Chapter 146
Chapter 146
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 146
Chapter Title: Clash with the Six Harmonies Spear House
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"Who the hell put a curse on a kid!"
"You mocking the Six Harmonies Spear House?!"
The Six Harmonies Spear House thugs shouted with utterly ridiculous expressions on their faces.
But Shin Yu-hyun fixed them with a sharp glare.
"I never said the person under the curse was a kid."
"……!"
For a split second, the men flinched, their faces registering shock.
"What are you talking about?"
"We didn't do anything like that."
The thugs quickly schooled their features and started spouting nonsense.
But Shin Yu-hyun had caught that fleeting look on their faces and was now certain.
These guys—no, the Six Harmonies Spear House—had cursed Kim Soo-yeon.
"You bastards!"
Kim Sang-cheol's face twisted in rage at their words, and he stepped forward.
Shin Yu-hyun raised a hand to block him.
Kim Sang-cheol, his face flushed red and purple, shot Shin Yu-hyun a look.
He couldn't forgive the ones who'd cursed his granddaughter.
But Shin Yu-hyun simply shook his head briefly at Kim Sang-cheol.
Then he leaned in close and whispered in the old man's ear.
"Leave this to me."
He snapped his fingers at the Six Harmonies Spear House men.
Snap.
Whoosh!
The sabers poised at their throats pulled back a step.
Finally able to breathe, the thugs scowled and yelled.
"Even the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan can't just pick a fight with the Six Harmonies Spear House!"
"We'll file a formal complaint about this!"
With the blades off their necks, their bravado returned.
Shin Yu-hyun let out a hollow chuckle at them.
"That's my line. Suwon is a city under our clan's protection. So why is the Six Harmonies Spear House buying up real estate here?"
"Th-that's……."
His sudden jab left them flustered.
As Shin Yu-hyun had said, Suwon was protected and primarily operated in by the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan.
For those guys to snap up property in a city like that!
"You know the rules. We don't mess with each other's territories."
The four great clans of Korea each protected specific areas centered around the Seoul metropolitan region.
The Six Harmonies Spear House covered Incheon Metropolitan City.
The Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan handled Suwon and the southern Gyeonggi Province areas, including Gunpo, Hwaseong, and Yongin.
The Spiral Fist Clan took Uijeongbu and northern Seoul.
The Ten Thousand Poisons Clan covered Namyangju and eastern Seoul.
And the heart of Seoul itself was guarded by the Hunter Association, where superhumans and hunters from the four great houses and beyond gathered.
Excluding central Seoul, the territories protected by the four great houses were bound by a mutual non-aggression pact.
They cooperated against magic beast invasions or villain attacks, but otherwise kept out of each other's domains.
What the Six Harmonies Spear House was doing now was a blatant violation of that treaty.
"The Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan will lodge a formal protest over this."
"Tch."
The Six Harmonies Spear House men fell silent at Shin Yu-hyun's words.
They just stared, faces saying How did they find out?
A coincidence?
Lee Sang-jae, one of the Six Harmonies Spear House members, frowned.
Whatever the reason, the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan now knew.
That meant delays to their plans.
Grinding his teeth, Lee Sang-jae glanced at Choi Hyuk-jun sprawled on the ground.
"That doesn't change the fact that you laid hands on Six Harmonies Spear House members."
"We'll let it slide for today!"
The thugs hoisted up their fallen comrade and began to retreat.
They didn't forget to toss a clichéd "You'll regret this" at Shin Yu-hyun and Kim Sang-cheol.
"You sure it's okay to let them go?"
"Yes. For now."
Shin Yu-hyun nodded at Kim Sang-cheol's worried question.
"No evidence, so we can't hold them."
"What if they come back for revenge?"
Shin Yu-hyun couldn't help but chuckle at the old man's persistent concern.
"Don't worry. They're not stupid enough to escalate things."
This was Suwon, the city where the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan mainly operated and held sway.
Starting a big fight here?
It'd be declaring war.
Shin Yu-hyun's lips curled up.
Bringing forces into Suwon would be tantamount to a declaration of war against the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan.
No matter how reckless the Six Harmonies Spear House was, they wouldn't go that far.
The losses would outweigh any gains.
"Leave this to me."
Shin Yu-hyun glared coldly at the Six Harmonies Spear House men speeding away in their car.
How dare they try to set up a branch here.
He had a rough idea of their goal now.
The Six Harmonies Spear House had bloated numbers but few powerhouses and weak intelligence.
They clearly didn't know much about the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan's internal affairs.
That's probably why they were trying to dodge the clan's eyes and set up a surveillance outpost in some out-of-the-way spot.
But that wouldn't happen now.
"You won't have to move anymore, sir. Please stay here."
Shin Yu-hyun smiled at Kim Sang-cheol. In his previous life, he hadn't known why Kim Sang-cheol had moved to Uijeongbu under the Spiral Fist Clan's protection.
Now that he knew it was because of these Six Harmonies Spear House scum, he couldn't just let the old man leave.
"Thank you."
Kim Sang-cheol gripped Shin Yu-hyun's hand and bowed his head.
Until now, he'd been agonizing over two things.
His ailing granddaughter, and the Six Harmonies Spear House thugs.
Shin Yu-hyun had resolved both in one go.
"So, you'll take the commission?"
"Of course. I'll refine that Agranium metal for you somehow."
"Glad to hear it."
Shin Yu-hyun smiled, then added one more thing.
"And please make a weapon out of the refined Agranium metal."
"Oh, right. You mentioned a weapon too."
Kim Sang-cheol recalled their earlier talk, before the Six Harmonies intruders.
"Got it. A promise is a promise. A sword for you, then?"
"No."
Shin Yu-hyun shook his head.
Creeeak.
Right on cue, the front door opened, and the group entered.
Shin Yu-hyun looked at them emerging into the courtyard and spoke.
"Please make a custom weapon for Choi Jin-seong."
"Me? A custom weapon for me?"
Choi Jin-seong, stepping out of the doorway, jumped in surprise upon hearing Shin Yu-hyun.
He'd had no idea why he'd been brought here.
Shin Yu-hyun had said he'd explain once he arrived.
But to think he'd request a custom weapon for him!
"Not for you?"
Kim Sang-cheol was shocked too.
He'd assumed it was a weapon for Shin Yu-hyun.
Not for what looked like an attendant.
"The weapon Choi Jin-seong will use is a bit special. It needs to be made from Agranium metal at minimum, even if not pure mithril."
"Hmm. Has to be Agranium metal, eh."
Kim Sang-cheol eyed Choi Jin-seong with interest.
"And even for you, sir, crafting a custom weapon for him will be quite the challenge."
"Sounds fun. I'll make it one of a kind."
A tricky weapon to forge?
For the first time in ages, Kim Sang-cheol felt his passion ignite.
"So, what weapon? A famed sword? A treasured blade? Or maybe a magic sword?"
Swords like those were well within Kim Sang-cheol's skills and Agranium metal.
But Shin Yu-hyun shook his head.
"Please make a large-caliber anti-materiel sniper rifle: PGM Hécate II."
"Huh?"
Kim Sang-cheol blinked at the completely unexpected request.
A sniper rifle?
"You want me to make a sniper rifle?"
"Yes."
Shin Yu-hyun nodded at the incredulous old man.
"H-ha, but firearms……."
"I've already gotten permission from the government and Hunter Association."
In the superhuman world, ordinary guns weren't much of a threat.
Swords, spears, and gauntlets wielded directly by superhumans were far more dangerous.
But the weapon Shin Yu-hyun wanted wasn't ordinary.
It fired mana bullets, so he'd secured approval from the government and Hunter Association in advance to avoid issues.
Basically just notified them, though.
Shin Yu-hyun chuckled inwardly.
The might of the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan, one of the four great houses, had pushed it through.
"A gun…… Never made one before. Hmm……."
Caught off guard, Kim Sang-cheol pondered.
He'd crafted all sorts of gear. Especially swords. Spears, bows, gauntlets too.
But never a gun.
And not just any gun—an anti-materiel sniper made with Agranium metal!
"Don't worry about that either. Nam Yeon-ah will help."
"Let's make it together!"
Nam Yeon-ah's eyes were already blazing at the sniper rifle mention.
Like Choi Jin-seong, she hadn't known why they'd come.
To craft an Agranium anti-materiel sniper!
With her vast knowledge, blueprints would be a breeze.
"But why a sniper rifle? It won't work on magic beasts."
Kim Sang-cheol glanced curiously between Shin Yu-hyun and Choi Jin-seong.
Even an anti-materiel sniper could barely scratch 2-star common magic beasts.
Agranum might hit a bit harder.
But their mana barriers or demon fighting spirit negated most of it.
"Of course you're right, sir. But that doesn't apply to our Choi Jin-seong."
Shin Yu-hyun smiled warmly at Choi Jin-seong.
The young man's face flushed under the gaze.
"Jin-seong can enchant bullets with mana."
"Mana enchant on bullets? For real?"
Kim Sang-cheol's eyes widened in shock.
Mana enchanting worked best on larger projectiles like arrows.
Tiny bullets were tough.
Plus, bullets contained gunpowder—mess up the enchant, and boom.
That's why ranged superhumans preferred bows.
Even large artillery shells were similar.
Bigger than bullets, easier to enchant, but failure meant massive explosions.
Far worse than a bullet mishap.
Superhumans had abandoned modern weaponry because of that volatility.
But Kim Sang-cheol had the unique trait Mana Bullet Mastery.
It guaranteed 100% enchant success.
Cheat-level ability.
Though limited to firearms.
Not artillery or missiles.
"Impressive."
"N-no, it's nothing."
Choi Jin-seong scratched his head at the praise.
"The Hall Leader's the impressive one."
He looked at Shin Yu-hyun.
What would have become of him without Shin Yu-hyun?
The thought alone was horrifying.
He might not even be here now.
"Anyway, I get it. With that, I'll give it a shot. Especially with the young lady helping."
"Leave it to us!"
Nam Yeon-ah replied to Kim Sang-cheol's gaze with burning enthusiasm.
"Please take care of it."
"Y-yes, please!"
As Shin Yu-hyun bowed to Kim Sang-cheol, Choi Jin-seong followed suit.
Now, all that's left is the Six Harmonies Spear House.
Shin Yu-hyun hardened his expression inwardly.
Because in his previous life, the Six Harmonies Spear House had…….