The Return of the Transcendent Blacksmith - Chapter 83

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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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Transcendent-level Blacksmith’s Return Episode 83
Once he’d passed the journalists, no one stood in Shin Tae-ho’s way.
The path to the transport aircraft was guarded by numerous Management Bureau staff from Japan.
The dedicated transport aircraft prepared for Mystery had a boarding bridge rather than a standard gate.
As Shin Tae-ho climbed the boarding bridge, trying to clear his cluttered mind—
Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi, arriving late, caught him before he could ascend.
“Wait, just a moment, please, Susanoo!”
“What now?”
Shin Tae-ho turned, his irritation plain.
He was in Mystery’s form, and unexpected complications had left him on edge.
At Mystery’s response, Tsukuyomi bristled, her eyes flashing with annoyance.
But Amaterasu, seemingly unbothered, simply held out her smartphone.
“Could I get your contact information? Once you leave, it’ll be a while before we see each other again. It’ll be hard to reconnect otherwise.”
“Why would you think I’d meet you again?”
“Because if a second tower appears, the world will face that threat again, won’t it? And well, I’m a world-class ranker, and I am strong?”
Amaterasu smiled brightly, her tone forthright.
The unexpected reasoning caught Shin Tae-ho off guard.
In his mind, memories of Amaterasu from before the regression surfaced.
‘She means what she’s saying.’
That couldn’t be her only reason.
Amaterasu wanted his number because she needed Mystery’s power.
Yet looking ahead to the future, having reliable allies wasn’t a burden for Shin Tae-ho either.
Amaterasu, who had fought valiantly to protect humanity until her dying breath, deserved a place among his comrades.
When Mystery stared at her intently, Amaterasu scratched the back of her head awkwardly.
“Is it… not possible?”
“I have no intention of giving you my number.”
“As I thought…”
Amaterasu’s shoulders sagged.
As Tsukuyomi stepped forward from behind, about to speak, Shin Tae-ho cut in.
“So give me yours instead. Then I’ll contact you.”
“Really? You mean it?”
“Yes. Since you’ve come dressed like that, I’ll do at least that much.”
Shin Tae-ho regarded Amaterasu with a lingering gaze, noting how the rough-woven outfit clung to her.
The helmet obscured whatever lay in her eyes.
But Tsukuyomi, reading the context and the angle of his gaze, bristled at what she perceived as pity.
“You don’t seem to grasp how difficult it was for her to come here.
Here, she is no mere challenger.”
Tsukuyomi spoke sharply, rebuking him: ‘How dare you, a mere challenger, comment on her attire?’
But before Mystery could retort—
Amaterasu deflated Tsukuyomi’s protest entirely.
“Huh? What’s wrong, Tsukuyomi? Wasn’t Susanoo admiring my ninja outfit?”
‘That doesn’t seem to be it, miss.’
“No.”
The words Tsukuyomi couldn’t bring herself to voice aloud came instead from Mystery’s mouth.
Amaterasu tilted her head in confusion, and Mystery extended his palm.
“Write it down. If you’re not going to, I’m leaving.”
“No, wait! Don’t go! Just a moment!”
Amaterasu hurriedly rummaged through her clothes and produced a pen and notepad.
In the process, the ill-fitting garment rode up once more—
But Tsukuyomi, having witnessed this twice already, fixed anyone watching with such a killing glare that they quickly looked away.
“Ah! My clothes again!”
“…Is your financial situation really so dire that she has to wear something like that?”
“…No. It’s just that her beauty grows more striking by the day, and the garment cannot keep pace.”
“Poor quality fabric, then. Should I buy her something later?”
“Th-th-this…!”
Blood flooded Tsukuyomi’s face as her whole body trembled.
The fan clutched in her hand cried out as though it might snap under the pressure of her grip.
Meanwhile, Amaterasu, having written down her number, beamed with radiant delight.
“Really? Then, could I ask for black fabric?”
“…Fine.”
Mystery turned his gaze briefly toward Tsukuyomi as he took the note.
Tsukuyomi, who had been seething with anger, now wore an expression of resignation after hearing Amaterasu’s words—as if she had surrendered everything.
Shin Tae-ho felt not vindication but something closer to pity at the sight, and climbed the boarding bridge.
“Take care, Susanoo. See you again!”
“What? Mystery. Why is that lady acting so familiar? Did you two become friends or something?”
Shin Tae-ho didn’t even turn his head toward Marcus as he settled into his seat and leaned back.
Beyond the window, Amaterasu continued waving both arms at him until the very end.
But Shin Tae-ho deliberately kept his gaze fixed away, desperate to avoid meeting her eyes even by chance.
Moments later, servants from her household arrived, having come late to retrieve the escaped Amaterasu.
After offering proper bows, they wrapped her in clothing like a package, covering the patches of bare skin showing here and there.
Only after Amaterasu had been carried away in that state did Shin Tae-ho turn his head to the window.
‘I’ve done what I could. Now I need to focus on my own matters.’
Shin Tae-ho’s motivation for going to the United States and Japan as Mystery to prevent Gate Breaks had stemmed from pressure by the government and ITRO.
But the choice of order was his own decision.
The reason he selected the United States and Japan among so many nations was because those two countries faced the most devastating damage from Gate Breaks.
‘The United States struggled to contain Gate Breaks due to insufficient population relative to its land area. Japan, meanwhile, lost Mount Fuji after an overwhelming number of monsters poured out from an Overlapped Gate.’
However, because Mystery had cleared the Gates, both nations were able to escape from their catastrophic crises.
And Shin Tae-ho himself had not only earned Gate rewards but had inadvertently established his presence and elevated his renown.
Yet this new fame was of a different character than the kind that had bothered him before.
⌜Mystery Returns to Korea. What Lies Ahead?⌟
⌜Mystery Prioritizes Rewards Over Human Lives. Is Mystery a Hero? A Mercenary?⌟
⌜Many Relate to Mystery’s Accountability Broadcasted Live… Management Bureau’s Raison d’Être Under Scrutiny?⌟
Mystery was not the idealized hero people desired.
Yet his pragmatic nature appeared all the more genuine because of it.
Most critiques attempting to hold Mystery accountable faded away, and the arrows of judgment turned instead toward the Management Bureau.
‘They won’t dare move Mystery around carelessly anymore. And Korea’s exposure to international pressure from ITRO and other nations should diminish as well.’
Shin Tae-ho skimmed through the articles quickly, then set his thoughts aside and sank into his own concerns.
The matter of Mystery had concluded well, but the most pressing problem lay elsewhere.
‘The Time Gap between Sinterhorne and reality has shrunk. I need to find out why.’
Shin Tae-ho had been blessed with the ability to experience over a month in Sinterhorne within mere seconds of real time.
An unexpected advantage, yet it had already become central to his future plans.
Would the Time Gap continue to shorten?
What was causing the Time Gap to shrink?
If he discovered the reason, could he reverse it and expand the gap instead?
Countless questions surfaced, but there was only one thing Shin Tae-ho could verify immediately.
‘I need to check the time the next time I enter Sinterhorne.’
Shin Tae-ho glanced out the window.
The transport aircraft, which had been flying without pause, was now crossing over Jeju Island.
‘Besides, there’s one last matter I need to wrap up.’
Contemplating what awaited him the moment he disembarked, Shin Tae-ho closed his eyes as if exhausted.
* * *
Cheongju International Airport, where Mystery was scheduled to arrive, was teeming with people.
Unlike before, the crowd now included not only journalists and content creators but also representatives from various Guilds, scouts, and countless personal fans of Mystery.
Oh Jin-hyuk, the Management Bureau director, regarded the situation with clear displeasure.
“Quite the turnout.”
“Mystery publicly announced his return date, so we couldn’t control the crowd, sir.”
Im A-yeong, the team leader, answered with an expression of difficulty.
Oh Jin-hyuk exhaled sharply and shook his head.
“That wasn’t directed at you, Im. But I honestly can’t fathom what Mystery is thinking.”
Before going to the United States, Mystery had been reluctant to even appear before the media.
Yet this time, he seemed almost eager to draw a crowd, answering questions from journalists as he moved toward the airport.
There was a possibility that Japan had rejected Mystery’s request to move discreetly.
However, Oh Jin-hyuk thought the likelihood of that was extremely low.
‘Our relationship with Mystery is already strained. He wouldn’t be stupid enough to escalate tensions over something trivial.’
“Oh, here it comes! There’s the transport aircraft!”
“Really! It’s exactly like what I saw on TV!”
The crowd cheered as the transport aircraft appeared on the horizon.
Some even unfurled handmade banners and waved them enthusiastically.
As the aircraft landed and the boarding bridge descended, the crowd began cheering in earnest.
“World! Class! Ranker! Mystery!”
“The United States lowered tariffs and saved Japan from the brink of ruin — it’s Mystery!!”
“I really love you!”
“Wait, we still don’t know the gender. What if Mystery’s a man?”
“I don’t care! I’d love him anyway!”
“…This bastard…?”
The Distortion Pattern obscured Mystery’s voice and gender from the world.
Yet the actions already demonstrated spoke louder than any revelation—the crowd was utterly captivated.
As Mystery emerged and descended the boarding bridge, the cheers reached a fever pitch.
Oh Jin-hyuk and Im A-yeong, who had been waiting, rushed toward Mystery at once.
“Mystery, you must be exhausted! Come this way. Let’s go inside and—”
“What in hell are you doing?”
“…Sir? Gah—!”
Mystery seized the bewildered Oh Jin-hyuk by the collar and hoisted him into the air.
The cheers died in an instant. The crowd fell silent.
Eyes wide with shock, people watched in stunned silence.
A low, growling tone rumbled from Mystery’s throat.
“You made a promise. You said that whatever demands came, the compensation would be guaranteed without fail.”
“G-gasp—yes, sir. That’s correct.”
Oh Jin-hyuk managed a strained response.
Mystery dragged the suspended Oh Jin-hyuk toward the helmet.
“Then what is this situation? Why did I have to wrangle with the government, hold press conferences, and make statements just to claim what was promised? What have the Management Bureau and ITRO been doing this whole time?”
“M-Mystery, that was—”
“Silence. You’re no better.”
Mystery cut off Marcus as he tried to intervene.
“You watched me accept worthless antiques as compensation in the United States and said nothing. In Japan, you looked the other way entirely.”
“No… that wasn’t…”
Marcus couldn’t find an answer.
Just as Mystery said—when he’d received the Aeon Relic in the States, an item he couldn’t even identify, he’d failed to protest properly.
And in Japan this time, he hadn’t dared speak up, asking why they couldn’t provide even a single antique as compensation.
Crash!
Mystery hurled Oh Jin-hyuk—whom he’d held in one hand—to the ground.
As a startled Im A-yeong rushed to Oh Jin-hyuk’s side, Mystery let out a guttural growl like an enraged beast and declared:
“I don’t care whether it’s the Management Bureau or ITRO. If either of you tries to deceive me again, to mock me even once—”
The crowd swallowed hard.
Cameras broadcasting live across various networks and video platforms waited for Mystery’s next words.
Instead of answering, Mystery drew a Hammer from his Inventory.
“M-Mystery?!”
Im A-yeong cried out in alarm.
Those awakened enough to channel Qi wrapped their bodies in protective energy, bracing for whatever was about to unfold.
Ignoring the reactions around him, Mystery swung the Hammer.
A small vortex swirled at the Hammer’s head where the Inferior Wind Rune was embedded, then erupted outward in a violent release.
Boom—!!
“Ahhhhh!”
The crowd shielded their eyes and bent low, crying out as the ferocious wind tore past them.
The gale was so intense that the grounded aircraft swayed; no one could open their eyes against it.
By the time the wind finally subsided,
Mystery had already vanished with it.
To be continued ▶
Return of the Transcendent-level Blacksmith
Author
Seal Release
Publisher
Kim Seok-hwan, Choi Se-ra
Publishing House
Grae Publishing
Contact
[email protected]
Publication Date
May 26, 2026
UCI
G720:N+A327-20260227067
※ This e-book is protected by copyright law. Unauthorized reproduction and distribution are prohibited, and violations may result in criminal and civil 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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