CH 9

C9: Growth (3)

“I’m going to die.”

After returning home from work, Seo-joon laid down on the bed feeling drowsy due to the fatigue.

It was true that it was efficient to do the tasks with the extra weight but efficiency and difficulty were two separate concepts. That’s why exercising efficiently means that he will quickly use his energy.

Above all, who in the world carries monster corpses while doing squats and push-ups?

Seo-joon burst out laughing at his actions.

“But I can save time.”

Seo-joon picked up his smartphone and checked the tasks list.

– 20km run. [20km/20km] (Completed!)

– 500 squats. [500/500] (Completed!)

– 200 push-ups. [200/200] (Completed!)

– 300 sit-ups. [300/300] (Completed!)

– 150 chin-ups. [150/150] (Completed!)

Seo-joon nodded softly to all the tasks he had accomplished.

In the case of sit-ups and chin-ups, they were performed separately, but he was able to shorten the time a lot.

“It was hard but I can’t waste time.”

Seo-joon once again ignited his fighting spirit.

The reason why he was performing the tasks was to listen to the lecture but what if he can’t listen to the lecture because he was too tired from doing the tasks?

Seo-joon entered the Transcension Academy while forcing his closing eyes and listened to Chiron’s and Shakyamuni’s lectures.

.

.

<Lecture progress 9.1%>

<Lecture progress 2.5%>

After a long time, Seo-joon listened to both lectures and then checked his progress.

“Shakyamuni’s lecture is really slow.”

That’s why Seo-joon started Chiron’s lecture a week later than Shakyamuni’s lecture. Nevertheless, Shakyamuni was only at 2.5%, compared to 9.1%.

“It’s SSS for a reason.”

But Seo-joon was not nervous.

Anyway, there was a year until the next professional hunter exam, and most of all, Shakyamuni’s lecture was for the transcendence process.

Maybe even if it wasn’t 100%, he could pass the professional hunter exam and also become an S-class hunter.

No, Seo-joon was convinced that he could do it.

“I have more time…”

Seo-joon, who organized his thoughts, muttered while looking at the time reflected on the smartphone screen.

Usually, to finish Shakyamuni’s lecture, he had to go past midnight and face the dawn. However, it was only a little past 10 p.m. now.

Hard work was certainly efficient.

“Shall I listen to the lecture again?”

Seo-joon shook his head quickly. This was because listening to lectures repeatedly did not increase his progress.

The progress of the lecture went up only when he understood the content clearly. In the case of Shakyamuni’s lecture, he had to gain some enlightenment, even if it was small.

Listening over and over again may help, but in a different sense, it could be a waste of time.

“Shall I listen to another lecture?”

It came to him suddenly, but it was a pretty good idea.

The lectures Seo-joon was currently taking were strictly just for mental and physical training. In short, it was nothing more than a preparation process before full-scale training.

However, Seo-joon dreamed of becoming a professional hunter and he needed more than just physical and mental training.

Hunters had to fight vicious monsters and sometimes even other hunters.

Mentor told him to focus on the two lectures until he came back, but wasn’t the training his own anyway?

Seo-joon eventually decided to take another lecture and it was a lecture on weapons, specifically spearmanship.

“Come to think of it, the Monkey King teaches spearmanship.”

Seo-joon went to Monkey King lecture.

[Basics of Staf and Spear] <Ran Na Chal> (Instructor: Monkey King)]

He then entered the lecture without hesitation and pressed the play button.

<We are measuring your appropriate tuition fee by calculating the causality rate··>

<Tuition fee: 27.000.000.000 ₩>

(We would like to inform you that the tuition fee may vary depending on your situation and causality.)

“One, ten, one hundred… 27 billion? Oh, my God!”

But the tuition fee didn’t make sense, it was beyond imagination,

“So that’s why it’s called the Transcension Academy?”

Seo-joon muttered without realizing it.

“I can’t guarantee this even if I become a professional hunter…”

Of course, if he became an S-class hunter, he could earn hundreds of millions of won quickly. Nevertheless, 27 billion was not a small amount.

However, the phrase said that it measures the appropriate tuition fee by calculating the causality rate. Does it mean that the tuition fee is charged differently depending on who takes the course?

“Are there any criteria or conditions?”

Seo-joon thought he could ask about lecture fees along with the transcendent community when Mentor came but in the end Seo-joon had no choice but to turn to a free pass lecture.

He searched for a long time but couldn’t find any particular lecture.

At the current level of Seo-joon, it would be helpful to listen to any lecture, but Seo-joon chose carefully. Since Seo-joon only had one free lecture left he had to choose a proper lecture.

“Should I look it up on the forum?”

The transcendental forum, “The chatter of beginners,” was a space where transcendence trainees recommended good lectures, complained about their worries, and comforted each other.

There must have been students who had the same concerns as him but because he couldn’t make a post he had to check the other trainees’ posts.

Seo-joon immediately accessed the forum and kept looking for a long time.

[Spearman – Is there a good instructor for spearmanship among the free pass lectures?]

“There it is!”

Seo-joon immediately clicked on the post.

[As the title suggests, are there any good instructors related to spearmanship among the free pass lectures?

I’m not in a position to take individual lectures other than those from the free pass.

It’s a difficult situation, but I still want to transcend…Please help me.]

He was in a similar situation to Seo-joon.

Seo-joon scrolled down and checked the comments with excitement.

[I’ll definitely transcend it this time!: Hmm, not so much for the free pass… The free pass is actually purchased for the lecture of instructor Shakyamuni.]

[Wire: There was also instructor Odin. What about instructor Odin?]

[Walking in the dark: Instructor Odin is not recommended. I’ve heard that he only knows how to handle Gungnir. Rather than instructor Odin, it’s better to gather people and take individual classes.]

[Window: That’s right.]

[Unmatched King: If you’re new to spears, Instructor Xiang Yu lectures aren’t bad either.]

[Window: Instructor Xiang Yu?]

[Unmatched King: Yes. If you’re into reverse divergence, it’s good to listen to it once. You might not know but he is the one who created the reverse divergence.]

“Xiang Yu?”

Was he talking about Emperor Xiang Yu?

Xiang Yu was known as the owner of overwhelming force, a one-man army. The saying that one person opposes 10,000 people came about because of Xiang Yu.

Since then, there have been figures that can stand against Xiang Yu, but there is no figure that surpasses him in Eastern history.

“Xiang Yu…”

Seo-joon entered the Transcension Academy again and entered Xiang Yu in the free pass search box.

[Reverse divergence is like this. (Instructor: Xiang Yu)]

A lecture appeared.

<Would you like to take this course?>

<After completing the lecture, you will learn ‘Reverse Divergence Spearmanship [A]’.>

After thinking about it for a while, Seo-joon pressed the course button.

It was because Seo-joon knew the king Xiang Yu was reliable, and since it was a free pass lecture, he was not charged for the course.

.

.

[Ha ha ha ha ha!]

The person who appeared on the screen had a large body and bulging muscles. His crude yet bold eyes were like that of a beast.

[You want to learn spears? Ha ha ha ha! Most of you who want to listen to this lecture are probably scum! Garbage learns spears! Ha ha ha ha!]

[Nice! I’ll teach you! But you guys don’t need Ran Na Chal! [They don’t even know how to swing a spear properly and they’re talking about the basics!]

[First, swing it! Engrave the concept of a spear in your body and your senses then come back!]

.

.

The lecture ended abruptly.

“Is that it?”

Seo-joon was confused but,

[Daily assignment has arrived]

[You will be given a task that matches the current student’s level by calculating the causality rate.]

– Swing a weapon classified as a spear 5,000 times [0/5,000]

Suddenly the assignment arrived.

It was not that difficult to swing a spear about 5,000 times; however, considering Chiron’s daily tasks, it may not be possible to simply swing it.

But the biggest problem was.

“Why are they all daily tasks?”

Seo-joon sighed.

Time flew again and a week has passed since Seo-joon began listening to Xiang Yu’s lecture.

Seo-joon’s daily life consisted of carrying monster bodies while doing Chiron’s daily tasks. When he returned home, he first listened to Chiron’s and Shakyamuni’s lectures, and in his spare time, he worked on Xiang Yu’s assignment.

It was hard, but Seo-joon was happy because he was growing every day and his goal of becoming a professional hunter was getting closer and closer.

“One!”

Today, Seo-joon was doing squats with monster bodies on his back.

“Hey! You’re crazy today, too!”

After a week, Seo-joon was by far the most popular star because he did almost five people’s work alone, reducing the amount of work others had to do, and naturally, getting off work faster.

“Two! I have to work hard. If I take a day off…Three! My body stiffens.”

“I feel it every time I see you, but you’re really amazing.”

Man-Cheol took a small chocolate bar out of his arms and handed it to Seo-joon. It was served as a snack today, but he saved it for Seo-joon.

“Take this. It’s nothing special, but eat it while you’re working.”

“Thank you!”

Now, there were few people that didn’t like Seo-joon.

When he was about to move again after receiving the chocolate bar, Man-cheol approached Seo-joon.

“Oh, you’ve become a star.”

“Mr. Man- Cheol, 4! Hello!”

“Fame is an infectious disease.”

Man-cheol shook his head with a displeased expression.

It was just then.

“Don’t worry! Hehe!”

Kim Tae-soo’s voice was heard from somewhere.

Seo-joon and Man-cheol’s head turned at the same time, and Kim Tae-soo, who had half a bald head, was bending toward someone, rubbing his palms.

“It’s really no problem, right?”

A soft voice followed. Looking closely, a woman with long black hair stood in front of Kim Tae-soo.

She stands out with her innocence and somewhat calm charm and Kim Tae-soo kept groveling to her.

“Our company has not had a single accident due to thorough management and safety regulations. You don’t have to be worried!”

“You know about the Behemoth incident not too long ago, right? I checked it, but there may still be parts I missed, so please review it thoroughly.”

“Yes! Of course! Hehe.”

It looked like a subcontractor flattering a high-ranking person.

Man-cheol looked at the two and said something.

“Oh, my. I’m going to give you everything, including liver and gallbladder.”

Seo-joon stopped training and approached Man-cheol.

“Who is she to make the team leader act like that?”

“The granddaughter of the Sword Saint.”

“Granddaughter of Sword Saint? Is it Park Seo-yoon?

“Do you know her?”

“It’s weird that you don’t know.”

Sword Saint Park Min-cheol was an awakened active 100 years ago when the concept of gate was first created.

At that time, there was no systematic knowledge of awakening as it is now. Monsters were more ferocious than they are now, and such monsters roamed the streets so people were not guaranteed to survive.

Park Min-cheol was one of the characters who worked as an awakened in such a world and brought back the current civilization.

He is regarded as a hero who saved mankind.

Although he is now a grandfather, he was the best awakened in the world when he was active. It made no sense to not know such a swordsman.

Man-Cheol shook his head slightly and said.

“No, I know the Sword Saint, but I don’t know his granddaughter.”

“Ah…that’s right.”

It was only then that Seo-joon was able to fully understand Man-cheol’s words.

That should be the case, because, unlike the reputation of the Sword Saint, his granddaughter did not stand out. Maybe she became famous because of her looks. That’s why Seo-joon knew her name.

‘Well, even so, she’s still a professional hunter.’

Seo-joon asked Man-cheol again.

“But why is the granddaughter of the Sword Saint here?”

“Because of what you’re carrying.”

Seo-joon turned his gaze away for a moment and looked at his back where he saw a limp 4-star manticore.

Seo-joon asked again.

“What’s wrong with this?”

“She killed it.”

Seo-joon looked at Seo-yoon with a slightly surprised look but the only thing he thought of was that she was pretty.

“Why? Are you interested?”

“No way.”

Seo-joon smiled and laughed at Man-cheol’s teasing remarks. She is a person who lives in a different world from himself even if he talks a lot.

Seo-joon turned his eyes away without paying any more attention and took a step forward.

“One!”

Squat!

He started to carry out the assigned daily tasks.

‘What is he doing?’

Seo-yoon, who was watching him, was amazed. In fact she was conscious of his gaze since earlier but she was just ignoring it.

Seo-yoon has received a lot of attention and is used to it now. Above all, the people who work here are people that she cannot relate to.

She wasn’t ignoring people, but there was no reason for her to be interested in them.

“Two!”

But what the hell was that?

In the end, Seo-yoon, who couldn’t hold back her curiosity, asked Kim Tae-soo.

“Who is that person?”

Kim Tae-soo stared at Seo-joon for a moment, kicked his tongue, and continued.

“Tsk. He’s a handyman working here, you don’t have to care about him. After going to the hospital, he suddenly started doing such crazy things but I’m ignoring it because he’s doing a good job. Do you want me to warn him?”

“No, you don’t have to.”

Seo-yoon let out a small sigh.

The words ‘After going to the hospital’ were stuck in her mind!

“Three!”

‘Is he a mentally ill person?’

Seo-yoon shook her head and quickly shook off her interest but Seo-joon, who didn’t know that, continued to do squats. Actually, he wouldn’t care even if he knew.

“Driver, here, three.”

“Oh, you brought three manticores alone? That’s great.”

Seo-joon placed the bodies in the truck while talking to the driver.

Suddenly, a strange movement was felt between those bodies.

“What is it?”

Seo-joon stared at the bodies but there was no movement.

‘I think this just moved…’

Normally, he wouldn’t notice it at all, but his senses, trained in the lectures of the Transcension Academy, told him so.

It was  something he couldn’t really explain.

“Seo-joon! It’s break time!”

‘Oh, it’s just me.’

The current Seo-joon had no choice but to define it as just a feeling.