“It’s garbage.”

“It seems so.” Eunhye’s disappointment was palpable.

Within the mimic was an array of odds and ends—mostly barely usable scrap metal.

“Everyone hopes for treasures, but all we ever find are scraps,” Kang Chulyi said as he rummaged through the jumbled mess.

Even if we were to pick out something worth selling among the scrap metal, it would still be a loss. Even so, I still believed the risk was worth taking.

Kang Chulyi continued to scour through the rubbish, finding more odds and ends. No matter how thoroughly he turned it inside out, the result was the same. “Seems like a bust.”

“Looks that way. Disappointing.”

“Don’t get too discouraged, young lady. This is how all mimics are!”

I also failed to see anything extraordinary among the items. Leaning closer to Seola, I asked in a hushed voice like I was sharing a secret, “Seola, is it still sparkling?”

“Yes.”

“Great. Sir?”

“Hmm?”

“Could you break this down further for us?”

“It shouldn’t be too difficult.” Kang Chulyi disassembled the mimic, which took less time than expected. “All done.”

There was more to the disassembled box than meets the eye. Mimics varied from creature to creature, and some types of mimics hid their treasures more elusively than others. They were indiscernible to the naked eye unless you broke them down entirely. But this was done so rarely that it was not widely known even a decade after the Collapse.

I secretly whispered to Seola again, “All right. Where is it?”

“Here.”

I trusted her. What she had sensed was undoubtedly mana and I was certain this mimic had swallowed something imbued with it.

I held up the unassuming wooden plank she’d pointed to. It looks like a single plank but two pieces are connected. Using one of Kang Chulyi’s tools, I pried open the space between the two planks, revealing a concealed compartment with something within it.

“What...”

Inside was a small bead.

“Oh, a mana light!”

“A mana light?”

“It emits light when it detects mana in the vicinity,” I explained.

“Is it valuable?” Eunhye asked, looking intrigued.

“It’s commonly used when hunting for artifacts in dungeons. It’s essential for top-tier hunters.” I examined the mana light. It was in pristine condition and perfect working order. “If we sell it, it should fetch a pretty penny.”

“How much are we talking here?”

“About this much?” I said, holding up three fingers.

Gulp.

Eunhye let out a soft gasp. Considering the price I had paid for the mimic, it was a jackpot.

Kang Chulyi looked at me with amazement. “How did you know?”

“A fairy told me.”

“A fairy?”

“Yes. An extremely adorable fairy, to be more precise.”

***

Thud!

The arrow struck the wooden target with precision, piercing the paper through the center.

A perfect gold, right in the bullseye.

“You’re truly a genius,” I exclaimed.

“Seojun, have your skills in flattery improved?” Eunhye retorted.

In just a few days, Eunhye had become perfectly adept with the compound bow. At first, she struggled as it felt quite different from the recurve bow she’d used before. But now, she was hitting the mark nearly every time.

“It’s all thanks to the weapon,” Eunhye admitted.

She wasn’t saying it for humility’s sake—she genuinely believed it. With no one to compare her progress to, she had every reason to think so. If other hunters had seen her with a bow, they would have fainted with jealousy.

“What will you teach me today, Master Seojun?”

“Well, my dear student, we’re going to try enchanting your weapon today,” I replied in an arrogant voice.

“I’m never calling you master ever again,” Eunhye chuckled softly, rolling her eyes.

We had begun to share jokes now and then, and I was glad to see her more relaxed around me.

“So how does it work?”

“I’ll show you.”

I picked up my spear, took a deep breath, and summoned mana. Hunters had various ways of using mana, and one of the basics was enchantment.

“Using a weapon made from monster materials or dungeon metals ensures good mana flow.”

“Good mana flow?”

“Yes. You could say it has high conductivity. I’m no scientist, so I might not be explaining it perfectly.”

I gathered mana at my fingertips, allowing it to flow into the spear. The mana enveloped the entire weapon, its faint undulating energy confirming the success of the enchantment.

Seola’s eyes lit up. “It’s sparkly!”

“That’s right. It’s because there is mana flowing through it.”

Despite steady training, I still had limited mana to work with. It might not be visible to the average person, but to a hunter who could sense mana, it was enough to be faintly perceptible.

Eunhye, having sensed the mana, nodded in agreement.

“But there’s one problem.”

“A problem?”

“Your weapon is a bow.”

“So?”

“You’ll need to enchant the arrows, not the bow.”

When attacking monsters, it wasn’t the bow but the arrows that needed mana. Of course, adding mana to the bow would increase its power, but it was more important to enchant the arrows first for beginners.

“But enchanting something with mana is easier when you are in contact with it.”

I let go of my spear, and it quickly lost its glow. The mana faded away in an instant.

“It’s not long, but it takes time for arrows to fly.”

“So I have to maintain the enchantment for that long?”

“Exactly. It won’t be easy.”

“Okay, I’ll try.”

Eunhye looked hopeful. She had shown a good deal of confidence since her initial success with sensing mana. It was a positive development. She took an arrow from her quiver and focused on it.

“Ugh...”

She seemed to wrestle with the arrow for a few minutes. Then, a faint glimmer of mana briefly flashed on the arrow.

What the... Thanks to Seola’s unbelievably fast progress, I had almost forgotten that Eunhye was also a genius in sensing mana.

After struggling with the arrow for a while, Eunhye let out a sigh. “This is tough.”

“What does make me, then?” I muttered.

“What?”

“Never mind. It’s nothing.”

How many months did it take me to successfully enchant my weapon again? I was feeling slightly jealous. Still, I explained all the tips I knew. “Just think of it as containing the mana.”

“Containing?”

“Imagine that inside this arrow there’s a space, and you’re filling that space with mana.”

“Filling the space. Got it.”

Several hours later, Eunhye succeeded in enchanting her arrows. I hadn’t expected her to master it in just a day.

Did Seola inherit her talent entirely from Eunhye?

Her progress was incredibly swift, but she was far from done. She couldn’t maintain the enchantment on the arrows after shooting them.

“I don’t think I’ll succeed today.”

“You’re already very fast.”

“But you succeeded,” Eunhye replied, looking at me with a hint of frustration.

I had shown Eunhye how to maintain the enchantment even when the weapon left the hand, having practiced it for situations when I needed to throw my spear. But Eunhye seemed to think I’d learned that skill on the spot.

She’s making quite an unreasonable assumption.

I had always been extremely slow with mana manipulation, and all of my current success was because I had prior knowledge from before my return. On top of everything, my mana storage capacity was limited, making it very impractical.

“Anyway, let’s call it a day.”

“It’s a pity, but I guess we’ll have to. It’s dinner time.”

The sun had already set, and as we packed up, Seola approached us excitedly. “Mommy.”

“Yes, Seola? Are you hungry? We’ll finish up soon.”

“No, it’s not that.”

“Then what is it?”

“I can teach you!” Seola exclaimed, beaming.

Eunhye couldn’t help but smile at her daughter’s enthusiasm. She picked up a branch the size of an arrow. “Is that so? Well then, Seola, please teach Mommy.”

“Okay! It’s like this.” She placed her small hand on the back of Eunhye’s hand, and a soft blue light flowed between them.

“Huh?”

Both Eunhye and I were speechless. The branch had indeed been enchanted with mana, and unlike when she and I had tried it, the mana was vividly visible this time.

Eunhye, clearly taken aback, dropped the branch. It landed with a thud, and mana continued to flow from it with no signs of dispersing anytime soon.

About thirty seconds passed, and the light gradually dimmed before vanishing completely.

Woah... I was so amazed that I couldn’t even speak.

It was just a simple branch that had fallen to the ground, not even an arrow made from conductive materials. Yet Seola had not only succeeded in enchanting it, but her enchantment held even after falling from her mother’s hand and lasted for a good thirty seconds.

Meanwhile, Eunhye looked like she had realized something. “S-Seojun, can you take her for a minute?”

“All right. Seola, come here.”

“Okay.”

Handing her to me, Eunhye quickly retrieved an arrow from her quiver. She held the arrow like the branch earlier and closed her eyes. Letting out a deep breath, she enchanted the arrow with mana. Then, she took out the compound bow and calmly nocked the arrow. Her speed was indistinguishable from an experienced bow hunter. In an instant, Eunhye aimed at the untouched paper target and let the arrow fly.

Thud!

The arrow flew toward the target and I approached the wood to check it. If the arrow had been properly enchanted, it would have penetrated much deeper.

“Huh?”

But there was no arrow on the target. Eunhye couldn’t possibly have missed...

Seola, nestled in my arms, reached out and removed the paper target.

What’s this? Behind the paper was a small hole in the wooden target. It was different from the holes made during the other practice rounds. It pierced through to the other side.

It was as if something had passed cleanly through the wood to the other side. I walked around in disbelief, and to my surprise, I found Eunhye’s arrow there. What the heck? Did she just shoot through this thing?

Eunhye’s arrow had passed through the wood and embedded itself in a tree on the other side. Her enchantment must have held until the arrow struck the tree. Thankfully, the compound bow and arrows were designed to be heavy and sturdy enough to withstand this kind of treatment.

I pulled the arrow out and examined its path. There was no doubt about it—Eunhye had maintained the enchantment. The sheer destructive power was remarkable.

This is beyond an applicant’s level. I couldn’t believe a hunter applicant could achieve such a feat even without obtaining a license.

Among bow hunters, very few were capable of this. I quietly looked at Seola, who was still nestled in my arms, playing with the paper target.

“Seola.”

“Yes?”

“Someday, please teach me what you taught Mommy just now.”

“Okay!”

I never expected our little Seola would be an instructor in the making. Eunhye joined us, unable to contain her curiosity.

“It worked.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely.”

“Woo-hoo!” Eunhye’s pure delight was evident as she reached out to me.

I chuckled and gave her a high five.

Seola extended her hands forward as well. “Me too!”

“Of course! You too!” Eunhye, brimming with excitement, gave our daughter a high five as well.

Seola giggled, thoroughly enjoying the celebration.

I couldn’t fathom my daughter’s talent. How could she succeed so easily in one try? Did Seola make her feel it? That was the most likely explanation. It seemed more like intuition than actually knowing what she was doing.

“Good job, Seola! I’m so proud of you,” Eunhye cheered.

“Hehehe.”

She snatched Seola from my arms, giving her a series of kisses and nuzzling her soft cheeks. I was slightly envious of the affection.

With the mana light and everything, I think we’re ready. I opened a notepad application on my smartphone where I’d organized our next steps. It might have been a bit early, but it was the right time.

“Eunhye.”

“Yes?”

“Let’s go to a dungeon tomorrow.”