Chapter 77: Encounter with Cheon Hun
Sa-hyeok muttered in surprise as he looked at Cheon Hun.
“What is he doing here?!”
The guild that Cheon Hun leads, DAVO, was indisputably the largest guild in South Korea.
No other guild could match DAVO, whether in terms of financial power or combat strength.
DAVO didn’t even accept applications for membership, recruiting all of its Hunters purely through scouting.
This meant they had the confidence to maintain their strength even with such a stringent recruitment process.
The only aspect where Kwonmu-mun was considered superior to DAVO was the individual combat power of the Guild Master.
The Guild Master of Kwonmu-mun, Kwak Ja-ryong.
The Hunter who saved Sa-hyeok in District 3 and instilled in him the dream of becoming a Hunter.
The founder of the Kwonmu Divine Art and the one who laid the foundation for the basic theory of martial arts.
The one who established the master-disciple system of martial arts training within the Combat Hunter community.
And the strongest Hunter in South Korea, Kwak Ja-ryong.
He was clearly lacking in only one area compared to Cheon Hun: organizational management and business skills.
It was evident from the fact that he, a born fighter, entrusted the guild management to Vice Master Ha Jeong-kwon and wandered the world for training and hunting.
That’s why Kwonmu-mun, despite having the potential to be the number one guild in South Korea, had ceded that position to DAVO.
Anyway, back to Cheon Hun.
In reality, being compared to Kwak Ja-ryong in terms of combat power was unfair to Cheon Hun.
Not only because Kwak Ja-ryong was too strong, but also because Cheon Hun was a Regeneration Sorcerer (Healer).
The only S-rank Regeneration Sorcerer in the country.
Yet, he was a figure about whom little was known other than that fact.
Considering his immense reputation and influence, it was strange how information related to him was so well concealed.
It was even harder to delve deeper since he rarely participated in external activities or raids.
That’s why Sa-hyeok was particularly surprised when he saw Cheon Hun.
He probably wouldn’t have been this surprised even if he had seen Jang Jae-han (‘Spear Saint’ – Changhwan Guild Master) or Jeon So-dam (‘Thunder Emperor’ – Orang Guild Master).
Anyway, marveling at this bizarre encounter, Sa-hyeok tried to quietly enter Gwan-ho’s house, but……
“Hey, Mr. Min Sa-hyeok.”
Cheon Hun approached Sa-hyeok, initiating the conversation.
“……Me?”
“Is there another Mr. Min Sa-hyeok in this alley?”
Sa-hyeok looked directly at Cheon Hun’s face for the first time.
A face that made it impossible to tell if he was in his 30s or 50s, an expression that made it impossible to discern whether he was smiling or frowning.
He had an aura that confused people just by looking at him.
Cheon Hun extended his hand to Sa-hyeok, offering a handshake.
Sa-hyeok extended his right arm and accepted the handshake.
While shaking hands, Cheon Hun said,
“This is quite a novel experience.”
“What is?”
“It’s the first time I’ve shaken hands with a corpse.”
“……Excuse me?”
“I’m talking about your right arm. It’s not in a living state, is it?”
Sa-hyeok’s right arm had become necrotic due to poison during his first raid and was now being manipulated by telekinesis.
Cheon Hun had grasped that just by shaking his hand once.
“How about it? Shall I heal that right arm for you?”
Sa-hyeok chuckled inwardly.
This right arm was, in itself, the most powerful weapon Sa-hyeok possessed.
If it were healed, the performance of this weapon would be reset. What healing?
“Thank you, but I’ll just take your kind offer. But how did you know me……?”
“You might not be aware of it, but in certain circles of the magic academia, you, Mr. Sa-hyeok, are quite a hot topic.”
“Me?!”
“It’s only natural, isn’t it? You’re going around using magic that defies any system identification, huh?”
A peculiar way of speaking that mixed informal and formal language from the start.
Sa-hyeok felt a slight displeasure but remained silent for now.
Cheon Hun continued,
“Besides, I’m slightly indebted to you.”
“Indebted……?”
No, this was the first time he had ever seen this person. What debt?
“You underwent a detailed examination at the Central Research Institute a while ago, right? You went through quite a bit of trouble because of the Colonnio going berserk.”
Colonnio.
A multi-purpose special equipment equipped with artificial intelligence, created by Antenon.
……And Bang-ul-i’s former form.
As soon as the word Colonnio came up, Bang-ul-i, feeling guilty, started blurting out random things.
[Hyung-nim, you know I was brainwashed by Antenon back then, right? That crazy rampage wasn’t my intention!]
Ignoring Bang-ul-i’s words, Sa-hyeok replied to Cheon Hun,
“There was such an incident.”
“I was the one who pushed for that detailed examination. Well, I didn’t know the Colonnio would go berserk either. Anyway, I do have a sense of responsibility. That’s why I asked if you wanted me to heal it, but if you don’t want to……”
Cheon Hun patted Sa-hyeok’s right shoulder and said,
“See you next time.”
Leaving those words behind, Cheon Hun got into his car and disappeared.
Watching Cheon Hun’s car drive away, Bang-ul-i said,
[That was dangerous. Trying to heal without even considering the other person’s situation.]
“……His words were a bit strange, but that’s true. Anyway, let’s go where we need to go.”
Sa-hyeok pressed the doorbell of Gwan-ho’s house.
At that very moment, Cheon Hun, sitting in the driver’s seat of his car, muttered to himself,
‘Min Sa-hyeok…… What is his true identity?’
A slight bewilderment was etched on his face.
‘My Heal skill wouldn’t work on him at all.’
He had subtly used Heal when he patted Sa-hyeok’s right shoulder at the end.
He had intended to glean some insight into the nature of that mysterious power, whether it was telekinesis or something else.
However, all he confirmed was the baffling fact that his Heal skill was completely ineffective on Sa-hyeok’s body.
Moreover……
‘I even felt an energy similar to mine. Could Hunter Min also be a
Thinking that, Cheon Hun shook his head.
‘Let’s not jump to conclusions. Let’s calmly observe and judge for now.’
Cheon Hun stepped on the accelerator, heading towards the DAVO Guild headquarters.
══════════════════
Inside Ma Gwan-ho’s residence.
Gwan-ho greeted Sa-hyeok warmly while simultaneously grilling him.
“Hey, what did you do to break my work?”
“The opponent just crushed it with his hand.”
“……What kind of guy was he? No, wait, did you fight with another Hunter?”
“Yes. What happened was……”
“Ah, forget about the Hunter vs. Hunter fight story. It’ll only complicate my mind if I get involved unnecessarily.”
“Huh?”
“When a Hunter fights a monster, it’s hunting. When a Hunter fights another Hunter, it’s an incident. I, as a craftsman, don’t want to get involved in that. Anyway, where are the broken fragments?”
“……I scattered them and used them as weapons.”
“Good grief.”
Gwan-ho sighed briefly and then said,
“So, you want to make a new weapon?”
“Yes.”
“You want me to make it, even though you know exactly how I make weapons?”
“Yes.”
Gwan-ho grinned and said,
“You’re the second.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“The second customer who’s commissioned me to make weapons more than once.”
“……Ah.”
He understood.
The weapons this old man made were all ultra-high risk, high return.
They were strong, but d*mn difficult to handle.
Wouldn’t a blacksmith obsessed with making cursed swords in a fantasy world feel like this?
But more importantly, he was suddenly curious about one thing.
If he was the second customer who commissioned more than once……
“Who was the first?”
“Huh? Didn’t you just run into him?”
“……You mean Cheon Hun?”
“Yeah. Before you, he was practically my only regular. Today, it was just a simple modification request, though.”
Sa-hyeok thought to himself.
What kind of person was this Cheon Hun?
He was becoming more and more enigmatic.
“Well then, anyway, what do you desire, our esteemed customer?”
“I’ve simply drawn up a blueprint.”
Sa-hyeok took out a notebook from his bag.
Gwan-ho quickly glanced at the drawing in the notebook.
Two metal rods were drawn in the notebook.
Both ends were sharpened to a point, with a diameter of 1cm.
The length was similar to the Mubuchamdo, about 40cm.
And in the middle of each needle, there was a round ring where a finger could be inserted.
It was complicated to explain in words, but the shape was……
⎯⎯0⎯⎯
……roughly like this.
Gwan-ho said,
“Are you going to use it to pierce and penetrate the opponent? Then the ring in the middle will be a hindrance. It will get caught in the ring and stop while penetrating.”
“That’s what I’m aiming for.”
“So the purpose is to embed it, not to penetrate.”
“Yes. Please look at the next page.”
Gwan-ho turned the page.
The material properties that Sa-hyeok desired for the weapon were written there.
“You want it made of a material that conducts electricity as well as possible? Are you making a lightning rod?”
“It’s similar to that.”
“And you want the material to be as hard as possible…… This is a bit vague.”
“That’s why I brought the material myself.”
“Material?”
Thud.
Sa-hyeok placed the Silent Shadow Sword on the table.
The artifact looted after defeating the King Septaferus.
A sword boasting incredible durability thanks to its characteristic of hardening upon impact.
Seeing that, Gwan-ho asked incredulously,
“……You want me to melt down an artifact to make your weapon?”
“Yes.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to just sell this and use the money to make a new weapon?”
“I thought about that too. But even with money, I couldn’t find a material harder than the Silent Shadow Sword through regular auction channels.”
“……It’s not about the money, but whether you can make the weapon you want or not, that’s all that matters, huh?”
“That’s right.”
“You crazy b*stard.”
Saying that, Gwan-ho burst into laughter.
“Alright, I accept. It would be stranger not to take on such an interesting job. But have you thought about the cost?”
“I’ll pay you as much as you want.”
“Give me that sword.”
Sa-hyeok handed over the Silent Shadow Sword with a puzzled expression.
A heavy, black-bladed heavy sword.
Caressing the blade, Gwan-ho said,
“Even if I melt this blade to make the weapon you want, there will be quite a bit of the blade left over.”
“I think so too.”
“Give me the remaining part. Consider it as payment for the crafting cost.”
Sa-hyeok’s eyes widened.
“Are you sure you’re okay with that?”
“It’s not easy for me to get my hands on such rare materials. No, wait, this is the first time I’ve seen the idea of melting down an artifact. And I have some ideas I want to experiment with using this material. So, what do you say? Will you accept?”
“Thank you!”
Sa-hyeok bowed his head in gratitude.
“Alright, then I’ll start crafting right away. And the function to be incorporated into this……”
“Do as you see fit.”
Gwan-ho grinned.
All sorts of ideas to maximize the performance of this weapon began to fill his head.
……Ideas that didn’t consider the user’s safety in the slightest.
══════════════════
Four days passed.
An uneventful daily routine continued.
Morning training, afternoon self-training, evening rest and personal maintenance.
During self-training, he received martial arts training from Jeong-kwon and practiced controlling his telekinesis in the guild swimming pool.
Click-
Sa-hyeok changed his clothes in the swimming pool locker room.
He casually glanced at the mirror attached to the locker door.
His face, and the rings of light, the Circles, that appeared behind it, were reflected.
Currently, a total of three rings were complete.
The fourth ring was about 60 percent complete.
In other words, Sa-hyeok’s current Circle level was approximately 3.6 Circles.
‘The Circles are growing. Not as fast as before, but they are.’
One Circle increased every time he completed a magic system.
And adding a magic system meant that the world accessible through magic had expanded that much.
In short, it meant that Sa-hyeok’s fourth magic system was still only 60 percent complete.
‘The 1st Circle was completed when I gained complete control over my right arm with telekinesis. The 2nd Circle was completed when the perfect synchronization of telekinesis and senses was achieved, and the 3rd Circle was completed when the precision of my telekinesis increased to the point where I could unlock dungeon gates.’
Then the condition for completing the fourth Circle was probably……
‘Complete control of fluids.’
Sand, mud, water, and even flames and lightning.
He probably needed to be able to control all of these to a certain degree to complete the 4th Circle.
Of course, from a physics perspective, flames and lightning weren’t fluids.
But this was the realm of magic.
Flames and lightning could also be considered fluids in the sense that they had ‘no fixed form.’
Anyway, the conclusion was……
‘I need to be able to control flames and lightning with telekinesis to reach the 4th Circle.’
But until that control was achieved, he needed support weapons to help him.
The Flame Pointer to assist in controlling flames. And……
Beep beep beep-
A call from Gwan-ho.
“The weapon is finished. Come right away.”
It was a call announcing the completion of the weapon.
The very weapon that would help him control lightning.
