I drew mana thinly and wrapped it around my entire body.
If I stepped out into the busy district without a Perception-Obscuring Field, the entire street would be paralyzed by the crowds swarming me.
The plaza in front of the subway station on a weekend afternoon was packed with people, leaving no room to step.
As I pushed through the crowd, I spotted a familiar face.
My younger sister's college friend and today's burden I'd taken on—Yu Seol-a.
Wavy hair cascading down to her waist.
Flashy nail art and stylish clothes.
The typical appearance of an urban woman you'd see anywhere.
She looked more like someone heading to a cafe than a Hunter about to enter a dungeon.
I approached silently from behind.
I dropped the Perception-Obscuring Field and spoke.
"Hey."
At the voice that suddenly popped out, Yu Seol-a jumped.
She turned around, her eyes widening.
"Eek! You really came!"
She gasped for breath and covered her mouth with both hands.
I'd heard from Kang Ha-eun.
That she was a hardcore fan who collected all my combat footage and merchandise.
She couldn't even make eye contact properly, and I could see her heart rate going crazy.
She looked ready to be moved to tears just from me breathing, which was exhausting.
"Whatever. Where are the other party members? You said you were forming a temporary raid party."
"Ah, o-over there! I'll guide you!"
Seol-a stiffly took the lead.
In a corner of the plaza, three men and women in gear were waiting in front of the dungeon entrance portal.
One tank holding a massive shield.
A healer to handle recovery and a mage for firepower.
A typical beginner composition.
As I approached with Seol-a, the three people's conversation cut off abruptly.
Silence flowed.
"K-Kang Tae-ho Hunter?!"
The tank dropped the helmet he was holding.
They all sprang up like springs and bent their backs at 90 degrees.
"Hello, Tae-ho Hunter!"
"Enough. Straighten up."
I waved my hand dismissively.
"I'm tagging along today as Yu Seol-a's temporary guide. I'll just watch from the back, so do what you normally do."
At those words, the party members wiped cold sweat and nodded vigorously.
I turned my gaze to look at Seol-a, who was frozen stiff.
I'd only heard from Ha-eun that she'd roughly awakened; I hadn't asked for detailed information.
"Your awakening type. Is it general or special?"
"G-general...! My awakening name is Fighter!"
A close-range DPS with that delicate body using her fists.
But there was nothing strange about it.
The awakening name on the Status Window isn't an absolute profession.
It's just a form the System forcibly shoved in looking only at efficiency.
You only need to look at my own situation to know that.
"So it opened a path toward close-combat bonuses. What's your total mana amount by Hunter Rank standards?"
"I got C-Rank!"
"Hmm. Your mana amount is usable. Combat experience?"
"At the Association training center... hitting wooden dummies is all I've done..."
Her face had turned pale white.
With a mentality that couldn't even kill a bug, she had to smash a monster's skull right away, so feeling fear was natural.
Tsk. I clicked my tongue.
"Today's your first real combat?"
"Yes... it's my first time."
"I'll know when I see how you do. Looks like you're ready, so let's go."
The party members moved toward the E-Rank Gate rift rippling in the center of the plaza.
I leisurely stuck my hands in my pockets and followed behind.
My vision inverted to red.
A disgusting stench of blood stabbed my nose.
As the preliminary survey information indicated, it was a dimly lit cave-type dungeon.
Stalactites hung from the ceiling, and the floor was damp.
"Tsk. Of all things, a goblin colony with beginners."
I muttered dryly.
Dark, narrow terrain was absolutely advantageous for small-bodied creatures.
It was the perfect environment for newbies experiencing real combat for the first time to panic after being ambushed.
Tension was evident on the party members' faces too.
"Form up. I won't step in unless you're really about to die."
I leaned against the cave wall and crossed my arms.
The mage began casting.
A sphere of light rose into the air, pushing back the darkness.
The tank took the lead with his shield forward.
Seol-a stuck close right behind the tank, completely hunched over.
"Textbook formation. Proceed."
Had we walked through the passage for about ten minutes?
A bizarre laughter echoed from the darkness.
Kirik, kiririk.
Five goblins with green skin poured out from gaps in the ceiling and walls.
Each held rusty daggers and clubs in their hands.
"They're here! Front defense!"
The tank raised his shield.
Clang! Kachang!
The rusty daggers struck the iron shield, sparks flying.
The tank, his center of gravity shifted backward, let out a grunt as he was pushed back.
"Yu Seol-a Hunter! Right side!"
At the tank's shout, Seol-a squeezed her eyes shut.
"Kyaaaah!"
She wildly threw punches while screaming.
The mana gauntlets wrapping both hands emitted a blue light.
—Kwang!
An explosive sound burst out.
One goblin died instantly, its chest grotesquely crushed as it was slammed into the wall.
The power was definitely C-Rank level.
But my brow furrowed.
"G-go away! Don't come near!"
Seol-a swung her gauntlets without even opening her eyes.
Each time her fists missed, the cave walls cracked and piles of rocks collapsed.
Her internal mana was leaking out meaninglessly.
"Mage! Concentrate firepower!"
The mage in the back fired mana bullets to clean up the remaining goblins.
As soon as the battle ended, Seol-a collapsed to the floor, gasping for breath.
Her face was pale, and her fingertips were trembling.
Side effects of rapid stamina depletion from mana overload.
Fighting like that, she'd die of exhaustion in the next room, let alone the boss room.
"Hey. Everyone gather around."
I called the party members together.
I plopped down on a rock.
My feet dangled in the air, not reaching the ground.
"First, tank. When the goblin dropped from above earlier, your shield angle was a mess. Your center of gravity completely shifted backward."
"Ah... yes, yes. I panicked..."
"When receiving attacks pressing down from above, don't raise it vertically—angle it to deflect. If you stubbornly try to endure, your shoulder joint will give out first."
The tank nodded with military discipline.
I turned my gaze to glare sharply at the sweat-drenched Seol-a.
"Yu Seol-a. You need to open your eyes properly first."
Seol-a flinched and hunched her shoulders.
"Does it make sense for a close-range DPS to shadowbox with her eyes squeezed shut?"
"S-sorry... they looked too disgusting..."
"And your mana operation is complete garbage."
I mercilessly drove the fact home.
"You relied on having one big mana pool and dumped it all in one shot, right? If you waste mana like that, you'll collapse from stamina depletion before reaching the middle of the dungeon."
No matter how huge the mana pool, without control, you'll exhaust your mana in one sloppy attack.
The absolute standard of strength isn't size, but control and efficiency.
"Don't stupidly wrap mana around your entire fist. At the instant your strike connects with the enemy, compress and detonate it only at the knuckle area. Understand?"
"Yes, yes! I'll keep it in mind!"
Seol-a jumped up from her seat as she answered.
"If you've caught your breath, let's move out again."
The effect of the nagging was definite.
From the second battle onward, the tank's formation became considerably more stable.
Seol-a also desperately kept her eyes open and began compressing mana to drive it into the goblins' solar plexuses.
As the mana waste rate decreased, the rate at which she tired also noticeably reduced.
After an hour of breakthrough, we reached the final boss area.
A hobgoblin with a build reaching 2 meters burst out from the darkness.
"I'll draw its attention first! Mage, support fire! Yu Seol-a Hunter, standby for entry!"
The tank angled his shield to deflect the hobgoblin's massive club.
Taking advantage of the opening, mana bullets obscured the monster's vision.
Right at that moment.
Seol-a kicked off the ground and leaped.
Blue mana compressed at high density at the tip of her right fist.
—Pueok!
The gauntlet pierced through and crushed the hobgoblin's jaw.
The monster collapsed with a thud.
Situation over.
I lifted my body from where I'd been leaning against the wall.
I slowly approached the corpse.
"Hobgoblin byproducts are useless. Just collect the Mana Stone."
The party members hesitated, looking at the gruesome corpse.
Beginners find it disgusting to directly cut open a monster's belly and extract the Mana Stone.
I lightly flicked my right index finger.
Blue mana sharply dug into the hobgoblin's solar plexus.
Smoothly.
An E-Rank Mana Stone without a drop of blood floated into the air and fell into my palm.
"If you handle mana precisely, you won't get blood on your hands."
The newbies stared at the cleanly extracted Mana Stone with blank expressions.
I really intended to just watch from start to finish in the dungeon.
But in the end, I did flick my finger at the last moment.
I walked out of the Gate.
Afternoon sunlight poured down.
The party members let out cheers and collapsed to the ground.
"Wow... we survived. Everyone did great!"
Seol-a also sat down on the ground as her legs gave out, exhaling rough breaths.
Her expression was deeply infused with the sense of accomplishment from having succeeded.
The mage from the party approached hesitantly.
"Um... Hero. If it's not too much trouble, could we take one group photo...?"
Annoying.
But it was hard to coldly reject the eyes of newbies who'd just overcome their first real combat.
"Haah... Take it quickly and let's disband."
The party members swarmed around me.
I made a half-hearted peace sign toward the camera lens with an expressionless face.
—Click.
It was the moment another eyewitness photo to be posted on social media was added.
After disbanding the party, I took only Seol-a to a shabby soup restaurant nearby.
After combat, greasy meat or hot soup is the best.
I ordered two extra-large bowls and sat facing her.
Seol-a remained frozen, only fiddling with her spoon.
"Eat before it gets cold. I won't nag while we're eating."
"Ah, yes! Thank you for the meal!"
Only then did Seol-a start eating the soup.
I also mixed rice into mine and chewed on kkakdugi.
As the meal was emptying, I casually spoke.
"For your first time, it wasn't bad. Your mentality probably took a hit though."
"It's thanks to Hero's feedback. When I compressed the mana, my body got much less tired."
"Remember one more thing."
I put down my water cup and met Seol-a's eyes.
"Just because your awakening name is Fighter doesn't mean you have to obsessively stick to enemies and only use your fists."
Seol-a's eyes widened.
"The awakening name on the Status Window isn't an absolute profession. It's just an optimized form the System forcibly overlaid on your body to increase mana efficiency. Don't be trapped by it."
I raised my right hand and condensed blue mana into a small point at my fingertip.
The small sphere-shaped mana rotated with a sharp sound.
"Mana is ultimately energy. Even if you have a body specialized in physical destructive power, if you compress mana to the extreme and release it into the air, that becomes a slash, becomes a shell."
Even using the same mana, whether you create scattering sparks or a condensed arrow depends on skill.
Wonder filled Seol-a's eyes.
"Ah... don't be dragged around by the awakening name... I'll engrave it in my bones!"
"Build combat experience slowly. But practice mana compression like breathing even in daily life. Then you won't die a dog's death."
I hopped down from my seat.
I approached the register and swiped the corporate card for the meal.
"Um... Hero! I won't bother you, so could we just exchange numbers once...?"
Seol-a urgently held out her smartphone.
Rather than having contact come through Ha-eun, it'd be better to directly shut it down with short replies.
I roughly tapped in my number and left the restaurant.
The sun was setting.
I caught a taxi and returned home.
As soon as I opened the front door and entered the penthouse living room, Ha-eun, who'd been lying on the sofa, sprang up.
"Oppa! You're back? How was it? Did our Seol-a do well? She didn't get hurt?"
"Yeah."
I tossed off my training jacket and answered perfunctorily.
"Just your average newbie level. I brought her back alive and well, so don't make a fuss."
"Ah, what~ Would it kill you to give her lots of praise? Say something nice!"
"You're loud. Move. I'm tired and going to sleep."
I ignored the whining Ha-eun, opened my room door, and went in.
I threw myself onto the bed.
I feel alive.
My smartphone buzzed in my pocket.
When I turned on the screen, there was a text from Seol-a, whose number I'd exchanged.
[Tae-ho Hunter! Thank you so very sincerely for guiding inadequate me today! ㅠㅠ I'll deeply engrave the advice Hero gave me in my heart and become an excellent Hunter who surpasses the limits of Fighter! Rest well! I respect you! ⟨heart emoticon⟩]
It was a densely packed long message that required scrolling for a while.
It was practically a prayer.
"Why'd she write such a long message? Exhausting."
I muttered dryly and roughly tapped the keyboard.
[ok. good work.]
I pressed the send button and tossed the smartphone onto the nightstand.
I pulled the bed covers up to my chin.
It'll be quiet for a while.
