Chapter 54

By chance, I ended up sharing a room with Eun-namu and later found myself in the lecture room.

The morning class covered the rules Hunters needed to know and how legal penalties change from civilians to Hunters.

Of course, since I already knew all of it, it was just a review for me, but it seemed unfamiliar to others, as many were dozing off.

“Ha-chan, what does this mean?”

“Ah, sometimes Hunter laws and civilian laws overlap, so it comes up like this. This one and the law here are different.”

“Ah, I see.”

Eun-namu, speaking in a monotone voice, nodded her head.

Unlike others, Eun-namu seemed very interested in Hunter-related matters.

Thanks to that, she had been asking me various questions since earlier, as I was well-versed in most Hunter-related laws.

The problem was, for some reason, she was too close, practically glued to my side.

‘Outwardly, she looks like a guy.’

Maybe because I recognized her as a girl, her subtle, soft scent was messing with my head.

“Thank you. Ha-chan explains things well.”

“Haha, really?”

Eun-namu, giving me lip service, smiled at me with her usual lazy smile.

The more I looked, the more my eyes kept following that smile.

“Damn, don’t get bewitched.”

When did I ever get bewitched?

While Baeksan kept giving Eun-namu a displeased look, I had to answer her questions throughout the morning class.

“Ugh.”

After stretching out the stiffness from the morning class, I was out on the field during the lunch break.

The rubber track, laid out nicely around the grass, was perfect for running.

Lately, I had been pushed to the limit by Baeksan under the guise of training.

Of course, it was only about a month of training, so there wasn’t any dramatic change.

But at least one habit had definitely formed.

If I didn’t move my body, I felt suffocated.

“Can I use Aura now?”

“Yeah, what you need most right now is to use Aura with your body. I’d like you to keep using Aura in your daily life, but if you did that, you’d break everything you touch.”

It was too much to start right now.

More than that, constant Aura? That’s a scary thought to say so casually.

“Start with baby steps.”

“Okay.”

I answered and retied my shoelaces, tapping the rubber floor with my toes.

“Ha-chan, are you going to run?”

At that moment, Eun-namu, who had left to use the restroom, returned, wiping her hands with a handkerchief.

Come to think of it, which restroom did she use in that state?

While having such useless curiosity, I nodded.

“Yeah, we only had written classes in the morning, so I feel stuffy.”

“You’re diligent. Do you train regularly?”

“Well, yeah.”

It was a secret that it hadn’t even been a month.

“Then me too.”

Eun-namu, light on her feet, jumped down the stairs and stood next to me.

Seeing her like this, I realized how short she was.

She might reach my chest, probably a bit taller than Ayu.

‘Judging by height, she’s definitely a girl.’

Her appearance was pretty, giving off a boyish vibe, so if Baeksan hadn’t told me, I would have thought Eun-namu was a guy.

“Want to race?”

“Sorry, I wasn’t planning to run that fast.”

“Okay, too bad.”

She didn’t seem too disappointed.

I forced a smile and started breathing slowly before running.

I’m not skilled at handling Aura.

Unlike regular Hunters or Returners, I can’t instantly release Aura from my body, and of course, the constant weak Aura they emit is beyond my imagination.

So, before handling Aura, I needed time to focus on the Aura within my body.

‘It feels like catching a flowing stream somewhere inside my body.’

Focusing on that feeling, I slowly started spreading Aura throughout my body.

Running is something people can do naturally without much thought.

But when you actually think about it, it requires using multiple muscles simultaneously.

‘Feet, calf muscles, thighs, waist, arms, back muscles, and even the heart and lungs.’

Running is the result of moving numerous organs, muscles, and bones together.

I needed to infuse Aura into every part of that process.

But here’s the problem.

‘If I put too much, my muscles will get damaged.’

Being unskilled at controlling Aura, I could only either pour it in or barely sprinkle it.

Of course, unlike others, I didn’t need to go through the arduous process of enlightenment to grow.

But if I couldn’t control it, it was all pointless.

‘A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.’

I infused a very faint amount of Aura into my body and slowly started taking steps.

*Crackle*

The slight red spark that jumped up was proof that I was controlling my Aura well, and I felt a bit proud.

The running wasn’t very fast.

At most, a brisk walk.

But perhaps because I was using Aura, it felt less tiring than usual.

This was my current limit.

“How much is this, percentage-wise?”

“0.1%.”

Baeksan answered my mutter perfectly.

Really, just a tiny bit.

“Get it to about 3%. Then you’ll reach the output level of a decent B-class Hunter.”

3% is B-class Hunter?

When I looked at Baeksan with disbelief, he chuckled at my expression.

“You don’t know how great I am, do you? Your body is like a highway compared to the level I’ve reached. By my standards, a B-class Hunter doesn’t even reach 1% of my output. Considering your body is completely untrained and your Aura control is terrible, I gave you a lot of leeway.”

“Just out of curiosity, what about A-class?”

“Right now, about 5%.”

My body was in a more incredible state than I imagined.

Thinking like that, I realized the power of the Thunderbolt I shot that day.

And at the same time, why my body was in such a mess.

“How strong is your Thunderbolt, really?”

“One shot could blow up Mount Baekdu.”

“…Isn’t that too quick of an answer? It makes it seem like you’ve actually done it.”

Baeksan didn’t answer.

I don’t know why it feels like it’s not a joke.

“Ha-chan, you’re slow.”

Meanwhile, Eun-namu, who had already run a lap, left with a lazy smile after saying that.

Even though I thought I was running pretty fast, Eun-namu didn’t seem tired at all during that lap.

‘She must be a Returner.’

At that moment, I saw a small bundle of black hands swaying behind her back.

Startled, I blinked, and when I looked again, it was gone.

“Baeksan.”

“Pretend you didn’t see it. It’s better not to see that. You’ll get involved.”

Involved in what?

I wanted to ask for a moment but kept my mouth shut.

For some reason, I felt like I shouldn’t know.

Maybe the unease I felt when I first saw Eun-namu was because of that.

‘Which side of the Returners is she from?’

Even if I didn’t know, it smelled dangerous.

So, I shook off the thought and focused on running again.

After running about 20 more laps, I returned to the dormitory room without showing much fatigue, which would have caused muscle soreness in the past.

‘Baeksan’s training seems to be helping.’

If this keeps up, won’t my body improve tremendously soon?

Thinking of my body, which I’m just glad isn’t gaining weight, I chuckled.

I can’t imagine my body being in good shape.

“Going to shower?”

Eun-namu, who had followed me, asked as we arrived at the dormitory.

“Yeah, just a quick rinse and change of clothes.”

“Okay.”

Running alone made me sweat, and since it’s summer, my clothes were damp.

So, I planned to quickly shower and change before class.

There are many who just turned twenty, and if I get called out for smelling like an old man, I’ll break.

Entering the room with Eun-namu, I grabbed the gym clothes I had set aside.

“I’ll wait inside.”

“Okay. I’ll be back soon.”

The shower room was outside, so I answered and headed there.

“Wow, you’ve become friends. Really.”

“Isn’t this just being acquaintances?”

“Don’t get involved, don’t get involved.”

“We’re in the same room, how can we not get involved?”

I was somewhat concerned, but my personality doesn’t allow me to ignore someone next to me.

Honestly, since I haven’t been directly harmed by Eun-namu, I can’t just push her away.

“Be mean, hey, do I look easy? Won’t you leave? Say it like this.”

“Hey, do I look easy? Won’t you leave?”

“You’re using this on me. Want to die?”

It’s not working, whatever.

While joking around with Baeksan, I stopped in front of the shower room.

Ah, towel.

Why do I always remember these things only when I’m in front of the shower room?

I had no choice but to turn back and head to the dormitory room.

Then, to get the towel, I unlocked the door with my fingerprint and opened it.

At that moment.

My eyes met Eun-namu’s, who was standing in front of the bed, pulling her shirt up to her chest.

Eun-namu had something like a band wrapped around her chest, probably a binder to make her look more like a guy.

But even that couldn’t completely flatten her chest, as some flesh peeked out from below.

At the same time, below that was a white belly and a slender waist that clearly suggested a girl.

After a brief moment of silence, I quietly closed the door and walked out.

‘I’m screwed.’

Damn it.

Even though she was wearing underwear, I saw a girl’s body.

Of course, I had no defense if she sued.

‘…Isn’t this force majeure?’

Since Eun-namu disguised herself as a guy and came to the Hunter Training Academy, if I argue that I didn’t know she was a girl from the start, it might be considered force majeure even if I get sued.

But this is South Korea.

A country where even false accusations can work. I’m living proof of that.

*Beep*

At that moment, the sound of the door unlocking was heard, and Eun-namu poked her head out.

As soon as our eyes met, I reflexively shouted.

“Eun-namu, I like guys. I’m not interested in girls!”

“Uh, okay.”

For the first time, a flustered expression appeared on Eun-namu’s face.

First strike, then deal with the aftermath.

The male dorm students passing by looked at me in shock, but this was the only way for me to survive.

Eun-namu, scratching her cheek awkwardly, opened the door as if to invite me in.

“Let’s talk.”

For some reason, I felt like I saw that bundle of black hands behind her again.

Yeah, it’s better to get hit quickly.