Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

141 – Special Privilege

The robot, which had made a dramatic entrance that would be remembered for a lifetime, transformed back into a sports car right after warning the two.

Ah-rin greeted Byung-tae, who was sitting in the driver’s seat, with a cheerful expression.

“Uncle Byung-tae! Long time no… oh, never mind. Anyway, it’s good to see you again!”

“Yeah. And I’m not ‘uncle,’ I’m ‘oppa.’ I may look old, but I’m not that old… By the way, did you eat?”

“I skipped the in-flight meal because I planned to eat here.”

“Get in. Let’s go eat.”

“Yay!!”

Ah-rin, who was about to get into the passenger seat with a joyful expression, stopped and looked towards Orléans. As a member of the ServiHum Clan, she couldn’t move freely without the leader’s permission.

Orléans, who was still staring blankly at Byung-tae’s car, snapped out of it and asked Byung-tae,

“Aren’t we having the meeting right now?”

“That’s why I said I’d take you directly by shuttle bus, but didn’t you say you wanted to walk around the city? So, walk as you originally planned. I’ll take Ah-rin to eat and then bring her to the meeting place.”

In truth, the city tour was just an excuse. Orléans’ original plan was to find a spacious area and show Myung-jun his fight with Svedov.

However, in the end, all Orléans could show was the sight of all his water rings being destroyed by a single strike from Byung-tae, not even Myung-jun.

‘Is the Liberal Clan full of monsters? How can an ordinary clan member, who isn’t even a world ranker, be this strong?’

It wasn’t unreasonable for Orléans to think that way. In reality, Byung-tae wasn’t considered one of the stronger combatants compared to other Liberal Clan members, most of whom were world rankers.

But that evaluation was before Byung-tae received his new custom machine, specially made by Soo-jeong.

With the custom machine, Byung-tae had become a powerful combatant with combat power surpassing even Deki, the Elemental Master who controlled four elements.

As they moved to the restaurant in Byung-tae’s car with Orléans’ permission, Ah-rin asked about the new custom machine Byung-tae had received.

“What is this car? It transformed into a robot in an instant.”

“Oh? Soo-jeong made it for me. It’s my new custom machine.”

“I’m curious about the internal structure that allows it to transform from a sports car into a robot.”

Byung-tae grinned and said to Ah-rin,

“Do you think it can only transform into a robot?”

The custom machine Byung-tae received from Soo-jeong.

The Multi-Environment Adaptable Variable Combat Test Machine ‘DOG FIGHT’ was equipment that only Byung-tae could handle within the Liberal Clan.

The ability to skillfully control a machine that could freely combine and transform with an enormous amount of long-range armaments and thousands of auxiliary parts, almost like an armory, was a skill unique to Byung-tae.

In fact, the cockpit of the Dog Fight, when transformed into combat mode rather than car mode, was filled with thousands of buttons, switches, handles, and analog sticks to control its numerous functions and expansion parts.

Byung-tae had the ability to perfectly master the control methods of any machine the moment he sat in the cockpit, without needing to practice.

“Right now, it can transform into a car, a robot, a tank, and a plane, but it can also transform into intermediate forms. For example, it can change its lower body into a tank while keeping its upper body as a robot, or it can attach wings to the tank form and fly, or it can fight with just the robot legs attached to the fighter jet form.”

“The firepower is incredible.”

“All the ammunition is special chemical rounds made by Seung-ho, who recently joined us. The warheads are specially coated, and the gunpowder inside is also a new type.”

Ah-rin smiled as she watched Byung-tae excitedly explain. She knew well that he had been self-conscious about his combat strength compared to other clan members.

Ah-rin listened attentively and expressed her amazement, making Byung-tae feel even better as he continued to boast about his custom machine.

Feeling as if he could fly, Byung-tae said to Ah-rin,

“Hey, let’s fly.”

“What?! Fly?! How?”

“Like this.”

Byung-tae pressed a button on the steering wheel, and combination parts were launched from a building beyond the window.

Moments later, a part that looked like the cockpit of a fighter jet approached the vehicle Ah-rin was in, and her car began to transform.

– Clack, clack, whirr, clack –

Various parts disassembled and flipped, and the passenger seat Ah-rin was sitting in moved from beside Byung-tae to behind him. A belt, wriggling as if alive, wrapped around her body.

‘Liquid metal? Or nanomachines? Whatever it is, it seems like the material itself is changing, not just the parts transforming.’

From the cockpit to the backrest, Byung-tae’s car had fully transformed into something resembling a fighter jet cockpit. Then, the combination parts launched from the building began to envelop the vehicle from behind.

“Ready to fly?”

Suddenly, the bottom of the fighter jet they were in opened, and two legs extended out. It then jumped off the ground powerfully, like a water bird taking off from the surface.

– Shuaaaaaaang! –

The intense sound of the jet engine, completely different from the sports car’s exhaust noise, pleasantly echoed in Ah-rin’s ears, making her involuntarily scream!

“Kyaaaaaa!!”

“How is it?! Cool, right?!”

“It’s the best!!”

“Then, I’ll take you to the restaurant at top speed! Passengers, please fasten your seatbelts tightly!”

“Oppa Byung-tae! Go faster!”

Excited by Ah-rin’s reaction, Byung-tae increased the speed, and the fighter jet they were in began to race through the skies of Liberty City as if performing an airshow.

Watching this from the ground, Orléans spoke in an envious tone.

“They look like they’re having fun.”

“If you’re jealous, why not ask for a ride? Maybe if you ask through Ah-rin, he’ll give you one.”

“No matter what, my pride hasn’t fallen that low.”

“In that case, we should have taken the shuttle bus when it was offered.”

Unlike Ah-rin, who was enjoying the spectacular airshow, the rest of the group left behind by Byung-tae were trudging along the endless roads of Liberty City.

Since Liberty City hadn’t officially opened yet, there wasn’t a single bus or taxi in sight.

The only fortunate thing was that, except for Ah-rin, the rest of the members were combat-type Awakeners with physical abilities far superior to ordinary people.

For them, walking for about an hour was a trivial task that required little physical exertion.

It was just the act of walking aimlessly down this empty road without any guidance that was unpleasant.

After walking for about ten minutes, Zhai Tianlin, whose patience had worn thin, began to emit a menacing aura from his body.

“Whoa! Whoa! What are you doing?!”

“This is annoying. I’m going to fly. You can walk or do whatever you want.”

“Didn’t you hear what the person in the robot said earlier? Using abilities inside Liberty City is prohibited. If you fly to the destination while emitting that menacing aura, do you think Cha Myung-jun will let it slide?”

“And what if he doesn’t? Is he going to kill me after inviting me here?”

Instead of answering Zhai Tianlin’s question, Orléans stared at him intently.

Zhai Tianlin, realizing the gravity of the situation, retracted his aura and grumbled,

“Damn. Now that I think about it, he really might do that.”

In the end, they followed the glowing arrows on the road to the meeting place without using any abilities.

There, they found a large round table with about twenty chairs and Ah-rin, who was patting her satisfied belly with a contented expression.

“You’re late. I ate too much while waiting.”

Seeing this, Orléans glared at Ah-rin, veins bulging in his neck.

“Ah-rin… Never mind. I was the one who insisted on walking.”

“As someone who has been a guest of the Liberal Clan for a long time, let me give you some advice, it’s easier to just accept what Myung-jun offers at face value. People who try to be clever and attempt various things always end up regretting it.”

“…I’ll take your advice.”

At that moment, a door opened, and Myung-jun and Soo-jeong appeared.

Behind them were Ho-chang, Byung-tae, Taylor, Kei, Soo-bin, Deki, and Seung-ho, who had recently joined.

They were the ‘core’ regular members of the Liberal Clan.

“Thank you for coming all the way here. We even offered you a vehicle, but you chose to walk. Did you enjoy your tour of the city?”

Orléans and his group had no choice but to honestly agree with Myung-jun’s question. They didn’t regret their foolish decision to walk, as Liberty City was filled with sights to see. Everyone shared the sentiment that just looking around made time fly by.

“It’s an impressive city. The entire time, I felt like I was in a futuristic city after riding a time machine. If it’s this lively before the official opening, I can only imagine how bustling it will be afterward.”

“Hehe… Thank you for the positive feedback.”

“So, can you now explain why you called us here today? We heard the request to become instructors at the academy, but we don’t know the specifics.”

“Hmm… I thought the explanation was sufficient…”

“It’s not that we don’t understand the purpose of the request. We’re curious about what exactly you expect from us and what you can offer in return. And also…”

Orléans was interrupted by Svedov, who continued,

“Let’s be honest. Until we arrived here, we thought the Liberal Clan was asking for our ‘help’ because of our strength. But that’s not the case. Frankly, none of you seem weaker than us, even if it’s not Cha Myung-jun himself. So, we’d like to know why such strong individuals are asking for help from those weaker than themselves.”

What Svedov felt was a common sentiment among them all. Everyone had witnessed Byung-tae easily defeating Svedov’s zombie mutants, which would have required considerable effort even if they fought together. Byung-tae’s shocking combat prowess, despite being considered weak within the Liberal Clan, had instantly shattered their confidence.

They began to doubt whether they were truly qualified to be instructors at this massive academy building.

Seeing this, Myung-jun smiled and spoke to them.

“It seems Byung-tae’s performance left quite an impression, but there’s no need to be so shocked. Byung-tae’s strength also relies heavily on his equipment.”

Myung-jun explained that the strength of the Liberal Clan, as seen by the public, was ultimately completed by the specialized equipment created by the Liberal Clan.

To make it easier to understand, Myung-jun compared the abilities of Seung-ho, who had recently joined, and Zhai Tianlin.

“Zhai Tianlin’s Awakener ability is poison. And our Seung-ho’s Awakener ability is chemical synthesis. Both can create powerful poisons that didn’t exist in the world before, but the way they handle their abilities is completely different. For example, Seung-ho can synthesize poison, but without the help of equipment, he can’t turn it into a cloud or generate a large amount of poison on the spot without materials. On the other hand, Zhai Tianlin…”

“Can create poison out of thin air. I understand what you mean.”

“That’s why what we can teach the Awakeners who will enroll in the academy mainly revolves around the operation of equipment. While the combat abilities of the Liberal Clan members wearing the equipment might be stronger, in terms of the operation of abilities, you are stronger.”

“So, what the Liberal Clan expects from us is to teach the Awakeners how to use their abilities, not the equipment?”

“Exactly. We want you to teach the students how to control and move their energy, how to imbue their summons with will and enhance their specifications, and how to recreate the corpses of acquired mutants in a state stronger than when they were alive. These are the special skills we cannot teach, and we hope you will pass them on to the many students who will enroll in the future.”

“That seems possible, but…” Svedov said.

“Just because we can do it doesn’t mean we have to. If we cooperate with the Liberal Clan, what will you offer us in return?”

Hearing Svedov’s words, Myung-jun smiled.

Then he spoke to the gathered ‘instructor candidates.’

“For the clans that cooperate with the instructor duties, we will grant draft rights for the academy graduates.”

The ‘draft’ Myung-jun mentioned referred to the system used in sports leagues, where teams select new players in a predetermined order during the ‘rookie selection meeting.’

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