“This is…”
This item Hailey handed over was a back scratcher. Of course, it wasn’t an ordinary back scratcher. This back scratcher had the handle of a golden horse. At a glance, it looked expensive.
This surprised even Sungjae, a person well-informed about all of Lee Gun’s items. “Uh! That came out at the US auction for a thousand dollars!”
It was worth a million won. However, if one considered that it was Lee Gun’s item, this item had gone for a very low price. That was why Chun Sungjae vividly remembered that information.
“It was an item Uncle allegedly put out on the flea market because he didn’t need it…”
This item had exchanged many hands before appearing at an auction in the US for the rich.
After Lee Gun’s death, all his items were auctioned off at large auctions. The prices ranged from tens of thousands of dollars to tens of millions.
So compared to that, this item had gotten sold at a very cheap price.
The Secretary clicked his tongue, thinking it was a fancy piece of junk. ‘A mere back scratcher sold for a thousand dollars!’
On the other hand, Hugo was hopping mad. “This cost only a thousand dollars? This?”
“S-Saint-nim!”
“Be careful! You’ll break it!”
“That’s right! Do you realize what kind of item that is?”
“???”
The Secretary looked at the Archer disciples as if they had lost their minds. Goat and Lee Jaewon looked nervous at the possibility of the back scratcher breaking.
Ignoring them, Hugo yelled toward his son, “Why the hell did it sell for only a thousand dollars?”
“What? Why would you ask me that? Despite it being Uncle’s item, it wasn’t giving off his aura. Therefore, it was assumed to be a cheap item…”
“What!”
Sparks flew in Hugo’s eyes for a moment. He was barely able to calm himself as he looked toward Lee Gun.
This meant he was willing to overlook the price right now. “Flea market? Hey! How could you sell the Sagittarius’s royal holy item at a marked-down price?”
“?!”
The Secretary’s expression was a sight to behold when he realized the unexpected identity of the item.
Royal holy item? That thing?
Lee Gun picked at his ear. “There is nothing wrong with selling one or two of those.”
“Hey!”
Yes, the item that everyone thought was a simple back scratcher was the Archer Saint’s royal holy item. Of course, it hadn’t originally been a back scratcher.
‘I’ll borrow it for a bit.’
Lee Gun had always stolen the Royal holy items(SS) of the twelve Zodiac Saints. According to him, he wanted to use them as references.
This “back scratcher” was one of Hugo’s royal holy items. His Divine Bow had been taken without permission, and its design had been changed.
That was why his Zodiac had raged at the bow’s artistic design being changed into something that looked very odd.
Of course, the Zodiac had been impressed by Lee Gun’s skill afterward.
Anyway, Lee Gun had remodeled and cannibalized the bow. He had taken the liberty of fixing it to his preference.
‘I never expected him to make it into a back scratcher.’
Hugo had just assumed that all the cannibalized components had been placed in Lee Gun’s workshop.
“Looks like it’s still functional.”
Click!
Lee Gun pressed on the snout of the horse connected to the back scratcher’s handle. Then, the rod of the backscratcher extended.
Hugo shook in rage. In truth, he had thought detaching that component was a good idea. He had given it over to Lee Gun, thinking his friend would make something better for him.
Lee Gun didn’t care if Hugo was shaking or not. The corners of his mouth lifted. “It is a different story since I have this now.”
He immediately used his ability.
[The item will be converted to the Dismantling Workshop.]
[The holy item is being dismantled.]
Lee Gun’s hand emitted a green light, and something surprising happened.
Puhng!
The back scratcher in his hand cracked as it got destroyed.
[The holy item has been dismantled.]
[You have acquired a small amount of Dismantle EXP.]
The green light spread in a circle. Looking at it was like watching a star explode. The pieces of the smashed item spread all over the place, but they then froze in the air.
The dismantled debris twinkled as they floated around Lee Gun. It was as if time had stopped. No! It was like watching space, where there was no gravity.
Lee Gun then took out his holy item.
[Book that holds everything(S)]
When he turned to page fourteen, a familiar item appeared.
[Sagittarius’s Sunlight(SS)]
An enormous bow! It was a weapon that only a Zodiac Saint, the proxy of a Zodiac, was allowed to use
A “Royal Holy Item” was the treasure of the Zodiacs. It was also proof of the contract between the Zodiacs and the Zodiac Saints. These items were the highest rank treasures of each temple.
Above all else, a Zodiac Saint without a Royal holy item could use only half of their power. This happened as the Zodiac Saints were directly linked to the Zodiacs. Their bodies were structured a bit differently from normal awakened beings.
And such an important holy item was in a very rough shape.
[You do not sense the power of a Zodiac.]
[You do not feel any life force within it.]
The rusty bow had lost its light, and its bowstring was in tatters. In fact, it was in pieces. Even calling it a bow would be tough now. Of course, it was in this state despite Lee Gun fixing it a bit.
When Lee Gun received it, it was blackened as it had been completely destroyed by fire.
Kevin furrowed his brows at the sight of the tragic-looking weapon. ‘I’m pretty sure the ones from the Libra temple did that.’
This happened around twenty years ago, after Red Eye was killed.
After learning of Lee Gun’s death through the Crab Saint, Hugo had crashed a press conference hosted by the other Zodiac Saints.
Hugo knew there was no way Lee Gun would die there. And so, he asked them why they had come out while leaving behind Lee Gun.
[You guys killed Red Eye? Lee Gun sacrificed his life for you? Do you really think I would believe that?]
Hugo had been waiting outside the tower at that time, so his friend’s death came out of the left field.
Of course, Kevin didn’t remember anything that had happened within the Devil’s tower, so he had been uncomfortable as he was dragged to the press conference. He had to keep his mouth shut.
‘The Scorpio Saint wasn’t present at that time. She might have gone back to the Devil’s Tower to search for Lee Gun.’
The situation after Red Eye’s death had been chaotic. It was said that the Scorpio Saint had fallen to the backline to take care of Sophie, who had fallen behind.
At the time, a fierce fight had broken out between Hugo and the other Zodiac Saints. It was during this fight that his royal holy item had gotten damaged.
[You should’ve never left the tower if you planned on getting this mad. Idiot!]
[Lee Gun probably died because you left. Have you thought about that?]
[…!]
Hugo was a powerful Zodiac Saint, but he was fighting a lone battle against many other Zodiac Saints. The numerical advantage was too high.
In the end, a tool that allowed a Zodiac Saint to use 100% of their power had been destroyed. It caused the fall of the Archer Saint.
[Now, you can use only half of your power.]
The Libra Saint had laughed when the bow had been destroyed. The Zodiac Saint who had destroyed Hugo’s bow had also laughed.
In truth, Hugo had lost to the toad monster ten years ago because the monster had been strong. However, a reason for that was also the absence of his royal holy item. It was that powerful of an item.
‘Even the Goat Saint can’t fix the royal holy item.’
The Goat Saint had been confident as he received help from his Zodiac. However, in the end, he had spectacularly failed.
The holy item’s rank was too high, and the damage was severe.
‘He said it was beyond the realm of repair.’
He said the holy item was completely dead.
Its connection to its Zodiac had been severed, so this Royal holy item had no value.
[It has been converted to the Repair Workshop.]
Lee Gun flicked his finger, and the broken fragments of the back scratcher gathered around the broken bow.
It was like watching sand particles converge. The fragments filled the empty spaces within the bow.
[The components are made from the same material.]
[Synthesizing it is possible.]
[Would you like to re-synthesize it?]
Lee Gun made a fist, and an incredible light burst forth.
“…!!”
As the light dissipated, an item appeared in front of him. It had regained the shape of a bow.
[The attribute of The Man Who Pounds on All Creation and the attribute of the Serpent Bearer have been activated.]
[The royal holy item has started breathing again.]
[The royal holy item has regained its vitality.]
Like a spark, it happened when the body of the bow joined together through Lee Gun’s power.
Pah-jee-jee-jeek!
Life energy surged forward within the dead bow like boiling lava. Then, the royal holy item emanated an explosive light.
Kwahng!
The bow of the sun had been revived, surprising all the disciples.
[The SS-rank holy item has been recreated.]
[Your EXP has increased by a massive amount.]
[Due to the revival of the Royal holy item, the Archer Saint’s Constructs are making a commotion.]
[The Serpent Bearer’s reputation has increased.]
[The soul infused within the holy item has received a favor from the Serpent Bearer, and it is showing goodwill toward you.]
Hugo was speechless when his holy item regained the shape of a bow. The item he had given up on had sprung back to life.
Lee Gun laughed. “I was having a problem because I didn’t have parts that could replace the damaged body. If I have something made out of the same material, the repair is easy.”
“…!!”
Of course, although the bow looked perfect, it was incomplete.
“I just set its frame. I need to do more to finish it.”
At that moment, a red light poured out from Lee Gun’s head.
[The Sagittarius is ecstatic!]
[The Sagittarius wants to compensate the Serpent Bearer.]
Accompanying those words, incredible items showered down on Lee Gun’s head. There were all kinds of gold, gems, treasures, and even aphrodisiacs. A pill for hair loss also fell, but Lee Gun immediately tossed it away. That wasn’t all.
From Lee Gun’s point of view, something incredibly surprising happened.
[The Sagittarius promises to repay you in any way possible.]
[You have formed an alliance.]
[<A promise with a god> has been formed.]
[In the future, the Sagittarius is willing to grant one request of any sort.]
Something fell in front of Lee Gun. It was a bracelet made out of a red feather.
[Proof of Promise]
Lee Gun grinned. Any sort of request…
[An Achievement has been added to the bible.]
[The Sun is moved by the Serpent’s favor.]
On the other hand, those who had watched the revival of the royal holy item couldn’t shut their mouths. It was to be expected.
“He fixed that?”
“Doesn’t that mean Lee Gun-nim is better than the master craftsman from the Genius Workshop?”
Kevin gulped. ‘It can almost be called a resurrection.’
Of course, the Serpent Bearer was a Zodiac of resurrection. Therefore, this might have been possible, but…
‘Wait a moment. Does that mean the Archer’s Saint ranking will change?’
The ones who had caused the downfall of the Archer Saint wouldn’t know about this, but Hugo had regained his power as the Archer Saint. This changed the complexion of the story once again.
After fixing the royal holy item, Lee Gun laughed in a satisfied manner. Then, he looked at Hailey. “I have to give it the finishing touch, but I was able to fix it thanks to you.”
Lee Gun took up his tools. This was all being done to destroy those who had sided with the Libra. “I’ll have to get into their holy grounds first.”
However, Lee Gun became surprised when he turned his head. A new bundle had already appeared in front of him.
“If… If you plan on going there, you should use this. These… These should help you.”
The bundle had all kinds of medicine; there was even a packed lunch for Lee Gun. That wasn’t all.
“What the hell? Are you planning on moving?”
Hugo looked inside the bundle, dumbfounded. The bundle was as big as a mountain, and it had water, clothes, batteries, books, towels, toothbrushes, and snacks. It contained enough food to feed several hundred people.
The amount of food within the bundle shocked Hailey’s Constructs.
[P-Princess! What about our food?]
“You guys can fast.”
[What?!]
[If you do this, our soldiers will…]
“They can fast.”
[Princess!]
Hugo’s mind went blank for a moment, then he tapped Lee Gun’s shoulder. “Good luck with her.”
His expression was more serious than ever. “Daughter. It has to be a daughter. You can’t have a son that looks like you.”
Hugo took a beating once again.
* * *
Only a short period had passed.
Lee Gun was sober. His ugly face lay in front of him. It was a life-sized figurine of Lee Gun; he truly used to look like a monster.
Lee Gun looked at his past appearance with a serious expression. “Sungjae.”
“Yes?”
“Do you think you could date someone with that face?”
Chun Sungjae turned serious. “If it’s Uncle, I think marriage is possible even with that face.”
“…”
He had asked the wrong person. What if he asked Yooha? Wouldn’t a woman give a different answer?
It didn’t matter in the end.
Lee Gun looked at Chun Sungjae, who was moving the baggage. The Serpent Bearer’s holy ground existed now. He was about to let Chun Sungjae immigrate there as the young man was his disciple.
At that moment.
Brrrrrrrr.
Lee Gun’s phone rang. When he checked the number, his brows furrowed. This was to be expected. The number was very familiar. Therefore, Lee Gun tilted his head in puzzlement as he answered the phone.
[Lee Gun! Please save us! The monsters have invaded us!]
The call was from none other than the Pisces Saint.
It seemed the Libra Saint’s invasion was about to start. The desperate voice continued.
[The Libra Saint and the others aren’t picking up my call. Please! Without you, my holy ground will…]
Lee Gun replied with a single sentence.
