Genius Blacksmith's Game

The blacksmith’s duel with Colson.

The reason Hyunsoo accepted was because he thought it was possible.

Before agreeing to the proposal, he opened God’s Custom Crafting and checked it carefully.

God’s Custom Crafting, literally, lets the user craft in the direction they desire.

In exchange, he figured there would be conditions attached.

Those conditions would be material conditions.

One way for a user to craft an artifact they need is to use materials related to it.

Even if you use such materials, there’s no guarantee that effect will be embedded.

At any rate, in this blacksmith’s duel he could obtain the materials he wanted, and this idea came to him.

Could I also embed a skill that can split a sword?

Convinced such an idea might be possible, Hyunsoo accepted him.

And the moment he entered the forge, he tried to realize it.

[You begin God’s Custom Crafting.]

[You may perform custom crafting for someone, or for yourself.]

[Through custom crafting, you can embed desired effects, and depending on probability, the desired effect can manifest up to 100%.]

Embed a skill that can split a sword.

[Searching for a skill that can split a sword.]

[A skill that can split a sword is not easy to apply.]

[However, by lowering various things such as Attack and stat-boosting effects, you can instead raise that effect dramatically.]

Ah...

Hyunsoo understood easily. Even to him, a skill that splits a sword with a sword was an absurd notion.

At minimum, it meant he would have to give up other ancillary things to achieve it.

In the first place, what matters in this blacksmith’s duel is inflicting a high Damage Degree.

Right now is an exceptional situation.

He could go all-in.

[You attempt to embed a skill that can split a sword by giving up Attack, stat boosts, and multiple skill effects.]

Then, Hyunsoo suddenly muttered to himself.

“You’re insane...”

Seen this way, this custom crafting was a jaw-droppingly outrageous skill.

It’s creating a skill, isn’t it?

Of course, it would be an ability bound to an artifact. But to some extent, it meant skill creation was possible.

Just as he was feeling the sheer scale of the God’s Heir’s power, additional alerts came.

[To raise the desired effect, there are various factors such as your skill, insight, and luck.]

[By various factors, the effect can apply up to 100%.]

Hyunsoo spotted the trap in that phrasing. It could apply at 1%, or at 10%.

If he truly did well, it could apply at 100%.

[Materials for crafting the artifact will be suggested. Iron, Mithril, Orichalcum...]

Hyunsoo chose iron among them.

In this blacksmith’s duel, he could freely use various materials.

But there was no Mithril or Orichalcum.

From the start, Mithril and Orichalcum themselves were extremely valuable rare ores.

It’s iron, but it’s top-grade iron of very high quality.

Moreover, it was the material most familiar to Hyunsoo.

Hyunsoo began crafting the sword.

Then alerts sounded.

[You are proceeding with God’s Custom Crafting.]

[Within the maker’s knowledge, please apply a sword-crafting method to create a skill that can split a sword.]

[Accordingly, the effect’s application rate may change.]

The knowledge to create a skill that can split a sword, as I conceive it?

That meant Cutting Power must be raised exorbitantly. In exchange, he might have to give up hardness.

At that moment, Hyunsoo’s mind spun rapidly.

Taaang—!

Why I’m making this artifact.

He thought about it.

This artifact would not be Hyunsoo’s main weapon like Radiance.

Give up one thing, and maximize another.

Taaaang—!

Passing through forging, he ground the blade even further.

My knowledge maximizes the effect.

As taught, and according to his own experience.

[In applying a skill that can split a sword, your knowledge is exceptional.]

[Your experience is astonishing.]

[Your understanding is outstanding.]

[Effect application rate increases by 5%.]

[Effect application rate increases by 7%.]

Before he knew it, it was nearing completion.

The blade was far sharper, but regrettably the sword’s hardness itself was low.

However, in the present situation, it was the most “custom” artifact.

Ding!

[An artifact imbued with God’s Custom Crafting is completed.]

[The experience and knowledge of a blacksmith with at least artisan-grade skill have been poured in, and the effect application rate has become extraordinarily high.]

[Effect application rate is 65%.]

[It is Rare grade.]

[Please name the sword.]

[The God of Blacksmiths title shines.]

[Do you wish to apply all stat-boosting rates granted by crafting (maintainable once per week only)?]

“Yes.”

[You gain All Stats +1.]

[Beginner Sword Mastery Lv.1 proficiency increases by 19%.]

[You gain Dexterity +10.]

The sword’s name was “First Custom Craft.”

Partly for branding Hyun’s forge, but also to later check, step by step, how much he had grown.

Hyunsoo immediately checked the First Custom Craft sword.

(Hyun’s First Custom Craft Sword)

Grade: Rare

Durability: 1,000/1,000

Attack: 177

Restriction: None for maker, Level 200–350.

Specials:

· Active Skill: Sword-That-Cuts-Swords.

Description: A custom craft sword made for the sole purpose of cutting swords.

“...?”

Frankly speaking, it was underwhelming. So underwhelming that Hyunsoo furrowed his brows.

It is Rare grade, but...

Level restriction is 200–350.

As far as he knew, level 200 restrictions typically start at Attack 250.

But the Attack was cut nearly in half.

There wasn’t even the common Strength +1 or Endurance +1. Only one singular point stood out.

That the Sword-That-Cuts-Swords skill exists. Is this the risk of going all-in...?

He promptly checked Sword-That-Cuts-Swords.

(Sword-That-Cuts-Swords)

Active Skill

Mana Cost: None

Usable Charges: 20/20

Description: On activation, there is an 80% chance to cut a Common-grade sword, a 60% chance to cut a Rare-grade sword, a 25% chance to cut an Epic-grade sword, and a 10% chance to cut a Unique sword.

Holy... 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Hyunsoo was aghast. Even excluding other special abilities, it was broken.

With just this alone, this artifact is finished.

Where in the world would there be a sword that can cut an enemy’s sword?

Of course, this First Custom Craft is a consumable.

Once all 20 attempts are expended, it cannot be restored and will vanish.

However, by itself the rarity of this sword defied common sense.

The question was whether he could win this match.

At 10%, it’s not an easy chance.

Even assuming three clashes of the swords, luck had to be on his side.

At that moment—

Colson, too, looked to have finished, wearing a triumphant expression.

Hyunsoo took his First Custom Craft sword and faced him.

Colson again urged him to come under him, and when he refused, said:

“Stubborn, aren’t you. Even at a glance, the grades of the artifacts you and I made are worlds apart.”

“...”

Ordinarily, that was true.

In Ares, artifact grade is absolute.

Under identical conditions, identical skill, when everything else is the same—

One holding a Common-grade sword can never defeat one holding a Rare-grade sword.

And yet...

The class that makes it possible is the God-class...

And the duel began.

[Sword-That-Cuts-Swords.]

[Activation fails.]

He failed, and Colson’s Weapon Breaker that destroys swords succeeded.

The second time was the same.

[Sword-That-Cuts-Swords.]

[Activation fails.]

Cold sweat ran down Hyunsoo’s back.

Seeing Colson’s face full of arrogance, when he swung his sword the last time—

[Sword-That-Cuts-Swords.]

[Activation success!]

[You cut the enemy’s sword!]

A pure white light gathered on his sword.

The slicing sound as the two swords met.

Skaaaak—!

His sword was, quite literally, cut.

Staring at his fallen blade, Colson’s pupils shook violently.

He couldn’t believe it.

He couldn’t understand it.

And Hyunsoo mulled over it—what he had said: “The grades of the artifacts you and I made are worlds apart.”

It was true.

He, too, had been trapped by that fixed idea. But just now, God’s Custom Crafting shattered it.

He didn’t know why.

He could only say it because he felt he, too, had realized something new.

“A sword isn’t decided by grade alone.”

Just then—

An incomprehensible alert flashed.

[God of Blacksmiths.]

[When you accomplish an astonishing feat as a blacksmith, others may respect you more or gain enlightenment.]

It was the effect attached to the title.

Someone might come to respect him, or gain enlightenment.

And Colson simply watched the back of Hyunsoo as he turned.

Slowly bending his knee, he picked up his own sword, Black Night, which had been completely cut.

A sword cleanly cut.

What he had said:

“A sword isn’t decided by grade alone.”

Suddenly, an unknown emotion welled up.

Staring at Hyunsoo’s back, Colson bit his lip.

In childhood—

Colson harbored a dream from his father’s words, a small-town blacksmith.

“Someday, the God of Blacksmiths will come to this land.”

The stories his father told about the God of Blacksmiths were enough to shake young Colson’s heart.

“He will break our common sense, bring new teachings to the blacksmiths of this land, and lead us.”

Listening, his eyes shone, and his father set a hand on his shoulder.

“And that opportunity was given to everyone.”

A story that a human might become God.

The boy Colson, full of dreams, came to yearn for a god.

He wanted to ascend to that place.

When he came to the Blacksmith’s Tower—

Ah, I’m a genius, he realized.

Then one day, an unprecedented genius named Deng appeared.

And from some day on, that dream grew faint.

He loved money.

He loved power.

But the outsider ahead of him, named Hyunsoo, broke his common sense and forced his way in.

Staring at that back, he asked:

“...Could I, as well.”

At some point, Hyunsoo was looking at Colson.

“Could I make such a weapon?”

“...”

Hyunsoo did not answer for a long time. But he knew the power this virtual world called Ares possessed.

“Someday.”

That impossibility does not exist.

[Through you, Colson realizes that he too might be able to go further.]

[Perhaps, in the future, he may become a blacksmith of an even higher realm.]

[You gain Dexterity +20.]

Colson’s chest burned hot. The forgotten dream and his father’s words revived.

He is the one who will break our common sense.

The one who will lead all the Blacksmiths’ Towers.

At last, it is realized.

Colson went down on one knee.

“Colson, Tower Master of the Blacksmith’s Tower of the Bow. I greet the God of Blacksmiths!”

But Colson knew he was still one who had far to go.

There was only one thing he could do. To be of some small help to the man’s steps.

“Please accept this.”

[Quest: You have completed the blacksmith’s duel with an astonishing achievement.]

[You have obtained “The Legendary Bow Crafting Method,” one of the ten treasures of the Blacksmith’s Tower.]

A legendary bow...?

Hyunsoo’s pupils trembled. Legendary artifacts—fewer than a hundred had even been released into Ares.

Moreover, Hyunsoo remembered perfectly the recent auction price of a ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ legendary artifact.

₩800,000,000...!

A thrill seized Hyunsoo.