Michail grew stronger through stimulation.

That’s what the novel described.

-Michail, as a child, happened to encounter a goblin in the mountains and faced the threat of death. In that moment, with a burning stimulus in his heart, Michail awakened his talent for swordsmanship.

That must have been how it was written in the novel.

And it probably would have been written like this in the Affinity Quest as well.

[Q. Michail Needs Stimulation]

Michail, whose skills were developing rapidly, had no worthy opponents left and started becoming complacent.

Provoke Michail in front of everyone.
Defeat Michail in an unknown location (1/1)
Lose to Michail in a ‘counter-duel’ (1/1)
Rewards: All stats +5, Swordsmanship Lv. 4
Michail’s reward: Swordsmanship Lv. 3

If failed: All stats –10 decrease

I am confident that I can make anyone grow faster than anyone else, provided I am aware of the quest involving them.

Instead of swinging my sword aimlessly, I have seen with my own eyes that by providing stimulation alongside the keywords given by a quest, they can grow faster even without rewards.

That’s what Ruin did. He grew insanely fast when given a little pressure.

Ruin grew from defeat, Michail from stimulation. The female protagonist had quests related to harassment.

The quests which appeared were fresh due to their perverse tastes, but one thing was certain about their effect.

I diligently carried out the quests. I couldn’t pass on freebies.

By the later parts of the novel, the protagonists were meant to grow into a saint, a hero, and a great magician saving the world, so growing them early wasn’t a bad thing.

I tormented the protagonists with fervor. To them, I must have seemed like a relentless brawler, but to me, I considered it moving towards world peace. Isn’t that moving? Or is it not?

Ultimately, people can grow if you touch upon what they lack.

They can break through walls that had stalled them and even experience the miracle of reaching new heights instantly.

It’s like those martial arts novels.

Even the main character, after being obliterated by the villain, would go ‘Hmm… Was I an idiot?’ and after secluded training, would gain enlightenment and reach the realms of Huagyong or Hyungyong.

That’s the kind of feeling an Affinity Quest gives.

Like how it feels incredibly relieving to scratch an unreachable itch, providing what they were unaware of lacking or needed stimulation helps fix their deficiencies, allowing them to grow stronger quickly. That was the power of the Affinity Quests I had.

-A quest has occurred.

It’s been a while since I’ve heard the notification sound.

It felt like a year since I last saw it.

[Q. The Short-Lived Fate of the Unfortunate Extra ‘Hanna’]

Ignored by her father and the servants, she always resented her pathetic talent.

She is thirsty for praise.

With the new semester just around the corner, Hanna takes on a quest above her level to improve quickly and gets killed by an ‘Elite Orc Swordsman’.

If only there were continuous praise, she could have realized her power and not just surpassed becoming a Knight Commander but even aim for the position of the empire’s greatest swordsman.

(!) Please help her become strong on her own.

Give her ego-boosting praise. (0/10)
Achieve an ‘Affinity of 40’ or higher. [Affinity: -10]
Defeat the ‘Elite Orc Swordsman’. (0/1)
Rewards: Swordsmanship Lv. 6, Strength +3 increase
Hanna: Swordsmanship Lv. 4, Beginner Aura (C)

If failed: Histania Hanna dies.

‘I have to do it.’

It wasn’t just the money that prompted me to propose this. It was the part that she was going to die that moved my heart. Even though I loved money and hated being bothered, I wasn’t cruel enough to ignore the future of someone’s death.

Of course, the money was the biggest reason.

I wanted to help her.
I didn’t know much about her past, but I could tell from the brief text that she hadn’t had an easy life.

Histania Hanna.

She wasn’t a character that appeared in the novel. They said because she died.

That made me feel even worse.

Unaware of my conflicted feelings, Hanna looked at me as if I were ridiculous.

“What did you say? What are you going to do for me?”

It seemed unbelievable that I would help her beat the strongest second-year student. Perhaps she was overcome with disbelief.

By the look on her face, that didn’t seem to be the case.

“How am I supposed to beat senior Michail?”

Hanna chuckled bitterly.

It seems she mistook my offer as a joke. I reassured her with sincerity.

“It’s possible.”

Michail has not yet awakened his aura, so there is still time before he does.

Michail awakens his aura in the second semester, during the episode where the female protagonist is kidnapped. That’s when he becomes a monster.

Until then, Michail is just a student slightly better at swordplay.

It’s enough to compete with swords.
With a bit of luck, you could even win.

Of course, Michail is already an exceptional swordsman with innate talent and combative sense, but before awakening his aura, he’s easier to deal with.

Once Michail awakens his aura, he becomes a monster.

That was the gist of what I meant. Michail without an awakened aura is definitely worth challenging.

If you think of him as just a student who’s a bit better with swords, you can move one step closer.

Right now, Michail’s swordsmanship is around level 3. Once Hanna reaches level 4, the birth of a saint will be witnessed.

Hanna, oblivious to my thoughts, gave me a look of pity.

She was dumbfounded.

“Excuse me, butler.”
“Yes?”

Hanna, with an incredulous look, as if seeing an invasive species disrupting the ecosystem, telling me what do I know.

“Are you aware of a joke that even our first years wouldn’t say?”
“What is it?”
“It’s saying that they would beat senior Michail”
“Ah, ha!”

As I snickered insidiously, a crinkle formed on Hanna’s expression. She didn’t like that I laughed.

“Why are you laughing?”
“It’s just humorous.”

She sighed…

Before her mood soured further, I asked her why.

“Back then, they smashed heads without care for who was a senior and who wasn’t.”
“That was because you had senior Michail in your grade year.”
“Even so, I confronted Michail.”

Hanna suddenly became silent.
It was as if she was looking at a real madman.
As the conversation seemed to go nowhere, with Hanna mumbling to herself that Michail is so strong, I let out a small laugh.

“So what about it?”
“What?”
“Do you think Michail is stronger than me?”

I asked her a fundamental question.

Hanna twitched her eyebrows.
Upon reflection, it seemed to make sense.
At some point, her gaze fixed on my sword.

If I were to fight Michail now…
I’m confident I can finish him quicker than Ruin did.

I teased Hanna with a grave voice.

“Do you think Michail could subdue Ruin like I did?”

No response.

Hanna bit her lips tightly, looking at my confident eyes. Maybe she thought Michail would probably lose to me. I probed her once more.

“Have you ever thought… there’s no way I can beat this person when you looked at Michail?”
“Yes.”

I preempted her response.

“Probably not. You must have thought that you’d like to become like Michail. Because it seemed within reach.”

Hanna seemed struck by a sudden revelation, having never even thought of challenging him.

The straightforward words left Hanna at a loss for words.

Hanna murmured to herself.

“Can I beat Michail, senior?”

She shook her head from side to side, chastising herself for being presumptuous.

As a final nail, I scanned the surroundings. There was no one in sight.

I reached out to Hanna. The red aura, just like I had seen before, rose like a heat haze.

“Do you not believe it?”

Hanna couldn’t take her eyes off of it.
The red aura seemed to reignite a passion that had been extinguished.

“Even if you don’t do it, it couldn’t be worse, right? If it doesn’t work, just think you’ve been scammed.”

“No. But it’s something impossible, isn’t it? How could I possibly think of defeating Michail, senior…”

“If you don’t try, wouldn’t that be regretful? As a swordsman, it’s quite embarrassing to give up without even trying.”

Hanna pondered deeply.

I gently pressed the seizure button that everyone reacts to.

“Are you scared?”

I want her to become my source of income.

***

“Amazing, Miss Hanna!”

Hanna looked at me with a blush on her face.

Apparently, being loudly praised by me loud enough for all the monsters in the mountains to hear was embarrassing for her.

This made me want to tease her even more.

“Wow! To have caught one already—could this be a record time?”

“No…!”

It’s been seven days now.

She decided to play along with my words, thinking she had nothing to lose.

But she added one more condition.

-“Let’s make it fifty-fifty. But how about this?”
-“What’s that?”
-“Well, if by some chance I manage to beat senior Michail at the school ranking tournament after the school reopens, I will give you all the allowance I receive.”
-“Really?”
-“Yes, ten thousand gold a month. That’s what I get. But if I lose, then you need to grant me a wish.”

Upon hearing her proposal, I thought to myself that I had struck gold.

It’s not like she will be at a loss.
After all, she would gain the title and confidence of having defeated Michail.

However, it seems she still doesn’t trust me all that much.

She hasn’t yet gained remarkable strength or been taught great swordsmanship techniques.

So far, my  wallet has been more precious.

Of course, I didn’t forget to give praise.

Hanna has been faithfully handing over half of her earnings to me.

As I slay an approaching orc’s head, I shout.

“Wow! Ten gold!”

The falling head of the orc.
I felt my  wallet getting healthier.
After having filled it with shillings for a while, I felt good thinking that I could fill it with golden coins for the first time in a while.

One gold per orc head.
Ten so far.
If I just work hard, I’ll quickly reach a hundred gold.

Hanna shook her head in disbelief as she watched me dissect orc heads like a madman.

I smiled faintly at her.

“Oh…! Now you’ve caught two! Incredible.”
“Ah, yeah.”
“Just try to catch three more.”

Hanna counts the orc heads she’s caught. They’re exactly five times less than the number I’ve caught.

Driven by an unnecessary sense of rivalry, she swings her sword even more fiercely.

‘She’s working hard.’

That’s how she encountered the Elite Orc.
I thought to myself, looking at her. She was a woman truly serious about swordsmanship. I thought she disliked swordsmanship when I first saw her Affinity window.

But she loved swordsmanship more than anyone.

That’s the feeling.

Like someone who had studied hard but was disappointed by not achieving the grades expected and thus hated even talking about their academic performance.

Her sword didn’t rely on luck.

Was it due to consistent practice or something else? She seemed impeccable in the mental aspect.

But there appeared to be gaps in her technical abilities.

As the number of orc heads diminished, I gathered strength at my fingertips.

A red aura enveloped the tip of my sword like a heat haze.

With a resounding boom, the red sword energy lashed out, and I brushed my sword off upon confirming the orc that ran in the distance had fallen.

She looked at me bewilderedly.

“How is that possible?”

Hanna, who was hydrating with water.
She had long since spat out the water she had been holding in her mouth.

I looked at her with an expression as if it was effortless and told her.

“I did it, so it worked.”
“You’re insane.”

She saw me as a monster.

Hanna fell to the ground with a thud.

She seemed to be exhausted.
I quietly sat down next to her.

“You’ve worked hard.”
“You’ve worked harder.”
“I know.”

The sun was setting.
It was about time for the lady to start heading back.
I spoke gently, ensuring she could hear me.

“Today, there was a lot of tension in your shoulders.”
“Is that so? I thought I had relaxed quite a bit.”

Hanna nodded slightly.
She didn’t argue.

“Your lower body movements are too big.”
“That’s because my lower body is big…”

I nodded quietly.
She is indeed broad-hipped.

“Don’t get any weird ideas.”
“I’m not.”

I continued to give her more feedback.
Her waist was too stiff.
Her movements were too straightforward. Especially.

“You seem to be trying too hard to imitate Michail.”

“Still… Is that so? You’re impressive.”

I shrugged my shoulders.

“I have an eye for detail.”

Excessive modesty can be offensive to others. I elevated myself since I knew I was good at what I did.

[Hanna’s affinity has increased by +1.]

I’ve raised her Affinity quite a bit in a week.
I felt proud of the results of my efforts.

The cool breeze caressed my hair. Indeed, the wind at quitting time is refreshingly pleasant.

Of course, Hanna’s eyes were red with fatigue, but I was fine, so it’s all good.

It’s almost time to leave.
I should buy some chocolate on the way home. The lady has been singing about it for a week, and it’s scary to think I might reincarnate into chocolate, so I should bring some.

To wrap up the day, I spoke to Hanna.
The words will surely be more helpful to her than any mediocre feedback.

I carefully placed my hand on her head as she lay sprawled on the ground.

“Well done.”
“Huh?”

Hanna opened her eyes wide in surprise.

“You did really well today. I’m praising you.”
“Why are you telling that to me…”

Praise was what she was thirsty for.
I didn’t know much about how Hanna had lived until now. Whether she was ignored or lived happily, I didn’t want to know and didn’t know either.

What I did know was that Hanna’s expression upon hearing praise was incredibly awkward.

With an unsure look on her face about what expression to make, Hanna looked up at me.

It seemed that she was not used to receiving praise after all.

Hanna looked at me with a strange expression.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Do you dislike my hand?”
“No, it feels good, actually.”
“I haven’t washed my hand since I pulled out the orc’s tooth…”
“Ah…!”
“I’m kidding.”

Hanna grinned.
It seems she enjoys the commoners’ jests.

As Hanna springs to her feet with a shout, her rascally nature is evident

“What’s the butler’s name?”
“Why do you ask?”
“I was just curious. I don’t think we’ve formally introduced ourselves yet.”

Right.

I nodded my head slightly and bowed courteously.

“My name is Ricardo.”
“Oh… That’s an impressive name.”
“I know.”

Hanna, with light steps, collected orc teeth.

I watched her affection meter as she worked, taking time out to avoid getting lazy.

[Histania Hanna Lv. 28]
[Occupation: Royal Academy Student]
[Affinity: 11]
[Favorite conversation topic: Compliments about swordsmanship]
[Least favorite conversation topic: School reopening]

Like any college student caught up in the same worries, Hanna’s affinity window looked promising.

It was clear she would grow fast.