Life Rebooted with Copy and Paste

[Spirit Stone]

Description

- A stone imbued with the energy of a Spirit King over many years. It holds a faint but familiar aura to spirits.

Rarity

- Common

Classification

- Ingredient

Kim Do-Joon's eyes sparkled with interest. What could “a familiar aura to spirits” mean?

Spirit Affinity.

It was clear that this ingredient held some level of Spirit Affinity. For now, there was only a vague description, without any specific effects. However, if it was refined, it might produce an item with Spirit Affinity effect.

If things don't go well, there’s still Spirit Lake...

Up until now, the swords he had copy-pasted that had Spirit Affinity—like Eldora’s sword and the relic swords of the elves—were all made from ingredients from the Spirit Lake.

If he failed to meet Vulcanus, he’d planned to seek out the Spirit Lake as a last resort. He hoped that raising his Spirit Affinity level would give him a breakthrough. After all, Vulcanus was also a spirit, so he should be influenced by Spirit Affinity.

However, with this recent discovery, Kim Do-Joon smirked.

If I can get what I need here, there’s no reason to make that long journey.

Gripping the stone tightly, Kim Do-Joon chuckled. He carefully stored it in his inventory and began to search the forest. There was no way this was the only stone infused with spirit energy.

And his hunch was right.

Wow.

Kim Do-Joon thought as he quickly found several piles of stones scattered throughout the area. He went a little deeper into the forest. Sure enough, even the pebbles by the flowing stream and the rocks stacked on the barren hill had information windows popping up.

He diligently collected them all. It wasn’t long before his inventory was piled high with these ingredients.

Phew.

Kim Do-Joon sighed contentedly, bending down to pick up another stone. As he did so, a flood of old memories washed over him. Before he gained his copy-paste ability, he was just an ordinary Gatherer, collecting crafting items like this.

Back then, even finding a cluster of red herbs made me feel like I owned the world...

Kim Do-Joon reminisced with a smile. However, things had changed recently. As a Hunter, he spent more time entering dungeons and defeating monsters than gathering ingredients.

Even when he stumbled upon crafting items, he’d often ignore them, thinking he’d be better off using this time to kill another monster.

Well, it’s true that killing another monster is more profitable in the end.

Even if there were no monsters around, it was better to just take a break. After all, it’d allow him to take down even more monsters later, which meant greater profit overall.

Hence, it’d been a while since Kim Do-Joon felt like this—a sense of satisfaction as a Gatherer. It was almost like stumbling upon a hidden treasure.

Nice.

Kim Do-Joon murmured to himself, his eyes gleaming with excitement. For the next few hours, until the sun began to dip below the horizon, he scoured the hills.

Sometimes, as he zipped through the forest, he even used his Sky Thunder ability to startle small animals and insects.

Eventually, Kim Do-Joon made his way back to the village, returning to the tent where his party was staying.

— Where have you been to get this dirty?

Siwelin asked as she approached him, noticing the dirt and dust clinging to his clothes. She began to dust him off with gentle pats.

"Just took a little walk in the mountains," Kim Do-Joon replied casually. "Thanks."

Kim Do-Joon added with a smile as she continued to clean him up. After thanking her, he turned to find Hwang Hyun-Woo. The man was sitting off to the side, sharpening a knife on a whetstone.

“Hey, Hyun-Woo, take a look at this,” Kim Do-Joon said, holding out a stone he had collected.

“Oh, you’re back, Hyung! What’s this?” Hwang Hyun-Woo asked, curious as he examined the stone.

As soon as he realized what it was, his expression mirrored the excitement Kim Do-Joon had felt earlier.

“This is...” Hwang Hyun-Woo was amazed.

“Do you think you can make equipment out of it?” Kim Do-Joon asked.

“Absolutely!” Hwang Hyun-Woo responded with enthusiasm.

Lately, Hwang Hyun-Woo’d been questioning why he even came along on this journey. Sure, he was supposed to be a porter, but with the inventory system, there wasn’t much to carry. Moreover, maintenance work had been sparse as well.

Seok Dae-Kyung managed his own gauntlets, Elena didn’t trust him with her equipment, and Siwelin didn’t even use weapons. This left him feeling like a useless burden, consuming food without contributing much. He had started to wonder if Kim Do-Joon had made a mistake in bringing him along.

However, now it all made sense.

So this is why he brought me.

Hwang Hyun-Woo thought, his excitement growing. He finally had a purpose: to craft equipment from ingredients that could only be found here.

Did he foresee this possibility and brought Hwang Hyun-Woo along specifically for this task? Kim Do-Joon suddenly seemed much more impressive to him!

“Well, this isn’t the best place for it. I’ll go scout out a spot where we can build a workshop!” Hwang Hyun-Woo said, brimming with energy.

This was his first real task, and he was eager to prove himself.

At the same time, a small bit of nervousness crept in. He had the Midas’ Touch crafting skill, so he was worried about messing up and ruining the valuable ingredient Kim Do-Joon had worked so hard to collect.

“I’ll come with you,” Kim Do-Joon offered, getting up to follow Hwang Hyun-Woo.

Since he expected to visit the workshop often, it made sense to help find a suitable location from the start.

Seeing this, Hwang Hyun-Woo’s expression turned serious.

“Hyung... Even though I’m only half a craftsman, this time, I swear I’ll make something truly exceptional!”

His face was filled with determination, which made Kim Do-Joon blink in surprise a couple of times.

“Oh, uh, yeah. No need to put too much pressure on yourself, though,” Kim Do-Joon said, trying to ease his nerves.

“Yes, sir!” Hwang Hyun-Woo responded with his spirit undiminished.

Watching him burn with resolve, Kim Do-Joon could not help but click his tongue. Honestly, even if he failed, the item would still be useful, so it didn’t really matter to Kim Do-Joon.

***

"What? You're asking if you can make something out of those stones?" Sallyon asked.

"Yeah. Since it's technically the property of your territory, I figured I should get permission first. Let the Flame Lord know," Kim Do-Joon replied.

Kim Do-Joon had gone to ask Sallyon for permission first. The last thing he wanted was to be caught off guard if someone decided to make an issue out of it later.

"Ah, don't worry about it," Sallyon waved his hand dismissively. "Play with those rocks all you want. The Lord is not going to care about something like that. I wouldn’t even bother him with such trivial matters."

"Really?" Kim Do-Joon asked, confirming Sallyon’s nonchalant response.

With the permission granted, Kim Do-Joon and Hwang Hyun-Woo set out to find the perfect spot to build a workshop. They searched for a flat area that was not too far from the village and was close to the mountain’s entrance.

Once they found a suitable location, Hwang Hyun-Woo began constructing the workshop using his second skill, Workshop Construction.

“Whoa,” Kim Do-Joon muttered in awe.

It was a fascinating sight. As soon as Hwang Hyun-Woo placed his hands on the ground, the ground began to rise, forming the shape of a small building. It looked rough, almost as if it was made of clay—well, it was made of clay, after all.

It also wasn’t easy work. Hwang Hyun-Woo was sweating profusely as he concentrated on creating the workshop. Meanwhile, Kim Do-Joon’s mind drifted to other thoughts.

Hyun-Woo’s crafting skill has about a 10% success rate... Out of ten attempts, only one item will have increased Spirit Affinity, while the other nine will likely reduce it.

Kim Do-Joon calculated silently. Although Hwang Hyun-Woo was full of determination, there was only so much that willpower could achieve. The skill itself was designed that way—success was rare, and failure was common.

But even if we only get one successful item, it’s fine. We’ve got plenty of ingredients. The real question is, what to do with the failed products...?

A failed piece of equipment meant to enhance Spirit Affinity would naturally have the opposite effect. Kim Do-Joon smirked at the thought. Lowering Spirit Affinity might be a limited-use option, but it could be interesting.

I wonder what would happen if we equipped those on the elves?

Would this weaken their spirits’ powers or strain their connection? What if it broke their contracts with the spirits?

Kim Do-Joon shook his head, dismissing the last idea. That seemed unlikely.

Still...

He thought that creating equipment that reduces Spirit Affinity could have uses beyond fighting elves. Despite the low success rate, the idea intrigued him. It was definitely worth a shot.

With these thoughts swirling in his mind, Kim Do-Joon watched as Hwang Hyun-Woo finished the workshop. For something made on the spot using a skill, it looked quite impressive. The workshop had a workbench, a forge in the back, and plenty of space to store materials.

“All done. Let’s first light the fire and get started,” Hwang Hyun-Woo announced, clearly eager to begin.

“Sure,” Kim Do-Joon replied.

Hwang Hyun-Woo got to work, stoking the forge and organizing the tools from his inventory. Meanwhile, there wasn’t much for Kim Do-Joon to do. Crafting was a craftsman’s job, not his. All he could do was neatly stack the stones he had brought in the backyard.

As Kim Do-Joon was busy stacking the stones, he suddenly noticed a goblin approaching, curiously peering at the forge.

“Kuruk.”

The smoke billowing up from the forge probably made the goblin think that someone was cooking meat nearby, so it had come to check.

Under normal circumstances, encountering a monster would lead to an immediate fight, with both sides drawing weapons. He had fought the Baku Tribe in neutral zones before. However, the monsters here were different.

They didn’t show the slightest aggression, much less attack humans on sight. Perhaps Vulcanus, the ruler of this land, had trained them well.

I never thought I’d see something like this.

Kim Do-Joon found the situation surreal. This was something he’d never have experienced anywhere else but the stem.

He opened his inventory and tossed a piece of jerky to the goblin. The creature chirped in delight before continuing on its way, satisfied with the snack.

Watching the goblin leave, Kim Do-Joon turned his gaze toward the village. There, he could see the newly arrived Baku Tribe members building their shelters. He observed them for a moment, deep in thought.

Then, a loud shout interrupted his thoughts.

— Argh! I failed! What kind of luck is this, failing right from the start?

Hwang Hyun-Woo’s frustrated voice echoed from behind him, bringing a smile to Kim Do-Joon’s face.

***

The next day, just as expected, Hwang Hyun-Woo’s crafting efforts resulted in failure nine times out of ten. He looked dejected, but Kim Do-Joon didn’t mind at all. He simply gathered the failed items and set them aside without a second thought, encouraging Hwang Hyun-Woo to keep at it.

While they were working, Sallyon suddenly appeared, her face contorted in horror as she noticed the pile of failed items in the backyard.

"What are you guys doing?!" she exclaimed, clearly distressed.

"We’re making equipment, obviously," Kim Do-Joon replied calmly, pretending not to understand why she was so upset.

It wasn’t hard to guess the reason for her reaction, though.

"How could you make such hideous things?! Ugh! Just looking at them makes me feel sick!" Sallyon continued to protest, clearly repelled by the negative Spirit Affinity Level -1 effect on the failed items.

"But you said we can make whatever we wanted," Kim Do-Joon nonchalantly reminded her.

"But not this!" Sallyon exclaimed, practically jumping up and down in frustration as she circled the failed items.

Hwang Hyun-Woo stood awkwardly off to the side, clearly uncomfortable with her reaction. Kim Do-Joon, on the other hand, merely shrugged, unaffected by her outburst.

"Making stuff like this on the Lord’s domain... How did you even manage to create such awful things from those stones in the first place... Ah!" Sallyon trailed off, her frustration mingling with curiosity and disbelief.

Then, the snapping Sallyon suddenly froze, her hand covering her mouth as she stared wide-eyed at something behind Kim Do-Joon. Her gaze was fixed, unmoving, as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

Curious, Kim Do-Joon slowly turned around to see what had rendered her speechless. A towering man stood there, as if he’d materialized out of nowhere. He had fiery red hair that seemed to blaze with an inner heat.

His mere presence was enough to fill the air with an overwhelming sense of power and authority. It wasn’t hard to guess who he was—only one being on this land capable of radiating such an aura.

"Y-Your Majesty!" Sallyon stammered, barely able to get the words out.

The Flame Lord, Vulcanus, who’d only recently turned them away, had appeared before them. Kim Do-Joon couldn’t help but smile inwardly. Who would’ve thought that he’d show up? Outwardly, he maintained a serious and respectful expression.

Vulcanus looked from Kim Do-Joon to Hwang Hyun-Woo, then shifted his gaze to the pile of failed items they had created. His brows furrowed in displeasure.

"What are you doing on my land?" Vulcanus asked, his voice laced with irritation.

He didn’t bother to hide his annoyance. The air around them grew noticeably hotter, as if the very atmosphere was radiating his anger.

"Uh... well..." Hwang Hyun-Woo stuttered, trembling uncontrollably as he collapsed to the ground. He was overwhelmed by the sheer intensity of Vulcanus's presence.

Seeing this, Kim Do-Joon stepped forward. He placed himself between Vulcanus and Hwang Hyun-Woo, shielding his friend from the oppressive aura. Hwang Hyun-Woo stared up at Kim Do-Joon in shock, realizing that the crushing, suffocating pressure vanished the moment he intervened.

"We’ve been making equipment using ingredients we gathered from the mountain," Kim Do-Joon said calmly, unflinchingly meeting Vulcanus’s gaze.

Vulcanus’s eyes narrowed in interest. Not many could stand before him with such composure. His attention shifted from the failed items and Hwang Hyun-Woo, before focusing solely on Kim Do-Joon. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Who gave you permission to do as you please on my land?" Vulcanus’s voice was still cold, the displeasure evident.

The idea that someone would dare to come onto his land, dig up his soil, and create such unpleasant objects—objects that seemed to exude a negative energy just by being near them—was infuriating.

Kim Do-Joon, unfazed, casually gestured to the side. Vulcanus’s gaze followed, landing on Sallyon.

"She said it was okay," Kim Do-Joon stated simply.

Sallyon, now the center of attention, desperately tried to suppress a hiccup, her hand still over her mouth as she nodded frantically.