Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: A Legendary Class Proposal (2)
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Instructor Relson swallowed hard.
He blinked, again and again.
But watching the pile of ash scatter into the air, he was forced to accept that what was happening before him was real.
“Wh-what in the…?”
This was impossible.
A game played by 2.5 billion people.
How many users had passed through Instructor Relson’s training grounds?
Tens of thousands, at the very least.
And from what he’d heard from the other instructors, not a single one had ever killed a goblin in one hit.
Even a genius like Han-ul took two hits.
An exceptionally good strike might take three.
Normally, it took five to six hits to kill a weakened goblin.
But this one had disintegrated into gray ash in a single blow.
“You’re not laughing anymore, are you?”
Instructor Relson’s pupils wavered. Hyun-soo didn’t bother to say anything more.
Ding!
[Hidden Piece: One Shot, One Kill.]
[You have gained 2 Strength.]
[You have met the qualifications to challenge the monster-slaying trials of the beginner zone.]
[You may proceed with monster-slaying trials from Stage 2 to Stage 4.]
[You can receive a reward after completing each stage.]
[You can choose to accumulate rewards without claiming them after each stage.]
[However, if you fail the next trial after accumulating rewards, the rewards will be lost.]
The cumulative reward system usually yielded far better rewards than claiming them one by one.
“You can take the trial… will you accept?”
Hyun-soo nodded at Relson’s words, his voice trembling.
‘Is the sword that good? Yes, it must be the sword. And it must have been a critical strike.’
A critical strike.
A critical hit.
There was no other logical explanation.
For a Level 1 player to kill a goblin in one hit when others needed five or six—it defied reality.
Relson composed himself.
The next monster was immediately summoned.
[Goblin Lv. 5]
This time, it was a real goblin.
It was slightly larger than the weakened one from before.
Moreover, for a Level 1 user, the difference between a Level 3 monster and a Level 5 monster was like night and day.
Even hunting the Level 3 weakened goblin was incredibly difficult at first without the instructors’ help.
“Kihehehehek!”
The goblin moved quickly.
There was another thing to consider.
‘It’s just the sword that's good, right?’
Only Hyun-soo’s sword looked special; he was wearing nothing but the default t-shirt and shorts provided in the beginner zone.
Because of that, one or two hits from a Level 5 goblin could be enough to get him forcibly logged out.
‘He’s fast, as expected.’
Relson gave a wry smile.
The speed of the fast-moving goblin.
The creature lunged forward with its dagger.
For a Level 1 user, it would be an impossibly fast attack.
But not for Hyun-soo.
There was no ‘kinetic vision’ stat in Ares.
However, as the Agility stat increased, an enemy’s movements began to appear marginally slower.
To Hyun-soo, the goblin’s movements seemed incredibly slow.
Twisting his body to the side, Hyun-soo dodged and swung his sword once more.
Fwsh-!
[You have slain the Goblin.]
“…!!?”
Again, it was a single strike.
Relson was so stunned that he took a step back.
Looking down at his sword, Gwangmyeong, Hyun-soo realized something.
‘As expected, games are all about gear…’
Of course, it was a result born from his own effort.
For the first time in a while, Hyun-soo opened his status window.
(Hyun-soo)
Level: 1
Class: None
Strength: 35 | Agility: 37 | Stamina: 33 | Wisdom: 19 | Intelligence: 19 | Dexterity: 353
Level 1 starts with all stats standardized at 5.
Most Level 1 users would leave the training dummy and hunting grounds in less than thirty minutes.
It was, after all, the most boring part of the game’s tutorial.
But Hyun-soo was different.
Smelting and refining.
Quenching and hammering.
The stats he had gained from that endless repetition.
The reward for an unconventional achievement.
The reward for successfully destroying the training dummy.
The stat increase from the epic sword, Gwangmyeong.
The attack power of Gwangmyeong, which was five times that of the iron swords beginner users wielded.
He hadn’t gotten this by slacking off.
The furnace temperature could rise to over 1,500 degrees, and he had worked tirelessly in that heat, which was hotter than anything else.
The Strength and Stamina stats that had risen from that repetition.
And the increase in his Dexterity stat.
It wasn't because he was lucky.
It was because he had earned it.
After checking his current status, Hyun-soo listened to the notification that followed.
[Stage 2 Trial Complete.]
[You may now challenge Stage 3.]
[You can receive your reward.]
[You can accumulate your reward.]
Hyun-soo enjoyed the idea of crafting things again inside this game.
But today, because of Relson, he had reflected on his past.
The world was full of people like Relson.
It was filled with those who only believed what was right in front of their eyes.
‘Will the day ever come when people like us are acknowledged?’
The image of his father, drenched in sweat and looking up at the sky, flashed through his mind.
Hyun-soo smiled faintly.
He decided it was time to let the world know.
That a blacksmith who wields a hammer has no reason to be looked down upon.
That they might even be comparable to a genius of the sword.
The first step was to shatter Relson’s preconceived notions.
And that first step would be bold and brave.
It was something he could do because he was confident.
“Stage 3 and Stage 4.”
Hyun-soo knew better than anyone what kind of person he was now.
He was not a fool.
He was not reckless.
He was more calculating than anyone.
“Start them at the same time.”
[You are performing an act that defies the common sense of your level.]
This time, it had nothing to do with being a blacksmith.
“Are you out of your mind…?”
Relson’s words caught in his throat.
The eyes of a man with firm resolve are powerful.
They conveyed confidence and declared that this was no reckless challenge.
This was a first.
No one had ever attempted Stage 3 and Stage 4 simultaneously.
It was a bold move that no genius had ever tried.
Seeing that look in his eyes, Relson decided to help him take that first step.
Snaaaap-!
With a snap of his fingers, three monsters were summoned.
***
[An unconventional event, unbefitting of the player's level, is occurring.]
The alert that user Hyun-soo had triggered again was unrelated to blacksmithing.
It was an alert that sounded because he was simply too strong for a Level 1 player.
Kim Tae-seok and Lee Ji-hee’s eyes trembled.
“Ch-Chief…?”
Her voice shook as she looked at Tae-seok’s hardened expression.
“Normally, you get an epic class reward for clearing Stage 3, right? But what happens if he clears Stage 4?”
Kim Tae-seok had no answer.
All he could do was guess.
Ares was a world where the greater the feat, the greater the reward.
Swallowing dryly, Kim Tae-seok said.
“He’ll probably get a class that’s even better than the epic class, Mad Knight.”
***
[Swift Goblin Lv. 6]
[Mad Goblin Lv. 15]
Hyun-soo looked at the three summoned goblins.
Stage 3 was a fight against two Swift Goblins.
Stage 4 was a fight against a Mad Goblin.
Han-ul had stopped partway through clearing Stage 4.
He had gotten close to killing it, but he had recognized his own limits faster than anyone.
Swift Goblins.
Creatures twice as fast as normal goblins, attacking from both sides.
One of them leaped high into the air with all its might and swung its dagger.
Hyun-soo’s movements were by no means elegant.
He was a blacksmith, not a swordsman.
But he met the dagger with Gwangmyeong, held in both hands, and struck it down.
Claaaang-!
Crack-!
[The goblin's sword has been destroyed.]
The goblin’s dagger shattered into pieces and scattered around.
Relson, watching this unfold, couldn't believe his eyes. The fragments of the dagger lay strewn across the floor.
‘Breaking a sword… with a sword…?’
How did he make a sword like that?
How?
At that moment.
Kiiiiing-
Hyun-soo’s Gwangmyeong emanated a sharper aura.
[Tough Blade]
[Increases Physical Attack by 12% and Physical Defense by 8% for 40 seconds.]
He immediately cut through the goblin.
“Kyaaaak!”
[You have slain the Swift Goblin.]
Just then, the other Swift Goblin stabbed Hyun-soo in the side.
Thwip-!
‘It’s over…’
Relson was certain.
For a Level 1 beginner, a single dagger strike from a Level 6 Swift Goblin was fatal…
“Ah, that stings.”
‘St-stings!?’
[HP has dropped below 82%.]
Hyun-soo was perfectly fine.
It was thanks to his drastically increased HP, a result of his high Stamina stat.
Krrrsssh-
And again, it was a single strike.
[You have slain the Swift Goblin.]
Hyun-soo turned to face the Mad Goblin.
Swordsmen are the best!
This was the creature that even Han-ul, whom Relson had praised so highly, could not kill.
Thwack-
The creature instantly rushed forward, plunged its dagger into Hyun-soo’s abdomen, and retreated.
[HP has dropped below 62%.]
And just as Hyun-soo was about to clutch his stomach.
Thwip-
A poison dart fired by the Mad Goblin struck him in the chest.
[HP has dropped below 43%.]
[You have been afflicted with the Dizziness status effect.]
[Your vision is shaking.]
Hyun-soo’s vision began to shake violently.
This was the same poison dart that had taken down Han-ul.
Seizing the opportunity, the Mad Goblin let out a screech and closed in.
“Kihehehe!”
Then it leaped high with a powerful jump.
Its shoulder pulled back.
Its target was Hyun-soo’s neck.
In that fleeting moment, Relson was certain that Hyun-soo’s neck would be cut and he would be forcibly logged out.
‘There’s no way he can dodge that.’
Considering Hyun-soo’s attack speed and current posture, it seemed impossible.
This must be the price of the stranger Hyun-soo's arrogance.
Then, Hyun-soo let out a smirk.
[Swift Blade]
[Momentarily increases attack speed by 1.7 times for 1 second.]
A passive skill with a 2% activation chance.
A blue light coalesced on Hyun-soo’s sword.
Faster than the creature could strike him.
Fwoooosh-
Hyun-soo cut the creature down in mid-air.
“Kihek!”
And before the screaming creature could fall.
Fwoooosh-
He swung again, this time from below.
The Mad Goblin was sliced in two and disintegrated into gray ash.
[You have slain the Mad Goblin.]
At that moment, Hyun-soo collapsed backward.
The dizziness status effect made it hard to keep his balance.
“Huff, huff.”
Hyun-soo gasped for breath.
After lying there for a while, he pushed himself up once the dizziness subsided.
Relson’s mind was in turmoil as he watched him.
Although Relson was a hunting ground instructor, he was also a man who dreamed of reaching the highest levels of swordsmanship.
He had always admired the knights who became heroes of war.
That was why he had always believed that only those who wielded the sword were the greatest.
But now, his preconceived notions were shattering.
Hyun-soo’s movements were clearly clumsy. They were at a beginner’s level.
But his sword and his body were not.
‘Is it because he created such an incredible artifact?’
He remembered the strangers shouting, “Games are all about gear!”
Then, as he watched Hyun-soo stand before him, breathing heavily, Relson was at a loss for words.
“…”
He had only just noticed it.
Ares was a virtual reality game, but many aspects of it were realistic.
The thickness of Hyun-soo’s right and left arms, as he stood facing him, was different.
Hyun-soo was naturally stout, so both of his arms were large.
But even a casual glance revealed a difference in muscle mass.
His right arm was far more massive than his left.
After staring at him for a long moment, Relson smiled bitterly.
“How many times?”
Hyun-soo looked at him with a puzzled expression.
“How many times have you swung a hammer in your life for your arm to become like that?”
Very rarely, there were knights like that.
Most of them were called the strong on this continent.
Hyun-soo thought for a moment before replying.
“I haven’t been counting.”
Right, there was no need to count.
His arm was already proof enough.
Watching him, Relson slowly bowed his head.
“My apologies. I mean this sincerely. I misjudged you. I looked down on the profession of a blacksmith.”
[Relson has a new realization.]
[Your affinity with Relson has increased.]
“You are a truly remarkable person. And your blacksmithing skills must be just as remarkable.”
After keeping his head bowed for a long while, Relson looked up and spoke.
“From now on, I think I will say this to the strangers.”
Hyun-soo watched him, his voice filled with excitement.
“Do you know of the blacksmith profession? It’s a truly magnificent and incredible profession, I’ll say!”
Hyun-soo smiled, satisfied.
This was how he wanted to change people’s minds, one by one.
To show them that being a blacksmith was not a profession to be looked down upon.
And at that moment.
“That is why I wish to make you a proposal.”
“A proposal?”
Hyun-soo wore a puzzled expression.
“Normally, I would be obligated to offer you the Mad Knight class, but I believe you can climb much higher.”
Relson’s voice grew more excited.
“You may be a blacksmith, but with this level of martial prowess, it’s more than enough. A knight who is not only strong but can also forge his own weapons! No, a man who leads such knights!”
“...?”
Hyun-soo sensed that things were taking a strange turn.
“What do you say? Would you like to become a Mad Lord?”
Ding!
[You can now undertake the class change quest for the Mad Lord, one of the Legendary classes.]
‘A legendary class?’