The Return of the Transcendent Blacksmith - Chapter 14

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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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Regression of the Transcendent Blacksmith — Episode 14
An awkward silence hung over the dinner table, still uncleared.
Shin Tae-ho stared at it without comprehension.
The creature met his gaze, tilting its head in confusion.
‘I knew an egg from the Administrator wouldn’t be ordinary, but a Dragon Egg? Never in a thousand years.’
Shin Tae-ho had survived until the very end before his Regression.
He had encountered and fought Wyverns, but meeting a dragon for the first time—that was new.
In fact, he hadn’t even known dragons existed as creatures.
Naturally, his Tamer training had never covered dragons.
‘What am I supposed to do now?’
“Ryong? Ryong-ryong~?”
When Shin Tae-ho gave no response, the creature batted his hand with gentle taps, as if asking why.
The claws grazing his fingertips jolted him back to awareness.
‘I have no idea how to raise this thing, but… it does look magnificent.’
In modern times, dragons were still spoken of as Divine Beasts of great power and mystique.
The thought that he had become a dragon’s Tamer sent a surge of pride through Shin Tae-ho, despite his usual lack of vanity.
He gently stroked the creature’s head with a steady hand.
It flinched at first, but once his palm found its rhythm, the dragon rumbled contentedly and leaned into the touch.
Gurgle.
A low sound came from the dragon’s belly as it kept its eyes closed, savoring the caress.
Then it struck him—the creature had only just been born and was surely starving.
‘Right, the training said the bond forms when you give them their first meal while they sense you as their guardian.’
He recalled what his Tamer lessons had taught him and retrieved raw meat from the refrigerator.
He cut the meat into small pieces with a knife, minced them, and held them out to the dragon.
“You’re hungry, aren’t you? Here, eat up.”
“Ryong?”
The creature approached with curiosity, sniffing at the meat intently.
Its face suddenly scrunched up in disgust, and it twisted away, slapping the meat from his fingers with a sharp flick of its tail.
“Yong! Yo-ong-!!”
“What? You don’t like it?”
Shin Tae-ho was baffled.
Could this be a vegetarian dragon?
Since it came from the Tower, anything was possible. He retrieved other foods from the kitchen.
“How about spinach?”
“Yong!!”
Whack. Another failure.
“What about nuts, then?”
“Yo-ong!!”
Whack. Strike two.
As Shin Tae-ho ransacked the refrigerator trying every food he could find, his eyes landed on the grilled meat he’d been eating.
‘Could it be…?’
He cut off a piece of the marbled pork belly he’d been enjoying.
“What about this?”
Sniff.
The petulant dragon sniffed at it with obvious reluctance.
The suspicion that had narrowed its eyes suddenly gave way to wide surprise.
“Ryong~!”
Gulp.
The dragon snatched the meat from his hand in one swift motion and devoured it.
Watching it chew enthusiastically, Shin Tae-ho understood.
‘Ah, so when it cries “Ryong,” that’s a positive sound, and “Yong” means no?’
He cleared away the cold meat from the table.
Instead, he took out tender, fatty ribeye steak, grilled it carefully over low heat, and fed it piece by piece to the dragon.
Having just tasted the freshly grilled ribeye after the cold pork, the dragon’s eyes went wide.
“Ryo, ryong! Ryo-ong!”
“That’s right. There’s plenty, so eat as much as you want until you’re full.”
The dragon seemed to understand, bobbing its head in agreement.
Whether it resembled a puppy or not, the swaying tail painted a clear picture of contentment.
True to its nature as a Divine Beast, the newborn dragon’s appetite was extraordinary.
Only after consuming nearly a kilogram of ribeye did the satisfied creature stretch out on its back, belly swollen and prominent.
“Grrrrk.”
“Look how nicely you’ve eaten.”
Shin Tae-ho stroked gently along the creature’s neck and belly as it lay stretched out before him.
Watching the dragon recline at ease, muscles relaxed, Shin Tae-ho chuckled softly.
“It’s overdue, but I’m glad we’ve met. I’m Shin Tae-ho.”
“Rong!”
At Shin Tae-ho’s introduction, the dragon rolled and stood up.
Feeling the creature’s intent gaze fixed on him, Shin Tae-ho tilted his head.
‘What is it? What do you want?’
As Shin Tae-ho met its eyes without speaking, the dragon gestured at itself with a small finger, as if frustrated.
“Rong! Rong-rong!”
Something about the gesture suddenly struck him—as though the creature were asking, ‘What’s my name?’—and Shin Tae-ho understood.
‘That’s it. I need to give this dragon a name.’
Shin Tae-ho assumed a serious expression and began pondering in earnest what name might suit the creature.
Then, recalling the sounds he’d deciphered earlier and what they’d meant, he struck his palm with his fist.
“That’s it. You cry ‘rong’ when you’re upset and ‘rong’ when you’re pleased, so how about Yong-ryong? What do you think?”
“Rong?!”
The dragon startled.
To name him from his own cries?!
The dragon had begun shaking his head in protest, then stopped abruptly.
…At first the name didn’t sit right, but the more he turned it over, the more he felt a warmth he couldn’t quite put into words.
And seeing Shin Tae-ho’s hopeful eyes, he couldn’t bring himself to refuse.
The dragon, having deliberated just as carefully as Shin Tae-ho, finally opened his mouth slowly.
“…Rong!”
“There. It’s a good name, isn’t it? I’m relieved you like it.”
When the affirmative cry of “Rong” came, Shin Tae-ho exhaled in relief.
Part of him had been worried the creature might actually dislike it.
‘There’s a lot I need to check.’
How people would react when he showed them a summoned creature like this dragon.
Whether Yong-ryong possessed the same rare special abilities that other rare summons had.
As Shin Tae-ho organized these questions in his mind, he extended his hand toward Yong-ryong.
Quick as the creature was, Yong-ryong understood the gesture at once and scrambled up his arm.
“Sniff-sniff.”
Yong-ryong scurried busily across Shin Tae-ho’s body, exploring every inch.
After methodically searching from top to bottom, Yong-ryong finally settled around his neck.
Slither—
Yong-ryong coiled himself like a scarf, wrapping snugly around his throat.
Feeling the dragon’s warm body heat against his neck, Shin Tae-ho stroked along Yong-ryong’s back.
“Let’s get along well from now on.”
“Rong!”
Yong-ryong answered brightly to Shin Tae-ho’s greeting.
* * *
Tower.com, the largest Tower community on the internet.
With users from across the globe, Tower.com was ablaze once again with heated arguments.
The hot topic setting the site on fire was, as always, the first Tutorial Conqueror.
But this time, alongside that, posts about the Management Bureau were burning just as intensely.
<Don’t anger the Management Bureau a second time. (Reason attached)>
Clicking the title revealed a video attached to the post.
From the angle, someone had filmed it inside the Awakener Registration Bureau.
In the video, Chief Im A-yeong was erupting with fury, her expression absolutely terrifying.
Naturally, the comments descended into chaos.
-Wow, that’s chilling. I was planning to go tomorrow but I’ll pass.
⌎Looking at that video made my legs shake and I got all… uncomfortable down there
⌎Some people aren’t prepared. That’s why I wore a diaper beforehand lol
-But seriously, the way she’s raging like that means that Awakener never showed up, right?
⌎Yeah, probably. Honestly, there’s no way one person did it solo. They must have a guild backing them or they’re with the Management Bureau lol
⌎Right, even the American, Chinese, and Japanese Management Bureaus couldn’t do it, so no way a solo player pulled it off
⌎This is facts
Though the post had only been up for less than a day.
The view count had already exceeded ten million, and there were already three million comments.
The Management Bureau employees gathered in the conference room, nodding as they watched Tower.com together on the projector.
“That does it. This should put the suspicions to rest.”
“She really committed to that performance. Im, you’ve had quite the ordeal.”
“N-no, thank you….”
Im A-yeong ducked her head, trying to hide her flushed face.
The reason Im A-yeong had erupted in anger at the Registration Bureau.
It wasn’t actually that she’d lost control under stress — it had been an order from the Management Bureau.
But why had the Management Bureau issued such a command to Im A-yeong?
The reason was to winnow out the scouts who had swarmed in with uncontrollable numbers.
“Thanks to that, the Chinese and Japanese scouts who were such thorns in our side have definitely left.”
“Not just them. We’ve confirmed that most of the scouts have given up and withdrawn.”
“There are still a few who haven’t let go of their hopes and remain, but we can manage them at a controllable level now.”
Though the Management Bureau was technically a Korean government agency, it couldn’t wield unlimited influence within Korea.
If scouts stronger than themselves were determined and pressed their attack, they could lose the Awakener entirely.
Even if they managed to stop them by force, using that action as a pretext could escalate into a diplomatic incident between nations, making things worse.
Oh Jin-hyeok, the Management Bureau Director, listened to the others’ conversation and sighed deeply.
“Now isn’t the right time. We’re withdrawing from the Registration Bureau.”
No one questioned Oh Jin-hyeok’s decision.
The Management Bureau was an organization founded to manage and support Awakeners.
Accordingly, its employees knew more about Awakeners than anyone else.
And they understood what it meant for things to unfold this way.
‘That Awakener has no intention of revealing themselves. Moreover, there must be a guild backing that Awakener from behind.’
Besides, even if they’d left for now thanks to Im A-yeong’s performance.
If the Awakener revealed their identity now, it was obvious the scouts would drop everything and rush to make contact immediately.
All of this meaning was compressed into Oh Jin-hyeok’s words.
‘Fortunately, they don’t seem to be neglecting their climb, so there’s no need to poke around looking for them now. Of course, we’ll have to meet eventually.’
Oh Jin-hyeok was the Management Bureau Director, responsible for overseeing the Awakeners upon whom the nation’s security depended.
He couldn’t simply stand by and watch a promising talent slip away.
‘When I eventually meet that Awakener, I need to have prepared an attractive offer that would make them want to cooperate with us.’
It is not a harsh wind but warm sunshine that removes the traveler’s cloak.
Now that his course of action was clear, the tension and anxiety that had clouded his mind all this time lifted considerably.
Oh Jin-hyeok stood and issued his orders.
“Effective immediately, all personnel assigned to finding the tutorial conqueror are reassigned to their original duties.”
“Pardon? Director, do you mean…?”
“We’re not responsible for just that Awakener, are we? Even now, other Awakeners are risking their lives climbing the tower. We need to support them.”
It was an obvious statement, yet Oh Jin-hyeok’s words brought surprise to his employees’ faces.
When he also underscored the Management Bureau’s very reason for existence, their expressions shifted to one of inspiration.
“Yes, understood!”
‘Finally, I don’t have to see those tiresome and infuriating frauds claiming they’ve conquered the tutorial!’
The faces of the employees leaving the conference room were brighter and clearer than ever before.
* * *
[You have entered Floor 15 of the Tower of Korea.]
“Yong-ryong.”
The moment Shin Tae-ho entered the tower, he called out to Yong-ryong and checked on her.
He’d been worried since this was her first time entering the tower since birth.
Fortunately, Yong-ryong blinked as if nothing was amiss.
“Ryong?”
“No. It’s nothing.”
Shin Tae-ho patted Yong-ryong’s head as she responded.
He took the Hammer from his inventory and read the message window.
[Floor 15 Trial: One day, countless beasts and monsters were drawn as if by some force into a forest. Eliminate all the forest’s invaders who are indiscriminately destroying it.]
[Clear Condition: Defeat all enemies before the forest is destroyed by 50% or more.]
[Time Limit: 24 hours]
[The trial begins.]
‘What? The trial content is different from usual.’
Shin Tae-ho found it strange.
Until now, the trials he’d received had simply been tasks to eliminate giant caterpillars or giant centipedes.
But now they were giving him 24 hours and asking him to defeat all enemies.
On top of that, the clear condition was to protect the forest from being more than 50% destroyed.
‘Are they saying these creatures will destroy the forest? But even so….’
As Shin Tae-ho tried to process the situation with bewilderment,
a crackling sound echoed from the distance, and a tree toppled to the ground.
In that moment, the content of the message window changed.
[Current Forest Destruction Rate: 0.6%]
[Current Forest Destruction Rate: 1%]
“…Dammit.”
Watching the forest destruction rate climb sharply in real time, Shin Tae-ho channeled energy through his body and kicked off the ground.
Continued in the next episode ▶
The Master Blacksmith’s Regression
Author
Sealing Release
Publisher
Kim Seok-hwan, Choi Se-ra
Published by
Grae Publishing
Inquiries
[email protected]
Publication Date
May 26, 2026
UCI
G720:N+A327-20260227067
※ This e-book is protected under copyright law. Unauthorized reproduction and copying are prohibited, and violations may result in criminal and civil legal liability.
※ Pentagram awaits your precious manuscript.

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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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