Chapter 52: The Surge of Creation

My house currently has six assistants.

Miner 1, Spinner 1, Lumberjack 1, Tanner 1, Disassembler 1, and Crafter 1.

Each specialized in their role, diligently performing their tasks, maintaining a good balance.

Until now.

“The storage is full?”

“Yes.”

Since the golems in the mine got stronger, the material yield naturally increased.

This caused a problem for the two assistants outside the mine.

Disassembler 1 and Crafter 1.

They’d been steadily breaking down and crafting materials, but the influx overwhelmed them.

Their disassembly and crafting speed couldn’t keep up, and the storage filled up.

Rumble—

Crash!

The already packed room got worse when Miner 1, fresh from work, dumped more ore on top.

The precariously stacked materials collapsed.

I’d been thrilled about the material surge, but I didn’t expect this.

“No way. All assistants, assemble!”

I wanted to turn a whole room into a subspace.

You know, like those settings where a door opens to a soccer-field-sized space.

But my limit was crafting subspace bags.

Space-related materials weren’t common, and converting an entire room was beyond me.

Someday, I’d try, though.

“Move everything to the lower floor!”

“Understood.”

“Don’t carry it by hand—use subspace bags! Start from the end room on the second floor!”

Clatter.

“What? If you don’t know the password, ask!”

No choice but to use the entire third floor as a storage-workshop.

Even then, it wasn’t enough.

More storage didn’t solve Disassembler 1 and Crafter 1’s inability to handle the material flood.

So—

“Let’s make No. 2s.”

Decision made.

Stronger golems meant more EXP, speeding up my leveling.

I hit Level 30 recently.

Now, I’d reached Level 40.

[Crafting complete.]

[‘Blacksmith’s Hammer’ obtained.]

I started crafting immediately.

Giving it my all for the new assistants.

Before, I used only mine materials to save money, but now I freely bought quality ones from the auction.

Getting used to spending, I guess?

Hammering skillfully, I soon finished two blacksmith sets.

[‘Blacksmith’s Workwear Top’ imbued with Blacksmith’s Soul.]

[‘Blacksmith’s Workwear Bottom’ imbued with Blacksmith’s Soul.]

[The Blacksmith’s Soul stirs the body.]

A familiar draining sensation as two assistants rose.

“You’re Crafter 2, you’re Disassembler 2. Got it?”

“Understood.”

[Blacksmith’s Soul named ‘Crafter 2’.]

[Blacksmith’s Soul named ‘Disassembler 2’.]

The first No. 2s.

They’d handle the material surge.

“Crafter 1, Disassembler 1, train them. Do as I taught, as you’ve done. Got it?”

“Understood.”

More materials, more manpower.

Vulcanus Forge’s item production doubled.

No, tripled.

Thanks to my level-ups, crafted items’ level restrictions soared.

With SSS-grade abilities and item effects, my Level 40 self could now craft gear exceeding Level 100.

Clang, clang!

Hammer sounds echoed through the building.

In a cutting-edge forge, dozens of blacksmiths swung hammers.

This was South Korea’s No. 2—no, now No. 3—Fire Goblin Forge.

There—

“What’s with this S-grade item?! Our brand is Fire Goblin! Who’d use this?”

“Sorry.”

Fire Goblin scolded an employee.

An S-grade blacksmith.

Not exceptional, but respectable.

His outburst drew nervous glances from other blacksmiths, swallowing hard.

“You were doing fine, so what’s this? Same materials! I didn’t ask for much—just S-grade items to match your skill!”

At first, apologies sufficed.

Fire Goblin’s tantrums weren’t new.

But mid-rant, the employee stopped responding.

Unnoticing, Fire Goblin continued until—

The employee clenched a fist, opening his tightly shut mouth.

“…Sorry. But the recent workload increase makes it hard to maintain quality.”

“What?”

“You’re demanding twice the usual workload.”

“So you’re saying you can’t do it?”

“No, I can’t. If you’re dissatisfied, I’ll leave.”

“You think you’ll make money elsewhere? Without Fire Goblin’s brand, your salary would plummet.”

“I’ll manage. I admired your ambition, but now it’s just inferiority. There’s no reason to stay.”

“What did you just say?”

“Goodbye.”

The employee threw off his apron and left.

Murmurs spread among the staff.

“Goh Chang-duk quit?”

“An original member?”

“I joined because of his character.”

“Our forge is…”

“Enough gawking! I’ll give fat bonuses, so meet the quota!”

“Yes, sir!”

Fire Goblin’s shout briefly silenced the forge.

Where did it go wrong?

Head throbbing, Fire Goblin asked an employee typing nearby.

“How’s the response?”

“Not great.”

“What? We lowered prices! Fire Goblin’s first sale ever! And increased supply!”

“See this?”

She showed recent public sentiment.

She presented data first, knowing Fire Goblin wouldn’t listen otherwise.

“People say it’s still too expensive. Our brand value’s dropped; they won’t pay premium prices.”

“Damn it!”

“It’s likely… Vulcanus Forge’s mass-produced items.”

Vulcanus Forge’s mass production.

S to SS-grade items, usually requiring costly custom orders, poured out as standard products.

“So what? They can’t match our volume!”

Fire Goblin shouted.

Even Vulcanus couldn’t ramp up production instantly.

Their pace hardly qualified as mass production.

So, Fire Goblin thought they couldn’t lose.

The reason soon emerged.

“Vulcanus Forge’s mass production has tripled.”

“Tripled?”

“More than doubled—nearly tripled.”

“And?”

“The gear’s level restrictions hit 100.”

“Level 100? Growing that fast makes no sense!”

“Even high-level Hunters say they’d rather wait for Vulcanus’ growth than use us unless urgent.”

Indeed.

Vulcanus Forge’s production had skyrocketed.

Quality didn’t drop—items stayed S to SS-grade.

Where were they getting these blacksmiths?

Fire Goblin was losing it.

“Fine with third place?”

“And…”

“What now?”

“Goh Chang-duk’s words resonated. I don’t see a reason to stay either.”

“What?”

“When I joined, you weren’t like this.”

“What’s wrong with everyone? What did I do?”

“Look behind you.”

Fire Goblin turned.

Blacksmiths stood with serious expressions, holding white envelopes.

Resignation letters.

Goh Chang-duk’s exit was just a trigger.

Too stunned to speak, Fire Goblin froze.

An employee—no, former employee—spoke.

“Why not return to being a blacksmith, Fire Goblin… no, Oh Jae-hwa?”

Meanwhile.

“This omakase, delivery food’s the best!”

I was enjoying a blissful meal.

Today’s menu: braised short ribs, large portion, devoured happily.

Tossing a piece to Spark—

Whoosh!

It melted in the flames, devoured.

Not sure if “eating” fits, but whatever.

“Man, I’m raking it in. Auto-hunting, auto-gathering, auto-crafting. I could live in my room forever!”

The new Crafter 2 and Disassembler 2 didn’t just double production.

The four assistants created synergy, nearly tripling output.

Living Armors lacked stamina, hammering day and night, producing tons of items.

My name—no, my brand—was trending online.

[Vulcanus Forge’s Growth Speed?!]

Level 100 gear already? Does that mean Vulcanus hit Level 100?

• No way.
  
• First crafted items’ restrictions suggest it’s true.
  
• Did they hide their level by crafting low-level gear?
  
• Why bother?
  
• True.
  

[Vulcanus Brand Insane!]

Fire Goblin Forge is toast, lol.

• Paying respects.
  
• Long live Vulcanus.
  
• What’s this?
  
• Heard Fire Goblin overworked to compete with Vulcanus, and their blacksmiths quit.
  
• Bless me with S-grade awakening.
  

[Want Vulcanus Gear So Bad!]

Less pricey than Fire Goblin, but still expensive. T_T

• Can’t help it, S-grade and up, lol.
  
• Who buys this?
  
• Not that bad. Reasonable for those with the skill to afford it.
  
• Way cheaper than Fire Goblin’s era, lol.
  

“Fire Goblin’s done?”

Enjoying community posts, I saw Fire Goblin’s fall.

Checking rankings, their name vanished from the blacksmith list.

I hadn’t cared, focused on my climb.

Didn’t expect them to collapse.

“Still can’t top this, though. I’m above in grade.”

I’ve grown a lot.

But No. 1, Kang Ho-duk’s forge, was untouchable.

No matter how good my gear, Level 100 was my limit.

Kang Ho-duk, reportedly over Level 200, crafted far higher-level gear.

Boosting my ego with community posts, I resumed work.

Then—

“Breaking news!”

A reporter’s voice boomed from the TV.