Chapter 39
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: An Awl in a Pocket (2)
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By acquiring the Whisper of the Fire Spirit, I gained the trait, Spirit's Flame.
It didn't take long to understand that it was a trait representing the Fire Spirit.
The flames wielded by a Fire Spirit are on a completely different level than those made of ordinary magic.
There are countless differences, but.
If I had to pick just one major difference.
It would be the sheer scope of what it can burn.
Should I say the concept itself is different?
The Spirit's Flame can burn anything.
[3, 2, 1]
*Fwoosh*
As the countdown finished, a translucent flame flickered to life around me.
Its color signified the pure flame unique to the spirit race.
[Commencing virtual combat.]
"Grrr..."
Once the countdown ended, the Sun Lion began to move.
It seemed to smile as it looked at the flames flickering around me.
Of course it would.
After all, the Sun Lion is a special monster that feeds on fire.
My Spirit's Flame must look like nothing more than an unusual meal to it.
"Stop smiling, you punk. I might get attached."
Trying to act all cute when it can't even hold a candle to Geumho's charm.
My heart belongs to Geumho alone.
I lowered my stance.
The next moment, a faint pain bloomed in my right shoulder, and the Path of the Wind unfolded.
The Sun Lion's strengths were its durability and endurance.
And its near-perfect resistance to fire.
These were significant advantages.
But on the flip side, those were its *only* advantages.
Despite its name, it was slow, and its power wasn't particularly impressive.
*Whoosh*
I checked the path indicated by the red wind.
Perhaps my training hadn't been in vain. The Path of the Wind was now presenting a wider variety of routes.
I chose the path that would get me to the creature in the shortest amount of time.
In that instant, as if reading my mind, the Path of the Wind erased all other options.
Now, only one path was visible to my eyes.
"Hoo..."
With a short, deep breath, I launched myself forward.
I ducked as soon as I got close.
*Whoosh*
Feeling its forepaw graze my head.
I took exactly one half-step forward.
"Grrrrrr!"
Six red lines appeared before my eyes once more.
I followed them, moving my body a total of six times.
*Fwhoosh!*
As expected of the Path of the Wind.
The detection was precise.
The evasion route was perfect.
"Hk!"
But perhaps because my sole focus was on closing the distance as quickly as possible.
I succeeded in getting close.
But my balance was a complete mess.
It was only natural after pulling off such acrobatic maneuvers.
"Kwwaaaaah!"
The ferocious roar of a beast echoed at point-blank range.
Now, only one Path of the Wind was visible to my eyes.
Just a short route to thrust my short spear.
At this distance and in this stance, evasion was impossible.
I couldn't use Predator's Killing Intent.
My opponent was a virtual monster made of mana.
A creature that moves based on the system's presets wouldn't flinch at mere intimidation.
Therefore, my only option was to attack.
I immediately thrust my short spear.
*Piiing!*
The sound that rang out was not one of a short spear hitting leather.
It sounded like steel clashing against steel.
Of course.
There was no way my weak strength could pierce the hide of a Sun Lion, a creature whose main advantage was durability and a near-perfect resistance to fire.
Especially since my balance was already shot, there was no hope.
However.
As long as the attack landed, that was enough.
*Fwoooooosh!*
The translucent flame flickering on my short spear.
*Thump, thump.*
It pulsed like a heart.
And the next moment.
*Piiing!*
With a brief flash.
"Gr... r... rr."
The Sun Lion's body began to dissipate into particles of mana.
"...Hoo."
Watching the Sun Lion vanish in a glow of mana particles.
I took a small, deep breath.
I did it.
[Sun Lion's annihilation confirmed!]
[Training terminated.]
[Combat time: 12 seconds 03.]
With that announcement, the facility door opened. I trudged outside.
As I stepped out.
I saw the cadets staring at me, their mouths agape.
"...What just happened?"
"He shattered the Sun Lion with a thrust from that position?"
"Crazy."
Everyone looked utterly bewildered.
Of course they would.
I had just finished off that Sun Lion in a single blow.
With fire, no less.
"Instructor. Aren't you letting the next person in?"
"Ah, ahem."
Instructor Pi Jinho, who had been just as dumbfounded, finally seemed to snap out of it and cleared his throat.
"Next. Cadet Go Hakcheon. You may enter."
"Huh? Ah, yes, sir!"
As everyone's eyes followed me, I nonchalantly moved to the spot next to Jia.
"...What did you do?"
Jia, clearly surprised as well, asked with wide eyes.
"Just... burned it."
"Burned it? The Sun Lion?"
"Yeah."
"...Just how high is your firepower to pull off something that absurd?"
"Who knows."
It was true that the Sun Lion had an absolute resistance to fire.
But what I faced wasn't a real Sun Lion, but a fake one made of mana.
In other words, a construct of mana.
A mana doll that moves based on preset values, unable to even properly register Predator's Killing Intent.
So, what I did was simple.
I burned a portion of the 'mana' that constituted the Sun Lion.
As a result, the Sun Lion could no longer maintain its form.
And it shattered into pieces.
This is what I meant earlier when I said the scope of what it can burn is different.
The Spirit's Flame, which burns all of creation, can incinerate not just physical objects, but mana itself.
Of course, this was no different from exploiting a loophole in the training facility.
Strictly speaking, I didn't defeat the Sun Lion.
If I got caught, the special points would surely be revoked.
But there was no chance of that.
I was the first person to ever do something as outlandish as collapsing the structure of a mana doll.
No one would have noticed.
Even Pi Jinho didn't seem to grasp the details, so I could assume I wouldn't get caught.
This is why you have to use your head.
Anyway, this Spirit's Flame.
I expected it, but it's seriously taxing.
I only used it properly for one second, but I feel completely drained.
The cost-performance is terrible.
Of course, compared to its power, the mana consumption could be considered low.
It's just that my own mana pool is so small that the efficiency seems abysmal.
In any case, it seems I won't be able to use it unless it's a truly critical moment.
Still, it's a useful ace up my sleeve. For now, that's enough.
***
That night.
The Superhuman Academy's internal SNS was on fire with talk of Kang Seoyul.
[Is it true Kang Seoyul took out the Sun Lion in 12 seconds?]
[Totally true. I saw it and nearly pissed myself.]
[Holy shit. Who would've thought a spear thrust while he was off-balance, one foot awkwardly in the air and his torso tilted, would shatter the Sun Lion to pieces.]
He had occasionally been a topic of discussion as the "rebellion of the last-place cadet," but it had never been this hot.
[You know that thing from the entrance ceremony? The Kang Seoyul stat manipulation incident. You think that was real after all?]
[Ah. So he faked it for a growth storyline? To get attention?]
[I'd say it's a definite possibility.]
His growth was so rapid that conspiracy theories had begun to emerge.
[Probably not stat manipulation. You can see his movements clearly. Kang Seoyul is seriously slow.]
[Yeah, I'll give you that. My 7-year-old sister is probably faster.]
[Kang Seoyul is just... what is it? Fast reaction time? Quick-witted? His ability to dodge at the exact right time and place is insane.]
Of course, a conspiracy theory was just a theory.
The majority of cadets had seen Kang Seoyul's weak physical abilities with their own eyes.
There was no doubt about Kang Seoyul's stats.
[I think there's something about that transparent flame.]
[Wow, Captain Obvious over here.]
[Who doesn't know that? The question is, what *is* that transparent flame?]
It wasn't just the cadets reading the SNS.
"Hmm. You've caused quite a stir again today."
A few outsiders had accounts for the school's network.
Among them was Yuhwa, the guild master of the Bihon Guild.
"What in the world is a transparent flame?"
The man was an enigma from top to bottom. She had heard of black flames and blue flames.
But she'd never heard of, let alone seen, something like a translucent flame.
"Just how much attention is he trying to attract?"
Yuhwa closed the SNS and opened a simulator.
Special flames usually boasted high firepower. The world's 31st ranker, 'Dark Flame,' was a prime example.
In that case, couldn't one assume Kang Seoyul's transparent flame also possessed special firepower?
"Hmm. If I set the firepower value to be enough to shatter a Sun Lion in one hit..."
Yuhwa's elegant fingers flew as she input the values.
[Commencing simulation.]
The result came quickly.
"...Error?"
The result was that it couldn't produce an answer.
Yuhwa was dumbfounded.
"Wow. This is the first time I've ever seen the simulator say it can't find an answer."
He was truly like an onion.
The more you peeled, the more layers you found.
Lately, it seemed like all she thought about during her breaks was Kang Seoyul.
"Is this why women are drawn to mysterious men?"
Yuhwa's curiosity only grew.
***
That night.
I was watching over Ha Siyeon's training for the first time in a while.
"...I don't think you need me anymore."
I was literally just watching.
There was nothing for me to teach.
I doubt even those pocket monsters from across the sea evolve this fast.
"Oh, come on. Compared to you, Seoyul, I've still got a long way to go."
Ha Siyeon's eyes sparkled. It was a bit much.
"You're using the Flame of Imprint incredibly well."
"Oh? Ah, yeah. Well, it's thanks to you letting me have it."
Seriously, all hail Ha Siyeon.
The Spirit's Flame couldn't be used without an affinity for the fire attribute.
If I hadn't obtained the Flame of Imprint, the Spirit's Flame would have been a truly useless ability.
"But are you really not going to tell me how you dealt with the Sun Lion?"
That was the tenth time she had asked that today alone.
Jia gave up pretty quickly, but this girl had an indomitable will.
I expected her not to give up easily, given her character, but this was beyond my imagination.
She would probably ask me this question for at least a month.
"...You absolutely can't tell anyone else, okay?"
"Huh? You'll tell me?"
Ha Siyeon's eyes widened.
"Why, should I not?"
"Tell me! I'll take it to my grave!"
Her reaction was intense.
She had great energy.
It made me want to tease her.
"It's a real secret."
"Okay!"
Still, I decided to hold back for now. I could tease her later when I had more time.
"I didn't burn the Sun Lion. I burned the mana framework, the very mold of mana that makes up the doll."
"Burn... the mana?"
Ha Siyeon's eyes widened as far as they could go.
"Is... is something like that possible?"
"I did it, so it must be."
"...Wow. That's insane. Does that mean magic is useless against you, Seoyul?"
"Hmm."
She wasn't wrong.
If I had enough mana, I could burn away any magic.
Yes.
If I had enough mana.
...Ah. Now I'm starting to miss a status window I've never even seen.
"Ah. It would be difficult now because of the seal. Your mana is lower than my nephew's."
"..."
That damn nephew.
I should meet him someday.
Getting compared to him all the time is starting to make me resent him without ever having met him.
"But Seoyul. How do you burn mana?"
"Huh? Um..."
I roughly organized my thoughts.
"First, you have to fully recognize that mana is one of the elements that constitutes the world."
"Okay."
I rambled on, saying whatever came to mind.
It was the usual, a feeling-based feeling.
Normally, this would be the scene where Ha Siyeon alone would have a breakthrough, thinking, 'Ah! I see!'
"Ugh. This is too difficult."
But this time, it seemed even the genius Ha Siyeon couldn't understand.
Well, that made sense.
The secrets of the spirits weren't going to be easy.
"If it were easy, everyone would be doing it."
"That's true."
Ha Siyeon closed her eyes, lost in thought. She was likely mulling over my words.
...Is she going to end up freezing mana later on?
Nah, no way.
*Vvvmm*
Suddenly, the smartphone in Ha Siyeon's pocket vibrated.
Her eyes trembled slightly as she checked her phone.
"Ugh. I have to go. I forgot I had an assignment due..."
Come to think of it, it was already 10 PM.
"Ah. Okay. You should go. You worked hard today."
"Uh-huh! You worked hard too, Seoyul! See you tomorrow!"
With a cheerful smile, Ha Siyeon quickly disappeared into the distance.
Left alone in the park, I stared blankly up at the sky.
Unlike in my original world, the clear night sky was vividly visible here.
When I first fell into this world, I wondered what would become of me.
But it felt like things were slowly starting to work out.
At this rate, participating in the localized warfare, my immediate goal, shouldn't be too difficult.
Ah. Speaking of localized warfare reminded me.
The terrorist attack by the Seekers of Truth that would happen during the event.
The Seekers of Truth prepare a lot for this attack.
One of the key items for their preparation is an ancient artifact stored in the heart of this academy, the 'Root of the World.'
This was the reason the doppelgnger tried to infiltrate the academy.
When that plan was foiled, they sent Hermit.
That's how important the plan is.
In this situation, what would happen if even Hermit failed to obtain the 'Root of the World'?
Nine times out of ten, they would mobilize other executives.
There was a small chance that Unknown himself might make a move.
I had to avoid that at all costs.
Then the best option was to hand over the 'Root of the World' to Hermit.
If it was going to fall into enemy hands anyway, it was better to let Hermit have it willingly.
Besides, I had a way to neutralize the 'Root of the World' anyway. To be honest, it didn't really matter if I gave it to him or not.
And by handing it over to Hermit, I could subtly touch the ancient artifact, the 'Root of the World,' and gain another elven racial trait.
It was truly a perfect plan.
The problem was that I had told Hermit to come back in a month.
How should I contact him?
"...Hermit."
It was just as I muttered that.
"So you knew."
Whoa, you scared me!
A man's voice came from right behind me.
I slowly turned my head.
"Greetings, Elder."
Hermit was bowing respectfully to me.