The First Commission

Day 1... The first day. It had definitely been completely blank before.

Wait.

I turned my head and saw the Suppressor hanging next to the entrance. Had I been unable to see the text in the Secondhand Bookstore because I was wearing the Suppressor? And now, the writing was reacting because my spiritual energy was reaching it.

I turned to the next page. There was writing there too. It was clearly packed with Hanja, but for some reason, the meaning flowed into my head as smoothly as if I were reading Korean.

"It really is... a diary."

It was literally an apprentice's diary. It detailed how someone from the distant past had entered a blacksmith workshop and begun learning the trade under a master. The first few entries were mostly about blacksmithing.

I read on, turning the pages. The early entries consisted of basic blacksmithing tips and how to handle minerals. Even if it was just in a game, I was someone who had spent ten years sweating in front of a forge.

Honestly, I prided myself on knowing the basics inside out. Yet, even after reading just a little, I could tell at once that the master in these writings possessed incredible expertise. The depth and insight of the teachings he casually tossed out were extraordinary.

This is...

As if possessed, my hands moved faster and faster, flipping through the pages. I quickly bypassed about twenty pages filled with basic blacksmithing techniques. Much of it aligned with the sensations I had developed in the game, so I had no trouble understanding it. The knowledge I already possessed was recorded up to around the twentieth day.

And then, as I kept turning the pages...

"This is it."

My eyes went wide. Written there were the basics of sorcery. It seemed the master had explained and taught sorcery step-by-step, from the very beginning, to a disciple who knew absolutely nothing. And the author, who had written it down, had also recorded his own understanding and realizations that came to mind as he listened.

"Ah... so that's what it meant."

The master's teachings and the disciple's faltering realizations as he followed along were laid out side-by-side on a single page. Thanks to this, even though I was just reading along, the concepts clicked perfectly in my mind, as if the two of them were standing right beside me, explaining it themselves.

Well, well, well.

The corners of my mouth curled upward. The basic theories of sorcery—which I couldn't fully grasp no matter how much I flipped through those multi-million-won textbooks earlier—were written on these pages in an incredibly intuitive and easy-to-understand manner.

I quickly turned the page.

And from then on, the methods of integrating sorcery with blacksmithing began to appear.

It was then.

Shhh—

The ink on the page I had just opened began to slowly ripple.

"Huh...?"

I rubbed my eyes. I wasn't seeing things. The characters on the paper blurred and dissolved, only to reform clearly.

Into different words.

What the? The page had changed on its own. I was clearly reading Day 21, but it had jumped to Day 32. I tried to flip the page back with my fingers, but it wouldn't budge. The paper was clearly soft, yet it felt as if someone was pressing down firmly on the page from the other side.

"..."

Read. It felt as if someone was telling me to do just that.

I lowered my gaze back to the page.

An empty shell if you cannot fill it with intent.

My hand froze.

An empty shell.

...That was exactly what my talisman had just been.

If the spiritual energy goes first, it scatters.

...So that was why.

I had simply copied the diagram and blindly poured in spiritual energy. I had never once engraved the intent of what I wanted to accomplish with this talisman into my heart.

The talisman I was making right now was a success talisman.

A face came to mind.

Lee Yujin.

My one and only younger sister, who had an exam coming up soon.

I picked up the fine brush again. Unrolling a fresh sheet of Yellow Talisman Paper, I closed my eyes this time before putting brush to paper.

This is a success talisman.

Yujin's exam.

I know how hard she's worked, staying up all night in that cramped study room.

Please, don't let her make mistakes and fail. Let her solve everything she knows, and guess the rest without regrets.

I firmly established that earnest desire in the center of my chest. Then, carrying that desire, I slowly channeled my spiritual energy and let it flow to the tip of the brush.

Slide—

I drew a circle.

Filled in the patterns.

And placed the Hanja in the center.

The moment the brush tip left the paper...

Vroooom—!

It was incomparable to the faint vibration from earlier. My spiritual energy was sucked into the center of the talisman, settling neatly within the circle traced by the red lines, where it began to circulate in a calm, steady hum.

The energy didn't leak out. It was perfectly contained, radiating its inherent light.

“……Hah.”

A chuckle escaped my lips. I looked down at the diary in my hands again. I had only read about thirty pages.

And yet...

The basics of sorcery, which had remained vague and disorganized no matter how much I flipped through those expensive textbooks, had entered my mind in their entirety. Even the practical principles that had blocked my progress were instantly cleared by those few short lines.

And above all...

What just happened... the book had definitely turned the pages on its own.

The book had recognized where I was stuck and opened to the right page for me.

But this wouldn't be the end of it. There was still a vast amount of the diary left.

What other secrets were written further in?

...And what page would it show me next?

I couldn't even begin to imagine.

I set the brush down and caressed the diary on the desk once more.

Apprentice's Diary.

I couldn't stop smiling. A cursed object? No one who owned it ever met a good end? Well, we'll see about that.

"……It seems."

It seems I've hit the jackpot with this book.

Clang...!

Clang...!

Clang...!

The cheerful ring of metal filled the basement workshop. Crimson flames were already dancing in the forge. Placing the heated iron on the anvil, I continued hammering in a rhythmic cadence.

I was currently adjusting my hands to the real-world tools. It was a sort of calibration process to perfectly synchronize the sensations from the game with my physical body in reality.

Clang! Clang! Claaang!

The recoil traveling up my wrist. The grain of the stretching iron. Even the angle of the flying sparks. Every single detail aligned flawlessly with the movements I envisioned in my head.

It was the first time I had properly held a hammer since my first visit to the old man's blacksmith shop. How long had it been since I last felt this sensation? It felt as if everything had finally returned to its proper place. I felt truly alive. A thrill coursed gently through my veins.

Hiss—!

As I plunged the heated iron into the quenching tub, white steam billowed up with a refreshing hiss.

“Phew.”

I pulled off my gloves, slumped into the chair in front of the workbench, and wiped the sweat from my forehead.

It was then.

"I’m back~!"

Creeeak, clack. Along with the sound of the heavy iron door opening, Seo Jian walked in, her voice bright and energetic. A pleasant smile was plastered across her face.

“I’ve returned~”

She was even humming, clearly in a great mood. Glancing at the cooling piece of iron on the workbench, she asked,

“Oh my, what were you doing? The workshop is sweltering.”

"Ah, just getting used to the equipment—"

I replied, wiping the back of my neck with a towel. "I was messing around with a few things. Did everything go well on your end?"

“Hehe~”

At my question, Seo Jian gave me a playful, eye-curving ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠smile. She then pulled an elegant jade plaque from her bag and set it down on the table with a soft clack.

“Ta-da! Take a look.”

Engraved on the surface of the jade plaque was a cloud pattern alongside two characters: [Tianshan].

“As of today, Dohyun, you have become a mysterious artisan belonging to the Cheonsan Sect, a major player in the Chinese sorcery world! How is it? Convincing, right?”

She had already sorted out my identity? I had barely been away from the workshop for a few days.

“You’re really fast at getting things done.”

“I told you I’m a veteran in this field. Ahem.”

Jian proudly placed her hands on her hips and shrugged her shoulders.

“That’s not all~!”

This time, she pulled out a state-of-the-art tablet PC. After tapping the screen a few times, she slid it over to me.

“Now, since the identity laundering is finished, we should get into the real work. I’ve gone ahead and compiled only the most lucrative requests for you, Dohyun!”

A construction company... a politician...

...Every single one of these prices is insane.

I had seen on the news that chaebols and politicians were obsessed with superstitions, but the scale of this industry was beyond belief. No matter how much I scrolled down with my finger, the list of commissions kept going.

“Have this many requests piled up in that short time?”

“Ah…! Well, that’s because there were already a lot of them piled up to begin with.”

Seo Jian explained, her eyes sparkling.

“The real artisans who know how to engrave spell circuits are all held tightly by the four great families, you know? They only cherry-pick work for their own families or requests that are extremely expensive and easy. It’s a kind of collusion, collusion.”

To summarize her explanation: because the great families controlled all the craftsmen capable of engraving circuits, they only accepted expensive and easy jobs. On top of that, despite their exorbitant fees, most of them lacked the actual skill to back it up.

In other words, it was a market where money was overflowing, but because there was no one to actually make the items, commissions just kept piling up.

...So the supply is bottlenecked.

I scrolled down, skimming through various commissions.

[Politician] ...

[Construction]

[Advertising]

My gaze stopped on one section.

[Food Service] ...

[Custom Crafting Commission]

“Hold on a second.”

“Yes? Did you find something you like?”

I pointed to a line on the screen.

“Do requests like this even come in?”

“Ah, that is…….”

Jian looked slightly embarrassed.

“We have a VIP client who is a big shot in the hotel industry. Since they are making it as a gift for their head chef, the pay is quite decent for a general request. But because it’s not a sorcery-related request, the unit price is a bit lower. That’s why I tucked it toward the back.”

Even if the price was lower...

Five million won for a single knife. No matter how I looked at it, that was already more than enough.

Stakes to suppress water veins, protective charms... sure, I could probably do them if I tried. But since this was my first commission, and my understanding of sorcery was still shallow, I wasn't confident I could pull off something so grand perfectly on the first try.

As expected, the first commission should start with something easy. Besides, I happened to have something I wanted to test out.

“You could look around a bit more before you decide…….”

“I’ve decided. I’ll go with this for my first request.”

At my words, Jian blinked in surprise. Then, she seemed to fall deep into thought.

...I guess as a broker, she'd prefer if I chose a higher-paying one?

It seemed she found it a bit of a shame that I was passing up commissions worth tens of millions of won to choose a five-million-won knife.

Just as I was thinking that, Jian's lips curled up into a meaningful smile.

“……Aha. I see, so that’s how it is.”

What was she talking about now?

“I think I understand, Dohyun. You don’t have to go out of your way to explain. I’m someone who knows enough about this business, after all.”

Her eyes sparkled.

“I knew people like you, Dohyun, wouldn’t be the type to be moved by money! That… artisan spirit of pouring your soul into a single blade!”

She closed her eyes and nodded repeatedly, entirely convinced of her own theory.

“A blade is definitely the right choice for a debut work. Before officially debuting in the sorcery world, you’re aiming to first establish your reputation properly with a blade, which is the foundation of a blacksmith, right!”

She had clearly misunderstood something, and in a big way.

But there ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was no need for me to go out of my way to explain that I was just intimidated by the sorcery aspect.

I cleared my throat lightly and gave a vague response.

“Ahem, well. The foundation is the most important thing, after all.”

“Awesome! Then I’ll contact Lavien right away and set up a meeting!”

Seo Jian hummed as she pulled out her phone.

Making a knife was something I could do with my eyes closed. That wasn't the issue.

—Characters and patterns are merely casings to hold spiritual energy. In the end, it only gains true efficacy when it meets the powerful intent of the one who crafts and wields it.

That single line from the apprentice's diary had been lingering in my mind for a while now.

If there was no fixed form for harboring intent...

Then...

The corners of my mouth crept upward.

I happened to have something I wanted to test out with this commission.