"Here. I Picked it off a tree. Tastes good," said Hyunsoo, holding out a lumpy purple fruit streaked with green veins. It pulsed faintly. Definitely not normal.
Lucain raised an eyebrow. "You went fruit-picking instead of training?"
Hyunsoo shrugged. "Monster ran. I ran. Saw the fruit. Got curious. Tasted great. Thought of you."
Lucain snatched it and bit in without hesitation.
"Thanks, but get back to trai—"
He stopped. Hyunsoo blinked.
"…Did you just say thanks?" he asked, eyes wide.
"Aren't you supposed to be the arrogant one?" Hyunsoo added. "Shouldn't it be something like, 'Since you offer it to me, I shall accept with honor'—with that dramatic pose and terrifying aura of yours?"
Lucain wiped juice from his lip and scoffed. "I'm prideful, not arrogant. There's a difference."
Hyunsoo leaned on the wooden sword Lucain had carved for him. "Yeah, and that difference is imaginary."
Lucain turned slowly, eyes narrowed. "You're getting bold."
Hyunsoo grinned. "You're getting soft."
"I've also come to a realization," Lucain said, cracking his neck. "You're an idiot."
"Not the first time I've heard that."
"Won't be the last. Now go beat up some monsters."
---
Suddenly, the sky dimmed. The wind stopped. A suffocating pressure blanketed the forest.
Something massive stirred beyond the treetops.
Then, it stepped.
The ground caved as a shadow darker than night loomed over them. A monster—no, a colossus—emerged from beyond the hill. Even hunched, it towered like a fortress. Its limbs were long, thin, jagged—like sharpened bone. One arm, razor-sharp and needle-thin, screeched through trees just by shifting.
Hyunsoo dropped the monster corpse. "Uh. That wasn't here before."
Lucain said nothing.
He bent down calmly and picked up a twig. Thin. Brittle. Barely dagger-length.
Hyunsoo stared. "What are you gonna do with that? Poke it?"
The colossus roared. The razor arm swung—a clean, mountain-splitting strike.
Lucain lifted the twig.
Tap.
The arm halted.
Not shattered. Not deflected. Just… nudged aside.
Lucain moved his wrist, gently pushing the monster's limb to the left like brushing a curtain. His feet didn't shift. His gaze stayed still.
Then—
He swung right.
No flash. No sound.
Just an afterimage.
A second later, the air cracked.
The shockwave split the beast in two. It didn't stop there. Trees behind it collapsed in a perfect line. Mountains—two of them—in the distance split, not crumbled, but sliced.
A vast, flat trail of destruction stretched into the horizon. Wide enough for giants. Long enough to vanish.
Hyunsoo stood frozen, jaw slack.
Lucain tossed the twig aside.
"Too light," he muttered.
---
Later, as the dust settled, Hyunsoo dragged back what remained of the earlier monster—what hadn't been reduced to slices.
Lucain clapped once, almost gently. "Good job."
Not sarcastic. Not mocking.
Just sincere.
Hyunsoo blinked.
"…You're enjoying this, aren't you?"
Lucain looked to the sky, a faint smirk on his lips. "I think… having a disciple isn't so bad."
"…You split it in half with a twig."
"You brought me fruit."
"…Fair."
---
They sat on a fallen tree trunk, surrounded by crushed earth and cleaved stone. The aftermath of Lucain's swing stretched past the horizon.
Hyunsoo poked the monster corpse with a stick, then pointed at the flattened range. "So... was that part of training?"
Lucain nodded. "Lesson seven: Precision."
Hyunsoo blinked. "What were one through six?"
Lucain raised a finger. "One—don't die."
"Reasonable."
"Two—be prideful."
"Less reasonable."
"Three to six are just 'Repeat one and two'—with more intensity."
Hyunsoo let out a tired laugh, leaning back. "Y'know, I expected the Demon King of Pride to be all blood and doomsday speeches. But you're kind of… chill."
Lucain tilted his head. "Chill?"
"I mean, aside from the whole slicing-mountains-with-sticks thing. Speaking of which—can you teach me that?"
"What, the Heaven-Splitting?"
Hyunsoo snorted. "'Heaven-Splitting'? That's so lame."
"Say that again."
"I think my brain glitched. I meant to say 'legendary name.'"
Lucain narrowed his eyes.
Hyunsoo raised his hands, grinning nervously. "I-it's a great name! Very pride-worthy! Totally not something a twelve-year-old edgelord would come up with."
Lucain stood, dusted off his coat, cracked his neck. "Lesson eight."
Hyunsoo gulped. "Please don't let it be 'suffer for sarcasm.'"
Lucain pointed at a distant cliff ridge. "See that?"
"Kind of?"
"Good. You'll be running to it. Back and forth. Until sunset."
Hyunsoo's jaw dropped. "What does that have to do with sword techniques?!"
Lucain turned, walking away. "I cut a mountain. You learn footwork."
"…This is abuse."
"It's called mentorship."
Hyunsoo sighed—and ran.
---
> [Congratulations! You've completed the trial!]
[You can now upgrade or change your class.]
Jinwoo stared at the glowing screen.
"Didn't I already have a class?"
> [Current Class: Unranked Awakened (Provisional)]
[Evaluation Complete.]
[Analyzing combat data, survival instincts, mana compatibility...]
The screen glitched—then flashed white.
> [Class Options Available:]
— Mana Brawler
— Rune Sniper
— Arcane Trickster
— ??? (Hidden Class - High Mana Affinity Detected)
Jinwoo muttered, "If something has question marks, I'm clicking it."
He tapped.
> [Warning: Hidden class may alter your magical growth path.]
[Confirm Selection? Y/N]
"Y."
> [Hidden Class Acquired: Spellweaver]
[Unique Trait: 'Living Circuitry' — Your body passively generates spell formulas. Spells can be modified in real time.]
[You are now a Magic-Type Awakened.]
Jinwoo stared wide-eyed. "…Wait. What?"
[What 'what'?]
"What, what, what?"
[Don't fu— ahem. Don't play dumb, Hajin.]
Jinwoo smirked.
"Oh my. Mind your language, Mister System," he said, mockingly.
[System rebooting interface… recalibrating modules… syncing emotion filters.]
[...Recalibration complete.]
[Would you like a tutorial on your new class abilities? Y/N]
Jinwoo tapped N instantly.
"Learning by doing is more fun," he muttered, cracking his knuckles.
[Understood. Proceed at your own risk, reckless idiot.]
He blinked. "Wait. Did it just—"
[No.]
"...Okay, now you're just being petty."
The screen flickered and vanished, leaving only a faint shimmer of magic in the air. Jinwoo looked down at his hands—faint circuit-like patterns glowed beneath his skin, flowing like liquid veins of light.
"Living circuitry, huh…" He concentrated, and shapes started forming in the air—symbols, runes, complex spell circles—automatically, like instinct. One twitch of his fingers, and a flame burst into existence. Another twist, and it folded into a blade.
"Whoa."
He grinned.
"This is gonna be fun."
---
Hyunsoo had finished his training, or something. Because it didn't feel like it.
Lucain stood, glitching even more than four days ago, when they met.
"I don't know what happening, but I guess this guy wants me away." Lucain said, crossing his arm and pointing the the screen.
[I do. Your job is done. If you don't I will use force.]
"How dare you threaten me." Lucain frowned, just the first two words were enough to enrage him.
[Do you think being away won't do anything to your kingdom? How many more days do you think Bucal can hold out.]
"Hmm.. that's true. But the way you say it is annoying. Maybe i should kill you and then leave."
[I sincerely apologise, please forgive my impudence. But do not kill me, Lord Pride. If you want I can even give the cordinates of this dimension, so that you can come again to meet your disciple?]
"... You are pretty good and getting away from trouble. I will let you live." He grinned, turning away from the screen. "But I'll remember your tone."
[Coordinates sent. Gate opening in 5… 4…]
Lucain glanced at Hyunsoo, who was lying on the ground, drenched in sweat and muttering something about cliffs and betrayal.
He walked over and crouched down. "Hyunsoo."
"Ugh… yes, master sadist?"
Lucain smirked. "Lesson nine."
Hyunsoo flinched. "C-can it wait till tomorrow?"
Lucain extended a small crystal pendant, faintly glowing. "Don't ever lose a battle."
Hyunsoo blinked. "Wait. That's it?"
Lucain stood. "That's it."
The air behind him tore open—light and void swirling into a gateway. He stepped toward it but paused at the edge.
"…Hyunsoo."
"Yeah?"
"You did well, my very first disciple"
And then he was gone.
---
Hyunsoo sat alone for a few moments, watching the last spark of the portal fade.
"…Wait, did he just praise me again?"
He stared at the pendant.
Then—
[New Quest Unlocked: "Disciple of Pride"]
> Objective: Prove yourself worthy of Lucain Vaincrest's teachings. Bonus Objective: Survive long enough to master the Heaven-Splitting technique. Reward: Pride's Favor (???)
Hyunsoo groaned and rolled over. "I hate this system. I hate cliffs. And I really hate mountain-cutting swordsmen with issues."
But despite all that, he smiled.
"…I'll get stronger. Just watch me, Master."
But he undramatically got teleported back to where he had gone missing from. It was night time now. The corn dog still lying but half eaten, probably by the dogs or cats.
"Finally, I can finally eat my kimbap and ramyeon. Goodbye, suspicious fruits!" He threw his hands in the air as if he had met some celebrity, well he actually had. He had met, and trained with a person with much more fame, power... I don't know about money. But well, he was the strongest person.
The Strongest King.