Chapter 70
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: The True Way to Use It (2)
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After finishing my shower, I headed to where Jia and Siyeon were waiting.
When I arrived at the meeting spot, the two girls were chatting and laughing cheerfully about something.
They mentioned they'd hung out together on Sunday, and it seemed they'd gotten much closer since then.
Sorry, am I a little late?
My shower took a bit longer than I expected.
Both of their gazes turned to me at once.
You're not late at all, Seonjonim! Please, sit here.
Jia said, pointing to an empty spot on the picnic blanket.
I thought I was going to die waiting! Hurry up and sit down! Jia packed a lunch box today!
Ah, okay.
I sat down.
An extravagant-looking lunch box caught my eye.
No, was this even a lunch box? That was clearly a stew pot. It felt more like a portable buffet.
But why was it so quiet?
I turned my head.
...
...
The two of them were staring at me with dazed expressions.
They seemed not to notice my gaze, just staring blankly.
...Is there something on my face?
Huh?
Ah.
It seemed they had snapped out of it.
Seoyul. Um, did you happen to change your shampoo or body wash?
Ha Siyeon asked an odd question out of the blue.
No? I just used what was in the shower room.
Really?
Ha Siyeon seemed to be pondering something.
Jia was the same.
Why?
Well, you have a really nice scent, Seonjonim. It's... refreshing, I guess?
...A scent?
Suddenly?
Yeah. Like sunshine? Or a field of flowers? Anyway, it's a very attractive scent.
...An attractive scent?
Something clicked in my mind.
Is that why? You seem even more handsome today.
Jia nodded as if she agreed with Ha Siyeon.
...Could this be the effect of increased charm?
My face and body couldn't change any further, so did it change my body odor to be more appealing or something?
...
This was bad.
It meant my body might not have changed at all.
...Nah. It can't be.
I forced down my anxiety.
Let's just eat first. I'm hungry.
Ah. Just a moment.
Jia rummaged through her bag and took something out.
Please drink this first.
It was a drink in a luxurious-looking bottle.
What is it?
It's a drink that helps with mana circulation. It's a new product we just successfully commercialized.
So it's a health drink?
Yes!
Health is important.
I easily twisted off the cap and downed it in one go.
Whoa.
It went down incredibly smoothly.
This is really good.
Right? It's effective, too. After drinking it, I felt like my mana circulated much better.
Jia said, her eyes sparkling.
Ha Siyeon casually chimed in.
Really? My big brother said those mana-related drinks are just a placebo effect.
*Glare.*
Jia glared at Ha Siyeon.
Her expression clearly said, *Don't rain on my parade.*
But Ha Siyeon was right.
Mana-related drinks like this were constantly being released, but even in the original story, a product with any noticeable effect was never developed.
This was just another expensive, tasty, and healthy drink.
Mana circulation function?
Even if it had one, it was minuscule.
It's true that other drinks have no effect, just like you said, Siyeon, but this one's different. I would never give Seonjonim something strange, would I?
...Jia is sensitive to mana flow, so could she actually feel a minuscule difference of less than 1%?
I lightly circulated my mana. At the same time, my eyes shot open.
...Huh? It's real?
Really?
Yeah.
My mana circulation efficiency had actually increased.
See? I was right, wasn't I?
Uh? Yeah.
No, but, it's great that my mana circulation efficiency improved. It's great, but...
But isn't this effect a little too good?
It felt like my mana circulation efficiency had nearly doubled.
A twofold increase in mana circulation efficiency meant that not only my mana control efficiency but also my mana growth limit had all risen.
If this was the drink's effect, the creator deserved every award in existence.
...Wait a minute.
An increase in my mana growth limit?
At that moment, my eyes widened.
...Could this be the effect of the complete elven assimilation, the increase in charm?
Following my face, body, and scent, were my mana vessels now being altered?
* * *
After all my classes were over.
Having finished a simple dinner, I was circulating my mana alone in a private training room I had reserved earlier.
Oh.
To put it simply, my guess was correct.
An increase in mana circulation efficiency due to the alteration of the vessels through which mana flows.
My charm had begun to affect unseen parts of my body, going beyond my face, physique, and scent.
My mana vessels must be changing into a more "attractive" form.
*Fwoosh-*
Wow.
A flame flickered on my palm, more brilliantly than usual.
Perhaps it was because the improvement of my vessels had increased my mana control efficiency.
My mana consumption had decreased.
And its power had increased.
This is another unexpected stroke of luck.
Just yesterday, I was combing through the 'Encyclopedia of Racial Traits,' organizing ways to raise my mana, and pondering how to increase it with the highest probability.
I never imagined that complete elven assimilation would bring such good fortune.
...In that case, maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to prioritize acquiring elven traits.
No.
Thinking it over, the chances of the next change affecting my mana vessels are almost nil.
The reason is simple.
The first complete elven assimilation brought subtle changes to my face and altered my skeletal structure.
Because of this, my growth limit rose from C-rank to somewhere around A-rank.
And today, with the second complete assimilation, my scent changed, and the structure of my mana vessels was altered.
My physical structure barely changed, and while my growth limit did increase slightly as a result, it's still only around A-rank.
Instructor Pi Jinho, who practically has a body scanner for eyes, said so, so it must be accurate.
In other words, charm can't cause alterations beyond a certain point.
There's probably a limit to how much my mana growth limit can increase as well.
...I should ask Jia this week to get a detailed examination.
There's no equipment to measure mana training, and Pi Jinho's 'Eyes that See Mystery' can't read mana perfectly.
Therefore, I need another way to confirm it.
If I tell Jia I need a detailed mana analysis of my current, sealed state, she'll secretly arrange it for me.
Shall I test it out?
I retracted my mana and stood up.
The current time was 6:50 PM.
My afternoon training with Shin Jia and Ha Siyeon was at 8:30.
I still had plenty of time.
Set mode. Marksmanship mode.
[Switching to training mode.]
At the same time, I picked up the training bow lying next to me.
Target. Durability: A-rank.
[Setting training target durability to A-rank.]
Settings complete.
[Beginning training.]
With that final notification, the surrounding scenery began to change.
The empty white room started transforming into a shooting range.
No matter how many times I saw it, the technology was astounding.
[Setup complete.]
Soon, all preparations were finished.
I stood at the firing line.
Hoo...
I took a light, deep breath, raised the bow, and stared at the target.
Feeling the familiar sensation of the training bow, I slowly drew the string.
I hadn't brought any arrows.
The quiver lay on the floor nearby.
The skill I was going to test today was none other than 'Arrow of Wind'.
A ridiculously overpowered trait that allowed me to condense wind into an arrow and shoot it.
A trait I had misunderstood and misused until now.
*Whoosh-*
At my will, the wind began to condense on the empty bowstring.
A gentle breeze swirled into a violent whirlwind, raging intensely.
Soon, it began to take the shape of an arrow.
A mystical arrow, different from the arrow of nature I had used with [Root of the World].
Ugh.
My head spun for a moment.
It was an early symptom of mana exhaustion.
Since it was my first time using it, I must have mismanaged my mana control.
Hoo.
Still, it wasn't enough to break my concentration.
*Whoooooosh-*
With a final burst of focus, the arrow took its complete form.
An arrow that radiated immense power even at a glance. I felt a strange tremor in my right hand, which was holding the arrow.
The vibration of the wind.
Feeling it, I took aim at the target.
And quietly, I released the string.
Ugh!
At the same time, a powerful gust of wind erupted. My body was thrown backward. In that moment, caught in a feeling of weightlessness as I felt the irresistible torrent of power.
*KABOOOOOM-!*
A tremendous explosion roared.
Immediately after.
I collapsed onto the floor.
*Whoosh-*
A secondary gust of hot wind.
Feeling the aftershock from the explosion, I opened my eyes.
...What the?
The target had been blown to smithereens, not a trace of it left.
[Training results compiled.]
[Target completely destroyed.]
[Time elapsed: 6.08 seconds.]
[Time from drawing the bowstring to release: 1.98 seconds.]
[Overall evaluation: 9.5/10]
[Additional rapid-fire training required.]
Looking at the objective data, I was left gaping once again.
...It took less than two seconds?
It felt like it had taken at least ten seconds.
I could produce similar destructive power with Spiral Arrow, but that required an enormous amount of time just to prepare.
That's why I'd called it a flashy, show-off skill that was too difficult to be practical in a real fight.
But the Arrow of Wind, despite my clumsy mana control on my first try, took only two seconds.
If I use it with suppressed power...
If I can properly control the mana consumption, focus on creation speed, and manage to achieve about half of this power...
This is insane.
The overpowered nature of 'Arrow of Wind' didn't end there.
Precise calculation. Time taken for the arrow to reach the target 200 meters away after leaving the bowstring.
[Beginning calculation.]
A moment ago, as I was blown back by the aftershock and feeling weightless, I heard the sound of impact.
In other words, the time it took for the arrow to hit the target was shorter than the time it took for my body to fall.
[Calculation complete.]
[Time to arrow impact is approximately 0.3 seconds.]
...Insane?
The advantage of the wind attribute lies in 'speed'.
Arrow of Wind demonstrated that trait perfectly.
If I can use this well...
The corners of my mouth curved into a smile.
* * *
The current time was 10:00 PM.
Good work.
Hah! I'm exhausted!
The training session with Ha Siyeon and Shin Jia was over.
Today, we trained on basic mana control.
Jia, you make sure to review the method for using aura I taught you today.
Yes, sir!
Jia answered sharply, standing at perfect attention.
Siyeon, you're doing well. Just keep it up.
Kay.
Siyeon, lying on the floor, gave a lazy wave and a half-hearted reply.
Siyeon. Seonjonim took time out of his day to train us, and that's your attitude?
Ha Siyeon didn't even bother to reply to Jia.
Let her be. She's out of it after training, right on the verge of mana exhaustion.
She's just like that because she's so tired.
Still, that's no way to show respect to a teacher...
It's fine. I hate that kind of stuff.
I can't stand rigid relationships, like strict rules between seniors and juniors, or a stuffy teacher-student dynamic.
Ah.
Jia covered her mouth, her eyes wide.
Jia, you should rest too if you're tired. Don't worry about what I think. I know you're exhausted too.
Jia's limbs were trembling faintly. She'd also overused her mana today and was probably having trouble just standing up straight.
...Yes.
Jia obediently sat down.
By the way, Jia. Is it really okay for us to use this training room every day?
Of course.
It must cost a fortune.
A three-person training room filled with high-tech equipment must be incredibly expensive.
It's fine. This place is run by a subsidiary of our group. This much is no problem at all.
Really? That's a relief, then.
Seeing Jia's expression, it really did seem like it was no problem.
Ah. Jia. Tell me the monthly rental fee, and I'll send you half.
Ha Siyeon said, still waving her hand limply.
She still seemed out of it.
I know that feeling well.
The state where you don't want to do anything. Because I've been there.
You don't have to. Like I said, it's not a burden.
Still, we're training together, so we should split it. I'm not that shameless.
She turned only her head to look up at Jia from her spot on the floor.
Her gaze held a strange determination.
Alright then. I'll message you the details later.
Jia chuckled and nodded.
Yeah. Thanks.
The atmosphere was heartwarming.
I was glad they seemed to have gotten much closer than I expected.
I let out a small smile and got up.
Alright, tomorrow, let's each prepare well for the tournament.
There's no joint training tomorrow.
They said they each had a lot to prepare for the tournament the day after tomorrow.
Same for me.
Well, I'm heading out first.
Okay.
Take care.
There was only one shower here, so I had to leave first to let the two of them wash up.
See you in the morning.
I gave a casual wave and left the training room.
* * *
The next day.
A completely unexpected variable emerged.
Breaking news. Early this morning, a mass outbreak of undersea monsters occurred along the entire East Coast. Despite numerous superhumans being deployed to the scene to resolve this widespread incident, a solution is not yet in sight.
The voice of a news anchor echoed through the classroom.
Faced with a seemingly endless flood of monsters, the government declared a national state of emergency this morning.
Worried murmurs spread among the cadets listening to the news.
Whoa. Is something really bad happening to Korea?
I heard they're still pouring out.
It was an incident I didn't know about.
There was a high chance it was a new variable, but from my perspective, it was probably an event that was skipped in the original story because the protagonist wasn't involved.
But if this is happening, what about the tournament?
I don't know. They can't possibly hold a tournament, which is basically a festival, when the whole East Coast is in chaos.
The problem was that the practical exam had been postponed, and now this incident was overlapping with the exam period.
The superhumans in charge of safety management and the support-types who help with conditioning are probably all out at the scene. Can they really proceed as scheduled?
Probably not.
Like they said, the chairman wouldn't do something that would earn him public scorn, like holding a tournament at a time like this.
Besides, they'd be short-staffed.
And most importantly, the fact that Instructor Pi Jinho hadn't shown up, even though class was supposed to have started twenty minutes ago, was the most definitive proof.
The emergency meeting was probably running long.
Is the practical exam cursed or something?
I know, right? Something always happens during exam periods.
Just as the murmuring grew louder.
Everyone, take your seats.
Instructor Pi Jinho entered the classroom.
He had an urgent expression.
As you all know, a national state of emergency has been declared on the East Coast.
Yes.
Due to these circumstances, the practical exam has been postponed indefinitely. I hope you all understand.
No one seemed to have any complaints.
Additionally, effective immediately, the Korean Superhuman Academy will provide support to the East Coast region. All students, from first to fourth year. Everyone.
...So we'll be in charge of evacuating civilians and defending the city areas.
Jia said.
Correct.
A great deluge covering the entire East Coast.
The fact that they were deploying even us prospective superhumans showed just how short-handed they were, and how serious the situation was.
I'll give you exactly thirty minutes. Gear up completely and assemble in the auditorium.
Yes, sir!
One last thing.
Instructor Pi Jinho paused, looking at me.
Cadet Kang Seoyul has received a separate support request.
Sir?
Pi Jinho wore a complex expression, a mixture of worry and expectation.
It seems they need your lightning-attribute magic.