Chapter 6: Meditation and Mentorship

“Hmm? No, it’s a good thing.”

Seong Ji-woo smiled, the corners of his eyes folding slightly. Even though he confirmed that it was indeed something good, Yu Hilo’s pale face grew even whiter. He awkwardly tried to mirror Seong Ji-woo’s smile, his lips trembling at the ends.

“…Can I ask… what it is?”

Even in this moment, Yu Hilo couldn’t suppress his curiosity about why Seong Ji-woo was smiling, so he carefully ventured the question. His head tilted side to side, obedient as if greeting his master returning from outside.

For a moment, Seong Ji-woo thought he wanted to scratch under Yu Hilo’s chin. He’d always dreamed of raising a big dog, but circumstances hadn’t allowed it, which he regretted a little.

‘Maybe I’ll get a big dog after graduation. I’ll need to open the shop anyway, and it’ll help keep petty thieves away.’

Looking at Yu Hilo’s face, Seong Ji-woo imagined what kind of dog it might be. Perhaps a Schnauzer. Yu Hilo, completely unaware of what Seong Ji-woo was thinking, waited expectantly with bright, attentive eyes. Seong Ji-woo let out a light laugh.

“I dealt with something annoying.”

“Something annoying…?”

Yu Hilo furrowed his brows. His face revealed all his thoughts as he tried to figure out what had bothered Seong Ji-woo. Seong Ji-woo shrugged, signaling it wasn’t something worth worrying about.

“It’s all done now, so you don’t need to worry. I eliminated the future culprit, and it feels so refreshing.”

In fact, the biggest potential trouble in the future was Yu Hilo himself. But people naturally find paper cuts more painful than the end of the world. Perhaps it was Yu Hilo’s absurdly innocent personality that made this mismatch seem so odd. The idea that this child could someday destroy the world didn’t fit at all.

“By the way, have you practiced a lot?”

“Yes!”

Yu Hilo exclaimed confidently, but Seong Ji-woo didn’t actually expect that he had practiced properly. Practice was about getting the body accustomed to a skill, which meant you needed to know how to do it in the first place. But since Yu Hilo didn’t even know how, it was natural that he couldn’t practice.

It was like giving sheet music to a child who has never touched a piano and expecting them to play it. Maybe that child would clench their fists and slam the piano lid instead of pressing the keys.

Seong Ji-woo imagined Yu Hilo happily pounding the piano lid and let out a deep sigh.

‘We’ve got a long way to go…’

Yu Hilo, sensing Seong Ji-woo’s sigh, pouted and confessed gloomily.

“I’m sorry. Actually… I didn’t know how to do it, so I couldn’t…”

“Right. Then it would be strange if you did. It’s fine.”

Seong Ji-woo didn’t scold him and moved on coolly. He thought it better to be honest from the start than to lie and get caught later. Besides, Yu Hilo already looked like someone who’d been scolded a lot, so he felt a little sorry for him.

“First, it’s important to get a feel for it, so let’s focus a bit.”

Today, Seong Ji-woo had prepared a proper mentoring session. It was the result of some thought he had given the night before in the dormitory. He walked straight to the window and began drawing the curtains.

Swish, swish. Under his hands, the dusty pale green blackout curtains spread fully. The dense color blocked all sunlight. Dust fell from the curtains, making Seong Ji-woo sneeze repeatedly and sniffle.

“Ah, my nose hurts.”

“Senpai, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just thought it’d be better to block outside elements as much as possible.”

Then he meticulously locked the door. The room became completely sealed. Even though it was just April, the weather remained chilly and bleak. Seong Ji-woo took two old cushions from a neglected locker in the corner and placed them side by side on the large training room floor.

“From now on, we’re meditating.”

“…Huh?”

Yu Hilo looked stunned at this unexpected training method.

After thinking things over the night before, Seong Ji-woo had watched videos on hypnotic methods to awaken people with latent abilities like Yu Hilo, who could not use their powers for some reason. Although the videos were long since proven fake, Seong Ji-woo, unaware of this, started to study hypnosis clumsily and realized that hypnosis was a kind of “immersive state.”

He concluded that meditation was the best way to achieve that state. He considered this method a potential breakthrough, a sensational approach in his own judgment.

Seong Ji-woo sat cross-legged to demonstrate, and Yu Hilo awkwardly followed suit.

‘But I don’t even know how to meditate…’

He knew meditation might help, but having spent too much time on the hypnosis part, he hadn’t researched how to meditate. He simply sat down and closed his eyes, unsure of what to do next.

Peeking sideways, he saw Yu Hilo staring intently at him. Their eyes met, startling him so much he almost popped, but Seong Ji-woo loudly tried to hide his embarrassment.

“You’re supposed to meditate. Why are you looking at me? Aren’t you closing your eyes?”

Yu Hilo quickly shut his eyes at Seong Ji-woo’s thunderous words. About five minutes passed silently with both in the cross-legged position. Soon, Yu Hilo’s legs started to fidget. He cautiously asked:

“Um, senpai… what should I think about when meditating?”

Seong Ji-woo thought of giving a plausible, philosophical answer, but quickly abandoned the idea, realizing it would make him look ridiculous.

‘Since Yu Hilo was honest with me earlier, I should be honest too as a mentor.’

In the end, he had nothing to say because he didn’t know. He replied quietly, in a calm voice unlike usual.

“I don’t know either.”

“…I see.”

Yu Hilo followed, replying softly in a similarly quiet voice. The exchange was barely a conversation, yet they remained silent for three more minutes.

From Seong Ji-woo’s perspective, it was three minutes. He felt three minutes had passed, but in reality, thirty minutes had gone by.

Startled awake by his nodding head, Seong Ji-woo looked at the person right in front of him and was shocked again.

“Ah! You scared me.”

He exclaimed involuntarily. Yu Hilo was kneeling right in front of him. At the start of meditation, he had been quietly sitting beside him. His cushion was abandoned, and Seong Ji-woo didn’t understand why he was there.

“You were sleeping so soundly, I was thinking about when to wake you up.”

Yu Hilo seemed to have noticed Seong Ji-woo’s confusion and spoke continuously, without being asked. Seong Ji-woo couldn’t fault him, as it was entirely his responsibility.

“Ah… sorry. I wasn’t trying to sleep. I stayed up late thinking about mentoring last night.”

The real reason he hadn’t slept enough was that he had watched five hypnotic videos in a row, finding them amusing.

“Mentoring? You stayed up thinking about that?”

Yu Hilo looked genuinely pleased. Seong Ji-woo nodded hesitantly.

“Yeah… something like that.”

He thought he’d done his best, but perhaps from Yu Hilo’s perspective it wasn’t enough. Even a little effort at mentoring brought him such joy.

A twinge of guilt arose. He thought he should have watched the beginner-friendly “15-Minute Meditation Method” video. The 40-minute video titled that didn’t seem reliable, so he hadn’t watched it.

“…Actually, while you were sleeping, I think I moved a shadow a little. Meditation seems to be working.”

Yu Hilo spoke with a slightly excited tone. Seong Ji-woo, still sleepy, rubbed his dry eyes and yawned consecutively.

“Hmm… a shadow, suddenly?”

“I think it’s my ability. Darkness is such an abstract concept…”

Only then did Seong Ji-woo recall that Yu Hilo’s ability was darkness-based. He’d always wondered how it worked—and it was shadows! Shadows naturally form where there are objects, light, and ground. With proper use, he could become a strong dealer…

‘No, wait. This kid is not just strong, he’s practically the strongest villain. He’ll reach the top without my help.’

Seong Ji-woo realized his mentoring approach might be completely off. This kid would master his powers in a few years and become a world-dominating villain, effortlessly clearing X-gates.

That meant Yu Hilo awakening his powers was only a matter of time, and Seong Ji-woo’s job was to prevent him from doing anything malicious this time. To prevent killing anyone.

“Hilo.”

Seong Ji-woo called Yu Hilo’s name gently but seriously. The heart of a teacher—or even a father—though in truth, he spoke with the conviction of a philosophical master.

“There are a few things I’ve realized in life. Being strong, using your powers stylishly, killing monsters—that’s fine… but you have to find inner peace. Always keep a good heart, love humanity, and be devoted to the community.”

To clarify, Seong Ji-woo believed in the inherent evil of man. That’s why he thought people like Yoo Ho-bin or Park Jun-su existed.

Good heart, humanity, devotion.

These noble concepts, mentioned without blinking, were things Seong Ji-woo had long discarded after harsh X-gate life.

Yu Hilo seemed bewildered by the sudden change in tone and demeanor. The question marks floating above his head were clear, and Seong Ji-woo decided to respond as shamelessly as possible. He knew his words were nonsense, so he pushed through like a crazed, logic-free master.

“Ever heard the saying? You are you, I am me. We are one. Walk in another’s shoes. Win-win. We are the world.”

“…Senpai, you just said ‘You are you, I am me’…”

“Huh? Did I say that?”

Oops. His true thoughts slipped out. Seong Ji-woo feigned innocence with a polite smile.

“You misheard. I would never say such selfish things. Do you know how altruistic I am?”

His lips were dry and cracked from lying. The fact that he lied without licking his lips it meant he lied just for Seong Ji-woo’s sake.