Genius Blacksmith's Game

Hyunsoo was thrilled at the words “two hundred million won.”

The amount named by the master of Golden Shield was simply the money they’d give him upon joining the guild.

Stay calm.

Even so, Hyunsoo quickly steadied himself and kept reading.

[If you join our Golden Shield guild, we’ll supply whatever materials you want.]

[In addition, since you’ve crafted a Rare artifact, our top blacksmiths in the guild will help you so you can craft the next grade up—Epic artifacts.]

[It’s true that Rare artifacts can be made fairly easily with the help of your class. But crafting Rare and crafting Epic are worlds apart—we can pass on the know-how.]

“Hm...”

Without realizing it, Hyunsoo’s hand stroked Radiance at his waist.

[We’ll await your reply.]

After reading all of Rune’s message, Hyunsoo opened the other messages.

[Hello? From the Sky-Forge guild... signing bonus is 50,000,000 won...]

[Greetings. Our Hanarum Blacksmiths guild would like to...]

[hey, do you take personal commissions?]

Most were similar.

What stood out was the sheer number of personal-item commission requests.

But after a brief hesitation, Hyunsoo shook his head.

Not yet. Not yet—I haven’t even changed class.

Hyunsoo didn’t think his value had been fully set yet.

He hadn’t even managed a class change, had he?

It wouldn’t be bad to decide after changing class and raising his level a bit.

Once I leave the Beginner Zone, I can change class, right?

For now, he politely declined, and soon an alert sounded that the auctioned item had sold.

[The 24-hour auction period has elapsed.]

[Hyun’s Second Bow has been sold for 2,450 Gold to Black Hammer Jack.]

“Khh...”

Roughly 2.5 million won!

He’d earned about 3.5 million won over the month.

Since that was about an ordinary person’s monthly salary, Hyunsoo smiled in satisfaction.

At last, I’m leaving the Beginner Zone.

At long last, after a month, he entered the Prime Kingdom.

[You have left the Beginner Zone.]

[Entering the Prime Kingdom.]

[You may change class.]

Head straight to the Blacksmith’s Tower.

Hyunsoo headed to the Blacksmith’s Tower for his class change.

****

“You were told to restore a Rare-grade bow, and you produced an Epic-grade bow?”

Special User Management Team.

Pureum Co., Ltd. CEO Lee Sejin rushed over as soon as he got a call from Team Leader Kim Taeseok.

On the monitor, the user Hyunsoo heading toward the Blacksmith’s Tower came into view.

“Now he just needs to clear two conditions?”

The first-ever Divine class in Ares.

User Hyunsoo had only two steps left to take on the path to becoming the God of Blacksmiths.

“Sir.”

At that moment, staffer Lee Jihee carefully spoke up.

“Can we know what the conditions in the Tower are?”

The method to become a Divine class is top-secret.

Only CEO Lee Sejin or the Ares executive tier knows.

Up to now, the reason Team Leader Kim Taeseok had told Lee Jihee anything was because she was the one monitoring user Hyunsoo at the time.

“We don’t know.”

“...Pardon?”

Lee Sejin’s words were somewhat shocking.

“We know what the final condition is, but in the Blacksmith’s Tower, there isn’t anything specifically set. If anything, calling it a ‘condition’ is vague—it’s to move Deng, the Tower Master of the Blacksmith’s Tower.”

“D–Deng? If it’s Deng...”

Lee Jihee knew of Deng.

Deng, Tower Master of the Blacksmith’s Tower.

Each kingdom and empire in Ares has a Blacksmith’s Tower.

Among those towers, the one in the Prime Kingdom—the one Hyunsoo was heading to—was the most famous.

The reason was precisely this NPC named Deng.

He held the same rank as other tower masters, but even they hailed him as a king among them, because he was that exceptional a blacksmith.

“Only the tower masters can guide you to the final condition; only they have received the oracle of the God of Blacksmiths, and only they can lead the worthy.”

“In a way, user Hyunsoo is unlucky. Of all places, he’s going to the tower managed by Deng.”

You could tell just by hearing it.

User Hyunsoo would have to accomplish something that could move Deng, the Tower Master of the Blacksmith’s Tower.

But as far as Lee Jihee knew, even when Smith, then #1 on the blacksmith rankings, visited the Blacksmith’s Tower for his class change, the tower master didn’t budge.

Then how high must Deng’s nose be?

Can anyone move a tower master like that...?

Before she knew it, Lee Jihee was watching Hyunsoo as he stepped into the Blacksmith’s Tower.

****

Han, the class-change NPC of the Blacksmith’s Tower, watched as the outsider Philip—who had completed a dagger—walked toward the Stone of Talent.

Soon Philip brought the dagger he made down hard onto the stone.

Clang!

In that instant, the dagger in Philip’s grip snapped in two.

Staring at his broken dagger, he asked with a flustered expression,

“How’s my talent?”

Han was both the NPC who performed class changes and the one who gauged outsiders’ talent.

At the man’s words, Han gave a wry smile.

“Average. Most of them break. I’ll process your class change.”

“Ah, I see. That’s a relief, at least.”

Even if the dagger broke ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) in two, that was average talent.

The way to gauge talent at the Blacksmith’s Tower wasn’t complicated.

Using a special forge called the Magic Forge, outsiders rely on a bit of system help to craft a dagger themselves.

Then they strike the stone to measure talent.

For most outsiders, when they strike the Stone of Talent, the dagger breaks clean in two.

But simply completing the dagger safely is itself a passing mark, so they change class.

However, Han knew the truth.

You’re making it with the help of mystic power to begin with—if you can’t even do that, you’re a fool.

Those who were ignorant of blacksmithing.

They make their first work in the Magic Forge under mystic power.

If it doesn’t break and even leaves a proper gouge, that’s remarkable.

Han looked over the nicks scattered across the Stone of Talent.

Those who left gouges mostly went on to become fairly well-known blacksmiths.

He glanced at the stone and gave a wry smile.

At the side of the stone was a deeply dented section.

Blacksmith Smith. Is there truly no one left who possesses talent like his?

Among outsiders, the only one who made it feel like he’d dug into the stone, not merely left a “gouge,” was Smith.

Stones of Talent exist throughout the Blacksmith’s Towers.

Moreover, the marks and dents on every Stone of Talent are shared among all towers.

Smith made that dent on a different tower’s stone, but you could see the same dent here.

Then Han looked at the very center of the stone and marveled.

“Khh...”

Deng, the Tower Master of the Blacksmith’s Tower—of blades.

The feat he left when he first came here.

A trace of a dagger that had driven in all the way to the center of the stone.

Literally a legend embodied.

Cut a stone with a dagger?

Ah, isn’t just hearing it awe-inspiring?

To craft a mere blade so that it could bite into stone like that.

Through this feat, Tower Master Deng caused a tremendous stir thirty years ago, and in the modern day he ultimately became the master of the most outstanding Blacksmith’s Tower.

Knock, knock—

Just as he was indulging in such reminiscence for the first time in a while, there was a knock from outside.

“The next outsider has arrived.”

“Send him in.”

An outsider entered.

He stood about 184 cm tall, with a solid build that felt like a blacksmith.

Just a feeling, surely.

Han knew.

Outsiders all sought mystic power, and most only became blacksmiths through that.

“Thank you for choosing to walk the path of the blacksmith. Your name?”

“Hyunsoo.”

“All right, I’ll explain from here.”

Han began to recite the spiel he repeated dozens of times a day like a parrot.

“Do you see the door back here?”

“Yes, I see it.”

“When you open that door, the Magic Forge will unfold. Inside, you can craft any dagger you wish. Additionally, you can use unlimited quantities of any materials suitable for your level.”

After wetting his throat with tea, Han continued.

“Also, you probably just thought, ‘How am I supposed to make a dagger?’ while listening to me.”

“...Mm.”

This outsider named Hyunsoo wore a meaningful smile.

Han tilted his head slightly.

Most outsiders truly were ignorant of blacksmithing, so not knowing was the norm.

There was no need to press for the meaning of that smile, so Han went on.

“If you attempt to craft a dagger inside, you’ll be guided by mystic power as to how to make it. Also, time flows differently inside the Magic Forge than outside.”

Han looked toward the Magic Forge in the back.

“Even if you spend all day crafting a dagger in there, only five minutes will have passed outside.”

Silently listening, the outsider named Hyunsoo wore a small smile.

“Nice. So that means in this Magic Forge there’s no craft limit, materials are supplied on demand, and only five minutes of real time pass, right?”

“Correct. And after you craft the dagger, there’s one last step.”

Han pointed to the Stone of Talent set to one side.

“With the dagger you made, strike that Stone of Talent. It’ll probably break, but don’t be too shocked—most do. And the crafted dagger will disappear after striking the stone, since it’s made by the temporary power of the Magic Forge.”

“What’s that deeply cut section in the middle?”

Han carefully explained the trace left by Tower Master Deng—whom he venerated—then launched into praise.

“Isn’t he truly incredible? To do something like that with a mere blade. Ah, and...”

As if remembering something, Han added,

“Master Deng once joked: if someone can do even what he did, he’ll give them the hammer he used back then. All right, you may enter now.”

Han opened the door to the Magic Forge.

Soon, the outsider named Hyunsoo stepped into the Magic Forge.

Creak—thud—

****

[You have entered the Magic Forge.]

Arms folded, Hyunsoo looked around the Magic Forge.

What the NPC named Han had explained was extremely interesting.

Especially one thing he said.

So if I can do as much as this tower master named Deng, I can get his hammer?

Thinking of the Stone of Talent, Hyunsoo smiled faintly.

This was the good part of the Magic Forge:

I can make any kind of dagger I want.

Any materials he wanted would be supplied without limit.

Hyunsoo slowly closed his eyes and pictured what dagger to make.

Then, opening them slowly, he broke into a wide grin.

The dagger that flashed across his mind.

For a moment, a conversation with his father passed through him.

Hyunsoo, would you believe it if I told you there’s a blade that cuts stone?

****

Deng, Tower Master of the Blacksmith’s Tower.

Arms folded, he was gazing at the Stone of Talent.

Clang!

TANG!

TA-AANG!

As always, a ruckus echoed—outsiders at each Blacksmith’s Tower were striking stone with daggers as they changed class.

The Stone of Talent Deng was watching was more special.

The stones linked to every class-change chamber made no sound.

But in Deng’s chamber, he could hear the sound from the Stone of Talent in real time.

Tiiiiing—

How many blades is that just today?

Deng gave a hollow laugh.

How many daggers, made in a day by lowly outsiders, had broken today?

It had to be in the hundreds.

That high, ringing ting.

Proof they hadn’t left so much as a gouge.

Pathetic outsiders...

Deng decided to tune it out.

Thirty years had passed.

In that time, no one had ever gouged that Stone of Talent as deeply as he had.

Deng turned to head to the forge to make artifacts.

Then—

Skaaaaaak—!

“...?”

Deng froze.

That unidentifiable sound.

Stiff as a board, he slowly turned his head.

Impossible... this can’t be happening...

That sound, that impact.

The sound of cutting stone?

Deng slowly turned—and saw it. The Stone of Talent that looked unchanged.

A moment later, that stone toppled to both sides, its cross-section cleanly severed.

Thooooom—!

Seeing that, Deng—who had been frozen—lunged down the tower in a rush.

Who is it? Who on earth is it!

He ran like mad, forgetting even to put on his shoes.