Resonance of the Unknown
One egg sat on the workbench. At a glance, it looked no different from a special-grade egg sold at the mart. But Seojun peered at the shell's surface through a magnifying glass, scrutinizing it relentlessly.
There's a faint pulsation.
It was as if he were pressing a stethoscope to it, expecting to hear a heartbeat. Faint blue veins, too fine for the naked eye, wove across the shell like a net. It was the 'gift' the egg ghost had left behind yesterday. There was no way it was ordinary food.
Seojun carefully picked up a small hammer. Tap. He struck it lightly. Ting— Instead of a crack, a clear metallic ring echoed out. The shell's hardness rivaled steel. He furrowed his brow and gripped the hammer tighter. This time, he put some force into it. Clang! Only then did a fine crack spiderweb across the shell. What oozed from the fissure wasn't yolk. It was a translucent, sticky substance somewhere between gelatin and mercury.
This is...
Unknown Egg
Type:Kaeyi Byproduct
Traits:Shape Memory, Shock Absorption
He checked it immediately through the Hunter system. It was an unexpected result, but one he could accept. Kaeyi were the embodiment of the unknown, after all.
Kaeyi byproduct, huh...
Testing it firsthand let him feel the traits intuitively. The slime perfectly mimicked the shape of whatever it touched. It also hardened instantly in response to external impacts. It was definitely no food ingredient. At minimum, it made an excellent buffer and adhesive.
Seojun sealed the broken shell and slime in separate glass jars. As he pondered how to use the kaeyi's gift, a sound shattered the forge's silence. Click-clack, click-clack. Rhythmic, weighty heels striking the floor. Worlds apart from Kim Sangwoo's rough stomps yesterday.
"Anyone here?"
A woman with a cold demeanor stood at the forge's entrance. She wore a skin-tight black leather suit, an abnormally long rapier at her waist. Her sharp eyes sized Seojun up like he was merchandise.
"Yes, what brings you here..."
"Kim Sangwoo sent me."
Kim Sangwoo must have been blabbing all over the neighborhood. Seojun nodded silently.
"Come on in. What can I do for you?"
Instead of answering, she unbuckled the rapier from her waist and set it on the workbench. Thud. The scabbard was worn ragged. Leather torn in places, exposing the wooden frame inside.
"This thing needs a sheath that can handle it. I've tried all the high-end ones on the market, but none last a week."
Seojun drew the sword from its sheath. Shing— A chilling friction accompanied the reveal of the silver blade. The sword hummed with faint vibrations. A high-frequency vibration sword—one that cleaved anything it touched by vibrating thousands of times per second. The problem was the residual vibrations that lingered even when powered down.
The sword itself rejects people.
Seojun gripped the hilt firmly. It stung his palm like static, trying to buck away. No wonder ordinary leather or wood sheaths couldn't endure it. It must have eaten through them from the inside while holstered.
"The blade's got a fierce temper. Like a rabid dog that doesn't recognize its master."
"......Spot on. It's the B-rank artifact Mad Dog. Great performance, rotten personality."
She gave a wry smile. Seojun tried sliding it back into the sheath, but it caught at the mouth. The interior was too damaged to accept it.
"I want a sheath that fully dampens the vibrations and protects the blade. Price doesn't matter."
It was a tough order. The interior needed to be soft to absorb vibrations, yet hard enough to withstand the blade. Two contradictory conditions to satisfy simultaneously. Impossible with conventional methods—unless forging it from adamantium. But a recent experiment flashed in Seojun's mind.
Shape memory and shock absorption.
The slime from the kaeyi egg. That might make it possible.
"Materials will cost extra. And I'll decide the design."
"As long as it works."
She wired the deposit coolly and left the forge. Seojun locked the door. Time for serious work.
First, material for the sheath's frame. He fetched black thornwood logs from the storeroom—a demonic plant hard as iron but lightweight. Whirr— The mana-stone-powered electric saw cleaved it in half. Seojun began hollowing it to match the sword's shape. Scrape, scrape, scritch. His chisel danced deftly. Sawdust flew like snow. He left the interior far roomier than a standard sheath. He had a separate filler for the space.
About done.
With the frame complete, time to mix the key ingredient. He retrieved the sealed jar. The clear slime sloshed inside. It needed added viscosity and durability.
Mithril powder and volcanic spider silk.
He ground mithril powder and spider silk in a mortar. Grind, grind, grind. He poured the fine mixture into the slime jar. Sizzle— The reaction was instant. The clear slime turned silvery-gray and bubbled. Seojun stirred rapidly with a long glass rod. It clumped stickily, stretching like taffy. Now it was a race against time—coat the interior before it set.
He brushed the mixture inside the wooden frame. Schlop, schlop, splat. Thoroughly, without gaps. Then he joined the halves and bound them tight with leather straps. Time to house the Mad Dog.
Seojun slathered the blade with special oil—a release agent to prevent sticking. He took a deep breath and pressed the sword to the sheath's mouth. Squish— A soft resistance yielded as it sank into the unset slime.
Now the real work begins.
Letting it harden like this would just make a rigid rubber sheath. To maximize shape memory, he needed to temper it with mana. Seojun lowered the forge's heat. A gentle warmth was key. He placed the sheath by the forge on the workbench and rested both hands atop it.
"Hup."
He drew mana from his entire body. Blue mana flowed from his palms into the sheath. The slime was mana-sensitive. Per Seojun's will, its molecules wrapped the blade's surface, brooking no micro-vibrations. It filled every contour perfectly. At the same time, he set a rhythm. Thump, thump. He pulsed the mana like waves. A heartbeat rhythm. Infusing the slime with vitality. Not dead material, but a living organism clutching the sword.
Sweat beaded on his forehead quickly. The slime writhed ceaselessly, suckling his mana greedily like a cuckoo chick in the nest.
This thing's got an appetite.
Seojun ramped up output. Silvery-gray light leaked from the wood's seams. An hour passed. The resistance inside faded, replaced by a solid stability. The slime had fully cured—not rigid, but elastic.
"Whew."
Seojun exhaled and inspected the result. It looked like an ordinary wooden sheath. But in hand, it felt different—subtle give beneath the wood's hardness.
He gripped the hilt and drew it. Chup-suck. An eerie sound, not the metallic shing of steel on wood. Like pulling a foot from mud or a squid sucker detaching. Yet the blade slid out smoothly, pristine without a speck of residue.
He sheathed it again. Sliiiide, thup. It glided in like being pulled. At the end, the interior contracted, clamping the blade—a sensation tingling to his fingertips.
Finally, he shook it by the hilt. No rattling play.
"Success."
As expected, the kaeyi egg slime was a perfect buffer. No matter the sword's vibrations, the jelly-like lining would absorb and disperse them all.
Now for finishing. He sanded the rough wood. Swish, scrape. It smoothed out. Instead of leather, he reinforced the mouth and tip with thin metal plates. Then a coat of black lacquer overall. The finished sheath gleamed obsidian-dark. But under light, faint blue vein patterns shimmered. The vascular web from the shell.
Not intentional.
Residual kaeyi aura from the slime manifesting. More mystical than ominous.
Late afternoon, the client returned. She raised an eyebrow at the finished sheath.
"Plainer than I expected."
"Try drawing it."
Seojun handed it over. She slotted her rapier in familiarly. Sliiiide, thup. Her eyes widened. The sensation was unlike any sheath before.
She drew and sheathed repeatedly. Chup. Swish. Chup.
"What is this feeling? Like the sheath is... sucking the sword in."
"Special filler inside. Absorbs vibrations, grips tight otherwise."
She infused mana with it sheathed. The rapier hummed to life. Normally, the sheath would rattle in agony. Now, silence. It subtly contracted and expanded, nullifying the vibes. Like breathing.
"Whoa..."
Satisfied, she belted it on. Even violent motion yielded no rattle. Perfect fit.
"Impressive. Kim Sangwoo wasn't exaggerating."
She paid the balance with a pleased smile.
"Han Yura, Silver Lining Guild. I'll be back, boss."
"Seojun Im. Anytime."
Han Yura left. Seojun tidied the scattered tools. Half the slime remained in the jar, plus the broken shell shards.
"..."
He picked up a shell fragment. Steel-hard yet light. Armor? Throwing weapons? Ideas cascaded.
Then, a glint in his peripheral vision. A basket in the forge's dark corner, holding the remaining eggs. One trembled faintly.
No illusion. It moved on its own. Its blue veins flushed crimson in unison, flashing.
A red system message floated before Seojun's eyes. Not the Hunter system he'd seen since awakening. Ominous yet unknown.
"Damn it..."
A strange sensation arose. An invisible thread linking him to the egg.
Underestimated the kaeyi...
These weren't mere materials. Processing and using them would entwine him deeper with the kaeyi. He realized that now.
Idly, he glanced at his hand. On his hammer-grip palm, faint red veins like the shell's flickered and vanished.
"No going back now."
Seojun accepted the unease. A kaeyi was an opportunity, after all.