Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

038 – Special Training

Thanks to Myung-jun’s timely intervention, Byung Tae, who ended up driving an armored vehicle equipped with a drill, was showing off incredible driving skills, shredding Rank 3 and 4 monsters into minced meat.

At the same time, Ho Chang, who was wearing a metal-armored suit and undergoing combat training, was facing a different kind of problem.

‘These guys aren’t attacking anymore?’

Initially, the battle seemed to be going well for Ho Chang. His enhanced reflexes, amplified by the armor suit he wore, allowed him to easily handle the fast-charging monsters. Moreover, the special material of Ho Chang’s armor was even preventing Night Stalkers from scratching it.

He was easily counter punching the monsters that rushed at him, killing them on the spot. The problem started after he had taken down about 10 of them. The Night Stalkers realized that their attacks were ineffective and stopped engaging him. What’s more, they began to subtly move out of his reach, surrounding him in a circle while emitting eerie howls.

‘They’re different from normal beasts. It’s like I’m dealing with test subjects.’

However, Ho Chang was unfazed. He knew that if they wanted to attack him, they’d have to come close, providing an opportunity for counterattack.

It was at this moment that the behavior of the monsters changed.

Their bodies began to distort, as if they were molting, but unlike the smooth molting of insects, this transformation was gruesome, accompanied by splatters of blood. After a moment, a new form of monster emerged from the bloody, slimy shell.

‘A scorpion?’

Ho Chang recalled the briefing he got from Myung-jun about Night Stalkers. They were beast-like monsters known for their strong attacks and for chasing enemies in groups. However, the new monster was more insect-like.

‘That tail is troubling.’

Ho Chang’s martial arts teacher had always told him as a habit.

The most important thing in a fight is not having a stronger force than the opponent, nor a faster speed, but having a smarter mind than the opponent. Because Ho Chang’s Dojo holds this belief, Ho Chang’s fighting style always involves predicting the opponent’s next move by observing their movement beforehand. He could predict the subsequent attack just by observing the transformed form of the beast.

‘He’s going for a long-range attack since close-range won’t work.’

The decision, made after sacrificing as many as 10 comrades, wouldn’t just be a simple long-range attack. Even excluding Ho Chang’s amazing defense techniques, the armor made personally by Myung-jun boasted durability that couldn’t be penetrated by even an average tank shell. An opponent against whom no attack was effective.

Thinking about what attack he would have made if he were in the opponent’s shoes, Ho Chang jumped back with a horrified expression.

At that moment, a long, slimy substance and sharp spikes shot from the monster’s tail like bullets where Ho Chang had been standing. He, who had prepared in advance, dodged the first attack with quick judgment. However, the other monsters surrounding him shot at him faster than he could dodge. Ho Chang desperately tried to fend off the sticky end of the projectile, but when the hard-looking ends collided with his armor, they exploded like sticky grenades, tangling up his armor. In less than a minute, Ho Chang, looking like a moth wrapped in a spider web, began struggling desperately to break free.

Despite the amazing output of the armored suit he wore, the cocoon didn’t budge, so Ho Chang had to shout at Soo-jeong,

“Surrender! Surrender! Miss! Surrender!”

At that moment, the restraint binding Ho Chang crumbled like powder and vanished, leaving Ho Chang standing in the same posture he was bound in, in the middle of an empty space.

What awaited his post-training was a “function improvement” meeting with Myung-jun and Soo-jeong, who had been watching Ho Chang’s combat.

“Hmm… Should we add long-range weapons even if it reduces performance? What do you think, Myung-jun?”

“Isn’t the penalty for the attack power we gain, like Mr. Byung Tae’s armored vehicle, too severe?”

“That’s true.”

“Then let’s modify it in a way that doesn’t degrade the performance too much.”

“What about attaching sharp blades all over the body? If we secure mobility, we can achieve an effect similar to the drill on Byung Tae’s vehicle, right?”

“Of course, that could counter those types of binding attacks, but it’s purely defensive. After all, there are only two ways for a defensive Awakener like Mr. Ho Chang to deal with that type of monster, either equip firepower capable of catching them from a distance, or ensure mobility to land close-range attacks.”

“But when you attach long-range weapons, the defense drops significantly, right?”

At Soo-jeong’s remark, Myung-jun fell into thought.

And then, as if something struck him, he spoke to Soo-jeong,

“Then let’s attach long-range weapons that aren’t classified as long-range weapons.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“We only think of long-range attacks in terms of firearms, so when we try to attach gun-type equipment, we face problems, right? Then, why not use a part of the body as a long-range weapon, instead of a gun…”

“Oh, that’s an interesting idea. Keep explaining.”

Soo-jeong showed interest, and Ho Chang, who had participated in the meeting, also began to pay keen attention to Myung-jun.

Then Myung-jun started explaining his idea, which was still at a conceptual level.

“For example, if we could shoot the fist out at ultra-high speed, like a rocket punch, that would be a weapon we could use at long range. Plus, when not fired, it would simply be recognized as a fist component. However, if the fist actually flies out, retrieving it could be an issue, so we could attach something like a chain to forcibly retrieve it. If you can control the fist even when it’s fired, it could be used as an anchor for climbing up building walls. It would also be possible to apply high voltage to electrocute.”

“Hmm… that sounds like a good idea. What do you think, Mr. Ho Chang?”

“First of all, practice would be needed to determine the appropriate timing or method of attack, but I think it would be sufficient as an emergency measure.”

“Then let’s change the design right away.”

Soo-jeong got up from her seat and moved to the large table in the center of the lab.

Then, the powered armor that Ho Chang had been wearing just a moment ago was displayed as a holographic image on the table.

“Shall we start with changing the design of the fist component then?”

Soo-jeong sat on one side of the table, humming as she began to manipulate the keyboard.

She then occasionally raised her hands to make sweeping motions in the air, starting to replace the holographic components one by one.

As she worked at an almost invisibly fast speed, the holographic powered armor seemed to disassemble and reassemble like a toy being put together.

“She looks incredibly proficient, as if She has been doing this all her life.”

“Well, handling this modification equipment is one of the abilities that senior gained. The moment I got the ability, I naturally knew how to use the equipment. Just like how Mr. Ho Chang was able to skillfully operate the powered armor as soon as he put it on.”

“Ah, that explains it.”

“But even considering that, the only person who can handle that equipment would be Senior. Her extensive knowledge of inventions and machinery from a young age gave her the ability to use it.”

“Is it like Byung Tae getting the ability to summon vehicles and me getting the ability to summon armor?”

“Exactly. The conditions for awakening as an Awakener are still shrouded in mystery. Some people touch a crystal and don’t awaken, while others touch a crystal that someone else had touched without anything happening and then awaken. So, you could say that awakening depends on luck, timing, and ability.”

Ho Chang turned his gaze back to Soo-jeong, who was working.

He thought to himself,

‘If Miss Soo-jeong got the ability of an inventor due to her background, and Byung Tae got the ability to control vehicles because he’s a driver, and I got the ability to summon armor because I’m a martial artist, then what did the captain do to get such an unbelievable ability?’

As far as he knew, Myung-jun’s official combat ability was ‘the ability to summon turrets’.

But Myung-jun’s abilities were not limited to just that. His real power was not only summoning turrets, but also sharing his abilities with others, granting access to an incredibly versatile pocket dimension, and developing additional abilities through the equipment in that dimension.

‘It’s an ability that makes everyone stronger by pooling their strengths together.’

Suddenly Ho Chang became curious about Myung-jun’s current combat capabilities and asked him.

“But Captain,”

“Yes.”

“How strong are you?”

“That’s a vague question. Strength is relative.”

“Then let’s use the gate clear time as the standard. After modifying his vehicle, Byung Tae has made some progress, but we’re still struggling with Rank 5 boss hunts. A 40-meter mud giant isn’t easy to take down even with a drill-equipped armored vehicle. After this modification, I’ll be able to take down small fry easily, but boss battles will still be difficult.”

“That’s true. Mud Giants are known to be among the more challenging bosses.”

“But Captain, you hunted that monster even before you became an Awakener. Doesn’t that mean you became stronger after awakening? I’m curious, how long would it take for the current you to clear a Rank 3 gate?”

Answering that question was not difficult.

Myung-jun himself had done time attacks solo in the training grounds to measure his current abilities.

He stretched out three fingers to show the time it took him to clear the gate.

“Three fingers… 30 minutes?!”

Seeing Ho Chang’s shocked expression, Myung-jun shook his head.

He then corrected the misunderstood information.

“3 minutes.”

The time it took for the current Myung-jun to hunt over 100 Rank 3 and 4 monsters and a building-sized 40-meter mud giant was just 3 minutes.

“Why did the captain only observe while making us train? Could it be that a Rank 3 gate was not even a warm-up for you?”

“So, after we go out, I’m planning to tackle high-ranking gates. While Ho Chang and Byung Tae overrun a Rank 1 gate and turn it into Rank 3, I will search for Rank 2 or 3 gates to transform them into Rank 5 or 6.”

“A Rank 5 boss would be…”

“In normal cases, in a Rank 5 gate, you’ll encounter Rank 5 regular monsters and Rank 6 special monsters. During an overrun, it would be one level higher, so expect Rank 5 and 6 regular monsters and Rank 7 or higher special monsters. It’s risky, but the rewards like materials and crystals would be incomparable to those from a Rank 3 gate. Of course, there’s something else we have to do before that.”

“What do we have to do?”

“Have you forgotten? We are all wanted by the South Korean government. We’ve been hiding in the pocket dimension for a month, so they must be desperate by now. As soon as we return, interesting things will start happening.”

“Are you really planning to fight against the South Korean government?”

“Of course, I have no desire to pick a fight unless they force it on us. However,…”

“However?”

“If they start it, then we have no choice but to destroy them thoroughly. All the preparations we’ve made so far have been for this moment.”

The firm resolve to never become a pawn of the government again was palpable in Myung-jun’s voice.

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