The Genius Assassin Who Takes it All

Chapter 166: Distorted Awakening (3)

Kim Shin-ryeong finished Kang-hoo and the summons’ training much later than expected.

Even though a long time had passed, Kim Shin-ryeong was never bored for a moment.

This was because he was constantly watching Kang-hoo’s movements and observing the battles with the summons with great interest.

At one point, he swallowed dryly and was surprised by how sore his throat was.

It meant that he had been watching with his mouth open, completely lost in the spectacle. He hadn’t even realized it.

‘It’s definitely not just luck.’

With his sharp insight, Kim Shin-ryeong recognized that Kang-hoo’s skills were not a result of mere chance and luck.

Even a hunter who gains great power by chance can easily demonstrate destructive power in a short battle.

But a long-term battle is different. It requires experienced skills and a seasoned approach.

Instead, he used the movements of the summons as a resource, upgrading himself step by step.

Kim Shin-ryeong had called Kang-hoo because he needed him, but it felt like the opposite had happened.

It felt as if he had helped Kang-hoo grow. That gave him a mix of strange emotions.

“Really.”

Kim Shin-ryeong burst into a hollow laugh as he looked at the state of his summons.

They all had the status of ‘recovering.’ It meant all the summons had collapsed while fighting Kang-hoo.

He had not used the summons with full power as he would in actual combat.

But by now, he calculated that Kang-hoo could at least ‘hold out’ against him.

Considering the difference in level, it was impressive that Kang-hoo could even hold out.

Kim Shin-ryeong clapped his hands toward the sweaty Kang-hoo and said strongly,

“Well done. Very well done. It was a delightful time. I hope it wasn’t too much trouble?”

He was sincere.

He was very grateful that Kang-hoo had trained with full power without holding back.

Of course, there was a promised reward, but still, Kim Shin-ryeong felt the sincerity.

“We both benefit, so I did my best. Your summons are all top-notch. I’m impressed.”

Kang-hoo was astonished several times by how powerful Kim Shin-ryeong’s summons were.

Their growth status was excellent, which was surprising considering they hadn’t been neglected.

Apart from some minor issues in training, their basic combat sense was good.

They were desirable as companions. Although it wouldn’t happen, he wanted to try working together in a dungeon.

“Really interesting. If I asked you to tell me who your master is, would that be rude?”

“Shall I be honest?”

“I’d appreciate it.”

“I don’t have one.”

“Lies.”

“It’s true.”

As soon as Kang-hoo answered, Kim Shin-ryeong couldn’t believe it and called it a lie.

If he had reached this level of assassination skill without a master, how much more powerful would he be with a good one?

Even without knowing, he would become an even more destructive assassin than he is now.

“My summons can handle hunters in the 250 to 300 level range.”

“I noticed.”

“You fought brilliantly against such summons. And you’re self-taught? Should I believe that?”

“Whether you believe it or not is up to you, but my answer is always the same. I have no master.”

Kang-hoo found Kim Shin-ryeong’s reaction amusing. It felt good to be acknowledged.

“Anyway, thank you. Now it’s time to keep my promise. Are you ready?”

“Of course.”

“Wait a moment. I need to fetch something from the secure storage.”

“I’ll wait.”

“Come inside. You can warm up by the fireplace.”

“I won’t refuse.”

Kang-hoo followed Kim Shin-ryeong inside and settled by the warm fireplace.

Meanwhile, Kim Shin-ryeong went down to the basement and didn’t come up for a long time.

He thought she was going to a nearby basement, but she seemed to be going much deeper.

Given her line of work, it wasn’t surprising.

Security being the top priority made sense. It’s far better to be excessive than lacking.

‘Grade 3 or 4, perhaps.’

Kang-hoo guessed that much.

It wasn’t like Kim Shin-ryeong had gotten the broken weapon for free.

She probably paid a considerable amount for it. Therefore, it would be difficult to give Kang-hoo a very expensive item.

Realistically, Grade 4 seemed most likely. Even Grade 3 would be a luxury for a mere acquaintance.

Anyway, Kang-hoo’s purpose in coming here was to build a connection with Kim Shin-ryeong.

It was an investment for the future.

Obtaining a broken weapon was a small pretext. It wasn’t something he’d regret losing.

He had already achieved his goal.

Kim Shin-ryeong seemed quite satisfied with the full-powered battle against her summons.

Her eyes and words, which couldn’t hide her emotions, proved it. They were filled with trust and affection.

How long had he waited?

His body, slightly chilled from the sweat, was now thoroughly warmed by the fireplace, to the point of feeling hot.

Kim Shin-ryeong came back with a dagger and casually threw it to Kang-hoo.

It was sheathed, so there was no problem catching it roughly.

She said.

“Look. It’s a broken weapon, so it can’t be used in actual combat. But there should be no problem using it to feed your weapon.”

“Thank you. Just a moment.”

As soon as Kang-hoo unsheathed the dagger and held the item in his hand.

“……?”

He was shocked to see the grade of the item displayed in the status window. It wasn’t grade 4 or 3 but grade 2!

He was given an item worth 100 billion won.

Of course, since it was a broken weapon, the purchase price would have been much lower, but initially, it would have been worth 100 billion won.

“How does it look?”

“Isn’t it a grade 2 item?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Kim Shin-ryeong had an expression that said, “What’s so great about it?”

It didn’t feel like a crude display of wealth.

It felt more like she was saying, “Did you think I couldn’t afford something like this?” It was the confidence of someone who had plenty.

“You’ve given me something very valuable.”

“The purchase price wasn’t much. Don’t forget it’s a broken weapon. No need to feel overly grateful.”

Kim Shin-ryeong shrugged her shoulders and turned to sip her thoroughly steeped tea.

Most people would have watched Kang-hoo’s reaction or his facial expression.

But she seemed indifferent.

“Then I will use it right away.”

“Yes, go ahead.”

【Distorted Awakening – By using the corrupted belief on a weapon of the same series, some of the stats can be absorbed.

A total of 5 absorptions are possible, and the higher the total stats of the weapon, the higher the absorption amount.

When the corrupted belief is brought near the weapon to be absorbed, the distorted awakening will be activated.】

Kang-hoo double-checked the tooltip one last time before proceeding with the distorted awakening.

As the description stated, when the corrupted belief was brought near the broken weapon, the distorted awakening was immediately activated.

There was no hesitation in the process.

The result came out right away.

After feeding the broken weapon with strength 300 and agility 300 stats to the corrupted belief.

The stat increase of the corrupted belief rose from strength 350 to 440, and agility from 0 to 90.

A total increase of 180 stats.

Considering that it was raised using a material with no value as a weapon, it was a great gain. Moreover, Kang-hoo didn’t invest a single penny in this process.

“How is it? About a 30% increase?”

“Exactly. Strength increased by 90, agility by 90.”

“That’s good. Even if you’re curious about the purchase price, don’t ask. I won’t tell you even if it kills me.”

“You don’t need to tell me. I’ll imagine it’s inflated in a favorable direction on purpose.”

“You’re quite cheeky. Are you trying to curry favor?”

“I’m just saying I won’t forget my gratitude.”

“You have a silver tongue. Why do you answer so smoothly?”

“If you talk to me often, your thoughts might change.”

Kang-hoo said with a slight smile.

Considering how close Park Dong-jae and Jung Yuri always criticized his ‘boring’ conversations…

Kim Shin-ryeong still didn’t know much about him. It was probably because she had only seen part of him.

“I hope you can help with the summon training often in the future. I’d also like to meet in other ways.”

“Is there another issue?”

“Well… I’d like to have the opportunity to test the daggers I craft or modify.”

“Tester?”

“Something like that. I’ll pay a fair price each time, so don’t worry about that.”

“Sounds good. Contact me, and we’ll schedule a meeting.”

“Yes. Good job.”

“Thank you for the dagger. I’ll make good use of it.”

“Let’s meet often.”

“Yes.”

Thus ended the meeting with Kim Shin-ryeong.

Among all his experiences, it was the easiest way to increase his stats.

Feeding a weapon and immediately seeing stat changes—if growth were this easy, how great would it be?

Anyway, Kang-hoo, who had left her mansion, walked along the well-paved road in front of the mansion to get some fresh air.

At that moment.

Letters slowly began to appear at the bottom of the status window related to the corrupted belief.

They hadn’t been there right after feeding the weapon, but they were now appearing in color.

【By achieving a special condition, a new option is being activated. It will be activated after the set waiting time.】

“I’ve never seen this before.”

It was an issue he hadn’t experienced in the original work.

The protagonist, Jang Si-hwan, didn’t have an item that absorbed other weapons like the corrupted belief.

Since the novel didn’t often describe the items of characters other than the protagonist.

Such things were never mentioned in the narrative.

He had considered it once while planning, but he had never detailed it.

‘This too.’

It would be in the realm of the unconscious.

A structure completely shrouded in mystery.

The special condition wasn’t revealed, nor was the set waiting time known.

The content flowed entirely at the system’s pace.

‘I guess I’ll need to research the field of feeding items in the future. It’s close to the unknown.’

There was more to study.

It was indeed himself who had shaped this vast world view.

But he hadn’t painted every picture. He had left some parts blank, leaving room for thought.

Those blanks were now filling up like the ‘new option.’

There was no need to explain or create the unexplored parts of the novel’s world.

But in this world, all blanks were filled.

The answers to those blanks had to be found in the unconscious.

In the ambiguous and vague boundary between knowing and not knowing.

At that moment.

【A hunter who has acquired the hidden skill ‘Bloodthirst of Madness’ has appeared.】

A hidden skill notification shared only with the owners of hidden skills popped up.

At this moment.

Somewhere on Earth, a hidden skill related to bloodthirst had appeared.