Even if I Make It Roughly, Ex-rank Items Continue to Accumulate - Chapter 98

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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 (98)

Questions

Cheongyeon Workshop Building 3rd Floor.

A small bedroom attached next to the Maintenance Zone.

“…Success?”

On the magic-powered wheelchair, Hyeon Eul-cheong looked around her surroundings.

Despite this being the bedroom where she slept every night, her attitude suggested the space itself felt unfamiliar. She even seemed uncomfortable with her own body, constantly looking down at her empty lower half.

After a moment of this.

Something wearing Hyeon Eul-cheong’s flesh let out a sigh of relief.

“Phew, success indeed.”

Lian Xiaojin.

Having secretly followed Lee Si-hyeok just moments ago, he had succeeded in possessing Hyeon Eul-cheong’s body.

He had been secretly infiltrating the workshop all this time, waiting for the right moment, and had achieved possession at the most optimal timing.

The mental resistance had been so fierce that he almost failed.

‘And I thought I’d be caught in the middle…’

During infiltration, the target’s gaze had somehow kept turning toward where Lian Xiaojin was hiding.

That cold and sharp stare.

Recalling those eyes once more sent chills down his entire body again.

Shiver!

“…Damn.”

But it seemed he hadn’t been caught.

No matter how EX-rank, he was just a Crafting Type.

Moreover, he had confirmed that Isaac Reynolds, a peak Assassination-type Hunter, always stayed nearby, but that wasn’t a problem either.

By activating his Cognitive Manipulation skill, Lian Xiaojin had completely distorted his own presence.

Shortly after.

Having finished adapting to his new body, Lian Xiaojin got on the elevator. It was inconvenient having no legs, but the job would be finished quickly.

Now he just needed to get close enough to approach the target’s mind.

‘This time I won’t overdo it. Just plant a ‘seed’.’

That was Lin Qingwu’s order.

Attempting brainwashing all at once had a high chance of failure, so he should just plant a brainwashing ‘seed’ deep in the mind.

Then in an instant, he would fall into being a faithful slave of the Absolute Dream Guild…

Clunk.

Soon the elevator stopped, and Lian Xiaojin arrived at the first floor.

On the opposite side.

He spotted the target stupidly just touring the workshop in a corner. His face looked vacant as if he knew nothing.

Lian Xiaojin smiled coldly and wheeled toward that spot.

The closer the distance, the deeper he could plant the seed.

However, attempting too much at once might expose him, so he first opened his mouth with an innocent expression.

“Ah, I’m late, aren’t I? Sorry about that. I forgot something in the bedroom.”

The special skill 『Mental Possession』 allowed him to check various memories simultaneously with possession.

So Lian Xiaojin knew everything about what conversations this body had with the target so far, and what conversations to continue.

Unaware of this, the target answered while still keeping his gaze fixed on the equipment.

“It’s fine. I was planning to stay a bit longer anyway, so it’s good for me to have more time to look around.”

“That’s a relief. Then shall we look at what we were going to see earlier first?”

How stupid. Lian Xiaojin sneered inwardly as he moved the wheelchair. The Component Manufacturing Zone, the Core Manufacturing Line. He was heading there to see the equipment the target had mentioned earlier.

As he moved the wheels little by little, he suddenly felt something strange.

“…?”

The other person wasn’t following.

Tilting his head and looking back, the target hadn’t moved a single step from that spot just moments ago.

Standing still like that, only staring intently at his wheelchair.

What? Why is he suddenly acting like that?

“…Aren’t you coming?”

“The wheelchair.”

“Pardon?”

“You seem to have switched to a different one?”

“What do you mean…?”

Then, the other person’s fingers spread out.

His extended index finger pointed at the wheel of the wheelchair Lian Xiaojin was holding.

“That one was on automatic drive until just now.”

“…?!”

Instantly, Lian Xiaojin’s eyes widened as if they would tear.

‘A-automatic drive?’

The thing was, Lian Xiaojin had just been operating the wheelchair wheels ‘manually’.

It was an unconscious action.

This might have been because he was born before the Gate era and was more familiar with analog wheelchairs.

Or it could have been a possibility that he missed it by mistake because he was too focused on the mission.

Either way, he had made an absurd mistake.

“Th-this is, this is…”

He hastily made up an excuse.

The gaze staring at him felt piercingly sharp.

“…Ah, I sometimes! I sometimes use manual operation too. Since my legs became like this, moving my body isn’t exactly easy…”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, yes. If I don’t move my hands like this, they keep getting stiff. It’s natural you wouldn’t know, ha, haha…”

“…”

A moment of silence followed immediately.

The sound of the clock’s second hand was unusually loud, and hot saliva went down his throat with a gulp.

“I understand. Let’s go.”

The target shrugged his shoulders and moved.

He passed by the frozen Lian Xiaojin without even looking back.

‘What the hell.’

What was that gaze from just now?

Beyond just the pupils, that stare seemed to see through the very essence of a person completely.

What the hell was that…

Watching the target who had already arrived at the Component Manufacturing Zone, Lian Xiaojin panted slightly.

Mental power consumption was already extreme in a possessed state, and at this rate, the possibility of being discovered would gradually increase.

‘Not yet, it’s not over yet.’

Stay calm.

He had felt fear for a moment, but judging by the other person’s reaction, it seemed he hadn’t completely noticed yet.

Then there would be plenty of opportunities.

In the end, that brat would just be dancing in the palm of his hand.

Then he pressed the automatic drive button in the corner of the wheelchair.

 

* * *

 

Whirr…

Not far away, Lee Si-hyeok stood still and quietly watched the approaching wheelchair.

On it sat Hyeon Eul-cheong with a slightly more fierce expression than before. Slightly raised eyebrows and a wrinkled brow.

If he had seen that face without any information, he would have just thought she was annoyed.

But not now.

‘…The original mind was pushed out and someone else took that place.’

He could tell at a glance.

Without 〈Phagethesis〉’s help, it might have taken a bit longer, but that was all. To Si-hyeok’s eyes, the difference was starkly clear.

Probably even now, that possessor’s characteristic expression was subtly showing through.

Who could it be, really?

The Reynolds Family?

Or were there still remnants of Chronos left?

He couldn’t tell. There was no way to figure it out right now.

‘Let’s observe a bit more for now.’

Just then, a voice came from the wheelchair beside him.

Component Manufacturing Zone, Core Manufacturing Line.

“…You said there’s something you want to examine closely here?”

“Yes. This.”

Si-hyeok broke from his thoughts and pointed to a square object attached to the wall.

 

[Crystal Growth Chamber]

 

It looked like a large storage container, roughly the height of a person.

The front was made of reinforced glass, with the frame itself composed of a matte metal frame. Mana cables were connected to its side like roots.

“This is the first time I’ve seen equipment like this here. That’s probably why it caught my eye more.”

“Hmm, this…”

Whatever was inside Hyeon Eul-cheong paused for a moment.

They were probably searching their memory for what role this equipment played.

Soon, as if remembering something, the voice brightened.

“It’s a Crystal Growth Chamber!”

“I can see that written there myself.”

“Ah, right, of course. Anyway, simply put, you can think of it as a device that grows the magic stones of artifacts. Would it be easier to understand if I said ‘enhancement’?”

“Enhancement?”

He asked deliberately, even though he knew.

“Yes. Artifacts basically use magic stones found in Gates as their core material, right? And those magic stones become the main driving force that makes the artifacts operate.”

“Since they take on the role of a core.”

“But as you know, magic stones have unavoidable limits. Inherent limits.”

In some ways, it was similar to awakened individuals’ skills.

Just as it’s hard to change a skill’s grade once it’s determined upon awakening, the same goes for magic stones.

If a magic stone is found in an S-rank Gate, it’s forever S-rank, and conversely, if it’s C-rank, it’s forever C-rank.

“Because of that, the completeness of an artifact varies depending on how good a magic stone you prepare when you first start crafting. If it’s a low-grade magic stone, the output and precision will naturally drop, so the finished product will obviously be below expectations.”

“Then that device is?”

“It’s a device that can help overcome those inherent limitations, even if just a little.”

“Please explain in more detail.”

“Well, for example, it’s like this. Let’s say the magic crystal, that is, the magic stone that was originally going to go into an artifact, was C-rank.”

Then, before installing that magic stone into the artifact.

You use the ‘Crystal Growth Chamber’ to enhance it once.

“I’ll skip over the principle itself for now. Anyway, when you put a magic crystal into the device, that crystal goes through a process and artificially absorbs more mana.”

When that happens, the magic stone’s output naturally becomes higher.

Since output is determined by the amount of mana possessed, naturally, artificially pumping in mana makes it stronger.

However, an additional comment was added.

“But the precision stays the same.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s a method that simply and crudely pumps in ‘only’ mana. Of course, even that can’t be said to be a very large amount… Anyway, while it’s much stronger than the existing output, that delicacy remains the same as before, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then it can actually have the opposite effect. Because the precision falls far short compared to the output.”

In short, it was a problem of imbalance.

Just as no matter how strong your power is, it’s useless without the skill to handle it, precision and output must advance together to be meaningful.

This enhancement equipment developed by Hyeon Eul-cheong was a type he’d never seen before, but it had a fatal flaw.

‘But…’

To Si-hyeok’s eyes, that very flaw was a new opportunity.

Output, imbalance, precision, enhancement.

An opportunity to combine all of these and create tremendous crafting equipment that was previously unimaginable.

While thinking about the design of such equipment, Si-hyeok suddenly spoke up.

A dry voice flowed out.

“Could you also explain the operating principle in detail?”

“What? The operating principle?”

“You said you’d skip over it earlier. But I’m curious. Exactly what method is used to enhance the magic stones?”

“Uh…”

Lian Xiaojin unconsciously opened and closed his mouth.

…Explain it?

It wasn’t unexpected. Since they’d talked about the equipment earlier, he naturally thought the other might be curious about its principle too.

What he hadn’t expected, however, was.

‘I don’t know that stuff?’

That Lian Xiaojin himself didn’t understand the principle.

He had managed to understand the device’s effects and results to some extent.

Put in a magic stone and the output becomes stronger. This part was quite simple logic even for him to grasp.

But exactly how does it operate?

He had no idea about that.

Of course, since he had this body’s memories, he knew it in simple textual terms, but if asked whether he properly understood it, absolutely not. It was literally just floating around in his head as a mass of text.

For him, who hadn’t majored in magical engineering, it was too distant a field.

It was like asking a non-major to explain a physics paper that exceeded doctoral-level understanding in an easy-to-understand way.

“…”

Lian Xiaojin glanced sideways at his target.

Then, when their eyes met exactly, he turned his gaze away again as if startled.

‘Ugh! Crazy bastard!’

A powerful Hunter of the Absolute Dream Guild and Lin Qingwu’s loyal subordinate.

Living such a life, this was the first time he’d encountered such a predicament.

“Won’t you explain it?”

“…Ah, well, let me organize my thoughts for a moment. I want to explain it as interestingly as possible.”

He was now even considering just attacking Isaac Reynolds or whatever and running away.

Suddenly, the other person continued speaking.

“Then I’ll ask questions instead.”

“Questions…?”

“Yes. Interestingly. Didn’t you say that?”

“I did, but.”

“That sounds interesting. Rather than explaining everything one by one, let’s go with a method where I ask what I’m curious about and you answer appropriately.”

“…”

“Why aren’t you answering?”

At that moment, for some reason.

Lian Xiaojin sensed a tone full of laughter from the other person.

“First question.”

Without giving him time to breathe, the other person asked.

“When the device first operates, how did you minimize the external reference field that forcibly synchronizes the wave values of the magic crystal seed and the Coherent Phase Matching algorithm?”

“…”

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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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