Chapter 15
Chapter 15
Aren thought carefully about the target of Eric’s revenge.
Disaster-type Gate, GT-033.
Gate name: “Footprints.”
It was the first A-rank Gate to appear after the Hunter Guild transitioned into a management company.
The reason it was called “Footprints” was simple.
GT-033 appeared over City Z for about ten minutes—then vanished without a trace.
And along with it, City Z disappeared from the map.
What remained where the Gate had passed were massive footprints, as if invisible giants had trampled the land.
A city was annihilated in mere minutes. That alone justified its A-rank classification.
‘It appeared again once.’
GT-033 resurfaced when the humanoid Gate released all Gates.
It passed through City H.
Just like before, the city was reduced to ruins.
As Aren recalled the horrifying disaster, they arrived at the training ground.
The moment the door opened—
Ding.
Ran checked a message on her device and gave an awkward smile.
“Aren… you don’t have anything after training today, right?”
“Why do you ask?”
A bad feeling crept over him. Whenever Ran made that face, trouble followed.
“My dad wants us to come to the chairman’s office together.”
“Why?”
“That weird painting from the museum—the one that turned a researcher into a statue. The analysis is done. They’re upgrading its rank, but they want your input.”
“I see.”
Since Gates without mana stones hadn’t been reclassified before, it made sense they wanted the original discoverer’s report.
“Oh, and they’re giving rewards for handling the F-rank incident!”
“In the chairman’s office?”
“Haha…”
That was the problem.
“Seems like my dad wants to see you.”
Of course he did.
Not Aren’s face—his ability.
Right now, the chairman probably saw him as the bastard who messed up his daughter’s mental stats.
‘Then I’ll just prove my worth.’
“When should we go?”
“Right after training.”
“Understood.”
“I’ll go with you. It’ll be fine.”
Ran forced a bright smile.
“Alright! Let’s start training!”
She turned—
Lua was still confused, dragged here without understanding anything.
Shing—
“Get up here, Aren.”
Eric was already on the ring.
“Are we going straight into sparring?”
“If you can explain it in words, I’ll listen.”
“…Hmm.”
Aren climbed up.
Could he explain how to use aura?
Could he teach techniques carved into his instincts through life-and-death battles?
No.
He couldn’t.
“I’ll spar with you later too, Aren!”
Meanwhile, Ran grabbed Lua.
“Let’s build some basic stamina!”
“W-what kind of training…?”
“Five laps around the field!”
“F-five laps?!”
“That’s nothing. What will you do in a C-rank Gate?”
“…Why would we even go there…?”
“You never know! Let’s go!”
“W-wait, Team Lead!”
Their voices faded.
Whoosh—
Eric coated his sword in aura.
“This is my limit.”
Aren observed.
Too much aura—thick, inefficient.
“You’re using far more than necessary.”
“I know. I want to fix it.”
Aren demonstrated.
A thin layer of aura—barely visible.
“No special trick. Just keep trying.”
A cliché answer.
It couldn’t be helped.
His skill was forged through near-death experiences.
“I understand.”
Eric nodded.
Then he charged.
Clang!
“…Heavier than I expected.”
“It only looks thin. There’s more mana inside.”
Eric’s hands trembled.
Aren held his sword one-handed.
“You need to fix your stance first.”
Clang!
“Your body reacts too late because you don’t anticipate defense.”
Clang!
“Then your form collapses.”
“…Hah.”
Eric couldn’t respond—just barely survived each exchange.
‘He’s different.’
Aren’s eyes were calm.
But his blade was sharp.
“No distractions.”
“…Got it.”
“Focus on survival.”
Eric obeyed.
Clang!
Again. And again.
…
Crack!
After ten exchanges, Eric’s sword broke.
“Stop.”
“Ha… haa…”
He collapsed.
“You used all your mana.”
“…Yeah.”
He expected criticism.
“Good job.”
“…What?”
“You need to reach your limit.”
“That’ll kill me.”
“No. That’s because blood mixes into your aura. Pure mana won’t kill you.”
Aren spoke confidently.
Eric stared.
“…What kind of life did you live?”
“…A lot happened.”
“That so.”
No further questions.
“Use all your mana daily.”
“Only mana.”
“Got it.”
Hope.
Even without talent, he could grow stronger.
Eric stood again.
“I’ll push further.”
“You’ll overdo it.”
“This isn’t my limit.”
“True limits leave you unable to move.”
“Exactly.”
He trained alone.
Shaking arms.
Broken sword.
But his expression was lighter.
Aren watched.
‘He won’t die easily.’
Then—
“Done sparring? My turn.”
Ran approached.
“Wasn’t that too harsh? He might need the infirmary.”
“And you weren’t?”
“…Lua’s weaker than I thought.”
“Get up here. No aura.”
“That’s cheating!”
They stepped onto the ring.
BANG!
“…Huh?”
“……”
Aren blinked.
He lost.
Completely.
Without aura.
Ran pinned him down.
“Why are you so weak without aura?”
“…I lost?”
He couldn’t process it.
Not even noticing her body pressed against him.
“You were this bad back then?”
“…Let’s go again.”
“Sure?”
“Again.”
“…Let me up first.”
“Oh, right. My bad.”
She got up—clearly pretending it was an accident.
“I won’t hold back.”
Ran laughed.
“Sounds like you were before.”
“….”
Yeah.
She was the only one who could light that fire in him again.