Chapter 496: You Don’t Have It?

As expected, Seo Ye-in showed a tremendous interest in Blink.

“I want Blink too.”

“Sorry, but you can’t learn it.”

“Why not?”

“Well, because you’re not a mage.”

No matter how much of a super-genius she was, the class gap was hard to overcome.

Especially for mages, the barrier was particularly high. Not only is the way they handle mana completely different, but they also have to master complex spell formulas.

It’s not like what you see on the surface, where you wave a staff and a fireball comes flying out.

“Of course, it’s theoretically possible. Like having a dual class.”

“Possible?”

“Yeah. If you start now and pour in six months to a year of blood, sweat, and tears… maybe.”

Even that was a prediction based on her ridiculous genius talent.

It wasn’t just inefficient. It would be disastrously inefficient.

Apparently, she didn’t want to chase that kind of romantic ideal either, because her enthusiasm quickly cooled.

“…Another way.”

“There is no other way.”

“Gunslinger movement skill?”

“I was going to tell you later. But if you really want to hear it…”

I motioned for her to come closer.

Then whispered into Seo Ye-in’s ear.

“…try speed walking.”

Whoosh!

I quickly stepped back, just in time to avoid a flying pot slicing through the air.

Seo Ye-in approached, holding the Immortal Pot half-raised.

With a gentle smile, I spoke in a Go Hyeon-woo tone.

“Hoho, Miss Seo. Why not put down that dangerous object? Violence won’t grant you Blink, you know.”

“Gunslinger movement skill.”

“I’m telling you, there’s no such thing.”

“Make one for me.”

“You’ve got Ghost Dance. Use that.”

Seo Ye-in looked half grumpy and half disappointed.

I added,

“For Gunslingers, movement skills aren’t that important anyway. You’ve got range.”

Typically, a ranged class’s attack distance is much longer than Blink’s movement range.

In other words, wherever the enemy is, you can just shoot them.

“If I can’t have it, I’ll destroy it….that kind of mindset, right?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

And so, Seo Ye-in vowed to bring down all spellcasters.

Next, I sent a message to Hong Yeon-hwa.

[Kim Ho: (waving dog emoji)]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: (springing-up dog emoji)]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: (tail-wagging dog emoji)]

[Kim Ho: What are you doing]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: Studying… magic]

Ever since the midterms ended, Hong Yeon-hwa had been holed up in the Ruby Magic Tower’s practice room.

It wasn’t because she was feeling down after losing to the Craftsman Dragon. She was focused on creating her own original spell formulas.

From her improvements to Fire Pillar to Hydra, she showed surprising talent in this field.

She was also steadily pushing through the Hardship Quest on her own. She was already up to stage 16.

Let’s just leave her be for now.

She was doing well. No need to drag her out just to show off Blink.

[Kim Ho: Alright, keep it up.]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: Thanks!]

[Hong Yeon-hwa: (tail-wagging dog emoji)]

Somewhat unsatisfied, I messaged Song Cheon-hye instead.

[Kim Ho: Hi]

[Song Cheon-hye: What is it]

[Song Cheon-hye: (suspicious hedgehog emoji)]

[Kim Ho: If you’ve got nothing going on, wanna spar?]

[Song Cheon-hye: Sure, why not]

[Song Cheon-hye: I’m on my way]

I wondered if she might have disciplinary committee duties, but it seemed like today was her day off.

It didn’t take long for Song Cheon-hye to arrive at the training room.

Glancing briefly at Seo Ye-in, she asked,

“Are the three of us training together?”

“No. She’s just watching for now.”

“Understood.”

Song Cheon-hye took her place across from me.

I, as usual, pulled out my toy hammer.

Then, in sync, we both kicked off the ground and rushed at each other.

Lightning-fast strikes pierced the air, crackling with thunder.

Fzzzzzt!

I deliberately acted like I was being overpowered and stepped back.

“You’re fiercer than usual. Have you improved?”

“Looks like it.”

Song Cheon-hye followed up with a cheerful expression.

She pushed me into a tighter and tighter corner.

Of course, I was only pretending.

Fzzzzzzzt!

Three lightning hummingbirds zipped toward me from three directions.

Rather than aiming to hit, it looked like she was trying to restrict my movements.

Guess I’ll play along with her plan.

As I moved in her direction without resistance, a look of “Finally!” spread across Song Cheon-hye’s face.

Then, she scattered a burst of electricity.

Zzzzzzzzzzzt—!

But just before I was engulfed by the current, I used Blink and reappeared behind Song Cheon-hye.

I brought my toy hammer down on the back of her head.

Boink!

“……”

Song Cheon-hye froze in place for a moment.

Then, slowly turning to face me, her expression was full of shock and disbelief.

“Wh-What? How did you Blink?”

“Just learned it recently.”

“Th-Then your Core is…?”

“Of course it’s A-rank.”

When I answered casually, Song Cheon-hye’s face crumbled like her world was collapsing.

She must’ve thought that if nothing else, she was unmatched in mana capacity, but now she’d been overtaken.

Soon, as if realizing something, she frowned.

“Wait a minute… did you call me here just to show off?”

“Mhmm. Jealous?”

“I can’t… exactly say I’m not…”

“I like your honesty. Since you’re here, how about we spar a bit more?”

“…Haah, alright.”

With a sigh, Song Cheon-hye readied her stance again.

We charged at each other once more.

Fzzzzzzzzt!

Amid the fierce exchange of attacks, I suddenly used Blink again and appeared behind her.

Before she could even turn around, I swung the toy hammer.

Boink!

Song Cheon-hye’s face twitched violently, but it looked like she was doing her best to suppress her anger, thinking that losing her temper meant losing the match.

“L-Let’s keep going.”

“Gladly.”

The spar resumed.

During the exchange, I deliberately made an exaggerated movement and stomped on the floor with a loud thud!

“Eek.”

Startled, Song Cheon-hye quickly turned around.

She thought I had used Blink to get behind her again.

Of course, there was nothing there and another toy hammer strike landed squarely on the back of her unguarded head.

Boink!!

I let out a sigh, pretending to be regretful.

“Seriously, mages without Blink are just way too easy to fool.”

Trembling with frustration, Song Cheon-hye spun around.

“…I’m leaving.”

“Where do you think you’re going, Blink-less Song Cheon-hye?”

“To the Special Training Room! I’m going! I swear I’ll hit A-rank out of sheer spite!”

“Alright, good luck with that.”

Fuming, Song Cheon-hye stormed out of the training room.

A furious mana training session was about to follow.

Everything’s going according to plan.

I sent a message to Senior Song Cheon-gi.

[Kim Ho: She says she’s going to focus on core rank for a while.]

[Kim Ho: Might be a good idea to increase her elixir support.]

[Song Cheon-gi: Noted. Thanks.]

I was currently hired by the Song family as a freelance spy.

The better Song Cheon-hye got and the better results she produced, the more rewards I’d receive.

From the Topaz Magic Tower’s vault, or from the inventory of the Thunder Lord.

In that sense, her reaching A-rank Core would be a win no matter what.

Given Song Cheon-hye’s current level of control, she wouldn’t be able to use Blink right away, but her mana reserves would still increase significantly.

I’d already laid the groundwork, so I expected good news before long.

Should I call Go Hyeon-woo next?

But after thinking it over, I figured it wouldn’t be all that fun.

He’d just congratulate me with 100% sincerity.

So I messaged my next target.

[Kim Ho: Noona]

[Dang Gyu-young: What].

[Kim Ho: Coffee?]

[Dang Gyu-young: Oh]

[Dang Gyu-young: Was just about to go to the store]

[Kim Ho: Perfect timing then]

[Dang Gyu-young: Let’s go]

I headed toward the store with Seo Ye-in in tow.

After waiting a bit, Dang Gyu-yeong appeared.

She seemed to be in a good mood, walking with a light step.

As she spotted me from a distance, she waved sweetly.

Guess it’s time to try it out.

It was the perfect timing, so I activated Blink.

The view shifted instantly, and I saw Dang Gyu-young’s surprised face up close.

“What the…..did you learn Blink?”

“I’ve been reborn. The me from yesterday and the me today are two different people. Please call me ‘Blink Kim Ho’.”

At that, Dang Gyu-young chuckled and reached out, then started roughly ruffling my hair and cheeks.

“Even your cringey lines are kinda cute. Anyway, congrats. You finally got what you wanted after going on and on about Blink, huh?”

“Thank you~”

“But you’re seriously fast. You’re already up to Core A in your first year? At this rate, I might get caught up.”

“That’s still a long way off.”

Even if the [Core] itself was now on par with third-year club presidents, graduates, or staff, I was still lacking in the skills, traits, and gear to support it.

Right now, my build had gaping holes I needed to patch, and the rest of my ranks needed to be brought up to match.

Most of them were still below B-rank for now.

Still, the fact that I was growing at an incredible pace remained true, and Dang Gyu-young narrowed her eyes and started interrogating me.

How did I do it? Was I using some cheat code passed down by an ultra-senior who had graduated long ago, and so on.

I let the questions wash over me and answered naturally, but then the Sloth came plodding over and voiced a complaint.

“Blink is not okay.”

“Sorry. I shouldn’t have left you behind like that.”

Even if it was for a demonstration, disappearing without a word wasn’t exactly polite.

Dang Gyu-young’s expression turned mischievous, but I waved her off to stop her.

“You were about to use Shadow Step, weren’t you?”

“Got me?”

“Let’s hold off this time.”

If she pulled another prank now, Seo Ye-in might actually get mad.

Before long, each of us bought a drink from the store and took a seat on the second-floor terrace.

Dang Gyu-young sipped her coffee, then nodded toward Seo Ye-in with her eyes.

“So, has her luck come back yet?”

“Not yet. Looks like it might really last over a week.”

“Aww.”

Dang Gyu-young made a face, clearly disappointed.

So I spoke up.

“Even if it doesn’t come back, we’re still heading to the downtown area.”

“Yeah? You sure that’s okay?”

“But there’s a condition. You and Sho-Sho noona both have to protect her.”

“I figured as much, but let’s hear the full deal.”

Dang Gyu-young rested her chin on the table and listened closely.

I placed a hand on Seo Ye-in’s head.

“Obviously, her safety comes first.”

“Yeah, I figured. You’re totally acting like her guardian now.”

Seo Ye-in quietly joined the conversation.

“Butler.”

“…I’ve thought this before, but I’m kind of jealous when she calls you that.”

Then Dang Gyu-young leaned toward me and spoke in a suggestive tone.

“…Hey, raise me too.”

“What are you talking about now?”

“I can eat well, play well, sleep well, and be cute too! Take care of me!”

“No thanks.”

I shut her down instantly and moved the conversation along.

“There’s a mystery book among the game center prizes. I’m planning to get it.”

“I was wondering why you changed your mind about going….of course it was for an item.”

“It’s something essential for world peace.”

“Stop using cheat codes already.”

Dang Gyu-young grumbled a bit, then continued.

“Anyway, that shouldn’t be a problem. I’ll ask Sho-Sho too, but she’ll probably agree.”

“Sounds good. And just to be clear….if there’s a fight, we’re going straight home.”

There was already enough to worry about; trying to mediate on top of that would be too much.

At that, Dang Gyu-young and Seo Ye-in’s gazes met midair.

Then, at the same time, they reached out and shook hands.

“Truce treaty?”

“Yes.”