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Chapter 4
You Can See This Too? (3)
Being a Hunter in a world without a system was quite exhausting.
Especially for Earth’s Hunters, who had to compete inside the Black Gates against otherworldly races from different dimensions.
Nothing ever came easily.
Other races had history and tradition. They already knew basic techniques without having to purchase manuals with points. But Earth’s Hunters had to spend points on every single basic skill.
And even after buying them, they didn’t acquire the skills instantly.
They had to read the manuals, interpret them, struggle to understand them—and only through effort could they finally learn the techniques.
That was how it was.
At least, until Hwang Hana saw Dohyun standing before her.
Fwoosh—
“…Why are you staring like that?”
“……”
Mana-made flames burned brightly above Dohyun’s palm.
Hwang Hana wasn’t simply staring because she was surprised.
She was carefully observing the fire hovering in his hand.
And the conclusion she reached—
‘It’s… it’s real.’
The basic fire-element spell Fire.
True to its straightforward name, it was a beginner spell that summoned flames to attack.
Magic was harder to master than basic combat skills. That was why people even debated separating Hunters and Mages as entirely different paths.
Even someone with natural talent for magic usually needed several days to learn a basic spell.
But he succeeded on the very first day?
Just by reading the book?
‘That doesn’t make any sense…’
Hwang Hana tried to deny his words internally—but what choice did she have?
She had just reviewed his paperwork stating that his innate ability was insignificant. That meant the only explanation was that he had truly learned a basic spell from the manual.
What was she supposed to call this?
Hwang Hana herself had been called a genius wherever she went.
But what Dohyun was displaying surpassed even that.
As she stared at him in disbelief, Dohyun scratched his head and blinked.
“Ah… Am I not supposed to use it freely? You said I could use everything, so I just tried it…”
Worried he might be scolded, he spoke cautiously.
Hwang Hana quickly snapped out of it and shook her head.
“N-No. You can use it. …More importantly, you really learned that just by reading?”
Well, manuals existed to be learned from.
But the issue was the time.
It hadn’t even been ten minutes since she stepped away—and he had already read and mastered a basic magic manual?
If that were true…
‘I need to contact Taebaek.’
An instructor contacting her guild in advance to recruit a promising talent was heavily criticized. Some had even received severe disciplinary action for it.
But if this was real, Dohyun was someone worth risking punishment for.
That was exactly why other guilds often supported their members becoming instructors.
But then—
“Ah, then can I try the other ones too?”
“…Other ones?”
“Yes. I read about three.”
“…?”
What did he mean?
Before she could fully process it, Dohyun extinguished the flame in his palm and walked over to the rack of weapons nearby. He picked up a dagger.
That alone was confusing.
Why would someone who just used magic suddenly grab a dagger?
Among Korean Hunters, there wasn’t a single person proficient in both magic and combat techniques.
That was common sense to Hwang Hana.
And Dohyun shattered it.
The moment he gripped the dagger, the atmosphere changed.
Ssss—
Mana faintly enveloped the blade.
Hwang Hana’s eyes widened.
Dagger Technique—one of the basic skills.
And judging by the mana circulating gently through his body, he had also learned Mana Manipulation—another basic technique.
‘No way…’
She watched carefully.
Dohyun moved swiftly, rushing toward a training dummy. Holding the dagger in reverse grip, he slashed as he passed it—smooth, subtle, and fast.
A stealthy, rapid strike.
Even his physical movement exceeded that of an ordinary person.
Hwang Hana couldn’t help but shout.
“Y-You really learned Dagger Technique?! And Mana Manipulation too?!”
Just moments ago she thought he was clearly a magic-type.
Now he had mastered dagger techniques and mana control as well?
She trembled as if struck by lightning.
Was this even possible?
When she mastered a basic manual in two days, everyone called her a genius.
Then what should they call someone who read manuals for less than ten minutes and learned two basic skills and one basic spell?
“Mon… monster.”
The fact that he had endured—and even imitated—her mana pressure earlier hadn’t been coincidence or luck.
He had done it himself.
From her perspective—without analysis or a system—that was the only explanation.
Even if a newly awakened Hunter could see skills in a status window, it usually took significant time to adapt their body to them.
But for Dohyun, who absorbed information instantly the moment he analyzed it, that limitation didn’t apply.
Which was why he couldn’t understand Hwang Hana’s shock.
To him, it simply worked because he saw it.
He couldn’t possibly feel the sense of deprivation others would feel.
In fact, he was slightly disappointed.
He had learned:
-
Basic Skill: Dagger Technique
-
Basic Skill: Mana Manipulation
-
Basic Magic: Fire
And permanently gained +2 Mana.
Yet he felt unsatisfied for another reason.
[You have acquired more than three F-rank skills today.]
[You have reached the limit of your current stats.]
[You cannot learn any more F-rank skills today.]
‘So there’s a limit. That’s unfortunate.’
If Hwang Hana had heard that thought, she might have fainted on the spot.
After staring blankly for a while, she swallowed hard.
“F-For now, go rest. The other trainees will be arriving soon.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
He had already tested everything anyway.
Dohyun answered casually.
Hwang Hana hurried toward the instructor building.
She had to report this to the Taebaek Guild as soon as possible.
By the time she left, the memory of Ji Yuchan—the young man who had briefly stirred the Hunter Association—had completely vanished from her mind.
Since she told him to rest, Dohyun obediently returned to his dormitory.
He didn’t fully understand her reaction—but he could roughly guess.
‘I guess analysis really is pretty fast.’
He smirked.
Was he being treated as a promising recruit?
The thought oddly lifted his mood.
Completely unaware that others usually took several days just to learn a single skill.
Knock knock—
“Mr. Dohyun, the new trainees have arrived.”
New APs—no, trainees.
He couldn’t miss this.
“I’m coming out!”
Excited, Dohyun stepped outside, eager to see who had arrived.
Awakening was rare.
Even in Seoul—the most populated city—fewer than five people awakened in an entire month.
That meant fewer than fifty per year.
Nationwide, the number didn’t even reach one hundred annually.
Naturally, the Seoul Hunter Training Center didn’t receive many recruits.
But this month was different.
A total of ten people.
The training center opened on the last day of each month.
And on the 30th alone, five people awakened.
Including Dohyun, who had registered today, there were five new awakeners—plus five more who had awakened earlier that month.
Ten in total.
The five who had awakened earlier and arrived in the evening had a different atmosphere.
They had known in advance they would enter the training center, so they were mentally prepared. There was little complaining.
On the shuttle bus, they chatted casually.
“Whew. A month might feel long, but let’s all do our best.”
“Sounds good.”
“I heard trainees from the same batch sometimes form parties together.”
“Hoho, Dongwook, are you already planning a party with us?”
The mood was lively.
Except for one person.
A tall, strikingly handsome young man sat quietly, staring out the window with boredom.
Two of the women on the bus couldn’t help but notice him.
One asked:
“Mr. Yuchan, aren’t you nervous at all?”
“Not really.”
He was Ji Yuchan—the one who had briefly caused a stir at the Hunter Association.
Dongwook nodded knowingly.
“Well, that makes sense. There was commotion at the Association when he registered.”
“What? Really?”
“Yeah, apparently a new prodigy showed up.”
“Oh my!”
“I heard five people awakened today alone. Hunters usually form five-person parties, right? If our group goes against theirs, we’ll definitely win—with Yuchan here!”
“Oh my, you’re right.”
“I heard this batch is unusually large. Competing could be fun.”
Everyone laughed.
Everyone except Ji Yuchan.
Soon, the bus arrived at the training center.
They gathered their belongings and stepped out.
At the entrance, they saw the five existing trainees—and Instructor Hwang Hana.
Most reacted the same way upon seeing her.
Which was natural.
Hwang Hana spoke.
“Welcome, trainees. I’ll be putting you through hell for the next month.”
At the same time, mana pressure surged from her like an initiation ritual, crushing them.
Most of the trainees reacted identically.
Their breath tightened.
It felt like someone was choking them.
“Ghk!”
“Ugh!”
“Kh!”
“Ahh!”
“…Tch.”
Even Ji Yuchan wasn’t immune.
He frowned deeply—but compared to the others, he handled it best.
He wasn’t in severe pain.
Yet at that moment, he noticed something strange.
In Hwang Hana’s eyes—
Indifference.
‘What?’
He had been told he possessed enough talent to cause a stir at the Hunter Association.
So why that reaction?
Then he noticed someone else staring at him.
But the only instructor here was Hwang Hana.
Which meant—
‘A trainee?’
That trainee was clearly looking at him, mouthing something.
‘S…? What is he saying?’
Ji Yuchan couldn’t understand.
But one of them was definitely staring at him with shining eyes.
Meanwhile, Dohyun thought excitedly—
‘An S-rank!’
