Even if I Make It Roughly, Ex-rank Items Continue to Accumulate - Chapter 146

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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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Even Hastily Made Ones Keep Stacking Up as EX-Rank (146)

 

Jiuquan, Gansu Province

 

“…So this time you must go with me…”

 

“I don’t want to go…”

 

“That won’t do… Master has summoned you…”

 

As he brewed and drank another cup of coffee, gazing at the clear sky and dew-laden forest, the conversation between Bae Jun-wan and the Snow Flame Empress continued to ring in his ears.

 

Since he wasn’t paying much attention, it only seeped in quietly, but as their discussion went on endlessly, Lee Si-hyeok began to grow curious.

 

‘Hmm.’

 

He stopped stroking Blackie and turned to look at them. At the halted touch, Blackie, who had been drowsily trying to fall asleep, opened its round eyes wide and looked up.

 

Lee Si-hyeok asked.

 

“Is there some serious matter at hand?”

 

“I’m telling you again, I don’t want to go… Hm?”

 

The Snow Flame Empress, who had been expressing firm refusal about whatever the matter was, opened her eyes that had been resolutely shut in displeasure. She opened her already large eyes even wider and looked at Lee Si-hyeok.

 

“What did you ask, you?”

 

“I was wondering if some serious incident had occurred. You’ve been talking non-stop since earlier. From this early morning.”

 

“Ah.”

 

At those words, the Snow Flame Empress finally realized.

 

The fact that she and Bae Jun-wan had been chattering away, completely excluding Lee Si-hyeok. And for over 30 minutes at that.

 

What kind of rudeness was this? Though the Snow Flame Empress wasn’t usually one for such attention to detail, she knew this bordered on discourtesy.

 

In the terms of this place, she was no different from a useless sack of barley.

 

“…I wasn’t being considerate. I’m sorry, you.”

 

She apologized in surprise.

 

“Pardon? So suddenly?”

 

But Lee Si-hyeok, who received the apology, looked as if wondering what this sudden nonsense was about. However, the Snow Flame Empress shot a sharp glance at the awkwardly standing Bae Jun-wan before continuing.

 

“This… wretched bastard made me completely forget you were here. With that snake-like tongue of his making me so flustered!”

 

“Yes, yes?”

 

Bae Jun-wan, suddenly designated as the culprit, flinched and stepped back.

 

“Wh-what do you mean, Cha Yu-rim. I merely reported Master’s words exactly as they were…”

 

“Be quiet! That damn report! Report! Because of that, I ended up being rude even to my benefactor who is like heaven to me!”

 

“No…”

 

Bae Jun-wan trailed off as if at a loss for words.

 

Then, giving up on standing upright, he just plopped down heavily into a chair.

 

A deep sigh that seemed to make the ground cave in. Lee Si-hyeok smiled wryly at his appearance of muttering in a daze, ‘How could Master appoint such a person as vice-master…’

 

However, regardless of that.

 

“Hmm. So then, you.”

 

The Snow Flame Empress herself asked brightly, seemingly delighted to finally be free from the tedious report.

 

“Are you curious about what report I received?”

 

“Yes, well. From what I can see, it seems you need to go to China, so I was wondering why you’re so reluctant to go.”

 

The Snow Flame Empress pursed her lips briefly before explaining.

 

“It’s a summons from Master, that is, Father…”

 

The content was that suspicious movements had recently been detected at the China headquarters where the Muksi Guild was established.

 

And this incident was presumed to be reconnaissance targeting the numerous legacy artifacts stored there. The origin seemed to be a certain tribe in the desert zone that appeared recently, though it wasn’t certain yet.

 

“Mm.”

 

Perhaps because it was too distant a matter.

 

It didn’t really resonate with him. Only one part caught Lee Si-hyeok’s interest.

 

“Are there really that many legacy artifacts there?”

 

“Hmm. As expected, you’re curious about that part.”

 

When he asked that, the Snow Flame Empress smiled thinly as if she had already anticipated it. Her tongue swept across her red lips once.

 

“Jiuquan, Gansu Province, China, where the Muksi Guild is located. That place has accumulated the results of my efforts, my father’s efforts, and countless other displaced people’s efforts to reclaim their homelands – piled up like mountains.”

 

“Come on, even so, mountains?”

 

“Indeed. That massive treasury can actually be compared to the royal palace vault you once saw in Orbes. The saying that artifacts form mountains is no mere boast.”

 

“Oh…”

 

Lee Si-hyeok’s eyes widened. He tapped the dew-covered table while thinking.

 

Meanwhile, the Snow Flame Empress was getting another earful from Bae Jun-wan for carelessly exposing the headquarters’ location. Her indignant cry reached his ears.

 

‘So such a place existed.’

 

Of course, he had thought about it several times.

 

Surely somewhere in this world there would be plenty of artifacts Lee Si-hyeok didn’t know about. And facilities that collected and stored them would also exist somewhere.

 

But to think it was the Muksi Guild.

 

There might be other places besides this, but Lee Si-hyeok thought there probably wasn’t anywhere that could surpass the Muksi Guild.

 

If the Muksi Guild’s master was truly the King of Orbes as the Snow Flame Empress said, he would possess unimaginably tremendous military power.

 

‘And he awakened crafting abilities too? Then there wouldn’t have been much difficulty managing artifacts either.’

 

It was only surprising that the name wasn’t widely known yet.

 

Though quite famous, even that fell far short compared to typical S-rank awakeners. Probably because of the grand purpose of reclaiming Orbes, he seemed to have thoroughly hidden his true power.

 

It was around the time such thoughts were being organized.

 

The moment new information was neatly arranged in one corner of his mind.

 

‘…Wait.’

 

A memory suddenly flashed through his mind.

 

‘Jiuquan, Gansu Province. Haven’t I heard that somewhere before?’

 

He immediately took out his phone.

 

He entered a portal site and searched for that region’s name.

 

Then information came streaming out.

 

“Ah, right.”

 

The first content that appeared was two things.

 

One was China’s largest magical engineering company, Jinling Heavy Industry.

 

It was that the massive industrial complex of that company, where ‘Ray Wen’ – whom he had clashed with several times at the Global Artifact Seminar – served as president, was located in Jiuquan’s desert zone.

 

The other surprised even Lee Si-hyeok quite a bit, and as soon as he read that information, his expression became rather cold. His grip on the phone tightened.

 

[The location of China’s Precipice Association’s skyscraper.]

 

‘So that’s where I heard it.’

 

It seemed to be when he received the investigation results about the Guardian of Light recently.

 

The Guardian Hunter had been secretly communicating with the skyscraper in Jiuquan behind the Association’s back.

 

“…”

 

Lee Si-hyeok narrowed his eyes and looked at the Snow Flame Empress. The sunlight was even more dazzling than before. He could see her covering her ears against Bae Jun-wan’s scolding in the sunlight pouring onto the terrace.

 

‘…So the Muksi Guild’s headquarters is in Jiuquan City.’

 

Well, it wasn’t something to take too seriously.

 

Though it was the same city, the area was ridiculously vast to simply consider it the same region.

 

About 170,000 km².

 

Considering that the entire Korean Peninsula was about 220,000 km², there was a possibility they might completely forget each other’s existence.

 

Still, he couldn’t help but be concerned.

 

‘Is there anything else to check?’

 

Lee Si-hyeok shook his head and scrolled down further. He had become interested in the news about artifacts being plentiful, and was curious if there was anything more to learn about the Precipice Association.

 

But after a while.

 

“…?”

 

Lee Si-hyeok’s finger, which had been browsing photos of Jiuquan in the image tab, froze in place.

 

One of the photos capturing the vast desert zone.

 

That was all it was.

 

But the moment he saw it, a scene that had been intensely imprinted in Lee Si-hyeok’s mind recently overlapped with it.

 

When he met CEO Hwang Eun-ho at Termion Security to find traces of the missing Hunter Baek Min-ji.

 

And when he received the cube-shaped box that Hwang had handed over, saying it was something Hunter Baek Min-ji had left behind.

 

At that moment, a strange sensation enveloped his entire body.

 

Hot wind and dry air wrapping around his whole body.

 

As if he were actually there, the scorching sun that seemed to burn his entire body and the barren wasteland of the desolate plains…

 

“…!”

 

His eyes snapped wide open. In the swirling confusion, various senses stood on edge together.

 

―Ding!

 

[The Mystery Box left by target ‘Baek Min-ji’ resonates!]

 

[Information about the Eye that Sees the Future, 『Oraculum Orb』 is expanded!]

 

“…?!”

 

* * *

 

A few minutes later.

 

[―Jiuquan, Gansu Province, China, Western Desert Region]

 

Lee Si-hyeok, who had returned to his room, swallowed hard as he looked at the message floating before his eyes. His pupils trembled. Honestly, it would be a lie to say he wasn’t surprised.

 

How could he not be surprised?

 

‘That place was in China.’

 

And it was in the region where the Absolute Dream Guild and Apocalypse Order were located.

 

It probably wasn’t a coincidence.

 

Hunter Baek Min-ji must have had some reason to head to that place where the Absolute Dream Guild was located, and that must have been the starting point of her current disappearance.

 

So leaving this for Lee Si-hyeok means…

 

“She’s telling me to come. To that place.”

 

As he reached that conclusion, a chuckle escaped him.

 

What on earth had happened that she left such a message while even looking into the future?

 

He pondered for a moment but quickly dismissed the thought.

 

Actually, it didn’t feel particularly important. The reason for her disappearance? The existence of the Absolute Dream Guild and Apocalypse Order? Such things were merely secondary factors.

 

The Artifact was there.

 

That single fact alone was enough to end the story. He had achieved various goals, but he was still far from reaching his dream. The path ahead was high and distant.

 

And in that process, the 『Oraculum Orb』 would serve as an important cornerstone.

 

Having finished his thoughts, Lee Si-hyeok chuckled and got up from the bed. The confusion and complexity had long since disappeared. Only refreshment lingered in his mind, and vitality filled his entire body.

 

New goals and plans.

 

Lee Si-hyeok savored the joy welling up from deep in his heart as he walked to the window and drew back the curtains.

 

The rain had stopped and the dust had settled.

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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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