Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Meeting of Old and New Disciples
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“Anyway, once my revenge is complete, I was planning to kill myself.”
Looking at the girl speaking with hollow eyes, I asked,
“Who are you getting revenge on?”
“I can’t tell you. That person doesn’t even know I exist. If they did, they would’ve come to kill me already.”
“Someone strong?”
“Very.”
“Hmm... It’s good that you have such clear resolve, but as I said earlier, I want five favors from you. If you finish your revenge and die before that, it puts me in a tough spot.”
“Then I promise. Even after my revenge is done, I’ll fulfill all five of your requests before I die.”
I shook my head at the girl staring at me emotionlessly with dead fish eyes.
‘She reminds me of my old self.’
I made my comeback on NA TUBE and have an unconditional ally like Seol Euna. I also possess the power to exact revenge. But this girl has nothing.
No great strength, no helpers, not even any means to prove her own worth.
I felt a strange sense of kinship somewhere deep down. I extended my hand toward her.
-Whoooong
“Done.”
“That’s it?”
She asked, looking a bit flustered.
“Yeah, that’s it. This buff’s real power comes out when combined with Circle Breaking and external mana. Once you master those, you’ll grow stronger at an absurd pace. And don’t worry—you’ve got exceptional talent to begin with.”
“Talent? I don’t have any talent.”
“No, you do. Revenge. That’s your greatest talent. Never forget these emotions. Train hard with the single-minded drive to tear apart the one who caused you this pain. Then you’ll achieve your revenge with your own hands.”
I turned away from her and addressed the other disciples.
“If no one else wants the buff, we’ll wrap it up here.”
The moment I spoke, the remaining three stepped forward.
I spoke to Seo Chanwoo, who had moved first.
“You’re an A-rank mage, right? You heard my explanation earlier—this buff comes with a debuff on release. Still okay with that?”
“Yes. Doesn’t matter. As long as I get stronger.”
I applied the buff to Seo Chanwoo, then to the rest of the disciples.
“Everyone, gather here.”
The effect of [SSS] The One Who Walks the King's Path amplifies dramatically when used with Circle Breaking and external mana. With my old disciples, the goal was just instruction, so I hadn’t taught them Circle Breaking or external mana techniques. But these new ones? Strength is the only goal, so I planned to teach them everything.
-Whooooong
I went through the disciples one by one, repeatedly tearing their circles with Circle Breaking and letting them recover.
About nine hours passed like that.
“Hoo...”
Im Sea, standing beside me, spoke up.
“Instructor, why not take a break? You’ve been using mana nonstop for nine hours already.”
I shook my head.
“No. The circle’s recovery is strongest on the first day after it’s torn. We’ve got over ten more hours to go. It’s essential for your rapid growth.”
-Thud thud
After operating mana for so long, my whole body started creaking. But it didn’t matter. If they grew fast, I could crush the Magic Tower Lord—and eventually, Baal Guild Master Choi Seung-hyun.
No matter how strong I am, taking on hundreds of elites alone is impossible. But with them? Totally doable.
Over 24 hours later.
I’d grown all four disciples’ circles to my limit.
“My body feels weird.”
Park Hye-yeon looked herself over as she spoke.
“Think of it as leveling up as a mage. Even a high B-rank mage would struggle against you now.”
“But I’m still a low B-rank mage?”
“Low or high B-rank doesn’t matter. Mage ranks are just based on total mana and Magic Tower tests. In real combat, that crap means nothing. I expanded your circle, so you can cast spells more efficiently with higher lethality. Plus the SSS buff synergy—you’ll grow fast from here.”
“Same for the rest of you. Cast your strongest spells.”
The four disciples unleashed their magic.
-Boom!
-Kurrrboom!
-Kwaaaang!
-Pzzt zzt zzt!
Deafening roars echoed around us. Their faces were all blank with shock.
“Th-this is my power?...”
In just 24 hours, an absurd transformation. If their magic was a dull blade before—one that couldn’t even cut a cucumber properly—now it was sharp enough to slice paper on touch. I’d honed their maximum potential to the edge.
“I drew out the full power you’re capable of. Don’t get complacent yet. You haven’t mastered external mana, right?”
The disciples nodded.
I handed each an artifact.
An artifact I made myself. Carrying it will drastically cut the time to absorb, rotate, and release mana. Of course, it’s temporary—get used to external mana fast. Here’s how to use it...
I’d given the disciples the SSS buff, expanded their circles with Circle Breaking, and used artifacts to master external mana quickly.
Thanks to that, they started growing stronger at a breakneck pace in no time.
For reference, Kang Eunbyeol—the Hunter Association President’s daughter—joined after the first day. She didn’t get the buff or Circle Breaking benefits, but I fully trained her on the artifact and external mana.
“We’ll stop here for today.”
The training disciples all collapsed in exhaustion.
Kang Eunbyeol whined.
“Instructor, this is too hard... Training every day like this, I feel sick all over...”
As she complained, the other disciples shot her cold glares.
Park Hye-yeon said to her,
“If it’s too hard, quit. Everyone here is desperate. We don’t have time to slack off like you.”
Kang Eunbyeol replied, flustered.
“I-I’m not quitting! I just mean, do we have to go this far? It’s just a class anyway...”
I hadn’t told Kang Eunbyeol about revenge or contracts. She wasn’t driven by vengeance like the others; she was just the Association President’s daughter. So her soft attitude was somewhat understandable. Still, the other disciples looked at her with disdain.
“Enough fighting, everyone. From now on, treat each other as allies you’ll fight with. Teamwork’s key.”
Only after I intervened did they drop their glares on Kang Eunbyeol.
I addressed the disciples.
“Good work so far. Short time, but you can feel how much stronger you’ve gotten. Starting today, no more training—we’re jumping straight to real combat.”
Kang Eunbyeol asked,
“Wh-what do you mean by real combat?”
“Dungeons, obviously. You’ll go in as a group.”
The others accepted it calmly, but Kang Eunbyeol asked again, hesitant.
“W-we have to go into the dungeon just us?”
“Obviously.”
As I said that, I approached Kang Eunbyeol, handed her a small artifact, and whispered,
“In a crisis, channel mana into this. I’ll teleport right to you.”
Only then did she step back, relieved.
“Unfortunately, all dungeons are booked tomorrow except one C-rank. Someone else reserved ahead, but it’s big, so we’ll split it. Won’t be much, but treat it as a warm-up. I’ll send the location tomorrow.”
At Helmont Academy, Yang Hangil shouted.
“Beginner class in Practical Magic Studies—tomorrow, you’re hitting the dungeon again. C-rank, same as last time. You go in alone. If you pull that pathetic runaway crap again, I won’t hold back this time. Stake your lives and clear it.”
Yang Hangil added as if remembering something.
“Oh, right. Another instructor’s disciples will be sharing your dungeon this time. Name’s confidential, can’t check, but you know better than anyone what happens if you mouth off to them, yeah?”
The next morning, Yang Hangil’s disciples and Choi Juwon’s disciples headed to the gate together.