Chapter 43
Chapter 43
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: Try Using This One Too
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The chief technical advisor of the kingdom's workshop at the eastern border fortress, Sir Harold Smith, scowled and turned his back on Kang Geohan as if dismissing him entirely. Then he spoke.
"A guy who can't even swing it is talking nonsense?"
He tried to leave while ignoring Kang Geohan.
At that moment, Kang Geohan felt it.
'If I back down here, I'm really screwed.'
Crunch!
Kang Geohan twisted his mana core.
It was a technique too difficult to use without preparation, but that was no issue.
Ever since learning mana core transformation from Kaltz, he had been doing mana core stretches for three hours every morning, skimping on sleep. He had done it today as well, and his mana core was plenty flexible.
'Twice...!'
Regrettably, it didn't twist three times.
It had only been a day since the goblin battle, so his condition hadn't fully recovered.
Even so, Kang Geohan gave it a try.
"Sir!"
Whooosh—!
The twice-twisted mana core unraveled, spewing mana. The mana spun clockwise, creating a slight whirlwind. Sir Harold Smith clearly felt it.
"Mana core transformation? At his age?"
"An elite-trained rich kid?"
"Even so..."
The knights watching the scene stroked their chins in admiration. The engineers adjusted their glasses, showing interest.
But Harold's expression crumpled even more.
"Where does a brat like you get off showing off parlor tricks?"
He knew it too. That it was impressive for a fresh White Knight trainee candidate to perform mana core transformation. But impressive only at that level.
There had been plenty of such talents before, and what irked him was that this greenhorn had dared to stop him—a man of junior baron's rank holding the highest position in the workshop—relying on his half-baked skills.
Reading genuine fury on Harold's face, Zaxen Silver paled.
"Kang Geohan White! What is this rudeness? Apologize at once!"
Shouting that, Zaxen Silver roughly grabbed for Kang Geohan's shoulder.
Clack!
But his hand was caught by Kaltz Black, who stood beside him, before it could reach.
"Don't touch my master's body carelessly."
Sparks flew from Zaxen Silver's eyes.
"You little—!"
Crunch!
With their gripped hands in between, Kaltz and Zaxen's mana clashed. It swirled wildly in all directions.
"What's that? There's a Gigant rider like him?"
"A newly assigned Silver Knight? But... he looks familiar?"
"...His presence is intense. This is trouble..."
The onlookers' faces hardened seriously.
The situation was that tense. The two knights would have clashed any second.
If Harold hadn't intervened.
"Hold on. Hold on, hold on."
He looked at Kaltz with a strange expression.
"This kid... I've seen him before... Kaltz! Your name was Kaltz Black, right?"
Kaltz Black released Zaxen Silver's hand and bowed his head with an embarrassed look.
"Long time no see, sir. I didn't expect you to remember."
"You're the little pioneer squad brat Harun treasured so much, aren't you? You came to me for gear when you weren't even ready for it. That's why I remember. But what happened to you? It's been about five years, right? Haven't seen you since that incident."
Kang Geohan turned to Kaltz in surprise.
'Why didn't I think of that?'
Come to think of it, Kaltz had said he mutinied to save his comrades during the Logot Kingdom's raid.
The Logot Kingdom bordered the east. His post had to have been around the eastern border fortress.
With the situation unfolding like this, Zaxen Silver's expression turned odd too.
Kaltz's old post in the eastern pioneer squad. His surname changing to Black five years ago. Thinking about it made his head spin.
'...No way my senior? Nah, can't be. Probably a junior.'
Harold Smith's expression grew even stranger.
"But what did you just call that punk? Master? Ahem! No? Did I hear wrong?"
Harold made an embarrassed face as if he'd made a mistake. But Kaltz replied with shameless boldness.
"Yes. Kang Geohan White here is my master. It's a complicated situation."
Harold's mouth gaped open.
"Complicated? This is downright absurd! What are you, nobility?"
Harold turned to Kang Geohan with laser-beam intensity.
Considering Kaltz's pride, Kang Geohan suppressed his embarrassment with all his might and stood tall.
"I'm from the rebel lands."
"Rebel lands...?"
Harold glanced at Kaltz Black. Then back at Kang Geohan. Back to Kaltz. Back to Kang Geohan. Then he sighed deeply.
"Hoo... What the hell is going on."
Harold beckoned Kang Geohan and turned away.
"Fine. Let's see it. You've piqued my curiosity. I want to know why Black calls you master. But,"
Harold's voice turned icy.
"If you don't meet my standards, you'll pay for wasting my time."
* * *
In the firepower testing ground connected directly to the kingdom workshop, Kang Geohan's Femoral stood tall.
They had just finished connecting the gear using the crane.
Rumble! It successfully lifted off. It felt somehow faster than usual.
"28 seconds... Not bad, but."
Harold Smith muttered, then shouted.
"Kid! What you're equipped with now is a weapon called 'Giant Slayer'! It's specialized for taking down a single powerful enemy!"
Kang Geohan looked at the massive axe in Femoral's hands. It was huge. Gears meshed complexly, and a propulsion unit was attached behind the blade.
"If you can swing that thing properly even once, I'll forget today's displeasure."
Harold Smith bared his teeth in a grin. His wrinkled face twisted like a demon crawling out of hell.
In truth, Harold thought it impossible for Kang Geohan to swing the Giant Slayer.
'Still too green. That weapon can't be handled with such a mana core and transformation level.'
Even so, he was testing him because he truly couldn't comprehend it.
'In my eyes, even a Black Knight is a rookie... But from clashing with Zaxen earlier, that Kaltz kid has grown into a knight not lacking as a Silver. For such a knight to serve a rebel-lander knight as master...? Why?'
So he wanted to see for himself. He didn't care about the circumstances. He just wondered if he'd see potential that met his standards.
"The target is that scrap Yotun in front of you. It's so damaged it needs scrapping. Of course, even battered, a Yotun's a Yotun. If you cleave it vertically in half with one strike, I'll let it slide."
Yotun. Linekar Kingdom's proud mainstay Gigant.
Height: 10.5 meters.
Shoulder width: 5 meters.
Chest-to-back thickness: 4 meters.
Weight: 30 tons.
A battlefield dominator with far superior size, sturdy outer armor, and output compared to the advanced trainer Cyclops that Kang Geohan rode.
Even with the best weapon, cleaving a Yotun in half with one strike from a Cyclops was near impossible.
But Kang Geohan's eyes calmed steadily.
'He wouldn't ask if it weren't possible. If I handle it right, it is.'
That meant Harold Smith took great pride in the Giant Slayer he'd made.
No need to hesitate or overthink anymore.
Kang Geohan mobilized his whole body's mana.
'3RM!'
He drew the maximum mana he could muster at once. Dividing his 85 mana into three uses meant squeezing out about 28 mana.
'Mana core transformation!'
He began twisting his mana core vigorously.
Earlier he'd barely managed twice, but with the tension heightening his focus, he succeeded in twisting it three times this time.
Sizzle—!
Steam jetted from his whole body, even his mouth and ears.
His body trembled from drawing out all the mana.
Whoooosh!
Femoral's maxed output transmitted to the Giant Slayer, making it vibrate.
Rumble!
Like a supercar engine revving, the Giant Slayer let out a low roar, and flames ignited in the propulsion unit behind the blade.
"...Huh?"
Harold Smith, watching, parted his lips slightly.
Kang Geohan raised both hands straight up as if lifting an axe.
Synced with his motion, Femoral hoisted the Giant Slayer overhead.
In truth, the rider and Gigant didn't need identical motions. With familiarity, thoughts alone could control it, and Kang Geohan was at that level.
But,
'I'll strike precisely. Fuse with the Gigant as much as possible for a powerful yet delicate blow...!'
Slicing something required not just power but accuracy. Yet those two conflicted.
Like how a pitcher's faster ball was more likely to go wild.
So Kang Geohan synchronized his body with the Gigant's. To drop a blow even a bit stronger and even a bit more precise.
His hands grew heavy. Like holding a real axe with both hands—no, like gripping a thrashing tiger's tail. His arms shook, vision blurred. But,
"Huup!"
The moment he inhaled until his belly swelled, his mind cleared.
Thud! Stomping the ground with heavy legs lightened his waist.
Swinging his arms down like yanking out the tiger's tail freed his shoulders.
Boom!
An explosion erupted from the raised Giant Slayer in Femoral's hands.
Flames surged, thick smoke billowed.
Screech! Eerie sounds came from Femoral's joints, and boom! The ground quaked under its stepping foot.
The blade, exploding, plunged like lightning.
And,
Crack!
The Yotun before him split in two. From head to crotch, like pressing pudding into halves—armor plates buckled inward, bulged, and tore. Shattered fragments rolled across the ground.
"What the hell?"
Harold's eyes bulged. The Giant Slayer had activated perfectly. He blinked.
"That shouldn't work with mana core alone? How?"
He didn't know Kang Geohan could mobilize an absurd amount of mana at once.
But clearly, Kang Geohan had shattered expectations with perfect success.
Gulp.
Swallowing, Harold's expression changed.
He yelled at the engineer beside him.
"Hey! Equip the Giant Stride too!"
At his command, engineers hurriedly attached new gear to Femoral's legs.
"Try using this one together too."
Harold's eyes gleamed.
After a brief rest, Kang Geohan split his 3RM power into two uses and perfectly wielded the Giant Stride and Giant Slayer.
Femoral leaped in like flying and smashed another scrap Yotun.
Harold slapped his thigh with his palm.
"That's it!"
Then he shouted.
"Hey, hey! Install the Berserker Pack too! Full new-gen three-piece set!"
The contemptuous look toward Kang Geohan was gone.
"Do it. Do it. You can, right?"
Like a hyena before meat, drool now dripped from Harold's mouth.