The Returned Genius Blacksmith has Awakened as an all-Master - Chapter 69

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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 69
069. Personal Protection
From the moment Geumson entered the Forgotten Giants’ City, one complication after another had emerged.
And deeper within, events unfolded that defied all understanding.
‘A horned brat? Did such a race even exist?’
In Lepion, dwarves and elves mingled freely with countless beast-kin and hybrid races.
Geumson had encountered many species while playing Lepion, but never anything quite like that shadow-tinted child.
‘Well, I’ll probably run into them again someday.’
The little creature had fled grinding its teeth, swearing revenge—it would certainly make another attempt.
But rather than frightened, Geumson found himself anticipating the encounter.
By then, he might have uncovered more secrets about Lepion itself.
“Let me think through what I’ve got.”
Geumson settled back into the sofa and began mentally cataloging the items he’d acquired.
‘Level’s up to 55 now… skill levels have climbed nicely too. But the real prize is the materials.’
Two items crystallized in his mind with perfect clarity.
‘The Ancient Giant’s Heart, the Seal Chain Fragment, and… Chronos’s Crown Fragment!’
An item the system itself had withheld from public disclosure.
Its information surfaced in his thoughts.
[Chronos’s Crown Fragment]
– Grade: Mythic
– Description:
A fragment of the crown worn by Chronos, the last king of the Forgotten Giants.
It contains his final will and regret, along with his yearning to transcend time itself.
Mythic Grade—nothing less.
For the first time, a Mythic-grade material lay in Geumson’s hands, transcending even the Ancient tier.
A fragment of a giant’s crown.
The shard alone contained enough material to craft an entire item.
And he’d already decided what to use it for.
‘I should repair the armor. Or maybe rebuild it from scratch?’
His armor was nearly destroyed from battling the giants.
It needed restoration.
This seemed like the perfect opportunity to test the expanded Hidden System feature—the Artisan’s Workshop’s Giant’s Smithy.
But the other materials…
Those were more ambiguous.
‘The Resonance Stone I can’t source right now… but it’d be perfect for the Lich King materials, wouldn’t it?’
Geumson had been considering the Lich King as well.
Just as he was pondering what to do with the rest, his smartphone—which lay face-down on the desk—began buzzing loudly.
Buzz-buzz-buzz-buzz—
The caller ID read ‘Cha Yu-gyeong, Team Lead, Mirae Group’.
– Geumson, it’s me, Cha Yu-gyeong. I’ve finished the relocation preparations. You haven’t forgotten about opening the Giants’ City, have you?
Her voice through the speaker sounded calm as always, yet somehow subdued—slightly strained.
It seemed Cha Yu-gyeong had caught the World Message too.
Still, she had a note of regret in her tone when addressing him.
– You know, if you’d given me even a hint about plans like that, I could’ve arranged proper promotion from the Group’s end and held a special event for you in front of the Giants’ City. That’s disappointing.
Cha Yu-gyeong, always consumed with thoughts of Mirae Group.
She seemed to view everything in Lepion as a promotional vehicle for the company.
‘It’s Mirae Group for now… but eventually, her efforts will be for all of humanity.’
In the age of collapse, Cha Yu-gyeong would need to make her mark.
This time, unlike before, he’d even gotten her to start playing Lepion herself.
So the future would surely be somewhat different because of that.
“It all happened so suddenly… I’ll make sure to give you advance notice next time. But relocation? What relocation?”
– You’ve forgotten? When we made our partnership contract, we agreed I’d provide you with a luxury officetel in Gangnam, remember?
“That’s…”
Geumson could only feel bewildered.
He remembered when Cha Yu-gyeong first made the proposal—all those conditions about full-time employment and such.
But he’d refused.
Only the partnership contract.
The terms were personal protection and Cha Yu-gyeong playing Lepion.
Those two things alone.
Yet now she was suddenly bringing up an officetel out of nowhere.
– Ah, well, I know you declined before, but for personal protection purposes, the studio apartment we’ve prepared really would be better. Your current residence has quite a few complications.
Mirae Group was Mirae Group, after all.
He’d only requested personal protection, yet they seemed to have prepared an entire residence for him.
‘Not bad at all.’
The reason he’d wanted to convert Lepion’s gold to cash with Chang-soo was also because of housing.
His current environment simply wasn’t conducive to devoting himself fully to Lepion.
“Well, then I won’t refuse. When would that be?”
– The studio is already prepared, so you can move in whenever it’s convenient for you. We’ll handle all the moving arrangements, so you just need to show up.
“R-really? In any case, understood.”
After the call ended, Geumson smiled with satisfaction.
At last he was leaving this cramped, shabby studio apartment for a new home.
A new environment, a new beginning.
And one prepared personally by South Korea’s leading conglomerate, Mirae Group, no less.
A situation he would never have imagined in his previous life.
His feelings about it were oddly mixed.
‘If I forge the Armor before moving and go to Aerthos to meet Astrid, that’d be perfect. Though the schedule’s pretty tight.’
As Geumson was contemplating what to do with the time remaining,
commotion erupted outside.
“Let go! Put that down! Who do you think you are stopping me like this? Huh? You won’t? You won’t!”
Noise from beyond the door.
The voice was familiar.
“Hey! Geumson! What is this! Hey! Geumson! Get out here quick!”
“Chang-soo?”
Geumson moved toward the entranceway with a puzzled expression.
But before he could open the door, an unfamiliar and intimidating voice from outside made him pause.
“Sir, we have been dispatched for the personal protection of Mr. Geumson. We cannot permit entry to anyone whose identity has not been verified.”
“No, I’m telling you I’m his friend! Geumson! Hey, Geumson! Get out here and deal with these people!”
“Should you continue to disturb the peace or attempt forced entry, we will have no choice but to respond physically in accordance with protocol.”
The atmosphere was turning tense.
Only then did Geumson grasp the situation and hastily opened the door.
“What’s going on—wait.”
The moment he opened it, Geumson doubted his own eyes.
The cramped studio hallway was filled with massive men who looked like they belonged in a film.
They stood well over two meters tall, their muscles bulging visibly beneath tight black suits—clearly not amateurs.
These were muscles honed through real combat, compressed and hardened by years in the field.
Somehow Geumson could read their skill at a glance.
Like the way he sized up a monster upon first encountering it in Lepion.
‘But… I think I could take them?’
An odd thought crossed Geumson’s mind.
It was probably a side effect of playing Lepion for so long.
But there was no time to dwell on it.
Chang-soo was struggling in the grip of one of these men, his eyes pleading pitifully.
He couldn’t ignore that desperate gaze.
“Hey! Geumson! What is all this about! What did you do? Are these guys thugs? Should I call the police?”
The moment Chang-soo saw Geumson, he cried out as if he’d found his savior.
But Geumson was equally bewildered.
“Um, excuse me… who are you, and why are you holding my friend?”
When Geumson asked hesitantly, the massive man holding Chang-soo gave a light bow and spoke.
“I am Park Cheol-min, head of security with Mirae Group’s Strategic Planning Team. I’m currently carrying out personal protection duties for Mr. Geumson on the orders of Team Leader Cha Yu-gyeong.”
“Mirae Group… ah!”
Now Geumson understood the situation.
But he’d never imagined they’d come to his door like this, setting up such an impenetrable perimeter.
“In any case, he’s my friend, so please let him in.”
At Geumson’s words, Team Leader Park Cheol-min checked something briefly via a communication device in his ear, then released Chang-soo.
Chang-soo promptly bolted into Geumson’s apartment.
He raised his voice unnecessarily.
“Hey! What the hell have you been up to! Those thugs—what was that about! I thought some loan shark was dragging me away. And what nonsense is this about Mirae Group?”
Once inside, Chang-soo fired off questions while casually retrieving a canned beer from the refrigerator and draining it in one go.
Watching him, Geumson sighed and began explaining from the start.
“So basically… I made a partnership contract with Mirae Group, and personal protection was one of the conditions, right?”
Chang-soo nodded slowly after hearing Geumson’s explanation.
But then he hesitated, as if wrestling with something, before carefully broaching the subject.
“Hey, but… I get the protection thing, but isn’t this basically imprisonment? What kind of security is this tight?”
Chang-soo looked at Geumson with worried eyes.
Geumson let out a soft laugh and shook his head.
“Actually, it’s perfect. I can focus on the game without worrying about annoying people bugging me.”
For Geumson, it was a blessing in disguise.
His real goal was neither money nor fame.
What he needed was time—time to prevent the coming catastrophe.
That was all that mattered.
“By the way, what happened with converting those 3 million gold?”
“Huh? I handled that ages ago. Didn’t you check your messages?”
“Wait, you sent it? Hold on!”
[Balance: 301,132,025 won]
Geumson checked the text message on his phone.
The moment he saw it, he went very still.
“No way. Wow….”
The amount didn’t feel real.
It was just numbers on a screen, strangely devoid of substance.
Seeing his reaction, Chang-soo laughed and shook his head.
“What are you fussing about over 300 million? Now you’ve got to play in the big leagues. The Mirae Group’s backing you up, right? Things are about to get serious.”

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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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