Unable to repay my student loans, I had no choice but to work part-time as a demon hunter.

The Relief Day holiday passed by day by day in Gordon’s studies, training and investigations.

Eight hours of studying, eight hours of practicing the essence of nature, and eight hours of sleeping—it's a very fulfilling day.

He read all four classics and took countless notes. He would also occasionally correspond with Eve Grant to continue their discussions about the Blackwater River.

Then, it was late April, the first day of school, early morning.

No. 9 Knight Road.

"Phew..." Gordon stood in the center of the living room, inspecting the results of his vacation.

Force field, release!

Two weeks ago, he had to concentrate to unleash his full power.

Now, it only takes one thought.

Invisible lines of perception spread out, silently passing through the walls and floors.

Thirty meters.

This is the limit without the aid of a cane.

In Lundnim, the floors of ordinary residential buildings are 2 to 3 meters high. In other words, if Gordon were standing on the 10th floor, he could sense what the people on the 1st floor were having for dinner.

If you're on the street, you can scan the information of the entire building across the street.

If the enemy gets within five meters, he can even predict their movements.

  

He officially named this ability "listening to strings".

Downstairs, the Hopkins Dental Clinic was already open, and a gentleman who had gotten a tooth pulled early was lying in a leather chair.

"This tooth needs to be pulled, sir. I'll count to three."

"Okay, okay..."

"one."

"Aaaaaah!" The scream pierced through the ceiling, creating magnificent ripples in Gordon's sensory field.

In that instant, Gordon sensed that the gentleman's muscles were twitching.

"...Didn't we agree to count to three? Where are two and three?" the gentleman said indignantly.

"You'll need it when you remove the other two."

Gordon shrugged; although he was upstairs, he could sense everything clearly.

The second kind of power is...

"Recognizing the strings".

If Gordon knows there is a clear connection between two things, and one end is within 100 meters, he can see a line pointing to the target. If the target is more than 100 meters away, he can only see a blurry line.

As long as the connection exists, Gordon is not afraid of others hiding.

From now on, whether it's lost items, kidnappings, or someone trying to escape, Gordon can reliably track them down.

To test it, he picked up the wind-up bird that Vera had won at the charity sale.

It crashed into the wall and exploded once. Vera picked it up, disassembled it, reassembled it, and put it back in its original place as if nothing had happened.

Now the wind-up bird can only fly backwards, but she won't let Gordon throw it away.

[Wind-up Bird. Back off four times!]

Gordon held it in his palm.

A faint silver line pierced through the wall, pointing outwards, and slowly deflected following a moving target.

Vera is back.

"He's heading home, his pace is steady." Gordon sensed silently. "His mood... I can't feel it. He's walking faster and faster, probably because he's hungry."

Gordon put down the bird, then picked up the Blackthorn Plum cane and tapped the ground.

The vibrations spread and returned, forming an incredibly clear model in Gordon's mind.

The thickness of the walls, the appearance of the furniture, the amount of food left in the cabinets... even the shape of the two remaining bad teeth in the gentleman's mouth downstairs was clearly visible.

Your walking stick. Let the world answer!

This thing can spread out the force field and amplify the feedback.

No matter if it's an unfamiliar building, a dark alley, or even a sewer, Gordon can create a mental model of the surroundings with just one tap.

The effective radius is approximately 100 meters.

Gordon nodded in satisfaction.

This is the main result of his holiday training: he has a clearer understanding of his own abilities.

also……

There's another surprise.

Gordon discovered this morning that he was able to manifest the "Unbroken String".

Based on his research on books and his own analysis, he believes that the source of matter may be divided into concrete and abstract forms.

Vera's "biting fate" is not easily fully manifested; she cannot simply take fate out, put it on the table, and take a couple of bites.

Gordon's "Unbroken String," however, is different; it is, in fact, a single string.

He focused his attention, and a silver thread extended from his fingertip. With his will, it condensed and lengthened, becoming a translucent thin thread that floated in the air with Gordon's thoughts.

Gordon placed it at one end and then tested the length.

It can be extended to about 2.5 meters, and its toughness and elasticity seem to be top-notch.

The doorknob turned, and Vera went home.

Gordon retrieved the thin line.

"You're back?" Gordon welcomed him.

"Aww." Vera nodded.

She had stayed up all night to ambush and kill a five-meter-long crocodile demon. She was a little tired, but her expression was very calm, just as if she had only gone out for a walk the night before.

After two weeks of recuperation, Gordon's condition has improved significantly.

Her wounds healed, her sleep stabilized, and her overeating subsided. But Gordon wouldn't let her stay cooped up at home all the time, lest she develop new health problems, so she would go out and elbow the monsters as well.

Sometimes it's patrolling, killing a few wet-footed men. Sometimes it's hunting, like today, bringing back a simple commission.

"What is it this time?"

"The Saw-Kid Demon".

"Lendnheim does not normally produce crocodiles."

"It seems like we import too much stuff from overseas," Vera said. "I only found out by looking at the catalog."

As the capital of the world empire, Lundnium's port unloads countless spices, rubber, and sugar every day, and occasionally strange demons crawl out of the boxes to establish their own habitats.

Vera walked to the table and stuffed four gold pounds into the small iron box containing household expenses.

A shared money box. It helps create a comfortable living environment for two.

This was Vera's idea.

She found it troublesome to keep track of how much she ate and spent. The more meticulously money was calculated, the more the relationships between people became strained.

Who ate whose bread, who used whose towel, and even who will sleep in which bed in the future... Do we really have to sort these things out one by one?

Let's just calculate it all together.

From then on, there was no longer any "his money" or "her money." It was both of their money.

"So much. Looks like you've cleaned it up completely." Gordon said, looking at the money.

"Yes." Vera nodded in satisfaction.

This is how hunting is done today.

She first learned what the alien demons they were fighting were, then researched with Gordon how much each part of the monster was worth, and finally hunted, butchered, and even sold them herself, without letting middlemen profit from the difference.

After a busy night, the reward was one gold pound, the crocodile skin two gold pounds, the abnormal gland eight silver pounds, the tail meat three silver pounds, and the rest added up to eighteen silver pounds. After deducting some losses, the net profit was four gold pounds.

In the past, the reward would have ended after the words "one gold pound".

You have to use your own brain for everything; it's novel, but very useful.

If I had met Gordon sooner, life might have gotten better much faster. Vera would sometimes think that way. But the thought would vanish as soon as it came to her mind.

Let bygones be bygones.

"I've learned a new ability, and I don't know its limits yet. Shall we team up?" Gordon flicked his wrist, and a line appeared.

"How can we cooperate?"

"Stand still," Gordon said.

As soon as she finished speaking, Vera stood still, neither asking questions nor expressing any doubt.

This collaboration inexplicably made Gordon feel a little tempted.

"..." Gordon walked to Vera's side and released a silver thread, which wrapped around Vera's wrist.

Vera felt it; the lines were very thin and weightless, feeling like a cool strand of hair against her skin.

"this one?"

"Don't rush." ​​Gordon beckoned with his finger.

The silver thread tightened, pulling Vera's left hand backward.

She was stunned for a moment, and then realized that it had also wrapped around her right hand. She tried to struggle, but the silver thread tightened more and more, wrapping around and converging.

In the blink of an eye, her hands were pulled behind her back, her wrists intertwined, and a fine thread tied into a beautiful and secure knot.

"Huh?"

By the time Vera realized what had happened, it was too late.

Until just now, she thought Gordon was joking with her.

She had been taught escape techniques at the hunter school, so she relaxed her joints and changed the angle of her hands, but she still couldn't break free.

Gordon sensed the changes in her muscles and anticipated how she would try to take advantage of the situation, constantly adjusting the pressure of the line.

"!" Vera had no choice but to fight back.

She tensed her muscles and exerted a little force, causing the silver thread to tremble violently.

It was so slender, yet it did not break.

Gordon's heart skipped a beat.

I'm trapped!

What kind of usage is this?

Is that something called "entanglement"?

Vera's strength far exceeded that of ordinary people, but the string itself was flexible, and with Gordon's constant adjustments and the knot tied professionally, it managed to catch her.

With her hands behind her back, she stretched her body backward, making her curves even more pronounced.

Vera clearly sensed that the current position was somewhat strange, but she didn't know how to describe it.

Finally, she looked up at Gordon.

His expression was subtle; though he was trapped, he seemed to have a slight excitement, like a hunter who had discovered a completely new trap.

"Interesting," Vera said.

"Did you think you could just tear it off?"

"That was true at first. But now it seems it will take some effort."

"Do you have any other ways to get out of this situation?"

"have?"

"What method?"

"..." Vera half-squatted down, looked up at Gordon, and said weakly, "...Dr. Gordon, could you please help me untie this?"

Crit!

His heart skipped a beat when he heard Vera speak in such a weak tone for the first time.

Seemingly sensing the user's shock, even the thin thread itself trembled slightly.

Vera could certainly sense it.

She had only intended to imitate Charlotte's tone, but the effect was unexpectedly remarkable.

Neither of them spoke.

I was simply sensing the subtle atmosphere.

Just then...

"Two." Dr. Hopkins' voice came from under the floorboards.

"Aaaaaahh ...

The screams shattered the balance.

"Untie it for you." Gordon raised his hand, and in the instant his mind changed, the silver thread loosened and returned to Gordon's hand.

"..." Vera straightened up and turned her gaze slightly away.

The two of them each took half a step back.

Gordon sat down in the chair and continued to fiddle with the thread in his hand.

In retrospect, this thread has indeed proven to have many ingenious uses.

Of course, if Vera is determined to break free, there will definitely be a way.

Because Gordon needs mental energy to maintain this line, and she can forcibly use source energy.

However, battles between ability users are ever-changing, and the upper limit of control abilities is very high, sometimes able to turn the tide of battle in an instant.

In any case, Gordon has gained another real means of combat.