Chapter 53

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 53

Chapter Title: Boastful Guild (3)

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I've been thinking for quite some time about whether it would be okay to share my abilities with Chae Yeonhwa.

The conclusion—as I just told her—is to make it public.

"The moment you learn about my abilities, we're in the same boat, got it?"

"Yes, yes!!"

"So not as a subsidiary, but as allies. The Boastful Guild and Crimson Lotus Guild will develop together as equals."

"Yesss!!!"

Just the fact that she's the guild master of Korea's number one guild, Crimson Lotus, and an S-rank awakener is reason enough to stay close to her.

Of course, by that logic, Twilight Guild's Eom Taesoo is in a similar position, but I have no plans to reveal anything to him anytime soon.

"C-come on, hurry up! I've been curious about it for a while now! You're always holed up in your cabin—how do you even make equipment?!!!"

The difference between Chae Yeonhwa and Eom Taesoo is simple.

Chae Yeonhwa has already inferred some of my abilities—or at least has plenty of clues to do so.

I figured it'd be better for our future relationship to just come clean before she starts getting suspicious.

And...

Her cuteness might turn out to be pretty helpful for equipment crafting, who knows.

"Hm hm~"

Kwon Yena and Kim Hyeji grinned mischievously as they watched Chae Yeonhwa buzzing with anticipation.

Everyone, including Chae Yeonhwa, gathered in the living room once more and sat in a circle.

Clack—

I solemnly placed my phone on the table in the center of our circle.

"Gulp..."

Chae Yeonhwa frantically looked around, craning her neck.

Aren't we supposed to go to the forge right now?

Why are we suddenly sitting in the living room?

She seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"One last question, Yeonhwa."

"Y-yes..."

"Are you ready to witness my abilities... the cruel secrets of this world?"

I figured Chae Yeonhwa might actually cry.

The glory of being Korea's top guild, earned ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠through over five years of grueling effort.

She must be certain that she'll have to hand it over soon after I created the Boastful Guild.

Not just because we're close, but because of all the incredible feats I've accomplished—she has no choice but to acknowledge them, even if she doesn't want to.

But once she sees the truth behind those feats...

...

I couldn't wait to see her reaction. It was going to be hilarious.

"Come closer and look at the phone screen."

"Gulp..."

I could even hear her swallowing hard from the tension.

At the same time, the forge system linked to my phone screen popped up.

I hadn't restarted the macro since showing it to Hyeji, so there were five accumulated equipment crafting tickets.

Of course, the odds of failing here are pretty high.

A-rank gear only has a 6% success rate, after all.

But don't worry.

I can prove it not just with successful crafts, but with all sorts of other functions too.

And above all, my gut feeling is telling me it'll work.

"Is this... some kind of idle game?"

"Kinda similar, but..."

"I play those sometimes too! But this one's new—must be a classic, huh?"

Chae Yeonhwa snatched my phone and peered at it curiously.

"Whoa, I thought it was some ancient game, but the security's tight."

She muttered something cryptic before handing the phone back.

A new message had appeared on the screen.

"Oh... so it has this feature too."

She could view it from the side, but not touch it directly.

Until now, I'd assumed anyone could operate it, so I'd been careful not to let others touch my phone or computer. Now I could relax a bit.

"Anyway, Yeonhwa."

"Yes?"

"This isn't a game or something you control. This is reality."

"...Right?"

"No, this."

I shoved the phone right up to Chae Yeonhwa's face.

"What do you mean by..."

"Seeing is believing. Yena, Hyeji—get ready."

"Hm hm~ Doing it again~?"

"Not every time, but since it's her first, let's do it Boastful Guild tradition style."

Someone might complain that a brand-new guild has no traditions, but whatever—it's an ancient one.

"Eek!! H-Hongryeong...!!"

I pulled out all the equipment from my inventory again, and Yena's wind magic made them float around.

Hyeji's kukri and Chae Yeonhwa's Crimson Flame Staff joined the mix.

The gear orbited the central living room table.

"Yeonhwa, calm down and watch the screen."

"..."

Chae Yeonhwa's gaze, which had been following her Crimson Flame Staff, locked onto my phone.

"Honorary guild member prayer!"

"Come forthhh!!!"

Click.

"More desperately!"

Rub rub rub rub rub rub rub—

"Come oooout!!!"

Hyeji rubbed her palms so hard it felt like sparks would fly, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠praying desperately.

And thanks to that...

"It appeared!!!"

"Woooow!!!"

I shouted in joy along with Hyeji.

Yena just smiled, watching the scene with familiarity.

Only Chae Yeonhwa stared at me with a dumbfounded expression, as if demanding an explanation.

Before explaining to her, time to reward the contributor.

"Phew... Good work, Hyeji. That was as honorable as three C-rank pieces of gear."

"Hee hee... Awesome!!"

A perfectly reasonable way to run a guild.

And now, it was time to explain to the outsider who'd just witnessed our guild culture for the first time.

"Th-this... is a real ability, not a game...?"

"Yep. That's why I can stay home all the time."

"So... we just crafted an A-rank Viking Helm...?"

"Not 'crafted' like pulled—we made it."

"A-anyway..."

Chae Yeonhwa looked incredulous.

To that, I immediately pulled the Viking Helm from my inventory.

"Want to try it on?"

"Y-yes..."

The A-rank Viking Helm I'd crafted before.

Last time, it got used as material for the Eye of the Storm and vanished without a trace, but it's definitely top-tier defensive gear.

Especially for warrior-type awakeners—it pumps stamina stats by a whopping five stages.

Damage absorption is solid at B+, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and it even lets you use the Oath of Loyalty skill.

"M-my stamina went up, but..."

"The equipment info shows up here too—check it out."

I took back the Viking Helm, appraised it, and showed her.

Then I repaired her Crimson Flame Staff right in front of her.

The Crimson Flame that Yena had snatched gleamed like new, but she didn't seem in the mood to celebrate its return.

"So, convinced?"

"...This isn't blacksmithing—it's a gacha game!"

"But we crafted it, right?"

"Eeeek...!"

Crimson Lotus Guild is famous for pouring tons of money into blacksmith ventures.

That's how my fake story of being their guild blacksmith got approved so easily.

In other words, all that investment money must sting right now.

"Yeonhwa, we're allies, right? If I do well, Crimson Lotus benefits too. Isn't that correct?"

"Y-yeah..."

"So you should be happy if I craft gear super easily, just a teeeeny bit. We're allies. Right?"

"Right..."

"If an A-rank fire staff pops out, guess who I'll look for first."

"Y-you'll give it to me?!!"

"Of course~..."

"Ehehehehehe..."

Of course, assuming we keep the alliance going.

"So, I thought of a goal for our alliance."

"Yes!!"

"The S-rank gate in Jongno. Let's clear it."

"Yes! Wha—?!?!"

The agreement with Chae Yeonhwa went off without a hitch, and the official alliance between Boastful Guild and Crimson Lotus Guild was announced.

Everyone was baffled that Korea's top guild would ally with a newbie guild, but once it came out that Yena had joined, the skepticism turned to massive interest.

And when it was revealed that Yena—whom everyone assumed was the guild master—was actually the vice guild master, the world's attention zeroed in on the identity of Boastful Guild's guild master.

Then, the guild master's name was revealed: Shin Yujun.

Of course, nothing else was disclosed.

But that secret wasn't going to last long.

All the circumstantial evidence pointed to Boastful Guild's guild master being the Boastful Blacksmith, so it naturally came out that his name was Shin Yujun.

No worries, though.

I pride myself on my extremely narrow social circle.

Even if someone from the orphanage thinks, "No way, is that him...?" no one has my contact info or knows where I am or what I'm doing.

I've lived my life so well!!!