Chapter 5

"Hmm."

Han Sung stood up, feeling a sharp chill, and tightly gripped the letter containing secrets that his mother had given him.

Was it because he overdid it yesterday? He felt a chill.

"Today is the introductory magic class, and I have to meet 'Yan Charles' too."

A French-American. Initially, he was a presence as insignificant as Han Sung, a candidate who went largely unnoticed. Even until the end, he remained one of the characters who didn't stand out much.

He was truly a character that no one paid attention to.

Then, a streamer, in a content called "Raising Extras," bestowed [Treasure] grade items and all kinds of [Growth Potions] to 'Ann Charles,' and even added [Achievements] through party play.

As a result, she grew to an unbelievable extent.

Given that other extras never grew to such an extent, it was clear that she was special.

"I don't need to go that far."

He has the ability [Target Blossoming] and the skill [Information Viewing].

These are called 'special abilities.' They achieve things that are impossible in reality and common sense, and they are the foundation of the war between monsters and humans in this 'world.'

However, even with special abilities, blossoming is only possible for blossoming.

Befriending Ann Charles is Han Sung's own ability.

"Who was Ann Charles again...?"

Han Sung searched the internet while moving to the lecture hall for the introductory magic class. It was quite a distance, so he had to take a bus.

* * *

When Han Sung entered the lecture hall, he was startled.

"Hey! It's Han Sung."

"Really? Wow. He's so ugly."

"Jin Hoon, Jin Hyun, Han Bae... and even Seo Yeon is wary of Han Sung? Is this for real?"

"Wow. Can someone ranked 500th receive so much attention?"

He could hear all the whispers. Sorry, but the microphone of this recording camera is top-notch.

- Your recognition has increased.

- You are receiving attention from multiple characters.

- Recognition: 12 Points obtained!

He even gained recognition points. So far, he has a total of 60 points. If he gathers 100, he can get a lower-grade random box.

"Should I act like a show-off?"

Han Sung shook his head.

Not yet. If he does, he needs to at least build up his physical stats first.

"Hey, did you see him shaking his head? You guys are nothing."

"Wow! How can someone look so arrogant with that face?"

"Is it arrogance if he has the skills? It's confidence."

"But he's so ugly."

"......Yeah."

Han Sung gritted his teeth and sat down.

"What a show-off."

He doesn't understand why he keeps having such delusions.

Being ugly is a fact. Does Han Sung ignore and look down on them? That's absurd. They are the heroes who will shake the continent in the future, whether as villains or heroes.

He needs to make a good impression to become their ally, but if rumors like this spread, his future will be blocked.

"Hello. I am Lee Jung-hyun, the 'Mage' who will be teaching the introductory magic class."

Lee Jung-hyun, a mage of fire element, is a world-class star known for both his skills and appearance.

Whether Lee Jung-hyun knew Han Sung's thoughts or not, he started the class.

"Wow, this is really hard."

It's Jin Hoon. Specialized in physical abilities, he is a novice in magic.

Han Bae, sitting next to him, explains various things.

Even though he has talent in special abilities, he is set to have received elite magic education from a mage family.

"Think of it a bit more simply. Magic seems difficult because it's called magic. Just think of it as a puzzle game."

It feels like he's teaching a young child, but Jin Hoon's magic level is really that low.

Out of curiosity, Han Sung used [Information Viewing].

He knows how much Jin Hoon grows in this game, but he didn't know the exact values and talents of his growth points.

- Using [Information Viewing].

- This is an out-of-spec ability.

- Ignoring the target's [Clear Mind (A/SS)].

- The level of [Information Viewing (F/EX)] is low. Only rough information can be viewed, excluding detailed information.

"Wow......"

He can only marvel.

He has two more unawakened characteristics and one unawakened unique ability, ranging from A to SS grade. Moreover, there are special abilities that he can't see yet?

"Since they are unawakened, they are almost like abilities he already has."

The common theory is that unawakened characteristics and abilities can be awakened through 'experience' or specific 'realizations.'

Unique abilities, special abilities, and characteristics. Even if you don't have them, you can get good ones if you gain [Rank] from 'dungeons' or 'monsters' later.

However,

"Even so, it's absurd that he has all of them."

Indeed, a protagonist-level character.

Well, if he achieves the accomplishments in the main scenario, he should get SSS-grade abilities and talents. Or his existing talents should awaken and evolve.

Only then can he defeat a dragon with his bare hands.

Moreover, look at his stats.

Han Sung would be blown away by Jin Hoon's sincere efforts. The gap between a 10s stat and a 40s stat is significant.

His luck stat is also a considerable monster.

"Indeed, a protagonist-level character."

Han Sung quietly bowed his head.

He glanced at the other characters.

Then his gaze fell on Ann Charles.

"Indeed!"

He had a feeling there was something special about her.

To know things like 'Clear Mind,' 'Third Eye,' 'Keen Observer's Eye,' and other [Information Viewing] abilities, you need to have several [Information Viewing] abilities.

But Han Sung was different.

Even though his level is low, he can view information more accurately than anyone else.

A completely 'late bloomer' type hero.

Han Sung played a video of the fully grown Ann Charles from the tube.

Flash.

A massive beam of light splits the sky as if the world has gone dark. In the brightened world, a woman appears. Ann Charles, with golden long hair, is wearing silver armor and holding the shimmering [Gungnir].

"Odin."

She was called the female version of Odin.

With her gesture, the world brightens again, and thousands of [Demons] turn to ash, and tens of thousands of monsters fall, spewing blood.

She was also known as the 'Master of Divine Punishment.'

"The title... it was her special ability."

The problem was that without 'Rank' achieved through 'Master of Divine Punishment' or 'Path of the King,' she couldn't awaken, and Charles lacked the ability to achieve such accomplishments.

"Such talent must be cultivated at all costs!"

Only then can he get closer to clearing the game and increase his survival rate. But the key is to make her lean towards good and keep her close to him.

"I need to get closer to her first."

He thought he needed to raise his charm stat to do so, but he didn't have the time for that yet.

"Let's take a short break."

At the words of Mage Lee Jung-hyun, the candidates gathered in small groups, drinking tea and going to the bathroom.

It feels like he's back in high school.

"Ah, 17 to 20 years old."

Those who had their talents and abilities confirmed and trained from a young age usually enter at 17, and those whose talents are discovered late can enter after a few years of basic education.

Of course, they need to have overwhelming talent or abilities.

But once you're over 20, you can't enter the Hero Academy.

Han Sung quietly stood up and followed Ann Charles. She was standing in front of a vending machine, searching her pockets for change, and then looking for her smartwatch.

But it seems she left it behind because it was charging.

"Is this also the influence of [Luck]?"

"Want one?"

Han Sung paid with his smartwatch and asked.

Ann Charles looked at Han Sung with a surprised look, then recognized him and was startled.

"Uh? Oh! Han Sung? Lee Han Sung?"

"Ah, you know me?"

"Of course! I was wondering if there would be any new students who don't know Lee Han Sung."

Ding. Click.

While talking, Han Sung's drink came out, and he gestured for her to choose one.

"Ah, no, it's fine......"

Ann Charles waved her arm, saying it was fine, but then pressed a button. Since it was already in the payment waiting state, the drink came out.

"Oops, sorry. It was a mistake!"

"Thank you?"

"Yes? Ah, thank you. Thank you."

Her face turned red. Whether it's her personality or because she's set to be 17, she is very easily flustered.

"Let's exchange greetings on the way."

"Ah, I understand."

"Then, I'll be going."

This much was enough for a first impression. If he got too close from the start, it would lead to misunderstandings.

Moreover, with his current charm, it's impossible.

Each character has a 'likability' towards the player, and charm greatly influences this likability.

"Her personality is as written. It's best to get close to her slowly... and since she has inferiority complex about her talent, it's good to address that part."

Take it slow. Slowly.

Soon, the class started, and the basic theory of 'magic conversion formulas' was explained.

Of course, Han Sung didn't gain anything from it.

Han Sung quietly gathered mana.

"Since I have [Mana Control], it should be much easier to control."

A very thin thread of mana emerged from the tip of Han Sung's fingers.

Two threads came out, twisted together, and became one. Then, he pulled out two more threads and made one. He combined the two threads created this way. Repeating this dozens or hundreds of times creates a very thin but highly compressed thread of mana.

"It keeps unraveling and doesn't clump well."

The low mana stat and the F-grade level of [Mana Control] were the main reasons.

- Mana increased by 1.

- Mana increased by 1.

If he keeps pulling until his head aches, his mana stat will increase.

If others saw this, they would scream that it's impossible, but Han Sung has been doing this for 52 years.

Moreover, with the cheat-like [Mana Control], it's not impossible.

"To extract abilities, this is not enough."

One of the hidden pieces.

This involves twisting and twisting thousands or tens of thousands of threads.

If you create a magic circle in this state, you can get the S-grade passive unique ability [Ultra-Concentrated Mana]. If you create a ki, you can get the S-grade [Ultra-Concentrated Ki].

The problem is that to achieve this, a genius needs to spend several years just doing this.

"For me, one to two weeks."

End

ⓒ [Dongju]

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