Miyeon's Daily Life ②
"Cooking duty again? You're amazing every time I see it."
"Yeah. Everything can be training."
Miyeon viewed the act of cooking as training itself. That was why she put so much care into it, even using her ability to make the soybean paste stew. The teaching she'd gained while learning swordsmanship was that every aspect of daily life was training.
"But don't you use kitchen knives anymore? You do it all by hand now?"
"A regular kitchen knife is actually more inconvenient."
For Miyeon, the Sword Princess with her Sword Qi ability, an ordinary kitchen knife felt crude and only got in the way of her powers. To her, its blade seemed rough and unrefined.
"Sis, your ability is insane no matter how many times I see it. I feel like a total normie compared to you."
"Hehe. You've been training hard too, Jinseok, and your ability's growing. You'll catch up to me soon enough."
"W-Well..."
As Miyeon said, Jinseok's ability had started at around D-rank when it first awakened, but it had grown through C-rank to roughly B-rank now. Still, Jinseok was starting to feel the limits of his growth, and becoming an S-rank hero like his sister seemed impossible.
(Sis says it'll grow, but honestly, it's been stagnant for years. My Physical Enhancement multiplier hasn't changed much, and I'm barely scraping B-rank by building up my base physical stats through workouts. At this rate, reaching S-rank like her is a pipe dream...)
Jinseok's ability, Physical Enhancement, amplified his physical capabilities as the name implied. But the amplification from his ability seemed to have maxed out, and no matter how much he trained over the years, it hadn't improved much. Instead, he focused on exercise—especially strength training—to boost his base physical prowess, which served as the foundation for the amplification.
To put it simply, back then his base physical ability was around 10, amplified by a factor of 10 through Physical Enhancement for a total output of 10 × 10 = 100. Now, he'd raised his base to about 30 and the multiplier to 12, yielding 30 × 12 = 360. He was definitely stronger, but it was mostly due to his raw muscle gains rather than the ability itself.
Thanks to that, he'd barely clawed his way from C-rank to B-rank territory. But human physical limits meant endless growth through training alone wasn't realistic. Jinseok already sensed he'd hit the ceiling for developing his ability.
(Abilities are mostly innate talent from the start, after all...)
Most scholars studying abilities agreed that their manifestation was largely innate talent. Training could refine control to a degree, but innate potential was the key factor, with clear limits to post-awakening growth.
"Oh, hey, what about the rice, Sis?"
"Oh no. I forgot to start it."
Glancing around the kitchen, Jinseok realized Miyeon hadn't prepared the rice while focusing on the stew.
"Look at me. Forgetting the rice..."
"Hehe. I'll handle the rice."
"Thanks, then."
Miyeon flustered over her oversight, but Jinseok stepped up to wash the rice and load the electric cooker.
(See? Even Sis isn't perfect.)
To Jinseok, his sister seemed flawless most days, but these rare slips made her feel endearingly human.
......
Pssshhh—!
Soon, steam hissed from the cooker as breakfast rice finished. With the stew already simmering courtesy of Miyeon, the meal was ready in minutes. Jinseok grabbed side dishes like kimchi from the fridge and set the table neatly.
Once the stew was done, Miyeon transferred it to a pot and placed it down, while Jinseok scooped the rice.
"That soybean paste stew looks delicious. Dig in, Sis."
Jinseok and Miyeon sat across from each other at a simple, humble breakfast spread. Jinseok grinned happily at the stew. Its nutty aroma alone made his mouth water, promising rich flavor.
He dug in with a blissful expression.
"You really love soybean paste stew, huh, Jinseok? Tasty?"
Miyeon started eating too, beaming as she watched him chow down and asked.
Even though she'd made it herself, she found his consistent enthusiasm intriguing.
"Yeah. Yours tastes totally different from anywhere else."
"Really?"
Miyeon's stew had a special something. Neither knew exactly why, but her cooking was uncannily delicious thanks to her ability. It wasn't just destructive enough to cleave giant monsters—it allowed precise, uniform cuts on ingredients too.
"For real. But your cooking's ruining me."
"How so?"
"My tongue's turned gourmet. Regular food out there just doesn't cut it anymore."
"Hehe."
Miyeon smiled at his joke. She was usually stoic, her cool beauty earning her the title Sword Princess, but alone with Jinseok, she'd let her guard down with a grin now and then.
After awakening, Miyeon had struggled to control her immense S-rank power, especially at such a young age. Stronger abilities were harder to rein in—like handing a child a sword bigger and heavier than themselves.
Emotional spikes triggered outbursts beyond her will, damaging surroundings. To master her power, she first learned to suppress her feelings, forging her icy Sword Princess persona.
Now, with control solidified, outbursts were history, but emotional restraint had become habit.
"You look so pretty when you smile, Sis. I get why you suppress emotions for control, but I wish you'd smile more."
"Mm. I'm trying to open up more now. It's not as hard to manage the power anymore."
Miyeon chatted with him, a faint smile lingering.
......
Jinseok and Miyeon had lived normally with their parents in childhood. But one day, monsters attacked their home. Their parents died defending against the intruders, and the siblings faced the beasts too.
"M-Mom... Dad... Uhhngh..."
"Jinseok! We have to run!"
While shocked Jinseok wailed before their parents' bodies, Miyeon assessed and tried dragging him to safety. But he was too stunned to move, and the monsters cornered them.
"S-Sis..."
"Don't worry! I'll protect you!"
Miyeon, who'd trained in kendo, grabbed her wooden practice sword from home and stood before her sobbing brother. But she was just a normal kid—facing a monster with a bokken was suicide.
(Please! I have to protect Jinseok!)
"Yaaah!"
Yet the monster lunging at them split in two from Miyeon's strike. Even she was stunned. Blue Sword Qi clung to her wooden sword.
The moment she awakened. Her fierce will to shield her brother had triggered it.