Chapter 23: The Blacksmith

After receiving an embarrassingly enthusiastic send-off from the dismantlers, I returned to the blacksmith’s workshop.

A note was stuck on the door: [Work in progress %, please take the kitchen supplies yourselves].

I cautiously entered so as not to disturb anything.

As I opened the door, the steady rhythm of hammering echoed from deep inside the blacksmith shop.

Curious, I tiptoed quietly around to the back door behind the counter to take a peek.

Yu Jae-i was pounding away, beads of sweat dripping from her face as she hammered several nails onto a world tree log.

Her white T-shirt and jeans were soaked with sweat, making the fabric look darker than usual.

“You came earlier than I expected.”

“I knew you’d be here.”

I was surprised when she suddenly spoke, as if she knew I had arrived without me realizing it.

My response was a little slow.

Yu Jae-i dropped the hammer like it was nothing and stood up.

Where she put down the hammer, three or four more hammers lay stacked.

They were all worn out, unusable hammers, each with different colors and shapes.

Only the hammer she was holding still maintained its original shape.

It looked like the shell of a turtle.

“Your right hand, that’s how it told you I came.”

“Oh… wow.”

I had been trying to walk quietly so as not to disturb her, but my thumb had moved without me knowing.

Even at this moment, it was tapping the screen diligently.

Tap, tap, tap, tap…

“At this rate, it’s no longer a habit, but more like it’s taken over your free will. Are you okay?”

“Hmm, I’m getting a little scared of myself too.”

Even as she answered, she didn’t put down her smartphone.

Seeing that, Yu Jae-i shook her head with a quiet laugh.

Then, draping a towel roughly over her shoulders, she walked over to me.

“As expected, it’s a world tree log.”

“Yeah.”

“I kept hammering after you left, and finally, the shape started to change.”

Sure enough, the log had slightly deformed.

From a thick cylinder to a slightly thinner one.

Still, it was definitely a log.

“But when making weapons from logs, do you always hammer them like this?”

“Of course. It’s a world tree log that Shin brought.”

“26 o’clock?”

“This hammer is made from the shell of ‘Gwisusan’…”

She lowered the hammer as she spoke.

Gwisusan was a massive turtle-like monster carrying a log shell on its back.

It could block just about any attack — its shell was its defining feature.

Its defensive power rivaled even the scales of dragons.

Because of that, hunters who prioritized defense dreamed of obtaining materials from it.

And this hammer was made from the shell of Gwisusan.

“You have to hammer it this way for the shape to change gradually. I’m not saying this is a perfect weapon as is.”

“Thanks for the hard work.”

“It’s fun. It’s stubborn, so I have to coax it carefully, but it’s manageable.”

“Coax?”

I remembered that craftsmen said communication with materials was necessary.

I thought to myself that it was probably something in that mysterious area I didn’t understand.

“What should I do with Atcher’s eyes?”

“Come here. You came back quickly, huh? Tomorrow—ah, it’s today now. I thought you wouldn’t arrive until dawn.”

“It’s not a big deal.”

Yu Jae-i took white Styrofoam boxes out of a magic container and stacked them neatly.

Inside the boxes, preserved by maintenance magic, were Atcher’s eyes, each carefully placed one by one.

Yu Jae-i opened one box and lifted one of Atcher’s eyes to check its quality.

“Wow, they’re well taken care of. Did you win over those old guys over there?”

She didn’t look at me while saying this, so I couldn’t tell if she was really asking.

Win them over?

She kept pulling boxes out and thought of the dismantling old guys from Insubong, Bukhansan.

They always held my hand tightly when leaving and said, “Come back! I want to work with a hunter like you for a long time!”

A young dismantler even handed me his business card and introduced himself, “I’m Park Il-seok. If you’re looking for a professional dismantler, please contact me.”

They were kind, but it was a bit overwhelming, so I quickly left that place.

“Hmm. This is beyond what I expected… No, how many did you get exactly?”

“As it happened, this is how it ended up. I don’t need more.”

When the boxes were stacked roughly fifteen high, Yu Jae-i was startled and called out.

I stopped in the exact pose of pulling out the sixteenth box and looked at her.

She shook her head repeatedly.

“No, the more, the merrier. The more we have, the more we can do. Take them all out.”

“All right.”

With that, I took all of Atcher’s eyes left in the magic container out.

She carefully examined each one.

Then, frowning, she suddenly asked,

“Why? Do you have something to say?”

I had been quietly watching her, so maybe my gaze made her uncomfortable.

I shrugged my shoulders and answered,

“No, nothing like that.”

“Well, then go on with your business. You keep looking over here, it’s distracting.”

“Can’t I just watch for a while? I have nowhere else to go!”

“Go home and rest then.”

“Taecheon’s there.”

“Taecheon… Ah, that Taecheon. Aren’t you two friends? Weren’t you inseparable since childhood?”

“He quietly quit the guild and is sulking now.”

“Oh? You came out of Baek Uncheon? Geez, I shouldn’t have contacted you…”

“Contact? Ha, as if he knew I was here.”

“What are you saying? What would I be doing?”

Well, it made sense. I had no reason to tell Yu Jae-i where I was.

Then what was the contact about?

Judging by her expression, she probably wouldn’t answer even if I asked.

After confirming the condition of all of Atcher’s eyes, she nodded with satisfaction.

Then she went back to where the log was originally placed.

From her back, I felt a firm tone as if saying, “Now, go home already.”

“Joo-ah, seriously! If you have nowhere to go, just break an Association quest.”

“Sure.”

Association quests were official requests issued by the Hunter Association or the government.

They usually involved eliminating monsters in difficult gates, tasks solo hunters or guilds often disliked.

If monsters weren’t steadily wiped out, their numbers would grow, leading to a ‘Break.’

The Hong Yu Tong Gate, where I had gathered herb flower petals, was one such gate that only required enough monster elimination to prevent a Break.

Judging by the evolved skeleton lord boss monster, it seemed the work hadn’t been done well.

In short, Association quests were often annoying, hard, and offered poor rewards.

Still, many hunters sought them out.

They were the easiest way to build connections with government or Association officials.

High-ranking people hard to meet normally could be approached through these.

“That’s a good idea.”

As a solo hunter, it was perfect.

I could build connections.

Look at that team leader of a guild, accumulating connections until they could sit face to face with the chairman of a conglomerate and even have meetings.

Of course, it wasn’t easy at all.

“Well, that’s that then.”

Yu Jae-i picked up the hammer she had made from the Gwisusan shell and said,

“So, are you going or what?”

She laughed skeptically at my hesitation but raised her arm.

Her finger was pointing at the semi-closed blacksmith’s sliding door.

“Go finish that quest. I want to swing the hammer already.”

“Just go already. You’re too much.”

And so, I was chased out of Jae-i’s blacksmith shop.

Yu Jae-i smiled brightly and waved the hammer as I left.

That smile seemed to say, “If you come back before Thursday, I’ll smash your stubborn head with this hammer.”

Hmph, just wait till Thursday.

If my equipment isn’t good enough, I’ll come back every day to complain!

*****

After sleeping through the night, I arrived at the Hunter Association in Pumcheong Damtong at 10 a.m.

I thought I wouldn’t fall asleep on the 50-hour watch, but as soon as I lay down on the cot, I immediately passed out.

Waking up from the nap, my mind was clear and my body refreshed.

I guess it only meant I could stay awake if I wanted, not that I shouldn’t sleep at all.

Even with a 50-hour watch, sleep was necessary.

“There it is.”

I checked the floor guide while scrolling through the new quest list on my smartphone.

The quest-related office was on floors 2 through 5.

I headed straight for the wide staircase in the middle of the building, but was stopped at the speed gate.

To pass, I needed a verification pass.

A note was stuck on the speed gate:

[Entry allowed after verification pass is issued! Issuance on the 1st floor.]

Apparently, many people like me tried to just barge through.

Seeing such a note made it clear.

I turned around and walked toward the verification pass office on the 1st floor.

Since it was morning, not many people were waiting.

My ticket number was 0034.

A man received his verification pass and stood up.

The display changed from number 33 to 34.

It was my turn.

“Hello, Hunter. Please present your hunter license.”

I put down my smartphone and fumbled for my hunter license in my wallet.

I wasn’t even sure how long it had been since I last took it out.

Not paying attention, I almost handed over my dismantler’s license instead of my hunter license.

“Yes, grade 0 Hunter Baek Do-woon, identity verified.”

The issuer didn’t recognize me at all.

Well, I wasn’t famous myself, just an acquaintance of a few famous people.

It was better they didn’t recognize me.

No awkward moments pretending to know someone.

At least no one would post online, “Baek Do-woon oppa at the Association to pick up quests!”

“The last date you entered a gate was two years ago, correct?”

“Yes, that’s correct. I finished my suspension and am returning now.”

I felt a lie creeping out.

Not a complete lie though.

After eating the world tree fruit and enduring a rather rough suspension, if you called that a “return,” it made sense.

“I see. Mr. Baek Do-woon, grade 0 hunter, you are now authorized to receive quests up to grade 6.”

“What? Aren’t hunters allowed to take quests up to their rank?”

A grade 0 hunter should be able to accept quests from grades 6 to 0, right?

The issuer nodded at my smile.

“That’s usually the case, but since this is your first quest after returning, there are some restrictions.”

“I see.”

It seemed like a limit placed on first-time returns.

Probably to prevent new returnees from getting injured and retiring again.

The issuer spoke seriously as he handed me the verification pass.

“Please take care of yourself this time, Mr. Baek Do-woon. I wish you good luck.”

“Thank you.”

I gathered my smartphone and verification pass and left the office.

The pass read: ‘Grade 0 Hunter Baek Do-woon’ and ‘Authorized for quests up to grade 6.’

I wondered what quests existed in the 6-6 grade range.

Well, any quest that would help me get through to Thursday quickly would do.

With that thought, I passed through the speed gate and climbed the stairs.

On the 2nd floor, hunters who were already there searching for quests glanced at me sharply.

Their eyes were cold and hostile.

They clearly weren’t welcoming to newcomers.

“Damn, another one!” Their looks said.

Seeing these veteran hunters frown at me, I was reminded again that I was truly a hunter now.

The world tree curse brings with it dirty looks.

But maybe the curse didn’t affect them the same way.

[The world tree is transmitting soil around to protect caretaker Baek Do-woon.]

“What? No, no way…”