SWNOVELXO Chapter 72 - Clue (1)
Chapter 72. Clue (1)
Johan cleared his throat.
“So, why did you ask about Chwisung?”
“Oh…!”
Yuri, snapping out of his reverie at Johan’s question, answered.
“That Chwisung technique rides the Magic Flow and pushes back against it.”
“Hmm, does it now?”
“Don’t you know anything about it?”
“Of course, I do.”
Yuri’s eyes sparkled slightly at that response.
“What is it?”
“What do you think?”
“…?”
“Heh heh heh, I’ll give you two assignments.”
“Suddenly, homework?”
“Just listen for now.”
“…Go ahead.”
“First, within the next year, you’ll complete the Magic Sword.”
“The Magic Sword? What’s that?”
“The Strong Sword, Refined Sword, Fire Sword, and Magic Sword. They’re commonly referred to as the levels from the First to Fourth Dan, recognized techniques.”
Although Johan referred to them as minor techniques, they weren’t to be taken lightly.
Unless it was the prestigious Magic Body Technique of a renowned family, there weren’t many ways to project mana externally.
Among those, the most widely known was that method.
It was also a standard used to distinguish the levels of mastery along with mana.
In other words, Johan was telling Yuri, who hadn’t even reached the First Dan, to climb up to the Fourth Dan within a year.
If anyone else heard this, they’d scoff at the absurdity.
But despite hearing all that, Yuri simply nodded calmly.
“Alright, sure.”
At this, Johan smiled inwardly.
‘This should be a good mid-term goal.’
So far, Yuri had been recklessly charging toward the grand goal of completing the Magic Flow.
It was a goal that might not be achieved for a long time.
However, if you only focus on the distant future, you’re bound to miss something.
Therefore, Johan decided to give Yuri smaller goals like this along the way.
Not too short, not too long.
Concrete goals that could be achieved.
This would undoubtedly help Yuri’s growth significantly.
And the goals Johan gave weren’t just ending with this.
No, in fact, what Johan was about to give now was the real homework.
“The second assignment: complete the Magic Flow-Capture.”
“Magic Flow-Capture?”
Yuri tilted his head.
Until now, Yuri had learned two things about the Magic Flow.
First, to read the flow.
Second, to deflect the flow that was read.
So, the sudden mention of Capture naturally puzzled him.
Johan added an explanation.
“Hmm… Let’s see. If reading the flow is the First Technique, and deflecting it is the Second Technique, then Capture would be around the Third Technique.”
“So, how do you capture the flow?”
Up until now, Yuri had been using the mana road created by Johan’s Magic Flow to control the flow.
But in reality, it was somewhat vague to call it control.
What Yuri was doing was extracting a few strands from a massive flow and diverting their direction.
To put it simply, it was like digging small channels in a massive river with a pickaxe.
That was the essence of the technique called “Deflecting.”
It might seem insignificant, but even those small channels could deflect Mucci’s attacks.
Furthermore, even the Sword Master’s momentum could be deflected through this technique.
However, Yuri wasn’t yet at a level where he could claim to have mastered it.
Just as he was beginning to grasp the concept of Deflecting, the sudden mention of Capture naturally left him confused.
It was only natural that he couldn’t quite grasp it.
And in response to Yuri’s question about how to capture the flow, Johan smiled and answered.
“Who knows? Even I don’t really know.”
“…What kind of nonsense is this?”
Yuri’s face contorted with frustration.
The more he did, the broader Johan’s smile became.
“I’m saying I don’t know how to explain Capture to you. It’s something I grasped quite instinctively.”
“Isn’t the Magic Flow a technique that relies heavily on instinct? Deflecting was the same.”
“At least those two were based on a completed theory and had a system, but Magic Flow-Capture doesn’t even have that.”
“So, what you’re saying is…?”
“Magic Flow-Capture is an unfinished technique with only a theoretical framework and hasn’t been fully realized yet.”
Yuri’s mouth opened slightly in surprise.
With wide eyes, he muttered in frustration.
“And now you’re telling me to learn that?”
“Not just learn it.”
“At least you have a conscience…”
“I’m telling you to complete it.”
“…Where’s your conscience, really?”
“Heh heh, wasn’t that our contract? I save your life, and you help me complete my technique.”
“I said I’d help, not that I’d do everything.”
“Oh-ho! Magic Flow-Capture is already halfway done by me, so strictly speaking, you’re not doing everything!”
“Yeah, yeah, whatever you say.”
Yuri, who looked frustrated, suddenly seemed to recall something and asked.
“Then, what about after Magic Flow-Capture? Is there nothing after that?”
“After that…”
A hint of bitterness touched Johan’s lips.
“It’s still just a rough idea.”
“…We’ve got a long way to go.”
The Magic Flow that Johan had created through his extensive experience was still an incomplete technique.
The reason was that there wasn’t enough time.
It took several years to comprehend a method to defeat the Sword Master.
Several more years to gather data and build theories for this.
And even more years to refine it into a new form of mana road that didn’t deviate from the Redner family’s traditional mana utilization method.
He spent 15 years on this.
For a single person to achieve in 15 years what would normally take a family decades, or even centuries, was enough to prove Johan’s genius.
But no matter how great, there were always limits.
That’s why Johan needed Yuri.
Someone who could verify the theories he’d created and apply them in practice.
A genius who could point out the flaws.
Johan playfully poked Yuri’s puffed-up cheek with his index finger, as if demonstrating a spear technique.
“Among the Winchester family’s spear techniques, the Chwisung you encountered is a technique that applies Deflecting.”
The standard Deflecting that redirects the generated force.
And the Magic Flow-Deflecting that touches the very source of power, the flow of mana.
In a way, the standard Deflecting was included in Magic Flow-Deflecting.
Yuri’s expression grew puzzled.
“…That was Deflecting?”
Johan faintly smiled at Yuri’s expression, which showed he didn’t quite understand.
He knew exactly why that guy was making such an expression.
“Why, does it not make sense that Chwisung is a form of Deflecting?”
“A bit. It feels different from the Deflecting I know.”
“If you figure out what that difference is, you’ll understand how Chwisung was able to push back against the Magic Flow-Deflecting.”
“No, but what does Chwisung have to do with the homework the old man gave me? Why are you talking in circles like this? You’re just confusing me.”
“Tsk, tsk, you fool. What do you think Magic Flow-Capture is supposed to capture?”
“Obviously, the flow of mana.”
“Then, what is the technique that interferes with the flow of power in general techniques?”
“Of course, it’s Deflecting… Ah!”
“Finally figured it out?”
Yuri nodded.
“So, you’re telling me to practice Magic Flow-Capture using the Winchester family’s Chwisung?”
“Exactly! It might be difficult to complete Magic Flow-Capture right now, but if you work on interfering with the flow of power, which is a step lower… with some effort, it should be somewhat possible.”
“Indeed…”
It sounded pretty reasonable.
No, it was more than plausible.
If he built up experience like that, he might one day find a clue to completing Magic Flow-Capture.
And Johan added a bit more.
“The Winchester family’s Chwisung is a very unique form of Deflecting. It’s also very suitable for practicing Magic Flow-Capture.”
“Unique… How so?”
“You’ll know once you experience it yourself. But if I were to give you a hint… I’d say it has a bit of a bounce to it.”
Yuri nodded in agreement.
‘I should probably increase the number of sparring sessions.’
There was no other way to encounter Chwisung more frequently.
‘The only issue is how to increase the number of sessions without making it obvious.’
If he showed any signs of desperation, Theresia might cancel the 10,000 points she promised for each sparring session.
Moreover, Theresia seemed quite perceptive.
If she caught wind of something suspicious, he would surely be at a disadvantage.
He needed to find a way to subtly coax her.
‘Hmm… after all, there’s no better way than pure goodwill, right?’
As Yuri was pondering the method,
“Ahem, I’ll be leaving now, so make sure you finish your homework before we meet again.”
Johan shuffled off the bed and stood up.
Just as he was about to leave the cave,
“Oh, right! Old man!”
Yuri urgently called out to Johan.
He then took out the pendant hanging around his neck.
“Old man, do you know what this is?”
Johan approached Yuri and examined the pendant.
It was a finely crafted necklace with a precious-looking crystal containing a dark green liquid.
As soon as he saw it, Johan blurted out,
“Where did you steal this from?”
A vein bulged on Yuri’s forehead.
“Steal?”
“Then where did you get something that looks so valuable?”
“I bought it with points!”
“Ho? Really?”
Johan scrutinized Yuri’s pendant, turning it over in his hands.
‘This doesn’t seem like an ordinary item.’
The craftsmanship of the pendant, the solidity and hardness of the crystal, were not things one would see every day.
Whoever made it must have been a master in this field.
The dark green liquid inside the pendant was also likely something special.
‘Green… Green, huh.’
Johan thought about the rare green-colored medicines.
At that moment, Yuri’s voice interrupted his thoughts.
“The item name was ‘Bone Clan’s Secret.'”
“…?!”
Johan stiffened in shock.
He blinked at Yuri.
“…What secret?”
“Bone Clan’s Secret. But the Bone Clan is famous for many things, right? If I had to guess, it’s either poison or medicine…”
“Don’t be ridiculous!”
Johan cut Yuri off and shouted.
His eyes blazing, Johan spoke passionately.
“Do you know why the Bone Clan’s poison is famous? It’s because it’s colorless, odorless, and tasteless! The more colored the Bone Clan’s poison is, the lower it’s regarded!”
“Oh, so since it has the title ‘Secret,’ that means this is medicine, right? Unless the store was lying?”
“Right, and it’s not just any medicine! There’s only one thing among the Bone Clan’s creations that would be called a ‘secret.’ It’s…”
“It’s…?”
“An elixir!”
“Oh! An elixir!”
“Yes, this is the famous elixir…”
“And what’s that?”
“….”
“What’s an elixir?”
“You ignorant… Ah!”
Johan, who was about to scold Yuri, suddenly changed his expression and smiled brightly.
Though he changed his expression, he couldn’t hide the Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat.
“It’s nothing special. An elixir is just a slightly peculiar medicine.”
“….”
“So, what do you say, want to sell this to me?”
Yuri’s expression turned very sour as he looked at Johan.
‘Even though I don’t know what an elixir is, one thing is certain.’
Seeing how this old man couldn’t hide his greed, it had to be something very valuable.
“Hey, keep your dirty hands off my elixir!”
Yuri quickly snatched the elixir from Johan’s hand and tucked it back into his clothes.
“Tsk…”
Johan clicked his tongue as the elixir slipped out of his grasp.
Yuri, now holding the elixir tightly to his chest, asked,
“So, what exactly is an elixir?”
“…Such a precious thing in the hands of an ignorant fool… Sigh, fine.”
“Ah! So what is it?”
Under Yuri’s urging, Johan sighed deeply.
Then, as if doing Yuri a great favor, he began to explain.
“Listen carefully, you ignorant brat. An elixir is…”
Johan’s explanation about the elixir continued for quite some time.
And finally, Yuri understood what an elixir was.
His hands trembled as he carefully took out the pendant.
Was it just his imagination, or did the dark green liquid inside the crystal seem to glow?
No, it wasn’t his imagination.
At this moment, the pendant in his hand was the most beautiful and radiant thing in the world.
Muttering to himself as he stared blankly at the pendant, Yuri said,
“…Damn, yeah, life is all about that one big hit.”
A surge of emotion welled up in Yuri’s eyes as he realized he had struck it big.