The Return of the Legendary Golden-Handed Blacksmith - Chapter 66

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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 66
66.
“Damn it.”
“Failed again.”
“Isn’t the difficulty too high?”
“Since it’s the main scenario, I understand the high difficulty, but this is the first quest. It’s too hard!”
The Tower of Kodor, located in the Northern Mountain Range.
Situated at the highest point of the Northern Mountain Range, this tower—which bore the name “Kodor” for that very reason—was the focus of ongoing challenges from countless players and guilds.
Unlike Jin-woo, who had cleared the tower guardians and earned the right to enter, these players simply walked in.
This was possible because the tower guardians had been a neutral faction from the beginning.
“The tower guardians give out a lot of tips.”
“The tower itself is difficult, but the approach is easy, which is nice. The quests are arranged helpfully.”
Some tower guardians even offered tips on climbing the tower itself.
Of course, the nature of those tips wasn’t entirely positive.
Small guilds.
Solo players.
And large guilds alike attempted the tower. Fortunately, the tower was formatted as an Instanced Dungeon, so there was no overlap regardless of who entered.
Still, nearly everyone failed to clear it properly.
Most players either barely made it to the first floor or climbed to the second or third before being wiped out.
After failing so many times, their motivation began to crumble.
“Can only top guilds beat this?”
“Even a ten-person party can’t do it.”
“Solo players definitely can’t. Not with difficulty like this.”
Those who had experienced it firsthand shuddered at the tower’s difficulty.
Reviews of the tower began appearing on ShareNet and MeTube—all saying it was too hard.
Among the players exiting empty-handed, a group clad in high-grade equipment caught their eye.
“!”
“It’s the Abel Guild!”
Abel—a top-tier guild.
The Abel Guild was composed of elite few, but every member was skilled.
“I’ve fought them in the arena before. They fight really well. That’s probably why they can manage the top thirty of the tower despite having so few members.”
“If they try, the Tower of Kodor will be cleared.”
“Maybe not. Haven’t you noticed none of the other towers have been cleared yet?”
“They could be controlling the information.”
“We have to clear it before Abel does!”
The Abel Guild’s reputation for strength was already established. For that reason, they had to succeed in clearing the tower before Abel did.
“Guild Master.”
“I heard through another guild that the difficulty is quite high. Plus, there’s a Time Limit too.”
The Abel Guild Master spoke.
“But the rewards are substantial.”
Cain, the Abel Guild Master, was a named ranker from Eternal Sunshine.
Back then and now in New Gene, he maintained the same class.
Dual-Blade Warrior.
He viewed dual blades as romance incarnate.
But dual blades were inherently quite difficult and inefficient. Yet romance cares nothing for efficiency.
“I heard amazing materials come out. Once we get those materials, we’ll go to the crafter.”
“So we’ll finally be getting new equipment?”
“We’ve had these for a long time. We need to throw out the old gear and move to new equipment. Can’t keep just repairing and limping along.”
The Abel Guild Master gestured.
“We’ll finish before any other guild arrives.”
* * *
The Tower of Kodor.
Jin-woo immediately summoned his three minions.
“First.”
A screech—
Black aura spread outward, and First materialized.
“Here, take the axe.”
-You have given the Orcish Emerald Jade Stone Axe to First.

“Thank you, Master!”
Next, he summoned the Attendant.
“This shield is for you.”
-You have given the Giant Guardian Stone Shield to the Attendant.
“Am I really worthy of receiving something so precious!”
Even so, the Attendant dutifully accepted the shield and equipped it immediately.
And his third minion, Moltus, materialized.
“This one’s newly made.”
A metallic clang—
Upon summoning, Moltus bowed respectfully to First and the Attendant.
“I meet my seniors.”
“We. are. minions. alike.”
“Nothing of the sort. We simply serve the same master.”
Even as Moltus spoke, the two other minions seemed pleased.
‘They’re all bone, yet somehow I can read their expressions?’
Since Moltus already had a Staff, all three minions were now equipped with Jin-woo’s gear.
“You’re my vanguard.”
Watching them, he felt genuinely reassured.
‘With this, I can test anything and see how it performs.’
“Hmm.”
Jin-woo looked at Moltus.
The Attendant had been made nimble to begin with, so it didn’t matter, but Moltus was wearing nothing and looked bare.
“Looking empty. Moltus, wait a moment. I’ll craft something to suit you.”
“Just hearing that means everything to me!”
Ding—!
As the three minions materialized, a notification appeared.
-Conditions satisfied!
-Number of summoned minions has exceeded three.
-You have learned a new skill!
“A new skill?”
* Territory Declaration
Grade: S
Description: Declare a domain of darkness. Those who enter the domain receive debuffs, while minions receive buffs.
Effect: Debuff to intruders within the domain, buff to minions
The skill he learned was Territory Declaration—a form of buff skill.
“Excellent.”
The skill acquisition condition was summoning and contracting three or more minions.
“A minion enhancement skill, then?”
The Grade was S, but the skill Level was 1. This skill, too, appeared to be one that could grow by absorbing souls.
“Let me test it out.”
Jin-woo raised his hand.
“Territory Declaration.”
-A domain is declared. Darkness spreads throughout the surroundings!
A great screech—!
-All who enter the domain receive this warning!
-All who enter the domain receive this warning!
Powerful buffs wrapped around First, the Attendant, and the Watcher.
Darkness flowed from the three minions clad in Jin-woo’s equipment collection. Intense, bright eyes began to gleam.
“This is good.”
Jin-woo was quite satisfied with his newly learned skill.
“Yeah, this is it.”
No longer just a passive crafter.
“To use my own equipment at its best, I need minions more than anything.”
Jin-woo gestured.
“We’re going to clear this tower today. Faster than anyone.”
At his declaration, all three minions dropped to one knee simultaneously.
“We will. comply.”
“We pledge our loyalty!”
“We’ll shatter everything, Master.”
The assault on the Tower of Kodor began, led by the three minions.
* * *
Crash—!
The Tower of Kodor had a Time Limit.
-The tower’s power binds you.
-You will automatically perish when time runs out.
-Time Limit: 10:00:00
The Time Limit was ten hours.
But in truth, this Time Limit was not particularly meaningful.
The reason was simple.
Crash-crash-crash—!
“Gaaahhhhh!”
Bull-man, Minor.
Crocodile-man, Kenafl.
The tower was packed with insanely powerful monsters and countless traps.
From the very first floor, this formidable tower greeted those who entered with violence.
Bang—!
First and the Attendant stood in front, with Moltus behind.
The roaring bull-man Minor charged at First. Chain bracelets wrapped around Minor’s two hands, and with all his strength, he brought them down in a crushing strike.
A sharp clang—!
In that instant, the Attendant moved swiftly and blocked Minor’s strike with his shield.
Bang—!
It was a tremendous blow. The shockwave from its force rippled outward.
Yet the shield bore not a single scratch.
“Groooowwww!”
Minor attacked relentlessly from that spot. But the shield didn’t budge an inch. It was the Giant Guardian Stone Shield, layered with multiple defense options.
No ordinary attack could penetrate it.
“Shield Bash!”
The Attendant used a special skill with perfect timing.
Boom—!
A special skill with a thirty percent chance to knock the opponent down. Minor flew backward and hit the ground hard.
Minor tried to get up quickly, but the timing had already been seized.
A whistle—
First raised the axe high.
Crack—!
A simple, direct strike from above. But with that single blow, Minor died.
-Your Level has increased!
His level rose from just one kill.
“Must’ve been a pretty strong monster.”
Jin-woo let out a satisfied chuckle.
“The axe performs quite well.”
The Orcish Emerald Jade Stone Axe was excellent.
“First, pull back a bit and try striking with less force.”
Boom! Boom!—
As soon as Minor was killed, more Minors appeared.
Following Jin-woo’s command, First eased the power from his strike.
The monsters’ most powerful attack was this charge. As the Minors charged in madly, the Attendant tried to block with his shield, but Jin-woo made him step aside first.
Crash-crash-crash—!
The Minor’s charge momentum, shattering the floor, seemed unstoppable.
“Now.”
Jin-woo gave the order.
“Swing!”
A sharp shriek—!
Overwhelming force meeting overwhelming force.
“Gyaaahhhhh—!”
-Your Level has increased!
The Minor died outright before the axe. The other Minor that had been coming from the side immediately slowed its approach.
A dark murmur—
-One-Hit Kill!
-Death’s aura blooms from First.
The elite Death Knight that First had become was far different from the skeleton warrior of before.
The frightened Minor suddenly retreated, then turned direction. If it couldn’t fight First, attacking something else would do.
It suddenly turned toward Moltus in the rear. Since the formation was slightly broken, a Minor at full speed could easily rush down Moltus.
“Not on your life.”
Dash-dash-dash—!
The charging Minor suddenly stumbled forward.
As Moltus moved the Staff, dark energy erupted from it.
“Interesting.”
Moltus’s method of attack was fundamentally dark energy discharge.
He layered skills on top of it, but this dark energy discharge alone was formidable.
“Can shape it like a whip, or like chains.”
And with the arcane enchantments Jin-woo had imbued in the Staff, he wielded them skillfully without needing Jin-woo’s direct control.
‘A quality soul really is different.’
Made from a Watcher’s soul, Moltus was remarkably intelligent.
With the Minor’s mobility nullified, First approached. And drove the axe down.
Crash—!
“Your coordination is outstanding.”
At Jin-woo’s praise, the three minions made a rattling sound.
‘What’s most impressive is First.’
Upon leveling up to elite Death Knight, and with the Orcish Emerald Jade Stone Axe in hand, First displayed extraordinary performance.
‘The Guardian Captain’s soul was worth feeding him.’
First wielded the axe in a frenzy, cleaving through monsters in a single assault.
‘The Giant Guardian Stone Shield is quite solid too. There’s room to improve, but.’
The axe and shield paired remarkably well. The axe delivered the powerful strikes Jin-woo had envisioned, and the shield held firm against any attack.
“I barely have anything to do here.”
As soon as that thought crossed his mind, Jin-woo’s eyes caught sight of souls.
“You all handle the combat.”
Jin-woo began gathering souls.
With each swing of First’s axe, monsters fell like leaves in autumn wind, and souls poured in.
-Soul of Minor [B-rank]
-Soul of Kenafl [B-rank]
All the souls here were B-rank.
“Excellent quality souls.”
They matched the grade of the Watcher’s soul.
“Though they look a bit murky.”
Jin-woo gathered the souls together.
A gentle floating sensation—
“Then I’ll let them grow equally.”
Jin-woo pooled the souls and distributed them evenly among his three minions to grow.
-First’s Level has increased!
-The Attendant’s Level has increased!
-Moltus’s Level has increased!
As the minions leveled through soul absorption, they fought with renewed vigor.
The Attendant stood out in particular.
The Attendant bore the most roles in this party.
Bang—!
Knocking monsters over with the shield or blocking attacks, then First finishes them.
He gathered herbs and materials dropped from hunted monsters, and even mined the occasional small ore deposits.
Truly versatile.
“I can gather more efficiently!”
With each level gain from souls, the Attendant’s body grew more nimble.
“Herbs!”
“Yes!”
“Materials!”
“Yes!”
Whatever Jin-woo commanded, the Attendant executed flawlessly.
Truly, the name “Attendant” suited the performance perfectly.
-You have cleared Floor 1!
-Settling Floor 1 clear rewards.
-Performance was overwhelming!
-You achieved the fastest clear time!
-Enhanced reward obtained.
As a result, Jin-woo cleared the first floor in record time.
“Not many can do that yet.”
But he was genuinely curious about the enhanced reward.
-Check your reward!
A chest fell before Jin-woo’s eyes.
Quite a large chest—Jin-woo had First open it.
“!”
His eyes widened.
“Wow.”
The reward was breathtaking.

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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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