novelraw Chapter 47 : Chapter 47
Chapter 47 : Chapter 47
Chapter 47: Black Fang (1)
“I hate specialty training. I hate training. I hate classes.”
“Then drop out.”
Seol Hayun indifferently countered Do Haru's sudden complaint.
The ambient noise around the table where we were sitting echoed slightly.
“Still, isn't it nice to be out? The academy is too stifling. Don't you think?”
“I prefer somewhere quiet if possible. It’s too loud here.”
“That’s harsh. But your opinion might change after we play some games later, you know? There are tons of fun things here.”
“You go do it.”
The conversation between Do Haru and Seol Hayun.
I felt sorry for Do Haru, but I had a similar opinion to Seol Hayun.
This place was an arcade near the academy.
It was fully equipped with various arcade machines, hands-on VR devices, virtual reality systems, and simple leisure activities like bowling.
We had settled at a fast-food court table on the second floor.
The sound of arcade machines from above and below, cheers, and bursts of laughter intertwined, making the air boisterous.
The space was packed with cadets who had come out to relieve stress.
I sat at the table and took a long sip of the soda.
A cool sensation traveled down my throat, but for some reason, my head didn't feel clearer.
‘It’s noisy.’
The space, where mechanical noises and murmuring voices were intertwined, felt slightly suffocating.
I might as well have stayed locked up in the training ground to check my skills.
Just as I was thinking that.
“But I’ve been curious since earlier, Jinwoo, what is that? A new weapon?”
Do Haru pointed to my waist.
I unconsciously lowered my gaze and looked at the heavy object hanging by my hip.
Just yesterday. The weapon I received as a 'reward' from Kang Mooseong.
“You got another sword? Can I take a look?”
Do Haru's eyes sparkled with curiosity.
I sighed and drew it out of the scabbard.
Clang—
“......What is it? Is it broken?”
Do Haru couldn't hide her bewildered expression.
Its appearance was ambiguous to even call it a sword.
That was because there was no recognizable 'blade.'
It looked like only a short root remained, as if it were broken.
Why was this uninvited guest in my hand instead of the 'Eclipse'?
The story goes back to yesterday.
***
The moment I reached out my hand toward the Eclipse.
As I penetrated the transparent sphere, light leaked out.
Flash-
Instantly, my vision was filled with a blinding white flash.
The other armaments floating in the air were quickly absorbed back into the device.
After a moment, silence descended.
The device's light slowly dimmed as if the selection was over.
I had clearly reached out my hand toward the Eclipse.
I hadn't even considered any other options.
So, the Eclipse should have been in my hand, but.
‘......What is this?’
A chilling yet heavy sensation was transmitted to my fingertips.
Pitch-black metal.
An ominous aura seeped into my fingertips.
What I was holding was not the Eclipse.
It was too short to be called a sword.
Only the hilt remained, and the blade attached above it was barely about 4cm long.
Considering that a typical sword exceeds 60cm, it was virtually in a bladeless state.
The tip of the sword had a wavy shape, making it look like a broken sword at a glance.
But looking closely, I could tell it wasn't broken.
The tip was smooth and polished, as if it had been made that way from the start.
The object in my hand vibrated subtly as if it were alive.
That vibration felt like an ominous heartbeat constricting my heart.
A blade so black it seemed to swallow all light.
A suffocating feeling overcame me.
“This case...... is the first.”
Kang Mooseong’s eyes wavered for a moment.
He stared intently at the sword in my hand and muttered in a low voice.
“Why did that appear?”
He seemed to know something.
I stared fixedly at Kang Mooseong, demanding an explanation.
“Black Fang.”
Kang Mooseong opened his mouth without taking his eyes off the sword.
“That is the name of that sword. Some call it the Cursed Sword.”
“The, the Cursed Sword?”
An ominous word that popped out unexpectedly.
There are a few common sense facts you learn when playing [Heroes Zero].
If 'Cursed' is attached to a name, there is a reason for it.
“First, I don't know why it's in your hand either. But I know the weapon itself. Would it be alright if I tell you a little about it?”
“Yes, please do.”
I sincerely asked.
To me, this sudden uninvited guest was a bewildering situation.
Kang Mooseong gazed at the air for a moment before speaking in a low voice.
“When the first Gate opened, humanity encountered the first Dungeon. There was an unknown ore found only there. A metal as black as pitch. People called it ‘Black Steel’.”
His voice echoed heavily.
“Black Steel was hard and extremely powerful. And, upon measurement, it contained an enormous amount of magic power, almost unimaginable. Its potential seemed limitless. However, no one could handle that metal. Do you know why?”
Kang Mooseong asked, looking at me, and I shook my head.
“Why?”
“It grows. This metal does.”
A brief answer.
Kang Mooseong let out a hollow laugh and continued his explanation.
“Despite being a metal, Black Steel grows like a living creature. There were theories that it absorbs something in the air, or absorbs magic power, or even that it feeds on Magi...... but none were ultimately proven. What is clear, however, is that it grows arbitrarily.”
Kang Mooseong raised the Black Fang and frowned.
“No matter what armament was made, the balance was warped. If a sword was made, it would swell up too much to wield, a shield would grotesquely expand, and armor would eventually become unwearable. That is how Black Steel fell into disuse as an unusable metal.”
Kang Mooseong shook his head and said.
“Then, a legendary swordsmith challenged the Black Steel.”
His eyes momentarily sparkled with interest.
“Swordsmith Yoo Euncheol. The artisan who left behind the Famous Sword 12 Zodiac series, you must have heard his name? He’s the man who made 12 swords symbolizing each animal. Among them, the one symbolizing the tiger is ‘White Fang’.”
“If its name is White Fang, is it related to Black Fang?”
“Yes. He modeled another sword after his White Fang and made it from Black Steel. That is the Black Fang.”
My gaze gathered once again on the sword in my hand.
Even with the explanation, it was still difficult to call it a sword.
Nevertheless, a peculiar aura continuously emanated from it, as if it were no ordinary object.
Somehow, it gave me the chills.
“But the result is as you see. An existence difficult to call a sword. Yoo Euncheol left no particular words, making this sword his final work. In other words, it was his posthumous work.”
Inside the pure white room, light was streaming from all directions, but the Black Fang remained entirely in the shadow, reflecting not a single ray of light.
“Since then, this sword has wandered through several owners. However, despite being made of growing Black Steel, it barely grew.”
The peculiar story continued.
“Someone went mad while possessing this sword, and another suffered an unfortunate accident. Eventually, the moniker of Cursed Sword was attached to it.”
“......Wait a minute. Are you telling me to take a sword with that name?”
I was listening, lost in the story, but then I suddenly came to my senses.
The intertwining story itself was ominous.
‘This is invalid!’
“Naturally, you wouldn't want a weapon like that. You are free to leave it.”
Kang Mooseong reached out his hand and said.
“I will retrieve the Black Fang for now.”
I held out the Black Fang to Kang Mooseong, and he grasped it.
The veins in Kang Mooseong’s wrist bulged.
But the Black Fang didn't budge.
Rather, it seemed to cling more deeply to my hand.
“Wait, you applied force just now, didn’t you?”
“......So this is what happened.”
Kang Mooseong withdrew his hand, smiled widely, and mumbled.
What? Why are you smiling?
“It seems you have been chosen. Sometimes a weapon chooses its owner.”
“Excuse me......?”
The strength momentarily left my hand, and I dropped the Black Fang.
Clang—!
The sword fell to the floor.
But in the very next moment.
My waist suddenly felt heavy.
“......”
The sword that had just fallen to the ground was already hanging securely at my waist.
Inside its scabbard.
‘No way.’
I placed the sword on the floor with trembling hands.
The sword was placed carefully on the floor.
‘What if I leave it here?’
And I would leave it behind.
That is, the moment I thought of ‘abandoning it.’
Swoosh-
The appearance of the sword on the floor vanished in an instant.
And my waist became heavy once again.
‘Damn it......’
There was a phenomenon that came to mind.
The so-called bound item.
There are items in games that cannot be dropped or traded.
They are called bound items in games.
Could it be that if that were to materialize, it would be realized in this manner?
‘If that conjecture is correct.’
It meant that the Cursed Sword had stuck to me. In a bound state.
I looked at Kang Mooseong with a feeling of helplessness.
However, he instead had eyes mixed with interest and amusement.
“That a sword that refused to serve a master would accept you, I never imagined! You might be the first. My goodness, living a long life certainly has its moments.”
“Instructor, this is not the time for that. You should tell me what to do with this.”
“In a case like this, there is only one answer. Accept it.”
Excuse me? What kind of nonsense is this?
“Originally, this weapon was slumbering in the relic sector deep inside there. Its sudden appearance like this is no coincidence.”
Kang Mooseong stroked his chin and added.
“It might even be an opportunity. A chance to delve into the potential of the Black Fang that no one knew about.”
Ding—!
[Tactical Manual]
[Special Task: Growing Black Fang]
[Let's grow the 'Black Fang'.]
[Reward: Liberation of the ‘Black Fang’]
A quest window popped up before my eyes.
The moment I saw the quest that appeared, I felt like I had spotted a lifeline dropped from the sky.
Yes, this might work.
I started shouting internally.
‘Reject! NO! Absolutely never! I won’t do it!’
If I did this, the quest would be rejected, and the Black Fang would return to its original place...... or so I thought.
‘I, I reject it.’
The quest did not disappear.
It was only then that I saw the last part of the quest window.
[Y / Y]
There was no rejection option there.
[Acceptance complete. Commencing task.]
[The Black Fang resonates with the Player's qualities.]
[Synchronization with the Black Fang begins......0%]
In an instant, a deep part of my chest thumped- thumped-, and at the same time, the vibration transmitted from the sword became clearer.
A strange sensation, as if my heartbeat was syncing with the sword’s pulse.
That was how I gained a peculiar companion who would not leave my side.
***
“A peculiar story.”
A low voice echoed in the room, responding to Kang Mooseong's report.
Broad shoulders and neatly groomed gray hair.
A man with a gentle but firm commanding gaze.
It was Principal Jang Juyoung, an elder who looked good in a pure white suit.
Kang Mooseong nodded and continued his report.
“I was also surprised. That the Black Fang would bind itself to a master.”
“It refused your hand as well?”
“Yes. The Black Fang rejected me and only clung to Ryu Jinwoo.”
The Principal closed and opened his eyes briefly, murmuring.
“That child certainly possesses a special talent.”
Kang Mooseong smiled with satisfaction at the Principal's words.
“By the way, there is one more interesting point. The White Fang, I mean.”
“Ah, that was also involved.”
The White Fang.
The famous sword, renowned as the original form of the Black Fang and Yoo Euncheol’s greatest masterpiece.
The person the White Fang served as its master was none other than Baekseok.
And the Black Fang had taken his disciple as its master.
“The master has the White Fang, the disciple has the Black Fang. Truly an exquisite coincidence.”
“There is no such thing as coincidence.”
Jang Juyoung firmly dismissed Kang Mooseong’s mention of coincidence.
“All relationships in the world have a predetermined flow. That is what we call inevitability.”
Jang Juyoung paused for a moment and quietly continued.
“Do you happen to know the dying wish Yoo Euncheol left behind?”
“What is it?”
“He said this. ‘The Black Fang is not a pair to the White Fang.’”
“Excuse me? Then what exactly is the Black Fang......”
Kang Mooseong's eyes widened at the Principal’s words, which defied expectations.
“There are even rumors that the name ‘Black Fang’ was not designated by the master Yoo Euncheol.”
At the Principal's continuing words, Kang Mooseong's expression gradually became more serious.
“You are well aware of the history of misfortune that befell those who possessed the Black Fang.”
“Yes. I conveyed that story to Ryu Jinwoo as well.”
“All of those individuals were only those who tried to forcibly take the Black Fang.”
“Then, are you saying......”
Tap-tap-
Jang Juyoung's finger tapped the desk.
“If the blade of the Black Fang were to return to its original form...... we might face a new world.”
The Principal, having concluded his remarks meaningfully, straightened his back and looked into the air.
Pondering the words he couldn't bring himself to say in front of Kang Mooseong.
In fact, there was a final dying wish that Master Yoo Euncheol had made before he died.
Pray that the master of the Black Fang does not appear.
And if the master of the Black Fang appears, the whole world shall hold him in awe and bow their heads.
The Principal's eyes gently closed.