Hunters Keep Coming To My House - Chapter 78

Chapter 78

If we go back to when Kang Yoon-soo was talking about his plans, the situation was like this:

“Frankly, this is something only Ms. Yeon-oh can do.”

“What on earth is it that makes you hesitate so much? Hurry up and tell us, Mr. Yoon-soo.”

“Ms. Yeon-oh handles mana well. Well, to be more precise, her proficiency in using mana is very high.”

…Is he giving a self-introduction?

Kang Yoon-soo himself is rumored to be skilled in handling mana.

Looking at him with skeptical eyes, Kang Yoon-soo shrugged lightly and spoke.

“Handling mana delicately and having a high proficiency are different things, Ms. Yeon-oh. For example, if my mana is likened to a high-performance supercomputer, Ms. Yeon-oh’s mana is like water. It’s not about how delicately I can work within a defined range; it’s about how Ms. Yeon-oh can use vast resources.”

…Um, so if we simplify what Kang Yoon-soo is saying more.

My mana is like raw materials, so I can create anything. But Kang Yoon-soo’s mana is already in a finished state.

Oh, it’s complicated.

Nodding slightly as if understanding, Kang Yoon-soo continued his explanation.

“This is a trade secret, and I was planning to tell you when you entered the guild, but given the situation, I have no choice.”

“Ahaha….”

“It’s a joke. For this reason, I want to entrust Ms. Yeon-oh with the task of destroying the life force vessel of a lich.”

“…The joke doesn’t seem to be over yet?”

“Unfortunately, this is sincere.”

He chuckled awkwardly. Suppressing the urge to say that this was not the time for jokes, now was a serious moment.

Right now, I’m deadly serious…!

“…Destroying the vessel is something anyone else can do, not just me.”

“But finding the location of the vessel is something only you can do. And only you can destroy the vessel.”

“What are you talking about?”

Unable to stand Kang Yoon-soo’s constant evasion and redirection, Jung Tae-il interrupted with a word. Upon this, Kang Yoon-soo placed his hand on Jung Tae-il’s shoulder and slowly laughed.

“You’re impatient. It’s my time now, so bear with it for a bit.”

“This is not the time for this.”

“Lich hasn’t moved yet, so it’s okay. We still have time to prepare.”

“….”

In the end, Jung Tae-il sighed and closed his mouth again. 

Kang Yoon-soo, who had won the short verbal skirmish, continued speaking with satisfaction.

“Even if it’s me, I can’t accurately determine the location once I get close to where the vessel is. That ship is probably completely occupied by the lich’s mana. My ability is excellent at distinguishing among numerous manas, but it’s challenging to find a place with a different concentration in a space filled with similar manas.”

“…Are you saying I can do that?”

“Ms. Yeon-oh can use other people’s mana, so you should be able to sense it instinctively. You’ll feel that there’s a large amount of mana gathered there.”

“Hmm, are you telling me to use <Magic Detection>?”

He raised his thumb momentarily, showing that I had guessed the correct answer. He even turned his thumb down for a moment.

“But Ms. Yeon-oh’s detection ability is still lacking. You don’t know how to handle mana delicately either.”

“Ugh.”

“So, I’ll quickly tutor you on those aspects. I believe you can grasp it quickly.”

As long as I know how to control mana.

I nodded slowly at his words.

Kang Yoon-soo knew that I could use other people’s mana. Perhaps he intended to convey his expertise by utilizing that.

‘…Being able to use someone else’s mana also means I can learn from it.’

If I could connect with Kang Yoon-soo’s mana and get a feel for how he handled it, there was nothing I couldn’t do.

I had no choice but to agree with his words, considering the possibility.

However, just when it seemed like Kang Yoon-soo’s presentation had successfully concluded, there was someone expressing doubt.

It was Yoo Seol-ah.

“Let’s assume Yeon-oh takes care of the location and vessel destruction. But how do we reach the pirate ship?”

“That’s where a well-coordinated team comes in; they need to divert the lich’s attention effectively.”

“…Were you planning to bluster from the beginning?”

“It’s the best option.”

“Then, are you and the others going to move with Yeon-oh?”

“That’s right.”

Ah, just fight already.

Ignoring Yoo Seol-ah’s disappointed muttering, Kang Yoon-soo extended his hand to me.

“Shall we go for the lesson, Student Yeon-oh?”

“…Yes, sir.”

Taking his hand, I played along reasonably. It’s not easy to get private tutoring like this anywhere else.

So, I’ll make the most of it.

Thinking so, about ten minutes into my determination, everything fell apart.

The Kang Yoon-soo who became a teacher discarded the usual friendly demeanor and transformed into a strict instructor wearing the mask of a devil.

He hoped for more than just understanding; he wanted me to surpass the limits on my own.

What Kang Yoon-soo taught me was how to excel at <Mana Detection>. Connecting our manas with <What’s Yours is Mine! What’s Mine is Yours!>, he extracted his mana like a thin thread. After creating thousands of these mana threads, he released them in all directions.

If one of these mana threads touched something, I could instinctively know what it was.

‘…That legged fish monster we fought earlier!’

And as another thread touched something else, once again, I immediately knew what it was.

I demanded an explanation from Kang Yoon-soo about the mechanism behind it, but he remained tight-lipped, not providing the answer I sought.

He seemed to expect me to figure it out on my own.

In the end, after pondering hard, I found the answer.

‘…For mana I’ve experienced once, I can instantly know its information.’

Ah, so that’s how Kang Yoon-soo can know the gate’s location in advance.

The mana of a newly generated gate would be something Kang Yoon-soo experiences for the first time.

So, using <Mana Detection> regularly and sensing something new would indicate the opening of a gate.

…This is truly a trade secret.

But it’s a trade secret that others can’t replicate.

Thinking that I had grasped it to some extent, Kang Yoon-soo severed our shared mana. Then, as if encouraging me to try it myself, he nodded.

‘…The principle is similar to using <What’s Yours is Mine! What’s Mine is Yours!>.’

Instead of connecting to others’ mana, if I wanted to use my mana like Kang Yoon-soo…

“…It should be done like this.”

I carefully drew out the mana and spread it far away. Initially, it was just a thin thread, but with multiple attempts, the number of mana threads I could create increased to hundreds. 

I wanted to scatter the mana threads in all directions like Kang Yoon-soo did, but it was impossible due to my lack of stats.

…Damn, it was because of my lacking stats.

Still, now I could use Kang Yoon-soo’s trade secret as well. That was a satisfactory achievement. And the system acknowledged it:

[Learning has no age limit! 

Obtained enlightenment from an outstanding practitioner. 

<Mana Detection(F)> has risen to <Mana Detection(A)>.]

Oh. The skill grade had increased, meaning the detection range or mana efficiency had improved.

‘…It’s quite certain.’

I tried using the upgraded <Mana Detection>. Hmm… I should be able to uncover information about a whole city with this.

Satisfied with the results, I looked at the instructor in the guise of a devil.

“Mr. Yoon-soo, I succeeded.”

“Who taught you? It’s an expected result. Now, shall we learn something else?”

“….”

“We don’t have much time, Student Yeon-oh.”

“…Yes.”

Even when I was a student, I didn’t study this diligently.

After that, I received lessons and practical training from Kang Yoon-soo on how to handle mana delicately. I also received feedback on what I lacked when I previously shot a mana bullet at the giant squid. 

As a result:

[Even cars run better with good fuel efficiency! 

Learned how to use mana efficiently. 

Permanent increase of 20 in mana.]

This alone was a remarkable achievement, but there was more:

[Bullets become even more robust! 

<Mana Bullet(B)> has risen to <Mana Bullet(A)>.]

I swear, from this day forward, I will consider Kang Yoon-soo my lifelong mentor…!