episode_0005

“….Master…”

“Ugh… just 5 more minutes…”

“Young Master…..Young Master…!”

I slowly raised my head, feeling very sleepy.

When I opened my eyes, Yuri was squatting next to me while I was sleeping.

He was poking my cheek with his finger.

Yuri continued to look at me with curious red eyes until he woke up.

I had no choice but to get up and sit on the chair.

“Wow… How long have I slept…“

“Well… You must have been so tired that you were snoring?“

As soon as she saw that I had woken up, she immediately took out an envelope from her pocket.

“A letter has arrived, Master! That’s also very important!”

The family seal with a black tiger symbol.

Apparently, a letter sent directly from the family had arrived.

‘Is that time finally coming…’

I stretched out and got ready to train again.

While I was drying my hair with a dry towel, Yuri quietly read the contents of the letter next to me.

“I invite you to the [New Year’s party] held at the family every year… I hope you will also attend… Um… Master, will you be attending?”

Yuri folded the letter and asked me after half-reading the contents.

Well, every time an invitation to an official event or family gathering arrives in my mailbox,

Han Seo-jin, who was immediately thrown into the trash can, never showed up at most events.

She seemed to have guessed that it would probably be the same this time too.

The same goes for the family members who gather there.

Even my name was not always written on the attendee list, so it was almost certain that I would not attend.

Rather, everyone just feels uncomfortable when they say they are coming.

But this time the story was a little different.

Because I have a few things I must do at the New Year’s party.

***

Among this family’s heirs, I am not the only one entering the academy this year.

Han Yun-seo, the youngest of the family’s successors.

She has shown a natural talent for swordsmanship since she was young and has been taking elite courses.

Even before entering the academy, she had grown up with a lot of expectations and support.

Because my skills were so outstanding that others, I passed the exam at a age one year younger than the other students.

This year, he entered [Central Academy] with me as a first year student.

On the other hand, as you can see, I, Han Seo-jin, have no skills as a hunter, let alone

I lived a life like a bastard, to the point where I would be praised even if I grew up properly and behaved well.

The admission notice states the reason for [equal opportunity admissions for men and women].

Even though I wasn’t even aware of it, I was confidently accepted into the prestigious Central Academy along with my youngest child.

As it turned out later, it was not his will that allowed him to pass.

It was the aftermath of the fact that the head of the family had implicitly offered Han Seo-jin admission to the chairman of the academy.

‘Thanks to her one word, I went through all sorts of hardships…’

Anyway, in this family, the New Year’s party was not a peaceful event like the holidays.

Rather, it was a windy day with all family members very nervous.

All successors explain their future plans to the head of the family at the New Year’s party.

The head of the family evaluates the completeness of the future plan and whether the character has potential for growth.

If you pass, you will receive full resources and manpower support from your family.

Conversely, it is a dangerous day when even those who have received support every year can lose all support in an instant.

Because even if you live in trouble every day, you could be thrown out on the street one morning.

It is a place where everyone gathers and receives the evaluation of the head of the family with their hearts strained.

‘But this isn’t the end…’

What I’m most interested in is the New Year’s [Second Doljabi] event.

It was a historic event held when a successor entered the academy that year.

Unique reinforcement items of the highest quality delivered through connections with the Hunter Association.

When a bunch of them are laid out on the table.

On the spot, prospective students could take one item.

It was meant to test one’s ability to determine the quality of an object and at the same time give blessings to one’s future life at the academy.

And most of the items posted there were [A] and [S] level items that you only saw once if you were lucky.

Since these were items that the head of the family had personally selected, they were definitely the items I needed most right now.

Also, if only I could get my skills recognized here.

From now on, there would be no need to worry about money at all.

In any case, the debt of about 200 million won lost through coins can be repaid as if it were nothing.

Additionally, they were the ones who could support not only the insane tuition fees of the academy but also living expenses.

The family is a community with considerable money and influence.

Lastly, there was one trash person that had to be dealt with on the spot.

I had to attend this New Year’s party.

When I first visited without knowing anything, I didn’t even get a proper say, let alone anything.

The most insignificant of the family’s descendants.

I’ll be lucky if it doesn’t ruin the family.

In any case, he had a reputation for being a bastard who was on the verge of having his family register destroyed.

That’s why they kicked me out, thinking that giving me an item was a waste of something precious.

Han Yun-seo, who seemed to have a bright future, ended up hogging all the supplies instead of me.

“I’m sorry, brother…”

The youngest’s apologetic eyes and the hands of my relatives pushing me away.

After being kicked out, I had no choice but to go to Shinnonhyeon to eat a hamburger with Yuri to freshen up.

On the way home that day, I met a [C] class bloodhound.

Proving that I had awakened to become a Weapon Master didn’t change much.

The evaluations that ‘Han Seo-jin is a disgrace to the family’ that have been steadily accumulating until now have been overwhelming.

Even though we were awakened members of the same combat class, Han Yun-seo was able to overwhelm me in terms of talent.

And if it is as I expected, the moment when I reveal that I am an awakened person.

It was obvious that the members there would spar with her in order to completely crush me.

[If you really want to be recognized as an academy student, shouldn’t you prove your skills?]

These kinds of provocations that ridicule me and ridicule me.

But if I could defeat her on the spot, I could turn the unfavorable situation around in an instant.

‘The question is whether I can win a sparring match with the youngest…’

A swordsman genius recognized by the Academy.

An aspiring [S]-class hunter who grew up well with the support of all his family.

If she and I fought right now, it was obvious who would win.

‘But this time… I won’t go away easily…!’

I smiled and quickly got up from my seat.

Skills and characteristics acquired through awakening as [Weapon Master].

And then invest all the bond points you will earn in the future into skill upgrades.

If you add the ultimate ultimate skill, Ilseom (一閃) on top of it as the final Hwaryong point…

‘There is a good chance of winning.’

I smiled and stretched out my hand into the air.

“Relationship Rank”

Then a pure white display appeared and a simple screen appeared.

—-

[Relationship Rank]

Yuri Lee: [2]

[Relationship Points]: 1

—-

‘hmm?’

I was wondering why my bond point suddenly went up by one.

I turned to Yuri and asked.

“Anyway, tell them that you will be attending the New Year’s party in two days… Oh, and by any chance. Yuri, did anything happen yesterday?”

Then she became embarrassed, her face turned bright red, and she started waving her hands around.

“Yes? yes? Yesterday! Ah… Ahhaha… I don’t know~? I don’t know…! Ah, laundry! The laundry must have been done by now~~”

bang…!

She slammed the iron door shut and quickly went up to the first floor.

‘what…’

I scratched my head and watched her back.

‘What happened? Then, let’s get started.’

It was time to begin my growth as a weapon master in earnest.

The goal is to become strong enough to win a spar with genius swordsman Han Yun-seo.

It may not seem easy, but I already knew how to fly.

It’s also a perfect side road where other people don’t even know if it’s there.

****

“Awakening”

As I stretched out into the air and chanted a spell, a display appeared.

It was a screen showing the skills, characteristics, and level acquired after awakening as a Weapon Master.

—–

Awakening

[Level: 1]

[Weapon Master]

hunter rank

[F]

active skill

[Slash] [F]

Swing the weapon diagonally to cut down nearby enemies.

Cool time 5.0s Range 1.0m

[Yeoncham(連斬)] [F]

Immediately resets the cooldown of the specified skill and activates once more.

Cool time 600.0s

[Throw] [F]

Throws the weapon at the enemy at very high speed.

Cool time 10.0s, range 10.0 m

Passive Skill

[Weapon Mastery]

There are no restrictions on any type of weapon and you can use it freely.

[Craftsman’s intuition]

You can immediately check the enchantment ability given to the reinforced item.

[Everything is One]

If the weapons and items you are wearing all have the same theme, you can apply the set effect.

—-

‘Oh oh…!’

I was reading the skills over and over again with a happy expression.

Fortunately, as I had hoped, combat-related skills appeared one after another.

[Throwing] and [Slashing], which are basically useful attack skills, were equipped as standard.

In addition, there is the [Year Strike] skill that allows you to once again use [Illumination], which has a long cooldown.

I breathed a sigh of relief because these awakening abilities were more useful than I thought.

What was more effective than expected was the passive skill.

Unlike before, where you could only check the abilities of an item by wearing it yourself,

[Craftsman’s Intuition] Now you can check the abilities of an item just by looking at its surface.

There were restrictions on the weapons that could be equipped depending on the occupation, school of swordsmanship, type of weapon, or even the group to which one belonged.

However, [Weapon Mastery] allows you to break through those restrictions and freely use anything.

Lastly, if you match the set, you can even enjoy the set effect, [Multiple Oneness].

‘Thank goodness… everything, even the passive, is usable…’

I immediately turned on the TV and played the floppy disk.

My vision turned white and the screen began to flicker.

In it, a swordsman appeared, free from the secular world and wandering freely.

Then, she sheathed the silver sword, leapt in an instant, and began to cut down everything in an instant.

Images of the evil spirits that had been chasing her being shattered to pieces passed through my mind.

As the powerful sound of thunder hit my eardrums, the screen instantly went black.

Soon, the very beautiful movement of the blade began to overflow in my mind.

[congratulations! You have acquired the One Island skill!]

As if possessed, I opened the status window again.

[Ilseom(一閃)] [F]

After sheathing the sword, she immediately kicks it and leaps forward. Cuts down all enemies in the path at once.

Cool time 60.0s, range 100m, maximum number of targets 10.

‘Is this… a flash of light…’

A skill that instantly slaughters up to 10 enemies within a 100m range.

The skill is even immune to incoming attacks because it is a forced evasion decision while the skill is in effect.

I can’t believe I can use such a ridiculous fraud skill!

This time, I took out a black box placed on one side and unfolded it.

Inside, a heavy black katana was waiting.

As I pulled out the knife while holding the handle, a cool energy flowed through my body.

The words [Return to one’s best efforts] engraved on the red sword’s body were fluttering like a blazing flame.

+0, [S Class] [Red Moon Muramasa]

A posthumous work left behind by one of the first hunters who fought against the Gate Invasion incident.

And at the same time, one of the most overrated deployed weapons in the game.

In the early to mid-aughts, this sword was a tier 1 distributed weapon that was enough to push through most of the main story.

And above all, a katana with a red blade blazing with flames that stimulates men’s romance.

‘Keu… This is it…’

I carefully sheathed the blade and placed it in the silver weapon case that Yuri had brought me.

The day when I will be able to use this [S-Class] weapon better than anyone else.

I was planning to confidently walk to the New Year’s party holding this cool guy.

‘Then… I guess all that’s left now is hard work…’

I held the wooden sword hanging on the wall and looked at the training dummy.

A hidden secret unknown to this world.

Many hunters simply think that their level increases as they kill monsters or gain more combat experience.

In fact, it was natural that the more experience you had as a hunter, the higher your level would be.

And in the past, I also believed that was the orthodoxy.

But only from the Hunter Association, and the rarest chosen ones among them.

I knew how to level up.

And this secret was a secret among secrets that was managed so that it could never be leaked.

Even I only found out about this fact through the will of the head of the family.

‘The problem was that I didn’t find out about it until too much time had passed.’

I took out the golden disk and put it between the thick books to keep it.

I used the remote control to change channels and watch news broadcasts.

“The current gate incidence rate in Korea has increased by about 12% compared to last year…”

“The birth of the world’s 11th level 6 hunter was officially announced this year in the United States. In line with this, the White House…”

“Our country also needs more level 6 hunters right now. yes? They say there are a few level 5 hunters in Korea right now, but there is only one level 6 hunter. I’m getting older now…”

“I heard that this Central Academy only selected foreign students, right? Among the talents selected from each country, will there be a hunter with level 6 qualifications in our country?…”

In this world, there was nothing like level to determine the value of a hunter.

Hunter rank could be achieved not only through skill, but also through consistency and luck.

There were even deceptive hunters who, in exchange for bribes, stole other people’s achievements and promoted them as their own.

However, the skill of the awakened person was very clearly shown in the number of levels.

Most academy graduates become formal hunters at around level 2.

Even if I reached level 3, I could be recognized as a hunter who was not overlooked by others.

The moment you reach level 4, you will be contacted by the Hunter Association or the country, and they will make a fuss to recruit you.

The moment it reaches level 5, it is already treated as a walking military weapon.

But what if you are level 6?

Currently, there are only 11 people in the world who are the world’s strongest awakeners.

Four in the United States, three in the European Union, two in China, one in Russia, and only one in South Korea.

If he could reach level 6, he would have proven that he was the most powerful hunter in the world.

An irreplaceable nobleman whom everyone looks up to and who cannot be tampered with even by the government.

Even the girls who were with me until the end couldn’t reach level 6 until the end.

I held the wooden sword, closed my eyes, and concentrated.

And then he struck the sword hard diagonally.

“Slash.“

Percussion!

“Kkii profit….!”

The doll shook with a cool hitting sound, and my hands began to ache.

Just one skill consumes enough mana to feel your body recoil.

I walked over to the magic spring and dipped my hand into the water.

A refreshing feeling spread throughout my body, and my energy quickly began to recover.

“Phew… Then, I guess level 2 will be enough.“

Conditions for leveling up that were not revealed to the world.

Total experience points are accumulated according to the amount of magical energy consumed on enemies, and the level increases when certain conditions are met.

And the other condition for promotion to level 2 was [Academy admission], so it was already met.

As long as you gain enough experience, reaching level 2 was no problem.

However, slashing a knife in the air alone did not give you experience points.

However, the magic recovery speed was not enough to keep up with beating monsters inside the gate all day.

Therefore, in a powerful country like the United States, even if hunters are addicted to drugs,

Cracking that expensive magic recovery potion like crazy

Or, he grew up instantly while submerged in a magic pool and undergoing torture-like training.

But there was no need for me to grow up in such an ignorant way.

This doll in this basement was no ordinary doll.

If I were to beat up an evil spirit wandering around this world like this by trapping it in a doll.

It is determined that you attacked the enemy and experience points are accumulated.

And when you run out of magic and are on the verge of exhaustion,

After just 5 minutes of soaking in the magical hot spring, your mana will be recharged to its maximum level.

This is a place where you can use skills to gain experience points and immediately refill depleted mana.

A fraudulent place where experience points are literally copied.

Only me and the head of the family knew of the existence of this ridiculous place.

‘Then… let’s go…!’

A monster that grows dozens of times faster than ordinary academy students or hunters.

Even if you beat monsters in the gate for a year, your experience level may or may not increase.

I was able to accumulate the same amount of experience by beating the scarecrow like crazy for an hour.

All day long, he made thousands of slashes at the scarecrow, practicing his slash and throwing skills in between.

Until all the wooden training swords provided here are broken.

I didn’t stop training all night.

****

And two days later.

By the time my entire body burned with blue flames and even the last remaining wooden sword was completely shattered.

[congratulations! You have become a level 2 awakened person!]

I became a level 2 awakened person.