The Return of the Talented Monopolist is Special

Eugene and Geumgeom were on their way down the mountain, back toward the territory of Pencell.

Geumgeom scratched his head and spoke.

“Ains, Janes. Those guys aren’t any different from other children. I never imagined they’d be so tearful after being scolded by their father.”

Before leaving, the bodyguard had said one more thing.

The young masters of the Ins family might appear tough on the outside, but inside, they were just like any other kids their age—fragile. On nights when they were scolded by Sirius, they’d cry and stay up all night, unable to stop.

“That sounds about right. And with a father like that…”

“Looking at them, I’ve often thought about giving them a good slap, but I do feel a little sorry for them.”

“Sirius Uncle would do anything for his ambitions. His children were nothing more than tools for him to become the head of the family.”

Eugene suddenly turned his gaze toward the south, where the Robert family’s territory lay.

For some reason, it was a night when he missed his family.

***

A few days later, the trainees of Pencell had a rare day of rest.

However, Eugene was preparing for training on the second floor of the training hall.

But it wasn’t swordsmanship training.

“Julia, what’s the next magic?”

It was for magic training.

Eugene looked at Julia with eyes full of anticipation.

“Shouldn’t you take a break today? Isn’t today one of the few days off in the year?”

“I don’t need that. This is more fun.”

If it had been the Eugene of his past life, he might have disagreed, but the current Eugene could handle both aura and magic with ease.

He had been given a chance at a completely new life, so why would he lie around in bed and think about it?

“That would be unthinkable.”

However, in this situation, it was Julia who became the troubled one.

“Wait… You’re… a bit scary.”

Thanks to his complete memory, Eugene recalled every word and action Julia had ever made.

In other words, he could now perfectly remember the principles and casting methods of complex magic as well. Eugene’s magical skills were skyrocketing.

As a result, Julia found that the magic she could teach Eugene was quickly running out.

Thud.

Julia closed her magic notebook and muttered to herself.

“What… more… should I teach?”

Julia was the daughter of a Master of the Tower and had grown up under his tutelage. Therefore, her magical skills, as well as her innate mana, were on a different level.

However, Eugene had even more exceptional abilities and a higher quality of mana than her.

‘Father… If I’m a talent that comes around once in a hundred years, Eugene must be a talent that appears once in a thousand years.’

Julia made a silent vow to herself that once she safely reached the Magic Tower, she would work even harder to learn magic from her father.

Seeing that Julia seemed deep in thought, Eugene spoke up first. There was a specific type of magic he wanted to learn.

“Julia, just in case…”

“Wait, I know, I know! Just give me a second.”

“Do you know anything about barrier magic?”

Upon hearing those words, Julia’s eyes widened.

“Barrier magic! I know that! I can do it well! Like this, like this— I can make it in a hemisphere shape, or even a small one…”

Barrier magic.

Among the different levels of the Magic Tower—Blue, Red, Black, and White—the barrier magic was the specialty of the Blue Tower and was considered an intermediate-level magic.

Eugene seemed surprised by her response as well.

‘The difficulty is quite high, so it would be hard for someone her age to even learn it, but she can use barrier magic. I only asked just in case…’

If she could teach him barrier magic…

‘Maybe I can solve the issues related to the Ins brothers and also address Pencell’s problems.’

While Eugene was impressed and hopeful about Julia’s abilities, he calmed her down as she excitedly continued.

“Like this! If you put something inside this kind of sphere, even a mid-level knight couldn’t get it out!”

“I get it, just tell me step by step, teacher. I’m looking forward to it.”

“Teacher? That’s a nice thing to hear. If you listen well, I’ll teach you even more. Try using honorifics with your older sister and teacher, Julia, okay?”

“…Yes, teacher.”

Eugene reluctantly acted like he was playing along, his eyes shining.

‘Julia turns out to be bright. She’s playful too. She’s been wanting me to call her ‘sister’ for a while, so it wouldn’t hurt to play along a bit.’

Eugene, who was always in a position of power, couldn’t help but give in when faced with someone as young and pure-hearted as Julia.

It made him feel a bit like a child again, and his heart became peaceful.

Julia straightened her expression with satisfaction and cleared her throat.

“Hmm, well, since you’re smart, I’ll start with the attributes. Is that okay?”

“I’ll listen first.”

“You’ll listen first?”

“I’ll listen…yes.”

“Alright! The foundation of a barrier is creating the area it protects.”

When most people think of a barrier, they imagine a “magical shield” — a transparent wall that allows both the inside and outside to be visible but prevents entry from the outside or keeps things from leaving the inside.

However, barriers can do much more than just protect or trap a certain area.

Eugene listened attentively to Julia’s words, as though he were a student learning from the beginning.

“Alarm spells or detection spells, commonly used by mercenaries, are also forms of barrier magic.”

Julia tapped her foot once.

“For example, you can set a zone with this foot at the center and then apply conditions within that zone. For example, if a living creature enters a 4-meter radius, an alarm will sound. Or, you could set the spell to detect objects with mana inside the designated area.”

“Wait, then maybe…”

“Do you have an idea? Some of the spells I’ve used are carrier magic.”

“The fog spell I used in Glampustan was also based on a barrier, wasn’t it?”

“Exactly! You’re sharp!”

Julia, impressed by Eugene’s understanding, playfully pinched his cheek.

Even though Julia was joking, Eugene’s intuition made her admire him once again.

“That’s why the fog didn’t leak out of the secret space and stayed dense, right?”

“Exactly, our smart Eugene.”

Julia, now full of energy, pinched Eugene’s cheek with both hands, then suddenly stepped back, startled.

“…What? I was just playing along with you.”

“How could you stick your lips out like that?”

“Stop talking nonsense and teach me more, teacher.”

With a slightly flushed face, Julia went off to find something.

“Where are you going?”

“Just wait for a bit.”

She quickly returned, holding a red balloon and a needle.

Julia inflated the balloon and then placed it on her palm.

Muttering something, a change started to happen in her hands.

A transparent sphere began to form around the balloon, centered on her palm.

And soon…

Ziiing…!

The balloon was now enclosed in a golden barrier slightly larger than its size.

“This is a very simple form of barrier magic. How is it? Cool, right?”

“Wow…”

Eugene, although he had seen many magicians during his time as a strategist for the Sun God Cult, had never seen a barrier being formed right in front of him. He was watching in awe.

But soon, his expression became sharper.

‘The principle of barrier magic seems to be about recombining mana that floats in the air into molecular forms and shaping it. Since hexagons are the most stable structure for maintaining a shape, it looks like hexagons are being linked together.’

Eugene was already exceptionally intelligent and observant, with an excellent understanding of situations and calculations, but understanding the principles like this was on a different level.

The key to this ability was the major effect of Mukgwang’s 3rd Circle, “Understanding Structure.”

Eugene had believed from the moment he created Mukgwang that this ability would be crucial for learning magic.

“Understanding of Structure, the ability to perceive the structure of magic. This… this could be quite useful.”

This ability, sometimes granted to those who are favored by the God of Magic, was undeniably overpowered. Being able to see the manifestation of magic, which others can only imagine in their minds, meant that casting magic would be far easier than before.

Julia poked the barrier surrounding the balloon with the needle.

“The balloon won’t pop, right? Even if a 2nd rank knight strikes it with a sword wrapped in aura, it won’t break in one hit.”

Seeing Eugene at a loss for words, Julia smiled proudly and continued her explanation.

“Now, let me tell you about the principle and structure of this barrier. It’s a bit complicated, so listen carefully. First, the air—”

Eugene, having just figured out the principle himself, immediately relayed what he had deduced.

“The mana floating in the air is shaped into a hexagonal form. The reason it’s a hexagon is because it’s the easiest shape to maintain the structure of a barrier. Am I right?”

“U-uh… that’s right… But, what are you?”

Julia stared at Eugene in disbelief.

Before she could react any further, Eugene poked the barrier at one point with the needle.

Bang!

The barrier, which had been maintaining its form, shattered with a golden glow, and the balloon burst along with it.

Julia was stunned, staring at the popped balloon in shock.

“How… did you…? Did you use your aura? No, this shouldn’t have broken with just a strike—”

“Aura?”

“Right, your aura’s sealed, isn’t it?! What? How did you do that? Did you target the core of the barrier, or was it just a coincidence?”

The core of the barrier.

This was a feature of barrier magic, essentially a weak spot. No matter how strong the barrier was, if you could pinpoint the core and apply force, the barrier would break.

This was something Eugene could easily perceive thanks to his Understanding of Structure.

“How did you do that?”

“Try speaking a little more politely to your student and younger sibling, and I’ll tell you.”

“Y-yes, Teacher… please tell me…”

“That’s a bit difficult.”

Eugene had no intention of explaining everything to Julia. Even if he did, she probably wouldn’t believe him.

He simply said that he felt that if he touched a certain point, the barrier would disappear.

“No way…”

Julia stared at him as if she had seen a ghost.

Not believing Eugene’s words, Julia seemed to be lost in thought, trying to figure out why her barrier had broken.

But Eugene couldn’t fully trust his understanding of Understanding of Structure either.

“Julia made a basic barrier, so it broke with physical force. If I were to deal with a stronger barrier, I’d probably need to use my aura.”

Eugene’s thoughts on Understanding Structure led him to realize that the most important aspect was the ability to interfere with a magician’s magic using their aura.

Of course, it would be difficult to interfere with a 6th-rank spell using a 5th-rank aura, but if the skills were the same, it would be possible.

“If I can learn to use barrier magic… and even improve it…”

He couldn’t help but feel excited.

Eugene hid his smile, lifting the corners of his mouth slightly.

“Since my aura is sealed for now, I should make the most of it and develop my magical abilities.”

Perhaps the aura seal, ordered by Jade, might turn out to be a great blessing.

With the secret of the ring, he could develop his magic further.

Julia, deep in thought, looked at Eugene’s smile and felt her face grow warm.

“He is handsome…”

Was he feeling the same way?

Just then, Gold Sword entered the training hall.

“I received word from Mule. He’s sorry for the late response. He says he was busy and asks to apologize for the delay in answering.”

Eugene nodded at the message.

“He must be busy communicating with the Magic Tower.”

Eugene, now understanding, asked Gold Sword.

“When can we meet him?”

“He says today is a rest day, so it’s fine to meet him today, but since you must also rest, he’s available in about a week.”

“Let’s go now.”

***

Mule’s residence existed like an isolated island within the Penchel family.

It was a messy space that was hard to distinguish whether it belonged to the first son of a famous swordsmanship family or an alchemist.

Since it was a rest day, Eugene had been specially permitted to visit Mule’s residence with Gold Sword accompanying him.

They were told to wait in the room, and the two of them were surrounded by a strange coziness as they took in their surroundings.

“Books do bring comfort…”

Having lived buried in books for over ten years in his past life, Eugene could understand why Mule’s room was in such a state and what his emotions might be.

“Wow, that book is huge. It could even be used as a weapon.”

Gold Sword, curious, tried to touch the books, but Eugene warned him to be careful.

“Welcome, Eugene. Actually, should I just call you nephew to make it more comfortable?”

“Hello, Uncle. I’ll call you Uncle as well.”

“You brat.”

Mule, seeming to have regained some vitality, greeted Eugene with a much-improved expression compared to before.

It was likely that he had followed Eugene’s advice from the herb fields and tried to conduct some research, and the results were probably favorable.

“Eugene, my nephew. I know your personality well, so I’ll get straight to the point. First, I followed your advice and changed the research materials.”

When Eugene smiled without saying a word, Mule smiled back in return.

“The results were quite good. There’s been progress. I wanted to thank you for it.”

“I’m glad I could help.”

“It’s a shame to just thank you with words. I’m not sure how to repay this favor.”

Eugene nodded enthusiastically.

“Of course, you should repay me.”

“Alright, good. Tell me anything. I’ll repay this favor today, no matter what.”

Mule looked at Eugene with a bright smile.

However, Eugene, in contrast, had a more serious expression as he spoke.

“Uncle.”

“I’m listening.”

“Have you ever researched the blood of the Black Dragon at Penchel?”

Mule’s expression stiffened immediately.

“…Why do you ask?”

The bright face that had just been visible was now completely gone, replaced by a heavy and, in some ways, intimidating expression.

“You told me to ask anything. I’m truly curious.”

“…”

After a moment of hesitation, Mule finally spoke.

“That… is Penchel’s mistake and a deep wound.”