Genius Blacksmith’s Game - Chapter 297

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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
The Great Atlas Tournament (Part 1) (2)
Time flowed swiftly, and the eve of the Great Atlas Tournament arrived.
Hyeon-su had made thorough preparations and now stood in his Father’s hospital room.
“Tomorrow is the day, when I face those who covet Hyeon’s Blacksmith Shop.”
To be honest, even Hyeon-su could not guarantee victory.
“I have done everything in my power to prepare.”
Ten days had passed since Atlas was promoted to a Great Territory.
Though brief, Lucifer had assumed the position of Atlas’s commander in that span.
Though Atlas’s forces had grown considerably as a result, it was sufficiently managed.
Rather, Atlas was achieving remarkable growth.
“The Great Atlas Tournament will likely decide everything.”
It was whether Hyeon-su could become king.
Defeat in the Great Atlas Tournament could crumble everything Hyeon-su had built.
First, there was a high probability that crafting twenty Artifacts would take over a year.
Moreover, recording a global defeat would invite countless invasions upon Atlas.
But victory would change everything.
Victory over the strongest User Coalition would suggest Atlas possessed the greatest potential to become king, crowned by that glory alone.
After conversing with his Father for some time, Hyeon-su rose to his feet.
He needed to rest well before facing the Great Atlas Tournament tomorrow.
*
*
*
-There is one undeniable fact.
-What is it?
-This Great Atlas Tournament is the first event ever hosted by a User.
-That’s correct. Promotional trailers for the Great Atlas Tournament have been broadcast on game channels worldwide for several days now.
-Moreover, the Great Atlas Tournament will be broadcast live in real-time across the entire world.
-Twenty minutes remain until the Great Atlas Tournament.
-Could you explain the rules?
-The Great Atlas Tournament is “the embodiment of all those who wished to test themselves against Hyeon.” The Coalition Forces have three thousand participants.
-Three thousand—truly an astronomical number. What’s even more astounding is that all three thousand exceed level 400.
-Correct. Furthermore, high-rankers from each nation comprise as much as 20% of the participants.
-Those leading the Coalition participants are the pinnacles of each nation, and a considerable number of participants decided to join this war for them.
-How many participants does Hyeon’s Blacksmith Shop have in total?
-Ah, this is quite an interesting fact, and a tragic one as well.
-Why is that?
-Hyeon’s Blacksmith Shop has unlimited participants.
-…Pardon?
-It is the position conveyed by Coalition Commander Kali under the agreement hosted by Pureum Corporation.
-Well, with that many troops, they could even threaten the Royal Capital itself. It’s also a testament to the Coalition Forces’ confidence.
-The rules state that the battle continues until either Hyeon’s Blacksmith Shop or the Coalition Forces are completely annihilated. Each side advances once every hour.
-The Coalition Forces consist of two armies total, with the First Army composed of 1,800 Users.
-Is the First Army the core force?
-No. The elite Users belong to the Second Army, and considering their generally higher levels, the Second Army represents the overwhelming military advantage.
-As I explain this, the Castle Wall of Atlas begins to broadcast.
The silhouette of Atlas, hidden by mist, reveals itself.
-The length of Atlas’s Castle Wall is immeasurable.
-That’s unexpected.
The viewers waiting for the Great Atlas match were equally shocked.
-Is that Atlas fake? Built just for this event?
-That’s real. According to the tournament rules, the Atlas shown in the event is 100% identical to the actual Atlas.
-This might actually be worth watching?
-Nah, you don’t know that a famous feast house only serves noodle soup?
-LMAOOOOO, Hyeon really spent big money. Castle Wall construction is just about having enough funds.
-The real issue is troop numbers. You know why Kali set it to unlimited? Because even if he gathered everything possible, it wouldn’t reach 2,000.
-But 2,000 is still impressive…
-Yeah right, one User commanding 2,000 troops? That’s absolutely insane.
-For real, leading NPCs is incredibly difficult.
-When you think about it that way, Hyeon is truly remarkable.
-So where are you betting, who’s your pick?
-Obviously the Coalition Forces lololololololol
-You too? Me too, everyone too.
Five minutes before the match begins.
The Atlas betting hosted by Pureum Corporation closed.
The betting odds showed 99.1% for the Coalition Forces and 0.9% for Hyeon’s Blacksmith Shop.
-What kind of fools are betting on that 0.9%?
-Seriously, how can a Territory built by a single User fight against a worldwide Coalition Forces?
-Right?
The viewers were confident there would be no upset.
Meanwhile.
The leaders of each nation, including Coalition Commander Kali, were discussing matters before logging into their Capsules.
Kali smiled wickedly.
“Did you all place money on the betting?”
“I wagered 50% of my fortune.”
“So did I.”
“Myself as well.”
“With a 99% win rate, we won’t earn much, but since victory is virtually guaranteed, it’s a safe investment.”
Kali nodded in agreement.
Everyone shared the same opinion.
Moreover, Kali and the other apex powerhouses were confident from the start that they wouldn’t even reach the second division.
Thus, the Coalition Forces had funneled all their weaker members into the first division while reserving their strongest for the second.
‘Broadcast our power to the entire world for such a trivial event? Preposterous.’
Of course, that didn’t mean the first division members were pushovers by any measure.
They were an elite force composed of genuine rankers from virtually every major nation.
I focused on the TV screen displaying them.
As for the second division, they would log in once the first division was completely annihilated or an hour had passed since the event began.
The first division began to appear on screen.
[The Great Atlas Battle commences.]
With the announcement echoing, the apex figures from each nation became transfixed viewers.
*
*
*
The viewers couldn’t tear their eyes away.
The opening act of the first event ever hosted by a User.
And alongside it, the world’s most renowned rankers were making their appearance.
-The first division looks incredible too.
-I can’t believe it. Rankers are notoriously difficult to unite. Yet here at the Great Atlas Battle, the world’s strongest have come together.
The viewers absorbed the sight of the first division’s core members.
[Agareth’s Legion Commander Peng Lv.476]
Agareth.
The second-ranked Demon Lord.
And the name of the man leading four hundred Users in the first division was Peng.
Peng was one of the most famous Users across the entire world.
The reason: a mere User served as a Demon Lord’s legion commander.
Evaluations of Legion Commander Peng were as follows:
‘Most terrifying as an enemy, most reassuring as an ally.’
Peng was a User who repeatedly plundered and invaded across the US Server.
The precedent of the Demon Race legions he commanded laying waste to several territories was remarkably well-known.
Moreover, Peng inherited Agareth’s authority, allowing him to demonize every single one of his subordinates to make them formidable.
“I can’t see ahead, and it’s quite humid.”
Since Atlas was at a disadvantage, Pureum Corporation had granted several privileges.
Of course, since most of those privileges were unremarkable, the Coalition accepted them all.
The briefly glimpsed Atlas vanished once more into the mist, invisible.
Toward Atlas’s eastern flank, they advanced alongside four hundred Users.
Those who seeped into the mist began demonizing at rapid speed.
After all, these were all Ares’s strongest damage dealers.
‘With this force, we could sweep away even five thousand ordinary Soldiers or Knights.’
It was conviction, not arrogance.
Peng glanced back with a scornful smile and spoke.
“Let’s finish this quickly and grab some food.”
After all, they only needed the Elixir that boosted all stats by 5.
That’s when Peng arrived at the East Gate and froze.
“…?”
Peng’s shock stemmed from sheer absurdity.
He had expected hundreds of soldiers guarding the East Gate.
-What is this?
-Why is there only one person?
-The masked figure’s identity cannot be confirmed.
-Regardless of the mask, the fact that the information itself is obscured suggests that Hyeon has crafted items with a function to conceal all information and artifact appearances.
-…Didn’t Hyeon never intend to take the Great Atlas battle seriously from the start?
-How can he defend with just one person?
Peng shared the same reaction.
“Damn it.”
Peng cursed at the man blocking his path without hesitation.
By his standards, this was utterly ridiculous.
[Unknown Identity Lv.???]
The masked man in robes appeared lean.
Yet his eyes, visible between the helmet’s gaps, were captivating and beautiful despite belonging to a man.
“Who are you to guard this place alone? Tch, how irritating. I’ll kill you and move on. These days, all sorts of punks think they can act tough.”
Shing—
The robed man blocking the way slowly draws his sword.
This man had made a promise with Hyeon-su months ago.
He had agreed to grant Hyeon-su three favors. This was Hyeon-su’s final request.
‘He’s no punk.’
He was Bahala, ranked first in the world.
Meanwhile, at the West Gate.
Archmage Rund shone as the world’s top-ranked mage.
Also called the Golden Mage, he was the Master leading the Golden Mage, the world’s greatest mage guild.
The firepower unleashed by 400 of the strongest mages transcends common sense.
A strike on any ordinary royal capital could inflict over 200,000 casualties in an instant.
“Wind.”
Whoooooosh—
Archmage Rund, befitting his title, easily dispersed the fog with wind magic, then immediately furrowed his brow.
‘An assassin?’
A single masked man wielding a dagger stared at him.
Assassins could generally conceal their character information.
The moment Rund met the gaze of the masked man’s eyes, he flinched for an instant.
The reason was simple: mages and assassins had poor compatibility.
“A skilled assassin can assassinate over 20 people, no matter how high-leveled the mage.”
Mages struggle to allow Assassins to land successful attacks.
Moreover, while Assassins boast exceptionally high average attack power, Mages possess pitifully low total HP.
“Ridiculous. What makes you think a single man can cut us down to any meaningful degree?”
And the one blocking their path thought to himself.
‘Revealing your identity is your choice.’
He chewed over his friend’s words before pulling down his mask.
He who began living a new life because of Bok-deung-i.
And these days, thanks to his dear friend, each moment brings joy.
“….”
Such thoughts consumed him.
To protect his friend while refusing to hide himself.
And to exact retribution.
They had exploited his friend’s weak military forces, endlessly threatening Atlas, and were now waging this absurd Great Atlas War.
“Good to see you.”
“…!?”
“…!?”
The face of the Grand Mage Rund hardened upon seeing the unmasked visage before him.
He had just spoken of how a single skilled Assassin could kill twenty men.
And that skilled Assassin.
“I am Asura Kabel.”
Ranked first among Assassins and the second legend, Asura.
Meanwhile, at the South Gate.
Sword Emperor Pond, who had suffered countless humiliations at Hyeon’s Forge.
He too arrived at the South Gate leading five hundred soldiers alongside Liu.
They also discovered a single Knight of unknown identity.
Finding this situation utterly trivial and absurd, Pond spoke.
“Scared?”
“….”
Pond, who had openly mocked him, soon panicked.
Thunk—
“…?”
A Dagger suddenly flew in, embedding itself precisely between his brows.
[Critical Hit triggered.]
Thunk, thunk, thunk—
Three more Daggers lodged themselves exactly between his brows.
Then he began oxidizing into ash.
Finally, the North Gate.
“Krraaaaaaagh!”
“Grrr, kraaaaaaagh!”
Relly, ranked first among world Tamers, found herself in panic.
She was leading a massive army of nearly two thousand monsters alongside the Tamers.
But then something bizarre occurred.
As they reached the North Gate, shrouded in fog so thick that not even an inch ahead was visible, an inexplicable phenomenon was unfolding.
[The Drake trembles in fear.]
[The Twin-Headed Ogre trembles in fear.]
[The Colossal Troll trembles in fear.]
[The Orc Chieftain trembles in fear.]
Nearly two thousand monsters in total.
They were sensing the aura of some entity concealed behind the fog.
And then.
Boom
Booooom
Boom
Boom
Boom
An unbelievable sight unfolded before her eyes.
[We pay homage.]
All two thousand monsters, crouching behind the fog, were either kneeling or prostrating themselves in reverence to some presence hidden within.

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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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