Chapter 70
Hong Man-gi spoke decisively.
"Reconstruct."
The moment he activated the skill again, the dagger floated into the air.
'First... dismantle it.'
Following Hong Man-gi's will, the dagger began breaking apart like sand.
Iron particles, impurities, and dried organic matter swirled in the air.
"Huh?!"
Lee Yu-han let out a silent scream as he watched his weapon turn into dust.
Hong Man-gi paid no attention.
'Next, purification.'
He burned away the impurities and organic matter until only high-purity iron remained.
But that alone was not enough.
'An F-rank material has obvious fundamental limits....'
Even if he simply reconstructed it, the result would still be a weak weapon similar to the original.
'I need something new. Something stronger and more special....'
Hong Man-gi's eyes moved toward something nearby.
The corpses of the Black Iron Obsidian Hounds he had killed earlier.
Their black scales still released faint traces of mana.
'That's it.'
He stretched his hand toward one of the corpses.
"Extract."
Material Reconstruction activated again.
The hound's hard scales broke down into powder.
From within them, pure carbon crystals and tiny mineral particles condensed with mana separated out and flew toward Hong Man-gi's hands.
Lee Yu-han's mouth fell open.
"Is... is that the new skill you learned just now?"
"The real part starts now."
Hong Man-gi's eyes shone.
Above his hands floated the purified iron particles from Lee Yu-han's dagger and the high-density carbon and mana minerals extracted from the Black Iron Obsidian Hound.
'Fuse.'
The two different materials began merging.
[Fwoooooosh!]
Explosive light and heat burst from the collision between the substances.
Hong Man-gi activated Will of the Frontline and endured the shock with his entire body while desperately controlling the fusion.
Beads of sweat formed across his forehead.
'I need to give it a shape... what would suit him best?'
He imagined a new dagger.
A form optimized for Lee Yu-han's fast and agile combat style.
Silent like a shadow.
Sharp like a fang.
A dagger made for an assassin.
Then,
following Hong Man-gi's imagination, the glowing metal mass slowly took shape.
A long, slender blade.
A handle designed to fit perfectly in the hand.
Even the weapon's balance was shaped exactly according to his will.
"W... wow... what is this?"
Lee Yu-han watched without breathing.
No hammer.
No sparks from a forge.
A weapon was being born solely from one man's will.
It looked almost like the domain of a god.
Finally,
the light faded.
"Here. It's a gift."
A smooth dagger rested on Hong Man-gi's palm.
The blade was a deep black like obsidian.
Whenever light touched it, blue mana rose from the surface like heat haze.
The grip looked as if it had been designed specifically for Lee Yu-han's hand from the beginning.
[Ding.]
A system window appeared before both Hong Man-gi and Lee Yu-han.
[Shadow Fang Dagger]
Grade: B-
Creator: Hong Man-gi
Owner: Lee Yu-han
Attack Speed +20%
Stealth Ability +15%
Additional Damage on Critical Point Attacks
Special Ability, Heel Step: Move a short distance like a shadow and attack the enemy from behind. Three uses per day.
"B... B-rank...?"
Lee Yu-han rubbed his eyes as though refusing to believe them.
A piece of F-rank scrap metal had instantly been reborn into a Unique weapon approaching B-rank.
"I told you, it's a gift. Are you not going to take it?"
"Huh? Y... yes!"
I accepted the new dagger Hunter Hong Man-gi was holding out to me with trembling hands.
The instant I gripped it, a shiver ran through my whole body.
It carried living warmth and settled perfectly into my hand.
The sense of unity was unbelievable.
It felt as though the dagger had become part of my arm.
Without even realizing it, I lightly swung the blade.
[Swoosh!]
Even the sound of cutting through the air was different.
It was nothing like the dull, weak sound my old dagger used to make.
This was sharp and fierce.
Like the cry of a predator tearing through the wind.
"Th... this is...."
All the emotions I had suppressed suddenly burst out at once.
Hot tears rolled down my cheeks.
Hunter Hong Man-gi looked at me in confusion.
"Wh... why are you crying?"
I sniffled and answered quickly.
"It's nothing! Really!"
A lowest-rank Hunter.
That disgusting label had forced me to endure endless humiliation.
The times people rejected me at dungeon entrances.
The helplessness of being treated like dead weight by my companions.
The self-loathing I swallowed every time I looked at the pathetic weapon in my hand.
It felt as if all those dark and painful memories were melting away before this shining blade.
This dagger felt like a key that cut away the old life of low-ranking Hunter Lee Yu-han and opened the door toward a new future.
Hunter Hong Man-gi had not simply given me a powerful weapon.
He had given me the belief that I could do it.
Warm encouragement telling me I was not alone.
A symbol of a new beginning.
"Hunter... I... really...."
I could not control the emotions swelling inside me.
Naturally, I could barely speak.
As though trying to comfort me, Hunter Hong Man-gi quietly pulled me into an embrace.
I leaned against him like a child and cried for a long time.
I don't know how much time passed.
When I finally calmed down enough to raise my head, Hunter Hong Man-gi was quietly looking down at his own hand.
The miraculous power resting within it.
I could vaguely understand that this power was not simply an ability to create and destroy objects.
Just as he had given new value and my own story to a discarded piece of scrap metal,
just as he had given hope to someone drowning in despair,
it was connected perfectly to the cooking philosophy he always spoke about.
A philosophy of touching and comforting a person's heart.
"I finally understand, Hunter."
Hunter Hong Man-gi touched the weapon at his waist, Full Moon.
Then he looked at me.
"Let's go. I'm sick of this place."
"Yes. Understood!"
Holding my new weapon, I felt filled with more confidence than I had ever known.
The low-ranking Hunter Lee Yu-han no longer existed.
I was a member of the Full Moon Restaurant.
Hong Man-gi's trusted companion.
Lee Yu-han.
A short while later.
[Clunk.]
The heavy door of the Full Moon Restaurant opened.
After leaving behind the hellish heat of the S-rank dungeon, the familiar space felt strangely comforting.
A faint smell of soy sauce reached their noses.
The scent of wooden tables finally made them feel that they had returned home.
"Haa... we're finally... back."
Lee Yu-han nearly collapsed the moment he crossed the threshold.
His face was covered with dirt and exhaustion.
Yet his eyes shone even brighter than the day he had been promoted to D-rank.
"You worked hard, Yu-han."
Hong Man-gi leaned against the wall and released a long breath.
His body felt impossibly heavy.
But the solid presence of Full Moon at his waist and the unfamiliar new senses surrounding his body supported him.
Gourmet Alchemist.
The name still felt unfamiliar.
Hong Man-gi repeatedly opened and closed his fist, as though determined to adapt to it as quickly as possible.
For a moment, silence filled the restaurant.
Neither man spoke.
Hong Man-gi yawned deeply and glanced toward the kitchen.
'Something... feels strange. Why?'
At first glance, everything looked exactly the same as when they left.
Yet something was definitely different.
The kitchen had been cleaned so perfectly that it almost felt unnatural.
Hong Man-gi quietly spoke into the air.
"Poming."
[Puwaaaaaang!]
Poming exploded into existence in a flash of light like a firework.
"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaak!!!"
The instant she appeared, every hair on her body stood up like a hedgehog.
She began flying around the restaurant at insane speed.
She smashed her head against the ceiling.
She zigzagged between table legs like an acrobat.
She even gently stepped on Lee Yu-han's head before bouncing away again.
"Chef! Thief! A thief came in here! No, someone even worse than a thief! Someone entered Poming's sacred kitchen without Poming's permission!"
Poming practically screamed.
"There's a stranger's smell everywhere! Someone sat on Poming's cushion! Someone opened Poming's precious sugar container! They even tried to locate Poming's secret snack storage! The evidence is obvious!"
She flew into Hong Man-gi's arms.
"This is an invasion! An invasion! This means war!"
As an SSS-rank gourmet spirit, Poming's extremely sensitive senses had detected every trace left behind by the stranger who had entered the restaurant.
"Calm down, Poming. I noticed something too. That's why I summoned you."
Hong Man-gi gently comforted her and raised his head.
His eyes moved toward the table by the window.
A man sat there quietly with his back toward them.
"Huh?"
Even Hong Man-gi was startled.
'What? When did he get inside...?'
Lee Yu-han spoke in surprise.
"Hunter... did that person come in with us?"
Impossible.
The restaurant was not open yet.
They had definitely locked the door before leaving.
And yet,
the man sitting there looked as if he had been waiting so long that he had become part of the restaurant itself.
Hong Man-gi swallowed dryly.
As though he had heard everything they had said, the man slowly turned his head.
Cold moonlight illuminated the side of his face.
"Ah!"
It was Cha Mu-jin.
Team Leader of the Hunter Association's Inspection Department.
'What the hell...? When did he come in?'
A cold sensation traveled down Hong Man-gi's spine.
There were no signs of a broken door.
No shattered windows.
Even while Hong Man-gi and Lee Yu-han had entered and spoken together, the man had not revealed the slightest presence.
"There was... no particular need to open the door."
Cha Mu-jin spoke quietly.
"The tea smelled pleasant, so I took the liberty of helping myself."
His words were polite.
But the act was clearly provocative.
He had poured and drunk tea without the owner's permission.
Hong Man-gi calmed the trembling Poming in his arms and gave Lee Yu-han a glance.
Stay behind.
Then he slowly approached Cha Mu-jin's table.
"That's not taking a liberty. That's trespassing, Team Leader. I didn't realize the Association's Inspection Department trained people in lockpicking too."
Hong Man-gi sat across from him.
Sharp tension gathered over the narrow table between them.
Cha Mu-jin gave a faint smile.
"Locks? There is no need to depend on something so outdated."
He lifted the teacup and drank the final drop remaining inside.
Then he quietly muttered something.
The next moment,
"!!!!"
Hong Man-gi's eyes widened.
Cha Mu-jin's body seemed to become transparent for an instant.
Then he was suddenly standing directly behind Hong Man-gi.
Hong Man-gi had not sensed him move at all.
No sound.
No shift in air.
Not even the slightest presence.
"Just as there is no need to open a door, there is also no need to enter through one."
Cha Mu-jin whispered beside his ear.
Hong Man-gi reflexively tried to turn.
But Cha Mu-jin lightly placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Space is not absolute, Hunter Hong Man-gi. It is merely a collection of perceptions. If you slip through the gaps between those perceptions, a wall becomes no thicker than a sheet of paper."
An unknown ability belonging to Cha Mu-jin.
He gave a faint smile.
"Being an Inspection Department agent isn't a job an ordinary Hunter can perform."
