Still Alive? (2)
Jowhasu likes humans.
The reason is that, unlike himself, who has lived through a stretch of ti so aningless it can't be counted by numbers, humans burn their lives brilliantly, even though their existence is as fleeting as a mont.
To Jowhasu, this was like watching cherry blossoms that bloom briefly and then fall gently, which is why he enjoyed observing humans.
The particular reason Jowhasu liked young humans best was because he saw them as cherry blossoms in full bloom.
Because he liked humans so much, jowhasu knew them well. Among the human traits he knew best, perhaps the most prominent was: "Humans die surprisingly easily."
But lately, jowhasu had begun to entertain doubts about whether this belief was truly correct.
This was because Kim Dojun—the human he'd recently contracted with—had survived injuries that would have killed any regular person or even a sorcerer, and after about a week of rest was discharged from the hospital as if nothing had happened.
And then—
"Aaaargh!"
"Going back to step one with etiquette training isn't easy, is it?"
Currently, for over two hours, goruwon had been dangling like a sandbag from one side of the mansion's pool—pulled in and out of the water, only to get pounded senseless, over and over.
"Please spare ! Please! I was wrong, teacher! Te—gack—!"
Bubble bubble bubble—
Each ti Kim Dojun let go of the rope, goruwon would dive into the pool, frantically blowing bubbles—the sight invariably making Jowhasu doubt his belief once more.
'Could it be that humans don't actually die that easily?'
That was the question.
"Pwah—! Hah! Sa...save !"
Splash!
Bubble bubble bubble—
Seeing Kim Dojun hoist up Goruwon with the rope again and force him into another dive, jowhasu wore a dazed expression.
Of course, Kim Dojun didn't care about Jowhasu's exhausted gaze. He simply pulled Goruwon up with the rope, and as Goruwon begged for his life, Kim Dojun pressed his index finger to his lips.
"...."
Instantly, goruwon fell silent.
Seeing this, Kim Dojun sported a satisfied look and spoke up.
"There's a saying in this world: Water knows the answer... You've heard that one, right?"
"Yes! I know it! I'm sorry, I swear I've committed a mortal sin!"
Goruwon had never heard such a saying and doubted it even existed, but he nodded eagerly for the sake of his own survival.
Kim Dojun, staring intently at him, continued.
"So, you're finally feeling so remorse, I see."
"Yes! Yes! Absolutely, I'll never, ever act out again...! Please, just this once...!"
Tears streaming down Goruwon's face.
Kim Dojun, nodding at the display, replied.
"Alright, if you're that remorseful, I suppose I can let it slide."
"Thank you! Thank you so much...!"
Dangling upside down, goruwon chanted his thanks repeatedly.
Kim Dojun, as if pleased with Goruwon's attitude, nodded approvingly.
"Good, now it seems you've finally learned proper manners. I'm very pleased."
"Yes, yes!"
"Then we'll stop with the underwater part."
"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you... sniff..."
So grateful for Kim Dojun's words, goruwon shed tears even as he dangled there.
"Alright, glad you understand. You'll listen well now, right?"
"Yes! I'll listen really well! I swear! I won't ever talk back!"
As if sensing he'd never have a better chance at survival, goruwon responded as loudly as he could.
"... Hmm!"
Looking very satisfied, Kim Dojun promptly tied the rope he was holding to the ground.
Then—
Clatter—
"?"
—he reappeared holding a baseball bat.
It was the sa beat-up bat he'd used previously to puml Goruwon.
"Teacher... what's that for?"
Goruwon's face hardened with a sense of impending doom.
But Kim Dojun just smiled, raising the bat.
"You seem to have reflected a bit, so we'll stop with the water. Instead—"
Before Goruwon could even say anything—
"Since we're at it, let's make sure those lessons in etiquette towards your teacher really stick this ti."
BAAAANG!
Kim Dojun started beating Goruwon rcilessly with the bat.
"Aaaaargh!"
For about two more hours, goruwon's screams echoed throughout the mansion.
"You're back."
"...."
When the security staff—who had finished their patrol—returned to the mansion, they found Goruwon literally beaten to a pulp.
Hearing whispers among the security staff, "Is he dead?"
Kim Dojun spoke up.
"He's not dead."
"...."
"Not yet."
He avoided the security staff's gaze as he murmured,
"Anyway, I hit him a bit, but he'll live as long as he gets treated."
And so he said.
"Yes... I think he'll survive. If we just give him oxygen and so food, he should perk up," the team leader thought, but he refrained from saying it out loud as he rushed over to Goruwon.
"Maybe I went a bit far with discipline."
[Was that discipline?]
As Jowhasu remarked after hearing Kim Dojun muttering to himself.
"It's discipline."
[It looked like violence to .]
"It's discipline."
[... Which part, exactly?]
"I can't really explain it in words. If you experience it, you'll understand. Wanna give it a try?"
At Kim Dojun's next comnt—
[Is that so, discipline...]
"Yeah. It's discipline."
[If you say so...]
Jowhasu had no choice but to nod.
####
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Ghost Spirit Jar (鬼酒甁)
Grade: ??
Uses: 0
Effect: You can capture defeated spirits inside the jar and brew them into 'liquor'. By drinking all of a spirit's brewed liquor, you gain spiritual power according to the spirit's grade.
Currently brewing 'Fragnt of Azmo of Greed' into 'liquor'.
Ti left: 83 days, 21 hours, 59 minutes, 45 seconds.
----
"Sure is taking a while."
Having just beaten etiquette into Goruwon after leaving the hospital, Kim Dojun, only a day past a week since discharge, was checking his dorm room for the Ghost Spirit Jar.
'The first ti I saw the 90-day tir, I was so broken physically I couldn't even worry about it.'
Now, having recovered fully, he found that the 90 days had ticked down to the 80s—a marginal reduction, but the brew ti still felt long. He was montarily disappointed.
'Still, if it takes 90 days to brew, the spiritual power must be incredible.'
With a sly smile, Kim Dojun put the Ghost Spirit Jar away.
'The fruit of patience will be sweet.'
After all, since obtaining Jowhasu, Kim Dojun needed a lot of spiritual power.
The reason Jowhasu contracted with him in the first place was that his plan required synchronization.
'Even after I gather all the fragnts I'm searching for...'
In short, the fusion with Jowhasu had to be used continuously, and for that a massive amount of spiritual power was required, so Kim Dojun felt fairly content with the situation.
Even if it took 80 days, at least after that he'd be able to drink the liquor brewed from the Fragnt of Azmo of Greed.
'Well, if I consider the spiritual power consumption, I'll probably still be lacking even then. But I do know how to increase the usage count of the Ghost Spirit Jar.'
With that thought, Kim Dojun now took out the Fragnt of the Powerless One.
----
Fragnt of the Powerless One
Grade: ??
Effect: Fragnt of the Powerless One. Originally split into three parts.
----
----
Fragnt of the Powerless One (Enhanced)
Grade: ??
Effect: Fragnt of the Powerless One. Originally split into three parts.
Extra Info: The Dreamwalker's Revi has infused it with her own spiritual power. It is useless as is, but if all three fragnts are collected, the infused power will allow the use of 'Dream Mirage'.
----
As soon as Kim Dojun took out the fragnt, a notification popped up in front of his eyes.
'If I hadn't kept these two together, I'd have been screwed.'
If not for these two fragnts, it would have been impossible to deal real damage to Azmo, so he was relieved. Then, with a strange expression, he stared at one of the fragnts.
It was the fragnt that Dreamwalker's Revi had given him.
'Well, since I forcibly fused incomplete fragnts using synchronization, I couldn't use the special ability called Dream Mirage. But I'll manage once I complete them.'
Finishing his thought, Kim Dojun put the fragnt away.
Either way, he planned to gather the last fragnt before the end of the current sester.
'That about wraps up the pressing concerns...'
With that, Kim Dojun finished reviewing everything and let out a wide grin.
'Still, I've already dealt with two maglignant spirits.'
Originally, capturing two maglignant spirits would have taken two years, so even with a ti skip he expected this to eat up a sizable chunk of ti.
In the ga, it wasn't until the third year that you could catch the third maglignant spirit.
But now?
'Damn~ At this rate, I might really finish all of them in three years and get out.'
Only about half a year had passed, but having already taken down two maglignant spirits, Kim Dojun was feeling a bit overconfident.
'I'll have to put Goruwon through even more rigorous training. Push the others forward as much as possible, too.'
If Goruwon heard this, he'd pass out from panic, but Kim Dojun mused on this with a straight face.
'... I should look into the Prophet too... Which ans the next person I need to et is Dan. More specifically, the information broker Dan is connected to.'
Ever since he got the impression that the Prophet might be linked to the maglignant spirits, he'd asked Yagrat about the mysterious group, but as expected, got nothing in return.
So, aside from the information broker working with Dan, there was no other source of relevant information. Thus, he decided to go looking for Dan.
"... Huh?"
As Kim Dojun reached that point in his thoughts, he suddenly rembered that Dan was managing the fox spirit group at the divine temple.
'Co to think of it, this guy hasn't contacted recently, has he?'
Of course, Kim Dojun himself had made Dan the boss of the fox spirit group and didn't particularly care about the lack of contact.
He'd only given Dan the boss role to squeeze so free labor and money out of him.
'Wouldn't the Twisted Evil group just leave them alone?'
But because the Twisted Evil group existed, he was initially prepared to lend Dan a few helping hands.
Once the fox spirit group started growing, Twisted Evil was never going to just sit idly by.
Since Twisted Evil, whose motto was revenge, would never allow the fox spirit group to thrive, Kim Dojun, with a strange expression, mused on the situation.
'... No way, did that guy die?'
Without realizing, this thought popped up, but he quickly shook his head.
No matter how much of a social outcast Dan was, when it ca to his own life he'd beco desperate.
In other words, if Dan were really in a life-or-death situation, he would certainly run for it.
And even if he didn't, if things followed the story flow Kim Dojun knew, Dan definitely wouldn't die here, so Kim Dojun fell silent for a mont.
'... Still, I'd better check it out just in case.'
He began to prepare to head to the divine temple.
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