Chapter 65
Chapter 65
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: The Second Guild Member (1)
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Hyun-soo couldn't hide his bewilderment.
'A retainer?'
A retainer was literally an NPC subordinate, usually kept by guild masters who owned territory.
There were several ways to acquire a retainer.
One could hire them for life with money, or a guild master might be granted one by the lord or other NPCs of a territory.
'But I've never heard of someone volunteering to be a retainer, and a potential legendary miner at that?'
Hyun-soo, though confused, quickly composed himself.
'If a miner becomes my retainer, could it be...?'
Hyun-soo weighed the efficiency of mining ores himself versus focusing on his blacksmithing.
He had already concluded that coming to the mine himself was a loss.
'It's definitely a shame, since I'd be missing out on opportunities to get special minerals.'
But Banya, kneeling before him, was speaking.
"In your stead, Master Hyun-soo, I will do my utmost to mine the ores you require."
"First, please stand up, Banya."
Hyun-soo took him by the shoulders and helped him up.
"I'm still lacking in many ways."
In fact, Hyun-soo was only level 80.
He needed to be at least level 100 to establish a guild.
He couldn't take Banya with him when he hadn't even established his guild or a base of operations.
"Don't tell me you're not accepting me..."
Banya's eyes wavered with anxiety. Hyun-soo could see in them a deep yearning to be with him.
"No, that's not it. Because I'm not ready, I'll send a carrier pigeon once I've decided on a base. You can come then."
At those words, Banya's face lit up.
*Ting!*
[You have accepted Banya as a retainer.]
[You can now view Banya's information.]
(Banya)
Grade: Epic
Type: Retainer
Level: 165
Attack Power: 504
Defense Power: 430
Mining Power: 1,672
Special Abilities:
· Passive Skill: Special Minerals.
· Passive Skill: Tireless Miner.
· Active Skill: Mineral Search.
· Active Skill: Mineral Effect Enhancement.
Potential: 111
Current EXP: 19%
Description: A talent destined to become the world's most special miner. He grows much faster than other miners and has a very high growth ceiling.
When an NPC becomes a retainer, they are assigned a grade.
This grade isn't determined by level alone.
It's based on their special powers and their skill in their respective field.
It's also determined by potential and various other factors.
'Banya is currently Epic grade.'
Retainer grades are divided into Normal, Rare, Epic, Unique, and Legendary.
Honestly, since he was destined to be a legend, I thought his grade would be higher.
I was a bit disappointed, but seeing his potential changed my mind completely.
'As I recall, potential indicates how far they can grow.'
The higher the potential, the higher their limit.
'From what I remember, normal retainers had a potential of around 30.'
Rare was 50.
Epic was 70.
Unique was 90.
'111...'
Banya was only an Epic for now, but he possessed an unbelievable amount of potential.
Of course, high potential doesn't guarantee one will become a legend.
According to something I read once, even with potential over 100, nine out of ten fail to reach it.
This is due to various environmental and other factors, so I'll have to wait and see if Banya actually becomes a legend.
'Are we going to grow together?'
Hyun-soo smiled faintly.
And now, Banya, Hyun-soo's first retainer, spoke with a flushed expression.
"When will I be able to seek you out, Master Hyun-soo?"
"It won't be long."
To that, Banya replied with a confident look.
"In that case, until I see you again, I will remain here and mine ores for you, Master Hyun-soo."
From the moment he became a retainer, it felt like Banya thought of nothing but Hyun-soo.
And Banya was no fool.
'The more magnificent artifacts Master Hyun-soo creates with superior minerals, the more my own name will be renowned.'
Banya immediately set off to acquire minerals for Hyun-soo.
And when a day had passed.
*Rumble-rumble-rumble-*
Hyun-soo couldn't help but marvel at the minerals the miners were pouring out.
[You have acquired 415 Iron Ore.]
[You have acquired 51 Cold Iron.]
The value of the minerals brought by the miners alone amounted to about 5 million won.
'I won't have to worry about Cold Iron for a while. I should sell all the iron ore.'
He could earn 2 million won just by selling the iron ore right away. Then, Hyun-soo wore a puzzled expression.
"Where did Chief Miner Lek go?"
"He's still mining the Thousand-Year Cold Iron."
Three hours later, Lek found Hyun-soo with a deeply moved expression.
Thanks to the pickaxe Hyun-soo had lent him, Lek had finally managed to mine the Thousand-Year Cold Iron he couldn't before.
Having mined it, Lek said with excitement.
"You're in for a treat. This Thousand-Year Cold Iron turned out to be no ordinary piece."
"Not ordinary?"
"It's estimated to have been buried for over six thousand years. Buried in the cold earth, it grew harder and absorbed chilling energy for a staggering six millennia."
Lek then handed over the Thousand-Year Cold Iron, carefully wrapped in cloth.
[You have acquired Thousand-Year Cold Iron (千年寒鐵).]
(Thousand-Year Cold Iron)
Grade: Unique
Requirement: Blacksmith Level 300 or higher
Difficulty: Highest.
Special Abilities
· Fire Resistance +91%
· Enhances Ice Attribute skills to Unique grade.
· Sword Cutting Power +150%
· Sword Skill Attack Power +58%
· Durability increased to Infinite.
Description: Cold Iron that has been buried underground for six thousand years. Though it shares the same name, it is incomparable to ordinary Thousand-Year Cold Iron.
'This is incredible.'
Hyun-soo was speechless. The Hundred-Year Cold Iron was an Epic-grade mineral, but this was Unique.
The stats for the Hundred-Year Cold Iron were as follows.
Fire Resistance +56%, enhances Ice Attribute skills to Epic grade, Sword Cutting Power +112%, and Durability increased to Infinite.
'But this one overwhelmingly surpasses it.'
A smile formed on Hyun-soo's lips. This amount was more than enough to make the shield that Hyuk-soo had mentioned.
"Thank you for everything."
Chief Miner Lek and the other miners looked reluctant to see Hyun-soo go.
"Come back anytime."
"I will."
Before leaving the Frost Mine, Hyun-soo offered the Damascus Longsword to Banya, who was now his retainer.
"Banya, I'd like you to use this."
Banya was genuinely moved.
However, Hyun-soo's intentions were slightly different.
'If Banya mines with this Damascus Longsword, his efficiency will be much better. He'll probably gather twice as much as he does now.'
Whether he knew of this or not, Banya's eyes even reddened.
"Master Hyun-soo, you are so generous. I am overjoyed to be able to serve you."
[Banya's loyalty has increased.]
[You have gained 1 Charisma.]
Finally, Hyun-soo entered the warp to exit the Frost Mine.
Once outside, Hyun-soo headed straight for the smithy.
Upon entering the smithy, he sent a whisper to Hyuk-soo before starting his work.
[Hyun-soo: It's Hyun-soo. I'm about to start on the shield. Heh, I think I can send it to you in about three days.]
[Bakeu: Thank you ^^]
Smiling faintly, Hyun-soo double-checked the information for the artifact Hyuk-soo wanted.
[A shield with high fire resistance, preferably with an offensive function. Must not melt in high heat. Would be good if it had the power to freeze a 2-meter radius.]
To be honest, he was asking for too much from a single shield.
First, the shield Hyuk-soo wanted had to possess two functions: 'defense and offense.'
'This would be difficult for an ordinary blacksmith to make.'
It seemed to require an applied understanding of both defense and offense.
'Come to think of it, this is the first proper piece of armor I've made.'
Looking at the shield in the completed blueprint, Hyun-soo smiled.
As he began crafting, Hyun-soo smiled faintly.
'I want to gift a legendary item to Mr. Hyuk-soo.'
After all, he was Hyun-soo's greatest benefactor.
And thankfully, Hyun-soo was confident that the shield he was making would be the best shield imaginable.
Hyun-soo began to raise the temperature of the forge.
***
[Bakeu: Thank you ^^]
After whispering with Hyun-soo, Bakeu smiled faintly.
But his expression darkened as he whispered with someone else.
The person Bakeu was currently whispering with was Vein, the 11th-ranked blacksmith.
[Vein: I must tell you, the shield you requested, Lord Bakeu, is absolutely impossible with my current knowledge.]
Bakeu's face crumpled in despair.
[Vein: I am the 11th-ranked blacksmith. Allow me to explain why it's impossible.]
Bakeu mulled over the message.
[Vein: The conditions you want are too demanding. High fire resistance, the shield must not melt, and it needs high base defense. On top of that, it needs to have an offensive function.]
Just reading the whisper, one could sense a hint of absurdity.
[Vein: Even the current number one ranked blacksmith couldn't make it. The biggest reason is that it's impossible to imbue an item with that many effects. The second reason is that it's too original a creation.]
[Bakeu: What do you mean by original?]
[Vein: The reason this shield is impossible to craft is that no recipe for such a shield exists in Ares.]
Bakeu had searched for a recipe to get such a shield, willing to pay a high price.
But just as Vein said, no recipe for such a shield existed.
[Vein: Ares is, after all, a game. Artifacts are born from set frameworks, set items, and set recipes. But this has no recipe, so it must be created using a blacksmith's own experience, knowledge, and application skills. Do you really think there's a user with that level of knowledge, experience, and skill?]
He had been hit with a hard truth.
[Vein: Since you seem to be holding on to this, Lord Bakeu, let me be blunt. Our guild wants you, an unofficial ranker and tanker, to join us.]
The guild Vein belonged to was Hwarang, the number one ranked guild in South Korea.
It easily surpassed a thousand members and boasted countless rankers.
They had been consistently extending an invitation to Bakeu, the unofficial ranker and tanker.
Despite that, Vein said.
[Vein: If there is a blacksmith who can craft such an item, you would be better off joining their guild.]
Bakeu's pupils trembled. Those words hit him the hardest.
A blacksmith telling him to go to a guild with a better blacksmith?
'And from the 11th-ranked blacksmith, no less?'
That made the words resonate even more deeply.
'Is it really that impossible to craft...?'
Bakeu sighed.
If he cleared the Salamander's Dungeon and completed his class quest, he could obtain a tanker-exclusive artifact.
'If I get that, I could probably reach 2nd place in the tanker rankings, both officially and unofficially.'
However, understanding Vein's words, Bakeu decided to give up on having such a shield made.
Instead, he decided to use the auction house to buy a set of armor and a shield with high fire resistance.
Three days later, Bakeu scowled.
'Damn it, there's not a single satisfactory set of armor or shield.'
Bakeu had already attempted the Salamander's Dungeon several times.
Moreover, today was the last day of the clear period, so he had to go in no matter what.
'Am I going to lose my class quest like this?'
If you fail a class quest, you can never get it again.
In other words, Bakeu would lose this class quest and its reward forever.
Bakeu stood before the Salamander's Dungeon with a look of despair.
A timer, visible only to him, floated above the dungeon entrance.
[Time remaining to complete class quest: 2 hours, 32 seconds.]
'I've tried many times already... should I give it one last shot?'
But he quickly shook his head. It would be a pointless death.
He wouldn't even make it halfway before dying and would just end up losing a level.
Just then.
[A gift from Hyun-soo has arrived.]
A notification popped up.