Chapter 145

〈Chapter 145〉 Part 1, Chapter 8 (4)

To me, this testing chamber is a place I’ve visited countless times during gameplay.

A level-testing chamber, you could say.

It’s the only place where one can check the growth limit of ability users expressed as affinity rates, so every time my comrades came in one by one, I had to visit this chamber repeatedly.

‘Eventually, they’ll make portable testers though.’

For now, I have to endure the inconvenience. Of course, as the spirit Phoenix, I can gauge someone’s affinity just by making contact with them. I leaned back slightly on purpose.

“Hmm.”

Just like now. Yi Seung-hyeong caught me from behind as I was about to fall, and in that moment, I confirmed once more how much potential for growth he possessed.

Fire Attribute: 98. All his other elemental powers were pretty standard, but his Fire Attribute was exceptionally high.

“……”

“Are you alright?”

“It’s nothing. Just a bit of anemia.”

I waved my hand and stood up again. The supervisor looked worried, but my physical fatigue paled in comparison to the mental stress.

‘What the heck is this guy?’

Fire Attribute 98. This man has talent capable of reaching a level cap that’s just one below max.

‘…Could this guy have died without appearing in the original story?’

There’s only one possibility: either he didn’t reach S-Rank and was killed by villains while at A-Rank, or he passed away long before the original storyline began, leaving him as a common A-Rank hero.

But thanks to my flames, he became an S-Rank hero, and if he grows a little more, he’ll have the power to reach SS-Rank on his own.

‘Should I really train him?’

Even though I’m concerned about Cheon Gaeul, anyone with this kind of potential is definitely worth cultivating. If I later suppress Nuclearian and let him truly master the art of Hwakwon, Yi Seung-hyeong will become my real trump card.

“Uh…”

“Yes?”

“You have that illness, right?”

“It’s not really an illness… more like a curse.”

Yi Seung-hyeong pouted as he muttered. The curse of the Flame Dragon that burns my mana whenever I go to Seoul? That’s all on me.

“…Let me see your hand for a moment.”

I extended my hand toward Yi Seung-hyeong. Though embarrassed, he took my hand.

“…You should be fine going to Seoul from now on.”

“Huh? …? I don’t feel any difference.”

“There is. You just can’t sense it.”

‘Because my heart has changed.’

I’ve decided not to be swayed by heroines anymore. There’s only one person in my heart now.

‘So stop weighing the world against me and help me out already.’

I placed my hand on my chest and stepped onto the two-footed platform in front of the tester. As I placed my hand on the lens-like panel that popped out from the tester, the gathered heroes started whispering among themselves.

– He doesn’t look like he’s ever been tested before.

– Is he really EX-Rank… awakening in a completely different direction from his original abilities?

– With how he awakened the Black Flame Dragon, his fire attribute must be truly incredible.

Bip.

The test results came out. The heroes who had rushed over in the meantime fixed their gazes on the top monitor screen.

Fire: 00

Water: 00

Earth: 00

Wind: 00

Light: 00

Darkness: 00

Illusion: 00

“Is this some sort of tragedy?!”

Yu Yeong-ho exclaimed dramatically. My carefully planned deception was finally paying off.

“To think he’s reduced his affinity rate to zero just by controlling monsters… what sorcery is this?!”

‘Typically delusional.’

People are startled by my tragic mana affinity, and Yu Yeong-ho’s misunderstanding leads them to pity me.

– Poor guy, lost all his mana controlling monsters…

– How can someone lose all their mana?

Regardless of what people say, I nodded unconsciously at the precise alignment of elemental patterns matching my memories.

‘There’s no way I’d have any affinity except for my own element.’

From my perspective, this feels like directly confirming game data with my own eyes, but I’m grateful for the limitations of this outdated tester.

‘If it showed three-digit numbers, what would I have done?’

My Fire Attribute would’ve hit 100. Swallowing the rest of my words, I stepped away from the tester.

Click.

Light flowed out from the lens, officially registering my mana pattern with the Hero Association.

– <Beast Tamer>, ‘Blue Wind’. Officially registered with the Hero Association. Welcome.

That day, I registered the humanoid form of Phoenix as a hero.

* * *

“So should we call you Blue Wind now?”

“Wrong. Call me Phoenix.”

I corrected Yoo Sung, the chairman, while giving him a scolding. After registering as an ability user with the association, I turned down the esteemed members’ invitation to dine together and instead went on a date with the truly high-ranking person.

“Sir, aren’t you tired doing two roles alone? Being a hero during the day and a villain at night?”

“It’s the opposite. The monster controller will strictly operate at night.”

“What about during the day?”

“I’ll be Phoenix.”

Unlike a nighttime thief, Phoenix is stronger under the sun shining on the earth during the day. Although it doesn’t weaken at night, there are more opportunities during the day.

“Relatively, there are fewer annoying people at night. During the day, I have many places to visit.”

Mainly gathering cores, managing core supplies, and eliminating monsters. Since we don’t yet have enough full strength to cover the entire Korean Peninsula, I’ll have to handle the incoming monsters alone until they grow.

“But sir, the more you work, the more cores we get, so thank you…”

“Yeah. By the way, I need to go to China soon.”

Mo Taegyeong summoned the monster controller to China. Even without me explaining, Yoon Yuhwa surely pieced together the information from various sources and understands the intention.

“Isn’t it about kidnapping, forcing medication, and compulsory naturalization?”

“Correct answer. And they might also be thinking…”

I felt unpleasant just imagining it.

“If the monster controller bears a child after being seeded with their seed, another hero will be born.”

“…Sir, shouldn’t you really not go?”

“Why? Are you scared something might happen to me?”

“Yes.”

At Yoon Yuhwa’s serious response, I inexplicably felt flustered. Yoon Yuhwa also seemed a bit embarrassed, keeping her eyes closed as she waited for me to speak.

“…Don’t worry. Something like that won’t happen.”

That’s why I’m going to China. After conveying my sincerity to Yoon Yuhwa with my mana, I shifted the gloomy topic to a dream-filled one.

“So, I plan to beat up all the S-Rank monsters in China.”

“Ah! So are you going to bring back frost from those too?!”

“Yeah. I’ll give you everything except what’s absolutely necessary.”

Yoon Yuhwa immediately brightened up. Her eyes sparkled so much with excitement about distributing S-Rank cores that it was hard to tell if they were stars or gold.

“Really, Sir. Thanks to you, life has been enjoyable lately.”

“That means you’ve been working a lot, huh? Looks like you’ve only slept for a couple of hours.”

“….Did you plant spies near me?”

“No. I can tell from your scattered mana.”

I reached out and grabbed Yoon Yuhwa’s hand resting on the table. Her pulse quickened slightly, and as I infused her with my mana, I boosted her vitality.

“My fire mana isn’t very efficient, but it should alleviate some of your fatigue.”

“….Ahem.”

Yoon Yuhwa cleared her throat and picked up her glass. She’s still young, I guess, since even this small skinship makes her blush—refreshingly different from the original story.

“Oh, by the way.”

Remembering the topic I wanted to bring up because Yoon Yuhwa wasn’t behaving like the 25-year-old puppeteer I remember, I continued.

“I have a favor to ask. It’ll require quite a bit of money…”

“What is it?”

As expected, Yoon Yuhwa instantly switched from the blushing maiden to the calculating chairman upon hearing the mention of expenses. I handed her the profile of Architect, a mid-level officer of the Blue Wind Sect whom I brought specifically to Seoul.

“An architecture ability user?”

“One B-Rank core can build a ten-story building in an hour.”

“…While buying time with money does make sense, isn’t one B-Rank core a bit too much?”

“We can earn cores through hunting. Besides, what I want to build isn’t just any ordinary building.”

I pulled out a map and pointed to a large plot of land in Dongjak. Yoon Yuhwa quickly realized the nature of the site and guessed my intentions.

“Rebuilding Inseoul University?”

“No. What we need now isn’t a university but an academy.”

“What’s the difference? …Academy? Could it be, Sir…?”

“Miss Yoon.”

I proposed a business idea that would surely interest her.

“Wouldn’t you consider starting an ability user training academy?”

***

After the battle at the Yalu River with Chinese heroes led by Unjang,

I realized the severe problem with the Blue Wind Sect’s combat capabilities.

The number of usable ability users is absolutely insufficient.

All the senior officers, except for Jo Deokbae, who acts as my shoe insert, are above A-Rank, but compared globally, both S-Rank and A-Rank heroes are abundant. We lack quantity despite having quality.

South Korea has about 600 heroes. Including villains and unregistered ability users, the number exceeds a thousand, but compared to China’s million heroes, our numbers are woefully inadequate.

‘That’s why I used Seok Harang’s power to create five thousand water-element ability users.’

Still, it’s not enough. With current awakenings only allowing for basic uses like washing hands, we need a specialized institution for systematic hero training.

Right here in Seoul.

I briefly explained my thoughts to Yoon Yuhwa.

***

“And the trained ability users will join the Blue Wind Sect?”

“Some will. I can’t just leave our promising recruits to be dogs for the association.”

“I agree. Ability users are national power after all. Nothing bad about it. …Ah, so that’s why you brought Architect? To set up a team here in New Seoul and design something impressive.”

“Exactly. If I leave everything to Architect, Seoul might as well turn into Han Yang again.”

Despite his purely American appearance, Architect James Lee insists on traditional aesthetics far more than any nobleman. Since I can’t manage things directly, I need to prevent him from turning the entire Seoul area into tile-roof houses while sipping makgeolli.

“So, Yoo Sung, lend me a hand. You know his abilities, so help him design buildings suitable for modern times.”

“Doesn’t Sir design clothes too?”

Yoon Yuhwa pointed behind her. Various types of clothing made for mechanical dolls – Xroids – were on display, each resembling her.

“The gifts I made with mana weaving… you’re using them on dolls.”

“They’re too precious to waste.”

Yoon Yuhwa received the various outfits I created with mana but used them for doll play. While the dolls resembled her, they lacked vitality.

“These designs… no, never mind. I’m busy anyway.”

Since these are merely implemented DLC skins from the game, and the actual designer isn’t me, what more is there to say? I deflected the conversation back to the training facility.

“I have to go to China, so I’m asking you to take care of this while I’m gone. At least have the academy building ready when I return.”

“How long will you be gone?”

“About three weeks?”

Though I planned with some leeway, it will likely take at least two weeks if everything goes smoothly. Plans rarely go according to schedule.

“Hmm. Then, Sir, I’ll come along.”

“What?”

“I’ll send a doll. Not the main body, but a doll will suffice, right?”

“No. I have someone else here.”

I pointed to the insole beneath my bare feet. Yoon Yuhwa looked slightly repulsed by the rock-like texture unlike regular rubber.

“…Sir?”

“I’ll return it to normal once we leave New Seoul. Can’t exactly drop a Flame Giant in the middle of New Seoul, can I?”

“Hmph. Really…”

I can’t possibly show everything I’ll do in China to the heroines. Still, I need someone to chat with to keep my mouth occupied, but bringing a monster to New Seoul isn’t feasible.

“Alright. I’ll prepare Jo Deokbae’s spot then. Who will represent the training facility, Sir? Should we set up a figurehead?”

“A hedonist obsessed with alcohol and women lives in Busan.”

“…Ah.”

Yoon Yuhwa openly frowned. She invested everything to acquire him, only for the previous owner to reappear and reclaim him.

“Why isn’t he going to Russia? His wife seemed almost like Russian royalty.”

“Sex.”

“Cough! Choke!”

Yoon Yuhwa choked on her tea, covering her mouth with her hand. I calmly sipped my strawberry latte and continued.

“He says he needs to catch up on twenty years. Also, they’re worried about mosquitoes around their daughter.”

“Sir.”

Wiping coffee from her lips with a handkerchief, Yoon Yuhwa spoke.

“One of those mosquitoes is you, Sir. What would you say if Harang’s ex-husband showed up?”

“…”

“Being honest, you’re going to China to find your ex-wife, right?”

I couldn’t say anything.

Because it’s true.