The Handsomer You Are, the Stronger You Become

He had his suspicions, but now they were confirmed.

For a brief moment, Kang Hyunsoo had considered the possibility that Ji Wonhoon, the president of Jaewon University, might have been used by Babylon. After all, the existence of a Life Absorption Magic lab on campus and the abduction of hunters by university staff could have pointed to manipulation.

But no.

Ji Wonhoon was part of Babylon.

And Ji Wonhoon didn’t even bother denying it.

If anything, he seemed amused by the mention of Babylon, as if the word itself piqued his curiosity.

“Hmm... Kang Hyunsoo, how do you know about Babylon?” Ji Wonhoon asked, his tone both intrigued and cautious.

“Why wouldn’t I know? You’ve been chasing me relentlessly since Daechi Station.”

“Daechi Station...? What are you talking about?”

Ji Wonhoon tilted his head in confusion, but Andy Kim, despite his injuries, quickly rose and answered on his behalf.

“Ugh! President, the incident at Daechi Station—the annihilation of Search Team 14. It seems the unidentified mercenary from that time was Kang Hyunsoo.”

“What? So it was you... Kang Hyunsoo, you’re telling me you were the one who wiped out our search team?”

“Didn’t you know? I assumed you were aware when you approached me, but I guess not.”

Kang Hyunsoo’s eyes narrowed as he watched the exchange between Andy and Ji Wonhoon.

He had thought Babylon’s repeated encounters with him were due to the Daechi Station incident, but apparently, they hadn’t even made the connection.

This revelation only seemed to excite Ji Wonhoon further.

Despite the devastation around him—his agents incapacitated and bleeding—Ji Wonhoon burst into laughter, his voice echoing through the underground chamber.

“Ahaha! What a strange twist of fate! The one who annihilated Search Team 14 turns out to be the champion of our competition! Kang Hyunsoo, how about it? Would you like to join Babylon?”

“President! He’s an enemy who destroyed our agents! Bringing him in would cause future complications—”

“That doesn’t matter,” Ji Wonhoon interrupted, waving Andy off. “The man proved his potential, didn’t he? It would be strange not to recruit someone who’s already proven himself. If anyone protests, we’ll deal with it.”

Ji Wonhoon’s praise didn’t stop there. He outright extended an invitation for Hyunsoo to join Babylon.

The atmosphere grew tense and strange.

“…What are you scheming?” Hyunsoo asked, his guard up.

“Scheming? I’m genuinely offering you an opportunity.”

“An opportunity?”

“Yes, a chance to grow stronger. Doesn’t this power tempt you?”

Ji Wonhoon raised his hand, and once again, purple aura ignited in his palm.

Hyunsoo frowned and asked, “What is that?”

“This? It’s potential—the latent power awakened and brought to the surface.”

“Potential…? You’re saying it’s dormant power that’s been forcibly awakened?”

Ji Wonhoon nodded, his tone turning almost professorial.

“Kang Hyunsoo, have you ever found it odd? Every hunter has talents, yet we can only access them by completing quests. Doesn’t that seem strange?”

He extinguished the purple aura and began a speech.

“The act of completing a quest doesn’t grant us power. It merely clears blockages in our circuits, allowing the power already within us to flow freely. In other words, the strength we gain comes from within.”

Ji Wonhoon placed a finger on his chest, emphasizing his point.

“That power is what we call potential. It’s the dormant strength tied up by quests. Babylon can forcibly awaken it.”

“So you’re saying you can access a hunter’s latent power without completing quests?”

“Exactly. That’s correct.”

Every hunter possessed talents, unlocking rewards as they completed quests. Babylon, however, had broken that system.

They could bypass quests entirely, forcibly drawing out the latent power within hunters.

Though Hyunsoo couldn’t discern the exact mechanism, he didn’t think Ji Wonhoon was lying.

The unrefined sensation he felt during his encounters with the purple aura seemed to align with Ji Wonhoon’s explanation.

But there was one question that still lingered.

“Then why did you abduct the hunters?” Hyunsoo asked.

“Think of it as recruitment efforts,” Ji Wonhoon replied. “We’re building our forces by inducting qualified hunters.”

“So the competition itself had an ulterior motive.”

“Indeed. But it’s not a bad thing. Ultimately, hunters become stronger, and Babylon expands its influence. It’s mutually beneficial.”

“Mutually beneficial? Then why resort to abduction?”

“The awakening process can be… painful. We simply put them to sleep to spare them the initial suffering. There’s no other intention. It’s only forceful at the beginning; once their potential is unlocked, they’re eager for more. They’ll be clamoring for this power soon enough. Hahaha!”

Ji Wonhoon chuckled heartily, glancing at the hunters hooked up to IVs of purple liquid.

He then turned back to Hyunsoo and made his proposal.

“So, what do you say? Join us, unlock your potential, and become strong enough to place the world beneath your feet.”

“What happens if I refuse?”

“Not much. You’ll simply… have your potential awakened the hard way.”

Ji Wonhoon flicked his finger downward, and suddenly—

Boom!

An enormous pressure descended on Hyunsoo.

It felt as if an immense, invisible weight were crushing him.

Hyunsoo dropped to one knee, glancing upward.

But there was nothing above him.

“Ugh… Magic…”

Hyunsoo quickly recognized the source of the power.

Magic.

Unlike physical talents such as swords, spears, or axes, magic talents manipulated mana itself.

Magic users were rare even among awakened hunters, and for close-combat fighters like Hyunsoo, they were a particularly troublesome match.

“I’ll assist you, Master!”

From above, Swallow flapped its wings and moved swiftly to support Hyunsoo.

It darted toward Ji Wonhoon, aiming for the back of his head.

But just as Swallow’s wings neared their target—

“Hmm?”

Ji Wonhoon extended his hand and caught Swallow mid-flight by one of its wings.

“...!”

“So, you’re the pet I’ve been sensing all this time. A talking one, no less. Fascinating.”

For the first time, Swallow was caught.

It wasn’t that its stealth had failed. Ji Wonhoon had been aware of its presence all along.

With a curious glint in his eye, Ji Wonhoon reached toward the sunglasses Swallow was wearing, as if intent on dissecting it.

But before he could go any further—

[Dismissing Beauty’s Companion.]
[Summoning Beauty’s Companion.]

Kang Hyunsoo swiftly resummoned Swallow back to his side, leveraging the summoning trait to retrieve his companion just in time.

The rescue was fortunate, but the situation was far from optimistic.

“You said your stealth couldn’t be detected, didn’t you?” Hyunsoo questioned, his voice low and tense.

“It usually isn’t, Master, unless the opponent is a high-level hunter with stealth-detection abilities or specialized magic. This guy is no ordinary opponent.”

Indeed, the fact that Ji Wonhoon had pinpointed Swallow’s stealth confirmed his strength.

Hyunsoo already knew this well.

Ji Wonhoon, president of Jaewon University, was a retired hunter who had made a name for himself during the early days of the Great Cataclysm. Though he retired due to injury, his reputation as a mage with unparalleled abilities still lingered.

For Hyunsoo, Ji Wonhoon was the worst possible opponent—a higher-level mage.

“Mid-tier hunter at minimum, maybe higher… His level must be at least 450,” Hyunsoo muttered to himself.

This was nearly double Hyunsoo’s current level.

And to make matters worse, Blossom, the ability that allowed him to overcome such level differences, had already been exhausted.

If Hyunsoo was to stand a chance, he needed a new plan. Unfortunately, Ji Wonhoon wasn’t going to give him the luxury of time.

“That was quite the enticing offer I made you,” Ji Wonhoon said, his predator-like gaze bearing down on Hyunsoo. “Are you truly refusing it, Kang Hyunsoo?”

The pressure increased with his words, forcing Hyunsoo’s body further into submission.

Hyunsoo gritted his teeth, raising his eyes to meet Ji Wonhoon’s.

“There’s no way I’d ever accept, Ji Wonhoon!”

[Activate]
[Skyward Blade (B)]

Hyunsoo mimicked Ji Wonhoon’s lofty tone, releasing a sharp energy slash aimed directly at him.

He had never planned on accepting the offer. A group capable of terrorism wasn’t one he could trust.@@novelbin@@

Of course, his refusal came with a price.

Clang!

“How dare you mock the president!” Andy growled, stepping in to block the attack.

“Enough,” Ji Wonhoon said, his tone commanding. “I’ll deal with this myself.”

Hyunsoo’s Skyward Blade failed to even reach Ji Wonhoon, stopped dead by Andy’s interception.

Hyunsoo pressed forward, activating Lunge, closing the gap with blinding speed, and swinging his twin swords.

Clang!

Yet, they struck an invisible barrier, a shield conjured by Ji Wonhoon’s magic.

“Let me show this unworthy foe the beauty of flames,” Ji Wonhoon intoned.

Fwoosh!

A massive fireball materialized in his hand, bursting forth to slam into Hyunsoo.

BOOM!

“Ugh!”

The explosion rocked the entire underground chamber.

Even with his twin swords raised and Faithful Armor wrapped around him, the sheer force was overwhelming.

Hyunsoo was thrown backward, rolling across the floor for several meters before coming to a halt.

“Master!” Swallow cried, shielding him with its wings, forming a protective barrier that finally stopped his momentum.

But Ji Wonhoon wasn’t done.

“Kneel,” Ji Wonhoon commanded.

“Ugh…!”

Thud!

A crushing force bore down on Hyunsoo again.

Even Swallow wasn’t spared this time, its small form pinned to the ground beside him.

With no other choice, Hyunsoo found himself kneeling before Ji Wonhoon.

The overwhelming disparity in power was undeniable.

With his knees on the ground and his head bowed, Hyunsoo clenched his fists in frustration.

He had poured everything into resisting, yet the gap in strength was simply too vast.

“Don’t worry,” Ji Wonhoon said, his voice smooth and mocking. “The pain won’t last long.”

He stretched out a hand, forming a translucent mana claw that wrapped tightly around Hyunsoo’s throat.

Squeeze!

“Ghh… You… b-bastard…” Hyunsoo gasped, his words barely audible.

As his vision blurred and his consciousness began to fade, Hyunsoo managed to whisper a single command:

“Now…!”

Shiiiing!

A brilliant blue portal tore open in front of him.

“Haaah!”

From the portal emerged Choi Jiwoo, a star hunter of the Hunter Association, her sword already slicing through the air toward Ji Wonhoon.