TRPM 52

chapter 52

Arthur successfully negotiated with Rachel and, as a result, started earning money to buy her mana potions.

Rachel drank the mana potions he brought, and the mana restored by the potions was injected into Arthur. Arthur then converted all the mana, except the amount his body needed, into ether and transformed it into innate energy suitable for Rachel’s body.

Just as individuals differ, so did the innate energy.

Arthur injected the innate energy he had created into Rachel, and gradually, she began to regain her health.

“(Rachel… he bought more!)”

Seeing her recover, Arthur became even more eager to earn money and feed her mana potions…

“(Enough! You didn’t even finish the last ones you bought!)”

“(Ah, sorry.)”

… Rachel, horrified, angrily refused to drink any more. After all, while potions are designed to be easy to consume, drinking dozens at once is obviously too much.

Meanwhile…

“Hmm… It’s really okay for me to be discharged, right?”

“According to the combined results of modern medicine and magical examinations, everything is normal in principle… but you know, we couldn’t even guess why this sudden brain hemorrhage happened in the first place.”

“And we also can’t understand how you fully recovered in just one day.”

During my hospital stay, I became the topic of discussion among the doctors.

A brain hemorrhage of unknown origin and a regenerative ability of unknown origin. Of course, I knew the cause, but the doctors couldn’t determine it, leaving them at a loss.

They must have also judged it unreasonable to keep someone with no apparent problems in the hospital, so they decided to discharge me.

“Phew…”

Crack.

Being confined in the hospital for a while left my body stiff. While I could still operate through my puppet, spending most of the day lying in bed had stiffened my body.

“Are you okay, Master?”

To loosen up, I went to a clearing in the mountains where I usually trained. Yeon Mirae asked me this.

“Yes, I’m fine.”

I was only slightly stiff, not in pain. A little movement would fix it quickly.

“… But please don’t do anything reckless again, okay?”

Watching me, Yeon Mirae said this. Whether it was using the heart-severing technique to expel organs before, or overstraining my brain after seeing something beyond the rift now, it looked dangerous to her.

To me, it was manageable, but it seemed perilous from her perspective.

“By the way… Master, could you watch my swordsmanship?”

Yeon Mirae asked, handing me her wooden practice sword.

A sword, huh…

I recalled how she had absorbed Arthur’s swordsmanship during their previous sparring. Thinking this, I took a light stance in front of her.

“Alright. Come at me.”

“Yes!”

Yeon Mirae swung her sword, and I focused more on evading than blocking, observing her movements carefully.

“… Thankfully, she hasn’t been consumed by Sir Sergey’s swordsmanship.”

Arthur’s swordsmanship was created by Sir Sergey, a soldier. But it didn’t suit Yeon Mirae.

“If Sir Sergey’s swordsmanship is about overwhelming the enemy with heavy strikes and aiming for critical damage….”

Yeon Mirae’s sword combined deceptive swings and unpredictable trajectory changes, a completely different approach. Using Sir Sergey’s techniques directly would be harmful to her. She only referenced his style and continued on her own path.

Of course…

“Below.”

Her sword sharply twisted, aiming for my legs. A brilliant feint, but I caught her blade with a reverse grip and jabbed at the sword’s face.

Her blade, aimed low at my legs, stuck in the ground, and before she could react, I used my free hand to unleash a technique.

“Guh?!”

My hand struck Yeon Mirae’s abdomen, sending her slightly airborne from the impact. I lowered my head and lifted my leg for a kick.

Thud!

“Ugh?!”

Yeon Mirae stumbled back from the kick to her head, massaging the areas I struck, while I pulled her sword from the ground.

“Not bad. With this skill, you could probably defeat opponents at your level.”

“Phew… Really?”

I nodded. The attack on her legs was avoidable for me, but for someone at her level, it would have been difficult to dodge.

At least, to my knowledge, there’s no Korean who could evade that attack. Aura Masters at a similar level might avoid lethal injury but would still lose mobility. Losing mobility in a sword fight is a serious disadvantage, so Yeon Mirae’s chances of winning are high.

“Of course, if we expand globally, the story changes.”

I thought this while…

“Uwaa…”

Yeon Mirae collapsed to the ground, drained. She must have relaxed after receiving my evaluation.

“Why were you so tense?”

“Well, being evaluated by you, Master… how could I not be?”

I smiled internally. Completely opposite to my previous self before regression.

[Why so tense?]
[Yes…]
[I know your usual skills. Even if it’s an evaluation, just do as you normally do and relax.]

I could understand her tension. Evaluations always make people nervous, even if performing well changes nothing.

“Then shall we evaluate your skills daily? You’d get used to it and be less tense.”

“Ugh…”

Yeon Mirae groaned as if the idea disgusted her. I laughed it off as a joke and used my internal energy to relax her body.

“Phew…”

Feeling her body loosen, she spoke.

“Master, I’ve learned all the basics of that swordsmanship, right?”

“… If your swordsmanship is the basic standard, then 99.9% of the world’s aura users wouldn’t even reach it.”

I pondered what she meant. Perhaps she wanted to reach the next level, though she had already grasped the basics.

“… No, I want to consolidate my swordsmanship first.”

She denied it. At this stage, optimizing and refining her body’s use of swordsmanship was more important than rapid advancement.

“I want to learn something else.”

“Something else?”

Was there anything I hadn’t taught her?

‘Basic martial arts, weapon techniques, hand-to-hand combat, agility techniques, magic, and psychic abilities.’

I’d taught her everything.

“Not that… it’s about… you know?”

The Samadhi Evolution technique.

“… Oh, that?”

I’d only taught her the basic theory of Samadhi Evolution, never formally trained her. But could Yeon Mirae actually learn it?

[Weapon, combat, and agility techniques involve movement, so I could manage those… Magic and psychic powers, however, I wouldn’t even know where to begin.]

Samadhi Evolution is a type of training in the martial arts, but more so a magical or psychic technique tied to enlightenment. Yeon Mirae has talent in movement and energy control, but not in magic or psychic abilities. Could she truly learn Samadhi Evolution?

“… Why suddenly want to learn it?”

I asked the reason instead of discouraging her.

“I want to see from the same perspective as you.”

“The same perspective?”

“Yes.”

She explained that her ordinary perception differs from mine. My insight through Samadhi allows me to perceive ether in ways she normally cannot.

‘Of course…’

I wondered if she now had a reason to want the same perspective as mine.

“I want to follow the conversations between you and Arthur too.”

“Hmm?”

“I want to perceive and feel ether like you or Arthur do.”

Ah, that’s why. When Arthur converts mana into ether, Yeon Mirae couldn’t sense it, leaving her unable to participate. That’s why she wants to learn Samadhi—to feel ether herself.

“… Alright.”

I considered it briefly and nodded. There’s no reason not to teach her. The only issue is her lack of natural talent for Samadhi Evolution.

But…

‘I can at least let her enter Samadhi, even if she can’t trigger full Samadhi Evolution.’

Samadhi itself isn’t that difficult a concept. While I’ve described it as the ability to perceive its essence, anyone can enter a state of deep focus.

The key is simply to concentrate on one thing. For Yeon Mirae, it could be swordsmanship, martial arts, or observing ether—anything that allows her focus.

“Understood?”
“Yes!”

After a brief explanation, I told her to try entering Samadhi.

“?”

Yeon Mirae embraced me and began practicing energy control while entering a Samadhi state.

“… What are you doing?”
“I’m entering Samadhi while practicing energy control.”
“… Why this method when I gave you so many examples?”
“Because it’s the most familiar and easiest to focus on for me.”
“… Why embrace me then?”
“This position is the most comfortable and allows you to assist if needed.”

Yeon Mirae seemed ready to counter any objection I might have.

… Fine, do as you wish.

Ironically, through this embrace, she genuinely entered a state of Samadhi, leaving me with no real argument.