novelraw Chapter 120
Chapter 120
Chapter 120
The process of the duel between Yoo Chan-seok and Sung Sihoon was currently being analyzed at the testing site using all available equipment.
South Korea had certainly succeeded in rising to its current brilliant position thanks to the existence of Hunters, but that did not mean they blindly trusted them.
They had accumulated data on countless Hunters and were continuing to do so. That accumulated information was then mobilized in the process of analyzing other Hunters.
"What do you mean by that?!"
"Errors keep occurring. This is the first time this has happened."
"Hey, you bastard! What do you mean, an error…!"
However, there had never been a case like this before. It was already a well-known fact that Yoo Chan-seok did not store mana in his body.
"The maximum output Yoo Chan-seok can produce is under analysis. We have nearly finished analyzing to what extent he strengthens his physical body using that output."
The problem was that jet-black flame. South Korea had an immense amount of data stored on a vast number of mana patterns. Every bit of that data was being mobilized to analyze that black flame.
It was on a completely different level from the equipment mobilized during the sparring match between Choi Yeoreum and Yoo Chan-seok. The Darak-dae Training Ground was a major national facility in South Korea, equipped with all sorts of devices to measure everything imaginable. It was not just about taking videos.
"There are no cases with commonalities. Not even similar cases. There is no data where we can find even a minimum of common points..."
"Stop trying to find similar cases and at least perform a proper analysis!"
The analysis was impossible. The flame Yoo Chan-seok used possessed an incredibly bizarre ability.
Analyzing the psychokinesis Sung Sihoon used was not that difficult. Currently, Sung Sihoon was covered from head to toe in armor, swinging his fists wildly. With every attack, he boasted an impact equivalent to a five-story building crashing in at 300 km/h.
In reality, Sung Sihoon was simply standing in the center of the armor. He was controlling the moving limbs of the armor with his psychokinesis. That was why he could pour out attacks boasting such massive impact without any damage to his physical body.
"There is no change in the values being measured."
"But that bastard is just taking the hits!"
The problem was Yoo Chan-seok. According to the measured impact, Yoo Chan-seok should have been turned into a pulp without leaving a trace after being hit by that.
"There is no abnormality in the measuring equipment."
Clearly, the impact was measured every time the armor worn by Sung Sihoon swung an arm. And Yoo Chan-seok was actually taking that terrifying impact with his body.
At the very least, the measuring equipment said so. However, nothing happened. The floor of the testing ground, which should not have been able to withstand such impact, was perfectly fine, and Yoo Chan-seok, who had been struck directly by the fist, was also perfectly fine.
"What on earth is going on?"
One of the people watching the scene spoke cautiously.
"Thinking back, the armor plate he handed over in Siberia previously was the same…"
The durability was no different from mud, so they had thought, "What is this?" and performed a detailed analysis. The result was that nothing was wrong.
However, even if the analysis results said so, the armor plate Yoo Chan-seok had handed over was actually weakened to the point that a person could tear it off with their hands like clay.
It was fine, yet not fine.
"What kind of nonsensical, contradictory bullshit is this?"
The commander watching the duel between Yoo Chan-seok and Sung Sihoon muttered that as he stared blankly at dozens of monitors.
And for Sung Sihoon, who was currently suffering through that contradictory situation, it was truly enough to drive him mad.
"You cannot grant mana resistance to impact."
Only Sung Sihoon’s armor could be protected from that Paradoxical Flame. Mana resistance could not be granted to the massive impact the armor spewed out as it moved.
"You bastard."
As the armor raised its arm high, the Paradoxical Flame clinging to it burned fiercely. As it swung toward Yoo Chan-seok, it burned even more intensely.
Yet the armor’s fist, which touched Yoo Chan-seok’s body, failed to inflict any damage.
"Leisurely, calmly."
Sung Sihoon muttered that to calm his increasingly unsettled mind.
All the things he had accomplished, all the achievements, honor, and praise he had built up, were not given by someone else. He had achieved them through his own constant refinement.
Sung Sihoon believed in his own strength. And this time as well, he began to believe with all his might that he would win.
At that moment, Yoo Chan-seok spoke.
"It looks just like your personality. Hiding inside a scrap of a tin can, believing it can protect you."
Yoo Chan-seok sneered as he took the fist swung by Sung Sihoon with his body.
"It makes me want to vomit seeing you stuck in there the moment you finished building the castle walls named Taebaek to hide behind."
Then, the spear thrust by Yoo Chan-seok struck the chest of the armor covering Sung Sihoon’s body. The spear did not pierce the armor.
"You are nothing."
Yoo Chan-seok continued speaking while deflecting dozens of metal fragments launched from the shoulders of Sung Sihoon’s armor.
"A bastard like you is just a coward shaking with fear that someone might take away the bundle of money you happened to get your hands on by chance."
"Shut your mouth."
Naturally, Yoo Chan-seok had no intention of shutting his mouth. Rather, as if he were certain this was truly getting under Sung Sihoon’s skin, he continued to speak without rest.
"You have no confidence in yourself. Do you know why? It’s simple. You only reached that position because you were lucky."
"You’re hilarious. If you put it that way, both you and I were just lucky!"
Yoo Chan-seok burst into laughter at Sung Sihoon’s words.
"If a god came to me when I was over sixty and proposed, 'I’ll give you the body of a twenty-year-old currently living somewhere, but in exchange, you lose all the achievements you’ve made so far. How about it?'"
With a bang, Yoo Chan-seok’s spear struck the armor once again. Sparks flew in all directions, and with a shockwave, the two were pushed back simultaneously.
"I would accept it immediately on the spot. I have confidence in myself. I’m over sixty, and you’re offering to make me twenty? That’s a huge win."
"You certainly talk well. Seeing you babble as you please is quite a spectacle, since that would never happen."
Yoo Chan-seok smiled upon hearing Sung Sihoon’s answer. From Yoo Chan-seok’s perspective, he couldn't help but laugh. In fact, he had made such a deal.
No, rather, it was the condition Yoo Chan-seok had demanded first.
The two poured out wild attacks at each other. Then, the ring on Yoo Chan-seok’s finger emitted a blue light. White frost formed on the armor where red energy wavered like waves. Simultaneously, the movements of the armor gradually became sluggish.
"Pathetic bastard."
In truth, Yoo Chan-seok did not find Sung Sihoon particularly pathetic. The purpose of this ongoing conversation was simply to make Sung Sihoon lose his cool.
Thinking that because I can do it, others can do it too, is an idiotic thought that can be refuted with just a little consideration.
However, Yoo Chan-seok’s choice words were proving exceptionally effective at grating on Sung Sihoon’s personality.
"Afraid of losing what you have, afraid of someone stronger than you appearing. You have no goals and no dreams. All you want to do is sit around like a pig that has overeaten and hope that right now lasts forever."
Yoo Chan-seok spoke as if he knew the person named Sung Sihoon very well. When someone speaks this way, it feels incredibly foul to the listener.
"You’re like a silverfish."
Just like his ongoing words and actions, the exchange between Yoo Chan-seok and Sung Sihoon became increasingly fierce.
The underground facility of the Darak-dae Training Ground, built with a massive budget from the South Korean government, was slowly being turned into a rag.
With a bit of exaggeration, it was a facility evaluated to withstand a strategic nuclear explosion, yet it looked this way.
"I will make it so you can never say another word!"
"If you had the ability to do that, you would have done it long ago."
As the two continued their duel over several hours, the commander watching through the observation equipment quickly contacted somewhere via a secure line.
"Judging by the progress so far, Yoo Chan-seok is in the lead. Of course, I do not know how much longer it will take."
— Understood. Secure as much data as possible.
A voice came from the receiver. It seemed Yoo Chan-seok would win. That meant Taebaek would eventually cooperate in the removal of the Erosion Core.
— If the HeadHunter succeeds in removing the Erosion Core, the public's fear of the Erosion Zones will be greatly dispelled.
"That is correct."
It would become difficult to control the citizens through fear of the Erosion Zones as they did now. Public opinion demanding an end to restrictions on electricity and water usage or the nighttime curfew would grow stronger.
If so, the South Korean government would naturally need to establish a plan for subsequent measures.
* * *
The duel between Sung Sihoon and me had already shifted into the pace I wanted. My enraged opponent was consuming mana excessively. And I had succeeded in turning the fight into a tedious war of attrition.
Three days. Sung Sihoon and I fought in this laboratory for three days. The lab was already completely destroyed.
"Huff... huff..."
With a heavy thud, part of the armor that had been maintaining its shape through Sung Sihoon’s psychokinesis fell to the floor.
He had used up almost all of his mana.
"I don’t think there is any need to fight further, Representative Sung Sihoon."
I could not kill him. It was a sparring match to begin with after all. If either Sung Sihoon or I were to die here, it would cause chaos.
Endless questions would pour in about why he died, how he died, and why we had this duel in the first place.
On top of that, I would be tugging on the South Korean government’s nerves, which had already started to view me as a thorn in their side. I had no intention of doing that.
"I can still fight!"
"I'm sure you can. You just cannot win."
Of course, Sung Sihoon could still fight. He was not just being stubborn.
However, he did not have enough power left to overturn the already decided outcome.
"You cannot win, and it is not such an important duel that you need to cling to it so stubbornly, is it?"
If he lost, the Earth would not blow up, and half of humanity would not vanish. At most, he just had to cooperate in our process of attacking the Triple Blood Cave.
That was exactly the level of stakes on the table. To use a gambling metaphor, it was at the level of a 100-won-per-point Hwatu game played between family members during a holiday.
"Putting your pride on the line for something like this only makes it uglier. Let's leave it at that."
Having finished speaking, I shortened the spear in my hand and hung it at my waist.
"It would be best to keep your promise. If you lost once, it means you could lose twice. I will be waiting for a favorable answer."
I had said what needed to be said and gained what I needed to gain. There was no reason to stay here any longer. I looked around and let out a small sigh.
"Wow, it's completely trashed. How did the underground lab end up looking like a convertible?"
The sky was visible beyond the gaping hole in the ceiling. Repairing this would likely require a massive amount of time and budget. On top of that, they would have to explain to the people why the Darak-dae Training Ground had ended up in this state.
It was none of my business, but I felt sorry for the people who had to do that work.
Kicking off the ground with both feet, I leapt up to the surface.
Since subjugating Jaun Valley, friction with other Hunters had been more frequent than dealing with Erosion Cores. But for now, this matter was settled.
"Finally, it's the Triple Blood Cave time."
Since the South Korean government had changed its policy, I did not know how actively Hunters would show interest in this subjugation, but I still could not go with just the three of us.
I would have to try my best.