The Only Enhancer - Chapter 117

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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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Episode 117
117 – Team 2 Interviews (1)
0.
Rumors circulating through the Reinforce Guild were far more abundant than one might expect.
Not all of them were favorable, and one of the most prominent concerned the interviews themselves.
It had been quite some time since the recruitment announcement for Team 2 was posted, yet the interviews still hadn’t commenced.
It was only natural that people would spread various rumors out of sheer impatience.
The endless waiting was wearing on everyone’s nerves.
How could it be any other way?
No one could fault them for it.
All they could do was hope the interviews would begin soon.
Regardless, applications continued to pour in far more than expected.
There were even whispers that governments actively encouraged their rising talents to apply.
Why?
The reason was equally straightforward.
Rumors.
-Have you heard? They say the Reinforce Guild will prioritize recruiting from countries where their current members hail from?
-Nah, that’s exaggerated.
-Still, wouldn’t they naturally prefer countries with existing guild members over those with no connections?
-Hmm, that actually makes sense.
-After all, people are people. It’s only natural.
The rumor that the Reinforce Guild would give priority to the countries of their current members held considerable weight.
It wasn’t entirely baseless speculation.
In fact, it bordered on plausible reasoning.
Since they were human, it was only natural they would show preference for the nations of those they worked alongside daily.
Several governments, banking on this theory, even instructed some of their elite to submit applications.
The prestige of the Reinforce Guild was beyond question.
As the situation grew increasingly heated,
the Reinforce Guild made an official announcement.
[As of now, we are closing recruitment for Team 2. Thank you all for your applications. We are currently reviewing them carefully, and we appreciate your patience. We will provide our responses as soon as possible.]
The announcement naturally sent shockwaves through the community.
They’re finally forming Team 2!
Judging by Team 1’s growth trajectory, it was nothing short of extraordinary.
Even now, all members had reached Level 5.
The world’s first guild composed entirely of Level 5 members.
But what made it truly remarkable was that they could grow even further.
The Reinforce Guild was the guild everyone desired to join.
Yet without knowing their selection criteria, applicants were understandably frustrated.
-What criteria are they using to select?
-Probably level, right?
-A high level doesn’t necessarily mean superior skill. Besides, Kim Min-jun can even strengthen his level, so there’s no reason he’d just look at levels.
-He seems to be evaluating character and personality. I’m Korean, and among the Koreans who joined the Reinforce Guild, none of them had any prior incidents or problems.
-Ah, I’m a former state agent myself, and I heard all countries are submitting applications from kids with clean criminal records and no trouble.
-Is this guy spouting nonsense or is it actually true?
-Oh, I touched my mom’s wallet when I was in elementary school. Did I get caught for that too? Please ㅠㅠ
– Hahaha, wouldn’t it be like a skills test?
-Nah, last time the candidates just got a quick glance, a few questions, and then were told to leave. Doesn’t seem like it.
-Really? Then what criteria are they using to select people?
I was curious about what standards were being applied, but no one knew that Min-jun possessed a skill capable of assessing people’s true abilities.
Or rather, they couldn’t have known.
Even as rumors swirled among the candidates, Min-jun remained unbothered.
He was too busy reading through applications that had arrived from countries around the world.
Of course, since there were some particularly interesting individuals among them, he was examining them with evident curiosity.
‘There are more unique traits than I expected?’
Seeing far more special characteristics than anticipated, I gazed upon them with eyes full of anticipation.
1.
Interviews require extensive preparation not only from the candidates but also from the interviewer.
One must prepare situational questions and decide in advance how to receive and evaluate the answers.
Of course, that applied only to ordinary interviews.
For Min-jun, such preparations were unnecessary.
I could simply glance at someone and see their abilities displayed before my eyes—there was no need to prepare questions.
But that was something the others didn’t know, wasn’t it?
The atmosphere in the waiting room made this abundantly clear.
Most candidates radiated a desperate hope that they would be selected.
The waiting room was thick with negative energy.
Even the Level 5 Hunters felt the same way.
Since Min-jun could strengthen levels, their own levels weren’t particularly advantageous.
Though there were no Level 6 Hunters present, they would likely feel no different if they were here.
Yet among all this anxiety, a few candidates waited with expressions brimming with confidence.
One of them was Andrew Neville, who had come from England.
‘Regardless of what others think, I will definitely be selected.’
He flashed a confident grin, and everyone around him watched warily.
There were others displaying confidence as well, but Andrew stood out among them.
He harbored not a shred of doubt.
Was it because the British government had sent him directly?
If so, other Hunters sent directly by their governments were here too, yet none of them displayed such unwavering confidence as Andrew.
There was only one reason for this.
‘Mister Reinforce has no reason to reject me!’
In fact, shouldn’t he treat me with special consideration?
One could say I’m just below the enhancement tier—not quite as high, but the next level down, wouldn’t you agree?
He genuinely believed this.
Andrew Neville.
Though his name remained unknown to the world at large, he was a notable figure within the British government.
Smith Andrew—that was the nickname by which he was known in England.
That nickname alone was enough to discern his characteristic.
A blacksmith.
Wasn’t it a characteristic that seemed perfectly suited to Min-jun, who openly declared himself an enhancement mage?
Andrew’s confidence stemmed from precisely this.
Characteristic: Blacksmith.
Though he was merely level 4, Andrew could accomplish far more than one might imagine.
Of course, he could not perform enhancements.
But like Gwen’s alchemy, he could craft equipment and incrementally elevate their performance.
While not true enhancement, the ability to improve equipment performance made Britain regard Andrew quite favorably.
Yet because it fell short of true enhancement, the equipment Andrew crafted or strengthened could never surpass the limits of genuine enhancement—a realization that led Britain to dispatch some pieces to the Reinforce Guild.
In fact, it was Andrew himself who had proposed the arrangement: if Min-jun captured Kraken, Andrew would be sent as a reward.
Min-jun’s side could have refused, certainly, but Britain thought otherwise, and Andrew saw no reason why he would be rejected.
‘Surely I deserve such consideration as a talented individual.’
Andrew genuinely believed this and carried himself with supreme confidence.
While he didn’t believe no other special characteristics existed besides his own, he was certain that no profession complemented an enhancement mage quite like his did.
And finally.
“Andrew Neville, please come in.”
His interview time had arrived, and with a confident expression, he rose promptly at Jung Ji-hwan’s summons.
Seeing Jung Ji-hwan regard him with an expressionless gaze made him momentarily shrink back, but he quickly regained his composure and stepped toward the interview room.
Or rather, he tried to.
Kuuuung.
Merely a single step.
He had taken but one step across the threshold of the interview room.
And yet.
“Kugh.”
A colossal pressure descended upon him, and breathing itself became arduous.
Before his eyes, something radiated an enormous presence.
A monster?
No—an unprecedented force that defied such crude description seized his entire body.
Rationally, he knew what stood before him, yet his rational mind had been utterly paralyzed, leaving him unable to comprehend it.
Though Andrew was merely level 4, he had proven himself in Disaster-class level 5 monster raids and was confident in his combat capabilities.
Yet the aura that constricted his body rendered him helpless, unable even to draw breath.
The power radiating from it was potent enough to kill with mere presence alone.
He struggled desperately to escape that aura, but his efforts proved futile.
Andrew, whose face had turned from crimson to deathly pale, suddenly felt the pressure release with a sharp snap.
And in that moment, he looked ahead.
“Ah.”
A blacksmith?
It won’t come off?
Because our compatibility is good, I’m treating myself with respect?
All of that had been bleached white and vanished.
I realized that in front of that man, it was all nonsense.
And this man with his dull, emotionless gaze—looking at me as though I were nothing more than a spare part.
That unprecedented power had shimmered into existence before being completely drawn into that man, and when I withdrew my energy, the very force that had been there moments before disappeared like a summer night’s dream.
I was so confused that I questioned whether I had truly felt anything at all.
But my instincts screamed.
Everything I felt was real, and I must not forget it.
Etched into my very instincts, Andrew found himself dropping to one knee without conscious thought.
For reasons he couldn’t explain, it felt like the only right thing to do.
“I… I am Andrew Neville.”
It was Andrew’s introduction, spoken barely above a whisper as he swallowed hard.
Even the sound of his swallow seemed deafening, and Andrew hesitated as though uncertain whether he should speak so loudly, his gaze fixed on the man before him—Min-jun.
If a sovereign existed in this world, could it not be this man?
While entertaining such a delusion.
“Stand up.”
At those casually spoken words, Andrew didn’t pause to think—he simply obeyed instantly, rising to his feet.
And then.
“Sit down.”
Thump.
He sat immediately.
Fortunately, sitting was easier than standing.
His legs had already lost all their strength, making it all the simpler.
As Andrew sat there.
Min-jun glanced at the documents and smiled faintly.
Was this a positive sign?
“The British Prime Minister’s office made quite the bold claim. That you would be to my liking.”
“….”
Cold sweat poured down like rain.
Why had the Prime Minister said such a thing!
Andrew thought as much, but he couldn’t muster any excuse.
He could only bow his head in shame.
Min-jun scratched his cheek as he observed Andrew.
He looked arrogant and presumptuous at first glance, so I released some of my aura to test him, but I was surprised to find him far more obedient than expected.
In any case, that wasn’t what mattered.
‘A blacksmith, then.’
There were aspects that overlapped with alchemy, and aspects that did not.
His level was still too low for an ultimate skill to manifest, so it was disappointing that he couldn’t truly evaluate its potential yet.
As Min-jun’s silence stretched on, lost in contemplation, Andrew’s insides burned with anxiety.
After bringing up the Prime Minister and then falling silent, it was only natural to feel uneasy.
Yet opening his mouth first was absolutely not an option.
Perhaps this was how a death row inmate felt, waiting for the executioner’s sentence to fall.
Andrew waited, consumed by restlessness and dread.
How long did he wait like that?
“First, I need to see the blacksmith’s work to make a proper assessment.”
“Ah! Y-yes, I’ll bring them at once!”
The moment Andrew spoke, he immediately retrieved both the equipment he’d refined and the gear he’d crafted himself.
His first impression was disappointment.
But as Min-jun examined them, he paused briefly before his eyes widened with sudden realization.
A brilliant idea had struck him.
“Is it possible for you to manufacture firearms?”
“Pardon?”
This was the moment a quest descended upon Andrew Neville.

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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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