Physical Therapy Facility #12, HanGook Hospital.

Seo Jun-ho sat on the floor, in the middle of the room, with his legs crossed and eyes closed. It was a technique for improving the flow of magic power. He learned it from his comrade, Rahmadat. 

Getting my body back in shape will be no simple task.

It would take at least a few months for him to train his body. Of course, he couldn’t just spend his time training for who knows how long. That’s why he decided to start with stuff he could improve on right away. 

My Magic stat is only 18…

It was a pretty unimpressive stat. 

Even slightly talented players often awakened with at least 20 Magic stat. 

“Damn, I’ll have to struggle like hell again to increase my magic.” 

Reminiscing his old memories brought a shadow to Jun-ho’s face. The day that he awakened as a player was also the day that he swore vengeance after losing his family. That was when he obtained the S-rank skill ‘Watchguard of Darkness’. 

However, it took half a year before he was able to use the skill properly. There was a simple reason. 

This stupid skill. It requires so much fucking magic.

As powerful as it was, it required equally as much magic to use. Jun-ho, who possessed less magic than the average person, did everything he could to make up for his weakness. 

All your stats increased by 1 every level. When he had just become a player, that was the only method he knew to raise his magic. So he killed monsters again and again to grind up levels. In the time that a person would go hunting once, he went on a hunt at least 3 to 5 times. While others were hospitalized from injuries, he just put on some bandages and continued to hunt. After a few years of repeating his hellish routine, he had become the world’s greatest player. 

“Phew…”

After emptying his thoughts, Jun-ho started slowly gathering the magic inside his body. The magic started flowing through his entire body, awakening his magic circuit. 

I’ve gotten real rusty.

Due to not using it for 25 years, his magic circuit has fallen into a deep slumber. People commonly compared magic to trains, and magic circuits to train tracks. It was only natural for an unused train track to become covered in foliage. It was the same thing for Jun-ho’s magic circuit. It’s been so long since any magic had flowed through it that it became rusty. 

Most players actually don’t concern themselves about such details, since no matter the condition, one can still use magic. However, Jun-ho was the kind of person who felt unsatisfied if his circuit wasn’t in tip-top shape. 

I already lack magic. I need to at least use it as efficiently as possible.

There was a smaller loss of magic when it passed through a clean and clear circuit. That’s why Jun-ho always maintained his magic circuit as best as possible. 

I’m only at 70% magic efficiency. This is basically unusable.

Rush!

Jun-ho collected the little magic he had onto a single point and unleashed it onto his rusted magic circuit. Magic quickly started rampaging through his circuit, which was spread across his entire body like tree roots. As magic coursed through the circuit, it slowly scraped off the impurities.

Swoosh.

When he opened his eyes again, three hours had passed. His entire body was soaked in sweat. 

“Sniff, sniff. Luckily, I don’t stink.”

Maybe it was because he was trapped in ice that not much toxin built up inside him. This was good news. It meant that he could just focus on getting his body back to its optimal condition. 

After getting up from his spot, Jun-ho tried gathering some magic. Unlike 3 hours ago, he was able to gather magic with greater ease. 

“95% magic efficiency… It’s less than what I had, but this isn’t too bad.”

This satisfying sensation was the reason why he took good care of his magic circuit. With a satisfied smile, he tightened his fist. Jun-ho started gathering all the magic he possessed. It was time to test the limits of his skills.

Fwoooosh!

The darkness created by magic bloomed flamboyantly, like a drop of black paint that fell in water. Someone who has seen this for the first time might even describe it as beautiful and approach it. But anyone who knew the truth about this skill would never do such a stupid thing. Darkness was more heinous and violent than any other attribute.

“Kugh…”

Jun-ho’s face started crumpling while maintaining the skill. 

“Ugh, cough! Cough…”

Unable to hold it anymore, he started hacking and coughing. When he was able to lift his head back up, the darkness had subsided. 

Wiping the spit off the corners of his lips, he thought to himself, So this is my limit with my current magic.

Many thoughts rushed through his head. 

In this case… how should I utilize it in real combat?

How did I fight when I used to lack mana?

Ugh, I really am fucking short on magic.

After searching through his memories, he quickly found the answers. 

I could use it as a blind or a trap, since I can only momentarily affect physical matter.

He would be able to blind the target or grab their ankle. That was all he could do right now with his insignificant amount of magic. 

Once I replenish my magic, let’s look into my Frost skill.

Thanks to the effects of ‘The One Who Opens Spring’, he could notice the fast recovery speed of his magic. Once his magic was fully replenished, he squinted his eyes in thought. 

“I wonder what it’s like.”

He was so curious, he thought he would go mad. When he gained proper control over the S-rank Watchguard of Darkness, he became unmatched. Frost was EX-rank, so it should be even stronger. He was honestly even a bit terrified.

…Is this thing also going to eat up a shit ton of magic?

With a worried face, Jun-ho slowly closed his eyes.

Like this… or no, is it like this?

Darkness and Frost. The two abilities were similar in that it created something from nothing. Thanks to that, he was able to activate the Frost skill much easier than he anticipated. 

Shoooo!

The ground he stood on froze solid. In contrast, there was a warm smile on his face. 

“It uses up less than I expected!”

As an EX-rank skill, it definitely took a bit of magic, but it used up similar amounts of magic as Watchguard of Darkness. That meant that it had a great magic-to-performance ratio. 

If it only takes this much magic… I think I’ll be able to use it in actual combat with just a slightly higher Magic stat.

Also, unlike Watchguard of Darkness, he didn’t have to experiment to figure out how to optimally utilize it. 

“I’ve already seen enough of how it should be used.”

Jun-ho battled against the Frost Queen for over 70 hours. That means he learned her techniques for 70 hours. And he didn’t just see it. He experienced it firsthand. 

“I can’t wait for the examination.”

The wide smile on Jun-ho’s face wouldn’t subside.

* * *

A week flew by pretty quick. During that week, Seo Jun-ho trained his body and memorized all the materials that Shim Deok-gu brought over. Most of it was a summary of major events that occurred in the last 25 years. 

“Alright, I’m ready.”

Pop, pop, pop. 

Jun-ho cracked his neck and put on some casual clothes. He was planning on getting discharged from the hospital on top of taking his test. 

Though, there will still be a body double that will occupy this bed for me.

Officially, the Specter was still bedridden. The Association released a public statement saying that he was in critical condition and needed at least a few months to recover. 

“Reveal Specter-nim* to the public!” 

(TN: -nim is an honorific used in Korean to refer to someone with respect.)

“Reveal him!”

After leaving the hospital, Jun-ho walked away from the chaos of loud reporters and civilians. Some were even using a megaphone. 

“Reveal my ass. Do they not feel sorry for a hospitalized patient?”

Though, if they had any common sense, they wouldn’t be making such a ruckus first thing in the morning. But he really couldn’t comment more on it, since he was the root cause of the commotion. 

After getting in a taxi, he immediately headed to the Player Association headquarters.

“They must have spent a pretty penny.”

The 80-floor building had an elegant, curved design. In front of the building, countless people were gathered. They were all people applying for the player permit exam. Jun-ho had pre-registered, so he was able to enter without having to stand in line. 

“Please rest in the waiting room for the meantime, and enter once it’s your turn.”

Jun-ho glanced over at the queue monitor. Number 75. He still had a bit of time until his turn. 

Clamor, clamor.

The waiting room had a surprisingly relaxed atmosphere. It was because the permit exam didn’t have a limit to the number of participants that could pass. As long as you were skilled, you would pass, so there was no need for people to be conscious of each other. 

“Phew.”

After sitting down on a chair, Jun-ho crossed his arms, closed his eyes, and listened closely. He was able to gather intel that wasn’t found in the very formal materials that Deok-gu handed him. 

“Did you see the news this morning? Finally, the ancient dungeon on the 2nd floor will be raided… the Sky’s Breath will…”

“Apparently, today’s judge will be the Association President Shim Deok-gu of all people.”

“Sigh, if I fail the exam again, it’ll be my 3rd time.”

“It’s been 2 years since I awakened, but I still haven’t been able to pass the test. Am I really that untalented?”

“Does anyone know which weapon has the highest probability of passing?”

There really isn’t any super useful information.

That shouldn’t be surprising, since it was a conversation among people that haven’t even become players yet. In fact, it would be more shocking if they knew any valuable intel. The moment he opened his eyes after losing interest in reconnaissance, an announcement started. 

– “Participant Number 1, please enter.” 

A humongous holographic screen appeared in the center of the waiting room. One could clearly observe the situation inside the testing room with it. Soon, participant number 1, who just finished selecting his weapon in the prep room, came up on screen. 

A spear.

He was holding a long spear, and his face was full of anxiety. However, the exam didn’t care for his condition, starting without any warning. 

“Oho.”

Holographic monsters charged at the man. He took a large swing with his spear, advancing towards the monsters. That made them slowly back off. 

“Ooh, isn’t he quite fierce?”

“The monsters are retreating because they’re scared.”

“I’m so jealous. Number 1 looks like he’s going to easily pass.”

Amazement from the participants who didn’t know anything filled the waiting room. However, Jun-ho simply shook his head.

Come on, that’s not how you use a spear.

The spear was a weapon that was most effective when you secured a safe distance from your opponent. Getting that up close meant that he had no proper understanding of the spear. 

And would you look at that. The man fell down on his ass after getting tangled up with the monsters that charged back at him. With that, the combat was over. The monsters disappeared in an instant, and the man held a dazed look while he was given the notice of failure. 

So this is how this goes.

Seo Jun-ho could feel his body itch, full of anticipation. He wondered if he would be able to feel ‘the sensation of cutting’ against holographic monsters.

* * *

The layout of the judges’ room was quite unique. One side of the room was a glass wall, which gave you a complete view of the examination room. In front of the glass wall was a cushy sofa, where 10 men and women sat. 

“Hmm. This participant is also pretty lackluster.”

“He appears to have not studied the characteristics of the monsters or tactics to face off against them.”

“That kind of preparation should be essential for a player.”

“I think it’ll be best to fail him.”

One by one, the guilds’ observers spoke, but unlike the usual, they were unable to strongly voice their opinions. They all carefully gave their 2 cents, watching the mood of one of the people in the room. 

“I’m of the same opinion. Let’s fail him.”

Though the Korean Player Association might no longer have its former glory, he was still the President of the Association. All the observers were careful to not upset Shim Deok-gu. 

“Bring in the next participant.”

As soon as Deok-gu finished speaking, an announcement was made. After a minute, a new participant entered the examination room. At the same time, multiple observers frowned.

“Sigh… Every test, there is always at least one person who does this.”

“Isn’t this way over the top, though? Sword, bow, throwing knives, even a spear and a gun… He basically brought in as many weapons as he could.”

“Despite lacking understanding of the weapons, they always bring in a whole bunch like that.”

“They probably think that the more weapons they have, the stronger they become.”

“Do they think that they’re the Specter or something?”

“Looking at how skinny he is, I’m even doubtful of his ability to take care of himself.”

This participant had what people commonly called the Specter disease. They were little greenhorns that wanted to copy the Specter who was called the master of all weapons a.k.a. the Walking Arsenal. Their common characteristic was that they carried around multiple weapons. 

“Even we’re baffled. I bet this really grinds your gears, President.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, aren’t these people imitating your close friend, Specter-nim?”

“And you were closer than anyone else to him, the one that people called the perfect player.”

“…That is indeed true. This is quite a funny situation.”

After finishing his sentence, Deok-gu couldn’t help but let out a faint laugh while looking down at the examination room. 

I told you to be flashy and knock their socks off… but isn’t this too much, you bastard?

The patient with the Specter disease(?), Seo Jun-ho, looked around the room with fascination.