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HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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Chapter 25
Republic of Korea Hero Association.
Deputy Director of Domestic Affairs Department 2, Min Hong-gi.
Dojun placed the business card in his hand on the table and looked across at Min Hong-gi, who was seated opposite him.
“There are three things I’d like to confirm with you, Mr. Seo Dojun.”
Min’s tone was clipped and formal—borderline overbearing—but his expression didn’t carry the same edge, so Dojun nodded without resistance.
“First, I need to confirm whether or not you are a Hero.”
If he’d wanted to, Dojun could’ve lied without blinking.
The only device on Earth capable of determining whether someone is a Hero—the Hero Detection Device—works by sending a pulse of mana, derived from a mana stone, through a person’s body. It then analyzes the response to determine whether that individual qualifies as a Hero.
Simple in theory, but the most reliable method currently known.
The problem was… Dojun himself.
The Heroes on Earth—those who had Awakened suddenly—had crude, primitive understandings of how to handle mana.
But Dojun? He had trained in the most refined and advanced mana techniques for centuries, having learned them as naturally as breathing since childhood. He had reached the pinnacle of martial and magical mastery—he was the Sword God.
Put simply, he could completely block out the Hero Detection Device’s mana pulse or create a barrier around his body with little effort. That alone was enough to fool the Hero Detection Device.
He had already demonstrated this during a prosecutor’s investigation and been officially recorded as a non-Hero. If he chose to lie, even the Hero Association would be powerless to refute it.
It would’ve been deception by technicality—but deception all the same.
Yet...
“I am.”
Dojun didn’t bother hiding the fact that he was a Hero.
After all, Hyun Jooyeon had likely already confirmed it in some capacity. There was no reason to lie. More importantly—
“You’ve already been arrested as a perpetrator once. Don’t bother continuing under a false identity. If you register properly as a Hero, it’ll be better for you in the long run, Mr. Seo. You might as well get your S-rank license and finally be able to access the Rifts you’ve been wanting so badly.”
Following Hyun Jooyeon’s advice, Dojun had decided: even if it meant a little extra hassle, he wouldn’t bother hiding himself anymore.
“Is it possible to bypass the Hero Detection Device?”
Min Hong-gi asked.
Dojun just sipped his coffee, as if to say, ’Figure it out yourself.’
Realizing he wouldn’t be getting an answer, Min reluctantly moved on to the second question.
“Secondly, when and where did you awaken as a Hero?”
Dojun answered without hesitation.
It was the day Kang Cheol-woo tried to have him killed via a contracted gate assassination. Specifically, it was May 25th—the day Dojun had taken over the body of the man known as Seo Dojun and started a new life.
As their conversation continued, Min naturally came to understand how Kang Cheol-woo had ended up in a vegetative state.
“Hm…”
Min Hong-gi let out a small sigh, his expression laced with concern as he looked at Dojun.
"Are you familiar with Hero Kang Yeong-pyo, by any chance?"
"Roughly."
"This is just a personal word of advice, but... you should be careful. Given Hero Kang Yeong-pyo’s personality, he won’t let this go quietly."
Dojun felt that Min Hong-gi might actually be a decent person. It took courage to voice concern like that—especially when the one in question was one of South Korea’s top-ranking S-Rank heroes.
"If you ever need help, feel free to reach out. The Association will do everything it can to mediate."
Dojun gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.
"Lastly, there’s something I need to confirm with you regarding the new rift in Mapo."
"What exactly do you want to know?"
"Everything you know about it. This is currently one of the Association’s top priorities. If possible, we’d appreciate it if you could give a detailed account of everything you experienced."
As he spoke, Min Hong-gi placed a recorder on the table, signaling that he was ready to listen.
"The Association views the appearance of this new rift as an extremely serious matter. The public is growing increasingly anxious, worrying that a monster wave like the one in the UK could happen here too. So, we ask for your full cooperation. If nothing else, Director Na Taehwang of the Hero Association genuinely prioritizes the safety of the people above all else."
Dojun recalled what Hyun Jooyeon had told him.
He slowly began to recount his story—from the moment the rift appeared, to how he entered it, and how he made it out.
He left out certain details, of course—like the presence of the World Tree, the uncanny resemblance of the rift to his destroyed world, and the fact that he absorbed an eternal ember.
He concealed a few things, yes. But he told no lies.
Min Hong-gi, apparently satisfied with Dojun’s honest and detailed explanation, smiled slightly.
“Thank you sincerely for the detailed account.”
Seeing him even offer a polite bow left Dojun with a surprisingly good impression of the Hero Association.
After all, the Association wielded enormous influence no matter where you were in the world.
And in some corrupt countries, that influence reeked—literally and figuratively.
When an organization held the public’s safety in its grasp, it was inevitable that everything about its operation would depend on the character of the one at the helm.
"If you ever need a favor, or have any requests for the Association, please don’t hesitate to reach out."
"Actually… I do have one favor."
"Please, go ahead."
"I’d like to get officially certified as a hero."
"That can be arranged immediately. But determining your grade will involve a bit of a process. I hope you understand."
"If I have a certified hero vouch for me, can the grading be simplified?"
"Absolutely. Do you have someone in mind who could vouch for you?"
"I do. One person."
"If you let me know who it is, I’ll verify it and fast-track the grading process."
Min Hong-gi seemed curious about who could possibly vouch for someone like Dojun. Then suddenly, a name came to mind.
“Is it… Hero Hyun Jooyeon?”
“If an S-Rank hero backs me, that should qualify me for at least the same rank, right?”
“…!”
And with that, the existence of South Korea’s eighth S-Rank hero was officially revealed to the world.
＊ ＊ ＊
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Seo Dojun (S-Rank)
Date of Birth: 2003/8/21
Hero Registration Number: 82KR1S00000008
Unique ID Number: 4JQ87
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The hero license was issued on the third day after meeting Min Hong-gi.
The license itself only included the hero’s name, rank, date of birth, registration number, and a unique identification number.
The hero registration number was simpler than expected—composed of the country code (in this case, 82KR for South Korea), a gender digit, the hero’s class, and a sequential registration number.
In short, the number neatly encoded all essential information about the hero.
In contrast, the unique ID number was randomly generated and had to match the registration number to be valid.
If the two didn’t match, no official benefits could be claimed.
That’s why some heroes, especially those who found carrying ID cards annoying, would tattoo both numbers on their bodies.
Dojun shoved the hero license casually into his pocket and headed straight to Gasan Hero Complex.
He already knew the layout and navigated the urban maze of buildings without hesitation until he arrived at his destination—
Custom Hero Gear Workshop
The store looked entirely average—not too big, not too small.
The name was generic and unremarkable, the kind of place most heroes wouldn’t even glance at.
As he opened the door, a young man inside, thoroughly absorbed in a mobile game, didn’t even look up when he spoke to Dojun.
“Can I get your name for the reservation?”
Instead of answering, Dojun simply dropped his backpack at the guy’s feet.
“I’d like to have a weapon made with this.”
“If you don’t have a reservation, we can’t help you. Just head down the street to the right—there are plenty of other forges. The guys there are solid. Check them out instead.”
A mutual contact had recommended this place, urging Dojun to make a reservation.
He had called ahead, only to be told—rather coldly—that the waitlist was full and they weren’t taking any new clients for the time being.
The voice on the phone? Clearly this same guy, the one too deep in his mobile game to even glance at him.
“I heard this place was good, so I came all the way here.”
“Honestly, everywhere’s about the same. And we’re overloaded right now. No room for walk-ins. So like I said—try somewhere else.”
Dojun, unamused, kicked the chair the guy was sitting on.
Crash!
The chair toppled, and the young man fell embarrassingly to the ground, face twisting in anger as he finally looked up at Dojun.
“Are you insane?! What the hell?!”
“Are you the owner?”
“I’m… the owner’s son!”
“Figures. This place won’t last long with you running it like that.”
“What?!”
“I’m not here to talk to you. Get your father.”
Making it crystal clear he was done talking, Dojun sat down on a chair in the corner of the office.
The young man glared, as if thinking, ’What kind of psycho is this?’ But he stomped off and disappeared behind a metal door deeper inside.
About five minutes later, the door creaked open again.
The young man returned, followed by a man who looked to be in his mid-sixties.
“I heard you were referred to us?”
The older man asked directly who had sent him.
“Hyun Jooyeon.”
The moment that name left Dojun’s mouth, both the man and his son widened their eyes in shock.
“You mean THE Jooyeon sent you?”
“Why else would I know about this place?”
Hearing that, the older man gave a slow nod, seemingly convinced.
“If it’s Jooyeon, that changes things… Alright. Let’s see what you brought.”
Dojun gestured to his backpack, and the man leaned down to inspect the contents himself.
“This is…”
He picked up the item with a look of surprise.
“What is that?”
The son asked, clearly intrigued by something he didn’t recognize.
The man, ignoring his son’s curiosity, looked directly at Dojun.
“You hunted this yourself?”
“Of course.”
“Hmph… It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a Giant Blackfang Serpent’s fang.”
[TL/N: Giant Blackscale Serpent → Giant Blackfang Serpent]
The man muttered like he’d just stumbled upon a rare treasure.
Hearing this, the young man looked stunned, darting his gaze between the fang and Dojun.
“The same Blackfang that only lives in the Serpent Caverns?”
To be fair, the material itself wasn’t that special.
Even with a generous evaluation, a Giant Blackfang Serpent’s fang only qualified as A-grade at best.
However, due to how difficult it was to obtain, there were hardly any weapon smiths who worked with Giant Blackfang Serpent fangs.
There were just too many easier ways for even A-rank heroes to acquire materials of much higher grade—plenty of gates out there offering better loot with far less hassle than hunting a Giant Blackfang alone on Bamseom Island in the dead of night.
“What kind of weapon do you want to make with it?”
“A decent sword. Something usable.”
Dojun spoke like he didn’t particularly care how it turned out, just that it got done.
“You want a pair of blades, right?”
“Do whatever you see fit. Just make the blade as long as possible.”
At that, it wasn’t the craftsman but the younger man—his son—who frowned.
“No matter how well you craft it, it’ll barely qualify as a longsword at best. You have to consider the original size of the material.”
“What’s that? You admitting you're not good enough? Also, boost the mana absorption rate as high as you can.”
Mana absorption rate refers to how efficiently a weapon can take in the wielder’s mana.
If the absorption rate is too low, the weapon can’t handle the user's power and may shatter.
That’s why heroes capable of directly channeling mana into their gear prioritize this stat above all else.
That said, unless a weapon is absolute garbage, it’s rare for it to break from absorbing a hero’s mana—even on Earth.
“Mana absorption rate? Anything grade-3 or higher can handle that just fine. Why even bring it up?”
The young man muttered, clearly annoyed and giving Dojun a side-eye.
“That’s just what people with no skill tell themselves.”
Dojun’s cool retort made the kid scoff, like he’d been waiting for it.
“So what, you think you’re different? You seriously don’t know that no hero has ever pushed past the mana absorption limit of a grade-3 weapon? You think you’re better than Sabri Alphonse or something?”
Sabri Alphonse—a top-tier French S-Rank hero and one of the best close-combat fighters on the planet.
His ability to channel mana into weapons was so legendary that many considered him the global gold standard for swordsmanship infused with magic.
And yet even Sabri had never exceeded the mana absorption threshold of a grade-3 weapon.
The young man was practically sneering by now, but Dojun quietly stood up and walked over to a rack of swords in the corner. He picked one up.
“Don’t touch that! Do you even know how expensive that is?!”
“What grade is this?”
“Grade-5! Now put it down—have some respect!”
“So its mana absorption rate should be several times higher than a grade-3, right?”
“Obviously! What kind of question is that?”
“Then what happens if I break it?”
The young man’s face twisted in disbelief, like he couldn’t believe what he just heard.
“Dude, I just told you—no hero has ever broken a weapon by overwhelming its mana absorption! Stop talking nonsense and put it down already!”
“If you think I can’t, then watch.”
The older man, who had been quietly observing this whole time, finally spoke.
“Go ahead. If you can do it.”
Dojun met the craftsman's gaze as if to say ’Don’t regret this,’ then began channeling mana into the sword.
The sword, which had appeared completely ordinary, began to glow red, gradually heating up.
Less than a minute passed before—
Craaaaaaack—CRASH.
A sharp fracturing sound rang out as the blade exploded into shards, scattering at Dojun’s feet.
“……!”
“……!”
The older man and his son stared, eyes bulging out of their skulls.
Dojun calmly placed the handle—now all that was left—back where it came from, completely unfazed.
“If you’re just going to churn out this kind of trash, you might as well say you’re not taking the job.”
Even after such a sharp provocation, neither the man nor his son could say a single word.
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HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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