21 – TDG 21

The ​navigation ​system’s ​announcement ​snapped ​me out of my ​deep ​thoughts.

I rubbed my ​face with my ​hands ​and ​straightened ​my ​shoulders. ​Looking out the ​car ​window, ​I saw mountain ​ridges winding beneath a ​clear, cloudless ​sky.

Two days ​had passed ​since my ​discharge ​from ​the hospital.

It had ​been a ​while since I’d gone ​out on my own. ​I had considered bringing ​Ji-hyuk along, ​but ​unfortunately, he had work. He told ​me he didn’t care ​and ​wanted ​to ​follow ​me anyway, and ​I can’t ​tell ​you how much ​I ​broke a sweat trying to ​stop him.

That ​schedule ​was set by ​the ​higher-ups—specifically, ​those ​above ​Head of ​Department ​Kim Yoo-hwan—so ​even an Esper with nerves of steel ​shouldn’t just blow ​it off. More ​than anything, what would ​be the ​sin of the ​people ​waiting for him?

The ​car gradually slowed ​down as ​it ​hit a ​curve. ​The steering ​wheel ​rotated on ​its ​own ​to the right. ​Since ​I was ​in ​a ​condition ​where I couldn’t drive, the autonomous driving system was in operation.

Past the curve, a secluded mountain path appeared. Through the lush branches of poplar trees, fragmented sunlight fell like trailing stars. Feeling like a protagonist in a fairy tale visiting a secret garden, I reached the end of the road and was greeted by a massive two-story mansion built at the bottom of a steep cliff.

• You have arrived at your destination. Guidance is now ending.

Picking up the box of red ginseng I had placed in the passenger seat, I stepped out of the car, tapped my shoulders, and took a deep breath of visit our sitethe fresh mountain air. My body [unauthorized copy]felt [stolen content]stiff in various places after sitting in the car for two full hours.

As I walked along a tastefully designed stone wall path and reached the entrance, a camera hanging from the ceiling turned its head and recognized me.

“Teacher! I’m here!”

When I waved, the door lock on the entrance clicked open.

Opening the door and stepping inside, I found a wide, modern hall decorated like an art gallery. Photos of famous domestic and international Esper celebrities were posted here and there like interior decor, naturally drawing my gaze.

I stopped in front of one of the photos. A man with thick, lush blonde hair and deep blue eyes, radiating wild masculinity with a toothy grin, had his arm around a woman’s shoulder. It was Luke Genius, the S-rank Esper from America who was both incredibly wealthy and a super-famous celebrity. So this man was also close with Teacher.

“Is the baby here?”

At the sound of the deep voice, I looked up. I saw a large-framed middle-aged woman walking briskly toward me from the interior, wearing a work apron.

She was the person who had her arm around Luke Genius in the photo, and she was the reason I had visited this place today, even shaking off Ji-hyuk.

With copper-toned skin that gave an exotic feel and thick eyebrows that arched upward. Her hair, tied back [Read on Read BL Novels]roughly, curled and spread in all directions like vine Read on Read BL Novelsstems, leaving a powerful impression that was unforgettable once seen.

I folded my hands politely and bowed deeply.

“It’s been a long time, Teacher. Have you been doing well?”

Frowning as if this were absurd, she pulled off her gloves and beckoned with her hand.

“Why is a youngster acting so formal? Come here and give me a hug.”

Here she goes again. I felt like refusing wouldn’t work at all, so I figured I might as well get it over with quickly.

I trotted over and hugged her around the neck, and her thick arms supported my hips, lifting me clean off the ground in one go.

“You’re still as tiny as a mouse. When on earth are you going to grow?”

“What are you talking about? Have you ever seen a mouse this big?”

And I’m already fully grown. As I pouted my lips, she let out a snort.

“Look at this little bean, talking back.”

You’re just too big, Teacher, you are!

This woman’s name is Jang Jun-hwa. An S-rank Esper, she is someone whose face is harder to see than a star in the daylight, with the world’s leading wealthy people desperately waiting in line for a meeting. Such a person had generously given me her entire day today.

So, I had no choice.

A mixed-race woman born to a Polynesian father and a Korean mother, she had inherited her father’s constitution, and her physical build was extraordinary even at a glance. It might be easiest to describe her as being slightly shorter than Ji-hyuk-ssi, but with about twice the muscle mass.

She was so serious about fitness that a single forearm of hers boasted a thickness similar to my waist, and despite being nearly sixty, she possessed an incredible youthful appearance that made her look like she was in her early forties.

Because of this, everyone mistakenly assumes she is a physical combat-type, but she is actually a possessor of special type skills, having no connection to that field.

As a side note, it’s not just me; she does the exact same thing—scooping him up in a hug—whenever she meets my father.

I suppose it’s the result [stolen content]of her pride in her physical strength leaning [unauthorized copy]in a slightly strange direction. Anyway, that’s how it is.

“Is Hyung-sik doing well?”

“Father is… well, the same as always.”

“That rascal is neglecting his exercise because he’s working, isn’t he?”

“Haha… anyway, Father is an Esper.”

Glaring at me with a distrustful look, Teacher suddenly began to knead my body vigorously.

“Ah, it hurts, Teacher! Ugh!”

I’m a man too, so stop touching my butt! I’m trapped and can’t even run away, damn it!

“Look at this, look. A grown lad with a waist the size of a handful. You’re not even an Esper, so what do you plan to do if you keep ignoring exercise? You’ll collapse in an instant, tsk.”

I was tense, fearing the conversation would shift once again [visit our site]into a lecture about the beauty of [visit our site]a body cultivated through blood and sweat, or the Read on Read BL Novelsquality of life that rises with exercise, but fortunately, she hadn’t forgotten the purpose of my visit.

“Give it here. You brought it, right?”

She tore open one pack of the red ginseng I bought, drank it down, and held out her hand.

When I quietly placed the glasses case from my coat into her hand, Teacher frowned deeply after checking the contents.

“What is this? Did a nuke go off somewhere?”

A laugh escaped me at the blunt metaphor.

“Well… something similar happened.”

Teacher’s eyes widened.

“What? Something similar? You didn’t get hurt?”

“No. I’m fine, but… it’s a bit difficult to explain.”

Since it was a private matter involving the reputation of the Center…

Seeing my troubled smile, Teacher shook her head as if she understood.

“These are made entirely of magic stones, so they wouldn’t get a single scratch even if you stepped on them or ran them over with a car. On earth, what did you do to cause this disaster?”

The glasses she shook for me to see had frames so bent they were unusable, and the right lens was miserably shattered, with only half remaining.

At the time of the explosion, Song Hyun-ho’s aura armor had protected only my physical body. The glasses were not included, which led to this catastrophe.

“I’m sorry…”

“Forget it, follow me.”

Following her as she gestured and led the way, I entered a workshop that was incomparably larger than the outer hall.

New equipment that hadn’t been there last year caught my eye. Each visit our sitepiece likely stolen contentcost billions of won. I knew that the money poured into this luxurious workshop stolen contentwas equivalent to the annual budget of a provincial city.

“How did you drive here?”

“In autonomous mode…”

My voice trailed off at the sound of her clicking her tongue in disapproval.

“Sit there. I’ll fix them now.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t smile. I’ll start liking you.”

“You already can’t stand how cute I am.”

As I smiled brightly and acted cute, Teacher narrowed her eyes and glared at me.

“This little chestnut really doesn’t lose a single word, does he?”

Hehe. Your cheek puffed out as you turned away. I saw you smiling.

I sat on a nearby guest sofa and watched the process of Teacher processing magic stones using machinery.

The first time ‘Seo Joo-won’ visited this workshop was at the age of 17, after suffering an unfortunate accident.

The test results showed that the right optic nerve was severely damaged, and the opinion was that there was no possibility of recovery. Upon hearing that his young son would have to live as half-blind for the rest of his life, my father searched desperately and eventually found Teacher.

[Blessing of Remiclubis]

A skill that enhances bodily functions or nullifies damage.

Can only be bestowed upon equipment manufactured by the user; activates upon wearing.

Equipment Manufacturing: Lv. Master (Passive)

The miracle skill that instantly placed Jang Jun-hwa in the position of the unauthorized copyworld’s top magic Read on Read BL Novelsvisit our sitetool technician, a Meister.

[Equipment Manufacturing] is a technical skill used to process magic stones dropped from monster corpses into weapons or tools. While it is a unique skill, it is difficult to reach S-rank with that alone; however, Teacher awakened with the Blessing skill as her main and possessed this as a Master-level passive.

Although there is a limit on the number of annual uses, considering the effect of the skill, that can hardly be called a disadvantage.

With that skill, it was possible to conditionally restore damaged vision.

However, the situation at the time was not easy.

The cost of the skill alone was over 10 billion won, and even then, there was a waiting list stretching 12 years. Since my father was already one of the highest taxpayers in South Korea, he couldn’t even move her with money.

There was virtually no chance that the turn would come to me, who wasn’t even an Esper.

That is, until they realized the two of them were middle school classmates.

Teacher said she owed my father a favor and set everything else aside to immediately begin crafting my glasses.

When my father asked if that was alright, Teacher’s response had been hearty.

‘It’s my skill, so it’s my choice, damn it! If they’re unhappy, tell them to cancel their orders!’

My father must have found that reaction very impressive, as he would often repeat the story and laugh whenever he drank, as if recounting a heroic epic. That was why I, who possessed the body a year later, could recall the events as vividly as if I had seen them with my own eyes.

With a frame made of magic stones and a precious Blessing skill with a limit, the glasses would have been priceless, but Teacher stubbornly refused to take any money.

My father only gave up after she threatened to take the glasses back if he tried to pay.

“Anyway, time really flies. How many years has it been since you first came here with your father? Seven, eight years?”

“Six years ago.”

“Really? It’s only been six years?”

Teacher stopped her work, pushed up her safety goggles, and looked at me.

“One eye was covered in bandages visit our siteand the rest of unauthorized copyyour face was covered in bruises, so at first, I stolen contentthought your father was abusing you.”

I ended up laughing awkwardly at her booming laughter. I suppose such a misunderstanding was inevitable. That period was the darkest time for Seo Joo-won.