Chapter 99
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 099
Chapter Title: A New Start. (2)
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There are all sorts of weirdos in the world, and they come in every variety imaginable.
Primitive technology experts are one such breed. They delve into restoring the skills humanity used during its hunter-gatherer days, studying ways to survive in the wild with nothing but their bare hands.
How to start a fire, how to chip and fracture stones into tools, how to set traps...
Back in the day, Woojin had scoured the internet for every survival technique under the sun to make it in the Demonic Realm. Every night, he'd honed those skills in his dreams.
So butchering a lion—skinning it and prepping the meat—was child's play for him.
‘Lion meat doesn’t taste particularly great.’
Woojin chewed thoroughly on the roasted lion meat over the fire. Like most carnivorous beasts, the flesh was tough as leather and reeked of gamey musk. And then there was that signature bitter tang unique to demonic beast meat.
Still, meat like this was precious rations. Woojin ground through the tire-tough lion meat and swallowed it down.
After finishing that combative meal...
‘...Time to check on things.’
Woojin wiped the grease from his fingers and stood. He wanted to see if the sewing materials had cured properly.
A simple wooden rack held the carefully tanned male lion hides—fat scraped clean—and the tendons draped over it.
‘Dried nicely.’
The materials had cured just right. Time to tackle the work he'd been putting off.
Dried beast tendons turn stiff and rigid. Woojin lightly pounded them with the base of his machete's hilt.
Thud, thud-thud...
With each pounding like pestling, the lion's tendons softened, starting to fray along their grain. Fine, tough muscle fibers. He meticulously teased them out and gathered them separately.
Too thin to use as-is, so he bundled a couple strands together. Then he briskly rubbed his palms, twisting the fibers into cord.
Twist, twist-twist—!
The fibers passing through Woojin's hands twisted into tight braids, fast and precise like machine-spun thread.
He'd made thread.
Thread from demonic beast tendons was astonishingly strong. Thicken it a bit more, and it'd make fine bowstring.
Hunting clothes required a lot of thread. Woojin patiently repeated the process several times.
‘...This should do.’
He'd gathered enough.
Prep work done—it was time for the real crafting. Woojin began slicing the male lion's hide with a dagger fashioned from a canine tooth.
Not an easy task.
‘Incredibly tough.’
The strength defied common sense. That was thanks to the male lion's stone-skin trait.
Not surprising, though.
To reign as a predator in the Demonic Realm's depths, stone hide was practically a required course. Weirder if it lacked one.
So cutting and sewing this hide was grueling work... but luckily, Woojin had picked up all sorts of skills.
Shing!
A blade-dark aura enveloped the dagger.
Mana Arts. A technique to infuse mana into an object, boosting its strength and sharpness. With it, the job became far easier.
‘Good thing I learned this back then.’
Everything you learn comes in handy eventually.
Slicing the black lion's hide with the mana-infused dagger, then stitching with needle and thread—the shape of clothing gradually emerged.
After that painstaking time...
Woojin held up his creation with both hands.
A glossy black hunting suit. The lion's mane framed the collar handsomely. Buttons were ground from lion claws, and he'd fashioned the head skin into a hood.
From thread to fabric to buttons—every bit crafted from the lion's body. Inspecting it, Woojin tilted his head.
‘Think I messed up.’
Not a bad mistake. It had just exceeded his expectations by a mile.
He'd made it too good.
No matter how he looked, it surpassed his skill level. He doubted he could replicate it. With that thought, Woojin donned the new hunting suit.
‘...Feels good.’
A comfortable fit enveloped his body. He felt a step closer to civilized life.
Finishing one task brought on a wave of backlog fatigue. Yawning contentedly, Woojin wished he could just crash... but
‘...Gotta make a scabbard too.’
Mountains of work left.
He could sleep and do it later, but since he'd started, better to finish. Steeling himself, Woojin kept at it without rest.
Work complete.
Woojin rested comfortably in the cave. Wasting time felt a bit regrettable, but rushing now would backfire.
‘Not a day or two's walk away.’
The road ahead was long. Not a short sprint—a marathon. Best to rest up fully, gear up properly, then hit the trail.
He alternated sleep and meals for three days straight. His body had recovered nicely.
‘...Time to head out.’
Woojin shouldered his pack. Made from leftover female lion hide.
He'd poured so much into the hunting suit that his enthusiasm had waned; the bag's craftsmanship was comparatively crude. Still plenty sturdy, fully functional.
‘First... scout the area.’
Climb high for a look around, check for threats.
A rocky peak caught his eye. Woojin headed there. Steep incline, but he scaled it like a mountain goat.
Soon, he reached the summit.
Surveying the surroundings, the first thing that jumped out was the distant volcanoes piercing the horizon. Lined up like a mountain range. Far off, but massive.
Black ash billowed from each peak. That soot blanketed the sky, deepening the gloom the farther you went into the Demonic Realm's depths.
So volcanoes marked north. South was where shadows lightened.
‘...What lies beyond those mountains?’
Curiosity struck.
Legends spoke of ancient underground ruins in the far north, source of all calamities lurking within.
The Gate to the Otherworld.
The mad king of the old north had twisted that doorknob himself, letting Demonic Realm horrors and ancient beings spill into the present world.
‘Are those ruins beyond the range?’
If so, Woojin had just spotted the Church Alliance's ultimate goal.
That thought made heading straight south feel like a waste. For the future, better gather intel now.
‘...Just a quick check.’
Peek beyond the mountains, then turn south to the city. Decision made, Woojin set off north.
Of course, the path wasn't smooth.
Ch rattle, ch-rattle—
An odd sound tickled his ears. Like a maraca filled with grain. A rattlesnake shaking its tail in warning.
That tail tip was grotesquely huge and thick. Like a massive hammer.
‘Stone Hammer Rattlesnake.’
First time seeing one in person for Woojin. Mentioned in Yurgis's Demonic Realm Chronicles.
The thing raised its head slightly. Big enough that even coiled, its eyes met Woojin's.
Whoosh—
A chilling whine pierced his ears. Sensing it, Woojin reflexively stepped back.
Kwaaaang!!
The whip-like tail shattered the ground. Ominous power. Woojin narrowed his eyes.
‘Weird attack for a beast.’
The Stone Hammer Rattlesnake shook its tail nonstop for momentum, then lashed out at openings.
Whip-fast, siege ram-strong. Approaching rashly seemed dangerous.
‘Let’s gauge it.’
Woojin drew a dagger from his belt. Throwing dagger from lion bone and teeth. He hurled it at the snake's brow.
Clang!
The snake whipped its tail, batting it away easily. But Woojin had more throwing daggers ready.
Four in rapid succession. Trajectories from his fingertips swarmed the snake. It countered by spinning its tail tip like a pinwheel.
Kakakang!!
All daggers deflected. That attack style wouldn't work on this rattlesnake.
‘Fast, and pretty strong.’
How to kill it?
As Woojin pondered, the coiled snake rattled its tail mockingly, as if asking if that was all.
Seeing that, Woojin grabbed another item from his belt and tossed it. The snake blocked it effortlessly again.
Splut!
Something shattered. The object hit the tail and burst. Not a dagger— a bamboo water flask he'd carved.
The snake was doused in its contents. Sticky liquid with a foul stench. Pine resin gathered from trees today.
‘Not too bright, huh.’
He conjured a small flame in his palm. Then lobbed it at the snake.
Pine resin burns beautifully.
“Keeek, kiiiik—!”
The flaming rattlesnake shrieked. It thrashed wildly, smashing surroundings. Best steer clear now.
Woojin backed off and watched leisurely as it convulsed.
‘Can’t drag this out forever.’
Obviously, tricks like this wouldn't fell strong demonic beasts. Soon the flames died. Enraged, the snake glared murderously.
But he'd bought enough time.
Roarrr!
Finishing his chant, a large fireball formed in Woojin's palms.
“Kiiik?!”
The snake, burned before, panicked and tried fleeing—but the fireball launched first.
Booom!!
“Kyaaaak—!”
Another wild dance. Woojin nodded approvingly.
‘Fire’s the weakness.’
Cold-blooded, snake-like beasts tended to hate fire. This one was no exception.
After much flailing, the rattlesnake finally slumped, exhausted.
Time to finish it.
He approached. It mustered a final bite, but Woojin's machete sliced its neck first.
Thud.
The head hit the dirt. It snapped futilely at empty air, as if protesting its unfair end...
The last thing the rattlesnake saw was the hunter's foot growing larger.
Squelch!
He crushed the head underfoot.
‘Easy cleanup.’
Used a fair bit of mana, but saved stamina and Lightning Bolt. Net gain. In the Demonic Realm, conserving strength was key—like running a marathon.
He swallowed the snake's inner core. Skinned it and packed the hide.
‘Back on the move.’
Hunting obstructing demonic beasts along the way, Woojin pressed north without pause.