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Chapter 53

This is a hub connecting the whole world, after all...

The Void Space Terminal was a transportation hub that allowed people to timely travel to hundreds of locations ranging from capitals and major cities of each country to various Danger Zones.

It was one of the pillars that supported the abnormal educational institution known as Babel.

I still feel the same way as before... it’s amazing that this huge facility is always so well-maintained.

Given the scale of wealth that passed through the Void Space Terminal every day, it should have been a prime target for demons or terrorists who sought societal chaos.

However, such worries were in vain since the terminal had seldom been directly targeted, even before the regression. The reason was simple.

The terminal’s owner is Ludwig.

This was a place that was created and managed personally by the one who was the first Perfect One and the strongest hero—the Emperor of Ascension.

Nearly every single surprise sabotage had been subdued beforehand. Even Great Evil, a member of the Ten Evils, retreated after sustaining injuries during an attempted attack.

In this way, Ludwig had managed to maintain its stature until it was destroyed together with the Destroyer of Heavens. In a way, that made it a prized company for investment.

Wait. Now that I think about it, shouldn’t I just buy this terminal’s stock?

He remembered how the terminal’s stock once plummeted due to crisis rumors but then soared again and maintained a consistently upward trend when Ludwig thwarted an invasion.

Pondering the investment opportunity that had come up accidentally, Se-Hoon suddenly noticed that the surroundings had become peculiarly noisy. He looked toward the source.

“...”

And saw Eun-Ha, dressed in a black suit, standing at the meeting location.

Her expressionless face and red hair, which could be considered her trademarks, made her unmistakable. Naturally, people would glance her way and wonder why she was there.

“Why is Ryu Eun-Ha here? Is she supervising someone?”

“What are you talking about? She’s famous for not doing such things. She even publicly turned down the son of the Seraphim Guildmaster.”

“Then do you think it makes sense that an S-rank hero would visit a D-class Danger Zone?”

People all around Eun-Ha were curiously theorized about why she would visit such a place. And amidst that enthusiastic atmosphere, Se-Hoon once again realized the heights that she had reached.

The place an S-rank hero stands is indeed far above reach.

Before the regression, he had seen her so often that he became desensitized to it. Normally, however, S-rank heroes were hard to even get close to, let alone talk to. Furthermore, with her position as the dean of the College of Borsippa, hardly anyone dared to present their business card to her.

In the past, she was just a picky regular to me... but now, she’s a reliable sponsor.

While he was pleased that he had formed a good relationship with her, he was also bitter, feeling the drastic gap between their standings.

Feeling the mixed emotions swirling inside of him, he made eye contact with Eun-Ha, who had been waiting for him.

“Ah.”

Upon seeing Eun-Ha approaching Se-Hoon without hesitation, people reflexively stepped to make way, leaving Se-Hoon standing alone.

“...”

Now up close, she silently scanned him from head to toe before asking calmly, “How’s your injury?”

“Ah, yes. I’ve fully recovered now.”

“That’s good to hear.”

Though her response sounded emotionless, he felt sincerity in it. After all, if there had actually been an issue with his arm, the quality of the equipment he forged in the future would have dropped, and that would understandably be a concern for her, who was always looking for new flavors to taste.

Otherwise, I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t care even if my arms were chopped off...

While he reminded himself that he could never let down his guard around her, the crowd that had gathered began to murmur again.

“So, the rumor about Ryu Eun-Ha sponsoring him is true?”

“That’s incredible.... Of all people, Ryu Eun-Ha...?”

There had been rumors after the auction that she took an interest in him, but as they were merely rumors, no one took them seriously. However, now that there was evidence of the two meeting separately over the weekend, the story changed.

This news was so big that it would spread not only within Babel but also outside of it. Noticing the crowd’s reaction, both of them looked at each other nonchalantly.

“Shall we go?”

“Let’s.”

Neither Se-Hoon nor Eun-Ha was the type to be delicate enough to care about such needless reactions. Ignoring the stares from around them, they headed straight for one of the gates.

Beep-

[Student Lee Se-Hoon. You have not been authorized to enter the D-class Danver Zone.]

When he brought his student ID close, a hologram appeared in midair, denying him permission. Then, Eun-Ha presented her own ID.

Beep-

“I will accompany him.”

[Dean Ryu Eun-Ha. Escort to D-class Danger Zone confirmed.]

The gate finally opened. Walking through the passage, a blue portal, large enough for ten adults to enter simultaneously, materialized, revealing its interior.

Examining the landscape shown on the other side, Eun-Ha warned Se-Hoon.

“You might feel a bit queasy; try to stay focused.”

Following Eun-Ha, who went through the portal first, Se-Hoon took a step inside.

Whoosh-

With a single step, he felt an odd sensation, like he had traversed a long distance instantly. The peculiar feeling from the distortion of distance unique to these portals made him frown.

This damn unpleasant feeling is still the same...

It might be due to his body being younger, but it seemed worse than before. Shaking off the lingering sensations, he quickly stepped through the portal with Eun-Ha.

“It’s still night here.”

“Yes. There are still five hours left until the sun rises here.”

While the terminal, enclosed by a giant barrier, was brightly lit, the D-class Danger Area beyond, Mount Silver Moon, was pitch-black.

So Wurgen Kruger’s artifact is somewhere in here...

He had arrived on the mountain earlier than before the regression, but he still wasn’t sure if the artifact would be there. As he looked on with a mix of hope and worry, Eun-Ha spoke up.

“Let me check your equipment first.”

With a slightly stern expression, Eun-Ha continued, “Please show me the equipment you’ll be wearing today.”

Hearing her request, Se-Hoon took off his coat to show the equipment he was wearing.

His weapon was the Five-Flame Sword sheathed in the Flaming Scabbard he had forged during the entrance exam. Armor-wise, he wore the standard combat uniform provided by the academy, with extra light armor covering his vital points.

It might look like he just threw on some armor over workout clothes, but in reality, it was equivalent to wearing two or three layers of steel armor.

Though it’s practically nothing against tough enemies...

But he thought that shouldn’t be a big problem since it would be difficult to go toe-to-toe against tough enemies in his current state, and Eun-Ha was with him.

However—

“As expected, your armor is inadequate.”

Disapproving of his armor, she tapped her void pocket like she had been expecting it.

“Excuse me.”

Without waiting for him to respond, she pulled out a black cube from her void pocket and immediately pressed it against his body.

Click! Ka-chunk.

The black cube split into pieces like a puzzle being disassembled and quickly molded itself around his body, taking the form of armor. From a distance, it looked as sleek and sharp as a suit.

Surprised by how seamlessly it felt like a second skin, he checked its information message.

[Shadow Matter Armor]

[Tier: Hero] [Quality: Perfect]

[Armor made using the darkness attribute material, shadow matter.

It automatically adjusts to fit the shape of the wearer’s body and disperses impacts into surrounding shadows.

*The armor’s shape adjusts to the wearer’s body.

*Impacts on the armor can be dispersed into connected shadows

*Enables the use of the skill ‘Shadow Hedgehog’]

Armor made from shadow matter... she really did put some thought into this.

The armor didn’t interfere with his physical capabilities, fitting the purpose of extermination practice well, and its automatic response to attacks increased his safety.

The fact that its performance seemed as if it were custom-made for today prompted his curiosity.

“You didn’t buy this just for me, did you?”

“It was a gift I received and never used; I had been storing it away I realized it seemed suitable for today. It fits well, as expected,” she explained, seeming pleased with his fully armed state.

He looked back down at the armor.

This must have been something she wasn’t keen on keeping.

He knew that she wouldn’t easily hand over something she valued or planned to use. So the ease with which she gave it away implied it wasn’t up to her standards or wasn’t something she wanted.

Since she said it was a gift, someone must have attempted to gain her favor... but it backfired due to their lack of tact.

Even if she had a taste for equipment, blatant offerings would be off-putting. And since she was someone meticulous in this aspect, she wouldn’t have appreciated the gesture.

Maybe if it was well forged... but that’s also not the case.

It was simply something made in the shape of armor using shadow matter. To put it nicely, the creator had stayed faithful to the material; to put it bluntly, the creator lacked the skill and ambition to properly utilize the material.

“Such a waste,” he thought, examining the armor.

Now ready to start the extermination practice, Eun-Ha instructed, “We’ll start moving now. Please follow me.”

“Ah, yes. Understood.”

Following her, he looked at the barrier entrance in the distance, which was blocked by a blue electromagnetic field. From it, sparks flew intermittently, presenting a quite intimidating sight to those seeing it for the first time.

While they walked toward the entrance, she explained about the barrier, “This is a hextech device that blocks any demonic aura from passing through. It’s harmless to humans, so there’s no need to worry.”

With that short explanation, she crossed the electromagnetic field with Se-Hoon following right behind.

Zap!

Blue sparks ran over his entire body.

Although it simply felt like static electricity was sweeping through him, if there had been any demonic aura inside him, like a monster or a demon, it would have triggered a reaction and fried his insides.

It’s still as deadly as ever...

Having safely crossed the electromagnetic field, he turned his gaze toward a forest, where the wind eerily blew. At a glance, it was just a forest on a gloomy mountain, but there was one key difference.

“The atmosphere of Danger Zones is mixed with not only human but also demonic auras. Your body might reject it at first, so let it adjust slowly.”

With just a few breaths, his lungs tingled and his body flinched. Feeling how sensitive his body was to such a small amount of demonic aura, he chuckled.

I guess it really is a new body.

Though he was mentally accustomed to the contaminated atmosphere of Danger Zones, his body instinctively shrank back as this was its first exposure. However, that strange sensation was brief. Soon, synching with his mind, his body began skillfully filtering out the demonic aura and the feeling of foreignness dissipated.

“It seems I’m adjusted now; how do I look?”

Although it hadn’t even been a minute since they entered, he was already naturally dealing with the demonic aura. The sight made Eun-Ha’s eyes widen slightly.

“Impressive. It should be challenging at first, no matter how talented...”

“I have a bit of a knack for this sort of thing.”

Even if he had a knack for it, adapting in less than a minute was an abnormal feat, but Eun-Ha didn’t make a big deal out of it.

“Excellent.”

She knew of his extraordinary talent already, and being a genius who had achieved many such abnormal feats herself, she quickly accepted it.

“Then we’ll move on now.”

Leading the way again, they entered deeper into Mount Silver Moon.

As they traveled, a chilling wind laden with demonic aura blew. The absence of even insect sounds made their footsteps echo, and it constantly felt like something in the darkness was watching them.

Observing the eerie atmosphere created by the demonic aura, Eun-Ha spoke up calmly.

“The monsters inhabiting this place are all nocturnal. They have a keen sense of smell and high intelligence, and they are capable of scouting and coordinating attacks. There are two methods of hunting them: attacking the monsters’ lairs directly during the day and defeating the monsters that roam at night.”

Glancing around, she naturally changed direction.

“And at times like now, in the middle of the night, we could stealthily ambush and defeat them one by one or sweep through them as they come. Naturally, the former is the usual choice.”

Suddenly stopping after they walked for a while, she stared at the bushes.

“Today, we are here for your extermination practice, so I plan to not intervene unless necessary. How do you wish to proceed?”

Now done laying out the basics, she left the decision to him.

Responding to the clear question, he stared straight ahead like her and stepped forward.

“Since I have a reliable supervisor, I’ll go for a frontal assault.”

“I’ll reiterate that I won’t intervene unless it’s a dangerous situation. That armor should prevent you from getting seriously injured, but if I deem such a situation is likely to occur, I will immediately halt the practice.”

She clearly set some boundaries, wary of how he could be overreliant on the armor’s capabilities. Considering her nature, that didn’t seem like an empty threat.

“It’s fine,” he calmly said in response to her warning.

Even though his physical capabilities were utterly disappointing, he wasn’t concerned that he would struggle against the monsters here.

“Okay...”

She nodded and stepped back, letting him take the lead.

In the quiet forest, the presence and gazes of monsters silently dispersed around them, beginning to encircle them. And the moment Se-Hoon, pretending to be unaware, walked right into the tightening encirclement—

Growl-!

Black wolves burst from the bushes, baring their white teeth and charging in unison.

These were the E-rank monsters, Silver Wolves, that inhabited Mount Silver Moon. Though they were the weakest in this area, their close-knit coordinated attacks made them a formidable foe for novices.

Eight of them... perhaps that’s a bit too many.

Although the Shadow Matter Armor would prevent injuries, the unpredictability of real combat remained a concern. Getting ready to intervene at any moment, especially if Se-Hoon were to injure his hand, Eun-Ha prepared herself.

At that moment, the Flaming Scabbard on Se-Hoon’s waist began to stir with fire mana.

And when his right hand gripped the handle of the Five-Flame Sword tightly, a burst of multicolored flames erupted in a crescent shape, slicing through the bodies of the Silver Wolves.

In the blink of an eye, the bodies of the Silver wolves had been split in half, tumbling miserably on the ground and spreading a burnt smell from the charred cut surfaces.

Eun-Ha’s eyes widened in surprise at the sight.

To achieve such a thing, he waited until all eight Silver Wolves were perfectly within range before he unleashed his sword technique. It wasn’t just his technique and patience that were remarkable; his profound understanding of the weapon he wielded was also nearly perfect.

Impressive...

His combat style, full of the traits of a blacksmith, piqued her interest more than any other hero’s. She silently admired him and the Five-Flame Sword he held.

“...”

“...”

Suddenly, an awkward sound broke the silence of the forest.