The Righteous Shield’s Counterattack
Even among hunters, there were communities and circles where they kept in touch. Recently, the hottest topic among them had been the guild war between Wraith and Echo. Guild wars were common enough to be buried quickly, but it was rare for a weak guild to declare war on one with an overwhelming advantage. That was why it had become such a hot topic.
Especially in the rest area for hunters called the Plaza, and in front of the huge bulletin board on the fifth floor where B-Class hunters gathered most often, people even talked now and then about Wraith and Echo.
“Even if Echo’s losses have been piling up lately, it’s still a guild on the brink of Silver promotion... and yet the lowest Bronze guild declared war on them? Has the Wraith guild leader lost his mind too?”
“You mean that new C-Class hunter? Word is he was F-Class not long ago, then got lucky and somehow made it to C-Class.”
Because the information they could access was limited, they guessed without basis that Hyun-jun’s promotion had been nothing but luck. Information about Hyun-jun had briefly become an issue at the Dungeon Management Bureau as well, but since there had been no official activity after that, the matter had gone quiet.
“Anyway, the real problem is those bastards who get lucky enough to rank up and start thinking it was all their own skill.”
Because the Dungeon Management Bureau did not clearly disclose the criteria for its evaluations, misunderstandings like this happened from time to time. They were born of hunters’ jealousy and resentment.
“That’s an interesting rumor.”
The female hunter sitting right beside them, sipping coffee, muttered with a faint smile. She had brown hair that fell to her waist and sharp, catlike features.
She was stunningly beautiful, but no one dared let their gaze linger too long. They knew she was Lee Jin-a, an S-Class mage hunter.
“Is it bothering you?”
The man sitting across from her asked. Jin-a shook her head.
“Not bothered, exactly. I just heard it was becoming an issue even among Bronze-tier guilds, so I got a little curious.”
“Curious about the Wraith guild leader, Kang Hyun-jun?”
“You could say that. Honestly, I’m not interested in Echo.”
At the man’s question, Jin-a answered lightly. Echo might have been a guild on the verge of Silver promotion, but it did not hold her interest.
“The Wraith guild leader... he was originally an F-Class hunter, wasn’t he?”
“That’s right. I understand he became a C-Class hunter through the one-time survival bonus. I’ve also received a few separate pieces of information related to that.”
“Tell me.”
Jin-a smiled, her eyes brightening. She looked charming, but the man in the black suit across from her still kept his expression and manner firmly businesslike.
“It seems the party was wiped out around the middle of the dungeon raid. The information came from the Dungeon Management Bureau, so... the source and reliability aren’t exactly certain, but we don’t have better information than this right now.”
“My word, really?”
If the other party members had already been wiped out in the middle of the dungeon, then Jin-a had every reason to be surprised. That would mean this F-Class hunter, Hyun-jun, had cleared a B-Class dungeon alone and even defeated the boss.
“There’s a high probability he’s a Second Awakener. The Hunter Division’s Team 2 leader at the Dungeon Management Bureau didn’t seem to judge him that way because Hyun-jun’s injuries were severe at the time the raid ended, but I think differently.”
“So what’s Team Leader Park Seok-hyun’s opinion?”
“I believe the current C-Class hunter Kang Hyun-jun is highly likely to be a Second Awakener.”
“I think I’ve seen the report too, but weren’t the injuries he took in the B-Class dungeon severe enough to make a Second Awakener diagnosis questionable?”
She was already keeping an eye on several hunters who had become issues, with the intention of founding her own guild someday. That was why she had picked up a little information on Hyun-jun too.
“Second Awakeners are rare. That’s why there isn’t much information on them. We can’t judge this just by the cases reported so far.”
There wasn’t enough information, so he thought it would be reckless to jump to conclusions. Seok-hyun was a cautious man, and fortunately Jin-a was the same.
“The Hunter Division won’t move immediately after Team 2 causes such a fuss, but among guild officials who have informants on this side, I suspect there are more than a few who think the same way I do.”
“But what if he isn’t a Second Awakener? What if it’s just a mistaken guess?”
“That’s why I think this guild war is worth paying attention to. I’ve confirmed that Kang Hyun-jun is on an unofficially obtained list. We’ll be able to ‘verify’ his skill in the guild war.”
Guild wars were held in a public place called the Colosseum, so they could be watched.
“Then once the verification is done, we’ll have to move right away.”
Jin-a said it plainly. Seok-hyun nodded and spoke.
“Yes. Kang Hyun-jun’s existence still isn’t widely known, but he’s drawing more than one set of eyes. Once the confirmation is over, you should settle it immediately.”
There were no shortage of people watching Kang Hyun-jun. Even if he had not yet been confirmed as a Second Awakener, the fact that an F-Class hunter had survived a B-Class dungeon alone was enough to make him worth a brief look.
Most had lost interest and looked away, but a small number still thought Hyun-jun might be a Second Awakener.
“Good. Team Leader Park, make sure you secure a way to contact Kang Hyun-jun before the guild war ends.”
“You don’t need to worry.”
Seok-hyun answered in a confident voice.
*
For the past few days, he had not dreamed of his past lives. So, to soothe his growing impatience, he focused even more intensely on mana circulation training.
“Huu!”
Swinging his sword without pause for three straight hours while pouring mana into it naturally left his breathing rough. Thanks to the past few days spent digging into mana circulation training alone, both his mana limit and his swordsmanship proficiency had improved a great deal.
The mana circulation method taught by Sidenmiller was efficient enough to deserve the word astonishing, but even so, Hyun-jun was not satisfied. Training in the Chamber of Past Lives was more effective.
Not enough.
The sword that had been swung cut through the empty air. It was fast enough to be excessive for the title of C-Class hunter, and yet he still found it unsatisfying.
I need to go to the Chamber of Past Lives...
He thought that while lightly biting his lip. If he went there, he could become stronger quickly. Because he knew that fact, he could not help but crave it all the more. In the end, Hyun-jun did not return home until after midnight that day either.
“Hyun-jun...”
So-jin, who had been waiting for him after sensing a familiar presence, ran out, but all she could see was Hyun-jun’s tired back. He went up to the third floor and threw himself onto the bed. He had put in the effort, so now all he could do was hope his past lives would answer. As soon as he closed his eyes, he felt his consciousness drifting away.
When he opened them again, countless doors lined up before his eyes. He had entered the space he himself had named the Hall of Past Lives, the place where the 990,000 chambers of his past lives gathered. The thing he had wanted so badly had finally come true!
“It worked!”
His gaze went to the door directly ahead. The epithet written there was.
“Carthage’s Righteous Shield...”
Carthago had answered him. Without hesitation, Hyun-jun stepped inside. The lights came on, revealing a vast training ground covered in sand. In the center stood Carthago. As always.
“You’ve come?”
“I’m ready.”
He said it while lifting the shield and sword lying beside him. Seeing Hyun-jun’s eager attitude, Carthago let a smile touch his lips as well.
“You are ready to grow stronger. Today, I will teach you a counterattack technique using the shield.”
“A counter technique?”
“It will be on a different level from a simple shield bash. I say that plainly, but it is still the most powerful counter-based technique across all the dimensions where I once stood.”
For reasons he could not explain, Carthago’s voice seemed to carry sorrow. It resembled Dantzig’s emotion, but he had no time to think further, because Carthago had already raised his shield and fixed him with a piercing gaze.
“It will be better to show you rather than explain it! Show me the best attack you can manage!”
Hyun-jun took up an offensive stance instead of answering. Aura flared over the raised sword. The instant their sharp gazes met, Hyun-jun burst forward like a bullet and swung his blade at Carthago.
It was so fast and lethal that no one would have doubted he was an A-Class hunter, but Carthago only calmly raised his shield.
Kwaaaang!
A thunderous roar exploded as Carthago’s shield collided with Hyun-jun’s sword. It was a strike packed with tremendous force, yet Carthago did not so much as twitch.
“Watch closely.”
What could that mean? The thought had only just crossed his mind when Carthago’s Aura Shield spat out a shockwave.
“Kraaah!”
It was not a simple mana wave. What composed it were sharp fragments of aura. Human bodies, hunter or not, could not endure a storm of aura shards. Hyun-jun was hurled far back with a scream, drenched in blood.
But this was the Chamber of Past Lives. His wounds healed quickly. The pain was still there, but even stronger than that was the exhilaration of learning a more powerful technique. Hyun-jun bared his white teeth and laughed.
“Hahaha!”
He had no intention of playing the weakling. He stood right back up and took his battle stance.
“What do I need to do now, Carthago?”
“The synchronization condition for mastering this technique is simple.”
Hyun-jun listened carefully to Carthago. Carthago picked up the shield and tossed it aside, then took a long spear in both hands.
“Succeed in a counterattack. Even once will do.”
Carthago’s figure vanished. When Hyun-jun sensed him, he was already on the left, thrusting the spear forward. Hyun-jun hastily fell back and blocked the spear with his shield.
“Tch!”
“I held back, but you still blocked my attack in one go! A growth rate worthy of praise!”
He withdrew the spear with an admiring sound, then prepared his second strike.
“But a counterattack will not be easy!”
Sharp attacks came crashing in like a storm, worthy not of the epithet Righteous Shield but of Master of the Spear.
“Kraah!”
He said he was holding back, but Carthago had once stood at the very summit as the strongest. There was no way his attacks would be ordinary. It was hard enough just to defend, let alone counterattack. Of the ten times he swung the spear, Hyun-jun managed to block four, but the other six ended with him skewered, vomiting blood, and rolling on the floor.
“Don’t get complacent just because there’s no time limit! Think of this as real combat and give it everything you have!”
Carthago’s stern voice rang out. Instead of answering, Hyun-jun picked up the sword and shield that had fallen beside him again. He was so exhausted it almost felt as though his body had become heavy, but he had no intention of giving up.
And once more he was unable to withstand the onslaught, collapsing in a spray of blood. He had lost count of how many times it had happened, and he had no idea how much time had passed.
“Are you giving up?”
Seeing Hyun-jun unable to get back up after falling, Carthago threw out a sharp question. It flew like a dagger and pierced his heart, and Hyun-jun sprang up like a roly-poly toy, shielding his body with the shield and pointing his sword at Carthago.
“That’s not my plan.”
“Good! That’s how my reincarnation should be!”
It began again. And after how many rounds of offense and defense had they exchanged without rest?
“Tch!”
Carthago staggered and stepped back. Hyun-jun had blocked the spear he thrust and swung his sword at the same time. Whether it counted as a successful counterattack or not, a red line of blood had opened across Carthago’s abdomen.
A smile spread across Hyun-jun’s lips. Carthago, watching him, also grinned and spoke.
“Congratulations. The condition has now been fulfilled.”
He had learned the strongest counterattack.
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