Chapter 25: Weight (1)
“Come back around this time tomorrow.”
After signing the contract under Sancheon’s insistence.
Once the explanation was finished, the craftsman carefully wrapped the Bloodstream Stone in cloth and spoke.
“Is it possible in just one day?”
“The Bloodstream Stone is like a heart. It has to be worked on while it’s as fresh as possible and finished before its quality drops. You’ll get a fine item, so don’t worry.”
“There’s no need to worry.”
Sanarae, standing beside him, whispered.
I nodded.
There was nothing to worry about regarding the Bloodstream Stone.
Unless someone had overwhelming confidence, they wouldn’t shove a life-risking contract right in front of you.
However, what I was concerned about right now was something else.
“Then shall we get going?”
“Yes, then I’ll leave it in your care, Mr. Sancheon.”
Holding the Bloodstream Stone dearly, the craftsman gave a curt nod.
***
“Get in, I’ll give you a ride.”
A parking lot at the edge of Mullae-dong.
Sanarae opened the Benz door and spoke.
But I waved my hand.
“No, it’s fine. I’ll stay somewhere nearby tonight.”
“You’re getting a place to stay? Didn’t you say you live alone in Seoul, Han-ul?”
“I have a close friend living nearby. Since I’m here, I plan to talk with him and stay over at his place.”
Sanarae narrowed her eyes.
But soon, she smiled lazily.
“Go ahead then. Just don’t get too excited and cause a scene. As you know, you’re not exactly an ordinary person anymore.”
I understood the hidden meaning in her words.
My face hadn’t been properly revealed in official settings.
But most people in this world already recognized me.
Just like Hong Han-sol did at Cafe Artium.
And the one most aware of that fact was myself.
“I know. You don’t need to worry.”
“Alright. See you tomorrow, Han-ul.”
As Sanarae slid her long legs into the Benz—
I quietly called out to her.
“Guild Master Sanarae.”
“Hm?”
“Are the people here… important to you?”
A slight crease formed between her brows.
It seemed she didn’t quite grasp the intent of my question.
I continued smoothly.
“You seem different here compared to how you usually are. The way you treated Mr. Sancheon earlier too. I was just curious.”
Even if she was deceiving people with illusions.
The side she showed here was completely different from her public dreamy image.
“If I answer that here, it’d be going beyond simple goodwill. Is that okay?”
Sanarae asked.
I shrugged.
“That’s an ambiguous reaction. Then I’ll give you an ambiguous answer too.”
A different emotion suddenly flickered in her eyes.
“!”
Instinctively, I grabbed the bead wrapped around my arm.
A killing intent had brushed past me.
Just for a moment.
But it was so chilling it felt like my spine was being ripped out.
“If it had been someone else asking that question instead of you, Han-ul… I might have had many thoughts.”
That was all Sanarae said.
She never explained what kind of thoughts those were.
***
The narrow alley of Mullae-dong, covered in deep darkness, was quiet.
At its deepest end, a faint light flickered.
Sancheon’s workshop.
“Truly remarkable.”
Holding a small carving knife, Sancheon muttered in admiration as he refined the Bloodstream Stone.
For the past 30 years, he had processed countless byproducts.
And created just as many items.
After signing a contract with Sanarae, he had even handled byproducts worth hundreds per gram.
“But this is the first time I’ve seen a Bloodstream Stone this perfect.”
Yet the gem in his hand now was enough to render all his past experience meaningless.
Monster byproducts typically contained a mysterious force called energy.
This energy influenced an Awakened’s stats or strengthened Skills.
His job was to create the optimal frame to release that energy as efficiently as possible.
But this Bloodstream Stone was different.
The energy it contained was so vast that instead of releasing it, it had to be controlled to prevent it from running wild.
‘There’s no time if I consider freshness. But I want to process it as slowly as possible. I want to handle this just a little longer.’
If he truly poured his soul into it—
He might create an S-grade crafted item, something no one had ever successfully made before.
Just what kind of absurd object is this?
Extracting a Bloodstream Stone of this level in the first place was already impossible.
Yet that young man had pulled it out casually, like candy from his pocket.
‘That Hunter who cleared the Garden of Mind… he must be something else entirely. What kind of monster has he brought me?’
The moment he brought the carving knife back to the Bloodstream Stone—
Sancheon’s eyes flashed.
“…Who’s there?”
His sharp gaze turned toward the closed shutter of the workshop.
“……”
No answer came.
But Sancheon set down the Bloodstream Stone and slowly stood up.
“I know you’re there. What business do you have?”
Only then did a response come.
Clank—
The tightly shut shutter lifted, revealing several figures.
Their faces were still hidden in darkness.
But Sancheon picked up a hammer from the workbench.
Because he hadn’t opened the shutter himself.
And for some reason, the lights wouldn’t turn on at all.
“Good evening, sir.”
A sly voice came from the darkness.
“I’ve been assigned as the mentor of the Guild that Hunter Kim Han-ul recently joined.”
“Mentor?”
“Yes. We heard that Hunter Han-ul entrusted a byproduct to this place. It seems there’s been a misunderstanding, so we’ve come to retrieve the Bloodstream Stone on his behalf.”
“……”
Sancheon remained silent.
There was no way he would believe that.
Anyone with basic sense could see through such a lie.
The problem was who they were.
He couldn’t even guess the identity of these men who had followed Han-ul with ill intent.
“You have the Bloodstream Stone, right, sir?”
“I’ve never heard of such a thing. This is just a common forge like any other in this alley. I’ve never crafted Hunter-related items. And I certainly don’t have something as precious as a Bloodstream Stone.”
“Oh really? Just a common forge, you say.”
One of the figures tilted his head.
“Then how does someone from a ‘common forge’ know that a Bloodstream Stone is valuable?”
“…!”
A mistake.
This had never happened before, and he had let slip something he shouldn’t have.
“To be honest, we saw everything, sir. Hunter Han-ul came here joking around with some woman. So stop making excuses and hand it over. It’s already been decided that our side will handle the Bloodstream Stone.”
The figures began to approach.
Sancheon slowly stepped back.
“That’s not what I was told. I’d like to call that young man first.”
His hand moved toward the smartphone on the table.
“Cheol-jung.”
“Yes!”
[Air Bullet]
Bang!
“…!”
Before he could grab it, a hole appeared in the smartphone, sparks flying.
“Don’t try anything funny, old man. You said you’re just an ‘ordinary’ craftsman? Then you should know how precious your life is.”
“……”
The unidentified figures came closer.
Under the dim lamp light—
One of them stepped forward.
The man who had called himself a “mentor.”
Only then did Sancheon recognize them.
“Hong Han-sol…!”
“Well, looks like you’re not just some ordinary old blacksmith. Most ordinary geezers don’t care about Hunters.”
A bald head, a vile face, large earrings, and a leather jacket.
Hong Han-sol of the Bon Breaker Guild.
Sancheon didn’t know about the conflict between Hong Han-sol and Kim Han-ul.
But he knew at least one thing—
That Hong Han-sol was a reckless lunatic who lost control once his temper snapped.
‘Judging by how he speaks… he doesn’t seem to recognize Sanarae.’
Then this made sense.
To him, Kim Han-ul must have looked like a clueless fool who got tricked and handed over the Bloodstream Stone.
Stealing it and blaming the craftsman would be nothing.
“You know my name, so you must know how great our Guild is. Then you know what to do, right? Hand over the Bloodstream Stone.”
“……”
“Who knows? Maybe if you say you lost it, he’ll understand. Was it Indomitable Guild? From what I heard from those leftovers who dropped out of the Garden of Mind, Kim Han-ul isn’t exactly a pushover either.”
Hong Han-sol sneered.
The other three Hunters grinned viciously as they approached.
“No.”
But their smiles vanished at Sancheon’s firm reply.
“I’ve already accepted the request. I won’t hand it over to you. If you want the Bloodstream Stone, bring that young man here.”
“Ha, this old man really doesn’t get it.”
Hong Han-sol’s face twisted.
“Drop the pointless pride and hand it over. Want your wrist cut off?”
Instead of answering, Sancheon tightened his grip on the hammer.
—Why don’t you just hammer away comfortably at our headquarters?
—No thanks, you brat. I’ve been hammering here for years. This place is my home.
—Then at least let me leave some shadows around.
—Those sluggish things in this neighborhood? No thanks. Who would even attack someone as insignificant as me? Say something useless like that again and I’ll leave this trade entirely.
—…Alright. Just don’t say things like that.
Sanarae’s face as she lowered her head flashed in his mind.
‘If she hadn’t made that face… I would’ve left this place long ago.’
She would probably cry a lot if something happened to him.
Even so—
For a craftsman, protecting his craft came first.
“Fine. You won’t get it unless my wrist breaks. Especially not to trash like you.”
“Old man, you really want to die?”
“I don’t want to die. My daughter would be very sad.”
“Ha. Boys.”
Hong Han-sol smirked.
“Looks like our Guild is being taken lightly.”
“……”
“Give the old man a massage. Just enough so he doesn’t die.”
He crossed his arms and waited.
For his three subordinates to rush forward and beat the old man senseless.
Sancheon also gripped his hammer tightly, prepared.
But—
“……”
5 seconds. 10 seconds passed.
No one moved.
“What the hell? Why are you spacing out? Move!”
Hong Han-sol kicked the Hunter beside him.
It was Yu Cheol-jung—the one who had destroyed the smartphone.
“You bastard, just because you got promoted to C-rank you think you can disobey? Stop messing around and—”
As he kept kicking his shin—
He suddenly stopped.
‘Huh?’
Something was wrong.
His foot hurt.
Not the usual numb pain from kicking a person.
It felt like kicking a stone… or a log.
“Ugh… hy-hyung…”
Only then did he notice Yu Cheol-jung’s face.
Frozen stiff in shock.
His body was leaning forward—
But it wasn’t moving at all.
As if turned into stone mid-motion.
A faint wheezing sound leaked from his open mouth.
“Hy-hyung… I-I can’t move…”
“What the hell is this? What’s wrong with him?”
Hong Han-sol looked around in confusion.
The other two were the same.
Frozen unnaturally like statues.
One of them had tears streaming down his face in terror.
“What is this? Did you do this?”
Only then did he realize something was wrong.
He turned his head in panic—
But the old craftsman still looked tense.
Not him.
“Who the hell is it?!”
As Hong Han-sol frantically looked around—
“Well done, Sage.”
A voice echoed from behind.
At the same time—
Hong Han-sol doubted his eyes.
A ghostly flame flickered beside the craftsman.
But he didn’t even have time to process it.
“Hmm… so Baby Petrification doesn’t work on A-rank. That’s a bit disappointing.”
Hong Han-sol slowly turned his head.
And when he saw the figure standing in front of the raised shutter—
Illuminated by moonlight—
His pupils widened.