A New Mentor
The number had finally appeared on Equivalent Exchange, which had shown no change until now. +1. Was this proof that I had overcome the ordeal? Or evidence that my mind had shattered once? I couldn’t be sure. But one thing was certain.
You can now offer emotions as a price.
It seemed the number of cards I could play had increased. The moment I became aware of my own change, a message appeared before the eyes of people all over the world.
The Sacrifice has awakened.
An incomprehensible message. The news outlets spat out article after article, but no one could define exactly what it meant. No one except the Demon Sect.
The next day, we were all leaving the house together.
“You’re really not coming to class?”
“Yeah. I have an appointment today.”
“With Suyeon again?”
“No. The Association President.”
“What?! For real?!”
Choi Ahyeon looked shocked, while Han Yuri wore a slightly uneasy expression.
“Isn’t that guy super busy? There’s no way he’d meet you that easily…”
“……”
Every time I looked at Han Yuri, something surged in my chest. But that emotion quickly vanished like foam.
Equivalent Exchange activated. Offering emotion to strengthen the body.
Anger. Rage. Sorrow. I had no time to drown in such trivial feelings right now. That was why I had Equivalent Exchange running non-stop for twenty-four hours straight.
I shrugged with a casual smile.
“I’ve built up quite a bit of favor, you know.”
“Favor my ass.”
“Anyway, put in a good word with the professor for me today.”
With that, I started running. From behind me came Han Yuri’s sharp shout.
“Tell her yourself! Are we your damn errand girls?!”
I had no choice. That morning I had sent Irena a text.
She wouldn’t listen. In the end, I had no choice but to run away.
On the bus heading to the Association, I stared out the window.
I’ll kill Han Jaehyuk before she arrives.
That single thought was the only thing in my head right now.
Could a D-rank like me really kill an S-rank like Han Jaehyuk? Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible. But there was a way. A way for me to stand on equal footing with him, even if only for a moment.
And.
The opportunity will come.
Just once. Now that I knew he was part of the Demon Sect, an opportunity was bound to appear. Especially…
The large-scale terrorist attack on the Association.
In a few weeks, three days after my birthday, the Demon Sect would storm the Korean Hunter Association. The aftermath would cost the Association President his life. At the time, Han Jaehyuk had been on an overseas business trip for work. I had simply brushed it off back then, but now that I knew he was with the Demon Sect, every puzzle piece clicked into place.
He participated in the raid.
Directly or indirectly. I had roughly sketched out a plan. Now all that remained was to prepare to kill him and strengthen my own forces.
That was why I had come to the Association today.
“The President is waiting for you inside.”
“Thank you.”
Following the secretary’s guidance, I arrived at the President’s office. When I opened the door and stepped inside, Lee Jun was sorting documents with a serious expression. At a glance, there seemed to be even more paperwork than on Irena’s desk.
“That uncle?”
“Hm? Oh dear, sorry about that. I’ve been swamped with work.”
Lee Jun jumped up in surprise as if he genuinely hadn’t noticed me and hurried to prepare tea.
There must be documents related to the Demon Sect in there too.
The investigation into the Demon Sect was probably nearing its conclusion.
“So, shall we grab a meal?”
“Yes, that too. But I actually came because there’s something I’d like to ask of you.”
Perhaps because my tone was different from usual, Lee Jun’s face hardened as he sat down.
“Really? Since it’s a request from our Seonghyun, I’ll do whatever I can to help.”
I took a small breath and bowed my head.
“For the next few weeks. No, even a few days would be fine. Please become my mentor.”
There were only two ways for me to raise my power as quickly as possible. Either pull Eve out as a sword, or freely use Thunder God.
For that, I needed Lee Jun’s help. He was one of the top three hunters in the country, and he already knew I could use Thunder God. The fact that he was Lee Seol’s father was a bit concerning, but I was in no position to be picky right now.
The fastest way. The most effective way. I would forge the blade that would kill Han Jaehyuk.
“……”
Silence. Lee Jun closed his mouth at my request. I couldn’t see his face. My guess was that he was probably flustered. And my guess turned out to be exactly right.
“Hmm… Seonghyun. I’m sorry. That’s a request I can’t fulfill.”
“……”
“First of all, I’m not very good at teaching people.”
A genius. Lee Jun was a genius. When a genius teaches an ordinary or dull person, they inevitably ask, Why can’t you understand this? What they consider obvious is difficult for ordinary people to grasp. Of course, I wouldn’t be able to understand his words or his teachings either. I wasn’t particularly smart, nor did I possess overflowing talent. I was just—
“You don’t have to teach me anything. Just spar with me. That’s all I need.”
Association Training Grounds.
The hunters belonging to the Association whispered among themselves as they watched.
“Isn’t he going to die like that…?”
“Ugh, crazy…”
BOOM!
Lee Jun swung a fist the size of a cauldron lid. Demonic Fist. It was his skill that allowed him to freely infuse and wield magic power in his punches. I had clearly seen the initial motion, yet somehow his fist was already slamming into my side.
“Kgh!”
I flew pathetically through the air and rolled across the ground.
Pain threshold +5.
If your head is bad…
Use your body to make up for it.
That was the method I was best at.
“Can you still stand?”
“Yes.”
I stood up while clutching my side. Lee Jun asked with concern.
“I’m not sure if this is really effective. At the very least, you need to exchange a few proper blows before you can learn anything…”
He was saying that because he didn’t know about my Equivalent Exchange.
Just beat the shit out of me already.
If he beat me like a dog on a hot summer day, my pain threshold would shoot up. But given Lee Jun’s personality, this was probably the best he could do.
“It’s fine. This is enough.”
“Sigh… Alright. If that puts your mind at ease, then let’s do it that way.”
“……”
This man had far too keen an eye. I hadn’t said a single word, yet he had seen right through me. That was probably why he had risen to the position of Association President.
“Then I’ll ask you again.”
“Sure.”
Just as Lee Jun and I reset our stances—
“Daddy!”
Lee Seol came running, huffing and puffing. It looked like the Association was about to be turned upside down again.
Association President’s Office.
Lee Seol watched anxiously as I received emergency treatment. My side was covered in deep purple bruises. The skin was twisted as if it had been hit by a cannon shell. When I spread the potion over the wound, Lee Seol let out a groan in my place.
“Ugh. It must hurt so much, Hyun. What do we do…”
Then she cutely glared at Lee Jun.
“Daddy, isn’t this too much? You should have held back like you do when you spar with me…”
“Ahem!”
Lee Jun cleared his throat and avoided her gaze. It was true that he hadn’t controlled his strength properly, so he had nothing to say. I stepped in to provide support fire.
“I asked him to go hard, so don’t scold him too much.”
“Okay… But what’s going on? Suddenly asking Dad for a spar…”
“There’s a rumor that the Hall of Challenge will be opening soon. I wanted to train a bit in advance.”
At my answer, Lee Seol smiled bitterly.
“As expected of you, Hyun.”
“It’s nothing. Shall we get back to it? You said we could go until tonight, right?”
“Yeah. But I feel like I’ve been roped into something…”
“It’s just your imagination. Just your imagination.”
First-year Class A exclusive lecture room.
While the lecture was in full swing, Choi Ahyeon whispered quietly to Han Yuri.
“Yuri, doesn’t the professor seem a bit off?”
“Yeah. She keeps cutting off mid-sentence.”
The one and only strength of Irena’s lectures was that they flowed like water, but that had disappeared. She looked as if her mind wasn’t fully on the lecture.
“Is it because Seonghyun isn’t here?”
“No way.”
Irena seemed to already half-know that Lee Seonghyun would be absent. That meant the two of them must have exchanged messages. When she came home last night, her condition didn’t look normal either… It felt similar to when Shin Suyeon had been attacked by Kim Seongho. The murderous atmosphere wasn’t there this time, but it felt like her emotions were even more tightly restrained.
I guess I just have to wait…?
I desperately wanted to dig into what was going on, but there had to be a reason he wasn’t telling us. Let’s wait. He would definitely tell us when the time was right. After all, he was our leader.
The now-empty Association training grounds.
Unlike the bustling crowd during the day, the place was deathly quiet at night. Only Lee Jun, Lee Seol, and I remained in the silent training hall. It had started as a one-on-one between me and Lee Jun, but at some point it had become me and Lee Seol versus Lee Jun.
“Seonghyun! To the left!”
At her shout, I twisted my body. Shhhk! A sharp ice spear shot toward Lee Jun. Even at that incredible speed, Lee Jun didn’t even blink as he swung his fist.
CRASH!
The ice shattered and scattered pathetically. I hadn’t expected it to work in the first place.
Thunder God.
In an instant, I circled behind him and swung my sword again, but—
“Seonghyun’s speed is certainly decent.”
He blocked my sword without even looking back.
This crazy bastard.
He was handling Lee Seol with one hand and me with the other. This was the power of the Association President. This was S-rank hunter Lee Jun.
“Shall we call it here for today?”
“Yes, understood.”
“Dad, thank you for your hard work.”
“Hard work? Anyway, you two should head home. I still have overtime left.”
“Yes. Thank you so much for today.”
“Sure, sure.”
As Lee Jun walked away, Lee Seol looked back and forth between us before turning to me with an apologetic expression.
“Hyun, I’m sorry, but can you go home alone? I think I need to help Dad with his overtime…”
Anyone listening would think I was so weak I needed protection.
“It’s fine. Go on. Uncle will be happy.”
“I’m really sorry! Next time we’ll definitely go together!”
As Lee Seol left, I ended up alone in the training grounds.
Should I head back too?
It was already 11 p.m. I had arrived here in the morning, so half a day had already passed.
Let’s get home quickly.
I needed to raise my Thunder God proficiency. Dragging my exhausted body out of the Association, I noticed someone crouching at the bottom of the stairs. Office attire, black heels, silver hair.
“Professor…?”
“……”
Irena was looking up at me like an abandoned puppy.