Chapter 34

[Translator – Angel Dust][Proofreader – Prototype]

Chapter 34: Operations (3)

The woman, who seemed on the verge of flipping the table moments ago, surprisingly sat down obediently.

Team leader Lee Jincheol and the appraiser he brought from his side looked worried, as if wondering what to make of this situation. Kim Junghyun’s expression turned serious as he locked eyes with me.

The look in his eyes did not indicate to ask why I was provoking her.

It was a look that seemed to question if there was anything wrong with the artifact.

Not for a single moment did he doubt my appraisal abilities. He believed there must be a reason for my sudden behavior. If there was nothing wrong with the artifact, I wouldn’t provoke others like this.

“All right. Feeling confident, are we? Do you see anything strange about the artifact?”

“Well, it’s not that there’s anything strange… It’s just that I’m wondering if you guys properly appraised the artifact. We came here to help, but if you’re going to disrespect Hunter Kim Junghyun like this, wouldn’t that make you lose the will to help?”

“Tsk, Haruka. You’re the one who crossed the line first. Whether our appraiser wears a mask or not, it shouldn’t matter from your perspective, right?”

Jincheol, who had been quietly observing, intervened. He didn’t want to be dragged around by the Japanese like this.

Already, Korea had to bear significant losses in the negotiations for support in the Spiter Colony Assault Operation. It was hard to watch these guys asking for more on their own terms.

“…That’s not for you to judge. We haven’t properly appraised it? Japan is considered to be superior in appraisal skills compared to Korea. Does what he say over there make sense?”

This time, she spoke with a mocking tone, and Jincheol and Dr. Yun’s expressions stiffened at her words.

“People who are so arrogant often can’t see beyond the clouds and can’t even imagine the existence of the universe.”

“Your self-confidence is admirable. All right. You, Yutaro, and the appraisers from Korea. Let’s evaluate this artifact, and let’s see who evaluated its value more accurately. If we win, I’ll give you one of the items from my collection. What will you wager?”

“I’ll wager this dagger.”

I took out an old dagger from my waist and infused it with magic, unfolding a pocket dimension.

Blue mana sparks flew as the dagger, piercing through the air, opened the pocket dimension.

People sighed in amazement at the sight. Haruka nodded, seemingly impressed.

“You have an interesting item. Fine. That should be enough. I’ll show you what I have briefly. Take a good look.”

As she turned the frame of the watch she held in her hand slightly, a hologram appeared.

When she pushed the air with her finger, several items appeared. It was her collection.

I smiled inwardly as I observed her flipping through the list.

‘…Huh, it seems like the heavens keep throwing good fortune my way.’

I saw an ancient manuscript in the collection. And confirming that its author was Arcana through insight, I nodded.

Had she acquired Arcana’s legacy? If so, it made sense for her to easily show the already devalued ancient manuscript.

But as someone who knew how difficult it was to obtain that legacy, I was confident that the likelihood of that was low.

I observed her carefully as she flipped through the list. Her gaze, voice, and expressions subtly changed with each artifact or artifact that appeared. She seemed to react more to the ones that she didn’t care much about, rather than the ones that were truly valuable.

Even when the ancient manuscript of Arcana appeared, she didn’t bat an eyelid, as if implying she didn’t care about such books.

‘Just the fact that she put that book in her collection means she understands its value to some extent.’

If she truly knew its value, she wouldn’t have shown it off like this, but she must know something about it.

This fact was quite intriguing. Whether it was her or someone around her, someone had interpreted the contents of that ancient manuscript to some extent.

“Take it out.”

At Haruka’s command, Atsumasa untied the pendant hidden in his T-shirt and placed it on the table. Then, she looked at him as if to entrust him with it.

Yutaro, with a confident expression that seemed to say he couldn’t lose.

“The name of the artifact is Voice of Enchantment. It as an Grade-A artifact, stimulating and seducing monsters with mana waves emanating from the green light crystal embedded in the pendant’s center. Based on the high curvature and fluidity of the internal mana circuit, it appeared to be an artifact created in the early B.CD 3000s. And…”

As his explanation continued without pause, Dr. Yun and others nodded in admiration, uttering quiet expressions of amazement.

After finishing all his explanations and smiling as if to ask, ‘How was my performance?’ Yutaro shrugged his shoulders.

Indeed, he had the skills to back up such confidence. Judging solely by the appraisal results, he was almost at the level of a grandmaster, despite looking barely in his early thirties.

‘I can see why they brought him here.’

Japan has a lot of talent like this. The choice was made to show off the young appraiser’s skills.

But as clearly as I saw the advantages, I also saw the disadvantages.

“I heard Yutaro’s evaluation well. I mostly agree with it, but let me add a few more details…”

Dr. Yun meticulously pointed out the minute details that Yutaro had missed or failed to explain.

They were the flaws I had noticed.

“If you look here, you can see unidentified characters engraved on the edge of the pendant. You might think it’s just a sign of ageing or simple decoration, but if you look at records of ancient magical civilizations, you’ll find similar forms of ancient languages.”

Listening to him, I inwardly admired him. It was a moment when I could understand why this person had come here.

‘That’s something I could never catch in just a few dozen ancient historical records.’

With his glasses pushed up, he continued to discuss other minor details and concluded his evaluation.

In fact, there were just questions, nothing was resolved. There was no certainty about what that ancient language was, whether it was correct or not.

But even finding that out was the skill of an appraiser.

“Now it’s my turn.”

With a look as if to say, “Go ahead and blabber.” Haruka glanced at me.

The others remain silent, waiting for Ugil to speak up.

I grabbed the chain part of the necklace and began to speak.

“Understanding the history of ancient magical civilizations isn’t easy. That’s why we must comprehend and memorize a lot of information, while also synthesizing all that knowledge to create new insights into the information we haven’t discovered yet.”

“What’s with the sudden lecture? Are you trying to teach the people here something?”

Haruka chuckled.

In truth, I spoke like this because I could see the passion of the appraisers present in this room.

The way an appraiser looks at the object in front of them, the gentle touch, the lips that close in contemplation, the time spent deciphering… Just by observing their opinions, you could feel their passion and depth.

I felt that passion and sincerity from both Yutaro and Dr. Yun.

Even in appraising a single item, if such advice could give them some insight, it was worth the momentary inconvenience.

And such things would accumulate to further advance the field of appraisal.

While aspiring to be the best appraiser, I didn’t intend to climb to the top alone.

This was one of the principles I had learned from my master. Thanks to this principle, I had learned a lot from him.

“You might find something valuable here too,” he lightly dismissed Haruka’s words and continued his explanation.

“The core of the artifact is indeed in this part where the essence is embedded, but as we move into the B.CD 3000s, the technology of mana circuits rapidly advanced, and even slight differences could cause designs to collapse and effects to change from their intended purpose. What you overlooked is the effect of this chain.”

My eyes widened. At the same time, the various waves emanating from the pendant vividly unfolded before me.

The waves emanating from the pendant and its chain rotated chaotically, creating intricate patterns that seemed to distort. It felt like bending space and time.

This was the result of the legacy obtained through [Mana Wavelength and Substances].

Initially, I could see waves with my insight, but now it was completely different.

With no need for insight, mana consumption also drastically decreased, and interpreting the waves became more intuitively understandable.

“You mean this chain?”

Dr. Yun asked.

“Yes, these chains made up of overlapping small rings regulate the mana waves emanating from the pendant. The spiral line engraved in a whirlpool-like pattern in the center of the pendant. You might think of it as Ellanoi’s ‘Infinite Spiral,’ but you’d be wrong. The real Infinite Spiral is the form of the waves created by this pendant.”

The reason why Japanese appraisers confirmed this as an artifact was probably because of the Infinite Spiral engraved on the pendant.

Along with the effect of emitting waves that seduce monsters, there was also the Infinite Spiral that artisans of the Ellanoi race must include in their works.

But that was a mere coincidence. The line carved on the pendant was just an auxiliary device to turn the form of simple waves into a real Infinite Spiral.

The real evidence to confirm that this was the work of the Ellanoi wasn’t visible, it lay in the form of those waves that couldn’t be seen.

I infused mana into the pendant.

Then, the spiral waves rotating infinitely spread through space.

At the same time, when some parts of the chain were surrounded by mana to disrupt the flow, the waves began to subtly distort.

“Wha… What…?”

“What in the…? Was Director Haruka always this beautiful?”

As a faint voice, seemingly flowing from somewhere, whispered in their ears, Yutaro and Dr. Yun’s pupils dilated, as if they were bewitched. Sᴇaʀᴄh the n0vᴇl(ꜰ)ire.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

“What do you think you’re doing!”

Sensing something amiss, Haruka, Kim Junghyun, and Lee Jincheol resisted the mental interference with their mana.

Clang!

As Haruka drew her sword to strike my wrist, Kim Junghyun and Lee Jincheol simultaneously intervened to stop her.

“What on earth are you doing?”

“You keep crossing the line, Haruka.”

Kim Junghyun’s eyes blazed like fire. In contrast, Lee Jincheol’s expression, with a gun pointed at Haruka’s head, was as cold as ice.

I released the mana in response to the increasingly serious atmosphere, dispersing the waves.

Then, Yutaro and Dr. Yun regained their composure.

“What was I just doing?”

“What in the world was that?”

“Mesmerization. It’s that allure the monsters experience.”

I calmly remarked as I put down the necklace.

Haruka, now calmed from her excitement, shot me a fierce glare before sheathing her sword and sitting back down.

“This is outrageous! Humans shouldn’t be able to hear the voice…”

Yutaro, who had been protesting, suddenly fell silent. He clearly heard it just now. That ghostly voice.

He briefly wondered if I had used magic, but there was no way the three hunters present here wouldn’t have noticed.

And instinctively, he knew. That voice that whispered in his ear just now was emitted by the artifact.

“An artifact, as remarkable as its functions, can become a bomb if you don’t know how to use it properly.”

Haruka’s expression hardened gravely.

The flat, unemotional voice felt like a loud slap to the back of her head.

For the first time, her pupils fluttered slightly.

“Director Haruka of the Sword Dragon Guild. What kind of confidence did you have to trash the appraisal and go home?”

The sudden interrogation left her unable to respond easily.

“I… I…”

“If this place didn’t exist, the Salvation Korean Special Forces would have proceeded with the operation relying solely on this artifact, and if such an abrupt incident occurred, they wouldn’t have been able to handle it.”

“We’ve never had such an incident before.”

Rather than apologizing, she only preserved her own pride, causing my voice to become even colder.

“Can you be sure that won’t happen in the future? Haruka. Have they always indulged such reckless behavior over there? Is this the behavior of an S-rank hunter?”

Even with that sarcasm, she couldn’t do anything but blush.

Grrr.

Looking at her stubborn expression, I raised one corner of my mouth.

“No, or was it intentional… something like that?”

At my words, she glared at me with widened eyes.

“What nonsense is that!”

“Then answer me. Is this situation because of your incompetence, or did the Japanese Defense Force, who knew all this, deliberately deploy this dangerous artifact in the Korean operation?”

[Translator – Angel Dust]

[Proofreader – Prototype]