Blood Demon of the Past Life – Chapter 119

Chapter 119: Preparation （2）

Yeon Woo-bin blinked.

He checked again several times in disbelief, but the Salamanders flying around Kang San were still clearly visible. They looked like flames shaped into the form of ‘lizards’. Their wide mouths, split in a playful grin, somehow made it seem like the creatures were enjoying this situation.

It was unfamiliar.

At the same time, it was familiar.

As he fumbled through his memories, Yeon Woo-bin felt like he had experienced a similar situation before.

It was after he lost his mother.

His father had been protective of Yeon Woo-bin, sparing no expense in supporting him, but due to the excessive protection, he often spent time alone. The ordinary life of playing with other kids in the playground was not allowed for Yeon Woo-bin. It was a lonely time. Perhaps feeling sorry for him, his father took him to a new home one day, saying they were moving.

It was a really spacious house.

To be precise, it was within a huge fence, with a vast green area that was more like a park than a garden.

It was nice.

It was a space where Yeon Woo-bin could run around to his heart’s content, and when he collapsed after excitedly kicking a ball around by himself, the gentle breeze would cool his sweat. Yeon Woo-bin would stare blankly at the sky then. Leaves from the branches that slightly obscured his vision would dance in the wind as they flew towards him. It was a happy memory. It was one of the few precious memories from his childhood, and somehow, looking at the Salamanders, he felt that then and now were similar. Now, they had a distinct form as if proving that they were ‘living creatures’, but thinking about it carefully, the feeling they gave him was no different from back then.

Unfamiliar yet familiar.

And a cozy feeling he didn’t want to reject.

This was no coincidence.

Even though Yeon Woo-bin hadn’t realized it himself, the existence of spirits had been with him from childhood until now.

‘It wasn’t a coincidence that I got Elemental Bless from my Congenital Awakening.’

He reached out his hand.

The Salamander recognized Yeon Woo-bin’s presence.

At the same time, the moment Yeon Woo-bin activated his mana.

Fwoosh.

The flames that started from the Salamander engulfed Yeon Woo-bin’s entire being.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

The world has changed.

I regained consciousness in a lush forest, having previously been in a workshop radiating intense heat.

I looked up at the sky.

Towering trees, so tall they made me question if such trees existed in reality, densely filled the sky. The sunlight filtering through them felt almost sacred. ‘I’ moved from that spot, the plants tickling my skin through the gaps in my woven bark shoes. As I looked around, I saw clusters of light, like fireflies, gathering around me even though it wasn’t nighttime yet.

Sizzle.

It was beautiful.

I raised my hand and caressed them, the light dancing between my long, white fingers.

Perhaps that sight sparked my curiosity.

Clip-clop.

A deer leaped towards me from afar.

The deer nudged its head forward as if asking to be petted, and when my hand stroked its head, it let out a happy cry as if it had won the world. The deer wasn’t the only creature to approach. Squirrels, rabbits, wolves, bears, and even chirping birds came to me. Carnivores and herbivores alike gathered, forgetting their place in the food chain as they spent a peaceful time around me.

Then it happened.

Whoosh.

Flames erupted.

Peeking out from behind a rock, it slowly crept towards me on its cute four legs.

It had the form of a lizard.

Blazing red flames.

Unlike the other creatures, the Salamander seemed slightly wary.

It watched from a distance, taking a step closer when I briefly showed interest in the deer, and another when I wasn’t looking. Before I knew it, the Salamander was right in front of me, nudging its head forward as if asking to be petted, just like the deer. Surprisingly, the other creatures didn’t avoid the Salamander. Its blazing appearance clearly resembled hot flames, but none of the creatures seemed to feel the heat.

I reached out my hand.

As I stroked the Salamander, it plopped down on my lap and made a pleasant sound.

Purr.

I laughed.

I couldn’t see my own face, but I felt the corners of my mouth lift into a wide smile.

As I continued to pet the Salamander, I spoke.

“Will you come with me?”

Purr.

The Salamander rubbed its face against me.

I knew it was a sign of agreement.

At that moment.

『Inheriting the contract with the Salamander.』

I.

No, Yeon Woo-bin heard an unfamiliar voice.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

A little while ago.

Jeong Chan-woo was startled.

Seeing the flames engulf Yeon Woo-bin, he hurriedly tried to put out the fire.

If Kang San hadn’t stopped him, that is.

“It’s okay.”

“Huh? What do you mean it’s okay? Right now…”

“Woo-bin’s face looks relaxed. And the flames aren’t hot.”

It was certainly strange.

At first, it seemed like an accident, but looking closely, Yeon Woo-bin had a calm expression while engulfed in flames. It was a situation that couldn’t be understood logically. But for people living in a world where monsters appeared in reality, a fantasy-like world, nothing was illogical, no matter what happened.

They stopped working for a while.

They took a breather and watched until the strange phenomenon happening to Yeon Woo-bin ended.

The wait wasn’t long.

The flames died down, and Yeon Woo-bin slowly opened his eyes.

“…Ah.”

“Woo-bin, are you okay?”

“I think so.”

Jo Han-byeol ran over and checked him all over.

Fortunately, there were no injuries.

Considering the size of the flames that were blazing, he should have been burned or even dead, but Yeon Woo-bin didn’t have a single hair scorched. It was a strange situation. Representing everyone, Kang San asked the question on their minds.

“What in the world happened?”

“I don’t really know. I felt a familiar yet strange feeling, and then I had a weird dream that I’ve never experienced before. Honestly, I’m not even sure if it was a dream or some kind of real experience, but I heard a strange voice saying that I was inheriting a contract with a Salamander in that place… Wait a minute.”

He hurriedly opened his skill window.

Contract with a Salamander.

That skill was there.

Yeon Woo-bin looked surprised, then immediately activated the skill.

“Summon Salamander.”

Fwoosh.

Fwoosh.

Flames erupted.

The Salamander, which only Yeon Woo-bin could see until a moment ago, appeared in the same form he had witnessed in his dream and flew around in the sky. Then it landed on Yeon Woo-bin’s shoulder. It purred and rubbed its face against Yeon Woo-bin’s, just like it had done in his dream.

“…Somehow, this is what happened.”

This situation.

Even Yeon Woo-bin couldn’t explain it.

Seeing him smile awkwardly, Kang San thought that the way Yeon Woo-bin acquired the skill was similar to his own.

‘Did he experience a past life like me?’

According to Yeon Woo-bin’s explanation, he had a strange dream he had never experienced before and then gained the skill to summon a Salamander. It was the same for Kang San. Whenever memories of his past life suddenly came back, he often received rewards like skills. But thinking about it carefully, he felt that it was completely different. Kang San had recognized his past life and received trials and rewards under the clear framework of Azmoon’s trials.

Yeon Woo-bin was different.

Like a butterfly that suddenly flew in.

It was good fortune that only brought rewards, and there were no penalties like trials or karma attached to it like Kang San’s.

In fact, the things that happened in this world couldn’t be clearly defined from the beginning.

Just like how people suddenly gained special abilities, Yeon Woo-bin might have also met his own unique conditions. It could be a coincidence or an inevitability. There were no clues that Kang San could get just because they had similar experiences. Perhaps there were others in the world who were settling their karma like Kang San. Just like how Kang San had suddenly accepted a trial one day, nothing was strange in this world, no matter what happened.

Kang San said,

“Everyone, go inside and rest. It looks like it’s going to take a while.”

He turned around.

It was a pointless worry in the end.

Now was the time to focus on the reality in front of him.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

A few days later.

All the work was finished.

Kang San called his Dongsaengs together and returned the items he had been entrusted with.

“Check it out.”

“Ooh.”

Jeong Chan-woo had a thrilled expression.

At Kang San’s words that he would enhance them, he entrusted a total of three items.

『Blessed Steel Armor』

『C-rank』

『Defense+32』

『Giant Orc’s Shield』

『C-rank』

『Defense+30』

『Swordmaster’s Longsword』

『C-rank』

『Attack+39』

『Special Effect: Quickness』

━Temporarily increases the speed of a strike.

Jeong Chan-woo’s equipment.

It was already at a considerably high level.

C-rank items are usually traded at around 100 to 300 million won, but Jeong Chan-woo’s father invested a whopping 500 million won upon learning that he had passed the C-rank test this time. It was practically something only possible because he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. If he had been a Hunter born into an ordinary family, people would have said that C-rank was excessive and that even equipping himself at the D-rank level would be considered impressive.

‘I wonder how they’ve changed.’

His heart pounded.

Rumor had it that the items entrusted to Yu Jeong-yeong usually saw an increase in stats of around 10 or so.

It was a revolution.

With such a tremendous increase, rumors even circulated that entrusting Yu Jeong-yeong with an enhancement would cost at least 100 million won to start. Honestly, Kang San hadn’t expected that much from his own skill. While Yu Jeong-yeong was a professional blacksmith who had trained in a forge for a very long time, Kang San was just an ordinary person with the skill.

The very first.

He checked the armor first.

As he opened the information, the changed stats were visible at a glance.

『Steel Armor Imbued with the Craftsman’s Soul』

『C-rank』

『Defense+48』

『Special Effect: Steel Will』

━Increases the base defense of the wearer by 5%.

“……Huh?”

For a moment.

Jeong Chan-woo blinked.

His thought process completely stopped.

He couldn’t tell if the stats he was seeing were real or if he was dreaming.

He then checked the stats of the other items.

『Shield Imbued with the Craftsman’s Soul』

『C-rank』

『Defense+45』

“……Eh?”

『Longsword Imbued with the Craftsman’s Soul』

『B-rank』

『Attack+60』

『Special Effect: Quickness, Bleeding』

━Temporarily increases the speed of a strike.

━Enemies in a bleeding state have their health regeneration temporarily reduced.

“Ugh!”

He was speechless.

The armor’s stats had increased by +16, the shield by +15, and the sword by +21.

And that wasn’t all.

The armor gained the special effect Steel Will, and the sword gained the special effect Bleeding.

Even though Jeong Chan-woo was somewhat naive, he knew that a single special effect added at least tens of millions to hundreds of millions of won to the value. In other words, if the effects of the items Jeong Chan-woo possessed were at an average level for C-rank, Kang San’s enhancement had transformed them into the highest tier of C-rank. In particular, the sword had been upgraded to B-rank, and the monetary value of the three items had jumped to at least two to three times their previous value.

Common sense crumbled.

Jeong Chan-woo looked at Kang San with a dumbfounded expression.

“……Hyeong, what on earth did you create?”

This was beyond expectations.

No, it was a result beyond common sense.