The Returned Genius Blacksmith has Awakened as an all-Master - Chapter 98

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

Chapter 98
098. And So It Came to Pass
While Geumson was turning over thoughts of Choi Jin-woong from Asura, Belian approached and spoke.
His voice carried an easy confidence.
But Geumson’s eyes had fixed on the crimson rift that Belian had opened—
the gate itself.
“That is…… what, exactly?”
Geumson asked about the gate as if he knew nothing of it.
Belian looked at him and let out a soft chuckle before responding.
“Hmm, as I am of royal blood, shouldn’t I possess something special?”
The prince deflected the question with a half-joking tone.
He had no intention of providing a real answer.
Geumson’s jaw tightened imperceptibly.
Any ordinary NPC would have pressed the matter, demanding details about the gate.
But his counterpart was the kingdom’s crown prince.
Not someone from whom information could be extracted through insistence.
Better, then, to—
‘Build rapport with him.’
That was unmistakably a Monster Gate.
The very gates that had led Earth and humanity toward annihilation.
And Belian wielded it freely.
This could not simply be left alone.
But Geumson restrained himself.
He would cultivate a relationship with Belian first, then slowly uncover the truth.
For now, he needed to focus on the battle before him rather than indulge his curiosity.
“Then I should attend to my own duties as well. I leave this place—the south—in your capable hands. Or should I say, you are the Star’s Successor here?”
Belian knew an impressive amount of detail about Geumson.
Impossible to tell whether he’d come for Aerthos’s sake or to test Geumson himself.
Yet Belian’s stride betrayed not a moment of hesitation.
He walked with elegant grace toward the Northern Wall, where the Royal Knight Order stood posted.
Clang—
Clang-clang!
Clang-clang-clang—
Geumson returned his focus to his work.
The hammer struck sparks as reinforcement continued unabated.
Like those sparks, his Contribution Points climbed at a dizzying pace.
[Aerthos Defense Battle Contribution Ranking]
1st: Gang Mu-jin (Yeokcheon) – 3,415,900P
2nd: Geumson – 2,988,700P
3rd: Red Lion (Yeokcheon) – 2,154,200P
4th: Choi Jin-woong (Asura) – 1,899,500P
.
.
.
Unfortunately, the contributions from Asura guild members among the prince’s reinforcements were not counted toward Geumson’s total.
They participated as Players completing a quest, so their points were tallied separately from his.
What was remarkable, however, was Gang Mu-jin.
Despite Geumson’s fierce pursuit, he still held first place.
‘Gang Mu-jin…… that man is a true monster.’
Geumson whistled low.
While he had climbed the rankings by reinforcing hundreds of pieces of equipment, Gang Mu-jin surpassed it all through sheer individual power alone.
Wielding the Moonlight Viper Sword, his destructive force was nothing short of catastrophic.
‘Fair enough—he deserves that much. Still, my apologies, Gang Mu-jin. That first-place spot is mine.’
A satisfied smile played across Geumson’s lips.
He seemed certain to catch up soon.
It was only a matter of time.
Just as he raised the hammer again, a familiar voice pierced his awareness.
“Hey, Super Ace! Did you open up a smithy here? Raking in the cash like it’s nothing!”
Ravi, dressed in grease-stained work clothes, had materialized at his side.
Ravi—whom he hadn’t seen in ages.
But asking after someone’s wellbeing was merely a formality.
Her gaze was not fixed on Geumson.
Only on Iron Walker.
She was examining Iron Walker’s combat movements with evident fascination.
Ravi’s eyes gleamed with sharp interest.
Yet within moments, her expression had grown distant and dazed.
“That’s…… the Ego Golem you made back then? It’s already grown this much?”
She seemed genuinely astonished by Iron Walker’s remarkable development.
The pace was unusually swift.
Even Ego Golems required constant orders to function.
But Iron Walker had achieved something close to autonomous operation.
With just a simple command from Geumson, it made its own judgments, eliminated threats in the vicinity, and organized the players’ formation.
It was even offering water to exhausted players.
“You’re telling me it’s already acting independently, outside the command hierarchy? That’s insane…… How did you manage that? Did you use some special component? Or perhaps…….”
Ravi couldn’t hide her excitement, unleashing questions as she observed Iron Walker.
Geumson responded with a rueful smile.
“I simply…… talked to it a lot.”
“Talked? It’s an Ego Golem, but you’re telling me you held conversations with a pile of scrap metal? Did something happen to your head?”
Ravi’s expression was one of disbelief, but when she recognized the sincerity in Geumson’s eyes, she fell silent in contemplation.
She was a genius.
Young enough to claim a branch director’s position.
She didn’t overlook the possibility hidden in Geumson’s words—something that transcended common sense.
‘Empathy…… promoting the Ego’s growth not through mere command transmission, but through emotional sharing? It shouldn’t be possible! Yet if it was…….’
The genesis of Magitech.
Akarna, the first Master Magitech engineer, who laid the foundation for all current Magitech.
Now even records of him no longer exist.
But from one’s teacher’s teacher.
From that teacher’s teacher.
Or perhaps from an even earlier generation—mythical tales passed down through time.
This was what Ravi now recalled.
Her eyes lit up once more.
The way she gazed at Geumson had become unsettling.
Sensing that intensity, Geumson cleared his throat and asked.
“So this is the favor you mentioned? Fighting in Aerthos this time?”
“No, that’s because of the Crown Prince, so that doesn’t count. The real favor is still a ways off.”
Ravi waved her hand dismissively, changing the subject.
Her expression grew serious for the first time.
“More importantly, watch yourself around that Crown Prince. Don’t let that handsome face fool you!”
“You mean Crown Prince Belian?”
“That’s the one. He looks polished on the surface and seems capable enough, but he’s rotten inside. He’ll use any means necessary to get what he wants. And he’s famous for discarding people without hesitation once they’ve outlived their usefulness.”
Ravi seemed genuinely concerned.
But Geumson merely shrugged indifferently.
“Is that so…… I see.”
A smile even played at the corner of Geumson’s mouth.
Perhaps it would be easier to build a rapport with Crown Prince Belian than expected.
At least, so long as he wanted Geumson.
Seeing that expression, Ravi grew uneasy somehow.
Because the face Geumson wore now was one she had seen before.
“It’s exactly like the expression you had before entering a dungeon…… Anyway, I’ve warned you, so don’t blame me later! Understood?”
With that brief farewell, Ravi departed.
It seemed she had made the trip specifically to warn him about Crown Prince Belian.
Watching her receding figure, Geumson fell into thought.
‘Crown Prince Belian, is it…….’
His mysterious power and inscrutable demeanor.
He was certainly someone to be wary of.
Yet simultaneously, Geumson felt an inexplicable sense of déjà vu.
Belian’s leisurely smile and those eyes that seemed to pierce through everything overlapped with the image of someone he had chanced to meet in the age of ruin.
‘Surely not…… that can’t be it.’
Geumson shook his head, dispelling the ominous thoughts.
Now was the time to focus on the battle at hand.
Though he had narrowed the gap in Contribution Points with Gang Mu-jin, none of it mattered if the quest failed.
But his premonition proved accurate.
As the battle stretched on, the balance of the battlefield began to crumble.
“Ah, I’m exhausted. I can’t take this anymore. I’m going to grab some sleep!”
“How much longer do we have to do this? Will this ever end? Come on…….”
“I have to get to work! Sorry! I’m heading out!”
The initial fervor had vanished, and players began abandoning the battlefield one by one.
Fatigue from days and nights of unbroken hunting. The demands of real life.
And above all, a mounting despair at a battle with no end in sight—it all weighed heavily upon them.
The number of players opposing the monsters began to dwindle rapidly.
Other positions held firm.
The Royal Knight Order and the Golem Legion maintained their lines without a hint of weariness, while the Yeokcheon and Asura guilds organized rotating shifts and fought on with methodical efficiency.
Only the South Gate—where freelance players had banded together—was crumbling at a catastrophic pace.
“Damn it, we’re going to break through at this rate!”
Geumson finally gripped the Forgotten Void Hammer tighter.
He could no longer remain merely a blacksmith.
“Walker, Tia! Hold the enemy at the front as long as you can! I’m going to clean up the rear!”
Geumson threw himself into battle.
Each time his hammer cut through the air, monsters fell like autumn leaves in a gale.
But it was not enough.
The tide of incoming monsters far exceeded what his individual strength could withstand.
“Kyaaaaaah!”
“Hold them! Hold them back somehow!”
“Mages! When are the mages going to send support? Mages!”
“Hold on! Players! We’re restoring mana! Just a little longer!”
Though those who remained fought desperately, the defense of the South Gate collapsed entirely.
Geumson and the handful of surviving players retreated to the top of the wall, left with no choice but to prepare for a hopeless last stand.
Looking down from the wall at the endless crimson sea of monsters spread below, Geumson clenched his teeth.
‘So…… it comes to this.’
The monsters that had invaded Seoul.
Their forms overlapped in his mind with those of now.
Helplessness pressed down on his shoulders.
Just as Geumson was anxiously preparing for the Siege Battle to begin—
A warm hand came to rest upon his shoulder.
And then, a voice whispered softly near his ear.
“Student, so you were here.”
Geumson spun around in shock.
There stood Astrid in her white robes, her face graced with a gentle smile.

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