Chapter 143 – Candidate No. 7, Kang Geom-Ma (1)

Cold sweat dripped from Volundr’s temples.

“Haa… haa…”

As he desperately tried to regulate his ragged breathing, Volundr looked at Kang Geom-Ma. He held his sashimi blade in his left hand, while his right hand touched the magic stone.

Witnessing what was unfolding before his eyes, Volundr’s pupils dilated in shock.

Despite the ominous energy emanating from the magic stone, comparable to the malice of an evil god, Kang Geom-Ma remained expressionless.

With a single hand, he suppressed the magic as effortlessly as one would step on a dry leaf.

Narrowing his eyes lazily, he murmured,

“It’s resisting more than I expected.”

“……”

Volundr’s face turned pale. From between Kang Geom-Ma’s fingers, a fierce and uncontrollable energy struggled to break free.

Kyeee—!

The piercing screech felt like it was tearing through his eardrums.

Volundr reevaluated his judgment of the magic stone.

That was no mere A-rank material. At the very least, it was S-rank. And among those, it was likely at the very top.

…But this kid was saying, “It’s resisting more than I expected,” while holding it down with complete composure, his expression as calm as ever.

Volundr knew Kang Geom-Ma wasn’t normal, but he never imagined the gap between them would be this vast.

At this point, wasn’t he the real monster, not the magic stone? His name even contained the character Ma (魔), meaning “demon.” Perhaps that wasn’t just a coincidence.

Kang Geom-Ma turned his gaze to Volundr.

“Ahjussi, now.”

“Ah… ah. Right.”

It wasn’t over yet. Strictly speaking, it hadn’t even begun.

Kang Geom-Ma had to purify the stone, and Volundr had to hammer and forge it.

This process would have to be repeated dozens, even hundreds of times before it could become a refinement material.

Still trembling, Volundr forced himself to stand up. He gathered the remaining strength in his fingers and straightened his shoulders.

Perhaps this was his turning point, a step forward in his life as a blacksmith.

Resolving himself, he opened his eyes, which had been tightly shut. Spitting into both palms, he gripped the hammer firmly.

With his determination solidified, the veins in his arms bulged with intensity. In a powerful voice, he shouted,

“Now!”

“Yeah.”

Kang Geom-Ma withdrew his hand from the magic stone, and in the same instant, Volundr’s hammer came crashing down with devastating force.

Clang!

The thick hammer struck the magic stone with a resounding impact.

As another roar tried to escape, Kang Geom-Ma immediately extended his hand to suppress the magic.

Then, the hammer fell again without pause.

And again.

Clang! Once.

Clang! Twice.

Clang! Three times.

Clang! Four times…

Though they exchanged no words, their coordination was flawless.

Sweat dripped from Volundr’s chin, but before it could hit the floor, it evaporated from the searing heat of the furnace.

Grrrghhh…

The screams of the malicious consciousness within the stone grew fainter.

The scorching wind of the forge overtook the thick magical energy that had surrounded it.

Volundr lifted his head, and in that instant, his gaze met Kang Geom-Ma’s.

“……”

Without speaking, the two locked eyes.

Through his gaze, Volundr conveyed his thoughts to the boy.

‘This might become the greatest masterpiece of my life as a blacksmith.’

As if understanding, Kang Geom-Ma grinned, baring his teeth.

***

Thirty minutes passed.

Fwoosh⎯!

[The Energy of Immortality has been annihilated by ‘Annihilation.’]

[You have developed immunity to unauthorized external intrusions.]

[The level of ‘Spirit Level’ has slightly increased.]

Seeing the notifications in my status, I felt a wave of relief.

I was nervous about the possibility of failure, but we succeeded.

The result lay right in front of me.

With all malice completely consumed, the Stone of Immortality had transformed into pure reinforcement material.

Not bad for a start.

However, we had only purified the stone.

The real enhancement process had yet to begin.

But at least we had taken the first step correctly.

From here on, everything depended on Volundr’s skill.

‘That aside.’

Volundr had collapsed into a chair, completely drained.

His posture was that of a man who had given everything he had until he was utterly spent.

I observed him in silence.

Until yesterday, I didn’t trust him.

After all, this was the man who downgraded Murasame from B-rank to D-rank.

But now that I had witnessed his craftsmanship firsthand, all my doubts had vanished.

‘What kind of passion does this old man have?’

Despite being engulfed by the blazing heat of the forge and the oppressive pressure of the magic energy, Volundr had never stopped hammering.

I had Spirit Level, but he endured everything through sheer willpower alone.

This was what it meant to be a true artisan.

“…Whew. I’m going to die.”

Volundr groaned as he stretched his neck from side to side, trying to relieve the tension.

I handed him a glass of cold water.

“Good work. You didn’t have to close your shop just for this.”

He took the glass and gave a faint smile.

“It’s fine. Thanks to you, I had a valuable experience.”

“If that’s the case, I’m glad.”

Volundr scratched his head with a carefree air.

He shook off his apron and glanced at the wall clock.

The minute hand pointed to fifteen minutes before the start of the fifth period.

Volundr looked at me.

“You’re going to be late for class. Leave your weapon here. I’ll reinforce it and deliver it to your dorm supervisor within the week.”

“…You said earlier that you’d be busy for a month.”

“Delaying the other orders by a few days won’t change anything. Besides, I’m already fired up, so I want to finish it as soon as possible. And to be honest… just imagining working with this stone has me impatient.”

His eyes shone intensely as he stared at the stone. His hands opened and closed repeatedly, as if itching to start.

That expression reminded me of my past self, back when I used to hold a knife before cutting into a tuna.

The desire to work with quality materials as soon as possible.

That was what defined a true artisan.

“I’ll leave it in your hands.”

I bowed slightly in respect. A master deserved proper treatment.

Volundr, surprised, scratched his cheek as if he hadn’t expected my attitude.

Finally, he rolled up his sleeves and declared with confidence,

“Alright! When you come to pick up your weapon, it’ll leave you speechless.”

***

At the same time, in the director’s office of the academy.

Sitting on the reception sofa with her legs crossed, Media lazily flipped through some documents, her gaze indifferent.

Standing in front of her, a man in a black suit remained still, hands clasped behind his back.

His posture was flawless, his back perfectly straight.

He was an official from the Hero Association.

Not just any official—he held a position high enough to secure a private meeting with the director of Joaquin Academy.

Within the association, he was known as Chief Sung.

He had come to request Media’s approval before establishing a temporary Hero Association branch within the academy.

The Association and the Academy.

It was an unusual collaboration, meaning there was a mountain of topics to discuss…

Yet, a heavy silence filled the office.

Chief Sung, his expression tense, didn’t dare speak.

All because of the warning given to him by the Association’s Vice President, Richard of Mura, before he left.

“Look, do whatever you want… but for the love of God, don’t provoke Media. Her temper is unbearable. If she gets pissed, even I won’t be able to stop her. Right now, she spends her days writing with a pen, but in her prime, she was a monster. If you push the wrong button, you’ll end up as a puddle of blood. Got it?”

Tyrant.

That was another one of Media’s well-known nicknames within the Association.

Vice President Changseong Richard Mura himself had explained where that name came from.

As one of the Seven Heroes, Media had played the role of a healer.

But her perspective on the job was… unique.

— A healer isn’t someone who just treats damage. A healer is someone who finds and eliminates the source of damage. That’s what a real healer is.

It was completely insane logic. By that reasoning, she wasn’t a healer—she was an attacker.

Just because her blessing had support skills, they categorized her as a healer?

“Hah.”

After finishing the documents, Media frowned in displeasure.

Chief Sung’s shoulders flinched.

“The Association… you people are hilarious.”

“…What do you mean…?”

Media rested her chin on one hand and stared directly at Chief Sung.

Just from that, his whole body tensed up as if his brain had shut down.

Media waved the documents in the air and spoke mockingly.

“According to this, you basically want to interfere in the October student council elections… Don’t you think your intentions are a little too obvious?”

“…If you have any objections, we’ll make the necessary revisions. Please tell us your requirements, Director.”

Chief Sung maintained a neutral attitude.

Media’s gaze sharpened, and her voice turned icy.

”‘The Hero Association will prioritize the protection of the next student council against hostile forces.’ And also, ‘the Association will contribute to the management of the student council election committee.’”

“……”

“Well, that’s a convincing excuse. But in reality, this is just a way to get close to the candidates and win them over, isn’t it?”

“……”

Chief Sung couldn’t refute her.

They had spent three days and three nights summarizing and refining the document.

Yet Media had read it in seconds and completely dismantled it.

With a flick of her fingers, she let the documents fall.

The papers fluttered in the air before landing at his feet.

“I understand the Association is short on personnel, but this is just excessive. I helped you capture that bastard Cladi, we signed an agreement, and this is what you do? Trying to manipulate my students?”

“……”

There was nothing he could say.

….

Everything she said was true.

Each word hit like a punch…

Chief Sung started imagining himself getting beaten to a pulp by Media.

His body broken, barely breathing, teeth shattered and needing implants…

As he trembled, Media watched him indifferently.

Finally, she sighed and spoke.

“…I’ll grant you permission.”

“…What?”

Chief Sung’s eyes widened.

Media clicked her tongue and explained her reasoning.

“There have been too many incidents this year. Even I need extra hands. I know your intentions aren’t pure, but I already discussed it with that gorilla Changseong. This is something the academy will have to accept.”

“T-Thank you very much!”

Chief Sung’s face lit up in relief.

He was also relieved to still be alive.

Media gestured with her chin toward the documents at his feet.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m only giving you permission because of that clause stating, ‘The next student council president will receive an access pass to the Hero Association’s Korean branch.’ At least you made an effort to seem transparent, which is slightly commendable.”

“Y-Yes, of course.”

Chief Sung nodded quickly.

With that, the conversation was nearly settled.

Hum~ hum~

Without realizing it, he started humming in happiness.

As he gathered the scattered documents one by one, Media casually dropped another statement.

“Oh, by the way, that old man told me something. It seems the Association has been digging into Kang Geom-Ma’s past.”

“……”

“If you pull a stunt like that again…”

At those words, Chief Sung froze in place, still crouched down collecting the papers.

He remained bent like a shrimp, not daring to move, only shifting his eyes toward Media.

Her cold gaze pierced through him.

She was the very embodiment of death in the form of a woman.

The color drained from his face.

After a suffocating silence, Media’s lips moved.

“…The rest, you can figure out yourself.”

Her vague words stabbed into his chest like a stake.

Nod… nod. Nod, nod, nod.

Pale as a sheet, Chief Sung nodded repeatedly.

In his mind, he had already made his decision.

As soon as he returned to the Association, he would immediately issue an order to halt the investigation.

Even Vice President Changseong feared this woman.

Chief Sung wasn’t nearly brave enough to challenge the tyrant’s threats.