The Heat of the Iron River
Clang! Clang, clang!
The noisy racket invaded my ears first thing in the morning.
Along with it, a familiar, scorching heat brushed fiercely against the tip of my nose.
It was hot. I felt it every time I came here, but it really was incredibly hot.
Feeling the heat that threatened to drench me in sweat at any moment, I stepped inside.
Clang! Clang!
I grimaced at the harsh metallic ring. I still wasn't used to that piercing sound.
The Cheolgang.
The main source of the Dang Clan's income and the place that elevated their reputation to its peak.
It boasted a legendary status, so much so that it was said the majority of the Central Plains' famous swords were born here.
I had already been here a few times, but the heat was still fierce.
The heat is one thing, but...
Clang! Clang!
The ringing sound kept vibrating deep inside my chest.
A sound that struck the soul. It was a soul-stirring sensation created only by masters of the craft.
Tsk.
It wasn't easy to gather so many master smiths in one place. It truly lived up to its name as the gathering ground for the greatest blacksmiths in the Central Plains.
It had been fascinating the first time I came, but it was even more so now.
And.
"You've arrived."
The old man standing before me was someone who had reached the absolute peak, even among these master smiths.
"Greetings, Chief Cheolgangju."
"...Greetings, Chief Cheolgangju."
Dang Ye-ran and I bowed to the old man.
The old man grinned.
"I heard you went through quite an ordeal and your body isn't fully recovered. Is it alright for you to be walking around like this?"
"...I'm fine. I wasn't hurt that badly."
"Is that so? Ah, the youth really is something else!"
He laughed boisterously and slapped my shoulder hard.
The impact rattled my bones, and I almost let out a scream.
"C-Chief. Young Master is still recovering."
Dang Ye-ran quickly stepped in to stop him. Cheolgangju turned his gaze to her.
He wasn't the only one looking.
From the moment Dang Ye-ran appeared, I could feel the blacksmiths in the Cheolgang stealing glances at us.
I had noticed it last time too, but their eyes were filled with a deeply uncomfortable mix of emotions.
It was so awkward that it was hard to even put into words.
"I heard from the Family Head. You want to repair the sword using dark iron?"
"...That is correct."
"Repairing a dark iron sword... If it's the Family Head's order, I could have done it myself."
Cheolgangju looked at me, his eyes asking why on earth I was leaving it to Dang Ye-ran.
"Don't you have your own task to attend to, Chief?"
It was none other than the repair of Man-wol.
Previously, it had only been barely restored, but now it had returned to Cheolgangju's hands to undergo a proper repair.
"That is true, but if it is urgent, I could prioritize this one first."
"..."
At those words, I glanced back at Dok-jon. Wouldn't it actually be better to let him do it? I looked at him with that question in my eyes, but...
Dok-jon's attitude remained resolute.
"...No, it is fine. I have already made up my mind to entrust this task to Lady Dang."
"Hmm..."
I want to entrust it to you too, you know.
But what could I do when the client—or rather, the ghost behind the client—refused?
At my words, Cheolgangju narrowed his eyes and stared at Dang Ye-ran.
I saw Dang Ye-ran flinch under his gaze.
Was he going to say something? The surrounding atmosphere and his clear disapproval made me a bit uneasy.
As I watched them with concern, wondering if he was going to scold her, he spoke.
"The dark iron is ready. The forge will be the issue, so you had better use my room."
"...!"
Dang Ye-ran's eyes widened at Cheolgangju's words.
The reaction from the surrounding blacksmiths was even more intense.
"...Chief. What do you mean by that?"
"Allowing her to use your forge?"
"That is—!"
"Silence."
As Cheolgangju growled, the surroundings fell silent in an instant.
He had suppressed the murmuring crowd with a single word.
His presence is no joke.
He didn't seem to be using internal energy, yet he overwhelmed them purely with his aura.
"How many forges in the Cheolgang can melt dark iron? And how many of those are actually available right now?"
"But... to use that forge..."
"What? One must be at least a candidate for the next Chief? It's because you hold onto such outdated notions that you can't forge a proper sword."
He clicked his tongue and chuckled.
Cheolgangju laughed as he spoke.
"Did the previous Chief not say the same? Stop wasting time on useless formalities and just focus on making proper swords."
Floating in the air, Dok-jon smirked at those words.
The previous Chief of the Cheolgang. That was none other than Dok-jon himself.
"...Even so, we cannot simply ignore tradition. Especially..."
One of the blacksmiths said, glancing at Dang Ye-ran.
"...I do not believe it is appropriate for someone who is not yet ready to use it."
Someone who is not yet ready.
At those words, Dang Ye-ran hunched her shoulders. I observed her reaction and pieced the situation together.
She's treated pretty terribly here.
I had been sensing it all along, but the way they treated Dang Ye-ran was exceptionally poor.
If a direct descendant of the main family was treated like this, there had to be a problem.
Hmm.
I watched them out of the corner of my eye. In any case, it wasn't my place to point it out or intervene.
"That is true."
Cheolgangju nodded at the blacksmith's words.
"Which is why I am going to give her a chance."
"A chance?"
"I will allow her to use the forge, but this will be her last chance."
Cheolgangju stared at Dang Ye-ran with sharp eyes.
"If she fails to do it properly this time, Lady Dang will be banned from entering the Cheolgang ever again."
"...!"
Dang Ye-ran gasped in surprise and snapped her head up.
"Chief..."
"If you accept, I will let you use the forge."
Cheolgangju's voice did not waver. He was absolutely firm, showing no intention of backing down.
Uh, this wasn't good.
"Chief. Forgive me for speaking out, but I believe the Family Head has already granted permission for this."
From what I could gather, using dark iron required a different forge.
And to use that forge, they needed Cheolgangju's permission.
If Dang Ye-ran messed up here...
She'll be completely ruined.
I had to prevent that. I tried to steer the situation somehow, but...
"So, regarding this matter—"
"No matter what the Family Head said, the Cheolgang is the domain of the blacksmiths."
Cheolgangju cut me off, his eyes flashing with intensity.
"I can tolerate some things out of respect for his word, but this is crossing the line. Is it not, Lady Dang?"
"..."
Dang Ye-ran bit her lip.
"Choose. Will you step forward, or will you step back?"
Cheolgangju demanded an answer.
I frowned as I watched them.
What a mess.
What did metallurgy mean to Dang Ye-ran?
I didn't know.
To be honest, I didn't care what her life had been like either.
I was too busy trying to survive myself; what did someone else's goals or beliefs matter to me?
Only...
She is desperate.
I knew she harbored a deep, desperate yearning for this craft.
Why she hid such immense talent.
Why she was so terrified of blood.
I didn't know, and I didn't want to know.
But I recognized her desperation.
Because without that desperation, it makes no sense.
Pouring one's soul into an action...
...was not something that could be achieved by talent alone.
Because she wished and wished for it.
Because she wanted it so desperately.
Only with such desperation would the soul respond.
The talent that filled it was a secondary matter.
If so...
What about the sound Dang Ye-ran had produced?
How much of her soul had been infused into it? My memory was uselessly good, so it was still vivid.
That sound...
...was a sound that could never be achieved without absolute desperation.
Knowing that...
"What kind of absolute nonsense are you—"
Before I knew it, I was about to snap at Cheolgangju, but...
"I will do it."
Dang Ye-ran cut me off and took a step forward.
"...I will do it."
"..."
"Please let me do it."
"Ha."
Cheolgangju let out a dry laugh at her words.
"Do you know that you are only able to set foot in the Cheolgang because of my generosity? I had to insist on it even when the Family Head tried to stop it."
"...Yes. I know it well. I am always grateful, and I will be grateful for the rest of my life."
"You know that, yet you still insist on doing this? Blacksmiths who can handle dark iron can be counted on one hand, even in the Cheolgang. That is how difficult it is."
"I know that too. I am very afraid."
"At most, you have only held a few pieces of ordinary iron. You have probably never even touched dark iron before, have you?"
"Yes. But I still want to try."
"Hmm."
Dang Ye-ran's voice trembled at first, but it grew clearer and steadier with every word she spoke.
Cheolgangju stared at her for a moment, then...
"Ha!"
...his anger vanished, replaced by a boisterous laugh.
"Go on in."
Permission was granted.
"The condition remains the same."
"Yes."
Dang Ye-ran walked past Cheolgangju and headed forward.
I watched her for a moment, then followed behind her small back.
"Tsk..."
As I passed Cheolgangju, I heard him click his tongue quietly.
I wondered if it was out of annoyance.
But I could tell that it was actually filled with worry and pity.
Because the expression on his face right now...
...was identical to the face Dok-jon made whenever he looked at Dang Ye-ran.
Whoosh!
The moment we entered the room, a wave of heat incomparable to before rushed over us.
It was enough to take my breath away.
Sweat had already beaded on my forehead, and a drop rolled down my cheek.
...I'm going to die here.
How could it be this hot?
It defied imagination.
...So this is the space Cheolgangju uses.
To think he forged weapons while enduring this kind of heat.
I felt a sudden wave of respect for the Chief.
"...So this is..."
Meanwhile, Dang Ye-ran strode forward to examine something.
It was clearly a forge.
However, its shape looked slightly different from the forges we had passed earlier.
For starters...
It's absolutely massive.
The sheer size of the forge was overwhelming.
As I stared at it, wondering why it was so different, Dang Ye-ran began to explain, as if reading my mind.
"This forge burns much hotter than the others."
"Ordinary iron can be worked in a normal forge... but special minerals like dark iron cannot be melted in one."
"So that's why you use this?"
"Yes. And..."
Dang Ye-ran picked up something lying nearby. It looked like ordinary charcoal, but...
"This is called Holy Spirit Charcoal. It's charcoal made from the Holy Spirit Trees that only grow in the far northern Gyewon Mountain Range."
"...Is it different?"
"Yes. Using this allows us to raise the heat much higher."
Holy Spirit Tree? It was a name I had never heard before.
...It certainly is different.
I could see why they called it a Holy Spirit Tree.
I can see the trace of a soul.
Even though it had been turned into charcoal, I could feel a faint spiritual energy lingering around it. Did she say the Gyewon Mountain Range? What kind of place was it to have such a divine tree?
Though it's a bit too weak to be called a true divine tree.
Still, the fact that a soul was infused in it meant it was indeed a sacred tree.
Perhaps an immortal resided there. Divine trees could only exist in the presence of immortals.
Remembering that, I engraved the name of the Gyewon Mountain Range into my mind.
I must never go anywhere near there.
I had to make sure I never accidentally visited.
In my past life, those so-called immortals had taken a particular dislike to me, and this life probably wouldn't be any different. I had to be careful.
Anyway.
Holding the Holy Spirit Charcoal, Dang Ye-ran approached the forge and began placing the pieces inside.
Before long...
Fwooooosh!
The fire caught the charcoal, and intense heat began to build up within the forge.
I watched the flames rise and spoke to her.
"...Are you really going to do this?"
Dang Ye-ran smiled at my question.
"You asked me to, didn't you?"
"I did ask, but you really don't have to push yourself."
I only asked because of Dok-jon's request, but it was clear that working with dark iron was no easy feat.
Besides, if she failed, she would be banned from the Cheolgang forever.
I didn't like the fact that Dang Ye-ran had to shoulder all the risk.
At my words, Dang Ye-ran stared at me intently.
"You said it yourself, Young Master. That you believe in me."
I scratched the back of my neck awkwardly.
"Well, that was..."
I hadn't meant it in this context, and honestly, it had been a lie.
"Then please, believe in me just a little longer..."
Whatever she saw in my reaction, Dang Ye-ran's smile was much brighter than before.
"And if worst comes to worst, I just won't enter the Cheolgang anymore."
"Pardon?"
"I can just find another smithy. It's not like the Cheolgang is the only forge in the world."
"...Haha."
A dry laugh escaped me at her bold declaration.
I wondered how she could be so confident, but...
...No. She isn't confident.
I couldn't miss the anxiety hidden deep in her eyes.
So I simply smiled.
"Alright. I'll believe in you."
I was just doing what I was told.
Maintaining my usual narrow-minded attitude...
...I decided to keep pretending to believe in her, just like before.
That was the best I could do.