Chapter 76
Chapter 76
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 76
Chapter Title: The Evaluation (1)
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Hyun-soo woke up early and called the construction company.
[You can expect it to be around 400 million won.]
400 million won.
That was the cost to completely rebuild the smithy.
Hyun-soo wanted the new smithy to look just like the old one.
‘So Father won't feel like a stranger when he returns.’
Of course, it wouldn't be an exact copy.
Considering the smithy had stood in that spot for nearly thirty years, it was due for a reconstruction anyway.
In other words, while the exterior would be the same, the interior would be brand new.
“I'll see you later.”
Hyun-soo was scheduled to meet an employee from the construction company in front of a café in two hours to sign the contract.
He was signing in advance despite not having the money because he was now confident in his own value.
Meanwhile, a thought crossed his mind.
‘The Ballas Territory…’
Developing the Ballas Territory was poised to become an incredibly important task for Hyun-soo.
It was a monumental quest that could net him 20 million won for every 10% increase.
Of course, for a single player to develop an entire territory would be no easy feat.
[You have logged in.]
He logged in to find himself in the smithy he had tidied up the previous evening.
Last night, Hyun-soo had also briefly looked into the Ballas Territory.
‘It was once called the Territory of Blacksmiths, but nearly half of them have already left.’
He wondered why. Just then, an NPC named Pere from the neighboring smithy paid him a visit.
“There's no name on your sign.”
The old blacksmith, Pere, let out a chuckle. He looked at Hyun-soo with the fondness of a grandfather gazing at his beloved grandson.
“Where did your companions go?”
“They were just visiting for the first day.”
Indeed, except for Nel, the miner Banya and Bakeu had visited yesterday and already left.
“You seem to be a stranger who just arrived in this territory yesterday. I'm afraid you've chosen the wrong place.”
Pere offered a bittersweet, unreadable smile. A glint appeared in Hyun-soo's eyes.
The old man, Pere, seemed to be a blacksmith who had been here for a long time.
He thought he might be able to get some information from him.
“Did something happen?”
“It did. Something very big.”
Hyun-soo looked puzzled.
With a serious expression, Pere stroked his long beard and spoke in a voice tinged with a sigh.
“Everything changed about a year ago, when the Edroll Merchant Guild came in.”
“The Edroll Merchant Guild?”
“Yes. The Edroll Merchant Guild is quite large in these parts.”
Hyun-soo understood.
‘Did that guild take over the territory?’
“The head of that guild challenged our Lord to a wager as soon as he arrived. For some reason, the Lord accepted, and after he lost, the Edroll Merchant Guild was put in charge of managing the blacksmiths. They immediately raised the taxes on blacksmiths to seventy percent and doubled their work hours. That's the long and short of it.”
Pere looked at the few remaining smithies nearby.
They were all but empty.
“That’s when the blacksmiths started to flee. The few who remain are basically doing forced labor. Those who couldn't escape in time were forced into another wager, lost, and were completely enslaved.”
Hyun-soo wore a look of confusion. Pere kept mentioning a wager.
‘A wager…’
Something about it was strange.
The very idea of a lord gambling away his territory's blacksmiths sounded nonsensical.
“That’s why I’m telling you that you’ve settled in the wrong place. But it’s a relief, in a way. You look to be a beginner-to-intermediate blacksmith. At your level, thankfully, the guild won't pay you much mind.”
To Hyun-soo, those words were quite bitter.
“Is it perhaps because I'm not worth their time?”
“That's right! Ho ho!”
The old blacksmith, Pere, laughed heartily, intending to hit Hyun-soo with a blunt truth.
Not that Hyun-soo took any offense, of course.
Pere placed a hand on Hyun-soo's shoulder.
“Still, you’re young. You have a long road of growth ahead of you as a blacksmith. Fortunately, this is a rental smithy, isn't it? So leave while you still can. Once you become a more skilled blacksmith, they won't leave you alone.”
“Thank you for the advice.”
Despite the harsh words, Hyun-soo realized one thing.
The old man, Pere, was giving him this advice out of genuine concern for him and his smithy.
Then, a question occurred to Hyun-soo.
“Then are you also subjected to forced labor, elder?”
“No.”
The old man, Pere, shook his head.
“I was originally a blacksmith here, but I served the Lord at his side. The day he lost the wager, he sent me out of the castle and told me to one day win that wager and save all the blacksmiths. I happen to be a rather skilled blacksmith, you see.”
He was an amusing old man.
In essence, Pere was the last resort the Lord had left behind.
“I went into hiding for a while and came back with even greater skill. I believe I'll be challenging them to a wager very soon.”
Hyun-soo nodded.
“I’ll be rooting for you.”
For now, Hyun-soo was in a position where he needed to observe the situation a little more.
“Ah, and if you want to learn some smithing techniques, feel free to stop by! Hah hah!”
Watching Pere say this, Hyun-soo let out a small smile.
He then went back outside and looked around at the other smithies.
‘It’s true.’
The few remaining blacksmiths were in a wretched state.
Their workload had been doubled, and it looked as though they were on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion.
‘With nearly seventy percent of their taxes going to the guild, of course the territory is failing.’
He figured that just solving this one problem would allow him to raise the development level to some extent.
He also saw the crest of what he presumed to be the Edroll Merchant Guild displayed in various places.
‘I'll have to look into the Edroll Merchant Guild, too.’
Just then, Hyun-soo logged out. The time for his meeting with the construction company employee was approaching.
***
Late at night.
Pere was hard at work in his smithy.
Surprisingly, despite being a highest-grade blacksmith, Pere was gripped by the pressure to become a master craftsman.
He was honing his skills, uncertain of the exact power the Edroll Merchant Guild's blacksmith possessed.
‘I will take back this territory, no matter what.’
Pere remembered a time when this place was filled with the laughter of blacksmiths.
Now, with so many having left, rumors were spreading that the territory itself might soon disappear.
‘This is this old man's final wish.’
To bring the sound of laughter back to this place.
He was in the middle of his diligent training when it happened.
Pere heard footsteps entering his smithy.
Turning his head, Pere wore a puzzled expression.
It was the very man who had made the wager with the Lord, accompanied by the guild's knights.
“Are you the blacksmith named Pere who came here recently?”
“I am, but for what reason…”
“I am Bukseu, an assessor of the Edroll Merchant Guild. I heard there was a skilled blacksmith here, so I came to propose a wager.”
At those words, Pere shook his head.
‘Not yet.’
Pere wasn't yet confident he could defeat the man known as the blacksmith assessor.
He also looked confused.
‘An assessor?’
Did he mean he assessed blacksmiths?
What Pere didn't know was that the man named Bukseu was a being with a peculiar power.
One of the more unique NPCs, the blacksmith Bukseu's power was literally that of an assessor.
Under the pretext of an evaluation, he could propose a wager, and those who lost were compelled to fulfill the terms he set.
Failure to comply would result in divine punishment by the power of a god.
“I apologize, but I do not wish to make a wager just yet. Please come back another time.”
Old Pere was no fool.
He intended to sharpen his blade further in secret.
However.
“No. The evaluation cannot be postponed. We will proceed.”
[The evaluation will now begin.]
“...?”
Pere was bewildered.
Despite not having agreed to it, the voice he heard was forcing him to participate.
‘S-So this is why the Lord…?’
He now understood why the Lord had accepted that ridiculous wager.
Pere had only been told to flee quickly by the Lord.
[If you fail to pass the evaluation, you must comply with his demands.]
[You may also state your own demands.]
“If you fail to pass the evaluation, I shall take your head, Pere, the Lord's blacksmith.”
Pere's vision swam.
This assessor, Bukseu, had known everything about him from the very beginning.
“Those who fail the evaluation are unable to speak of this special power of mine. Ah, but I suppose that doesn't matter, does it? Since you'll be dead anyway.”
[Failure to pass the evaluation will require compliance.]
Pere's eyes twitched.
It seemed this was how he had silenced the Lord and the other blacksmiths.
[State your terms.]
Pere quickly composed himself.
“If I win, nullify the terms of the wager made with the Lord and all the other blacksmiths.”
[Your life is on the line.]
[The condition is acceptable.]
“So be it.”
As the so-called blacksmith assessor moved his arm, holographic images of two large smithies appeared.
“This is what’s known as the Smithy of Dreams. It allows one to rapidly craft equipment using the knowledge, judgment, experience, and thoughts in one's mind. It possesses a mysterious power that can complete five days' worth of smithing in a single day.”
At those words, Pere nodded.
“The evaluation begins now.”
As instructed, Pere moved his hands in the holographic smithy, using the knowledge in his head.
Just as he imagined, the processes of smelting and refining began.
“The one who creates the higher-grade sword wins.”
Pere began crafting swiftly, just as he had always practiced.
He gave it his all.
Cold sweat poured down his body.
And he knew.
‘A fine sword will emerge.’
He was, after all, a highest-grade blacksmith.
Moreover, he was a rare talent, once hailed as the most skilled blacksmith in this territory.
But then, Pere glanced to his side and froze.
To his dismay, the artifact Bukseu was creating was already surpassing his own.
A blacksmith has an intuition for these things.
Mine is Epic.
His is Unique.
Pere knew.
He was going to die today.
And he thought.
The forging, quenching, and several other processes still remained.
Was there any point in continuing this contest?
Wouldn't it be better not to engage in this farce at all?
Just then.
“Pay more attention to refining the tip of the sword.”
“...?”
A strange voice reached him.
When he turned his head, he saw a young man standing there.
It was the young beginner-to-intermediate blacksmith named Hyun-soo, who had just moved into the rental smithy yesterday.
Puzzled by the words, Pere, clutching at straws, began to refine the sword's tip with more care.
Clang, clang, claaang—!
He figured he had nothing to lose.
Then, he heard a strange notification.
[Your understanding of the sword is far surpassing your usual skill.]
[You are receiving the teachings of a Master Craftsman.]