Skill Copy (3)

As soon as Jang Si-hwan answered the call, an excited voice burst out. It wasn’t so much anger as it was exhilaration.

“You rat bastard! I finally found you. Just as I thought. The Hidden Skills, they’re all Shin Kang-hoo’s, right?”

“Why’d you call if you already knew?”

“I wanted to confirm it. Where’d the info come from?”

“Shinto Guild. I got it straight from Go Cheon-yeong.”

“Go Cheon-yeong? That nutcase guild master of Shinto? He’s as crazy as I am.”

“Good, then.”

“That bastard Shin Kang-hoo… He gobbled up all those Hidden Skills and never even showed it, huh?”

“Vincent. Shin Kang-hoo had no reason to show off to you, and it’s not like having Hidden Skills is a problem.”

“How is it not a problem? An assassin punk with no real skills having two Hidden Skills? That’s insane.”

“That’s what I’m asking — why is it insane?”

“Why do I need a reason! If it’s not me, then it’s not right!”

“……”

Jang Si-hwan rubbed his throbbing forehead with his fingertips.

Honestly, Jang Si-hwan didn’t particularly covet Kang-hoo’s Hidden Skills.

He had his own, and he bore no ill will toward Kang-hoo.

If anything, he thought Kang-hoo was impressive.

A hunter having even one Hidden Skill was considered a jackpot — but Kang-hoo had two.

Calling it luck didn’t hold up. It had to be skill.

“Anyway. I’ll be flying to Korea as soon as I wrap things up in Hungary. Just so you know.”

“What do you want me to say?”

“Don’t get in my way. Don’t try to steal my spotlight.”

“Suit yourself.”

“Damn right. I won’t tell L. Keep your mouth shut. Make sure no reporters catch wind of it.”

“Whatever.”

“I’m already buzzing. See you soon.”

The call ended.

Jang Si-hwan stared at the name “Vincent” on his smartphone screen for a long time without saying anything.

Knowing Vincent’s personality, this would end one way or another. Either Kang-hoo would die, or Vincent would.

From Jang Si-hwan’s perspective, he didn’t care who won. It wasn’t his business anyway.

Still, a thought occurred to him.

If Kang-hoo died easily to Vincent, then it meant Kang-hoo’s skills were only that good.

But if Vincent were the one to die…?

“Maybe the lineup for Justice will change. Three Koreans? That’d be pretty interesting.”

A glint of anticipation appeared on Jang Si-hwan’s face as he licked his lips.

Thinking it over again, it really was a fun spectacle.

Would the current Justice member pass revalidation, or would someone else kill them and get validated instead?

If Kang-hoo killed Vincent, there’d be no more doubts about his skills.

Vincent’s level was over 650.

And he had three Hidden Skills — Jang Si-hwan had confirmed that himself.

Objectively, Kang-hoo was up against someone he likely wouldn’t even get the chance to fight properly.

“This should be fun.”

Was this the underdog effect?

Jang Si-hwan felt his heart strangely leaning toward Kang-hoo.

Truthfully, he’d been annoyed for a while at Vincent Meyer trying to slip free of his control.

If this was a chance to replace him for a different reason… that wouldn’t be so bad.

Feeling satisfied no matter the result, a smile naturally crept onto his face.

However…

If Shin Kang-hoo were to join Justice, he’d have to adjust things with Chae Gwanhyeong.

“Talk about counting chickens before they hatch. Hmph.”

Jang Si-hwan muttered as he replayed a video of Kang-hoo he’d been looping.

Shin Kang-hoo. Truly an interesting hunter.

An escapee from Cheongmyeong Detention Center who later shut it down with his own hands — a complete reversal of fate.

Jang Si-hwan, knowing Kang-hoo’s dramatic life story, was eager to see where he’d go next.

“Same skill, but why does the younger guy’s look sturdier? That’s so unfair.”

“It’s thanks to your excellent teaching, Master.”

“You punk! I’m not praising myself here — I’m pissed off!”

“Ah…”

“‘Ah’ what, huh! I’ve never seen a web shimmer like this before. Do skills discriminate by age now?”

“Maybe they do, Master.”

“Can’t even throw me a polite lie, can you? Sigh.”

“My version of Celestial Assassin’s Heavenly Net-Kill definitely looks flashier, Master.”

“Damn, now you’re rubbing it in. Still… I guess all that grueling training paid off. Heh heh.”

Despite the curse words, Celestial Assassin was smiling at Kang-hoo.

And seeing that smile, Kang-hoo couldn’t help but smile himself.

Seeing his master happy naturally made him happy too.

“You brat, making me smile.”

“……”

“Smile often. You might not realize it, but you’ve got a pretty nice smile.”

The “pretty” he mentioned likely referred to the warm affection a master feels for his disciple.

Spending time with Celestial Assassin, even briefly, always left Kang-hoo emotionally stirred.

“Thank you, Master.”

“At this point, you should be able to use Celestial Assassin’s Heavenly Net-Kill without issue. How does it feel?”

“It might not be as effective in one-on-one combat, but it seems extremely powerful for massacring groups.”

“Exactly. Once you master the Dark Phase more thoroughly, I’ll teach you how to convert it into a set-up skill.”

“Yes, Master.”

The first time Kang-hoo learned about Celestial Assassin’s Heavenly Net-Kill was as a deployable trap-type skill.

In the original story, Celestial Assassin used it in his China stronghold to keep riffraff from intruding.

You could compare it to a magical trap array.

Just as Kang-hoo sometimes used Flame of Death as a deployable rather than an active skill, Celestial Assassin’s Heavenly Net-Kill could be used that way too.

However, doing so smoothly required at least 1,000 units of Dark Phase energy.

For Kang-hoo right now, it was an unreachable dream.

Still, he had finally obtained one of the skills he had long dreamed of — his master Celestial Assassin’s very own technique.

How many enemies he would be able to decimate and drag into a swamp of death using Celestial Assassin’s Heavenly Net-Kill from now on was hard to predict.

But one thing was certain: whatever his enemies imagined, they would feel a fear far beyond it.

When he told Celestial Assassin that he would never bring shame to the name and honor of the skill’s master, he truly meant it.

After a solid hour of rest.

Phase two of training began.

What they had done before to improve mastery of Celestial Assassin’s Heavenly Net-Kill was more “learning” than “training.”

Now the real training began.

After showering and changing during his break, Kang-hoo stood before Celestial Assassin again.

Meanwhile, Celestial Assassin had spent the entire hour in meditation at the training grounds while Kang-hoo rested.

Only after Kang-hoo arrived did he emerge from his deep meditation, his expression calm and serene.

“From now on, the apple training will always be part of your basics. Even in the third and fourth rounds of training, the apple drills stay.”

“Yes, Master.”

“If I see you slacking, know that your life will be what tightens the slackened cord.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Now, your second training. The key this time is to wait — to not dodge until the very last second of the enemy’s attack.”

“To provoke the enemy into exerting more effort, and seize a more favorable position to counterattack.”

As Kang-hoo repeated his understanding, Celestial Assassin nodded.

That he could answer immediately was due to a recurring frustration Kang-hoo always had — that lingering 2% of imperfection.

Against weaker foes, dodging early and then striking back was effective.

But against stronger opponents, premature evasion often worked against him.

If Kang-hoo dodged before the enemy fully committed to their power, the opponent could conserve their strength.

Not only that, but it gave the enemy a chance to reset their aim and gain the upper hand.

Against high-level hunters like Ishihara Yuji, early evasion was not a path to certain victory.

“The method is simple. Look — see the red ink on the tip of these chopsticks?”

“Yes, I can see it clearly.”

Just as Celestial Assassin said, the tip of the chopsticks he held was smeared with thick, sticky ink.

The tip was covered with a small rubber pad, probably to prevent serious injury.

But the rubber wasn’t very wide, so a direct stab would still hurt quite a bit.

“If you dodge in a way that leaves only a dot of ink, that’s a success. But if it leaves a streak or a smudge, you fail.”

“Yes, I’ll do my best.”

“Wait! I’m not done yet. If there’s no ink at all, that’s a failure too.”

“Yes.”

“This is about learning how to get hit smartly. I’m not telling you to dodge like a squealing rat.”

“I understand.”

Kang-hoo immediately took his stance.

Without even announcing the start, Celestial Assassin lunged straight at him.

“Hup!”

With an involuntary breath, Kang-hoo’s body moved just before the chopsticks could touch him.

He thought he’d dodged late enough and positioned himself well — but he was wrong.

Celestial Assassin had already anticipated the spot and jabbed Kang-hoo hard in the shoulder.

Pook!

“Grrgh!”

A stinging pain shot down from his left shoulder, radiating through his entire arm.

If this were real combat, that shoulder would be gone. At the very least, his left arm would’ve been disabled.

“You must’ve had fun fighting weaklings until now. But how long do you think your luck will hold?”

Celestial Assassin’s words pierced him like a dagger. They hit hard because they weren’t wrong.

And it continued.

“You’re too fast!”

“You probably think this looks cool, huh? To me, it looks like a pointless stunt!”

“You got two lives or what? Why are you dodging so damn late?!”

“You can’t even dodge this properly, and you talk about assassins and training?”

Kang-hoo kept failing and was bombarded with scathing remarks — practically a verbal carpet bombing.

Too fast.

Too slow.

Or unable to resist the urge to use a skill, dodging too early.

Trapped in a cycle of these three errors, Kang-hoo failed to create the scenario Celestial Assassin wanted.

Celestial Assassin was especially ruthless in his critique of Kang-hoo’s skill-dependent evasions.

“Seems you never even consider the idea that your skills could be sealed. Didn’t you already learn that from Haemi?”

“I did.”

“Skills aren’t your first option. They’re your last. Your dependency is too high.”

“…Haa…”

“I’m not saying your flashy, graceful use of skills is wrong. But that’s all you’ve got.”

“……”

More than just stepping on him, this was a complete denial of Kang-hoo’s worth and potential.

Though Kang-hoo had remained composed throughout, these words were so sharp they made him want to snap.

Celestial Assassin followed up with one final blow, perfectly aimed to provoke.

“Don’t arrogantly think the world’s battles revolve around you. You’re no different from the other worthless assassins in my eyes.”