The day of the press conference arrived.
Seong-jun proceeded with the press conference as discussed with the Association.
He stated that the re-awakening of his entire party was made possible through the full support of the Association, and as such, their involvement in the recent B-rank Dungeon Break was also carried out at the Association’s request.
However, he also made it clear that while they would accept the Association’s requests as much as possible during such incidents, their relationship was horizontal and independent.
Depending on the situation, they might not always be able to comply.
Regardless, through this press conference, public sentiment toward the Association began to shift.
“Haha! President! The reaction to the press conference is explosive. There are many favorable responses toward the Association as well!”
“Even though there are still many who look at us unfavorably, we have achieved our primary goal by generating some positive public opinion. Bringing Kim Seong-jun on board was truly a stroke of genius.”
Of course, the press conference didn’t have the dramatic effect of turning every critic into a supporter.
However, moving from nothing but criticism to having a segment of favorable public opinion was certainly a satisfying result.
In the past, the Association was cursed regardless of what they did.
Now, at least, a foundation had been laid where they could grow favorable public opinion depending on their actions.
“It is encouraging that the public sentiment has turned slightly positive through Healer Kim Seong-jun’s press conference today, but we must not become complacent. Whether this seed we sowed today grows and blossoms or withers away, causing this hard-earned opportunity to vanish like a bubble, ultimately depends on us.”
Therefore, the Association President decided they must do their best to cultivate this favorable public opinion.
If they didn’t, this hard-won chance might be pointlessly wasted.
“Understood!”
When the executives replied in unison, the Association President looked at Park Se-jin of the Awakener Management Bureau and asked, “By the way, did Healer Kim Seong-jun and Karl Buckman meet?”
“Yes, as soon as the press conference ended, I informed Healer Kim Seong-jun and arranged a meeting between the two.”
As soon as Karl Buckman arrived at the Association, the President first identified his intention for entering Korea.
As expected, Karl had entered the country to meet Seong-jun.
After confirming this, the President asked for his understanding and requested that he wait just one day.
Naturally, Karl Buckman could easily wait a single day and readily agreed.
And today, as soon as the press conference concluded, Seong-jun was informed, and a meeting was arranged for the two of them.
“You said Karl Buckman requested a private meeting with Healer Kim Seong-jun?”
“Since the meeting was taking place within the Association, I intended to be present, but Karl Buckman wanted to speak with Healer Kim Seong-jun alone, so I had no choice but to step out. Healer Kim Seong-jun wanted that as well.”
If only Karl had wanted it and Seong-jun hadn’t, he would have stayed in that room no matter what.
However, since Seong-jun also wished for a private conversation, he was forced to excuse himself.
“I see. It can’t be helped. In any case, we must firmly seize this opportunity. So, everyone, return to your posts and prepare at least one plan that is friendly to Awakeners while being helpful to the general public.”
If both Seong-jun and Karl Buckman wanted a private meeting, there was nothing to be done.
He already had a rough idea of why Karl was there anyway, so he only needed to check the results later.
For now, how to capitalize on this opportunity was more important, so he ordered the executives to come up with at least one plan each.
Meanwhile, at that same time, Seong-jun was having his private meeting with Karl Buckman.
—
“So, you’re wondering if I can regenerate a severed arm?”
“That’s right. I lost my left arm 2 years ago while clearing an A-rank dungeon. If I can restore my arm, I’m willing to give you everything I have.”
Money?
Artifacts?
To the current Karl Buckman, those things held little meaning.
The only thing that mattered to him now was the left arm he had lost 2 years ago.
If he could just get his left arm back, he would be reborn as a complete S-rank rather than a half-measure.
And once that happened, he could collect money or artifacts again whenever he wanted.
“2 years. Quite a bit of time has passed. First, I’ll check if treatment is possible through a diagnosis.”
Regardless of the situation, it was difficult to give a definitive answer before performing a diagnosis.
“What do I need to do?”
Seong-jun stood up and smiled at Karl Buckman, who was asking what his role was.
“You don’t have to do anything. I’ll come over to you for a moment.”
Seong-jun stood up, approached Karl Buckman, and placed his hand on the man’s left shoulder.
And then…
‘Diagnosis!’
He immediately cast his Diagnosis skill.
**[Diagnosis Result: Expected full recovery in 3 months with 30 minutes of treatment daily. (Efficiency drops significantly if God’s Miracle is used for more than 30 minutes. Not recommended.) Slight pain will accompany the treatment.]**
God’s Miracle required a massive amount of mana, but above all, it demanded high concentration from the caster.
Therefore, maintaining God’s Miracle for a long time would inevitably put a strain on Seong-jun.
More importantly, the efficiency of God’s Miracle dropped sharply after 30 minutes.
It was the definition of inefficient.
For this reason, the system set the maximum maintenance time for God’s Miracle at 30 minutes.
The diagnosis result showed that a total of 3 months would be required if treated for 30 minutes every day.
After confirming the result, Seong-jun returned to his seat and sat down.
“The diagnosis shows that a full recovery is possible.”
When the word “recovery” left Seong-jun’s mouth, Karl Buckman’s eyes widened.
“Huff! Is… is that true? You can really bring my arm back?”
“Yes, it’s possible. However, because so much time has passed, it won’t be easy to do in a short period. It will take some time.”
When he mentioned it would take time, Karl Buckman asked cautiously, “How long?”
“This skill requires intense concentration, so it’s difficult to maintain for a long time. Furthermore, the efficiency drops significantly after 30 minutes, so 30 minutes is the current maximum. Assuming we do treatments for 30 minutes every day, it will take 3 months for a full recovery. Additionally, there may be some pain involved during the process.”
At the mention of 3 months, Karl Buckman jumped up from his seat.
“3 months! You’re saying my arm will be completely healed in just 3 months? Hahaha! If I can reconstruct this left arm, I could wait 3 years, let alone 3 months!”
Karl Buckman had lived as a one-armed man for 2 years; could he not wait a mere 3 months?
Now that it was confirmed that treatment was possible, it was time to talk about the medical fees.
‘If it were an ordinary person, I could treat them for free to gain title experience and reputation.’
Of course, even if they were ordinary people, he would receive appropriate compensation from the wealthy.
But Awakeners were different.
For some reason, no matter how much he treated Hunters for free, it was not treated as an Unpaid Good Deed.
He wouldn’t gain any title experience at all.
Therefore, while he was willing to treat those who fought on the same battlefield for free, he intended to receive proper compensation otherwise, since he couldn’t gain title experience from it.
“What do you want? Money? Or an artifact? I’ll give you whatever you want! Just say the word!”
At Karl Buckman’s offer to give him anything, Seong-jun gave a faint smile and spoke.
“Well, I already have enough money, so it doesn’t really tempt me. As for artifacts, what I have now is enough that I won’t feel inferior anywhere. Do you have anything that might make me want to put my heart and soul into your treatment?”
He already had more than enough money to be comfortable.
Of course, this was based on Seong-jun’s own standards, and there were many domestic Hunters who had several times more money than him.
In any case, from Seong-jun’s perspective, he wasn’t particularly desperate for money.
He also had enough artifacts for the moment, and once he started operating the Dungeon Creation Device in earnest, he could secure high-grade equipment whenever he wanted.
In this situation, since Karl Buckman was the one who was desperate, Seong-jun told him to make an offer.
“Hmm, what would be good… Ah! Come to think of it, I have that! 2 years ago, I obtained an S-rank artifact in the dungeon where I lost my arm. It’s a consumable, one-time-use item called a Skill Enhancement Stone. It can enhance any skill regardless of its level.”
A Skill Enhancement Stone was an item that enhanced a skill by at least one level to a maximum of three levels, which was a different concept from leveling up.
It was known to appear with an extremely low probability only in A-rank dungeons, and one had never been listed at an auction yet.
That was only natural, as any Hunter who obtained one would want to use it themselves rather than auctioning it off.
At the time, he had been so despondent over losing his arm that he had shoved the Skill Enhancement Stone into a corner and completely forgotten about its existence.
That was the only reason it remained; otherwise, he would have used it long ago.
“Oh! A Skill Enhancement Stone. That certainly piques my interest.”
When Seong-jun showed interest, Karl Buckman immediately spoke.
“I’ll give you 10 million dollars along with the Skill Enhancement Stone. Is that enough to treat me?”
Ten million dollars was over 14 billion won at the current exchange rate.
While Seong-jun had much more than that in his bank account, it was by no means a small amount.
‘If I enhance Holy Weapon Enchant with a Skill Enhancement Stone… I might even be able to clear B-rank dungeons smoothly. I must get that.’
The strongest among the buffs Seong-jun possessed was his Enchant Buff, and among them, the offensive buff Holy Weapon Enchant could be considered the core of his hunting.
If he enhanced Holy Weapon Enchant to make it even more powerful, it might become possible to clear B-rank dungeon bosses, which he had thought was still too much for him.
However, wasn’t negotiation all about the give-and-take?
“I’ll treat you if you give me the Skill Enhancement Stone and 30 million dollars.”
‘Since I asked for 30 million, I should be able to get at least 20 million.’
Seong-jun asked for 30 million dollars because he expected the negotiation to conclude at 20 million dollars.
But that was a thought born from Seong-jun taking Karl Buckman too lightly.
“Deal! Then do we start the treatment today?”
Karl Buckman was one of the main pillars of the Holy Emperor Guild, which ranked near the top of the world’s top 10 guilds.
His personal assets were known to exceed 100 million dollars, so what did 30 million dollars matter?
When he agreed so readily, Seong-jun was the one who looked flustered.
“What? You’ll pay the Skill Enhancement Stone and 30 million dollars as the medical fee?”
“If I can get my arm back, I’d give you even more than that. Hahahaha!”
Seeing Karl Buckman agree without even thinking about haggling, Seong-jun could realize how desperate the man was.
‘Wow! He really must be desperate.’
Frankly, even if he had asked for 50 million dollars instead of 30 million, it seemed like Karl would have agreed immediately.
Although he was laughing heartily, desperation was etched on his face.
“Very well. But is it alright for you to stay in Korea for 3 months? I understand you hold the position of Vice Guild Leader in your guild. Besides, you must have teammates. If necessary, you can travel between the US and Korea for treatment. However, if you do that, the treatment period might increase significantly.”
It wasn’t just a few weeks; it was a full 3 months.
Since he had to receive treatment every day, it meant he had to stay in Korea for 3 months.
Of course, it wasn’t absolutely mandatory to receive treatment every single day, so he could travel back and forth, but that would make the treatment period much longer.
It could even take 6 months or more.
In any case, he had to clear this part up, so he brought it up first.
“I’ll ask for the guild’s understanding. It’s not like problems will arise just because I’m gone, so the guild will understand. I’ll wire the full amount of money today. And I’ll have the guild bring the Skill Enhancement Stone as quickly as possible.”
It was the Holy Emperor Guild, one of the top 10 in the world; what could happen just because one half-S-rank was gone?
Even if something did happen, regaining his arm was more important to Karl Buckman than anything else right now.
“I see. Anyway, this isn’t a great place for treatment, so let’s go to my house for now. It’s a bit humble since I haven’t moved yet, but it’ll be better than here. Since this work requires intense concentration, it’s best not to be disturbed during the treatment if possible.”
This was the Association, a place where many people came and went.
Even if they were careful, they could be unintentionally disturbed.
Therefore, even if it was a bit shabby, he judged it better to perform the treatment comfortably at home.
“As long as I can receive treatment, I don’t care where it is.”
“Haha, then let’s go.”
Having concluded their negotiation, Seong-jun and Karl Buckman left the Association.
—
The Holy Emperor Guild headquarters in New York, USA.
Guild Master William Kraft and S-rank Healer Sarah Berin were discussing a dungeon raid.
At that moment…
*Bang!*
Another S-rank Healer, Reina Jeffros, hurriedly opened the door to the Guild Master’s office and entered.
“William!”
William looked at Reina with a puzzled expression.
“Hmm? Reina. What is it?”
“Oh? Reina. You seem to be in a hurry, but you should at least knock, shouldn’t you?”
Reina, who realized late that Sarah was also there, gave an awkward smile.
“Ah! Sarah was here too? Sorry. It’s just such an urgent matter.”
What could be so urgent that she would burst into the Guild Master’s office without even knocking?
“An urgent matter?”
“It’s about Karl! He says treatment is possible!”
In an instant, William and Sarah’s eyes widened.
“Treatment is possible? Are you saying Karl can get his arm back? Really?”
“W-what? Is that true?”
Seeing the two of them looking incredulous, Reina nodded her head.
“I was so shocked when I got the call from Karl a little while ago. But it’s true. The treatment has already started, and he said he confirmed that his arm is being reconstructed, even if only a little. However, because so much time has passed, a full recovery isn’t possible in a short time, and he has to receive daily treatment for about 3 months.”
Karl had seen his arm being reconstructed, even if only slightly, after receiving the treatment.
Since he had confirmed it with his own eyes, what more needed to be said?
“Whoa! So treatment is really possible. Karl can truly get his left arm back? That’s great. That’s truly great!”
William had a look of genuine joy on his face.
“But because of that, he’ll be staying in Korea for 3 months for the treatment. He said he could travel back and forth, but that would make the treatment period much longer.”
When she said he had to stay in Korea for 3 months, William and Sarah smiled.
“If Karl can return with a whole body, we can wait 3 years, let alone 3 months.”
“Are we finally going to see Karl’s dual swords again? I’m already looking forward to seeing what kind of faces those people who ignored Karl for being a half-S-rank will make when they see him whole.”
There were quite a few people who subtly looked down on Karl Buckman for losing an arm and becoming a half-strength S-rank.
In this situation, if Karl Buckman regained his left arm and returned as a complete S-rank?
No one would be able to ignore the man who had been among the top 10 close-range damage dealers in the entire world.
“Ah! And Karl asked for a favor, so I have to go to Korea for a bit. Since I’m going anyway, I’ll stay for a few days.”
When Reina said she was going to Korea, Sarah asked with a puzzled expression, “To Korea? What did Karl ask for that requires you to go all the way there?”
“He said he promised 30 million dollars and a Skill Enhancement Stone as medical fees. The money can be wired immediately, but the Skill Enhancement Stone seems to be at Karl’s house. He asked me to bring it to him.”
When the words “Skill Enhancement Stone” came out of Reina’s mouth, William and Sarah looked shocked once again.
“A Skill Enhancement Stone? He had one left without using it?”
“Whoa! 30 million dollars is one thing, but isn’t a Skill Enhancement Stone a bit overkill? Those are so rare that if he put it up for auction, it would easily surpass 200 million dollars.”
Though no Skill Enhancement Stone had ever appeared at an auction, it was certain that if one were listed, it would draw incredible competition.
Although they said it would exceed 200 million dollars, one could likely get several times that if it were actually put up for auction.
“It seems Karl brought it up first. From Karl’s perspective, his arm is more important than a Skill Enhancement Stone. I think so too. No matter how much you enhance a skill with a Skill Enhancement Stone, it can’t be stronger than wielding dual swords in a complete state. Anyway, the decision has already been made, so it’ll be hard to overturn.”
They were surprised that a Skill Enhancement Stone still remained, but as Reina said, it was more important for Karl to get his arm back.
“As Reina said, no matter how great a Skill Enhancement Stone is, it’s nothing compared to Karl getting his arm back. Instead of that, I’ll go myself.”
When William said he would take the Skill Enhancement Stone to Korea himself, Reina looked dumbfounded.
“What? What are you talking about? I already said I’d go! Karl asked me for the favor too! So of course, I should be the one to go!”
“Karl is getting his arm back; how can I just sit still? Reina, you concede this time. I have to go see it with my own eyes.”
As William and Reina bickered over who would go…
“Sigh, why don’t we all just go? Let’s postpone most of our schedules and go together for a few days. We can make an official visit request to the Korean Association. Why are you making it so complicated?”
Sarah offered a solution as if it were no big deal.
“Ah! That’ll work. Great! Reina, you go to Karl’s house right now and find the Skill Enhancement Stone. Sarah, you contact the Korean Association and tell them that Holy Emperor will be making an official visit to Korea.”
William Kraft canceled all the guild’s schedules and set a schedule for Korea.
This was because not only William but the others also felt a sense of debt toward Karl.
And so, Holy Emperor decided on an official visit to Korea.
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