Long Live Free Weapons
“Cough, cough...!”
The journey back home was an agonizing ordeal. She barely kept herself upright by clinging to anything within reach—telephone poles, streetlamps, it made no difference.
Wheezing as though on the brink of death, she naturally drew the stares of passersby, but Yena lacked the luxury of paying them any mind. She simply poured every ounce of strength she possessed into each dragging step.
“I-if I can just... just make it home...”
Through her fading consciousness, the familiar front door finally swam into view. Sitting forlornly on the welcome mat was a package. Her Hunter Eats delivery had already arrived in the meantime.
“I-I'm saved...!”
Yena threw herself forward in a desperate crawl and hugged the package to her chest. Lacking even the energy to punch in the door lock's passcode, she slumped right there in the hallway, peeling away the packing tape with trembling fingers.
Riiip.
As the wrapping came away, a crystal radiating a brilliant azure luster revealed itself.
An E-Rankmagic stone. A precious, noble thing priced at a staggering 1.5 million won.
“...”
Drool trickled between her lips after merely staring at it for a few seconds.
“I wonder what this tastes like.”
An F-Rank magic stone had tasted like dry, crumbly dirt. But the E-Rank was on an entirely different level from its aroma alone. Why on earth a chunk of mineral smelled so delightfully sweet was a mystery, but—
“...Thank you for the meal.”
She couldn't wait any longer. Cupping the E-Rank magic stone delicately between both slender hands, Yena popped it into her mouth without a second thought.
Crunch. Crunch!
It had the satisfying crispness of biting into perfectly fried chicken. As the hard gemstone shattered into tiny fragments and slipped down her throat, a refreshing, invigorating wave surged through her entire body.
“...S-so delicious.”
Best of all, it had a pleasant sweetness, like sucking on gourmet hard candy. She rolled the remaining shards around on her tongue, savoring every last bit.
A portion of internal mana has been restored.
Current Mana Remaining: 8.1%
“Ooh...!”
Her eyes flashed as she checked the numbers hovering in the air.
Due to all that frantic exertion, her remaining mana had plummeted down to 7.1%. Yet a single stone had raised it by a whole percent! That was the equivalent of five F-Rank magic stones!
Yena began counting on her fingers.
“One E-Rank magic stone is 1.5 million won. But five F-Rank magic stones would be 2.5 million won...”
The math clicked in an instant.
“Gasp!”
Her eyes went wide, and she clapped a hand over her mouth.
A net savings of one million won!
“Isn't this amazing?!”
This meant she could save even more money. On top of that, it tasted infinitely better than the F-Rank stones. In fact, even after devouring the whole thing, Yena lingered, licking her lips with fond regret.
“Magic stones! Magic stones really were the answer all along...!”
She had to eat them just to stay alive, but they were actually delicious too? How could anyone resist?
Furthermore, having absorbed such high-quality mana, her strength had bounced back considerably, leaving behind the utter exhaustion from moments ago.
“If an E-Rank is like this, what about a D-Rank?”
No, what about the ranks above that?
“Heh...”
Staring blankly into space, Yena let another string of drool escape.
“I have to climb the tower. As hard as I can.”
Because then, she could eat even tastier magic stones. Having fallen completely under the spell of gourmet mana delicacies, the terrifying concept of 'Hell difficulty' had long since evaporated from Yena's mind.
“Ah, right.”
A thought suddenly struck her.
“...I don't have a weapon right now, do I?”
Her parasol hadn't been able to withstand the sheer destructive power of Battoujutsu. It had shattered catastrophically, leaving literally nothing behind but the bare metal ribs. Then again, swinging an actual sword around felt a little frightening. A parasol was just right. It even blocked the sunlight.
“All right, I'll commission a custom one.”
Attack power didn't matter in the slightest—it just had to be sturdy. Incredibly, impossibly sturdy.
“I can just earn more money in the tower anyway. Heheh.”
She had plenty of cash for now. Besides, how could she skimp on investing in a partner that would accompany her into battle? Still, it's just a parasol, so it'll probably only cost a few tens of thousands of won, right?
Carrying that naive assumption, Yena rested at home for a short while before inquiring about craftsmen specializing in hunter equipment.
She was in luck. According to her search, there was one located just a ten-minute walk from her house. Heading over immediately to meet him, Yena explained her business to a friendly-looking, burly man.
Stroking his thick beard, the Bearded Blacksmith spoke with a grave expression.
“A sturdy parasol? Hmm. If it needs to serve as a weapon, it'll have to be custom-made. Give me one bill. Since you're such a pretty little lady, I'll do you a favor. Normally, I'm not even taking commissions right now.”
Though Yena flinched inwardly at being addressed as a 'pretty little lady,' she kept her poker face as best she could and pressed on.
“One bill? Ten thousand won?”
“Hahaha, you're quite the joker, miss.”
“T-then... one hundred thousand won?”
“Come now.”
“O-o-one... million won?”
“Multiply that by ten.”
“...Eh?”
The color drained from Yena's face as cold sweat broke out across her brow.
“Ten million won...?!”
Even if she had made a bit of money recently, ten million won for a single parasol?! That was enough to buy a mountain of magic stones on the delivery app!
“W-w-wait... just a moment.”
Thoroughly flustered, she whipped out her smartphone and searched the going market rates for custom hunter weaponry. To her shock, the Bearded Blacksmith had been telling the truth. In fact, considering the discount he offered, it was actually on the cheaper end.
I had no idea it was this expensive...
Hunters put their lives on the line climbing the tower. Naturally, conventional wisdom dictated that they spared no expense on weapons and armor. Still, this blew far past any psychological resistance line she had maintained. She had possessed a vague awareness of it, of course, but hearing people say 'it's expensive' was worlds apart from hearing the actual numbers firsthand.
The baseline is tens of millions, and high-rank hunters spend up to billions?!
Yena slumped her shoulders and muttered dejectedly.
“I don't have that kind of money...”
The Bearded Blacksmith chuckled.
“See? Told you, didn't I?”
“...Yes.”
“Besides, there's something else you might not know: I'm pretty well-renowned in this industry. My commissions for the entire year are already fully booked.”
“I-I see...”
She did vaguely recall him mentioning he couldn't take orders right now, which meant that even if she had the money, commissioning it in the first place would have been out of the question.
Seeing Yena's crestfallen expression, the Bearded Blacksmith let out a hearty laugh.
“Can't be helped if you're short on coin. The raw materials alone cost a fortune. They all come from the tower, you see, so they don't come cheap.”
“...”
Yet even hearing that, her feet refused to budge.
Perhaps she looked too pitiful standing there. The artisan grunted thoughtfully, then pointed toward a massive iron hammer and an anvil beside him.
“Or... you could try forging it yourself, little lady. I'll provide the raw materials at cost price.”
It was merely a joke. There was no way a frail, delicate young lady could handle metallurgical smithing. He had only offered out of sympathy because she seemed unable to let the matter go.
However.
“...Forge it? Myself?”
At his words, Yena's eyes began to sparkle. A path had opened before her. It struck her so suddenly that she wondered why she hadn't considered such an option until now.
“Yes! I'll do it!”
“...Eh?”
As Yena nodded without the slightest hesitation, the blacksmith blinked in bewilderment.
She only says that because she doesn't realize how grueling it is. A sheltered girl who knows nothing of the world.
With such an innocent, rose-tinted view, how would she ever survive in this harsh world? Though it pained him, the Bearded Blacksmith decided to give this lovely young lady a small taste of reality's severity.
“Fine! I can't just hand the tools over, so I'll demonstrate first. Watch closely!”
The smith gripped the massive iron hammer and swung it down with all his might onto the red-hot special steel.
Clang! Clang!
Accompanied by brilliant showers of sparks, the craftsman's practiced hammering rang out. The refined artistry of taming metal and infusing mana unfolded vividly before her eyes. Watching with rapt attention, Yena's eyes glittered.
Ding.
The One Who Walks Ahead has activated.
Acquired the skill Blacksmith's Intuition (A).
Acquired the skill Intermediate Smelting (B).
It worked!
The corners of Yena's lips curled upward at the sight of the notifications. In that fleeting instant, the sensation of having struck an anvil tens of thousands of times bloomed right at the tips of her fingers.
Presently, the Bearded Blacksmith straightened his back and wiped away his sweat. Though it had only been a brief demonstration, his face radiated proud craftsmanship.
“See that? It's no walk in the park. Swing without the proper technique, and your elbows will be screaming after just a few strikes. If even a seasoned veteran like me feels it, imagine how it'd be for you, miss. Now then, how about you head on—”
“Thank you so much!”
“...Huh?”
Before he could even finish his sentence, Yena darted over and hoisted the heavy work hammer resting beside the anvil. It hadn't looked that big in the craftsman's burly grip, but holding it herself, the hammer seemed half the size of her entire body.
“Whoa, hey, miss! I-I was just kidding! It's dangerous, so put that down righ—!”
Startled out of his wits, the artisan reached out, but in that very split second—
Yena swung the hammer with effortless grace and brought it crashing down onto the glowing red steel without a shred of hesitation.
BOOM! BOOM! KABOOM!
An overwhelming concussive crash shook the entire workshop. The timbre of the sound was on a completely different plane from the smith's earlier demonstration.
“...What?”
Hypnotized, the blacksmith could only stare, his jaw hanging wide open. A flawless strike pinpointing the precise grain of the metal... From those delicate motions flowed the consummate mastery of someone who had spent decades hammering before an anvil.
“What... what on earth is this...?”
Yet while the Bearded Blacksmith stood frozen in utter stupefaction, Yena continued swinging the massive hammer with her slender arms, forging the steel in a whirlwind of strikes.
And then.
Thud.
Seeing Yena suddenly collapse onto the floor, the blacksmith shrieked in horror and rushed to support her.
“A-are you all right?! Miss! Get a grip, miss!”
Drip.
A trickle of blood escaped the corner of Yena's lips, staining the floor.
“I-I was... so excited... that I overdid it...”
Drop.
Her arm, which had been weakly reaching toward the smith, fell limp as she whispered her final words:
“I-I really... wanted... my own custom... parasol...”
The Bearded Blacksmith wailed in anguish.
“Miiiiiiiss!”
In truth, it was merely temporary dizziness brought on by the sudden depletion of her mana, but there was no way the blacksmith could have known that.
“...Ugh, mmm.”
How deeply had she slept? Yena forced her heavy eyelids open with great effort. A soft, plush sensation greeted her back.
“Where...?”
Opening her eyes, an unfamiliar ceiling entered her view. Rubbing her eyes for a second, she suddenly jolted upright in panic.
“...Ah, my mana!”
With urgent fingers, she tapped the empty air.
Current Mana Remaining: 3.6%
What a relief. Activating the skill had consumed a substantial amount of mana, but it wasn't enough to kill her on the spot.
“Phew...”
Just as she exhaled a sigh of relief at having once again dodged dying in her sleep—
Click.
The door burst open, and the Bearded Blacksmith came barreling inside with an expression of frantic dread.
“M-miss! Are you all right?! Are you hurting anywhere else? Should I call a doctor?!”
“Ah, yes... I'm fine. My body has always been a bit frail, so this happens from time to time. But where is this...?”
“It's my private break room. You collapsed out of nowhere, so I panicked and carried you in here.”
“Oh, thank you. I'm sorry to have troubled you...”
She offered a bashful, timid smile, and the sight of it made the blacksmith's eyes well with tears.
Poor thing...
She had clearly been born with an incurably frail constitution. Which meant she had thrown herself into forging a weapon at the risk of her very life, fully aware of the consequences.
Miss... I have witnessed your desperate resolve.
Seeing Yena's burning dedication, the artisan wept. Not from his eyes, but from his chest. From the bottom of his heart!
...To move a grown man to tears at such a young age. What a terrifying young lady she will grow up to be.
Shaking his head with a wistful smile, he slowly brought forward a long object he had concealed behind his back.
“Here. Take this.”
“...Eh?”
What the Bearded Blacksmith offered was a pristine, snow-white parasol without a single speck of dirt. Intricate, mysterious runes were etched across its surface.
“Th-this is...”
“It took me a full day to forge. Thanks to that, my backlog got pushed back a bit further.”
“Ah... because of me...”
Yet the Bearded Blacksmith had experienced an epiphany of his own—specifically, he had been inspired by that single moment of flawless hammering Yena had displayed.
“Don't apologize. Thanks to you, miss, the creative block weighing on my mind completely shattered. It allowed me to forge the greatest masterpiece of my life.”
It had to be expensive. Even as Yena accepted the parasol with trembling hands, she looked up at the blacksmith hesitantly.
“Don't look at me with those eyes. I won't take a single coin. No, I wouldn't dare charge you. Not to the benefactor who opened my eyes to a whole new world.”
The blacksmith went on, blathering about whether she would consider taking him as her disciple and the like, but—
F-free...?!
The blacksmith's voice no longer registered in Yena's mind.
“Humans cannot be perfect. Yet an artisan is bound to crave perfection. That is what it means to be a craftsman. Surely, if I were to walk alongside you, miss, I could—”
While the Bearded Blacksmith was baring his soul with utter solemnity, Yena popped the parasol open with an innocent, radiant grin.
“Thank you, Mister! I'll put it to great use!”
“...”
The Bearded Blacksmith came to a sudden realization.
She hadn't listened to a single word he just said.
...Maybe I should have charged her. Hmm.
Then again, having put on such a grand, noble act, it was a little too late to walk it back.
Watching Yena's bright, beaming smile, the Bearded Blacksmith felt a warm, fond sensation bloom in his chest.
Well, can't be helped. Look how happy she is.