“We’ll have to use magic.”

Kim Myeongju neatly wrapped up the situation and stood up.

“Shall we discuss this for a moment?”

At his suggestion, Seo Yi-tae and Go Jung-in followed him out, looking bewildered.

“Please rest. I’ll call someone to take care of the repairs.”

“What? You want me to rest in this situation?”

Kim Songcheol pointed at the ceiling with his finger, but all he got in return was a refreshing smile.

“Yes, haha.”

Kim Myeongju closed the entrance and headed for the elevator. As he pressed the elevator button, Seo Yi-tae finally spoke.

“Wouldn’t an explanation be more… necessary than a discussion?”

Seo Yi-tae was still dumbfounded.

The stick currently embedded in Kim Songcheol’s room. It wasn’t made to be used like that.

It merely produces a slight buoyancy in response to mana flow.

That stick got stuck in the ceiling.

Knowing the principle of the stick made it even harder to understand.

“The explanation isn’t long. The mana affinity came out to 100. It’s the highest score since we began measuring affinity.”

“100?”

“100?”

Both of them widened their eyes simultaneously.

It was a number they had never heard of before.

They even wondered how a person could be born with a score of 100.

“Since Mr. Kim Songcheol has already entered the training institute, we don’t need to worry too much about security, but please keep quiet about this for now.”

If the number 100 became known, everyone would react the same way these two did.

Also, the more surprising the news, the faster it spreads, so after passing through a few people, it might even make headlines in the newspaper.

Making headlines itself isn’t a big deal. The problem is Kim Songcheol’s mental state.

He had just entered the training institute and hadn’t even adapted yet; he shouldn’t be distracted by unnecessary things.

“Um… wouldn’t swordsmanship be possible?”

Go Jung-in asked cautiously. Hearing the number 100 made him quite eager.

“I’m confident I can train him well.”

“Denied. Magic seems better. Don’t you agree, Instructor Seo Yi-tae?”

“This… isn’t just better. I don’t even know how to explain it. There probably isn’t such talent even in ‘Arcadia’…”

Seo Yi-tae murmured with a trembling voice. Kim Myeongju gestured to Go Jung-in.

Look at this.

Are you still going to take him for swordsmanship?

That’s what he meant.

“Tsk.”

Go Jung-in clicked his tongue and crossed his arms. In his opinion, swordsmanship was indeed pointless.

Because his talent for magic was unfathomable.

“Instructor Seo Yi-tae.”

“Yes?”

“It’s been decided for magic, and now you’ll have to teach him… What are your thoughts?”

Kim Myeongju asked as he got into the elevator.

“So…”

Seo Yi-tae took a moment to collect her thoughts. She only spoke after the elevator doors closed.

“It would be great if Cha Sehyeon could teach him, but…”

Cha Sehyeon is the best mage in the Republic of Korea. However, there were a few reasons why she couldn’t teach Kim Songcheol, the two most prominent being:

Her personality and her time.

Her personality was bad, and she had no time.

“Or couldn’t we recruit another hunter? Like Pyo Cheol-gwang or Min Song-i…”

“Why would we entrust education to an external hunter?”

Kim Myeongju asked.

“Because I don’t have the skill to teach Mr. Kim Songcheol.”

Seo Yi-tae also came from this training institute. In terms of seniority, she was quite a veteran. It had been six years since she became a mage.

But she still hadn’t reached the 3rd Circle.

Her mana affinity was quite good, but other areas were all slightly lacking.

“I asked for your opinion, Ms. Seo Yi-tae, regarding the instructional plan.”

Kim Myeongju said in a chiding tone. In his eyes, Seo Yi-tae wasn’t just an inferior student without skill. While her magic skill might be a bit lacking, she definitely had a talent for teaching.

“Try to take charge and guide him for a while. You’ll do well.”

“Then… I’ll try my best…”

“Oh, by the way, there’s a group that recently started mana sensing, right?”

“Ah, yes.”

“Could we put him in that group? What do you think?”

Trainees whose subject is magic first begin with mana sensing. Starting by feeling mana and creating the 1st Circle was the first task as a mage.

“About two people have created a Circle, but I think Mr. Kim Songcheol can definitely catch up.”

“Then let’s put him there and start for now. There are many theories to learn besides magic, so individual lessons won’t work… So, we’ll do that for now?”

“Ah, yes.”

“Just make sure to lay a good foundation. That’s enough.”

Kim Myeongju smiled and encouraged her. After all, he didn’t expect much from Seo Yi-tae either. He knew better than anyone that she wasn’t the vessel to contain Kim Songcheol.

***

Kim Songcheol sat at the dining table with the delivered breakfast.

He just ordered home-style food, and a nine-dish meal arrived.

Considering his past of eating cereal, it was quite a luxury.

“Let’s see…”

Kim Songcheol ate his meal and rechecked the timetable he received last night.

It was a timetable listing the classes he had to take at the training institute.

‘There are more subjects than I thought. I just thought I’d be learning magic.’

There were theoretical tactical courses, wilderness survival skills, monster analysis, and courses related to other-dimensional civilizations.

Dungeons are not just places for Earthlings to enter. They can also encounter beings from other dimensions, and they needed to know about their cultures and political situations.

After eating, Kim Songcheol picked up his pad and headed to the designated lecture hall.

After leaving the dormitory and walking a bit, he saw a sports field.

Classes hadn’t even started yet, but there were trainees swinging swords.

‘Wow, so that’s what aura is.’

Among several trainees, a red energy flickered on one person’s sword.

The aura he actually saw was more mysterious than he expected. It wasn’t just a red light but constantly shimmered, asserting its presence.

‘Swordsmanship wouldn’t have been bad either.’

Kim Songcheol felt regret for the path he didn’t take and then quickened his steps.

The first class was Basic Magic.

The lecture hall was on the 3rd floor of the Magic Training Center.

“Isn’t he quite handsome?”

“He is handsome.”

“That…”

Creak.

As Kim Songcheol entered the lecture room, the chatter abruptly stopped.

The lecture room was quite spacious.

It looked about 30 pyeong, but only three trainees were sitting on the floor.

Two were female staff members, and one was a male staff member.

The male staff member was lying on the floor, sleeping, and the two female staff members were chatting.

They were all around 20 years old.

At a glance, they looked like high school students.

“Oh? Are you a professor? This is Professor Seo Yi-tae’s lecture room.”

One of the female staff members said to Kim Songcheol.

“…I am a trainee.”

Kim Songcheol replied awkwardly.

When he mentioned being a trainee, the male staff member who was lying down opened one eye and quickly scanned Kim Songcheol.

He closed his eyes again without much reaction, though.

“…Huh?”

“Ah, that must be it. They raised the age limit for Mana Affinity Swordsmen. Right?”

“Yes, that’s why I was brought in.”

Kim Songcheol nodded and sat down. It was an integrated chair he hadn’t sat in for a long time.

The other trainees were probably sitting on the floor because this integrated chair was uncomfortable.

“So, how old are you?”

“Thirty-one.”

“Then you’re older than Professor Seo Yi-tae. That’s interesting.”

There was no malice at all, but Kim Songcheol couldn’t help but swallow dryly at their pure admiration.

Just then, the door opened and Seo Yi-tae entered the lecture room. She was wearing a dress similar to yesterday’s.

“Hello.”

As Seo Yi-tae entered, the male staff member trainee finally stood up and sat down.

But that was all.

No one sat in the integrated chair. They just greeted her while sitting.

“You’re here.”

Seo Yi-tae gave a slightly awkward smile and acknowledged Kim Songcheol.

“Yes, I didn’t want to be late…”

“Alright. Shall we sit on the floor for now? Normal Magic training is usually done sitting on the floor.”

“Ah.”

Kim Songcheol then moved to the floor and sat down.

Seo Yi-tae, still holding her pad, stood in front of the trainees.

“Has everyone practiced their personal training?”

The male staff member and one of the female staff member trainees nodded, but the other female staff member trainee made a sad face.

“I did the Breathing Technique last night, but I don’t know if I gathered enough Mana.”

“It’s okay. You don’t need to rush anything. It’s more important to go correctly than to go quickly. Before we begin, let’s do a quick check.”

Seo Yi-tae first sat in front of a trainee and placed her hand on their chest.

“Starting with the Breathing Technique. Inhale…”

Following Seo Yi-tae’s instructions, the trainee began to move their Mana.

Each time she inhaled, the surrounding Mana was drawn into her body, and after some absorption, it flowed out with her exhalation.

“You don’t have much Mana yet. You’ll need to gather a little more.”

Seo Yi-tae checked each person’s progress one by one.

Only after kindly pointing out the shortcomings of the trainees who had created a Circle, did it become Kim Songcheol’s turn.

Seo Yi-tae, sitting in front of Kim Songcheol, seemed stiff for some reason.

She hadn’t been like that when talking to the other trainees, but now she nervously swallowed.

“Um… did you read the materials I sent you?”

“If it’s what I received yesterday, yes. I read it all.”

“All of it?”

“Yes.”

“It’s over 200 pages… didn’t I leave a comment to just read chapter 1?”

“Yes, I saw it, but I had a lot of time left, so I just kept reading…”

Seo Yi-tae had only dealt with trainees who had just graduated high school.

Among them, many trainees had no interest in studying.

So, when a trainee who was a former accountant joined, it was almost awkward.

“Well, then, shall we start with Mana Sensing?”

“Actually, I did Mana Sensing yesterday. I tried it alone as described in chapter 1, and I could feel it.”

“Ah…”

Seo Yi-tae’s brain briefly lagged.

It usually takes at least a week to sense normal Mana.

She thought it might take Kim Songcheol about a day at most, but he just read the theory and did it.

“Did you try anything else? Like the Breathing Technique…?”

“No, I was told it was dangerous to do it alone at first, so I didn’t.”

He was an excellent student.

To read the lecture materials so thoroughly.

“Then… so… let’s start with the Breathing Technique. Close your eyes, hands on your knees.”

Seo Yi-tae lightly placed her fingertips on Kim Songcheol’s chest.

“As you know, you gather Mana in your heart through the Breathing Technique and then create a Circle. So, it can be seen as the initiation stage to activate the rotation of the Circle.”

“Yes.”

Kim Songcheol nodded with his eyes closed.

Not only Seo Yi-tae but also the other trainees were watching him.

This was because the part about ‘sensing Mana alone’ had piqued their curiosity.

Seo Yi-tae tried to ignore the gazes of the other trainees and continued the lesson.

“Now, we’re going to inhale. The image of drawing in the Mana that exists in nature is important. Then, you send the Mana that has entered your lungs to your heart and hold it tight. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

Kim Songcheol also nodded.

“Alright, take a big inhale. Enough to make your chest rise.”

Hooooop…

The moment Kim Songcheol inhaled through his nose.

Mana suddenly began to surge around him.

The Mana swirled as it was sucked into Kim Songcheol’s mouth and nose.

The violent reaction of the Mana was so loud that anyone could feel it.

‘W-what is this…?’

Seo Yi-tae was startled, but she quickly raised her Mana in preparation for any unforeseen circumstances.

She also raised her hand to calm the flustered trainees.

This was a phenomenon she had never experienced before.

A slight misstep could have a major impact on Kim Songcheol.

But as if to mock Seo Yi-tae,

The moment Kim Songcheol began to exhale, the Mana’s surging stopped, and it became as calm as a sea after a storm.

And when Kim Songcheol inhaled again, the same phenomenon occurred.

Even Seo Yi-tae, who had taught many trainees, had never seen anything like it.

She bit her lower lip, a sad expression on her face.

‘I told you he wasn’t someone I could teach, Director…!’