Chapter 14

Chapter 013

The conversation had deepened, and after enjoying a delicious meal, it seemed like it was time to part ways.

"Ji-hwan."

Baek Seul-hee began calling me by my name.

"Ji-hwan, if you were to awaken as an ice ability user, how would you use this ability?"

"Are you seeking advice from me as a specialist in ice abilities?"

"Yes. It's just a question. It would be nice if it could help me."

"What should I say to someone who is a specialist in ice abilities?"

"As they say, even a blank sheet of paper can be useful when held together. If Ji-hwan were to awaken as an ice ability user, someone who can freely create ice, how would you fight?"

"Hmm...."

Is she seeking advice from an enemy?

Well, she doesn't know I'm an enemy yet, so she can talk to me so casually.

"Well, I've only seen how you fight in videos. You use an ice whip, create ice walls, and spread ice wings...?"

"Right. If we add a bit of variation, what do you think would be good?"

"Hmm...."

Should I help her?

I definitely know more about ice abilities than Baek Seul-hee.

Ice abilities are a staple in subcultures.

"First... how about ice spikes?"

"Ice spikes?"

"Yes. They are literally spikes, but their size is almost like stalactites. You would use them to pierce and subdue the enemy. If they get pinned to a wall with a spike through their shoulder, they can't escape unless they break the ice, right?"

"I see."

Her reaction is lukewarm.

Of course, it's probably because this new ability doesn't differ much from the existing ones she uses—skills like ice spears.

'What should I do?'

Should I tell her about the ice magic she awakens to in the original story?

Or should I tell her about ice magic that doesn't exist in this world but that I know about?

'Mr. President. Since you told me to do my best to recruit her to our side, don't blame me later.'

If I tell her that I enhanced Baek Seul-hee, Snow White, and you blame me later, I can say I was just doing my job.

"It seems you already know about ice spikes."

"Um... for now."

"Then how about this? Spraying ice crystals into the air. It's like compressed dry ice that instantly freezes any enemy it touches."

"...Hmm."

This time, she seems troubled for a different reason.

"Is that... possible?"

"Whether it's possible or not depends on you, Seul-hee. Isn't it true that the abilities of ability users develop based on their imagination?"

"You seem to know a lot about the abilities of ability users."

"Knowledge about abilities is as essential to people in this world as knowledge about computers and smartphones."

I deftly brushed aside her doubts and pointed to the ice cream that came as a dessert.

"Imagine ice fragments of this size spreading out in all directions, numbering in the hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands. When they touch, the compressed ice fragments would burst, covering the opponent in cold."

"Hmm...."

"Maybe we could call this technique 'Ice Spirit Scattering'?"

"Even the name of the technique? That's quite specific."

"When we were young, didn't we all try to create our own heroes?"

That is, creating our own characters.

"It's just one of those manifestations of imagination."

"No, it will be very helpful. I don't have a clear idea yet, but I'm sure this will lead to some great ideas and eventually become a powerful technique."

Of course.

It's your ultimate move in the original novel.

I barely managed to push the words back down and eat the ice cream.

"Then, if you were an ability user, what kind of ability user would you want to be?"

"Me, an ability user?"

"Yes. An ability user. Any ability, any grade. Do you have any desired ability?"

"Ugh...."

If I were the me before I became a goblin, I probably wouldn't have wished for such an ability.

No, I still wish for it.

"The ability to enter books?"

"Excuse me?"

"The ability to experience various story worlds directly. To see, hear, and feel the many worlds I've only seen in print, and to experience them vividly."

"Ji-hwan, you really seem to love stories."

"Yes, I really do."

That's why I ended up in this world after criticizing overly nationalistic light novels.

"Ji-hwan, you seem to enjoy stories purely. Others analyze stories to see how they can make them their own."

"Excuse me?"

"That's right. In a world where others' imaginations can develop into one's own abilities, directly manifesting abilities from comics or novels is not considered plagiarism but 'homage' and is popular."

"......"

"Ji-hwan, do you know what the most commonly used sword by ability users who have awakened is?"

"A light saber, right?"

Orange.

A sword that shoots out.

A sword created using the power of the Force.

"Right. That's what we all learned. After we awakened to our abilities... that's what we saw from a young age."

It's popular because the 'superpower content' that adults could show to children who had awakened to their abilities was limited to that era's content.

"Have you watched children's TV channels often? Most of what you see there is that. Content that teaches children not to use their abilities recklessly. Only when children grow up and can control themselves do they start to enjoy stories."

Of course, as children grow up, they gradually start to create their own abilities, and adults show them worlds they've created with their imaginations to help improve the children's abilities.

"I feel that this world, which is expressed through imagination, is a harsh place. People can't enjoy entertainment for what it is and only look at it for the purpose of improving their abilities."

That's why.

"When I watched that movie earlier, I thought, 'If I could make a dinosaur out of ice and fight, it would be just like that. If I could make wings out of ice and fly into space, how would I fly? If I used ice magic to stop a meteor falling from space, how would I do it?'"

The movie we watched also had to be analyzed by ability users in terms of 'how to break through the atmosphere' or 'how to fight if you transform into a dinosaur.'

"In that sense, I envy Ji-hwan for enjoying movies purely. You enjoy content as content."

Baek Seul-hee smiled genuinely and raised her cup to me.

"Even at Sejong Academy, can I ask you to talk about stories like this from time to time?"

* * *

Evening.

After the meeting with the mysterious man, Do Ji-hwan, Baek Seul-hee returned home and threw herself onto the bed.

Beeeeep!!

As soon as she switched from personal privacy mode to daily mode, all sorts of messages started flooding in.

Proposals for hero public service advertisements.

Requests to show her face at official government events.

Invitations to a gathering of Busan-born heroes.

All of them were public and required her to be a 'hero' in front of others.

There was no place for the individual, the human, Baek Seul-hee.

Only the S-class ability user, the pride of Korea, existed.

"Ha."

Baek Seul-hee covered her face with her hand.

"Will I have to live like this for the rest of my life...."

Probably, until she dies.

Even her marriage would be managed by the state.

If she were to fall in love with a foreigner and marry, the entire country would mobilize to meddle in and criticize the marriage.

Her freedom as a hero had already disappeared.

From the moment she started walking the path of light.

Powerful heroes roam the world like the Heaven's Pride, but in Korea, it's much harder.

"I...."

As Baek Seul-hee extended her hand into the air.

"......!!"

Without realizing it, the ice crystals she created in the air started to scatter.

One small ice fragment turned into two, two into four, four into eight, doubling in number.

She picked up one of the ice fragments, arranged like a grid, and gently threw it at the balcony window.

Crack.

The balcony window began to freeze over, as if frost had settled on it.

Although it was only the size of a palm, the small ice fragment exploded with cold like a bomb.

"Wow...."

What happened?

Could the conversation with that man have helped her develop a new skill?

Just from what he said once?

"...No way."

She couldn't think of such a skill herself.

Yet, it felt like she already knew it, and she had mastered the new skill.

Thanks to Do Ji-hwan's imagination.

"......Hehe."

Baek Seul-hee clutched her smartphone.

She examined Do Ji-hwan's profile picture.

"...What?"