Exam time crept closer. Jinyo walked to the testing area to await his evaluation. While sitting and waiting to be called by queue number, a well-dressed young man brought a young girl to stand right in front of Jinyo and Rina.

  "Good morning, Mr. Southerncross. And to the lady who saved my life and my sister's the other day."

  Sven spoke with a humble and polite tone. His treatment of Jinyo and Rina had changed—more cautious and respectful toward both of them. Rina raised an eyebrow slightly at being called "lady," but she didn't bother to correct him.

  "Why did you bring this young lady out here? I warned you—if the situation isn't stable, don't let her wander around."

  Rina looked at Luciria standing behind her brother. Her expression showed displeasure. It was as if her warning held no value worth following.

  "Grandfather doesn't understand the situation. He's forcing Luciria to continue the exam. It's disappointing, but unavoidable since it's an order from the head of the family. As for you, ma'am—I had my family investigate your organization. We found nothing."

  "Are you saying it's my fault for not giving your grandfather information he'd believe?"

  "I didn't mean it that way. If I've caused offense, I apologize."

  "Forget it. What happens to your family has nothing to do with me. I've already said everything useful for your lives. I don't need thanks. If you want to thank someone, thank Jinyo instead."

  Rina glanced at the young man sitting beside her. Sven, Luciria, and the senior butler turned to speak with him.

  "As a token of gratitude, I'll take responsibility for the damaged car myself. I hope that's satisfactory, Mr. Southerncross."

  "Thank you. I was just worrying about where I'd find the money to pay for wrecking their car. Ha ha ha. By the way—how are your two bodyguards doing? Were their injuries serious?"

  "Don't worry. They're both receiving the best treatment program the hospital offers. They'll be back to work in a few months. Joey and Adam would be pleased to know you're concerned about them."

  "I'm glad they're alright."

  Jinyo knew well how severe the effects of the Punishment Wave technique could be. It was pain that shook the very soul. Their internal organs were probably damaged far worse than their external injuries. Without proper treatment, returning to duty would be difficult.

  "By the way, Mr. Southerncross, there's something I'd like to ask you. It would be most helpful if you could address my curiosity."

  "What is it?"

  "The carrots and rice porridge you ate that day—where did you get them?"

  Sven still remembered that irresistibly aromatic rice. He'd even asked Joey and Adam at the hospital how they felt after eating the Happy Carrots. The result was that even when Sven ordered the highest quality Happy Carrots available on the market for the two bodyguards to taste, both confirmed they couldn't compare to the carrots Jinyo had tossed them.

  Happy Carrots contained compounds that helped suppress stress, increase relaxation, and regulate mood. But they required time and continuous consumption over several weeks before showing results. They weren't vegetables that worked instantly like magic medicine.

  However, Jinyo's Happy Carrots had an almost immediate effect on mental state. They made fear of the enemy vanish. Even if the effect only lasted three to five minutes, they were incredibly useful against psychic-type enemies. If possible, Sven wanted to know their source.

  "..."

  Jinyo's nerves tensed the moment he heard this question. But he'd prepared an answer long ago because there was no way to keep it hidden forever—especially since he planned to do business exporting special produce from the Garden of the Sword.

  "The Happy Carrots and rice are my own produce."

  "You produced them yourself?"

  "I'm a doctor of botany. I have experience in genetic modification. In my free time from tutoring, I go back to research and modify the genetics of plants I'm interested in. Especially rice, carrots, and potatoes."

  "You modify plant genetics by yourself?"

  Sven was surprised by Jinyo's answer. He didn't believe it immediately—there were too many doubts. Plant genetic modification required extensive time and skill. Especially modifying magical plants required enormous technology and capital. Tens of millions or even hundreds of millions.

  Sven had already had James investigate the Southerncross family's financial status. They were burdened with massive inherited debt. The land behind the manor was useless because it was all mountains. How could Jinyo have a private research lab requiring imported foreign technology?

  His detective instincts raised questions, but he didn't interrogate Jinyo too deeply.

  "I see. Would there be any problem if I wanted to patronize you? For the rice, carrots, and potatoes."

  "I can't sell you the potatoes. The rice yield is still too low. But if it's carrots, I'd be happy to sell."

  "If possible, may I have your contact information?"

  "Of course."

  Jinyo beamed. Out of nowhere, he'd gained a new customer—and a billionaire's heir at that! Jinyo had sold Exploding Potatoes exclusively to William, and that would be the last time he accepted that hellish contract. He thought Sven seemed generous and a trustworthy trade partner. The two young men shook hands in cooperation.

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  "Until we meet again, Mr. Southerncross. Next time, I'll bring a gift for your little friend too."

  Sven turned to smile at Gretel, who looked up watching the adults talk. Gretel shrugged—because for him, the more customers Jinyo had, the more his allowance would increase! The more money Jinyo made, the more he'd benefit indirectly. Wasn't that great?

  "Um..."

  Luciria, who had been standing silently for so long, finally spoke. She looked directly at Jinyo. The young girl gathered her courage. She had deliberated all night and decided to speak.

  "You're here to take the teacher's exam, right? You accept disciples, don't you?"

  "Huh? Yes, of course I do."

  Jinyo was caught off guard by this welcome question. Sven's and James's expressions changed the instant Luciria spoke. Their instinct was to find something to cover the girl's mouth and stop her from continuing.

  "Lucy, this isn't something you can decide."

  "I want to study with him. Is that not allowed? He's skilled and comes from a good family. Would Grandfather really not accept him?"

  Luciria asked her brother with sorrowful eyes.

  "That's not the problem. We've seen with our own eyes that he's strong. But Mr. Southerncross has no experience in teaching."

  "Wasn't he a teacher before?"

  "Teaching academics and teaching martial arts are different. Mr. Southerncross, I must apologize for my sister speaking without thinking. It's not that you're inadequate—this really isn't something we can decide."

  Sven knew that saying this was shameless and discourteous to their benefactor. He tried to decline Jinyo using the most polite words possible. Sven didn't want to leave a bad impression on a benefactor who was a promising young man.

  A man who'd handled that monster. Who also modified magical plant genetics himself. Who'd earned his doctorate at a young age. Not only did Sven not want to make an enemy of him—he actually wanted to befriend this man. But the matter of becoming Luciria's teacher... sorry. That was impossible.

  "Why? Why can't I even choose my own teacher?"

  "Lucy, you should have known since you stepped into our family. Everything must be according to Grandfather's wishes. Mr. Southerncross, ma'am, please excuse us."

  Sven took Luciria's hand and led her away before she could make things more difficult. The young girl turned back to look at Jinyo, Rina, and the boy she didn't know—but that boy was practically a clone of Jinyo. His cold, indifferent demeanor resembled Rina. He must be the son of both of them.

  So they're already married? And they have a son.

  How nice...

  Why? Why is it like this?

  Luciria's heart went cold. She didn't know why the air conditioning felt so frigid today. It was lonely and quiet even though someone walked beside her. No one had let go of her hand, yet it felt as if the entire world had abandoned her.

  Jinyo watched Luciria turn away. The young man sighed with regret.

  "I'm still just a country teacher and a worthless doctorate holder that no one will hire."

  Jinyo wasn't angry at Sven. The other party was a young genius swordswoman with a bright future. Though Jinyo was confident his own future would be limitless too, right now he was just someone who'd barely survived a job crisis. He had no reputation as either a teacher or a fighter. What parent would want to entrust their child's future to someone they knew nothing about? His ancient, noble lineage akin to aristocracy didn't help burnish his worth at all. Especially if the Halfrin family had such high expectations for Luciria.

  "You know that already. From now on, you need to work harder and build your name. If you're strong enough to slap everyone in the face, no one will look down on you anymore!"

  Gretel spoke to his father.

  "Where did you pick up that mindset?"

  "From a teacher at school."

  "That's quite the intense teacher."

  "Gretel's right. You need to show everyone quickly that you're not pathetic. Make those who looked down on you flip over backward and line up to grovel at your feet."

  Rina added.

  "Groveling at my feet is a bit much. But yeah... even if I don't want anyone to grovel, I can't accept being looked down on forever either."

  Jinyo stood and stretched his arms fully. The aptitude test was about to begin. Most people were gathering at the testing grounds—not just examinees but their families too. Even the local TV station had set up cameras for a live broadcast.

  Hunter license exams occurred every month, with dates varying by region. Nationwide, there was a Hunter license exam every two or three days. The importance level wasn't enough for satellite broadcast, but this was a world where technology had advanced to include the internet. Live streaming on social media platforms was still necessary.

  Children as young as twelve to uncles as old as forty participated in the exam. If they obtained a license, they could legally work as Hunters. It would generate income and improve their families' quality of life. For young men with dreams, they had grand visions. They dreamed of becoming legends. Unlike adults who'd seen more of the world—they just hoped to have money to send their children to school and pay rent.

  Jinyo separated from Rina and Gretel. When he joined the group of other examinees, he realized how suffocating it was. The competition here was truly intense, with countless eyes watching. Some were so nervous they could barely breathe, while others just stood there—especially those who'd come to take the exam yesterday. Those who'd obtained teaching licenses had to take the Hunter exam again to collect data for final evaluation. If they didn't perform well, they'd end up as ordinary teachers. Because no matter how solid your theoretical knowledge, if you couldn't perform in practice, you were worthless.

  Jinyo felt a mocking gaze from across the way. When he turned to look, he found Joden standing with crossed arms, staring at him. Irritation, hostility, questioning, ready to devour from behind. Like hundreds of needles stabbing his back. Jinyo didn't understand why Joden had to view him as an enemy like this. Weren't we just an employer and employee who parted on good terms?

  "That incompetent trash. Just someone without Planar. How dare he come take the Hunter level exam!"

  "Sigh. Joden, you're paying way too much attention to that guy. He's just a contract teacher, isn't he? How can you let someone like that affect your mental health?"

  Noktis shook his head. He didn't understand why Joden was so fixated on Jinyo either. True, Jinyo had scored over a hundred points higher than them on the exam. But to hold a grudge over just that was too petty.

  Joden acted like Jinyo had killed his father. But didn't your father die of a heart attack?

  "Yeah, you're right. That chicken is bound to fail anyway. If he flunks the aptitude test, there's no hope for him regardless."

  Joden was confident Jinyo couldn't score well on the aptitude test. Not because he looked down on Jinyo without evidence—but as a former employer, wouldn't he have read Jinyo's file?

  This man had lost the ability to cultivate!

  "Examinees number 1 through 100, please line up. We will now test cultivation."

  An official shouted through a megaphone. Before them stood large capsules. They were the most advanced inventions of the current era, called [Artificial Caves].

  In ancient times, sources of magical power or chi were usually found in caves or mineral veins. Practitioners of old had to enter and train inside, absorbing power from the earth in caves until they barely saw sun or moonlight. That was the most efficient way to cultivate. However, in the modern era, once they discovered how to extract Magic Stones, they began extracting them instead to cultivate anywhere.

  Planar was the convergence point of magical power and chi. This meant Magic Essence extracted through Magic Stones could also be used for cultivation. Simply insert a Magic Stone into the extraction machine, and the Artificial Cave would release Magic Essence to be absorbed, cultivating the Planar within the body.

  This test would determine how well examinees could absorb Magic Essence extracted from Magic Stones within five minutes. It was practically the most important factor for the Hunter profession. Because if your cultivation rate was low, you had no future. While you spent one day traveling one kilometer, some people had already traveled a hundred kilometers in that same day.

  All male examinees were forced to remove their shirts because fabric affected Magic Essence absorption. Some wanted to remove their underwear too but were stopped by officials in time.

  Jinyo sighed, feeling extremely nervous. He watched people enter the Artificial Caves. When officials pressed the start button, Magic Essence was extracted and released through vents, filling the chamber with blue vapor.

  The examinees meditated, using whatever cultivation techniques they'd learned to absorb the surrounding Magic Essence.

  When five minutes passed, the Artificial Cave doors opened.

  "Examinee number 009: Cultivation rate 11%."

  "Examinee number 010: Cultivation rate 32%."

  "Examinee number 011: Cultivation rate 42%."

  "Mom, what does cultivation rate mean?"

  Gretel tugged at his mother's skirt to ask.

  "It's the rate of absorbing Magic Essence. Within five minutes, out of 100% Magic Essence, how much can the examinee absorb? 11% means absorbing only 11 out of 100. That's considered very low. That 009 person's future is basically over."

  Rina looked at the sixteen-year-old boy. The average human cultivation rate was between 25 and 40. Higher than that was above average. Above 80% was considered genius.

  "What's Mom's cultivation rate? Is it 90%?"

  "How could that be possible?"

  Rina laughed at her son's words. Her cultivation rate was only 62%. That was already much higher than average. Talented, but not genius level. Cultivation rate depended on genes and innate gifts from birth to death. No matter how hard you tried, you couldn't change your cultivation rate.

  "Then what's Bro Yo's rate? Do you remember, Mom?"

  "Jinyo used to have a 72% cultivation rate."

  "Why does he have more than Mom!"

  Gretel was displeased. He was glad his father wasn't terrible, but why did his mother have to lose to that man?

  "There's someone with even more than that. And you know them well."

  "Who?"

  Gretel was curious. If there was someone that amazing, he wanted to know. And they were someone close to him? He didn't know anyone like that.

  "Naho Southerncross. 81% cultivation rate."

  "..."

  The smile on Gretel's face vanished instantly.

  "That's impossible."

  "It's already happened."

  "Then why does Auntie Naho seem so hopeless!"

  "Naho's cultivation rate is high, that's true. But..."

  "But???"

  "God forgot to give her intelligence. Cultivation techniques require brains to learn. And Naho has no brain."

  "..."

  God help us.

  His aunt wasn't just someone God forgot to give instructions on how to use her beauty productively. God even forgot to include the user manual for her talents.

  It seemed her words about wanting to leech off her brother for life weren't a joke after all.