Chapter 78 - Power Up! (1)

The reason I decided not to kill Lee Mun-ryong and instead chose to hire him was simple.

He looked useful.

You know how when you're playing a Romance of the Three Kingdoms game, you capture an enemy general with good stats instead of killing them, then recruit them? It was like that.

Like how even if you know Lü Bu is going to betray you, you still want to use him for a while before offing him.

...Well, the Three Kingdoms bit was a joke.

I needed information to assess the situation.

[First Pentacle of Saturn]

There was magic that could summon the souls of the dead and make them answer questions, but it was only usable on Saturdays.

And since smooth conversation hadn't been possible, it wasn't enough to get a clear read on the current situation.

It wasn't the first time I'd been attacked by a wizard, but....

This attack was a little different from the incidents so far.

The previous attacks hadn't been ones I'd sought out.

They were cases where I'd stumbled upon a cannibal wizard's Workshop disguised as a ranch, or accidentally wandered into a campground that had been consumed by the Zombie Wizard, and ended up fighting.

In Chairman Kim's case, he hadn't been targeting me either; he'd simply attacked me as a nuisance standing in the way while trying to retrieve Namgung Soo-ah.

But Alphons had specifically targeted me, tracked me down, and attacked.

Even setting aside that Alphons had used magic to find me,

there was a possibility that information related to me had been spread somewhere.

Information that would make a wizard target me. Namely, information that I was the owner of grimoires.

That was why I planned to hire Lee Mun-ryong, a mercenary in this line of work, and use him to gather information in reverse.

...And honestly, it was because things had been dangerous this time.

Bluntly put, if there had been even one more Breathing Technique user on Lee Mun-ryong's level, I would have died.

That said, I didn't think Grizzly was weak.

Grizzly had shown outstanding ability against enemies so far.

It was simply that Lee Mun-ryong was strong beyond imagination.

If they'd kept fighting, Grizzly would've eventually won, but still.

Buying time was one thing.

I hadn't expected there could be a human capable of holding their own against Grizzly as an individual rather than a group.

With a calm gaze, I looked at the man sitting across from me.

".........."

Lee Mun-ryong, sipping tea in my tiny studio apartment.

"Slurrrp~."

And so, for the sake of my own survival,

I intended to keep Lee Mun-ryong at my side, find out just how exceptional he was among Breathing Technique users,

and finally learn Breathing Techniques myself.

Considering how much I'd suffered running around fighting in the flesh this time, it was truly essential.

Lee Mun-ryong set down his teacup, looked around the room, and spoke.

"Clean, but cramped. Is this a safe house?"

"...Something like that."

This was actually my main residence, but... since its location had already been compromised by Soo-ah, I'd planned to abandon it depending on how things went, so I'd invited him here.

"Now that we've entered a client-and-bodyguard relationship, I have a few questions. These aren't questions that will affect your employment terms negatively, so please answer honestly."

"Feels like a job interview. My heart's pounding. Alright."

Lee Mun-ryong nodded with a resolute expression, and I spoke with a slight tension in my voice.

"...Old man, how skilled are you among Breathing Technique users?"

I figured he was probably strong, but I'd prefer it if he were a top-tier expert rather than someone mediocre.

If warriors on Lee Mun-ryong's level were common, my safety was seriously at risk.

And Lee Mun-ryong answered without a moment's hesitation.

"Greatest Under Heaven."

I blinked at Lee Mun-ryong's answer for a moment.

"...No, old man. I appreciate the confidence, and I like it, but."

I said in an incredulous voice.

"I need objective information for planning ahead. Give me a real answer."

"Hmm... if that's what you need... fighting can't really be measured in numbers, but...."

Lee Mun-ryong rubbed his chin, thought for a moment, then spoke.

"Currently, there are a few guys stronger than me. But even against them, I don't go down easily."

A few guys, huh... well, it wasn't precise information, but it seemed he was indeed quite skilled.

Then again, he'd gone toe-to-toe with Grizzly and survived. It would've been strange if he were anything ordinary.

This wasn't something I could figure out just by mulling it over, so that was enough.

Now for the main topic.

"Separate from the bodyguard duties, can you teach me the Breathing Technique you use?"

"Breathing Technique? You mean martial arts. Sure, fine by me."

Unexpectedly, Lee Mun-ryong agreed readily.

"I'm glad, but you're agreeing to teach me more easily than I expected."

"Martial arts are just tools in the end. What's so special about them? If someone wants to learn, there's no reason not to teach."

His words were easygoing, but his eyes were serious.

"Just don't expect any profound enlightenment or anything like that. I don't know about that stuff either."

Lee Mun-ryong stood up from his seat and spoke.

"All I can teach you is how to breathe and how to hit people."

I smiled lightly and stood up after him.

"That's exactly what I want to learn."

Good that he didn't waste time with pointless chatter.

Magic called martial arts that enhanced physical abilities.

Time to begin Breathing Technique training.

...And a short while later.

In the small studio apartment, I was slumped against the bed, drenched in sweat.

It wasn't as if I'd learned anything spectacular; I'd gone outside and run as Lee Mun-ryong instructed, then learned how to throw a proper straight punch and how to exhale with purpose.

"Haa... haa...."

But I was so exhausted that only ragged breaths came out.

"...Isn't there a faster way to learn the Breathing Technique?"

"You call it Breathing Technique or whatever, but in the end it's about controlling and moving your body. Starting from how you breathe, you've got to be mindful of every little thing. Consistent training is the only answer."

Lee Mun-ryong answered nonchalantly.

"The body has to be ready to a certain degree before it can hold the mystical."

I looked at Lee Mun-ryong with tired eyes.

...Well, that was obvious enough.

"So, now that you've tried teaching me, what do you think? Think I can pick up Breathing Techniques quickly?"

"Hard to say. You've got a bit of stamina, but it's at an ordinary person's level. I don't see any particular talent for Breathing Techniques."

My eyes narrowed.

At those words about having no particular talent,

Me, a magical genius! A Breathing Technique dunce!?

...is not why I was shocked.

Learning was learning, and I hadn't expected from the start that it would come easily.

But I'd held out some hope.

As expected, it seemed like mastering Breathing Techniques was going to require a fair amount of time.

".........."

For now, I'd work on Breathing Technique training bit by bit alongside physical conditioning....

As I was organizing my thoughts,

the Gnomes came toddling over.

"Master! Gnome also learned martial arts, Gnome!"

"What?"

Lee Mun-ryong shrugged.

"They were watching from the side, so I played around with them a little."

The Gnome pulled two sickles from its white beard pouch and gripped one in each hand, waving them around.

"Gnome Fist Technique! Humans who bully Master are already dead, Gnome!"

Whoosh whoosh~ Swish~ Slash~!

I looked down at the Gnome for a moment.

'This... reminds me of those stone grandfather statues holding kitchen knives....' [TL: "Dolharbang" are iconic stone statues from Jeju Island, Korea]

Anyway, I gave the Gnome a pat on the head.

"Impressive."

"Gnoooome~."

Then I spoke to Lee Mun-ryong again.

"Setting aside that I'll keep learning Breathing Techniques steadily, there might be situations like this time where I end up in close-quarters combat. Teach me some small tricks at least."

Lee Mun-ryong rubbed his chin and then spoke up.

"Tricks, huh... techniques also take time to master. I'll teach you some fighting dirty tips."

"Dirty tips?"

"Making an improvised weapon the enemy doesn't expect. First, put on leather gloves and dip your hands in a container of adhesive.

Then break some glass and coat the adhesive-covered gloves with the glass shards. You tear the enemy's skin apart."

I blinked.

"I think I've seen that in a comic book."

Lee Mun-ryong blinked too.

"Really? I also saw it in a comic book."

"You son of a...! Teach me something real!"

I snapped.

I'd said I'd treat him with respect as a business partner. I never said I'd revere him.

If I got pissed off, the polite speech was going out the window.

I didn't disregard comic book knowledge, but taking gold coins and then pulling this made me angry.

At my outburst, Grizzly, who had been curled up quietly, stood up.

"Grrr... Gyah!"

The human who teased its master.

Grizzly bit the hem of Lee Mun-ryong's pants and yanked, sending him sprawling.

"Aaaaaagh~!"

You'd need to be properly armed with a spear and able to move while hitting and retreating to handle Grizzly; once it got a bite in like this, it was over.

Grizzly shook its head side to side,

and Lee Mun-ryong was dragged across the floor, thrashing helplessly as he cried out.

"I was wrong! Have mercy!"

...And just then.

Ding-dong. The doorbell rang from the entrance.

Even calling it an entrance, it was a studio apartment, so it was right there.

'Who could it be?'

I went to the door and looked through the peephole, but no one was visible.

Something nagged at me, so I cautiously opened the door.

Thud. Something was hanging on the door.

"This is...."

It was a box with the words [Please pick me up] engraved on it.

The kind of box you see in comics that looks like it should have an abandoned kitten inside.

But what was inside wasn't a cat.

A book with a cover that looked like a martial arts manual.

A grimoire.

I gently rubbed the back of my neck.

My eyes narrowed.

'So I'm already a wizard now, huh? These guys are just showing up blatantly now.'

Then again, thinking about it,

<The Lesser Key of Solomon> had also teleported itself into a bazaar I happened to be visiting.

I picked up the new grimoire.

Different from <De Vermis Mysteriis> and <The Lesser Key of Solomon>, yet a similar energy.

It was a real grimoire.

<Baopuzi> looked up at me and gently fluttered its pages.

Baopuzi!

The wizard who called to it on that night when the stars shone!

It was a day late because of the sudden downpour, but....

It had found its way here properly!