Narrator's POV
"Happy birthday, Keyaru!!!"
"Haha, I'm a bit too old for this kind of stuff," he said in an embarrassed tone, though his heart was a bit touched by his mother's kind attention.
"I know you don't like this kind of thing, but I think it's important to enjoy it at your age," declared Kim Mijun firmly. However, her voice couldn't hide a certain form of regret.
This didn't go unnoticed by Keyaru's eyes, which had become a weapon in themselves.
'I know someone who had a rough teenage years,' thought Keyaru behind his usual gentle smile at home.
Once seated in the dining room, Keyaru casually greeted his sister, Hyomin.
The two had grown much closer after clearing things up, but Hyomin didn't display her "familial" affection in front of others.
She just stayed friendly, nothing more.
'At least she's not hanging out with those idiots anymore.'
This information had been obtained after bribing a girl with short black hair named Minjeong Lee.
Keyaru's sister had even started getting better grades, but she seemed to want a better position than the one she held among the top 10 students in her class.
'Anyway, she'll be able to go to a good university soon if all goes well."'
Hyomin was in her final year, and there were only a few months left before she'd leave the family nest.
Kim Mijun had already decided to find her a small apartment near her university once high school was over.
While Keyaru was having a casual discussion with Hyomin during breakfast, he wondered what a non-awakened person's status looked like.
Name: Hyomin Joo
Age: 18
Race: Human
Class: None
Level: 1
MP: 0/0
Physical Attack: 6
Physical Defense: 7
Magic Attack: 0
Magic Defense: 0
Speed: 8
Skills: None
Passive Skills: None
Level Limit: 41
Talent Values:
MP: 0
Physical Attack: 75
Physical Defense: 63
Magic Attack: 0
Magic Defense: 0
Speed: 122
Total Value: 260
'Trash.'
That was the first word that came to Keyaru's mind after processing the information from his sister Hyomin's status.
Why?
She literally had no talent linked to the supernatural energy called mana, and even her physical talent stats were just passable.
There was also the fact that her total stat value was well below the average of 350 in the Redo of Healer universe.
'I understand now why some hunters look down on normal humans. She's literally biologically inferior to a goblin!!'
Keyaru now understood why no normal human could beat a random monster without mana: they were simply too weak.
The difference between his sister and the information about the average farmer in the Redo of Healer universe was huge.
*Woof Woof!* While Keyaru was considering contacting his usual black market courier, he heard his dog start barking energetically at him.
'Oh, damn!"'Keyaru's eyes glowed a greenish color due to the use of his magic eyes and excitement.
Name: Marceline
Age: 6
Race: Dog?
Class: None
Level: 1
MP: 15/15
Physical Attack: 12
Physical Defense: 15
Magic Attack: 9
Magic Defense: 10
Speed: 14
Skills:
• Venom Fang (Lvl 1)
Passive Skills:
• Poison Resistance (Lvl 2): 20% chance to not suffer negative effects against harmful substances.
Level Limit: 38
Talent Values:
MP: 100
Physical Attack: 102
Physical Defense: 110
Magic Attack: 70
Magic Defense: 10
Speed: 103
Total Value: 495
"So... This thing became a magical beast?!" he said in a low voice.
He would have never thought that the potion made with the mana stone or mana crystals could have this effect on a creature.
It even has a total value of 495!
This can also be increased if I use my healing magic directly on it to improve its talent.
'Now that I think about it, Sung Jinwoo had about 10 points in all his stats at the start of the story.'
After realizing this, Keyaru looked at his own stats again.
'So, me and Marceline are equal to an E-rank hunter.'
This information had depressed him a bit, but he quickly pulled himself together.
For starters, he had better stats than Sung Jinwoo at his beginnings, since that idiot is the world's weakest hunter.
Secondly, he could level up and manipulate his stat distribution thanks to his healing magic, aka the 'Transformation Heal' technique.
Third and last point, he now had, thanks to his dog and his knowledge of alchemy, a way to forcefully 'awaken' creatures without mana.
' I already had the idea of using Transformation Heal to forcefully awaken talented and desperate individuals, but this potion avoids my direct exposure!!'
*Bam!* Keyaru was interrupted by the sound of a birthday cake being placed in front of him.
"Go ahead, big guy, blow out the candles," declared Kim Mijun with a tender smile.
Keyaru pushed his ideas to a corner of his mind before putting on a happy smile at the table, to satisfy his mother.
....
Keyaru's POV
The information about Marceline has been bothering me until now because of its implications.
But I chose to ignore these implications and this potion for now.
Why?
Because I'm not yet strong enough to fully exploit this kind of discovery on an international scale, but also because I plan to use it only for personal purposes.
"Are you new?" A massive man blocked my path to a door in a poorly lit alley.
"No, I'm a client mentioned by Mr. K," I replied in a neutral voice.
The man asked for proof, so I handed him my own business card, the one used under Mr. K's identity.
It's accessible only by people directly connected to me, like certain dark web and black market couriers, but not by ordinary people.
"You can enter, but don't try to act smart in this place ."
He finally let me pass reluctantly, but I saw a gleam of greed and envy shine in his eyes.
Apparently, my reputation as Mr. K is starting to spread a bit too much in Seoul's underworld. But it was inevitable, and to be honest, I don't mind.
It simply means more work and the need to be even more careful with my couriers and clients.
My 'Eros Kiss V1.0' potion was a monumental success, and its improved version was even more so.
Currently, I have so much cash that I'm forced to spend it to make it usable in official circuits.
I'm even forced to make my clients reserve their orders in advance since I don't have enough workforce to increase production.
This explains the growing influence of Mr. K's identity in Seoul's shadows.
People no longer want ordinary sexual pleasures after ingesting my slightly addictive substances since the update.
....
"So to summarize, you want to enter low-level dungeons and hunt monsters to help Mr. K with their corpses?" A man surrounded by scantily clad women asked me for confirmation.
We're currently in a very little-known nightclub, frequented only by privileged people and shady characters.
My interlocutor is named Lee Jung .
He's an official D-rank hunter, but he's involved in shady business according to my informants.
Why?
For more money, of course.
Being a low-rank hunter isn't easy, and Sung Jinwoo is the best example.
Except that unlike him, many have thrown their morals in the trash to buy better equipment and increase their chances of survival in dungeons.
Frankly, I'm not going to judge them, since I'd do the same if I were in Solo Leveling without cheats.
The advantages of being a hunter are simply too tempting.
"Exactly, I just want high protection during my time in the dungeon."
For now, I want to learn more about the hunter profession, but I can't do it under the identities of Keyaru Kim or Mr. K.
I don't want to register as an E-rank either!
That's why I prefer to create a new false identity.