Chapter 8
Chapter 8
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: Epic Artifact Production (2)
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Hyun-soo was looking at the bigger picture, beyond just breaking the wooden dummy in ten hits.
He was willing to stay in this beginner zone for at least a month.
After all, getting a VVIP capsule worth fifty million won after a month's stay would be a huge gain.
So he thought, and thought again.
‘The things I can get in the beginner zone are limited.’
Even if he could obtain something, it would come with a "Beginner Zone" prefix.
It would only have a third of the effect of minerals from outside the beginner zone.
Relying on such items would eventually lead to a dead end.
That’s why he considered it.
A way to increase his Dexterity stat while also breaking the "Beginner Zone" limitation.
And a way to make Ren the blacksmith an even better one.
Three birds with one stone.
The answer was to obtain iron sand ingots.
‘There’s a high chance that minerals I craft with my own hands won’t have the ‘Beginner Zone’ prefix.’
If so, the iron sand ingot would possess its full power.
And if he used that mineral to craft an artifact, it would turn out even better.
“You mean to collect this iron powder from the beach and make a mineral out of it?”
Ren looked puzzled.
As a blacksmith, he also had a question.
“Is there any advantage to it?”
If they had to go through all this trouble, there had to be a benefit.
Hyun-soo nodded.
“Iron sand has a much higher titanium content than regular ingots. It also has a low corrosion rate. That means we can obtain iron that is far stronger than normal.”
“...!”
Ren’s eyes widened.
The iron powder from this beach contained a large amount of titanium?
[Ren has gained new blacksmithing knowledge from your teachings.]
[You have acquired 2 Dexterity.]
“What should I do?”
The once-indifferent Ren now wore a look of burning motivation.
“It’s simple.”
Hyun-soo squatted down and began scraping up iron sand, which looked like iron powder, with a large magnet.
“Just gather the iron sand like I am.”
Soon, Ren was also squatting with a large magnet in hand.
Ren was a mountain of a man, standing at nearly 6'3", with a clean-shaven head that gave him a fierce look.
Hyun-soo was also tall, around 6'0".
The sight of two grown men squatting down to gather iron sand was quite comical.
“It will take quite some time to gather enough iron sand.”
Most of the work a blacksmith did was grueling manual labor to begin with.
We can buy a machine-made kitchen knife for just a few tens of thousands of won.
But making a kitchen knife by hand could take more than a day.
Hyun-soo continued to scrape up iron sand with the magnet.
[You have acquired 1 Dexterity.]
‘Oh...?’
Hyun-soo could feel that his Dexterity was increasing faster, thanks to the ‘Dexterity Just For You’ title.
He grew excited, thinking he might gain a massive amount of Dexterity when factoring in the time it would take to turn this iron sand into a single mineral.
But the surprising notifications didn't end there.
[This is a new challenge that no one has attempted before.]
[You have acquired 30 Dexterity.]
[If you produce a result from a challenge no one has succeeded in before, you will receive an additional reward.]
[Rewards for this new, unattempted challenge will accumulate.]
[If you fail to produce a result, the accumulated rewards will be deleted.]
“Hmm...?”
No one had attempted it.
Hyun-soo thought carefully about Ares.
This game was controlled by the supercomputer, Ares.
And that supercomputer contained all the information in the world.
Iron sand ingots had existed in the distant past.
But in the modern era, no one made them anymore.
It was only natural that no one in Ares had ever tried to make an iron sand ingot.
Hyun-soo continued to gather the iron sand.
[Rewards are accumulating.]
[Rewards are accumulating.]
[Accumulating...]
[Accumulating...]
[You have acquired 1 Dexterity.]
Hyun-soo was curious about the reward.
The Dexterity he was acquiring was from the repetitive action.
The accumulating reward was also likely to be Dexterity.
After all, he had received Dexterity along with the notification about an unconventional act.
And so, Hyun-soo and Ren spent about five full days scraping up iron sand before leaving the beach.
***
After gathering enough iron sand, Ren and Hyun-soo returned to the smithy.
Ren looked at Hyun-soo in amazement.
“Sh-shouldn’t you get some rest?”
“...Since when does a blacksmith have time to rest?”
Ren was bewildered.
From the looks of it, Hyun-soo couldn't be older than his early twenties.
Yet the blacksmith's spirit he displayed seemed ancient, even to Ren.
‘How can someone so young...’
It might have seemed incredible to Ren, but for Hyun-soo, it was once a part of his daily life.
His father's smithy, where everything had been done by hand.
Blacksmiths needed temperatures over 1,500 degrees Celsius to melt minerals.
Because of that, they would stand before the furnace for days on end, repeatedly working to raise the fire's temperature every hour.
Before starting to smelt the iron sand, Hyun-soo began the process of raising the temperature of the smithy’s furnace.
“You’re still in the learning process, Ren, so you can get some sleep.”
“N-no, I couldn’t possibly...”
But the tedious hours dragged on.
One hour, five hours, ten hours...
To escape the sweltering heat of the smithy for a moment, Ren placed a chair outside and sat down.
He had to go back in and add charcoal when it was his turn.
But the cool summer night breeze felt good.
Without realizing it, Ren fell asleep.
*Chirp, chirp—*
When he opened his eyes, Ren shot up in surprise.
“I have to add the charcoal!”
Charcoal had to be added continuously to raise the temperature.
Ren, who had started running in a panic, soon came to a halt.
‘He’s insane...’
Hyun-soo was standing there with his arms crossed.
Of course, he too looked utterly exhausted.
But he acted nonchalant.
As if it were only natural for a blacksmith.
In the time Ren had been asleep, Hyun-soo had stood watch over the fire without a single wink of sleep.
“...”
It was an indescribable feeling.
Ren had simply wanted to become a better blacksmith.
He had wanted to craft a higher-grade sword to wipe the smirk off Instructor Hans's face.
But now, a new thought occurred to him.
Perhaps the incredible skill that man had shown was the result of a long and arduous process.
Tens of thousands of hammer strikes.
Tens of thousands of sleepless nights.
Skills earned by battling the blistering heat of the forge tens of thousands of times.
Ren was genuinely in awe.
‘I want to forge a weapon with that kind of will, with that kind of spirit...’
Sensing a presence, Hyun-soo turned his head.
“Sleep well?”
[Ren feels a deep respect for your blacksmith’s spirit.]
[Your affinity with Ren has reached MAX.]
Hyun-soo looked puzzled.
He had just acted as he normally would, yet his affinity had suddenly maxed out.
Ren approached him, his face set with a new resolve.
“How many more days will it take to get the mineral?”
“Hmm, at least four days?”
“Then, during that time, I’d like to try making a sword. Could you help me?”
Hyun-soo read Ren’s expression.
As he’d mentioned, countless aspiring blacksmiths had sought out his father.
Nine out of ten ran away.
And that one remaining person...
That one person would endure for a few more days before eventually running away too.
Only about one in a hundred.
That one person had the same look in their eyes as Ren did now.
*I want to be like you.*
*I want to become a true blacksmith.*
An expression that said, *Even if I don't make money, even if I'm looked down upon, I want to create my own work of art solely with my hands.*
Even if he had that spirit and had only just awakened to it now...
Hyun-soo believed he could become a blacksmith who could advance much further.
Hyun-soo smiled faintly.
“Shall we make it, then? Your masterpiece.”
And so it began.
Hyun-soo worked on smelting while Ren worked on forging a sword.
Ren was on fire.
Never in his life had he been so passionate about learning the craft of a blacksmith.
“That's not how you do it. Relax your grip on the hammer. How many times do I have to tell you that too much force is counterproductive?”
At times, he was harshly scolded.
Smelting, refining.
Quenching.
Hammering.
Working the bellows.
Oil quenching.
He corrected every single step, teaching him relentlessly.
But for some reason...
Ren was enjoying himself.
A day passed.
Two days passed.
Three days passed.
Claaang—! Claaang—! Claaaaang—!
“Good!”
Following his teachings, Ren took another step forward.
Fwoooosh—
Hyun-soo could see the molten iron flowing from the furnace.
Claaang—!
Claaaaang—!
Claaang—!
Day by day, Ren's hammering grew more skillful.
Hyun-soo hammered at the lumpy, basalt-like chunk of iron sand, working to remove the impurities.
Claaang— Claang—! Claaang—!
Listening to Hyun-soo’s nagging, Ren's understanding of sword-making deepened daily.
“This should be good enough.”
In front of the blazing fire, Hyun-soo relentlessly heated and cooled the lumpy iron sand to remove even more impurities.
Meanwhile, Ren applied what he learned, understanding concepts that had eluded him his entire life.
Finally, Hyun-soo succeeded in obtaining a true ‘iron sand ingot,’ completely free of impurities.
“We’re almost done.”
So much time had passed that he had lost track of it.
After that arduous process, Hyun-soo was in the final stages of obtaining the iron sand ingot.
And at a certain moment...
Having mastered a much-improved technique for the bellows, oil quenching, and hammering, Ren finished the polishing and even completed the final step of engraving a pattern onto the sword.
Having finally completed the sword, Ren burst into tears.
“Sob... sob...!”
“...?”
As Hyun-soo watched the suddenly weeping Ren with confusion...
*Ting!*
[Hidden Quest: Develop Ren - Complete.]
[You can receive your reward from Ren.]
[Ren has crafted the masterpiece of his life.]
[Beginner Blacksmith Ren has grown one step and now approaches the level of an Intermediate Blacksmith.]
[Through you, Ren has awakened to the true spirit of a blacksmith.]
[He may one day reach an even higher level of craftsmanship.]
[You have acquired 20 Dexterity.]
“...”
A bewildered Hyun-soo approached the sobbing Ren.
“Thank you, thank you...!”
Hyun-soo had only taught him.
Just as his father had taught him.
He had merely acted according to the blacksmith’s spirit his father had instilled in him.
He never imagined it would completely change Ren's way of thinking.
Ren wept, clutching the sword to his chest.
“Please, look. Look at this sword, born from your guidance!”
Hyun-soo took the sword he was offered and examined it.
(Faded Sword of the Enlightened)
Grade: Rare
Durability: 1,200/1,200
Attack Power: 39
Requirement: Level 1-50
Special Abilities:
·Stamina +3, Agility +2.
·Active Skill: Smite.
Description: The second masterpiece of the Beginner Zone, created by Beginner Blacksmith Ren, surpassing his previous greatest work.
Hyun-soo checked the sword's quality.
In truth, its craftsmanship didn't quite reach the level of the first sword Hyun-soo had made.
But this was, after all, a game.
It was possible to receive help from the game's various systems.
Furthermore, Ren possessed several skills, and NPCs could also receive various effects.
The result of those effects was a Rare artifact.
Even if its craftsmanship was inferior to his own, it was undeniably a high-grade sword.
This was something that had happened because of Ren's sincere desire to become a better blacksmith.
It was the sword he had created, the result he had achieved.
“Excellent. Ren, you are now a blacksmith who can aspire to any level.”
Having grown one step meant he could continue to grow in the future.
Wiping away his tears, Ren spoke.
“Even after you leave, I will remember you forever.”
[Ren pledges his loyalty to you.]
[Even after your departure, Ren will speak of you endlessly.]
Hyun-soo simply smiled, feeling pleased.
But suddenly, Ren ran off somewhere.
“...?”
Hyun-soo wondered if, in his joy, he had run off to rub it in the face of the instructor named Hans.
But Ren quickly returned, holding a box in his arms.
Placing the box on the ground, Ren opened it.
*Ting!*
[Your affinity with Ren is MAX.]
[You have completed the Hidden Quest: Develop Ren with outstanding results.]
Inside was a mineral Hyun-soo had never seen before in his life.
[The reward is enhanced.]
[You have acquired Beginner Zone's Mithril Ore.]
It wasn't the highest-grade iron ore of the beginner zone, but a mineral named Beginner Zone's Mithril.