Beginning of Summer (4)
Kang Shin-hyuk felt a chill permeate all over him as soon as he opened the door into the club room. For a brief moment, he wondered if he had entered an irregular gate instead, but he didn’t. It was just that Shin Eunah was standing right in front of him. Lee Na-hee was there as well, standing bravely against Shin Eunah though her legs were trembling. Kang Shin-hyuk himself was barely able to open his mouth against the pressure he felt.
“Well… senior, what the hell?”
“I was told you would be working before dinner, so I came to see.”
“Hey, how can this person…”
The two responded at the same time, then turned to stare at each other once more. Well, that was to be expected. He did call both of them senior, he supposed. Shin Eunah spoke up again, her gaze unmoving from Lee Na-hee.
“I heard that this kid is an enchanter. Were you about to do your usual work together?”
“Well, yeah…”
“Do you need an enchanter? The contest wasn’t good compared to your usual skills.”
“Urgh?!” Shin Eunah boldly attacked Lee Na-hee, who knew that the longsword wasn’t Kang Shin-hyuk’s best work. She was quick to recover and refute it, however.
“We made it when we first met and didn’t know each other well, but now we fit each other! Hey, junior, show it to this person! That!”
“Ah, um… yes? What is it?” After a moment of confusion, he gently produced the Lightning Spider Web they had made together to Shin Eunah. He wondered why these two were fighting. Shin Eunah looked at the shimmering gold-colored threads, letting out a small exclamation.
“Pretty…! That’s… yesterday?”
“Yes.”
“That’s why she knew you’re Shin Eun-hyuk…” He began to grow very worried about what sort of conversation they were having before he arrived.
“As expected of grandpa, it’s pretty.”
“Hmm…?” Shin Eunah let out that child-like statement before she realized that they weren’t alone. Her face immediately hardened, but Lee Na-hee said nothing and only stared at her. Shin Eunah avoided her gaze and tried to counterattack.
“It’s definitely a delicate enchantment technique, but it’s also clear that my junior can make better things without enchanting. As evidence…” Shin Eunah stared at Kang Shin-hyuk until he produced the Venom Princess Soul. Now it was Lee Na-hee’s turn to be amazed.
“Ugh, were you wearing this yesterday? What is this scam… A+ rank, how’d you do it?”
“It was thanks to the creation of the lightning web I was able to figure it out, and the materials were great.”
“If A+ rank artifacts could be created just because of good materials, all of the high-rankers would have more artifacts than they knew what to do with!” Shin Eunah had a cruel smile as she watched Lee Na-hee stomp the ground in frustration and admiration.
“After all, you are just a stepping stone for my junior.”
“Wow…!”
“Why are you puffing up?” Kang Shin-hyuk let out a sigh. He had been trying to calm things down and defend Lee Na-hee, but it went poorly.
“Let’s get to work. Senior… Lee Na-hee, don’t worry about Shin Eunah. Shin Eunah, stay quiet and don’t interfere with our work.”
“Junior, your attitude toward me feels so severe.”
“It’s in your head.”
“Ooh… my junior is great.” Lee Na-hee proudly made a face at Shin Eunah before turning to Kang Shin-hyuk. It wouldn’t end well if she found out about Shin Eunah’s true face. She had already accidentally called him grandpa, after all. Shin Eunah quieted down, blushing ashamedly.
“Is she your sister?”
“You really believe that Senior Lee Na-hee?” Kang Shin-hyuk responded to Lee Na-hee as they entered the workshop.
“Say it more comfortably, like everyone else.”
“For example?”
“You could call me sister.”
“I don’t want to die.” In the end, he decided to stop using her surname and call her Na-hee. Strangely, after the prior incident, he felt closer to her. Perhaps it was because of their shared embarrassing tastes from junior high. He didn’t want to continue to grow closer to people because of that.
“So, what are you making today?”
“I was thinking about a throwing weapon I could use as Shin Eun-hyuk, and I just got some good ingredients.”
“Do you really need one? The thread yesterday covered everything from short to long range.”
“Of course I need it. The ten strands are fine, but I need a backup that can go further than them just in case.”
“…You look very excited.”
“…” Without questioning her, Kang Shin-hyuk quietly produced the materials out of his inventory. They were the leftover wasp stingers. The ten centimeter long needle-thin stingers seemed to be made for use in throwing.
“This is poisonous, too, right? Maybe instead of the Death Puppeteer, it should be the Spider Puppeteer…”
“Could you not increase my nicknames?” Kang Shin-hyuk waved her off and got down to business. He wanted her to engrave two enchantments on the weapons: wind and stealth.
“Wind?”
“Look here.” Kang Shin-hyuk waved a finger in front of Lee Na-hee’s face, spinning a weak wind around it. Her eyes opened wide.
“An attribute?!”
“In fact, I used it yesterday in handling the thread.” No matter his proficiency with weapons, it wouldn’t have been possible to control all ten threads without the power of his Wind Mastery. The gloves he had made were practically made to be used with his Wind Mastery.
“Not a trait, you must’ve acquired the attribute mastery skill. Incredible. Why do you get all the cool things?”
“You might get one if you defeat an irregular gate alone too.”
“I’m sorry, you keep it.” The two started working right away as they chatted. Meanwhile, Shin Eunah was watching from outside the workshop with puffed cheeks. She didn’t like Lee Na-hee getting so close to Shin-hyuk.
“Grandpa doesn’t need an enchanter…”
“That’s just your thoughts.”
“Oh, Claire.” Suddenly, Claire appeared behind her. She had shown up after receiving a call from Eunah that said she would be going to the artifact production club. She had shown up one step too late, but it seemed to have worked out.
“Couldn’t mess up in front of him?”
“You act like we’re lovers.”
“They’re both just kids.”
“…” Shin Eunah quietly turned away.
“Ah.”
“Whatever you said to her, make sure you’re gentle about it.”
“I just told my junior the truth.”
“What do you mean?”
“I think that she’s an enchanter who has no reason to be with grandpa.” Claire’s eyes narrowed, and Shin Eunah was quick to excuse her own actions.
“My junior can create perfect artifacts by himself. He needs room to grow.” It might certainly seem that way to Shin Eunah, but was that the case? Claire shook her head and sighed.
“That’s why you’re only a combat-class.”
“…It sounds like I don’t understand my juniors.” Shin Eunah wasn’t happy that Claire seemed to be forming a consensus with Kang Shin-hyuk. She clenched her fists, but Claire didn’t back down.
“When it comes to products, it’s true that you don’t understand. Look.”
“Oh, um.” Shin Eunah followed Claire’s gesture, looking at Kang Shin-hyuk’s face as he worked on the stingers. Her expression loosened as she watched him work seriously.
Only
“Hey…” Shin Eunah was now engrossed in watching him work, eliciting a groan from Claire. She could certainly understand Shin Eunah’s feelings to an extent. The figure of a person passionately devoted to their work was attractive, after all. Kang Shin-hyuk was especially so. That transcendent concentration that hinted at his reincarnation.
‘Well, it’s fine.’ Claire thought about the terrorist incident as she watched him. He manipulated those strands of thread freely, cutting down monsters and terrorists alike. She had watched the videos of the event all day long on repeat.
‘Why is my heart… where did this kid appear from? Why?’ If it weren’t for Shin Eunah, she might’ve been thrilled to greet him with a hug as soon as the battle had ended. If only he were three years older.
“…Claire?” It was then that she came back to her senses, feeling Shin Eunah’s sharp gaze. Claire realized she had been staring at Shin-hyuk as well.
“Goodness, look at the time.”
“Ah, yes. Before that, I have something I want to ask Claire.”
“It’s in your head.”
“Huh…” They waited quietly for Kang Shin-hyuk to finish working in a frozen atmosphere.
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