Chapter 20
Iron.
A representative metallic element that makes up the Earth's crust and a key resource underpinning modern civilization, iron is essential to humanity.
For that reason,
when someone found an iron vein inside a Gate that had appeared on state, corporate, or private property, they all tended to react the same way.
"I, Kang Yul, have finally found a mineral that can make me money. Now, if my dealings with the Affectionate Merchant, my exclusive sales route, really take off… has my era finally arrived…!?"
They would lose their minds on the spot, loudly proclaiming they'd hit the Gate lottery and making fools of themselves.
To anyone watching, they might look so pathetic that the only thought would be, 'What's wrong with that guy…?'
But the uses for 'magic steel (魔力鋼),' made by smelting iron infused with mana, were truly endless. Considering that, this much gloating was practically endearing.
"Ahh… This won't do. I need to cram all this information into my head one more time…!"
With eyes gone a little wild, Kang Yul checked the entry on iron in the Hunter Gallery's information archive.
<Hunter Gallery - Information Archive>
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【Iron (鐵 / Iron)】
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A representative metallic element that makes up the Earth's crust and a key resource underpinning modern civilization.
Thanks to its high strength and excellent workability, it is widely used in fields ranging from construction and industry to weapons manufacturing.
▪ It is also occasionally found inside supernatural phenomena [Gates], and its value varies greatly according to the purity of its mana and the quality of the ore.
High-purity magic iron ore is considered an essential material for Hunter equipment and magitech devices.
▪ The Hunter Association and private companies refine iron mined from Gates and use it to make not only weapons but also armor, portable barrier devices, Gate excavation equipment, mana generators, and a wide range of other equipment.
▪ Gate-mined iron is also widely used in general industry.
It is an essential material for everything from the frameworks of skyscrapers, bridges, railways, ships, aircraft, and vehicles to mana power plants and supernatural disaster response facilities.
In recent years, production of
'magic steel (魔力鋼),'
which is more durable and corrosion-resistant than ordinary iron,
has continued to increase.
▪ Iron has also long been considered a material that drives away ghosts and monsters.
Perhaps due to this tradition, it has a certain suppressive effect on some supernatural life-forms and curse-type phenomena, and is widely used as a basic material for barrier devices, seals, and exorcism equipment.
※ Iron ore with an excessive concentration of mana may undergo sudden changes in its properties or cause unexpected reactions in ordinary smelting equipment.
High-purity magic iron ore should always be evaluated and smelted at an authorized facility.
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He'd read this entry in the archive several times already.
But Kang Yul read it over and over, studying it as if trying to memorize it, until he finally let out a deranged laugh and spoke to Worm.
"Heh heh heh… Worm… did I tell you…?"
Wriggle-?
﹝Anomaly﹞
: It feels deep affection for you-?
"We're rich now! We can buy soil to eat without worrying about money anymore!"
Wriggle….
﹝Anomaly﹞
: It feels a little afraid of you….
"Ah, I scared you with how I look right now. But Worm, money is really important to humans. With money, you can do just about anything."
For example,
"Maybe Worm will be able to live outside with me from now on. With a vein this big, I might even be able to buy an entire mountain instead of a house with a yard."
Wriggle-!?!?!
﹝Anomaly﹞
: It feels deep affection for you-!?!?!
: It is very surprised that it will get to spend more time with you-!?
Worm stiffened its body as if asking if that was really true, then began trembling all over.
It was only natural for it to react that way.
Given how often Kang Yul usually said things like that, Worm was probably wondering whether this was a dream or reality.
"Worm, even if you're curious about the outside, you must never leave the Gate."
Wriggle-?
﹝Anomaly﹞
: It feels deep affection for you-?
"The world I live in isn't an environment you'd like, Worm. You wouldn't like a forest of concrete in a bleak city, would you?"
Saying that the environment outside wasn't very suitable for Worm was, honestly, just a convenient excuse.
In reality, Kang Yul simply wanted to eliminate the risk, since he had no idea what might happen if Worm left the Gate and appeared in the world.
According to the Hunter Gallery archive, Worm might have a trait that lets it adapt to its surroundings depending on its food and the mana density, so Kang Yul figured it was best to be as cautious as possible.
"So, even if it gets a little frustrating, could you put up with it?"
Wriggle-!
﹝Anomaly﹞
: It feels deep affection for you-!
: It likes its surroundings.
"Thank you, Worm."
And so, Worm had never once left the Gate.
Whenever Kang Yul went out or left the Gate to sleep, Worm would see him off with a wriggle that made it look lonely….
'…This really isn't something a person should do.'
If Worm were just an ordinary insect he couldn't communicate with, that would be one thing. But now it was a companion like family, someone who'd formed a deep bond with Kang Yul.
So Kang Yul decided to look at things differently.
"Our next goal is to mine a ton of iron, sell it, and save up enough to buy an entire mountain."
If he couldn't keep Worm hidden inside the Gate forever, he could buy a whole mountain and let it stay active only around there.
'I was going to have to check on this sooner or later anyway.'
Wasn't Worm the 0.2-second domain-expansion tactical nuke he could summon in a no-holds-barred situation when his life was on the line?
So he needed to find out things like how far its influence extended, whether Kang Yul himself would be harmed, and whether this world could really handle Worm….
Even aside from improving Worm's living conditions, these were things he absolutely had to look into at least once.
"You'll help me too, right, Worm?"
Wriggle-!
﹝Anomaly﹞
: It feels deep affection for you-!
: It thinks it will help you with all its heart!
"Good. Now that we've set a goal…"
Clang-!
"…Let's get back to honest mining today, shall we?"
Wriggle-!
The goal: the dream of owning my own home (mountain).
Kang Yul vowed he wouldn't stop swinging his pickaxe until then.
Of course.
Bzzzt-!
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[Web Message]
Hello, Hunter Kang Yul. This is the Field Management Team of the Hunter Management Bureau.
We request your cooperation with next week's 'Subway Exploration' operation.
▪ Date and time: Next Friday at 11:00 p.m.
▪ Assembly location: Hunter Management Bureau, Nowon Branch
▪ Duties: Assist the Bureau's representative Hunter, 'Team Leader Myo'
This operation involves
information classified as Level 3
.
Details of the schedule and preparations will be provided separately after you assemble at the site.
Please reply to confirm whether you can participate.
Thank you.
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Even Kang Yul couldn't simply ignore a summons from the organization he belonged to.
Especially when it came from an influential power player in an organization connected to the state.
#####
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
A week had passed since Kang Yul discovered the iron vein.
During that time, Kang Yul had swung his pickaxe nonstop to mine iron.
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
Though it required more physical movement than using the rock drill and drained his stamina faster, he had no choice.
Iron infused with mana was too hard for a mere rock drill to mine.
To mine it, he would have to bring mining equipment made of magic steel into the Gate, assemble it, and set it up there.
But Kang Yul didn't have the money for that, and even if he'd bought the equipment, he couldn't hire a contractor to assemble it inside the Gate.
And so,
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
Kang Yul had to make full use of the perfect pickaxe Kim Chaeryeong had made for him.
There was absolutely nothing wrong with its performance.
This perfect pickaxe could break magic-infused iron.
He'd even made a heartwarming start by feeding Worm the first historic lump of iron he'd mined.
But that only lasted a little while.
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
The longer Kang Yul kept mining, the more he realized how difficult it was to mine magic iron.
The pickaxe was perfect. But the mining process wasn't.
So what exactly was the problem?
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
The answer was Kang Yul himself, with his imperfect body and technique.
As a mage whose physical abilities were only slightly better than an ordinary person's, he had his limits when it came to bringing out the pickaxe's full potential.
And since he'd only ever used a rock drill that worked with the click of a button, he also lacked the skill to wield a perfect pickaxe.
At that moment, Kang Yul admitted his limitations and murmured that he'd hit a 'wall.'
So did Kang Yul just give up?
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
The answer was 'no.'
Kang Yul was a dirt-poor orphan who'd grown up in an orphanage.
Every moment of his life had been blocked by a wall, and it was far rarer for him to face a situation without one.
But whenever that happened, Kang Yul had adapted flexibly, either by taking a detour or finding a new path.
So this time, too, he needed to show that same flexibility, but…
Clang-!
…this time, Kang Yul decided not to avoid the 'wall.'
The Kang Yul of then was different from the Kang Yul of now.
He had a trustworthy companion (Worm), and he also had several ways to break through the wall.
On top of that, he had a goal he wanted to achieve, so he had more than enough motivation.
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
Clang-!
So Kang Yul didn't stop swinging his pickaxe.
His swings were clumsy, lacking both skill and stamina, but he steadily collected the pieces of magic iron that broke off.
Among them, he shaped the pieces of magic iron Worm had judged to be 'tasty soil' into neat, manageable sizes.
Then he put the carefully selected magic iron into a wooden box and made a wish.
He needed a 'mining-related skill book' or a 'mining-related ability' worthy of its value.
After waiting a little while,
Click-!
The box opened with a sound, revealing an old book and a blue slip of paper he'd never seen before.
Before opening the book, Kang Yul checked the note first.
It read as follows.
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I N S U F F I C I E N T P A Y M E N T !
R E G U L A R C U S T O M E R P E R K S !
S P E C I A L D I S C O U N T !
L O W - G R A D E M I N I N G S K I L L B O O K !
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Kang Yul was taken aback after reading the note, but soon accepted the situation: the merchant had given him a special discount for being a regular customer.
That alone was surprising enough, but what truly shocked Kang Yul happened next.
Thump-!
Just after he finished reading the note,
Kang Yul turned toward the heavy sound behind him and found a box.
It was a copper box twice the size of the wooden one he'd had before, with a golden slip of paper he'd never seen beneath it.
Since he had no idea what was going on, Kang Yul naturally checked the note first.
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M E M B E R S H I P U P G R A D E !
B R O N Z E T I E R !
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At that moment, Kang Yul became certain of something.
It seemed the Affectionate Merchant really liked the goods the regular customer was trading.
The proof was how the merchant had handled the discount and membership upgrade all at once.
Wasn't it a mercenary attitude, clearly intended to get him to sell magic iron often?
Kang Yul rather liked that attitude from the Affectionate Merchant.
When you were the one making the deal, someone being proactive like this was much better than speaking vaguely and lowballing the value.
And so,
Creeeak-!
Kang Yul opened the copper box and filled it with all the less valuable iron he'd collected so far—the pieces Worm hadn't judged to be 'tasty soil.'
Then he made another fervent wish.
But this time, he wasn't asking for a 'mining-related skill book' or a 'mining-related ability.'
After all, he'd just received a low-grade mining skill book in his last trade.
So, thinking of the mission he would have to go on soon, he wished for 'the best possible way to protect Kang Yul's body.'
He added, 'Preferably something that works well with Worm's Dokkaebi Club ability.'
Then,
Creak-!
The hinges of the copper box he'd closed made a sharp sound as it opened by themselves.
Inside were a white slip of paper and a black bag that appeared to be made of aluminum.
Once again, Kang Yul checked the note first.
──────────
M A G I C W A N D !
R E G U L A R C U S T O M E R S A F E T Y G U A R A N T E E D !
──────────
At that moment, Kang Yul thought, a little out of the blue, that the Affectionate Merchant had gotten a lot kinder.
Compared with the cryptic notes he'd received at first, this one was easy to understand—and the merchant was even looking out for his safety.
Anyway, Kang Yul decided that something good was good and picked up the black bag in the copper box, but…
"This is… a magic wand…?"
After opening the box and examining the magic wand, Kang Yul murmured to himself, surprised once.
Then he read the instruction manual included in the box and was surprised a second time.
And that was because…
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A semi-automatic pistol for combat against supernatural phenomena
「Hecate H-9」
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■ Product Overview
「Hecate H-9」 is a special-response semi-automatic pistol designed for combat with supernatural beings and anomalous entities.
It uses standard 9mm ammunition. Thanks to the mana-interference suppression structure built into the firearm, it can inflict a certain level of physical damage even on targets that exhibit intangibility, regeneration, possession, or curse reactions.
■ Recommended Users
ㆍSupernatural life-forms of Class D or below
ㆍPossessing entities
ㆍCurse-infected entities
ㆍMinor evil spirits and anomalous creatures
■ Precautions
※ Do not engage entities of Class C or higher alone.
※ This firearm is designed for combat with supernatural entities of Class D or below.
※ Prolonged exposure to mana-contaminated areas may reduce the performance of the firearm's internal stabilization device.
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One day before his visit to the Hunter Management Bureau, Kang Yul got his hands on a Muggle's magic wand.