Chapter 87
Chapter 87
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Mana Sword - 2
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It wasn’t as if he hadn’t seen types like that once or twice before.
“All right. As you all know by now, no matter how skilled a hunter you are…”
Of course, that was exactly what he’d been about to say when Captain Kim Sang-deok sensed something off and turned his head.
“…W-What the hell is that!”
Before his eyes unfolded a sight he could scarcely believe.
Ssssss.
The aura enveloping the mana sword was rippling intensely.
“W-What?”
Training officer Captain Kim Sang-deok’s eyes went wide.
It was an aura far denser than anything he could produce.
Even seeing it with his own eyes, he couldn’t believe it.
Military mana swords unleashed greater power the deeper the color of the aura cloaking the blade.
He’d never seen a mana sword wrapped in such a thick aura before.
‘I’ve been training for over six months, and I can’t even compare!’
Thanks to his position as training officer, he’d gotten his mana weapon earlier than the other hunters.
It only made sense, since he had to instruct them.
And yet Sergeant Kim Min-jun handled the weapon with the ease of breathing.
Even though he’d just been issued it moments ago.
‘What kind of freak is this guy!’
He’d already heard the rumors about Sergeant Kim Min-jun.
A flawless hunter without a single flaw.
His accomplishments in such a short time were so impressive that even the division commander paid personal attention.
‘No, it’s just luck. There’s no way he did that on purpose right away.’
He’d heard some hunters had constitutions that resonated especially well with mana swords.
One in a thousand, they said.
Sergeant Kim Min-jun must just be one of them.
“Training officer. What’s next?”
“…Uh, yeah. Sergeant Kim Min-jun. I haven’t even taught you how to handle it yet, but you’re doing great. You can head back now.”
“Yes, sir.”
Kim Min-jun descended from the platform with a perfectly natural expression.
Watching his back, Captain Kim Sang-deok vowed to expose his weaknesses sooner or later.
Why?
Because crushing show-offs like him and feeling superior was the one joy of military life.
“Wow… Sergeant Kim Min-jun. How did you do that just now?”
“The training officer’s aura was nothing compared to yours, right?”
“The training officer’s was this faint sky blue at best, but yours was a deep, solid blue. The kind you could see clearly even from far away.”
As he returned to his seat, the hunters bombarded him with excited questions.
And for good reason—they hadn’t even started training yet, and he’d already cloaked his sword in a denser aura than the training officer.
They’d thought even he would struggle this time, but he’d shattered those expectations spectacularly.
“It’s all about feel. The moment I gripped the sword, I just knew what to do.”
“…How do you know that?”
“I’ve been holding this thing for ages, and I still have no clue.”
He made it sound like it just worked if you grabbed it right.
The hunters laughed in exasperation.
“All right. Your first goal is to cloak your mana knives in mana aura, just like that!”
A short while later.
Under the training officer’s guidance, the real training began.
The hunters followed Captain Kim Sang-deok’s instructions, mimicking his movements.
Swoooo.
Cloaking the aura itself was easy.
Most hunters managed to wrap their mana knives in aura without much delay.
“Argh!”
“Maintaining it is no joke…”
“No wonder it’s the latest gear…”
But.
Keeping that aura steady for any length of time was the hard part.
They’d start strong, but most couldn’t hold it for even a full minute.
“To maintain aura, you need a certain level of stamina and intense focus. What you’re experiencing is normal—concentrate on keeping it up!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Got it!”
Maintaining aura came down to each hunter’s individual sense.
There was nothing the training officer could do about that.
‘Of course. What kind of elites are they from frontline units anyway?’
Captain Kim Sang-deok inwardly sneered at the hunters struggling to maintain their auras.
He could hold his for nearly thirty minutes, and they couldn’t even manage one.
After all those dungeons and irregular monsters they’d supposedly cleared?
‘Tch…’
That sense of superiority didn’t last long.
Because he spotted Sergeant Kim Min-jun maintaining his thick aura for an extended period.
“Sergeant Kim Min-jun. Maintaining the mana sword’s aura is impressive, but whether it can actually deal effective damage is another matter. Plus, your method is too brute-force. You planning to keep it up like that even when you’re not facing monsters?”
“I think it’s fine for me. It’s not hard at all.”
“What?”
No matter how he thought about it, it didn’t add up.
Captain Kim Sang-deok figured that dense aura was just for show.
There were rare cases where hunters could manifest thick auras but couldn’t damage monsters.
“Then, can I try cutting that training iron orb up ahead?”
The training officer was grasping for any nitpick he could find.
Wanting to shut him up, Kim Min-jun calmly pointed in one direction.
Thirty meters away stood a training iron orb.
“You won’t even scratch it anyway, so go ahead.”
Captain Kim Sang-deok nodded mockingly, as if to say, be my guest.
“Yes, sir.”
I don’t know why he’s picking on me, but I’ll make him see for himself.
That I’m not some pushover.
‘It’s not fully familiar in my hand yet, but quartering that thing should be easy.’
Kim Min-jun walked slowly toward the orb, keeping the mana sword’s aura steady.
He couldn’t control it perfectly yet.
No matter how exceptional his abilities, he was still just a warlock.
Mastering a brand-new weapon design on the spot wasn’t simple.
‘That said, a couple days of intense practice and I’ll master this sword too.’
Military mana sword.
No need for a two-handed stance.
For him, that was a luxury.
‘Ah, been a while since I tested a skill. Might as well.’
He raised the sword in one hand.
Then he activated his newly unlocked skill, Aura of Desire.
Ssssss.
As the skill kicked in, the mana in his body surged explosively.
A reinforcement skill that temporarily boosted all abilities.
Its effects fully transferred to the mana sword in his grip.
“Huh, huh…?”
“H-Hey! What’s that?!”
The aura around the mana sword thickened even more, expanding in size.
‘Feels like I’ve got power to spare.’
The enlarged aura took on a form three times the size of the military mana sword.
Even this was him holding back.
Did he really need to go all out on a training tool?
Slash.
A casual downward swing.
The orb split cleanly in two with a sharp crack from that glancing blow.
Hunters needed anywhere from three to eight months of training to reach that level—and he’d already surpassed it.
“Huh? It cut like tofu?”
“Whoa… For real? And he just started training?”
The hunters gawked, alternating between Kim Min-jun and the bisected orb.
‘…Is that even possible?’
Captain Kim Sang-deok was just as stunned.
He’d been plotting how to mess with him, but that thought vanished.
‘So the rumor about him taking on six Lycanthropes barehanded was true?’
A gut feeling told him the wildly exaggerated tales might actually be fact.
And that he shouldn’t mess with this guy lightly.
“…Sergeant Kim Min-jun. I didn’t think you’d actually do it when I said it expecting failure.”
Captain Kim Sang-deok announced he’d note it in the records, then excused himself for a bit.
Telling them to train on their own.
“What’s with today’s training officer?”
“He half-asses the lesson and just bails.”
That left a bad impression on the hunters.
“More than that, did you notice? He’s been pushing Sergeant Kim Min-jun extra hard.”
“Yeah, it felt targeted.”
Rude instruction.
An attitude that looked down on them.
And ditching midway through training.
“At this rate, he’ll get transferred out soon, don’t you think?”
“This hunter unit coddles officers. If he were a regular hunter, he’d be demoted left and right.”
“Yeah.”
Before long, the hunters were trash-talking Captain Kim Sang-deok.
“Hey. He’s still the training officer—don’t badmouth him so openly. Keep it down.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Got it.”
Picking petty fights despite being a captain.
No need to treat a guy like that as a superior.
“Anyway, you guys still haven’t gotten the hang of it?”
Kim Min-jun shared some tips with the struggling hunters: it was all about technique.
“This weapon, made from processed mana stones, runs on your own stamina as fuel. So control the intensity. Crank it hard at first like you’re starting an engine, then dial it back to maintain the aura.”
“…Easier said than done.”
“If I could do that, I’d have maintained mine ages ago.”
Lee Dong-jin and Kim Kwang-sik replied with defeated looks.
Kim Min-jun approached them and gave one-on-one pointers.
Just correcting their posture to make aura output easier, but still.
“Oh? You’ve got potential.”
An hour had passed since the training officer left.
From the female hunters’ line, one stepped forward maintaining a decent aura.
It was Corporal Son Eun-seo.
“Corporal Son Eun-seo! Thank you…”
She grimaced in response, breathing heavily from exhaustion.
“Wow. Not a corporal for nothing. How long’s she held that?”
“Four minutes straight now.”
A nearby female hunter answered for her.
“Son Eun-seo. You’re tensing up too much. How do you plan to fight monsters like that?”
He reached for the mana knife in her hand.
“Sergeant Kim Min-jun?”
She flinched, looking puzzled, but faced forward at his serious expression.
“Relax. Trust me and let go.”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
Would this even help?
She doubted it strongly but decided to follow his lead.
“Don’t just flop. Visualize it. Imagine feeding your body’s fuel to the mana sword bit by bit.”
“Understood.”
Thus began the one-on-one coaching.
‘No way a little advice from him changes anything, right?’
After about ten minutes, Son Eun-seo was ready to say that was enough.
No matter Kim Min-jun’s insane talent, coaching others required a separate skill set.
‘…What?’
She’d thought that for sure, but then the change happened.