Genius Blacksmith’s Game - Chapter 254

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Genius Blacksmith’s Game
Royal Shop (1)
There was something Hyeon-su couldn’t comprehend.
He had long since filled his Blessing to 100% and completed the Holy Sovereign’s Quest condition.
Yet no notification had arrived for quite some time, and now the reason became clear.
[You have accomplished truly extraordinary Achievements in such a short span of time.]
[By annihilating a total of 6,000 troops with only 4,000 soldiers, you have solidified your position as a worthy successor to the Holy Sovereign.]
[Furthermore, one of your guild members achieved victory by standing against many with unparalleled strength.]
Reflecting on it, defeating a combined force of 6,000—Rebel Forces and Users from China—was indeed extraordinary and remarkable.
And recruiting Bahala to block Users who pressed forward alone was equally noteworthy.
[The territorial shop of Atlas Territory is far more exceptional.]
[Obtaining territorial contribution in existing territories was a far easier endeavor.]
[Yet even under such circumstances, you succeeded in accessing the Royal Shop.]
Everything is interconnected.
That Hyeon-su shook hands with others through the Holy Sovereign’s Quest, that he defeated his enemies—all of it.
A truth now revealed.
‘Contribution in Atlas Territory is harder to raise than elsewhere.’
Hyeon-su had uniquely obtained 150,000 contribution.
[The Holy Sovereign deliberated at length and concluded that you are worthy of receiving this reward.]
[The one who bears legend shall gain access upon using the final single instance of “Grant Me Your Blessing.”]
In other words, a reward had to be given, but deliberation over whether that reward was appropriate at this moment had prolonged.
For timing is something that inevitably exists in all matters.
‘The original reward given upon filling 100% contribution was the one who bears legend.’
[You have obtained the title “Grant Me Your Loyalty.”]
Grant Me Your Loyalty.
Abbreviated as GMYL, I confirmed it.
(Grant Me Your Loyalty)
Unique Title
Grade: SS
Special Abilities:
·When someone possessing power recognized by the system swears loyalty to you or wishes to join your guild, you may receive Blessing.
·However, the Blessing obtained is 50% of “Grant Me Your Blessing.”
·Should you first suggest to someone that they become your Retainer, depending on their circumstances and various other factors, you may inspire higher admiration and loyalty, potentially making them your Retainer.
·Should someone who might swear loyalty be nearby, you may sense their presence.
·However, this applies only to those possessing power recognized by the system.
Hyeon-su nearly cried out.
The notification mentioned earlier had explained this.
The Holy Sovereign was a king who gathered the strongest individuals on the Continent.
The Retainers who followed him were countless and exceptional.
This is the power that proves and demonstrates that.
‘I can recommend him, and depending on his current circumstances, I can make him develop loyalty like the grace of a liege lord….’
The grace of a liege lord is ultimately a probabilistic trigger.
Moreover, it doesn’t require Hyeon-su to propose it first.
And this is why it’s an absurd scam.
‘Although I can only obtain 50% of my clan’s protection, this has a clear difference from my clan.’
That clear difference is precisely the number of times it can be used.
Just as Artifacts, no matter how excellent their consumable nature, cannot surpass permanence.
‘This is permanent.’
Whether two years, five years, or ten years pass. As long as someone the system recognizes becomes my guild member or retainer, they can receive protection.
And this title alone hints at the path of the Holy Sovereign.
‘I will become the strongest on this Continent and command the most followers.’
I’m engulfed in endless exhilaration.
Although I cannot apply it to anyone immediately.
But as this activates more, as more people swear loyalty.
‘The weak Atlas will disappear and become a mighty Atlas.’
Holy Sovereign. And the ancient Atlas Territory will finally reveal its true power.
Hyeon-su, who had been engulfed in exhilaration, soon faced reality.
“First, I need to overcome this crisis….”
Bahala will guard the passage until he goes to Lucius.
But everyone will eventually arrive at Atlas.
That’s between a month at the shortest and two months at the longest.
But as the notification mentioned, the Royal Territory Shop of Atlas is special compared to ordinary Territory shops.
‘There must be things that exist only in this Atlas Royal Shop.’
Hyeon-su clicked on the Royal Shop.
[You possess 150,318 Contribution Points.]
Things that can be purchased with this contribution.
Most of them were the same as those in the general shop.
And Hyeon-su’s expression hardened as he confirmed what was special.
[Awaken Soldier. Required Contribution: 1,000.]
[Awaken Knight. Required Contribution: 30,000.]
[Awaken Talent. Required Contribution: 500,000.]
The beings of Atlas are asleep.
While I cannot purchase soldiers, I can awaken those who sleep.
The problem is they’re far too expensive.
‘To awaken a single ordinary soldier costs 1,000 contribution points… Even using all my contribution points, I can only awaken roughly 150 soldiers. Knights at best five.’
And awakening talents.
‘Talents must refer to individuals like Commander Ben.’
That requires a full 500,000 contribution points.
But compared to soldiers and knights, talents didn’t feel expensive.
‘Ben was an NPC who had reached Legendary Grade level.’
The problem is whether awakening them this way would earn their loyalty.
Even Bon’s previous encounter had only planted the hope that he might serve Hyeon-su.
Moreover, Hyeon-su didn’t have the 500,000 contribution points to spare.
‘Awakening talented individuals with 500,000 contribution points would be wasteful.’
As Hyeon-su walked the path of the Holy Sovereign, he would eventually be able to awaken them naturally.
The other items were identical to those found in ordinary Territory Shops.
The fortunate part was that they were remarkably cheap.
‘With just 150,000 contribution points carefully applied, I can establish a foundation to endure to some degree.’
But it was merely establishing a foundation—the conclusion was clear that this alone wouldn’t be enough to survive.
Something else caught his eye.
[Talent Verification. Required Contribution: 200,000.]
Talent Verification was an item that revealed what talented individuals had lived in Atlas.
Upon realizing one fact, chills ran down his spine.
“…I had talented individuals close to me?”
Today, Hyeon-su had gained Inner Court Loyalty.
The question arose.
Would the talented individuals awakened in Atlas be loyal to Hyeon-su?
No.
Even Bon, at level 480, hadn’t been, and these unknown talented individuals would likely not be loyal when awakened either.
However, regardless of loyalty, fundamentally they would remain in Atlas.
The weakness of Inner Court Loyalty was that a connection had to form upon meeting an exceptional talent.
And these exceptional talents were limited.
‘If these individuals awaken and I gain their hearts, can Inner Court Loyalty be applied?’
Hyeon-su decided that one day he would purchase this Talent Verification to see what individuals existed.
It was a privilege that allowed him to decide which individuals to awaken first.
With that in mind, he continued checking if there were other special items.
“There has to be. Please. There has to be.”
So far, the Royal Shop showed no method to stop the world-ranked Users.
Hyeon-su searched intently for that method and managed to discover something unusual.
[Another Atlas. Required Contribution: 150,000.]
Hyeon-su opened the detailed description.
*
*
*
CEO Lee Se-jin.
He was observing the red dots on the screen displayed by the supercomputer Ares.
As mentioned, the red dots were those targeting Hyeon-su and Atlas.
In just one day, those red dots had increased roughly twofold.
“…A User’s excellence exposes him to danger.”
The Dagger of Desire that he had created.
It will eventually become an immensely powerful artifact, but it cannot save Hyeon-su in the present moment.
The Royal Shop that Hyeon-su was examining.
Lee Se-jin knew its contents.
“Even the Royal Shop offers no means to obtain Atlas in its current state.”
Then Se-jin’s expression grew puzzled.
User Hyeon-su was reading the detailed description of a purchase item called “Another Atlas.”
Se-jin also opened the detailed information for Another Atlas.
[You can create a false Atlas and apply it. This false Atlas is identical in every way to the currently established Atlas. The soldiers, knights, and talents that the current Atlas possesses will not actually die even if they perish in the false Atlas, and the false Atlas will be maintained for 3 days.]
“Another Atlas is useful for concealing the current Atlas’s location.”
Because one could create a false Atlas.
People would believe it to be the real Atlas.
“User Hyeon-su could hide this false Atlas as if it were his real territory, gather people to it, and temporarily conceal the true Atlas.”
This was what Lee Se-jin was trying to point out.
“Only temporarily.”
Users are not fools.
They would quickly discover that there exists a real Atlas, not merely a false one.
In other words, this was merely a stopgap measure that would delay matters by only one or two weeks at most.
It would be exposed far too easily, and it could not resolve the fundamental problem.
“The real issue is that people will covet User Hyeon-su and attempt to either seduce or force him into submission to obtain the artifact.”
Yet Hyeon-su continued to stare at it, contemplating something.
Then.
-…With this, those targeting me will no longer target me.
Se-jin tilted his head in confusion.
It seemed User Hyeon-su had realized he could temporarily hide his location with the false Atlas.
But did he not understand that the fundamental problem could not be solved?
-The location-concealing function is useless.
‘He knows it’s useless?’
That meant he had found another method.
‘With a false Atlas, those targeting me will no longer target me?’
Perhaps User Hyeon-su had discovered a use for Another Atlas that Se-jin himself had overlooked.
Se-jin—a genius scientist—gazed at him with a noticeably animated expression.
What could that plan possibly be?
What could he accomplish with merely a false Atlas?
*
*
*
“…This is a way to prevent people from targeting Atlas?”
Nel examined Another Atlas and sighed.
“This only has the function to conceal the territory.”
She wanted to make him confront reality.
But Hyeon-su spoke.
“Why do we need to hide the real Atlas?”
“Pardon?”
Nel didn’t understand what he meant.
The very purpose of this item was concealment.
A fake Atlas modeled after the real one—which would vanish like a mirage after three days.
“Listen, Nel. The moment you purchase this, the troops of the real Atlas won’t die in the fake Atlas.”
Of course, I knew that fact.
“In other words, even if all our guild members and entire forces perish, actual death won’t apply.”
Nel simply nodded.
It was already known information, and she didn’t grasp what Hyeon-su was trying to say.
“I’ll post an announcement very soon.”
“…An announcement?”
“Yes. The announcement will say this.”
Nel focused on his words.
“I will face everyone who desires me.”
“…?”
Nel’s thoughts froze for a moment, then something suddenly struck her.
“…Are you saying that those targeting you, Lord Hyeon-su, will unite like in the Continental War, and we’ll use the fake Atlas to fight them in a ‘massive territory battle’? Is that even….”
Then Nel realized. It was feasible.
“Their purpose in wanting to meet me is to obtain good Artifacts. Here, I’ll tell them this: Come at me all at once. If you win, I’ll craft Artifacts for you.”
Nel continued the thought.
“But if you lose, never return to Atlas again…?”
This could work.
Why?
“It will serve as proof that they too made a promise before the eyes of the entire world.”
Nel thought Hyeon-su’s thinking was remarkable. Synthesizing his thoughts, it went like this:
Not long ago, the world experienced an unprecedented event called the ‘Continental War’.
People across the globe were anticipating again.
When would another event that could captivate the world be held?
But this time, the organizer wasn’t Pureum Corporation.
“An event. The Atlas Tournament.”
It was Hyeon-su, a User.
Hyeon-su was breaking another framework, creating yet another spectacle in the world of Ares.
An event that would captivate the entire world.
The curtain rises on the Grand Atlas Tournament.

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