Chapter 80 – Teamwork (1)

Rachel paused in the middle of walking. I also stopped since she had a serious expression. She stared at me and spoke.

“I already submitted the team list.”

Team Rachel consisted of the following: Rachel, Jin Hoseung, Yi Bokgyu, Kim Hajin, and Tomer. Rachel ranked the highest with Jin Hoseung and Yi Bokgyu at rank 108 and 173 respectively.

“… So you can’t go somewhere else.”

She seemed worried because of Chae Nayun.

“Of course.”

“Ah, they’re over there!”

Jin Hoseung, Yi Bokhyu, and Tomer all arrived.

“We’re in the same team now. Let’s go get some food.”

Jin Hoseung excitedly spoke. Was it because he was on Rachel’s team? I glanced at Rachel who nodded.

“So where are we going?”

“Mm… well, what do you want to eat, Rachel?”

“I’m fine with anything.”

Rachel wasn’t particularly picky, but she did have a preference.

“Let’s go to Hangyujung, the Korean restaurant.”

“Uh, sure.”

Yi Bokgyu and Jin Hoseung didn’t mind as Rachel coughed in satisfaction. Only Tomer had no reaction.

“Are you okay with that?”

“… Yeah.”

Rachel briefly replied, “Great.”

They had decided.

“Oh right.”

We headed there with a GPS as Jin Hoseung approached me.

“Hajin, about the ticket from before, it’s in two days. Do you want to come with me?”

“To France?”

Rachel’s eyes flickered. France and England had a similar relationship to Korea and Japan. An artifact scramble had occurred between them about 20 years ago.

“No, I’m fine.”

Honestly, Napoleon’s rifle interested me, but I didn’t want to go all the way to France.

“Why? Who knows, maybe Napoleon’s rifle will become yours.”

“Napoleon?” Rachel muttered.

“How? I’m rank 334.”

“Well, it’s better than keeping it in a museum. By the way, did your voice change Hajin?”

“Cough. Did it?”

I had used the flute I bought from Clancy Islet’s antique shop.

[Horn Flute] [Antique] A flute used by a wandering minstrel of Joseon. Your throat will become clearer for three hours if you blow this horn.

I used it for the first time before visiting Kim Suho because a deep voice sounded more reliable. I’ve used it often ever since. I liked my clearer voice, and it felt great to open up my throat in the morning.

“Yeah, is it puberty?”

“…”

Thankfully, I didn’t have to answer his nonsensical question as we arrived at the Korean restaurant. Rachel entered first while smacking her lips.

***

After nine months, the Chameleon Troupe gathered at their hideout in an abandoned factory in Suwon. Droon finally figured out how to use the white crystal.

“Kid, do I really break it?”

Cheok Jungyeong asked again with an artifact sword in his hand. Droon frowned and urged him.

“Yeah, do it.”

“Tsk, don’t blame me if anything goes wrong.”

Cheok Jungyeong grumbled as he wrapped his fist in a dense magic power. KWANG. His fist clashed with the artifact sword and shattered it like glass.

“Happy?”

“Yep.”

Droon picked up a fragment of the shattered sword and placed it on a stone table.

“I’ll initiate it now.”

Woong — The white crystal began to resonate and unleashed magic power that condensed inside the cube. Then it radiated towards the sword fragment. The white magic power clung to the fragment and formed a crystal sword.

“Oooh.”

Cheok Jungyeong applauded while the rest of the Chameleon Troupe members looked shocked.

“Just like that, a tiny sword fragment became a partial artifact. According to my tests, it’s as strong as a low rank artifact. A single artifact can produce about 30 partial artifacts. Taking the crystal’s magic power into account, we’ll be able to make about 600 more.”

“We can sell each partial artifact for around 700-800 million won. Amazing.”

A simple calculation revealed a profit of at least 500 billion won. Each member would earn approximately 20 million won even after the black market and money laundering fees. The risk had been worth it.

“Yeah, but it’ll take at least 5 years to sell it all.”

“That’s fine. Oh, by the way,” Jain suddenly interjected. “Packhorse Master began their conquest of the Suwon Devil’s Nest.”

The members’ eyes flickered.

The Chameleon Troupe treated Packhorse Master like prey that finally appeared.

***

“Look, if you do this…”

Evandel busily played with clay at 9:00 P.M. when she should’ve been asleep. She spent too much magic power creating spirits, so I gave her some clay.

“Tada.”

Evandel made a penguin with glasses that she often saw on TV.

“Wow, what’s this?”

I looked surprised as Evandel proudly puffed her chest.

“How did you make it? Are you a genius?”

“Hihi, want me to tell you?”

“No, I won’t be able to do it even if you told me.”

My smartwatch suddenly rang as I praised the smiling Evandel. It came from Kim Suho.

[Can you come out to the forest we met last time?]

So you finally decided. I stood up with a smile.

“Evandel, I’m going out for a bit.”

“Un? Where are you going?”

“Uh… to buy some snacks before bed.”

“Snacks? I want cake!”

“Okay.”

“Cake, cake!”

“I’ll buy some, don’t worry.”

I went outside with cake as an excuse. I repeated cake so I wouldn’t forget as I headed to Kim Suho.

Cube’s night felt chilly even during summer because it was an island in the East Sea. I rubbed my shoulders every time the wind blew until I arrived.

Kim Suho stood with a serious expression in the middle of the dark forest. His usual gentleness had disappeared under the heavy atmosphere.

“Yo, Kim Suho, why’d you call me?”

Kim Suho turned around as he heard me. He stared for a long time before sighing.

“Do you remember what you said to me last time?”

“Huh? Oh yeah, what about it?”

“… I recently found a dungeon.”

I smiled since I already knew.

“It must’ve formed recently since it’s small, so I thought about challenging it alone.”

“However, it’s still a dungeon and risky to conquer by yourself.”

I leisurely crossed my arms and interrupted him. Kim Suho calmly nodded.

“Yeah, I’ve been thinking the same.”

Kim Suho suddenly threw down his jacket. “I’ll need to verify your skills if I’m going to trust my back to you,” he murmured as he stared at me.

“Huh?”

The situation turned out a bit differently than I expected.

“I know the dungeon’s exact location, so it’s okay if I determine whether you’ll be a help or a burden, right?”

“Right. Cough.”

My arms began to tremble. Honestly, I wouldn’t be able to defeat him even if Kim Suho became blind and left-handed. Not to mention, he was a swordsman while I was a sharpshooter.

“You’re right, but you haven’t considered one thing.”

“What’s that?”

I racked my brain to avoid fighting. Should I show him the Desert Eagle’s power? He should understand my attack power if I shot a tree trunk.

“It’s not fair for a sharpshooter and a warrior to fight one-on-one in an open field. Plus, the difference in my attack power varies depending on the type of gun.”

“You don’t have to beat me.”

Kim Suho cut me off.

“And the weapon doesn’t matter. I’m not trying to test your weapon’s power.”

“Really?”

“Yes, I’ll stop when I’m satisfied.”

I couldn’t say anything as Kim Suho took out his sword. Not a cadet sword, but a wooden sword for sparring. However, a sword’s quality didn’t matter for Kim Suho. My bullets wouldn’t work the moment his magic power surrounded that sword. Anti-magic also wouldn’t change a thing. Kim Suho’s magic power existed on a higher dimension and could cut even anti-magic.

A good idea popped into my head.

“Oh, but I forgot my gun.”

“What’s that on your waist?”

I looked down and saw the cadet handgun in my belt holster.

“Oh… I brought it… I forgot…”

I took the gun out without any other choice.

“Will it be okay? I won’t be able to control my strength.”

“It’s fine.”

“Also, this isn’t my real weapon. I’m using this since Cube prohibits personal weapon, but…”

I racked my brain to buy time and looked around for something to trigger my luck. I checked the surrounding forest, the dark sky, and the cool wind. Kim Suho’s hair fluttered, and the jacket he threw flapped on the ground. The jacket! I needed my SP and luck for Kim Suho to recognize me.

“Are you ready?” Kim Suho spoke as I stared at the ground.

“Hold on. Someone sent me a message.”

I wasn’t ready yet as I fiddled with my smartwatch. I busily tapped on the holographic keyboard for two minutes.

[Cadet Jacket] A jacket created by Cube. — Trap Transformation: When someone steps on this jacket, a strong and unknown force will push that person off. This effect lasts for 10 minutes and will disappear after one use.

[25 SP will be consumed. Would you like to save?]

I needed less SP than expected for a one-time use that wouldn’t deal any damage.

“I’m ready.”

I turned off the smartwatch and took a deep breath.

“Then let’s start.”

“Yeah.”

The man who would become the world's strongest stood in front of me. I felt immense pressure as I held my breath. Then Kim Suho charged with unbelievable speed.

However, I could react with bullet time. I clearly saw his wooden sword even though he moved much faster than me. I glanced at the jacket after barely ducking the slash. I only needed four steps.

Whish— Kim Suho’s wooden sword swung past my eyes. I fired at his foot as he dodged by lightly jumping. Then he swung his sword while moving backward and grazed my shoulder. A burning pain overwhelmed me, but I managed to take two steps. However, Kim Suho’s sword already rose again.

My instincts roared that I couldn’t dodge it. How could I avoid a sword that came towards me five times per second?

I used aether with no other options.

Aether shot up from my feet and pushed me aside. Only a single step remained from the jacket. Kim Suho seemed surprised that I avoided his consecutive strikes. However, he chased after me without giving me a chance and aimed for my shoulder. However, before his sword could hit… He stepped on the jacket.

“…!”

Kim Suho’s body disappeared from view. The trap sent him flying without a scream. He couldn’t properly land because it caught him off guard as he fell and rolled about 50 meters away. My bullet struck first next to his head as he tried to stand.

“In a real fight, that wouldn't have missed.”

His qi reinforcement would’ve blocked it anyways. I trudged up to soulless Kim Suho, but a smile emerged on his face as I reached out.