Weapon-Eating Bastard [EN]: Chapter 51

Weapon-Devouring Bastard – Episode 51

What I asked of the Mountain God was his time.

To be precise, it meant the time he would spend helping me train.

“What are you talking about?”

“I would appreciate it if you could help me with my training.”

“Training?”

The Mountain God looked bewildered.

“Well, you seem to know already, but I’m not human, I’m a goblin. There’s not much help I can give you, you know?”

“What I want is a little different.”

Sorcery was known as a very mysterious skill, regardless of its strength.

Like using instant teleportation or summoning fire and ice.

There are techniques like spells or magic, and they even accomplish things that are impossible by any means in the world.

Moreover, goblins are like incarnations of nature.

No one uses sorcery better than a goblin.

And I knew the kind of sorcery he could unleash because he was a goblin.

“I heard that you used to perform some kind of sorcery for the trainees a long time ago. Was it illusion magic?”

“You little….”

The Mountain God frowned.

“I would appreciate it if you could bring out the things in my memory.”

I recalled what I had read in the records about the Mountain God.

‘The Mountain God’s illusion magic wasn’t originally meant to help with training, though.’

But I deliberately framed it nicely to make it sound better.

Goblins like commotion and enjoy playing pranks on people.

He seems to like alcohol more now, but in the past, he used to play pranks on the direct descendants who entered the mountain to relieve their boredom.

The main method used at that time was illusion magic.

It was to bring out a certain being from the memories of the person who came to train and embody it in reality.

That was what I wanted to use now.

“Ahem! Hey, kid. I don’t know where you heard it from, but that’s not something you can use for training. It’s just an illusion coming out of a talisman….”

The Mountain God looked a little embarrassed by my request.

“I know that if you keep replenishing your power, you can create a form that is no different from what exists in reality. And I heard that you protected Cheonwisan [Heavenly Mountain] during the Great War with that technique.”

“No, how did you know that….”

“That’s why I asked for your time. It wouldn’t be difficult for you, would it? You just need time, right?”

The Mountain God flinched.

‘Damn it. How does this little brat know so much?’

It was something from so long ago that he couldn’t even remember when it was.

He was regretting his playfulness back then.

“Is it too difficult? I thought it would be very easy for you, so I asked.”

At those words, the Mountain God clicked his tongue lowly.

It wasn’t difficult. It wasn’t difficult, but… it was annoying.

‘Then that means I have to be stuck with this guy while he’s training!’

But since he had already made a promise, he couldn’t take it back.

“Okay… I’ll do it. About 1 o’clock….”

“Since it’s your sorcery, I think I can skip my morning training. Could you help me for about 12 hours a day?”

“What, what? 12 hours?”

The Mountain God’s expression twisted.

He thought it would only take about an hour, but 12 hours!

“Hey, isn’t that a bit too long? You’re training using a goblin’s sorcery. Spending half the day is highway robbery, you little rascal!”

“Ah, I see. Hmm… then how about 4 hours after lunch?”

Four hours.

That wasn’t bad. It would be a little annoying, but not unbearable.

“Okay, fine. That’s okay.”

“Thank you, Mountain God.”

That’s how I got the chance to do a new training.

* * *

The Mountain God picked up the talisman that had fallen to the ground with a sullen expression.

What the Mountain God’s sorcery created was not something that existed in this world, nor was it a being in the Mountain God’s own memory.

What the illusion magic created was something in Lee Cheol’s memory, and also a being that Lee Cheol focused on and recalled.

‘That little runt fought that monster? The end of the world.’

Well, the world was always in its end.

Especially this crazy family called Soongmoo was the epitome of the end of the world.

“Hey, kid! How about it, want to take a break?”

“Hoo…. Please proceed right away.”

The Mountain God frowned as if he was fed up.

Even though what came out of the illusion magic wasn’t real, it was clear that Lee Cheol’s senses would feel it as real.

In other words, from Lee Cheol’s point of view, the battle just now was clearly like a real battle with his life on the line.

But to take a short breath and move on to the next one right away.

“Okay, do whatever you want. Concentrate and recall like before.”

After closing his eyes and thinking about something for a while, Lee Cheol nodded, and the Mountain God yawned and threw the talisman away.

This time, it was a person who appeared.

A neat martial uniform, a handsome appearance, and a sword in his hand.

“Huh? Who’s that?”

“He was an instructor in the cadet corps.”

“Oh, is that so.”

Lee Cheol had that much conversation and started clashing with the illusion magic again.

The Mountain God sighed deeply, feeling the magical power draining away.

‘Why did I say I would do something like this?’

He could have avoided this troublesome task by diverting the conversation appropriately or offering other rewards in advance….

Before he knew it, things had tilted towards helping.

That guy might be better with his tongue than with weapons.

‘Come to think of it, isn’t 4 hours too long? Wasn’t that guy bluffing when he first asked for 12 hours to make it feel relatively less?’

That might be true! No, it’s definitely true!

‘And there’s something else strange about it.’

The content of the second request was also strange.

Anyway, what Lee Cheol does is all kinds of bizarre things.

‘Eing! What’s done is done. Let’s shake it off. The second request won’t be difficult anyway!’

The Mountain God opened a bottle of alcohol and quenched his thirst.

He was sipping alcohol absentmindedly when he suddenly tilted his head.

‘…Has that guy gotten taller?’

Looking at him, it seemed like his body had grown a little compared to when he first came to the mountain.

No, not a little, but quite a bit.

He had grown at least a hand span taller.

His shoulders had broadened, and his muscles had grown.

His body had become so sturdy that it couldn’t be seen as a change of just 3 months.

‘Well, he’s been using his body and recovering like that….’

The curves of his body that were revealed with each intense movement were quite sharp.

Who would see that body as belonging to a 14-year-old child?

Only then did the Mountain God begin to carefully examine Lee Cheol’s appearance and movements.

The brilliant martial arts he was unfolding.

Things like the movement of his feet and the movement of his arms.

The Mountain God’s mouth slowly opened.

‘He definitely wasn’t this good when he first started training, was he?’

His movements had become more sophisticated.

He continued to fight while changing weapons, and the flow was uninterrupted like a flowing river.

Every time he wielded each weapon, he felt like someone who had been handling only that weapon.

When he wielded a sword, he felt like a swordsman.

When he wielded a spear, he felt like a spearman.

What was shocking was that there were dozens of changing weapons, and each weapon felt like it had its own level of proficiency.

‘His ability to handle Mana and magical power has also grown.’

The erratic energy began to move according to Lee Cheol’s will, and the Mana that seemed to be out of control also seemed to be holding the reins well.

Compared to when he first started training, the proficiency of all abilities had improved significantly.

‘It’s not so much that he’s gotten stronger… but that he’s become more solid.’

It was more accurate to say that he had built a solid foundation rather than feeling like he had crossed a certain stage and gone up.

And that was in just 3 months.

Now it was understandable that he was able to find out the signs of the spirit beast and chase after it.

His Mana, senses, Aura, and the skills to move his body.

Since proficiency in all areas had been achieved, he was naturally able to do such a thing.

Kwaang!

At that moment, an explosion erupted and a cold wind suddenly swept through the training ground.

‘Heo, even cold energy? It’s quite difficult for humans to handle elemental power, isn’t it?’

He had seen countless trainees, but he had never seen anyone like that before.

He had Mana in his eyes, and he wielded more than one or two weapons.

He was fighting while bursting out Aura, but the control was precise, and he even used cold energy?

‘It’s amazing that he’s fighting so frantically, but it’s not chaotic and precise.’

The flamboyant gestures themselves felt like they had been established as martial arts.

It had only been 3 months. In those 3 months, the child had laid his foundation.

There were only about 9 months left.

That child would definitely grow again, but where would he go?

‘If it’s that child, it seems really possible to go in there and come out.’

If that child passed through that training ground that no one dared to challenge anymore.

It was the first event in the history of the Soongmoo family.

Kwaang!

Another explosion echoed through the training ground.

‘Anyway.’

The Mountain God’s eyes sank deeply.

‘That weapon. I’ve seen something similar….’

In an instant.

The Mountain God’s eyes grew wider and wider as he watched Lee Cheol’s unique movements.

* * *

After each training session, I would always head to the open-air bath where the healing water came out.

As I soaked my body in the steaming healing water, a weak sound escaped my mouth without me realizing it.

“Heuah-.”

It felt like I was being rewarded for that exhausting training time.

The feeling of carbonated water wrapping around my body. That tickling feeling permeated every corner of my body.

The energy of the healing water permeated the muscles and bones through the skin, and then affected the magical power system.

Feeling strangely cool and strangely awkward, I enjoyed the warm water temperature.

“You must be human too. I can see you’re tired. Hehe!”

The Mountain God, who had appeared without a sound, as if he had used some kind of sorcery again, was grinning.

“Mountain God? What’s going on?”

“Hey, I’ve been through some trouble too, so I need to take a break.”

The Mountain God strode into the bath and sat down right across from me.

“Euh, cool~heoda.”

Then the Mountain God started eating eggs.

He was about to take out Sikhye [sweet rice beverage].

“You were thinking about eating Sikhye right now, weren’t you?”

“…No.”

I slyly turned my gaze away.

“What do you mean no, you little rascal. And in this case, it’s not Sikhye, it’s Yakju [refined rice wine].”

When the Mountain God waved his hand in the air, Makgeolli [Korean rice wine] in a plastic bottle fell down.

I wondered if a person could like alcohol that much.

‘He’s not human in the first place, right.’

I had read records that goblins liked alcohol, but I didn’t expect it to be this much.

“Don’t look at me enviously. Kid. You’re not old enough to drink yet.”

“It’s okay.”

I wasn’t going to ask for it anyway.

The Mountain God continued to tilt the bottle and eat the eggs.

Then he glanced at me.

“How many months has it been since you came here?”

“It’s been over 3 months.”

“Haven’t you rested at all during that time?”

I didn’t know what kind of question it was, but I answered truthfully.

“I rested every time.”

“I’m not talking about coming here after training. I’m talking about taking a proper break.”

“….”

“You’re a tough one. I’ve lived quite a long time, you know? But I’ve never seen anyone train so hard that their body hurts and go into the bath three times a day.”

The Mountain God chuckled as he munched on the eggs.

After that, we didn’t have much conversation.

When my body was fully recovered, I slowly got up from my seat.

“I think my body has recovered. I’ll go up first.”

“Wait a minute.”

The Mountain God stopped me when I had raised my body halfway.

“Sit down again. Let’s talk for a minute.”

His tone was no different from usual, but the Mountain God’s face, which was waving the bottle in the air, was more serious than ever.

I got up awkwardly and sat back in the bath.

“What you were wielding earlier. What’s its name?”

“Are you talking about this?”

I showed the black ring on my finger.

“Yes.”

“It’s called Mujin.”

The Mountain God’s eyes sank deeply.

“Where did you get it?”

“….”

Why was he suddenly asking this?

While I was looking for something to say, the Mountain God stared at me intently.

“If it’s a difficult part to talk about, I promise I won’t talk about it anywhere.”

“Why are you curious?”

“I’m not sure yet, but it’s a story related to its identity. Can’t you tell me?”

I hesitated for a moment.

Since I had received the goblin’s promise, there was no problem in telling him.

And I was also curious about Mujin’s identity.

“I got it from the family’s archive.”

Tak tak-.

The Mountain God tapped the surface of the stone surrounding the healing water with his finger as if he was contemplating something.

The Mountain God took another sip of alcohol and asked.

“How much do you know about it?”