episode_0043

Hong Yeonhwa stared intently at the hologram that appeared before her.

The hologram displayed text scrolling rapidly. It was a gaze filled with determination to pierce through, yet the hologram remained steadfast.

“You won’t get a reply by doing that, miss.”

“I know.”

It was Saturday afternoon. In preparation for the upcoming tower climb next week, Hong Yeonhwa was refraining from activities that would strain her body.

She only did light stretching exercises and avoided all other physical training. She let her mind rest as well, aiming to enter the tower in top condition.

Thus, she could lie on the bed and absentmindedly gaze at the hologram. Sometimes she would fidget, then adjust her posture, meditate briefly, and glance at the scrolling text.

As Eriel went about her simple household chores, she couldn’t help but sigh at such trivial matters.

Due to her role as a guardian and assistant to Hong Yeonhwa, she understood even better why such attitudes emerged.

Eriel, still engaged in a staring contest with the hologram-watching Hong Yeonhwa, sighed and spoke.

“…If you’re so curious, why don’t you go see for yourself?”

Startled, Hong Yeonhwa’s shoulders trembled. It was an immediate response without fail. The trembling voice that followed was an added bonus.

“Well, isn’t that a bit… inappropriate? Going to check if I’ve taken what I gave you… No, maybe I’m asleep now and can’t respond…”

“I fail to understand why you, who know the reasons well, are engaging in a staring match with the hologram. It baffles me.”

“When did I engage in a staring match?”

“Exactly since you returned to the lodging last night.”

Hong Yeonhwa blinked rapidly, then turned her head to bury her face in the pillow. With a declaration of refusal to converse through physical means, Eriel couldn’t help but sigh this time and walked away.

The sound of footsteps faded away. Sensing Eriel’s departure to find tasks, Hong Yeonhwa sighed for no reason.

Sunlight gently illuminated the room. Along with the fresh air flowing in through the open window, there was a peaceful atmosphere.

It was quite tranquil. Even the non-existent languor in the air made Hong Yeonhwa briefly consider taking a nap, resting her head on the pillow.

…In truth, sleep eluded her.

Frowning, Hong Yeonhwa flipped over her body. Her cheeks were indented from pressing against the pillow. She idly tossed and turned before glancing at her smartwatch.

There were no new messages. More precisely, there were no messages from the contacts she had set alarms for.

“Did I use it properly?”

The potion handed to her by Yi Hayul. Although described as an investment format stored in the family warehouse, it was indeed valuable.

Those who awakened their magical abilities were called “Choin,” or transcendent beings.

Based on these abilities, those who subdue monsters, deal with villains, and contribute to society are called “heroes.”

There is also the title of “Hunter.” These individuals are also Choin, but they focus more on exploring dungeons and ruins rather than subduing monsters and villains.

Heroes and Hunters. Many Choin follow these two paths, but not everyone does.

There are those who dislike fights that result in bloodshed wherever they go, and those whose talents lie not in combat but in other areas of expertise.

Alchemists were among them.

Their work involved developing and producing potions intended for Choin consumption. The number of Choin specializing in alchemy and pharmacy was not large.

Furthermore, skilled individuals in that field who achieved great success were few and far between.

The Geophwa family always had access to potions due to its scarce supply of talented individuals.

The potion handed to Hong Yeonhwa by Yi Hayul was a rare potion given once a year to the heir of the family.

A potion centered around the roots of the Fairy Tree.

The Fairy Tree, even if three generations piled up virtues, was a mystical being that people would call upon just by finding one branch, let alone the entire tree.

Since the time of sijo poetry until now, it was relatively easy to obtain ingredients due to the deep connection between the Taesan and Geophwa families. Therefore, receiving medicine every year or two was a given.

The production of refined Geopwha by Hong Yeonhwa was unprecedented, leaving excess medicine as she did not consume all that was supplied.

The efficacy was certain. Hong Yeonhwa had taken it at least three times and could feel its effects.

So she passed it over. She thought it was an important time for Yi Hayul, who had just begun to grow.

She was confident it would have a positive impact on Yi Hayul’s rapid growth.

“…Will he like it?”

While brooding over the unchanging message, a faint smile crept onto her face as she imagined the future.

She looked forward to Yi Hayul’s reaction when they next met. What kind of response would he show? Would he be amazed by the tremendous efficacy? Or would he be extremely grateful to her?

“Hehe…”

Or perhaps, he might retain that smile from that moment.

Filled with anticipation, Hong Yeonhwa buried her face in the pillow and let out a laugh.

* * *

“Ah, damn.”

His expression involuntarily twisted.

Feeling something foreign, he spat out saliva. Black blood splattered on the floor as usual.

Spitting on the floor of the house was a filthy act, but at this point, he didn’t care. The floor was already soaked in blood. Even if he spat dozens of times more, the hardened blood covered the floor so thickly that it wouldn’t make a difference.

At least he thought it was fortunate that he couldn’t smell the dirty blood, lacking his sense of smell at this moment.

“Ugh…”

What in the world is going on here?

He sat against the wall, lost in thought.

After taking the medicine, blood came out of his mouth. As the amount increased, he eventually lost consciousness, only to regain it after nearly a day.

Why? For what reason? He wasn’t sure…

As he was about to sigh, he used his fingers to scrape off the dried blood clot in his mouth. Hindered by the hardened scab in his mouth, he couldn’t spit it out, disturbing his breathing.

Even a slight movement of his finger felt strenuous.

When he first tried to stand up, he almost fell flat on his face. The floor wasn’t as slippery as he had thought. It seemed the blood had solidified, making it less slippery.

The issue lay with his body. While he hesitated to support his upper body with his arms, when he stood up with his legs, he almost lost his strength.

His body felt as heavy as if it were soaked in water. His reactions were sluggish, and he couldn’t muster any strength, feeling like he had just woken up from a deep sleep.

For now, leaning against the wall was the best he could do due to the overwhelming heaviness.

His body felt too heavy to move. However, conversely, his mana was bubbling with energy.

The capacity of mana stored in his core had increased significantly. Comparing the previous capacity to a droplet of water, it had transformed into a cupful.

The circuitry had also changed beyond recognition. The existing circuits had thickened and expanded. The movement of mana, which was extremely subtle, now felt unfamiliar.

Additionally, new circuits had emerged. Thanks to these newly established circuits between the existing ones, the movement of mana became even denser.

Although his body felt heavy, it had changed.

It seemed that his body had received positive effects during the process of ingesting the medicine and absorbing mana.

His current physical state might be a backlash from sudden growth, one could speculate.

It was an unbelievable change. The fact that a single dose of medicine brought about such significant changes left him astonished.

How was it in the original work? Frankly, back then, I didn’t just take one and be done with it, so I’m not sure. I don’t even know if I can compare the stats from the original work here…

Therefore, for now, I can’t use magic. The excessive increase in mana capacity and quality, the changes in the core and circuits.

Rash manipulation of mana wouldn’t yield good results, it seems. Adjusting for a day or two must mean something like this.

For now, she simply focused on settling the effects of the medicine in her body.

“…What was that all about?”

Leaning against the wall, lost in thought, a dream from just before waking came to mind.

To say it came to mind was a bit of a stretch. Dreams were like that by nature, but the details faded upon waking.

Just vague memories of a dreamlike forest and floating lights lingered. Nothing more came to mind no matter how hard I tried.

“I don’t understand.”

I couldn’t grasp what was happening. Was it normal to experience this after taking a potion? It didn’t seem likely…

Feeling perplexed, I sensed the spatial information conveyed in the room.

The black carpet on the floor, half swallowed up and stiffened by dried blood…

“Ugh.”

A sigh escaped me involuntarily. I wanted to just close my eyes and ignore it, but I couldn’t leave it unattended.

Luckily, the mess was easily cleaned up. I had forgotten until now, but there were various convenience spells embedded within the dormitory.

Using purification and cleaning spells, the bloodstains clinging to the room vanished neatly. Magic was truly handy.

I staggered to the shower and washed myself. Feeling like I might doze off standing under the warm water, I quickly wiped off the blood and got out.

I put on a white robe I had never worn before. The soft and cozy texture was quite satisfying. It felt even better against my bare skin.

The room was now clean with all traces of blood gone. I had opened the window for ventilation. Though my sense of smell was sealed, a hint of discomfort lingered.

Since Professor Atra’s class last time, I’ve noticed something: I don’t know how to perceive this discomfort.

Both Professor Atra and Professor Liana had been drinking the night before, but they had both properly bathed and used cleaning spells to get rid of any odors.

It’s puzzling how my body reacted to that.

“Let’s think about it later.”

After briefly contemplating, my head started to ache. I felt feverish. Dragging my legs, I made my way to the sofa in the living room.

Though I couldn’t smell anything, I didn’t want to fall asleep in the room that gave off an unpleasant vibe.

I grabbed a blanket and lay down on the sofa. With the blanket over me, it became a decent sleeping spot.

“Just a little nap…”

Even though I had slept for a whole day, I still felt tired. Sleep was the best medicine for illness. Let’s rest for a bit and then think again…

…

– Ring! Ring! Ring!

Just as consciousness was fading, the alarm went off. It was one alarm after another.

“Ugh.”

Grumbling, I tapped my smartwatch. Just as I was about to drift off to sleep, why were the alarms going off one after another now?

A hologram appeared.

[Monday AM 6:40]

A strange message popped up. I scratched my head for a moment, checked my spatial perception, then interpreted the hologram again.

Monday, morning, 6:40 AM.

Monday… the day with the Tower of Growth schedule.

“Huh…”

Was I experiencing hallucinations even through spatial perception? Or was I still in a dream? Did my smartwatch break?

I fell into deep contemplation.

The relentless notifications continued to ring without stopping. Reality crept closer and closer.

With no proper preparation over the weekend, the day of entering the tower had arrived.