Chapter 94: The Reincarnated One Completes It

The main hall of Yeonhwamun, located at the heart of Seoul.

Inside this splendid building, where countless people usually came and went, many individuals were moving about briskly.

From famous journalists to heroes who ran their own guilds, and from various businesspeople to South Korean politicians.

The distinguished guests invited to the Yeonhwamun project briefing were being guided to fill the seats in the enormous training hall on the first floor.

“……”

Yeon Seongha, dressed in Yeonhwamun's training uniform, slowly turned his gaze to the murmuring crowd.

These people seemed to find the spectacle amusing, and their interest made him feel uncomfortable, but he quickly dismissed it.

‘Those useless guys aren’t worth my attention.’

What mattered to him was to complete today’s promotion ceremony without any issues.

Just as he was taking a deep breath, an old man with white hair at the roots stood beside him and scolded him.

“Stupid boy.”

“What were you thinking, showing your fangs to the headmaster? Are you crazy or what?”

As the old man continued to nag, Yeon Seongha frowned and replied.

“It’s none of your business, old man.”

“……What did you say?”

“Stop your nonsense and get lost.”

Yeon Seongha closed his eyes, as if to signal that the conversation was over, and took another deep breath. The old man, seemingly exasperated by his arrogant and disrespectful response, sighed.

“Boy, if you could care about such things, you wouldn’t have come here.”

“……”

“The headmaster has already drawn his sword. Even those who used to boast about their neutrality, like me, have no choice but to pick a side.”

After a long pause, Yeon Seongha slowly opened his mouth to respond to the old man, Park Jin-hwan, who was the head of Yeonhwamun’s internal affairs.

“You should have chosen the other side.”

“You were demoted because you were an obstacle to the ongoing projects. Even if that weren’t the case, I wouldn’t have wanted to choose the other side.”

“……”

Yeon Seongha remained silent, listening to Park Jin-hwan’s words.

By applying for the Seven Wheel Promotion Ceremony, he had set the stage for the struggle over the position of the next headmaster of Yeonhwamun.

He quickly dismissed the thought of the chaos that might ensue.

‘It doesn’t matter how it turns out.’

His master had wanted him to become the headmaster of Yeonhwamun, and he would fulfill that wish. As he reaffirmed this, Park Jin-hwan spoke again.

“The moment you step up there today, the headmaster won’t hold back anymore.”

“Perhaps he’ll even assign you a mission right after the Seven Wheel Promotion Ceremony to get rid of you.”

“……”

“So, let’s make this the last time I ask you.”

Park Jin-hwan looked at Yeon Seongha seriously.

“Are you really sure about this?”

At Park Jin-hwan’s question, Yeon Seongha suddenly recalled a conversation he had with that strange guy.

‘I’ll make you the headmaster, even if you don’t want it.’

Just as he had declared that he would become the headmaster, the strange guy had declared that he would make it happen.

Recalling the confident look in his eyes, Yeon Seongha calmly spoke.

“I will become the headmaster of Yeonhwamun.”

- The Seven Wheel Promotion Ceremony for Yeon Seongha will now begin. Please take your seats, distinguished guests...

The training hall grew quiet. As he watched the shadow of the headmaster enter through the entrance, Yeon Seongha added calmly.

“It was a deal, after all.”

***

Sunday morning.

While the students were enjoying their last weekend before the despair of Monday, Lee Se-hoon was preparing for his work in Kim In-cheol’s workshop.

“Phew...!”

Thud!

The heavy metal box on the floor. Lee Se-hoon wiped the sweat from his forehead and took a deep breath.

“Damn, it’s so heavy...”

The metal box in front of him, an aether space box, was usually not this heavy, but this time it was inevitable.

This was because it contained all the byproducts of the Black Lotus flood, including the new tree.

‘Still, it’s good that I can move it this way.’

Nowadays, he could easily move things with aether space items, but in the past, heroes had to carry everything manually because there was no proper means to do so.

If they had encountered a monster like the new tree back then, they would have only recovered a part of it and discarded the rest.

‘Seeing this, Ludwig is truly remarkable.’

In the past, aether space was a power that only a few individuals with spatial abilities could handle, but everything changed when Ludwig became the first to reach the peak and descended from the Hero’s Tower.

He organized aether space into a formula and distributed it freely to everyone, something no one had been able to define before.

‘Restoring pipelines between countries, solving supply issues caused by monsters and mines, increasing the recovery rate of byproducts, and improving heroes’ equipment... The list goes on and on.’

Now, it’s just a part of history, but at the time, Ludwig was nothing short of a miracle to the heroes who were active.

Reflecting on this, Lee Se-hoon inwardly marveled.

‘That’s why peak ascenders are so terrifying.’

A transcendent being who can solve problems that even nations and humanity as a whole cannot.

Feeling the presence of such a being, which had become a part of daily life, Lee Se-hoon placed his hand on the panel of the aether space box.

Squeak─

The ring of Ascension on his right ring finger faintly glowed, and the shape of the warehouse naturally formed in his mind.

Impressed by the neatly organized byproducts of the new tree inside, Lee Se-hoon thought.

‘The internal projection feature... This is quite an expensive box.’

He had thought it would be cheap since it was given as a bonus, but it seemed to be the latest model, possibly as a reward for his recent efforts.

Still impressed by Babel’s generous spending, Lee Se-hoon chose the most abundant piece of the new tree among the byproducts.

Click!

The front of the metal box opened like a door, and a piece of the new tree smoothly emerged from the dark interior.

Thud!

A piece of the new tree, comparable to a large tree.

The enormous size made Lee Se-hoon realize once again how much material he had secured.

‘With the seeds to grow later... This should be enough to use against the Six Great Demons until they’re all dead.’

Thinking about how many items he could make, Lee Se-hoon felt satisfied. At that moment, Kim In-cheol, who had parked his motorcycle, entered the workshop.

“Is this the byproduct of that new tree?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“It’s as big as rumored. So... Can I take a look?”

Seeing Kim In-cheol’s interested expression, Lee Se-hoon nodded.

“Since you’ve lent me the workshop, it’s only natural. But please don’t use mana.”

“Alright...”

Approaching the piece of the new tree, Kim In-cheol first stroked its surface before checking the information window.

‘Usually, such pieces are fragile before processing... But this one is different. It feels like touching a whole tree, not just a piece.’

With a curious expression, Kim In-cheol then checked the information window.

[Piece of the New Tree]

[Grade: Rare] [Quality: Superior]

A part of the new tree that grew during the Black Lotus flood.

It grew abundantly from the rich soil but lost much of its power due to the aftermath of destruction.

*The properties change according to the mana infused within.

“This is...”

The material’s properties change according to the infused mana. Kim In-cheol’s eyes widened at this effect.

“A material that changes properties during the processing... With such versatility, it could be considered a hero-grade material.”

Even the most skilled craftsman would be limited if the materials were incompatible from the start.

However, this new tree could change its properties based on how the craftsman processed it, making it a versatile material that could adapt to any challenging material.

“What percentage of the material you obtained is this?”

“By volume, it’s less than 1%.”

“Wow...”

To have secured this much of such a material. Kim In-cheol was amazed but also curious.

“But can you use all of it by yourself?”

No matter how hard Lee Se-hoon worked, it would be difficult to use thousands of tons of material alone.

Smiling slightly at Kim In-cheol’s question, Lee Se-hoon replied.

“It’s a lot, but not that much. Once I select the usable pieces, more than half will be gone.”

“...That much will be filtered out?”

Even in its current state, it’s good. How could it be reduced so much by selection? Confused, Kim In-cheol asked.

“You’ll understand when you see it. But for that, the assistant needs to come quickly...”

“Assistant? You don’t have any friends in the department...”

Knock knock

Just as he said that, a knock echoed from the entrance of the workshop.

Turning his head, Kim In-cheol saw a silver-haired girl peeking in, looking embarrassed.

“Um... Is there a first-year student named Lee Se-hoon here?”

“Yes, here. Here. Come in.”

As Lee Se-hoon, who had been hidden behind Kim In-cheol, waved his hand, Louise entered the workshop, frowning.

Wearing a plain choker, a black hoodie with a wolf character, and long jeans, Louise’s casual look surprised Lee Se-hoon.

‘So, she does have casual clothes.’

Before the regression, the beast girl wore a black rider suit even to sleep, so seeing her in casual clothes was refreshing.

“...Why are you staring at me like that?”

Avoiding his gaze, Louise snapped. Lee Se-hoon smiled and shared his thoughts.

“You look just like yourself in casual clothes.”

“...”

It was an ambiguous comment that felt like both a compliment and an insult.

Feeling her pride hurt, Louise swallowed her words and glanced to the side.

“Who’s that over there?”

“That’s Professor Kim In-cheol, the owner of this workshop.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Kim In-cheol.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Louise Valentine.”

The two exchanged light bows. Though there was a slight awkwardness, it didn’t affect the work, so Lee Se-hoon quickly got to the point.

“Now that the assistant is here, let’s start.”

“Assistant? You said you wanted to talk to me for a moment.”

“I will talk, but not with you.”

“What...”

“Come on, let’s get moving.”

Holding Louise’s shoulders, Lee Se-hoon moved to the end of the piece and took out the White Light Dagger from his pocket.

“Let’s see...”

Examining the grain of the piece, which resembled tree rings, he made a small scratch and connected a black spirit thread to the handle of the White Light Dagger.

Repeating this process several times, he finally inserted the tip of the White Light Dagger into the center of the piece.

“Good, that’s it.”

“What is this... a tent?”

The black spirit threads spreading from the handle of the White Light Dagger. Confused by the unfamiliar shape, Louise looked at Lee Se-hoon, who explained simply.

“No, it’s more like a telephone.”

“This is?”

“You’ll understand once you try it.”

Connecting a new black spirit thread to the handle, Lee Se-hoon extended it to Louise’s mouth.

“Go ahead, bite it.”

“...What kind of nonsense is this on a weekend?”

Sighing and grumbling, Louise bit the black spirit thread. Showing respect to her benefactor, Lee Se-hoon was very satisfied and stood beside her.

“This piece of wood is in a dormant state. Try to use a verbal spell as if you’re kicking it awake.”

“...?”

Louise looked at him as if he was speaking nonsense. Calmly, Lee Se-hoon continued.

“Just imagine waking up a sleeping person.”

“???”

Still confused, Louise watched as Lee Se-hoon took the black spirit thread from his mouth and sighed deeply.

“Ha... I’ll show you once, so watch carefully.”

“Hey, wait a minute...!”

Before Louise could say anything, Lee Se-hoon bit the black spirit thread and refined his mana, preparing the verbal spell he would use.

‘Since the mana is ambiguous, I need to use an image.’

The effectiveness of verbal spells varies greatly depending on the image one holds. To maximize the effect, Lee Se-hoon recalled a moment when he desperately wished for someone to wake up.

‘Master...’

The memory of bloody, torn flesh, which made him feel uncomfortable even to think about, but using it as a tool was what made a true verbal spell user.

Recalling the beast girl’s advice before the regression, Lee Se-hoon completed the image based on his memory.

“<Mental Awakening>”

The verbal spell traveled through the black spirit thread into the piece of the new tree.

Rattle, rattle, rattle, rattle─!

The piece of the new tree began to shake violently. Just when it seemed to be calming down, changes started to occur.

Crack, crack

It shrank as if compressed and was covered with bark.

Lee Se-hoon, who watched it as if it were being reborn as a tree, used another prepared verbal spell.

“<Growth Stop>”

The piece of the new tree, which had been growing wildly, stopped. Kim In-cheol, who was watching from the side, looked surprised.

“Was this piece... alive?”

“Yes, it was probably in a vegetative state after splitting.”

Before the regression, the new tree was famous as a material not only for its versatility but also for its tenacious life force.

For example, an S-rank hero who bought it for ornamental use planted it in his garden, and it rooted overnight, drying out the surrounding plants.

“Though it won’t be as strong as the original, if we use its growth ability well, it can easily adapt to even the most challenging materials.”

“...You really have an incredible material.”

Thinking about how many different items could be made using this material, Kim In-cheol was amazed. Meanwhile, Louise, who had been watching from behind, looked at him with a serious expression.

“If you can do it alone, why did you call me?”

“Verbal spell users need experience. I thought it would be good for training.”

“So why did you call me on a weekend...”

“Your verbal spells are more reliable.”

The verbal spells he used had a shallow effect and a high chance of failure, but Louise’s verbal spells, influenced by her latent skill ‘Mana Synchronization,’ could penetrate deeply and had a high chance of success.

Therefore, to efficiently process the piece of the new tree, Louise’s help was essential.

“...You’re just making excuses.”

Snatching the black spirit thread from Lee Se-hoon’s hand, Louise looked at him with a stern expression.

“So, what do I do next?”

“It’s not difficult.”

Approaching the ‘Furnace 4,’ the only one among the five furnaces on the workshop wall that was off, Lee Se-hoon pressed a button.

Clank!

With the press of the button, terrifying flames spewed from the semi-transparent cover. The furnace, which could turn even metal into molten iron, made Lee Se-hoon smile.

“Make it strong enough to withstand these flames.”

“...”

How many verbal spells would it take