HC: Handyman | Ch. 198 - Balance

Jack finally allowed himself to breathe once they made it to the first ditch without any incidents. “Wow! You guys really did a great job fo

Jack finally allowed himself to breathe once they made it to the first ditch without any incidents.

“Wow! You guys really did a great job fortifying the defenses,” Rob said, genuinely impressed.

Horace grinned. “Haha. What can I say? As the team’s trapper, I’ve got to make sure the fortress stays secure. I’m glad someone noticed.”

“Oh, please. You didn’t even do the work. It was all Riku,” Marie said flatly.

Horace ignored her. “Rob, guard the ditch with me, okay? Let Marie handle AoE, and Christoph will clean up the stragglers.”

With Amari absent, Horace had stepped into the leadership role. And he was taking it seriously enough that he didn’t rise to Marie’s bait.

Rob nodded, more serious now. “Sure. No problem.”

Horace turned to the group. “Listen up. We don’t know what’s coming or how much stronger this wave will be. But whatever happens, we’ll handle it.”

Everyone braced for the wave.

Wave 27 comes. Beware!

The moment the notification flashed, a gust of wind slammed in from the direction of the fortress. Snow and frost raced across the ground. The wind howled through the canyon like a beast unleashed. And it was freezing.

Jack flinched as the cold bit into him, sharper than anything he’d felt in the Breach before. His breath misted in the air. Even through his imbued overalls, he could feel the chill trying to worm its way in.

Everyone's HP began dropping.

-5

-5

“Oh wow. So much damage!” Horace exclaimed.

Without hesitating, Jack activated his skill.

Fat Coating! Fat Coating! Fat Coating!

Stacks of stored fat vanished from his inventory and everyone’s cold resistance was boosted. 

A ripple of warmth spread across his body. The wind still howled, but it didn’t sting anymore. It didn’t slow his limbs or bite his skin. Between [Fat Coating] and the [1000-Year-Old Ice] package Horace had unlocked at the peak, the cold was neutralized.

“Whoa!” Rob shouted, shielding his eyes as the wind whipped at his coat. “This package—I mean, packages are nuts!”

Jack couldn’t help but smile. He had known that it had to be something special based on everyone’s reaction to it, or how many Breach Points it cost.

But seeing it in action was something else entirely. The entire fortress pass had turned into a frozen gauntlet. 

Beneath the howl of the wind came a heavier, rumbling sound.

The wave was coming.

They turned the corner—dozens of shagrats, their fur now a pale brown. 

“The shagrats…” Horace muttered. “They’re colored differently. That must mean they're stronger.”

“How much stronger?” Jack asked.

“That’s what we have to find out.”

The shagrats advanced, their coats already dusted with frost. [Tranmontane] was slowly gnawing away their HP before they even reached striking distance.

They tried to stampede, but the wind hammered into them head-on. Their charge broke apart. Claws skidded over ice-slick stone. A few lost footing entirely and slammed into the ground mid-run.

Marie was already in motion. She grabbed a bomb, lit the fuse, and hurled it.

“Marie, you—” Jack started, eyes wide.

She’d earned [Slinger’s Arm] from the Cobalt Romie, and her range had definitely improved. But this? They’d barely turned the corner, and she was already targeting them.

The wind caught the explosive mid-air, carried it farther than Jack expected—and dropped it right where it needed to land.

Boom!

The blast ripped through the front line, carving off a massive chunk of HP in a single detonation.

“Wow. You’ve got so much range!”

“Of course. She’s got the wind on her side,” Rob said. “With the right angle and elevation, wind can make a huge difference for ranged attacks. And Marie’s a talented grenadier—she’s making the most of it.”

“Really?” Jack asked.

Seeing Marie already launching another round, Jack quickly buffed her with [March of the Embers].

You’ve played [March of the Embers].

Success rate: A+

+300XP in [Bard]

Audience bonus: +512XP in [Bard]

All your allies deal +10(+2%) damage for 1 minute.

[Soulful Performer] activates: All your allies receive +10(+2) attack for 10 minutes.

He lucked out and played it perfectly on the first try.

“Wow! So cool!” Rob said.

“What?”

“This buff! It’s amazing! Having a bard in the party is amazing.”

Jack glanced at his cousin. Rob’s eyes were practically glowing as he followed the action, like a kid in an amusement park. Was their team really that impressive? Maybe Jack had been in the thick of it too long to appreciate it.

Horace kept his focus on the incoming enemies, eyes narrowed. Then he placed a hand on his chest and exhaled. “Okay. The system just averaged the levels. They’re around 22 or 23. We’re good. We can handle it.”

The shagrats had definitely grown stronger—but not enough to overwhelm them. The system was compensating for Rob’s presence, but not punishing them for sneaking in an extra party member.

The wave pushed forward, shagrats straining against the gale. Arrows and bombs flew farther than usual, wind-driven. Their bulkier HP bars made them harder to drop—but thanks to [Gunpowder Kegs], the aid package Rob had discovered earlier, Marie’s explosives were hitting like siege fire.

All the while, [Tranmontane] kept whittling down the enemy, second by second.

The wind gnawed at them relentlessly, every gust dragging their HP down in slow, merciless ticks. But thanks to Jack’s [Fat Coating] and the [1000-Year-Old Ice] package, their party took no damage from the chill.

“Is it just me, or is it taking forever for them to reach the ditch?” Jack asked.

“It’s not just you. Fifty percent speed debuff is massive,” Marie said, clearly proud. “And do you see how some of them stop entirely? That means they got the [Frostbite] debuff.”

Jack studied the shagrat army. Some of the creatures staggered, their limbs caked in frost. A few stopped moving entirely.

Frostbite, uh?

Bit by bit, the wave broke apart. One by one, the shagrats fell.

Then the bears charged in from the rear.

The short-faced bears barreled into the rear line like boulders let loose, claws swinging. Despite the shagrats’ slight buff, the bears were still level 35. Whether their enemies were level 20 or 22 didn’t matter. If anything, the added toughness just made the kills more satisfying—an opportunity to flex.

Rob’s jaw practically hit the floor. “What are those bears?! You’ve got four of them—and they’re on your side?!”

Marie puffed up her chest. “Stick around, noob. You might learn a thing or two.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Rob said.

Marie stood a little taller, clearly pleased by the faint trace of respect in his voice.

“The cold isn’t affecting the bears either, is it?” Jack asked.

“They’ve got some cold resistance,” Horace replied. “They live in these mountains. This kind of weather is normal for them.”

Another way [Tranmontane] worked in their favor.

Between the bears, the wind, and Marie’s bombs, the shagrats struggled to even reach the first ditch.

When the last of them entered the canyon, Horace turned to Marie. “What do you think? How many more”

“Compared to the last wave? Numbers jumped a lot. Rob’s presence really spiked the count.”

“Right... well, it shouldn’t matter,” Horace said. “This wind package is too OP.”

And it didn’t matter. In the end, they didn’t even need to hold the line. The wind had done it for them. Wave 27 never stood a chance.

As soon as the last shagrats collapsed, [Tranmontane] faded. The howl vanished in an instant, leaving only silence—and a field of frostbitten corpses.

“Well, that was anticlimactic,” Rob said.

“Yeah,” Jack replied, practically giddy. “I love that wind upgrade. We hardly have to do anything.”

“Honestly, I was scared the system would scale everything to level 30,” Rob admitted. “Glad it didn’t.”

Jack caught the shift in his cousin’s voice. The weight in it. He really had been worried. And for good reason. If the entire Breach had jumped ten levels just because of his presence, it would’ve been a nightmare. But with the enemy’s boosted numbers and levels, the adjustment had landed in a sweet spot: challenging, but still manageable.

“Okay,” Horace said, already eyeing the road leading to the forest. “Guess we go check out the new places Rob’s map revealed?”

“Sounds good,” Rob replied.

“What about you, Rob?” Jack asked. “Where are you headed?”

“I don’t know. I’m done with the fortress. Wherever you guys think is best.” He turned to Marie. “Where are you going?”

She blinked, caught off guard by the lack of sarcasm. “I—I’m going to the slopes. Behind the fortress.”

“Slopes? Nice,” Rob said, grinning. “Good terrain for a rogue like me. I’ll go with you.”

Marie frowned. “What? Why?”

He scratched the back of his head. “Horace told me you were the one who first explored the citadel. I found two more packages there. Just figured you might’ve missed something on the slopes too.”

Marie narrowed her eyes, but her voice softened slightly. “Oh yeah? Come on, then, Mr. Know-It-All. Let’s see if you find more packages than me.”

“I’m game,” Rob said, falling into step beside her.

The two set off, already bickering again—but the rhythm was off. Familiar, but lighter. Jack watched them go, frowning just slightly.

“I never expected Rob to volunteer to go with Marie,” he said to Horace. “That was kind of unexpected, wasn’t it?”

Horace shrugged. “Yeah. A little.”

Jack let it slide with a shrug of his own. “Anyway, I’m going to start cleaning up here. Good luck in the forest!”

Horace summoned his horse and galloped off, hooves crunching over frozen stone.

With everyone heading their separate ways, Jack crossed the ditch and began combing through the battlefield.

After butchering so many shagrats from earlier waves, the differences in this batch stood out immediately. The new shagrats were slightly smaller, and their fur was coarser. And when harvested, the bones, fat, and meat were the same, but the pelts were of a slightly higher grade.

Still, even with the improved quality, they weren’t good enough to replace the cobalt-romie pelt Jack had been wearing.

He swept the field quickly, moving from carcass to carcass. All it took was a touch—each body burst into motes of light, the loot transferring directly into his inventory. His Butchering XP reserves were running low—he’d already spent most of it at the XP Store—and there were still so many upgrades on his list.

He made sure to trigger the vases and Clay Dome combo. Thanks to the wind funneling the beasts into a tight cluster, two quick rounds were enough to loot the area efficiently and rack up bonus XP.

With the battlefield clear, Jack exhaled. That was one problem solved. But Amari was coming back to the fortress with a crew of ten hungry, under-equipped soldiers, counting on him.

He had to start making gear for them—or they’d be useless.

On one hand, Rob’s map revealed a nearby valley where grass could be harvested. On the other, Jack had a decent stash of bones in his inventory—and a full library of crafting recipes ready to go.

It was time to dig into bone carving.

He wasn’t about to dive into advanced techniques without a foundation. Better to start with the basics and build from there. He would begin with the first bone carving recipe he’d unlocked: [Bone Pendant].

He settled near the fire and unpacked his bone carving tool set, the memory of his lesson with the professor flickering to the surface.

Always start with research.

Jack opened his browser and pulled up examples of bone-carved necklaces—pieces from ancient artisans, museum relics etched with weathered symbols, and newer creations by modern craftspeople keeping the old ways alive.

Once he had gone through several pictures and illustrations, he turned to the material.

He chose one of the yellowed romie teeth, each one easily the size of his palm. Turning it over in his hand, he studied its natural curve and texture, letting the shape speak to him.

Several of the designs he’d seen floated through his mind. None of them used a tooth this massive, but they offered a foundation—a hint of what could work.

At first, the concept was a haze.

But the longer he looked, the more it took shape.

Finally, with a steady breath, Jack got to work.

Ch. 197 - Bickering

INDEX

Ch. 199 - Tooth