WPRAF 20

Chapter 20

“Boxing?”

I recognized the steps as Choi Kyung weaved through the goblins and commented.

“That’s right.”

Seon Woo-jin nodded.

Breeze was a character based on boxing.

“Is that all the characters you can possess?”

“No, there’s one more. An assassin character, but that one’s stronger in one-on-one situations than many-on-one.”

“Hm…”

“Isn’t that enough… to pass?”

“Not really.”

I spoke honestly while watching Choi Kyung turn goblin soldiers into mush.

“When Choi Kyung first revealed the character Breeze, I was definitely impressed.”

I couldn’t deny being amazed at how a human could move like that, and the strikes were excellent.

“But that’s all.”

After the initial wonder and amazement came a feeling of unease.

She was too reckless, didn’t utilize the environment, and exposed her back too easily.

And the thing I worried about most:

Lethality was lacking.

The elite soldiers with exceptional endurance could withstand her punches.

Seon Woo-jin’s expression darkened as I delivered my candid assessment.

“Still…”

I turned back to Choi Kyung and continued.

“If she fixes her weaknesses, she’ll be useful.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Choi Kyung passes.”

With just a little guidance from me, she could perform on the front lines alongside Hwang Hye-joo and me.

But what about Seon Woo-jin? He wasn’t contributing to the battle at all.

“Hmm?”

“What can you do?”

Seon Woo-jin looked slightly embarrassed at the question.

“I…”

He quickly regained his confidence and answered.

“I can train you, sir.”

Shortly after Han Se-hyun took the so-called intruders away, leaving only the two of them at the house, Jeong So-mi asked:

“Unnie, are you really going to join that advance team thing? I saw your face earlier—it looked like you were totally smitten with Seon Woo-jin.”

“Smitten? Me? I just said whatever came to my mind earlier because I was distracted. What about you?”

“I’m going to follow you, senior.”

He’s the one who saved my life. I owe him that.

And there’s something I need to ask him—specifically, the truth about my parents’ hidden deaths.

‘Ten years ago, he knows the secret behind the deaths of my parents, who were diplomats in China.’

The official cause of death was acute heart failure.

But my parents were obsessively health-conscious.

When I was little, I never touched junk food at the school store, let alone fast food.

Instead, we took supplements and tonics, and only organic food was on the table.

Our house had exercise equipment rivaling a gym.

‘Heart failure for people like that? Impossible.’

So when So-mi became an adult, she received an email saying, “Your parents were murdered.”

Later, after joining the National Intelligence Service, she learned from a retired agent that Han Se-hyun had been active in Beijing ten years ago, where her parents were.

Naturally, she tracked him—but even her top-secret clearance couldn’t find a single hair on him. Only directors or higher could access his info.

By luck, she was assigned a surveillance mission—and the target was Han Se-hyun.

Now, they were on the same team.

She had many opportunities to ask questions but couldn’t bring herself to do it.

At first, she was adapting to the situation, then focused on survival, and finally was too afraid.

Afraid he might have been involved in her parents’ deaths.

So she spent several days mentally preparing and waiting for the right moment.

At that moment, Hwang Hye-joo pointed to the items laid out in the living room.

“By the way, why the items?”

“Oh, these? We learned some new skills when we leveled up last time. I’m going to try them out.”

“The [Component Analysis] skill?”

“Yes.”

[Component Analysis] is a skill exclusive to the [Analyst] class. I tried it before on an apple at home, and it came out like this:

[Apple]

• Category: Fruit

• Calories: 50~80 Kcal

• Nutrients: Calcium, Protein, Carbohydrates, Vitamin A…

• Effects: Relieves constipation, antioxidant, fatigue recovery

• Evaluation: High-quality, edible fruit

I wondered what results it would show on items.

So I prepared.

Goblin Berserker, elite soldiers’ armor and spear, even the mana stone extracted from one of them.

I laid them out on the living room floor like a stall, planning to check them one by one.

“Let’s start with the Berserker’s item.”

So-mi placed her hand on the red-tinged armor and activated [Component Analysis].

A message appeared:

[Significant level difference between skill and item.]
[Component Analysis impossible.]

“Hmm…”

“What happened?”

“Impossible. The level is too low.”

The armor was formally called [Limited Edition Dwarf Slave Plate Armor] and was “rare.”

Even if [Component Analysis] didn’t work, the item info could still be seen.

Its effect was similar to mass-produced items, but physical defense nearly reached +50, and it had fire resistance.

Thus, “rare” items were stronger than “high-grade” items and even had an extra option.

“Then what about this one?”

Hwang Hye-joo pointed to the armor obtained from the goblin elite soldier.

“I’ll try it.”

So-mi activated the skill, and a long spear appeared before her eyes.

“Done! High-grade is possible.”

“So what did it show?”

“Wait, I’ll type it into the tablet.”

She opened a notepad on the tablet and typed the analysis:

[Mass-Produced Dwarf Slave Plate Armor]

• Category: Armor

• Materials: Steel 30%, Mithril 20%, Impurities 50%

• Effects: Health +5 / Strength +3 / Physical Defense +30

• Evaluation: Low-quality armor for dwarves, in need of repair

Hwang Hye-joo exclaimed, wide-eyed:

“This is considered low-quality?”

“Well, dwarves are excellent blacksmiths.”

“Imagine what a proper one would produce.”

Finally, So-mi picked up the mana stone. [Component Analysis] could only be used three times a day, so this was her last chance.

Would it work?

She calmed her pounding heart and examined the baseball-sized stone glowing blue.

[Mana Stone]

• Category: Energy Crystal

• Components: Mana, Magnesium, Calcium, Phosphorus, Iron…

• Evaluation: Highly concentrated mana stone, quality: Low. Grants 3 mana points when used.

“If it’s okay with you, sir…”

Seon Woo-jin asked if he could take the last trainee slot. He claimed a training contract was a win-win, but I recommended someone else.

“I’m fine. Train Hye-joo.”

“So you mean…”

“Yes. Both pass. Let’s do well from now on.”

Seon Woo-jin relaxed, and I turned my gaze to Choi Kyung.

I was more curious about her [Possession] class main skill, [Avatar].

‘…I wonder how much it’s worth.’

On the way home, I subtly asked her if I could check [Avatar]’s value.

Choi Kyung’s eyes sparkled. She was curious too.

I immediately set up a [Small Loan] without exchanging money and activated [Collateral].

Then Choi Kyung’s skills were displayed:

[Avatar] and [Enhanced Senses]

I checked [Enhanced Senses] first:

[Player Choi Kyung’s ‘Enhanced Senses’ skill loan limit: 40,000 coins]

“What the… that alone is worth 40,000?”

“What?”

Choi Kyung asked anxiously from the back seat.

“Enhanced Senses can borrow up to 40,000 coins.”

“Wow! It literally enhances the senses.”

“See farther, hear better?”

“Yes. Night vision improves, motion detection too. Then what about Avatar? How much?”

I checked [Avatar]’s loan limit and was speechless:

[Player Choi Kyung’s ‘Avatar’ skill loan limit: 50,000,000 coins]

I don’t know how they calculated that, but it shows the current value of [Avatar].

As she levels it up, the loan limit would skyrocket.

So the skill is essentially out of my reach.

I tried to console myself, since I wasn’t interested in the skill anyway, and told Choi Kyung:

“Fifty million…”

“Fifty million coins? No way, this skill must be incredible!”

“Yes, fifty million. Not too bad.”

I teased her a bit and later told her the truth at home.

“Fifty million?!”

“Senior, me too! Let me see it!”

Ignoring Choi Kyung bouncing in shock and Seon Woo-jin pestering me, I entered the living room.

“Senior, you have to see this.”

So-mi said seriously, handing me her tablet.

The screen showed the analysis, and under [Mana Stone], something amazing appeared.

It could be used. And using it increased “Mana.”

“Mana” boosts skill power. Until now, mana stones were only confirmed for use by architects, engineers, or magic engineers.

‘Absorbing mana stones to build structures.’

So-mi’s discovery resembled the usage in building-related gameplay.

“So did it work?”

She shook her head.

“No matter what I tried, it didn’t work. Seems like a skill is needed to absorb it, like the building players.”

“Hm… so the answer is the skill.”

I agreed with Seon Woo-jin and glanced at Hwang Hye-joo, who was eyeing Choi Kyung and Seon Woo-jin fiddling with a smartphone.

‘Hye-joo has that side too.’

I’m not interested in celebrities, so I didn’t really empathize, but whatever.

I smirked and glanced at the pile of mana stones on the table.

“Doesn’t work immediately, huh.”

“I’ll put them back.”

“No, leave them.”

Might as well sell them later. I gave Choi the side-eye.

“Sigh… coins? Won? How should I receive payment?”

Always quick to catch cues.

“Coins.”

Mana stones already had a market price. Supply and demand created natural value.

Lowest-grade mana stones dropped by goblin soldiers or hellhounds: 3,000 coins or 3,000,000 won. Low-grade: double that.

One lowest-grade stone could produce the output a building player generates.

I put the mana stones I’d collected in my duffel bag and handed them to Choi.

“Please.”

Barrier projects fall under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport. Choi probably had connections there. Adding a premium, he could sell them.

“Got it. I’ll do my best. But these… are they for use?”

Choi gestured to the items in the living room, eyes gleaming with greed.

“You recognize good stuff instantly.”

“That’s the one, right? From the goblin berserker?”

“Yes. Rare-tier item. Probably the highest grade item currently available.”

Because I was the first to defeat a berserker; no one else had done it yet. If another had died, the gate timer would have changed.

“Uh… sorry to be rude, but can I use this? I’m a spearman, you know.”

He lifted the goblin berserker’s spear.

Its formal name: [Marking Spear].

Pitch-black shaft with a red blade. Anyone struck by it gets “marked” and takes additional damage.

Additional damage means extra impact per strike—a perfect option for a weapon built for combos.

‘That’s quite heavy.’

Choi lifted the spear easily with one hand. Clearly, he invested heavily in [Strength].

I said calmly to him, twirling the spear with excitement:

“Go ahead, use it.”

“…Really? No extra conditions?”

He still doesn’t know me well.

“…None?”