NPC's Metallurgy 1

"Since you said this is your first time with metallurgy, let's start by making a sword out of A-rank silver ore. Then we'll move on to S-rank, SS-rank, and once you're used to forging, we'll go to shields and armor in that order."

According to Kim Seok-jung, swords were the easiest to make among them. Shields and armor required increasingly advanced forging skills, and since that part was heavily influenced by dexterity, he said it couldn't be overcome in just a day or two.

For me, who hadn't paid much attention to the dexterity stat for a while, it was a bit worrying that mine was only at 294.

Is it going to hit a snag in this unexpected place? Looks like I'll have no choice but to hammer away like mad for the next few days. But how will the NPC effects play out?

Ahead of the main work, worries and curiosity about the NPC effects bubbled up. Thanks to the Oath of Covenant, there was no risk of it leaking outside, but I hoped the effects would manifest at a level Kim Seok-jung could reasonably understand and brush off as I dove into the real work.

"We'll start with melting the ore."

I piled the ore high into a rectangular frame with a long handle and shoved it into the furnace where the SS-rank magic firewood was blazing. Maybe because it was SS-rank firewood with A-rank ore, the ore melted down fast.

"Add more ore."

Following Kim Seok-jung's instructions, I pulled out the frame, added more A-rank ore, and shoved it back into the furnace. Again, the A-rank ore melted quickly.

"That's enough. Next up is quenching after smelting. Pull the frame and dunk it in the cooling water to let it cool fully."

Sizzle.

As the frame hit the cooling water, steam rose and the molten metal cooled rapidly.

"Now take the metal out of the frame and set it on the anvil."

I placed the frame from the cooling water on the anvil, flipped it over, and gave it a light tap. A long, glowing red metal ingot slid out.

"This size ingot is what blacksmiths typically use for a longsword. The amount of ore varies by equipment, and even for the same gear, it depends on the blacksmith's forging skill."

Kim Seok-jung told me to use the standard ingot size for now since it was my first time, and increase the ore amount as my skills improved. He also prepared about a dozen frames in shapes suited ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to the standard ingots for each type of gear.

"Now I'll show you how to make a longsword."

Kim Seok-jung said, gripping a hammer in one hand and tongs in the other.

"The basics of hammering are listening to the metal's sound."

"Pardon? Like some enlightenment moment from novels or comics? 'Listen to the voice of the metal' or something?"

Up until then, I'd been listening quietly, but his sudden out-of-left-field comment left me flustered, and I blurted out something ridiculous even to my own ears.

And then I saw it. Kim Seok-jung's face screaming, 'What the fresh hell is this lunatic?'

"Does metal have a mouth? What voice?"

If I could turn back time, I'd go back exactly five seconds—no more, no less.

My face burned as Kim Seok-jung continued his explanation.

"Gear performance comes from the uniformity of the mana, and the easiest way to check that is by sound."

Damn. If there was a hole to crawl into, I'd have dived right in.

"Besides sound, you can feel it through the rebound when striking with the hammer, or sense it with mana detection—blacksmiths each have their own way—but the simplest is this sound method. Alright, now for the real hammering demo."

Kim Seok-jung clamped the end of the ingot with the tongs and brought the hammer down lightly.

Clang.

Even the light strike rang out with a sharp high note that echoed through the smithy. With that first hammer blow, his sword-making began in earnest.

* * *

Impressive.

I couldn't help but admire Kim Seok-jung's hammering, focusing intently to miss nothing.

He rotated the tong-held ingot while striking, like he was playing an instrument. At first, it was the sharp clash of metal on metal, but at some point, the sound changed.

I started to grasp what he'd meant by reading the metal's sound. Initially, each strike on the ingot produced slightly different noises, but now they were growing similar, and as the sword's shape took form, the sounds became identical.

Throughout, Kim Seok-jung kept explaining.

"Just in case, but don't worry much about folding. Some blacksmiths who learned wrong think folding like in the old days boosts performance, but it's all nonsense—ignore it."

The reason for folding in the past was clear. It created countless thin layers, making swords springy and strong like springs, so famed blades underwent hundreds of folds, and more folds meant better skill.

But now, things were different. Materials were different, and performance depended on mana uniformity. Even mana distribution strengthened the metal, making folding nearly meaningless. A blacksmith's skill was all about spreading mana evenly. He said extra forging for strength was pointless time-wasting with negligible effect.

With explanations and work intertwined, Kim Seok-jung finally set down his hammer.

"This finishes stage one. Next, sharpen the blade and apply a mana coating to protect it."

The sword was complete in under twenty minutes. True masters made the impossible look effortless, and that was Kim Seok-jung to a tee. Anyone watching would think sword-making was a breeze.

"Your turn now. I'll advise as needed, so make one with A-rank ore."

I remade an ingot, set it on the anvil, and picked up tongs and hammer. That's when the long-awaited alert appeared.

The all-purpose tool can split into two? But is that all?

This was different from leatherworking, and I wasn't sure how to take it. Good that Kim Seok-jung didn't notice, or bad that I'd have to do the work myself? Hard to say.

Wait, come to think of it, the tasks keep piling up?

With potions, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠learn herbs once and buy with mana forever. Leather required ongoing butchering and tanning, but the tool handled the rest. Magic patterns needed full drawing despite Copy Drawing, though White Ink allowed fixes. And metallurgy? Straight-up manual labor.

No choice but to make it. First, switch to hammer and tongs.

I set down the regular hammer and tongs, summoning the NPC's all-purpose tool as blacksmith hammer and tongs.

"Personal gear? Nice. A true blacksmith needs tools fitted to his hands."

He took the sudden appearance as summoning magic, showing no surprise—in fact, satisfaction at my "personal" gear.

I refocused on the ingot, clamping one end with the tongs. That's when the tongs' effect kicked in, making me think Residual Mana Detection was the real cheat skill.

The ingot's mana felt vividly different from monster hides or mana stones. Mana filled the ingot's frame but clumped and solidified unevenly.

So that's it.

Now I understood mana uniformity.

Alright, let's shape it like that sword from earlier.

I activated Blacksmith's Blueprint, picturing Kim Seok-jung's sword. A hologram bloomed around the ingot, forming the sword's shape—similar to Copy Drawing for magic patterns, but 3D instead of flat.

Time to get serious.

No doubts about performance with NPC gear. Learning ancient metallurgy over modern was turning into a godsend. I felt grateful to Lee Musin.

Wait, before that—the tongs can infuse mana?

Kim Seok-jung hadn't mentioned it, but no useless description would exist, so I infused a bit via the tongs. My mana circled the ingot's surface without penetrating the solid clumps, but I kept at it steadily.

Recalling Kim Seok-jung's swings, I gripped the hammer lightly and struck.

Clang.

The hammer's impact echoed through the smithy. The struck spot glowed red-hot, the mana clump there receding slightly, the outer edge resolidifying. My infused mana rushed into the gap, halting solidification. The mana's nature shifted subtly—like tanning in leatherwork.

Yes. That's how it works.

I now knew exactly how to forge a proper sword. No more hesitation. Deep down, anxiety had lingered at doing everything manually, but it vanished, replaced by calm and excitement for my creation.

Wonder what it'll turn out like. Let's do this right.

I hammered in earnest.

Clang. Clang.

With each strike, the ingot reshaped, and internal mana clumps softened. I seized the moments, slamming in my mana to prevent resolidification.

As converted sections grew, the sword took form. Finally, all original mana was replaced. A few more strikes yielded no change—I knew it was done.

Plus, I'd been so focused on mana I'd overlooked something crucial.

"Hm. This a sword? ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠You weren't aiming for a club, were you?"

The hologram wasn't foolproof. Magic patterns let me trace, but here I had to hammer ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the shape—tough with my low dexterity and zero experience. My "sword" ended up a club in sword clothing. My face burned again.

"Mana sensing's great, but dexterity's lacking. Uniformity matters, but this is overkill."

No denying it looked like a club; no excuses.

"No way you can tackle armor like this. Dexterity stat's obviously low too."

"S-sorry."

"It's fine. Effort can overcome this. Check how the mana differs between your sword and mine."

To answer my lingering curiosity, I reached for Kim Seok-jung's sword. Mine's mana had transformed via NPC effects—surely better—but I wanted to compare.

To be continued in the next chapter...