Even if I Make It Roughly, Ex-rank Items Continue to Accumulate - Chapter 19

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

Even Hastily Made Ones Keep Stacking Up as EX-Rank (19)

Can I really do it?

The day after notifying the Association about participating in the expo.

Instead of going to work at Security, Lee Si-hyeok headed to the Termion Corporation Headquarters Building.

―Beep beep! The door is opening.

It was to start creating the artifact to exhibit at the expo in his Personal Research Lab.

Lee Si-hyeok sat at the Main Table and examined a document.

 

[Artifact Creation Request Form]

[Client: Isaac Reynolds

Weapon Request Type: Dagger / Assassination Specialized / Close Infiltration Use]

 

It was the artifact creation request form he had received from Isaac not long ago.

After all, hadn’t the recruitment condition for Termion Security’s security personnel been ‘provision of artifacts directly made by Lee Si-hyeok’?

So he had to resume the creation that had been interrupted due to Chronos’s surveillance.

Lee Si-hyeok’s gaze moved downward. The bottom part of the request form listed the functions needed for the dagger.

 

[Basic Required Specifications – Dagger Design Request]

[∙ Noise blocking treatment (including all resonance/vibration sounds)

∙ Integrated camouflage exterior (blocks metallic shine when inactive)

∙ Contact-type mana transfer circuit insertion

∙ Heat and impact resistance treatment

….]

 

Reading through it, Lee Si-hyeok slowly nodded his head.

‘Nothing too difficult.’

While there were many functions, nothing seemed particularly unreasonable.

Isaac was an S-rank Hunter standing at the pinnacle of assassination-type. Since he knew exactly what functions were absolutely necessary in combat, it was packed tight with only the truly essential ones.

“Boss.”

Just as he was finishing reading through the request form once more, Isaac released his Stealth and revealed himself.

“What?”

“The dagger you’re going to make for me this time. You’re planning to participate in the GateTech Expo with that, right? You’re not separately creating a new artifact for exhibition?”

Isaac’s expression was uncertain.

It was a natural question. Right now, Lee Si-hyeok wasn’t planning to create artifacts for two separate purposes, but rather to make one artifact that he would both exhibit at the expo and provide to Isaac.

“I wonder if that’s really possible….”

However, there’s also the saying about losing both rabbits when trying to catch two. Isaac was worried about a potential situation.

Despite Isaac’s concern, Lee Si-hyeok answered leisurely.

“Nothing to worry about. Rather than getting distracted trying to make multiple artifacts, it’s much better to focus on one.”

“….”

“And daggers are artifacts with high demand, aren’t they?”

Since Isaac was so strong, quite a number of Hunters used daggers as their main weapon due to his influence.

“…Alright, I understand.”

Only then did Isaac seem to accept it, nodding his head before hiding himself again. It was consideration to not interfere with the work.

Now the planning was finished.

He had decided which artifact to mimic, and while reading the request form, he had also planned how to proceed with the flow.

Of course, he hadn’t drawn a perfect blueprint.

The『Mimicry』skill would appropriately guide him in a better direction according to the creation process, and overly detailed planning would only be a hindrance.

Swish swish.

Lee Si-hyeok arranged materials on the Main Table.

Then he brought up the information of the Legacy Artifact he had seen in Termion’s Underground Warehouse not long ago.

 

[〈Pale Trace〉 – B-Rank / Dagger

Though the blade’s trajectory is short, this dagger skips through space to directly inflict wounds at designated locations. It ignores all defensive measures of the target.

It is said to have been discovered in the deepest part of the Mining Site Buried in Darkness. However, there are rumors that an even deeper area exists below that… Who knows. It’s just a rumor.]

 

The artifact that would serve as the original for『Mimicry』this time. A gleam passed through Lee Si-hyeok’s eyes as he confirmed the artifact’s information.

‘…Skips through space to directly inflict wounds at designated locations.’

The so-called ‘Spacetime Penetration Technique’.

An incredible technique that could overcome the dagger’s greatest weakness – lack of destructive power.

And this technique would have originally been a unique characteristic possessed only by〈Pale Trace〉.

However….

 

[All required materials are currently satisfied!]

[You can『Mimic』〈Pale Trace〉!]

 

Only Lee Si-hyeok could directly create it.

‘By the way, what’s that description written below?’

―It is said to have been discovered in the deepest part of the Mining Site Buried in Darkness. However, below that….

The phrases written below Pale Trace that felt somehow meaningful.

No matter how much he thought about it, they seemed completely unrelated to parts like the artifact’s circuits or design.

Though curiosity arose in one corner of his mind, since there was no need to worry about it right now, he shook his head.

 

[『Mimicry』is activating!]

 

Lee Si-hyeok, having cleared his distracting thoughts, picked up the materials.

 

* * *

 

In a corner of the Research Lab.

Isaac was watching Lee Si-hyeok’s creation process while concealing his presence.

Whirrrr! Lee Si-hyeok rotated circuit strands thinner than hair with Tactile Response Tweezers, carefully aligning them with his fingertips.

Occasionally, sounds of other researchers chatting could be heard from the Corridor outside the Research Lab, but Lee Si-hyeok showed no reaction whatsoever.

Concentration at its peak.

‘…Impressive.’

Isaac expressed admiration at Lee Si-hyeok’s appearance, maintaining even his breathing while performing only necessary movements.

After observing for quite a while, Isaac discovered something peculiar about Lee Si-hyeok.

Tap, tap, tap.

The habit of tapping the table three times when pressing the Metal Base. Crack! The habit of cracking his knuckle joints once before soldering circuits.

It was a kind of routine. A routine that only an extremely small number among engineers possessed.

Since Isaac was a member of the Reynolds Family, he had met countless engineers and knew well when such routines appeared.

‘When completely immersed in one’s own world.’

Right now, only the table in front of him would be visible in Lee Si-hyeok’s field of vision. No matter what happened around him, his concentration would not be broken.

While Isaac swallowed at that astounding sight, his forehead was slightly wrinkled.

Those wrinkles contained worry, distrust, and small expectations respectively.

‘Spacetime Penetration Technique….’

Isaac had also heard the explanation.

Before Lee Si-hyeok began working, he had briefly explained what kind of artifact he would make. Though it was certainly a brief explanation, its content was clearer than anything.

However, precisely because of that, Isaac couldn’t help but distrust what Lee Si-hyeok had said.

‘Is that really possible?’

Skipping through space to inflict wounds at designated locations. And while ignoring the target’s defensive measures at that.

If.

If this were truly possible, it would be nothing short of revolutionary—calling it innovation wouldn’t even be enough.

The limitations of daggers as weapons.

Those limitations were that compared to other weapons, their ‘destructive power’—penetration and cutting ability—was woefully inadequate.

The reason was simple.

Daggers were extremely light in mass, and their blade length was very short.

Compared to spears, longswords, or even shortswords, daggers were incredibly compact.

Of course, that was precisely why assassination-type hunters favored daggers… but eventually everyone hit their limits. The weapon’s compact form created vague limitations on how much mana could be channeled into it.

Throb! Isaac felt a hot sensation in his abdomen.

“…”

When he lifted his clothes to check, there was no blood flowing, but a long scar was etched there.

It was a wound he’d received while subjugating a top-tier Gate in the past.

That Gate Boss’s offensive power itself had been truly pathetic, but its defensive capability was on a completely different level from any monster he’d encountered before.

‘…Damn it.’

Isaac had lost several comrades that day. It was a disaster that occurred because his dagger couldn’t penetrate the Boss’s defense even once.

Isaac, who had been leading the subjugation team, felt tremendous frustration at the time.

After that, he’d considered trying other weapons several times, but he had no choice. Assassination-type. What he’d once thought was a blessing—his class—was blocking him from wielding other weapons.

Tap, tap, tap.

Lee Si-hyeok pressed the Mana Transfer Tester and drummed on the table again.

In the past.

Even at the depths of frustration, Isaac had worked tirelessly to overcome the limitations of daggers.

One of those efforts was meeting renowned craftsmen from around the world. Thanks to his position as a member of the Reynolds Family, he could meet anyone he wanted to.

And he commissioned them.

To create an artifact that overcame the limitations of daggers.

But the responses that came back were…

—It’s impossible.

—It’s difficult for us. This is like an inherent limitation of the weapon itself.

—You’d get the same answer anywhere else. Have you considered using a weapon other than daggers… ah, sorry.

They were always the same.

So he gave up. It couldn’t be done. There had been several S-rank crafting types among them, so it was natural resignation. After that, Isaac had put the thought aside completely.

Right up until the moment he came under Lee Si-hyeok.

‘…I originally came to find Boss for a different reason anyway.’

He had wanted independence from his family, not to do something about his dagger.

But…

“Hmm, this should be enough for this. Next is…”

Right now, that Boss was confident that what everyone had declared impossible was actually possible.

He had stepped forward to do it without Isaac even saying it was necessary.

So Isaac couldn’t help but doubt. Even if he was an EX-rank Awakened, was this really feasible?

Doubt upon doubt. Distrust upon distrust kept building.

“Done!”

Lee Si-hyeok stretched and looked at the blue window that appeared before his eyes.

—Ding!

 

[You have successfully crafted a ‘Legacy Artifact’.]

[Remarkable Achievement!]

[You have made additional modifications to the artifact that ‘Mimicked’ 〈Pale Trace〉.]

[Therefore, you can set a new name for the artifact.]

[〈Pale Trace〉 → New name!]

 

How much time had passed? Lee Si-hyeok checked his smart watch, but it wasn’t working—the battery must have died. Probably… he’d stayed up at least two nights.

‘Success.’

Even so, the sense of achievement was much greater than the fatigue.

Moreover, like with the Shadow Blade last time, he had made additional modifications this time too, creating a clear difference from the original. He had improved some essential functions that Isaac had requested—nothing too complicated.

After thinking for a moment, Lee Si-hyeok muttered the name he’d come up with.

“〈Hollow Trace〉. I’ll go with Hollow Trace.”

If the original name Pale Trace meant ‘faint trace,’ then Hollow Trace meant ’empty trace.’

He named it to signify that it had advanced one step beyond the previous version.

 

[〈Pale Trace〉 → 〈Hollow Trace〉]

[Name has been changed.]

 

“Isaac, come closer.”

Lee Si-hyeok stretched his stiff neck and stood up from his chair.

“What is it, Boss?”

“The crafting is finished, so we need to test it.”

He handed Hollow Trace to Isaac.

But his expression was a bit strange. There was something like suspicious doubt in his eyes.

“What’s wrong? Is something the matter?”

“…It’s nothing. So I should go in there? The Experimental Small Containment Room?”

“Hmm…”

Lee Si-hyeok tilted his head but nodded anyway.

Isaac kept looking down at the dagger with a worried expression, which bothered him, but if he said it was nothing, what could he do?

—Beginning simulation.

After confirming that Isaac had entered the testing chamber and finished preparing, Lee Si-hyeok activated the simulation device.

It was similar to the simulation that Deputy Manager Han Da-hee had entered during the recent grade assessment.

It would virtually generate monsters appropriate to the subject’s level and test the artifact against them.

—Assessing subject’s level.

—S-rank Hunter. Isaac Reynolds.

—Projecting [Remnant of Belmark]!

Thoom.

With a heavy sound, an enormous virtual monster appeared in the testing chamber.

Quietly fluttering metallic membrane. Its entire body was covered in black metal as if it were a living machine.

“…!”

Isaac’s eyes widened when he saw it.

‘That thing is…?’

Remnant of Belmark. That was the very creature that had carved the long scar on Isaac’s abdomen.

Why? Even if it was just a simulation, why did the Remnant appear of all things? Could Boss have intended something…

Grooooar!

There was no time for long contemplation.

The Remnant swung its massive fist.

The same attack pattern as before. Isaac kicked off the ground to create distance and thought.

That creature had shown such weak attacks back then too, but as the battle progressed, they’d nearly been wiped out because they couldn’t penetrate its defense.

That armor covered in black metal—no matter how much they slashed, stabbed, or pierced it, not a single scratch appeared.

…That’s how it was ‘back then.’

But what about now?

“…”

Isaac lowered his gaze and looked down at the Hollow Trace in his hand. Distrust, doubt, uncertainty, anxiety. Such emotions churned wildly.

He raised his head. Through the glass window of the testing chamber, he could see Boss’s face. A seemingly indifferent smile. The confidence, certainty, faith, and determination he felt from it.

The moment he faced those emotions.

It felt like all the negative thoughts cluttering his mind were swept away completely.

And what remained was only one thing.

Anticipation.

Whoosh…!

Feeling his heart rate rise to its peak, Isaac swung his dagger through the air.

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