Shinyoung’s Center (3)

“Wow…it’s really cool…!” Kang Shin-hyuk was watching Claire make such a pure expression for the first time. Well, perhaps she had done the same when he first cosplayed as the Death Puppeteer, but he decided to ignore that.

“How is it?”

“The best.” She gave him a thumbs-up without hesitation. Kang Shin-hyuk was happy as he ran a hand over the shiny blue bike he had produced. It had a sleek seat large enough for two people to ride on. The front fender was sharp as if it could cut through anything it hit, and the two wheels made of rubber were made directly from Halo’s sap, glowing mysteriously. It was designed to be able to change directions with ease in mid-air.

-Koo.

“Quiet.”

-Quoo…

When Kang Shin-hyuk knocked on the bike, he heard a faint sound from somewhere inside as it vibrated gently, and the brilliant bead embedded in its steering wheel sparkled. It struck Claire as a valuable item ill-suited for a magic bike.

“The Shinfeng orb can be retrieved at any time. I was thinking of transforming the bike later into a weapon that could use the orb.”

“A blacksmith can do that?! I want to learn metallurgy now, not alchemy!”

“Not just a blacksmith, but a blacksmith the Hero Universe admitted.”

“I am also registered to the Hero Universe… I’m going to get upset.” His work this time around seemed to be motivating Claire. It didn’t have a transformation function yet, but Claire seemed excited at the idea of it. He quietly pulled up the status of his masterpiece as she examined it.

[Blue cow]

[SS-rank]

[Special Abilities-Lightning, Lightning Speed, Thunder God, New Wind]

*Lightning – Fires lightning at an enemy. When cast under the sky, its power doubles. This doubles again if it is raining.

*Lightning Speed ― By consuming spiritual power, you can move as fast as lightning.

*Thunder God ― A body forged by lightning. It ignores lightning strikes and will absorb external energy to recover itself. It becomes reinforced anytime it absorbs lightning.

*New Wind – Constantly produces power and can speed up using the wind. The power of lightning doubles the power of the wind.

[The form of a beast that threw itself into a lightning storm to protect God. As the years passed, it wandered through the world and found itself in the hands of those not worthy. The blacksmith who deals with spiritual power has renovated it in a ground-breaking way to add what was lacking, bringing it one step closer to its original ability and appearance. The ego began to grow once more.]

It seemed like it hadn’t changed much despite being turned into a bike from a cow. However, Kang Shin-hyuk was satisfied with the end product. His efforts could be praised just for not reducing its rank in the first place, yet he had even raised the rank from SS to SS+.

‘Although, that’s largely thanks to the Shinfeng orb.’ No matter how much Kang Shin-hyuk designed an awesome interior, it wouldn’t help if the power source that would move it was inadequate. However, using a power source that could support the blue cow’s lightning properties would allow the two artifacts to harmonize. Since they were both damaged, harmonizing the two would accelerate their restoration. With that, the bike’s ability would naturally increase. It was a wonderful piece of craftsmanship that couldn’t have been produced without Anvil’s knowledge.

“Did you finish registering?”

“Yeah, I have a superhuman driver’s license.” Despite their similar appearances, magic bikes required a special license to drive.

“So, when you ride a bike, you have to look like Shin Eun-hyuk.”

“Not if I don’t get caught.”

“There’s no way to catch and interrogate each person who drives a magic bike, I suppose.”

“There’s not a way to find them in the first place.”

“Then, let’s ride.” Today’s date was a bike drive in the sky. When Kang Shin-hyuk tapped his back seat, the corners of Claire’s lips raised up.

“You won’t be able to satisfy me without going fast.”

“Keep in mind you said that. Hold on tightly.”

“Where to?” A superhuman’s senses were different from those of ordinary people. Since their bodies were different, so too were their senses of balance, their vision, and their reflexes. For Claire, a top-ranking superhuman, going 200 kilometers per hour was like taking a gentle walk in the breeze. In the first place, she enjoyed riding magic bikes.

“Kyaaaaaaaah!”

“That’s why I told you!”

“Ohhhhh!” But even then, she couldn’t beat the blue cow.

“Aren’t you stepping on the gas too much?! This is too fast!”

“Noona, I haven’t even brought out its power yet.”

“What?!” Running purely on the power of the Shinfeng orb, it traveled at more than five hundred kilometers per hour. Yet even that didn’t bring out the limits of its power. Claire was stunned as she pondered about that, clinging to Kang Shin-hyuk’s waist.

“Was it a little scary?”

“Can you keep alert while moving this fast?”

“Absolutely.” Driving a bike at these speeds was extremely dangerous as the body was exposed to the elements. Even the enhanced body of a superhuman could be seriously injured in an accident at these speeds. Considering that there were times you might even need to fight on such a bike, going at a speed you couldn’t handle was tantamount to suicide.

“My agility is S-rank now.” In addition to that, Kang Shin-hyuk had his trait that would push his physical performance to the limit. With that unique skill giving him a sixth sense, it wasn’t difficult to control the bike. He could even perform all sorts of tricks with it. Halo, who had been dissatisfied watching Kang Shin-hyuk make the bike, let go of his disappointment upon seeing him ride the bike at full speed to the top of the tree.

“Since I can communicate with the bike through spiritual power, it’s more like moving my own body.”

“Uh…spiritual power is still difficult…”

“My noona is doing well too.” Claire had been working hard as a full-fledged bartender to train her spiritual power. In fact, when it came to making cocktails, she had excelled in using it.

“But I don’t really have that feeling…can you help? What do you think?”

“Uh, um…” It was natural when the two of them were riding the same bike, but he finally realized that the amount of contact her body was making with his was increasing. Kang Shin-hyuk wondered why, but today it felt like Claire was a bit more active than before. The relationship they had was good, but today it felt like the direction was subtly different. It was good, though.

“Well, I might be able to…”

“Hm?”

“Spiritual power is a source of communication.”

“Huh.”

“So, with my spiritual power, I could touch and activate your source, so that your spiritual power can be activated.”

“Hey.”

“Yeah?” Claire whispered in his ear, putting a little more strength in her grip.

“That sounds a little nasty.”

“Actually, I thought it was a bit too erotic as I was said it.”

“Did you think you shouldn’t, but said it anyway?”

“Because my noona asked… I’m sorry.”

“I can’t hide it.” Claire leaned her face on his back with a grin. She made her decision, lifting her head up.

“Not today, next time. Next time, understand?”

“…Yes.”

“I’m hungry, let’s go eat chicken.”

“Okay.” In the end, the two ate at a chicken restaurant that was popular on Jeju Island before returning.

***

“So, there’s a rumor…” The next day, the internet was abuzz with news of Kang Shin-hyuk and Claire’s nighttime date that had been captured on photo. Although thankfully, people were claiming that it was Shin Eun-hyuk. Kang Shin-hyuk’s face wasn’t properly photographed, so no connections were made. He pledged to cover his face when riding in the future.

“The reason you said no yesterday was because of the date, no?”

“Well, right…are you in a bad mood?”

“No.” Lee Na-hee glanced at the image of the two on her phone in the club room after school.

“I thought my unnie was in the lead.”

“Was there such a good relationship between you two?”

“You could say something like that because our relationship has improved a lot.” Since working together during the previous incident, Lee Na-hee had begun to communicate personally with Claire. That also seemed to be the case with Eleanor. Kang Shin-hyuk had his suspicions that the three were in cahoots.

“You said you’re working as a bartender at her bar, right?”

“That’s a secret.”

“Will you make me a drink later?”

“It’s banned for all minors.”

“But you work there.”

Only

“Okay, if you go, you can have something non-alcoholic.”

“Alright.”

“But be careful. On the days I work, there is almost a 100% chance Eunah will show up.”

“…That person? Wait…” Lee Na-hee produced the picture once more.

“What happens if she sees this? Will you die?”

“Maybe, so I’ll prepare myself. Help me.”

“Oh, yes.” Lee Na-hee inadvertently responded sincerely at Kang Shin-hyuk’s seriousness. But that evening, despite preparations, Shin Eunah did not appear to pursue Kang Shin-hyuk. He was thrilled with her growth, though Claire and Lee Na-hee, who had arrived in a mask, were trembling.

Kang Shin-hyuk once again felt alienated, but he knew his life would be flipped the moment he asked. So he quietly worked on making cocktails.