An F-Rank Veterinarian Physically Heals an S-Rank Magical Beast - Chapter 49
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Chapter 49
“Alliance Leader… No, we shall now become your sword and shield!”
“Long live the Alliance Leader! Long may he reign!”
In an instant, the ruins of Floor 11 transformed into an atmosphere befitting the grand hall of the Murim Alliance. Someone was even waving a tattered flag they’d found from who knows where.
My eyes lost their anchor, trembling uncontrollably. My gaze darted left and right, my pupils quivering with genuine distress.
‘No, this isn’t what I wanted.’
I’d blurted out whatever came to mind to derail the negotiations. But they actually accepted it. And of all things, they’d made me the Alliance Leader. Admittedly, it sounded impressive.
But the position of Alliance Leader meant I’d gained a family to be responsible for, which translated to an exponential explosion of ‘troublesome duties’. Food expenses? Lodging? Health insurance?
“Wait, everyone, please calm down….”
“Give us your orders! Alliance Leader! Shall we strike down those mechanical demon cult bastards at once!”
Watching these half-mechanical beings pledge their loyalty with gleaming eyes, I realized something: they weren’t in a position to be choosy.
They weren’t merely grasping at straws—if someone threw them a rope, they’d hang themselves with it even if it were rotten, or even a dynamite fuse.
I calculated rapidly. The milk was already spilled.
If I couldn’t put it back in the bottle?
I’d drink it, freeze it, boil it away, or find some way to use it. I had to make something of this situation.
‘Wait… thinking about it, this isn’t so bad, is it?’
These people were masters, even if they were rotten. Though their bodies had been modified, that very modification had transformed them into hybrid warriors capable of wielding both inner power and mechanical strength simultaneously. If I fixed them up and put them to proper use?
I’d essentially have dozens of S-rank Hunters working for free, complete with an ‘absolute obedience’ feature. For conquering the next floor—Floor 12, the AI Empire—there was no better vanguard than this.
‘Zero labor costs. Food expenses… they’ll figure it out themselves. Benefits? Healing their inner power counts as benefits.’
The sound of a calculator clicking echoed cheerfully in my mind. My expression transformed instantly. The bewilderment vanished, replaced by the greed of a ruthless corporate executive… or rather, the dignity of an Alliance Leader.
“Ahem, ahem.”
I cleared my throat and clasped my hands behind my back.
“Very well. I do not overlook your devotion. But as your Alliance Leader, let me impart the first lesson.”
I smiled wickedly.
“There is no such thing as a free lunch in this world. Follow me. We ascend to Floor 12.”
The treatment of the Murim martial artists progressed faster than expected. Using my Universal Codex and Glaki’s Eye, I redesigned their neural pathways and unblocked their twisted qi channels—within moments, they were back on their feet.
Then came the great migration. Before the dimensional gate that connected Floor 11 to Floor 12.
“M-Master Alliance Leader. What is that vortex? I sense an evil aura emanating from it….”
“Could it be the Hell Gate opened by the Demonic Cult’s Blood Demon?”
The Murim martial artists trembled as they stared at the gate. They had spent their entire lives cultivating martial arts alone, leaving them ignorant of the Tower’s systems.
“It’s like an elevator. Just get in. No more questions.”
I shoved them through the gate as if they were cargo.
Whoooosh—!
Light flashed, and the scenery transformed.
Floor 12, the AI Empire. This world was on an entirely different level from Floor 11.
Towering skyscrapers piercing the sky, neon signs blazing across the streets, air cars soaring through the heavens.
For the Murim martial artists, it was a shock of apocalyptic proportions.
“Gasp! Is that… a bird made of metal?”
“The buildings are made of glass! How do they not collapse?!”
“These eerie lights everywhere! This must be an illusion spell!”
An elderly man shouted upon seeing a vending machine on the street.
“You there, demon trapped in that metal box! Show your true form at once!”
Crash!
The old man unleashed a palm strike, shattering the vending machine. Cans of beverages tumbled out everywhere.
“….”
I pressed my forehead. A headache was already setting in. I had to conquer the Empire with these people.
“Elder, that’s not a demon—it’s a machine that dispenses water. And you’ll be paying for the damage from your activity allowance later.”
“A machine that dispenses water, you say! These Western barbarians certainly practice remarkable sorcery.”
I sighed deeply and reorganized the group. I couldn’t have this rabble wandering through the city center. I headed straight for a place with few people, but abundant ‘resources.’
I stood at the railing of the Abandoned Factory’s rooftop, looking down. Behind me, the cold metallic skyscrapers of Floor 12 stretched out; above my head, the sky flickered with red warning lights. Below, about fifty bewildered Murim martial artists stood waiting.
“Now, everyone listen. As Alliance Leader, I’m issuing my first command.”
My voice resonated with internal energy, ringing out clearly.
“This Alliance operates on pure performance. Those who don’t work don’t eat. If you want to recover your inner strength, move!”
The location Jin-hyuk pointed to was the ‘Scrap Metal Processing Plant’ and ‘Advanced Combat Zone’ where discarded androids and security robots were piled up like mountains. More precisely, it was an outer guard post of the AI Empire.
“Dismantle all of those… no, subdue them and secure the parts. Especially the ‘central processing units’ and ‘power cores’—the better condition they’re in, the more incentive you get, so handle it accordingly.”
The martial artists’ expressions darkened.
“B-but, Alliance Leader? Securing parts?”
“We are warriors! Not scrap metal dealers!”
A monk who appeared to be from the Shaolin Sect stepped forward with clasped hands.
“Amitabha… this humble monk has taken a vow against killing. How could dismantling such scrap metal possibly aid in my cultivation?”
“Venerable monk, those are robots. They’re not living beings. The more you break them, the more experience points you accumulate, not karma. Besides, you’ll need to sell those parts to repair your temple’s roof tiles and gild the Buddha statues, won’t you?”
“…!!”
The monk’s eyes widened. His pupils dilated at the mention of gilding.
“Moreover, instead of ‘let us discuss conquering the realm,’ the words from an Alliance Leader’s mouth are ‘let us gather scrap metal.’ This is too much!”
Other martial artists murmured in agreement. They had just escaped the control of mechanical bodies and reclaimed their humanity, only to open their eyes and find themselves rolling around with metal scraps again.
But Jin-hyuk remained resolute.
“Warriors don’t eat? To cultivate inner strength, you need elixirs and quality weapons. Where does all that come from? From those walking money bags over there.”
One of the security robots Jin-hyuk pointed at emitted a whirring sound and aimed its laser.
“And you seem to have forgotten—I haven’t received my medical fees yet. You’ll have to pay with your labor.”
“Tsk… I’ll follow the Alliance Leader’s orders, but…”
“Never thought I’d use my sword mastery for scrap metal recycling.”
Crash! Clang!
Eventually, the brilliant techniques of the martial arts masters began to be used for dismantling robot limbs.
“Hyah! The Huashan sword blooms like plum blossoms! Plum Blossom Cascade!”
Clang!
Red sword energy bloomed from the tip of the Huashan Sect Swordmaster’s blade.
But what was severed was not a villain’s neck—it was a robot’s hydraulic cylinder.
“Take this! The secret technique of the Beggar Sect! Dog-Beating Staff Technique… no, Robot-Beating Staff Technique!”
Crack!
A staff wielded by a ragged master struck the robot’s head with precision.
“Hundred-Step Divine Fist! Aim only for the head! You said the cores are expensive!”
Crash! Boom!
The battlefield instantly became chaos. But it was not mere chaos. The coordinated formations of the martial arts masters were movements beyond the AI’s computational range. The robots, confused by the ‘illogical and unscientific’ movements absent from their combat data, fell like autumn leaves in the wind.
“Warning. Warning. Pattern analysis impossible. Enemy joint mobility exceeds human limits.”
“Error. Searching martial arts novel database… Error. Error.”
The robots exploded one after another.
Shortly after, a few martial artists working in the corner began to murmur.
“Something seems wrong about this, doesn’t it?”
A beggar from the Beggar Sect tore off a robot’s arm while muttering complaints.
“Exactly. We fled from those creepy machines, only to escape the tiger and meet the devil instead.”
“We elevated him to Alliance Leader, but he’s even more tyrannical than some foreman. This isn’t leadership—it’s exploitation.”
“Shh, he’ll hear you. Look at that man’s eyes. He’s no ordinary person.”
“So what if he hears? No food, just endless work! Three shifts a day—is this the Murim Alliance or a coal mine?!”
Just as the martial artists, thoroughly sick of battling machines, began to slow their pace while grumbling.
“Hmm. A devil, a foreman, a coal mine—that’s quite harsh, isn’t it?”
A chill ran down their spines. When the martial artists stiffly turned their heads, Jin-hyuk was already crouched directly behind them, casually tapping the robot’s head.
The corners of Jin-hyuk’s mouth curved up smoothly.
“I was providing you with ‘vocational training’ and ‘rehabilitation therapy’ to help you overcome your trauma and reintegrate into society. Yet here you are, cursing me behind my back?”
“Ah, no, Alliance Leader! It’s not that we….”
“Our spirits are just a bit depleted, so nonsense came out! This mouth of mine has a mind of its own! Hahahaha!”
The frightened martial artists scrambled with excuses, but Jin-hyuk opened a system window in mid-air and clicked his tongue.
“Depleted spirits? Yet your mouths work fine while your bodies won’t? That’s textbook malingering. In the military—or rather, in the Murim Alliance—we call that ‘loss of discipline,’ don’t we?”
Jin-hyuk’s eyes gleamed. Like a hyena eyeing prey—or rather, like an unscrupulous boss.
“This won’t do. As Alliance Leader, I have a duty to rehabilitate the mental state of my disciples. See that over there?”
Where Jin-hyuk pointed was not the area with ordinary guard robots. Crimson lasers flashed from all directions, and massive heavy-duty killing machines, easily three meters tall, swarmed about—the ‘Advanced Combat Zone,’ the elite monster spawning region.
“Why don’t you go have a little chat with those ‘special alloy’ friends over there? Their shells are incredibly durable—perfect for internal energy cultivation. The impact feedback will be exquisite too.”
“A-Alliance Leader?! Those aren’t things humans should face…!”
“You want us to punch those bare-handed?! Those aren’t robots—they’re tanks! Look at those lasers! They can melt stone!”
The martial artists’ faces went pale. These were monsters where a single graze meant death, martial arts or not.
But Jin-hyuk remained unmoved.
“If you don’t like it, cough up the treatment fees.”
“…!!”
“If you don’t bring back 300 kilograms of scrap metal each right now, tonight’s dinner will be replaced with lubricating oil. Execute immediately.”
“Kyaaaah! We’re going! We’ll go right now!”
“Alliance Leader! Please spare us! We’ll bring three tons instead of 300 kilograms!”
In the end, the disgruntled martial artists, swallowing their pride like bitter medicine—or rather, like they were smashing robots—threw themselves into the even more treacherous battlefield.
“Argh! Die, you scrap metal heaps!”
“Feel the full force of my wrath! This is all because of that Alliance Leader bastard… No, for justice!”
Whether driven by the will to survive or channeling their rage at Jin-hyuk into the robots, the combat in the Advanced Combat Zone had never been more fierce and desperate.
“Wow! Look at that! The Qingcheng Sect Leader just dodged the laser and snapped a robot’s neck!”
“I guess it’s true—people’s potential explodes when they’re backed into a corner.”
Watching their desperate forms, Jin-hyuk nodded with satisfaction.
“People really do perform best when they’re being worked hard. Now, where’s the next scrap metal collection site?”
On Floor 12, the desolate realm of the AI Empire, an unscrupulous enterprise—or rather, the ‘New Murim Alliance Labor Office’—was officially opening for business.
Jin-hyuk’s inventory would soon be brimming with expensive components. Of course, the workers’ wages would converge to zero under the guise of ‘medical treatment deductions’.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————