Hespera 2
'How the hell did she know? Does Hespera have some hidden ability no one else knows about?'
I kept a straight face on the outside, but inside, I was burning up with anxiety. My lips were parched, and a fierce thirst was making me increasingly jittery.
'What if she caught on? Should I play dumb?'
As all sorts of thoughts raced through my mind, Hespera spoke up again.
"However, seeing Mr. Kim Suho's leather armor made me realize there was a major error in my initial evaluation. Not only does a ++ rating exist, but your leather armor shattered the existing limitations of leather armor, which is why I gave it a perfect 100 points."
Phew, what a relief. It seemed like the secret of my leather armor hadn't been exposed.
But I still couldn't wrap my head around why it had earned a ++ rating or how it had overcome the limitations of leather armor. With a face full of questions, I focused even harder on her words.
"As you know, the primary limitation of leather armor is that the mana inherent in monster corpses is incompatible with the leatherworker's mana. Because of this, the monster's mana and the leatherworker's mana can't blend properly, leading to a host of problems."
"Problems?"
"Since the mana doesn't mix right, the defense and regeneration suffer from the start. During regeneration, the monster's latent ferocity exploits the moment when the leatherworker's mana is depleted, devouring it and shortening the armor's lifespan. On top of that, you can't engrave magic patterns on leather armor. Even if you pour in massive amounts of mana to force it, it won't function properly—again, because the monster's mana rejects it. Compare that to plate armor, where the dungeon mana in the minerals synergizes with the hunter's mana. It's an unfairly disadvantaged situation."
She paused to wet her throat and continued.
"And the material is so volatile that the difficulty is beyond imagination. There are fewer than one leatherworker per country capable of producing results with defense comparable to the material's grade. Just look at Korea—excluding you, Mr. Kim Suho, there's no one. Worldwide, there are barely a dozen or so at this level. That's why hunters keep ignoring leather armor. Why choose it over plate when it falls short even in basic defense? At best, it's worn as underarmor beneath plate or sought by a niche few classes."
Only after hearing Hespera's explanation did I understand why I'd gotten the ++ rating and broken the old limits. It was all thanks to the mana infused in my armor—the mana that had fused with the monster's mana to become something entirely new.
I also learned the harsh reality facing leatherworkers. In my case, thanks to my Residual Mana Detection skill and the NPC system handling the compression process, I never struggled with leather armor crafting. But others did.
Take Ha Geonmin—she made it obvious. Yet the tournament results drove home just how real the issues were. Even with Korea's top leatherworkers competing, no one but me produced S-rank defense armor.
More crucially, this wasn't unique to Korea. Worldwide, only a dozen or so? It was a graver problem than I'd thought. No wonder leather armor was shunned globally.
And hearing it lamented by Hespera, the world's top leatherworker, made it hit even harder.
As she continued, a flash of contempt lit up Hespera's eyes.
"Honestly, I nearly left Korea in utter disappointment. Sure, skill gaps happen—given the difficulty, it's expected. But for a country's top leatherworkers to produce such trash results and look satisfied? Dismayed and furious doesn't even cover it—they were thrilled! Advertising their own incompetence with those smug faces? They're all worthless scum."
"Scum might be a bit..."
I tried to calm her sudden flare-up, but Hespera only got more worked up, unleashing a tirade.
"No, they are scum. Hunters to begin with was pure luck. They reap all the benefits without even trying to improve their shortcomings? Most leatherworker hunters don't even enter dungeons—they just tinker with hides in comfort. If they won't make the effort, they're scum. Out of the third-round participants, only one showed any frustration. That one aside, the rest are all scum."
I nearly blurted out, "You're right."
Though she was ranting in anger, her words rang true. Hunters were all lucky breaks, exceptions like those who rejected the role notwithstanding—and none were here anyway.
They enjoyed hunter perks without dungeon dives or combat like combat-class hunters. So if they slacked on skill-building too? Hespera had a point.
But she was too extreme. Her argument had a glaring flaw: judging the whole from a slice.
'What about hunters who want to enter dungeons but can't? Those who want to grow but lack materials?'
Maybe Sweden guaranteed those conditions, but not Korea. Ha Geonmin alone had suffered endlessly before joining our guild.
Their tournament behavior was spot-on, but it didn't represent everyone.
Still, I had no desire to argue or defend them here. This wasn't about right or wrong.
I didn't want to speak for them either. Right now, I just wanted to hear her out.
I pointed out that the conversation was veering off-topic. Left unchecked, it'd drag on forever.
"I understand your point, Ms. Hespera. But could you explain why I got the ++ rating?"
"Ah! Sorry. I got worked up again. It's just so frustrating how leatherworkers get looked down on by blacksmiths—I lost it without thinking. I have a blacksmith friend, and right before coming here, we had a blowout with that damn guy, so I was already on edge."
Hespera bowed her head in apology.
I was curious who this blacksmith was that dared belittle the world's best leatherworker. He had to be no ordinary hunter.
Tempting as it was, I shelved the question to avoid another detour.
I couldn't fully grasp her feelings as a non-leatherworker, but I sympathized—thanks to Ha Geonmin. With her endless passion for leather as "the future of armor," she'd probably get along great with Hespera.
With the apology done, Hespera returned to the main topic.
"As you've probably guessed, the ++ rating for your armor came from the mana within it. It might be embarrassing to say this to your face, Mr. Kim Suho, but I've always prided myself on being the world's best at mana control. Even more so than mages in precision."
I nodded instinctively. I'd sensed the mana in her armor. Blending incompatible monster and leatherworker mana that finely? No average control could do it. Even mages would struggle, as she said.
"But the moment I saw your armor, my confidence crumbled—no, shattered to pieces. Not that I was disappointed or crushed. Quite the opposite—I was overjoyed. It wasn't just mixing mana; it had transformed into something new. I was moved to tears. This new mana solves every issue from monster-hunter mana clashes at once, overcoming all the perceived limits of leather armor."
Hespera was ranting again, but this time in ecstatic excitement. It reminded me of someone I saw often: Ha Geonmin.
Her vibe matched perfectly.
'If those two ever hit it off, it'd be a sight.'
Unlikely, but if it happened, I'd steer clear.
"This new mana resolves every problem I mentioned. Unified as one, it boosts defense and regeneration. Lifespan loss during regen is negligible—unless it's over half-destroyed, it barely drops. Tests showed magic patterns work flawlessly too. It absorbs plate armor's strengths into leather's advantages, charting a bold new path for leather armor."
Her assessment matched mine exactly. I'd made it and run countless tests, but she'd figured it all out in hours. She'd even spotted magic patterns—something I hadn't considered—showing me new possibilities.
'Magic patterns? Worth thinking about.'
For A-rank gear, it was public knowledge anyway, so anyone could do it. But guild S-rank leather armor rivaled SS-rank plate. Leaking that via enchanters would be a headache, so caution was key.
"One lingering question, though. You said earlier my armor might conquer an SSS-rank dungeon—what did you mean?"
Our talk had cleared up a lot, but not the SSS-rank connection.
"Yes, but first—one thing. Is it a skill?"
The abrupt question clicked: she meant my armor's mana.
Conveniently, even I didn't know how the mana fused. If she'd asked to learn it, I'd be stuck. But calling it a skill made answering easy.
"Yes, a skill."
"As I thought. Natural acquisition? Or from a treasure chest?"
No known leatherworker skill fused mana that way—she knew that best, hence the question about its origin.
"Natural acquisition."
"Irregular, as expected."
'Irregular? What?'
I was thrown by her labeling me an irregular, but she barreled on, ignoring my confusion.
"I've always wondered. Combat hunters produce 'irregulars' periodically—wielding elemental magic freely regardless of skills, or unleashing otherworldly power from the same skill. But production-class hunters? None until now."
Her eyes fixed on me.
"Then one appeared in production: Miracle from your country—you know her. I thought, 'If a potion-maker irregular emerges, leatherworkers will too.' So I toured the world, baiting with lures to find one. Korea wasn't on the itinerary—Japan then South America. Never dreamed one country would have two. My blacksmith friend insisted I check anyway—the one who taught me Korean. And here... I found a real irregular. That's why you're extra welcome, Mr. Kim Suho."
To be continued in the next chapter... The Hunter Who Awakened as an NPC