The Only Enhancer - Chapter 69

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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 69
Episode 69 – Ah! It’s Cheap, It’s Affordable! (2)
3.
Franklin had prayed that nothing would happen until lunchtime, yet here was a disaster unfolding—it was utterly disheartening.
How could someone look at Min-jun and call him a monster, causing such a commotion?
As Franklin glanced at Robert Hauser with an expression of utter bewilderment, Hauser rolled his eyes.
Hauser’s position was somewhat unfair as well.
Who could have known that someone possessed such monstrous mana would turn out to be a distinguished guest?
Of course, his thoughts hadn’t changed much even now.
‘Is he really not a monster?’
Still harboring suspicions, Hauser observed Min-jun, who sat across from Franklin.
Unaware of Hauser’s thoughts, Franklin quickly bowed his head.
“I truly… I’m not sure what to say. I’ve been apologizing repeatedly since yesterday.”
“No, it’s fine. You didn’t know, after all.”
Min-jun said it was okay, but it was somewhat shocking nonetheless.
What about him made them call him a monster?
His mana was abundant, certainly, but wasn’t that far from monstrous?
Though he thought this, he chose not to voice it.
He could already picture how much more apologetic Franklin would become.
In any case, the meeting scheduled for lunchtime had been moved up somewhat.
From Min-jun’s perspective, this was quite fortunate.
‘I didn’t have anything else to do anyway.’
Jung Ji-hwan hadn’t arrived yet.
He was running late due to the task Min-jun had assigned him, apparently still not here.
Quite busy since morning.
Yet, as if unable to remain a gentleman, Jung Ji-hwan entered with a knock.
He approached Min-jun and spoke.
“I’ve successfully handled all the tasks you planned.”
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“Not at all. It’s only natural.”
At Jung Ji-hwan’s loyal words, Franklin let out a small exclamation of admiration.
He’d felt it before, but Min-jun truly had a gift for winning people over.
Meanwhile, observing Jung Ji-hwan, Robert Hauser trembled slightly.
By the aura alone, Jung Ji-hwan was merely Level 5, yet why did it feel this way?
‘He seems stronger than me?’
Part of it was because Hauser was a Healer, but somehow it felt as though Jung Ji-hwan was concealing something.
It was the faint aura of the six-star equipment contained within the subspace Min-jun had given him—not from Jung Ji-hwan’s curse.
Only because Hauser was particularly sensitive to mana could he barely perceive it.
Likely, no one besides Hauser would be able to sense it.
In any case, Min-jun smiled as if to say they were all gathered now and had things to discuss, and Franklin nodded in agreement.
Since everyone had already gathered, there was no point in wasting time.
Franklin might fall a bit behind on his duties, but it wasn’t severe enough to cause any real disruption.
“Shall we move on to the main discussion?”
Franklin nodded at Min-jun’s question.
He still hadn’t heard the purpose of Min-jun’s visit.
Bringing the entire guild for what was supposedly just a tour suggested there was definitely an ulterior motive.
What could it be?
Just as Franklin’s curiosity reached its peak, Min-jun spoke first.
“First, I had some business to handle in the United States, but I also came here with a purpose regarding the Saint Guild.”
“Yes, please tell me.”
Franklin gestured his readiness to listen and turned his full attention to Min-jun’s words.
What could his purpose be?
But then, before Min-jun continued, he retrieved an item from his inventory.
An item radiating a dazzling violet light, displaying an extraordinary presence.
A +6 item.
“Wh-wh-what on earth is this!?”
“Wow! Master! I told you! He really is a monster, isn’t he!?”
Both of them trembled in absolute shock.
The world’s third-ranked guild master Franklin and Robert Hauser, one of only two Level 6 healers in the world, had every reason to be astonished.
A +6 item certainly possessed the gravitas to warrant such a reaction.
The moment Franklin saw the item, he recalled every piece of information about +6 items stored in his mind, yet nothing matched.
Among the supposedly only ten +6 items in the entire world, there was no match.
In other words.
“…Is this the eleventh +6 item?”
Franklin asked cautiously, and Min-jun paused for a moment.
But that pause didn’t feel like he’d struck a nerve.
“Which number was this again?”
“The forty-eighth.”
“Ah, that’s right.”
Min-jun murmured, and Jung Ji-hwan answered.
But the meaning behind those words eluded Franklin’s comprehension.
The forty-eighth +6 item?
That couldn’t be possible.
The tenth +6 item Franklin knew of was America’s last one, yet if what they said was true, where were the other thirty-eight?
The absurdity of it all made him clutch his head in vertigo.
“Sigh.”
“Master, what exactly is that man?”
“….”
Franklin wanted to know the answer to that question himself.
But he couldn’t very well ask it directly to the man’s face.
Franklin held back Hauser and contemplated the matter with a measured expression.
By conventional logic, that item should have come from defeating a Disaster Level 5 monster that appeared in Taiwan not long ago.
But look at Min-jun and Jung Ji-hwan’s attitudes.
It didn’t feel that way at all.
Rather.
‘They’re treating that +6 item like it’s nothing.’
His mind insisted this couldn’t be true, yet the evidence before his eyes screamed otherwise.
What on earth was this?
Franklin decided to stop thinking about it.
Min-jun spoke with a slightly excited expression.
“Since we’re in an alliance, there’s something I should tell you.”
“…Well, I’d like to claim I won’t be surprised by whatever you say next, but I can’t honestly guarantee that.”
At Franklin’s words, Min-jun smiled faintly and spoke.
“My specialty isn’t healing.”
“…Don’t tell me?”
“Yes. As you might have guessed, I’m an Enhancer with the ability to strengthen items.”
“…Huh.”
Franklin couldn’t find the words.
He’d just learned something far too momentous.
An ability to strengthen items, no less.
‘This is insane.’
The entire situation was insane.
An Enhancer?
Capable of strengthening items?
Whether Min-jun was mad, or he himself was mad, or if this was all some dream.
He couldn’t tell anymore.
Well, he understood, but the information was so staggering he wanted to deny it.
Franklin understood well enough.
An Enhancer.
Putting that into perspective, the +6 item and everything Min-jun had shown so far suddenly made sense.
“…Wow, didn’t I say it? That mon….”
“Stop.”
Franklin cut off Hauser before he could spout more nonsense, exhaling softly as he asked.
“So that’s why you brought out this +6 item.”
“It’s hard to believe if I just tell you, after all.”
“That’s certainly true, though at this point it hardly matters whether we believe it or not—it’s simply extraordinary.”
Someone possessing power of such immeasurable value.
And he had proposed an alliance with such a person before anyone else.
It was truly a stroke of incredible fortune.
Yet Franklin remained vigilant as he asked carefully.
“Is that the reason you’ve come to inform me of this?”
I wasn’t naive enough to think he’d revealed it simply because of our alliance.
Min-jun might be oblivious, but Jung Ji-hwan—who could be called Min-jun’s right hand—was a man who likely harbored tens of thousands of cunning schemes within his mind.
Coming here wasn’t merely to announce that I was an enhancement artisan.
And indeed, that proved true.
“That’s part of it, but since we’re allies, I’m willing to offer you a discount.”
“…What?”
So right now.
He was saying he’d sell a +6 enhanced item?
There were only ten in the entire world, or rather, I no longer knew how many Min-jun possessed, but at minimum there were eleven +6 enhanced items in existence, and he was offering to sell one.
Its value was beyond estimation.
It was an item I’d never even dreamed could be purchased.
Franklin pondered this carefully.
He opened his mouth with utmost caution.
“…Are you perhaps here to acquire our guild?”
“…What?”
“So the Saint Guild is being sold. Thank you for everything, Master.”
Hauser immediately attempted to switch sides, while Franklin stared at Min-jun with unwavering seriousness.
Well, if someone was selling +6 enhanced items, one could hardly blame him for thinking that way.
Min-jun shook his head slightly and spoke.
“That’s not it.”
“B-but our guild doesn’t have enough funds to pay that price.”
“Of course, but I have no intention of selling +6 enhanced items just yet.”
“Ah….”
Though they lacked the funds to purchase, they were deeply disappointed that it wasn’t for sale.
Yet that didn’t mean the opportunity was completely lost.
Min-jun had said “not yet,” after all.
In other words, the future remained uncertain.
‘Dumping +6 enhanced items would be excessive. +5 items would be different, though.’
I was willing to sell one or two of them.
But as Franklin had said, the Saint Guild lacked the purchasing power.
Currently, only nations considered superpowers, extremely wealthy families, or rich countries could realistically afford +6 enhanced items.
The Saint Guild was impressive, certainly, but they didn’t possess wealth on a national scale.
If I thought of them as a business entity, they were closer to a global conglomerate, yet even that wasn’t enough to purchase +6 enhanced items.
The reason I was bringing out +6 enhanced items and offering a discount was quite simple.
“I heard there’s a Disaster Level 5 monster within Saint Guild territory.”
“…Surely not?”
“I’ll eliminate it for you at a discount.”
He was offering a monster extermination service at a reduced rate.
Well, I could also sell some +5 enhanced items as a bonus.
4.
A bull the size of a small hill lay sprawled across the grassland, basking in repose.
From its posture emanated an unmistakable aura of composure.
Only one classification of creature could truly savor such leisure within nature itself.
The apex predator.
The bull, gleaming like burnished metal, exemplified this perfectly.
A Calamity Level 5 monster.
A beast of such formidable power that it was commonly said to possess the strength to annihilate entire nations.
The very presence of this apex predator caused even Calamity Level 4 monsters to grovel and desperately flee its territory.
Thus it wallowed contentedly across the grassland, savoring its dominion.
Of course, as it rolled about, the surrounding landscape was being reduced to devastation—but such matters were beneath the bull’s concern.
Yet in that moment, the bull sensed something amiss.
“What the—?”
An alien mana signature had manifested.
How dare anything encroach upon its domain!
As fury seized it and it began to rise, a colossal single horn erupted from the very ground beneath where it had been wallowing.
Whoooosh!
The bull’s body, which should have effortlessly deflected all attacks, found itself pierced through as though its defenses were meaningless.
Impaled by the horn in a single, devastating strike, the bull was less consumed by pain than by bewilderment at the gaping wound now perforating its form.
What in the abyss was happening?
Though it failed to comprehend the situation fully, it thrashed with desperate strength to wrench itself free from the horn.
But—
Crunch, crunch, crunch!
An immense pulling force emanated from the horn.
Realizing it could not simply escape, the bull’s eyes widened with panic.
Never had it imagined such a thing could befall an apex predator like itself.
Yet in that moment, a considerable throng of humans appeared.
The bull sensed it instinctively.
These humans were the architects of its torment.
“Roooaaarrr!”
It bellowed and thrashed, yet escape remained beyond its reach.
The human contingent began their assault.
Boom! Boom!
Crash! Crash, crash, crash!
Whoooosh!
Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch!
As devastating strikes rained down like a tempest, even such a creature struggled to maintain its senses.
While none of these individual skills matched the horn’s raw power, they were nonetheless devastating blows that could not be dismissed.
“Roooaaarrr!”
As the bull convulsed in agony, a fracturing sound emanated from the horn.
Crack!
The bull twisted its body nimbly at the sound, and as the fissure spread wider, engulfing the entire horn, I felt the moment shift.
The bull scraped its legs against the ground.
Crash———!
Snap!
With the horn shattered, I reclaimed my freedom.
Now it was time to trample these insignificant humans into dust.
The moment I kicked the earth and charged forward.
Isabella stepped forward.
Boom!
Blessed with two of Min-jun’s buffs, Isabella had become something approaching superhuman.
She held firm even against my massive charge and unleashed her skill.
I had intended to crush every human beneath my hooves, yet now I found myself fixated solely on that woman wielding the shield who had sidestepped—as if drawn by a matador’s crimson cape, my blood-red eyes locked onto Isabella alone as I charged, and she parried my assault with practiced ease.
Like a bullfighter’s red flag, my crimson gaze followed only Isabella as I rushed forward, and she skillfully deflected each of my attacks.
Boom!
As I blocked another charge.
The remaining guild members swiftly recharged their mana and unleashed their ultimate abilities once more.
Ultimate skills filled the sky.
Yet even as I cried out mournfully, I could only see Isabella as I charged toward her.
Cha Hae-yeon, fearing something might go wrong, also restrained me, and soon Park Min-ho joined in, allowing them to gain perfect control.
From the moment they secured complete aggro, the raid could be said to have entered safe territory.
This was no exception.
With Isabella leading and Cha Hae-yeon and Park Min-ho securing the aggro, even this Disaster Level 5 monster became no different from any other level.
It was merely brutally strong, brutally massive, and brutally enduring—like a Disaster Level 4.
Watching the spectacle unfold, Franklin shook his head in disbelief.
“…Huh.”
“….”
Even Robert Hauser found himself speechless.
He had witnessed something beyond common sense.
They had sacrificed quite a lot to defeat this Disaster Level 5.
But Franklin harbored no regrets whatsoever.
Because of that sacrifice, he had earned the privilege to witness this spectacle.
“Does that even make sense?”
“…All the guild members wielding Tier 6 weapons?”
“…And that’s not even the strangest part….”
“Or do all the guild members possess Level 5 potential, or are they Level 5?”
“That….”
“Or is it the Reinforce Guild Master’s skill that drained the monster’s health in a single blow?”
“…Enough. None of it makes sense.”
At Robert Hauser’s repeated words, Franklin shook his head as if he couldn’t be bothered to speak anymore.
To be frank, it surpassed the bounds of comprehension.
Though we suffered considerable losses this time, I never once considered it a setback.
Not only did we finally eliminate the Disaster Level 5 that had plagued us for so long, but Min-jun offered to sell us several +5 enhanced items at a discount in exchange for becoming allies.
Since he also mentioned being open to trades, we could exchange those +5 enhanced items we had no use for in the guild.
And Franklin thought to himself:
‘Forming an alliance with Min-jun was my greatest decision.’
As Franklin watched the raid with that thought in mind, Hauser, standing beside him, spoke.
“At this point, wouldn’t it be better to become subordinate to them rather than mere allies? It would feel reassuring.”
….
I wanted to say no for the sake of pride.
But the words wouldn’t leave my lips.
Franklin too was tempted by Hauser’s words.
5.
Before the monsters appeared, and even after, the United States—called the mightiest nation—possessed an abundance of things related to Awakeners.
The Item Auction House was especially so.
True to its name, it was a place where items could be auctioned, yet purchases could be made from anywhere in the world.
By anyone at all.
Since extraordinary items typically emerged from this place, every guild across the globe rushed to browse the auctions.
It wasn’t only the guilds, though.
Because anyone could use it, crowds naturally gathered.
And then one item was listed.
[Brilliant Golden Flash]+6(mj-49)
[Seller: mj]
[Auction Starting Price: 10,000,000,000$]
An item that defied all reason.

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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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