Chapter 4
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 004
Chapter Title: Repairing the Sword of Dawn
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"Change into this outfit and come into the treatment room."
I handed her a store uniform that wouldn't matter if it got dirty.
The treatment she was about to receive would ruin her clothes pretty badly anyway.
Her symptoms were similar to Yang Deok-chun's.
Excessive magi contamination.
However, just as there was a gap between a D-rank and an S-rank hunter's power, the amount of magi accumulated in her body was on a whole different level.
And it was high-purity magi from an S-rank dungeon, at that.
It was nothing like the magi buildup in a D-rank hunter's body.
The purification process was bound to produce a massive amount of waste matter.
I lit some mana incense made by grinding up mana stones.
It was a different type from what I'd used on Yang Deok-chun.
This one was made from slightly higher-purity mana stones.
Plus, I'd minimized the wax's melting point so it would burn the stones a bit faster.
It was a special blend designed for treating high-rank hunters, who required far more mana.
These days, it didn't make financial sense to use it, though.
Whoosh!
The incense ignited with a sweet, melting aroma as the mana dissolved into the air.
Choi Su-ah, now changed into the uniform, sensed the mana in the air and flinched, glancing around.
"This is..."
"Just the basic setup for treatment."
I guided her to the bed in the treatment room.
"Lie down here."
"That's all?"
"Oh, and leave the sword over here, separate from you."
Even after changing, Choi Su-ah still had the Sword of Dawn strapped to her waist.
If I hadn't said anything, she probably would've lain down with it still on.
"Do I have to take it off?"
"Yes. It's essential for the treatment."
"..."
Choi Su-ah hesitated.
It was something she'd never taken off her body, so it was natural she'd feel resistant.
After a moment's thought, she placed the Sword of Dawn on the shelf beside the treatment bed.
The shelf was huge—big enough to leave plenty of space even with the sword on it.
It was a special shelf I'd set up in the shop specifically for treatments like this.
With a tense expression, she set the sword down, bit her lip, and lay on the bed.
"Well then, I leave myself in your hands."
"Got it."
She lay there looking up at me, her tension plain as day.
I'd never seen her like this on TV.
She's more timid than I thought.
I gazed at her for a moment, then reached out.
Was she that on edge?
The instant I extended my hand, she jolted in surprise and squeezed her eyes shut.
But my hand wasn't headed for Choi Su-ah—it was for her weapon, the Sword of Dawn.
"Huh?"
She clearly hadn't expected me to grab the sword.
Her eyes flew open in shock, and she hurriedly reached out to grab my hand.
"D-Doctor? If you touch that the wrong way..."
"I know. Mystics reject anyone who isn't their owner."
Mystic.
A mineral that fell from space when the gates opened.
An unknown substance that couldn't be smelted or reshaped by conventional means—repairing it was outright impossible.
But if it acknowledged someone as its owner, it would morph into the perfect weapon suited to that person's power.
Once bonded, the mystic became spiritually intertwined with its owner, bound in an unbreakable connection.
If someone else tried to wield a mystic weapon, the worst case was that it could kill the intruder.
No wonder guilds had entire manuals dedicated to handling them.
Only the owner was allowed to touch it.
That was probably one reason she treasured the sword so much.
Mishandling it could lead to disaster.
"It's for the treatment. Don't worry—I've got a way."
"...Okay."
She'd grabbed my hand to stop me, but after hesitating, she nodded.
"Just lie still. No matter what I do, don't move."
"Got it."
I ran my hand once along the sheathed Sword of Dawn.
Choi Su-ah stared at me in wide-eyed surprise.
Vmmm.
The sword began reacting to the touch of a stranger.
It emitted a hazy glow, radiating hostility.
Weapons with egos were called ego swords, right?
What a temperamental thing.
Reactions like this just made repairs all the more satisfying.
The mana density in the air was sufficient now.
Snap!
I flicked my fingers, and the air currents shifted.
Mana in the atmosphere gathered toward my hand.
The blue light coalesced naturally, taking form bit by bit.
It shaped into thread and needle.
A needle and thread made of mana appeared in my hand.
I looked at the Sword of Dawn.
Sure enough, chips were missing from the edge.
And there were fine cracks scattered across the blade.
It was a miracle it held its form at all.
Cracks, huh...
It wasn't just surface damage—the energy emanating from the sword felt off, too.
I knew from her chart that Choi Su-ah's condition was dire since her soul was linked to it, but seeing the sword's damage really drives it home.
I have to fix you first to treat her. So just hold still.
The Sword of Dawn's soul was intimately connected to its user.
The user's state affected the sword—and vice versa.
That was why I'd reached for the sword instead of her.
Fixing it was the prerequisite to treating Choi Su-ah.
The sword's vibrations of resistance slowly faded.
"Huh? The sword isn't rejecting you?"
Choi Su-ah's eyes widened as she watched.
"H-How is that possible?"
She looked like she'd witnessed the impossible.
Ignoring her gaze, I threaded the mana needle.
Then I plunged it into a crack on the sword.
Vmmm!
A soft glow emanated from the sword as the mana needle pierced it.
"H-How is that work— gasp!"
As I stitched the crack with needle and thread, a faint moan escaped Choi Su-ah's lips.
"W-Wait, Doctor. My arm feels itchy."
She called out urgently.
Right now, I was repairing the sword and treating her body simultaneously.
Weapons made from mystic resonated with their user's soul.
I was using that resonance to heal both sword and owner at once.
It had to be different from how I'd treated Yang Deok-chun.
The magi in her body came from an S-rank dungeon.
A single misstep could make it go berserk.
So I needed to stabilize her body via the sword first.
"Stay still. You can't move."
Every time I stitched and wove with needle and thread, her body twitched.
"D-Doctor, this feels weird..."
Her resonating soul was reacting.
"Where, and how?"
"Well..."
"Be honest, or the treatment won't work."
"My chest feels all tingly... It's weird."
"Not unpleasant, though?"
She shook her head.
Good—it was taking effect.
Her soul, resonating with the sword, was receiving positive stimulation.
"Hang in there. It's only going to get more intense."
"M-More than this?"
Her face flushed, she gazed at me in shock, breathing hotly.
"Yes. Brace yourself."
"O-Okay. I'll endure."
"If it's too much, hug the cushion by the bed. It'll help."
The blue, cute cat cushion I'd placed in the room for mental comfort.
I'd added it because the treatment room felt too sterile.
"G-Got it."
I didn't look her way.
Priority one: fix the sword.
I wove the mana thread into the cracks along the blade.
Then I tied it tight, pulling the fissures together.
Vmmm.
The sword began to vibrate.
"Mmph!"
A muffled moan came from Choi Su-ah, like she'd clamped a hand over her mouth.
The mystic, that wondrous mineral, absorbed the mana from the thread.
And with it, the damaged blade began to heal itself.
Once all the cracks were stitched, I snapped my fingers again.
Snap!
The needle and thread morphed into a pair of gloves.
I slipped them on and stroked the sword.
Vmmm!
The thing that had thrashed wildly at first was now welcoming my touch.
It must trust me to heal it.
This is the good part.
When a resistant ego sword finally submits.
That's the thrill of handling them.
I stroked the blade gently.
I coated the entire thing in mana, helping it absorb even more.
This would kickstart the mystic's self-healing.
Mystics can't be smelted? True.
But unrepairable?
False.
Feed them enough mana, and they heal themselves—that's what makes mystics special.
"Can't be fixed?"
Check if your mana was enough first.
"Haaah..."
As I slowly stroked the sword with mana-infused gloves, a soft moan came from beside me.
"Hah... hah... D-Doctor..."
Choi Su-ah lay on the bed, her face beet red.
She'd been twitching like her nerves were wired to the sword ever since I started stitching.
Sweat poured off her as she panted.
She'd followed my instruction not to move perfectly.
She clutched the blue cat cushion tight, gasping for breath.
It wasn't pain.
The magi accumulated in her body was melting away bit by bit, creating a ticklish sensation.
Like the refreshing clearness when a stuffy nose suddenly opens—mixed with a strange pleasure as the magi clogging her mana-ways dissolved.
Different people felt that tickle to varying degrees.
It might've been tough for her to bear.
"You're doing great. Just a bit longer."
"I-Is it really okay?"
"Of course. You'll feel better soon."
I kept stroking the sword without pause.
"Uuugh..."
Each time, she bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut.
"I-It's too much..."
"Just a little longer. Almost done."
The sword's glow brightened steadily.
The initial cracks were nearly gone, and the chipped edge had regenerated.
The sword's almost fully restored.
Which meant Choi Su-ah, in resonance with it, had improved substantially too.
I glanced at her.
She lay limp on the bed, drenched in sweat and heaving for breath, utterly spent.
"The sword's fully repaired."
"R-Really?"
"Yes. Give it a little time, and it'll finish healing on its own."
"D-Does that mean I'm cured too?"
I shook my head and set the sword aside.
"Now we treat the patient herself."
"Ah..."
"We'll expel all the remaining magi from your body. What we just did was prep work to melt the deeply embedded stuff."
The mana incense had filled the treatment room with mana the whole time I'd been working on the sword.
Mana oversaturation.
The mana gloves shifted form into a small towel.
It began to warm gently.
I placed the mana towel, radiating soft heat, on her lower abdomen.
"Keep this here for a bit."
"W-What should I do?"
"Just go to sleep from here on out."
"Sleep? But I'm not sleepy at all."
She'd fall asleep soon, whether she wanted to or not.
"Doesn't your body feel more relaxed, with drowsiness creeping in?"
"K-Kinda like that..."
The oversaturated mana gathered around Choi Su-ah.
She was wrapped in a blanket of mana.
"Your mind will start to fade."
"Uuuh..."
"If you're anxious, squeeze that cat cushion you're holding."
How much time passed?
Her eyes slowly drifted shut.
I placed my hand on her lower abdomen.
The hunter's core, brimming with power.
The center of all mana-ways.
Fierce light rippled.
Amid the S-rank hunter's immense mana, the magi contamination stood out sharply.
Thanks to the sword's influence, the magi hadn't taken root—it was flowing through her body alongside the mana.
This makes it easy.
Melting and breaking it down would've been the hard part.
Like with Yang Deok-chun, I drew out all the magi flowing through her body and expelled it.
Purifying Choi Su-ah's magi.
Magi contamination level decreasing.
Contamination level below 0% – Purification complete.
A massive crystal formed in the treatment room, made entirely of magi.
The oversaturated mana centered on Choi Su-ah had sucked up and absorbed all the expelled magi.
Just like with Yang Deok-chun, a mana crystal formed.
But this mana crystal gleamed with incomparable brilliance.
Mana Crystal – S-Grade
A crystal formed from purified magi. High concentration for superior efficiency.