Instructor Zero was confused. "Graduating early? The course is very intense, you cannot graduate before being combat-ready, and learning mana control to a very high degree, not to mention the experience you'll have to gain in the dungeon raids. It's impossible to do all of that before the already extremely short schedule"
"I'm already proficient in combat and mana control. I'll show you" Ilsung pulsed a small amount of mana rapidly in his body and concentrated it in his palm. Swirling currents of air were condensing into a sphere in Ilsung's palm, which he held in front of him.
Rapidly pulsing mana emanated from the sphere of air currents. Though this was insignificant from Ilsung's perspective, such control and concentration of mana left Zero aghast.
When Ilsung coughed a few times, the dumbstruck face of instructor Zero returned to normal.
"Ok, you can set it down. I never expected to see someone mastering mana control to that degree in such a short time. Even I haven't reached such a level, let alone the other instructors. Your mana control is exceptional, but what about your strength and combat techniques?"
"I'm glad you asked. I can say without a doubt, that I'm extremely proficient in combat. Regarding strength, I think I'm stronger than anyone in this Academy, including the instructors." Ilsung said calmly.
~~
Instructor Zero frowned.
"Without a doubt, you are probably the first in Korea right now to have such mana control, but don't be too overconfident. Combat and strength are quite different from mana, talent is just a small part of the equation. You need instructors with years of experience to guide and teach you combat techniques. Years of training, hard work, and experience will beat talent any day."
Ilsung smiled "Instructor Zero, don't get angry, I'm confident in my strength and combat. If you feel I'm being overconfident and boastful, we can head to the gymnasium and I'll be glad to show you."
The frown on Zero's face disappeared. Why is he so calm and confident? Even if he can use his excellent mana control to strengthen himself, he shouldn't be able to overcome any of the instructors, yet he is challenging me boldly.
"Alright, either you'll prove me wrong or you'll learn a lesson. Follow me"
Instructor Zero lead Ilsung to the opposite side of the floor. There was a special elevator. After Zero swiped his ID and put his thumb on the scanner, the elevator doors opened. Once both of them were in, Zero pressed the button labeled B1. Ilsung noticed that there was also a B2, he figured that these were underground floors, which the instructors could access.
As the doors of the elevator opened. Ilsung saw a row of rooms on the right and a very large open hall on the left. Zero and Ilsung entered the hall. The hall was covered entirely with padded mats, there was a gym in one corner, and the other corner had racks filled with cold weapons of various sorts.
In the center, people were sparring in pairs of two and a man was instructing a group. Ilsung recognized that the people here are all instructors, and the person teaching the group was an extremely robust-looking man, with a strong aura.
Zero walked toward the man. "Good Evening Instructor Park"
Instructor Park looked at Zero and smiled "Just in time for sparring..." He looked at Ilsung "Who's the kid?"
"He's a trainee, apparently he wants to graduate early. His mana control is indeed exceptional, but he doesn't seem to understand the difference between talent and the experience required to become proficient in combat. He claims to be stronger than any of us. I want to test him"
Hearing this, Park, along with the other instructors burst out laughing. "Why don't you first show us your mana skills kid," Park said.
Ilsung smiled "Sure".
Seems like what I showed instructor Zero wasn't enough, I'll have to thoroughly shock them
Ilsung moved toward the center of the hall. He pulsed mana through his body, gradually increasing its rate. He then slowly radiated the mana through his body, condensing it above his skin. Strong currents of air condensed onto Ilsung's body and a strong, glass-like Armor surrounded his body.
Zero, Park, and all the other instructors in the hall were shocked beyond belief. They never thought mana could be used in such a way and with such smoothness.
Ilsung made a swiping gesture with his fingers and a staff from the rack flew into his hand. He moved with lightning-fast speed and stood before instructor Park before anyone realized, and struck the staff into the ground. Mana coursing through Ilsung was released from the staff in the form of a powerful wave, instantly blowing everyone away.
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The powerful wave knocked out a few instructors. Park and Zero, who were now down on the mat looked at each other before standing up.
Ilsung looked at the knocked-out instructors, who were now being catered to by the other instructors. "Don't worry, they will wake up in a moment, they're just knocked out".
Instructor Park had a solemn look on his face. He knocked people out with the sheer power of his mana, and he could telekinetically draw a weapon from the rack. I can't ignore him.
"Follow me, kid. You too Zero. The rest of you, we are done for the day" Park led Ilsung and Zero to the special elevator.
Park, Zero, and Ilsung arrived at the last underground floor. There were rows of rooms labeled 'Research', 'Advanced Materials', 'Engineering', and so on. Instructor Park led the group to a room labeled 'Test Equipment'.
Inside the room, there were several large and small machines, most of which looked like engineering prototypes.
"You are the closest anyone has come to being called an expert mana user. You are extremely fast too, and you seem to have powerful abilities like telekinesis. But right now what I want to know is how hard can you hit?"
Instructor Park pointed at a large monolithic block, which had a target in the center.
"Hmm, Well, first of all, it wasn't telekinesis, I used mana to pull the staff into my hand. And second, how hard can I punch it?"
Instructor Park was amused "That makes it even more impressive. Now, regarding this machine.... You shouldn't hold back. It's not a problem even if you destroy it".
Ilsung smiled "Sure," he cracked his knuckles and took a karate punching stance. He pushed mana into his right hand, after he felt it was enough, he shifted his weight forward and threw a punch.
A solid thud, resonated in the room, followed by the sound of metal snapping. The large block was nearly snapped in half, held only by the edges.
Ilsung was surprised. Though it wasn't my maximum power, I can't believe it's still standing. I thought it would be reduced to rubble
Instructor Park was shocked too, he knew the large block was made of carbon fiber and titanium, with sensors to measure the force of impact. The machine was designed to withstand the power of a monster, yet it was nearly broken into pieces by the kid, which meant the data from the punch couldn't be collected.
Instructor Zero only felt stupid as he looked at Ilsung. "Damn, kid. You are a monster!"
Ilsung laughed "So what do you think Instructor Park?"
Park looked at Ilsung and then turned to Zero "Forward the CCTV footage to the security ministry along with our recommendation and request for clearance to certify him.."
"...And I want it done within an hour."
Instructor Zero nodded and darted out of the room.
Park looked at Ilsung for a full minute before sighing. "You are very strong, I wouldn't even bother with the certification if I were you, but being certified will allow you to enter the Academy dungeon. Do you think you can handle it?"
Ilsung pondered for a minute and replied "I can probably solo it under an hour"
"I agree that you are very strong, but you don't know what it's like in the dungeon, though it's still in the training period, and monsters won't kill you, that doesn't mean you won't get seriously hurt," Park said with a hint of anxiousness.
"You don't have to worry, the punch you just saw, was barely half of my strength. Plus, I have a few cards up my sleeve, needless to say, they are a secret" Ilsung said with a smile.
Hearing Ilsung, a sense of excitement rose inside Park, and Ilsung's next words sent him over the edge.
"How about we both go into the dungeon, and I promise I'll show you some magic"
"What? What did you say?" Park hurriedly asked, grabbing Ilsung by the shoulders.
Ilsung laughed "You heard it right. Magic"
I have no reason to hide my power, though in the presence of others I tend to hold back by instinct. By showing a few tricks, I can gain his support, which in turn means I can have the government pave the way for my endeavors
Park looked intently at Ilsung. "Fuck the certification, let's go right now!"
Ilsung laughed "Before we go, do you guys have something like a GoPro?"
Park shook his head "We do have the latest GoPro, but you can't take it into the dungeon, we tried multiple times, but only a limited type of items can be taken in. Firearms or things like mobiles and cameras just vanish into thin air if you try to take them inside. Cold weapons were the only things we were able to take inside."
"Either way, I would like a GoPro" Ilsung replied without a hint of doubt.
~~
Park brought the latest GoPro along with a chest mount and handed it to Ilsung, who after having Park wait outside, cast conjure magic onto it. He place the GoPro with its mount in a corner and left the room.
"Where's the camera?" Park was confused.
"Don't worry about it, let's go, you should bring a weapon to defend yourself"
"I got a pair of daggers with me, but what about you?"
"You'll see. Let's go, though it'll just be the two of us, I can guarantee our safety."
Park was getting increasingly curious.
After exiting the Academy through the backdoor, they stepped into the backyard. After passing the guard post, which was manned by guards with guns, they arrived in front of the dungeon entrance.
A 4-meter-tall, cave-like structure stood in front of them. From the outside, it was roughly the size of a large room.
"Before going in, let me give you a summary of what to expect. We will encounter Ghouls initially, they are strong and some of them are armed with wooden branches, they can steal your life force if they get you down. Next, there'll be a group of Demonic Vines that can trap and suffocate, and finally, there's a large Gorgon, that can immobilize you and is venomous. The dungeon goes further but we couldn't get past the Gorgon."
"How long does it take for the dead monsters to regenerate?"
"We have about 4 hours before they respawn."
"How do you know the names of the monsters? Can you find out from the status screen?"
"Yes. Once you encounter a monster, it is added to the monster compendium, which you can check from the info tab of the status screen. You'll see once we go in. Are you ready?"
Ilsung nodded "Let's go"
~~
END OF CHAPTER 13