After Returning, My Abilities are Infinite

Episode 118. Scavenger (7)

It was common knowledge that hunters were better off having many characteristics and skills. If you had you could deal with multiple situations, and it would be easier to coordinate with your teammates.

So, the majority of 1st class hunters had at least ten or as many as twenty characteristics. It was like this so that they occur at any time and expand the scope of their response.

“Ugh, ahhh…….”

Crunch.

Lee Hyun-seung stomped on the Returnee’s body, which had become a mess.

“Are there four left now?”

Analysts that resided in the Association and observed the hunters’ data considered Lee Hyun-seung’s data to be the most amazing.

-Is this really ‘Scavenger Lee Hyun-seung’s’ data? Didn’t you misregister the database of someone else with the same name? This is…

Creak, creak.

Lee Hyun-seung took a step forward. And the columns stuck in the ground started to float in the air.

-No, that doesn’t make sense. You mean he survived on the front line with only two characteristics and one skill? And he even earned the title of the strongest human alive?

Snap!

Lee Hyun-seung snapped his finger.

[Characteristic ‘Item Maniac’ (SSS) is activated.]

[The arsenal lingering in the subspace appears at the beckon call of its owner.]

Around the columns appeared objects that looked so horrific that it was hard to call them weapons. Unlike the other well-managed weapons, the objects that materialized when Lee Hyun-seung gestured with his hand had dried up globs of blood and flesh stuck to their blades. An unpleasant and eerie atmosphere descended upon the area.

Looking at the objects, the Returnees thought, ‘Are those really weapons? Are those even meant to be used by human hands?’

Something felt wrong. The objects were merely bits of metal, but it felt like they were facing many giant predators. They became petrified, and their hands started to shake.

“He’s about to play some trick. Restrain him! He’s in our domain anyway, so he won’t be able to use his full strength…!”

The leader shouted, and the rest of the Returnees rushed forward. But Lee Hyun-seung didn’t even blink.

Up until now, he had a hard time fighting because he thought he was dealing with people and had to control his power. But now that he considered the Returnees as ‘monsters’, the four were no match for Lee Hyun-seung.

No matter how fast, it was ‘human’ speed.

No matter how hard and powerful, it was barely a 2-meter-long body of a ‘human’.

No matter how vicious, it was an attack by a ‘human’ with rational thinking.

Humans were so insignificant compared to the foes Lee Hyun-seung had faced.

The front line was a living hell. Giant mountains walked around, and countless monsters swarmed in from the collapsed sky. With one mistake, a city could be demolished, and with two mistakes, a country could be destroyed. You were responsible for every single action, and extreme tension accompanied each action.

That was what it meant to be a hero and the biggest shield protecting humanity.

Sweep.

Lee Hyun-seung’s foot swept the floor.

“Huh─?”

Thud.

A Returnee running towards Lee Hyun-seung got caught by the tip of his swinging foot. It was a strange sight. It didn’t look like Lee Hyun-seung had intentionally tripped the Returnee. Rather, it looked like the Returnee had dashed into his moving foot and tripped himself.

“I guess there’s nothing special about Returnees.”

Whoosh.

The Returnee, who lost his balance from tripping, flew slightly up into the air for a moment. His weight shifted forward. No matter how powerful he was, it was impossible for his human body to fight back.

Ping-

Along with a metallic sound, like a coin rolling across the floor, a long spear shot upwards. The silver streak of light stretched downward from above and pierced the Returnee’s chest, sticking through his skin and out his back. Sticky blood flowed out.

“Argh….”

“Oh, I almost forgot. You guys don’t immediately die from an attack like this.”

Lee Hyun-seung murmured coldly, looking at the Returnee moaning in pain.

“I have to tear you apart completely to kill you.”

Snap!

His finger snapped once more. And metal rained down from behind Lee Hyun-seung. The silver rays of light penetrated, tore, and smashed the Returnee’s body like bullets and utterly destroyed him.

The sight of hard skin breaking off and intestines spilling out was not very pleasant. It wasn’t a battle against human beings. He was strictly fighting under the assumption that he was dealing with monsters.

He fought ruthlessly to kill them most efficiently and swiftly possible.

“What, what are you doing───!”

The Returnee behind, who was also charging towards Lee Hyun-seung, screamed. At the same time, colorful lights exploded around Lee Hyun-seung. It was a shockwave created by mana—a source of intangible violence that boasted power that surpassed most bombs.

Jeong Si-woo’s eyes widened. That was dangerous. No matter how powerful Lee Hyun-seung was, in the face of an unanticipated attack…….

“What am I doing?”

However, after the dust cloud lifted, Lee Hyun-seung’s face was unscathed.

“I’m cleaning up things that could pose a threat to people.”

Brrrrrr.

One of the columns hovering around Lee Hyun-seung had turned into a shield.

[Name: ‘One Thousand Faces’.]

[Weapon made of metal from a different world which contains the function ‘Indestructible’. Changes form depending on the user’s will, and its function changes according to the changed form.]

[Currently in the form of a ‘Shield’.]

And the other floating columns also began to transform. Some turned into swords, and others turned into spears.

“I was a bit nervous about Returnees, but this is too easy.”

And some columns turned into staffs and robes that wizards would use.

“You’re no different from the villains I always deal with. Your attack patterns are even inferior to most of them…. When you said you came back from a different world, did you mean you were there on vacation or something?”

Crackle-!

A storm started to rage furiously. It was a storm that was on a different level from the magic the Returnee had just used. Heavy lightning fell from the sky, and the violent electricity and heat instantly crushed the Returnee’s mana shield and savagely torched the body hiding inside. The Returnee’s body was charcoaled black. The smell of cooked meat wafted from the repulsive burnt body.

“I’ll take care of you thoroughly.”

Squish, crack.

The weapons move at Lee Hyun-seung’s signal. They tear apart the burnt corpse, and Lee Hyun-seung takes another step forward.

A senseless and overwhelmingly one-sided exchange of attacks. Two Returnees had died in an instant. The mood subsided.

* * *

‘The Five Kings destroyed… this easily?’

These were individuals that made humankind suffer for a very long time in my past life. Although the rhetoric that the leader used to rally the Returnees was more threatening than the force they wielded… They were still powerful individuals.

They were not individuals to be defeated so easily.

‘Was Lee Hyun-seung this powerful a hunter?’

Was the Scavenger Lee Hyun-seung this strong? I swallowed unconsciously. Even though he was a top-level hunter, this was unbelievable.

The great Five Kings were no match for him. Lee Hyun-seung dominated in power, skill, speed, and composure in combat. Like an adult playing with a child, Lee Hyun-seung skillfully and readily took their lives one by one.

It was a way of fighting that suited the name Scavenger.

-In the future, you will be among the strongest. You will be more powerful than anyone else.

Suddenly, I remembered what -The Great Sage- had told me. Could I surpass him? He was as strong as the Martial God in his prime. Seeing him fight in person, I felt so much pressure.

[There was no time for you to step in. That’s too bad since you even used the power from your newly earned class.]

“…I did show off, so it is a bit embarrassing.”

[Well, you’re the reason he intervened. It wasn’t meaningless.]

I grinned at the Traveler’s words. Yes, it wasn’t entirely meaningless.

“Ugh… Haargh.”

No matter what I did, without Lee Hyun-seung, I couldn’t have wiped out four of the Five Kings in such a short time.

“There isn’t much to you. Last month’s Mass Hunt was much more difficult. You’re not even worth classifying as a monster.”

“Aaarghh….”

The leader of the Five Kings rolled on the floor, grasping at his chest. Blood spilled out. In exactly 10 minutes, Lee Hyun-seung tore to death the strongest Returnees. It wasn’t a metaphor. He literally ‘tore’ them apart.

Like a Rift that was cleared, bits of flesh were scattered here and there.

“No way. This is impossible…. How can there be someone like you here…….”

“Without someone like me here, humanity would have come to an end long ago. The other world you thought was horrible was just a lot more peaceful and quiet than here. Anyone immersed in Disasters day after day will earn the same power as me.”

Listening to Lee Hyun-seung’s calm words, the leader of the Five Kings slowly bled to death. The weapons stuck in his body were gradually pulled out. His face turned pale. Leaving him behind, Lee Hyun-seung turned his head.

“Now that we’ve taken care of four, there’s one left.”

“…….”

“I’d like to hear what you have to say.”

“…I have nothing to say.”

The Returnee in the red mask muttered quietly. It was the woman they called ‘Lee’.

“What do you want me to call you? Like the old days? Or do you have a different name now?”

“I don’t even remember the old days. Lee is my only name. I’ve never had another name, and I can’t remember it if I did.”

She retorted sharply. Nevertheless, Lee Hyun-seung started to speak, his face unfazed. I couldn’t tell from his face what he was thinking.

“Okay. I see. I’ll call you Lee from now on. If you don’t want to remember, I don’t want to make you remember, either.”

“…….”

“I’ll stop asking personal questions now and ask you about the dead four and other Returnees.”

“I will never give you any information.”

“You don’t have to say it out loud.”

Lee Hyun-seung looked at me, and I nodded.

“Jeong Si-woo, I think you can help me now.”

“Yes. Are you handing over the wheel?”

Did that simple question solve all of his doubts? Or was he holding it in? I couldn’t tell. I glanced at Lee Hyun-seung for a moment, then took my cell phone out of my pocket.

“You don’t have to go through the trouble of telling me. Just keep everything nicely in your head.”

Ring, ring.

The dial tone rang a few times, and I could hear a voice.

-Ajusshi, what is it? What’s going on?

“Then, we’ll take everything without inconveniencing you.”

I had no intention of painstakingly interrogating her as I did before I came back in time. I had a talented Esper who could directly extract memories saved on my favorite contacts list as number 1.

“Hey, Hyun-woo. I’ll send you the location, so come over here, will you?”