Chapter 376: I Hate Fire (3)

After diligently swinging the Flame Whip and finishing one round of hunting Obsidian Golems in the igneous rock cave.

For now, after managing to defeat about ten of them according to the accepted commission, I reached the point where I could give myself a rather satisfactory self-assessment.

Being able to inflict damage on a B-rank fire monster with magic of the same fire attribute meant that the Flame Magic I had used until just now was not significantly different in power from a 4th Circle spell.

Perhaps, at this level, Hwayoung Sunbae would say it’s a sufficiently decent improved version.

Giving up the mana dedicated to stability and boldly increasing the firepower was definitely effective.

Although it had become less like a rope made of flames, like the existing Flame Whip, and more like a bomb exploding the moment it touched the monster’s body.

Any way you go, as long as you reach Seoul, it’s fine. Anyway, as a result, it meant I had created a magic spell that was quite highly usable.

It was useful in many ways, both in lethality and practicality. To the point where I thought it would be okay to even use it if necessary, when truly needed.

…Now, what’s essentially left is Cha Yuri’s evaluation.

“…….”

I wondered if she was really watching me use the Flame Whip.

I hurried my steps towards Cha Yuri, who was looking at me with a blank stare from a short distance away.

As soon as I approached, Cha Yuri opened her mouth and uttered in a calm voice.

“…Not bad.”

“Huh?”

“Using the instability of Flame Magic to link it into an immediate explosion the moment it touches the monster’s body, right? It was not a bad idea.”

“Ah, yes.”

“And the way you operated the mana itself was quite decent too. For a magic you made yourself, it looks quite usable in many ways.”

“…Thank you.”

I had wondered if, because she’d been wearing a displeased expression all day today, she hadn’t properly observed my Flame Whip either, but it seemed that part was just my useless worry.

Seeing that she uttered her impression of my magic’s completion without the slightest hesitation, it seemed she had watched me dealing with the Obsidian Golems using the Flame Whip without missing anything.

As soon as the magic demonstration ended, she gave her feedback wholeheartedly based on what she observed.

“So, is that all?”

“…There is one more, though.”

“There is one, you say?”

“Well, it’s because it’s not a finished magic spell yet.”

“Show me, then.”

“……”

As I was debating whether to show the second magic spell, which was too embarrassing to even call magic, Cha Yuri’s slightly urging voice was heard.

“Why hesitate? You asked for help with magic consultation.”

“Actually, it’s because the completion level is so insufficient that I can’t even call it magic. Even if Cha Yuri-ssi sees it directly, it won’t make much difference…”

“I’ll see it and judge, so just show it first.”

“…Alright.”

Indeed, in the first place, it’s nonsensical that after calling her to ask for magic consultation, I myself would be embarrassed to show the magic.

Showing an unfinished magic spell to someone else made me hesitate a bit, but hesitating to show the magic here itself was, in a way, just as shameful an act.

Steeling myself for a certain amount of shame, I used the second Flame Magic towards a nearby Obsidian Golem.

Wrapping my fist in flames to cause a large impact along with an explosion, a demonstration of… not Fire Punch, but Explosive Fist.

-Pahk!

“……”

“……”

“……”

The Obsidian Golem, standing there after taking my Explosive Fist as if it wasn’t even ticklish, turned its head towards me and stared blankly.

Clearly, golems don’t have expressions, yet somehow, I could feel a gaze that seemed quite dumbfounded from its face.

Reacting to that awkward response, before I knew it, I was swinging the Mithril Greatsword I’d taken from my subspace pocket at the monster before me.

-Swerg!

‘Ggeuk…!’

…Certainly, since raising it to level 9, the sword slashes I swing feel different.

After putting the greatsword, which felt several times lighter than before, back into my subspace pocket, I slowly shifted my gaze towards Cha Yuri, who was looking at me.

There stood a mage watching me with a face no different from the Obsidian Golem just now.

“So, when are you going to show me the magic?”

“…That was it just now.”

“……”

“……”

Cha Yuri, frozen as if dumbfounded, and the atmosphere, which became awkward along with her.

Unable to bear the shame, I quietly covered my face, and immediately, comfort that wasn’t quite comfort came back from Cha Yuri.

“Oh, r-right? Intentionally using a pathetic Flame Magic to induce the enemy’s carelessness, then slicing them down with your specialty, the greatsword-it’s a combo technique, right?”

“……”

“……”

“The i-idea itself isn’t bad. If you improve it a little more, it might become plausible in its own way…”

“It’s not that kind of technique, so don’t awkwardly try to comfort me, Cha Yuri-ssi.”

“…I figured as much.”

I know too, just how much of a trash magic this Explosive Fist is.

Last time, when I did the magic test in front of Hwayoung Sunbae, there was a restriction that I couldn’t use a sword, so I did use it as a last resort, but…

In reality, if I could just swing my sword, even trying to use a 3rd Circle magic or lower like this was a loss.

In terms of mana consumption, it was inefficient compared to other magic spells; as a close-combat skill, it was a lower-tier version of my other abilities; and as I wrapped my fist in Flame Magic to use it, there was also the risk of injury.

Even including all these drawbacks, there wasn’t any special advantage that made it absolutely necessary to use, and that was obviously not the case either.

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t get a grasp on which part of this magic to make viable, so the improvement was also facing difficulties.

“Right. I think I can roughly understand why you asked me for magic consultation today.”

“No, today I just wanted to know if my Flame Whip was a usable technique or not, if you could just tell me that much…”

“That fire fist? Anyway, let’s start by increasing the power of that magic. We’ll proceed step by step with stability and other factors.”

“…It’s Explosive Fist.”

“…Right, whatever.”

Suddenly, in one corner of the dungeon, Cha Yuri took her position and began improving my Flame Magic.

Her previously unmotivated eyes suddenly vanished, and the moment she entered her field of expertise, her eyes changed; she was definitely showing the aspect of an A-rank mage.

…Of course, no matter what, I didn’t want to show this Explosive Fist.

---

A somewhat sudden start to Cha Yuri’s magic improvement lesson.

She moved the location to a monster-free area of the dungeon and immediately began the magic lesson, facing me.

“First, let’s start by improving your Explosive Fist itself.”

“Yes.”

It was the first time I’d learned magic lessons from someone other than Hwayoung Sunbae, but just because the teacher changed didn’t make it difficult to understand.

Rather, in some aspects, it even felt a bit easier to understand compared to Hwayoung Sunbae’s lessons.

If Hwayoung Sunbae’s magic lectures were lessons that built up by solidifying the basics, Cha Yuri’s magic improvement lessons were quite intuitive and had a clear sense of purpose.

It was felt enough that she herself does not neglect magic research, as a professional flair was quite palpable in Cha Yuri’s lessons.

“When you first created Explosive Fist, what purpose did you intend to use it for?”

“Well…”

I intended to use it as a presentable assignment for my Master, who suddenly told me to create a 3rd Circle magic.

Since I couldn’t say that, I naturally had to give her a different answer.

Thinking about how I first created Explosive Fist and how I intended to use it…

“To inflict effective damage on specific monsters using a close-combat attack containing the fire attribute.”

“Right. Then, let’s take only the most basic purpose from that. Since it’s Flame Magic, the ‘fire attribute’ must naturally be included, and the element of ‘close combat’ is an indispensable element. Now, let’s delve deeper from here. Recognize clearly what are the advantages unique to ‘fire attribute’ and ‘close combat’, and in a direction that utilizes those advantages…”

Cha Yuri started speaking ramblingly, as if suddenly entering her own world.

It was an unexpected sight, to the point where I thought, “Was she this talkative person?”

It seemed because it was her field of expertise, she spoke with more conviction, and seeing that, I felt a deep sense of trust from her.

Not in a way that conjures up the concept of magic from the start, but by first thinking of the application of magic and then adding the appropriate concepts.

Cha Yuri’s lessons, like showing a shortcut towards the goal, felt like they were awakening my mind in a short time.

Following that, I continued the magic research regarding Explosive Fist according to her lessons.

“Stability is a trap concept. The moment this concept is included, you have to think of the magic you use as having its output lowered by at least one or two circles. This kind of thing is a concept used only for household magic tools, not one hunters would use.”

“So, is it better to boldly remove it?”

“If you consider the power, yes. However, if you do that, you who use the magic could also become endangered, so you’d have to use something like sturdy gloves.”

“So, in conclusion, to properly use Explosive Fist, auxiliary equipment is essential, right?”

“Normally, that would be the case, but… if you utilize your awakened ability, I don’t think it would necessarily be so.”

“Huh?”

“Make a fist with your right hand. Like when you used Explosive Fist earlier.”

Wondering what on earth she was trying to do, I obediently made a fist as she said, and soon after, a cool sensation began flowing over my fist.

It didn’t take long until I realized that it was Cha Yuri’s wind magic flowing, and I was feeling it.

“…Cha Yuri-ssi? What magic is this?”

“Wind Gauntlets. If you wrap yourself with this, you can block ordinary attacks or flying debris.”

“Ho….”

I rarely seemed to see Cha Yuri’s body getting dirty with dust and dirt during usual party hunts, but such a secret was hidden behind the scenes.

Certainly, like an A-rank wind mage, her ability to utilize wind magic alone was outstanding in many ways.

Perhaps if I used Explosive Fist on top of the protective barrier made with this wind magic, even if I gave up stability, the worry of getting burned the moment I used the magic…

…No, something’s wrong?

“Wait a moment, Cha Yuri-ssi.”

“Yeah.”

“If I use Explosive Fist in this state right now, won’t my fist just explode?”

“It probably would.”

“No matter how important power is, this is a bit…”

As I said with a weary voice and shook my head, instead, the one who made a strange expression was none other than Cha Yuri.

She withdrew the wind gauntlets she had used from my fist and replied in a dumbfounded voice.

“Of course, you shouldn’t use it together with wind magic. Are you going to keep talking nonsense?”

“Huh?”

“With your cold magic, make ice gauntlets like these wind gauntlets to protect your hands and increase the power of Explosive Fist, that’s what I mean.”

“…Ah.”

“In the first place, if it’s a technique that can only be used together with my magic, how do you plan to use it alone in actual combat?”

…Right, that’s correct.