I Was a Porter, but My Mana Is Infinite? Episode 4
Seong-u didn't return to the gosiwon.
Instead, he moved to a training center operated by the Hunter Management Bureau nearby.
It was a space decorated to be as close to reality as possible for the Hunters' training.
The monsters seen here moved similarly to real ones based on the information gathered by raid parties.
The effect was clear.
'Thanks to the training center, the Hunters' death rate has dropped considerably.'
Not only could you grasp the monsters' characteristics, but you could also adapt to dungeons in advance.
The problem was the cost.
Per use, depending on the rank, one had to pay anywhere from several hundred thousand won to tens of millions of won.
When Seong-u showed his Hunter Pass, the staff member bowed his head.
"We will guide you to E-14 training ground."
Round, circular training grounds stood in a row.
Sounds of battle came from inside them.
The staff member stopped in front of an empty training ground.
"When you are finished using it and press the end button, I will open the door for you. Have a good time."
Light filled a space of about thirty pyeong.
Seong-u had only heard stories about it; this was his first time coming here.
[Please select your desired dungeon.]
Along with a mechanical voice, a list of dungeons floated in the air.
About to select F-rank, Seong-u shook his head.
"I found out that F-rank isn't difficult thanks to the Goblin Mine just now. Then… shall I try E-rank?"
Among E-rank dungeons, the most reasonably clearable one was [Forest of Verdant Shade].
It mainly featured Deathplants, wood monsters with an adverse elemental relationship to fire.
Because of the monsters' tendency to ambush suddenly in dense forests, it was a dungeon Hunters avoided.
'On the other hand, the rewards are quite good.'
Seong-u selected [Forest of Verdant Shade].
The light in the space gradually darkened and dyed green.
And soon the space transformed into a forest, and a Deathplant appeared.
Swish—
A vine covered in steel-hard thorns fell down over his head.
"Hup!"
Seong-u urgently rolled to the side.
Each time the vine shook, he could feel the flickering wind. 'It's just like the real thing.'
Seong-u opened his eyes wide and stared at the Deathplant.
—Grrrrrk!
Its roots squirmed, and once again its vine split the air.
Seong-u reached out his hand and cast [Fireball].
The fireball struck the Deathplant's body and exploded.
As flames rose, the approaching monster stopped and cowered.
"They said low-rank dungeons are no different from the real thing here. It's true."
Seong-u continued casting Fireball.
Boom—
Boom—
Thick bark scales rose from the Deathplant's body like armor, and it no longer burned from the fire.
Revealing yellow pupils, it slowly walked forward.
"Oh? You're holding up? Let's see who wins!"
Seong-u reached out with both hands instead of one and cast Fireball.
Fireballs poured out without rest.
The Deathplant cowered even more.
In a very brief time, he had cast Fireball over one hundred times.
"Hua. My Fireball never stops!"
Thirty minutes had passed without him being able to kill a single Deathplant.
The armor-like bark scales finally began to fall away.
—Grrrrrk!
The thorny vine shot out in an ambush.
Dodging it, he cast Fireball even more fiercely.
One hour had passed.
The Deathplant was finally stripped bare and began to burn.
However, sticky sap flowed from its wounds and blocked the flames.
By the time two hours had passed, his fatigue had disappeared and excitement had risen.
"What kind of Hunter could do such a crazy thing? Right?"
—Grrrrrrk!
It wasn't just the Deathplant that had changed.
Once every two seconds.
The number of Fireballs cast during those two hours was a whopping three thousand six hundred.
His Fireball proficiency had risen, allowing him to control it much more freely.
Compressing his mana, the explosion grew more powerful in a smaller size.
Not only that, but what had been usable only once every three seconds had now decreased to two seconds.
This wasn't simply a matter of speed.
'My stats have risen too.'
[Bae Seong-u]
[Rank: F-Rank]
[Stamina: 17 (F)]
[Strength: 10 (F)]
[Agility: 15 (F)]
[Endurance: 19 (F)]
[Mana: ∞]
Skills
[Fireball (F)]
[Proficiency: 68/100]
Stamina had risen by 5, Agility by 2, and Endurance by 5.
The most noticeable increase was, without a doubt, Fireball's proficiency.
It had risen from 17 to 68.
It was a speed difficult to understand through common sense.
'At this rate, raising Fireball would be faster than buying an E-rank skill, wouldn't it?'
Ordinary Hunters couldn't raise their skills' ranks by accumulating proficiency.
Because the amount of mana they could cast per day was fixed.
Since the proficiency required to raise the rank increased as the rank grew higher, they would rather try to learn new skills.
That was one of the reasons skill books were expensive.
Seong-u slowly stepped back and gathered Fireballs in both hands.
Fwoooooosh—
As his mana gathered, it was simultaneously compressed.
The fireball rapidly spun even without him willing it.
His hand stung from the flying sparks.
"Let's finish this!"
KABOOM—
Basketball-sized fireballs shot out from both hands toward the Deathplant.
The compressed Fireballs burned through the stem and shattered its body into pieces.
Crackle—
Only black charcoal remained where the Deathplant had stood before disappearing.
After that, a new Deathplant appeared and approached.
The first time was difficult, but from the second time onward, it could be handled quickly.
The second took ten minutes, and the third was successfully handled within five minutes.
Seong-u placed his hand on the training ground door and stopped the operation.
[Results]
[Elapsed Time]
[03:27:29]
[Monsters Killed]
[3 Deathplants]
[Skills Cast]
[Fireball: 3,890 times]
...
The more he looked, the more laughable the numbers became.
[Do you wish to save?]
Seong-u selected No and came outside.
The staff member who had guided him was waiting.
"Good work."
He guided Seong-u to the exit and returned the Hunter Pass he had submitted.
Outside, the sun had already set and it was dark.
When Seong-u snapped his fingers, a flame the size of a lighter flickered to life.
"Ooh. So I can do this kind of application now."
Seong-u stretched and headed home.
The dingy gosiwon was something that should have felt depressing just to look at… but not today.
Perhaps because his pockets were heavy, his heart felt full.
"A fulfilling! Day's work complete…!"
He even hummed a tune as he climbed the stairs.
Someone had opened a window and was smoking a cigarette.
It was Gim Si-hyeok, the gosiwon manager.
The ashtray was piled high with cigarettes.
"Oh. Hyung, you're back?"
"What kind of chain-smoking is a young punk like you doing?"
"I smoke because it's worth it. Life is very go… good!"
"What did the owner say this time?"
"Now he tells me to clean the building too. It's the ultimate power trip."
The gosiwon owner was the landlord of this old building.
"I can just leave, but you can't, can you?"
"Yes. Because this is the only place that takes me in until I become an adult."
It wasn't like the orphan Si-hyeok could afford a studio in expensive Seoul.
"I'm going to save up just enough to get a room and leave. And I'm going to be a porter too."
"You think being a porter is all that great?"
"It has to be better than being a gosiwon manager."
Si-hyeok looked at Seong-u's clothes stained with goblin blood.
"At least you get to do something of your own will."
Si-hyeok had also lost his parents a year ago.
Through that shared bond of suffering, the two had lived like brothers.
"Take it easy."
"Yes. You rest well too, hyung."
Seong-u nodded and went inside.
After a clean shower, he lay on the bed.
It was the first time exhaustion had felt this pleasant.
Seong-u thought about his plans for the future.
'I have to clear a dungeon tomorrow too.'
The target was [Forest of Verdant Shade], which he had practiced in the training center today.
If it was about the compatibility of wood and fire, it wouldn't be too difficult.
Seong-u took out his phone and opened Hunter Tube.
It was a site where Hunters uploaded their personal raid videos.
He had subscribed to Hunters he usually admired.
Among them, next to the name [Cheon Seol-a], there was an N mark.
"She solo cleared the B-rank Ogre Cheongong?"
Cheon Seol-a was an S-rank Hunter who used magic, just as Seong-u did.
If there was a difference from him, it was that she mainly used ice magic.
It had only been up for an hour, but the view count had already surpassed twenty million.
When he clicked the video, a 3D video capable of 360-degree rotation appeared.
—B-rank Ogre Cheongong raid video. Ogres have tough skin, so it's best to aim for precise weak points.
[Summon Ice Spear]
Crackle—
Ice starting from her hands formed a giant spear like an awl.
Though a mage, her characteristic was possessing speed and agility rivaling a damage dealer.
She had been on the national fencing team before Gates appeared.
Cheon Seol-a and the spear suited each other incredibly well.
'Strictly speaking, a magic swordsman? No, a magic spearman?'
She was also the model Seong-u aspired to.
Then an ogre bellowed ferociously and charged at her.
Inside the narrow cave, rocks like thorns that would cut if touched jutted out everywhere.
Cheon Seol-a stepped on the wall and leaped, brushing past above the ogre's head.
Stab—
"Amazing!"
The spear accurately pierced the back of its neck.
And when she twisted to the side, its nape tore away and its head fell off.
The fallen head was still frenzied, biting its jaws shut.
—Ogres thrash even after dying, so be careful. For safety, crush the joints of the arms and legs.
Stab—
With a single thrust, one joint was precisely crushed.
The ogre's body collapsed on the ground and flailed.
"Crushing the joints of a monstrous ogre is easier said than done. A movement only possible because it's her."
Without a single pant, she advanced to the boss room.
And the highlight was the boss monster raid.
The Three-Headed Ogre not only emanated three different auras but also possessed a body harder than steel.
An ordinary Hunter would have their frail body crushed just by grazing it.
—Hmm. From what I can feel in my body, it's fear, damage amplification, and slow auras.
She erected an ice wall and retreated.
KABOOOOM—
The thick wall was smashed in one blow, and the ogre chased after her.
—The Three-Headed Ogre's auras grow stronger the closer you get. It falls further into madness the more it bleeds, so it's better to maintain distance and finish it in one go.
"In one go?"
Question marks filled his head.
Cheon Seol-a answered those question marks with an exclamation mark.
Swoosh—
She dispelled the Ice Spear and raised both hands.
Before he knew it, a staff was in her grasp.
It was the White Dragon, an S-rank staff that was like her symbol.
Absolute zero cold spread out with her at the center.
"S-rank skill. [Frozen Blood Tear]!"
Seong-u forgot he was in a gosiwon and shouted without realizing it.
In a world filled with white ice, she alone moved.
She stopped in front of the rigidly frozen Three-Headed Ogre with its mouth open.
—Good work.
Finishing words directed at no one in particular, she tapped the ogre's head with her staff.
Crack-crack-crack—
The ogre crumbled into red fragments.
"That's insane."
Even after the video ended, Seong-u couldn't calm his excitement for a long while.
'What if I learned Frozen Blood Tear?'
He could continuously cast such magic without any limit to his mana.
His heart pounded as if it would burst from imagination alone.
Unlike before, it was no longer just a dream.