Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: I Still Want to Smith (1)
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Hyun-soo's father was known as the world's greatest Master Craftsman.
Like father, like son, Kang Hyun-soo also loved making weapons.
Swords, bows, spears, shields. He made them all without preference; smithing was the most enjoyable thing in the world to him.
His father even called him a smithing addict.
But the doctor sitting across from him now said,
“It's been three years since the accident, but working in a smithy is out of the question.”
The doctor looked at Hyun-soo's hand. His right hand trembled slightly.
There had been a fire at the smithy. It wasn't his father's fault.
The cause was determined to be a spark from the wiring.
His father had been sleeping in a back room that day, and he, who had been out, rushed in to save him.
In the process, a steel beam collapsed and crushed his right hand.
He barely managed to pull his father out of the smithy, but after being taken to the hospital, his father was ultimately declared to be in a vegetative state.
And just like that, Hyun-soo could no longer work as a blacksmith, and his body was covered in terrible burns.
“Perhaps you should look for a different line of work?”
Hyun-soo's lips tightened.
He had graduated high school, but he'd been working in the smithy since he was young.
Yes, there wasn't much else Hyun-soo could do.
“It's not easy to find a job with this body.”
Hyun-soo's right hand was fine for everyday tasks.
The problem was the burns.
Burns that covered his entire body.
Enough to make anyone grimace.
The doctor couldn't hide his bitter expression.
“It will cost about three billion won to remove the burns.”
Modern medicine had improved a lot.
To the point where any burn could be completely erased. The problem was the exorbitant cost.
“We're trying to find a way to help you here at the hospital, but it's not easy.”
His doctor knew of Hyun-soo's circumstances.
Hyun-soo soon forced a bitter smile.
“Thank you for your concern.”
After Hyun-soo left, the doctor sighed.
His face filled with guilt for not being able to offer more help to the unfortunate young man.
***
Hyun-soo bought a few cans of beer and returned home. His original house had burned down, so he now lived in a shabby studio apartment.
Gulping down his beer, he turned on a TV rerun.
It was a documentary titled 'The Restoration of Haemosu's Smelting Sword'.
“Oh.”
Hyun-soo smiled, seeing his dad on the TV screen.
The narration began.
-The flawlessly restored Smelting Sword. In the year 2040, an age where everything is mechanized, Mr. Kang Hyun-tae is a Master Craftsman who still forges weapons by hand.
The National Museum had commissioned the restoration of the Smelting Sword once used by Haemosu.
The camera caught a TV station employee interviewing him in awe.
-It's incredible, to think you perfectly restored the Smelting Sword when it was rusted and on the verge of breaking.
His father remained silent for a long moment. Hyun-soo knew the reason better than anyone.
At the time, his father had hammered for so long that his right arm had lost its strength, reaching a point where he could no longer work as a blacksmith.
That was why Hyun-soo was the one who had actually restored the Smelting Sword.
Hyun-soo had been helping in his father's smithy since he was ten, and at some point, he had become a blacksmith on par with his father.
Hyun-soo had asked them to say his father did it. He'd made the excuse that he was embarrassed, but that wasn't true.
At a time when his father was known as the last remaining Master Craftsman in the world.
He had wanted to protect his father's pride.
-You're too kind.
After a long silence, his father gave a bitter smile.
Several more scenes flashed by before a station official threw out a provocative comment.
-I understand you're called the last Master Craftsman in the world. Some say that's only because there aren't many blacksmiths left. What are your thoughts on that?
It was a question that could be seen as rude.
But the answer had already been proven.
Besides, his father was full of confidence, and the TV station knew it.
-Won't the finished product be proof enough?
There weren't many blacksmiths, but the world was overflowing with appraisers.
Reporters and appraisers from foreign stations who had come to cover the story were all amazed by his father's work.
After the show ended, he gulped his beer and muttered.
“What am I going to do for a living?”
The truth was, he could probably find some way to get by, but the scars were the problem.
And while he was one of the few blacksmiths in the world, it was hard for blacksmiths to make money.
People wanted legendary artifacts as decorations, not just some sword made by a random person.
This was especially true in a country where owning weapons was illegal.
That's why they made a living through restoration commissions from museums and the like.
‘Three billion won is easy to say…’
The cost to remove the scars.
On top of that, he needed even more money to cover his father's hospital bills.
Just then.
“Hey, Hyun-soo.”
Someone pounded on the door.
When he opened the door, his friend Ji-hoon was there, swinging a bag of chicken.
“You punk, were you moping around?”
“You're here?”
His friend Ji-hoon was a good guy.
Ever since the accident, he had consistently come over to visit.
He knew it was to keep him from being lonely.
“Cheers.”
They cheerfully clinked their beer cans. His mood lifted now that his friend was here.
As they drank beer in a friendly atmosphere, Hyun-soo started talking about his life.
“Hah... What am I supposed to do now? The future is so bleak...”
“Shh. Shut up for a second.”
“...Your friend is having a hard time, and instead of comfort, you tell me to shut up?”
Ji-hoon was a true friend.
“Yeah, yeah, whatever you say.”
Even though he talked like that, if Hyun-soo called to complain, he'd come running right away.
Ji-hoon, having silenced him, looked at the TV.
“It's today.”
“What is?”
“You know Han-wool, the kendo gold medalist, right?”
“Yeah.”
“He's challenging the wooden dummy today.”
“Wooden dummy?”
“Yup.”
Ji-hoon connected the TV to a Paprika TV broadcast.
Soon, a man with a determined expression began striking the wooden dummy.
One strike, two strikes, three strikes.
Even to his untrained eye, the strikes were extraordinary.
The wooden dummy shook violently with each hit.
By the ninth strike, it was visibly damaged.
But...
“Agh, failed again!”
On the tenth strike, it still didn't break.
“Damn it, those vicious bastards at Purum Inc., why'd they even put in something you can't break?”
Ares, the game the whole world was crazy about.
Unfortunately, Hyun-soo couldn't afford to play it.
“If you can't do it, just don't do it. Why is everyone making such a fuss?”
At Hyun-soo's words, Ji-hoon wagged his index finger.
“Why? Because if you break that thing, you get a fifty-million-won capsule.”
“Fi-fifty million won?”
To the now 23-year-old Hyun-soo, it was an astronomical sum of money.
“Yeah, man. That's why people tried, but now, breaking it is practically a badge of honor.”
“A badge of honor?”
“Because all the so-called geniuses from around the world couldn't break it. Kendo prodigies, archery prodigies, martial arts prodigies—all of them.”
“If everyone's stats are the same, isn't it obvious they can't break it?”
For Hyun-soo, who was thinking of online RPGs, it was a common assumption.
“You're a noob at this game. In virtual reality, special people are a little different. See that flash of white light every time that kendo genius strikes?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“That's a critical hit. It only happens when you strike with perfect precision. Normal people might get one every ten tries, but guys like him get it every other try.”
“And he still can't break it?”
“Yup, still can't. They basically made it unbreakable.”
“Hmm...”
Hyun-soo stroked his chin.
“Then couldn't you just make something to hit it with?”
“Hey, didn't I just explain? It's the beginner zone, so there are no jobs. You can't switch to a blacksmith. So making an artifact is impossible... huh?”
Ji-hoon's expression quickly turned to one of puzzlement.
“...Can you make things?”
“If the process is the same as in real life, then sure, I can.”
After saying it, Hyun-soo's own eyes widened.
“Uh...?”
Ji-hoon stood up and looked down at him.
“Th-this makes you a totally broken character!”
Hyun-soo looked up at Ji-hoon with trembling eyes.
“Do people... spend real money on Ares?”
“Of course!”
“So they spend money on items too?”
“There are none to buy!”
Hyun-soo stared at the TV screen for a moment. The fifty-million-won capsule shimmered in his mind.
“Could I maybe make money through a game too?”
Ji-hoon couldn't give him a definite answer.
He didn't know what kind of unknown variables there might be.
Crucially, they still didn't know.
Whether his blacksmithing skills would even work in the game.
“Should I give it a try? Ares.”
For Hyun-soo, whose future looked bleak, there was no other choice.
***
The next day.
Hyun-soo headed to a capsule room with Ji-hoon.
Yesterday evening.
Having decided to try Ares, Hyun-soo had done plenty of research on it.
“Just the basic capsule costs ten million won...”
The VVIP capsules were extremely expensive, but even the standard models were no joke.
Hyun-soo didn't have that kind of money.
“I'm definitely getting that capsule.”
“Ooh... If you get the VVIP capsule, let me try it too. They say the VVIP capsule has a sync rate of almost 99.9%.”
The higher the sync rate, the more realistic the game feels. But even the standard model boasted a rate of 85%.
In truth, a VVIP capsule wasn't necessary; it was more of a status symbol for the rich.
The two of them paid at the capsule room.
“Have fun in Ares~!”
It would be a long time before Ji-hoon and Hyun-soo could meet in the game.
Ji-hoon zipped into his capsule first, and Hyun-soo entered the one in front of him.
Pssshhh-
The capsule door closed.
Soon, wires attached themselves all over his body, and a visor lowered over his eyes.
Hyun-soo's heart pounded.
In truth, there was another reason for his pounding heart.
Today, too, despite the hot summer day, Hyun-soo had come wearing a long-sleeved shirt, long pants, a hat, and a mask.
It was because of the scars that covered his entire body.
Because of them, he could barely remember his own true appearance.
Normally, his body was covered in raised burn scars, as if hundreds of earthworms were crawling all over him.
[Connecting to the character creation screen.]
White text appeared in the darkness.
The screen changed immediately.
For a long while, Hyun-soo couldn't say a word.
Because there was a mirror right in front of him.
A mirror for customization.
Standing before that mirror, he couldn't find a single scar on his body.
The mottled scar that covered his left cheek.
The left eyebrow that had stopped growing.
The scars that had covered his arms—all of it was gone, revealing his true self.
He looked down at his right hand.
His right arm, which used to tremble faintly even at rest, was perfectly still.
An alert sounded.
[Change character appearance...]
“Pass.”
[Character nickname...]
“Hyun-soo.”
He liked using his real name.
He suddenly remembered a conversation with his father.
‘Dad, why did you quit your good corporate job to become a blacksmith?’
‘Because it's fun.’
‘Geez, Dad, you should have been born in the Joseon Dynasty.’
His father rapped him on the head and said.
‘Then why are you doing it? A kid with a bright future like you should be studying. Why do you want to do this thankless blacksmithing work?’
‘Because it's fun.’
Back then, he and his father had looked at each other and laughed.
‘Actually, I have a small dream.’
‘What kind of dream?’
It was a dream that was difficult to realize.
‘A dream where people need the things I make, and they're genuinely happy when they receive them.’
A dream that could never come true in the modern world.
His father, after saying that, had placed a hand on his shoulder.
‘Hyun-soo, you smithing addict. Whatever you do, as long as you're having fun and you're happy, isn't that what matters?’
He mulled over those words.
Right, whatever I do, as long as I'm having fun and I'm happy, that's all that matters.
[Initiating connection.]
And so, Hyun-soo decided to try Ares.
Another Master Craftsman, born from a Master Craftsman, logged into the game.