Chapter 37: The Swordmaster’s Scabbard

Korea’s Rank 1.

A commission from the Swordmaster.

Curious, I opened the commission details.

[From Han Yura of the Hunter Association.]

• I’m contacting Vulcanus to request the repair of the SSS-grade scabbard Twilight.
  
• Twilight is a set item with Dawn, a Level 300 restricted item. If you find it too difficult, please decline.
  

“Decline?”

It sounds like a jab at my pride.

Well, fair enough.

Level 300 equipment is no joke.

I just hit Level 25.

Repairing Level 100 armor was tough, so a Level 25 me fixing Level 300 gear would require insane skill.

• If you’re confident, we’ll provide Second Chance.
  
• If you fail, the commission will be canceled, and we’ll retrieve the item.
  
• If you succeed, the Hunter Association will pay…
  

“Second Chance?”

What’s that item?

A quick search revealed it.

An item that restores a broken item to 1 durability, whether from combat or repair.

Apparently, it’s incredibly rare.

To go this far for a low-level blacksmith like me?

They must be desperate.

“Shall I take it?”

I wasn’t overflowing with confidence, but why not?

With Second Chance as a safety net, I had nothing to lose.

[Commission accepted.]

Upon accepting, Twilight appeared before me.

Literally twilight.

A scabbard with the hue of a darkening sky, broken in two.

Checking its info—

[Twilight]

Type: Scabbard

Grade: SSS

Restriction: Level 300 or higher

Description: Due to severe damage, it cannot unleash its latent power.

Abilities: 1. –

As expected.

Despite its SSS grade, it showed no abilities.

A scabbard split in half can’t function.

“Here’s Second Chance.”

Second Chance.

Simply put, it looked like a gem.

Placed beside the scabbard, it faintly illuminated it.

No need to waste time.

“Repair!”

I used the skill immediately.

But, unlike usual, no points appeared.

[Materials required for repair.]

Materials were needed.

Checking the required materials—

[Divine Tree Branch]

[Black Iron]

For a Level 300 SSS-grade item, the materials were intense.

Thankfully, the Hunter Association sent some Divine Tree Branches, knowing they were needed.

“Why didn’t they send the rest?”

If they knew about the branches, didn’t they know about the other materials?

Or are these additional materials only I’d know due to my SSS-grade ability?

Curious, but fortunately—

“I’ve got them.”

Most required materials were obtainable from the Mine.

Black Iron, a rare ore from Area 1.

Dark Fiber from Area 2.

Shadow Wood from Area 3.

Even for me, who treats the Mine like home, these were extremely rare materials, but with the high commission fee—

“Generous move.”

I tossed in all the required materials.

Buzz—

Points appeared.

They shimmered like Twilight’s hue.

And—

Clang!

“Whoa, tough stuff.”

Incredibly sturdy.

The points didn’t look thick, but they were so solid.

Even swinging my hammer hard, I’d never met points this unresponsive.

“Ember, help out.”

Whoosh.

Ember breathed flames onto Twilight.

The scabbard glowed red.

Swinging my hammer—

Clang!

Thankfully, it responded better than before.

Still, compared to past points, it was child’s play, but the hammer was working.

Clang!

[Progress: 5%…]

I’d been hammering for a while.

Only 5% complete.

Honestly, without Ember’s help, I wouldn’t have reached even this.

Level 300 gear, huh? No surprise.

I knew what to do.

Swipe.

I dismissed the progress bar.

And closed my eyes to the world.

I used to focus only on games.

Now, hammering focused me more.

Clang!

I hammered, oblivious to the world.

Ember tirelessly fueled the flames beside me.

If the flames dimmed, hammering got harder, but I kept swinging.

Clang!

When did I take this commission?

After leaving the Mine and a quick meal.

Around sunrise, I think.

What time is it now?

No idea.

But the sunlight felt intense, so past noon.

Clang!

My arm felt like cramping.

I gripped the hammer tighter.

My palms felt raw, but breaking the points brought more thrill than pain.

Clang!

The window’s sunlight dimmed.

After relentless hammering, the split scabbard was fully reattached.

Each swing perfected the crude connection.

Restoring its original form.

As the sunlight faded further.

At twilight’s hour.

[Repair of Twilight is complete.]

My hammering stopped.

My body was drenched in sweat.

The floor was soaked.

Hoo.

Hoo.

Breathing heavily, I lifted Twilight.

Its red gleam in the window’s light shone beautifully.

[You’ve reached a state of transcendence, realizing the essence of a blacksmith.]

[The level limit for items crafted with the Production Skill increases.]

[The level limit for items repaired with the Repair Skill increases.]

[The quantity and quality of materials obtained with the Disassembly Skill…]

A familiar system message.

Level 300 gear repair after Level 100.

In a daze, I checked the item’s info.

[Twilight]

Type: Scabbard

Grade: SSS

Restriction: Level 300 or higher

Description: Dawn and Twilight. Twilight embraces Dawn, and Dawn rests in Twilight. Following nature’s cycle, the darkened night sky leaves a faint Dawn and Twilight.

Abilities:

1. Night – When sheathing, deals additional damage proportional to damage dealt to enemies.
   
2. Dusk – Damage dealt to enemies is stored in the scabbard, empowering the blade upon sheathing.
   
3. Twilight – Creates a ‘Twilight Barrier’ when sheathing, blocking enemy attacks.
   
4. Dawn – When used with Dawn, all stats double.
   

The scabbard, Twilight.

Its abilities centered on sheathing.

From this, I could guess Dawn’s abilities as a set item.

“Dawn must be about drawing the blade.”

Sheathing’s Twilight.

Drawing’s Dawn.

Together, doubling all stats.

A perfect set item.

Likely stronger than a single SSS-grade weapon.

“This works too, huh?”

A realization.

Not just swords and scabbards, but bows and quivers, too.

I should try this someday, I thought, completing the commission and returning the item.

Soon after—

[Thank you, Vulcanus.]

• Separate from the commission fee, the Hunter Association vows to repay this favor.
  
• Contact us anytime for requests.
  
• We intended Second Chance as a consumable, but as a small reward, we leave it with you.
  
• Thank you again, Vulcanus.
  
• Han Yura
  

A reply from Han Yura.

“Now I’ve connected with Rank 4.”

Just need Rank 5 for a full ranker connection?

With that silly thought, I looked at the gem sent with the message.

Second Chance.

Not sure when I’d use it, but it’s valuable, so I kept it.

“Wow, really?”

Checking my account, the commission fee pushed my balance past 100 billion.

To think I’d see 100 billion in my account.

I thought only conglomerates saw such figures.

Wondering where to spend this fortune, I swung my hammer again today.

Soon after.

Reporters swarmed the Hunter Association’s headquarters.

The Association often drew reporters, but today’s crowd was unprecedented.

The reason was simple.

Big news.

A scoop.

What happened?

Whispers among waiting reporters revealed it.

“The Swordmaster soloed an SS-grade monster?”

“That’s why we’re all here. Even for the Swordmaster, soloing an SS-grade monster was impossible.”

“Exactly. I’m proud. Until now, SS-grade Gates needed the Association and the five major guilds.”

“This could put Korea on the global Hunter rankings.”

Swordmaster Han Yura.

She soloed an SS-grade monster.

Not an entire SS-grade Gate, though.

A Gate Break.

A Gate that appeared suddenly, self-destructed, and unleashed monsters.

An SS-grade monster, Basilisk (Serpent King), emerged.

“She took down a Basilisk alone.”

“If it wasn’t the Swordmaster, a city would’ve been wiped out.”

“That’s conservative. Delayed response would’ve caused massive casualties.”

Basilisk.

Known as the Serpent King, it wore a crown despite its eight legs.

Its petrifying breath turned enemies to stone.

Its sharp claws carried petrifying venom.

With unparalleled poison and physical strength, it was a formidable monster.

Soloing it was deemed impossible by Korea’s Hunter standards.

Then—

Whir-whir-whir—

Whir-whir-whir—

A helicopter’s sound echoed.

Reporters looked up to see helicopters transporting the Basilisk’s corpse.

Gates don’t leave monster corpses, only items.

But Gate Break monsters leave corpses like this.

A Basilisk corpse.

Worth a fortune, requiring helicopters to transport.

And above—

Dash.

Something leaped.

A small dot at first, but reporters quickly recognized it.

“The Swordmaster!”

“Jumping from that height?”

“Wow, Rank 1 for a reason.”

“Superhuman.”

Swordmaster Han Yura.

Contacted by the Association, she jumped for an interview.

Landing precisely among the reporters, like a cat, despite the height.

She brushed her short hair and faced the reporters.

Her suit was torn, and petrified wounds lingered from the Basilisk fight, but she seemed unfazed.

The eager reporters—

“Hunter Han Yura! Korea’s first to solo an SS-grade monster. Your thoughts?”

“Few Hunters globally can solo SS-grade monsters. Any secret?”

“Did you reawaken?”

“Hunter Han Yura, a word!”

Questions poured out.

Han Yura, silent, grasped her scabbard.

Reporters flinched and stepped back.

Then she spoke.

“Gate occurrences are spiking. The Association will release a new manual soon, so citizens, please stay vigilant.”

“Your thoughts!”

“As a Hunter Association member, I did my duty.”

As usual.

She spoke calmly, offering no showmanship.

Other questions got the same formal responses she’d given countless times.

Then—

A reporter noticed something.

“That sword, isn’t it from the last SS-grade Gate raid? I heard it needed repair and was unusable.”

“Kang Ho-duk’s forge?”

“Only they could fix something like that.”

Dawn and Twilight.

Her weapon had changed.

The reporters noticed.

Han Yura hesitated.

Should she reveal Vulcanus or keep it secret?

The answer came quickly.

“Vulcanus repaired it.”

She drew the scabbard.

Beneath the jet-black scabbard, Vulcanus’ red seal gleamed like paint.

A repair, not a craft, yet the seal remained.

“I’d like to thank Vulcanus again. Thanks to their repair of Twilight, I protected citizens without casualties.”

With that, Han Yura turned away.

And—

“Vulcanus Forge again?”

“That’s Level 300 gear, right?”

“Vulcanus is low-level, no? They can repair Level 300 gear?”

“This… doesn’t this surpass Kang Ho-duk’s forge?”

Vulcanus’ name buzzed among the reporters.