Leaving the Namsan Gate, I headed to the nearby Blacksmith’s Shop.
Even though it was my first time here, my steps were steady. It’s common for a shopping street to form near a gate.
Hunters and dismantlers come and go, so related shops spring up like mushrooms after rain. Before the gate appeared, people said there was a popular date spot because of Namsan Tower…
That had nothing to do with me, who had never had a girlfriend.
Feeling somewhat down, I opened the Blacksmith’s Shop door.
“Welcome!”
A burly man greeted me with a loud voice as I entered. He had thick arms that seemed to say he was the owner of the shop.
I placed the Noll leather I had carried on my shoulder onto the counter. The blacksmith, as if this was a familiar task, began inspecting the Noll leather—assessing its quality.
I silently waited for the appraisal to finish.
“Selling or crafting?”
“I’m here to craft.”
The blacksmith finished inspecting and asked, and I answered promptly. He scratched his thick beard and said,
“Make sure you catch the dismantler who tore this leather apart.”
“Huh?”
“He’s quite skilled. Makes you wonder why someone with such skill would be dismantling Noll leather.”
“… Really?”
I repeated in disbelief. Was my skill really good enough to earn praise from the blacksmith?
The dismantlers always scolded me. All the nitpicking about not being able to do the job properly.
“You’re at least a B-rank dismantler.”
“That high?”
“If it wasn’t Noll leather he dismantled, I could’ve gauged his skill better… But anyway, he’s talented.”
“For a Hunter to make good money, they need to work with skilled dismantlers… Hmm? Ah, you did this yourself?”
“Can you tell?”
“I was going to ask if you were trying to hide it.”
I shook my head. Of course, I had tried to hide it—I just couldn’t control the corner of my mouth creeping up into a smile.
I raised my hand to cover my grin. The blacksmith chuckled and continued.
“That’s a shame. If only your appraisal skills were good, you could’ve made a name for yourself as a dismantler.”
“If only my appraisal skills were good.” That was just hypothetical.
The reason for his words was easy to guess: the condition of the Noll leather wasn’t good.
No matter how good the dismantling skill, if the leather quality is poor from the start, it’s useless. Now I understood why the blacksmith didn’t think I was a proper dismantler.
A skilled dismantler wouldn’t dismantle low-quality leather unless it was a request.
“So, can this not be used to make equipment?”
“Most of what you brought will have to be discarded. You might be able to use some of it for crafting…”
The blacksmith’s voice trailed off. I could roughly guess what he wanted to say.
‘Even if you craft equipment with low-quality materials, you’ll only get low-quality gear.’
That must have been it. I understood. Chefs search for fresh ingredients to create excellent flavors.
Likewise, blacksmiths naturally discard low-quality materials to seek high-quality ones for making good equipment.
“With what’s left… I could make about one forearm guard.”
One? Not even a pair. For a moment, I thought he was trying to rip me off, but I shook my head.
The blacksmith had said most of the materials needed to be thrown away.
Since the quantity of usable leather was small, there was no other choice.
“Then, I’ll take one forearm guard, please.”
“Understood. That’ll be 300,000 won.”
“That’s cheap. Do you take cards?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you.”
After paying the full amount by card, I left the Blacksmith’s Shop. Just before exiting, the blacksmith added that I should come back tomorrow morning to pick it up.
Next, I found myself in a small café that immediately caught my eye. Habits are scary. I didn’t come in intending to visit a café.
I saw the sign and somehow walked in, ordering an Americano.
“This is scary…”
I muttered while sipping the iced Americano through a straw. The caffeine entering my body relaxed me completely. The feeling of tension melting away wasn’t unpleasant at all.
During a little over a year as an office worker, I’d become a total caffeine slave. Like many who stare at monitors all day, I had to drink coffee to keep going.
But that wasn’t the only scary thing.
There was one more.
Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap…
I took my smartphone out and launched [World Tree Nurturing]. Using my left index finger, I tapped the screen diligently.
If I hadn’t felt the mana draining from my hand, I wouldn’t have noticed my tapping. Mana flowed from my fingertip toward the sprout on the screen.
With each tap, the sprout trembled as it absorbed the mana.
“I didn’t know I was this good…”
Now, I could understand why Taecheon scolded me to stop playing the game so much. I could also understand why Manager Lee tried to relate everything to the game.
Apparently, I’d been unknowingly playing the game extremely hard. I didn’t even realize I’d been tapping like this…
“Hmm. So that’s what the help message meant.”
Only now did I grasp the help message. When I tap the screen, mana is delivered to the World Tree sprout. The sprout absorbs the mana and grows, and as it grows, I grow as well.
I still didn’t fully understand how the sprout’s growth meant my growth. I had a few guesses though.
As a reward for growing the World Tree, I had received the ‘Primeval World Tree Fruit.’
Like that, I’d probably get items or new skills. In other words, just by tapping the smartphone screen, I could become stronger.
“If I’d known from the start, I would’ve been tapping hard at home…”
I sighed and muttered, tapping the screen earnestly. Getting a new skill and immediately rushing into the gate…
Nothing had changed since the day I became a Hunter and followed Taecheon into the gate like a puppy. If anything, I was maintaining my initial spirit.
“Character window.”
A bluish window appeared before my eyes. It was fine now that I knew I just had to tap.
This wasn’t the time to blame my stupidity.
I checked to see what else I might be missing. The character window showed HP, MP, and SP as it had at home.
But… “How did I miss this?”
There was something I had overlooked. The HP, MP, and SP values were unrealistically strange.
I couldn’t understand how I hadn’t noticed.
[Character Window]
[Baek Dowoon – World Tree Keeper]
[Titles –]
[HP – 100%]
[MP – 102,600]
[SP – ∞]
[Status – ]
“Infinite…?”
SP usually means Stamina Points in games. My character window showed stamina as infinite.
If this was true, I had become a body that never tires.
I wasn’t tired even after pulling all-nighters. This must be why.
Because the numbers were so ridiculous, the maximum MP of 102,600 didn’t seem all that surprising.
I used to have so little mana that I had to rest regularly during hunts. That 260 number was probably my maximum mana before eating the fruit.
Now, it was 102,600.
Clearly increased thanks to the Primeval World Tree Fruit. I was already overjoyed that my regeneration improved and I could manage mana better, but there was another gift.
Still, seeing the “SP co” notation made it less shocking.
“… I guess this is what people call a blessing.”
I murmured as I checked the Titles and Status sections. I started with Status at the bottom.
Nothing happened when I pressed it.
Status probably indicated my current condition. Since I was sitting still, nothing appeared.
Then I pressed Titles. I expected nothing, but I was wrong.
There was exactly one title.
“World Tree’s Companion.”
“Companion…?”
Clicking on the title brought up a message. It explained how to obtain it and the effects it provided.
[World Tree’s Companion – Awarded for being the first in humanity to nurture the World Tree.]
[Effect – Does not tire while on land. Gains a natural resource gathering probability bonus.]
[Equip Effect – (Unlock conditions unmet, the World Tree must grow further.)]
Now I understood why my stamina was infinite. The effect said I wouldn’t get tired as long as I was on land.
“Unlock conditions unmet…”
I sighed. Human greed never ends. Seeing that the equip effect was locked made me want it even more.
Apparently, the condition would be met once the World Tree grew further, so I’d have to keep tapping diligently.
Of course, this was nothing new—I’d always been doing it.
I often heard those around me say, “Stop playing the game so much!”
“Someone should really get this game addict.”
“Game addict. Yeah, that’s me… Huh? Manager Lee?”
“… Why are you admitting it all of a sudden?”
Manager Lee frowned and sat opposite me. His face carried the same suspicion as the day before, as if wondering, ‘Has this guy finally lost his mind?’
There was still no trace of respect. After all, I couldn’t even thank the person who saved my life last night…
I wasn’t going to say anything since words would only make me look bad.
“How did you find out I was here?”
“If the boss suddenly quits, you’ve got to check.”
That wasn’t an answer.
“Oh, and how did you know I quit?”
“Two hours ago, someone posted on the guild board that the team leader handed in his resignation.”
He slid his smartphone toward me. The screen showed a post titled, ‘Baek Dowoon quit the company.’
The post read:
[He insisted on quitting, so I accepted his resignation.]
[I’m worried this might cause problems.]
[Will he be alright?]
The post was short but had already been viewed 92 times.
Ninety-two people.
Most Baekwooncheon guild members must have seen it.
I sighed deeply and shook my head.
“Ha, what if Dohee sees this?”
“Huh? What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“Taecheon doesn’t check websites or anything, so he’s fine.”
That was true.
Taecheon wasn’t a problem at all. He probably wouldn’t notice for a while unless someone told him.
And the founding members, including Hanjaeim, wouldn’t talk about it. They were probably glad I got kicked out.
The problem was Dohee.
“Dohee’s different. She checks this stuff all the time. She says it’s her job to see what the guild members want.”
“As expected from the deputy guild master. You’re admirable compared to some.”
“Shut up! Whose side are you on?”
Manager Lee shrugged without answering.
Ugh. That annoying guy. I never liked him from the start.
He was funny, so I kept him around, but…
“Oh.”
Manager Lee’s annoying exclamation stopped me cold.
My smartphone rang.
The game screen slid down, and the caller ID appeared.
Seeing the caller, I cupped my hands over my face.
For the first time since sitting in the café, my left index finger stopped tapping.
The black screen displayed,
[Don’t pick up! I said don’t pick up, you crazy bastard!]
It was my one and only precious, beloved younger sister, Baek Dohee.
“… I’m screwed.”