39

Chapter 39: The Value of Power

The trading hall became increasingly quiet as the appraisal continued.

Subin stood beside the counter with his arms folded, watching the appraisers examine one item after another. He had expected some surprise, but the reactions were stronger than he had anticipated.

The first few mana crystals were ordinary enough.

Then came the Crystal Horn Beast cores.

Then the Crystal Ravager cores.

Then the high-purity mana crystals from the natural depths.

The appraisers gradually stopped speaking among themselves.

One of them carefully placed an Epic-grade core onto the appraisal table.

"Please wait."

The man checked the identification device again.

Then again.

His expression became increasingly serious.

Kang Min-jae noticed.

"What is it?"

The appraiser looked at him.

"This core has a mana content of more than ten thousand."

Min-jae's eyebrows rose.

"From what?"

Subin answered casually. "Crystal Horn Beast."

Min-jae looked at Subin.

"Level?"

"Thirty-six."

Silence.

The appraiser continued examining the core.

"Purity is eighty-six percent. The core is extremely stable."

Another appraiser approached.

"That's an Epic-grade core."

Min-jae nodded slowly.

"That's worth a considerable amount."

Subin wasn't particularly interested in the exact value.

He had already earned enough money from the dungeon to change his family's financial situation.

What interested him was what the Association could do with the materials.

"Can the Association use these cores for equipment?"

The appraiser nodded.

"Yes. High-quality mana cores can be used in weapon manufacturing, armor reinforcement, mana batteries, dungeon equipment and various forms of magical technology. Epic-grade cores are especially valuable."

Subin glanced at the Legendary mana crystal in his storage.

He had no intention of selling that.

Not yet.

He wanted to understand it first.

The appraiser continued examining the remaining materials.

Then he reached the Crystal Devourer scales.

His eyes widened.

"These are interesting."

"Why?" Min-jae asked.

"They have unusually high mana conductivity."

He turned toward Subin.

"Did you kill a Mana Crystal Devourer?"

"Yes."

"How many?"

"One."

The appraiser nodded.

"That explains the quality."

Subin didn't correct him.

He didn't mention that he had encountered seven Crystal Ravagers afterward either.

There was no reason to turn the appraisal into a spectacle.

The final material was the Legendary Deep-Mana Crystal.

Subin had deliberately kept it hidden.

Only a small portion of the materials he had brought out was enough to create a substantial commotion.

He wasn't ready to reveal everything.

The appraisers eventually completed the initial evaluation.

One of them handed Min-jae the report.

Min-jae read it.

His expression became increasingly complicated.

Subin waited.

"How much?"

Min-jae looked up.

"The Association's preliminary valuation is approximately 480 million won."

Subin remained silent.

The number was considerably larger than he expected.

Min-jae continued.

"That's before accounting for the special materials we haven't fully classified."

Subin nodded.

"Sell everything except the high-purity crystals."

Min-jae looked surprised.

"You don't want to keep the cores?"

"I have no immediate use for all of them."

That was true.

Subin's storage was already filled with materials.

Keeping everything would only make his inventory unnecessarily complicated.

Min-jae nodded.

"We can purchase most of it immediately."

"Fine."

The transaction was completed after several additional evaluations.

The money was transferred into Subin's Association account.

He checked the balance.

For the first time in his life, the number in his account was large enough that he had trouble mentally processing it.

He had gone from being unemployed to becoming wealthy in a matter of weeks.

Yet strangely, his reaction was calm.

Money was useful.

But it wasn't his goal.

Swordsmanship was.

Min-jae seemed to notice his lack of excitement.

"You really aren't interested in the money, are you?"

Subin smiled.

"Money is useful."

"That's it?"

"That's it."

Min-jae laughed.

"You really are unusual."

Subin stood.

"I need equipment."

"What kind?"

"Training equipment. A proper training room. Something where I can practice without destroying the walls."

Min-jae stared at him.

Then he laughed again.

"That might actually be the easiest request you've made."

The Association had specialized training facilities for high-ranking Awakeners.

Subin was taken to one of them.

The room was enormous.

Its walls were reinforced with multiple layers of mana-resistant material. The floor was designed to withstand attacks from C-rank and even some B-rank Awakeners.

Several training constructs stood along the walls.

Min-jae explained the system.

"These constructs can simulate different levels of combat ability. We normally use them for registered Awakeners preparing for dungeon missions."

Subin looked at them.

"How strong?"

"Currently, the strongest can simulate Level 35."

Subin nodded.

"Good enough."

Min-jae stared at him.

"Good enough?"

Subin entered the center of the room.

The training system activated.

[Combat Simulation System]

[Select opponent.]

Subin selected Level 35.

A humanoid construct appeared.

It carried a standard sword.

The simulation began.

The construct attacked immediately.

Subin blocked.

Clang!

The impact pushed him backward several steps.

He smiled.

"Better."

The construct attacked again.

Subin used Natural Flow.

Instead of stopping the strike, he redirected it.

The sword passed beside his body.

Subin countered.

Silver Flow.

The construct blocked.

Subin changed direction.

Flowing Edge.

The construct retreated.

Subin followed.

The battle continued.

Unlike the monsters inside the dungeon, this opponent had no obvious biological weakness.

It fought like a trained swordsman.

Its movements were economical.

Its footwork was disciplined.

Its attacks were measured.

Subin's eyes became increasingly focused.

This was exactly what he wanted.

A sword opponent.

Not something he could defeat through brute force.

Something that forced him to understand.

The construct attacked with a diagonal slash.

Subin blocked.

The next strike came from below.

He moved.

The third attack changed halfway through.

Subin's eyes sharpened.

Adaptation.

The construct wasn't following a fixed sequence.

It was responding to him.

Subin's Sword Comprehension activated.

[Analyzing opponent...]

[Analysis: 21%]

The construct attacked again.

Subin didn't counter.

He observed.

Its shoulder movement.

Its wrist rotation.

Its foot position.

Its breathing pattern.

Even though it wasn't alive, its combat algorithm was based on human swordsmanship.

Subin slowly began understanding it.

[Analysis: 37%]

The construct suddenly accelerated.

Subin's body reacted instinctively.

Predator's Sense detected the change.

He stepped aside.

The sword passed across his chest.

Subin's blade moved.

One Absolute Edge.

The construct's arm fell.

[Simulation damage detected.]

The construct immediately regenerated.

Subin smiled.

"So you don't stop."

The battle continued.

He fought for almost twenty minutes.

His body became covered in sweat.

His arms grew heavy.

But his understanding continued improving.

[Analysis: 61%]

[Analysis: 78%]

[Analysis: 92%]

Finally, Subin understood the simulation's swordsmanship completely.

The construct attacked.

Subin moved.

One step.

One turn.

One cut.

The wooden training blade struck the construct's chest.

The simulation ended.

[Opponent defeated.]

[Combat simulation complete.]

[Sword Comprehension analysis: 100%]

Subin stood still.

Then the system displayed another message.

[Sword God Foundation has incorporated analyzed swordsmanship.]

[Foundation: 35% → 38%]

Subin's eyes brightened.

The construct had given him something valuable.

Not a new skill.

A deeper understanding of ordinary human swordsmanship.

That mattered.

He didn't want to become dependent on techniques that came only from monsters or ancient projections.

Human swordsmanship had its own strengths.

It was adaptable.

It evolved through experience.

It could contain countless styles.

Subin looked toward Min-jae.

"Can I use this room regularly?"

Min-jae nodded.

"Of course."

"Then I'll rent it."

Min-jae shook his head.

"Your contribution to the Association from the dungeon materials is already more than enough. You can use it."

Subin accepted.

"Thanks."

Min-jae hesitated before speaking again.

"There is something else."

"What?"

"Your rank."

Subin waited.

"The Association has discussed your performance."

"And?"

Min-jae took out a tablet.

"The official evaluation placed you at C rank because that was the highest rank available to newly registered Awakeners without extensive background records."

Subin understood.

"But?"

"But your recent dungeon results are far beyond the normal C-rank standard."

Min-jae showed him the report.

"The Association is considering another evaluation."

Subin wasn't surprised.

"What rank?"

"We don't know yet."

"Fine."

"You aren't worried?"

"No."

Min-jae smiled.

"I thought you'd say that."

Subin looked at the training room.

"When?"

"Three days."

"Okay."

Min-jae turned to leave, then stopped.

"One more thing."

Subin looked at him.

"People are beginning to notice you."

Subin shrugged.

"I expected that."

"The Association isn't the only organization interested in strong Awakeners. Several large guilds have already asked about you."

Subin wasn't particularly interested.

"Are they going to cause trouble?"

"Probably not."

"Then there's nothing to worry about."

Min-jae nodded.

"That's what I thought you'd say."

After Min-jae left, Subin remained alone in the training room.

He drew Simple Edge.

The plain blade reflected the overhead lights.

He remembered the moment in the deepest dungeon when its synchronization had reached 99.9%.

He hadn't been able to understand the remaining 0.1%.

Perhaps that wasn't something the dungeon could teach him.

Perhaps it wasn't something a system could simply unlock.

Maybe it required something personal.

His own swordsmanship.

His own understanding.

His own path.

Subin raised the sword.

He performed a simple slash.

Then another.

No skill activation.

No system assistance.

Just a sword.

His movements became slower.

More precise.

He practiced until the evening.

By the time he stopped, his shirt was soaked with sweat.

The system appeared.

[Sword God Foundation: 38%]

[Personal Sword Path: 24% → 26%]

[Sword Intent Comprehension: 24% → 25%]

Subin looked at the numbers.

Then at Simple Edge.

A faint smile appeared.

He had no idea what awaited him in the next evaluation.

He didn't know which guilds would approach him.

He didn't know what the Association would decide.

But those things were secondary.

His path remained simple.

Find stronger swordsmen.

Understand their swordsmanship.

Refine his own.

Become stronger.

And continue walking forward.

Outside the training room, the Association's busy corridors were already filled with rumors about the young C-rank swordsman who had returned from the Stone Guardian Ruins carrying an unprecedented amount of treasure.

Subin ignored all of it.

For now, he had three days.

Three days to sharpen his sword.