs of consistent exercise, but that alone wouldn't be enough to develop such a well-balanced physique by the age of twenty.
Unless she was obsessive about her posture.
It was a little strange, but not something I needed to dwell on.
The important thing now was whether the method I used on Choi Hyena would allow Han Seoah to break through to the next realm.
Woooong-
Through the hand on her back, I sent my magic power into Han Seoah's mana circle, scanning her entire body. The magic traveled through her magic circuits, relaying even the most trivial information back to me.
The examination was proceeding without a hitch when suddenly...
'...What's this?'
I found something strange.
For a moment, I wondered if I was mistaken and checked again, but the result was the same.
Han Seoah's mana levels, the shape of her mana circle, and the structure of her magic circuits had already surpassed the 2nd Circle level.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say she was on the verge of the 3rd Circle.
She should have broken through to the next realm long ago. I couldn't for the life of me understand why she was still stuck at the 1st Circle.
'...Don't tell me she has a unique constitution like Sister Lael?'
It was a possibility.
Just as Han Lael's body had a rejection response to physical contact, it wouldn't be strange if her younger sister, Han Seoah, was also born with a unique constitution.
But I quickly shook my head.
'If she had a unique constitution, Sister Lael wouldn't have entrusted her to me.'
Even if she had asked me as a last resort, she would have at least given me a heads-up.
As I pondered for a moment, Han Lael's words suddenly flashed through my mind.
—It would be even better if you could offer some advice.
I finally understood why Han Lael had entrusted this task to me.
Shwooo-
Careful not to strain Han Seoah's mana circle, I channeled the six elements into it one by one.
The circle began to activate as if resonating with the elements.
“Hk, heuk...!”
“...Bear with it.”
Han Seoah's sensual moans nearly broke my concentration, but fortunately, there were no major issues.
About ten minutes passed.
“...Hoo.”
I quietly removed my hand from Han Seoah's back.
The examination had confirmed my suspicions, but the problem was how to explain it to her.
'...It's less of an explanation and more of a persuasion, I suppose.'
I calmly took a breath and wiped my face.
Han Lael probably already knew what the problem was. The reason she still asked me for this favor must have been because she judged it was a problem she couldn't solve on her own.
“Hah, hah... I-Is it over...?”
Han Seoah cautiously turned her head to look at me, tears welling in her eyes.
“For all your talk of scaring me, it didn't hurt that much-”
“Han Seoah.”
“Stop imitating your sister.”
*
There's a saying that magical talent is inherited.
But that's half right and half wrong.
It's true that talent can be inherited, but the probability isn't very high.
In that respect, the chances of Han Seoah having outstanding talent were extremely low.
—Hah... Could she be the reincarnation of the founding patriarch?
—Creating a circle at the age of eight... Has there ever been a precedent in the family?
—Do not place that child in the category of ordinary people. If she continues to grow like this, she is timber that will grow to become a great archmage and lead the Jinryu Han family.
That was because Han Lael, who was born with monstrous talent, already existed.
Nevertheless, the adults who had seen Han Lael's talent held expectations for Han Seoah.
Just in case.
As if to repay those expectations, Han Seoah showed promise in various fields from a young age.
Academics, sports, arts and music—she excelled at them all.
If she had been born into an ordinary family, she would have been called a child prodigy.
Unfortunately, however, she was born as a direct descendant of the Jinryu Han family, one of the most powerful magic noble families in South Korea.
What she wore, what she ate, how she slept—even the way she breathed was constantly compared to her older sister, Han Lael.
And that wasn't all.
Outside the family, she became a target of comparison with Choi Hyena, who was her age but more skilled.
When the stress that had been accumulating since childhood reached its breaking point, Han Seoah was only eight years old.
In a situation where it was becoming difficult to even maintain her sanity, the survival method Han Seoah ultimately chose was 'imitation'.
“Just because your sister is a Conceptualist doesn't mean you can be one too. You're not unaware that your talent lies in being an Elementalist, are you?”
Magic is broadly divided into five categories: Elemental, Conceptual, Alchemy, Spirit, and Summoning.
While Han Lael gained fame as a Conceptualist, Han Seoah's talents, like mine, were in the Elemental category, specifically specializing in Water and Darkness.
Moreover, her affinity for the Darkness element was at a 2nd-grade level, and Water was at a quasi-2nd-grade level.
So why was she still stuck at the 1st Circle?
The reason was simple and clear.
“Stop being stubborn and focus on Elemental magic. You know it too. At this rate, you'll never reach the 2nd Circle in your life...”
“I know that much!”
Before I could finish, a sharp voice echoed through the study.
Thump!
Han Seoah's fist, which she had slammed on the floor, was trembling. Blood seeped from it, but she seemed completely unfazed.
“...I know better than anyone that no matter how hard I try, I can never be like my sister.”
Her voice trailed off towards the end.
As she said, Conceptual and Spirit magic were the fields most heavily influenced by talent among the five categories.
That was precisely why Han Seoah was stuck at the 1st Circle despite having considerable talent in Elemental magic.
Because she was trying to force herself into clothes that didn't fit.
'Hoo... I didn't sign up to be a psychologist.'
I felt a sigh coming on, but I held it back.
Right, how can anyone just pick and choose to do only what they want in life?
“So, you're going to live your whole life as a 1st Circle mage?”
“...If I have to live in this family, I'd rather do that.”
Han Seoah avoided my gaze.
I didn't know what had happened, but honestly, it just looked like a rich girl's tantrum to me.
Of course, I wasn't insensitive enough to say what I was thinking out loud.
“Then just move out of the house.”
“...What?”
Plop.
I casually sat down on the floor, bringing myself to Han Seoah's eye level as I continued.
“I moved out of the orphanage when I was twenty and lived on my own, you know? I mean, I got some support funds, but it wasn't much. Maybe two million won? After the security deposit and rent, I was broke. But I couldn't starve, so I did manual labor, worked night shifts at convenience stores, I did a bit of everything.”
It's a memory now, but back then, I lived quite fiercely.
“If you don't like it at home, just move out. You have plenty of money, don't you?”
I didn't sympathize with Han Seoah's words, but I could understand where she was coming from.
Even I had wanted to run away from the orphanage a few times. But I had nowhere to go, so I just endured it.
“B-But the family elders will object...”
“You can just ask your sister, can't you?”
“...What?”
“Your sister, the acting head of the family, lives separately from home. Who's going to say anything if you move out? If they give you a hard time, just tattle to your sister.”
As far as I knew, Han Lael wasn't the type to coldly refuse her younger sister's request.
If she were truly indifferent to her sister, she wouldn't have asked me for this favor in the first place.
Drip, drip-
“Hm?”
Just as I was taking a breather, blood was trickling down from Han Seoah's fist.
Snatch-
I half-forcedly grabbed Han Seoah's hand and checked the wound.
Her nails had dug into her skin, and the wound looked quite deep.
If left alone, it would definitely scar.
“...It's nothing.”
“Nothing, my ass.”
Pretending to search my pockets, I took out some Holy Water from my inventory.
Trickle, trickle-
I examined the wound and poured a moderate amount of Holy Water on it.
“Heuk?! I-It stings...!!”
“Endure it.”
After quickly finishing the first aid, I wrapped a bandage around Han Seoah's hand.
What is this, am I a butler instead of a private tutor?
“Th-Thank you...”
Han Seoah's face turned red as she shyly thanked me.
She looked like a ripe persimmon, ready to burst.
“...Wh-Why do you keep star-”
Flick!
“Aack!!”
Holding back my strength, I flicked Han Seoah on the forehead.
She writhed in pain.
“Stop your whining and learn magic properly. Do you know how many people are out there busting their asses to become mages?”
Leaving Han Seoah to roll on the floor clutching her forehead, I stood up.
I'd done as much as I could.
If this didn't work, I'd just have to go to the Northern Front and earn some money.
“K-Kang Hyun-woo...!!!”
A furious voice came from behind me, but I ignored it and left the study.
“...Ah, I forgot to give her the Acupoint Manipulation and just left.”
I hurried back and used my Black Flame to slowly burn away the impure energy that had accumulated in Han Seoah's meridians.
She writhed in agony during the process, but that wasn't my problem.