In terms of the age he's currently inhabiting, he's 17, but in actuality, he's 23. Kang Sihyun couldn't fathom why he should be sentenced to death at such a youthful and promising age. Just yesterday, he was eating well and excelling in his training, but the sudden news of his impending demise left him speechless. He didn't know how to react.
He entertained the idea of blood flowing backward through his body, despite having a pacemaker, but he came to terms with the existence of abilities in this world, understanding that conventional wisdom wouldn't apply.
"You seemed perfectly fine until Titan, so it must be the third core that's the problem. However, the reason you're still alive is probably because the other two cores are functioning properly, kid."
"They're holding it off with sheer force, that's what it means."
"Exactly. But you can't be completely at ease. We never know when the balance might be disrupted."
"... "
"In essence, you're like a walking time bomb right now. Or to be more precise, a glass marble containing a bomb?"
With a wry smile, he sat down on the chair, his brows furrowed in contemplation. Sihyun followed suit, keeping silent and maintaining the heavy atmosphere. It was about ten minutes later, judging from his perception, that Russ finally spoke up.
"If you're lucky, you might just keep living like this without dying. Unless something major disrupts the balance. All you need to do is manage the core circulation properly."
He always seems to waver whenever such words are spoken.
Looking at Russ with eyes that questioned why he's inserting these flags, Sihyun glanced down at his wrist. As expected, there were distinct red marks left on his wrist.
"If luck isn't on your side, you'll die."
"That's right."
"Is there no other way?"
"While the problem may not be solved, there might be a way to make it safer."
"What is it?"
As his eyes wandered from his wrist, Russ, with his blonde hair, took on a rare serious expression before slowly speaking up.
"If the fourth core is intact, engraving it to enhance your current state might be preferable. That way, even if one core becomes unstable, the balance will still be maintained. But if even the fourth core is problematic..."
"...the balance will collapse."
"That's right."
Silence lingered. Russ, who was initially planning to be his disciple, now seemed exasperated, running his hand through his hair. It was frustrating that the only solution that came up wasn't particularly helpful. Sihyun, looking at him, sighed inwardly.
This makes it the second time he's heard that the fourth engraving is impractical. It seems there's no way but to maintain the current state. He sighed, feeling resigned. Just when he thought he could finally live a bit, things turned so tumultuous.
"...Still, it's not like it's a complete death sentence. If you do well, the balance might hold until the end."
Russ frowned at his nonchalant tone.
"It's not something to be taken lightly."
"There's no point in being anxious. It's not like there's anything we can do about dying."
"Speaking as if you've already experienced death at least once?"
"...It's just a figure of speech."
He would often hold his breath as if struggling to breathe, then clear his throat before speaking. At least now he knew that his core wasn't in perfect condition. It was fortunate that he found out now, before attempting the fourth engraving without knowing any better.
"So, there are no current issues, right? Using mana doesn't pose any problems?"
"For now, that's correct. Still, refrain from using skills until you reach the bottom of your mana pool. It's the riskiest behavior."
"Got it."
"Don't force yourself to use mana if you don't have any left. You might pass out from exhaustion."
He'd experienced something like that before.
Though not a complete faint, he had experienced mana depletion. Remembering the incident at the Orc Stronghold, he hesitated for a moment before nodding in agreement, resting his arms on the back of the chair and soaking his head in sweat, Russ sighed heavily, as if trying to cool down his rising temperature.
"Once we return to the States, I'll look into it as much as possible, so be careful, kid. Have you forgotten what a loss it would be for the world if you were to lose one? It's not like a Quadruple-Class can just come out whenever they want. It's not like you can choose to live a normal life. So, don't act like you have some kind of trust in that."
"... "
"Answer me."
"Yeah, well...."
Furrowing his brows, Sihyun nodded vaguely in response to the man urging him for an answer. In truth, he did have a shred of belief. Thinking of the boy who always popped up to solve problems whenever they arose, Sihyun raised his hand and traced where his mark would be. Come to think of it, it had been a long time since he'd seen Kang Sihyun. Since the third engraving, they hadn't met, and as Sihyun sat there pondering, Russ, who had been sitting next to him, lowered his head and looked at him with his chin resting on his hand.
"You did well to accept the teaching offer. If you'd come later, who knows what state he'd be in."
"I have a question."
"What is it?"
"How did you know?"
"Know what?"
"About the mana collision. Neither the principal nor Iha Hyuk said anything."
The last time they met, he had just finished his third engraving, and the principal was the same. How did he find out what they didn't notice? Sihyun asked, and Russ chuckled before flicking his finger against Sihyun's forehead. Before Sihyun could react, he felt a slight pain, as if he'd been gently tapped.
"What was that for?"
"Feeling someone else's mana isn't as easy as you think."
"Is it difficult?"
"Start by considering whether you can sense the flow of blood in someone else's body, then ask."
"That sounds difficult."
"Yeah. I'm more accustomed to mana reversals since I've seen them often. There aren't many in Korea yet."
At least there's less illegal activity in the United States.
The man, who had sighed heavily, muttered about how coming back to the country felt like nonsense. Sihyun, who had learned about the situation of another country through this conversation, remained silent. A moment of awkward silence passed. As Sihyun pondered about mana collisions, he belatedly remembered something he had forgotten.
"So, why did you come here?"
He had been asking since earlier, but the topic got sidetracked because of the mana collision. Russ, too, seemed to have forgotten, as a short, "Ah," escaped his lips.
"I accepted the sparring offer since I was in Korea anyway. It would be a waste if I didn't see you before I left."
"You accepted the sparring offer just to see me?"
"Yeah. They asked me to spar in exchange for showing a Quadruple's face. Since I agreed to see your condition, it's a favor to you, kid."
"I didn't particularly ask for it."
What kind of logic is this? Clearly rejecting the man who was trying to burden him with debt, Sihyun searched his pockets. His square phone emerged. Checking the time, he realized he had to leave soon and handed the phone to Russ.
"I have to go back before roll call, so I'll be going now. Can you leave your number?"
"What, are you interested in me?"
"It's not that. I might have to contact you soon."
As if saying, "If you don't deny it quickly, I'll boast about myself," Sihyun preemptively warned the man, then shook the phone he was holding as if to say, "If you don't refuse quickly, I'm not particularly great."
The man, who had been frightened by Haehyuk's mention of his child, nodded as if to say, "How about that?" before shrugging his shoulders and dialing his phone number again to hand it back to me.
"Are we going to see each other often like this?"
"I'll only contact you when it's absolutely necessary."
"You're quite curt. So, why are you taking my number without telling me the reason?"
"I'll tell you when the time comes."
As if the mana collision from earlier wasn't enough for him, I felt like I was about to get scolded again if I mentioned the incident at the Orc Stronghold. Avoiding the answer, Russ, with a suspicious glance, checked the time and pushed his back.
"Let's talk more next time, two days from now at this time."
I nodded in response to his suggestion to talk more next time.
With a push from his back, I left the training room. It was only after seeing Russ disappear with teleportation that I realized he had casually mentioned coming to my training room. Come to think of it, I hadn't even conducted the skill research I planned to do today.
"...That was intense."
I sighed, feeling thoroughly wrung out by the lunatic who had managed to get into my head. My hair, now half-dried with the dryer, was completely fluffy.
"Where have you been?"
As soon as I returned to my room, there were three pairs of eyes fixed on me. When I said it was the training room, Hamin's voice came flying, telling me to speak and leave next time. Then, Seowoo's gentle nagging began.
"I thought it might be the training room, so I didn't go. Seeing that you didn't tell us anything, I thought you might have something to do alone. But Sihyun, since we're worried, let us know before you leave next time. If you tell us not to come, we won't either."
"Got it."
"Was it uncomfortable?"
As I accepted the reasonable nagging, Haru asked. Shaking my head in denial and then checking the relieved red eyes, I objected to Seowoo's instruction to lie down on the bed as he said he would turn off the lights.
"You're on the second floor, so I should turn it off. Why should you?"
Might I trip in the darkness? Saying "Fine, hurry up and go" with a wave of my hand, I walked to the switch, but Seowoo, who was standing in front of it, stared at me silently. His eyes were searching.
"Why?"
"What happened?"
"Huh?"
"Just... your expression seems stiffer than usual."
"...It's nothing. Training didn't go as expected."
Damn ghostly guy. Both Baek Geonu and Yoo Seowoo. Turning my head because I couldn't stand their quick reactions to my changes, I pushed them away with a firm back, urging them to leave quickly. In that motion, Russ came to mind, and for a moment, he glanced at my wrist. I heard the boy going upstairs, turned off the lights, and grabbed my wrist.
Thump, thump, thump, thump.
I could feel my heartbeat beating normally.
After briefly feeling that, I walked to the bed.
I was still alive.
Then, everything was fine.
Thank you for reading this far! You can access more chapters from HERE by joining my Patreon community. You'll gain exclusive early access to the COMPLETE NOVEL.
As a member of my Patreon community, here is what you'll get:
For $5
- Early access to 100s of chapters before they go public.
- You also get access to all the novels I'm translating, you can find them here HERE.
- Your name will be featured on the "Wall of Gratitude".
- The power to vote on which novel I translate next.
- You Get Ad-free Chapters.
For $10
- You get to suggest a Novel for me to translate.
- You get access to Digital art.
- Your name featured on the "Wall of Gratitude" (in gold).
For $20
- You get to recommend a Novel and I will immediately start translating it.
- Your name featured on the "Wall of Gratitude" (in blue).
Plus, you can Cancel your membership at any time.
Don't let this amazing opportunity slip through your fingers!
