TRPM 05

CHAPTER 05

After undergoing government testing, Lee Ha-eun was revealed to have awakened magical abilities.

Well, anyone could have guessed that after seeing her conjure fire back in kindergarten.

The problem was that while her magical ability was discovered, the fact that she had also awakened Aura was not revealed.

‘Well, even when the government conducts these tests, all they really do is identify where the energy gathers in the body and make assumptions about what kind of ability it is. They can’t actually distinguish between mana, aura, spiritual power, elemental force, and so on.’

If she had been tested at the Awakener Association in Korea with state-of-the-art equipment, they might have caught it. But with just the local community office’s device, all they could confirm was that her energy was centered in her heart.

And since both mana and aura not only have similar properties but also gather in the heart, distinguishing the two would’ve been even harder.

‘Lucky for Lee Ha-eun.’

Thanks to her second ability going unnoticed, she wasn’t bothered by government agencies as the world’s “first dual-ability awakener.”

Of course, it was only a matter of time.

Right now, Ha-eun was still too young to fully understand most of the knowledge that had been etched into her mind at the moment of awakening. But one day, when she realized the existence of Aura and innocently revealed it, the truth that she was a dual-ability awakener would come out.

‘I can’t let that happen.’

For her sake.

And for mine.

With that in mind…

“Ha-eun, the energy inside your body that isn’t magic… it’s not strange. Got it?”

“Mm, got it.”

“And among the knowledge in your head, anything that’s not about magic—it’s not strange either. Understand?”

“Mm, got it.”

“And even if it’s not strange, you still have to hide that energy and knowledge from others. Okay?”

“Mm, got it.”

“Forget.”

“… Huh? Why were we talking about this again?”

Whenever I got the chance, I told Ha-eun these things, and then I infused my voice with mana and cast a spell of verbal compulsion—making her forget that I’d ever said them.

A single attempt meant nothing, but by repeating it, I engraved the suggestion deep into her unconscious mind. Eventually, she would obey those words instinctively without even knowing why.

Of course, this was only hypnotic suggestion. Once her level surpassed mine, the effect would naturally unravel. But by then, she would be smart enough to understand just how dangerous it was to reveal she had awakened two abilities.

“Anyway, Gun-woo, I’m so glad I get to go to the same elementary school as you!”

“Yeah, me too.”

Three years had already passed since I first implanted the suggestion for her to hide her dual awakening.

Now, it was time for us to enter elementary school.

Of course, awakened children couldn’t exactly be educated alongside ordinary kids, so we enrolled in a specialized elementary school for awakeners.

‘That’s why I pretended to be an Aura awakener too.’

Partly because Ha-eun had begged to attend the same school as me, but also because I figured a specialized school would be more efficient for me as well.

After all, the basic curriculum was the same as in regular schools, and on top of that, specialized schools tended to be rich in energy like mana, making it easier to strengthen both inner force and magic.

Most importantly, I wasn’t entirely comfortable sending Ha-eun off alone.

“Ah, is that our school over there?”

“Yeah. We came here last year for the entrance ceremony, remember?”

“I was holding Mom’s hand back then, so I don’t really remember….”

Ha-eun was timid, and I worried she wouldn’t be able to fit in with the other kids if left on her own.

She could get along fine with ordinary children in kindergarten, but among awakeners…

“Take this!”

“Hi-yah! My finishing move!”

We turned our heads toward the voices.

There, some older kids were openly using their powers to fight.

… Well, that figured.

‘Give kids power before they’ve learned proper morality—or before they understand why they should follow it—and this is what happens.’

They get drunk on their strength and start running wild.

That’s why every teacher in a specialized school was either an awakener themselves or strong enough to handle awakened children.

But no matter how many teachers there were, they’d never outnumber the students. They couldn’t possibly stop every single scuffle.

‘If Ha-eun came here alone, she would’ve been intimidated by kids like that and never had a proper school life.’

That was the biggest reason I enrolled alongside her.

‘But….’

My senses picked up on something strange.

It felt like the surrounding mana was… being drawn into the school itself.

‘So that’s why specialized schools are always known for being rich in mana… they’re gathering it artificially.’

Back in my previous life, I had attended a specialized high school for awakeners, but I hadn’t realized it at the time.

Now, I understood.

These schools were designed to pull ambient mana inward, artificially raising the concentration within.

‘I should take some time later to find where exactly the mana is being gathered.’

There was a high chance I’d discover a device or a magic circle behind it. If I did, I might even be able to modify it for my own use.

Even if I didn’t, the concentration would be highest at the gathering point anyway, making it a perfect place to train.

‘I came here for Ha-eun, but it looks like I’ll gain something too.’

Just as I thought that, Ha-eun whispered nervously:

“Let’s go quickly. Those kids scare me….”

I nodded and led her toward the classroom we’d been assigned at the entrance ceremony.

We’d been put in the same class.

Well—more precisely…

‘There’s only one class per grade, since so few kids awaken before age eight.’

Children who awakened later entered specialized middle or high schools instead.

That’s how it had been for me in my past life.

Even though awakeners under eight weren’t uncommon across all of Korea, in this neighborhood there were barely twenty, so splitting into multiple classes wasn’t possible.

Our homeroom teacher was none other than the principal himself.

It felt a little odd for a principal to be homeroom teacher, but it wasn’t really my concern.

At least, he seemed perfect for wrangling a classroom full of rowdy first-graders.

“Class begins now.”

The moment he spoke, he released a wave of power that crushed down on us.

He was imprinting into our minds: “Teachers are frightening.” Or perhaps: “Adults are to be feared.”

Wouldn’t parents complain about such methods? Maybe. But aside from being a bit heavy-handed, I thought it was actually effective.

Parents and teachers alike benefitted when kids, drunk on power, were suddenly subdued. And kids benefitted too, realizing that plenty of people stronger than them existed, keeping them from causing trouble.

Of course, this method would only work for younger students.

That’s why older kids, like the ones we saw earlier, still went wild.

Soon, the morning lessons ended.

‘…Although, for first-graders like us, that basically meant “eat lunch and then go straight home.”’

In other words, it was time to leave.

But instead of heading home, I walked toward a certain place in the school.

Naturally, Ha-eun followed me.

“Gun-woo, where are we going?”

“We’re going treasure hunting.”

“Treasure hunting? I want to play too!”

Her eyes lit up at the words.

Well, the “treasure” I was after and the treasure she imagined were probably completely different things.

But I didn’t stop her.

‘…Doesn’t seem like anyone’s watching us.’

The teachers were either busy in the staff room or occupied controlling other students.

Even if they saw us, it wouldn’t matter. It’s not like we were up to anything bad.

‘Now, let’s see….’

I followed the flow of mana.

The same current I’d sensed earlier, being pulled into one spot in the school.

“Gun-woo, look! The principal’s over there.”

“…Ah. So he is.”

Sure enough, when I reached the destination, our homeroom teacher—the principal—was there.

“Oh? Well, well. If it isn’t Ha-eun and Gun-woo.”

Unlike during class, he greeted us warmly with a gentle smile.

“How did you two know to come here?”

“We were treasure hunting with Gun-woo!”

“Hoho, is that so?”

Ha-eun parroted back the excuse I’d given her.

While they chatted, I quietly observed the surroundings.

‘…Yes, the mana is definitely concentrating here. Even now….’

This was without a doubt the area of the school with the highest mana density.

If I could train here….

I glanced at the principal and asked:

“Sir, what is this place?”

“This is a training room for teachers.”

“A training room?”

For the teachers…?

Ah, of course.

‘So the teachers know this place has higher mana density too.’

That’s why they trained here. After all, training efficiency rose dramatically in such an environment.

“Does that mean we can’t come in?”

Worried, Ha-eun asked before I could.

Since it was a “teachers’” room, she was afraid students weren’t allowed.

“You can come in, but you mustn’t disturb the teachers. Understand?”

“Yes!”

“And you must be quiet here. If you’re noisy, you’ll interrupt their training.”

“…(Okay…)”

Ha-eun answered in the smallest voice possible—so quiet even I, standing right next to her, barely heard it.

Finding her adorable, the principal handed her a candy.

Overjoyed, she declared that she’d found treasure and won the game.

I just smiled at her.

‘Thank you.’

She had received candy as her treasure.

But me?

Of course I’d found treasure too.

‘This very place is the treasure.’

I had been wondering how to gain access to this spot.

And thanks to Ha-eun, the opportunity fell right into my lap.

How could I not be grateful?