I'm the Protagonist, So This Should Be Easy. My Mental State Is Shattered.
I never thought I'd lose. Honestly, I figured I'd win. But the scene in front of me proved I'd been utterly humiliated by two damn dogs. It was fucking awful. At least this was the Academy. They weren't the kind of insane bastards who'd go, "If you don't know, you deserve to get beaten more."
"So... Shinu, what exactly are you asking me for?"
"Can you teach me how to deal with those two mutts?"
The professor I was talking to was a woman named Marina. Short blonde hair that reached her shoulders. An exotic appearance. Casual office attire. A black whip hanging from her waist. Up to that point, she seemed pretty decent. But the single lazy, everything-is-a-hassle expression on her face made all those positive traits fade away.
"They're officially called werewolves. Not mutts."
"As long as the meaning gets across, who cares? Why are you nitpicking?"
"......Anyway, Shinu, what kind of problem do you think you have?"
"Why did I ask a question only to get another question thrown back at me?"
"Ha......"
Marina let out a sigh so heavy it seemed like the ground might collapse. Her Korean was fluent, and her sighs were just as Korean-level fluent.
"To be honest, I didn't expect you to lose to a trash mob like that. Especially not you, Shinu."
"Where do you see a trash mob? That's a boss mob."
[You're the one who can't catch them because you're weak, you know.]
'You're pissing me off, so stop teasing. Those two mutts are already doing a good enough job of that.'
I clutched my head for a moment before Marina turned her gaze back to me and opened her mouth again.
"For someone like you, Shinu, a little bit of body reinforcement should be more than enough to handle it."
"How do I do that?"
".....How the hell did you even get into the Academy?"
Marina's face started to twist. It was a mix of suspicion that the person in front of her was actually a student and the exasperation of having run into an idiot.
"This is something every student who has awakened an ability knows. It's basic education."
"According to the scanner, I'm an incompetent."
"Wait, how did an incompetent even get in here?"
"That's discriminatory language. Should I report you?"
"Fuck...... Fine. Pay attention."
Marina began staring at me. Her eyes still looked lazy, but her focus was locked onto me without wavering. Since it had come to this, she seemed determined to explain it properly.
"You know that people who have awakened abilities develop mana inside their bodies, right?"
"Yes, I learned that after coming here."
"...Anyway, let's assume you are an ability user, Shinu."
Marina muttered something like, 'I'm not even surprised anymore, fuck.' It was nice to see she'd already adapted.
"Generally, the mana inside the body can be sensed from the moment of ability awakening."
"Everyone can?"
"Of course not everyone. But there is a point where it becomes possible."
The professor suddenly raised the whip in her right hand and cracked it toward the ground. On the floor was a crudely drawn face that looked like someone was angry.
"Usually, it's when you're overwhelmed by intense emotions like rage that you can sense the mana inside your body."
"This is getting complicated. Can I get a five-minute crash course instead?"
"Once you sense the mana, it'll probably feel similar for everyone. Like a foreign substance in your heart."
Marina placed her hand on her own solar plexus. Then she moved that hand toward her legs or arms as she continued the explanation.
"Deciding the direction that foreign substance flows and circulating it is the basics of body reinforcement."
"Explain it more simply."
"How can I make it simpler than this! If you're reinforcing your arm, send it to your arm! If it's your leg, send it to your leg! For your whole body, send it throughout your whole body!"
Finally having reached the limit of her patience, Marina started speaking casually. Mentally, she still seemed a bit lacking.
[Do you really not know even that? At least you're not a complete idiot.]
'The author doesn't have much in his head either, so don't expect anything from me.'
"It's simple. I'm worried it's becoming too upwardly standardized though."
"If it were as easy as it sounds, everyone would just walk around using body reinforcement."
Marina's continued explanation made it clear that body reinforcement wasn't as easy as it seemed. If you couldn't properly control the amount of mana, it was worse than not using it at all in PvP.
"Still, isn't reinforcement always good? A +1 enhancement is better than no enhancement, right?"
"Do you even remember how many students you've beaten up with that?"
"I don't even remember how many pieces of bread I've eaten. How am I supposed to count them one by one?"
"That's why you can't just recklessly use it on people! Use your damn brain, fuck!!!"
Now that Marina mentioned it, a vague memory did come back. Students who charged in with half-assed body reinforcement, lost their balance, or got completely countered when they tried to parry an attack. It was obvious their body reinforcement hadn't been done properly.
"So if you're not confident in body reinforcement, it's better to focus on your unique ability. You should use whichever is stronger."
"Since I don't have an ability, body reinforcement is my only option, right?"
"I didn't think you'd have zero abilities, but since your PvP skills are outstanding, Shinu, body reinforcement will give you a lot of advantages."
"You just said half-assed reinforcement is poison. Why is this so contradictory?"
"That's only for PvP. Against monsters, the story is completely different."
I still didn't quite understand. Maybe she was worried about my intelligence level, because Marina provided additional explanation.
"How did it feel when you were fighting that monster earlier, Shinu?"
"Hmm. The knife didn't really sink in. It felt like my attacks weren't landing properly."
"Your style is purely for PvP, Shinu. It's great for stabbing vital points, but without the right weapon, your power falls way short against monsters."
"Shit, so I was lacking DPS."
Anyway, I roughly got it. My attack method wasn't very effective against monsters with slightly tough exteriors. In the end, I needed a way to boost that power. And since Marina was right here, I figured I could find a solution.
"For now, let's assume you're an ability user and start from the stage of sensing mana."
"You said I need to feel intense emotions, right?"
"Yes. Want to try?"
"Even if you tell me to do it right now, how am I supposed to?"
"Hmm... Then I'll help you a bit."
Marina cleared her throat for a moment. Soon, a roar burst from her opened mouth.
"You fucking brain-dead idiot! Is your head just for decoration?!"
"That came out of nowhere, but I hear it all the time so it doesn't even hurt."
".....Let me try a different approach."
Marina began thinking quite seriously. At that moment, a voice cut in.
[This body shall help as well. Is this your first love? I don't like people with no experience.]
'Hey, wait a second...'
And it went very deep.
[Why are you playing around so childishly? Get some proper hobbies.]
[I'm hanging out with my friends on Christmas. Stop texting me.]
[I'm only meeting you because it's you. Be grateful.]
[Let's break up? Is this really the time to say that?]
[Don't complain about me getting coffee with another guy. It's pathetic.]
[Why are you mad? Who told you to take so long?]
[Oh, I went to a club once. Why? What about it?]
It hurt a lot. It really hurt. As if she couldn't lose to that, another sharp dagger flew from Marina.
"Since today is Friday, have it done by Monday morning."
"This is due today. I'm in a hurry."
"If you can do it, why are you whining so much? Just do it like this from the start."
"Is doing that one thing really so hard? What kind of man can't even handle that?"
"What's so difficult that you're making such a fuss? Five minutes is plenty. Stop complaining for no reason."
"I was the one who set the direction, so this is basically all my work. I'll submit the report under my name."
"I'm leaving first, so finish it before I get off work and put it on my desk. I'll check it tomorrow morning."
It was dangerous. My mind was already starting to waver.
"Wait, fuck, hold on! This area attack is way too strong!"
But neither the voice nor Marina paid any attention to my words. They started tearing into my heart again.
[Why do you only drive a compact car? It doesn't even go anywhere. With that money I could buy something else.]
"You just ask without even looking it up? Try searching for it yourself, please!"
"Hold on, shut up. I'm having a meta moment."
I spoke to both the voice and Marina at the same time. Of course.
[Is this my fault? Fine. I'll just go then.]
"Don't just do it blindly. If you don't know, at least think about asking!"
"Shut up, please."
It didn't work at all. Instead, the verbal blades came even faster.
[If we buy a house, you're putting it in my name, right?]
[I'll give you the money later, so pay for my stuff first. No, I said later.]
"Shut up!"
My heart shook violently. It felt like something was about to surge up. With one final step left. For that last step, the voice and Marina fired their sharpest shots yet.
[What did I ever do to deserve this? What's the problem with saying that there?]
"Why are you being so cheap as a guy? That's why you have no popularity with women."
"I said shut the fuck up!!!!!!!"
At that moment, something surged from my heart and began to feel like a lump. It was familiar yet completely unfamiliar, a slightly obstructive foreign sensation. It seemed slightly sticky and viscous. This was probably mana. It felt like blood, sweat, and tears, but I desperately denied it. If it wasn't real mana, I'd have to go through even worse pain than before.
[Congratulations, my dear. Your efforts have borne fruit.]
'You son of a bitch, that was really harsh.'
Right then, Marina looked at my face and spoke cautiously.
"Shinu, do you feel something?"
"Yes...... Fuck. I feel it way too well."
Marina clapped in congratulations as if relieved. Her refreshed expression made it seem like her earlier words had been quite sincere.
"Then shall we try body reinforcement now, Shinu?"
"But how do I move it?"
"Think of it as slowly pushing a highly viscous substance from your heart toward the extremity you want to reinforce."
I tried to push the foreign substance I felt in my heart. However.
"It's not moving? Does this get affected by emotions too?"
It didn't move at all. It felt like a highly viscous object, but when I tried to move it, it was like a rock that wouldn't budge. It was harder to handle than I thought.
"Of course. At times like this, you need a slightly calmer feeling rather than intense emotions."
"....Telling someone whose heart was just torn apart to calm down is pretty cruel, you know."
"It can't be helped. Wouldn't it be unfair to stop after suffering that much just now?"
"Fuck."
Anyway, I calmed the countless emotions swirling inside me. Soon, quietness arrived. In the middle of that, I focused on the foreign substance in my chest. The direction I chose was my left arm. Then, unbelievably, I felt the massive viscous object slowly begin to move.
"Oh! It's moving."
An exclamation slipped out before I could stop it. However.
[My dear? Wait a moment! You must stop!]
"Shinu? I haven't activated the dueling arena system yet, so if you move too much mana at once—!!"
The voice in my head and Marina looked different. They seemed quite urgent, so I thought there might be a problem. At that moment, I felt a tightness in my left shoulder. It was like forcing something into a small hole, cramming it in. The lumps that couldn't pass through the small hole kept getting compressed. But that tightness, after a brief delay, turned into a sense of release.
- Boom!!!!!!!
"......Huh?"
The sense of release came from my shoulder exploding. My left arm, having lost its destination, flew freely through the air. Like a bird flying through the sky. Of course, it was affected by gravity.
- Thud.
It eventually fell to the ground.
At that sight, only silence passed between me and Marina.
"..."
"..."
To understand the current situation, I opened my mouth again.
"What the hell is this."
"If you move too much at once, an explosion can occur at the joint."
"......You could've told me the safety rules a little sooner."
"I didn't expect you to move so ignorantly all of a sudden."
As soon as she finished speaking, blood spurted from my shoulder a beat late. The one bit of luck was that I didn't feel any pain. It seemed the shock of the unbelievable situation had numbed the pain.
At that moment, I saw Hye-ji running toward me, and Jung Ayeon was sprinting after her.
"Shinu! What happened!!"
"Hye-ji, just so you know, this isn't my fault."
Marina quickly distanced herself, claiming it wasn't her fault. As expected of a professor. Hye-ji had a worried expression, but I definitely saw it. The face she made while running over here.
"When you were running over, your expression was totally 'Which pathetic bastard set off a bomb!'"
"......Anyway, why did Kim Shinu become Kim Shin/woo!!"
Hye-ji couldn't deny my words. She looked a little stung, but the fact that she was worried was enough, so I briefly explained the situation.
"I failed at body reinforcement and became Shanks, fuck."
When I looked at my now-missing left shoulder, the amount of blood flowing had already decreased significantly. When I looked down, there was a huge pool of blood—so much I wondered if it was a lethal amount.
At that moment, a voice spoke in my head.
[My dear, are you heading toward the Grand Line?]
'No, aren't you from the old days? How do you know about One Piece?'
[It's so famous. Now that I think about it, the ending comes to mind.]
'I dropped it at the sea king meat stew arc. If you spoil anything after that, I'll really kill you.'
Spoilers must never be forgiven. Come to think of it, I should've beaten up the guy who spoiled the Endgame with his League ID, but I never caught him. It was such a shame.
This time, Jung Ayeon screamed in a shrill voice.
"Young Master!! Where has your left arm gone!!"
The moment I heard those words, my lips suddenly trembled and my head began to spin. My vision shook and strength left my legs. It was probably the backlash from losing too much blood. Unable to hold on any longer, I collapsed and muttered quietly.
".....I have gone to usher in a new era."
- Splat.
My body collapsed onto the pool of blood. As I smelled the metallic scent of blood, my consciousness began to fade.