NOVEL NEXT
Chapter 75
Stepping outside the main building of the Department of Martial Arts, Se-Hoon looked back at the building with a curious expression.
Getting asked to be his apprentice out of the blue was a bit of a surprise.
To Se-Hoon, it was unbelievable that Kwang-Soo—someone known for his high standards and said to even surpass Perfect Ones in pickiness—had asked him to be his apprentice. If it had been before the regression, Se-Hoon would have thought Kwang-Soo had gone senile.
I refused for now... but it’s not a bad offer.
One of Kwang-Soo’s Vision Sword Techniques, the Celestial Infinity Blade, was as powerful as the skills of Perfect Ones. But more importantly, Kwang-Soo had a strong force behind him—the Executioners. They were an unofficial organization, founded by none other than Kwang-Soo himself, that dedicated their whole lives to hunting down demons.
They helped me a few times before the regression.
Since the members of the Executioners were all over the world, their identities ranging from well-known high-ranking heroes to ordinary citizens, Se-Hoon could receive their help even in remote places, which was quite beneficial.
However, despite all that, he still refused Kwang-Soo’s offer because of one very simple reason.
“If you serve another master, wouldn’t that make me look incompetent? You’re not allowed to become someone else’s apprentice without my permission unless you want to die.”
His master’s warning was still fresh in his mind.
While he didn’t actually need to obey a warning made in the past, he still tried to avoid breaking the promise he had made to himself once.
Master... now that I think about it, she should be alive and well right now.
As the genius founder of the outrageous skill Soul Honing, Se-Hoon planned to visit her. Unfortunately, however, that didn’t seem possible anytime soon.
His master was probably busy running away from various organizations, constantly changing her identity, and wandering from place to place.
Well, there’s no rush.
Out of everyone, he was confident that his master wouldn’t end up dying a miserable death, no matter what kind of butterfly effect he might cause. Completely assured, he put the thoughts of his master aside for the moment and checked the skills he just acquired.
[Eyes of Clairvoyance] 『A』
[A technique for observing the mana in living beings.
The color of the observed mana changes according to the different properties of the mana inside the target. Prolonged activation can lead to vision degradation and hallucinations.
*Can observe the mana of living beings
*The greater the target’s skill is compared to the user, the greater the strain on the user’s eyes and mana consumption]
[Celestial Infinity Blade] 『S』
[A sword technique that shapes the processed mana within the body into a sword.
It uses all of the body’s strength to form a sword aura that is sharper and more powerful than ordinary sword auras.
*Additional effects have not yet been acquired
*Nature of the sword aura varies with the amount of mana consumed
*Physical fatigue accumulates with each cast]
They both seem quite useful.
The Eyes of Clairvoyance seemed perfect for finding the weak spots of enemies and accurately analyzing what equipment would suit each person best.
And while the Celestial Infinity Blade wasn’t fully mastered, carrying some uncertainties for actual combat, it was likely still powerful given its S-tier classification.
It seems like I got just what I needed right before the extermination practical.
With these two skills, he could pass the extermination practical trouble-free, scoring points and obtaining the hidden materials quite straightforwardly.
He was completely satisfied by how smoothly the situation was unfolding. But at that moment, he suddenly heard a clear voice.
“Hey!”
From afar, the clear voice hit his ears with a resounding impact.
He turned towards the source of the sound and saw the silver-haired Luize running toward him with a grim face and an ominous arrow made of mana floating above her.
“What the...”
“Come here.”
Before he could even properly respond, she grabbed his wrist and quickly dragged him away. She pulled him toward a back alley near the bus stop with a look of urgency on her face.
“What’s so urgent that you have to drag me to such a shady place?”
Finally letting go of his hand, she stared at him with sharp eyes.
“There’s a rumor saying that you picked a fight with Vier. Is it true?”
“I didn’t pick a fight with him. He had just lost his composure when I gave him some advice.”
“You... sigh.”
Seemingly troubled, she looked at him with a complex expression full of both annoyance and gratefulness. At that embarrassing reaction, the awkwardness between them increased.
Why is she acting like this all of a sudden?
Was there a reason for her to react so oddly to his fight with Vier? Pondering for a moment, he belatedly remembered the scar hidden behind the choker he had made for her.
“Don’t tell me... are you thinking that I fought Vier because of you?”
“What? Of course not... huh?”
Seeing Se-Hoon’s baffled face, Luize grew more and more flustered.
Amidst the awkward silence that settled between them, her eyes began to flicker wildly as she gradually came to an understanding of the entire situation.
“No. No, no, no, no. Do you think I’m crazy?? I was just worried that you might drag me into your mess. Do you even hear yourself? This is ridiculous...”
“Is that really it?”
“Yes! Why else would I come looking for you!” denied Luize vehemently, her voice raising in desperation.
Se-Hoon glanced at the arrow floating above her.
“You used incantation magic to track me, right?”
“...So what if I did.”
“Haven’t I told you before? Incantation Magic tends to be empowered by the clarity and intenseness of the caster’s intent.”
He chuckled, seeing how the arrow was pointing precisely at him.
“It shouldn’t have been easy to cast such a delicate spell like location tracking with Incantation Magic and yet...”
“...”
“You must have been quite worried about me—”
Thump!
Luize covered Se-Hoon’s mouth, glaring at him with her face that was turning red with embarrassment.
“Shut up already.”
She looked like she might actually use Incantation Magic to cast a spell if he had spoken any further.
Deciding it was for the best to stop teasing her, he raised his hands in the air, prompting her to change the subject and release her grip.
“So, what are you going to do now?”
“About what?”
“Well, the Barmuths are bound to pull all sorts of tricks. You have to be prepared for that. Or do you want to end up with a hole in your throat like me?” she said, fiddling with her choker.
Feeling her sincerity, he pondered for a moment.
“I think I’m prepared enough.”
“You... are?”
“It seems I’ll acquire a strong ally.”
He knew that his attack on the Barmuths with just his few blueprints would have ended with a premature disruption in production before he was able to deal any significant damage.
Now that I’ve managed to contact Ha Baek-Yeon, that changes everything.
Visionary Ha Baek-Yeon was a Perfect One and humanity’s strongest archer. Once a target had been seen by her even once, there was no escaping her arrows, no matter where in the world they were.
With such a monster involved, Se-Hoon knew that the Barmuths would stand no chance, no matter how hard they tried.
Even if the Barmuths still think they have a chance, they wouldn’t waste their efforts on a matter like this.
Now that all the preparations were complete, all he had to do was sit back and watch.
Seeing his laid-back demeanor, Luize looked at him curiously.
“Where do you find all these allies from?”
“I didn’t find them; they found me. I’m a pretty impressive individual, you know.”
“...”
She wondered why she had even worried about him.
Feeling somewhat lighter, she sighed in relief internally.
“Still, contact me immediately if you need any help. If it’s about demolishing that Vier guy, I’m all in.”
Observing Luize’s mana surging at the mention of her mortal enemy, Se-Hoon nodded.
“I’ll call you if I need help. Just make sure you keep up with your training so you won’t hold me back.”
“You’re so annoying... I’m going.”
Shooting him a glare, she began muttering something to herself as she walked away. But before she could fully leave, Se-Hoon spoke up.
“Thanks for worrying about me.”
“...”
She halted briefly. Then, a moment later, she sharply retorted, “Who said I was?”
Leaving behind that retort, she vanished into the alley with a sprint, her flustered demeanor making Se-Hoon crack a smile.
It’s more fun to tease her now. She even knows how to show gratitude.
Sometimes, she reminded him of the Blast Dog he knew before, but then, at other times, she showed a completely different side.
He marveled at how much she had changed since their first meeting.
Brr-
Feeling a short vibration in his pocket, an indication that a new message had arrived on his phone, he immediately checked it.
Yeom Sung-Ha: I’ll repay the remaining debt by taking care of that Vier Barmuth guy for you.
Speechless by the message, Se-Hoon stared at it for a while, rubbing his eyes, every so often. Then he muttered, “This guy hasn’t changed at all though...”
***
A week after the Noblesse had ended, a rumor about the confrontation between Se-Hoon and Vier had spread so widely within Babel that there was hardly anyone unaware of it. It had become such a popular topic of conversation that it was even discussed among the professors.
“What do you think will happen to Lee Se-Hoon?”
“What’s there to think about? He’ll probably end up holding hands with either the Inoues or the Myers. What else?”
“True. He probably can’t rely on Dean Ryu alone to protect him from the vast Barmuth family.”
While there had been instances of individuals rising against entire organizations in the past, the outcomes were always the same. They always either met a mysterious death for standing alone till the end or sought refuge in another organization to escape harm.
“Every now and then, there’s always such an individual. Remember that guy from Aqar Quf? He also revolted against an organization on his own, but that just ended in him losing favor with everyone so badly that he couldn’t graduate for years.”
“Some people only learn the hard way.”
Assuming Se-Hoon’s defeat was already a foregone conclusion, the main curiosity was which organization he would seek refuge with.
However, regardless of which organization he chose, the amount of talent and abilities he had shown during his clash with Vier had been so overwhelming that all previous doubts of whether he would thrive—because of his injuries—were obliterated.
Whether it’s with the Inoues or the Myers, wherever Lee Se-Hoon ends up will gain significant influence over the hero industry’s future.
We need to choose our side quickly.
Knowing that Se-Hoon was a figure capable of disrupting the delicate balance maintained in the hero industry until now, everyone’s attention became focused on his next move. Meanwhile, a peculiar rumor had begun to spread under all the discussions.
“Have you heard of Carlton’s workshop?”
“Isn’t that the swordsmith workshop that nearly went bankrupt because of the Barmuths? What about it?”
“They’ve started mass producing new D-grade swords recently, and they’re supposedly pretty incredible. The fast movers are already in talks for contracts.”
“Really? But isn’t that market already dominated by the Barmuths... have they managed to forge something better?”
Currently, the Barmuths’ grip on the lower-grade mass-produced weapon industry was extremely firm. So, when various small to medium-sized workshops began to challenge their monopoly in this market all of a sudden, the people’s response to this news wasn’t very positive.
They trusted the well-regarded technical prowess of the Barmuths over the small workshops that were mostly in a state of decline.
“People are probably just hyping it up too much before the official product launch. How does it even make sense that a nearly bankrupt workshop would come up with something like that?”
“It’s probably just a claim that they can mass-produce some equipment that they handmade one by one; it’s not the first time I’ve seen something like this.”
With no solid proof, everyone remained skeptical.
Then, amidst all the skepticism, a certain video was uploaded to a famous global video platform.
D-grade Mass-Produced Longsword Comparison Mukbang (Eating it fr) Ryu Eun-Ha
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It was a peculiar video, its title promising a longsword comparison video in mukbang format. With the title alone, most would have dismissed it as simple clickbait, but when people noticed the channel’s name, everyone was caught off guard.
“Ryu Eun-Ha? Could it be the S-rank hero Ryu Eun-Ha...?”
“Maybe it’s an impersonation video? But then it would have been taken down immediately if that were the case...”
No one believed that Eun-Ha, known for shunning public appearances and rarely giving interviews, had uploaded a video on the internet. However, despite being extremely dubious, the setup was too intriguing for people to ignore, forcing many to click on the video out of curiosity.
The moment the video was played, the screen revealed a woman with red hair—it was actually Ryu Eun-Ha herself.
「Hello. I am Ryu Eun-Ha, the Dean of Borsippa at Babel Academy and an active S-rank hero.」
She was speaking in her usual impassive manner as she looked down at the dozens of different pieces of equipment laid out in front of her.
「Today, I will be comparing the most popular D-grade mass-produced longsword from the Barmuths to a newly released longsword.」
Giving only that brief introduction, she stepped off-screen to fetch two longswords and place them on the desk.
The weapons were unadorned, typical mass-produced equipment, but one of them caught the eye of the viewers due to its blade shining more brightly than the other.
「This is the Barmuths’ longsword, and the other one with a brighter blade is a new model from Carlton’s workshop. Now that the introduction is over, let’s get to eating.」
Holding up each sword in turn for the camera, she began with the Barmuths’ longsword, chewing on it starting from the tip.
Crunch, crunch.
In the blink of an eye, the longsword disappeared into her mouth and the tips of her hair flickered like flames.
「The charge rate is about one percent at level one. It’s fairly decent for a mass-produced weapon. It seems to be focused on durability, so the slicing force might be a bit lower, but its mana conductivity is commendable...」
Having consumed the entire longsword, she was able to analyze the weapon’s performance with accuracy rivaling that of experts and, in some aspects, even surpassing them.
「However, if the mana circuit is structured this way, its compatibility will decrease when infused with special kinds of mana, creating vulnerabilities. The most incompatible mana would undoubtedly be divine mana.」
Pausing to bring out another copy of the Barmuths’ sword, she took out a bead filled with divine mana and melted it into the interior of the longsword.
Closely showing the longsword glimmering with a soft golden hue to the camera, Eun-Ha then swiftly tapped a section of it with her fingertip.
Crack!
Without any resistance, the longsword snapped in half instantly. She then showed the cross-section of the sword and continued her explanation.
「As you can see, the internal mana circuit has been altered by the addition of divine mana. This is how its durability can be weakened, and also...」
Essentially dissecting the longsword, she continued her detailed explanation. Then, when she was done explaining, eight swords lay broken by her side.
「Now, I’ll try out this new longsword from Carlton’s workshop.」
Still speaking in her usual indifferent tone, she took the longsword and started to chew on it from its tip as well.
「...」
However, unlike how she had eaten the Barmuths’ swords without hesitation, she paused momentarily. Then, the corners of her mouth lifted ever so slightly.
「Indeed...」
With that murmur full of satisfaction, she resumed her expressionless demeanor and finished eating the remaining bits of the longsword.
Fwoosh!
When she got close to finishing the longsword, her hair flickered more intensely than when eating the Barmuths’ sword. She calmly said her explanation.
「The charge rate is about three percent at level one. This... should be the highest among D-grade mass-produced weapons. Both the durability and slicing force are excellent, about thirty percent better than the Barmuths’ longsword.」
「The mana conductivity is about ten percent better, and its compatibility, especially, seems to be remarkable. It shows little variance with different types of mana and can even accommodate divine mana...」
After that, Eun-Ha verified the new longsword with the exact same procedure used for the Barmuths’, and the results were outstanding in every aspect.
Having completed her explanation, she grasped both swords.
「With the general explanation concluded, I’ll do a final, simple cross-comparison.」
She spread her arms wide, with a sword in each hand, and swung them toward each other without any hesitation.
Clang!
Sparks flew as Barmuths’ longsword was cleanly sliced in half.
「That concludes this evaluation. Next time, I’ll review shields.」
The video ended abruptly, without any further explanation. And despite its lack of subtitles and editing, making it an unfriendly thirty-minute sequence, people couldn’t take their eyes off it for even a moment.
Not only was the sheer presence of the renowned S-rank hero Ryu Eun-Ha drawing, but the content of the video itself was very professional and impactful.
How did she manage to address such a controversial topic so directly...
This is definitely going viral.
For once, the S-rank hero recognized by numerous blacksmiths for her discerning eye for equipment, Ryu Eun-Ha made a review—something that used to always be shrouded in rumors—and publicly shared it.
As a result, the video spread with the speed and ferocity of flames across a dry field throughout the hero industry. And just one day after the video was uploaded—
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The entire hero industry was rocked by the ensuing controversy.