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Chapter 2
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“You bastard! Can’t you reinforce this properly?!”
“Hey! Who the hell reinforced A-59?! Dammit, it’s busted again!!”
“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!!”
The reinforcement factory was in complete chaos.
The noise from the machines was already deafening, so the managers had to scream at the top of their lungs just to be heard. And for every little delay in movement, they’d swing their whips at the workers.
That’s not a metaphor. They actually whipped them.
Whack!
A worker who had just failed a reinforcement trembled as the lash struck his back.
The manager kicked him hard and shouted.
“You useless pieces of shit! No one else will hire failures like you!! What, you think you can survive out there when you can’t even kill a single monster or make a potion properly?!”
It was a scene unheard of in the 21st century, where even criminals had protected rights.
Even after the Cataclysm and the appearance of dungeons, monsters, and awakened individuals, this level of treatment was rare.
But the managers still acted this way for one reason:
Because the people working here were all low-grade enhancement sorcerers.
Failures who took at least a week to reinforce a low-grade potion or weapon.
Sure, low-grade potions and gear weren’t exactly cheap, but could anyone make a living off just that?
No, not unless you were at least a C-rank—a mid-grade enhancement sorcerer. Low-grade was barely scraping by.
And they couldn’t just get normal jobs either.
There were laws in place to protect regular workers—awakeners weren’t allowed to work in jobs meant for non-awakened people.
That left guilds as their only real option. But why would a guild spend money on weak and expensive labor unless they were exceptional?
And hard labor? Forget it. Most low-grade alchemists were frail.
In short, this factory was one of their only ways to survive.
No matter how unfair it was, they had no way out.
‘Even if someone reported this, nothing would change.’
The manager smirked. This factory was secretly backed by the Mir Guild.
One of the top five guilds in South Korea, on par with the biggest corporations.
Even if someone escaped and reported them, nothing would come of it.
Whirrrr—clank! Clank!
“What the hell is it now?!”
The sound of materials jamming caught the manager’s attention.
A young man, probably around twenty, was staring blankly at a machine—like his soul had left his body.
Fuming, the manager stomped over and yelled,
“Hey! What the hell are you doing?!”
“…”
“You’ve lost your damn mind, haven’t you?! What, you think just ’cause your numbers were good lately I’d let it slide?!”
That was Han Yujin. He had slightly better numbers than the others.
Not incredibly talented or anything—just the best among the worst.
Still, being the biggest fish in a small pond meant he got slightly better treatment.
But now…
“You know what? One of us is dying today.”
The manager rolled up his sleeves and stormed toward him.
Just beside Yujin was Seungmin, another young worker around his age, who quickly stepped in to block the manager.
“W-Wait, please!”
“Move. What, you think you’re in charge now?”
Crack!
The whip came down hard.
Seungmin flinched, but held his ground.
“You want me to beat you instead?!”
“N-No, I just—”
“Shut it.”
That’s when Yujin finally spoke—his voice slow and empty, like a puppet cut from its strings.
“Move.”
“…Hyung?”
Seungmin blinked at Yujin’s unfamiliar tone and gaze.
Just a moment ago, he’d been complaining of a headache—so why did he suddenly look fine?
“What’s with this pig?”
“P-Pig?! Are you talking to me?!”
As Yujin stared straight at him, rage flared in the manager’s eyes.
“You little—!”
Grab.
The manager seized Yujin’s shoulder. Their eyes met.
“…You look familiar.”
Suddenly, chills ran down his spine.
There was something terrifying in Yujin’s eyes. Like the eyes of a soldier who had spent too long in the trenches, hunting enemies.
‘Wh-What kind of kid has eyes like that…?’
He was a former D-rank hunter, even had experience killing monsters—but he’d never felt this kind of pressure.
“Have we met before?”
“…”
“Hmm. I know that face. Can’t place the name, though. Was this… right after I possessed this body?”
“What the hell are you babbling about—?”
“Maybe it was a dream.”
Yujin mumbled to himself.
He was confused, too.
After all, just moments ago, he had been face-to-face with the Demon King.
He’d definitely died in that encounter.
‘A death flashback? Is that what this is?’
But this felt too real.
‘Ah. I remember now. I know who this bastard is.’
Right after he first possessed this body—when he was still disoriented—this guy had beaten him half to death.
He died shortly afterward when a dungeon burst inside the factory.
“I always regretted not getting back at you. But now, this is perfect.”
“…W-What?”
“What’s your name?”
The manager gripped his whip tightly, alarmed by Yujin’s change.
Screw the look in his eyes—he’d just beat the crazy out of him.
“Your mom’s name, asshole!”
Thwip!
As the whip came down—
“Hmph.”
Yujin dodged easily, as if he could see the trajectory.
The whip struck the machine instead, and Yujin grabbed it mid-air.
“You really think this kind of crap is acceptable these days?”
“U-Urgh!”
Yank!
Yujin tugged the whip with force, throwing the manager off balance.
Smack!
“Guh-aaaagh!!”
“And yet—knees are so much more effective.”
Yujin kneed him straight in the nose, smashing it. The manager collapsed, clutching his face.
“Whining over a busted nose. Pathetic.”
He recalled how he’d been beaten within an inch of his life back then. His muscles and skin were torn apart, and recovery had taken weeks.
‘The medical bills alone almost ruined me.’
If it weren’t for that, he could’ve grown stronger faster.
The memory irritated him.
“Using my soul on someone like you is a waste. But whatever—it’s just a dream.”
He picked up a dented iron bar—a failed reinforcement attempt. It looked more like scrap metal than a dagger.
Flash!
“Enhance.”
The failed dagger glowed.
[Skill: Soul Enhancement activated.]
[Failed Dagger (+1)]
[Sharpness +30%]
Its durability was still terrible, but for now, this would do.
Enough to deal with this bastard.
“…?”
But something felt off.
The stat boost was fine. A +30% increase for a +1 reinforcement was expected—for him, anyway.
No normal enhancement sorcerer, not even an A-rank, could get that kind of boost. 10% was the usual ceiling.
This was only possible because of Yujin’s unique class: Soul Enhancement Sorcerer.
But something else was off—
‘…Why didn’t it drain my soul?’
Usually, using that skill made him feel his life force draining. This time, it just used mana—like any regular skill.
‘No way—’
“Status window.”
[Status Window]
Name: Han Yujin
Class: Soul Enhancement Sorcerer (Enhanced)
Trait: None
Unique Skill: Soul EnhancementStrength: 5
Agility: 5
Stamina: 5
Mana: 10*Consumes mana to enhance skills and gear.
*Your soul is intact and vivid. The power of Soul Enhancement increases.
His stats were reset to beginner levels—except for one thing.
The class remained enhanced.
…Ha.
So the job stayed upgraded after death?
‘Right. Just before I died—’
[Entering 2nd cycle…]
That was the message.
Which meant…
‘This isn’t a dream. It’s real.’
Yujin finally understood.
He had returned to the past—with his enhanced class intact.
