Solo Resurrection

Chapter 76 – First Meeting (2)

“Home run!”

Choi Min-jun flew through the air at an incredible speed and crashed into the opposite wall of the conference room in just 1 second.

“You have to finish it properly!”

He didn’t think Choi Min-jun would have survived this attack.

However, the finishing touch should always be certain.

Quickly running towards where Choi Min-jun had collided, he soon saw him writhing among the concrete debris.

“This one is quite tough.”

“Ugh, kuh… You… Y-you’ll regret this…”

“Regret? What regret? Planning to meet me in hell for revenge? Adios! No need, keep it to yourself. Hahaha!”

Kang Hyeon imitated a famous commercial and laughed heartily as if it was really funny.

“Well then, farewell.”

However, as if nothing had happened, he immediately put on a serious face and raised Ogre’s hammer.

“Sayonara.”

-Kwang!

The hammer was struck down with full force, and dust rose with a thunderous sound.

“Damn… What now?”

But Kang Hyeon’s expression twisted with irritation. It was because of the unidentified masked person standing in front of him.

“I don’t know who you are, but put down the man you’re holding. I was in the middle of a whack-a-mole game, you know?”

“…”

The masked person remained silent despite Kang Hyeon’s request.

‘Damn. My magic power is running out too… This guy can’t be dealt with just Ogre’s hammer.’

In a very brief moment, he snatched Choi Min-jun at an incredible speed. It was an action impossible without excellent athletic ability and boldness.

‘I have to finish him off here somehow. Even if it costs me my life…’

Having made up his mind, Kang Hyeon put away Ogre’s hammer. Then he drew out the spare sword he had been carrying.

“Give him back while I’m asking nicely!”

Kang Hyeon quickly rushed forward and swung his sword.

The masked person’s and Kang Hyeon’s swords became entangled in a messy clash.

‘Damn! What kind of guy is this?!’

After clashing swords just a few times, Kang Hyeon sensed it.

‘I’m no match for him in swordsmanship.’

He felt an even higher wall than when he had clashed with An Yu-seong.

In his current injured state, this wasn’t an opponent he could fight.

-Chaeng!

Kang Hyeon swung his sword widely and took a step back.

‘Haa, it’s not a technique I should use in actual combat yet, but…’

Kang Hyeon’s magic power began to rise and infuse into the longsword. The longsword emitted a bluish light and burst into bright flames.

“…!”

For a moment, the masked person’s eyes widened at the sight.

“Don’t be scared. Here I come.”

There was no time or leisure left now. Kang Hyeon ran at full speed, prepared to cut down everything with this one strike.

‘What the-!?’

Suddenly, magic power began to surge in the masked person’s sword as well.

It was much more refined and sharp magic power than Kang Hyeon’s.

-Chaeng! Kwang!

Their swords clashed.

At the same time, magic power exploded, and a thunderous sound rang out.

Realizing his opponent was still intact, Kang Hyeon swung his sword relentlessly.

-Cheng, Kwang! Chaeng, Kwang! Kwang!

Kang Hyeon squeezed out his last remaining strength and attacked frantically.

However, no matter which path he swung his sword, no matter how powerfully he swung it, the enemy was receiving all attacks.

‘Where on earth did this monster come from?!’

Clearly, he was overwhelming in physical ability. He was faster and stronger. But all his attacks were futilely blocked by the enemy’s hands.

The enemy was either narrowly avoiding Kang Hyeon’s attacks or skillfully deflecting them.

“Damn it! Just die already!”

-Seugek!

As he was swinging his sword frantically, finally, the enemy’s attack flew through Kang Hyeon’s opening.

“Kugh!”

A sword strike that accurately penetrated through the gap in his armor torn during the battle.

Kang Hyeon smiled at the burning pain creeping up his side.

‘This is nothing.’

Kang Hyeon swung his sword without hesitation.

“Die!”

Naturally, for the first time, confusion appeared in the eyes of the masked person who thought Kang Hyeon would falter from the pain.

“Damn!”

However, the attack narrowly grazed the enemy’s arm and passed by.

“Shit…”

At the same time, the blue magic power swirling around Kang Hyeon’s sword extinguished, and a strong sense of exhaustion swept over his entire body.

Finally, all his magic power had run out.

“It’s not over yet!”

Even though his magic power was depleted, Kang Hyeon charged again.

The masked person easily dodged that sword and swung his sword at Kang Hyeon’s leg again.

-Seuek!

It was a wound that should have healed quickly normally, but now that his magic power was gone, blood continued to flow.

Kang Hyeon moved, limping with his leg muscle cut.

The masked person looked at him coldly.

“What are you doing? Not finishing it?”

“…”

The masked person no longer pressed Kang Hyeon.

“Hey! Where are you going!”

He simply left the conference room, taking Choi Min-jun with him.

“Aaaaargh! Damn it-!”

Kang Hyeon’s scream filled with rage echoed through the conference room.

***

Ippotranslation

***

“Good work.”

“You were alive?”

“I’m capable enough to protect myself at least.”

Kang Hyeon chuckled at Shin Tae-gil’s words.

“It’s a mess.”

The battle ended in victory.

But it was a victory full of wounds.

Countless casualties.

Most of them were high-ranking officials of the country, and even the President was among them.

“Let’s clean your face first.”

Kang Hyeon received the towel Shin Tae-gil handed him and rubbed his face vigorously.

However, the dried blood didn’t come off easily.

“Ah, I feel a bit better. Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“By the way, what are you going to do now?”

“About what?”

“We’ve made such a mess. Won’t you get fired, Mr. Shin Tae-gil?”

“Is my job the issue right now?”

“I guess not. Haha.”

Shin Tae-gil had a somewhat enigmatic expression. He looked like someone who had given up everything, but at times he also looked like a mad person burning with anger.

“So you were all gathered here. I see.”

“Brother Choi Dong-woo.”

Choi Dong-woo, walking over with a tired look, broke the silence between the two.

“You’ve worked hard too, little brother Kang Hyeon.”

Choi Dong-woo smiled bitterly at the sight of Kang Hyeon covered in blood.

“We all have.”

“Did you let that guy escape?”

“Yes. I should have gotten proper revenge this time.”

“Sigh… I wanted to chase after him too, but I couldn’t bring myself to leave the people here.”

“What can we do? Next time we meet, I’ll really have to flatten him.”

“Hahaha! Well, with that hammer of yours, nothing should be impossible.”

Choi Dong-woo, who was laughing loudly as if it was funny, suddenly turned serious.

“By the way, do you know the identity of that masked person at the end?”

“I guess you saw it too, brother.”

“With all that commotion, how could I not?”

“I don’t know who it was, but their swordsmanship was incredible.”

Kang Hyeon smiled bitterly, remembering the swordsmanship that protected Choi Min-jun until the end.

“Don’t blame yourself too much. You did your best.”

“Save the consolation.”

“Hahaha, that’s right. That’s more like you.”

“…”

“But you know what? That person… Didn’t they seem like a woman?”

Kang Hyeon fell into thought at Choi Dong-woo’s words.

‘A woman…?’

Certainly, although they were wearing clothes that concealed their figure, their build didn’t seem particularly large. Moreover, the face hidden behind the mask was also quite small.

“A strong person capable of stopping you, a woman, and someone not present here. Doesn’t it remind you of someone?”

“Han Se-yeon…”

“Let’s stop there.”

Shin Tae-gil, who had been listening, stood up.

“We’re not even sure if that masked person was a woman, let alone if it was Han Se-yeon.”

“That’s right. I know that too, but…”

“So such speculation among ourselves is meaningless. It might even have negative consequences.”

“…”

“I’ll look into matters regarding Han Se-yeon separately, so how about we leave it at that for now?”

“Alright.”

Despite Shin Tae-gil’s words, Kang Hyeon’s expression remained troubled.

‘Han Se-yeon… Han Se-yeon…’

Kang Hyeon had witnessed her fighting up close before.

On that day when he faced death for the first time after the tutorial.

Kang Hyeon had fallen into self-loathing watching Han Se-yeon’s swordsmanship as she weaved through the Orcs.

‘Was it similar? It seemed alike, but…’

He had also fought with Han Se-yeon in the Forest of Benandi.

But that was a long time ago compared to now.

Kang Hyeon’s head became increasingly complicated.

‘Sigh, I don’t know.’

In the end, Kang Hyeon gave up thinking about it.

Shin Tae-gil would look into the masked person in detail. Besides, now wasn’t the time to worry about such things.

“Hey, Mr. Shin Tae-gil.”

“Yes.”

“Are there any renowned item makers or repairmen?”

“Why are you suddenly asking about that?”

In response to Shin Tae-gil’s question, Kang Hyeon silently held out Bilgein’s longsword.

“Hmm…”

Shin Tae-gil looked flustered at the sight of the completely shattered red longsword.

“Isn’t this the B-grade equipment you received in the tutorial?”

“That’s right.”

“How did it get shattered like this? Equipment of that grade should have basic durability-related functions…”

Shin Tae-gil looked at Kang Hyeon as if he was looking at an ignorant person.

“It just happened while using it… So, do you have someone or not?!”

Kang Hyeon shouted, getting unnecessarily worked up.

“There are some, but… Wouldn’t it be better to get a new weapon?”

“No. I must have this one.”

“Ability users who can craft or repair items are appearing, but it’ll be hard to find someone who can handle B-grade equipment already.”

“Just look for someone, and in the meantime, get me some decent equipment to use as a replacement.”

“You should really do that kind of thing yourself now…”

“How am I supposed to when items don’t drop for me in dungeons?! I’ll look too, so please help me find someone.”

“Sigh, alright.”

Shin Tae-gil shook his head, feeling his already aching head throb even more.

“Puhahaha!”

Just then.

Kang Hyeon turned his head at the sound of laughter coming from beside him.

There was An Yu-seong, looking relatively clean, walking towards them.

“Kang Hyeon. What’s with that look?”

“Don’t start with me. I’m already pissed off.”

Kang Hyeon felt annoyed seeing An Yu-seong, the only one who was clean.

“How come you look so neat? Where have you been playing around?”

“What are you talking about? I was today’s ace.”

“Bullshit.”

At that moment, Kang Hyeon’s eyes met with those of a woman walking behind An Yu-seong.

“You, you are?!”

“The figurine pervert?!”

“What? Brother Kang Hyeon, you know each other?”

***

Ippotranslation

***

After the battle, a devastating scene unfolded. But apart from that, Yoon Na-rae couldn’t control her pounding heart.

‘Perhaps… This man and I might be destined for each other!’

Yoon Na-rae had quite a cute appearance. Naturally, she had received countless confessions.

But her dating experience was zero.

The looks of ordinary people, the abilities of ordinary people, couldn’t satisfy her.

‘This person is different. I must catch him!’

As she was making this resolve internally, she noticed An Yu-seong leaving without a word.

“W-wait a moment!”

“…?”

“How can you leave without saying anything?!”

“I’m going.”

An Yu-seong turned away without lingering after saying just one word. Even that expressionless and cold appearance looked handsome.

“No! Well, I mean…”

“What is it? You want to fight?”

“Ah, no! That’s not it…”

Yoon Na-rae’s cheeks flushed red at his direct words.

Of course, An Yu-seong meant it as an invitation to spar.

“Your name. Tell me.”

“An Yu-seong.”

“I’m Yoon Na-rae.”

“Okay.”

“No, don’t go! Just stop for a moment!”

“Sigh, what do you want? I enjoyed fighting with you, but the fight’s over now and I need to get back to my guild, you know? If you have something to say, say it quickly.”

At Yu-seong’s mention of returning to his guild, Yoon Na-rae’s mind lit up.

‘He has a guild?!’

Currently, she was unaffiliated. If a man of his caliber belonged to a guild, it probably wasn’t an ordinary one.

“Me too! I want to go to the guild too. Is that okay?”

“Sure.”

An Yu-seong answered readily.

Following closely behind him, Yoon Na-rae repeated to herself.

‘Yes. It’s true that I’m following him because I like him… But it’s not just that! Aren’t you curious about what kind of guild a man like that belongs to? It must be some small, unknown elite guild!’

Just then, she heard An Yu-seong laughing from up ahead.

‘Finally…!’

“Figure pervert?!”

“What? You know him too?”

The moment she saw Kang Hyeon, Yoon Na-rae felt like all the puzzle pieces fell into place.

At the same time, her hopes came crashing down.

‘Small elite guild. That familiar face… This man is the figure guy who was being sold next to that pervert!’

Yoon Na-rae, overwhelmed with despair, covered her face with both hands.

‘To think this handsome man is of the same ilk as that pervert…’

“What brings you here?”

“…”

I said,” What is it.”

Yoon Na-rae kept her head down and didn’t answer. Then, An Yu-seong next to her spoke with a smile.

“She’s a woman I fought with. She kept following me after the fight ended.”

“Oh?”

As Kang Hyeon stroked his chin, something started to dawn on him.

“I see. An Yu-seong is quite handsome… Right?”

“W-what?!”

“Looking at this guy’s face, he’s in a league where even decent idols can’t compete. It’s understandable to be captivated. Right.”

“No! That’s not it!”

Yoon Na-rae’s hypersensitive reaction made the corners of Kang Hyeon’s mouth curl up even more.

“But what can we do? That handsome man is already in a guild… and I’m the guild master…?”

“Kang Hyeon. That just now was a bit creepy.”

Sin Tae-gil shook his head after seeing Kang Hyeon’s eyes wide open and gleaming with madness.

“Ugh… Stop talking nonsense, you pervert!”

Yoon Na-rae shouted and hurriedly left the place.

“Hahahahaha-!”

Kang Hyeon’s booming laughter echoing from afar tormented her even more.

“Just you wait… Next time I’ll surprise you all with my new costume! I’ll show you real art, not those silly figurines!”

Yoon Na-rae clenched her fists, filled with determination.