Chapter 5.2
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Opinions vary, but in the exorcism series, the standard for a strong person is generally considered to be 50 or higher.
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From that perspective, this woman named Yoo Ah-in was definitely 「𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙜.」
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「𝙅𝙪𝙙𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙗𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙚𝙨, 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙢𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙖 𝙥𝙝𝙮𝙨𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙛𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙧.」
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After unlocking the Shadow Assimilation trait, my detection ability has improved beyond comparison.
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However, even so, if Yoo Ah-in’s spellcraft rank was as high as her physical ability, I would not have easily noticed her presence.
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「𝙋𝙚𝙧𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙨 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙧𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙢𝙚.」
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To see if I could notice her presence or not. Or, if I did notice her, what kind of reaction I would show. It seemed like Yoo Ah-in’s own way of testing the waters to get a sense of her enemy.
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“Ha. . . . . . . Okay. Just go outside until we’re done talking.”
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“Huh? What?”
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Yoo Ah-in glared at me with resentment.
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No, even if you look at me like that, I didn’t do anything.
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Once the situation was sorted out, Seo Ji-an apologized to me with an uncharacteristically shy expression.
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“. . .I’m sorry. She didn’t mean anything bad.”
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“It’s okay. She didn’t attack me, and it would be strange if you didn’t have any aides.”
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“Even though I clearly told her you were a guest. . . . . . . she’s just very suspicious.”
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After dealing with the unexpected interruption, I opened the door again and checked all the prepared materials.
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Seo Ji-an’s background as a wealthy person was evident, and there was not a single item that looked low-quality at a glance. They were all top-notch.
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「𝘼𝙨 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙, 𝙄’𝙫𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙣 𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙭𝙘𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙤𝙧 𝙗𝙚𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨.」
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Seo Ji-an had already perfectly fulfilled my requests twice. If you give, you should also receive. Now it was my turn to keep my promise.
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“Just in case, have you ever used a nature-type spell other than the Wind element?”
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“Of course not. I don’t even know the spells for the other elements in the first place. Don’t you think it’s stranger that you know them all?”
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I nodded. After all, investing in that element would be a waste of time without the related trait.
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“I’ll teach you the spell, so it doesn’t matter.”
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“I understand. So what do I do now?”
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Seo Ji-an looked at me with anticipation in her eyes, and I smiled and continued.
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“First, go to the bathroom and get in the tub.”
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“Huh?”
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At those words, Seo Ji-an’s face turned cold, and Yoo Ah-in, who had reappeared from somewhere, drew the sword she was holding and said coldly.
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“Should I kill him?”
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“No, what are you thinking? Of course there’s no strange meaning behind it.”
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It took quite a bit of explanation to convince the two of them properly.
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🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷
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Splash.
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“W-Well, I’m in.”
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Despite its large size, Seo Ji-an’s house had a separate spacious bathroom apart from the living space.
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“Do you need a bathroom of this size when you live alone?”
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“. . . . . .It’s a matter of taste. I have servants to take care of it, so it’s not a problem.”
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Seo Ji-an got into the bathtub, changing her clothes to prevent any accidents.
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Of course, there was no way her bare skin would be visible. I didn’t do this with the intention of seeing her naked in the first place.
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Even though it was for business, she seemed to be quite embarrassed by the situation itself, as her face was flushed.
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“If you’re going to start, hurry up.”
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“I’m already doing it.”
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Shhh.
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I thought about the spell in my head and immediately started to cast it.
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The first was a spell of cohesion, targeting the bathtub itself.
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The second was a spell of activation, targeting the water in the bathtub.
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Finally, the third was a spell of assimilation, cast simultaneously on Seo Ji-an and the bathtub.
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Each of them had a formal name, but to put it simply, it was a process of creating an environment that was easier to adapt to nature.
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“Whew.”
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Seo Ji-an had been using Wind element spells so far, but in fact, that’s not Seo Ji-an’s real talent.
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▶Traits (5/10)
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【Water God (S)】
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【Accelerated Growth (B)】
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【Daughter of the Wind (B-)】
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【Wealthy (B-)】
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【Eagle Eyes (C+)】
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「𝙒𝙚𝙡𝙡, 𝙞𝙩’𝙨 𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙒𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙩 𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙤𝙣𝙚.」
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However, I, who have knowledge of the exorcism series, know.
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「𝙄𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙙, 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚-𝙩𝙮𝙥𝙚 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙖 𝙝𝙞𝙜𝙝-𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙪𝙥.」
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Even a B-minus rank 「𝘿𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙒𝙞𝙣𝙙」 trait is not enough. That’s why it was called inefficient and unorthodox.
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「𝙃𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧, 𝙞𝙛 𝙞𝙩’𝙨 𝙎-𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙤𝙧 𝙝𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙚𝙧, 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩’𝙨 𝙖 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮.」
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【Water God (S)】
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▶Has absolute authority over water element magic.
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As long as the Water God trait exists, Seo Ji-an had the potential to achieve great things with nature-type spells.
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“Okay, here’s the spell.”
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“This is it? There are so many core components missing here and there. Are you trying to tell me to kill myself?”
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“No, this is right for you.”
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It is arrogant for humans to try to control nature at will.
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That’s why nature-type spells emphasize the distinction between right and wrong more than any other spell.
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Otherwise, the caster himself may suffer the consequences.
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「𝙃𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧, 𝙎𝙚𝙤 𝙅𝙞-𝙖𝙣’𝙨 𝙘𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩.」
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For someone with an S-rank nature trait, unnecessary rules and formalities are actually poison. On the contrary, it only suppresses their own power and potential.
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“Feel the flow of the water until you can cast the spell I gave you.”
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“. . . . . .No, I don’t think that will be necessary.”
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Seo Ji-an created a moment of silence as if she had sensed something.
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And then.
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Thud.
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“Huh?”
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Splash!
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Suddenly, she grabbed me, who was next to her, and dropped me into the tub. She even pulled me next to her.
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「. . .𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣?」
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Her wet jade-colored short hair gave off a faint fragrance. Her pale face, covered in water droplets, was so alluring that it took my breath away for a moment.
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As I stared at Seo Ji-an in front of me, flustered, she smiled faintly.
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“I don’t particularly distrust you, but it’s the first time I’ve seen this kind of spell composition.”
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“So. . .if you fail, we’ll die together?”
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“I won’t go that far for a test run, but you have to take responsibility, don’t you?”
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It was quite a deadly mindset. Even so, I couldn’t blame her.
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“Oh, man.”
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The spell is perfect anyway.
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When I didn’t refuse, Seo Ji-an seemed relieved and began to compose the spell as it was.
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It took a while since it was her first time using the spell, but she calmly finished the composition and cast the spell.
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“Whew.”
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Then, a wave was created.
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