55. Making His Mark

Even after they’d cleared the Iron Tomb, the two teams went on cooperating, each of them chasing a dream of its own.

At the gate that had opened over in Chuncheon, they slew the boss monster and took the alchemy gear.

For clearing the Twisted Pit, the reward was this sub-space pouch with a capacity limit of a full ton.

And what became of the Arahan strike-force Hunters?

“…”
“…”

The condition of taking spoils by contribution held just as firm through the last two gates. Yujin unleashed all the necromancy he hadn’t been able to use at the Iron Tomb, holding nothing back, raising an undead army on the spot and snatching away any chance for Arahan to step in.

— Heheh. That feels good.

Fafnir watched the dumbstruck Arahan Hunters and laughed, satisfied.

“Getting satisfied at this much is a problem.”

— Is it?

“The real revenge hasn’t even started yet.”

He’d managed to fray the temper of the vice-president who’d engineered the whole affair, but from the standpoint of the country’s largest guild it amounted to no more than a minor incident.

“His pride’s bound to be plenty bruised. He’ll retaliate one way or another.”

— Is that also within the contractor’s reckoning?

“That’s right. I’ll whittle their forces down and grow off the scraps, and a day will come when I drive a knife into Arahan’s heart.”

Yujin spoke with conviction. It was something he’d already done once, before the regression.

I’m getting stronger far faster than I did back then. So what’s to say I can’t do it again?

— I’m forever in the contractor’s debt.

“If you’re going to talk about debt, then eat your mana stones diligently.”

Yujin shot back curtly.

“I learned a thing or two.”

After they’d sealed the last gate, Song Myeongseok switched back to formal speech.

“Good thing you learned something.”
“Next time, I’ll show you a thing or two as well.”
“If you’ve got the skill to manage it, sure.”

Of course he would.

I don’t know when the day we meet again will be, but until then, keep grinding your teeth.

‘He needs to get at least a little stronger to be worth anything once I turn him into an undead.’

In the original history, even Jo Seungcheol, a 7th-Rank talent, had ended up a Skeleton Mage. Reinforce the bones, swap out the body’s constituent matter, and a man might gain abilities to match that rank.

But still.

‘I’d rather go through less trouble if I can help it.’

Did anyone have any idea what a hassle it was to remodel an undead already made? The reinforcement materials had to be fitted in along a line that wouldn’t upset the balance between the assimilated corpse and its soul, and the wavelengths and synergies of every item and material had to be accounted for besides.

‘So get stronger. Fast.’

A light of desire rose in Yujin’s eyes, and Song Myeongseok, meeting that gaze head-on, took a step back before he knew it.

“Ah. Don’t forget to send me the scrap metal.”
“Should I have it all delivered to the Paju workshop?”
“23.5 tons. If the weight’s off by even a little, I’ll take it up with Arahan.”
“That useless ju— …anyway, that won’t happen.”

Arahan’s people had evidently looked into the Lump of Iron Steeped in Obsession while clearing the other two gates.

‘You really think so?’

‘Sure. And probably more capable than Shin Junseok, too.’

Shin Junseok had awakened only about two years ago. Grand Alchemist of the future or not, in this timeline he was nothing more than Alchemist A, good with his hands and his instincts; going purely by skill proficiency and mana-application ability, there were plenty of alchemists more capable than him.

‘Arahan’s alchemists won’t have a clue even if they wake from the dead.’

Let them investigate and analyze it a hundred days over; all they’d come away with was a chill, never figuring out what it was for. The Lump of Iron Steeped in Obsession was a metal friendlier to necromancy than to alchemy.

‘I can reinforce bone with it, or even craft undead like the Living Armor.’

Its uses were, quite simply, inexhaustible. The conditions for a grudge to congeal in something as inanimate as iron were rare, which made it a mineral even Yujin had struggled to obtain.

‘Twenty tons is enough to last me years.’

Lucky, really. If the Arahan Guild had swallowed the Iron Tomb whole, he’d never have gotten the chance. That scrap metal would reinforce his forces for a long, long time to come.

“Boss. You really pulled it off.”
“You lot all right?”
“Bit tired, but no major injuries.”
“Not that. You’ve made an enemy of Arahan now.”

At Yujin’s remark, Lee Seongmin let out a startled yelp.

“Why’d it turn out that way?!”
“Arahan’s the one who proposed the joint clear, but in the end we screwed them over.”
“You didn’t even know that, junior?”

The twins patted Lee Seongmin’s shoulder.

Those two saw it coming, just as I figured. Blank-faced at first, but quick on the uptake. The future Mirror Hunters really are something else.

“It’s fine. If I hadn’t met you, Boss, I’d never have gotten a chance like this.”
“I learned a lot thanks to you too, Bro. We landed one on Hunter Song Myeongseok while he was scrambling around!”

Kang Minyeong wore a rapt expression, as if she still couldn’t shake the thrill of that moment: reading Fafnir’s senses through Sync, then toppling a Living Armor in splendid fashion with a single arrow. The two of them were already addicted to the taste of growing stronger.

“Let’s put off settling up this clear for later.”

Paracelsus’s Magic Cylinder already had an owner picked out. Still, since it was an artifact they’d obtained while working alongside the Scraps, he ought to pay the group a fair price for it, and even Yujin found that much of an expense burdensome. His main source of income, the mana stones, now had to be thrown to Fafnir as meals.

“Understood, Boss.”
“And Seongmin, you take the Bag of Infinity.”
“Who? Me?”
“Observe the pouch’s formula and your understanding of your unique ability will rise.”
“Th-thank you so much!”

Lee Seongmin’s eyes welled with tears.

There’s no need to cry this much, surely.

“I thought I wasn’t needed anymore on account of the artifact!”
“…You can’t even hold more than a few kilos to begin with. If all I wanted was a porter, I wouldn’t have kept you around.”
“I’ll keep on devoting my loyalty to you from here on out!”

Sure.

Work like you’re ready to grind your bones to dust from here on out. You lot have a great deal of it ahead of you.

Kronos clicked his tongue in displeasure.

— Crunch.

The armrest lay smashed to bits. A beat too late, Baek Seonghyeon glared sidelong at the chair’s components, broken into hundreds of pieces.

“Look at me. So unlike myself, getting worked up like that.”

Had he projected himself onto the pulverized armrest? The blood drained from the face of the secretary, who had just finished his report.

“And what does Hunter Song Myeongseok have to say?”
“H-he says that with prior information, the result wouldn’t have come out like this…”
“Pathetic.”

Baek Seonghyeon cut off the secretary’s words, reached for the armrest out of habit, and clicked his tongue at the empty air where it had been.

‘That the two of them would clash was as I calculated. But I never imagined he’d lose so one-sidedly.’

He’d seen through Song Myeongseok’s ambition long ago. The man no doubt believed he hid it well enough in his own way, but slipping past Baek Seonghyeon’s eyes was a tall order. Summoning him to the vice-president’s office and ordering him to recruit Yujin had been part of the plan as well.

‘Why has it come out this way?’

Song Myeongseok’s defeat was a variable that hadn’t entered the reckoning. His unique trait, the Heavenly Bone, was impressive in itself, but in combat sense and his feel for handling mana he stood on par with the guildmaster, Lee Shinwoo. Aura aside, Song Myeongseok was a talent who could go toe to toe even with a 4th-Rank Martial-line Hunter.

And a man like that had been beaten one-sidedly.

“Well now. This has become troublesome.”

At the words Baek Seonghyeon let slip under his breath, the secretary’s eyes darted side to side.

“Ah. That wasn’t directed at you.”
“My apologies.”
“I have things to think over, so step out.”

— Creak.

Left alone in the vice-president’s office, Baek Seonghyeon worked the abacus in his head.

‘This affair lowered the odds, but it’s made things more certain.’

A talent who had brought down even Song Myeongseok. Yujin had to be brought into Arahan’s fold, without fail. And if they failed to win him over…

‘Then there’s nothing for it but to dispose of him before Phoenix or Dawn step in.’

A chill killing intent shimmered around Baek Seonghyeon’s eyes.

After settling the matter of how to divide the gate-clear spoils, Yujin’s group returned to the Paju workshop.

“Bro. We didn’t come to the wrong place, did we?”

At Kang Minyeong’s question, Yujin shrugged.

“There’s way too many people.”
“Maybe the alchemist moved his workshop?”

Shin Junseok’s workshop had always been deserted, but today was different. Dozens of people had set up camp in front of the fence, all of them clamoring at once.

“Alchemist Shin! We’re from Oseong Enterprise!”
“Jeil Enterprise’s investment proposal…”
“This time…”

As if they’d agreed on a dress code, the suited men raised their voices. It was a good thing Shin Junseok’s workshop sat a little removed from the town center; otherwise the residents would have lodged no end of complaints.

“Should we have come in suits too?”
“Want me to go get ready now?”
“It’s a joke, so let it go.”

Yujin waved a hand and pushed through the crowd gathered in front of the workshop.

“Coming through.”
“Hey, you. What’s the big idea, shoving all of a sudden?”

They slid out of the way at even a light shove. With a Strength stat comparable to a Martial-line Hunter of the same Stellar Rank, getting through was effortless, though he caught a few curses on the way.

“Hold on. Could that be Hunter Cheon Yujin?!”
“It’s Hunter Cheon Yujin!”
“Didn’t they say he did a joint clear with Arahan?”
“Heard he overwhelmed that Song Myeongseok.”

— Murmur, murmur.

The representatives the various enterprises and guilds had sent out recognized Yujin. He’d sealed three long-uncleared gates in a row, after all. Arahan had clamped down on the information, but it couldn’t keep the rumor from spreading entirely.

“Yes, yes. I’m that Cheon Yujin.”

As Yujin answered breezily and pressed forward, the Scraps hurried to follow at his back.

“Pardon us, coming through.”
“Oh, I took part in that clear too. I’m Kang Minyeong!”
“Senior. This is embarrassing.”

After a small commotion, the group made it safely inside the workshop. Shin Junseok was about to go check on the uproar outside when his eyes met Yujin’s, just as Yujin stepped past the fence.

“Partner!”
“My, my. You’ve gotten popular while I wasn’t looking.”
“It’s all thanks to you, Yuj— …that’s not what matters here!”
“Look how many people want to invest. That’s a good thing.”

Yujin spoke breezily.

“Didn’t I tell you I turned down even Arahan’s investment?”
“Ah. Did you?”
“Acting like it’s someone else’s problem!”

Spitting out a curse, Shin Junseok vented his frustration on the ground.

Cantankerous as ever, in this life or the last.

‘What’s with the sudden misdeed talk?’

‘Quiet. I don’t know anything about that.’

Shoo, shoo. Begone, foul spirit.

Shoving Kronos’s stray thoughts into a corner, he patted Shin Junseok’s shoulder.

“But the potion-supply talk’s pretty much settled, isn’t it?”
“It’s only the initial production run I’m handing over to Arahan.”
“Ah. You mean the next production batch.”
“And the investment.”
“Smooth out your face. Your skill’s been recognized.”
“My skill? It’s thanks to you teaching me.”

The self-reproach showed plain on Shin Junseok’s face. It was something Yujin had never seen before the regression, and he swallowed a groan.

‘Is it because I told him the potion’s formula?’

To find a serviceable do— …no, a partner, I let slip a little knowledge of the future. I never imagined a side effect would surface like this.

He’s having a grand old time. A grand old time of it.

‘Spout another line of nonsense about hardship and trials and I’ll start leaving the watch at home.’

‘Watch closely. See how I solve it.’

Yujin crooked a finger at Lee Seongmin, who stood behind him.

“The Bag of Infinity?”
“Yeah. Take out the thing we got at the Toy Factory.”

A hydraulic cylinder with a reddish cast. When he eased it out in front of Shin Junseok, the alchemist’s clouded eyes sharpened.

“P-Partner. This is…?”
“A legendary alchemist named Paracelsus. It’s something that fellow used.”
“How could I not know that name?! But why are you giving such a precious thing to me…”
“Because the most outstanding alchemist around me is you.”

At Yujin’s praise, Shin Junseok’s face brightened.

“Partner!”
“Research it and tell me the results and how to use it.”
“Of course. I’ll figure out everything from this cylinder’s operating principle to its construction formula and report back to you!”

See there.

Barely said a word and he’s already perked right up, hasn’t he?

‘Where did the Constellation who was wailing about cause and effect a moment ago run off to?’

The pocket watch in his pocket gave off a loud buzzing tremor, then fell silent for a long while.