A fierce bomb went off.
Fwoosh.
Gim Chan-yeol grabbed the back of his neck at Bu Sin-hyeok’s provocation, which poured a generous dose of oil on the dying embers.
“How dare you!”
Bam!
Trainee Baek Arin kicked off the table and launched herself.
Closing in until she was right under Bu Sin-hyeok’s nose, she spoke with blazing eyes.
“Stop running your mouth and come at me.”
Right in front of Bu Sin-hyeok’s nose. Her fist, which had stopped mere inches away, became engulfed in a dense white aura.
Yet Bu Sin-hyeok didn’t budge an inch.
Without so much as blinking, he merely wore a sneer.
That reaction made her uneasy.
‘Just what kind of guy is he?’
Bu Sin-hyeok looked at her, frozen right before him, and said.
“Fine.”
The Battalion Commander, who had been watching from the side, cut in before the atmosphere could grow any hotter.
“Now, now! Trainees, let’s do it like this.”
Bu Sin-hyeok listened to the Battalion Commander’s words.
“Let’s compete in an obstacle run.”
Everyone looked puzzled at the mention of an obstacle run. Captain Gim Chan-yeol smiled leisurely and gestured.
“It’s an assessment used in the previous Awakened training course.”
Seeing the Battalion Commander’s signal, an instructor went outside on his own to prepare.
“This should be enough.”
At those words, one trainee stood up and shouted.
“Why do we have to do this! We’ve already proven ourselves more than enough; rather, shouldn’t that guy be the one to show what he’s got?!”
He cried foul.
They were anxious because an evaluation that hadn’t even existed was suddenly being brought back.
“Now, now. This evaluation will not be reflected in your training course. However, I will put up one reward.”
At the mention of a reward, everyone’s eyes lit up.
“An outing pass.”
They all sprang to their feet. With bright, eager eyes, they looked only at the Battalion Commander.
“One that can be used anytime.”
At that qualifier, cheers erupted from everyone.
“Woooooow!”
Bu Sin-hyeok scratched his ear at the mention of an outing.
“I used to be like that too.”
Baek Arin, hearing Bu Sin-hyeok reminisce about the past, spoke in a dumbfounded tone.
“Are you boasting about being old?”
“Hey, kiddo, if you’re that excited, you shout too. Didn’t your eyes just light up?”
Bu Sin-hyeok teased her, having suddenly gone from picking a fight to sparkling with anticipation.
“What?! Forget that—if you have any conscience at all, leave on your own!”
“I’ll leave on my own. But if I leave now, a gentleman with a fiercer face than yours will come to kill me.”
At those cryptic words, she made a sulky face.
“Should I just cut him up and dump him in secret?”
“Hey, say stuff like that in secret.”
The Battalion Commander made an announcement to the excited trainees.
“We need to prepare, so assemble at the training ground in thirty minutes.”
“Yes, sir!”
They answered in thunderous unison. Bu Sin-hyeok looked at them with the eyes of an adult watching children and chuckled.
“Heh-heh, cute little things. You’re all getting out in a few weeks anyway.”
Captain Gim Chan-yeol gestured to Sin-hyeok, who was standing still, and guided him to his room.
“The rule here is two trainees per room. But considering your special case, I think you can have one to yourself.”
After showing Sin-hyeok to his room, he hurriedly moved to leave.
“See you later! Make sure you do well, trainee!”
He unusually emphasized the ‘do well.’
Bu Sin-hyeok smirked and nodded.
“Of course, I’m a guy who finished his term as a scout in the Hongik Battalion; how could I lose to such brats?”
* * *
The Battalion Commander smiled as he headed out of the room toward the training ground. An elf stuck to his side.
“Captain Gim Chan-yeol.”
“Yes, speak. Instructor Elastine.”
He looked at the current situation with worry.
“I am concerned that this may be too extreme. Even if he is a soldier who has served, was it not a unit completely unrelated to the Awakened or Gates?”
Captain Gim Chan-yeol simply smiled at the elf, whose beautiful heart was worried that Bu Sin-hyeok might get hurt.
“You’ve got one thing wrong. Trainee Bu Sin-hyeok, who has re-enlisted, is from the Hongik Battalion Scout Unit—a frontline Gate Reconnaissance Battalion.”
Elastine looked at him with puzzled eyes.
“A non-Awakened?”
“Yes. It is classified, but know this. I believe he is the second case among Earthlings of someone who learned to handle mana on their own without Awakening.”
“Ahhh….”
With his anxiety eased, Elastine made a relieved expression.
“That is a relief. I was worried he might have spoken out of bravado.”
“Haha, don’t worry. Though I heard he has a problematic constitution.”
He hadn’t heard what the problem was.
“For now, go and prepare. It’s been a while since the training ground was opened, so it will be quite rusty.”
“I will inspect it carefully.”
Elastine moved faster than the Battalion Commander.
* * *
Bu Sin-hyeok flopped onto the bed and scratched his stomach.
“Mana. It’s been a while. I wonder if I can still use it well.”
When he closed his eyes, he could feel an alien mana.
When he opened them again, he could see it, if only faintly.
“Awakening sure is nice. I couldn’t see like this before.”
He grasped the mana, and it could be felt.
Opening his hand, it was modest, yet drenched heavily like water.
Then it scattered into the air as if evaporating.
‘A unique constitution.’
A High Elf dispatched to Earth had said this upon seeing Bu Sin-hyeok’s constitution.
‘It is a constitution in which mana stagnates. To begin with, mana flows in any world. Like wind, like a river, or like the sea—flowing is the natural principle. But with you, it is different. It stops, it stagnates, and its nature changes.’
Upon hearing this, Brigadier General Yi Gang-yeol had dismissed it simply.
“So it just means it’s difficult, not that he can’t use it, right?”
The elf had smirked and replied.
“You could see it that way. However, proper external release will be difficult. By ordinary academic standards, his talent will likely never be manifested.’
‘Hmm…’
Having heard this explanation, Brigadier General Yi Gang-yeol found a way to make use of it.
The mana inside Bu Sin-hyeok’s body hardened and set like cement as time passed. When that happened, external release became impossible.
However, there was a way to alleviate this and use it temporarily.
‘A potion.’
Drinking a low-grade mana potion made from a blue magic herb would temporarily activate the mana and stimulate the body.
“And I just so happen to have that exact potion right now.”
Better yet, it wasn’t low-grade, but a top-grade potion that was hard to obtain.
[Top-Grade Mana Potion] [Rare]
======================================
Accelerates mana recovery and partially replenishes mana.
※ Slight increase in mana.
※ Effect applies simply by possessing it.
======================================
He stealthily shook his canteen, and a sloshing sound could be heard.
‘Are potions easy to make?’
He had put in some magic herbs and shaken it a few times, and a top-grade potion came out. He had never heard of such a thing being possible.
This was truly thanks to the combination of Sin-hyeok’s bizarre constitution and his Awakening.
Whatever the case, he had struck it incredibly lucky.
‘Do I really not have to drink it?’
He simply held it in his hand and waited, and a definite reaction came.
‘It’s coming.’
He put the canteen back into his inventory and waited for his turn to come.
As he stared at the ceiling, an announcement came over the speaker.
“All trainees of the 1st Battalion, please assemble at the training ground. I repeat. All trainees, to the training ground.”
As he slowly rose, the broadcast suddenly went berserk.
“You have one minute. Ruuuun!”
At those words, Bu Sin-hyeok’s relaxed expression instantly soured.
‘This damn army!’
He ran immediately.
He rushed to the training ground, where everyone was already lined up in perfect formation.
“Damn, they’re fast.”
“Trainee Bu Sin-hyeok, please come over here for now.”
The Battalion Commander smiled and pointed to a corner.
“You haven’t been assigned to a platoon yet, so stand by my side.”
“Can’t I just go over there to that corner? Too much attention is on me.”
Indeed, all eyes were fixed on him. Reward aside, the trainees’ expressions were fierce.
“Now then, I shall explain. Focus.”
“Focus!”
They chorused their acknowledgement and focused on the Battalion Commander. He turned to the instructor, Elastine, standing beside him.
“Then, if you would.”
“Yes.”
The Battalion Commander snapped his fingers, and a Gate was revealed on the training ground platform.
“This is one of the Gates used for training. There are no dangerous creatures inside, so you may rest assured.”
Elastine caught the Battalion Commander’s eye signal, smiled brightly, and entered the open Gate first.
“The interior is like a complex maze. Various traps and targets you must hit are marked.”
The Battalion Commander pulled a small crystal orb from his pocket and blew a small amount of mana into it.
At once, the interior of the Gate was reflected in the air.
While warming up, Elastine glanced toward those who would be watching through the crystal orb.
The Battalion Commander stuck his head into the Gate and shouted.
“Please begin!”
He pulled his face right back out. At the same time, Sergeant Jeong Jin-su hurriedly entered the Gate.
Beep.
As the sergeant who had entered started the timer, time began to be measured.
Step.
He immediately broke into a run. The crystal orb reflected Elastine’s movements.
“Whoa?!”
Suddenly, the floor collapsed. He climbed up the tree beside him and sprinted by stepping on branches.
Crack.
As the tree snapped, he smoothly rolled across the floor and sprinted again.
Whiiine.
Ambush-type magic circles that seemed like landmines activated from parts of the floor ahead.
Boom-boom-bang!
Elastine avoided them by covering his entire body in magic power.
Targets appeared without warning in between. He threw daggers and pierced them.
“Whoa…”
The trainees watching this had wretched expressions.
Beep.
Sergeant Jeong Jin-su, who had come out of the Gate, announced the time and score.
“Clear time 3 minutes 18 seconds 22. Target score 9 points or above.”
The Battalion Commander smiled and said.
“What do you think? Not bad, is it?”
Gulp.
Some trainees let out hollow laughs and raised their hands.
“Can we forfeit?”
“Heh-heh-heh. Trainee.”
Captain Gim Chan-yeol said nothing and simply asked for the trainee’s name.
“What is your name, trainee?”
The trainee who sensed the vibe hurriedly shouted.
“Sergeant Gim In-cheol! I wish to forfeit my intention of giving up! Please let me in!”
“Hahaha, that’s the spirit! Everyone, do your best and give it a try! Let’s begin!”
The trainees entered in a line.
The first ten ended with time over and a target score of ‘none.’
Roughly one hundred personnel attempted it, but most were utterly decimated. Most finished in around the twelve-minute range, and target scores of 1 or 2 were the norm.
Sergeant Jeong Jin-su called out the next.
“Next trainee, 1st Company, Trainee Company Commander Baek Arin. Please enter.”
Baek Arin stepped forward with a sword at her waist.
Before entering, she glanced at him standing beside the Battalion Commander.
“What?”
Bu Sin-hyeok clicked his tongue at that unpleasant look.
“Old man.”
She fumed.
Then she whipped around and entered.
“Heh-heh-heo. You’re in your prime.”
Bu Sin-hyeok put on airs beside him. Gim Chan-yeol ignored him, keeping his eyes fixed on her record.
* * *
Baek Arin, having entered, waited for Sergeant Jeong Jin-su’s signal.
He gave Baek Arin a precaution.
“Instructor Elastine is on standby inside the Gate, so there is no need to worry about getting hurt. However, if you fall out too quickly, even the instructor will have trouble reaching you, so please be careful.”
“Okay.”
The moment the signal dropped, she kicked off the floor and ran.
Running powerfully, Baek Arin kept her attention on the floor.
‘Just now, for sure.’
The floor was strange.
As expected, the floor collapsed.
She quickly checked the surrounding terrain.
‘Only trees. Then, the Body Hardening Technique!’
[Body Hardening Technique activated.]
Vitality surged through her entire body, and her physical form began to surpass its limits.
She immediately imitated Instructor Elastine’s movements.
Tat-tak.
She climbed the tree.
She moved precariously by stepping on branches.
Her landing steps were unstable, but they were unmistakably the gait of an elf.
“Impressive.”
Elastine’s voice was heard softly.
At that reaction, Baek Arin ran brimming with confidence.
‘First place is mine! This is the level of the 1st Battalion!’
After running for a while, the tree snapped, and she landed on the floor. The moment she landed, ambush-type magic circles activated.
“Haht!”
She gathered her Body Hardening Technique at the tips of her feet and struck down at the floor.
Thud!
A powerful shockwave rippled through the floor and smashed all the ambush-type magic circles to pieces.
‘Almost there!’
Moving forward, she saw a single rope hanging loosely between two cliffs.
Without hesitation, she threw herself at the rope.
Sway.
Barely maintaining her balance on the violently swaying rope, she ran.
Tap-tap-tap.
In the middle of her run, ten hidden targets surfaced all at once.
“Hmph!”
She immediately drew her sword and slashed in all directions.
The target fell just as it was. Her center of gravity thrown off, Baek Arin stomped hard on the rope.
At that, she flew high through the air and headed for the edge of the cliff.
“Excellent immovable mind to overcome fear, and excellent sense of balance.”
At the cliff’s edge, Instructor Elastin spoke with a satisfied expression.
She landed in front of the instructor.
“Mission complete.”
Elastin smiled at Baek Arin’s confident attitude and praised her.
“Splendid. O woman blessed with talent that shines brighter than anyone’s.”
At those words, Baek Arin’s ears flushed faintly red.
“Th-thank you.”
She whipped around and glared at Bu Sinhyeok, who would be watching.
“Five minutes, twelve point twenty-two seconds. Target score: eight points.”
At the words eight points, she checked the targets still remaining in the air.
Two were floating there.
“Tch.”
Expressing her regret, she followed the instructor’s guidance and headed outside.
* * *
“Now, this time it is Trainee Bu Sinhyeok’s turn.”
At last, the main event had begun.
Bu Sinhyeok headed into the Gate without hesitation.
[You have entered the F-rank Gate, Training Grounds.]
[This Gate is an artificially created space intended for training Awakened.]
[If you achieve high results, a small gift from Yggdrasil will be granted.]
At the message sent by Yggdrasil, Sinhyeok snorted inwardly.
‘So this is why people keep going on about Awakening.’
Everyone had been making a fuss since long ago, saying that once you Awakened, everything was different. They said it was even more game-like than a game.
‘It sure does seem that way. They’re saying they’ll give me something just for doing a little well.’
As the message drew his eyes and he went farther inside, Sergeant Jeong Jinsu greeted him with a smile.
“I will inform you of the precautions. As this is an actual Gate, you may be seriously injured. So please take care of yourself.”
“That’s it?”
“Yes.”
At those absurd precautions, Bu Sinhyeok could guess why this evaluation had disappeared.
‘They’re just going at it stupidly. Why don’t things like this ever change?’
“Please tell me when you are ready, trainee.”
When Bu Sinhyeok focused on the back of his hand, a Korean War canteen suddenly appeared.
“Hm?”
The sergeant looked puzzled at the sight of him summoning a canteen.
As he held it in his hand and waited, the potion’s effects began to work.
[The highest-grade mana potion is taking effect.]
[Mana recovery is accelerated, and a small amount of mana temporarily increases.]
As faint mana flowed in, the mana frozen solid inside his body stirred.
“Whew.”
With a deep breath, he placed his hand on the floor and focused.
“Are you ready?”
“Not yet.”
Bu Sinhyeok calmly scattered the mana that had broken free into his surroundings.
Granule-like mana spread around him, expanding his sense of energy without limit.
‘There are no living creatures, and all the terrain has been arbitrarily adjusted.’
Then, aside from the straight path, he discovered a peculiar route. A single wooden bridge heavily covered in mana.
‘As expected, there is one.’
He opened his eyes and asked Sergeant Jeong Jinsu, who was waiting.
“I just have to reach the end, right?”
“Yes. There are no special rules. As long as you do not use consumables other than mana potions.”
Bu Sinhyeok confirmed it again.
“There really are no ‘rules,’ correct?”
“Yes, that is correct. Also, your personal equipment has not yet been issued, so what equipment did you primarily use before?”
Sergeant Jeong Jinsu took out various things and showed them to him.
Sinhyeok pointed at once.
“Give me the Glock 17. That will do.”
He received the handgun from him and gripped it tightly.
“Then, sta—”
Bu Sinhyeok calmly steadied his breathing.
“—rt!”
He ran not forward, but to the right.
“Huh!? Trainee, all other paths are blocked, u-uhhh!?”
He found the cleverly left-open path reserved for assistants and instructors and entered it.
“How!?”
After taking one step inside, there was a wooden ladder. When he immediately climbed up, a wooden bridge stretched straight all the way to the end.
“This! Is the seasoned know-how of a sergeant who served out his enlistmeeeent!”
Bu Sinhyeok sprinted like mad across the short distance.
As the granule-like mana touched his feet, his muscles pumped up like crazy.
After running for a while, he saw the two cliffs and the rope.
While running, he glanced sideways and shot at the pitiful target boards floating there.
Bang bang bang bang bang!
Bang bang bang bang bang!
Without even looking at the ten shots he had fired off so refreshingly, he leaped and landed in front of Instructor Elastin.
Whoosh.
Thud.
The startled Instructor Elastin said,
“Are you insane?”
* * *
The battalion commander and the trainees outside were even more shocked.
“No! Isn’t that cheating!”
Baek Arin saw the measured time and target score and trembled.
Time: 2 minutes, 14.11 seconds. Target score: 10 points.
It was an overwhelming score.
[You have achieved a remarkable result.]
[As a reward, Mana Mapping proficiency will increase.]
[Mana Mapping proficiency has grown to LV.5.]
‘Hm? What did it give me this time?’