Chapter 9 : magic bullet
Lee Min-ho was lost in his thoughts as he sat in class, preoccupied with the decisions he had to make. In just a few days, he would be leaving for London. If there were mages in this world, that's where he would likely have the best chance of finding them. Furthermore, now that he had Mammon and Vassago by his side, many things would be simplified.
The demon Mammon offered his contractor two precious things: the ability to speak and read all languages, as well as the power to attract wealth and see the true value of things. These abilities were extremely useful, especially when it came to finding magical ingredients or financial resources for his projects.
As for Vassago, he also offered considerable advantages. Firstly, supernatural eloquence that could be useful in many social or diplomatic situations. Additionally, he had the power to see past, present, and future events, which could be incredibly valuable for knowledge-seeking or foreseeing future dangers.
With these new allies by his side, Min-ho felt both excited and confident, knowing he had reached a sufficient level of magical mastery to defend himself optimally. Although he didn't have access to massive spells, he knew that if he combined martial arts with his superhuman strength and certain spells such as magical projectiles and enhancements, he would be able to effectively defend himself against most opponents, except for high-ranking Church executors.
However, if he were to face adversaries of this caliber, he would need to implement more advanced strategies to flee. The only way for him to be on equal footing with a high-ranking Church executor is the creation of a Mystic Key, a magical artifact that would allow him to use his combat alchemy optimally, but this would require resources he didn't currently have.
He still had a hidden card with a set of spells that the Faust family had spent centuries developing. These spells could give him a crucial advantage in difficult situations, but he had heavy drawbacks due to his current lack of mastery.
Lee Min-ho planned to inform Park Eun-Ha of his imminent departure for London and to express his intention to teach her magic upon his return. However, he was concerned about the young girl's strange behavior lately. She seemed to adopt an arrogant and distant attitude toward him.
Min-ho was perplexed by this sudden change in Park Eun-Ha's behavior. He wondered what could be causing this attitude. Was it because of something he had done or said? Or was there another reason behind her radical change in behavior? Despite his numerous experiences with women, it was the first time this had happened to him.
Anyway, Min-ho knew he had to find a way to solve this problem, especially if he wanted to succeed in teaching magic to Park Eun-Ha upon his return. Perhaps his trip to London would give him the opportunity to ponder a solution and find a way to "train" Park Eun-Ha, as he had envisioned.
As the day was drawing to a close, Min-ho decided it was time to broach the subject with Park Eun-Ha. Rising from his chair as soon as the bell rang, he quickly made his way to where he knew he would find her: in the classroom.
Approaching Eun-Ha, Min-ho felt confident in his actions. He knew he had to inform her about his departure to London, but he immediately noticed that Eun-Ha seemed hesitant, lost in her own thoughts.
"I wanted to talk to you about something important," Min-ho began, taking a deep breath.
Eun-Ha looked up from her book, her gaze meeting Min-ho's. She seemed surprised by his direct approach, but her eyebrows furrowed slightly, as if she was preparing for something.
"What's going on?" she asked, her voice colder than usual but with a hint of curiosity in her eyes.
Min-ho plunged in, knowing he had to be honest with her. "I'm leaving... for a school exchange to London," he announced, carefully observing Eun-Ha's reaction.
To his surprise, Eun-Ha's face darkened slightly, betraying her concern. "London?" she repeated, her voice slightly trembling. "For how long?"
"About 6 months," he replied, noting her reaction with a mix of relief and curiosity about what was troubling her.
After a moment of silence, Eun-Ha finally looked up at him, her expression a mixture of sadness and determination. "What do you expect me to feel about this, Min-ho?" she murmured softly, her eyes slightly shining, hiding an emotion hard to decipher.
"What you feel about it doesn't matter," he replied coldly, his eyes meeting hers unwaveringly. "I just wanted to let you know about my departure."
Eun-Ha seemed surprised by his sharp response, but she showed no signs of offense. Instead, she seemed resolved, as if she had already anticipated his reaction.
"Very well," she finally said, her voice firmer than before. "Safe travels then, Min-ho."
She rose from her chair and gathered her belongings, ready to leave. Min-ho watched her go, wondering what was truly going on in the young girl's mind. Afterward, once he arrived home, he went straight to his room. Seated at his desk, he delved into his thoughts. He decided to practice controlling his energy, specifically focusing on the Magic Bullet spell. Though the spell seemed simple, it offered many possibilities. It involved imbuing a bullet made of mana with kinetic energy and projecting it towards the enemy. Min-ho's bullets were heated to over a thousand degrees, giving them impressive destructive power.
As Lee Min-ho sat at his desk, he immersed himself in his thoughts, pondering what could be going through Park Eun-Ha's mind. He felt intrigued by her recent behavior and sought answers to his questions.
Deciding to focus on his magical training for the moment, Min-ho concentrated on energy control, particularly honing his skills with the Magic Bullet spell. Though seemingly straightforward, Min-ho utilized the school of numerology to simplify and amplify his control over magical energy. This also shortened the incantations of his spells and allowed him to use them more effortlessly through a system of mental imagery.
After his training session, he drifted off to sleep.