“Come on, will you just sit still? I told you, I can fix it!”
“Oh, you scam artist! Stop with your nonsense already!”
Seriously, this kid doesn’t trust a word I say.
“I’m telling you, it’ll really work. I can heal it!”
After pouring my heart into my explanation, all I got was a deadpan look.
“Teacher, I don’t know what kind of nonsense you’re on about now, but…”
“This isn’t sudden nonsense. I’ve awakened, and now I can fix it.”
“Regardless! Do you think I haven’t tried everything already?”
Aden started her life story rant.
“When I was young, I lived like an actual princess.”
“Hmm.”
“Servants gave me everything I wanted, nobles showered me with gifts, and I grew up loved and adored.”
“Hmm.”
“Do you think my family would have abandoned me without trying everything first? They tried everything in the world to cure me!”
The atmosphere unexpectedly grew heavy.
Should I kneel and listen respectfully?
For now, I kept quiet.
“They summoned the most renowned healers from Thea. They even invited S-rank mages from Earth. But nothing worked! Do you think you’re better than all of them, Teacher?”
“Honestly, I am far better…”
“Kyaaah-!”
Aden let out a scream.
Failed to convey sincerity.
What was a serious, drama-like moment turned into a comedy skit in an instant.
But what can I do?
It’s true.
“Aden, I get why you don’t believe me. But!”
In this situation, anyone would tell me to stop spewing nonsense.
“But just trust me this one time, like you’re taking a gamble. It could change your life!”
I’m saying this for my student’s sake.
“Just sit here for 10 minutes! Ten minutes!”
“Kyaaaah-!”
Aden clutched her chest in frustration.
“Hey, I’m the one who’s frustrated!”
Kang Hyun also threw up his hands.
“Fine, let’s bet! A bet!”
“…A bet? What’s the stake?”
“If I can’t cure you, I’ll be your slave for life.”
“Who would trust a stake like that?”
Good point.
“Ah! I’ll go with you to watch that thing you wanted to see.”
“<Kyle Chronicles: REMAKE>?”
Aden couldn’t believe her ears and asked again.
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Got her. Hooked her good.
This offer was reasonable without being over the top.
<Kyle Chronicles>.
A touching epic about the mercenary Kyle’s rise to heroism, traveling across Thea.
The remake was special, they said, with painstaking attention to historical accuracy.
It had sparked a frenzy among fans, especially diehard ones like Aden.
“Are you really serious?”
Even Aden couldn’t just brush it off as another one of my delusions now.
“Did this guy eat something weird?”
“Hey, don’t blurt out your inner thoughts to your teacher.”
“You swore you’d never watch it, even if you died!”
“I did.”
I had.
Even after coming back to life, I was avoiding it.
‘There’s no way I’m watching that.’
They said it faithfully recreated the real Kyle.
In this age of advanced magitech,memory visualization magic was absurdly advanced.
They had supposedly turned the memories of survivors from a hundred years ago into direct footage.
So it would all be vividly lifelike.
My younger self’s cringe-worthy speeches, drunk on hero fantasies.
The humiliating, bloody struggles in the battlefield trenches.
‘How could I possibly watch that sober?’
The film’s ratings were through the roof.
People loved it and called it amazing, but…
Watching it myself?
That was a completely different story.
‘I’d rather die. I’ve already died once, but I’d die again before watching it.’
But Aden didn’t know about my ironclad resolve.
As bait, it was perfect.
“…You’re really promising this? If I sit down for just a moment, we’ll absolutely go watch it together?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. If I can’t heal you, then I’ll go watch it with you.”
“…”
Was this man serious?
Aden’s eyes asked the question.
“Enough, just sit down already.”
“…Fine.”
“Turn your back this way.”
Even as she sat in front of Kang Hyun, Aden still didn’t believe him.
‘Finally, I’ve lured this guy in.’
Her thoughts were solely on how to convert this stubborn man into a devotee of Kyle’s greatness.
So she never imagined that the hand placed on her back would completely change her life.
###
Kang Hyun’s extraordinary mana control was precise, targeting and breaking the mana stones obstructing her energy flow.
Aden’s eyes began to tremble.
She stared blankly at her status screen.
Her mana stat, which had always been F-rank, was now…
“A…? Seriously, A…?”
She could feel the immense mana coursing through her body.
And yet, she struggled to accept it as reality.
Painful memories flashed through her mind.
The diagnosis of mana stone syndrome.
Her father’s cold gaze.
Healers shaking their heads.
Servants, nobles, and siblings who no longer smiled at her.
Her mother’s wailing cries on the final day.
All were haunting wounds and scars from her childhood.
The root of all that misery had been her mana stone syndrome.
‘Even the <Mana Stone Syndrome> trait is gone.’
She was completely healed.
The stones had transformed back into mana, now fully absorbed into her body.
The proof was her A-rank mana stat—an astonishing level, revered as a once-in-a-generation talent in her family.
“Congratulations.”
Clap. Clap.
A simple and nonchalant congratulations.
Tears welled up in her eyes.
Aden couldn’t hold back the torrent of emotions and burst into tears.
“Uwaaaaaaa—!”
Aden suddenly fell to her knees, bowing deeply.
It was an almost explosive, impulsive action.
Kang Hyun flinched in surprise.
“Whoa, whoa…”
“Uwaaaaaa—! I’ll serve you as my savior for life, Teacher!”
“Alright, alright. Just keep working hard on your magic.”
“Uwaaaaaa!”
She was crying her heart out.
She was overjoyed.
It must’ve been such a heavy burden for her all this time.
“I swear! I’ll never forget this debt of gratitude! Never!”
“Okay, okay, stop crying already.”
Kang Hyun replied bluntly, uncomfortable with the overly emotional scene.
He had always hated these melodramatic situations.
Even during his time as a hero, he had experienced plenty of similar reactions.
Yet, compliments and thanks still made him uneasy.
He much preferred to observe the results of his actions from afar rather than be caught in the middle of the fanfare.
“Did you think I healed you ‘just because’?”
Good deeds mattered.
As a mercenary, as a hero, Kang Hyun had learned this lesson the hard way.
A small act of kindness could save your life later.
A petty grudge could return as an assassin’s blade.
Without good deeds, great achievements were impossible.
That was the conclusion Kyle had reached.
The allies who followed him during the World Tree War…
They hadn’t joined him for money or his good looks.
‘Living life the right way’ was one of his creeds.
It might seem trivial for the great hero Kyle, but it worked.
“Sniff… So it wasn’t ‘just’ healing? Then why?”
“I couldn’t let talent like yours go to waste. It’d be a shame.”
Aden’s talent was the real deal.
Helping such a genius would undoubtedly come back as a great reward in the future.
‘And besides, she loves magic so much.’
How could he leave her as she was?
She was even a die-hard fan of Kyle.
In a way, Aden’s admiration for Kyle had played a part in changing her life.
Not that she realized it herself.
She just cried.
“Uwaaahhh—! Teacher! Teacheeerrrr—!”
“Ack, geez!”
After all, why had Aden stuck around at the academy in the first place?
He was the only one who had ever called her a genius.
Her father had dismissed her as a failure and cast her out.
And on top of that, Kang Hyun’s teaching skills were unparalleled.
Despite not being an Awakened himself, his magic instruction was extraordinary.
That’s why Aden couldn’t leave [Kang Hyun’s Magic Academy].
And now, she would have even more reason to stay.
“Blow your nose and get your stuff together, already!”
“Sniff! Where are you going…?”
Aden wiped her nose, still sounding nasally.
“Ugh, gross.”
Not very graceful for an elf.
Though, honestly, his past disciples had been just as unrefined.
But none of that mattered.
Kang Hyun’s grin grew wide with excitement.
“This time, I’m really heading into a dungeon.”
One Word wasn’t enough to satisfy him.
His throat was already itchy.
###
The two arrived at a gate near Seoul.
“Did you register for the dungeon run?”
“Yep.”
“Wait, just the two of us got approval?”
“They said during training that up to F+ rank gates don’t require approval.”
F-rank gates wouldn’t overflow even if the raid failed.
So the process was simple.
Kang Hyun had deliberately chosen an easy one for their first run.
One perfectly suited for Words of Power.
The surroundings were quiet.
In such a remote area, there was no one around.
“Are you sure the two of us can handle this?”
Normally, a team of five was the minimum.
But Aden wasn’t very experienced in these matters.
Her anxiety showed as she hesitated.
“What, don’t you trust me?”
“No.”
“What.”
A blunt response.
“I’m grateful, but calling you reliable is… a stretch.”
“What’s unreliable about my magic skills?”
“Your magic is amazing, but you’re so scatterbrained.”
“What.”
Hero Kyle.
Being criticized by his student for being stupid.
“You’re bad at business, terrible with people because of your personality, and that’s why you ran your academy into the ground.”
“That, that’s…”
Even the mighty Kyle had no experience running a business.
“And now you expect me to believe you’ve properly prepared for this raid? Unless…”
Aden’s eyes widened as realization dawned on her.
“Are you counting on my A-rank mana to pull this off?”
What nonsense.
He wanted to argue, but her expression said she was already convinced.
“Hah, guess I’ll just have to handle it myself…”
“Enough chatter. Let’s just get going.”
Kang Hyun brushed past her and started walking.
But then he paused.
“Oh, right.”
“What is it now?”
“Have you registered as an Awakened?”
“Ah.”
Going in without registration would be illegal.
“I haven’t.”
“Unbelievable. And you call me scatterbrained?”
“Hehe…”
Aden scratched her head sheepishly.
“Actually, this works out better. Let’s go back, form a proper team, and get a beginner’s guide—”
“I’ll clear it myself.”
“Excuse me!?”
Aden was utterly shocked.
“Are you insane!? Who clears a dungeon solo!?”
“I’ll be back soon. Stay here.”
“W-Wait! Teacher!”
Ignoring her protests, Kang Hyun stepped into the gate alone.
