Chapter 371: Dyeing (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 371: Dyeing (4)
I was in the training room, alone for the first time in a while.
I sat in the center and sank into meditation.
“Ssssp.”
I took a calm, steady breath.
In that long inhalation that seemed to pull in endlessly, I could clearly feel the particles of mana. I pushed them into every corner of my circuits, then exhaled the breath I had been holding.
“Fuuu.”
With each repeated breath, my senses of the world around me grew sharper.
The mana enveloping my body.
I could perceive what lay within each coalesced particle.
“Ssssp.”
I stopped floundering in that ecstatic sensation and pushed my consciousness deeper.
The thread of my will, which had been touching the surface of the coalesced mana, reached for something deeper.
Fire, water, wind, earth, and so on.
My own mana surged along the threads of will connected to each particle that constituted the greater whole.
When I added mana to the particles of fire, the surrounding temperature rose sharply.
When I empowered the particles of wind, a breeze rustled through the sealed space.
When I empowered the particles of water, the humidity skyrocketed as if after a downpour.
And finally, when I empowered the particles of earth…
“Cough, cough!”
Ugh.
Was this yellow dust or what?
With every breath, acrid dust filled my nostrils, making me feel like I was poisoning my own body.
“Ahem… Fuuu.”
I steadied my breathing and reconnected my momentarily broken concentration.
I had realized something while tinkering with various methods to give Han Ju-hee a plausible training regimen.
I hadn't been utilizing this body's talent to its full 100%.
To convince a skeptical Han Ju-hee, I had told her that the talent I now possessed was the next stage of evolution that modern mages should strive to reach.
Thinking of it that way changed my entire perspective on my own talent.
If the gift I enjoyed truly was the next evolutionary step for modern mages…
Then didn't that mean there was a next stage of evolution for me, too? And wasn't uncovering it first the true privilege of the talent I'd been given?
“Ssssp.”
The more strongly I entangled my consciousness with the surrounding mana, the more that hypothesis solidified into conviction.
The mana floating in the air.
And within it, the individual elemental particles frolicking freely.
If I let my consciousness, which had already sunk this far, sink even deeper…
“Ah.”
The thread of my consciousness, thin yet strong, snapped.
“Ssssp… Is this my limit for now?”
Thanks to several days of effort, I had succeeded in penetrating the interior of the mana with my consciousness, but that was as far as I could go.
I was certain there was something deeper, but the moment I tried to delve into it, my consciousness would sever, and I’d return to my original state.
“It doesn’t feel like an impossible realm…”
This place is not for you yet. Do not approach so recklessly.
Every time my consciousness was pushed back, it felt as if something was whispering those words to me.
“Well… I should be satisfied with this for now.”
That was enough.
Just by increasing the depth of my consciousness, the ways I could utilize mana had become far more diverse.
For the time being, I could focus my training on that while waiting for an opportunity.
I closed my eyes once more.
“Ssssp.”
As I let the mana I drew in with the oxygen dissolve into my circuits, I thought back on the time I had spent in this body.
A thoroughly debauched time, filled with pleasure.
I boldly took any woman I desired and pushed through with overwhelming talent instead of effort.
A competition among 504 people?
Honestly, it didn't feel real to me.
With nothing tangible to grasp, I just thought, I guess that's happening, and moved on.
It was the same with uncovering Han Ju-hee's secret.
Drunk on the scent of the women by my side, I felt like it didn't matter.
A connection that had all but been severed.
I’d wondered what I would gain by stubbornly digging and clawing at it… but now, I could no longer afford to think that way.
“Fuuu.”
Points of contact kept forming between the greatest challenges of my life.
Problems I had thought were completely separate were now stepping into each other's territory.
Red Pill, the Church of Light, Hexagram…
Organizations so well-known that their names alone inspired fear.
Or organizations so shrouded in mystery that they inspired questions and dread.
Only after hearing the names of the beings who had repeatedly thrown me into crisis during my time as Son Si-woo did a heavy tension finally coil in the pit of my stomach.
The stage had grown immense in an instant.
And standing upon it was Han Ju-hee, who I thought had nothing to do with any of this.
I didn't know what her role was yet… but it surely wasn't a simple one.
“Ssssp.”
Now that the stage had grown as large as it could, I had to prepare.
What I needed to do was clear.
I had to acquire information and broaden my vision, which was obscured by the darkness of ignorance.
I couldn't rely solely on Han Ju-hee for information.
I wasn't ready to press her for it yet.
If I just blindly asked, ‘Who is the boss of Hexagram?’ I might get an answer.
But I wouldn't be able to handle the consequences.
Therefore, I had to find another source.
Someone who could give me a clue—big or small—that would help me figure out where to start.
Just one person.
Someone came to mind.
Our relationship wasn't exactly friendly, but they were someone I could certainly propose a deal to.
And as luck would have it, I had something they wanted.
“Fuuu.”
I exhaled one last time and opened my eyes.
I immediately stood up, took out my smartphone, and called the person.
“Hey, it’s me. We need to meet.”
* * *
A five-story building on the outskirts of Gangnam.
The sign hanging at the entrance was stylishly inscribed with the name ‘Zodiac.’
“They’re living better than I thought.”
I felt a pang of envy.
For a mere front guild, they’d set up shop in Gangnam, even if it was on the outskirts.
“…While I’m stuck using a club room as my guild hideout.”
In contrast, the hideout for the guild ‘Twilight,’ founded by Kim Do-jin, was a club room at Korea University.
Of course, it wasn't for lack of money.
It was purely a strategic choice to survive in an already saturated red ocean.
Still, looking at this respectable building made me jealous.
‘Should I ask for this building as part of the deal?’
The temptation rose in an instant.
But Kim Do-jin let out a small sigh and dismissed the thought.
“Forget it.”
Right now, credible information was far more urgent than a fancy building.
Shaking off my lingering attachment, I entered the building, where a receptionist greeted me.
“Oh, welcome.”
“……”
A blonde foreigner.
And she was beautiful.
“You’re Do-jin Kim, correct?”
On top of that, she spoke fluent Korean.
The foreign guide came out from behind the desk and led Kim Do-jin to the elevator.
“The guild leader’s office is on the fifth floor. I hope you have a good time, okay?”
“Uh… thank you.”
“Hehe, you’re welcome.”
The doors closed along with her fluent English pronunciation.
“I almost fell for that.”
I couldn't believe they were using an Awakened with some sort of charm ability as a guide.
Even so, I had been swayed too easily.
“It was only a C-rank charm at best…”
It seemed that while I used to be incredibly resistant to the charms of beautiful women, I was now incredibly weak to them.
“…Another thing I need to prepare for.”
Just as I was shaking my head, the elevator arrived.
I stepped out immediately and saw a familiar face standing in front of the guild leader’s office.
“It’s been a while.”
A man with bright blond hair and an impressive, beaming smile.
It was K, the leader of this guild.
“Please, come in.”
I followed him into the office.
There was nothing particularly noteworthy inside.
A desk, a chair, a sofa for guests.
It was a tidy office, equipped with everything you’d expect.
That was all.
“What would you like to drink?”
“Forget that. I’d rather get straight to the deal.”
Kim Do-jin took a small box from the inner pocket of his thick jumper and placed it on the table.
“It’s an orb filled with bad karma.”
It was the orb I had obtained after killing the Sword Demon, who had been consumed by killing intent in the last dungeon. All of his bad karma was condensed inside it.
“May I take a look?”
“Be my guest.”
The moment he got permission, K reached for the box.
When he opened the lid, a glass orb shimmering with a grayish-black light scattered an unsettling aura into the surroundings.
“Hmm… the amount is certainly substantial.”
K nodded with a satisfied expression and closed the lid again.
He looked up and spoke.
“I’ll purchase it. If you have a price in mind, I’ll do my best to meet it.”
Kim Do-jin was slightly surprised by the straightforward response.
He quickly schooled his expression and replied.
“I’d like to be paid with something other than money.”
“Something other than money…?”
He asked back with a puzzled look. I spoke firmly.
“Information.”
Zodiac.
Though disguised as a guild, they were one of the organizations swimming diligently beneath the surface.
Judging by the fact that they had partially emerged into the light, it seemed they were still testing the waters rather than committing overt evil. But it was also true that the bulk of their body remained submerged in the shadows.
If so, they might know.
“Hexagram.”
Information about them, which no one standing in the light knew.
“Hand over whatever information you have on them. That’s the price I want.”
Around the time the two men’s deal was underway…
A message was delivered to Han Ju-hee, who was meditating in the Tower Lord’s office.
[Zodiac’s K and Kim Do-jin have made contact.]
Han Ju-hee’s face wrinkled slightly as she read it.
The message was brief, but the implication was obvious.
Kim Do-jin must have gone to Zodiac to get information on Hexagram.
“Haa… I warned him so clearly.”
Was he running wild, unable to control his youthful vigor, or was there something else at play?
Despite her advice, which had been closer to a warning, his reckless advance made her hesitate for a moment.
Should she nip it in the bud to prevent future trouble, or watch a little longer?
After deep contemplation, she took out her smartphone and sent a message.
[Han Ju-hee: Let’s meet at the lab in two days.]
It seemed she had to see him in person to decide.