Became a Mechromancer - Chapter 34

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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 34.
Reckoning (1)
“A grace period? What in the world does that mean?”
An executive from the Changtian Clan stared blankly into empty space.
The hunters who had participated in the clan’s expedition were so stunned by the Abyss Layer 1’s declaration of a grace period—as if it were looking down upon them—that they had lost all sense of triumph from conquering the 80th floor.
After a long moment.
Squelch. Crunch. Shlick—.
At the sound of flesh being carved away, all eyes turned toward Chairman Han Hyun-chul.
Chairman Han Hyun-chul was using the Frost Demon Blade to carve open the chest of the lava giant and extract the mana stone from within.
Truth be told.
Han Hyun-chul was equally shocked.
Yet, as always, I simply did what needed to be done in silence.
I turned the word “grace period” over in my mind as I extracted the mana stone.
And I understood.
The Ghost was not simply destroying the Abyss.
‘It was a being with the power to control the system itself.’
In that moment, the exhilaration of conquering the 80th floor became infinitesimally small before the absolute entity known as the Ghost.
An executive carefully opened his mouth.
“Chairman.”
“Speak.”
“What if we asked the media to delay any reports about the Ghost by just one day?”
Go Gyeong-taek’s eyes widened at those words.
He cried out on behalf of Han Hyun-chul.
“That’s absolutely absurd!”
The executive quickly waved his hands.
“Please don’t misunderstand. We’re not trying to hide it.”
“Then what?”
“Ordinary citizens don’t receive system notifications. So if we announce it first, and the Ghost story comes out naturally the next day, it won’t be too late.”
Another executive chimed in.
“Considering the efforts of the guilds that participated in the subjugation under the Changtian name…”
In other words, they wanted to secure credit for themselves.
Go Gyeong-taek glanced at Chairman Han Hyun-chul and shook his head.
“That’s like trying to block out the sun with your palm!”
“Why must someone of all people be so stubborn about this?”
The executive calmly persuaded, gesturing toward the hunters who had participated in the subjugation.
Or rather, it was closer to coercion.
“Is it wrong to want the world to properly acknowledge the blood and sweat we shed?”
“…!!”
In the end, Go Gyeong-taek fell silent.
Everyone’s gaze immediately turned toward Han Hyun-chul.
And then.
The hand holding Han Hyun-chul’s sword trembled.
‘As long as ordinary people don’t find out?’
He would become a laughingstock among awakened hunters instead.
More than anything.
‘The Ghost asks for nothing and yet saves the world.’
The white-haired elder simply gazed down at the Frost Sword in his palm.
Then he surveyed the executives once more.
Pathetic men.
“…I’ll head out first.”
He was neither for nor against.
Leaving only a hollow smile, he exited the Abyss.
* * *
The next day, at a cafe.
Holographic news screens floated above the tables of people refueling on caffeine.
『Changtian Clan Successfully Clears Abyss 80th Floor!』
『Steel Guild: “A victory as precious as it is difficult.”』
『Hunter Park Dae-hyun: “We accomplished this with our own strength, without relying on American-grade item rentals!”』
『Guild Master Yoon Hwi-won: “We wielded our swords solely for the safety of our citizens.”』
And then….
『Chairman Han Hyun-chul: “I offer my sincere condolences to the hunters who lost their lives in this subjugation.”』
A man sipping his drink spoke up.
“I was wondering if I should move overseas, but these kids handled it pretty well.”
“The 80th floor isn’t easy.”
They were whining about going up with America.”
“That’s just gear power. If we’re being honest, Changtian is impressive.”
“What’s impressive about it? Other places cleared it at 82nd floor difficulty, and we cleared 80th floor difficulty.”
A man with an implant arm, swinging it around loudly, spoke while looking at Chairman Han Hyun-chul in the hologram.
“Look at that old fossil, see those shoulder pads he’s wearing?”
Then a low voice came from behind.
“You should acknowledge good work when you see it. Don’t just criticize endlessly.”
“What the hell….”
The man turned around with a glare.
The person was Han San-ho, the guild master of the Han San Guild, a man of sturdy build.
The man instinctively sensed that Han San-ho was a high-ranking hunter and averted his gaze.
Then Han San-ho pointed his chin toward Han Hyun-chul in the hologram.
“That man simply offered condolences to the fallen hunters—why are you making a fuss? And didn’t you say you wanted to move overseas? If you hate it here, emigrate.”
“….”
“What, you got a problem? Want to fight? Should we step outside?”
“Ah, no. My eyes have always been like this… you know.”
“They do seem unusual. Anyway, let’s drop it.”
The men, intimidated by the oppressive atmosphere, fled the cafe like cowards.
As Han San-ho turned back around, Song In-ah, a refined woman in an elegant suit across from him, gave him a reproachful look.
“They were talking among themselves—why did you have to butt in?”
“If you were in my position, would you just sit there listening to someone badmouth your grandfather?”
“Ugh. After cutting ties and leaving….”
Song In-ah trailed off, realizing her slip, but Han San-ho simply laughed it off as if it were nothing.
“Just because I left home doesn’t make my grandfather a stranger.”
Song In-ah cleared her throat awkwardly and changed the subject.
So.
“Why did you want to see me?”
In response to her question, Han San-ho pulled up a hologram and tapped the news tab.
He scrolled through various news articles.
“Why is this like this?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why isn’t there anything about Abyss Layer 1 in the headlines? There’s not a shred of coverage about the specter.”
“….”
“Isn’t this media suppression?”
Song In-ah’s brow furrowed at his words.
Han San-ho asked again.
“Is it because the clan is trying to hide the credit, or did you learn something about the specter?”
Song In-ah sighed.
“It’s about the credit, just like you said.”
“…I had a feeling.”
“Early this morning, the clan contacted my father asking him to delay the announcement by just one day.”
Sigh….
“Those people still haven’t come to their senses.”
Song In-ah fidgeted with her coffee cup as she spoke.
“But honestly, it’s not like ordinary people will suffer just because information is delayed by a day.”
“You’re the reason Awakeners get criticized for being a privileged class—thinking in ways that defy common sense.”
“You’re one to talk, considering you’ve enjoyed those privileges to the fullest.”
At Song In-ah’s barbed tone, Han San-ho laughed bitterly.
“I enjoyed them plenty. Even underwent artificial awakening surgery. I admit it. Satisfied?”
A moment of silence passed between them.
Song In-ah asked.
“But why are you so interested in the specter anyway?”
“I want to recruit them for the Han San Guild.”
Song In-ah shook her head in disbelief.
“You certainly have ambitious dreams.”
“Hey! What’s wrong with our guild?! We’re like family, we care for each other!”
“We don’t have the money.”
“….”
Han San-ho, struck by the harsh truth, let out a groan.
Song In-ah’s expression grew serious as she lowered her voice.
“And because of the global announcement, practically every nation is in a frenzy. …I’d bet anything the US is making moves too.”
“Come on, the US is our ally. Would they really do that?”
At Han San-ho’s question, Song In-ah rubbed her temples in frustration.
“The Abyss gets exponentially harder the deeper you go, right? But what happens if the ghost clears just a few upper layers? The overall difficulty drops.”
“….”
“You don’t understand what that means? Hunter survival rates go up, subjugation risks decrease. With the ghost around, everyone can breathe easier—do you really think America will just sit idle?”
Han San-ho fell silent.
An irrefutable fact.
Song In-ah gazed out the window.
“The battle for the ghost… has already begun.”
* * *
Arlington, Virginia, USA.
Pentagon Strategic Conference Room.
A long table bathed in blue light.
US Secretary of Defense Liam and Hunter Management Bureau Director David stood with folded arms, staring at a hologram suspended in mid-air.
On the hologram:
『KOREA ABYSS – FLOOR 1
SUSPENSION』
The headline was displayed.
“Give your report.”
At Secretary Liam’s heavy, low voice, Jacob, standing beside the screen with a thick beard, opened his mouth.
“As you can see, a global announcement appeared regarding the suspension of South Korea Abyss Layer 1 dissolution.”
Secretary Liam stroked his beard and narrowed his eyes.
“What’s the possibility of a system error?”
“We’ve completed verification through South Korean hunters seeking naturalization on our side.”
Jacob connected the dive port in his neural interface to the computer and displayed the data.
Soon after.
A hologram materializes in mid-air, rendered by AI from hunter reports and hand-drawn maps.
Among them, the Wendigo’s physical graph stood out.
Jacob pointed to the sharp downward curve of the Wendigo’s physical graph.
“The reported Wendigo’s physical stats are about one-fifth compared to the Wendigo that was on Floor 3 before.”
Only then did Hunter Management Bureau Director David, who had remained silent, speak up.
“As you can see, it’s not simply that a layer was removed. Secretary. The difficulty of every layer has been forcibly adjusted.”
Secretary Liam’s eyebrows twitched.
“Then… what about the Changtian Clan’s conquest of Floor 80 this time?”
“Yes. Thanks to that ghost, we were able to clear it without borrowing any items from us.”
The US Hunter Management Bureau, which also dealt in item rentals, was far from pleased.
Liam, arms crossed, stared intently at the word SUSPENSION on the screen.
An entity that gripped and shook the Abyss system itself, erasing upper layers and arbitrarily reducing difficulty.
Wait.
‘Upper layers disappear and lower layers with reduced difficulty are conquered?’
Liam straightened his posture and posed the question.
Could it be….
“Could it eliminate the Abyss entirely?”
That was the hope humanity had dreamed of for seventy years.
“I share that assessment.”
Holy shit….
A curse escaped the minister’s lips.
He calmed his racing heart before continuing.
“Director David, mobilize your hunter intelligence network to maximum capacity. And we’ll dispatch a hunter team under JSOC.”
His orders were clear and ruthless.
“Find that ghost and bring them to me before anyone else does.”
And….
Liam added something unprecedented.
“Whether it takes a blank check or if that doesn’t work, feel free to use any of our hunters with mental abilities. Bring them in by any means necessary.”
“Understood.”
Jacob, listening to the two men’s conversation, clicked his tongue inwardly.
Tsk.
‘Neither I nor Blood Soo have found any leads on the ghost, and now these people are jumping in too.’
Jacob, who also worked as an information broker, disconnected the cable attached to the dive port with a disgruntled expression.
* * *
Meanwhile, the ghost Lim Doo-ho had finished his day’s work and stepped out onto his room’s terrace.
He pulled up his status window.

[Main Status]
Name: Lim Doo-ho
Class: Mecromancer
F-Rank Lv.78
Experience: 3492/3572
Traits: Super Intelligence Summon/Unsummon, Garage
Collection: Isto, Hawkeye
Skills: Metal Manipulation, Component Detection
Dimensional Access, Nanobot Lv.6
Mana Affinity 97, Mechanical Knowledge 104
Craftsmanship 100, Mana Circuit 85
Available Stats: 112
“I’ve leveled up 16 levels.”
Eighty wendigos worth one experience point each would never have sufficed, but the golems filled the gap instantly.
Well….
‘I was lucky.’
Crack—pop.
The crisp sound of a beer can opening rang out cheerfully.
The refreshing beer slid down my throat.
“Ahhh….”
The night view of Seoul stretching below the balcony glittered like jewels, utterly exhilarating.
My parents chatted away in the living room downstairs, watching television.
My twin siblings studied diligently in their respective rooms.
My bank account balance grew fuller by the day.
I swirled the beer can gently while gazing up at the night sky.
“…This is paradise itself.”
What was strange was that I’d expected the ghost incident to dominate the news today, but instead, the media was plastered entirely with reports of the 80th Floor clear.
Right….
‘It makes sense—I earned a whole year’s worth of time, after all.’
Truth be told.
The ghost not receiving attention.
“Is actually a relief.”
Ding—.
My smartwatch chimed.
‘Who is it?’
I glanced at my smartwatch to check the message.
But then.
『Breaking News: Abyss Layer 1 Dissolution Suspended』
“Why is this showing up?”
When I opened the news tab, it was suddenly filled with stories about the ghost and the grace period.
‘Why now, all of a sudden?’
“Why???”
Among the news reports, one caught my attention—a massive banner hanging over Tehran.
Iran was brazenly sending love calls to the Ghost with oil money, breaking its own laws in the process.
Doo-ho enlarged the hologram to check the amount written on the banner.
“…One hundred billion?”
The sum was so enormous it felt surreal.
But what came to mind first was something else.
‘It won’t work because of Isto and Hawkeye.’
One of them opens his mouth and shouts about world conquest, while the other preaches robot liberation!
Most importantly.
Both of them are the only mechanics in the entire world that operate inside the Abyss.
“They’ll definitely end up dragged to some laboratory.”
Of course, those two wouldn’t go quietly.
Hunters and military robots would swarm them in droves…
But here’s the thing.
‘I don’t think they’ll lose.’
Most of all.
This peace I share with family.
‘I’m already happy enough.’
My gaze turned toward the shadow melting into the darkness.
The corner of the terrace railing.
Hawkeye maintained her vigilant stance, fine-tuning her scope.
Dependable, yet somehow pitiful.
Gulp.
I drained the beer can and stood up.
“Hawkeye. Let’s head inside.”
-Yes?
“We need to check the parts shop.”
-Ah! You mean the Mimic.
“Right, and we should open the treasure chest too.”
Hawkeye and I headed into the Garage.
Finally, it was time for the rewards I’d been waiting for.
I Became a Mechromancer
Author |
Gungang E
Publication Date |
February 25, 2026
Publisher |
Tail Six
Website｜
https://talesyx.com
Email｜
[email protected]
ⓒ Geon-gang E, 2026
This publication is protected by copyright law and may not be reproduced or duplicated without permission.
UCI｜
G720:N+A277-20260210015.0034

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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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