Chapter 10
Impurity (3)
“B–… Back?”
A shadow fell over Sehyun’s face as he drew closer.
His smile looked unusually eerie.
“Hold still. I need to measure your size.”
“Ahem. So that’s what you meant by size…”
What the hell is this guy imagining?
Who’s going to eat you or something, seriously.
Sehyun unrolled a tape measure and checked Seongcheol’s back and arm length.
‘Just as I thought. No different from what I knew.’
He smirked and then fetched a box from the corner.
When he set it down with a thud, the box revealed metal parts inside.
“Do you know why you lost to me?”
“…Because I’m weak, I suppose. What, are you here to mock me now?”
Sehyun slowly shook his head.
“Of course not. It’s something you can confirm right now. Just how weak I am.”
It was true that the size of one’s stellar power was the yardstick of a Player’s strength.
And by sheer stellar power, Sehyun could never defeat Seongcheol.
Compared to Sehyun, who barely wielded a meteor-grade artifact, Seongcheol’s ability was planetary-grade.
But there was a variable.
‘A Player’s ability bends the laws of the world through stellar power.’
The magnitude of stellar power only determined the scale of the phenomenon.
If one could distort the phenomenon itself or block its activation, then no matter how immense that stellar power was, it became useless.
In the end, the real deciding factor in battle was how well you understood abilities—their affinities and characteristics.
And in that regard, no one could surpass Sehyun.
“Use your ability. Right now.”
“Here?”
“This is a smithy that handles molten metal. It’s fine, use it without worry.”
Still doubtful, Seongcheol cupped his hand and formed a sphere of magma.
It wobbled slightly but kept its form under his control.
Then Sehyun slipped the bracelet off his wrist and tossed it into the magma sphere.
Ssshhhhh—
The sphere warped and collapsed, spilling down to the floor.
“This is…”
“This is your weakness. When impurities mix in, your control falters.”
Seongcheol tried to command the magma again, but it just slipped away.
“How? It wasn’t like this when other objects melted into it…”
‘Of course. Because it isn’t a simple impurity.’
It was an artifact imbued with stellar power.
That was the key.
“It’s not just an impurity—it’s stellar power mixing in. Haven’t you ever fought another Player before?”
“I have, but… you’re the first I’ve ever clashed with properly.”
Well, who would dare stand against Seongcheol’s ability?
From what Sehyun remembered, Seongcheol always ended fights quickly.
At first, he thought it was to conserve his rapidly draining stellar power. But the truth was, it was due to the weakness in his ability.
‘A tricky power indeed. To maintain the purity of stellar power amidst chaos…’
As time passed, its might and control would gradually diminish until it couldn’t be used at all.
Just like impurities seeping in, the surrounding stellar power would slowly contaminate his.
“…So that’s my weakness.”
“Ahem.”
Seongcheol groaned at the blunt explanation.
But Sehyun just flashed a grin, as if it was no big deal.
“Don’t worry. I wouldn’t bring it up if I didn’t already have a fix.”
“You have a way?”
Sehyun pulled a chain bracelet from his pocket.
“This artifact is the solution.”
Seongcheol tilted his head.
A natural reaction—no one knew about artifacts yet, at this point in time.
“Simply put, it’s a custom-made weapon designed to cover a Player’s weakness.”
When Sehyun beckoned for his arm, Seongcheol frowned suspiciously.
“…It’s not dangerous, is it?”
“Look at you—such a big guy, scared. Don’t worry, it’s not dangerous.”
Well. At least, not for you.
Though reluctant, Seongcheol finally extended his hand, and Sehyun got to work.
He began fitting small iron parts onto each finger joint, then layered plates of metal across the back of the hand, covering the forearm in steel plating.
After welding the pieces together, a gauntlet was complete.
“How does it feel? Fits perfectly, right?”
“…Amazingly so.”
Seongcheol flexed his fist in awe.
For Sehyun, it wasn’t anything remarkable.
After all, he’d known Seongcheol’s arm size for years.
“An artifact… I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“It’s still in the experimental stage. I’d like you to serve as a test subject.”
“Me?”
“Yes. Not for free, of course—if it works properly, this one’s yours.”
“You’d… give me this weapon?”
It wasn’t like anyone else could use it anyway, being custom-made.
But Sehyun kept that to himself.
There was no need to ruin the gratitude shining on Seongcheol’s face.
‘In some ways, he really is a simple man.’
Sehyun knew Seongcheol was someone who deeply valued loyalty and favors.
He would never leave such kindness unanswered.
‘The debt he feels will turn him into a firm ally.’
And right now, Seongcheol was one of the strongest allies Sehyun could hope for.
“Don’t move yet. It’s not finished.”
Sehyun pressed his hand onto the plated gauntlet and summoned his stellar power.
Light spread from his palm, etching runes across the gauntlet’s surface.
“What in the…!”
Ignoring Seongcheol’s shock, Sehyun focused on his work.
He was engraving the gauntlet with its unique myth.
‘Remember it… Remember Seongcheol-hyung’s figure from back then.’
He intended to recreate the very image of the “Arm of the Golem” with this gauntlet.
[Scene transition: Seongcheol’s past mythic battle against obsidian-skinned ape monsters, wielding his magma and forming a colossal stone arm like a golem.]
Although Sehyun had experienced it firsthand, reproducing a scene so close to myth required something crucial.
‘Alright. Now…’
He swallowed hard, adjusted his welding mask, and carefully picked up a soul stone with tongs.
Even Seongcheol stiffened nervously.
“Th-this isn’t dangerous, right?”
“Yes, for now.”
“For now?!”
Normally, artifact creation was simple: grind the soul stone, erase its consciousness, extract only the stellar power, and bind it to the weapon.
But that wouldn’t work here.
With Sehyun awakened, the stellar power would be absorbed into him before the weapon could settle.
So instead, he chose to keep the soul stone’s consciousness intact and insert it directly.
This avoided leakage—but it carried the risk of the artifact’s stellar power clashing with its wielder’s.
Which is why Seongcheol was the perfect test subject.
If anyone could withstand stellar power backlash, it was him.
‘Even though it’s from the future… I remember he harmonized perfectly after swallowing Taehun’s soul stone. I have to trust that.’
Brrrrrr…
As the soul stone neared the gauntlet, the two reacted violently, shaking in resonance.
The tong tips glowed hot blue as if about to melt.
Thud!
The stone locked into the groove perfectly.
Blue stellar power flared along the etched runes.
‘Good. It’s syncing with the myth.’
Just as Sehyun sighed in relief—
Kiiiiiiiing—!!!!
“…!!!”
Cracks spread across the gauntlet as it glowed red hot.
“You said it wasn’t dangerous?!”
“…Damn it!”
Leaving the panicked Seongcheol, Sehyun pressed his hand to the gauntlet.
‘What’s wrong? The fusion was perfect…’
An unexpected anomaly.
But he quickly realized the cause.
‘Don’t tell me… it’s too compatible?’
The stellar powers weren’t just syncing—they were generating synergy.
The artifact couldn’t withstand the overload.
‘…To think I’d have to downgrade the myth.’
He would have to modify the engravings.
Impossible under normal methods—but with his awakened ability that interfered directly with artifacts, it was doable.
Kiiiiing—
He closed his eyes and recalled the myth again, checking every line inscribed.
‘When steam rose like preheating, the monsters’ black soul stones refined into resplendent light…’
That was the one line he kept.
He erased all others, letting a new engraving branch out in their place.
When he opened his eyes, the gauntlet had calmed.
“It’s… done?”
“Yes. Though if I’d slipped even a little, you’d have lost an arm.”
“M–my arm?! It almost got blown off?!”
Seongcheol, who had just relaxed, cried out in shock.
Sehyun replied flatly, as if it were someone else’s problem.
“Geez, can’t even take a joke. Anyway, try it. Use your power like usual—it’ll activate on its own. I designed it that way.”
Seongcheol clenched his fist.
Molten veins surged through the etched grooves like pulsing blood vessels.
Before him, a magma sphere appeared.
This time, its shape was perfectly smooth.
“And that’s not all.”
Sehyun tossed the bracelet into the sphere again.
Ssssshhhhh—!!!
The sphere threatened to collapse, but instead, thick smoke belched out, and the sphere regained stability.
The artifact had filtered the impurity.
“…It really feels lighter.”
“That’s because it’s refining your stellar power’s purity.”
The “Furnace.”
An artifact that expelled impurities as steam, refining stellar power to its purest state.
With this, Seongcheol’s ability would only grow stronger—unshaken by external contamination.
“You’re really giving me something like this?”
“If giving you one of these means you’ll help me, it’s a bargain.”
“…I see.”
A faint smile spread on Seongcheol’s face.
Then he handed Sehyun something.
A soul stone.
Its owner was obvious, no words needed.
“Take it.”
“…Are you sure?”
Sehyun couldn’t help but falter.
That soul stone was, in essence, Seongcheol’s beloved little sister.
“Keeping it any longer… would just be an attachment. I’d only shame Seonga if I clung to her.”
He didn’t sound boisterous now.
But in that quiet determination, Sehyun sensed a release he hadn’t before.
The man who had clung to vengeance, barely holding on to life with ashes, was gone.
From now on, he would walk a different path.
“…Then I’ll hold on to it.”
Sehyun accepted the soul stone with composure.
Now the lingering attachment belonged to him alone.
He clenched the soul stone tightly in his hand.
