Chapter 12: Episode 12 – A Clone’s Limit, A Human’s Dream

Chapter 12: Episode 12 – A Clone’s Limit, A Human’s Dream Episode 12 – A Clone’s Limit, A Human’s Dream It was a low, lazy sun outside, and the cramped windows of the apartment were tinted warm orange. The light filtered in through thin curtains, falling over piles of instant ramen wrappers, sweat-soaked gym clothes, and the single futon that marked Kim Do-hyun’s (김도현) tiny kingdom. He threw off his shoes and closed the door behind him with the heel of his foot, a heavy sigh coming between his lips. Home again. His back was sore, his calves were on fire, and his neck was chewed up by a very bad-tempered gorilla. But all that did not appear on his face. "I swear... If I don’t get a reward for this grind, I’m gonna start charging the clone rent," he muttered, voice dry as sand. Yet something was... wrong. The flat was silent. A little too silent. He looked across at the little corner table where the clone folded its work clothes. Nothing. No sign. Still gone? "Seriously?" Do-hyun rubbed his hair that was now a bit greasy and took out his phone. It was his principal one the good phone. Sleek. Clean. It is used primarily to make calls, sometimes to text, and swipe through forums on Awakeners and Hunter statistics. The clone had his old gaming phone. That was a scratched black rectangle with a broken screen and a home button that would only work when you pressed it with the bone of your thumb. Unluckily, that meant he did not know what the clone was up to now. Yeah, sure, he could tell it what to do in his mind, but it was not like sending a text message or having a decent conversation. It was more like telling your dog, "sit," and hoping it didn’t go eat the neighbor’s socks instead. "I need something better," he muttered and dropped his bag onto the floor. His fingers opened up the browser automatically, muscle memory guiding him to a site bookmarked under "Hunter Marketplace." [Global Awakener Net | Premium Licensed Skills] A dazzling page full of scrolls, techniques, enhancement tools, and gear popped up. Icons shimmered with digital light, each one promising power, knowledge, or wealth. Do-hyun scrolled through the rows lazily, half out of curiosity and half out of despair. There it was. [Skill: Shared Sight] Allows the summoner to view the world through the eyes of their summoned creature. Permanent link. Cooldown: none. Price: ₩100,000,000 He nearly choked on air. "One hundred million won? What kind of scam... That’s more than an apartment downtown!" he barked, clutching his chest in exaggerated pain. Scrolling further, he found another skill that made his stomach tighten. [Skill: Telepathy Link] Enables long-distance communication with summoned creatures. True interaction. Not just orders — conversation. Price: ₩400,000,000 Do-hyun stared blankly at the screen. It might as well have said sold exclusively to gods and billionaires. Because in his bank account? He had a proud, heroic balance of... ₩533,000. "Not even enough for one-tenth of a skill scroll’s tax fee," he mumbled. He slumped onto his mattress. The springs groaned in protest, much like his soul. "I should’ve been born as a chaebol," he sighed, hands over his face. But then, like a whisper in the wind or the divine calling of ramen, something clicked. He opened his eyes. "Wait... Am I being dumb?" He sat up, eyes wide with a glint of fresh obsession. "Why am I wasting my clones doing hard labor like some peasant? I’ve got a literal second body! Manual labor’s not the move... If I’m gonna live twice, then I need to think bigger." He turned, opened the status app, and stared at the numbers. The clone was giving him gains. His physical body was improving every day because the clone never stopped training. Muscle fiber tore and rebuilt. Stamina climbed. Reflexes ticked upward. He was transforming, bit by bit. "But a clone lifting boxes won’t make me rich," he muttered. His gaze drifted back to the scroll shop, then to the news feed flashing on the homepage. [Top Ranker Buys $3 Million Villa in Seoul Hillside] [Another S-Rank Awakens in Daegu — Real Estate Surges Nearby] [Hunter Agencies Compete for Young Talent] The world was obsessed with Awakeners. Why wouldn’t they be? These people could summon flames from their hands, crush concrete with a punch, or disappear into thin air. Some could fly. Others could heal wounds with a touch. They were walking miracles. Do-hyun blinked as another headline appeared. [C-Rank Hunter Earns Over ₩800,000,000 in a Year] His mouth fell open slightly. C-rank. Not even A or S. Just... average. And yet... "Eight hundred million?" He fell back onto the futon like he had been sniped. He stared at the ceiling, barely breathing. A crack in the plaster curved like a smile above him, mocking him. "I’ve been living like a medieval farmer... when I could’ve been an alchemist," he whispered. "No... Better. A hunter." The word tasted strange and electric on his tongue. Hunter. He had thought about it once. Like everyone else. Back when he was fat and shy and afraid to even talk to cashiers. He told himself the Hunter life was a fantasy. A life for hotshot kids born with rich parents, strong genes, and natural magic. But now? He had changed. His body was leaner. His eyes were sharper. His mind... more dangerous. He stood up and walked over to the mirror. His reflection stared back. Still soft around the edges, but tighter. Clearer. Something beneath the surface was shifting, like magma preparing to explode. His clone had already been training. Every day, every night. Do-hyun took a deep breath. "I’m gonna become a Hunter," he said out loud. And the moment the words left his lips, his whole body felt warm. Not just heat. Alive. Electric. He gasped. A tiny buzz echoed in his ears, like the sound of paper being torn apart in the wind. And then, something deeper bloomed inside him — like a candle being lit in a cold, dark tunnel. [System Notification — Stat Unlocked] [Vitality: 0.1] Do-hyun stared at the pop-up with wide eyes. His hand trembled, the same one that had trained, typed, written, fought, and smacked the alarm clock every morning. He held it up and felt... the change. A light tingling sensation coursed through his skin. Not pain. Not exactly comfort either. Just awareness. His wounds didn’t instantly vanish. No cut magically disappeared. But the ache in his shoulder dulled. The burn in his thighs faded ever so slightly. Vitality. This was the foundation. The root of endurance. The breath of regeneration. The difference between surviving and collapsing. He opened the full status screen with a single thought. [Awakener Status Window] Name: Kim Do-hyun (김도현) Strength: 0.10 Reflexes: 0.103 Stamina: 0.945 Endurance: 0.813 Magic: 0.146 Vitality: 0.1 (Newly Unlocked) Vitality... the core of self-repair. He remembered reading about it. A rare stat. Hidden in most people unless awakened. Once it grew, it allowed users to heal faster, resist fatigue, endure poisons, and sometimes... regenerate lost limbs. He grinned slowly. "This... is the beginning." The clone might have been training harder than him, eating more, and carrying boxes like a one-man machine, but he was the original. The main body. The mind behind the machine. ???? SYSTEM ALERT: Clone Support Needed! Ever dreamed of doing nothing while your clone builds your empire? Good. That’s exactly how I run things here. But even clones need energy — and guess what fuels them? Your support. ???? Golden ticket ???? Vote ???? Gift ???? Unlock Privileges ???? Drop a comment Every click powers the system. Every tap births a new clone. Help me build a world where you chill, and we grind. — Little LYTA (Clone #47 out)