## Chapter 181 – Mana Man Kim Kat
“Ugh…”
I woke up to sunlight seeping through the curtains.
Was it morning already? I’d fallen asleep around dawn, so I still felt tired, but somehow, I felt energy surging through my whole body. Not that it was actually surging, but the thought of finally confirming my mana made me feel invigorated.
Let’s wash up and head to the guild.
—Snore, snore.
I heard breathing.
Cloudy on the right. And Winia on the left.
The two women were sleeping soundly. I’d satisfied Cloudy, and I’d made Winia tremble until her body went limp. I’d done my duty as a stud.
I carefully slipped out of bed, making sure not to wake them.
My neck and back were stiff from all the vigorous movement. I did some simple stretches and practiced Real Combat Kwonbeop to check my condition.
—Papat!
Good, good.
There’s nothing wrong with my body.
“Kui, kui.”
My throat feels fine too.
I immediately went into the shower and washed my body. The cold water cleared my muddled mind and snapped me awake. “Mana,” I murmured, feeling a thrill. Mana… Was that power really mana?
I dried myself off and came out.
“…Kat? You’re awake?”
“Oh, you’re up? Sorry, did I wake you?”
“No, I just woke up too.”
Cloudy rubbed her eyes and sat up.
The blanket slipped down, revealing her bare chest. G-cup sized breasts, I’d estimate… What? Did they get bigger? They say a woman’s breasts grow the more you touch them, and she’s certainly showing amazing growth.
More than anything, her pink nipples stood out against her healthy tan skin, making them look incredibly beautiful.
C, calm down!
Don’t get hard! I said don’t get hard!
But it was already up. It’ll be uncomfortable to put on pants like this… Anyway, I got dressed. All the way to my armor.
“Are you going out?”
Cloudy brushed her hair back and asked. Her emphasized collarbone and exposed armpits caught my eye. I couldn’t look any longer, or I wouldn’t be able to hold back.
“Yeah. I need to go to the Adventurer’s Guild. I need to ask the Guild Master about this mana thing. I heard that some people awaken mana on the battlefield, so maybe that’s what happened to me.”
Karin had once said that mercenaries who’d been rolling around on the battlefield would suddenly awaken mana and turn into even more ruthless killers. That was what I was thinking about.
I might be in a similar situation.
“Okay. I hope it goes well. Can you go alone, Kat? Should I come with you?”
“Of course, I can go alone. I’m not a kid… It’s okay. It might take a while. You should get some rest too. Tell Winia for me.”
“Really? Then I should get to work on the things I’ve been putting off today.”
Cloudy stretched and lay back down on the bed. “I’m going to sleep a little more… Kat, do you love me? Hehe, yesterday was… really good,” she said warmly. I went over and kissed her forehead, and she tried to pull me into a hug.
Of course, I’d expected it, so I dodged.
“Hmph… You’re dodging me?”
“Ah, we did it a lot yesterday.”
“I want to do it more. Aah… I’m already wet. Huh? Just once?”
“Ah, no, no. If we’re going to do it, let’s do it at night. Or do it yourself.”
“Kat’s gotten cold…”
Cloudy made a sad sound and drooped her ears.
Oh no!
“Eeeh! I’ll take my clothes off, so wait!”
“Hehe, I’m just kidding. Go on.”
“Okay.”
With that, Cloudy hugged the sleeping Winia. “Ugh…” Winia made a noise but didn’t wake up. Was she in a deep sleep? I had forced her to climax too many times yesterday.
Anyway, I went outside.
A busy morning.
People moving busily here and there.
I moved as quickly as they did. I couldn’t wait any longer. I wanted to know the truth. I didn’t want to be strung along with false hope. It would be better for my mental health to ask Karin and get a conclusion quickly.
“Mana…”
I arrived at the guild before long. I remembered the day I first came here after getting my ass kicked by those martial artist bastards. I was just as nervous as I was back then.
—Determination.
I pushed open the door.
—Hap!
—Heop!
Inside, training was in full swing, even though it was early.
I gave a light bow to those who looked at me and searched for Karin… Hmm? Was she not here? I couldn’t see her. Was she not on the training grounds? I went inside the office building.
“Is the Guild Master here?”
—Creak.
“Oh, you’re here?”
Following the voice, I turned my head and saw Karin sitting on the sofa, reading something like a newspaper, waving at me. —Phew. Smoke billowed from her mouth. She held a pipe in her left hand.
“How have you been?”
I sat down opposite her and greeted her. The way she was inhaling smoke and making a languid expression made her look like a drug addict… Was this person really doing drugs?
Come to think of it, a cruel question arose about what Karin, with her ideology that was no different from a serial killer, did in her free time.
“I’m always the same. How about you? Have you been slicing up some people?”
“Why do you always ask me that whenever you see my face?”
“Because that’s what I’m most curious about. It’s fun to hear that the kid I taught is making progress, isn’t it? It gives me a sense of accomplishment. That’s what makes my life worth living.”
Karin crossed her legs and put down the newspaper. Her black leather pants were taut, probably because of her healthy thighs. Her body type was… similar to Cloudy’s?
“So, are you here for another lesson? Good thinking. It’s more efficient to do it continuously instead of just dabbling once in a while. If you learn a little more, you’ll be treated well even if you join an average mercenary group…”
“No, that’s not it. I came to talk about something else today.”
“Something else?”
I looked around. After confirming that no one was around, I leaned forward and said quietly.
“Guild Master.”
“Why, why? What is it? What is it?”
“I think I’ve awakened mana.”
“What?”
Karin’s eyes widened, and she blew smoke in my face.
You fucking piece of shit.
“Ah, sorry. I was a little surprised. So, what did you say?”
“I think I’ve awakened mana.”
“Hmm, I admit you have talent, but… did you drink during the day? Did you come to see me because you were drunk and thinking of me? Didn’t you say you had two women?”
“No, why are you talking about women… More importantly, you don’t believe what your disciple is saying.”
I began to tell Karin, who was expressing doubt, about how I’d sliced an orc almost in half with ‘Push’ instead of ‘Slash.’ I added details about what I felt, the emotions I heard, and the power that surged.
“Didn’t you say that there were mercenaries who suddenly awakened mana on the battlefield? What I felt at that time was exactly that. I was wondering if I might have awakened mana during a fierce battle.”
“Hmm… It sounds similar, just from the story.”
This time, Karin crossed her legs in the opposite direction and told me to hold out my hand. When I held out my hand, Karin grabbed it and began to stroke my forearm.
“What are you doing?”
“Hmm, your forearm is firm. And there are a lot of scars. Oh, your hands are big too? Wow, look at the size difference between my hand and yours.”
“Sexual harassment?”
“Bullshit.”
She closed her eyes and massaged my forearm before opening her mouth.
“Hmm… Mana? I don’t feel anything? When I’m facing someone like this, I can feel their mana to some extent? But there’s nothing like that in you right now. All I can feel is murderous intent and bloodlust. That’s all.”
Was she detecting my mana through physical contact?
The answer that came back was the same as the other two women who had fondled my body to their heart’s content. What was going on? Was it not mana after all? Then what was it that had split the orc in half?
“Then what was it that split the orc in half? For a moment, the sword became incredibly heavy, and I just sliced it all the way to its heart… I couldn’t have done that with my own strength.”
“Yeah, that’s a bit suspicious. Well, in this case, there’s no choice but to test it.”
Karin let go of my hand and stood up.
After stretching, she picked up a steel sword that was leaning against the wall.
“Follow me.”
Karin gestured and led me.
I got up awkwardly and followed her.
I thought we were going to the training grounds, but we weren’t. It was a small yard behind the office building. It felt cool because the sun didn’t shine there, and the weeds growing here and there made it feel like an abandoned lot.
“Aren’t we going to the training grounds?”
“It’s not like we’re going to show it to anyone, right?”
“I guess not.”
“Take your sword.”
She tapped her shoulder with her sword and told me to draw mine. —Swish. I drew my sword as she said.
“I’ve certainly seen some of the mercenaries under me awaken mana. I speculate that they grasped some kind of clue while fighting fiercely for their lives, and that’s how they awakened mana.”
The explanation I’d heard.
“According to your claim, you also fought bloody battles with monsters. And now that you’re used to killing, you might have gained mana like those mercenaries.”
“Uh… Yeah. I guess so.”
“But I can’t feel any mana right now… I don’t know. I don’t know that much about it either. I just learned the Art of Spiritual Cultivation and practiced it. There are so many kinds of Art of Spiritual Cultivation.”
Karin continued with a little more explanation.
“But there is a way to find out. You said you felt power surging every time you fought? I heard that the knights in the Northern Empire go completely crazy when they go into battle, and in that state, they exert unbelievable strength and tear people apart with their bare hands. That must be how those knights use mana.”
What, tear people apart with their bare hands?
There was nothing good to imagine.
“In other words, there are many ways to manifest mana… or use it… or whatever. You might be one of those.”
After finishing her story, she took a stance.
Was she thinking of testing it with a sparring match?
“So, from now on, I’m going to slash at you with the intention of killing you, so defend yourself, counterattack, or stab my neck with your blade. Do whatever you want.”
“Huh? Huh? You’re starting right away?”
“Here I come.”
—Paaht!
Karin, who had rushed at me in an instant, swung her sword at me. What, what?! You fucking bitch, that’s a real sword! I usually sparred with a wooden sword, but suddenly she was going crazy with a real sword, and I felt like I was going to piss my pants in fear!
Panicked, I somehow raised my sword to defend. —Clang, clang! But could I block Karin’s attacks with my level of skill? Absolutely impossible!
The real swordsmanship of a master killer with a real sword!
“Aaaaaaaah!!!!”
I was terrified.
I was so scared that all sorts of thoughts started running through my head.
Could it be? Really? Was she going to kill me like this?
Was she just sparring a little too aggressively?
“Die well.”
Then Karin said coldly.
“You were a good disciple. Ah, am I eating you too early? But still, someone like you would be okay.”
It was an unbelievable death sentence.
You fucking bitch! She said she was going to test my mana, but was she really planning to kill me in a secluded place?! She’d been satisfying her desire to kill like this all along, this evil piece of shit!
Somehow, the fact that there was a hidden space like this was suspicious from the start!
“Stop itttttt!!!!! You fucking cunt!!!! Stop itttt!!!!”
“Tsk, defend yourself as you’ve learned. That’s how you’ll live for even one more second.”
I couldn’t die in a place like this!
I mobilized all the skills I had learned so far to defend and attack. But my sword could never stand up to Karin’s sword. I retreated, overwhelmed by the relentless attacks.
“Damn it! You fucking bitch! You tricked me!”
“Did you believe me?”
“I fucking believed you, you fucking cunt!!”
“Haa, I really can’t stand this moment… I really can’t.”
“Crazy bitch!”
When there was a brief opening, I unleashed a strike with all my strength. I had to take the initiative in the attack. If I just defended, I would eventually die. The one who wins in battle is always the one who ‘attacks.’
“Real Combat Swordsmanship Dejaaaaat!!!
I shouted loudly to attract attention and struck down with my blade.
It was a tactic I often used. I overwhelm the opponent’s hearing with a loud voice. If I do that, something positive will happen, no matter what!
—Whoosh!
Karin blocked my strike. Of course. With her level of skill, my attack would be as insignificant as a hamster playing with a toothpick.
But I immediately continued my offensive. Until now, four times had been the limit, but this time I would transcend that limit! Because if I didn’t, I would die!
“Chaap! Chaap! Tssuaaaap!!!! Red—Tag!”
I put my soul into the sword—!
Remember that feeling, Kim Kat!
“Hmm… Huh? Huh? This bastard? Ah, could this be it?”
Then Karin, who was muttering something, raised her sword.
“Stop.”
—Clang!
In an instant, my sword flew into the sky. The spinning sword was plunged into the ground. I looked at Karin… Could it be? Was I going to die like this? I gasped for breath and reached for the handle of my knife.
“Relax, you idiot. Why would I kill my disciple?”
As I was doing that, she said that.
…What did you say?
“This bastard is really scared shitless. I’m kidding, you idiot. Relax. That’s how you show your true skills, right? Anyway… yeah. Now I know what you mean.”
“A, are you fucking kidding me? I thought I was going to die just now? That was a lie?”
What was this confusion?
“It’s there. Mana.”
Then, Karin declared to me.
“I felt it a little bit just now.”
