Chapter 48-The Inverted Talent (1)
A book lay open on the desk in front of Kang Min-hyuk; he sat in the chair and opened it.
[The forefront of my mind was occupied by the deliberation of the guardian gate. Would its deception unveil a new way for me to increase my magical ability? If I don’t meet my expectations again this time, I may be trapped in self-doubt. Part of me has already given up. I don’t want my feelings to be swayed by useless anticipation, but as long as there was some possibility, I couldn’t turn away from Suhomun’s deliberation.]
It was Klinssman’s familiar handwriting. When Kang Min-hyuk had returned to the original world, he’d begun to record his thoughts in the form of a diary.
[Day 1. I used Guardian Gate’s deliberation. I knew my intentions, but mana didn’t follow my will.]
The fundamental purpose of the training was to move mana, strengthen the body through mana, and in the end, accumulate some mana in Danjeon. It usually takes people over a year to adjust to this process. It isn’t easy to feel and move mana’s intangible power, and it requires high-level skills to accumulate it in the desired place. So Kang Min-hyuk gave Klinssman the direction but didn’t expect results right away.
He continued to read.
[Day 3. Mana began to move according to my will. The spirit of the guardian gate is similar to mana meditation, but at the same time, everything is different. Mana meditation refers to forming mana around the heart and training the basic circle of magic. However, Suhomun’s deliberation method was training the ‘human body’ itself.]
‘He’s already using the trial law?’
Kang Min-hyuk looked up from the words, surprised.
Even Lee Jun-ho, who is said to be the greatest genius of Suhomun, took a month to adapt to the Simbeop fully.
On the other hand, Kang Min-hyuk took longer than others, but Klinssman showed himself adapting to the process in only three days. Is it because the starting point is similar to mana meditation? Or is it because Klinss’ talent is unusual? Questions swarmed his mind as he turned to the next page.
[Day 10. My body is changing. My skin is harder than before, and my whole body is full of strength. My speed is increasing, and my sightless eyes seem to be gradually recovering. How the hell is this possible? Suhomun’s heart method has a power that I cannot understand.]
The phenomenon of physical strengthening Klinssman was experiencing was remarkably familiar to Kang Min-hyuk.
The method wasn’t intensive or unknown; it was a phenomenon experienced by all reinforced warriors when they were injected with reinforcement liquid. It was a process of transition from human to superhuman. However, Kang Min-hyuk’s confusion was caused by the fact that Klinss didn’t use any reinforcement solution. Usually, the body is strengthened through the injection of fortification liquid, but Klinssman was strengthening his body without any help.
Suddenly, a conversation came to mind that had been passed through generations…
“The sentiment of the guardian gate is a family secret that originated from a very long history before the Ganghwa civilization. In the present time, through the special method of reinforcement, all can obtain meaningful results with Suhomun’s examination. Still, in the past, this was a privilege granted only to a few selected people.”
The privilege was earned through talent. Even without reinforcement liquid, it is a process that accumulates mana through the depth of the method. Klinssman’s experience was exactly that.
[Day 20. Now I have confidence. Through Suhomun’s heartbeat, I am getting stronger. I haven’t taken the steps yet, but it is clear that this is taking me along a new path. I used to think that magic is all about the power of this world. In those days when I was fighting monsters with swords, magicians’ image flapping their robes was shocking to me. But now I have a new way. I will be strong through the deep law of the guardian gate, and I will eradicate all of the demons of the abyss.]
Klinssman was changing. In the last chapter, he wrote a passage directly to Kang Min-hyuk.
[I have a request to make of you.]
Klinssman, who had always acted as advisor, was now trading roles with Kang Min-hyuk.
[I had no hope that I would be strong. My limitations were set from the moment I was born, and even though I had amassed great knowledge, it meant nothing to me. But now…I don’t know your strength, but I can use my body at will if I can be strong. I sincerely beg you…in the same way that I’ve helped your evolution; I hope you help mine.]
That was the end of the diary. As Kang Min-hyuk closed the book, his face was stained with complex emotions, and he felt quite different from when he had first opened it.
* * *
The relationship with Klinssman was overly complicated. Kang Min-hyuk considered him a benefactor, but looking back to the beginning, it had begun as a one-sided journey.
‘What should I do?’
He ruminated. It was hard for him to see the request in a positive light. He had offered the Guardian Gate’s deliberation in return for the help he’d already received from Klinss. However, it was a different matter to dive into training Klinssman’s body. Min-hyuk was once the successor to Suhomun, and his training methods all stem from there. In other words, to go ahead with it would allow all the secrets of the Guardian Gate to flow into Klinssman. It was a very important decision, and one he would have to calculate carefully. It was an all-or-nothing situation; he had to be sure it was the right thing to do. He was worried.
The secret of the guardian gate was not Kang Min-hyuk’s to tell. The ancestors of Suhomun had raised it through sweat and struggle, and Kang Min-hyuk had no right to tap into it at will. However, it was said that the teachings of Suhomun were to be used for others’ good.
The reason for Suhomun’s name was reflected in the meaning of ‘Suho’ itself. It stemmed from the days when the gate’s plague first appeared. The ancestors of Suhomun hoped to protect the world with its power, so the secrets of Suhomun were well guarded, and people referred to Suhomun as Korea’s beacon of hope. Would the ancestors have turned away from Klinssman? The boy who lost his entire family to the wrath of monsters?
No…Kang Min-hyuk didn’t think so.
Besides, the secret of the guardian gate is not exactly secret. It turned into a huge force and became shrouded in mystery, but the knowledge was initially open to everyone. The ancestors of Suhomun never turned away those hungry to be taught; the power was there for those who wanted to protect the world. The attitude remained the same.
Kang Min-hyuk had no reason to turn away from Klinssman, who desperately wanted to transcend his own limitations…
“Klinssman…”
He looked down at the diary, wondering what kind of life the man who wrote it had lived. Kang Min-hyuk wasn’t sure. However, in the same way that his own life had been released from despair, he hoped that he could shed a ray of light into Klinssman’s, too.
“I believe you will do what is right. I believe in the hostility you express toward monsters. If I give you the power of the Guardian Gate, your power will be unleashed upon the monsters. Yes, I can help. I will help you to become stronger.”
He reopened the book. At the point where Klinssman’s writing ended, Kang Min-hyuk began.
[I accept your request. Be prepared to adapt to all changes that will happen to you in the future.]
Kang Min-hyuk and Klinssman’s relationship began to deepen into a mutually beneficial symbiosis.
* * *
Kang Min-hyuk sat down cross-legged. In order to train Klinssman’s body in the future, it was necessary to confirm the state of his current body.
“Whoo.”
He took a deep breath.
The blood and mana flowing in his veins reacted to Kang Min-hyuk’s will, and an inner vision began to form in his mind. It was quite different from a month ago. Klinssman had been working hard on the mental method so far, and mana was properly settled in every corner of his body. It wasn’t perfect yet; he hadn’t simplified the method, so there was an imbalance due to uneven distribution of mana, but that wasn’t such a big deal. They just had to stabilize the inner structure. Mana from Danjeon was induced into blood vessels, and the state of every corner of the body was rearranged.
Danjeon mana is a power that can be used freely; it maintains the strengthening of the body, and when Danjeon is raised, the mana in that location amplifies physical prowess. All mana shouldn’t be accumulated in a Danjeon; only when mana is properly distributed throughout the body can the power of Danjeon be fully utilized. Kang Min-hyuk is refining those basic steps.
After the preliminary check, Kang Min-hyuk conducted a full-scale operation of the Simbeop. He had to check if he could really accumulate mana even if he didn’t have the strengthening amount.
Hwaak
Nature’s mana gave a sensory stimulus to the skin as it rose, and some movement was felt through the wide-open pores.
‘It’s Mana.’
It was clear. Nature’s mana was being absorbed according to the intentions of Kang Min-hyuk’s heartbeat.
The amount wasn’t huge, but it was exciting to absorb mana with human power. Klinssman had the innate ability to adapt quickly to the process. It was astonishing.
The fundamental reason Kang Min-hyuk gave up his position as Suhomun’s successor was that he had been born with a decisive lack of talent for Simbeop. Mana didn’t react to the extent that it could be perceived as inferior, so most of the guardian gate’s secrets could not be used. So, at the time of learning magic, he felt joyful. Kang Min-hyuk’s Danjeon did not accept mana, but Kang Min-hyuk’s circle absorbed mana as much as possible.
He finished the trial. It wasn’t a lot, but Kang Min-hyuk laughed bleakly at the fact that he had increased mana just a little.
It seemed serendipitous and a little ironic. Kang Min-hyuk was born into the Ganghwa civilization and had lived for the sword all his life. Klinssman was born into an advanced magical civilization, with 2000 years of history: they each had the knowledge required by the other…but absurdity stemmed from the fact that Kang Min-hyuk was a naturally gifted magician, Klinssman was an innately powerful swordsman. Kang Min-hyuk felt as though it was a joke from God.
“Is it fate that has brought us together?”
Min-hyuk thought so.
To travel between two dimensions and find someone who has lived a different life to have the necessary aspects to compliment your strengths wasn’t something that could be dismissed as a coincidence.
In the case of a dramatic mystery, where logic failed to explain, the word destiny summarised it all.
‘Maybe with Klinss’s body, he may reach the ultimate level set by Suhomun.’
Suddenly, an idea came to Kang Min-hyuk’s mind. “What if I use the Guardian Door’s Heart Method in the Mana Room?”
It was a world with barren mana, and even in that world, Klinssman’s body attracted the mana of nature itself.
However, if you use the mental method in a room full of natural mana, how will Klinssman’s body react?
In the world where I lived, I might achieve that which would usually take ten years in just one year.
It was a possibility. Kang Min-hyuk got goosebumps from his body just to consider the potential.
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