Became a Mechromancer - Chapter 25

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 25.
Fruition (2)
The judging room of a government-sponsored functional competition.
At the center of the table sat Choi Tae-jin, CEO of Sanin Heavy Industries, flanked by Han Ji-hyuk, a professor at Korea University, and Yu So-young, a doctor and authority on artificial intelligence.
Luminaries who elevated the prestige of the competition.
Yet their authority stood in stark contrast to the mediocrity of the submitted works.
Han Ji-hyuk exhaled softly as he flipped through the judging documents floating in the hologram.
“The quality of these submissions is abysmal. It would be wonderful if major corporations participated in domestic competitions like this.”
“Professor Han, what benefit would our corporations gain from submitting to a domestic competition like this?”
Choi Tae-jin let out a dry chuckle, resting his chrome-implanted hand against his chin as he continued.
“A waste of time.”
His mechanical eye scanned the next submission with indifference.
Hmm….
“That’s based on Daesin Robotics’ combat prediction module. The AI computation speed is passable, but… they’ve simply lifted the original source code as-is.”
“Exactly. How desperate must they be to submit someone else’s work? It’s insulting.”
Yu So-young immediately opened another hologram window and began drafting a warning notice.
“A research institute like that deserves budget cuts and a penalty preventing submissions for at least five years.”
The judges continued examining works that plagiarized technology and made only superficial improvements, their expressions growing increasingly stern.
Choi Tae-jin let out an irritated remark.
“These bastards come prepared with flashy presentations every year, that’s all.”
“What’s the point? They’re just trying to score points with presentations and pad their resumes with awards.”
Just then, as they examined another work.
Hmm?
A submission devoid of any flashiness entered Choi Tae-jin’s field of vision.
A work combining beast hide and metal framework.
“…What is this?”
Han Ji-hyuk checked the submission documents.
“An exoskeleton support device? Surely it’s not for Naturals?”
Choi Tae-jin tapped the device’s frame with his chrome fingers.
Ting, ting.
A dull metallic sound. He smirked.
“Getting implant surgery would be a hundred times better. Why bother with this?”
“The submitter is the Hunter Management Bureau Machine Upcycling Department.”
Ah….
All three wore expressions of displeasure.
“Machine Upcycling? You mean that junk shop department?”
“Ha. Looks like the Bureau submitted this as a joke.”
Unlike the other two, Yu So-young examined the work carefully.
“Still, I should provide an evaluation.”
“I’m an enhancement practitioner, and Dr. Yu and Professor Han are full-body cyborgs. How are we supposed to evaluate equipment designed for Naturals?”
Choi Tae-jin’s point was that there was no way to experience a Natural’s limitations.
But….
“I’ll do it.”
“You, Dr. Yu? How exactly?”
“I can lower my full-body cyborg power mode to match their specifications.”
She pulled up her full-body cyborg settings interface and adjusted the options.
-System power reduced to 90% below normal.
-Switching to energy-saving mode.
The AI voice echoed in her ears as her body swayed.
Suddenly, gravity pressed down upon me.
Fortunately, putting on the auxiliary device wasn’t difficult.
No, the sensation of it fitting snugly against my body was quite pleasant.
‘Unexpected?’
I carefully took a few steps.
Wow!
My eyes widened slightly.
My gait felt light.
I bent my legs in place, twisted my waist, and marveled continuously.
There was no sense of discomfort whatsoever.
Most importantly, the beast leather minimized friction between the artificial skin and the device.
‘I never imagined beast leather could be utilized this way.’
Dr. Yu So-young brought up a hologram and reviewed the submission documents again.
『Maximum Load Capacity: 200kg』
A frown creased my brow.
I’ll admit it’s comfortable.
But!
Lifting 200kg with such an auxiliary device?
‘As if.’
My gaze immediately shifted to the corner.
I raised my hand and pointed at the test weight that must have weighed 150kg.
“Let me try lifting that.”
“I think you’ve already shown sufficient sincerity.”
Choi Tae-jin tried to stop me, but I was already there, gripping the weight’s handle.
I exerted force.
Whirrrrring─.
The heavy weight lifted with a mechanical whine.
…Hmm!
The eyes of the two men watching me widened dramatically.
‘She lifted that?!’
In fact, the person holding it was even more surprised.
It wasn’t difficult at all—the auxiliary device continued to amplify her movements with perfect synchronization.
A moment later.
As she set the auxiliary device back down, Choi Tae-jin and Professor Han approached.
“Where’s the power source?”
“To produce this much output… the battery pack is this small?”
They scrutinized every corner of the auxiliary device.
Choi Tae-jin’s gaze fixed on the joint section.
His chrome fingers fidgeted with the joint cover of the auxiliary device.
‘I’m curious about this actuator structure.’
Just as he attempted to pry the cover open.
Professor Han Ji-hyuk, who had been reviewing the documents, spoke.
“The joint section has a patent registered.”
“…!”
Choi Tae-jin’s hand froze.
If a patent was registered, he couldn’t touch it without the submitter’s prior consent.
Of course, the presenter would explain the joint in question.
But they would withhold the core technology.
Therefore….
As he attempted to forcibly open the cover, a cold voice cut through.
“A corporate CEO shouldn’t overstep boundaries.”
A warning from Dr. Yu So-young.
Choi Tae-jin finally withdrew his hand.
“Strict, aren’t we.”
Choi Tae-jin twisted his mouth and glanced at the name on the documents.
Lim Doo-ho?
‘I’ll have to see his presentation….’
Dr. Yu So-young spoke, looking at both of them.
“With that auxiliary device, I think a global competition submission would be possible.”
“It’s possible, but how should I put it? The design and all—wouldn’t it need some refinement?”
At her pointed remark, Professor Han Ji-hyuk offered a rebuttal.
Then Choi Tae-jin tilted his head.
The design?
“Professor Han, isn’t this better than the walking module you’re researching?”
“…!!”
Professor Han Ji-hyuk’s expression hardened.
His silence itself was the answer.
Choi Tae-jin, smirking faintly, couldn’t take his eyes off Lim Doo-ho’s creation for a long while.
* * *
One week later.
Park Gyu-tae and Doo-ho stepped into the lobby of the Korea Industrial Science Foundation Headquarters Building, and both of them gaped in unison.
The marble floor gleamed so brilliantly it hurt the eyes.
A floor-to-ceiling glass ceiling that seemed to stretch to the heavens.
State-of-the-art holographic directional signs adorning the space with lavish elegance.
Whirr, whirr.
As Park Deputy adjusted his necktie, his cheap implant whined loudly.
Ugh….
“Lim Doo-ho. Are we actually supposed to be here?”
“We have an invitation, don’t we?”
I answered that way, but I too felt myself shrinking.
I steadied my breathing and squared my shoulders.
‘I haven’t done anything wrong.’
Among all those submissions, hadn’t I made it to the finals?
How dare they!
-Who are they to evaluate Doo-ho!
-For humans inferior to robots to evaluate Mechromancer is fundamentally wrong.
Honestly, what they said was strange, but in this moment, it gave me unexpected strength.
Yes, let’s go.
Just focus on the presentation as planned.
Doo-ho and Park Deputy took their seats in the front row of the Grand Auditorium.
Glance, glance.
Park Deputy looked around the room.
Researchers, university professors, PhDs—nothing but.
He swallowed hard.
No matter how I looked at it.
‘This isn’t a place for us….’
Doo-ho gazed down at his smartwatch, reviewing the presentation content he’d prepared so far.
Park Deputy shook his head watching Doo-ho.
‘In the end, we’re just here to make others shine….’
He wanted to warn him not to harbor foolish dreams, but he simply let it be.
Soon after.
The Grand Auditorium lights dimmed and the host took the stage.
“Good day! We are now beginning the presentations of the finalist teams for the 2069 Government-Affiliated Technology Competition!”
After that.
A technical showcase unfolded like an academic conference.
With each team that took the stage, my eyes glazed over.
Complex equations rendered in hologram.
A parade of specialized terminology that was difficult even to pronounce.
Park Deputy leaned close to Doo-ho’s ear and whispered.
“I can’t understand a single word of this.”
“Me too.”
I nodded along with the others.
‘But I’ve already studied all of this in the Garage.’
Besides, Isto had been feeding me mechanical knowledge from university papers, so there was nothing to worry about.
Moreover.
I thought everyone had submitted something remarkable, but it was just slight modifications to existing technology.
‘Doesn’t seem like much, really.’
That thought crossed my mind for a moment.
No, that can’t be right.
‘They’re all master’s and doctorate holders.’
After a few more teams finished their presentations.
Finally, it was my turn.
I took the stage and steadied my breathing.
Feeling the weight of countless gazes, I began speaking calmly.
“Good morning. I’m Lim Doo-ho from the Hunter Management Bureau Machine Upcycling Department.”
My voice trembled slightly from nervousness.
As the stage lights illuminated my face, my mouth went dry.
‘Stay composed.’
I projected the hologram and glanced briefly at the presentation filled with technical jargon.
‘Do I really need to present like they did?’
The truth was.
The submissions were dressed up in theory, but they kept feeling trivial to me.
Boring, uninspired, stale submissions.
I skipped the complex presentation and brought up the holographic footage instead.
Worn work clothes.
It showed my Father lifting and working with discarded steel reinforcement bars weighing over 100 kilograms.
As another video appeared.
It was Jang Moon-seo in the Workshop, endlessly forging metal with a heavy hammer.
“My presentation topic is an auxiliary device for Naturals.”
Simple, humble equipment.
The demonstration video repeated.
Park Deputy’s face flushed red.
His son had prepared well, or so he’d heard….
“What is this?”
He was about to stand up in embarrassment when the atmosphere in the audience shifted.
Scholars unable to tear their eyes from the footage.
Soon.
They began murmuring among themselves.
“How is that even possible?”
“The efficiency is incredible.”
“How stable does the auxiliary device need to be for forging to even be possible?”
Those in the know watched Doo-ho’s presentation as if mesmerized, analyzing every detail.
Only then did Doo-ho introduce the Smart Actuator, though he’d deliberately withheld some of the core technology.
As they listened to his presentation, everyone in the audience reached the same conclusion.
Shouldn’t this Smart Actuator be unveiled as next-generation technology by a global corporation, not in a venue like this?
Doo-ho read the atmosphere of the audience and moved toward his conclusion.
“If we proceed with mass production of the auxiliary device, the unit cost can be brought down to 500,000 coins.”
I paused briefly to catch my breath.
Every eye in the audience fixed upon me.
I relaxed and spoke what I’d been wanting to say.
“You’re probably thinking, ‘Who would even buy something like this to justify mass production?’ But here’s the thing… sixty percent of Korea’s population, and a substantial portion of the global population, are Naturals.”
With the implication that demand exists and therefore production is viable, I bowed toward the audience.
Silence.
Then, moments later, applause erupted.
I’d managed a decent showing, it seemed.
Park Deputy looked up at me on stage.
The presentation was clumsy and lacked polish.
Yet somehow, I looked impressive.
After all presentations concluded.
Shortly after, the awards ceremony began.
Starting with the honorable mentions, names were called one by one, and recipients took the stage amid cheers.
Park Deputy sighed as he watched them.
‘I thought they’d at least give him an honorable mention….’
“Came up empty.”
“Sir?”
“You saw it yourself. Even people worse than you are getting awards.”
Park Deputy gave me an awkward expression as I shook my head.
In my opinion….
“Your presentation was better than theirs.”
In that moment, the voices of Isto and Hawkeye echoed in my mind.
-Huh?! Park Deputy’s lost his mind?!
-Mechromancer, sir. Park Deputy… it seems his time has come.
At that moment.
“Now then! Only the Grand Prize and Gold Award remain!”
The emcee heightened the tension.
“So, the honorable Grand Prize candidates! I shall announce the two teams!”
Silence fell over the Grand Auditorium.
“First, the Korea University Research Team!”
Thunderous applause!
The Korea University graduate and doctoral students cheered and rose from their seats.
With Doo-ho excluded, five teams still remained in the competition.
Park Deputy grinned bitterly as he watched them.
Tsk….
“Hey, Lim Doo-ho. Let’s go.”
“It’s not over yet….”
Ugh.
“Don’t be a supporting actor. Let’s get out of here. You don’t realize the remaining teams are all better than us?”
Just as Doo-ho was preparing to leave at Park Deputy’s irritated words.
“Our next candidate for glory is! Lim Doo-ho from the Hunter Management Bureau!”
Thud!
Park Deputy, who had been standing, collapsed back into his chair.
Doo-ho walked toward the stage as if entranced.
Park Deputy’s cheap prosthetic hand trembled.
Wait, wait.
That bastard Lim Doo-ho.
Even if he doesn’t win here, he’s already gold, isn’t he?
“This is huge!”
He hurriedly made a call on his smartwatch.
The hologram displayed the face of Ham Bong-sik, the director of the Transportation Department.
-Yeah, Park Deputy.
“Director, we’re at the awards ceremony right now!”
Park Deputy looked up at Doo-ho standing dumbly on stage.
Director Ham asked.
-What’s the problem?!
“It’s not that, it’s just that Doo-ho got, got, got…”
-Doo-ho? Park Deputy, have you been drinking during the day?
“No, wait! Just watch!”
Park Deputy pointed his smartwatch camera toward the stage.
Beyond the hologram, the emcee’s passionate voice erupted from the stage.
“The Grand Prize of the 2069 Government-Affiliated Skills Competition is…!”
A breathless silence.
Director Ham Bong-sik’s eyes in the hologram widened in shock.
He must have seen Doo-ho.
Hey, hey!
-What in the world is happening right now?!
Along with his question.
The emcee’s roar shook the Grand Auditorium.
Congratulations!
“Lim Doo-ho from the Hunter Management Bureau Machine Upcycling Department!”
I had become a Mechromancer.
Author |
Gungang E
Publication Date |
February 25, 2026
Publisher |
TaleSyx
Website |
https://talesyx.com
Email |
[email protected]
ⓒ Gungang E, 2026
This publication is protected by copyright law and may not be reproduced or copied without permission.
UCI |
G720:N+A277-20260210015.0025

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