**Episode 3
Mechromancer (3)**
The hunters’ eyes fixed on what used to be the King’s Ratkin.
The leader inhaled sharply and asked,
“Did you… take this down by yourself?”
Du-ho froze for a split second.
‘What do I do?’
He couldn’t mention the humanoid.
If he revealed something that made the impossible possible for 70 years… it could provoke the hunters.
Most hunters had a strong aversion to cyborgs and androids that could threaten them.
One young hunter stepped closer, tilting his head.
“Whoa… looks like it was blown away in a single hit?”
Cold sweat ran down Du-ho’s back.
Then—his eyes landed on the autonomous taxi.
Ah!
“That wasn’t me.”
“…What?”
Du-ho pointed at the taxi.
“I think the taxi got sucked in and slammed into the King’s Ratkin. When I woke up, it was already like that…”
The hunters looked at the taxi.
Not a scratch on it.
Hard to believe—but at the same time…
An awakened wouldn’t normally hide their strength. Showing it meant better treatment.
“Ah!”
The leader clapped.
“That makes sense! That taxi must weigh at least a ton, and if it got pulled into the crack at high force…”
The others quickly filled in the story themselves.
“Oh! So it got crushed on impact!”
“Man, if it weren’t for mana interference, machines really are stronger than monsters!”
“Heh, without mana interference, wouldn’t we all lose our jobs?”
Laughter broke out.
Then one hunter frowned.
“I’m not joking. Scientists are obsessed with replacing us.”
“Exactly! A few rogue awakened cause trouble, and suddenly they want to control everything with androids!”
“Yet they collapse the moment a crack appears.”
“They can’t replace us.”
“Hey, don’t be so sure.”
“If a robot like that exists, I’ll fry my own hand!”
Du-ho pressed his lips tightly.
- Please summon me so that human can fry his hand.
‘Stay quiet.’
- …
For now, the King’s Ratkin issue seemed settled.
But—
“What about the 60 Ratkin?”
All eyes turned to Du-ho again.
He glanced at the bodies.
Crushed heads. Twisted limbs. Torn bodies.
A massacre.
No witnesses.
No choice.
“…Is this an interrogation?”
He pushed back boldly.
At that moment—
A powerful aura leaked from him.
The hunters flinched and stepped back.
The density of mana was overwhelming.
Inside his head—
- I released a bit of energy from my mana circuits to match your tone.
‘Why are you doing things on your own?!’
- Hehe, judging by their faces, it worked.
Indeed—the hunters’ expressions had changed.
Like beasts sensing danger.
“S-strong…”
The leader spoke carefully.
“…We didn’t mean to interrogate you. Please understand.”
Du-ho decided to play along.
From experience, being underestimated only hurt him.
“I was on edge too.”
“Of course. Understandable.”
A young hunter chimed in excitedly.
“To have this much power right after awakening… incredible!”
“It’s nothing.”
“Even humble too, huh?”
“No… just lucky.”
The leader thought to himself:
‘Luck is good too.’
Even strong hunters were a nuisance if unlucky.
Then—
Two voices overlapped.
- They’re nothing impressive. Subdue them now—
“Would you consider joining our guild after your evaluation—”
“Ah, come on!”
Du-ho snapped in frustration.
The hunters flinched.
Silence fell.
“…Sorry. I’m not fully recovered yet. It’s hard to adjust.”
He pretended to be exhausted.
‘Actually… this worked out well.’
Late awakening. 60 monsters defeated.
A perfect headline.
Of course—all thanks to the super intelligence.
So now—
‘I need to draw a line.’
“And… too much attention stresses me out.”
“I see.”
The leader signaled his team—don’t push recruitment.
Still, he stepped forward.
“I’ll help you collect mana stones.”
“…Mana stones?”
“Yes. It’s your rightful reward.”
With practiced hands, he extracted crystal-like stones from the corpses.
Soon—
Over 60 stones, including the King’s Ratkin’s.
“Here.”
He handed them over.
“Once you register, you can exchange them immediately.”
“Thank you.”
“If anyone asks, say Han San-ho, guild leader of Hansan Guild, is your guarantor.”
He handed over his business card.
Du-ho tilted his head.
‘Guild leader? But this looks like just a party…’
Still—
‘I’ll accept the favor.’
“What will you do after this?” Han asked.
“I’ll go home first… I need to process everything.”
“Understandable.”
“If you need anything, feel free to contact me.”
It was already overwhelming.
Still, Du-ho pocketed the card.
‘That went smoother than expected.’
- You could’ve just subdued them.
‘Be quiet!’
* * *
The hunter transport dropped him home.
“Thank you for today!”
“My pleasure.”
The vehicle drove away.
Du-ho walked through his neighborhood.
Old factory buildings turned into housing.
Drone pads on rooftops.
No more delivery workers.
‘My father used to be one…’
He remembered.
“The last delivery man.”
It had even made the news.
He walked quietly.
‘It’s been years since I walked like this.’
- Who dares overwork a Mechromancer?!
“It’s called being poor.”
- Then let’s conquer the world—
“Can we do that tomorrow?”
- First, you must grow stronger…
“And?”
- Expand your forces…
“And?”
He stopped walking.
“…Cut the crap.”
- Eh?!
Silence.
“If we can’t conquer the world tomorrow, shut up.”
- …
“We’re poor. I need money.”
- …What should I do then?
Du-ho smirked.
“Help me fix my life first.”
- Oh! Solve financial problems first!
“Yes.”
- Then after that—world domination—
“Don’t get ahead of yourself!”
- Understood!
He stopped in front of a butcher shop.
“Yoon’s Butcher Shop – 70 Years Tradition”
Holograms of sizzling meat flickered.
But in his mind—
He saw the past.
His father smiling on payday.
His siblings tugging his clothes.
“Meat! Meat!”
Du-ho took out his card.
“…Let’s eat till we burst.”
- What’s that?
“Card.”
- Card?
“You don’t even know that and talk about world domination?”
- Information gathering isn’t my field.
“…You’re supposed to be super intelligence.”
- I cannot directly connect to human networks.
“…Why?”
- That’s how I’m designed. But I can use humanoids to access data.
‘So they restricted it…’
- If I could connect, I could launch nuclear attacks!
“…Yeah, that’s exactly why.”
He walked inside.
Cool air greeted him.
“Welcome to Yoon’s Butcher Shop!”
Du-ho looked at the pork section.
3kg pork belly.
“Let’s feast.”
He never would’ve done this before.
But now—
‘I won’t live like that anymore.’
- Of course! You have me!
He paid.
80,000 coins.
‘Selling mana stones should bring about 3 million…’
“The guild leader said clearing a crack pays 5 million.”
With meat in hand, he bought lettuce too.
Walking home under the sunset—
A warm smile appeared.
My siblings…
‘Tonight, I’ll treat them properly.’
