"Hoo..."
I entered the barrier and lay down.
It had been a while since I'd done some fieldwork.
Maybe because it was a snowy plain without blizzards, but even after just a few hours, my stamina was draining fast.
Kancho trudged over through the snow and lay down beside me.
His fur was soaked and matted from pushing through the drifts.
"My body's feeling super heavyyy."
It looked incredibly weighed down by the wet fur.
Good thing it wasn't a thousand tons.
"How about some hot cocoa!"
"Thanks, Momo."
"Sounds greattt."
I propped myself up halfway and sipped the cocoa Momo handed me.
The warmth spreading through me made my body relax completely.
"Kancho, dry off your fur a bit."
"Got ittt. Gotta lighten up a littlett."
Dark and Seira joined us soon after, sitting by the campfire.
As expected from natural powerhouses.
They showed no signs of fatigue after all that heavy labor.
'Still, we've tidied up a lot.'
I glanced outside the barrier.
When we first arrived, it was swallowed in shadows and looked utterly gloomy.
Now, sunlight was pouring in.
Thanks to the iceberg that had blocked the sun being gone.
The temperature and overall vibe felt much warmer and cozier.
"Captain. Need to blow up more rocks?"
"Nah. This should be enough."
"Goodtt. Gotta make more claytt."
Kancho shook out his empty bag.
It was a mini crossbody, so it couldn't hold much clay.
'That's why he had to hustle to make more after each mini-gun shot.'
I pictured Kancho quietly molding clay in the corner.
A pang hit me!
I'd been so focused on climbing the tower that I hadn't paid enough attention to Kancho.
The kid was struggling with limited bag space, and here I was, splurging on a 200-million-won motorcycle and grinning like an idiot.
Time for some reflection.
"Just hang in there a bit, Kancho. I'll get you a subspace bag. One that's not too heavy to carry."
"Can it hold lots of clayyy?"
"Tons!"
"Awesomeee. Now I can blow up even more stufftt!"
I gave him a vigorous pat, then crossed my arms.
And let out a low hum.
The groundwork was pretty much done.
We could block the swirling blizzards with Camella's barrier, assuming that held.
Now, what remained was finding resilient seeds that could sprout even in this snowy field.
"Hmm."
Camella, pipe in mouth, walked over to the wall.
She tilted her head for a while, as if trying to recall something.
Which meant she was puffing out an enormous amount of smoke today.
By the time the area was practically a fog village, Camella spoke up.
"I once saw flowers grown in a blizzard. But I can't remember when or where. There was definitely a family that did it for generations."
"Elia. Got any potions for better memory?"
"If I did, I'd take it first. Lately, I've been forgetting things a lot?"
"That's not something a potion can fixxx. Granny. It's the natural order, so accept ittt."
Elia fiddled with Kancho's head.
"This little guy is pretty amazing. He's got this charm that makes you want to pat him every time."
"Wanna get blown uppp?"
While Kancho and Elia bickered.
Jin-hyuk stood up.
"We've done all we can for now, so let's head out and look for seeds. And there's one more place worth checking."
He pulled out the Yodel Compass from his pocket.
No need to come back to the 12th floor until we got the seeds.
Perfect timing to visit the Yodel Forest.
No idea what new feature it'd add, but the Yodel Compass had never let him down.
"Almost forgottt! We really gotta go nowtt! Toto Gramps' discipline must be slippingtt!"
"We'll head there as soon as we get a ticket."
I stretched lazily and hit the exit button.
Farming's done for today.
[Exiting the 12th floor of the Tower of Myths.]
Kansai Airport, Japan.
Cheon Se-yeon, hat pulled low, exited the airport.
She headed toward a nearby logistics warehouse.
Ring ring.
"Yes. Team Leader Jin Yun-ho. I've arrived."
They might have noticed already. If there's a connection between the Onmyoji group and the Japanese government.
"Probably. I went through immigration openly. But so what? I'm here on vacation."
Se-yeon shrugged.
She actually hoped they'd noticed and come to her.
It'd save her the trouble of hunting them down.
Are you carrying the talismans Jin-hyuk gave you?
"Of course."
She glanced down.
Thanks to Jin-hyuk's generous supply, she'd stuck them on her arms, legs, neck, shoulders—everywhere possible.
The more good talismans, the better.
She walked on, getting briefed on the basics.
A car parked in a shady spot flashed its lights.
Se-yeon squinted and smiled.
"Yes. Just linked up. I'll contact you from Kyoto."
She hung up and approached the car.
"Hunter Cheon Se-yeon. Long time no see."
"Long time indeed. Hunter Kim Hyun-woong. Hunter Lee Kyung-ho's here too."
"You know me. I don't like Japan much. Can't miss a chance to smash things up."
Grade 2 hunters in the 80th-floor clears: Kim Hyun-woong and Lee Kyung-ho.
They'd been pulled from Busan and Daegu as the main force for this raid.
"Se-yeon unnie!"
"Oh, Yun-jeong!"
Lee Yun-jeong dashed out and hugged Cheon Se-yeon.
A standout Grade 2 hunter, she was the star of the Jeonju Hunter Bureau.
Se-yeon looked them over again.
Normally, main forces get exempted from ops like this.
But given the gravity, they'd stepped up big time.
"Only one Grade 1: Hunter Cheon Se-yeon."
"Can't be helped. Grade 1s are already on missions, and official bureau Grade 1s need host country approval for entry."
A foreign nation's registered weapon entering the country.
No nation would welcome that, obviously.
If Se-yeon weren't a freelancer, she'd be twiddling her thumbs watching this op from afar.
"What about Kang-seok oppa? He's a freelancer, so he could come. Not showing up at a time like this?"
"Kang-seok's got issues. Trouble with his old mentor from childhood. Anyway."
Se-yeon held out her bag.
Yun-jeong took it, puzzled, and opened it.
"T-Talismans? Unnie! You into weird stuff now?"
"It's a long story. Everyone take plenty—no exceptions. This is life-or-death, so don't brush it off."
Yun-jeong nodded, grabbed hers, and passed the bag around.
No more questions.
Se-yeon rarely emphasized things this much. There had to be a reason.
"Shall we go? To Kyoto."
"Hop in. I'll drive."
"Thanks."
Cheon Se-yeon and the Grade 2 hunters boarded.
As the engine started, the waiting vehicles behind lit up.
About thirty hunters from various branches.
"Let's roll. Time to hunt some oni."
With Se-yeon's car in the lead, the convoy moved out.
The Kansai oni who'd boldly rampaged in Korea without fear.
Off to Kyoto to catch them.
Spacious officetel terrace.
Jin-hyuk, drenched in sweat from back-to-back training with Seira and Dark, widened his eyes.
"Staring hard won't make alchemy any better?"
"It's my way of focusing?"
Learning never ends.
After sword and chain practice, physical training, now alchemy class.
He drew the transmutation circle following Elia's demo.
Then placed a flash potion and a small explosive clay on it.
"Now channel mana in. Stay alert from here? If it fails, something nasty might come out."
"Nasty like?"
"A bomb that blows off the alchemist's wrist?"
"Oh. Focus, focus."
What he was making was like a flashbang—explodes and blinds enemies.
"Visualize what you want in your head. Be as detailed as possible. Knowing how it works helps even more. I recommend keeping your eyes open? Good for concentration, but you can't close them every time in battle."
"Okay."
He focused again and poured mana into the circle.
The explosive clay and flash potion mixed in a blue glow.
Elia subtly backed away.
With those materials, better to keep distance.
She didn't want her head turning into a conch from exploding clay.
A burst of light from the circle formed a round orb atop it.
'Did it work?'
He swallowed dryly and picked up the orb.
Tossed it lightly into the air.
Slash!
Sliced it with his sword.
The orb exploded softly, scattering flashes around.
"Aaaah! Momo's eyes!!"
"Momooo!!"
He was definitely in the living room gaming with Kancho?!
Tried to pull off alchemy, but ended up pulling off Momo instead.
Elia scooped up the rolling Momo.
"No need to worry? When sight's gone, other senses sharpen."
"No! Fix my eyes quick!"
Elia chuckled at the panicking Momo.
The elf had a mischievous side sometimes.
A satisfied smile spread on Jin-hyuk's face.
Sorry for the rolling Momo, but alchemy success.
"Hmm, not bad at all?"
"Decent, right?"
"More than decent—excellent? This chubby roller's proof."
Momo's eyes were swollen from all the rubbing.
"Momo can see now."
The tiny thumb-up, and Momo scooted back to the living room.
Decided dangerous spectating was over.
Ding!
Maybe because he got the alchemy master's approval.
[Unique Trait Star's Alchemy Basics level up! Current level: 3]
[Transmutation circles successfully used once can now be drawn instantly at will!]
[Activation and completion time for circles reduced!]
Even the trait leveled up nicely.
'Niceee.'
He pumped his fist in the air.
Instant circle completion.
No more chalk or pencil scribbling each time.
'This'll be usable.'
Limited to a few circles for instant draw, but deployable in real combat—that's huge.
While Jin-hyuk hummed cheerfully, reviewing what he'd just learned.
Star's Alchemist Elia Forsen quietly smiled.
'A rewarding disciple.'
Not just fast learning.
Exceptional at applying what he learns.
That flash orb was Jin-hyuk's combo idea.
Even to close-combat novice Elia, it seemed handy in melee.
"Hmm."
Leaning on the railing, Elia propped her chin.
Whoever it would be, it'd be tricky.
Facing our master, that is.
"Elia. One more transmutation before bed?"
Riding the momentum for a new idea.
Ring ring ring.
The intercom buzzed.
Huh? It's 4 AM?
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T/N:
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