Chapter 10
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 10
Chapter Title: SSS-Grade Rusty Iron Sword (E)
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After learning the saintess's shocking nickname, the holy and prim image I'd conjured up all by myself completely shattered.
But after a little time passed, it actually started to feel pretty good.
The intimidating aura that came with her job title as saintess had cracked, making her seem way more approachable.
Somehow feeling a surge of confidence, I immediately started pondering what message to send to the saintess—no, to Holy Piss.
It didn't matter that I had a D-rank Light Staff. Sure, she had that ridiculous nickname, but she was still one of only eleven S-rank Awakeners in the entire world, the de facto number one of the Holy Kingdom.
Before sending the message, the thing I needed to worry about was keeping my identity under wraps from the public eye.
I wasn't affiliated with any guild right now.
Thanks to the orphanage director's blunder, I had unparalleled freedom, but at the same time, I was in an incredibly vulnerable state with no one watching my back.
I was more valuable than a goose that laid golden eggs.
Crafting the world's first B-rank gear in just two days was already absurd, and that was only the beginning.
I wouldn't feel safe until I unlocked some self-defense features later on, or at least until Kwon Yena finished her year in the guild and I could make her my official bodyguard.
"Ha... what should I do?"
Gurgle~
"Ah."
Come to think of it, I hadn't eaten anything since leaving the orphanage yesterday.
I'd been so dopamine-drunk that I hadn't even noticed my hunger.
I had nothing to eat at home, so I got ready to head out and grab something.
"...Wait, do I even have money?"
The subsidy I'd received upon leaving was 5 million won.
Out of that, I'd spent 500,000 on training facility rental on the first day, and 3.3 million on the studio apartment deposit plus first month's rent.
That left me with 1.2 million...
But the moment I checked my abilities, I'd impulsively spent 1.05 million ordering a computer because I wanted a bigger screen.
Now I had 150,000 left.
That wouldn't last me a week.
Well, I could scrape by if I really tried, but I didn't want to!
After finally turning my life around, I had no intention of living pathetically, scraping by on a few thousand won per meal.
I was about to head out but instead opened Hunter Gallery and switched to the auction house tab.
You have accessed the auction house for the first time!
Would you like to link it with [Forge]?
"Oh?"
The moment I entered the auction house, the same guidance message popped up that I usually saw when using my Forge skill.
I had no idea what linking it would do, but it couldn't hurt, so I hit [Yes] right away.
Successfully linked Hunter Gallery Auction House with [Forge]!
[Name Engraving] function unlocked.
Auction house linked with the Forge.
I jumped right into the Gallery auction house, but nothing seemed special.
"What changed?"
I might not notice since it was my first time, but even so, none of my Forge functions seemed reflected there.
No matter how much I looked around, I couldn't spot anything, so I closed the Gallery for now and opened the Forge to check.
It was ridiculous that my phone pulled up the Forge even though I'd been glued to it all day yesterday.
I checked the main screen for any new features, and thankfully, there were changes here.
Newly added were [Auction House Access] and [Name Engraving].
I tapped [Auction House Access] first to check it out.
"Oh..."
Surprisingly, it was identical to the auction house I'd just seen in Hunter Gallery.
I still had no clue what was different.
Maybe it was added for future use, so I decided to think of it as a convenience patch that let me craft gear and sell it immediately.
"That doesn't sound half bad."
If they were serious enough to add convenience patches like this, I could hope they'd eventually fix this clunky design too. With that in mind, I checked the [Name Engraving] function.
[ ]
[ ]
[Engrave]
This time, there were two blank fields.
I tapped the top blank without thinking, but got no response, so I tried the middle one. An item list popped up on the right.
"Hm..."
For now, I selected the C-rank shortsword I planned to sell.
"Now what?"
Tutorials were the last resort.
There were probably a bunch of new ones piled up for all the recent additions.
"Hmm..."
Exercising the superhuman focus of an EX-rank Blacksmith, I pondered and came up with a brilliant idea: since it's name engraving, maybe think of a name in my head like when I set my Gallery nickname.
[Fucking OP]
[Shortsword (C)]
[Engrave]
"Oh, it actually worked."
So why the hell did they add this?
I got how to use it, but not why it existed.
No way engraving a name added special effects.
That would basically be custom ability injection.
"Shit, hold up..."
Wasn't the whole Blacksmith job like that to begin with?
Since when had I accepted that gear types, attributes, and abilities were random?
"Aah..."
It was a sales tactic.
They'd tossed me a light-attribute staff in the tutorial—better than anything I could've imagined—so I'd glossed right over my suspicions.
I wanted to file a formal complaint, but there was no [Customer Service] function.
"Ahem... right... I can just pray to Lord Hephaestus..."
I felt a bit wronged for a moment, but positively speaking, crafting B-rank on day two meant I could afford the randomness penalty.
Anyway, shaking off the momentary detour of injustice, I decided to figure out what [Name Engraving] actually did.
"Should I test it out for experience?"
I removed the C-rank shortsword and slotted in the crappiest gear from my inventory: the rusty iron sword.
[SSS-Grade]
[Rusty Iron Sword]
[Engrave]
The most straightforward and dramatic name that came to mind for a performance upgrade, I added it right away.
Without hesitation, I tapped [Engrave], and surprisingly...
You have engraved a new name onto 『Rusty Iron Sword (E)』.
You have acquired 『SSS-Grade Rusty Iron Sword (E)』!
"Whaaat!!... Ah..."
I'd gotten my hopes up, but as expected, name engraving couldn't change performance.
It was literally just engraving the name.
I stared holes into the innocent rusty iron sword, but weirdly, it looked a lot better than before.
『SSS-Grade Rusty Iron Sword (E)』
Way cooler than some plain old rusty iron sword.
"This is straight-up marketing for blacksmiths, isn't it?"
There was a reason [Name Engraving] unlocked after linking with the auction house.
A fancy name made buyers more likely to pick it, even with the same stats.
Now that I knew, I started thinking about what name to give the C-rank shortsword to sell it fast.
Should I go over-the-top like SSS-Grade to pull aggro?
Or brand it with my name like blacksmiths in comics?
"Hm..."
After a short debate, I decided on a name that would draw attention and sell quick at a high price.
Honestly, it felt cheap putting a mere C-rank as my official debut piece.
Call it a practice run.
To brand myself, it needed to be at least a B-rank that no one had ever made before.
For now, my goal was living expenses, so branding was tabled.
I picked a name without overthinking and engraved it.
You have engraved a new name onto 『Shortsword (C)』.
You have acquired 『Well-Honed Shortsword (C)』!
"Oh... it really works."
I did the same for the one-hand shield.
You have engraved a new name onto 『One-Hand Shield (C)』.
You have acquired 『Sturdy One-Hand Shield (C)』!
I added descriptors like "Well-Honed" and "Sturdy."
Normally, gear gets prefixes like that probabilistically when a related stat effect outperforms others.
They weren't originally that, but since I added relevant descriptors, no one should suspect anything.
Even with the same effects, the prefixed version just looks better, so it'd definitely be more popular.
After engraving, I headed straight to the auction house and listed both items.
Seller anonymous, highest bid auction, 24-hour listing.
This way, I wouldn't have to price them myself—they'd sell naturally at the market's top price.
C-rank gear that wasn't mass-produced yet always had way more demand than supply.
Once they sold, I'd pocket at least 100 million, so I decided to flex my 150,000 on a single meal.
"Hm..."
A place for a satisfying breakfast worth 150,000 in the morning.
Crimson Lotus Hotel's breakfast buffet sounded perfect.
I wondered if it was okay to show up in cheap padding, but I remembered that real rich people dressed modestly, so I headed out confidently.
A quick search showed adult breakfast at Crimson Lotus Hotel was exactly 100,000 won.
50,000 left for a taxi—perfect.
30-minute walk to the subway.
Riverside reverse commute, but whatever.
In 24 hours, I'd be rich enough to call taxis daily.
I called a cab, scrolled the Gallery for 15 minutes, then stepped out as it arrived.
Click—
As I left, I sensed someone behind me and turned to lock eyes with the guy from next door.
"Alright, alright! Day 2 of my miracle run—gates every day!!!"
"..."
"Ah..."
Bam—!
Looks like a weirdo lives next door.