Archmage (2)
Hibiki, who had disappeared from the room, reappeared a few minutes later.
When she returned, the Awakening Stone I had left on her desk turned gray. It crushed like burnt briquettes and melted in the air without leaving a trace.
Hibiki had Awakened successfully.
“Ah!”
She looked down at her hands as if everything was unfamiliar. Her face was calm, but she couldn’t speak easily.
I knew what that felt like—the feeling of lightness when you just Awakened as a hunter. Refreshing feeling as if all cells had been newly woken up and reborn.
“Congratulations.”
Hibiki’s eyes were slightly shaken.
“Now, about the chances of rampage····.”
“As I said, now that you’ve activated the core, the possibility is close to zero. If you’re still nervous, you can continue to activate the potential Mana.”
In her previous life, Hibiki had almost activated all of 50,000 potential Mana, and she had done it in a short time, too.
Now, it was time to check what I was curious about.
“Do you see the system message?”
“Yes.”
I asked her potential Mana and active Mana that I already knew. Next up…
“What’s your unique skill?”
I waited nervously for the words to fall out of her mouth. Hibiki’s eyes stared into the air and read it along.
“Multiple… Cognition.”
That was the one phrase I was waiting for.
‘It’s a success!’
Amano Hibiki was likely to be called the Archmage in this life, too. I sang of pleasure inwardly.
‘Even if the Awakening method and timing are different, the unique skill will not change!’
When gathering more colleagues in the future, there was no need to worry about their capabilities being different from the future.
‘Just as the potential Mana is set at birth, I can think of unique skills as being attributed to one person. It’s literally a unique ability.‘
I eased my worries. After that, Hibiki was busy reading the system message for a while, and I waited without hurrying her.
“I checked everything.”
I suggested how to nurture her from now on as if I analyzed the information I had heard so far.
“It’s a unique skill that’s optimized to use magic.”
Instead of starting with close-range type Hunter’s basic skills, such as Sword Mastery and Mana Barrier, Hibiki nodded unopposed at my proposal to fill all four now-open slots with magic mastery skills.
Rather than weigh the pros and cons of my words, she must be busy following me with the information in her head.
“The company will pay for the initial training, as stated in the contract.”
I also included an anti-eat-and-run clause in case she suspected it was a fraud if the terms of the contract were too generous, but I didn’t have to worry about such a possibility.
If Hibiki grew up like this, a lot of guilds would continue to offer scout proposals. Still, she wouldn’t even bother with it.
I knew her personality, beyond the fragmentation of her fundamental nature that she currently showed.
‘She will find out after months of training and getting used to the Hunter industry that I’m the one who can make her grow the fastest.’
There was another reason why Hibiki was called the Archmage.
Although it was a tool to slaughter dungeon monsters she hated so much, Hibiki loved magic with all her heart.
Magic was her only interest, work, and hobby in her hands. Whenever she had a chance, she constantly experimented with the Mana in her body, thinking about improving her proficiency in each spell and studying to improve it.
‘Some magic had been modified so much that there was little trace of the system Mana pattern guide.’
Other Hunters tried to learn such modified magic. Still, communication was difficult without seeing each other’s Mana, and I, who could see and remember it perfectly, had limitations in explaining it with words and videos.
Of course, I was using it well after the reincarnation. Most of the magic skills I used now were improved versions of Hibiki’s.
‘I’m going to teach this to Hibiki again.‘
Hibiki would be learning the achievements and heritage of the future herself.
‘And then, she’ll go beyond it.‘
This life had changed from the beginning.
“Do you have any more questions?”
Hibiki looked down at the contract, hesitating for a moment before speaking. “You said we were going to Korea, right?”
“Yes.”
“Here, your name.”
There was the real name I had just written down in the signature column of the contract indicated by my finger.
“This sounds like a Korean name.”
She took turns looking at my Western-looking face and the name of the signature column.
The reason why I approached in disguise was in case she refused and would get into a long argument. However, there was no need to hide anymore.
“It would be quite unpleasant for the Japanese government to Awaken someone and scout them to Korea in this way. That’s why I’m registering you as a Hunter in Korea.”
Beyond the unpleasantness, they would impose sanctions.
“And so, I inevitably disguised myself.”
In fact, there was a greater reason to remove the traces of Seo Jin-wook coming to Japan.
Wubble!
I took off the mask slime I was wearing on my face, revealing not the image of a Hunter who would enter Korea, not the look that I used it in the U.S. The face, used only for today’s camouflage, was removed.
Hibiki’s eyes slightly widened when she saw my bare face beneath it.
“Let me greet you again. I’m Seo Jin-wook. I look forward to working with you.”
“I look forward to working with you, too.”
It must be interesting to see the Mask Slime for the first time. Hibiki, who had been staring at my face for a while, suddenly murmured.
“You’re much….younger than I thought you’d be.”
*
I gave her a few more days to arrange everything around her.
“I’m sorry for the tight schedule. Is it possible in 3 days? You don’t have to terminate the house papers. The company will pay for the rent for the time being.”
“Yes.”
I thought it was a tight schedule, but Hibiki contacted me the next day.
“I’m done fixing up.”
When I came to pick her up, Hibiki was waiting for me with a simple Boston bag, not even a travel carrier.
“Is this all the luggage?”
She nodded quietly.
“Hmm…”
I had revealed that I was a Hunter, I had confirmed that it was a real company in the U.S., and I had solved her problems, but this was a little unexpected.
I then asked with a foolish smile. “It’s fast and simple. Aren’t you nervous? To start a new life by leaving your previous life behind you?”
Besides, she was being led by a foreigner who came by unexpectedly, too. However, Hibiki’s answer was unexpected.
“No, it’s refreshing.”
It was the first expression I heard from her mouth after my reincarnation, although her expression was still cold.
“I’m really relieved.”
“I see.”
Perhaps she had been waiting for an opportunity to leave the past, which was symbolized by anxiety, fear, and guilt.
*
“Here I am.”
“Jin-wook! Welcome!”
When I opened the hotel door, Nate, who watched TV in the living room, ran out.
“Huh? Who is this?”
I introduced the two to each other.
“We’ll be working together in the future.”
Hibiki bowed her head. Nate also said ‘hello’ and asked me.
“Are we working together? Then… Is she an Awakened? She’s a Hunter, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Oh, you’re not an ordinary person. That’s a relief!”
What do you mean, that’s a relief?
“Look, Jin-wook! Look at this. While Jin-wook was gone, the cat threw up two more crystals, so I kept it safe. That it would never break, in the safest way!”
The safest way? I somehow felt uneasy about it.
“Oh, wait a minute…”
At that moment…
Wubble!
Nate’s shadow wobbled, and a zombie in the shape of a small child crawled out from it.
“Uhhhh…!”
The zombie looked at Nate with a half-melted face and put out his hands together.
There were two Iponia crystals on it.
“Thank you, Ally!”
“Uhhhh… Ohhhh…!”
I looked at Hibiki, who froze on the spot. She would definitely need an explanation.
“Oh, what that is?”
Hibiki’s expression was still unmoved. Her gaze pointed at the boy zombie that crawled out of the shadows without saying a word.
“Uh… Hibiki?”
Then…
Thud!
Hibiki then fainted on the floor of the hotel carpet with a blank expression.
*
After sending Nate and Hibiki to Korea, I arrived in Korea on a separate flight. In an identity created by the Senator, well, lent, to be exact.
As soon as the plane door opened, people from the government waited for me in well-ironed suits.
“Welcome to Korea, Mr. Bill Russell.”
My steps never stopped while I was moving under their protocol.
After walking out of the airport through a separate immigration stand, I boarded the prepared vehicle. It was a black business car headed for Hannam-dong. The entire house was rented for me, technically for a single person named Bill Russell.
‘Well, the Korean government should serve the Hunters who are coming in from abroad well.‘
They were here specifically to help prevent the collapse of the S-Class dungeon. In fact, it was just as dangerous.
‘Depending on whether you value risk or return, the decision would be different. Like the real Bill Russell, some people choose no-risk and low-return.’
Bill Russell, an S-Class Hunter who lent his identity without knowing who I was, would be enjoying his vacation at his villa in Miami now, avoiding the eyes of others after receiving an acceptable amount of fee through the Senator. I didn’t know him in my previous life, but he was actually said to be one of the Senator’s people.
“Please dismiss all the employees. They’re getting on my way in training.”
“Will you be alright?”
“Yes.”
After sending out the employees who were waiting for chores or miscellaneous errands, I was the only one who remained alone in the house.
‘Now, I’m going to catch my breath.‘
I rented another house under the name of the company not far from this house and let Nate and Hibiki stay there, and so, I went back and forth between the two places to watch their training for the time being.
In the meantime, information was delivered that Hunters were coming in one after another from all around the world. When all the Hunters finally arrived in Korea, the first briefing began.
*
“Nice to meet you. I’m Han-seol.”
“I am Seo Gyu-cheol.”
“I am Bill Russell.”
The multinational Hunter team, of course, included the Korean Hunters. Since they had experienced it directly by their clear, they led the briefing. Even I was a little nervous when I faced them in Bill Russell’s shell. It was because of Han-seol rather than Seo Gyu-cheol.
‘May that be a skill or whatever… How does she, how far, and how clear does she see the future?’
If she had even predicted that I would join the expedition under disguise, she would not be to the point of being omnipotent, but the level of all-knowing.
However, there was nothing I could do with that assumption. What plan would work in front of an all-knowing?
“I’ve heard a lot about you. Thank you for your help.”
However, a slightly tired-faced Han-seol passed by with a brief greeting, just as she greeted all the other hunters.
“We will start the briefing.”
After an hour of briefing and more than two hours of question and answer, the faces of the hunters gathered from each country became more serious. A hunter, sitting next to me, looked at me, and spoke.
“What a tricky dungeon.”
I answered bluntly. “It is.”
“I understand why they dragged it on for three months. It would have been hard without a person as capable as me as the support.”
Her name was Nicole Thompson, the one who calmly talked about her high reputation.
She was a member of the U.S. team formed by the Senator and a support type hunter in SS-Rank that did not exist in Korea. In my previous life, she also participated in the Siheung 8th dungeon’s final attack, which took place half a year later.
Then, she died there.
“Hmm?”
She stared at me in my face and said, “Bill Russell? I’ve heard of your name, but it’s my first time seeing you.”
“I see.”
“Yes, I’ve never seen you before. But… is this not your first time?”
“What do you mean?”
She tilted her head with a smile on her mouth.
“I have a good sense. It’s not like a skill as a hunter, but it’s just a hunch… but the way you look at me doesn’t feel like the kind you give to someone you’ve never seen before.”
I clicked my tongue inside. I tried not to reveal it, but I thought she could read my awkward attitude. I had been feeling a bit tense to deal with this Hunter, Nicole Thompson.
“Maybe, the death of my previous life has become a trauma to me.”
The reason was nothing much.
It was not the appearance and physique of a woman named Nicole Thompson or what she looked like. She had a blonde cut under the ear, white skin, green eyes, and a slender build.
The only similarities were those listed above. There would be more than a million people on this planet who satisfied all the above characteristics.
If you compare only faces, her appearance was not completely similar—a completely different person when comparing Mana’s amount in the core.
However, there was a thing that she had—the aura felt from a person.
It was the feeling of that person.
‘This, I need to fix it. If I keep doing this, I’ll be offended to see any white blonde in the future.’
The woman named Nicole Thompson reminded me of Angelica.
‘Still… They do look a little bit alike.’
I shook my head and dusted off my thoughts.
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