CH 17

[ If you don’t activate your capabilities as an S-class supporter within the given time period, you will die! (D-88) ]

[ Mission 2: Listen to Compliments inside a Gate (0/3) ]

Even now, the deadline loomed nearer while the accomplishment of the second mission seemed so far away.

‘I have to join raids.’

She wondered if she still had to look into lower-level raids, or if she could simply join one with the help of her acquaintances.

Seo-ah, laying on the floor, watched the other hunters train. She noticed that most were working in pairs, contrary to her own experience.

“Mmm.” She hauled herself up to a seated position, turning to Kim Cheol-doo. “Instructor?”

The man in question was currently pressing his forehead to a wall as he reflected on his narrow worldview. “There exists such weak hunters like that… Did we already push her limits?”

“What are you doing, Instructor?”

As their training progressed, Kim Cheol-doo began to treat Seo-ah more naturally. He helped her stand.

“Is it better to pair up like that?”

“Well, it stimulates one’s competitive spirit, and the sense of urgency tends to increase the rate of improvement.”

“Really? Then, can I do it too? My stats have gone up, but not by much. I’m in a bit of a hurry…”

Her words made him think. Because she was weaker than everyone else in the room, it was difficult to use the usual sparring methods. On the other hand, he genuinely wanted her to improve faster.

Park Seo-ah was weak, but nevertheless sincere, which spurred him on.

“Fine, let’s do this. Doo-hee, come here.”

“Yes, sir.”

Kim Cheol-doo made Seo-ah hold a wooden sword and face an unarmed Yoon Doo-hee, a C-class hunter whose goal was to become a trainer as well.

“Seo-ah, you’ll be attacking Doo-hee. Let’s aim to hit her at least once, shall we?”

“Once? Okay…”

“Doo-hee, don’t attack, just dodge.”

“…Understood,” Yoon Doo-hee said reluctantly.

He had watched Park Seo-ah train and seen how slow and weak she was.

“Let’s start! Seo-ah, if you succeed even once, today’s training will be over!”

“Yes!” Seo-ah steadily swung the sword, focusing on the basic movements she had learned thus far.

She tried ten times, twenty, fifty, but she couldn’t even hit Doo-hee, much less graze his clothing.

It was as expected. There was a two-level difference between the two, and the sum of the other person’s stats was around a hundred times that of the E-class hunter.

Still, Seo-ah did not give up and steadily approached Doo-hee.

‘Oh, that’s good.’

Kim Cheol-doo’s eyes shone sharply.

Park Seo-ah’s movements were much more flexible than they had been in the beginning—visible results from her training.

‘At this rate, she’ll be able to strike her by tomorrow.’

He smiled and nodded approvingly, seeing his trainee in a new light.

‘I thought she’d get tired and give up, but she has more guts than I thought.’

It wasn’t just a matter of fatigue and physical strength, but also patience, sincerity, and effort.

And just then—

There was the sound of her 71st attempt’s success.

“You got it!”

Seo-ah’s wooden sword made contact with Doo-hee’s ankle, glancing off lightly, yes, but a strike regardless.

Seo-ah collapsed immediately with heavy breaths. She didn’t even have the strength to lift a finger.

Yoon Doo-hee stood tall and stared at her in bewilderment.

“Hahaha!” Kim Cheol-doo applauded. “Well done! Doo-hee, you must have let your guard down for a second. Still, a win is a win.”

“…Yes.” He bowed, secretly biting his lower lip.

Seo-ah’s attack speed was slower than a snail monster’s, and he could avoid her movements even with closed eyes. But as time went by, Seo-ah improved at a pace that seemed contrary to the fatigue that must have been accumulating in her muscles.

She began targeting the spots that he wasn’t actively protecting, and if she had been faster, she would have been able to hit him quite a few times. And after about thirty more attempts like that, her speed gradually increased. Of course, it hadn’t reached the extent that Doo-hee felt threatened, but it meant that he had to pay more attention to avoid her.

In the end, he let Seo-ah strike him in the ankle because it hurt his pride that he had to give her all so as not to lose against an E-class healer.

Yoon Doo-hee did not express those emotions, only looking at her with a subdued gaze.

In real time, that much improvement…

Seo-ah pointed at him. “Hah, you’re really amazing, wow. You were dodging so fast that I couldn’t even see you. Can I be like that too? Well, I’m E-class so it’ll probably be difficult.”

“You’re a healer, aren’t you? It’s enough to simply grow to a certain extent, so you don’t have to be too ambitious.”

“Still, I wish I could protect myself, especially when there’s a mob rush.”

“That much should be satisfactory, and you’ll definitely be able to do that if you continue to work as hard as you do now,” he said encouragingly as he handed her some water.

Doo-hee glanced at them with a stiff expression while tidying up.

‘Let’s see…’

In fact, since the moment she hit Yoon Doo-hee earlier, Seo-ah had a status window floating in her mind.

[ The skill ‘Brain’ has been activated. ]

‘That’s its name?’

Seo-ah read the description.

[ Brain: The ability to use one’s brain improves. Applies only to the skill holder (Lv. 1: Quick Acquisition). ]

It seemed that it was a passive skill that activated automatically under certain conditions.

Anyway, it was the perfect skill for training.

‘It seems that it was activated regardless of the mission status. I don’t know what those conditions were, but… I’m thankful.’

[ Stats: Muscle Strength: 15 (7↑). Mana Recovery: 8 (1↑). Agility: 10 (5↑). Defense: 11 (5↑). Physical Strength: 14 (5↑). Mental Strength: 20 (6↑). ]

“Oh…” she expressed admiringly, then covered her mouth at Yoon Doo-hee’s glance.

Considering that it had taken her three days to raise her stats to half of that, her rate of growth had really sped up. Perhaps she could even reach the E-class limits soon.

Other values also increased.

[ Life: 30/30. Mana 16/16. Fatigue (30/55). ]

Those levels were maxed out, probably because they were affected by her stats, although her mana levels had very little improvement.

‘I need a lot of mana to use skills…’

“Instructor, how do I raise my life, mana, and fatigue threshold levels?

“Life and fatigue levels can be increased by increasing physical strength, and mana levels can be increased by increasing mana recovery.

“I see. Then, what’s mental strength for?”

“It affects mostly healing-type skills, and it’s important when defending against mental attacks.”

“Ah.”

While Seo-ah was receiving an impromptu theoretical lesson, Yoon Doo-hee approached and started talking, “Since Ms. Park Seo-ah seems to have developed a sense for this, why don’t we do something different this time?”

“Yes? What would you like to do?”

“Like earlier, she will take the lead and attack, and I will dodge, but I will counterattack when I think I will be hit.”

“In short, you will also attack?” Seo-ah asked.

Doo-hee shrugged. “Yes, but just enough to parry. We’re both going to be using wooden swords, so I don’t think you’ll get hurt.”

“That’s fine with me. It’s normal to get a little hurt during training,” she agreed easily.

Although it was not that simple for Kim Cheol-doo, who was asked to keep an eye on her.

Doo-hee bristled. “Do I look like I can’t control my own strength?”

“That’s not what I meant.”

Kim Cheol-doo rubbed the stubble on his chin. “Can you do it, Doo-hee? I mean, can you control your excitement?”

“Yes. This will be good training for me as well.”

He knew very well that Yoon Doo-hee was an excitable person, and always emphasized that he had to exercise moderation.

“Okay, then let’s meet again later. You both need to eat and rest.”

Even if Yoon Doo-hee couldn’t control himself, Kim Cheol-doo figured that as a B-class hunter, he could block any attacks.

“Yes, sir.”

Both instructor and newbie left the premises, and after seeing them disappear completely, Doo-hee dropped his wooden sword.

Thunk!

“You cheeky, E-class…”