Chapter 133
Chapter 133
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 133
Chapter Title: Blessing of the Great Nature Reaches S-Rank
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“Rising three stages seems like a definite win.”
When a trait’s rank goes up, not only do its effects improve, but new abilities can unlock too.
That means just upgrading the rank could feel like buying a whole new trait.
“Hmm.”
After mulling it over alone, I made up my mind.
“Yeah, I’ll buy it.”
Limited sale at 50% off—if I pass on this, I’ll regret it later and won’t be able to stand it. Even if I regret it, I’ll just go for it.
I bought the trait without hesitation.
[You have purchased Trait Enhancement (???).]
[You have achieved the ‘Limited Purchase’ accomplishment.]
[As a reward, you acquire 4,000 points.]
[Select the trait to enhance.]
Once I bought it, a message popped up asking me to choose the trait to enhance.
Among my traits with proficiency ranks, the best one is ‘Blessing of the Great Nature.’
Sure, the most expensive trait I own is ‘Battle Maniac,’ but it’s a fixed trait without a proficiency rank, so it can’t be enhanced.
Well, ‘Blessing of the Great Nature’ is such a star trait that I didn’t feel any regret.
[Enhancing ‘Blessing of the Great Nature (A)’]
[‘Blessing of the Great Nature (A)’ proficiency rank is 3.]
[‘Blessing of the Great Nature (A)’ proficiency rank has exceeded 5!]
[‘Blessing of the Great Nature’ advances to S-rank!]
[All effects of ‘Blessing of the Great Nature’ change to match its rank!]
[You have achieved the ‘Well-Raised Trait’ accomplishment.]
[As a reward, you acquire 5,000 points.]
“Huh? What?”
‘Blessing of the Great Nature’ advanced to S-rank?
My heart pounded with excitement.
I brushed aside the accomplishment window hovering in front of me and quickly checked the trait.
［Blessing of the Great Nature (S)［Rank: 2(28%)］
［Passive Effects］
►Blessing of the Great Nature
During mana meditation, acquire additional mana. Up to 230% more based on surrounding environment.
Acquire additional attribute proficiency. Up to 150% more attribute proficiency depending on the situation.
►Rest of the Great Nature
Stamina and mana recovery speed increases by 100%.
Wound recovery accelerates.
Recovery from various status ailments accelerates.
►Grasp of the Great Nature
Control the natural mana floating in the atmosphere with your will.
［Active Effects］
►Heart of the Great Nature
For 3 minutes, stamina and mana recovery speed increases by 1000%.
*Cooldown: 20 hours
“Jackpot.”
As I read the updated effects, my jaw dropped.
New abilities appeared, and the existing effects had massively improved.
The original ‘Blessing of the Great Nature’ focused on ‘mana recovery,’ but now that it hit S-rank, ‘stamina recovery’ was included too.
And the core of it, ‘Heart of the Great Nature,’ had its duration tripled from 1 minute to a whopping 3 minutes.
“‘Heart of the Great Nature’ is the real jackpot.”
The short 1-minute duration had always felt lacking, but 3 minutes was plenty satisfying. It matched the duration of ‘Battle Lust’ too.
The 60,000 points didn’t feel wasteful at all.
Honestly, if it went on sale again, I’d buy another one.
“But what’s this?”
Grasp of the Great Nature.
It was the name of the newly added passive effect.
It let me control natural mana with my will.
At that moment, the usage method for ‘Grasp of the Great Nature’ imprinted in my mind.
“Let’s try it.”
I looked around and turned my gaze to the fridge.
I focused my mind and stared at it. Then, the blue mana in the atmosphere, invisible to normal eyes, came into view.
Focusing harder, the natural mana wriggled and moved according to my will.
“Oh.”
It was still clumsy, but it was definitely responding to my will.
Slowly, I used the natural mana to grip the fridge handle.
*
That instant, a sudden headache hit me. It felt just like the first time using magic, when I was handling imagination.
But I endured the headache and slowly pulled the fridge handle with the natural mana.
Creeeak.
The fridge door, wrapped in natural mana, began to open slowly. It felt like I was using telekinesis.
“Oh...”
I stared at it in a daze.
“But how do I use this?”
Friday after school.
Jang An-cheol was explaining the final school schedule to the students.
“Alright, the list of practical instructors you’ve all been waiting for is out. It’s posted on the paper up front, so everyone check it.”
“Oh, exciting.”
“I heard a bunch of famous wizards are coming this time.”
Jang An-cheol continued.
“Oh, right. The student application period starts next week. You all know this week was the contact period for external instructors, right? Probably quite a few of you got personal contacts from them.”
The students nodded. They’d all been glued to their smart student handbooks all week, probably waiting for messages.
Of course, I just let it slide without much thought.
Because I’d decided to choose Lee Hee-young as my practical instructor.
Her teaching skills wouldn’t fall short anywhere.
“That’s it for homeroom. Good work today.”
Jang An-cheol headed out again.
The students rushed forward to check the external instructor list.
I ignored it, stood up, and packed my bag. Gotta finish training quick and rest.
“Kim Sun-woo.”
Then I heard Lee Seo-jun calling me. I turned to see him standing there with an awkward smile.
Come to think of it, this was our first conversation since the class rep battle.
He’d gotten mad at me back then and had been subtly avoiding me, but now he seemed fine.
“What?”
“Just curious if you picked an instructor yet.”
“Instructor? I went with Teacher Lee Hee-young.”
My answer seemed unexpected, as Lee Seo-jun pondered for a moment.
“Hmm. Yeah? She’s a solid choice.”
“You?”
I already knew, but asked to keep the conversation going.
“Wizard Shin Sung-woo. We already talked.”
Sword Saint Shin Sung-woo.
A star wizard rumored to wield the sword insanely well, true to his Sword Saint moniker.
He’d be a great influence on Lee Seo-jun’s swordsmanship.
“I see. Nice, getting someone that impressive.”
“Yeah, but didn’t you get a ton of contacts too?”
I did, but they started with guild scouts and went on to messages from total strangers.
No matter how I thought about it, sharing smart student handbook numbers with school bigwigs was a privacy violation.
“Too many messages to check. I cleared them all.”
I showed Lee Seo-jun my handbook’s message tab. With 600+ unread, his eyes widened in surprise.
“Wow, that’s a ton. Almost double mine?”
“Idiot. They gave up on you ’cause you’re too good already. They contacted me ’cause I seem manageable.”
“Hey, what’s with that? Why’s your self-esteem so low?”
“...Well, whatever.”
Sunday morning, 10 a.m.
Maybe because it was a holiday morning, the training ground was unusually empty and quiet, unlike usual.
Saturday had a few people, but Sunday mornings felt like everyone agreed to sleep in—no one in sight.
I sat on a training ground bench, waiting for my appointment.
Sitting still got boring, so I played around moving trash on the ground with Grasp of the Great Nature.
After practicing on and off for days, I could handle it pretty well now.
Though I still had no idea how to use it practically.
“You’re already here?”
Then Yoo Ah-ra appeared, in a black tracksuit with her hair tied back. Even dressed so casually, her beauty shone through.
“You’re here?”
“Didn’t keep you waiting long?”
“Nah, I just got here too.”
I stood up.
I’d met Yoo Ah-ra today to make good on our promised support form training.
We entered the training room.
Yoo Ah-ra stretched big, then said to me.
“Hmm. What to start with? Form adaptation training won’t work.”
“We’ll rely on imagination. Start small to make it easier to manifest.”
For demonstration, I manifested magic on my palm.
It had been a while since I made anything but a sphere, so it felt awkward.
What I made was a small rectangular box.
A miniature ‘wall.’
Way too small for real combat, of course, but it was just for practice.
“Start from this small size.”
Yoo Ah-ra looked at the wall on my hand and muttered quietly.
“...You said you couldn’t handle support forms, but you’re pretty good.”
Good? This was my limit.
Somehow, even though I wasn’t here to teach her, it turned into me teaching Yoo Ah-ra.
“Alright, I’ll give it a shot.”
Yoo Ah-ra nodded and focused her mana on her palm.
Soon, the mana slowly ignited into a wall of flame.
“...Insane.”
She nailed it on the first try?
Manifesting a new form perfectly right away.
I’d been impressed by Yoon Ha-young’s talent when teaching her, but this was next level. Made me feel kinda down.
“Easier than I thought.”
“...You did it way too easily, and that’s weird.”
“No, I’ve only handled simple stuff like spheres, so maybe that’s why it felt easier.”
“Hmm.”
Fair point. Kids used to detailed shapes like spears or arrows often struggled more with support forms.
Is that why I picked it up quick?
“Anyway, grow the size step by step like this.”
“Simple.”
“...Yeah, sure.”
If anyone else said it, it’d sound cocky, but coming from Yoo Ah-ra, she meant it.
“Ah, there you are~”
Then a middle-aged man’s voice came from somewhere. Our eyes turned that way.
A man stood before us without a sound.
Messy hair and beard. But his face looked familiar.
I was a bit flustered. ...No way, this guy.
“Who are you?”
Yoo Ah-ra asked the man. He replied confidently.
“I’m the new external instructor here for practical guidance this time.”
That surprised me again. External instructor?
“Oh, hello.”
Yoo Ah-ra greeted him awkwardly. The man grinned and nodded, then looked at me.
“Kim Sun-woo?”
“...Yeah, that’s me.”
“Nice to meet ya. But why no reply to my messages?”
“Messages?”
“It’s contact week. I reached out, so why ignore me? Read but no reply is one thing, but a whole week unread? Got pissed and came myself.”
He’d even come to contact me personally. Totally unexpected.
“Messages piled up so much I didn’t see it.”
“...I see. Still, check ’em on time.”
Then he glanced at Yoo Ah-ra beside me.
“But is she your girlfriend? Nice skills.”
Yoo Ah-ra’s eyes narrowed instantly. She looked genuinely pissed.
Made me annoyed too. Not at the guy in front of me, but at Yoo Ah-ra.
[You have achieved the ‘Third Time’ accomplishment.]
[As a reward, you acquire 3,000 points.]
Wait, what?
I didn’t confess. Didn’t get rejected.
The man stared at Yoo Ah-ra’s face, then spoke.
“...But aren’t you Ji-ho’s daughter?”
Yoo Ah-ra’s eyes widened like saucers. Yoo Ji-ho—her father’s name.
“You know my dad?”
“Well, yeah. Not super close, though—guy’s got a shitty personality.”
“...Mind if I ask your name?”
Yoo Ah-ra asked. The man stroked his scruffy chin beard and said.
“Choi Il-hyun.”
Once Choi Il-hyun revealed himself, Yoo Ah-ra looked shocked again.
“...The Weirdo?”
“Don’t call me weirdo. Hate it—sounds like some girl’s nickname. Call me the Immortal instead.”
Then he turned back to me.
“So, I came specially to be your instructor. What do ya say?”
Choi Il-hyun said it with bold confidence.