Nutrient (1)
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“Mr. Seung-ho, what have you done?!”
The branch manager Ma Gi-tae rose from his seat and raised his voice, but Seung-ho was sitting in front of him with a little finger digging on his earwax.
Ma Gi-tae widened his eyes and stared at him, and eventually, Seung-ho drooped his shoulders as if surrendering.
“Manager, isn’t raising talented people helping the Association?”
“But that is too much! Feeding all five of top-quality mana stones!”
Ma Gi-tae’s blood pressure rose rapidly. Seung-ho used all the stones that were meant for the Association.
His shiny scalp turned red, but there was no sign of agitation from Seung-ho.
Seung-ho spoke calmly, as usual. “You weren’t going to sell it anyway, weren’t you also going to feed them to hunters? The talents I saw were certain, so if he develops, he could help us greatly with…”
“Mr. Seung-ho, didn’t you think about the other hunters we have? Just the one Iris Guild member? Didn’t you judge too quickly?”
“Well…”
Seung-ho couldn’t answer. It was true. He made a self-centered judgment without looking at other possible options.
“Mr. Seung-ho,” Gi-tae sat down. “I’m going to say that you did the job well. However, it’s difficult if you continue to act this way.”
Seung-ho closed his mouth as he considered Gi-tae’s words. Ma Gi-tae waited for him to speak, but he didn’t show any sign.
“Okay,” Ma Gi-tae continued. “Do you think we should continue to provide mana stones to Yu-hwa?”
“Well… that was my plan, but when I listened to you, my thoughts changed.”
Ma Gi-tae’s expression brightened.
“Yeah?”
“Yes. I have to meet some other people. Let’s look at the hunters wanting to apply to the Association, and find more people who are as talented as Yu-hwa.”
* * *
Seung-ho slowly opened the front door.
“I’m home.”
“You said you were only getting your pictures taken, and it took you three days?”
His father lightly rebuked him in the living room as he took off his shoes.
“Haha, I went to Japan and got a little lost at the hot springs.”
“Did you buy anything there?”
Seung-ho got nervous at what his father asked, but he pretended that he needs to use the bathroom and walked away from the living room.
“Please tell me what you need. I’ll buy it next time.”
He went inside the bathroom, washed his hands, and continued lying, but his father seemed to believe him.
“There is nothing we need. We’ll move in two days from now, so if you haven’t yet, pack all your luggage tomorrow.”
“Two days from now? Already? But where is mother?”
“She must be in Min-ju’s house. Have you had lunch?”
“Yes. How’s Seong-ah?”
“The doctor who visited her was great. In just a couple of days, her condition improved so much that she is now able to go outside for a while.”
“That’s great.”
“The doctor said Seong-ah might recover enough to go to college… Son, when you go abroad, call us when you arrive. Your mother is pretty angry.”
Seung-ho was sweating upon hearing his father’s words.
He sighed heavily.
“It’s late, but Merry Christmas,” his father tapped his shoulder, but that didn’t relieve Seung-ho’s trouble.
* * *
The next morning, Seung-ho was fetched by Choi Tae-ho.
They went to the Western Branch, where Seung-who will meet some hunters in the branch’s multi-purpose training center.
When he went inside, he saw six people standing around Ma Gi-tae.
All of them looked like hunters. They watched Seung-ho approach, but he ignored them as he looked around the place.
Yu-hwa wasn’t there.
“What time is it?”
“It’s 8:36 am.”
The appointment was scheduled for 30 minutes ago. Anyway, he had already tested Yu-hwa’s skills, so it didn’t matter if he was late.
He apologized to Ma Gi-tae and the others.
“Sorry I’m late.”
“Fine. We understand that you live far from here.”
“Thank you. Then, let’s start testing right away.”
“What?” A woman stepped in front of Seung-ho. “A test? Why?”
Seung-ho turned around and looked at Ma Gi-Tae, but the manager avoided his gaze and looked away.
“Hmm… should I say it’s a verification? A confirmation? I know you’re upset, but we have to do it properly,” Seung-ho tried to explain calmly.
“Everyone here is a hunter at AA level. What test and what verification are you talking about?”
“Everyone can have magical powers, but using them properly is a gift. I’ll start with you because you were the first to come forward, what’s your name?”
“…Su-yeon.”
“Pull mana and create magical energy as thin as possible.”
Su-yeon pulled out mana and made energy as thin as a hair in front of her. Seung-ho nodded and glanced at the people behind her.
Everyone was able to do it.
Seung-ho nodded approvingly.
“Then, twist the energy and form a rope.”
At his command, the six people’s enthusiasm was obviously declining.
Were they too confident of their skills?
“Branch Manager, how strong is this building?” Seung ho asked, kicking the floor lightly.
“Uh… why?”
“If these people can’t control their magic, will this building get destroyed? Is it okay if that happens?”
“Why don’t we do it outside… uh… okay.”
The manager realized why. Seung-ho is known as a public relations ambassador. If he is seen training other hunters, his parents may find it suspicious.
Ma Gi-tae swallowed and nodded grimly.
Suddenly-
“Sorry I’m late!”
Yu-hwa entered the training area. He said he was sorry, but his expression clearly looked otherwise. Everyone stared at him, but he didn’t care at all.
“Sit there,” Seung-ho told him, before turning back to the six people. “Now, with mana entangled like a rope, it would stay as it is for a while. If you put a little impure energy in it, however…”
He made a rope and crumpled it to a ball. Then, he threw it up in the air. It soared to the ceiling of the training ground and exploded.
The woman spoke bluntly. “We know how to do magical explosions.”
Seung-ho laughed at her attitude.
“There is a quicker way to make explosions. Like this.”
Seung-ho jumped into the air and started moving his body from place to place with small explosions in the air.
He stayed there as if gravity did not exist.
Everyone’s mouths hung open, except Yu-hwa.
“I learned this in less than 10 minutes…” Yu-hwa muttered.
Seung-ho landed smoothly and looked at Yu-hwa’s haughty face. He wanted to hit it just once.
Instead, he continued explaining to the group.
“The principle is simple. You can release magical power from your body, and the explosion will push you to a different place. If you do not want to get hurt, protect your body with pure energy before using impure energy to move away. This is the initial stage of our training.”
The group’s mouths were still open. Seung-ho smiled and looked at Su-yeon.
“Did I explain it clearly? Ah, be careful not to break your limbs by putting too much mana on them. Only an idiot would break his own body, don’t you think?”
Su-yeon looked at him angrily, and sent her rope upwards, causing a magical explosion.
As time passed, Ma Gi-tae’s expression became darker and darker.
* * *
Seung-ho approached Yu-hwa, who was lying on the floor. He tapped his shoulder.
“You’ve been asleep for 2 hours.”
Except for Su-yeon, everyone who was training gave up on the first lesson, and they left the training field without saying anything.
By now, more than half the building was already destroyed.
Ma Gi-tae wanted to tear off his hair but restrained himself with superhuman patience.
Su-yeon looked frustrated.
“The amount of mana is not well-controlled, so the explosions were very strong. Build a little more control, you will do well,” Seung-ho told her.
“Did he really do this in less than 10 minutes?”
Seung-ho nodded.
“Show me again,” she asked.
Seung-ho didn’t have to show it himself. He gestured to Yu-hwa.
“Show her.”
Then, Yu-hwa bounced up into the air, approaching Seung-ho quickly.
Seeing that, Su-yeon looked more frustrated and desperate.
“It is important that you balance your energy by releasing it from your back, shoulder, arms… the more mana you can extract, the better and faster you can move,” Seung-ho explained.
“How much energy did you use?” she asked Yu-hwa.
“About 100? I think you can do it, but you should set a higher goal than a low one.”
“No.” Seung-ho disagreed. “Set realistic goals rather than impossible goals. You could become greater than Yu-hwa if you had the talent. If you catch up with his level, I’ll teach you further.”