episode_0022

In the past, the mercenary group’s image wasn’t great, but as they began to take the lead in dungeon conquests, their image improved significantly.

There were even individuals among the mercenaries who had received official titles, raising their prestige considerably.

In the game, there was a story intertwined with the protagonist transitioning from an adventurer to a mercenary.

The size of mercenary groups varied, but those with enough influence for their leader to attend the Mercenary Council boasted sizes comparable to small armies.

Naturally, villages sprang up around the mercenary groups’ established bases.

These villages attracted various artisans and specialized merchants, fostering the development of splendid skills.

“······Yujin.”

“What?”

“······That. Do you want to touch it?”

“You can touch it after it’s processed. Stop nagging me.”

Mijung once again whined while looking at my bag.

She wanted me to let her touch the mana stone.

Why was she so obsessed with the mana stone?

Indeed, mana stones were valuable items.

Well-crafted mana stones could enhance mana transfer efficiency and capacity by two to three times or even hundreds of times compared to raw mana stones.

They served as primary focus gems for mages and auxiliary devices stabilizing mana flow within the body for swordsmen.

Even if one didn’t know how to manipulate mana at all, just possessing a mana stone increased resistance to magic, making it an essential item for mercenaries.

As the usefulness of mana stones grew over time, mana stone processing had become a prominent field nowadays.

Especially, the village nearby was renowned for mana stone craftsmanship.

Mercenaries from across the continent flocked there to commission mana stone crafting, sell raw stones, and purchase finished products.

The person I was looking for would likely be working as an apprentice craftsman in that village by now.

“Get some rest. We still have a long way to go before we arrive.”

“······.”

“Oh. You’re not sleeping.”

“Yeah.”

“At least close your eyes. Your eyeballs look like they’re about to dry up from lack of moisture.”

“Huh.”

Inside the carriage heading to the neighboring village, I covered my face with a hat and leaned against the wall.

Glancing sideways, I saw Mijung, as I described, keeping her eyes tightly shut in a meditative posture.

Of course, we weren’t the only ones inside the carriage.

People heading to the neighboring village crowded in like a swarm of bees.

It was a bit shaky and somewhat uncomfortable, but mentally, this side felt more comfortable.

Each time I rode a luxurious carriage, thoughts of our main heroines came to mind.

Although riding in a luxury carriage was physically comfortable, it felt mentally uncomfortable, like self-torture.

Moreover, the fare was much cheaper on this side, so there was no reason to spend a fortune for a self-inflicted mental ordeal.

“Move closer to my side.”

“Yeah.”

Mijung pulled me closer to prevent any contact with the person sitting next to her.

Perhaps she was worried about the awkwardness if her cold body touched someone and they realized she was a vampire.

Since I had taken out her fangs, there was no danger, but it would probably cause more chaos if people found out there was a vampire here than if I explained it myself.

Dealing with such situations was truly tiresome.

“Maybe I should practice mana control.”

It was a good opportunity since the journey was boring.

I should practice mana control, something I hadn’t tried while conquering dungeons.

Like any other attribute with levels, tinkering a bit during the early stages would significantly boost the level.

Just a bit of practice during downtime would make a noticeable difference.

[Attribute: Mana Control (lv.1)]

“Proficiently control mana within the body. Consuming a small amount of mana dramatically enhances physical abilities. Overload results in damage.”

Quietly closing my eyes, I activated mana control.

Since it operated internally, there was no need to worry about being noticed even in crowded places.

Unless sudden overload led to full-body paralysis.

“I’ve been using it relentlessly in the adventurer zone for three days, yet my level is still 1.”

During the lively raid on the adventurer guild, it was intriguing that the level didn’t increase at all.

Certainly, at that time, it was used indiscriminately as a stat-boosting skill to substitute for a paladin.

As a result, it almost always caused a rampage, triggered overload, and was quite chaotic.

“So, you have to write properly to level up, right?”

This is quite a finicky characteristic.

The key point is that to increase proficiency, you have to write carefully without causing a rampage or triggering overload.

It’s like achieving 10 years without accidents to be recognized for driving skills.

I wanted to practice by causing overload while learning, as if I had to park a car.

Well, it doesn’t matter since you can’t cause overload inside a carriage anyway.

“Hoo…”

Taking a deep breath, I concentrate my mind, feeling the flow of mana within me.

It feels strange.

It’s like feeling the blood flow through my body directly.

It’s a sensation that hasn’t become familiar even after 12 years.

In fact, controlling mana within the body is possible even without this trait.

Although I couldn’t output as much due to overload during the past 12 attempts, I managed to control it in my own way.

However, since the trait Mana Control explicitly states ‘skillfully’ controlling mana, its effect is significant.

While before, concentrating hard with a lot of effort would only slightly improve my condition, now it feels like my body becomes lighter in an instant.

Now I understand why Yerina emphasized mana control so much.

I think I also understand why Yerina sighed, saying I lacked talent.

Originally, this skill should progress rapidly, so how pathetic must I have looked, reflecting on my improved condition.

“Toward 10 years without accidents. Toward 10 years without accidents.”

I refocus on controlling mana, trying to force all the freely roaming mana in my body to move in one direction.

If my concentration wavers even slightly, individuals start appearing here and there, deviating from the formation.

It’s not easy due to the unfamiliar sensation.

Even though it states ‘skillfully,’ just feeling the overall flow of mana is tough for me.

It’s like lifting a heavy basket with muscles in your buttocks that you’ve never used before.

Despite intense focus and effort, the results are unsatisfactory and frustrating.

“This is driving me crazy.”

Trying to delicately adjust the output to avoid overloading makes it even harder on my stomach.

Still, as I continue to concentrate, something seems to be happening.

Initially, I could only see the large flow circulating within my body, but now I can perceive even finer currents.

Branches branching off from the stem extend to the extremities of my body.

If control fails at the main flow, the mana won’t reach the extremities in the first place.

Even if successful in the main flow, failure in the minor flows leads to a drastic drop in efficiency.

“Oh.”

Just for a moment.

All the mana flows within me came under my control, harmonizing.

It lasted only a second, but I clearly felt it.

Time slowed down drastically as power surged through my body.

It felt like entering a completely different world.

“Insane. I was going to use this recklessly?”

Until now, I thought mana control was just an ordinary stat-boosting skill.

For a paladin, the stats increasing fivefold are intuitively displayed in the stat window, so why isn’t it shown here made me wonder.

That question was just answered.

Since the effects vary greatly depending on proficiency and concentration, it’s impossible to quantitatively display how much the stats increase.

So, extraordinary individuals like Yerina are in a state where this trait is constantly activated.

Maintaining such intense concentration throughout the body like I am now.

Absolutely insane.

[Trait: Mana Control (lv.2)]

Level up to 1.

It seems like the system has finally acknowledged that I am training properly.

Just by raising it to level 1, sweat drips from my forehead and my whole body feels stiff.

When will I ever raise it to level 10…

It’s frustrating.

Still, now that I’ve learned the true power of mana control, I’m quite satisfied.

It was only for a second, but I also caught a glimpse of the potential.

The possibility of surpassing the realm of ordinary beings.

“Is it all coming together now?”

I exhale deeply and open my eyes.

I’ve been concentrating so deeply that I can hardly hear the ambient noise around me.

This might be the most focused moment since the English listening test in the college entrance exam.

“Hmm?”

But something is off.

The moment I opened my eyes, something was thrust in front of me.

A sword.

A man was pointing a sword at me.

“Get down! Can’t you hear me?”

“…”

I look around, trying to assess the situation.

The carriage is empty except for me and Mijeong.

Outside the carriage, passengers are trembling, raising their hands and kneeling.

And surrounding them, men with large swords.

“Ha.”

I understand the situation.

The carriage must have encountered a band of thieves on the mountain road.

But what surprises me is not that part.

“Mijeong. I should have woken you up.”

“Why?”

“Why? It’s a dangerous situation.”

“Dangerous? This?”

I’m at a loss for words.

Mijeong, sitting next to me, still sits in the same posture, tilting her head.

Mijeong doesn’t even seem to realize that this is a dangerous situation.

She seems to lack even the most basic common sense, to the point where she might forget my name.

“What are you doing! Stop chatting casually and get down quickly! Will kill you?”

In truth, Mijeong isn’t entirely wrong.

This is not actually a very dangerous situation.

An excessively large sword.

It looks threatening, but the balance is completely off, and the blade is not sharp.

Clearly a decorative sword.

However, despite that, his stance is quite stable.

It seems like he’s not holding a sword for the first time.

Rather than not knowing how to handle a sword, it seems more like he’s holding a decorative sword to intimidate ordinary people.

Judging by the scars on his face and arms, he must have been a thief for quite some time.

“This is your last warning!”

“Mijeong. Lie down.”

“Okay.”

A perfect training partner has appeared on its own.

A good opportunity to confirm the results of mana control training.