Chapter 215: The Unquenchable Anvil, 'Orun' (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 215: The Unquenchable Anvil, 'Orun' (2)
"This is unbelievable...!"
Orun's eyes shook violently.
He couldn't help it.
If Jinhyuk's hand movements until just a moment ago had been merely decent...
What he was showing now was on an entirely different level.
Gulp.
He swallowed hard.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Beyond the flying sparks, he could see the dragon's blood seeping into the dagger.
It was an incredibly natural sequence of events.
This mastery, sublimated into the realm of art, far transcended any common sense Orun had known until now.
'...Is that truly what hammering is?'
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Orun's heart began to beat rapidly.
Something he had forgotten for far too long flared up once again at this very moment.
Right then,
Jinhyuk's hand came to a sudden halt.
The air, which had been burning hot, cooled down as if it were all a lie.
"Why... why did you stop?! Why on earth did you stop here?!"
Orun wore a devastated expression, looking like someone who had missed out right before the climax.
Just a little more.
With just a tiny bit more effort, the item enhancement would succeed.
Only the most difficult and tricky final hurdle remained.
"With my skills, this is my limit. If I go any further, the dagger will break."
Jinhyuk shook his head calmly.
Therefore,
"Please finish the final step, Master Orun."
The one to deliver the grand finale had been decided from the very beginning.
"You... trust me? Isn't this item precious to you?"
"It is expensive and precious. That's exactly why I'm asking you, Master Orun."
"Do you say that knowing I've smashed over ten accessories so far?"
"I know. But this time is different from the beginning. Right now... haven't you resolved to strike the hammer once more?"
"..."
Orun looked back and forth between Jinhyuk and the hammer.
He seemed to hesitate, but only for a brief moment.
"I'll do it."
"Before that, try drinking this first."
Jinhyuk tossed a black bottle toward Orun.
Crack!
Opening the bottle cap, Orun sniffed the liquid inside.
He frowned at the pungent, offensive smell that stung the tip of his nose.
"What is this? It smells like medicine... but I've never seen anything like it."
Of course he had never seen it before.
It was a hangover cure drink purchased from a convenience store.
"Trust me and chug it down. It'll probably help a lot."
While trauma was one issue, Orun had another major problem.
Excessive blood alcohol level.
To put it simply, because he drank alcohol 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, his true skills couldn't shine.
[Status condition is cured.]
[Focus and precision increase by 300%!]
Orun, who had emptied the entire bottle into his mouth, widened his eyes.
He couldn't help but be amazed.
His mind had cleared up instantly, and his nauseating drunkenness vanished in a flash.
This was indeed the ultimate essential item for modern office workers worn down by overtime and company dinners.
"This is... incredible. I never imagined such an elixir existed."
"I'm glad you're satisfied. Now, please show us what you've got."
"Since you've given me something so precious, of course I will. Leave it to me."
Orun raised his hammer high into the air with a determined look.
"Don't do it! Are you really trusting that old geezer because you have no other choice? You shouldn't trust him! Absolutely not!"
Alice screamed at the top of her lungs.
Since the very person who had suffered the bitter taste of failure was strongly opposing it, it did feel a bit unsettling.
Actually, it was incredibly nerve-wracking.
The moment that thought crossed his mind—
"Huuuup!"
The hammer, stacked with various skills, struck the dagger.
Though it looked simple, it was a strike accumulated over decades of experience.
'Please...!'
Wroooooom!
Right then, a blinding light burst forth.
The inside of the smithy was dyed pure white.
* * *
[An astounding display of craftsmanship! You have successfully enhanced a Relic of extreme difficulty!]
[Pentagris's Fang (Blue)]
Attack Power: 5,570
Durability: 2,200 / 2,200
Special Effect (Basic Passive): Every 3rd attack increases Critical Rate by 7%.
Self-Sacrifice (Active): If Pentagris's Fang is voluntarily destroyed, an option is added that increases Attack Power by 100 times with a 100% probability.
The color shifted up a tier.
The blade, which had held a green glow, was soon dyed in a blue light.
"...It actually succeeded."
"Huh? It really succeeded?"
"Unbelievable. I actually succeeded?"
This time, all three of them were surprised simultaneously.
Jinhyuk thought at least one of them shouldn't be surprised, but since it succeeded anyway, he decided to let it slide.
What mattered right now was admiring the sheer majesty of this insane item.
'Its attack power is actually higher than the spear I got from the Empire's treasury.'
Considering the portability and speed of a dagger, these stats were absolutely absurd.
On top of that, thanks to overcoming the atrocious success rate of enhancing a Relic, it had even gained two unexpected special effects.
Jinhyuk calmed his racing heart.
Then, he quietly read through the text on the status window.
A 7% increase in critical rate every three hits...
'This is excellent.'
The longer the battle dragged on, the higher the chance of landing a critical hit, and a 7% increase was quite significant.
From an opponent's perspective, they would inevitably be thrown into a panic by the sudden, massive bursts of damage.
'Furthermore... this active effect, Self-Sacrifice, is practically a cheat.'
One-hit kill.
If an enemy took a whopping 550,000 damage, even a boss monster would find it difficult to survive.
After all, the health of most typical mid-to-large-sized monsters didn't even exceed 100,000, let alone 500,000.
Good.
Everything had concluded very satisfactorily.
Well, actually...
There was still one last thing left to do.
Jinhyuk flashed a bright smile at Orun.
"As expected of your magnificent skill. The rumors of you being the greatest blacksmith in the Tower were true."
"Ahem! I've always been this good. I was just taking it easy until now. My hands are finally warming up. To be honest, there really is no blacksmith like me. Isn't that right? Hahaha!"
Orun, his nose held high in the air, showered himself with self-praise.
"That aside, how do you plan to compensate us for the damages?"
"Hmm? What damages?"
"You smashed all of my precious companion's treasures. Naturally, you must pay the price for that."
"B-but didn't you say it was fine... that you'd let it slide?"
"I did. I said that, but..."
Jinhyuk subtly pointed to the side.
Standing there was the noble Queen, her face distorted with rage.
"My friend here says otherwise."
"Gasp!"
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
Various items in the smithy began to float into the air.
Droplets of blood manifested by the 'Blood Lord' were slowly rotating counterclockwise.
"How dare you... smash all of my treasures? And you only succeed after breaking all of my things? Are you playing with me right now? Or are you just dying to piss me off?"
An unimaginable amount of mana weighed down on Orun's entire body.
It was a pressure akin to facing a dragon head-on.
This... I will definitely die.
Orun's voice grew urgent.
The sole thought of survival filled his mind.
"H-how much... do I need to compensate?"
"I believe 800 billion Coins should do it."
"Eight... eight hundred billion?!"
Orun's eyes nearly popped out of his head.
"My friend here only deals in extremely high-value treasures. Even this is a massive discount."
"W-where would I get that many Coins? No, even the Emperor would find it impossible to pay that kind of compensation!"
"Well, then there's only the second option."
Jinhyuk pulled out a sheet of paper infused with mana and placed it on the desk.
It was an employment application for Veteran Corporation.
"'We welcome your application for our open recruitment in the first half of this year. Our company, which prioritizes IT and Big Data...' W-what does all this mean? I can read the words, but I don't understand a single thing."
"It's nothing important. Just trivial details, so you don't need to read it closely. In fact, don't read it closely at all."
"O-oh, I see."
"There's a section for your signature and seal at the bottom. Yes, right there. Just write your name there, Master Orun."
"Wait...!"
Though he instinctively sensed something ominous...
Jinhyuk semi-forcibly obtained Orun's signature.
With this, the company had gained another reliable employee.
'Crafting was never my specialty to begin with.'
There was no reason to waste time and effort clinging to this when there was an expert available.
Provoking Orun had solely been to copy the dwarf's abilities and fuse them with his other skills.
It was never about doing the crafting himself.
'I should try more diverse fusions with the copied skills soon. Of course, I'll also need training to familiarize myself with them.'
If he fused 'Daylight' and 'Fire Dragon's Breath'...
He would be able to obtain an area-of-effect skill beyond imagination.
A skill with an effect similar to Goguma's Innate Holy Chant.
As he thought about his future tasks, the corners of Jinhyuk's mouth naturally curled upward.
It was always a joy to know that there were still plenty of opportunities left to grow even stronger.
But right then—
Dong—! Dong—! Dong—!
A long, resonant tolling of a bell shook the castle.
"Could this be..."
Orun immediately realized what the tolling meant.
And Jinhyuk, too, knew exactly what it signified.
The Bell of Pelomon.
A bell that rang only when the capital of the Empire was under attack,
nicknamed the 'Bell of the End'.
* * *
"Enemy attack! All forces, assemble on the castle walls!"
"Archers! Magic Corps, standby! We must concentrate our firepower all at once!"
"Imperial Guard, protect His Majesty and the royal family! Do not let them inside under any circumstances!"
Mid-level commanders frantically ordered their soldiers.
It was hard to believe that an enemy had reached the very heart of the Empire.
But even as they looked at the enemies drawing near, they couldn't deny reality.
Armored soldiers and various military units moved busily within the castle.
Clank!
Catapults were loaded with massive boulders. The knights drew their swords and moved to their designated strongholds within the castle.
With porters carrying various strategic supplies and livestock running amok, the interior of the castle was a scene of near-total chaos.
"A-an enemy here?"
"Who on earth managed to get all the way here?"
"Worry about that later, just get inside!"
"Mommy..."
Though anxious, the citizens began to evacuate further inland to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.
And...
Jinhyuk, standing atop the watchtower, watched the entire scene in silence.
"..."
When he first heard the bell, he had run through various possibilities.
The most likely culprit was the Murim, and the second was the Demonic Human Association, whom he had encountered not long ago.
Since both factions wouldn't hesitate to do anything to achieve their goals, he thought either was highly probable.
However, what was currently approaching at a rapid pace was neither the Murim nor the Demonic Human Association.
"This won't be easy either. We've been completely caught off guard."
Alice clicked her tongue.
She was absolutely right.
He hadn't expected them to make a move like this.
"I guess the best defense really is a good offense."
They were coming.
Jinhyuk gripped his newly acquired fang.