Chapter 121: Forging for the Sword Saint

Before me lay a pile of crafting requests.  

Among them, the one I chose was—  

“Of course, I should start with the Hunter Association’s requests.”  

A crafting request from the Hunter Association.  

Specifically, it was for Sword Saint Han Yu-ra.  

My relationship with the Hunter Association had remained close.  

Not only because of previous contracts but also thanks to the friendly Hunter Chairman.  

And the Sword Saint herself, who had come all the way to the rank 8 Gate with the Chairman out of concern for me.  

I had to repay their kindness.  

– Vulcanus Hunter, thank you.  

– Han Yu-ra Hunter has two requests.  

– First, an armor set.  

– Second, enhancements for Twilight and Dawn.  

Interestingly, Han Yu-ra wasn’t asking for new weapons.  

She wanted the SSS-grade weapons she primarily used—Twilight and Dawn—to be upgraded.  

‘That makes sense.’  

After all, I was the one who had repaired her Twilight originally.  

The SSS-grade scabbard Twilight.  

Its effect was so powerful that, combined with Dawn, it created synergy strong enough to overcome the limits of SSS-grade weapons.  

That’s why she preferred to enhance her existing weapons rather than seek new ones.  

– If you need any materials for the crafting, please let me know. I will provide whatever you require.  

– For starters, I will send you the promised Basilisk Scale.  

– Along with materials that will aid in upgrading Dawn and Twilight.  

– Please take good care of it, Vulcanus Hunter.  

Along with the message, the materials appeared before my eyes.  

The promised Basilisk materials had arrived.  

However, the condition of the scales was far from ideal.  

Reading the item description, they were indeed SS-grade materials.  

‘But it’s iffy.’  

The scales were hardened, cracked, and fractured.  

Essentially, they were more like S-grade materials.  

Well, to be precise, they were a bit better than regular S-grade, but still.  

The silver lining was that the quantity was large enough that even after making Han Yu-ra’s armor, there’d be plenty left over.  

I thought I’d save the remainder for crafting other items later and examined the second material.  

‘As expected, the proper stuff was kept separate.’  

I half-wondered if the only thing obtained from killing the Basilisk was these tattered scales.  

But no, the next material to arrive was the genuine Basilisk material.  

[Basilisk’s Eye]  

Type: Material  

Grade: SS  

Description: The petrifying gaze of the Basilisk, the king of snakes. All of the Basilisk’s petrification abilities originate from this gaze.  

The Basilisk’s Eye was an SS-grade material, far superior to the scales.  

Though I was a little tempted to keep it, it was worth using to make Han Yu-ra’s equipment.  

My real concern was that if a tower suddenly appeared in reality, and Hunters either avoided it or turned a blind eye, Earth could face destruction.  

But since Han Yu-ra was affiliated with the Hunter Association, she wouldn’t just stand idly by and watch the world perish.  

“Let’s start with the armor.”  

[Using crafting skill.]  

I began by crafting armor using the Basilisk scales.  

Though the scales were in poor condition, they were still SS-grade materials.  

At the very least, the results should surpass most S-grade materials.  

I wondered if I might craft L-grade equipment again this time.  

[Crafting complete.]  

[Obtained ‘Small King’s Scale Armor’.]  

Was it because the scales were damaged?  

Or does using SS-grade materials not guarantee an L-grade item?  

The finished armor was not L-grade.  

Even so—  

[Small King’s Scale Armor]  

Type: Light Armor  

Grade: SSS  

Requirement: Level 320 or higher  

Description: Scale armor crafted from the scales of the Basilisk, also called the Small King, the king of snakes.  

Defense: 3,100  

Abilities:  

1. Neutralization – Greatly increases resistance to all types of status ailments. 10% chance to reflect status ailment attacks.  

2. Resistance – Greatly increases all elemental resistances. 10% chance to reflect elemental attacks.  

3. Scales – Increases movement speed and partially ignores collisions with enemies while moving.  

4. Regeneration – Increases health regeneration, and grants additional movement speed equal to the amount of health regenerated.  

The armor turned out more useful than I expected.  

A light armor specialized in movement speed that suits the Sword Saint’s combat style perfectly.  

Plus, the Neutralization effect raised resistance against status ailments like bleeding, which had given her trouble during her sparring match with Park Kang-chul.  

And the elemental resistance meant protection from all elemental attacks.  

This armor would be far more practical than I’d first thought.  

[Crafting complete.]  

[Obtained ‘Small King’s Scale Shoulder’.]  

[Crafting complete.]  

[Obtained ‘Small King’s Scale Gloves’.]  

I continued crafting the entire set of armor for her.  

Thankfully, as expected, plenty of Basilisk scales remained after completing the armor.  

With this much left, it seemed possible to make armor for Combat 5 as well in the future.  

Once the armor was finished, I thought, ‘Now, how should I upgrade these?’  

Only the upgrades for Dawn and Twilight remained.  

[Twilight]  

Type: Scabbard  

Grade: SSS  

Requirement: Level 300 or higher  

Description: Dawn and Twilight. Twilight accepts Dawn, and Dawn immerses in Twilight. Following the natural order, the darkened night sky leaves behind a small Dawn and Twilight.  

Abilities:  

1. Night – When sheathing the blade, deals additional damage proportional to the damage inflicted on the enemy.  

2. Sunset – Damage dealt to the enemy is stored in the scabbard and grants power to the blade upon drawing.  

3. Gloaming – When sheathing, creates a ‘Gloaming Shield’ that blocks enemy attacks.  

4. Dawn – When used together with ‘Dawn’, all the above values double.  

Twilight.  

Even seeing it again, it was a scabbard with excellent performance.  

Dawn was the same.  

While Twilight’s abilities were geared toward sheathing, Dawn’s were tuned for drawing the blade.  

The synergy of these two items made overwhelming power possible.  

‘Basilisk’s Eye.’  

Looking at this, I was reminded of the image of the cursed sword I’d made for Park Kang-chul.  

This was it.  

With this, I could upgrade Dawn and Twilight to my satisfaction.  

[Using upgrade skill.]  

“Bang!”  

Immediately, I swung my hammer.  

First, the level.  

Dawn and Twilight had remained at the original wearing level of 300 when I first repaired them.  

I raised the required level of both Dawn and Twilight.  

Naturally, as the required level rose, Dawn’s attack power increased as well.  

Up to this point, it was an easy process.  

But the next step was the real challenge.  

“Bang!”  

I fused the Basilisk’s Eye.  

Which one—Dawn or Twilight?  

There was no need to hesitate.  

I would infuse the Basilisk’s Eye into both items.  

With that in mind, I combined the separate Dawn and Twilight into one.  

In grand terms, I simply sheathed the blade into the scabbard.  

Then, placing the Basilisk’s Eye on the joint, I struck with the hammer.  

The points broke, and the Basilisk’s Eye gradually began fusing with Dawn and Twilight.  

“Blaze, engrave the Rune of Union here. And on the other side, carve the Rune of Separation.”  

“Got it!”  

“Hwaruk!”  

I began carving the Rune Scripts.  

Usually, only one Rune Script is engraved per item.  

If two Rune Scripts are carved on a single item, the item cannot withstand the power, causing its durability to plummet sharply.  

So why did I use two Rune Scripts?  

Because Dawn and Twilight were a set yet distinct items.  

Thus, the two Rune Scripts could withstand the power without issue.  

Moreover, the Rune Scripts were not engraved separately but inscribed on the joint where the blade was sheathed.  

This would further enhance the synergy between Dawn’s drawing and Twilight’s sheathing abilities.  

“Bang!”  

Two Rune Scripts.  

Along with the SS-grade Basilisk’s Eye.  

Though it was merely upgrading existing items, the materials and Rune Scripts involved were extraordinary, so it took considerable time.  

Almost as much as when I made Park Kang-chul’s sword, Blood Sea Devourer.  

Without noticing how day and night passed, I hammered away.  

[Upgrade complete.]  

[Obtained ‘Small King’s Dawn’.]  

[Upgrade complete.]  

[Obtained ‘Small King’s Twilight’.]  

The upgrade was successful.  

Because I used the Basilisk’s Eye, the item names had changed.  

Small King’s Dawn and Twilight.  

Well, this was fine.  

At least better than a name like ‘Snake King’s Dawn.’  

After finishing the upgrade, I nervously checked the item details.  

Hoping everything was crafted well as expected, I opened the info window.  

[Small King’s Twilight]  

Type: Scabbard  

Grade: L  

Requirement: Level 320 or higher  

Description: Dawn and Twilight. Twilight accepts Dawn, and Dawn immerses in Twilight. When the Small King’s Dawn rises, the people close their eyes, and when Twilight fades, the eyes of the world close.  

Abilities:  

1. Night – When sheathing, deals additional damage proportional to the damage inflicted on the enemy.  

2. Sunset – Damage dealt is stored in the scabbard and grants power to the blade upon drawing.  

3. Gloaming – When sheathing, creates a ‘Gloaming Shield’ that blocks enemy attacks.  

4. Dawn – When used together with ‘Dawn’, all the above values triple.  

5. Crushing – When sheathing, breaks the ‘Petrification’ created by Dawn, dealing additional damage.  

“Legendary!”  

A third legendary-grade weapon had been produced.  

Since I hadn’t made a new weapon but upgraded an existing one, the abilities were similar.  

Night, Sunset, Gloaming.  

The numbers seemed slightly higher, but the descriptions were the same.  

The change started with the fourth ability, Dawn.  

“It triples the values now.”  

Originally, Twilight’s fourth ability stated that when used with Dawn, all values doubled.  

Now, those values had increased to three times.  

Even though it seemed simple, the damage had grown tremendously.  

More importantly, a fifth ability appeared after embedding the Basilisk’s Eye.  

‘Crushing.’  

It destroyed the petrification created by Dawn when sheathing, dealing additional damage.  

Curious, I checked Dawn’s item details.  

[Small King’s Dawn]  

Type: Sword  

Grade: L  

Requirement: Level 320 or higher  

Description: Dawn and Twilight. Twilight accepts Dawn, and Dawn immerses in Twilight. When the Small King’s Dawn rises, the people close their eyes, and when Twilight fades, the eyes of the world close.  

Abilities:  

1. Day – When drawing the blade, the initial damage dealt to the enemy increases based on the time Twilight was sheathed.  

2. Dawn – When drawing, the basic attack power increases based on the time Twilight was sheathed.  

3. Sunrise – When drawing, it creates ‘Dawn Light Sword Energy.’  

4. Dawn – When used together with ‘Twilight’, all the above values triple.  

5. Petrification – Inflicts ‘Petrification’ status ailment on enemies.  

“Wow, insane.”  

Not only Twilight but Dawn had become an L-grade item.  

In other words, I had just created two L-grade items in one go.  

Look at those abilities.  

The synergy between Dawn and Twilight, already strong, had improved even further.  

And the final ability.  

Inflicting petrification with Dawn, then sheathing Twilight to shatter it and deal additional damage—  

Synergy like no other.  

Reading the item description, I realized—  

“This might make me feel bad for Park Kang-chul.”  

The moment she received these items,  Sword Saint Han Yu-ra would reclaim the number one spot on the ranking once again.