Baseless Confidence

"Since I fell for it once, I won't fall for it twice."

"What on earth is that baseless confidence...?"

Unaware of who Tae-hyun was planning to send, the King of Attali continued to shower him with praise.

"To Count Kim Tae-hyun, who has brilliantly subjugated the Sadiq Order, I bestow this horn and sword!"

A horn?

It was an unexpected item. Horn-type items were quite rare in the game. After all, they were incredibly useful in large-scale battles!

The only famous horn item players knew of was the one received by a player who had participated in the subjugation of the Valley of Despair and Sorrow. Though Tae-hyun had received a fief instead!

No, why didn't you give this to me when I was actually fighting the Sadiq Order...? It's not like large-scale battles happen every day...

Giving a mass-combat item right after a massive battle was already over felt like a tease!

"Thank you!"

Of course, he had no intention of refusing a free gift.

Item check.

Tae-hyun had higher expectations for the sword than the horn. A sword bestowed by the King. If it was a Legendary-grade artifact that he could actually use...!

...

His racing heart instantly cooled down.

What kind of useless piece of junk is this?

He easily cleared the reputation requirement, but the problem was its complete lack of utility.

Should I melt it down to extract the materials? I wonder what's inside.

"?!?!"

Tae-hyun was genuinely shocked.

This meant the blacksmith NPC who crafted this sword possessed an incredibly high level of skill!

Wait, if they're that good, couldn't they have made the attack power stronger? Why make such a defective piece of crap...?

Tae-hyun smacked his lips in disappointment. Other than the skill, the sword really had nothing going for it.

Fine, let's look at the horn.

Tae-hyun was overlooking something. Rewards from difficult quests always had a value corresponding to their difficulty! This was a sword received after giving up a fief. Although he was overlooking it because the sword's raw stats were so abysmal, there was no way it was actually bad!

Oh, this is actually pretty good...!

Tae-hyun's face brightened.

A wide-area curse dispelling and curse casting item. He would have to actually use it to know for sure, but since it bore the name of the Attali Royal Family, there was no way the curse would be weak. It sounded far more useful than the sword!

Its durability was low and it couldn't be repaired, but with Tae-hyun's absurd Luck stat, he felt like he could get plenty of uses out of it.

Now all that's left is to use my contribution points to grab whatever I can from the treasury, right?

"Greeting a bright new day together~ We are the best~ Yuseong! Yuseong!"

"...What on earth is that song?"

Chairman Yoo asked with a bewildered expression. Playing in a party with dedicated high-level players was great, but the employees kept singing this bizarre song!

"Pardon? Chairman, it's the company song."

"...I don't recall any such song in my memory."

The song representing the company! If Chairman Yoo's memory served him right, the original company song was far more monotonous and boring.

"The President wanted a song with a fresh image suitable for a new era..."

"That boy only focuses his energy on useless things!"

Chairman Yoo scolded his son, Yu Seong-woo, who wasn't even present.

"Do you have any idea how much embarrassment I've suffered because of him?"

"Pardon? Because of President Yu ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Seong-woo? What happened?"

"...It's nothing."

Realizing Chairman Yoo was in a foul mood, Jung Ji-yong shut his mouth. After all, Chairman Yoo had been teased relentlessly by the Kim father-son duo about corporate fines!

Regardless, the party's efficiency was outstanding. Endless cash-shop purchases + high-level players funneling all their experience points = explosive leveling speed!

"I leveled up."

"Nice shot, Chairman!"

"You're amazing, Chairman!"

Reactions poured in at his every word!

"...I'm not really one to talk, but is it really okay for these kids to just play games all day?"

"Of course, Chairman. Yuseong runs perfectly fine even without these fellows!"

"Well, that makes me feel a bit strange in its own way..."

Chairman Yoo checked his level. The dream three-digit number: 100! He had finally broken past level 100. For a latecomer to Pan-On, it was a terrifyingly fast pace.

Yet, Chairman Yoo still felt it was lacking. And that was entirely because of Tae-hyun.

They said that kid is likely in his late 100s, right?

Chairman Yoo had asked his employees various questions. Especially about Tae-hyun!

"Kim Tae-hyun? He's a monster. Honestly, watching him fight, I think he'd rank globally. Some idiots say he can't compare to overseas players, but they clearly know nothing about Pan-On!"

"What level do you think he is?"

"At that level of play? Maybe in his late 100s? He'd have to be around there to put out that kind of damage."

A common-sense judgment! None of them knew that Tae-hyun had surpassed Chairman Yoo's level a long time ago.

Chairman Yoo looked around.

Still, using the company's employees like this feels a bit wrong. I should raise my level as quickly as possible and send them back to work.

"Hello, Executive Director Kim."

"..."

Executive Director Kim didn't reply, merely nodding slightly as he walked past. Seeing this, Jung Ji-yong furrowed his brows. It was a blatantly rude gesture! However, Jung Ji-yong didn't say anything and let it slide. Getting angry first meant losing.

"Then, I shall take my leave."

Once Jung Ji-yong left, Executive Director Kim muttered under his breath.

"That arrogant bastard..."

"He is incredibly insolent, sir."

"He was the one who whispered in the Chairman's ear and ruined the project proposal I spearheaded last time."

"Exactly, sir!"

A trusted subordinate beside him chimed in, agreeing with ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Executive Director Kim.

"Just because the Chairman dotes on him, that young punk is acting like he owns the place!"

Executive Director Kim gnashed his teeth. In terms of official rank, Executive Director Kim had nothing to be ashamed of, but when it came to their relationship with the Chairman, it was a completely different story. Jung Ji-yong was the Chairman's right-hand man! Picking a fight with him would only invite an immediate counterattack.

"I heard a rumor that he's doing something with the Chairman again. Is that true?"

"Yes, sir. I believe they are playing some game called Pan-On..."

"A game?"

"Yes. They are all playing Pan-On together..."

"...Does that make any sense?! The Chairman is playing a game meant for kids?"

Executive Director Kim spoke as if it were utterly absurd. The Chairman Yoo he knew was a strict, serious, and dignified old monster. For such a man to be playing games with his employees was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a situation he couldn't comprehend, no matter how many times he heard it.

"I looked into it, and it seems Pan-On is quite popular among older folks as well. It allows them to engage in intense physical activity without any bodily limitations."

"Hmm, is that why the Chairman rejected my golf invitation?"

In truth, there was only one reason Chairman Yoo had rejected Executive Director Kim's invitation. Because Executive Director Kim kept winning!

- Haha, Chairman! That was a lucky shot! I guess luck is on my side today!

- Oh my, Chairman! You shouldn't aim like that from there!

- ...

Executive Director Kim didn't realize it, but he was fundamentally a clueless idiot.

"If that bastard gets any closer to the Chairman, it's going to be a headache."

"What do you plan to do, sir?"

"Ask the employees who are participating how we can meet up with the Chairman. I'll log in and meet him myself."

"W-Would you really need to go that far, sir?"

"What kind of foolish question is that? Under normal circumstances, it's incredibly difficult to even get a chance to meet the Chairman. If I can meet him through a childish game like this, it's a massive bargain!"

Clang, clang!

A cheerful metallic ringing echoed in front of the Attali Royal Palace treasury. Passing NPCs and players alike stared in utter disbelief. Who on earth would use blacksmithing skills right in the middle of the palace courtyard!

But Tae-hyun didn't care. Setting up right here was much faster than traveling somewhere else!

Various message windows popped up. Tae-hyun found it too tedious to read them all and casually swiped them away. Beside him, Lee Da-bi and Cain were watching with eyes full of anticipation!

"Hey, stop hovering and go look inside the treasury to see if there's anything good. We need to spend our contribution points anyway."

"Okay!"

Lee Da-bi headed inside the treasury. Tae-hyun turned back to his work. Since she had entered that massive royal treasury, it would probably take her a few hours...

"I found it!"

"?!"

Tae-hyun was so startled he nearly dropped his hammer.

"You found it already?"

"Yes!"

Tae-hyun shuddered when he saw the item window Lee Da-bi showed him. To think it would be here of all places...!

Orichalcum. One of the rarest metals in Pan-On. It was a metal that ordinary players could almost never get their hands on. And Tae-hyun possessed...

"I have to buy this!"

Clack!

Tae-hyun immediately spent his contribution points to purchase the ingot. It was a painful purchase that ate up a third of his hard-earned contribution points, but Tae-hyun had no regrets.

If I craft arrows with this and make the engineering mount, my blacksmithing skill will definitely reach Advanced!

Currently, his blacksmithing skill was at the very peak of Intermediate. It was well within reach.

"But what are you going to do with that?"

"I'm going to make arrows."

"..."

After calming down Lee Da-bi, who was practically in tears insisting it was a waste, Tae-hyun entered the final stages of crafting.

Crafting three at once! Only about half of his contribution points remained, but Tae-hyun had no regrets. A mount was always worth the investment!

"...Huh?"

Random teleportation? Tae-hyun checked the other two motorcycles in a panic. This wasn't good. Of all things, a random option like that on a mount made it a defective product! Fortunately, the other two motorcycles didn't have that specific option.

These were options born from the Lucky Blacksmith's Technique!

How should I distribute these?