The Weight of a Blacksmith's Pride

The test results confirmed it: I could freely manipulate even the heaviest molten metal. A greatsword as large as a grown adult’s body? I could lift it with ease. I…

“Um… are you okay?”

“Not a total failure….”

“Y-yes! Of course! That lady must have been lying. I’ll give her a good scolding later.”

My cracked heart could not be mended by such clumsy comfort.

My body was soon to become my own creation. Every single thing I forged with these hands had to be the absolute best. Anything less was unacceptable.

If even one piece fell short… then all those endless years in the forge would lose their meaning, wouldn’t they?

My face burned with shame. I whipped my head from side to side, trying to cool the heat rising in my cheeks.

Suddenly, a smooth black orb caught my eye.

It’s definitely the crystal orb they use to appraise equipment.

Leaving the flustered Soha behind, I walked back to the round table. The black crystal orb sat at the perfect height, perfectly aligned with my gaze.

“Tch…”

There was no way I could be weak. I refused to allow it.

Tap.

Without hesitation, I pressed my palm against the orb.

“That’s for appraising equipment…”

Soha was still mumbling around her fingers, trying to stop me, when it happened.

A sound similar to before, yet far louder, erupted from every direction.

“Ugh…!”

A groan came from beside me as an unfamiliar sensation flowed from the orb into my palm. Something was pouring into my body, an unidentified current racing through my veins.

Then came the feeling of smooth glass grains crumbling, one by one.

The crystal orb made of glass did not shatter into fragments. Instead, it simply disintegrated.

It was a bizarre sight. Not a single shard flew outward; the entire orb collapsed into a powerless pile of sand that trickled down like a tiny dune.

“What’s going on?!”

The room had fallen silent. The quiet was broken as someone flung the door open.

“Wait…! You can’t come in…”

Soha shouted at the man who had just entered. He glanced toward one corner of the room.

A round security camera was spitting blue sparks with a loud crackle.

“The monitors and all the electronic devices went completely dead…”

“It’s fine. Please leave,” I said.

I listened to their conversation and gave a small nod. Everyone except me was flustered, unable to hide their panic.

This is it.

This was exactly the scene I had expected.

Soon, with only the three of us left ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in the large room, Soha slowly walked toward me.

“…Shall we run a few more tests?”

“Huh…?”

“Just a tiny ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bit more.”

I had acted on pure impulse, my face burning with shame, without thinking about what might come next. I hadn’t expected this.

“Haa…”

I stepped out of the Hunter Association building and let out a long sigh.

She said “just a little,” but…

The pitch-black scenery from earlier was gone. Now bright sunlight poured down, and people bustled along the streets.

At least I could be grateful that they had confirmed there was nothing wrong with my body.

Was it because this was the first time a beastperson had been exposed to the appraisal orb…?

I hadn’t gotten dragged into any annoying complications, either.

Shaking my head, I alternated my gaze between the single sheet of paper and the ID card in my hands.

“Hmm.”

The document stated that my return to daily life had been approved, and the ID card proved my newly granted identity.

There was apparently a temporary shelter for beastpeople who had just emerged from the Tower, but I had refused it.

I have money and can live on my own. Why would I?

Besides, being locked up somewhere again was absolutely out of the question.

It was about time I lived doing only what I wanted.

“……”

The only problem was that I still hadn’t decided what that would be.

Back when I was first trapped in the forge, I had made a long list of things I wanted to do once I got out, but I could barely remember any of it now.

“Well… I can figure that out gradually.”

I set the thoughts aside and decided to use the money I had saved to find a place to live first. Somewhere I could also run a forge. Maybe buy a small plot of land and build a house on it.

Following the magnetic field visible to my eyes, I headed toward the spot where I had buried my bundle of cash.

Northeast…

I easily reached the ridge near the Tower again. I scraped the dirt with my toes and pulled out every bill I had hidden.

With this much, I should be able to buy a small plot of land.

I still hadn’t spent any of the roughly five hundred thousand won I had set aside, so in total I had fifteen million won in cash.

I couldn’t quite remember the average price of land, but it would probably be fine.

It can’t be that expensive, right?

I dusted off the dirt-covered bundle of bills, neatly organized them, stuffed them into my bag, and descended the mountain. Looking around, I spotted a sign that read “Real Estate Agency.”

Real estate. Agency. Obviously, that was where they handled property transactions.

I walked straight over and pushed open the door.

Ding-dong. A clear chime rang out, followed by a rush ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of warm air.

“Welcome… huh?”

The middle-aged agent who had been sitting at his desk fiddling with his phone looked up at me and immediately narrowed his eyes.

Oh, right. A phone.

I added “buy a phone” to my mental shopping list and confidently approached the desk.

“Um… what brings you here, kid?”

“I’m here to buy land.”

With my answer, I handed him the ID card I had just received.

Dan (鍛), age 20.

When Soha had asked my age and I said I couldn’t remember, she had tried to mark me down as around ten years old. After fierce protest and stubborn effort, I had somehow managed to secure my current age.

“……This isn’t fake, is it?”

It was an absurd question that made my brow furrow on its own. My tail thumped against the floor repeatedly.

“O-okay, I got it. But buying land requires a lot of money…”

It was needless worry. I had money.

“How much?!”

“Let me see…”

The agent leaned close to his monitor and began clicking the mouse.

I watched him with a faint, mocking smile.

How dare he underestimate me. He’ll pay for that soon…

“The cheapest plot is around one billion five hundred thirty-two million won.”

“…Huh?”

The casual words he spoke while staring at the monitor made an idiotic sound slip from my lips.

I glanced down at the bag containing my bundle of cash.

I had fifteen million won. The land cost one billion five hundred million.

“Uh…”

In other words, it was roughly a hundred times more than what I had.

“I-I’ll come back later…”

Avoiding the agent’s gaze, I left the office.

With every step, my tail dragged limply across the ground, producing a soft swish-swish sound against my will.

“It’s finally fixed…”

The employee who had restored the Association’s suddenly dead system wiped the sweat from his forehead and muttered to himself.

The monitor flickered brightly. A document appeared on the screen.

“So this was the cause.”

The employee had heard that a new beastperson entity had appeared, but he hadn’t realized the system error was because of them.

He clicked his tongue and was about to leave his seat when it happened.

The computer’s cooling fan spun violently.

“Again? What now…!”

While he watched anxiously, a sheet of paper slid out of the printer beside him.

It was another examination report, this one filled with incomprehensible characters unlike the previous one.

“What the hell is this?”

Indescribable letters and absurd numerical values followed below them.

“…It’s an error.”

Assuming it was simply a misprint caused by a glitch, the employee paid it no mind. He picked up the report, crumpled it with both hands, and tossed it into the trash bin.

“Ah, Kim Sang-cheol shoots… Goal!!”

In the Hunter Association, where no one had arrived for work yet, only the sound of childish laughter echoed through the halls.