Chapter 107

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Translator: Ebonarch

Chapter: 107

Chapter Title: Hati Completed

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After wrapping up the rowdy dinner.

Lee Se-hun returned to his dorm room and sat down at his desk, staring at the two blueprints he had borrowed from Lea.

"Hmm..."

The unfinished blueprint left behind by Lea's father, Dane Claudel, and the new enchant blueprint she had created this time.

If these two were perfectly fused, it would complete the item Lea planned to submit for the special trainee selection tournament.

'The problem is that it's far too dangerous...'

Before his regression. As the casualties from the Puppeteer grew worse by the day, the Hero Association publicly declared a subjugation operation and destroyed countless hideouts and puppets.

And finally, once they pinpointed the main body's location, the Hero Association assembled a full-scale subjugation force.

'Eight S-rank heroes, plus twenty-one A-ranks recognized as quasi-S-rank.'

Not a single Summit Climber participated, as the Association President at the time judged there was no need for their help.

In truth, that lineup had enough power to overwhelm even one of the Ten Evils without much trouble, but the results weren't that decisive.

'Two S-ranks dead, two retired; nine quasi-S dead, eight retired, I think.'

A惨 defeat where four S-ranks and seventeen quasi-S-ranks were effectively neutralized.

Magwang-su, who had participated in the subjugation force back then, attributed the reasons to three factors.

First, the Association President's mistake in not seeking help from the Summit Climbers.

Second, even after being picked off one by one, the Puppeteer still had five Single Numbers—automata comparable to S-ranks—remaining.

And the third and final reason was the device the Puppeteer used at the end: the completed product from fusing those two blueprints right in front of him.

'The first two are just regrets... The third one was the real culprit.'

Considering its danger, it would be best not to make it at all, but that wasn't so simple.

'If I just flat-out say no, Lea will rebel or get expelled... And I can't reveal I'm a regressor to convince her.'

Above all, scrapping such a powerful artifact without even testing it went against Lee Se-hun's nature.

'It all comes down to how to control it...'

With no ideas coming to mind, Lee Se-hun examined the blueprints again.

'The user has to handle the provisional enchant designation, resonance adjustment, and effect modulation all themselves.'

Even just using it would be demanding enough, and factoring in variables from the target it was applied to, most people wouldn't be able to wield it properly.

'The Puppeteer could offload the calculations to other puppets, so in a way, it's perfect for them.'

A tool that seemed tailor-made for the Puppeteer.

After racking his brain for a while, mentally revising and redrawing the blueprints over and over, Lee Se-hun boldly scrapped everything.

'I'll think about this later.'

It was something he'd only heard about before his regression, and the blueprints were incomplete anyway—too many gaps to devise a solution now.

Deciding to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠handle other matters first, Lee Se-hun set the blueprints aside and pulled out the materials for his own submission: the new artifact for Louise.

Saruk

A large, pristine white lotus petal about the size of a fist.

It was the white part taken from the leaves attached to the Sacred Tree's core, and its properties were quite unique.

An effect that merged the various elements imbued in the lotus petal into one.

Its structure differed greatly from the Sacred Tree byproducts he'd used before, as this part had assisted the core's evolution.

'That's why it pairs so well with finicky materials.'

Kung

A glossy black ore that distorted the air around it like a haze. The leftover Hero-grade material 'Ink-Heavy Darkness' from making the Ink ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Spider Ring before.

Lee Se-hun also pulled out the Projection Alloy he'd used previously, then closed his eyes to retrieve the final material.

'Meticulously weighing gains and losses, cunningly hiding their own secrets while prying into others'. Hesitates not even to kill kin...'

He'd only met him once, on the day of the exchange meet, but by glimpsing past memories then, Lee Se-hun had gleaned the kind of man Inoue Ren—Erika's brother—was.

Wung

As if proving the depth of his understanding, something viscous rose from Lee Se-hun's solar plexus, flowed into his right hand, and solidified into a finger-sized ore.

Deep black with a neat rectangular shape, flawless as if pre-processed. Lee Se-hun immediately checked its info window.

'Perfect.'

Better than he'd anticipated—in some ways, even more so.

With all materials out and verified, Lee Se-hun began forging in earnest.

'Start with the Ink-Heavy Darkness.'

Previously, he'd refined it by heating in the furnace and incrementally building heat with hammer and essence strikes, but no need for that hassle now.

Tung—tung—

The Dawnlight Hammer wrapped in flames, lightly tapping the Ink-Heavy Darkness.

Normally unchanged, but each strike flattened and spread it bit by bit.

'As they say, even artisans need good tools.'

The Radiant Flame from the Molten Spirit Furnace, specialized for melting ores.

Reproduced via the artifact skill 'Dawnlight', it drastically shortened refinement time.

'One slip-up and the material's gone.'

Slightly too long in contact and its properties vanished. Thus, Lee Se-hun carefully shaped it into a thin plate.

"Hoo. Shaping's good enough..."

Confirming the mental blueprint, he started from the outermost section.

Tung—

"[Shape Memory]"

Tung—

"[Spell Projection]"

Each Dawnlight Hammer strike imprinted verbal engravings inward, and soon changes appeared on the Ink-Heavy Darkness.

Sususu

Clear letters emerging on the surface.

The verbal engraving hadn't fully absorbed; Lee Se-hun infused mana into it.

Wung!

Some absorbed mana shifted to the engraving, activating the function. Lee Se-hun smiled at the sight.

'Perfect.'

The rest was repetitive work.

Hammer with Dawnlight, engrave verbal imprints inside. Inspecting the circuit-like engravings, he sliced the Ink Mark Stone—Ren's bond stone—with the White Light Dagger.

Sak

Cut like wire, he placed pieces into the engravings on the Ink-Heavy Darkness and lightly tapped with Dawnlight Hammer.

Chiiik—

Neatly welded like soldering.

After two hours of intense labor, with prep complete, Lee Se-hun covered the Ink-Heavy Darkness with the Sacred Tree Petal for the final touch.

Steadying his Mental Image and mana.

"[Trait Fusion]"

The final verbal engraving seeped into the Sacred Tree Petal.

Wuwung!

The petal enveloping the Ink-Heavy Darkness emitted a soft glow. To keep the effect going, Lee Se-hun continuously infused mana to activate it.

As the petal shrank and finally cracked.

Pasasak

It shattered like an egg, revealing the completed artifact.

'Dear one, my ass...'

Tsking at the overly dramatic settlement window, Lee Se-hun examined the completed Hati.

Like the previous Varg, it took the form of a choker. But instead of a silver buckle, it bore dense X-patterns, making this one sleeker.

"Scars won't be an issue... Next, functions."

Picking up Hati, he checked its info window.

'Exactly as planned.'

If the user failed spell control, causing mana rampage, it absorbed the excess and forcibly stabilized it.

Then resupplied to the spell or user for another try. Not just a safety device, but great for honing skills too.

'Forces stabilization until the spell fires properly and even returns the mana.'

A perfect safety net for mages always on edge with mana control.

Confirming the intended performance replicated perfectly, Lee Se-hun set Hati down.

'Now for the hidden function.'

Gazing at Hati, he infused mana and snapped his fingers.

Ttak!

Mana waves shot from his fingertip, patterns lighting up across Hati in response.

Chyararak!

Compressed steel plates unfolded into a mask.

With a bold X etched on it, Lee Se-hun snapped again.

Ttak!

Hati swiftly reverted to choker form. Satisfied, he nodded.

'Applied perfectly.'

An external intervention feature for emergencies. If Louise had issues, he could step in anytime to shut it down.

'And gag her when she's yapping.'

Pleased with the unexpectedly solid function, a sudden thought struck him.

'An artifact the Puppeteer would covet... Doesn't that make it an inescapable trap they'll fall for once?'

A trap invisible in the info window, known only to the maker. Mulling it over.

'...I like it.'

His lips curled unwittingly.

"We'll end today's class here. Great work staying late, everyone."

The elderly professor finished and slowly walked the hallway outside the lecture room.

"Ah, take care!"

"Great work, sir!"

Cadets passing by greeted him with bows and polite nods—spontaneous, not forced. A sign of his high regard and influence in the building.

"Even the freshmen are so polite already... As expected, impressive every year."

"Tell me about it. Having to respond to every greeting must be tiring."

The elderly professor, Charles Reynolds, smiled softly at his colleague professors heading out together.

"What's tiring about it? I'm grateful they notice me."

"That's what's impressive about you. I get furious just seeing some cadets... especially the idiots."

"Exactly. Babel's quality has dropped so much lately..."

Chuckling at their idle chatter, Charles suddenly stopped.

"Ah, darn... I need to pop back to the lab."

"Forget something?"

"Left a document I need to take home. Go ahead to the bar; I'll catch up."

"Got it."

"Take your time."

His colleagues headed to the tavern first. Watching them go, Charles turned toward his lab.

The largest among the Elemental Department professors' labs. Grabbing papers from his desk, he naturally infused mana.

Sususu

Blue mana swept the surface, altering the content.

Photos of cadets secretly snapped around Babel. Beside each, their daily routines and brief reports—quite telling.

Progress on the Mana Purifier—what Lee Se-hun called the Mana Erosion Device—and changes it wrought.

Flipping through, Charles's hand paused at one photo.

"......"

Lee Se-hun carrying bagged food, Louise and Lea trailing reluctantly. Below, a few lines.

"Tsk..."

He tsked involuntarily at the report.

Such prime talents right there, yet he could only watch. He ached to kidnap them—especially Louise Valente—but calmed himself.

'Stay calm...'

Rash moves now meant losing chances forever; patience would bring opportunities again.

Chanting that inwardly like a mantra, he read the rest.

'Thought she had no interest in special trainees... Guess not.'

Louise, who rejected the Elemental Department's promise of Ivory Tower special trainee status and went to Martial Combat instead.

How infuriating to lose such talent to magic-illiterate trash.

'If those two join too... I can make things big.'

Reviewing his plans, he scanned the rest, withdrew the mana.

Sususu

Blue dust scattered in the air.

Back to normal papers, he pocketed them and left the lab.

"Ah, good work."

"Hard work today."

Exchanging soft smiles and nods with assistants, he headed to join his colleagues.