Genius Blacksmith's Game

The smile that had lingered on Taeha’s lips as he laughed for a long time at what was written on the note slowly faded.

I don’t dislike Hyunsoo, either.

But Taeha thought he might have to go back to the conglomerate family soon.

He had told his father that he would become immensely wealthy through a game called Ares and someday rival Hansung Group.

Now his father’s patience might be about to run out.

Right then.

[The chairman is asking for you.]

After getting the call, Taeha went straight to Hansung Group headquarters.

He faced his father, who was seated in the chairman’s office. For a long time, his father did nothing but sign papers.

Taeha waited to hear, Come back in and start management training again.

But instead......

“Is Ares fun?”

“......What?”

He’d asked something completely unexpected.

“No, as of now I’m not exactly finding it fun.”

That was true. Taeha had only pushed forward with the thought that he had to show his father something.

“Are you planning not to honor your grandfather’s last wish?”

His grandfather’s last words.

He had said them to Taeha while fully lucid.

Taeha, live having fun. In this world there are things you can’t do just by having a lot of money.

But those words from his grandfather had felt meaningless to the youngest son of a conglomerate family.

Soon, Lee Taeseong closed the file, took off his glasses, and spoke.

“I know what you want to do.”

Taeseong was wearing a small smile, unlike his usual self.

“Maybe things really will turn out the way you said. I looked into it, and what he’s accomplished is truly extraordinary.”

“......Yes.”

As a player, Taeha understood better than anyone just how incredible the things Hyunsoo had done were.

“I have a reward prepared for that kid, so you can prepare something separately.”

Taeha was surprised.

That his father had a reward he wanted to give him?

And this was the first time his father had ever given his approval. Because of that, a smile formed on Taeha’s lips.

After he left, Taeseong put his glasses back on.

He had ended up seeing the possibility in the bold dream Taeha had spoken of.

I’ll build a guild that will shock the whole country.

Taeseong gave a wry smile.

“With that kid, it might actually be possible.”

Soon, Taeseong rose to his feet.

It was time for him to go give his own reward.

*****

[You have logged into Ares.]

Ressel had been in no state of mind when he received the Dragon-Flame Sword.

With his grandfather there beside him, the notifications that popped up hadn’t even registered in his ears.

He dragged them open now and checked them.

[Congratulations.]

[As a Dragon Knight, you have come to possess a dragon.]

[Unique class. You can advance to Dragon Lord.]

[Unique class. You can remain a Dragon Knight.]

[Dragon Lord is a ruler class, a powerful commander class that can keep many allies under your command and wield them.]

[The Dragon Knight class is a powerful class with the strength to protect a certain person and move forward, cutting down anyone who threatens them.]

Ressel was stunned.

There were in total two options in the notifications, and they were telling him to choose between Dragon Lord and Dragon Knight.

Both were Unique grade.

In Ares, a class usually follows the grade of the artifact.

On top of that, special classes like Hidden Classes exist.

The existing Dragon Knight had been Epic grade and counted as quite a good class.

Just staying a Dragon Knight already makes it Unique......?

No matter what he chose, it would be Unique.

Either way, Ressel would be able to become even stronger than before.

And Dragon Lord was the class Ressel had truly wanted.

From the start, I’ve been running so I could become a Dragon Lord.

When he first became a Dragon Knight, he’d advanced to that class knowing that at the end of its path there was a “powerful ruler class” called Dragon Lord.

But he made an unexpected choice.

[You have chosen Dragon Knight.]

However, he didn’t feel the slightest regret about his choice.

[All stats will be redistributed, and 200 bonus points will be applied evenly.]

[Your skills will change and you will gain strength greater than before.]

[Dragon Knight is a class that exists to protect a lord.]

[When with your lord, the effects of all stats are increased by 10%.]

[When with your lord, all skill effects are increased by 10%.]

Ressel walked.

He’d walked away from the forge for a while as he chatted briefly with his father and grandfather.

As he walked like that, at some point Ressel began to run.

He had embraced a new dream.

Taeha, live having fun. In this world there are things you can’t do just by having a lot of money.

It was a dream that felt like it would be the most fun in the world.

And he had come to realize that dream while playing Ares.

Something I could never accomplish alone.

Ressel ran with every ounce of strength he had.

Before he knew it, he had come to a stop in front of the small, shabby, signless forge.

Breathing hard, Taeha took in the sound of hammering coming from inside.

And soon, his eyes met those of the man moving the hammer.

That dream was......

To turn this still small and shabby guild into the best guild in the world and make it stand shoulder to shoulder with Hansung Group.

He could do it.

Ressel took a step and walked into the forge.

The blacksmith who had set his hammer down gave a small smile.

Ressel was the first to reach his hand out to him.

“I’ll be in your care from now on, Master.”

The blacksmith clasped that hand firmly.

“Welcome, Ressel.”

[Ressel has joined the guild Radiance.]

*****

Official Korea ranking no. 21.

No—by becoming an even stronger Dragon Knight, Ressel might now be able to stand toe to toe with those in the top 10, and Hyunsoo had succeeded in recruiting him into the guild Radiance.

It wasn’t a simple recruitment.

There was a clear difference between just letting someone into the guild and having them join after receiving a favor.

“I’ll make this guild the best, no matter what.”

Even just looking at him now, that was clear. Ressel wasn’t just one more run-of-the-mill guild member; you could see the drive in him to somehow make this guild take off.

And Hyunsoo told him why the guild’s name was Radiance, and about Hyun’s Forge and Crazy Rookie.

“That does make sense.”

After hearing Hyunsoo’s explanation, Ressel accepted it.

“First of all, we need to raise Hyun’s Forge’s profile and further increase the guild’s strength. Oh, right.”

As if he’d just remembered something, Ressel spoke.

“Of course, I’ll pay you for the Dragon-Flame Sword.”

Hyunsoo smiled faintly. Just because he’d written “Ressel” on the note didn’t mean he’d ever thought Ressel wouldn’t pay the commission fee.

“I still don’t really know its exact value, so can I give it to you after I review things? With a spoonful of gratitude mixed in.”

Ressel grinned playfully. Hyunsoo nodded.

“It’s not urgent, so just give it to me when it suits you.”

“My father also said he’ll give you a separate reward.”

“A reward?”

Hyunsoo couldn’t help but make a puzzled face.

A reward? Had he ever done anything that deserved a reward from Chairman Lee Taeseong?

Come to think of it......

Hyunsoo had crossed paths with Chairman Lee Taeseong once.

It had been at the National Museum. He was such a well-known public figure that Hyunsoo had recognized him at a glance.

But he wasn’t the type to make a fuss, so he’d only looked at the Dragon-Flame Sword he wanted to see.

“Yes, if you wait you’ll probably find out, right? My father scares me too much for me to ask him that myself.”

“Got it. And I think I need to go log out.”

“Ah, you said today was the day you start building the forge, right?”

“Yeah.”

Just like he’d said to Ressel, today was the day he was going to rebuild the forge that had burned down.

Hyunsoo logged out to go to Gyeongju.

[You have logged out.]

After getting out of the capsule, Hyunsoo washed up and changed into neat clothes.

It will probably take about three years.

His conversation with the construction company staff came to mind.

He’d wanted to build it as quickly as possible for his father, who might come back at any time, but that had been difficult.

He’d also wanted to build it with the best raw materials, but that too hadn’t been easy.

I’ve still got a mountain of hospital bills to pay......

It couldn’t be helped.

It was just as he was about to head out.

Hyunsoo received a call from one of the construction staff.

“-Mr. Hyunsoo, please get over here, quick!”

“Huh?”

The staffer said something he couldn’t quite understand in a voice tinged with laughter.

Wearing a puzzled expression, Hyunsoo got on the bus to Gyeongju.

When Hyunsoo arrived at the site where the small forge in Gyeongju was going to be built, he was at a loss for words.

He stared at the construction workers for a long time.

There were the few people he’d hired himself. Mixed in among them were dozens of veteran construction workers from a major corporation.

On the helmets they were wearing, the name “Hansung Construction” was written.

Hansung Construction.

It was one of the Hansung Group affiliates run by Chairman Lee Taeseong. Soon, the construction company employee Hyunsoo had hired came over.

“Mr. Hyunsoo, this must be great for you!”

“What’s going on?”

At Hyunsoo’s question, the employee gave him a puzzled look.

“You didn’t know? Chairman Lee Taeseong of Hansung Group came in person. He said Hansung Construction’s workers will be building this forge together with us. He also ordered us to use only the best raw materials and the best tools for the forge. If you just sign here, it looks like we’ll be starting construction together with Hansung Group. We can cut the construction period down to six months, too.”

Soon, Hyunsoo saw Chairman Lee Taeseong getting out of an expensive foreign car.

Hyunsoo held the paperwork in his hand without signing it.

Chairman Lee Taeseong walked up beside him.

“Chairman, I don’t understand why you’re doing this. I’ve never done anything that deserves this.”

To be honest, Hyunsoo didn’t feel at ease.

Shortening the construction period.

And Lee Taeseong’s order to fill it with the best raw materials and the best materials for a forge.

It was worth at least a billion won.

Hansung Construction’s workers were some of the top elites in the country, after all.

“Why do you say you’ve never done anything to deserve it?”

Hands clasped behind his back, Taeseong spoke as he looked at his workers.

“In the game, you made a Dragon-Flame Sword for my son and my father. In reality, you made one for me.”

Hyunsoo didn’t understand what he meant by saying he’d made a Dragon-Flame Sword for him.

“When I was a child, I loved dragons so much. And they say dragons grant wishes.”

Silently, Hyunsoo watched him, lost in reminiscence.

“I wanted to make a wish to the dragon. My dream was that the little corner shop that was Hansung would grow big and make my father happy. When he saw how much I liked dragons, my father took me by the hand and brought me to the National Museum.”

Hyunsoo had doubted it countless times—whether what he and his father did was really something valuable.

Students on field trips to the National Museum would brush past the Dragon-Flame Sword with bored expressions.

When couples picked it as a date spot, they would frown and say, Ugh, why a museum~.

And someone would say, Why is everyone making such a fuss over some old relic?

“When I saw that rusted sword, I was as happy as a child. And when I saw the restored Dragon-Flame Sword this time, it felt like I’d gone back to who I was then. It was beautiful. So beautiful and magnificent that I just stared at it, completely spellbound.”

Those doubts faded.

“It’s a worthy thing. Even if countless children and adults just pass that sword by, for someone it’ll become an unforgettable memory, and someone else will just stand there staring, spellbound.”

Right, not everyone in the world needs to treasure it.

“For you and your father, who protected that precious thing, this is not something I’m stingy about.”

Taeseong knew the reality. The hardships and trials Hyunsoo must have gone through.

At Chairman Lee Taeseong’s words, Hyunsoo realized something.

That being a blacksmith in the real world was still an incredibly precious and great thing.

In a firm voice, Lee Taeseong spoke.

“The state probably turned its back while rattling off all sorts of reasons.”

It’s not easy to do something with government money.

“It’s laughable, really, that this world turns its back on a blacksmith it ought to be protecting.”

To Hyunsoo, whose eyes had turned red, Taeseong said,

“Let’s say you and I no longer owe each other anything after this.”

“Thank you.”

Hyunsoo ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) decided to sign. Looking at him with a proud expression, Taeseong spoke.

“You go on ahead.”

He patted Hyunsoo on the shoulder and walked past.

“I’ll protect the last Master Blacksmith.”