Work, Family, and Items

Manifestation magic.

It meant visualizing an image you imagined through mana. By the dictionary definition alone, elemental spells like Firebolt counted as well—but in practice, the term usually referred to something with a carefully shaped form. A sword and shield, for instance.

The reasons people bothered with manifestation magic varied. From primitive fantasy civilizations to biomechanical ones, Gate Apocalypse held every kind of world imaginable. But two common rules always applied.

One: manifestation demanded an enormous amount of mana.

Two: once something had already been formed from mana, it couldn't be enhanced any further.

Which meant I was an exception to both.

I was summoning cards with barely any mana—and enhancing them on top of that.

"How is that even possible?"

Kang Jiye's expression turned serious in an instant. Everything I'd just described was foundational theory taught from the Academy onward. If more people like me existed, the curriculum would have to be rewritten. Frontline hunters could get blindsided by an unexpected attack.

In the original story, the protagonist's party had been thrown into considerable chaos over exactly this.

Not that knowing ahead of time would have helped them much.

I offered an explanation before she short-circuited completely.

"It only works with cards. And there are other restrictions, too."

"Restrictions?"

"For example, I can't throw the same combination twice in a row. I can't go into more detail than that, though."

"…"

Kang Jiye chewed over my words carefully.

"So at the end of the day, it still is manifestation magic, right?"

"That's right."

"Sorry, but could you throw them again?"

"Ah—yes, ma'am."

Whoosh—CRASH! BOOM!

Stone dust sprayed in every direction. Fist-sized craters pocked the granite surface where the cards had struck. The craters from the paired cards looked a little larger than the rest.

Kang Jiye spoke again.

"This time, without the enhancement."

Thwack-thwack-thwack!

Five cards lodged halfway into the rock. Kang Jiye walked over, pulled them out one by one, and examined them.

"…It's real. The difference is exactly one low-grade enhancement stone."

Enhancement stones ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠increased an object's durability and power. Low-grade ones were commonly used on arrowheads and special-forces ammunition, so a Hunter Administration official who handled them daily would have no trouble telling the difference.

Fsssh—

The cards dissolved into white smoke in Kang Jiye's hands. Their stored mana had run out—a textbook trait of manifestation magic.

She let out a hollow laugh.

"Amazing. Really. What on earth is the principle behind this?"

"…Hmm."

This much I could tell her, right? The hunters and the protagonist's party would be fighting in my place anyway.

"Subspace."

"Subspace?"

I nodded.

"I store the cards in a subspace. I'm basically pulling out something that's already half-materialized. That's why I can enhance them. Other monsters or criminals could probably use the same method."

"…So subspace magic can do something like that."

As time went on, all sorts of bizarre things would start cropping up. Feeding them information like this ahead of time might reduce hunter casualties, even if only a little. Of course, only within limits that didn't come back to bite me.

Kang Jiye mulled over my words with a grave expression, then broke into a bright smile and clapped her hands together.

Clap!

"Alright. My curiosity's satisfied, at least. The rest we can research later. You went out of your way to show me—thank you, Pecia. I know it was a hassle."

A gesture that she wouldn't press any further. I gratefully accepted the kindness. I felt a little guilty toward someone responsible for her subordinates' lives—but I had my own nose buried three feet deep in trouble. A monster's body, a mind from another world. Spill everything I knew without thinking, and both body and mind would get very busy very fast.

"Huh? Haah… I've got a call-up request."

Kang Jiye, fiddling with her smartwatch, suddenly scowled. Another powerful criminal had apparently turned up somewhere. A rare early day off, ruined—a pity.

The moment our eyes met, I nodded.

"Go ahead. I'll pick up Yena."

"What would I do without you?"

"The neighbors would've watched her, I'm sure."

Kang Jiye poked my cheek.

"This is when you're supposed to milk it a little. You stiff little thing."

"I keep telling you I can't do that. So who's it this time?"

"Not a who—a group."

"A group?"

"Valhalla's Gate, I think? Apparently a pretty well-known smuggling outfit in the industry. I only heard of them recently myself."

"…!"

"What? You know them?"

Valhalla's Gate.

So those bastards had already set foot in Korea.

A global criminal organization that trafficked monsters. They mostly dealt in plant-type monsters that secreted hallucinogens or narcotic compounds—not the type that actively threatened innocent civilians. The problem was that somewhere along the way, they would transport a boss with a mind-control skill and trigger a massive disaster.

A ship would dock at ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Incheon Port packed with B-class and below ability users who'd all been infected. The protagonist's party would have to eliminate the boss while carefully avoiding the infected hunters—a genuine nightmare scenario. One of the few Incheon episodes in Gate Apocalypse.

…

But for me, this could also be a windfall. Among the items you could get from that boss was one that synergized beautifully with Pecia's skills. There had even been a route where Pecia, realizing this mid-story, robbed the item outright.

…The problem was that it wasn't time to bring that thing in yet.

I looked at Kang Jiye.

"Auntie."

"Hm?"

"Just… don't go today."

Kang Jiye's eyes went round.

"Don't go?"

"It's just a request. If it were truly urgent, they would've issued a mandatory order. Things will be fine without you."

"Okay, but why?"

"Because Yena will be sad."

"…!"

"Something terrible almost happened not long ago. There's no need to prioritize something that isn't even urgent, is there?"

Kang Jiye's face darkened slightly. No matter how arbitrary the logic, once you brought Yena into it, the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠argument became impossible to dismiss. Still, worry seemed to gnaw at her. She looked down at her smartwatch and spoke in a conflicted tone.

"Still, I won't know if it's urgent until I check…"

Her subordinates were the issue, no doubt. They could get hurt. But as far as I knew, that worry was completely unnecessary.

I cut through her hesitation.

"It is absolutely not urgent."

"…?"

"It's just some black-market money changing hands. If a truly urgent situation comes up, I'll let you know."

"…"

Kang Jiye stared at me steadily. Bewilderment welled in both her eyes. She probably wanted to demand an explanation right then and there. But after a moment she huffed a small smile and spoke with an almost resigned air.

"Honestly. I have no idea what I've picked up off the street."

I blinked. I'd expected to need more persuasion.

"You're trusting me?"

Kang Jiye shrugged.

"What am I supposed to do if I don't? When you're saying all that. Of course I'm going to see Yena."

"Oh…"

"Don't 'oh' me. I'm going to grill you about everything later."

She thoroughly ruffled my hair. I laughed awkwardly and cheered on the inside.

Family peace and items. Is this what they call killing two birds with one stone?

Kang Jiye must not go there right now. In the original timeline, she had already lost Yena by this point—she wouldn't have been capable of proper fieldwork the way she was now. If the competent Kang Jiye of the present joined that operation, history could change. The mind-control incident would erupt somewhere other than Incheon, and then even I wouldn't be able to do anything about it.

"There she is."

Yena was at the kindergarten playground, scanning the entrance with anxious eyes. Other people had been picking her up in her mother's place far too often.

"…!"

The moment Kang Jiye saw that, she bit down hard on her lip.

"…"

Dew gathered slowly at the corners of her eyes. She hastily wiped the tears with her sleeve and opened her arms toward her daughter.

"Yena."

Yena's eyes went wide the instant she spotted Kang Jiye, and a huge smile bloomed across her face.

"Mommy!!"

…

…

Eheh. Ehehehehehehe.

Fifty-six low-grade magic scrolls and a hundred twenty consumable low-grade enhancement stones. Plus mid-grade magic scrolls and assorted other goodies on top of that.

Kang Jiye had provided far more items than what had been promised. With just these, a ghoul or whatever—one single card would be enough to blow its head clean off. Compared to the days when I'd barely managed to pierce a forehead, this was explosive growth. I had no intention of actively seeking out fights, but I couldn't help being delighted.

"Aww, look at you. Happy? Try smiling like that more often."

Kang Jiye kneaded my cheeks this way and that, apparently still holding a grudge over my usual deadpan face.

"Happy?"

Yena, trying to copy her mom, squished my chest the exact same way—but I was in far too good a mood to care. Kang Jiye gently pulled Yena's hands away.

"Ah-ah. You shouldn't touch things like that without permission."

"Mmm… when do I get big like Unnie?"

"If Yena sits quietly and does this, you'll grow. Later."

Kang Jiye handed Yena a smartphone. The moment her favorite game appeared on the screen, Yena was instantly absorbed. Kang Jiye seized the opening to speak to me.

"The preliminary assembly day is coming up soon. There'll be a talent assessment and various other things, but they don't use equipment that sensitive, so don't panic."

She meant mana detection. I nodded in relief.

"Thank you for telling me. I was actually worried about that."

"There's something you especially need to watch out for this time, though. A kid from a prestigious hunter family is enrolling in the same year as you."

"A hunter?"

"It's a comprehensive academy, after all."

"Ah… which prestigious family?"

"Adriel Joel Kang. Korean name: Kang Jihun. He's apparently quite aggressive, so avoid him if you can."

…?

Kang Jihun?

That was a member of the protagonist's party. The one most hostile toward monsters, no less.