Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: The Tower of Blacksmiths' Feat (1)
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Hyun-soo’s heart pounded at the mention of 200 million won.
The amount the Golden Shield Guild Master was talking about was just the signing bonus for joining the guild.
‘Calm down.’
But Hyun-soo quickly composed himself and continued reading.
[If you join our Golden Shield Guild, we will supply you with any materials you desire.]
[Furthermore, you have currently crafted a rare artifact. The best blacksmiths in our guild will help you so that you can craft the next grade, epic artifacts.]
[It's true that rare artifacts can be made quite easily with the help of a class. However, making an epic artifact is a world apart from making a rare one, and we can pass on our know-how.]
“Hmm…”
Hyun-soo unconsciously stroked Gwangmyeong at his waist.
[Well then, I will be waiting for your reply.]
After reading all of Ron’s message, Hyun-soo opened his other messages.
[Hello? The Sky Blacksmith Guild… A signing bonus of 50 million won…]
[Greetings. We are the Hanareum Blacksmith Guild…]
[yo, do u take personal item crafting requests?]
Most of them were similar.
What stood out was the large number of requests for personal item crafting.
However, after a moment of thought, Hyun-soo shook his head.
‘Not yet. Not yet, I haven’t even advanced my class.’
Hyun-soo believed his value wasn’t fully determined yet.
Hadn’t he not even advanced his class?
It wouldn’t be too late to decide after advancing his class and raising his level a bit.
‘I can advance my class once I leave the beginner zone, right?’
For now, he politely sent his refusals, and soon, a notification arrived that his auctioned item had been sold.
[The auction time of 24 hours has passed.]
[Hyeon's Second Bow has been sold to Blackhammer Jack for 2,450 gold.]
“Heh…”
That was about 2.5 million won!
In one month, he had earned about 3.5 million won.
It was as much as an average person’s monthly salary, so Hyun-soo smiled with satisfaction.
‘Now I can finally leave the beginner zone.’
At last, after a month, he entered the Prime Kingdom.
[You have left the beginner zone.]
[You are entering the Prime Kingdom.]
[You can now advance your class.]
‘I should head straight to the Tower of Blacksmiths.’
Hyun-soo made his way to the Tower of Blacksmiths for his class advancement.
***
“You told him to restore a rare-grade bow, and he created an epic-grade one?”
The Special User Management Team.
Lee Se-jin, the CEO of Purum Inc., had rushed over after receiving a call from Team Leader Kim Tae-seok.
On the monitor, he could see the user Hyun-soo heading towards the Tower of Blacksmiths.
“So, he only needs to fulfill two more conditions?”
Ares’s first-ever God Class.
User Hyun-soo was just two steps away from becoming the God of Blacksmiths.
“Mr. Lee.”
Just then, employee Lee Ji-hee spoke up cautiously.
“Do you know what the condition he has to achieve in the tower is?”
The method to become a God Class was a top-level secret.
Only CEO Lee Se-jin or the executives of Ares knew.
The reason Team Leader Kim Tae-seok had told Lee Ji-hee was because she had been monitoring user Hyun-soo at the time.
“We don’t know either.”
“…Pardon?”
Lee Se-jin’s words were rather shocking.
“We know what the final condition is, but there’s no specific condition set for the Tower of Blacksmiths. If there is one, it’s a bit ambiguous to call it a condition. It’s to make Daeng, the Master of the Tower of Blacksmiths, take action.”
“D-Daeng? You mean… Daeng?”
Lee Ji-hee knew about Daeng.
Daeng, the Master of the Tower of Blacksmiths.
Each kingdom and empire in Ares had a Tower of Blacksmiths.
Among them, the tower in the Prime Kingdom, where Hyun-soo was headed, was the most famous.
The reason was this NPC named Daeng.
He held the same rank as the other Tower Masters, but he was such an outstanding blacksmith that even they revered him as a king.
“Only the Tower Master can guide the way to the final condition. They alone have received the oracle of the God of Blacksmiths, and they alone can lead the one who is worthy.”
“In a way, user Hyun-soo is unlucky. To think he’d go to the tower managed by Daeng of all people.”
She could tell just by listening.
User Hyun-soo had to accomplish something there that would make Daeng, the Master of the Tower of Blacksmiths, take action.
However, as far as Lee Ji-hee knew, when the current number one ranked blacksmith, Smith, visited the Tower of Blacksmiths for his class advancement in the past, the Tower Master hadn’t budged an inch.
If so, how high were Daeng’s standards?
‘Can he really move a Tower Master like that…?’
Lee Ji-hee watched Hyun-soo, who had just entered the Tower of Blacksmiths.
***
Han, the class advancement NPC in the Tower of Blacksmiths, watched as the outsider Philip, who had just finished a dagger, walked over to the ‘Stone of Talent.’
Soon, Philip struck the stone with all his might with the dagger he had made.
*Clang-!*
The moment it hit, the dagger in Philip’s hand broke in two.
He looked at his broken dagger and asked with a bewildered expression.
“How good is my talent?”
Han was an NPC who not only handled class advancements but also gauged the talent of outsiders.
At the man’s words, Han gave a wry smile.
“About average. Most of them break. I’ll advance your class for you.”
“Oh, is that so? That’s a relief, at least.”
The dagger broke in two, yet his talent was average.
The method of determining talent at the Tower of Blacksmiths was not difficult.
Using a special smithy called the Magic Smithy, the outsider would craft a dagger themselves with some help from the system.
Then, they would strike the stone to measure their talent.
For most outsiders, their daggers would break in two when they struck the Stone of Talent.
However, the mere fact that they successfully crafted a dagger was enough to pass, so they would get their class advancement.
But Han knew the truth.
‘It was made with the help of a mysterious power in the first place. It’d be foolish not to be able to do that much.’
Those ignorant of smithing.
They received a mysterious power and created their first item in the Magic Smithy.
‘If it didn’t break and just left a decent scratch, that would be a huge deal.’
Han looked at the various scratches on the Stone of Talent.
Most of those who had left scratches later became quite famous blacksmiths.
He gave a wry smile as he looked at the stone.
The deeply indented part on the side of the stone.
‘The blacksmith Smith. Is there no one else with talent like his?’
Among the outsiders, Smith was the only one who had made it feel less like a ‘scratch’ and more like he had ‘dug into the stone.’
This Stone of Talent existed in every Tower of Blacksmiths across the land.
Furthermore, the scratches and dents on this stone were shared among all the towers.
Although Smith had created this dent in another tower, it was visible here as well.
Then, Han looked at the center of the Stone of Talent and marveled.
‘Incredible…’
Daeng, the Master of the Tower of Blacksmiths.
The feat he left behind when he first came here.
The mark of a dagger that had penetrated to the center of the stone.
He was, quite literally, a legend.
‘To cut a stone with a dagger?’
Ah, just hearing it sounded phenomenal.
To think he had crafted a mere blade that could dig into stone like this.
Through this feat, Master Daeng had caused a huge stir 30 years ago, and in the present day, he had ultimately become the Master of the most distinguished Tower of Blacksmiths.
*Knock, knock-*
As he was lost in such sentiments for the first time in a while, there was a knock from outside.
“The next outsider is here.”
“Let them in.”
An outsider entered.
He was tall, about 184cm, with a sturdy build that gave him the feel of a blacksmith.
‘It’s probably just a feeling.’
Han knew.
All outsiders wanted the mysterious power, and most became blacksmiths only through it.
“Thank you for choosing the path of the blacksmith. Your name?”
“Hyun-soo.”
“Very well, I will begin the explanation now.”
Han began to recite the words he repeated dozens of times a day like a parrot.
“Do you see the door behind me?”
“Yes, I see it.”
“If you open that door and go inside, the Magic Smithy will unfold before you. Inside, you, Hyun-soo, can craft any kind of dagger you wish. Additionally, you can use any material suitable for your level limitlessly.”
Han took a sip of tea to wet his throat and continued.
“Furthermore, you must be listening to me now and thinking, ‘How am I supposed to make a dagger?’”
“…Hmm.”
The outsider named Hyun-soo gave a meaningful smile.
Han tilted his head for a moment.
Most outsiders were indeed ignorant of smithing, so not knowing was the correct answer.
There was no need to question the meaning of that smile, so Han continued.
“If you wish to craft a dagger inside, a mysterious power will guide you on how to do it. Also, the flow of time inside the Magic Smithy is different from the outside.”
Han glanced at the Magic Smithy behind him.
“Even if you spend a whole day crafting a dagger in there, only five minutes will have passed outside.”
The outsider named Hyun-soo, who had been listening silently, gave a small smile.
“That’s good. Does that mean there are no crafting limits in this Magic Smithy, any materials I want are supplied, and only five minutes of real time will pass?”
“That is correct. And after you’ve crafted the dagger, you just need to go through the final step.”
Han pointed to the Stone of Talent placed on one side.
“You just need to strike that Stone of Talent with the dagger you made. It will probably break, but you don’t need to be too surprised. That’s what happens to most of them. Also, the dagger is created by the temporary power of the Magic Smithy, so it will disappear after striking the Stone of Talent.”
“What’s that deeply carved part in the middle?”
Han patiently explained to him, who had taken an interest in the mark left by Master Daeng, and then boasted about him.
“Isn’t he an amazing person? To accomplish such a thing with a mere blade. Ah, and also.”
Han said, looking as if he had remembered something.
“Master Daeng once said jokingly, ‘If someone can do even as much as I did, I’ll give them the hammer I used to use.’ Now, you may enter.”
Han opened the door to the Magic Smithy.
Soon, the outsider named Hyun-soo stepped inside the Magic Smithy.
*Creeak, thud-*
***
[You have entered the Magic Smithy.]
Upon entering the Magic Smithy, Hyun-soo crossed his arms.
The information the NPC named Han had explained was very interesting.
Especially one of the things he had said.
‘So if I can do as much as that Tower Master, Daeng, I can get his hammer?’
Recalling the Stone of Talent, Hyun-soo let out a small laugh.
This was the great thing about the Magic Smithy.
‘I can make any kind of dagger I want.’
Any material he desired was supplied limitlessly.
Hyun-soo slowly closed his eyes and thought about what kind of dagger to make.
And when he slowly opened his eyes, he grinned.
A dagger flashed through his mind.
For a moment, a conversation he had with his father passed through his thoughts.
‘Hyun-soo, would you believe me if I told you there was a sword that could cut stone?’
***
Daeng, the Master of the Tower of Blacksmiths.
He stood with his arms crossed, looking at the Stone of Talent.
*Clang-!*
*Ting!*
*Tiiing!*
Today, as always, clamorous sounds echoed as outsiders in each Tower of Blacksmiths struck the stone with their daggers for their class advancement.
The Stone of Talent Daeng was looking at was special.
The stones in all the class advancement locations were connected, but they made no sound.
However, the Stone of Talent in Daeng’s room allowed him to hear the sounds in real time.
*Tiiiiing-*
‘How many has that been just today?’
Daeng let out a hollow laugh.
How many daggers had these lowly outsiders crafted and broken in a single day?
It had to be close to several hundred.
The *tiiing* sound.
It was proof that they couldn’t even leave a scratch.
‘Pathetic outsiders…’
Daeng decided to ignore it.
Thirty years had passed.
In all that time, no one had managed to dent the Stone of Talent as deeply as he had.
Daeng decided to just make an artifact in his smithy and turned around.
Just then.
*Sliiiice-!*
“…?”
Daeng froze.
That unidentifiable sound.
Frozen stiff, Daeng slowly turned his head.
‘No way… It can’t be…’
This sound, this impact.
‘Is that the sound of a stone being cut?’
Slowly turning his head, Daeng could see it. The Stone of Talent, which seemed to have no change.
The stone, now with a clean-cut surface, fell to both sides.
*Thuuud-!*
Seeing this, the frozen Daeng began to rush down the tower.
‘Who in the world was it? Who was it!’
Forgetting even to put on his shoes, he ran like a madman.