Chapter 77 : Chapter 77

Chapter 77- Quagmire (2)

“The rain... just keeps falling.”

Lee Si-yeong said, looking up at the sky.

She had heard that a new stage was starting, so she had expected some kind of change, but this change in the environment was, how should she put it…

It was bizarre. Very much so.

“It’s like the sky has torn open.”

It was a terrifying amount of rainfall, to the point where such words wouldn't be strange.

If this much rain were to fall naturally, it should have weakened a little within a few hours, but now the heavy rainfall continued to the point where water was beginning to pool on the ground.

‘…And to be doing manual labor in a place like this, out of the blue.’

Lee Si-yeong let out a deep sigh.

Right now, all the members of her team were split up and working as instructed by Kim Gyu-sik.

And among them, the task assigned to her group was ‘logging’.

Her mana had returned to some extent, so it wasn't too difficult, but the problem was that she couldn't understand the reason for doing this in a place where demonic beasts and other hostile climbers were roaming around without rest.

Cutting down trees while something was constantly drizzling down from the sky was not a task befitting a mage, at least.

And the one who had ordered this work had tucked Meirin under his arm, said he had something for her to do, and disappeared again.

“Here, a hot pack. It’s getting cold, right?”

She tossed a hot pack she had brought to Seo Ah-in, who was in the same group as her.

To be precise, it wasn't she who had brought it, but Kim Gyu-sik.

‘How on earth did he bring things like this?’

Bringing an item with such a specific use meant that he had anticipated a situation where it would be needed from the very beginning.

The distribution of items had been so natural that she had almost missed it.

“...Huh? Ah. Thank you.”

Seo Ah-in took the hot pack, sticking her axe into a tree she had just been felling.

She had a dazed expression that didn't show a shred of intelligence, but the axe she wielded was incredibly fierce.

‘…’

But.

Was she always this strong?

As the guild master of Renegade, she paid close attention to her guild members.

It was easy to keep track since there weren't many of them in the first place.

But, at least for Seo Ah-in, to produce this much ‘output’ in her current low-mana state, she should have had to push herself quite hard. She probably would have had to overload herself to the point of collapse to barely manage it.

The way she looked now seemed quite... fine.

Although her mind seemed to be completely elsewhere.

“What are you thinking about so intently?”

“Th-that Pink Mage-”

“...Who are you calling Pink Mage? I’m younger than you, you know.”

“...”

A question mark briefly appeared above Seo Ah-in's head, but she soon nodded as if in understanding.

It was a reaction that somehow made Lee Si-yeong, who was watching, feel annoyed and want to argue.

“...What does that mean?”

“No, looking at your physique, it’s certainly…”

“...”

“It’s a relief if they just think you’re young; if someone didn't know, they might even mistake you for a boy, don't you think?”

“Do you really want to die?”

Should I fire off a magic spell?

Of course, Seo Ah-in herself had a physique that could certainly make such a claim, but saying it out loud was a separate issue.

“They say birds of a feather flock together. You’ve been sticking to Kim Gyu-sik so much, it seems your disposition is becoming more like his...”

As she said that and fiddled with her staff, Seo Ah-in rubbed the hot pack on her cheek and tilted her head.

“I don't know. I don't really feel like I'm becoming like that crafty beast tamer, but there's one thing for sure.”

“Hmm?”

“I've felt like something has been changing since I started hanging around him... and I've really noticed it lately.”

It was the same just a moment ago.

She didn't usually neglect her training, but still, there had been no remarkable growth, as if she was blocked by a wall.

But as soon as that man said, ‘It will happen now,’ a new ability popped into existence.

Her overall physical abilities also felt like they had been massively boosted.

“...That, it’s that, right?”

“It probably is.”

It was a phenomenon known among climbers as a type of ‘awakening’. A climber's rank was often determined by how many times they had experienced this.

It wasn't a particularly special phenomenon, to the point that its name was already widely known.

However.

“The catalysts for climbers’ awakenings are all different. Even a prestigious organization like the Hunting Alliance has almost no personnel who can ‘guide’ it.”

Even if there were, it was mostly by rule of thumb.

Lee Si-yeong nodded her head at Seo Ah-in’s words.

She had heard that the situation was a bit better in the West, but in any case, it was true that finding a proper guide in the East was difficult.

Moreover, even in the West, it was safe to say that there was no one who could pinpoint an awakening more accurately than the person themselves, as if they were predicting the future.

“...”

“...”

Lee Si-yeong and Seo Ah-in silently faced each other.

“Are we perhaps thinking the same thing?”

“I think so.”

“You say it first.”

“Don’t you think that person is preparing to make something big happen soon?”

“...Huh?”

“It makes sense.”

Seo Ah-in shrugged and continued her explanation.

If he was someone who knew everything in advance like that, he would have already achieved unimaginable success long ago.

But now, it seemed as if he was gathering strength for ‘something’.

Gathering people around him. Carefully nurturing each one. Lying low and avoiding attention.

Finally, just before this ordeal, he stepped out of the world's spotlight, even breaking the long-standing unwritten rule of the climber world.

What on earth was he planning?

How far was his vision reaching?

“Oh, really?”

“...You don’t seem to agree with my thoughts at all?”

“No, I agree on some parts, but it feels a bit different from that?”

“Pardon?”

Lee Si-yeong stroked her chin and looked back at Seo Ah-in.

Her narrowed eyes held an indescribable sense of persistence.

“If what you said is true. Why does that guy spend so much time with you?”

“...What? Huh? What?”

“If he’s a guy who sees through everything, even the trivial details, from the start. Wouldn't he try to use his time as efficiently as possible? Preferably on important people?”

“Th...at would be so, right?”

“Then who is the person that guy ‘first’ met and has been with for the ‘longest’ time?”

“...”

Oh.

Wait a minute.

Is that how it is?

Certainly, watching him from the side, it seemed like he spent almost all his time with a specific purpose.

But besides the almost useless things, it also seemed like he spent various kinds of time with me.

I had thought it was just a natural consequence of using the same lodging, but considering his behavior patterns, it was actually quite strange.

“Doesn’t that guy give you some kind of special treatment?”

“...N-no, probably not! M-Mr. Gyu-sik often disappears with other people besides me!”

“Right. But he does that most often with you-”

“W-we’re working! Work! We’ll be late if we keep this up!”

“...”

If it wasn't true, it wasn't true. Why was she making such a fuss by herself?

Lee Si-yeong sighed, looking at Seo Ah-in, who had become noticeably more flustered than before.

“Kids these days.”

muttered the person who was younger than Seo Ah-in, bitterly.

***

[ 1 Skill Share slot for target ‘Seo Ah-in’ is added. ]

“...?”

What's this.

Why did this suddenly open up.

Have I done anything with her recently?

As I was tilting my head, Meirin, who was next to me, spoke.

“Oh. Is something wrong?”

“Something is, but. Well, you don’t have to worry about it.”

It was a good thing anyway, so what was the point of finding a reason.

“More importantly, how are you feeling now?”

Right now, Meirin’s condition was more important.

In a few hours, this person was scheduled to become quite important.

Though for now, she was running around barefoot on the muddy ground with a bewildered expression.

“Ah, no... I still don’t really feel anything.”

“Is that so. But please continue.”

“...”

At my words, Meirin tilted her head but repeated the routine she had been following.

It was a training I had made her do many times before. A forced memorization of an ‘action routine’.

But this time, it was a little special.

Because it was a ‘Martial Arts Compilation’ set that I had meticulously crafted with my Observation skill.

The most efficient breathing, the most effective footwork, the most destructive movements. It was a kind of personalized curriculum for Meirin that I had pieced together.

And this person was at the perfect time to train this, a point where her mana was ‘moderately’ recovered. I had been waiting for this moment.

If she had no mana at all, her physical ability wouldn't be enough to repeat it many times, and if her mana was completely full, she wouldn't even be able to feel the ‘other energy’.

In fact, it had already been several hours since I started making her run around in the rain. Yet, she was still moving quite well.

“Gyu-Gyu-sik. I think I’m really going to d-...”

“The fact that you’re saying you’re going to die means you can still do more, member-nim. Do one more set in the time you have to talk nonsense.”

“...”

Ah, geez.

I was unintentionally reminded of my old trainer.

He was a man who worked people to death, but he was also the person who gave me one realization.

If you keep shoving a person into a proven routine, no matter what, results will come out.

Just look at Meirin.

For someone who was just telling me she was about to die, her breathing was gradually stabilizing.

Seeing her look over herself with a bewildered expression, she seemed quite flustered by the unfamiliar energy she felt inside her body.

“Oh, oh my. This is really... there’s something else here?”

“That’s Qi.”

“...Pardon?”

Meirin looked back at me in shock, but I just shrugged my shoulders in response.

Well, I could understand, since she had just awakened in a few hours of exercise what the Martial Arts Alliance was still running around day and night trying to obtain.

“Actually, it’s slower than I expected.”

“Pardon? Pardon?”

“Meirin, you’re a genius. It wouldn’t have been strange if you were much faster than this.”

Meirin slowly blinked her eyes.

It looked like she was slowly processing what I said in her brain.

“...A genius? Me?”

“Of course.”

When it comes to martial arts, if this person can be properly injected with the related skill set... she's a jack-of-all-trades who can be utilized in all sorts of places.

And now was the time to test that.

I yawned and checked my watch.

“You’ll probably see results soon that you can be convinced of yourself.”

And at the same time as I said those words.

-!

A gunshot rang out in the forest.

The sound came from a place not even a few meters away from us.

Probably.

Other climbers had ambushed some of our team members who were currently split up.

“Th-this is...!”

“They’re right on time.”

It meant that those who knew how to use their heads a little were starting to appear.

The whole concept of the ordeal was survival, after all.

It wouldn't do if there was no confrontation between the participants, an essential element.

I smirked and checked my condition.

“Let’s go greet our guests.”

Well, this is perfect.

It’s a chance to test how far I can push the people around me in this ordeal’s boss fight.

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