Chapter 27. D-Rank Constellation (2)
— The Qinggang Sword?!
— Why does some Korean countryside punk have a famous sword like that?
— Didn’t you hear? It’s the Constellation Weapon of a D-rank Constellation.
— Xiahou En… If it belongs to his Constellation, I suppose it makes sense.
— What do you mean, it makes sense? The Qinggang Sword originally belonged to Cao Cao, and Zhao Yun was the one who became famous using it. Xiahou En was basically just the guy carrying the sword around!
— Neither Cao Cao nor Zhao Yun exists as a Constellation, though. So Xiahou En could have the Qinggang Sword as his Constellation Weapon.
— Exactly. Without the Qinggang Sword, he doesn’t really have any other weapon suitable for a Constellation Weapon.
— I still don’t accept it!
An argument broke out in the chat.
Many of the Constellations were unhappy that a mere D-rank Constellation possessed such an incredible Constellation Weapon.
— Judging from that, it looks like Full Manifestation… He must have worked pretty hard despite being contracted to a D-rank Constellation.
— If someone like Xiahou En were my Constellation, I’d probably cancel the contract almost immediately.
— That punk actually has some perseverance.
Not every Contractor could freely use their Constellation’s weapon.
If their bond with their Constellation was low, they couldn’t summon the Constellation Weapon at all.
Even if the bond was somewhat high, they could only use a portion of its true power.
But Lee Jukheon had summoned the Qinggang Sword itself and was freely wielding it.
That meant his assigned Constellation, Xiahou En, favored Lee Jukheon enough to grant him access to Full Manifestation.
— Anyway, that guy… His movements changed completely after drawing the Qinggang Sword.
— He’s probably confident that his weapon completely outclasses Kang Yujin’s.
— Maybe the Qinggang Sword itself gives bonus stats.
— Even putting physical ability aside, his swordsmanship really is impressive.
Just as the chat was saying, Lee Jukheon was currently pushing Kang Yujin back on the ground below.
Lee Jukheon attacked with swift, sharp movements, while Kang Yujin focused entirely on dodging.
Until now, Kang Yujin had cleverly used his flail to block enemy attacks.
But that wasn’t possible against Lee Jukheon.
Trying to block the Qinggang Sword would obviously result in the flail being cut to pieces.
— I thought that flail was something amazing after seeing him use it to restrain Baphomet, but I guess it’s nothing special.
— That’s just a commercially sold weapon made by the Apostles. You can’t compare it to a legendary sword like the Qinggang Sword.
— Right. The Qinggang Sword is practically priceless.
— So Kang Yujin has the advantage in physical stats, while Lee Jukheon has the advantage in technique and equipment?
Thinking back on Kang Yujin’s previous battles, it didn’t seem like he had ever received proper combat training.
His physical abilities were outstanding, and he certainly possessed great combat instincts separate from technical skill, but…
What are you going to do, Kang Yujin? That guy isn’t an easy opponent.
Geumgak swallowed dryly as he watched Kang Yujin.
Then—
Hm?
Geumgak doubted his own eyes.
Even though Kang Yujin was clearly being pushed onto the defensive…
His expression was still relaxed.
Lee Jukheon had been born twenty-two years ago into an ordinary middle-class family.
He had attended a kendo dojo when he was young, but he hadn’t trained there for very long.
Nor had he shown any special talent.
Lee Jukheon had been growing up as an ordinary boy.
Then the Great Fantasy Descent happened, and his life changed forever.
In the chaotic world that followed, Lee Jukheon lost his parents.
They weren’t killed by monsters or demons.
They were killed because of crimes committed by other humans.
After that, Lee Jukheon wandered from place to place until he eventually became a Contractor.
At first, he didn’t even properly understand what it meant that his contracted Constellation was only D-rank.
He simply believed that becoming a Contractor meant his life would finally change.
However, he quickly ran into the limitations of having a D-rank Constellation.
He worked relentlessly to overcome those limitations.
He even found another Contractor who was famous for his swordsmanship and learned sword techniques from him.
However…
In the end, there were some limits he simply could not overcome.
No matter how skilled his swordsmanship became, against gigantic monsters he could only inflict shallow wounds.
His stamina wasn’t strengthened either, so he quickly ran out of breath during prolonged battles.
If he worked as an assassin who killed people with a single strike, he could probably have done fairly well.
In fact, several organizations had tried to recruit Lee Jukheon for exactly that purpose.
But that wasn’t the kind of Contractor Lee Jukheon had dreamed of becoming.
After losing hope for his future, Lee Jukheon began hanging around with violent delinquent Contractors.
His refined swordsmanship combined with the power of the Qinggang Sword was extremely effective in close-range fights against other Contractors.
Before long, Lee Jukheon became the leader of the group.
He began roaming around with his followers and causing trouble wherever he went.
As his influence expanded and he took control over an important transportation route, Lee Jukheon eventually became someone nobody dared to provoke casually.
And yet…
Lee Jukheon never felt satisfied.
Everything irritated him.
Even now, while fighting the man named Kang Yujin standing before him, Lee Jukheon felt nothing but frustration.
“Haaap!”
The Qinggang Sword swung through the air and once again damaged Kang Yujin’s flail.
If it had been an ordinary blade, the sword itself probably would have broken.
But this was the Qinggang Sword.
Rather than breaking, it didn’t even have a single scratch.
“You rich bastards should’ve gone up to Seoul and fought among yourselves! Why the hell did you have to come bother us?!”
Lee Jukheon shouted while continuously attacking Kang Yujin.
“You’re contracted to an S-rank Constellation, right? I heard countless Constellations are watching you! Must be nice, you bastard!”
Lee Jukheon continued attacking, while Kang Yujin was unable to properly counterattack.
Using the flail required large movements.
Kang Yujin knew that the moment he exposed an opening, Lee Jukheon would immediately charge into it.
“But what are you going to do now? You’re about to die here to some piece of trash contracted to a D-rank Constellation!!”
“……”
Perhaps the provocation finally worked.
Kang Yujin moved differently from before.
He adjusted his grip on the flail and tensed his shoulder.
An opening!
Lee Jukheon didn’t miss it.
The experience and techniques he had accumulated over the years immediately produced the optimal answer for how to attack.
Kang Yujin’s right abdomen was completely exposed.
If Lee Jukheon stabbed there, then no matter how extraordinary Kang Yujin’s physical abilities were, he would suffer a serious wound.
Puk!
The Qinggang Sword pierced straight through Kang Yujin’s right abdomen.
The flail fell from Kang Yujin’s hand.
— Ah!
— He got him.
— Kang Yujin!!
— Why would he leave himself open there?!
Cries of shock erupted from the Constellations in the chat.
The Observation Device was currently showing Kang Yujin from behind.
