Chapter 3 – The Fake Mage (３)

*

The Fireball was one of the most basic fire spells out there.

Even Gijun, crippled by Mana Circle Formation Disorder, could cast it without breaking a sweat.

So how the hell was that same Fireball Legendary-grade?

What was that even supposed to mean?

Legendary—even Gijun, who barely knew the game, could tell that meant it was a top-tier spell.

‘Well, it’s a game.’

Gijun decided not to overthink it.

It was just a game, after all.

If it were exactly like real life, there’d be no point in playing.

If anything, it made things more interesting.

A wave of eagerness surged up inside him—he wanted to move to the next step right away.

“So what do I do now?”

“Your skill is so remarkable I don’t think you need any extra steps. Let’s move straight to the final stage.”

It felt a bit anticlimactic, he had to admit.

Still, it made perfect sense.

The Tutorial was ultimately a system designed for ordinary people, not Superhumans.

For someone like Gijun, who’d already lived the Superhuman life—or any other Superhuman for that matter—the Tutorial was mostly unnecessary.

And that was doubly true when you’d shown fundamentals impressive enough to make even that old man gape in awe, not just a ‘barely pulled it off.’

Not that complaints about fairness hadn’t erupted among the User base.

Superhumans diving into the game and monopolizing Extra Rewards in the Tutorial was a common occurrence, after all.

But the game company never stepped in on that front.

In fact, a Player running wild in-game could face real trouble if their Superhuman identity got exposed.

They’d get hammered by the public narrative: ‘You’re a Superhuman—what the hell are you doing in a game?’

Cases had even popped up where a real-world scandal got someone expelled from their Guild.

After incidents like that, an unwritten rule took hold: Superhumans in-game would just play the game politely.

For Gijun, though, this was welcome news.

He wanted to enjoy the real game as fast as possible.

“What’s the final stage?”

The old man grinned at Gijun’s question.

“Live combat.”

“Live combat, as in—”

KUUUWOONG!

Before Gijun could even finish his question, a thunderous roar erupted from the far side.

He snapped his head toward the sound, startled.

“Huh?”

A note of shock escaped his lips.

KYAAAAAA!

A monster the size of a house had appeared.

“Win a fight against that one. Think you can manage?”

Gijun turned back to study the creature lumbering toward him.

It was a massive serpent.

Too massive to just call ‘big.’

A snake large enough to swallow an entire building whole…

“An imugi that’s lived on this mountain for over a thousand years.”

An imugi.

No level, no information of any kind appeared for the creature.

It was almost absurd.

How the hell was he supposed to fight something like that and win?

Right now, Gijun was just a beginner who had barely started the game.

But Gijun steadied his breathing.

There had to be a way.

They wouldn’t have thrown a completely unbeatable monster at him.

No matter how hard the game was, a game was still a game.

And if that was true, then the key to clearing it had to be hidden somewhere, didn’t it?

That was what Gijun thought.

Then he looked at the creature again.

And in that moment…

‘Huh?’

Gijun’s eyes went wide.

‘I get it.’

And Gijun understood.

What the method was to take down that creature.

Whoosh!

With that, Gijun began to move his Mana.

*

‘Now, let’s see…’

Myeongjun watched Gijun with intrigued eyes.

The results of testing Gijun so far had been satisfying.

‘Among the talents I’ve seen, he’s easily the best.’

The word ‘best’ didn’t feel the least bit undeserved.

It wasn’t just talk.

Every process of moving Mana and combining it with an Element was so naturally and swiftly executed it was unbelievable.

That was a level you couldn’t reach through mere effort alone.

It meant he was more familiar with and had a stronger affinity for Mana,

and the Elements that made up this world, than anyone else.

‘So just how far can he reach?’

That was what Myeongjun was curious about now.

So he had prepared the highest-difficulty test he could give.

That target was the trial of the imugi, ‘Tarakan.’

If Gijun won the fight against Tarakan, then his talent could be said to surpass even Myeongjun’s own.

‘After all, I, too, spent hundreds of days in a fight with that creature.’

That was the truth.

Myeongjun had been unable to eat or sleep for hundreds of days trying to defeat Tarakan.

But in the end, he did it.

‘I found it.’

Tarakan.

The moment he figured out what that creature was, he was able to win the fight against it.

And the only way to win that fight was to uncover its ‘true identity.’

‘If you manage to uncover its identity, you’ll be able to take it down.’

Being able to reveal Tarakan’s true nature would mean possessing an equally exceptional talent for Mana…

At that moment.

Kyaaaaaah!

Tarakan opened its maw wide and began charging straight at Gijun.

Every time its massive body moved, trees were torn out by their roots and the ground shook violently.

The roar erupting from its mouth sent out such strong shockwaves that even standing was a struggle.

‘Now… what are you going to do?’

Myeongjun asked himself.

But…

‘Hm…?’

Myeongjun’s eyes flew wide open.

And then he let out a gasp.

“What the hell…”

Because Gijun was doing something unbelievable right now.

No — to be precise, he hadn’t moved at all.

Face-to-face with that horrifying monster charging straight at him, he hadn’t taken a single step.

He wasn’t even using magic.

Just shifting his Mana, draping it over his body.

In that instant, Myeongjun felt a chill crawl up his spine.

‘No way…?’

Had he seen through the creature’s true form?

In less than a minute of meeting it?

‘How is that even possible.’

Even he himself had taken hundreds of days.

That thousand-year-old imugi was a spirit beast with a master’s knack for hiding its identity.

A spirit beast like that — even with its terrifying appearance right in front of him — was it really possible to pierce its essence the moment they met?

But Gijun’s demeanor right now left no room for any other interpretation.

It was clear he had seen straight through Tarakan’s true form.

And now.

Crunch!

Tarakan took Gijun into its mouth and swallowed him whole.

All that remained where Gijun had stood was a crater in the earth.

But then.

Whoosh!

A brilliant light burst forth from inside Tarakan’s mouth.

Blue light blazed fiercely through its clenched teeth.

And then.

BOOM!

An explosion erupted.

“Hup!”

And Gijun landed back on the ground, as if nothing had happened.

“Ha…!”

Myeongjun couldn’t help but gasp at the sight.

He could scarcely believe what he was seeing.

At the same time, the giant Tarakan had vanished without a trace, and in its place floated a single tiny fairy.

That was Tarakan’s real form.

The creature was a spirit that had lived in this mountain for a thousand years.

Its imugi shape was merely a fake, meant to intimidate any who trespassed on this mountain.

So once you discovered Tarakan’s true form, there was no need to be afraid.

On the contrary, if you got inside and twisted the Mana circuits that altered its appearance, you could force it back to its original state.

“You… did you really see through this creature’s identity?”

Myeongjun asked Gijun, as if he couldn’t believe his own eyes.

And Gijun answered.

“Yes. Of course.”

As though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

As if to ask why he’d even bother asking.

And to Gijun, it was perfectly natural.

The moment he faced the creature, he felt it.

Because the flow of Mana moving around its body wasn’t normal.

Of course, this kind of insight into Mana was still a matter of talent.

It wasn’t something you could do just because your magic was strong.

It was something only possible with an innate gift for magic.

‘A talent worthy of being called monstrous.’

He meant it.

Gijun.

The young man before him was a monster.

“Hahaha!”

Myeongjun laughed.

“A perfect victory for you.”

With those words, a message appeared.

[Your talent for Mana Handling has been adjusted upward.]

[Your talent for Mana Handling has been changed to the highest Grade.]

The highest Grade!

[Mana Handling]

>Grade : Legendary

>Proficiency : F

>Magic Attack +20%

>Casting Speed +20%

‘Legendary again.’

The Grade of Mana Handling had shifted.

In this moment, following Fireball, even Mana Handling had transformed to Legendary Grade.

At the same time, his base Stats surged by a full 10%.

That was effectively a doubled increase.

Gijun let out a hollow laugh.

He was dumbfounded.

Even when Mana Handling had no Grade, he’d clearly felt its utility.

After all, it was the skill that had given wings to a man already called a genius.

And now, that staggering skill had become Legendary Grade.

Myeongjun smiled as he spoke.

“You are more than worthy to receive this. A talent truly supreme—no, even ‘supreme’ falls short; it is a peerless, epoch-making talent.”

“···!”

Peerless talent.

A phrase he’d heard so often it’d felt like nails being driven into his ears.

But one day, it had vanished completely.

And even Gijun himself had forgotten it.

Though this was just a game, having someone recognize him was a genuinely thrilling experience.

“This is the greatest weapon I have built over a lifetime. I ask you to take it, hone it, and refine it. Well, what are you waiting for? Go on, use that technique!”

“I understand.”

At Myeongjun’s words, Gijun stirred his Mana.

“!!!”

Gijun sensed a dramatic change.

In an instant, more Mana gathered, and at a far greater speed.

‘This is genuinely insane.’

Myeongjun’s words hadn’t been lies.

Not the part about it being the greatest weapon built over a lifetime.

An involuntary gasp escaped his lips.

And that wasn’t all.

The Fireball was enormous.

It looked roughly 1.5 times larger than the Fireball Gijun used in reality.

Moreover, the casting speed was noticeably faster.

‘At this rate… this isn’t just 1st-Circle level; it’s got to be at least 2nd Circle.’

Producing 2nd-Circle power with a Fireball.

Wasn’t that truly a dream come true?

Of course, it was probably only possible because this was a game.

A wistful thought briefly flickered through his mind.

If only this were reality, not a game…

But Gijun quickly shook his head.

Because he knew that was utterly impossible.

‘This class seems better than I expected.’

Flame Seeker.

The class name was unfamiliar, but after giving it a try, it was a class he rather liked.

The Fireball’s raw power was immense, and its synergy with the Mana Handling skill was incredibly apt.

And above all, he truly loved the vivid sensation of it feeling like he was using real magic.

His resolve blazed.

He wanted to keep enjoying this game.