I Became an SSS-Grade Time-Transcending Almighty Blacksmith - Chapter 15

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

Chapter 15
Chapter 15
The Volcanic Revolver.
A weapon I’d crafted, modeled after a named item from the Final Gate.
Though I’d never cared much for hunting, this revolver made it easy to dispatch the monsters in the Hunting Ground.
I needed to hunt to raise my Level and gather materials, after all.
So despite my distaste, I’d gritted my teeth and ventured in—
“……huh?”
The monsters in the Hunting Ground had changed.
The space I’d thoroughly cleared, where monsters had once spawned,
where I’d expected at most Slimes or Horned Rabbits to appear—
“Kergh?”
Something new was crawling out.
A creature I’d never encountered in person, yet somehow unmistakably familiar.
And little wonder—that green dwarf was perhaps the most famous monster in all of fantasy.
Its identity was none other than—
“A Goblin?”
Yes.
A Goblin.
One of the lowest-tier monsters, though respected as comparatively strong, stood right at the entrance.
And that wasn’t all.
“Gnarr!”
Another creature held in equal regard to the Goblin—
a Kobold, looking rather like a small dog-man.
Various other monsters had been added to the mix.
The common thread: they were all far stronger than Slimes or Horned Rabbits.
What’s more—
“Kergh, kergh!”
The moment they spotted me, they charged.
Aggressive monsters, then.
Caught off guard, I—
“Agh!”
Bang!
immediately pulled the trigger of the Volcanic Revolver.
The Volcanic Revolver’s power was undeniable.
One shot sent both Goblins and Kobolds tumbling down.
Even without hitting vital points—
a solid body shot was enough to trigger an explosion and end them instantly.
But there were quite a few of them.
Worse, one Goblin had a contraption called a Wind Gun pressed to its mouth, aiming directly at me.
Bang!
The moment I squeezed the last round—
Whoosh!
I backpedaled and bolted from the Hunting Ground.
“Haah, haah……”
It had lasted only a moment, but cold sweat streamed down my spine.
I’d let my guard slip, hadn’t even brought Wooden Armor—
If that Wind Gun had paralyzed me—
the thought alone was horrifying.
“This is exactly why I hate combat……”
Life-or-death struggle.
That simply wasn’t my temperament.
By nature, I’m a blacksmith.
But what choice did I have?
If I wanted to raise my Level and gather monster materials, I had no choice but to go back in.
At the very least, with Wooden Armor—
no, Iron Armor equipped, I could ignore everything the Goblins and Kobolds threw at me.
“Ugh……”
But the thought left me deeply uneasy.
Still, I had no choice but to head back to the Smithy and grab the armor.
“Right, there was that too.”
A door came into view.
When I raised the Smithy of Time to Level 3, this second unlocked space had appeared alongside the Blacksmith’s Hunting Ground.
[ Blacksmith’s Assistant Waiting Room ]
An assistant waiting room.
When I’d first heard the name, it seemed utterly useless to me, so I’d paid it no mind.
But perhaps because I was reluctant to head back to the Hunting Ground—
a sudden curiosity stirred in me. I changed direction, pushed open the door to the assistant waiting room, and stepped inside.
When I heard “assistant waiting room,” I’d pictured a real-world lounge with chairs and lockers.
“That’s all?”
There was only a raised platform in the center of the room.
Why on earth was this called an assistant waiting room?
The answer came from Ember.
– If you examine the platform, you’ll understand.
Following Ember’s advice, I approached the center of the room and placed my hand on the platform.
Information about it flooded my mind at once.
[ Blacksmith’s Summoning Platform Lv 1 ]
A platform for summoning the blacksmith’s assistants.
– Summoning Lv 1
Only then did understanding dawn on me.
The true nature of this room.
“Wait—this isn’t a waiting room at all. It’s a summoning chamber?”
This wasn’t simply a space for hiring and housing employees.
A place to summon assistants.
If that were the case, why not just call it an assistant summoning chamber from the start?
Why give it such a misleading name?
“I’d have come here first if I’d known!”
I was at a loss for words.
Regardless, if I could summon assistants through this platform, there was no reason not to use it.
I had no idea what kind of assistant might appear, but I needed to try immediately.
Whatever assistant came forth would surely prove invaluable to my blacksmithing endeavors.
“But how do I use it?”
– Strike the platform with a hammer, if you would.
“A hammer?”
Suddenly being told to strike it with a hammer seemed odd.
Puzzled though I was, I trusted Ember and fetched a hammer from the Smithy.
Then, as Ember had instructed—
Clang!
I brought it down with all my strength.
Perhaps it was thanks to days of swinging the hammer with enthusiasm—
my strike hit the groove on the platform with absolute precision.
And in that instant—
[ Forming the Summoning Circle to call forth the blacksmith’s assistant. ]
[ The grade of the summoned assistant will be determined by your evaluation rank. ]
“Huh?”
A Summoning Circle materialized before me.
But its shape was strangely familiar.
And for good reason.
“Points?”
The same Points that appeared whenever I crafted an item were positioned throughout the Summoning Circle.
The moment I recognized this—
my body reacted faster than my mind, having spent days striking Points.
Clang!
I swung the hammer at one of the Points in the Summoning Circle.
And I was right.
Crack—
The Point shattered, its fragments scattering like dust and being absorbed into the Summoning Circle below.
Understanding what was happening—
I focused and began striking the Points in rapid succession.
Clang, clang, clang!
It’s the same as when I craft an item.
No need to overthink it.
Just do what I always do.
With that thought, I repeatedly struck the Points as they appeared.
‘This is harder than I expected.’
The crafting difficulty is higher than any item I’ve made since my awakening.
It surpasses even the Volcanic Revolver, which was the most difficult until now.
Though technically, this isn’t crafting.
But isn’t it the same—pounding away at Points and waiting for the result?
In that sense, this task was quite demanding.
Some Points were so thick I had to strike them with force multiple times before they’d shatter.
Others required quick reflexes, their duration so brief.
Points appeared in unexpected locations.
A blacksmith experiencing this for the first time would have panicked and missed many Points.
Clang!
But not me.
In the Final Gate, I’d tackled crafting challenges far more difficult than this as a matter of routine.
All I need to do is bring that experience into this reality.
With my low Level 3 stats, I can’t fully unleash that experience, but within my current limits, I shattered as many Points as possible.
Swinging the hammer without losing track of time, the result came.
Fwoooosh—
All the Points before my eyes vanished.
The Summoning Circle absorbed every fragment of those Points and began to glow brilliantly.
[ Summoning is complete. ]
[ Craft Evaluation: S-Rank ]
The difficulty was higher than I’d anticipated, so I’d worried it might come out A-Rank or lower.
Fortunately, it came out S-Rank.
Given that S-Rank is realistically the highest grade I can achieve at my current level, this is as perfect as it gets.
And with that—
[ S-Rank Assistant ‘Monster Hunter of the Icaya Mountain Range’ is summoned. ]
Whoooosh—
My assistant began to materialize through the Summoning Circle.
“Oh…”
A woman with a cold, sharp expression.
Her dark gray hair was tied back tightly, and though she carried no equipment, she epitomized the image of a hunter at first glance.
The moment she materialized, she dropped to one knee before me.
“Serin, Hunter of the Icaya Mountain Range, at your service. Thank you for summoning me, Master.”
Her voice was cold as she bowed her head.
* * *
Serin, the Monster Hunter of the Icaya Mountain Range.
The instant she introduced herself, her status window appeared before my eyes.
[ Status Window ]
– Name: Serin
– Level: 3
– Occupation: Hunter
– Ability: Weakness Detection
– Strength: 15
– Agility: 26
– Vitality: 13
– Intelligence: 10
– Wisdom: 10
Reading these numbers, I couldn’t help but be taken aback.
‘Why are her stats so high?’
Even at Level 3, you’re supposed to have a base 10 in each stat plus only six bonus Points to distribute.
But Serin had twenty-four bonus Points added to her base 10 stats.
In terms of levels, that meant her stats were already at Level 9 standard.
And that wasn’t all.
‘Weakness Detection?’
When I checked her ability—
[ Weakness Detection ]
I detect the enemy’s weak point.
Critical damage increases threefold when striking a weak point.
It’s a powerful ability that suits a hunter perfectly.
And that’s not even all of it.
[ Skill Window ]
1. Focused Shot Lv 3
2. Rapid Fire Lv 2
3. Piercing Shot Lv 1
4. Dual Shot Lv 1
5. Tracking Lv 2
6. Eagle Eye Lv 2
…………
Why does she have so many skills?
At Level 3, she shouldn’t have more than ten skills.
And her skill levels are higher than you’d expect for her current level.
Looking at this, I reached a realization.
‘She’s been weakened.’
Serin was never supposed to be at Level 3.
She’s been scaled down to match my level during the summoning.
Both her stats and her skills have been reduced.
Thinking about it that way, I couldn’t help but wonder how powerful she must have been originally to remain this formidable even after being weakened.
“Um, well. I look forward to working with you?”
“You may speak more casually, Master.”
“It’s just… no matter how I look at it, I seem to be younger than you. Might I ask your age…?”
“Having lived alone in the mountain range, I don’t recall my age clearly.”
It’s not that she looks old.
It’s more that she seems incredibly mature.
No matter how I look at her, she doesn’t seem younger than me.
Even though she told me to speak casually, I can’t bring myself to use informal speech with her.
“I’ll drop the formality later once I feel more comfortable.”
“Yes, Master.”
“You can stand up. Serin? And please, treat me more casually as well.”
“Yes, Master.”
Besides, she doesn’t seem to be treating me casually either, so I can’t drop the formal speech first.
In any case, I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to do next.
She rose from her position at my word.
“Shall I guide you to the Hunting Ground?”
She stated her role matter-of-factly.
The Hunting Ground—right.
The moment I heard those words, it struck me again that she had been summoned as my assistant.
Of course, through the Assistant Summoning, a ‘hunter’ had been called forth.
So it was only natural that she had been summoned as my companion for hunting.
“Right now?”
“I wish to examine the place where I’ll be working moving forward.”
“Ah, I understand.”
There was nothing else to discuss anyway.
We headed straight to the Hunting Ground.
However, to reach the Hunting Ground, we necessarily had to pass through the Smithy.
The moment I saw the hammer and anvil of the Smithy, one problem came to mind.
“Do you have equipment?”
Her weapon, in particular.

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