I Became the EX-Rank Pet Maker Hunters Obsess Over - Chapter 67

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Haruto

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ I Became the EX-Rank Pet Maker Hunters Obsess Over ◈

Chapter 67: New Essence

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Drip...

Cheon Sanha opened his eyes to the sound of water droplets falling.

“...”

His arms were bound, and the groans of suffering Hunters echoed all around him.

A prison holding several dozen Hunters.

“Ugh...”

“Ghk...”

Some were uninjured, while others were in poor condition.

Near him, the giant hedgehog was curled up.

“...Haniki, are you okay?”

“Chit, chit...”

Haniki’s back looked bare.

They had probably taken everything that could be used as a weapon.

Including Haniki’s spines.

“Damn it... Those bastards...”

“Chit, chit...”

As if telling Cheon Sanha not to worry, Haniki came closer and rubbed its head against him.

Rub, rub.

Whew... Right. Stay calm.

Haniki looked pitiful with all its spines pulled out, but it was a magical beast that could make new ones whenever it wanted.

Honestly, how many spines had Cheon Sanha pulled out by now? It would really be okay, right?

“More importantly, where are we...?”

He had thought he was about to die, but he woke up in a prison.

...Come to think of it, they had said the Merfolk took away incapacitated Hunters. He could not tell whether this was fortunate or unfortunate.

Guards were patrolling outside.

He could easily free himself from restraints like these, but without knowing where they were, he could not make a reckless move.

“Aorh...”

“Aorhorh...”

Then voices came from nearby.

“Hahaha...!! Someone else has woken up?”

It came from above, not the floor.

“...”

Cheon Sanha stared at the man overhead for a while, unable to say anything.

The man was suspended in midair in a turtle-shell tie.

“...Fuck. Why the hell are you like that?”

“Well... I resisted just a liiittle, and they tied me up like this. Be careful. If you mess up any worse here, they’ll cut your tendons. Hahaha!”

...From the Merfolk’s perspective, would it not have been easier just to cut his tendons instead of tying him up like that?

‘I can’t understand Merfolk behavior.’

In any case, perhaps because of that, more people than expected had regained consciousness, but they all remained quietly captive.

The turtle-shell-bound man shook his head and spoke.

“Good grief... Who could have expected a monster like that to suddenly appear? Isn’t that cheating?”

...The monster that had appeared on the battlefield.

It was a monster whose size could not even be estimated.

And it was durable enough to emerge unscathed from Cheon Sanha’s bombardment.

‘That was a disaster...’

Could beings called Transcendents create monsters like that with ease?

“Ahh, I want to go home and play games!! I’m bored to death here!!!”

The man writhed wildly despite being bound.

“Could there be an outside rescue...?”

The man was suspiciously calm, so Cheon Sanha tested the waters, wondering if rescue was coming...

“Hahaha! Rescue? Is that even possible? We’re probably inside Merfolk Island, so there’s no way to find us. Coming by ship would honestly be suicide... The only option is from the sky, but who knows? They might be able to rescue us, but I don’t think escape would be possible.”

“So that’s how it is... Breaking through those monsters with humanity’s forces...”

“Hmm... It might be possible for those folks who reached Tier 2... Hehehe... Oh, I really wonder what’ll happen. Hahahaha!!!!”

Perhaps because he laughed too loudly, Merfolk entered the prison carrying clubs and began beating the turtle-shell-bound man.

Thud!! Thud!!! Thud!!!!

“Aorhorh!!!”

“Aorooooorh!!!!!”

“Aaaah!!!! I’m sorry!!! I’m sorrrryyyyy!!!! Aorooooorh!!!!!”

For a while, the sounds of Merfolk beating the turtle-shell-bound man echoed through the prison.

* * *

Ars Magna

Hermes Research Institute

I considered what S-rank magical beast to make for Yeon Harim.

“I want to give her one powerful finishing move that synergizes with the Keraunos model. How should I do it, Luise?”

“I don’t know. Didn’t you have a direction in mind? I think I need to hear it before I can advise you.”

That was true.

For now, my direction was to make use of Yeon Harim’s throwing ability.

[ Talent 》 Extraordinary Throwing Ability, Exceptional Mana Control, Exceptional Dynamic Visual Acuity, Exceptional Obsession Ability, Excellent Spatial Perception. ]

It would be too much of a waste to leave extraordinary throwing ability unused.

And since the category specifically said “throwing,” she must possess tremendous talent for throwing things.

If Yeon Harim had not become a Hunter, would she have become a baseball player and dominated the mound?

Anyway, there was already a precedent in the Echidna model.

I had wondered whether modifying that model slightly would be a good direction, so I had asked just in case.

I explained my idea.

However, Luise’s response was lukewarm.

“...It definitely doesn’t seem bad, but... It’s kind of... bland.”

“Is it?”

He would modify the Echidna model to make spears instead of arrows and have her throw them... Was that not good enough?

Luise shook her head.

“Your thinking has become rigid, Yoo Hyun... It happens often to researchers like us, but... Are you in a slump?”

“...?”

When I looked puzzled, Luise spoke carefully.

“...A few months ago, you wouldn’t have simply gone in the direction of using what already existed. Something about your thinking now is... stiff. It feels like you’ve lost your creative freedom.”

I blinked at her words.

My thinking had become bland?

Certainly... That might be true.

But had I not developed it in the direction of creating synergy between a magical beast and its owner?

“...I’m not in a slump. I’m not stuck on anything.”

“I was in a slump for a while too, so I know how it feels. Maybe right now, Yoo Hyun, you are...”

Click.

At that moment, Researcher A, Asagiri, opened the door and poked their head in.

“Director, you have a guest.”

“A guest?”

No one besides Hunter Yeon Harim should be coming.

Since Asagiri had called me, it was probably someone I had at least some acquaintance with.

When I headed to the reception room, a woman I had never seen before was sitting there.

She stood and introduced herself.

“Hello... I am Shin Hayeon, a Hunter affiliated with Cheonseong Guild. I came today because I have something to give you.”

She handed me a case containing a trident, scales, pearls, and what looked like a leather book.

“...These are artifacts farmed in Britain. The Guild Master told me to deliver them to you.”

He had said he was going to Britain to farm artifacts...

‘But with that man’s personality, I thought he would bring them himself. That’s unexpected.’

When Yoo Hyun asked about it, Shin Hayeon lowered her head and spoke.

“The Guild Master went missing in the last battle...”

“...What?”

For a moment, Yoo Hyun wondered if he had heard correctly.

‘Cheon Sanha went missing?’

He had seen an online article saying a giant tidal wave had swept over the coast... Had Cheon Sanha been caught in it?

“It was not a tidal wave.”

The truth was different.

After most people had been swept away by the tidal wave, a colossal monster appeared.

That monster, which they were not even sure was a Merfolk, had caused the remaining Hunters on the battlefield to disappear.

“It was an overwhelming monster. Something different from a Merfolk... It showed no sign of being harmed even by the Guild Master’s attacks.”

“But when you say missing...”

“His body has not been found yet. We believe the Guild Master was probably kidnapped.”

It was such shocking news that Britain had yet to report the matter accurately.

After saying only what she had to say, Shin Hayeon left.

The Cheonseong Guild probably would not fall apart over this incident. A guild was fundamentally a group that pursued profit, like a corporation.

They probably viewed the Guild Master as a gear that could simply be replaced.

Especially since it was a guild created by Cheonseong Group.

Yoo Hyun stared at the ceiling in the reception room Shin Hayeon had left behind, deep in thought.

“...”

Cheon Sanha had been defeated...

Their relationship had not been long, but it had not been bad. Thanks to him, Yoo Hyun had been able to spread his Jellykko model throughout Korea with ease.

He was a business partner, but he had been warm toward Yoo Hyun, so honestly, Yoo Hyun had nothing but good feelings toward him.

Though he could be burdensome.

Anyway.

Cheon Sanha was a man who could have become Korea’s next S-rank Hunter.

Yet he had apparently been defeated without being able to do anything.

For some reason, those words made Yoo Hyun’s mind grow cold.

“...Have I become too arrogant?”

Cheon Sanha and the Echidna model.

Yoo Hyun had thought he had awakened Cheon Sanha’s Talents through a magical beast and brought about evolution in a new direction.

But that was not true.

It was not evolution. It had merely followed an existing method.

Had he become overconfident in his magical-beast crafting techniques at some point?

Once his head cooled, he sensed that something was wrong.

‘...What have I been doing all this time?’

...When had he stagnated?

Thinking about it, his magical-beast crafting ability had not improved at all since he first made an S-rank magical beast.

Obsessed with EX-rank Traits, he had stopped developing the fundamentals of magical-beast crafting.

Rather than exploring new crafting methods, he had grown accustomed only to what he already knew. He had become obsessed with powerful essence and excessively fixated on second-order energy.

Yoo Hyun asked the skeleton Jelly Dog that had come close to him.

“...Amon, have I changed a lot?”

[ ...I do not know. I have never seen what you were like before. But... it is certain that something is consuming you. ]

Being consumed...

Certainly, that might be true.

At some point, it had become difficult to suppress his impulses.

He had not considered it a big deal, but his mind was definitely being swallowed by his ability.

Using the jelly’s elasticity, Amon climbed onto the table.

Boing!

The creature crossed its arms and spoke.

[ ...The Dharma Path spoken of in Dharma Arts is the standard that becomes the foundation of one’s arts, the path one chooses to follow. By walking that unwavering path, one can preserve one’s identity while reaching transcendence. You should consider whether you have such a path. ]

Yoo Hyun could not fully understand Amon’s words, but somehow, they struck his heart.

He recalled the past.

‘What was it like when I first made a magical beast...?’

The first magical beast he had made from his own design...

Naturally, it was the Jellykko model.

Back then, his design was poor, and his environment was nowhere near as good as it was now.

He had bought an old secondhand Incubator and made Jellykko with low-grade materials.

Simply watching the little creature, much smaller than it was now, gradually grow in the Incubator had made him happy.

Unlike now, he had been too inexperienced then, so he had made mistakes during the crafting process...

Still, that lifeform had ultimately grown without issue and become a Jellykko.

Though it had ended up covered in spots unlike the original design.

“Pant, pant.”

At the familiar breathing sound, Yoo Hyun turned toward the door. Haengbok was peeking its head in, as though Amon had opened the door for it.

“...Should I return to my beginnings once more?”

To avoid being swallowed by his EX-rank Traits, he needed to establish his own principles and firmly build his foundation, rather than rely on second-order energy or cheat-like materials such as top-grade essence.

Yoo Hyun abruptly stood up, found Hunter Yeon Harim, and spoke.

“It seems magical-beast crafting will take a little longer.”

She gave a somewhat hollow smile.

“It’s okay. I’ve been free lately... So free that I got caught up in something like that while fooling around in my office...”

He did not know what “something like that” meant...

But he had received her permission for now.

After calling her over, it would be rude to make her wait too long.

* * *

Boooom!!!

The ceiling shook, and dust rained down.

Researcher A, Asagiri, who had been sipping coffee in the break room, jumped at the sudden vibration and explosion.

“What the hell...?!”

Asagiri hurried down the hallway and opened the door to the cultivation room where the explosion had come from.

Inside were a completely shattered Incubator, and Yoo Hyun and Luise protected by Jellykko’s shield.

“Wait... Director, what on earth happened...?”

“I tried a cultivation experiment.”

Asagiri blinked at Yoo Hyun’s words.

Yoo Hyun, an ultra-genius alchemist who flawlessly performed every magical-beast crafting process like a machine, had caused an Incubator explosion through a failed cultivation...?

‘...What?’

Pushing aside the questions that came to mind, Asagiri approached Yoo Hyun.

“But what were you cultivating for it to explode...?”

“This is the blueprint. Take a look.”

Asagiri accepted the magical-beast design Yoo Hyun handed over, eyes widening.

Yoo Hyun was an ultra-genius alchemist who went straight into cultivation work without drawing blueprints, so he never left behind designs like this.

“Then I’ll read it first.”

Asagiri slowly read the blueprint as though savoring it. Excitement filled their eyes, only to be replaced by bewilderment moments later.

‘...C-crazy... What is this...?’

The design was far too complicated.

Essence densely wrapped around the mana core, so packed that the Buffering Array had nothing on it.

Even if every mutual collision between essences had been resolved through transcendent calculation ability, was this not excessive?