The Only Enhancer - Chapter 95

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 95
Episode 95 – Double (3)
I never expected you’d keep it a secret.
Usually people can’t wait to brag after awakening, but how was I supposed to know you’d hide it?
The old Min-jun wouldn’t have thought much of it, but this time I felt genuinely sorry.
So I apologized right away.
There was no helping it either.
Paulo’s stats were simply too impressive to let slide.
[Paulo Schultz]
-Lv. 2(5)
-Ability Score: 8.
‘With a Level 5 aptitude and an ability score of 8, he’s on par with Won Eun-seong.’
In other words, he was at the same level as someone who could easily become a pillar of the Hunter Association.
Even if that wasn’t the case, he possessed the potential to rank among the elite in any guild.
That’s exactly why I asked in the first place.
I never thought it would be a secret.
While Min-jun and Michelle were both taken aback, Gwen was thinking to herself.
‘Thank goodness I stayed quiet.’
Of course, with her alchemist’s eyes that could perceive mana, Gwen had also recognized that Paulo was an awakened one, but she managed to avoid trouble thanks to Min-jun speaking first.
Anyway, why had Michelle’s friend been hiding the fact that he was an awakened one?
Everyone was curious about that.
Everyone except Paulo, that is.
“…How did you know?”
When Paulo asked again, Min-jun answered apologetically.
“Sorry about that. You were radiating mana so openly, there was no way I couldn’t notice.”
“…You sensed the mana?”
That answer actually surprised Paulo even more.
Sensing mana was something only an extremely select few top-tier hunters could do.
At least, that’s what Paulo understood.
Seeing Paulo’s reaction, Min-jun quickly clarified to avoid misunderstanding.
“I have a related skill for it.”
“…I see.”
Whether he was shocked at having hidden it so well only to have it discovered like this, or surprised that Min-jun possessed such a remarkable skill, Paulo’s expression grew considerably more dejected.
Watching Paulo like that, Michelle turned to question him instead.
“But why were you hiding it anyway?”
“…Well, you know how it can create distance between people. So I just didn’t mention it.”
Min-jun, who was using a dedicated skill to discern truth from falsehood, could tell that was genuine.
He supposed it made sense that a peer being an awakened one could make the world feel like a completely different place.
Though that logic didn’t apply to Michelle, of course.
“What? You think I’d feel distant from you over something like that? If that were the case, I wouldn’t be hanging out with Min-jun and Gwen like this.”
“I’m… I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking clearly.”
“That’s right! Don’t do that next time! We’ve been close since we were kids, so why would you keep secrets for a reason like that? Anyway, congratulations on awakening, even if it’s late.”
As the atmosphere grew warm, Min-jun smiled contentedly, while Gwen watched the scene with a hint of envy in her eyes.
She wanted that kind of atmosphere too.
‘He said I looked so cool on the way here, so I pressed the accelerator even harder.’
For some reason, a sigh escaped her, but still—wasn’t this progress compared to before?
If she continued to close the distance like this…
‘Well, of course, it’s different with Min-jun because he’s the guild master and all.’
Gwen thought timidly, though no one was listening.
And so they chatted at the coffee shop for quite a while.
They talked about this and that, and unlike the first day when Michelle and Min-jun had only spoken vaguely about each other, they now shared various stories about one another.
They didn’t mention being part of the Reinforce Guild or being important figures.
There was no need to, and besides, there was plenty else to talk about.
They discussed how they were currently staying in Germany but would likely travel across all of Europe soon, and how they’d spent some time in Korea and the United States before that.
Though they stumbled a bit when asked where they’d gone sightseeing, it was still an enjoyable conversation.
Everyone except Paulo, that is.
5.
Around the time Min-jun, Gwen, Michelle, and Paulo were chatting at the cafe.
The German agents were watching them from a distance with puzzled expressions.
Michelle alone would have been acceptable, but Paulo’s sudden appearance was unwelcome.
‘Damn it.’
Matteo in particular was quite disappointed.
He’d been quietly writing an absurd story about whether Michelle and Min-jun had gotten together and come to Germany, which only made it more frustrating.
Several other agents felt the same way.
But other agents dismissed them with a look, as if to say that was ridiculous.
With Gwen right there, how could Michelle possibly have an opening?
Last time, when Michelle was there, they saw Gwen rush over, and Michelle seemed to be rooting for the two of them.
Just then, a radio transmission came through—the identity verification that Matteo had requested was complete.
-Identity confirmed.
-Who is it?
-His name is Paulo Schultz. He’s a rookie who awakened about a month ago. He’s gained considerable recognition for his abilities and is currently registered with the Aero Guild after awakening.
-Hmm.
The Aero Guild was one of the largest guilds in Germany.
If he belonged to such a guild, his abilities were certainly solid.
For now, let’s keep watching.
From Matteo’s perspective, Paulo was an unpredictable variable.
And he was an awakened one at that.
Moreover, he seemed quite irritated with Min-jun.
It seemed like it was because he liked Michelle, which was troublesome.
Since they’d decided to keep an eye on him, they would continue to do so.
—If any trouble arises, we’ll handle it immediately.
—Yes, understood.
The German agents watched them chatter away.
6.
Though the incident had settled, Paulo’s wariness remained undiminished.
Especially toward Min-jun.
It couldn’t be helped.
An Awakened with a skill that could keenly sense an opponent’s mana—that’s what they said he was.
How could he not seem suspicious?
‘What’s his purpose?’
Honestly, the probability seemed low, but to Paulo’s mind, it made no sense whatsoever.
An Awakened who travels with such a beautiful woman.
And an extraordinarily handsome Awakened at that—why would he spend time with Michelle?
It’s not as though he had no friends during his school years and lacked people to play with.
Judging by his fluent German and frequent use of English, he clearly didn’t live purely in Korea—it seems he lived in the Western world.
I can’t quite figure it out.
Paulo narrowed his eyes and gazed at Min-jun while entertaining these thoughts.
‘Suspicious, no matter how I look at it.’
Min-jun observed Paulo and thought to himself.
‘He seems upset I didn’t tell him the secret.’
I’ll probably need to use various methods to smooth this over.
Though I won’t be giving him any enhancement items, that’s for sure.
While Min-jun was thinking this, Michelle clapped her hands together with a snap and asked.
“By the way, have you two eaten?”
“Eaten?”
“Yeah. Now that I think about it.”
Gwen realized she’d been starving this whole time, and Min-jun was in a similar state.
They’d eaten breakfast, but lunch hadn’t happened yet.
Both shook their heads, looking at Michelle.
Their eyes asked whether she knew of a good restaurant.
Seeing their gazes, Michelle grinned and spoke.
“There’s an amazing restaurant about 15 minutes away by car from here!”
“…You! Don’t tell me…!?”
Seeing Michelle’s triumphant expression, Paulo’s face fell in despair.
What was she up to?
Then Michelle spoke.
“What kind of restaurant is it?”
“Hehe, it’s a Korean restaurant. Want to go?”
“Korean?”
Hearing Michelle’s words, Paulo let out a small sigh and spoke.
“Michelle was like that yesterday too….”
“So it doesn’t taste good?”
“…Well, it does have some flavor.”
“Hmm.”
Min-jun found himself intrigued by her words.
A Korean restaurant in Germany, no less.
Having been here for a while now, I’d been craving Korean food, and this seemed like perfect timing.
It sounded ideal.
“I’m interested.”
Min-jun nodded in agreement with a smile.
Gwen also nodded in response.
“I’d like to go too.”
“Great! Then let’s head out! How did you two get here? Would you like to ride with Paulo if that’s okay?”
Paulo considered stopping Michelle from making such a sudden decision, but he thought it might actually be better than going separately.
However.
“Oh, we came by car too.”
“I’ll drive, so you go first and I’ll follow!”
At those words, Paulo’s shoulders lifted slightly with satisfaction.
Paulo’s car was none other than a BMW 4 Series.
And it was a new model at that.
For Paulo, who had only just turned twenty, it was quite an impressive vehicle.
Of course, regardless of age, it was simply a fine car by any standard.
He’d told Michelle it was his father’s car, but in reality, it was Paulo’s own.
He’d saved up money from diligent raiding to buy it.
As such, he took considerable pride in his vehicle.
Of course, since those two were Awakened as well, they might have rented quite a nice car too, but from what he’d heard, they weren’t native to Germany and were only staying temporarily.
So his car was likely better than theirs.
‘Heh! I might be able to show off a bit.’
With such thoughts, he spoke up quickly.
“Which floor did you park on?”
Since there was a parking building right next to the department store, he was asking which level they’d parked on.
Min-jun, who couldn’t drive, didn’t remember and couldn’t answer immediately, so Gwen responded instead.
“We parked on the third floor.”
“Oh!? We’re on the third floor too, so we can go together.”
How convenient.
Paulo wore a slight victor’s smile.
Going to show off his car would surely lift his spirits.
Of course, since Gwen had said it was her car.
It would be hard to say he’d completely outdone Min-jun, but still, that was essentially the same thing, wasn’t it?
With a satisfied Paulo, they all headed toward the parking building together.
And so we headed up to the third floor.
“Ah, this is my car.”
Paulo spoke as though it were nothing special.
But seeing his expression, Michelle looked at him as though she’d witnessed something rather distasteful.
“Ugh.”
Paulo was somewhat wounded by her reaction, though he tried not to show it.
But look at this.
“Oh!”
Min-jun, who had only just begun taking interest in cars, saw Paulo’s BMW 4 Series and his eyes sparkled with genuine enthusiasm.
The design admittedly resembled a nutria somewhat, but setting that aside, it was quite a refined piece of engineering.
Min-jun’s eyes gleamed as he spoke.
“That’s actually quite impressive.”
“Hmph, well of course. The 4 Series has that kind of charm. The more you look at it, the more impressive it becomes.”
Perhaps because Min-jun had complimented his car?
Michelle let out a small sigh as she watched Paulo begin chattering away with unbridled enthusiasm.
“Sigh.”
It was the look of someone thinking, “Here he goes again.”
Well, when it came to cars, men couldn’t help but become obsessed.
Min-jun was beginning to show signs of the same affliction.
Then Gwen spoke.
“Let’s ride in mine too.”
“Ah, yes, let’s.”
Min-jun said this and gave Paulo an approving thumbs-up as though impressed.
Paulo found himself wondering if Min-jun wasn’t such a bad person after all, and he rubbed his nose slightly.
But then.
“…Huh?”
“Wow!”
Watching Min-jun and Gwen head toward Gwen’s car, Paulo and Michelle’s eyes widened like lanterns in shock.
Min-jun looked at them both with an expression asking why they were reacting that way.
“Your car is really impressive!”
“This one? Right? Gwen’s car is quite impressive indeed.”
Min-jun said this and boarded the vehicle, as did Gwen.
And then she started the engine.
Vroooom!
A ferocious exhaust note echoed throughout the entire parking structure.
And hearing it, Paulo couldn’t help but gasp in admiration.
“…Wow.”
“Impressive, right?”
At Michelle’s words, Paulo forgot all about trying to one-up her and found himself nodding involuntarily.
The Ferrari Roma was indeed impressive.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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