Genius Blacksmith’s Game - Chapter 17

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Genius Blacksmith’s Game

 

 

 

 

Horn Bow Restoration (2)

 

 

 

Lee Ji-hee recalled what Team Leader Kim Tae-seok had said not long ago.

User Hyeon-su has achieved the conditions for a divine class.

One of them was rejecting a legendary class once, and another was achieving two Amazing Achievements in that profession.

Currently, Hyeon-su has achieved one Amazing Achievement.

“Team Leader. Creating Gwangmyeong was achieving one Amazing Achievement, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then that restoration would be included too, wouldn’t it?”

Kim Tae-seok let out a small sigh.

“Right, if he pulls off that restoration, it would be an Amazing Achievement.”

An undeniable fact.

However, Kim Tae-seok shook his head.

“But it won’t be easy because of the restrictions. It would be nice if it could be done purely through skill alone…”

In reality, everything is determined by a blacksmith’s skill alone.

However, this place is ultimately a game.

Just like how a swordsman with a higher level is much stronger than Han-ul, who is the greatest kendo genius in reality.

There are things that can’t be done with real-world skills alone.

Soon Kim Tae-seok tapped away at his keyboard.

“It’ll definitely take longer than with mithril, and I think this might be the key issue.”

“What do you mean?”

“That’s restoration work. It’s different from the original creations that User Hyeon-su has made. It’s the work of restoring something that was already made.”

Lee Ji-hee made an expression showing she didn’t understand why that was a problem.

“Let me put it this way. A chef made a dish originally, then told another chef to taste it and make the same thing with the same ingredients. Could they recreate the exact same taste?”

“…Ah.”

Lee Ji-hee understood.

“Right, the ingredients available to User Hyeon-su are the same, but restoring something just by looking at it and feeling its texture, like tasting, isn’t easy.”

“Unless he’s an incredible restorer, it won’t be easy.”

“Exactly. Moreover, when Restoration Technique and skills combine, there should be guidance on restoration methods, but there’s none of that because of the restrictions.”

That was certainly true.

Then Lee Ji-hee thought of something.

Cooking with the same ingredients…

“Team Leader.”

“Hm?”

“But what if the person cooking second makes a more delicious dish than the chef who cooked first?”

“…?”

Kim Tae-seok’s eyes widened at the unexpected question.

“Of, of course…”

The request was for restoration.

What would the client say if it looked the same on the outside but tasted better?

“They’d be thrilled that it tastes better…?”

 

 

 

Hyeon-su, who had started the restoration work, was definitely feeling it.

‘VVIP Capsule and Standard Capsule. It’s like heaven and earth…’

It was only a 15% difference in synchronization rate. However, human limits could be determined even within this 15%.

The Olympics where national representatives gather!

Does the winner have twice the skill of others to win?

No, just a little more. They were often just slightly better than the others.

This 15% carries more weight than one might think.

Therefore, Hyeon-su was certain.

That much more precise and perfect work was now possible than when creating Hyeon-su’s First Sword, Gwangmyeong.

Also.

‘Restoration work is fun.’

Others might say if they heard this:

‘Why is that fun!’

Perhaps it’s like saying “I find studying the most fun thing in the world!”

But Hyeon-su genuinely found it fun.

‘Maybe people who find studying fun feel this way for this reason?’

When studying, you continuously accumulate new knowledge.

That person probably finds joy not in studying itself, but in gaining that knowledge.

Hyeon-su was similar but slightly different.

The creation process itself was fun, but he felt joy in the anticipation of what result would come from his efforts.

What kind of thing will come out this time.

What better thing can I make than before this time.

“First of all…”

The first task was to bend the woods.

He had to bend the mulberry wood, bamboo, oak wood, and others.

He had to hold both ends and make that curved state maintainable.

However.

‘Why won’t it bend like this?’

Hyeon-su noticed. It was because of the restrictions.

Like before, those restrictions were preventing easy creation.

“Shall I help a bit?”

“…Aren’t you busy?”

“It’s fine. Besides, isn’t this the process of restoring a relic my father left behind?”

Lord Vance continued to stay by Hyeon-su’s side.

“Will you keep helping?”

“…If you want, I’ll do so. Restoring father’s relic together, it would be quite meaningful.”

At those words, Hyeon-su gave a bitter smile.

“You must want to run away though?”

“…?”

Bans sat down facing Hyeon-su with an incredulous smile and pressed down hard on the wood he was holding together with him.

“Don’t say such things. I’m a lord and known as a quite skilled swordsman. Would someone like me want to run away from mere work like this? Hahahaha!”

 

 

3 days later.

“Can’t I go back…?”

“No, you can’t.”

“…”

Bans was going crazy and wanted to jump around.

Ah, this is boring, I’m going crazy!

For three days straight, he had been repeating only the work of bending materials.

His back ached as if it would break, and both arms were trembling with cramps.

But Hyeon-su was different. He tied the ends of the wood together with wire.

“Take a break.”

“I’m fine. This work is easy.”

“…?”

Bans looked at Hyeon-su with an incomprehensible expression.

“Are you crazy?”

Hyeon-su chuckled and shook his head.

“After working in that hot blacksmith shop every day, working in this cool environment has to be easy.”

“…Ah?”

Bans understood. That would certainly be the case.

Then he became curious.

“Do all blacksmiths originally take as long as you do?”

“Not in this place.”

“…In this place?”

“Yes, this place receives help from mystical power and Lord Ares. It would probably be made and restored in a snap.”

“Then where you live?”

“Where I live, this kind of manual labor is common.”

Bans looked at the young man Hyeon-su.

In fact, he still doubted whether he could really restore it.

However, the way he saw through the materials without even looking closely was very impressive, and Hyeon-su was full of confidence.

And what he trusted most were his palms.

‘Palms where blisters have burst, torn, and repeated…’

Those palms were proof.

Lord Bans, who was also a swordsman, got blisters on his hands like that every time he trained.

But it was rare for calluses to form so completely.

“That’s enough now. I’ll do it alone.”

Hyeon-su smiled brightly. Saying he couldn’t leave when asked if he could go back was just a joke.

“…I’ll just stay nearby.”

It was too arduous and difficult, so Bans decided to just watch.

The reason was that Hyeon-su’s expression was interesting.

‘How…’

How could he smile so happily?

Making something all day might be fun.

But after one day, two days, three days, people would want to run away from boredom.

Yet Hyeon-su was humming and enjoying himself.

‘Is he crazy about his profession?’

That’s how Lord Bans watched the young man named Hyeon-su.

Three days passed.

Scrape scrape scrape-

“Now I’ll work on trimming the mulberry wood.”

Five days passed.

“Finally, it’s well trimmed. Now I’ll work on making the bow body using mulberry wood and bamboo.”

Another week passed.

“Phew, the connection work is finally done. Now I’ll proceed with trimming the water buffalo horn.”

Bans just watched Hyeon-su silently.

Another four days passed like that.

“Now I’ll boil the binding agent.”

Bubble bubble bubble, the thing called binding agent boiled thickly.

Bans continued to just watch him.

It was an indescribable feeling.

Watching the young man do his best for the relic his father left behind, a smile naturally settled on his face.

“Now I’ll make the bowstring core with whale sinew.”

The bowstring core made from whale sinew was literally white thread.

How many days had already passed?

About 20 days?

Lord Bans slowly got up from his seat and drew his sword.

Shing-

“No matter how bored you are, are you trying to kill me…?”

Hyeon-su laughed playfully, and Bans shook his head.

“I can’t kill you out of boredom, so I thought I’d train with my sword.”

Bans was speaking indirectly.

It had taken over 20 days.

Perhaps it would take even longer in the future.

A young man doing his best to restore his father’s relic.

Bans wanted to help him.

That’s why he thought about teaching him.

“How about it, would you like to learn?”

 

 

 

[You gain 1 Dexterity.]

[Your intimacy with Bans increases.]

[You gain 1 Dexterity.]

[Your intimacy with Bans increases…]

 

Over 20 days.

Hyeon-su was working while hearing these notifications.

But suddenly Lord Bans spoke.

“How about it, would you like to learn?”

 

Ding!

 

[Skill Quest: Prime Swordsmanship Training]

Grade: B

Restriction: One who received Bans’ proposal.

Reward: Prime Swordsmanship.

Failure Penalty: Decreased intimacy with Bans.

Description: Bans, called a lord and renowned swordsman. Learn his swordsmanship through training. Acquire skill when training proficiency reaches 80% or higher.

 

‘Swordsmanship skill? And it’s even Rare?’

Hyeon-su made a puzzled expression at Bans suddenly offering to teach him swordsmanship.

Looking at him with a small smile, he nodded.

“Good.”

Blacksmith belongs to the production class in Ares and is known as a very weak class.

But if he learned swordsmanship skills, it would be of great help to Hyeon-su.

“I will show you three movements of swordsmanship, and you watch with your eyes while continuing that work.”

“Yes.”

Hyeon-su continued working steadily.

Another two days passed.

 

[You have achieved 5% proficiency.]

 

The Quest description clearly stated that he needed to achieve at least 80% proficiency.

While restoring the horn bow, Hyeon-su also spent about 2 hours a day learning proper form from him.

Skills could be learned through skill Quests like this, or more easily through Skill Books.

Before he knew it, the work had progressed to 99%.

Truth be told, Hyeon-su was getting tired.

No matter how much he loved this profession, work that continued for over a month would exhaust anyone.

Now only the final task remained.

That task was to balance the horn bow by exposing it to fire.

Exhausted from the arduous labor, Hyeon-su spoke up.

“Is there a particular reason you want to restore this bow?”

Bans, who had been swinging his sword, smiled softly.

“When I hold that bow, it reminds me of the time I spent with my father.”

This was why Hyeon-su loved this profession.

Sometimes it was a job that touched someone’s memories.

Hyeon-su continued his work while Bans shared his story.

“My father was a cold man, someone who wouldn’t even spare a glance for his son. One day, after my mother passed away, my father changed. That change began with this: ‘Bans, would you like to learn archery?'”

Hyeon-su’s hands worked more skillfully to balance the bow.

“He was trying to change, I suppose, for me who was left alone after mother’s passing.”

Hyeon-su lifted the bow to check if it was well-balanced, then exposed it to fire again.

“When I first shot an arrow, I wasn’t very good at it, but with a gentle tone unlike his usual self, he taught me how to shoot one arrow at a time.”

The bow being balanced was almost identical to the one Bans had first held.

“After he passed away, I found comfort in looking at that bow, because it felt like my father’s warmth.”

Yes, the bow Hyeon-su was restoring wasn’t just any bow.

It was his memories, his recollections with his father.

“That’s why.”

Looking at Bans who smiled warmly, Hyeon-su smiled back.

“Those are beautiful memories.”

Just as he had his own, Bans too had memories with his father.

Seeing Bans’s eyes redden with those wistful memories, Hyeon-su slowly stood up.

Finally, Hyeon-su proceeded with the last task.

It was the end of bow making.

Swooosh-

He nocked an arrow on the bowstring and pulled it back with all his strength. Soon, that single arrow flew precisely toward the target.

Thwack-

Immediately, a notification rang out.

 

[You have demonstrated Blacksmith Restoration Technique that defies common sense for your level.]

[You have accomplished something miraculous that cannot be done twice in the Beginner Zone.]

[A blacksmith superior to existing blacksmiths has restored it with greater precision and excellence.]

[The grade of the Master Archer’s Horn Bow is being upgraded.]

[Rare Artifact is being upgraded to Epic Artifact.]

[You gain 1 to all stats.]

[You gain 30 Dexterity.]

[You gain 30 Fame.]

[You acquire the title ‘Restorer Who Transcends Limits’.]

 

Hyeon-su held out the bow to Bans with a smile.

“Please check it. Your memories with your father.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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