The Second Coming of Gluttony - Chapter 106

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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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Chapter 106. The Village Chief’s Gift (3)

The carriage that had been thundering across the open field finally came to a stop at Mountain Foot. The Village Chief had said it would take around half a day, but they’d arrived in less than that.
Four horses running at full gallop had cut the journey time by more than half.
Seol Jihoo descended with his luggage, drawing in the fresh scent of grass that brushed his nose. The air was crisp and vital like a clear spring deep in the mountains, thick with the mountain’s essence.
As he savored the cool moss-scent wafting from all sides, Seol Jihoo gazed up at the towering mountain before him with reverent eyes.
He’d expected Big Stone Rock Mountain to be a narrow gorge with bare stone formations, but verdant vegetation cascaded across the landscape in a cool, lush profusion.
And the scattered peaks rising through billowing white and dense clouds painted a vista so distant and sublime it seemed pulled from legend—like gazing upon the Kunlun Mountains themselves.
“I’m curious about something.”
A cool voice reached Seol Jihoo’s ears just as he was marveling at the grand panorama. The speaker was a strikingly handsome man with slightly sharp, hawk-like eyes.
When Seol Jihoo tilted his head, Kazuki stepped closer and asked,
“Why did that person come along?”
He glanced sidelong at the carriage still present beside them. At the same moment, the door flew open and a woman emerged—her hair swept back smoothly and gathered at the crown like a topknot.
The beautiful woman, whose sharp features matched Kazuki’s own intensity, wore no glasses today and had forgone her usual maid’s uniform.
Whatever wind had blown today, she was dressed in a bright lemon-yellow sports bra matching her hair color and black leggings that clung tightly to her thighs and calves—
“That would be—”
The starkly exposed collarbone, willow-slim waist, and delicate ankle bones that were never visible in her usual attire left Seol Jihoo momentarily speechless.
Agnes lifted her clasped hands toward the sky and slowly rotated her slender, deer-like neck left and right.
Seol Jihoo, who had been watching with an unconsciously open mouth, felt Kazuki’s piercing stare and managed to continue,
“I heard your first operation failed and that you felt keenly aware of your shortcomings.”
“No.”
Kazuki shook his head.
“Reasons can be fabricated easily. What I’m curious about is how you found out she was coming for train—”
Agnes’s eyes flicked toward him, and Kazuki immediately fell silent. Once her gaze shifted away, he lowered his voice considerably.
“That’s what I mean.”
“Ah. I told him about it.”
“Why?”
“She comes by sometimes to observe my training. I didn’t want her to make a wasted trip…”
“She observes your training? That woman?”
Kazuki’s expression made clear his disbelief.
“That goes beyond simple goodwill. You’re not even affiliated with Sicily.”
“She taught me in the Neutral Zone. She’s given me advice since I left as well.”
Seol Jihoo answered straightforwardly, then asked with a puzzled expression,
“Why do you ask?”
When Kazuki didn’t respond, a faint tension crept into Seol Jihoo’s otherwise ingenuous face.
“Is there bad blood between you two, perhaps?”
“No.”
Kazuki denied it.
“It’s not that simple, though…”
But his evident displeasure seemed difficult to articulate, so Seol Jihoo decided to change the subject.
“In any case, are you doing well, Kazuki?”
“Me? If you’re asking whether I finished the handover, I did.”
Kazuki, recognizing Seol Jihoo’s intent, readily accepted the redirect.
“And from my second participation, I learned this: Banquets are so full of unpredictable and random elements that even meticulous external preparation often proves useless. It’s far more worthwhile to spend time training than to waste effort on things that don’t matter.”
“That sounds like you’re saying the only thing worth trusting is personal ability.”
“Perhaps. It’s just a value judgment, not a conclusion. Luck isn’t a skill, after all.”
The moment Seol Jihoo was about to question, “Luck?” the sound of the carriage departing reached their ears.
Turning instinctively, he saw Hugo staring fixedly after the shrinking carriage, his eyes puffy and swollen.
“Anyway, I apologize. It seems my selfish hopes created a misunderstanding.”
Seol Jihoo’s eyes widened at Kazuki’s apology.
“You must have been looking forward to private lessons with Master Jang. Having uninvited guests tag along must feel intrusive.”
The fact that Umitsubame, which Kazuki led, maintained good relations with the Triad. And conversely, the fact that Carpe Diem maintained good relations with Sicily.
Connecting these two facts with the timing of Jang Maldong’s return would make the meaning of misunderstanding clear enough.
But Seol Jihoo, unaware of the complicated nuances between external factions, accepted it at face value.
“Not at all. If anything, I’m excited to be training together.”
“Good. Since we made a promise, I’ll do my best to help.”
Having lifted a weight from his shoulders, Kazuki spoke readily.
Soon the carriage vanished completely from sight, and in the distance, Jang Maldong’s voice called out, demanding why they weren’t hurrying.
“I barely forgot… I was just starting to stop dreaming about it….”
He must have hated this enormously. Seol Jihoo couldn’t help but smile at the sight of the massive bald Black man sniffling, his frame towering like a mountain.
But when he saw Kazuki, and even Agnes, nodding along as if they understood, his expression turned uncertain.
[This is what you wanted.]
As Jang Maldong’s reproach brushed through his mind, the elevated mood crashed down at once.
‘Get your head straight.’
This isn’t a pleasure trip. You came here to train.
To avoid running away,
To stop hoping for luck,
To face crises head-on without flinching,
To stop relying on Future Sense.
To cultivate raw strength.
‘I have to get stronger.’
Having steeled his resolve, Seol Jihoo sniffled and followed Hugo, who was climbing in fits and starts.

The Haramag region was not a safe zone. Big Stone Rock Mountain itself was an unsafe zone, so it should have been Kazuki leading the way, but it was Jang Maldong who walked at the front.
Having spent half his Paradise life on this mountain, he knew the terrain better than any local villager, so his role as guide posed no problem.
He knew the path as clearly as his own backyard. He even had the map Muto had given him.
“Quite the hiding place.”
It took Jang Maldong roughly thirty minutes to locate the cave dwelling and make his comment,
“Elder. A moment.”
And it was around then that Kazuki requested a halt in their advance.
The area around the cave was too exposed to be called a proper hiding place. After noting the damaged vegetation and undergrowth, Kazuki spoke.
“It appears it was originally well-concealed… but someone must have stumbled upon the cave by chance and made it their dwelling.”
“A single creature? Or a group?”
Kazuki lowered his gaze. He swept the ground briefly, then continued matter-of-factly.
“Cave Ettins. The numbers are small. There are eight in the cave, and I detect no movement.”
“They’re sleeping.”
“Likely so. They don’t wander during the day unless they’re hungry.”
While Seol Jihoo marveled at the swift and precise analysis, Kazuki drew out his crossbow. He loaded a bolt and aimed in one smooth motion when Jang Maldong’s staff blocked his path.
“Elder?”
Jang Maldong didn’t answer, turning instead to face Seol Jihoo.
“Name the four elements that determine the manifestation of Aura.”
Though the question came abruptly, Seol Jihoo answered faithfully with what he’d learned.
“Quantity, flow speed and power, control, and visualization.”
Jang Maldong said nothing in reply. He simply picked up a stone of suitable size and, before anyone could stop him, hurled it forcefully into the cave.
Crack, crack!
Rumble-rumble!
The quiet mountain, compounded by the cave’s acoustics, filled with echoing sounds of the stone rolling.
The defining trait of Cave Ettins was their two heads. With one always awake and alert to the surroundings, there was no way they’d missed that noise.
Moreover, they possessed keen sense of smell, so it was only a matter of time before they detected their approaching enemies.
As expected, within seconds the cave began filling with shrill squeals and commotion. Jang Maldong opened his mouth.
“Get ready. The moment one bursts out, hit it with everything you have.”
Seol Jihoo, who had been watching, summoned his Magical Power without a moment’s hesitation. An overwhelming force beyond Upper-Middle Grade surged through the circuit and erupted from his right palm.
What scattered chaotically began to flow like water into his hand, gradually coalescing into a single form.
The final shape was a spear—a short one, only sixty centimeters long, yet unmistakably a single spear of blue-tinged Magical Power.
“Here they come.”
Hugo muttered softly.
Rumble!
The moment Seol Jihoo heard the sound of creatures pouring out, he didn’t hesitate at all—he charged forward.
The stance of a technique ingrained into his body through hundreds, thousands of repetitions of painstaking effort. From the crossing of his feet to the movement of his arms, all under close observation, Agnes’s eyes widened slightly.
‘Perfect.’
Truly a seamless, flowing motion.
The moment the Cave Ettin emerged from the cave and the instant Seol Jihoo snapped his right arm forward happened almost simultaneously.
Boom!
On impact, the sound of a grenade exploding tore through the air. The one rushing forward halted abruptly mid-charge. Its body swayed like a pendulum, then collapsed completely.
Screech?
The Cave Ettin that had rushed out after it faltered in its tracks. Its face, twisted from the explosive sound, went slack. One of the fallen creature’s two heads had vaporized without a trace, while the other lay shredded into pulp.
The surviving Cave Ettin tore its gaze from the scattered brains and flesh, its four eyes watching in shock as another Magical Power Spear came flying toward it.
Thud!
A clean hole punched through his muscular, taut chest. The impact was so violent that even as the spear tore through him, his torso folded in half, and his feet left the ground, unable to withstand the shock.
“Oh, damn!”
Hugo, who had been gloomy moments before, gasped at the sight of the creature flying backward with its limbs flailing forward.
Bang! Bang!
One-Hit Certain Kill. One creature fell with every throw.
That wasn’t all. Unlike ordinary spear throws, the impact wave rippled outward each time it exploded, affecting everything around it. Kazuki’s eyes narrowed as he watched creatures lose their balance and topple over without even being struck—some of them wounded by the shockwave alone.
“Enough!”
Jang Maldong barked the order and hurled an Ice Spear.
“The last one is yours. Handle it yourself. But you’re forbidden from using the Earring and Bracelet.”
Seol Jihoo caught the spear and charged forward like a beam of light. He’d already confirmed the power of the Mana Spear Throw. His body felt alive, and there was no reason to refuse a solo fight.
Seol Jihoo, intoxicated by combat after so long, descended on the pack like an enraged lion. The creatures, driven wild by the death of their companions, shrieked and hauled themselves back to their feet.
“Well?”
Jang Maldong spoke quietly, watching Seol Jihoo clash with the remaining Cave Ettins.
“Not bad.”
Kazuki kept his eyes fixed on the fight, maintaining his Sniping stance just in case.
“He’s got both penetrating power and destructive force. That alone would be useful, but with the splash effect too…”
“Exactly. An ability like that will work even at the Banquet.”
Kazuki nodded as if it were obvious.
“It absolutely will. The slow rate of fire is unfortunate, but as part of a team, it’ll be a solid option.”
“What if rapid fire were possible?”
“Then there’s nothing more to say. The speed of an Archer with the destructive force of a Mage—that’d give him clear advantages in ambush and first-strike tactics.”
Kazuki offered an assessment bordering on praise. He’d seen firsthand the unique Class combination that Seol Jihoo possessed—a warrior with naturally high Magical Power and the only job arrangement Guyla had carefully designed—and he couldn’t help but marvel.
“This is promising. I’m looking forward to the Banquet.”
Jang Maldong pressed further after Kazuki’s words.
“Then what about right now?”
“?”
“Close combat, I mean.”
He’d been watching the battle from the start. The young man was thrusting and slashing with obvious delight, cutting through his enemies. It wasn’t quite a massacre, but the remaining creatures were fighting back with stubborn ferocity. It was clear proof that Seol Jihoo was dominating.
“Well, compared to his Level, it’s…”
“I’m not asking you to compare acorns. Use yourself as the standard. Give me your honest assessment.”
Kazuki raised one eyebrow.
“Me… as the standard?”
“Yes. Doesn’t it seem impressive to you?”
Was this some kind of appraisal session? Kazuki tilted his head, slowly lowering his Crossbow as his eyes flickered between the two. Jang Maldong’s face had gone hard and severe.
“…I suppose it does.”
Reading the ominous shift in tone, Kazuki gave a measured response. He studied Seol Jihoo a moment longer before rendering his judgment.
“Utterly pathetic, actually.”
Jang Maldong’s mouth twisted.
“Exactly. He’ll get himself killed the moment he steps onto that Stage with skills like that.”
“As a swordsman, yes. But if he uses that spear he just threw, it changes things. With the team protecting him, he could manage through Stage 2 decently enough.”
Kazuki spoke matter-of-factly, unaware of Seol Jihoo’s stubbornness.
“I already said that. But he doesn’t want to hear it.”
“…Pardon?”
“He insists on taking the warrior role instead of throwing spears. The damn idiot won’t listen to reason.”
Kazuki couldn’t believe his ears.
“No, I mean—close combat skills matter, sure, but a Spear Technique user throwing spears? What’s strange about that?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”
Jang Maldong struck his chest in frustration, and Hugo smirked.
“Honestly, he didn’t even need to come here. If you or Cho Hong had dug in your heels like that, the old man would’ve beaten it into you until you gave in.”
“He’s not thick-skulled like you two.”
Jang Maldong snorted and crossed his arms.
“At least he thinks things through. Seems to have good insight, too. When someone like that gets stubborn, it means there’s something eating at him underneath.”
“So what will you do about it?”
“Make him realize it for himself. That’s the only way. He’s the type who needs to live through it, to feel it himself, before he’ll give up.”
That was when Kazuki finally understood why Jang Maldong had permitted an outsider to participate.
“It’ll take a day at minimum. Two at most.”
The battle was nearly over by now. Jang Maldong clicked his tongue and shook his head.
“Tch. Still can’t finish off a handful of Cave Ettins…”

Seol Jihoo had swept through the Cave Ettins that sheltered in their hideaway, and swept them clean. The Mana Spear Throw wasn’t half bad, and the combat itself had been a decisive victory. Compared to his first Expedition, it was remarkable progress.
A good start, they said. Surely he’d earned some points too. Seol Jihoo didn’t let it show on his face, but inside, he glowed with satisfaction.
After the battle ended, the five of them entered the cave.
The hideout was a spacious earthen burrow furnished with simple necessities—a table, drawers, a bed, and the like. The one saving grace was that the Cave Ettin horde hadn’t caused significant damage to the space.
Having collected all the books the Village Chief had requested, Seol Jihoo searched the surroundings meticulously. Since he’d said he’d cover the commission fee with whatever was inside, there had to be something worth finding.
The table and drawers yielded nothing that could be called proper compensation. But when he opened the heavily sealed storage cabinet mounted on the wall, Seol Jihoo’s jaw dropped.
The four-tiered cabinet, roughly eighty centimeters in diameter, was packed entirely with colorful potion bottles. From tier one through tier four, the array of hues was so varied it resembled a festival of colors.
Kazuki carefully lifted an orange bottle.
“This looks like an Explosive Reagent.”
“Wait. Isn’t that a Beauty Potion?”
Hugo’s eyes gleamed as he gazed at a pink bottle.
Seol Jihoo was overwhelmed. High-quality Healing Water, bottles containing Salt Powder, mysterious potions shimmering in five colors—there were so many varieties he couldn’t tell what was what.
Only the potions containing milky-white liquid felt strangely familiar somehow.
In any case, they decided to examine the effects later when time permitted, and the five of them unpacked their belongings in the cave and began cleaning away all traces of the Cave Ettin.
They wouldn’t be leaving anytime soon, so they needed a habitable space for the duration of their stay.
Needless to say, everything inside the hideout belonged to Seol Jihoo. Hugo admired the many valuable potions, but Jang Maldong’s stern command kept him from even thinking of touching them.
Agnes and Kazuki were the same. It wasn’t as though Jang Maldong had volunteered as a guide so that Seol Jihoo could fight alone.
After about an hour of tidying the cave, they emerged just as the sun that had hung at its zenith began preparing to drift westward.

Jang Maldong, who had ordered Agnes, Kazuki, and Hugo to individual training, regarded the aimlessly standing Seol Jihoo with a question.
“Tell me what Spear Techniques you’ve mastered so far.”
When Seol Jihoo listed Gyeol, Gyo, and Ye, Jang Maldong continued.
“Wearing all twelve Sand Pouches, deploy Gyeol, Gyo, and Ye in sequence. Draw up all your magical power. If needed, you may activate your Aura as well.”
“Here? Right now?”
“Don’t make me repeat myself. You can rampage as you like, but you must go all out.”
“How many times should I do it?”
“Until I tell you to stop.”
It was a request with neither beginning nor end. Why suddenly demand to see his Spear Technique?
Though the question did linger in his mind, Seol Jihoo obediently hefted his spear and assumed his stance.
“Begin.”
Whoosh!
The spear, brimming with magical power, slashed violently through the air. Seol Jihoo, following instructions, poured every ounce of his strength into repeatedly deploying his Spear Technique.
‘It’s been a while.’
He suddenly recalled the days in the Neutral Zone when he’d struck the target until told to die. Having practiced a thousand strikes daily, this was the most familiar training of all.
Jang Maldong said almost nothing. A bit faster, more precisely, and with greater force—just three words, then he watched silently.
Thus, without pause, the repetitions continued for roughly two hours.
“Huff…! Huff…!”
Seol Jihoo gradually felt his breathing grow ragged. Three Sand Pouches on each limb, twelve total; his arms had already begun to ache, and more than anything, because he’d drawn on his full magical power from the start, his stamina plummeted exponentially.
He’d have welcomed even a target number to aim for. Seol Jihoo banished stray thoughts and focused on working the spear.
‘There must be a reason.’
This was someone revered as the finest trainer in Paradise. There was certainly a purpose to the demand, he thought, and pressed on, thrusting the spear with quiet determination.
How much time had passed?
A sour taste began rising in his mouth. His arms ached as if they might fall off. As his once-clean form collapsed and the edge of his technique visibly dulled, Jang Maldong finally spoke the words to stop.
“Haah…! Haah…!”
Seol Jihoo crumpled to the ground, gasping for breath. His entire body was drenched in sweat. Yet he felt relief that he’d stopped just before his stamina reached its absolute limit, and managed a weary smile.
‘Did I pass the first training?’
Thanks to his daily practice, he thought it more manageable than expected, but then he shook his head. This couldn’t possibly be the end, and he mustn’t be satisfied yet.
So the eager student, burning with resolve, asked.
“Master, what’s the next training?”
“…What? Next?”
Jang Maldong, surveying the surroundings, raised one eyebrow.
“Ah. Is that all for today’s training?”
“What nonsense. Enough. Get up.”
Jang Maldong spoke as if suddenly confused by what he’d heard. Though bewildered, Seol Jihoo scrambled to his feet.
“Your stamina’s been properly depleted, so… a warm-up like that should suffice. Ah. You can remove all the Sand Pouches now.”
Confusion flickered across Seol Jihoo’s eyes. It might have been a misunderstanding, but his tone sounded less like he’d completed training and more like he hadn’t even done warm-up exercises yet.
“Now that I think of it, you did like running, didn’t you?”
Seol Jihoo swallowed hard as he glanced at the surrounding terrain. He did enjoy it, but there was a vast—an enormous—difference between running on flat track and navigating such rugged mountainside.
More to the point, looking at the terrain of Big Stone Rock Mountain, “running” wasn’t the right word at all; he’d be climbing, scaling, leaping over obstacles.
‘Surely not…’
“First, let’s loosen up your body lightly.”
A tension of inexplicable origin surges up. And,
“Before we properly begin, let me offer one piece of advice: think of what you’re about to undertake as combat.”
The moment I heard the word “start,” my tension transformed into dread.
Jang Maldong continued in a matter-of-fact tone.
“Approach it as though you’re fighting for your life. If you’re not prepared to die, you won’t endure what’s coming.”
Listening to him speak with such an expressionless face, I felt a sudden chill crawl down my spine.
‘What… is this?’
It seemed I’d miscalculated something terribly, catastrophically wrong.
“Don’t forget: training is combat.”
No jest, no play. Not even a threat meant to frighten. Jang Maldong was speaking with absolute sincerity.
“Let’s see… that should suffice.”
Jang Maldong raised a stick and pointed ahead. Beyond the rugged, treacherous terrain, a mountain peak rose sharply in the distance.
‘This is madness.’
Under normal circumstances, I might manage eight or nine round trips with some effort. But in this exhausted state, even one or two would be impossible.
Yet to Seol Jihoo’s ear,
“Fifty round trips. You may use Magical Power, but you will complete the full count without exception.”
The words fell like a thunderbolt from a clear sky. After draining my Magical Power and stamina completely dry, what was this nonsense?
“However, the Earring is forbidden.”
As Seol Jihoo looked up at the mountain peak, his face twisted with dismay.
But Jang Maldong paid it no mind and opened his mouth.
“I trust you’ll prove through your actions what you insisted upon so stubbornly.”
Seol Jihoo clenched his teeth.
And thus.
“Begin.”
Throughout Seol Jihoo’s entire life in Paradise,
“Start.”
The curtain rose on the first of the four most grueling and difficult battles he would ever face.

(To be continued in the next part)

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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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