Chapter 65
Chapter 65
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Kim Jin-ah (3)
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Kim Jin-ah’s voice rang out from the smartphone.
“Customer, have you confirmed the 10 billion won deposit?”
“I told you, didn’t I? One day is more than enough.”
“Oh, so it really worked. Thank you. I’ll use it well and pay it back.”
“But, customer.”
“Yes?”
“Wouldn’t it be better to focus on building up one prime location rather than opening multiple stores right next to the Five Saints Group?”
“Hmm, you think so?”
“Yes. Rather than fixating on the Five Saints and fighting them, growing to a size they can’t touch would be far more constructive for your future.”
Hmm.
She wasn’t wrong.
It started as revenge, but there was no need to get hung up on Shin Jong-oh alone.
“Heehee, so I did a little scouting. There’s a building for sale in the bustling Apgujeong-dong area. It’s a three-story, 100-pyeong place, and it’s a fire sale, so it’s incredibly cheap…”
“Really? How much?”
“About 8 billion won. It’s a bit run-down, but if you renovate it, it’ll be perfect.”
Kim Jin-ah’s voice brimmed with energy.
Maybe she found the business I was starting interesting.
Or perhaps it was just her diligence with the 10 billion loan.
Either way, her enthusiasm was a welcome bonus.
One thing I was curious about, though.
“Hmm, but if we’re being realistic, does location even matter that much? The business I’m planning is high-performance item sales anyway… If word spreads right, people would line up even if I set up shop on Ulleungdo.”
“Oh, come on, customer. Weren’t you planning to turn Demir Workshop into a world-class brand? Location isn’t just about customer access—it’s about the brand’s prestige too.”
“Hmm, that makes sense. The first step is the most important, after all. Like you said, Jin-ah, better to go big in one great spot than scrape together a few small stores.”
I nodded.
Once decided, no need to drag it out.
With her help, I snapped up the building in no time and got to work fixing it up.
“Master, this building is a wreck. Just trust in me, Demir.”
Clang! Clang!
The building’s condition didn’t bother me one bit.
With Demir’s hands that could create something from nothing, what was there to worry about?
Even if it wasn’t quite at his peak form.
“First, I’ll rip out all the steel beams and reinforce them solid. Hmph, and what’s with this building’s shape? Even our clan’s babies could cobble together something prettier! As an artist, I can’t abide this!”
Demir’s eyes burned with passion.
Clang! Clang!
Over the next month or so, the building slowly transformed.
It wouldn’t become a flashy glass tower in the heart of the district.
But it took on an artistic flair, like gazing upon medieval architecture.
While watching the process, I trained steadily on the side.
More than the awakened ones.
I focused on boosting Bone Worker, Bone Four, and Bone Five’s stats.
To close the gap that had opened up, for the future.
How much time passed like that?
“Ooh.”
“Haha, does it please you, master?”
And just like that, the building was complete.
“Not bad? It’s got personality, yet it blends well with the surroundings.”
“Kekeke, hearing that from you lifts my spirits! Shall I show you the interior?”
Demir puffed out his chest and led me inside.
The shop interior was incredibly luxurious.
Like it was meant for VIPs only, gold gleamed from every corner.
“That Kim Jin-ah girl was impressive. She rattled off requirements without missing a beat, and her descriptions were so detailed, it was like she was painting it in my head. Honestly, I just built it to her specs.”
“Wow.”
I wandered the interior in admiration.
The first floor was the ready-made sales area.
Where I’d sell Demir’s B-grade mass-produced items in unlimited quantities.
The second floor, by contrast, was for limited editions.
One corner had a mini-workshop for Demir, and the rest featured sleek display cases like a museum.
S-grade items would start filling those soon enough.
[‘Air Purification’ (B-grade) zone.]
[‘Security Setup’ (A-grade) zone.]
“I pitched in a bit too. If anyone touches the goods without unlocking, an alarm goes straight to you, master. Air purification’s standard, of course.”
“Kyaa, Eldrin’s got the touch.”
“Such praise from you makes my soul ecstatic—life feels blissful.”
“R-Really?”
I climbed the stairs further.
And the third floor that appeared…
[‘Air Purification’ (B-grade) zone.]
[‘Temperature Control’ (B-grade) zone.]
[Set Temperature – 24˚C]
“Whoa?”
It was a house.
A modern home setup with a plush sofa, fluffy bed, TV, desk, clock, and more.
It even had a terrace overlooking the Han River Olympic Boulevard.
“This was my idea. After that Shin Jong-oh punk trashed your living space, you’ve been wandering like a stray. I, Demir, can’t let my master go homeless.”
“…”
Even solved the housing issue.
This was incredible.
“I’m seriously touched.”
“Hoho, you’re the one who let me spread my craft in this world—that’s the real感动.”
“Why does everyone have to say such pretty words?”
I was truly fortunate.
To have this unique ability letting me command such loyal subordinates.
‘Next up, the rooftop.’
The rooftop was a training ground.
Felt like transplanting the mountain clearing I sometimes used.
Dozens of steel dummies stood ready.
Honestly, this was my favorite part.
“You guys really outdid yourselves.”
I praised their hard work from the heart.
* * *
The new shop’s location wasn’t bad at all.
Especially since…
[Demir Workshop! Official Sales Launch!]
[Apgujeong’s New Hotspot?]
[Bigwig Baek Sang-don: “Competitors are always welcome.”]
Hunter boards and media showered it with attention.
From opening day, crowds poured in.
Twenty weapons.
Ones I’d had Demir whip up sporadically while building.
All priced at 20 million won each, regardless of type.
The baseline for his mass-produced gear going forward.
“Excuse me, can I see the weapons?”
“Huh? Where’re the clerks? Why are there skeletons…?”
The gawkers who’d swarmed froze.
Short skeletons were stationed at each weapon type.
Clack clack.
Bone boys with tiny hammers tapped their teeth in grins.
Even more shocking.
“Haha, you’re here! Human! Come closer! This is a sword! Even as mass-produced fare, it boasts incredible performance from the great Demir’s touch!”
“Over here! Check out this bow! See that string tension? Only connoisseurs notice, but that fine detail separates masterpieces!”
The dwarves were talking—one by one!
“Master, surprisingly, my skeleton summoning skill seems to be evolving too. They haven’t fully awakened yet… but they feel like the souls of the lads who trusted and followed me most 500 years ago. They even helped with the building.”
About two weeks ago.
That’s what Demir confided.
Honestly, mind-blowing.
If true, that was insane force multiplication!
Ten more dwarves besides Demir.
Like having a hundred-man production line.
‘And if those subordinates grow and learn skeleton summoning too?’
Infinite blacksmith derivatives!
I control one Demir, and he controls a legion of hundreds!
The thought alone sent shivers down my spine.
Anyway.
Talking skeletons were shock enough for the crowd.
Even I, a necromancer, freaked the first time. First-time customers?
“W-What in the world?”
“Skeletons talking? And… hawking wares?”
“Skeletons speaking! Undead talking! Gotta record this!”
It was already an eccentric workshop.
Now it’d be even more so.
Still, opening day.
The twenty prepped items sold out in under an hour.
400 million won in sales in sixty minutes.
We shut the doors right after.
About two hours later, Kim Jin-ah arrived with a potted plant for the opening celebration—and gaped.
“Wow, already sold out?”
“Shouldn’t we have prepped more?”
“Hmm, no, this might be better. Demand’s limited anyway. Selling less means less exposure.”
“But don’t you want to sweep ‘em all when the hype’s high…?”
“Customer.”
“Yes?”
“I’m the youngest Harvard MBA ever. Marketing is patience. Just wait and see.”
* * *Meanwhile.
“Whew.”
Gi So-yul, her black hair tied back, cleared a dungeon solo.
[A-grade Dungeon - ‘Minotaur’s Palace’]
The kind she soloed occasionally for combat experience.
Thud! Boom!
A massive bull-man swung a man-sized axe.
Whoosh!
But her movements were sharp and ruthless.
Vanishing into the swing’s arc.
Swoosh!
Reappearing behind its neck.
Slash!
One slash, one down.
Gi So-yul’s dagger plunged precisely into the nape.
“Moooo!”
One fell, then two.
Soon.
The palace corridor was littered with countless bull-man corpses.
‘No way.’
‘Minotaur’s Palace’ spawned about once a month.
Meaning she’d cleared it plenty.
But.
‘Clearing the corridor this fast?’
Normally, one corridor took an hour. Now? Barely twenty minutes.
Felt like the dungeon got nerfed.
“Just from swapping one weapon…”
Gi So-yul stared blankly at her palm.
More precisely, the dagger atop it.
[Item: Dagger for an Assassin]
[Grade: S]
[Type: Dagger]
[Description: A weapon forged by legendary blacksmith Demir and his master, inspired by a certain assassin! It boasts performance transcending design through astonishing focus and passion.]
[Effect 1: Agility +50.]
[Effect 2: Attack Speed +200%.]
[Effect 3: After stealth, first strike damage +500%.]
[Effect 4: Ice magic resistance +30%.]
The absurd DPS monster.
Gi So-yul gently caressed the weapon.
A pleasant chill crept up her skin to her heart.
I’m your weapon.
Made solely for you.
As if it whispered.
‘Should I say it after all?’
Gi So-yul was a ranker.
A solid mid-to-upper tier one.
The kind villain rankers targeted to climb even one spot higher.
So she’d hidden her info as much as possible.
‘Like her weapon.’
Leak that, and counters spread.
A weakness exposed.
But.
‘Joo Dong-hoon asked me to promote it.’
Best promo? Revealing the weapon’s specs.
Normally, she’d ignore 100%.
Not this time.
Gratitude first, gut feeling second.
‘But this isn’t good for Dong-hoon either?’
This was S-grade. S-grade.
The kind even world-class workshops like Baekdon treated as projects.
Announce a lone blacksmith churning them out quick?
He’d paint a target for global crime syndicates.
‘In that case…’
One solution.
Offer to bodyguard again.
‘I could protect one Dong-hoon easy.’
Squeeze!
Gi So-yul clenched her fist, resolved.
Absolutely not because she wanted to go back to him.
A man who crafts S-grades was a national treasure.
‘Just patriotic duty to guard the nation’s asset.’
Whoosh!
With her decision made, she dashed back into the dungeon.