One Stone, Three Birds

First, a look at the skillbook.

What Seo Ye-in had chosen was an explosive-type special round. For punching through anti-personnel defenses like barriers or hardened qi, it might trade away some efficiency compared to piercing or slashing rounds.

Of course, that was only a relative comparison.

Stronger than a plain Magic Bullet, at least.

The Magic Bullet + Explosive Bullet + Ejection combo would punch through even three layers of Hong Yeon-hwa's defensive magic without breaking a sweat — provided the skill's rank climbed high enough to back it up, that is.

Then again, the single biggest reason the vast majority of gunners picked explosive or impact rounds first was versatility.

It's not like PvP is all we'll ever be fighting.

Far more monster breeds were non-humanoid than not, and true giants among them were beyond counting. A mid-to-large-class monster like the Ogre, for one, simply couldn't be dealt serious damage with piercing rounds — the same way stabbing a man over and over with a needle might hurt more, but would take an eternity to actually kill him.

Impact rounds drove their shock all the way into the body; explosive rounds tore apart a broad surface. That was why the two rated so highly for general use.

Last of all, the choice widened the range of weapons available to her down the road. Rocket launchers, mortars — an entire family of explosive firearms would open up to her.

Their price tags being anything but a joke was a flaw, granted —

But this is Hyeseong Group we're talking about.

For this rich girl, that was hardly a flaw at all.

Whether Seo Ye-in had actually weighed those factors, or simply followed the instincts of my lucky charm, I couldn't say. Either way, in Ahn Jungmi's judgment and mine alike, Explosive Bullet was a superb choice.

She used the skillbook then and there, and brilliant light swallowed her whole.

Fwaaah—!

Something along these lines must have popped up before her eyes:

Next up was the rolled-up bundle of parchment.

Marksmanship was a trait that granted a bonus to every ranged skill and trait there was. For Seo Ye-in, merely learning it would tack a plus onto Magic Bullet, Ejection, and Explosive Bullet alike.

A trait that versatile was in constant demand and carried a price to match —

Hyeseong Group again, then.

Truly, there seemed to be nothing money couldn't do. She'd probably bought it through one of the scholarship students in the archers' club.

I gave Seo Ye-in a light nod.

"Go on. Use it."

"Mm."

Fwaaah—! This time, too, the scroll flared with light and washed over Seo Ye-in.

A quest scroll did exactly what the name promised: it imposed a quest on its user and paid out the reward once the objective was met. The goal came up at random, but its difficulty had a ceiling drawn to match the reward's worth.

In other words, it was never going to order you out of the blue to go capture a Blood Cult Elder.

Sure enough, before long Seo Ye-in was staring intently at empty air.

"…."

"What came up?"

"This."

At my question, she shared the quest contents.

Just as expected, it hadn't strayed far from my predictions. Enemy kills spoke for themselves. Consecutive kills meant cutting down enemies back to back without a single miss. A headshot meant driving a Magic Bullet square between the enemy's eyes.

At Seo Ye-in's level, all three conditions would fall without much fuss. The one sticking point was the venue — because anywhere a hundred-plus enemies appeared at once meant—

For now, a dungeon's the only option.

It would have been nice if the training dummies counted, but quests were never that obliging.

"We'll have to put this one on hold until conquest week."

"Mm."

"Shall we sort out Explosive Bullet first, then?"

"Shall we."

We set off for the Training Center.

The Training Center. A training room.

For this session, we had invited one more person besides the two of us.

"Brother Kim. Miss Seo."

"Hey. There you are."

Go Hyeon-woo looked back and forth between us, his face faintly aglow with excitement.

"Now that I think on it, I believe this is the first time I've trained with the two of you together."

"You do fine left to your own devices."

Go Hyeon-woo had entered Dragon Slayer Academy with one unwavering goal: to resolve the long-cherished wish of his sect. Earning, one day, the right to wield the sacred relic he kept bound and sealed was surely part of that same goal. His hunger for improvement was extraordinary no matter how you looked at it.

Hand him an opportunity — the Special Meditation Room, a rare elixir, a stroke of fortune like the Bodhidharma Statue — and he grew like a tiger given wings. He had also already mastered martial arts of a high order, so there was little for me to fix. Perhaps not talent on Seo Ye-in's scale, but overflowing all the same.

True, the problem at hand — how awkwardly his footwork and sword forms ran together — would probably find its own road given time.

"I just wanted this one solved a little sooner."

"That is most welcome news to me. But might I ask the reason?"

"Like I said before — next week, we're going into a B-Rank dungeon."

"I remember. A place that is certainly not to be taken lightly."

Least of all for Go Hyeon-woo, who had brushed shoulders with death itself in the Black Snake Chamber. Every bit of strength we shored up now was that much better a shield against whatever that dungeon sprang on us.

Next, I pointed at Seo Ye-in.

"And this young lady here, I'm told, still has one PvP match left."

"So her final match awaits a stretch of training first. I see."

Go Hyeon-woo nodded, looking convinced.

Seo Ye-in's [Explosive Bullet] was F-Rank, freshly learned as it was. It would explode, yes — but both the power and the blast radius would be a sorry sight.

Which was to say, not much better than not using it at all.

"For it to earn a place in real combat, we'll need it up to D-Rank at the least."

"Understood. Then what would you have me do?"

"For now, just go stand over there."

When I pointed to one side of the training room, Go Hyeon-woo trudged over and planted himself there. I then led Seo Ye-in to the opposite end, set her down facing him, and spoke while we both looked him over.

"What do we have standing over there?"

"Go Hyeon-woo."

"Doesn't he look satisfying to shoot?"

"Taking him down."

Seo Ye-in had her assault rifle out in a flash. If anything, she seemed more fired up than usual.

Seeing that, Go Hyeon-woo spoke.

"Hm. I believe I have some grasp of my role."

"Right. You stand there, block, and dodge — that's it."

Get beaten around long enough and your body starts twisting out of harm's way, and a body that twists is a body that improves — that was my personal doctrine. And if you still didn't improve? Then you simply went on getting beaten around.

I added one condition.

"Use your footwork as it comes, and lean your forms on Following Stream."

"That does seem the wiser choice."

Clear Stream blew one's guard wide open for the entire length of its casting — a poor fit for this drill, and he had no intention of counterattacking Seo Ye-in in the first place. Following Stream, by contrast, unfolded with relative ease and was defensive by nature, far better suited to riding out a downpour of Magic Bullets.

With the two squared off, I took up a post against one wall, referee-style.

"This round is one-sided defense, so I'll be pouring some strength into the defense myself."

Whiii—

Wind spiraled in like a whirlpool and wrapped a sphere of barrier around Go Hyeon-woo. Wind Barrier, cast and ready. Even a Go Hyeon-woo tangled his hands and feet when ordered to do something unfamiliar, and tangled hands and feet meant conceding clean hits bit by bit — so to keep the scales roughly even, I had to step in and patch up the defense myself.

And grind some ranks while I'm at it.

Until now I'd set the iron dummies against ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠each other and layered barriers over them in turns, but blocking live Magic Bullets should let me rank up far faster. The Wind Force and Twister I kept cycling alongside were a bonus on top. Add it all together, and this was a training method that leveled all three of us at once.

"Everyone ready?"

I passed my gaze from Go Hyeon-woo to Seo Ye-in, and both answered with a small dip of the chin.

"Then begin."

"…!"

The instant my signal fell, Go Hyeon-woo — sword raised in middle guard — faced his opponent and began working speed into his steps, slow and steady. Seo Ye-in's hand was already at the magazine.

Blue-tinged fingers packed it brim-full of Magic Bullets.

Pull one of those rounds out for a closer look, and you'd find a bomb symbol engraved on the side of the casing — the mark of [Explosive Bullet] layered within.

Then the muzzle swung to bear on its target and spewed blue fire without restraint.

Ratatatat!

"…."

Go Hyeon-woo's response was composed from first shot to last. His sword moved with the same ease, the wind coiled along its blade tipping the Magic Bullets aside one by one.

This much is just the foundation.

These bullets came howling in dead ahead, after all — any swordsman past a certain line could bat them away all day. Go Hyeon-woo had to push one step past that.

Whiii—

Another thread of wind began circling his calves. And in that state, Go Hyeon-woo set his footwork in motion — one step, then two.

But.

There's the creak.

His steps stretched front, back, left, and right exactly as high-grade footwork should — and each stretch cracked tiny seams into a defense that had been seamless while he stood still. Magic Bullets wormed through those seams and hammered against the Wind Barrier.

Pop-pop-pop,

Explosions smaller than a baby's fist. F-Rank Explosive Bullets were a trivial little thing indeed.

But that's how every beginning looks.

Everyone starts out clumsy.

Go Hyeon-woo kept laying down his steps, creaking, one at a time. I stacked barrier upon barrier without pause. And Seo Ye-in kept firing like a machine, her magic gun flaring blue.

Ratatatat!

The three of us poured every spare hour into that drill. Seo Ye-in fired; Go Hyeon-woo blocked with Following Stream and stepped; I threw up barriers.

The first to cash in on results was, sure enough, Seo Ye-in. She halted her barrage out of nowhere and dropped a single line.

"It went up."

"E?"

A small nod.

From that moment, the explosions that had barely filled a baby's fist swelled to the size of an adult's palm, punching through even the Wind Barrier and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠whittling Go Hyeon-woo down a little at a time.

His suffering didn't last long, though —

— because my own skill's rank had climbed a step as well. Attack and defense had evened out again, and it was in the middle of that balance that Go Hyeon-woo finally seized his breakthrough.

Whiii—

For one shining instant, the footwork and the Following Stream that had run on separate rails clicked smoothly into one. Most of the Magic Bullets smacked into empty air, and the rest slid away along the stream.

"Brother Kim."

Go Hyeon-woo looked at me, his face radiant.

See? Take your lumps and you grow. Works every time.

I gave him a level nod.

"Well done. Now let's make it second nature."

"Gladly."

Go Hyeon-woo ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠threw himself into the footwork with fresh fire, and Seo Ye-in's muzzle went chasing after him.

Ratatatatat!

The training carried on like that for several more days, until Friday.

The footwork and forms of Go Hyeon-woo, which had connected only in happy accidents, now flowed together as naturally as running water. These days it was actually rare to catch him creaking — he had even taken to mixing Clear Stream in from time to time.

Seo Ye-in had progress of her own ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to show. Midway through another furious barrage she stopped dead without warning and fixed her eyes on me.

"It went up."

"D?"

"Mm."

A handful of days to drag a brand-new skill from F-Rank all the way to D. A terrifying talent, however many times you looked at it.

The rank was now fit for the real thing, which meant the next order of business was—

"Let's go finish your PvP. Time to go scold the mages."

"Scolding them."