Chapter 28
“What do each of you feel when using mana?” Seong-Hwi asked.
“Well, it’s heavy.”
“What? What do you mean? Mana is sharp.”
“For me, it’s cute like a puppy.”
The answers of each member were different.
Seong-Hwi remarked, “As you’ve just heard, how each person feels mana is different. It’s natural. Everyone has a heart, but that doesn’t mean everyone’s heart is the same shape.”
Mana was a mysterious power that humans had no experience using. Using the building analogy again, the Magic stat would be like the interior, which individuals could decorate to their liking—modern, Persian, Santorini, or Victorian styles.
“Can everyone move their mana?” Seong-Hwi asked.
“Well, more or less.”
“Somewhat.”
They all seemed unconfident. Although they could move their arm without thinking, they needed to move their mana consciously since they had never done it before.
“You’ll have to train so that you can subconsciously move mana. You won’t have time to think about moving mana in specific ways during battle, where every millisecond counts. Your mana has to react before you even think.”
The others stared at him as if saying it was easier said than done. However, they couldn’t argue it because they had seen how immensely fast Seong-Hwi’s skills activated during battle.
So that was his secret.
Well, it’s only natural that thinking before moving makes it slower.
Seong-Hwi observed their changing expressions and continued, “Magic is omnipotent. It makes any miracles that exceed your wildest imaginations possible.”
He was certain that no one had ever experienced the limit of magic. It was like a hole that never reached its bottom, no matter how much one dug.
“Using the same analogy as before, you can exert more strength by enhancing your fast-twitch muscle fibers with mana and endure more by enhancing your slow-twitch muscle fibers. You can think of it as a form of doping.”
Not even the genius Lina Ahn had ever figured out everything about mana because the effects of mana and how it was sensed differed per person. Hence, it was impossible to collect and analyze the infinite data.
“Don’t complicate it. The more Magic stat you have, the better. Your mana capacity is directly related to the number of skills you can activate and how long they last,” Seong-Hwi remarked, and the others nodded.
He borrowed Lina’s analogy again. “The relationship between mana and skills is indivisible. Let me give you an example. Mana is the electricity, we are the computer, and skills are the programs.”
“Electricity, computer, programs.” Yeji nodded furiously as if she understood completely
Meanwhile, Seong-Tae was as blank-faced as one who was given an SAT exam out of nowhere. “Urgh... what are you talking about? Am I the only one who’s not following? Do the people who graduated from university understand?”
Seong-Hwi continued, “Mana is the electricity. Think of it like the energy that powers the computer. Our body is the computer hardware. There are high-performance and low-performance computers. Skills are the software programs. You’ve all used skills, right?”
Everyone nodded.
“Then how many among you have felt how your mana moves and the path it takes?” Seong-Hwi asked.
The team stared at one another. Their mana moved on its own when they used skills. They believed there was nothing more to feel. Seong-Hwi sighed softly.
This is normal, I suppose. People can drive an automatic car once they earn a driver’s license, but it doesn’t necessarily mean they can drive a manual car.
Ye-Ji slowly raised her hand and asked, “Ummm... I felt the mana move to my eyes whenever I used my skill.”
Seong-Hwi stared at Ye-Ji, the high schooler.
Her D Weapon is a smartphone, if I remember correctly.
“What’s the skill’s name?” he asked.
“Danger Detect. When I use the skill, the person in the most danger lights up red.”
Seong-Hwi nodded and remarked, “That’s a type of detection skill. It is also connected to the Sense stat since it uses one’s sight.”
“Yes, I had a feeling that was the case.”
“It’s a focus-type skill, not a radial one. How do you activate the skill?”
“Huh? I just think about using it, and it activates on its own.”
“As I’ve already mentioned, you don’t have the time to think about activating a skill during a battle, when every millisecond counts. You’re begging your enemy to kill you.”
Ye-Ji’s expression hardened, and she grew silent.
Seong-Hwi continued, “I compared skills to programs because every skill has its unique mana pattern. You said you felt mana moving to your eyes when using Danger Detect, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then that is its mana pattern. Try moving your mana in the same way it traveled when the skill activated.”
“The same way,” Ye-Ji muttered and focused on her mana.
She understood Seong-Hwi’s analogy the best because she happened to interpret her flow of mana like that of electricity, the same as his analogy.
Mana is the electricity, my body is the computer, and the skill is the program. If I remember correctly, the mana moved in this direction.
Ye-Ji slowly moved her mana through the same circuit it traveled when activating Danger Detect. Her mana reached her eyes, and they turned green.
[Activating Skill: Danger Detect.]
“Huh? Oh!” Ye-Ji shouted in surprise.
She had not even thought about using the skill, but it activated on its own.
Seong-Hwi smiled and said, “Remember that mana pattern. If you get used to doing that, the skill will activate just from moving mana instead of thinking about activating it.” He turned to the others and continued, “The way you’ve been using skills was like typing commands on a command line, but this kid just used a shortcut key. I don’t have to explain which is more effective, right?”
“H-how did you do that, Ye-Ji?”
“I-I don’t know either. I only input my mana in the circuit that it automatically drains into whenever I use the skill,” Ye-Ji stuttered in bewilderment.
Seong-Hwi said, “But of course, this method will be slower at the moment. You need practice. Memorize the mana pattern for the skills you use and practice them. Mana patterns of F-rank skills aren’t that complicated, so you’ll get it down quickly.”
It was common sense in the Mirror World, but Jun’s team felt like they were entering a whole new world. For reference, the mana pattern of Seong-Hwi’s unique skill, Symbol Embodiment, was both complex and fluid. The pattern for each embodied symbol was slightly different, hence he needed to memorize each slight difference. This showed how extraordinary Seong-Hwi’s talent in using his D Weapon was.
“You’ll be able to use skills as easily as moving your arm in the future. That’s what we call skill mastery. D Weapons work in the same way.”
Hwa-Yeon’s eyes shone once Seong-Hwi mentioned D Weapons because her D Weapon, a compact, was useless in battle.
“I will first say that this doesn’t apply to every case. To give a general theory, enhancers need to be able to send mana evenly throughout their body, even if it’s crude. For emitters, the hands, especially the tips of your fingers. For conjurers, the heart. For manipulators, the brain. For transformers, you need to know how to freely send mana to your bones and skin.”
None of the team members looked like they had an idea of how to do it.
Seong-Hwi smiled and said lastly, “Keep everything I’ve told you to heart. Practicing now will save you many times over in the future. You’ll be thanking me down the line.”
And I hope you’ll be of good value for the information I provided.
***
Seong-Hwi showered Jun’s team with tons of information about stats, skills, and D Weapons.
It reminds me of old times.
He had worked hard for the publicization of monopolized information and its standardization during his days in Clan Calasanz. Those who were ahead kept any information they discovered for themselves, resulting in the deaths of many people who did not know even the simplest of things.
Most information about dungeons was privatized. Their location, presence of traps, the Chaos, the boss, rewards, and so on—people were hesitant to reveal any information about them. Seong-Hwi had done his best so that people did not die from the simplest of things because they just did not know.
I can’t say that I was completely open either. I never released information about Destiny Force.
He did not say anything about Destiny Force, the secondary force he created, to Jun’s team either.
Seong-Hwi looked away from Jun and the others and mumbled to himself, “Status Window.”
[Cheon Seong-Hwi
Health: F(49+50) Strength: F(49+50)
Dexterity: F(99) Sense: F(99)
Magic: E(26) Destiny Force E(40)
Karma: 18,925
Destiny Weapon: Symbolic Tarot Deck F(99)
Skills (2) Traits (2) Items (3) Cubes (0)]
[Unique Skill: Symbol Embodiment]
[Item Skill: Myriad Faces]
[Traits: Chaos Slaughterer F(0), Hundred-Man Killer F(0)]
[Items: Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong F(59), Myriad Cheoyong Mask F(0), Shaco Knife F(0)]
His stats were the same, but he had 18,925 Karma.
I was going to keep it for transactions in the Mirror World.
It was closed in the Dark Forest, but the Coin System opened once they reached the Mirror World. Karma could be converted to imaginary currency known as Coins, which allowed people to give and receive common quests using them. Seong-Hwi had been planning on leaving some Karma for that, but changed his mind once he was sure about what the endpoint of the Pursuer of Chaos quest chain was.
If I’m right, there’s no way I can defeat it as a Double-E.
Only his Magic and Destiny Force were E-rank, and the rest were F-rank. Seong-Hwi was rolling in Karma, so he decided to open some cubes.
First, items.
Seong-Hwi had three items. He had planned on taking the items of the Chedbell gang members he slaughtered in the cave, but not only were they F-rank items, but they were damaged during battle.
I’ll leave the Shaco Knife as it is for now. I’ll invest in the artifacts with high potential first.
[Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong F(14) obtained.]
[Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong F(15) obtained.]
[Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong F(13) obtained.]
[Extinguishing excess F(2) points.]
[Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong F(59) → Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong F(99).]
He opened wood cubes until the Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong reached the max of F-rank and opened a stone cube.
[Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong E(10) obtained.]
[Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong F(99) → Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong E(10).]
[Changing the effect of Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong.]
[The left bracelet boosts Health by E(45). The right bracelet boosts Strength by E(45).]
[Health and Strength cannot receive this effect because they are F-rank.]
...
Seong-Hwi smiled at the Akasha Messages.
I knew it had high potential. It used to boost the two stats by F(50), but now it’s E(45). It’s an insane boost.
Although the number went down by five, it was far better since the letter rank went up by one. Seong-Hwi invested 800 Karma into raising Health and Strength to F(99) and 2,000 more Karma to open a stone cube for each of them.
[Boosting Health and Strength by E(45) as per the effect of Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong.]
[Health E(11) → Health E(56).]
[Strength E(15) → Strength E(60).]
His Health and Strength immediately went past the halfway point of E-rank thanks to the bracelets.
Next, the Myriad Cheoyong Mask.
The Myriad Cheoyong Mask was immensely helpful for obtaining the trait Hundred-Man Killer. It was a no-brainer choice to invest his Karma into it since it was also guaranteed to have high potential.
[Myriad Cheoyong Mask F(14) obtained.]
[Myriad Cheoyong Mask F(15) obtained.]
...
[Myriad Cheoyong Mask E(17) obtained.]
[Changing the effect of Item Skill: Myriad Faces.]
...
[Myriad Faces (Artifact Skill)
Description: The wearer can change their face, language, voice, and aura into those of the individual they touch, once every 24 hours.
Duration: Proportional to mana capacity
Cooldown: 24 hours]
“Hah!” Seong-Hwi laughed.
On top of the target’s face, he could now copy their language, voice, and aura. This skill would have prevented him from getting exposed during his slaughter of the Chedbell gang a few days ago. He could now imitate others far more effectively.
Swindlers would kill for this artifact.
It would likely not be helpful in battle, but he did not regret investing Karma into it since he could always sell it for Coins if it ever came down to it.
I’ll invest in Chaos Slaughterer later since the quest chain is still ongoing. I’ll invest in my D Weapon and the stats first.
Seong-Hwi had 13,125 Karma left. He needed to be careful about where to invest it.
[Cheon Seong-Hwi
Health: E(11+45) Strength: E(15+45)
Dexterity: E(45) Sense: E(16)
Magic: E(55) Destiny Force E(85)
Karma: 125
Destiny Weapon: Symbolic Tarot Deck E(49)
Skills (2) Traits (2) Items (3) Cubes (0)]
[Unique Skill: Symbol Embodiment]
[Item Skill: Myriad Faces]
[Traits: Chaos Slaughterer F(0), Hundred-Man Killer F(0)]
[Items: Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong E(10), Myriad Cheoyong Mask E(17), Shaco Knife F(0)]
As a result, his status window was nothing like what it had been five minutes ago. His Karma was reduced to 125 after purchasing three Dexterity stone cubes, one Sense stone cube, two Magic stone cubes, three Destiny Force stone cubes, and four D Weapon stone cubes, which cost 13,000 Karma.
It’s hard to earn money or Karma, but extremely easy to spend it.
Seong-Hwi smacked his lips after becoming poor in an instant. He felt like a salaryman who overspent on his payday and saw his balance after two days. Even so, he was more than satisfied now that he was a Hexa-E.
I can’t get stronger like everyone else because I also have Destiny Force to invest my Karma into. The final target of the mandatory quest is already decided.
He would kill the Judge.
***
“You’re leaving, aren’t you?” Jun asked as Seong-Hwi was getting accustomed to his new stat levels.
Seong-Hwi smirked and remarked, “Was it that obvious?”
“Yes. You’ve never given us such detailed explanations until today. It sounded as if it was the last chance you were giving us.”
Jun was the leader for a reason. He knew that Card was the type to give opportunities for all but allow them to come to realizations on their own. He had given a similar explanation before, but in a much more unfriendly way.
As if he were telling us to figure it out through combat, Jun thought.
If such a person were explaining without holding anything back, it meant that he would leave them.
“Don’t hate me for this. I was never tied down to this team from the beginning.”
“Hate you? Never. I should be thanking you. We learned so much from you, albeit from an unreliable source.”
“Keh, you’re a doubtful man. Anyway, you’ll easily get your hands on a Teleport Rock if you take my information to heart and polish yourselves accordingly.”
Jun’s eyes sank in silence. Obtaining Teleport Rocks for themselves meant the number available for others decreased.
Seong-Hwi realized what Jun was thinking from his expression and asked, “What? Do you feel like you’re stealing others’ opportunities?”
“I don’t know. I’m not that much of a saint. I’m only a man who cares more for my comrades than strangers.”
“That’s a good attitude to have. Choose your priorities and only help those lower on the list when you can. I doubt you want to become a moron who helps others at the cost of yourself.”
Jun remained silent momentarily and asked, “Card, do you perhaps... know what kind of place the Mirror World is?”
“Yeah, and you do too.”
“Pardon?”
Seong-Hwi smirked and replied, “Do you think the Dark Forest is any different from Earth? I don’t think so.”
Jun couldn’t answer.
“Genetics, IQ, family background, economic condition, nations, factions, and the like—nothing is fair here or on Earth. The ones who survive are the haves, and the rest are have-nots. They had luck, skill, or whatever else.”
“Haves?”
Jun wondered if he was one of the haves. He realized he was a young man with a healthy body, which was a massive advantage. His D Weapon was relatively good, and he had even discovered his leadership talent. He was certainly one of the haves.
Seong-Hwi continued, “A hundred will be selected among the haves. You’ve witnessed it constantly on Earth, haven’t you? Superiority is decided as early as primary school. Those with the highest grades go to the best universities and get hired by the best companies. It’s comical how people who’ve lived in that world complain about unfairness after all this time.”
The complaints stemmed from the haves suddenly turning into the have-nots. Humans were weaker than the other races, like students with a bad memory in a world where studying was everything.
“I don’t believe the Mirror World will be different from Earth. It’s all the same, no matter where you are.” Seong-Hwi straightened his index finger and continued, “Do you know what the only solution to this shitty world is? To climb to the top of the pyramid. To become number one.”
This was Seong-Hwi’s goal. He would rapidly grow stronger to become one of the Ten Lords and Fiends and even surpass them to one day acquire the Master Stone. He would keep climbing until he reached the top and had nowhere else to climb. He would try to reach the level of the rich who could donate large amounts without it affecting their wealth.
Jun stared at Seong-Hwi, his expression frozen.
Seong-Hwi joked, “You know what they say, people only remember the one who’s first.”
“That’s... not true,” Jun muttered.
“Hm?”
“I don’t think so.”
Jun stared at Seong-Hwi intently. His eyes resembled those of the past Seong-Hwi—shining as brightly as his name.
Jun expressed, “I don’t believe being first is the only answer. If that’s the case, it would mean everyone else’s answers are wrong.”
“Then what do you suggest? Everyone should work hard and grow stronger together while holding hands?”
“Yes. The power of many is always stronger than the power of one. Even thin branches are harder to break when many are bound together.”
“Break? You’re naive. Branches will be sliced if an ax is swung down on them. It would be even easier if a few branches were rotten. But what about one steel bar? It’s far stronger than several branches. It was the same on Earth; it’s just that power there was money instead of strength.”
“You talked as if only the rich can donate, but you’re wrong. Someone with a hundred billion won could easily donate a million won, but someone with only a million won could just as well donate the same amount.”
“How idealistic. Even if they donated their life savings, the fact that they donated the same amount doesn’t change. The rich could even donate a billion won if they wanted to.”
“Then a thousand people can donate a million won each. The more of us that are bound together, the more we can donate and surpass what the rich donated.”
Neither was willing to back down. Seong-Hwi felt that he had made the right choice to invest in Jun.
Good. That’s it. I’ll be walking a different path, but you can walk down that one. Perhaps you’ll reach a different ending than I did.
Seong-Hwi smiled and genuinely laughed, “Haha! Shall we make a bet, then? You try to fulfill your ideals, and I will fulfill mine.”
“Very well. Whatever kind of place the Mirror World is, I will become one of the many branches and create an unbreakable pillar.”
Jun’s eyes filled with determination. He recalled his powerless self at the time of the District 8 massacre. He even had to entrust his revenge to someone else. He did not want to experience anything like that ever again.
“You will build a fence that protects the lambs from the wolves, and I will become a tiger who devours the wolves. Let’s see who is right in the Mirror World,” Seong-Hwi said as he walked away.
Just then, Jun asked, “So, what is your name?”
Seong-Hwi stopped and turned to Jun. He stared at him and answered, “Cheon Seong-Hwi.”
The man trying to grasp his destiny to shine brightly had sown the seed. Only time could tell whether it would bud.