Chapter 81: 15th Floor. Heaven-Endowed Blacksmith (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 81: 15th Floor. Heaven-Endowed Blacksmith (2)
[Olivia Turner (46th Floor): Congratulations on clearing the 15th floor. I have a question for the poster who mentioned meeting the blacksmith.]
[Kang San (17th Floor): Oh, Ms. Olivia?]
[Haidal Loop (15th Floor): Uh, what is it?]
[Olivia Turner (46th Floor): Were you unable to go underground?]
[Haidal Loop (15th Floor): Underground? I didn't even know there was an underground...?]
[Olivia Turner (46th Floor): Hmm... I see. It seems he won't tell you unless you ask him directly. Thank you for confirming.]
* * *
"Shoddy works, you say?"
Something made poorly, without skill, and of little value.
The blacksmith had stated with his own mouth that he would only craft shoddy works.
"It is only natural. Why would I waste my skill crafting proper armaments for the likes of you? The only things you or I can take from this place are scraps."
The blacksmith spoke with utter indifference. The Master of All Weapons muttered as if this was exactly what he expected.
[You haven't changed a bit.]
"Is it greed for a blacksmith to wish to craft weapons only for those capable of wielding his children? Since I have a contract with the Master of the Universe, I will forge them because I must... but I have no desire to put my heart into the work."
The blacksmith kept his word. He always worked half-heartedly, creating equipment for players that were nothing more than failures in his eyes.
‘Though even those failures possessed absurd performance.’
"From now on, if you bring materials, come find me. I'll craft shoddy works befitting wretches like you. If you shout 'Blacksmith,' you'll be able to return here."
The blacksmith picked up his hammer again and began striking the anvil. His attitude made it clear he had no interest in further conversation.
Normally, the relationship between a player and the blacksmith ended here.
However, there was a way to take it one step further. That was why Kang Jun-hyeok took a step forward.
"Then what happens if I prove that I am a warrior worthy of your recognition?"
"Hmm?"
The blacksmith stopped his hammer mid-swing. Kang Jun-hyeok continued.
"If I do that, can I obtain a weapon you've crafted with your full sincerity?"
* * *
Kang Jun-hyeok knew the truth.
The equipment made by the Tower's NPC blacksmith possessed miraculous performance.
As long as the materials were sufficient, they were far superior to any equipment generally obtainable in the Tower. Even in the final battle of his past life, he had been wearing several pieces forged by this very man.
They were items of a caliber that were hard to match unless one possessed Unique grade equipment.
That was the quality of the blacksmith's "failures."
Then, what would be the level of an armament he crafted with his full sincerity?
Unique grade equipment like the Holy Sword or Lemegeton, which could only be obtained through a Perfect Clear—could his work reach even that level?
The possibility was high. His true goal on the 15th floor was to earn the blacksmith's recognition.
The blacksmith burst into laughter.
"Haha! You? Earn my recognition? How arrogant. Your pride is sky-high. Master of All Weapons... you truly are a master worthy of him. Fine. You are a player, and I am an NPC. If you seek a challenge, I must respond."
The blacksmith set down his hammer and stomped his foot. At that moment, a section of the floor in the corner of the forge ground open, revealing a staircase leading into the depths.
Rumble!
"The mines of the 15th floor do not end at the surface. Beneath the forge where I dwell, there is an underground. Therefore, I shall give you a quest. Go down to the underground mine and personally mine the ore that will serve as the material for your equipment."
[Hidden Quest: Prove Your Qualifications]
[Condition: Descend to the underground mine of the 15th floor and mine ore.]
[Success Reward: The blacksmith recognizes you and crafts a proper armament for you.]
[Failure Penalty: The blacksmith will never recognize you again.]
"I accept."
Kang Jun-hyeok nodded. The blacksmith let out a mocking chuckle.
"I hope you can produce results that match your arrogant pride. Though I doubt there's any chance of that."
The blacksmith turned away and resumed his hammering.
From here on, results would speak louder than words. Kang Jun-hyeok descended the stairs.
Pshhh. Pshhhhh.
The sound of gas venting reached his ears. A stale, pungent odor stung his nose. Waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs was a ruined, twisted mine filled with acrid smoke.
[15th Floor Progress Quest]
[Conquer the underground mine.]
* * *
The 15th floor was divided into three stages.
First, the 1% clear rate: Reaching the end of the surface mine and clearing it.
Next, the 10% clear rate: Wandering the mine to collect fragments, awakening and defeating the Golem at the end, and meeting the blacksmith.
And then, the final step: Receiving the hidden quest from the blacksmith and heading to the underground mine.
Clearing this was likely the only way to reach a 100% clear rate. Kang Jun-hyeok grumbled.
"A quest you can only get if the player asks for it directly. It's damnably picky."
The problem was that the blacksmith himself never mentioned the underground. Only when a player declared they would prove themselves did the path finally open.
[It means those who lack even that much initiative don't deserve the chance to be tested. His personality is even pricklier than mine.]
"I think he's better than you. You used to make sure no one could even get close."
[...Hmph.]
The Master of All Weapons couldn't deny it. Kang Jun-hyeok drew his weapon.
"Shall we get started, then?"
His expression turned serious. The conditions for heading to the underground mine were difficult, but it wasn't impossible. Quite a few players had told the blacksmith they would prove themselves and earned the right to descend. Kang Jun-hyeok had done the same in his past life.
However, no one had ever actually earned the blacksmith's recognition. Not even him.
Pshhh. Pshhhhh.
Toxic gases spewed violently from vents throughout the mine. The miasma tried to enter his lungs and ravage his body. The toxicity was so high that simply breathing dealt damage. He was protected thanks to his Poison Resistance skill, but other players would have taken 1 damage per second.
And such toxicity was merely the first obstacle of the underground.
Rumble!
As he moved forward, ores rose and coalesced into the shape of a Golem. Naturally, they were different from the Golems on the surface. Composed of corroded and broken ores, they looked almost like mummies.
Thump!
Their strength and speed were significantly lower than the Golems on the surface. Any player who had made it this far would have no trouble dealing with them.
But the problem wasn't the Golem's strength.
Crunch!
His greatsword slammed into the Golem's head. At that moment, the corroded ores making up its body began to vibrate violently. Kang Jun-hyeok quickly raised his shield.
BOOM!
The Golem's body exploded. Fragments of its body shattered and flew in all directions like a claymore mine.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The trouble didn't end there. The ores in the walls struck by the fragments also began to vibrate before exploding like grenades.
Boom! Rumble!
A chain reaction of explosions shook the mine violently. Shrapnel flying from every direction targeted Kang Jun-hyeok's entire body.
[Repulsion]
Wooooong!
A powerful wave of force deflected the fragments. However, the fragments that were blown away struck the walls again, triggering even more explosions. Kang Jun-hyeok clicked his tongue.
[Rift Movement]
His body vanished, reappearing outside the range of the explosions.
Rumble... Boom...
The explosions continued for over a minute before finally subsiding. When the dust settled, what remained was a gruesome scene of total destruction.
‘The difficulty is as insane as ever.’
This was the second obstacle of the underground. Everything here was a bomb. Touch a wall the wrong way, and it explodes; once one goes off, a chain reaction follows. A typical player would fight the first Golem they saw, get caught in the explosion, and flee in a near-death state.
Of course, it wasn't a problem for Kang Jun-hyeok. With his power, he could withstand the explosions and push forward.
However, the greatest and final obstacle remained. The Master of All Weapons muttered.
[That fellow truly demands something bizarre.]
The quest condition wasn't to clear the underground. It was to personally mine the ore that existed there.
[You are strong. You are exceptional. As a warrior and a player, you are near perfection. But what that fellow requires is not that kind of ability.]
In this mine filled with bombs and traps, how was one supposed to find the necessary ore?
That was the core problem. If you touched the walls recklessly, they would explode, destroying all the intact ores. There was only one solution: to read the veins of the mine, hear the sound of the metal, and mine it with surgical precision.
It was a task that required the skills of a master miner, not a player.
No matter how exceptional Kang Jun-hyeok was, there was no answer since the task required a completely different set of skills.
Thus, the Master of All Weapons asked with anticipation.
[How do you plan to solve this?]
If it was the Kang Jun-hyeok he knew, he would find a way. Kang Jun-hyeok replied as if the answer was obvious.
"What do you mean, how? I'm going to solve it with the power of a player."
[A player?]
"What, did you forget already? I got it just before entering this floor."
[...Hmm?]
The Master of All Weapons searched his memory for what Kang Jun-hyeok had recently obtained. In that moment, he was struck with realization.
Kang Jun-hyeok calmly activated a skill.
[Pixie's Treasure Intuition]
* * *
Rumble... Boom...
The blacksmith stopped his hammer at the thunderous sounds echoing from the underground. It seemed the player who had visited was struggling to clear the quest.
"A futile effort."
What he demanded from a player wasn't strength or technique. It was pure talent. The intuition to hear the sound of metal and read the veins of the earth—an ability that appeared perhaps once every few thousand years, even among the dwarves, the race of the earth.
That was what the blacksmith required.
Some asked why he demanded such a thing from a warrior—wasn't it enough to be good at fighting? But the blacksmith's conviction never wavered.
‘Shouldn't a true warrior be able to at least hear the sound of metal?’
Why should he craft a proper armament for someone who lacked even that much sensitivity? Many players had sought him out, but none had ever cleared the condition he set. The blacksmith had no doubt that this time would be no different.
However, as he continued to hammer, the blacksmith soon realized something was strange.
"...He isn't coming up."
Six hours had already passed since Kang Jun-hyeok went underground, yet he had not returned. The constant thunderous sounds had also long since vanished. A look of bewilderment crossed the blacksmith's face at this unprecedented occurrence.
‘He did possess the Master of All Weapons. He certainly seems more exceptional than other players.’
Even so, it wouldn't change anything. What he desired was not ability as a player.
Then, a few hours later, Kang Jun-hyeok trudged back up the stairs.
"You've returned."
"I'm back."
"You must have realized by now that it is impossible for the likes of you to earn my recognition. Just give up gracefully and—"
"No."
Kang Jun-hyeok held out his hand.
The blacksmith, who had been watching with an indifferent expression, widened his eyes to their limit. In that hand was a single piece of ore that glowed with a brilliant golden light.
"I've mined it."
"...Huh?"
The blacksmith blinked, wondering if he was hallucinating. But no matter how he looked at it, the golden-glowing ore was definitely the one that existed only in the deepest parts of the underground.
"Wh-What?"
How? A mere player?
Flustered, he desperately tried to organize his thoughts. Kang Jun-hyeok had been underground for quite a while. Perhaps he had found the ore through a miracle of luck. It couldn't have been through his own ability.
Just as he was settling on that thought, Kang Jun-hyeok shook his sleeve.
Clatter!
Seven ores of various colors tumbled onto the floor.
"I thought you might say it was just luck, so I mined as much as I could. Is this enough for you to recognize me?"
"..."
The blacksmith's jaw dropped.