Chapter 47
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: The Second Skill (1)
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Kang Sa-hu wore a satisfied smile as he watched his comrades fight with a level of familiarity that was a far cry from before.
Back when they'd been hunting together in a B-rank gate, there had always been an awkward edge to it—a hint of danger lurking in every moment. But now? They moved with far more ease and confidence than they ever had in those B-rank gates.
The desperate, sweat-drenched effort from their first F-rank gate was nowhere to be seen.
Kieek!
The goblins began dropping like autumn leaves in a gale.
Even without skills, every arrow that flew struck clean through a goblin's skull. The spears hurled by the goblins with all their might bounced harmlessly off Kim Ho-myeong's shield.
But a few of the goblins charging down the slope reached the ground and clustered together, rushing forward in a mob.
Sgeek—
Yet not a single one made it anywhere near Kim Ho-myeong, who stood at the front.
Lee Yu-rim had already slipped into their midst. With the effect of Wind Body – Gentle Breeze, she wove through them like the wind itself, slicing throats left and right.
Kraaak!
Kieek!
Clean, efficient strikes without a wasted motion.
Confirming that even Lee Yu-rim had grown accustomed to the hunt, Kang Sa-hu nodded and turned to Kang Ji-ye.
She shrugged as if she'd known he was going to look her way.
"No one's hurt yet."
He nodded at her perfectly reasonable explanation.
She was his little sister, someone he'd spent his whole life with. He knew she wouldn't lie about her progress or slack off. He'd check her growth properly later.
As she watched the goblins getting cleared out in short order, Kang Ji-ye suddenly turned to Kang Sa-hu with a curious look.
"By the way, oppa. That subspace thing you showed us earlier—is that your second skill?"
She asked casually, thinking it seemed oddly mismatched for a necromancer, but contrary to her expectations, Kang Sa-hu shook his head.
"No, the skill I got is something else."
"Huh? But that thing you showed us—wasn't it a skill? Is there necromancer magic like that...?"
As Kang Ji-ye blinked in confusion, Kang Sa-hu explained matter-of-factly.
"My second skill is called the Authority of Ability Absorption. It lets me absorb abilities offered up by spirits."
"...What did I just hear?"
Kang Ji-ye stared at him in shock.
"So that means you actually have three skills now? Soul Core Creation, Authority of Ability Absorption, and the subspace?"
In response to her question, Kang Sa-hu shook his head again, mentally tallying the absorbed skills—Blink Step and Telekinesis—on top of those.
"If you count the absorbed ones, it's five."
"......"
Kang Ji-ye stared at him with a blank, defeated expression.
"Oppa, at that point, you could go on a one-man rampage without even using necromancer magic, right?"
It was an offhand question, but Kang Sa-hu—who had been wary of relying solely on necromancer magic and was shifting toward skill-focused combat to make full use of Duke of Hell Demadr's Blood-Drinking Scythe—simply nodded without a word.
"I could."
"...Wow, seriously. Oppa, you're just..."
As Kang Ji-ye trailed off, unable to continue, Park Joo-hee returned after inspecting the trolls' weapons with Kang Sa-hu's permission.
"These are decent and all, but they still can't compare to that scythe."
She sounded a bit disappointed as she gave her assessment of the trolls' gear.
Kang Sa-hu, who had checked the weapons ahead of her, understood exactly what she meant.
The great scythe he wielded was a golden relic-grade weapon, while most of the arms and armor from the trolls were plain white common-grade items.
The elite trolls had wielded a mix of green rare-grade gear, but even setting grades aside, they paled in comparison to 'Duke of Hell Demadr's Blood-Drinking Scythe' just on visual inspection alone.
"Still, their construction and forms were worth studying. If we get some good ore from here, I can forge you something way better than those."
Park Joo-hee flashed a confident grin from behind her sunglasses.
"So, Meister, how old are you anyway?"
Kang Ji-ye asked out of the blue, catching Park Joo-hee off guard with a puzzled look.
"My age? Why?"
"Just curious. You talk to oppa so casually, so I figured you might be around the same age. But you don't look it."
Caught off guard, Park Joo-hee flinched visibly.
"W-well, I've eaten plenty over the years!"
"So how old are you?"
As Kang Ji-ye pressed relentlessly, Park Joo-hee started sweating bullets.
But under the intense, predatory stare—like a cat spotting prey—she finally mumbled through gritted teeth.
"Tw-twenty-two..."
"Huh?! Twenty-two?! That's three years younger than oppa! Even younger than Ho-myeong oppa and Yu-rim unnie?!"
Kang Ji-ye fixed her with wide, cat-like eyes.
"W-what's that supposed to mean?!"
"No, I just assumed you were older since you talk so casually. I'm surprised you're not."
Though her words were polite enough, the subtext screamed, 'You're younger and already bantering like that?'
Sensing it, Park Joo-hee flushed red and raised her voice in defense.
"L-look, I'm with the National Intelligence Service! Different affiliations, no overlap—why wouldn't I...!"
"Oh my, listen to her talking like she's one of us. Why do you think we're all here together? That's cold."
"Th-that's not what I...!"
Just as Kang Ji-ye toyed with her like a cat batting a mouse—armed with Confucian hierarchy—Kang Sa-hu stepped toward Bae Deok-ho.
"Bae Deok-ho-ssi, you alright?"
"Huh? Of course, Party Leader! What do you think—have we improved?"
"Improved? You're doing splendidly."
"Hah! Haha!"
Bae Deok-ho burst into laughter at the praise, while Kim Ho-myeong—eyes fixed forward—cracked a smile.
'What are they talking about?'
Lee Yu-rim, at the vanguard mowing down goblins, glanced back curiously as she overheard Kang Sa-hu speaking to Bae Deok-ho and the ensuing laughter.
Unlike Bae Deok-ho with his ranged attacks or Kim Ho-myeong who only moved if enemies got too close, Lee Yu-rim's clothes were soaked with sweat from her constant motion.
Noticing this, Kang Sa-hu stepped forward.
"I'll take it from here."
"You will?"
Bae Deok-ho sounded surprised but inwardly smiled, recognizing that Kang Sa-hu had assessed Lee Yu-rim's state and made the call.
Kim Ho-myeong understood it as consideration, too.
"Yes. You're all curious about my growth, after all."
No one had said it aloud, but everyone wondered why Kang Sa-hu—who was already plenty strong—had switched from magic to scythe-based hunting.
He'd picked up on it early and decided to demonstrate proactively, sparing them the awkwardness of asking.
Had they refused to join his guild back then, he wouldn't have bothered. But now that he'd confirmed their trust, it was only right to return it in kind.
Bae Deok-ho lit up at the promise of new abilities and called out to Lee Yu-rim.
"Yu-rim!"
She turned at his voice and spotted the prearranged signal for retreat. Tilting her head, she swiftly extricated herself from the goblins and returned.
"What's up? There are still plenty of goblins left."
"The leader wants to handle the rest himself."
As Bae Deok-ho winked, Lee Yu-rim sheathed her daggers without question and fixed her focused gaze on Kang Sa-hu.
Her eyes held a touch more trust than strictly necessary, but Kang Sa-hu set the thought aside and gripped 'Duke of Hell Demadr's Blood-Drinking Scythe' with both hands.
Kiyak!
kieek, kieek.
The goblins, thrown into disarray by Lee Yu-rim's sudden withdrawal, spotted Kang Sa-hu striding toward them.
Unlike their reckless charges at her, they flinched at the sight of him, not daring to rush in blindly.
"...?"
From afar, it had looked different. He checked if he'd unconsciously cast a spell or was emitting a threatening glare.
Of course, nothing like that was happening.
'Guess the scythe looks intimidating.'
The massive great scythe, towering over even the tall Kang Sa-hu, was surely a terrifying sight for pint-sized goblins.
But that wasn't why they felt fear.
Kek, ke-ruk.
Ki, ki-e!
An instinctive dread.
It wasn't mere intimidation from some special reason.
Through generations of survival, they'd accumulated countless threats. That instinct, etched into their bodies, could sense danger from even a first-time encounter.
Just as a mouse wouldn't fear a whale on first sight without reason.
The goblins felt primal terror from Kang Sa-hu, who posed no active threat.
Ki, ki-relek!
A few goblins spun on their heels and bolted.
The stationary ones glared at the fleeing traitors with betrayed eyes.
Kang Sa-hu watched in bewilderment.
But the confusion was brief. He had the perfect skill for distant foes. Recalling it, he raised the scythe horizontally like a baseball bat cocked upward.
Death that Spins and Returns
[Boomerang throw / Auto-return / Special: Rapid Bloodsuck]
Feeling the skill ready, Kang Sa-hu hurled the scythe upward with full force, like swinging a bat.
Whirr, whirr, whirr.
The onlookers' eyes widened in shock as he tossed his weapon away.
But the shock soon turned to awe.
Tseeeeng, tsseeeeeeng, tsseeeeeeng—!
At first, the spinning was visible to the eye, but the speed ramped up in an instant. The disc-like blur hurtled forward like a boomerang.
Slaash, slaash.
Kaaaak!
Even the crudely armored goblins were sliced apart—armor and all—without resistance.
Kieeeek!
Realizing flight was futile against that scythe, the goblins turned back to Kang Sa-hu.
The terror still made their legs shake, but they sensed instinctively: unarmed as he was now, this was their chance.
Ke-re-re!
The goblins wheeled toward Kang Sa-hu for a counterattack.
But the moment they turned, their resolve flickered out like a candle in the wind.
......!!
Unlike before, with both hands free, Kang Sa-hu had instantly cast the necromancer spell Fear Imprint. The sheer terror radiating from him made charging impossible.
No glow in his eyes, just his standing presence—yet it crushed hearts and blanked minds.
Ke, ke-ra-ra...!
The goblins facing him gaped, jaws unhinging.
Their bodies trembled like leaves, eyes rolled back, pupils vanishing.
And then, the scythe—having swept through a wave—returned with its ferocious spin, severing the necks of the horror-stricken goblins.
Thud thud thud.
The headless goblin bodies hit the ground.
-Clack!
Gorged on blood via its special effect [Rapid Bloodsuck], the scythe flew back menacingly—only to settle gently into Kang Sa-hu's hands.