Request Complete, and a New Beginning

Before sending the scrolls to Onhwa Guild, Park Ha-jun, Lee Soo-ji, and the two awakeners—Kim Ah-hyun and Kang Eun-ho—gathered in an empty lecture hall for the administrative staff interviews.

"······."

Ten candidates came and went from the lecture hall. All of them had impressive specs, and even though most were mages, they conducted themselves with proper etiquette during the interviews.

But.

"···They don't seem all that interested in the actual work."

Kim Ah-hyun nodded at Lee Soo-ji's words.

"They just came out of curiosity."

It was exactly that. People with such remarkable credentials had no real reason to work in this small lab.

They seemed to harbor strange expectations, ready to leave the moment reality didn't match up.

It felt like they'd just come to scout out the lab because of the influence of the professor's papers.

"···Next time, we should focus on non-awakeners for the interviews."

The administrative role involved interactions with the magic community, so they'd prioritized awakeners. But it hadn't been the best choice.

"Don't worry, Professor! You've got me!"

Kang Eun-ho clenched his fist tightly as he spoke.

He had a year and a half left until graduation. He'd reached the peak of 2nd Circle and was now attempting to unlock 3rd Circle.

With Kang Eun-ho's intuition, the moment he entered 3rd Circle, he'd wield 3rd Circle spells at a proficient level.

It meant he'd quickly establish himself in the magic world and dedicate himself to the lab.

"Haha. I'll look forward to it."

Park Ha-jun brushed it off with a smile and flipped through the documents.

Then, the info on the candidate who'd piqued his curiosity the most appeared.

Truly, a gem of this era. A double major in mathematics, no less.

Park Ha-jun smiled and gave Lee Soo-ji a nod.

She soon brought in Im Ji-won, who had been waiting outside the lecture hall.

Im Ji-won was a small, cute little creature. Even the perpetually expressionless Kim Ah-hyun drew in a breath.

And then.

"Hello! If you hire me, I'll work really hard!!"

Unlike the previous candidates, she brimmed with enthusiasm.

* * *

The next evening.

Sitting in his workshop chair, Park Ha-jun recalled yesterday's interview as he finished the final touches on the Detection circuit.

'···I like her.'

He planned to make the final decision tomorrow.

But it was only natural that his heart leaned toward Im Ji-won.

She was the only candidate who'd shown genuine passion for the job.

Her education, experience, and awakening ability—all of it intrigued him.

'···There seems to be a story behind why she applied for a lab admin position.'

He hadn't pried into it during the interview. At least her enthusiasm didn't feel fake.

'Working together, I'll find out in time.'

Anyway, he'd discuss the final confirmation with the researchers tomorrow.

For now, finishing the Detection scroll took priority.

Out of the seven pits, four were traps.

But one of those traps had an extra 'key'.

In other words, they'd inevitably have to face at least one trap pit, no matter what.

Understanding the explanation, Park Ha-jun began drawing the Detection circuit.

A Detection circuit created via Fourier transform.

It would locate the pits and distinguish the objects hidden inside—trap or key···.

This was the circuit he'd developed with his researchers.

But Park Ha-jun had no intention of ending the Onhwa Guild commission here.

From now on, he'd create a circuit that drastically reduced the risk of those traps.

'The principle of distinction is to shoot mana waves into the pit and differentiate traps from keys based on the returning measurements······.'

But what if he altered the properties of those 'mana waves'?

Specifically, if he infused them with attributes?

When mana waves hit an object, they could deal attribute damage.

In other words, fire-attribute mana waves would burn whatever they touched.

The purpose of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Detection was still distinction···.

But not just distinction—a clever trick.

Yes. A scroll laced with a workaround.

It wasn't difficult. It was no different from adding Mana Arrow to Barrier.

With that, Park Ha-jun began drawing the 'knot' that defined the mana properties as the first step in the circuit.

'···The key to the boss monster is a stone tablet, right?'

His 'knot' represented the purest element above all.

Worried that fire-attribute mana might melt the stone tablet, he designed it as 'water-attribute mana'.

He topological invariants of the knot to embody the purest 'water'.

The purest water contained no minerals, so it would have strong chemical absorption.

It couldn't kill monsters instantly, but it could drastically weaken their condition···.

After three hours of drawing the circuit, Park Ha-jun sent the email.

* * *

The A-rank gate on Jeju Island.

Onhwa Guild's subjugation team stood ready.

It was Elite Team 1, including Guild Master Kim Chae-won.

After issuing the standby order, Kim Chae-won checked the scroll info from asd123.

Good thing asd123 had sent a clear explanation and usage instructions with the scroll···.

'The status window alone tells us nothing.'

A scroll beyond what the system could ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠capture. As expected of asd123.

With a brief sigh of admiration, Kim Chae-won opened the [Mail].

However, those surfaced monsters would be weaker than usual.

'···Surface?'

Was this why asd123 had asked about the monsters' levels?

···In truth, Onhwa Guild specialized in offense.

With Guild Master Kim Chae-won, a top healer who could revive anyone short of death.

Her team naturally filled with attack-type hunters.

'···Even if the monsters rush us all at once, our team can handle it.'

The problem was falling into pits barely wide enough for two people, fighting monsters in that cramped space.

If Kim Chae-won fell with them, fine—but otherwise, low-defense hunters could die in seconds.

'But using this scroll makes all the monsters surface?'

And all weakened? Then no one had to fall into the pits?

"Hmm···."

Kim Chae-won read the email with skeptical eyes, then dismissed the status window.

She couldn't doubt now. If the leader wavered, the team would crumble.

"Let's head out."

With that, Onhwa Guild's subjugation team passed through the gate.

······

Scorching sun and fierce sand winds.

A muscular man grumbled irritably.

"···This place is insane."

Mana infused the very environment, making even top hunters feel rising discomfort.

Normally, they'd have to scour for the seven pits amid this misery.

Standard mage Detection couldn't scan such a vast desert at once.

But asd123's scroll would be different.

He might not make the monsters surface, but at least it would pinpoint all seven pits instantly.

Thus, Kim Chae-won activated the scroll.

"Monsters could pop up around here too—stay sharp."

The six hunters gripped their weapons.

As they guarded Kim Chae-won, a drop of mana fell from the scroll.

It seeped into the brown sand, etching a grid across the vast desert.

Soon, 'singularities' marked seven spots.

Those were the pits.

"Those must be the pits."

"This fast··· This scroll maker's stuff really is something."

It was refreshing enough to momentarily forget the desert's misery.

But after the singularities appeared, nothing else happened.

asd123's email had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠said the monsters would surface.

"···Do we have to check them ourselves?"

The muscular hunter asked. Under the blazing sun, patience wore thin.

As he stepped forward, Kim Chae-won stopped him.

"Wait three more minutes···."

As a healer, she was sensitive to mana flows and waves. She could feel it.

'···Something's happening.'

Mana waves were emanating from those singularities, seeping into the pits.

asd123 must have added extra effects to the scroll.

After three minutes—

Pipit······.

Strange noises came from some pits.

"Sounds like monsters···."

No sooner had he spoken than ant-lion-like monsters surged from four pits.

Their movements were desperate but feeble.

They should have reacted to humans as prey, but they just sat there.

Some cells destroyed by the purest water—it was almost a given.

In that moment, the subjugation team made an easy call.

"We should take them out now···."

Kim Chae-won nodded and cast Wind of Regeneration on her team. A skill that ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠greatly boosted natural healing.

The hunters charged the monsters.

Having easily cleared them, the team checked the empty pits one by one.

They retrieved four 'stone tablets' from the pits.

"Now, insert these into the stone door blocking the cave, and it opens."

Kim Chae-won looked around at her team and asked.

"···Anyone hurt?"

As if. It wasn't fighting bug monsters—it was swatting bugs.

"Anyone feeling the heat?"

It hadn't taken long enough for that. Feeling heat already wouldn't make them elite.

"Then··· we just take down the boss and done···?"

Kim Chae-won uttered the obvious in a bewildered tone.

It was warranted. Cradle of the Desert always forced at least one trap encounter.

Distinguishing the 'key trap' was especially tough.

Without a skilled mage, it turned into Russian roulette.

Mental strain from heat and sand, physical toll from traps—then facing the boss depleted.

That was the standard clear.

But.

asd123 had shattered the mold entirely. He'd erased the unavoidable 'trap'.

The result was overwhelming. Hunters lightly warmed up, primed in peak condition for the boss···.

"This is really different."

She decided not to doubt anymore.

25% of profits. Seemed fair for this subjugation.

'What to request next···.'

A miraculous creator who fulfilled every request.

Natural to want to maintain good relations.

* * *

The next day at lunch.

A system message appeared as Park Ha-jun arrived at the lab.

Being an A-rank gate, it was less than Hwayeong Guild's commission, but.

Plenty satisfying pay. And above all···.

The attribute idea from this Detection scroll could apply to the upcoming wave too.

An idea he might not have thought of without this request.

'···This commission was fun.'

Satisfied, Park Ha-jun dismissed the status window.

Of course, it couldn't just be fun for him.

He'd asked Hwang Ji-on to add performance bonuses for the researchers.

After finishing the talk in the department head's office, Park Ha-jun returned to the lab.

But there was a somewhat unfamiliar face in front of the lab door.

"Ms. Ji-won?"

Tense, perhaps, Im Ji-won was steadying her breath outside the lab door.

"Ah···!"

Not here for work yet—just a pre-final-confirmation lab visit.

Park Ha-jun approached the momentarily flustered woman, smiled gently, and opened the lab door.

"Shall we go in?"

Park Ha-jun looked forward to the lab's growth.