The Returned Genius Blacksmith has Awakened as an all-Master - Chapter 39

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

Episode 39
039. Distrust
Iron Walker’s welcome news of a level-up.
As the surroundings spun from two successive battles that unfolded in quick succession, a menacing clicking sound of pincers echoed from deep within the cavern.
Click-click…….
Click-click-click…….
‘Truly endless streams of them.’
Being so deep in the mine, the sheer number of monsters was almost beyond what one person could handle alone.
But for Geumsohn, fighting alongside Iron Walker, it was hardly a struggle.
If anything, he found himself wishing they’d hurry up and come out already.
‘This time… what’s this?’
From the darkness, an enormous scorpion fashioned entirely of obsidian emerged into view.
The stinger at the tip of its tail glowed a fierce red, like molten iron.
[Obsidian Scorpion Lv.45]
It lunged with a speed that dwarfed all previous monsters, seizing Iron Walker’s waist with its massive pincers.
Crash!
With the sound of steel buckling, the glowing red tail-stinger came crashing down upon Iron Walker’s back.
Sizzle-crack!
Metal groaned as it began to melt, yet Iron Walker—that steel giant oblivious to pain—held firm.
Instead, he gripped the scorpion’s pincers and held steady, granting Geumsohn the perfect opening.
Geumsohn seized that fleeting moment without hesitation.
The joint where the scorpion’s tail connected to its body.
Toward the red point that bloomed in that spot, he swung his hammer with all his might.
Crack-boom!
[Obsidian Scorpion defeated.]
[Level increased! Lv.27]
[Obtained: Complete Obsidian Shell.]
[Obsidian Scorpion defeated.]
[Obtained: Burning Poison Pouch.]
[Obsidian Scorpion defeated.]
[Obtained: Superior Mana Stone.]
.
.
.
[Level increased! Lv.28]
“Phew…… more tiring than I expected.”
An endless tide of monsters, pouring forth without respite.
Only after striking them all down could he finally catch his breath.
True silence fell at last.
After a brief rest, Geumsohn began searching for an appropriate location.
“Good, this should do.”
Geumsohn came to a halt at a dead end of the mine.
He withdrew an old pickaxe from his inventory.
The very pickaxe Tuban had given him—one that his hand now knew intimately.
“Shall I begin the real mining now?”
As he activated his Mining skill, it resonated with Resolve Intuition, and red threads and dots bloomed across the stone face like a spider’s web.
The flow of ore veins and the most vulnerable points.
Without hesitation, Geumsohn brought his pickaxe down upon the thickest, brightest red point.
Boom-crash-bang!
A sound incomparable to anything before.
It was no longer mere pickaxe work—it was an explosion-level roar that made the mine itself ring.
* * *
At that same moment, in the Capital of Airok Kingdom, within the Magic Engineering Society Central Branch.
The vast circular conference hall churned with branch directors who had gathered from across the kingdom.
“This is no time to be sitting idle!”
At the heart of the commotion stood the youngest branch director, Ravi, her voice raised.
Unable to contain herself any longer, she brought her palm down hard upon the table.
Bang!
“An outsider! A mere novice who just entered the field of Magic Engineering has created an Ego Golem! Do you not grasp the magnitude? And why are all of you people of standing acting like this?”
Despite her fervent outcry, the other branch directors remained unmoved.
The white-haired northern branch director yawned and spoke curtly.
“Director Ravi, don’t get so worked up. You’re still young and don’t understand how the world works. You can’t trust outsiders so easily—they’ll betray you as naturally as breathing.”
“That’s right. Besides, have you forgotten that our Society operates under a ‘treaty’ that prevents us from deeply interfering with the technology outsiders possess? Meddling carelessly could only make things worse.”
The eastern branch director adjusted his spectacles and chimed in.
There was logic to their words.
But Ravi felt maddened by frustration.
“No, I wouldn’t have brought this up over something trivial! I’m telling you, it wasn’t just a golem—it’s still a primitive Ego Golem, yes, but the potential dwelling within it is…!”
Ravi’s hollow cry scattered into empty air.
If anything, laughter erupted from one corner.
“Tsk, tsk. You’re young enough to be gullible, that’s all. Outsiders by nature are cunning and gifted liars. They probably dug up some old Ego Core, cobbled it together haphazardly, and conned you into thinking they made it themselves. To fall for such a transparent trick—it’s pathetic.”
“Shouldn’t we arrest that man and interrogate him instead? He could be a spy who stole our kingdom’s secret techniques!”
Ravi clenched her fists.
Nothing got through to these people.
They were nothing but rotten old men clinging to ancient rules, turning their backs on a rapidly changing reality and refusing to embrace transformation.
‘These infuriating old geezers…! They should have seen it with their own eyes!’
It was as she sank into helplessness.
The heavy door of the conference room opened without a sound, and a man entered like a shadow.
Black formal robes, hair swept back cleanly as if oiled, piercing eyes, and a smile at his lips smooth as silk.
Yet his eyes were not smiling at all.
The moment he appeared, every branch director in the conference room rose from their seats and bowed their heads.
“We pay our respects to the Crown Prince.”
The Crown Prince of the Airok Kingdom.
Belian von Airok.
He showed interest in Ravi’s words.
“Forgive my interruption during your meeting. I’ve just overheard a most fascinating discussion.”
The Crown Prince Belian spoke to Ravi.
But Ravi’s face was twisted as though she’d tasted something foul.
‘Of all people, why him…’
Crown Prince Belian.
Behind that gentle facade lay rumors that under the guise of protecting the kingdom’s technology, he seized the wealth and skills of many, and even took their lives once they’d outlived their usefulness.
And now that man had taken an interest in Geumsohn.
Ravi gritted her teeth.
But contrary to Ravi’s grim expression, Crown Prince Belian spoke with curiosity gleaming in his eyes.
“An outsider has created an Ego Golem, you say? Moreover, a Successor of the Gears—something that has virtually vanished from the world…. How truly intriguing. Don’t you all agree?”
At his words, the air in the conference room froze.
His word ‘intriguing’ could only mean trouble for Geumsohn.
Crown Prince Belian smiled pleasantly, speaking softly to Ravi.
“Director Ravi? Would you tell me more details about that outsider?”
His voice was sweet as honey, yet it seemed to conceal a serpent’s venom.
Ravi could not remain silent.
‘My super ace! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!’
Ravi could only apologize to Geumsohn repeatedly in her heart.
Even as she did, she began to divulge information about Geumsohn to Crown Prince Belian.
Crown Prince Belian, listening to Ravi’s words.
Spoke only one thing.
“This rare talent, I must meet him in person. Director Ravi, hand over all records regarding that outsider to me. At once.”
At his command, cold sweat trickled down Ravi’s spine.
She felt it in her bones.
She had carelessly drawn the attention of an enormous shark—a force far beyond her ability to manage.
So Ravi could only offer a small prayer.
That Geumsohn would meet Crown Prince Belian’s exacting standards.
For contrary to the grim rumors surrounding Crown Prince Belian, there were also whispers that if one satisfied his demanding eye, he would offer support so lavish it became a burden.
Ravi clung to that rumor as her only hope.
* * *
Crash—!
Crash—!
Crash—!
.
.
.
The violent sound of a pickaxe striking stone.
Geumsohn swinging with his signature rhythm, each strike precise and deliberate.
From the darkness, agents of the Asura Guild watched in silence.
A single emotion written across every face.
Disbelief.
They could not accept what they were witnessing, no matter how clearly it unfolded before their eyes.
Crack!
Crunch!
The solid stone wall crumbled like tofu, giving way beneath each blow.
And from within, raw ore fragments began to emerge.
[You have obtained Premium Iron Ore.]
[Your Mining Proficiency has increased.]
[Due to your Luck Stat, you have discovered a hidden Mithril Raw Stone!]
[You have obtained Premium Copper.]
[Your Mining Skill has reached Level 6.]
.
.
.
Iron Walker, too, assisted at Geumsohn’s side, shattering the stone wall with massive steel arms.
Though far faster than ordinary players, the creature ignored the grain of the ore vein and relied on brute force, often damaging the minerals in the process.
But once Geumsohn pointed out the precise locations, the monster’s efficiency improved noticeably.
.
.
.
[You have obtained Premium Silver Raw Stone.]
[Your Mining Skill has reached Level 9.]
.
.
.
[Your Mining Skill has reached Level 10 [MAX]!]
“Well now, Level 10 achieved.”
The second skill to reach maximum rank, after Refining.
As if in celebration, a message materialized before him.
[Achievement: Mine Destroyer]
[You are the first to master the Mining Skill!]
[The system acknowledges your extraordinary mining prowess.]
[Effect 1: Your chances of discovering rare ore increase by 20% permanently.]
[Effect 2: Your stamina consumption decreases by 30%.]
‘Thirty percent reduction in stamina? That’s an absurd efficiency gain.’
He had earned an achievement of staggering proportions without even expecting it.
Mining—a skill that others dismissed without a second thought.
Mastering it alone had granted him a substantial achievement.
‘Then I should push toward maximum rank in other areas as well. It won’t be easy, but……’
Once he acquired the Alchemist class, he would already have three professions.
Raising skill levels would only become harder from there.
But it didn’t matter.
He simply had to keep going.
Just as he was doing now with the pickaxe.

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