The Return of the Legendary Golden-Handed Blacksmith - Chapter 224

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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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Chapter 224
224.
The Royal Forge received many visitors.
Nobles with an interest in crafting, semi-nobles carrying commissions from royalty.
And blacksmiths.
The Royal Forge was the dream of many blacksmiths. It was the kingdom’s most vital center, and entry into it meant you were among the kingdom’s most skilled craftspeople.
The blacksmiths arriving through such recommendations could be identified at a glance by their bearing and attire.
The blacksmiths observed Jin-woo’s clothing.
At first glance it looked shabby, but his rippling muscles made the garb irrelevant.
A newcomer, then!
Those who thought this in unison moved as tradition dictated.
Blacksmiths were fundamentally arrogant.
Moreover, they were overflowing with confidence, and the early period following their recommendation to the Royal Forge was notoriously difficult.
So they needed to be kept in check.
Through dismissal.
And through skill.
Their first priority was to assess who this newcomer was in preparation for working together, and that assessment process was precisely dismissal.
To observe how he behaved when intentionally ignored.
There had been various patterns so far.
Some would strike up a conversation first when dismissed.
Others would grow angry at those dismissing them.
Still others would wait the whole day long.
It wasn’t a good method, but when dealing with fundamentally ego-driven blacksmiths, it was unavoidable.
So the blacksmiths were quite curious. How would this muscular newcomer react?
Jin-woo’s pattern was one they’d never seen before.
The moment he arrived, he went straight to a work station, picked up materials, and began smelting!
……!
And it wasn’t mere smelting.
A single hammer strike captured everyone’s attention.
All of the Royal Forge’s First Master Craftsman, Second Master Craftsman, and Third Master Craftsman looked toward Jin-woo.
The Royal Forge ranked its members by tier, and generally once they focused, they didn’t look elsewhere.
The higher the rank, the more extraordinary their concentration—the First Master could maintain focus even with an explosion.
Clang!
Jin-woo continued his hammering.
They’d wanted to dismiss him as tradition demanded, but this was impossible to ignore.
Clang! Clang!
“What…?”
“Whose recommendation brought him?”
All of them had arrived here on the recommendations of celebrated blacksmiths.
And so they were all curious about this overwhelming hammering technique.
Whose recommendation had brought this man here?
Clang!
As they all wondered, Jin-woo brought down his hammer.
“That’s a Fragment of the Sun’s Star!”
The material Jin-woo was using was a mineral valued highly in the palace—the Fragment of the Sun’s Star.
Named for its radiant glow like the sun and its faceted appearance like a star, it was the choice of all those of standing in the palace, who wore equipment crafted from it.
“That’s quite difficult to work with.”
“If you strike it like that—”
It shatters.
Clang!
Yet the Fragment of the Sun’s Star remained intact.
More than that—it glowed.
“……It’s glowing.”
The Fragment of the Sun’s Star had a particular property.
When all its latent power was drawn forth, it glowed.
That light—resembling sunlight or starlight—was proof of working the material well.
Yet drawing out that light was extraordinarily difficult. Many attempts to obtain it ended in the material shattering.
The Royal Forge’s blacksmiths therefore desired the Fragment’s light but rarely attempted it.
Yet this newly arrived blacksmith was achieving it.
Whoooosh—
Clang!
With each hammer strike, the glow intensified.
“This is no mere hammering…….”
Power rising forth.
As Jin-woo struck with his hammer, he was using Skills.
Soul Forging, Maximization Smelting.
And even Harmonia Smelting, which drew everything together and made it bloom.
That wasn’t all.
Jin-woo smiled faintly and wrapped his hand in flames.
!
“That’s Master Oson’s technique?”
“Did he come on Master Oson’s recommendation?”
Someone recognized the Hand Tempering—wrapping flames around the hand.
Clang!
Jin-woo accelerated his pace.
‘I chose the one that looked trickiest.’
Jin-woo smiled as he regarded the Fragment of the Sun’s Star.
‘Just as I thought.’
Difficult materials all share the same advantage.
‘Once you move past the difficulty and reveal their true nature—’
Their beauty is magnified.
Clang!
Jin-woo employed Rune Inscription – Extreme.
Whooosh—. Whooooosh—.
Characters were inscribed upon the Fragment of the Sun’s Star.
‘Radiant and bright.’
Jin-woo continued his hammering.
“This is…… problematic.”
The expressions of the blacksmiths watching hardened.
There were only so many First Master positions available.
If this Jin-woo entered as a Royal Forge blacksmith, the First Master seat was all but assured.
His hammering alone was worthy of such standing.
At that moment, one master stepped forward.
He was the Second Master, waiting to become First Master.
“Since you’ve greeted me so formally.”
The Second Master spoke.
“I should return the greeting!”
His body itched.
He couldn’t stand still after witnessing that crafting.
Anticipation and anxiety.
Conflicting emotions wrapped around the Second Master.
The Second Master reached for the Fragment of the Sun’s Star, then grabbed a different material instead. He didn’t want a battle of pride using the same material.
He wanted to create his finest work with the material he could best handle.
The Second Master gripped his material and placed it in the furnace.
Whoooosh—.
Then he took out tongs and struck in a straight line with his hammer, as if answering a challenge.
Hammering is one of the most crucial elements in crafting. Yet skill cannot be fully gauged by hammering alone.
A blacksmith speaks through the finished product, not the process.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The Royal Forge had diverse materials.
The finest Flower Steel from Avalon, and besides that, Orichalcum, Darkness Stone, the highest grade Mithril—
Many materials that the very mention of made clear they were premium minerals.
The Second Master next took hold of other minerals and placed them in the furnace.
Whoooosh—!
The First Masters observed the Second Master.
Even they felt a breathlessness watching Jin-woo’s crafting.
Yet the Second Master responded by demonstrating his craft, which felt admirable.
Words of encouragement weren’t needed.
A blacksmith speaks through crafting. Trust in that.
Clang!
What had begun as Jin-woo’s crafting had become a contest with the entire Royal Forge.
Though it was called an exchange between blacksmiths, the situation had grown quite intense.
Then Jin-woo began to accelerate.
Clang! Clang!
Faster than the Second Master could follow.
Jin-woo created a complete piece of equipment in an instant.
-Equipment created!
-USSR+ Grade equipment created!
Even casually crafted, USSR+ Grade came out.
‘The Fragment of the Sun’s Star. This is interesting.’
Jin-woo had been absorbed in the Fragment of the Sun’s Star but now withdrew.
‘I should explore it further.’
He picked up the completed sword in hand.
Whoooosh—
Then he gave it a light swing.
Hum—
The power of the Fragment of the Sun’s Star was that its glimmering aura rose like an Aura.
The sword Jin-woo had crafted was saturated with that aura.
Sharp and pure white.
Its sharpness was apparent merely from looking at it, and the masters could say nothing more, simply watching Jin-woo in silence.
“The Fragment of the Sun’s Star. Excellent material. And—”
Jin-woo pointed at the furnace fire.
“The fire’s excellent too.”
“You are…….”
The First Master stepped forward to ask who Jin-woo was.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
At that moment, the Second Master’s hammering intensified.
“Ah.”
Only now did Jin-woo observe the Second Master’s crafting.
Clang!
‘As expected.’
The crafting he’d shown when first arriving had been restrained.
‘Now he’s doing it properly.’
Clang!
‘Yes. This is it.’
Jin-woo’s eyes brightened.
‘Each reached first rank in their home city.’
Then they came to the capital and proved their skill again.
‘And by proving and proving themselves, they’ve reached this Royal Forge.’
Clang!
Excellent crafting indeed.
‘Superior even to the blacksmiths of Chanran?’
They surpassed even Oson, Chanran’s representative blacksmith.
‘No. Oson has advantages in some respects.’
And the Second Master excelled in other areas.
‘What level are we talking about?’
Not all blacksmiths in the Royal Forge were of the same caliber.
‘They must be divided by tier.’
Jin-woo shifted his gaze and found the three who seemed most formidable.
‘Those three are completely different.’
The very Auras they radiated differed.
‘I should exchange techniques with those blacksmiths next.’
Clang!
Then the Second Master completed his sword.
A magnificent blade crafted using all the Royal Forge’s materials.
In sharp contrast to Jin-woo’s simple sword, the Second Master’s work looked more impressive to any observer.
…….
Yet all the other blacksmiths couldn’t look away from Jin-woo’s sword, not the Second Master’s ornate one.
Jin-woo approached the Second Master.
“Excellent work. Your hammering is clean. The Options, the design, the quality—”
Somehow, Jin-woo had taken on the demeanor of appraising the Second Master.
“I didn’t ask for your evaluation!”
A Royal Forge blacksmith receiving assessment from one who’d just arrived?
Nothing wounded pride more than that.
“Then.”
Jin-woo smiled subtly and showed his own sword to the Second Master.
“Would you evaluate mine?”
Gulp—.
The Second Master was desperately curious.
What was Jin-woo’s sword like, crafted with that perfect hammering technique that captured the eye?
The Second Master found himself accepting the sword Jin-woo offered without thinking.
Evaluating was far preferable to being evaluated.
!
The Second Master took Jin-woo’s sword and examined the Options.
And he saw.
The result that hammering had created.
“Ah.”
Then he spoke.
“Where…… are you from?”
At first, he’d naturally assumed Jin-woo was a new Royal Forge blacksmith brought by recommendation.
But that was wrong.
It had to be wrong.
This skill.
This result.
This wasn’t someone brought on the back of anyone’s recommendation.
It was skill worthy not just of the First Master position, but of Chief Blacksmith of the Royal Forge.
And more than that—
Whoooosh—.
The power of the Goddess of Fire and Furnace was felt.
They had all inherited the power of the Goddess of Fire and Furnace. Of course they had—the power descended upon the palace, and Rufema was its direct Patron.
The First Master quickly approached and examined the sword.
And asked the same question.
“I am Tralios, the First Master of this Royal Forge. How have you come here? O Successor of the Flame.”
The First Master had understood with certainty.
Who Jin-woo was.
“I came to meet Master Rufema.”
“Master Rufema is currently—”
“Met me? You came to meet me?”
A voice called from behind.
Rufema.
Over two meters tall, with gray hair and gray beard—a towering old man.
‘In the past, that frame must have been packed with muscle.’
Now he was quite lean. Yet even so, his presence was formidable.
“Who are you? I don’t recognize your face.”
The proud Royal Forge blacksmiths dropped to their knees the moment Rufema appeared.
“Great Master!”
“Great Master, you’ve come!”
At their loud cries, Rufema waved his hand dismissively.
“Too loud. Put that energy into swinging hammers instead.”
“We beg your pardon—!”
At Rufema’s words, the other blacksmiths retreated and returned to their work.
“So. You came to meet me?”
“Master Oson sent me.”
“Oson? Ha ha ha, young blacksmith. Are you Oson’s apprentice?”
“Yes. I studied Hand Tempering under Master Oson.”
Whoooosh—.
Jin-woo demonstrated Hand Tempering.
“I’m searching for the Temple of the Goddess of Fire and Furnace. Master Oson said that if you were Rufema, you would know its location, so I’ve come.”
“Ah. So you’re a Patron of the Goddess of Fire and Furnace. Impressive. Most impressive.”
Rufema observed Jin-woo.
“But why seek the Temple?”
At that moment, something different emanated from the Hand Tempering Jin-woo raised.
Whoooosh—!
Rufema’s eyebrows twitched.
Something was wrong. The power rising from Jin-woo was not merely what a Patron could receive.
“Young blacksmith. Could you possibly be…….”
Jin-woo was no Patron of the Goddess of Fire and Furnace.
“Her…….”
-The Goddess of Fire and Furnace greets her long-time Patron!
“Yes. I am her Successor.”
Astonishment crossed Rufema’s face.

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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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