Machine God with EX-rank talent (Deus ex machina)

"Tsk! How long has it been, and it's already a mess."

Hyun Suho clicked his tongue as he looked at the fallen men and spoke to Tatiana.

"Stand back."

Tatiana, who was about to run to the fallen soldiers nearby, noticed that the hunters were still standing and recoiled in surprise, stepping back.

Tang Tianqi narrowed his eyes as he looked at the suddenly appearing Hyun Suho.

"Was there still one left?"

He assumed Hyun Suho was also a soldier from General's unit.

Despite seeing his fallen comrades and the Tang clan's martial artists surrounding him, Hyun Suho's expression remained calm.

Even General Bayets, the leader of the soldiers, had been anxious in front of the Tang clan's martial artists.

Tang Tianqi, uneasy with Hyun Suho's composure, threw his throwing knives without a word.

Shu-shu-shuk!

Three throwing knives flew rapidly like flashes of light.

It was the same trick he had used earlier on Bayets.

The first two knives were a distraction, with the last one suddenly dropping being the key move.

For most hunters, even the third distraction was unnecessary. The majority couldn't even block the first two knives.

Because the angle and trajectory of the dropping knife varied every time, it was an attack that was difficult to block even if one was aware of it.

Until now, only a handful of people had perfectly blocked this trick on the first try.

Seeing the perfectly curving path, Tang Tianqi was sure it would work this time too...

Tak!

Using a snap of his wrist, Hyun Suho effortlessly blocked the throwing knife.

Moreover, Hyun Suho didn't even turn his gaze.

Tang Tianqi's eyes widened as if they were about to pop out upon seeing Hyun Suho calmly holding the throwing knife.

"...What?"

Even if the two of them had planned it together, it wouldn't have been caught so easily.

After a brief pause, Hyun Suho scratched his head as if he were embarrassed.

"Oh! Was that your secret move? I thought there was more to come. The hunters here are really tame."

Hyun Suho, who still vividly remembered the dimension gate where the Heavenly Demon Sect existed.

There, the assassins would always have a second or third plan prepared in case the first attempt failed.

The last plan usually involved a mutual destruction technique.

Casually imagining those extreme individuals, Hyun Suho examined the throwing knife with an embarrassed expression.

As expected, only the third knife had a peculiar pattern engraved on it.

It wasn't just for show; it was meant to control the flow of the wind.

That was the secret behind the sudden drop of the knife.

"To use a trick like this without any skills—impressive."

In the age of hunters, people were overly reliant on skills.

In other dimensions, wizards had to spend decades locked away in small rooms, researching all night long just to use magic.

But here, you could simply raise your level or use a skill book to do the same.

Of course, places like England's Magic Tower or Maru-mun still studied traditional methods, but they were extremely rare compared to the whole.

Chinese hunters, in particular, were said to be very serious about martial arts training, but this was the first time Hyun Suho had seen it in person.

Hyun Suho leisurely spoke to the startled Tang Tianqi.

"Why don't you hand over the antidote now? At this rate, someone might die."

General's subordinates, who had been poisoned, were rapidly losing their life signs.

This poison was different from the anesthetic used by the soldiers.

It was more accurate to call it a "slow-killing poison" than a paralyzing one.

Once poisoned, the victim had no choice but to comply with the one holding the antidote.

That's why Hyun Suho had intended to receive the antidote, but Tang Tianqi didn't seem willing to hand it over.

"Attack!"

At Tang Tianqi's command, the martial artists who were on standby began to throw their throwing knives simultaneously.

Shu-shu-shu-shu-shuk!!

What they threw were tiny needles that were barely visible.

These were called "Ox Hair Needles" because they were as thin and stiff as ox hair.

The needles themselves had low lethality, but the potent poison coating them was the real problem.

Using Ox Hair Needles implied that the enemy was incredibly strong.

Unlike the paralyzing poison, this one had no antidote.

With Ox Hair Needles pouring in from all directions, there was no good place to hide or escape.

Even if one raised a shield, it would be impossible to block every gap.

But Hyun Suho blocked them with a very simple method.

"Black Hole."

As he created a gravity sphere with his palm and floated it in the air, the Ox Hair Needles that were raining down on him changed direction.

The needles were sucked into the black hole, where they crumpled under the intense pressure, getting tangled together.

Eventually, the mass of needles, now clumped together like a small ball, fell to the ground.

Thunk!

Seeing this, Tang Tianqi hurriedly drew his throwing knives and shouted.

"He's a powerful wizard! Scatter, everyone!"

Wizards specialized in wide-area magic. If they stayed clumped together, they could all be wiped out at once.

Despite repeated failures, Tang Tianqi gave the order with a cool-headed demeanor.

Hearing this, Hyun Suho, who was about to use his Genocide skill, paused.

He had intended to subdue them with gunfire, but a better idea came to him.

Since the enemy had mistaken him for a wizard, he decided to play along with that expectation.

'How about it? Isn't this the perfect opponent for your first real battle?'

[I have been eagerly awaiting this moment.]

The magic book he had obtained from the last dimension gate.

It wasn't Hyun Suho but Nova who had memorized the complex spell formulas in the book.

The results were beyond Hyun Suho's expectations.

He didn't know how, but Nova had succeeded in creating an artificial circle using nanobots.

Nova had quickly advanced to the level of a 6th Circle magician within just a few months.

It seemed that the circle grew in proportion to Hyun Suho's level.

Thanks to this, Hyun Suho could use magic without the need to calculate complex formulas or chant incantations.

"Fire Strike."

As soon as Hyun Suho uttered the simple incantation, a fireball the size of a human head floated up behind him.

Seeing this, Tang Tianqi shouted.

"Dodge it!!"

Before he even finished speaking, the fireball shot forward.

BOOM!

The fireball sequentially struck the ground, causing massive explosions that set everything ablaze.

Hyun Suho, witnessing the overwhelming power, clicked his tongue.

“I can't believe it even after using it myself. This isn't something even a real mage hunter could do, right?”

Using no-chant magic was a privilege exclusive to hunter skills.

But Nova had managed to replicate it exactly.

Of course, there was no avoiding the mana consumption, but the mere fact that he could now use magic freely was an incredible advantage.

“The firepower is sufficient, but I’ll need to do a bit more research on how to apply it in combat.”

Hyun Suho said this as he grabbed a flying projectile through the surging flames.

It was astonishing for a non-mage hunter to be able to use no-chant magic, but that didn't mean it was a perfect solution.

Compared to swordsmanship, his skills as a mage were still rudimentary.

That’s why the opponent could counterattack so quickly.

Tang Tianqi, who had dodged the explosion unharmed, moved in a zigzag pattern and threw more projectiles.

“Die!”

A barrage of projectiles, each with different shapes and functions, was unleashed.

Some were simply poisoned daggers, while others were mechanical mini-drones.

Hyun Suho caught a bullet fired from one of the drones and examined it curiously.

“The era of hunters is definitely different.”

Come to think of it, with all the mechanical technology available, it would indeed be strange to only throw daggers as projectiles.

Later, even explosives were thrown at him.

Beep beep beep beep beep!!

A timed bomb that would explode when it reached a specific location.

Mastering all these different projectiles to such a level would have required tremendous training.

After throwing the timed bomb, Tang Tianqi and his subordinates quickly leaped back.

Judging by their reactions, the power of this bomb seemed to be beyond imagination.

“Could it be a mini-nuke?”

Hyun Suho also grabbed the bomb and turned it around in his hands.

When the expected explosion didn’t occur, Tang Tianqi, who had thrown himself back, looked at Hyun Suho in disbelief and asked,

“H-how did you do that? Why didn’t the bomb...?”

“Sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from science.”

It seemed the words were different, but that didn’t matter.

At least, Tang Tianqi and his men looked like they were completely fooled.

The reason Hyun Suho was able to disarm the timed bomb in time was very simple.

Hyun Suho’s original job wasn’t a mage but a mech warrior, a mechanic.

[Stopping an old-fashioned bomb like this is a piece of cake.]

‘I knew there was something odd about those strange things lately.’

The magic had been sufficiently tested.

Of course, he had used it plenty against monsters and in sparring with Eun Hui-gwang, but he wanted to see if it would work in real combat against hunters.

Hyun Suho then issued a stern warning to Tang Tianqi.

“Now you must have realized, the reason I haven’t killed you yet isn’t because I’m a soft-hearted rookie mage. It’s because of your background.”

The opponent was the Tang Clan.

One of the most powerful groups in China, a hunter nation that boasted top rankers.

Uniquely, the Tang Clan was a martial group formed by blood relations.

Unlike other martial artists, their trademarks were poison and projectiles.

Usually, family-run companies are treated as small-time and go bankrupt early, but the Tang Clan was different.

[Return grace twice over, repay grudges tenfold.]

This was their famous motto, known worldwide.

It wasn’t just talk either; they were truly famous for pursuing vengeance to the ends of the earth if a grudge was born.

Of course, Hyun Suho wasn’t letting them off just because he feared the Tang Clan’s reputation.

He simply thought there was no need to create unnecessary grudges.

He didn’t know the exact circumstances between these two groups yet, but he judged that they hadn’t crossed the point of no return.

‘I hope that remains the case.’

At Hyun Suho’s words, Tang Tianqi gritted his teeth while surveying the situation.

Although his subordinates were injured by Hyun Suho’s magic, they were still in a condition that would allow them to move after some recuperation.

He squinted, calculating what would happen if they continued to fight.

He knew Hyun Suho hadn’t revealed all his true strength yet.

If they fought, it would be a certain defeat.

Having calculated this, Tang Tianqi stared at Hyun Suho with fierce eyes before throwing something.

A small object flew in an arc.

Given that it was thrown by a martial artist from the Tang Clan, it couldn’t be taken lightly, but Hyun Suho casually caught it.

It was a glass bottle filled with a yellow liquid.

Shaking it, Hyun Suho asked,

“This is the antidote, right?”

“The Tang Clan does not lie.”

“…Fine. Be careful on your way back to Sichuan.”

After issuing this one-sided order to leave, Hyun Suho began tending to the fallen soldiers.

As Hyun Suho turned his back, Tang Tianqi hesitated for a moment but couldn’t bring himself to give the order to attack.

Grinding his teeth in frustration, he eventually signaled his subordinates to retreat. 

Swish, swish, swish!

Realizing they had disappeared, Hyun Suho let out a small sigh.

“Things have really gotten tangled up.”

As soon as the Tang Clan left, Tatiana, who had been waiting in the back, hurriedly approached and shouted.

“Is that really the antidote?”

“They said it is.”

“Hmm... What if they’re lying?”

There was a chance they had given them poison instead of an antidote.

Hyun Suho opened the bottle of antidote and stirred it with his finger.

Seeing this, Tatiana exclaimed in horror.

“W-what are you doing?”

“Checking the ingredients.”

“Is that even possible?”

“Of course. I’m an exceptional hunter.”

It was a phrase that could be used like a master key.

Of course, Hyun Suho wasn’t lying.

While it wasn’t a hunter skill, Nova was analyzing the components.

[There are no harmful substances.]

‘Good, then…’

Even if this wasn’t really an antidote, Hyun Suho had a healing factor.

Since his healing factor had even cured the curse of the Destroyer, detoxifying a paralysis poison would be no problem.

Trusting Tang Tianqi’s words for now, he carefully administered the antidote to everyone.

“Hope it’s enough…”

The only one left was Bayets, who was still in bear form.

Hyun Suho poured the remaining antidote into his mouth and carefully removed the projectiles embedded in his body.

As he did, Bayets’ body began to glow, and he started to shrink.

Tssssss!

Bayets returned to his human form.

It seemed that he had maintained his form to avoid worsening his injuries by shrinking with the projectiles still embedded in him.

Even in an unconscious state, he had managed to maintain the hunter skill safely.

“That’s convenient.”

As Tatiana looked at the now human-formed Bayets, her eyes welled up with tears as she cried out.

“Colonel! Please wake up! Are you alright?”

It seemed pointless to say this to an unconscious person, but surprisingly, there was a response.

“Ugh...!”

Bayets, who had been twitching his fingers, opened his eyes.

“Ta-Tatiana.”

“Yes! It’s me, Colonel.”

“I’m... alright...”

But that was as far as he could go.

Having confirmed that Tatiana was safe, Bayets seemed to relax and rolled his eyes back, fainting again.

“Uncle!”

Tatiana, panicking, was gently pulled away by Hyun Suho, who checked on Bayets.

[Vital signs are stable.]

Hearing Nova’s report, Hyun Suho let out a sigh of relief and reassured Tatiana.

“Don’t worry. He’ll wake up after a little rest.”

“R-really?”

“Yes, really.”

“Thank goodness!”

Tatiana finally felt relieved hearing that Bayets was safe.

With her face streaked with tears and dirt, she looked at Hyun Suho with renewed appreciation.

“But who are you...?”

“Well, that’s a bit complicated...”

Hyun Suho found himself at a loss for how to explain the situation.

* * * 

A little later, in Vladivostok.

The group, now somewhat recovered, limped back into the city.

The soldiers at the city gate recognized them and shouted in surprise.

“C-Col

onel Bayets?! What on earth happened…?”

“Quiet. Do you want the whole city to know?”

“S-sorry, sir.”

“Open the gate. We’re returning to the command headquarters.”

“Yes, sir!”

The group boarded the car that had been prepared in advance and headed back to the base.

Even in the car, Bayets sat with his arms crossed, looking uncomfortable.

This was because Hyun Suho, an outsider, was sitting in the same car.

As Bayets glanced around anxiously, Tatiana gently reassured him.

“It’s alright. He’s the one who helped us.”

“…I understand.”

Bayets knew that if it weren’t for Hyun Suho, they would have been captured by the Tang Clan.

But that didn’t mean he could fully trust him just yet.

“Did you say you wanted to meet the General?”

“Yes. I want to hear the full situation here from the General.”