Se-in's Fury and Awakening
Kim Se-in's fury was tremendous. It was my first time witnessing druid abilities up close, but I could feel just how intensely her emotions were infused into them. Brown vines sprouted from the ground, coiling around the six hunters.
"S-Se-in! There's some misunderstanding here! It wasn't me! It was actually my uncle who..."
Kang Min desperately screamed every excuse he could think of to escape this situation, but there was no way Kim Se-in would let him off easily. She unleashed her power even more fiercely.
Crack, crunch—
"Gaaahhh!!"
But that was the limit of what Kim Se-in could do. The six hunters she had ensnared consisted of one A-rank and the rest B- and C-ranks. For anyone short of an S-rank hunter, simply restraining six of them was already pushing her abilities to the max. And as time passed, the vines' grip would only weaken.
I decided to use sorcery. Honestly, since it was my first time trying this spell, I wasn't entirely confident it would work properly. During our strategy session with Kang A-jin, Valentina, and Lisa, Kang A-jin had taught me a new one. It was a fusion of several existing spells, enhanced by her creative theory—the same one I'd used to drain mana from Park Hyun-jun and Kim Hyun-cheol.
She had offered to join the plan herself and extract mana directly from the enemies, but I didn't think it was necessary to put her at risk. Kang A-jin might be unfamiliar to ordinary people, but anyone in the know recognized her as a renowned sorceress. Getting her name tangled in something like this wouldn't do her any favors.
The same went for Valentina and Lisa, who were illegal immigrants. I deployed the new spell I'd learned from Kang A-jin.
Flutter, flutter, flutter—
Six talismans floated into the air. I targeted the six hunters Kim Se-in had restrained and began drawing out their mana. At first, I had my doubts, but thanks to my excellent teacher, the spell soon activated smoothly.
Swish, swish, swish. Mana began flowing from the six hunters into the talismans. Their faces grew pale, and then their skin started to shrivel and dry up.
"Huh?"
I was surprised by how much better the spell performed than I'd expected. I'd been skeptical since it was my first try, but it not only worked—it was even more effective than when Kang A-jin had used it, in some ways. I figured there were a few reasons for that.
Kang A-jin had only ever used this spell on S-ranks before. Casting it on an S-rank versus A-rank or lower was a world of difference. Plus, these guys were all bound by Kim Se-in's vines right now, making it easier to suck out their mana. And when Kang A-jin had used it on Park Hyun-jun and Kim Hyun-cheol, she must have held back her power. No matter how vile they were, casually eliminating S-ranks could complicate things later. It seemed like she planned to break them and use them down the line.
What I realized using this mana-draining spell today was just how incredibly powerful it truly was. Against Kang Min's crew, there was no need to hold back. These were dead men walking—better to squeeze them dry.
Swish, swish, swish, swish.
As their mana was drained, the bastards could only gape silently, unable to even scream. Their life force ebbed away from every inch of their bodies until they were skin and bones, unrecognizable from their original faces.
Once every last drop was absorbed, the talismans fluttered back to me one by one, stacking neatly at my feet.
Kim Se-in still clenched her lips tight, keeping Kang Min's gang restrained.
"Se-in."
I signaled her that it was time to finish them. She mustered her remaining strength and amplified her ability.
Splat! Splat! Splat!
The men bound by the sprouting vines began bursting into bloody pulps one by one.
"N-No...!"
Kang Min was last. In his final moments, his eyes bulged wide with abject terror. Even if Kim Se-in or her friend had worn that expression, he never would have stopped.
Splat!
All six hunters were reduced to unrecognizable gore.
"Grrr..."
"Grrrr..."
Monsters drawn by the scent of blood approached. They couldn't get too close because of me, but they drooled hungrily over the bloody messes on the ground.
I gathered the talismans and approached Kim Se-in, wrapping my arms around her shoulders.
"You did great."
Her body went limp with exhaustion as she leaned into my embrace.
"Thank you, Sung-gi."
Her eyes grew misty, as if recalling past regrets.
"Really... thank you..."
Back home, I absorbed the mana I'd drained from Kang Min's gang. Knowing it came from those criminal scum might make it feel tainted, but mana and skills themselves were neutral. The fault lay with those who misused them.
Kim Se-in seemed relieved on one hand, but uneasy from the thrill of killing six people on the other.
"You'll restart the guild, right?"
"Yes. I promised my late friend. No matter what, I'll keep that promise."
"No more bad stuff will happen from now on, so don't worry. I'll have your back."
"Sung-gi..."
"Se-in..."
Without a word, we sought each other's lips. We stripped off layer after layer and dove into the physical conversation we'd been having so often lately. It struck me that I'd never had this much sex with one woman in such a short time. Circumstances made it unavoidable, but I felt a twinge of guilt toward the others. Kim Eun-bi and Jo A-young, at least, would need some intensive sessions soon. If I could find a way to push them to S-rank.
I tested the new mana I'd acquired—along with what I already had—on Kim Se-in during sex. Injecting mana she didn't need felt like the wrong approach. There was no point fixating on specifics if I wasn't just passing it straight through. Like the unique druid ability I'd seen in the dungeon today, different from other hunters', there had to be mana types that meshed well within the broad spectrum—ones that could synergize upon contact.
I could house any mana in my body, but that was impossible for most. The way I infused it into a woman's body stemmed from my Unreasonable Favor trait—specifically through sex. Some chemical mechanism seemed at play, though I had no idea what it was. Even Kang A-jin, let alone Valentina, didn't know.
"Ahhng! Sung-gi! My body—it's!!"
Midway through, Kim Se-in suddenly reacted far more intensely than usual. A faint glow emanated from her body. I froze my hips in surprise, but that wasn't it—she clung to my neck and pressed herself desperately against me. Snapping out of my shock, I thrust harder.
Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap!
"Haaa! Sung-gi! I—I'm!!"
Gush.
Reaching climax, Kim Se-in unleashed a flood of juices from her pussy. An even stronger light burst from her body. I held her tight as she trembled violently.
The effect lasted about ten seconds. The glow faded gradually, and Kim Se-in opened her eyes with a refreshed smile, like waking from a deep sleep.
"Sung-gi..."
I felt a powerful premonition. Something definitive had changed in her. My strategy during this session had clearly worked.
"Se-in! Let's check your rank!"
"Huh? Oh, sure!"
Kang Mancheol was in full panic.
"Hoo, fuck... that goddamn bitch... fuck that bastard..."
He panted heavily, replaying the gear shop incident. His office was a wreck—phone smashed, papers crumpled and scattered everywhere.
Today alone, he'd fielded dozens of calls. All saying they could no longer continue contracts with Puleaf. Nearly every partner company had reached out, and the rest would soon follow. Choi Yunmi had already spread the word.
Her influence in the industry was massive on its own, but having an S-rank hunter backing her made it unstoppable. Who could've guessed touching Kim Se-in would unleash this backlash? He'd thought she was just some no-name hunter with no connections.
At this rate, his only option was to sell the company for pennies.
"Haa, haa..."
Drooling in a daze, Kang Mancheol suddenly steeled himself. Handing over the company was as good as handing over his life.
"Fuck, I can't die alone."
He contacted the Thai poison shaman group he'd hired to drug Kim Se-in.