A S-Class Hunter With Great Agility - Chapter 171

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 171: Hamlet (1)

 

Empty eyes. Yet if you looked into them, deep hatred and immense sorrow dwelled within.

 

Creak.

 

The prince’s body moved like a rusty jointed doll.

 

“One of Shakespeare’s four great tragedies. Hamlet. It’s not a story children particularly enjoy, so I don’t usually use it much…”

 

Heo Gil said this while lowering his upper body. Then the puppet’s body took the exact same posture as him.

 

“But you’re a grown adult.”

 

Do they consider twenty-one years old an adult these days?

 

It sounded like the excuse of a child who had finally brought out a toy they hadn’t been able to play with much before.

 

Creak.

 

When Heo Gil extended his arm, the puppet aimed its sword.

 

Spiritual Sight.

 

[Skill]

 

Puppet Show (S) lv.max

 

— A pierrot on stage entangled in thread.

 

Summons characters from works and turns them into puppets. The puppet’s stats are identical to the skill caster’s stats.

 

‘Identical to the caster’s stats?’

 

While it was a summoning-type ability like mine, there was a difference in method.

 

‘Heo Gil… it feels like he’s summoning copies of himself.’

 

Since those copies fight in place of the main body, it felt like an invulnerable S-rank had appeared before me. How frightening.

 

“Phew…”

 

I took a deep breath and aimed my sword. The empty tragic eyes met mine.

 

Heo Gil muttered.

 

“…Puppets cannot move on their own. You must lift their limbs and make them into a princess, a prince, or a dragon from a story for them to fulfill their purpose.”

 

Swoosh.

 

“Marionette.”

 

Saying this, Heo Gil swung his arm. Simultaneously, the puppet’s sword sliced through the air.

 

“…!”

 

I barely dodged that sword. It was by a hair’s breadth.

 

[Skill]

 

Marionette (S) lv.max

 

— The true desire of a pierrot yearning for laughter.

 

Controls soulless, inanimate beings. Including the inherent characteristics that being possesses, the caster handles the being like their own limbs.

 

‘Tsk, dodging twice will be difficult.’

 

The puppet moved as Heo Gil moved. Proving it was S-rank, its movements didn’t allow for a moment’s carelessness.

 

‘I need to counterattack.’

 

Offense was the best defense.

 

“Severe Cold.”

 

Freezing aura gathered on the blade. The Spirit General Sword containing winter became even sharper.

 

Clang!

 

The puppet’s sword and the Spirit General Sword clashed. I put strength into my arm and pressed down hard on the opponent’s sword.

 

Ugh, what kind of strength is this…

 

Heo Gil’s strength was 272. However, his body wouldn’t be able to draw out that strength to its maximum.

 

But puppets are different. A puppet’s body doesn’t age.

 

Creak.

 

Hamlet’s sword and my sword twisted against each other.

 

‘But I expected this much too!’

 

I bit down hard and put strength into the arm holding my sword.

 

Crack!

 

Then Heo Gil’s puppet, momentarily caught off guard, was pushed back.

 

| It feels more comfortable to exert strength than before. You must have grown, how admirable. |

 

As could be seen from the Mountain Lord’s words.

 

[Status Window]

 

Name: Eun Hae-dam, White Tiger Mountain Lord

 

Grade: ?? rank

 

[Stats]

 

Stamina: 10(+210/233) Strength: 10(+239) Agility: 10(+197)

 

Mental Power | 173/200 Mana | 499/510

 

Divine Descent Ritual had reached level 5. And simultaneously, my stats increased.

 

‘Each stat went up by nearly 30.’

 

This meant I could now draw more power from the Mountain Lord’s true form. Amazing progress.

 

However, it still wasn’t enough to face an S-rank. To bridge that gap, I still needed…

 

“Talisman Arts.”

 

Golden flames blazed up from my palm. A bright yellow talisman paper materialized in the air.

 

“Enhancement.”

 

Swish, swish.

 

Crimson letters were inscribed onto the talisman paper. Soon it transformed into an incredibly reliable support item.

 

[Skill]

 

Talisman Arts (S) lv.1

 

— Disasters vanish in golden light, and evil spirits become red ash.

 

Creates talismans imbued with spiritual power and grants abilities accordingly. Available uses and duration vary by level.

 

‘Before fully awakening the skill, I could maintain a 10% enhancement effect for 5 minutes.’

 

This time…

 

[Item]

 

Talisman (S)

 

— A clumsy wish’s heart tends to be more delicate and produce greater power.

 

Attack Power Enhancement +20%

 

00:01:00

 

The duration was only 1 minute, but I could now produce a stronger effect than before.

 

Slash!

 

When I swung my sword, the blade cut deep into the puppet’s armor. The puppet staggered.

 

“…Haha. This is quite surprising indeed.”

 

Heo Gil laughed as if he hadn’t expected this.

 

“I shouldn’t go easy on you!”

 

“That’s what I was hoping for.”

 

The puppet charged at me. His blade was filled with resentment and vengeance.

 

To be or not to be.

 

“That was the question, wasn’t it.”

 

A character trapped in terrible tragedy, struggling desperately. Even though the Hamlet recreated here was merely a puppet…

 

…I think it’s better to live.

 

Even if misfortune and pain come crashing like unbearable waves. Life has value simply by being alive.

 

“I don’t know if a puppet can hear this, but.”

 

I swung my sword once more.

 

“Vengeful Ghost Ice Kill.”

 

Massive ice formed in the air. The ice refined into a deadly form poured down toward the puppet.

 

* * *

 

Choi Yu-kyung quietly watched the battle.

 

“The dean’s excited.”

 

He looked incredibly excited. It was natural since he rarely got to fight like this except during Hunter ranking matches.

 

Even with age, A-ranks were no match for him, and S-ranks wouldn’t fight him using the excuse that Heo Gil was their senior — actually because it was bothersome. He was like a fish in water.

 

“It’s progressing more evenly than expected, isn’t it? He always exceeds expectations.”

 

“Right. I thought it would be quite difficult against an S-rank too… Well, he’s a kid who’s survived several encounters with the Bishop, so maybe it’s natural.”

 

“At this rate, he might actually be able to win.”

 

Lee Cheong-ryu hummed a tune. Before anyone knew it, he had even pulled out popcorn from his Gate.

 

“Someone’s fighting so hard over there and you’re eating popcorn.”

 

“Want some? It’s caramel flavored.”

 

“…Give me some.”

 

Crunch crunch.

 

The two munched on popcorn while watching Heo Gil and Eun Hae-dam’s sparring match.

 

“So, what do you think? At this rate, he might really gain the upper hand.”

 

“Hmm…”

 

“Dean Heo Gil is a 1.5 generation S-rank. He awakened around thirty and had a relatively short prime. They say late-blooming flowers are more splendid… Well. Such flowers just wither faster.”

 

Lee Cheong-ryu’s eyes became serious. Choi Yu-kyung quietly looked toward where Heo Gil was standing.

 

“…He’s definitely not like he used to be. That’s probably why he’s considering retirement.”

 

She leaned back against the sofa.

 

“Do you know that I awakened around the time when Dean Heo Gil was in his prime?”

 

“Hmm, that would make sense timing-wise. Guild Leader Choi Yu-kyung’s awakening was exactly about 10 years ago from now.”

 

“That’s right. It was when Heo Gil was passing through his mid-thirties.”

 

He was….

 

“Strong. Ridiculously so.”

 

Eden is the undisputed number one guild in the Republic of Korea. Then when Eden didn’t exist, who exactly held that position?

 

The Academy.

 

An educational institution that teaches quality Awakened in the best environment. Nine out of ten Hunters from guild academies have gone through that institution.

 

The Awakened who came from the Academy were those who suited the word ‘elite’ better than anyone else.

 

Though the waters have become muddied recently, in the past…. The word Academy was a kind of guarantee certificate that proved one’s abilities.

 

‘If someone is the head of such an institution, how strong would they be? Both in power and in the ability to control and lead people.’

 

It wasn’t a level that a high school student who had just awakened could dare to challenge.

 

“I went through all kinds of hardships in my early twenties trying to defeat Dean Heo Gil…. This is half joke, half serious, but if I had awakened when he was just 5 years younger, hmm.”

 

“….”

 

“It would have taken me 10 more years to make Eden the number one guild.”

 

By Choi Yu-kyung’s standards, this was nothing short of the highest praise.

 

“Did they say flowers that bloom late wither early? Well. But people aren’t flowers.”

 

Growing older means….

 

“Experience accumulates. You become more solid, more skilled. I think it means becoming stronger.”

 

Though that doesn’t necessarily correlate directly with physical abilities.

 

Choi Yu-kyung believed that.

 

Shaaaak—

 

Sharp ice poured down from the air. It was an overwhelming sight.

 

“….”

 

However, Choi Yu-kyung’s expression didn’t change.

 

Because Heo Gil’s puppet moved its sword as if it would shatter all that ice.

 

* * *

 

“…!”

 

Vengeful Ghost Ice Kill didn’t work. Hamlet deflected each piece of ice as if performing acrobatics.

 

‘Tsk, as expected. My skill operation is severely lacking.’

 

[Skill]

 

Severe Cold (A) lv.max

 

Vengeful Ghost Ice Kill (A) lv.max

 

Spirit Form (S) lv.max

 

Vengeful Ghost Ice Kill is an A-rank skill. In contrast, Heo Gil possesses an S-rank skill that has been raised to maximum level.

 

‘Even though I knew that….’

 

I was frustrated. I thought I had climbed quite far, but I’m still lacking.

 

| That’s what time is like. But don’t be too hard on yourself. You too have your own years. |

 

“…!”

 

The Mountain Lord spoke. I came to my senses. This wasn’t the time for this.

 

‘I too have….’

 

I had it.

 

[Skill]

 

Spirit Form (S) lv.max

 

— Blizzards are meant to hide footprints.

 

Transforms the user into spirit form to hide their appearance. At this time, no human can discover the caster.

 

An S-rank skill that had grown to its limits.

 

I opened my mouth.

 

“Spirit Form.”

 

Cold breath escaped from my mouth. And that was my last breath.

 

The warm body temperature of a human disappeared, and my body became a complete soul, turning transparent.

 

“…! What the….”

 

When I instantly disappeared from where I had been standing, Heo Gil opened his eyes wide and checked all directions.

 

‘Everyone who sees it for the first time is bound to be surprised.’

 

Except for humans like Lee Cheong-ryu who reacted unusually by saying ‘become my companion.’

 

Heo Gil’s puppet was equally confused. The puppet couldn’t get its bearings and just looked around.

 

Crack!

 

I drove the Spirit General Sword into the training ground floor.

 

“Severe Cold.”

 

Saaaaaaak—

 

A freezing ice sheet began spreading out from the Spirit General Sword.

 

“…Damn it.”

 

Heo Gil bit his lips tightly. The ice sheet I created climbed up Hamlet’s legs and began freezing them.

 

“Kuk!”

 

He tried to move his puppet to escape from the ice, but it was difficult for now.

 

Swish—

 

I seized that opportunity. Taking advantage of my invisibility, I swung the Spirit General Sword swiftly.

 

Still…

 

There was time left.

 

[Item]

 

Talisman (S)

 

— A clumsy wish’s heart tends to produce more delicate and greater power.

 

Attack Power Enhancement +20%

 

00:00:01

 

Crack!

 

Heo Gil’s puppet finally shattered. Clatter clang, the puppet rolled across the training ground floor.

 

“Haha… Hahahaha!”

 

Looking at the tragic puppet that had been cast aside, Heo Gil laughed loudly.

 

“…”

 

I heightened my alertness. The fight wasn’t over.

 

‘Hong I-jo hasn’t made his judgment either.’

 

What I had defeated was Heo Gil’s puppet, not his main body.

 

Until he exhausted his mana to the limit and collapsed, I couldn’t dare claim victory.

 

Sure enough.

 

“…It’s been a while since I brought out Hamlet, but using all of this is almost a first.”

 

“…!”

 

Creak.

 

Heo Gil’s cube rotated.

 

“Puppet Show, Four Great Tragedies.”

 

Othello, King Lear, Macbeth.

 

The protagonists of ancient tragedies began revealing themselves.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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