Chapter 37
Class: Blacksmith.
With crafting skills like forging, weaving, and alchemy.
“……”
I’d never even held a hammer in my life—how was I supposed to know anything about this?
“Hm, I don’t really know much about production classes either…”
Soyul was the same.
The so-called Empress of Assassins—she had only ever cut down people or monsters, never swung a hammer.
That left me with only one option.
[You activate the skill, ‘Legacy of the Ten Thousand Arts’ (S-rank).]
[Consumes 20 Energy.]
[The ‘Master of Ten Thousand Arts’ appears.]
The very next morning, I summoned the old man without delay.
“Oh? This brat.”
“Yes, Master.”
“You’ve grown again, haven’t you.”
The old man instantly noticed that I’d reached C-rank.
“Heh, so you’ve finally grasped the thread of the Supreme Azure Mind Method?”
“That’s right.”
“Well, slower than I’d hoped… but it seems you’ve unsealed another of your undead. Not bad. Is his name Bone Six?”
“Oh…”
He knew the seal had been lifted already?
My eyes lit up as I asked,
“About that, Master.”
“What.”
“Do you know anything about Blacksmiths?”
“Blacksmiths… you mean forging?”
“Yes. You’ve mastered the Legacy of the Ten Thousand Arts. Crafting is a form of technique too, so surely you’ve mastered that as well?”
I nodded with confidence.
If anyone could show Bone Six the proper path, it was this old man.
I was excited.
‘Once he maxes out blacksmithing, won’t he be able to churn out S-rank items like copies?’
S-rank items were priceless treasures.
If I raised Bone Six properly, I’d never have to worry about money again.
And I could outfit my skeletons and myself with the best gear.
“Huh? Why ask me about forging? Don’t tell me your new undead is actually a blacksmith?”
“Ha ha, yep, exactly. Want to see?”
[You activate the skill, ‘Summon Balanced Skeletons’ (C-rank).]
[Consumes 10 Energy.]
[Bone Six appears.]
I showed him Bone Six, hammer in hand.
But the old man just looked displeased.
“Tsk, tsk, you fool.”
“…Sir?”
A bad feeling crept over me.
Like my hopes were about to be crushed flat.
“Listen well. My Legacy of the Ten Thousand Arts exists only to fight. A technique is still a technique, but do I look like someone who’d sit in a workshop hammering away?!”
“…What?”
No way.
“Think about it. I was an absolute ruler with no equal in my world. Why would I waste time making weapons when I could just steal the best ones? To me, blacksmithing is a lowly, disgraceful craft!”
“……”
“You don’t get it, do you? That’s because you’ve failed to change your mindset. Do you know what weaklings always blame?”
“…What.”
“Their gear. Always their gear. A true absolute being should be unbeatable even with a stick in hand. And you’re already whining about equipment?”
“I wasn’t blaming gear… I just wanted to ask about Blacksmithing…”
I was speechless.
What had I expected from him?
‘And on top of that…’
Stealing the best gear instead of making it?
It was like there was a massive wall between his world and mine—different rules, different morals entirely.
“You once promised, Master! You said you’d teach all of my skeletons!”
I remembered what he had said in the past:
—The title Legacy of the Ten Thousand Arts came from mastering countless skills. How could I limit myself to only ten when I’ve mastered so many?
He had said ten skills back then. That meant Bone Six should count too…
“Tsk, brat. Did I ever say I’d teach smithing? He’s got a hammer—i’ll just teach him hammer techniques instead.”
“…Hammer techniques? No thanks.”
Unacceptable.
I already had five combat skeletons.
This production-class skeleton was a miracle.
He could make my dream of full S-rank gear come true.
I couldn’t let that slip away.
“What? You dare scoff at hammer techniques? Smashing things with a giant hammer is a whole different kind of thrill—”
“No thanks! I said no!”
“You brat! Have you lost your mind?”
The old man’s eyes widened in fury.
But I had to say it.
“The Legacy of the Ten Thousand Arts I learned isn’t ten thousand tricks, it’s all tricks. You yourself said all techniques converge into one at their peak!”
“Hmph! I’m the founder of the Legacy. That makes it my rules.”
“I can’t accept that. How can you dismiss entire crafts? No skill deserves to be belittled.”
“I’m not dismissing them—I’m saying you should focus on strength first! With your pitiful power, do you really have time to swing a hammer at an anvil? Better to swing your sword instead!”
“My Legacy is different from yours. Mine includes blacksmithing.”
“Heh, ungrateful brat… what a stubborn fool you are.”
He looked exasperated, but I glared back with determination.
‘Bone Six is a blacksmith.’
He was born a blacksmith, and I wanted to raise him as one.
I refused to turn him into some mindless hammer-wielding thug.
This was a summoner’s conviction.
My skeletons were like my children.
And what parent doesn’t want their child to walk the path they were born for?
I turned my back.
“Hey, brat! Where do you think you’re going? Stop right there!”
I smirked.
If Soyul and the old man couldn’t help me, I’d find another way.
‘There’s only one holy ground for production classes in Korea.’
Gotomall.
The underground mall at Gangnam Express Bus Terminal.
‘It used to sell mostly fashion clothes.’
Now it was a hub for all kinds of production classes and hunter item businesses.
“Brat!”
The old man called out in a panic.
“What now?”
“Go if you must, but you’d better get your Supreme Azure Body Technique first!”
“……”
I probably should.
But not today.
I’d just reached C-rank yesterday.
And right now, I was more curious about Bone Six’s abilities.
“Sorry, but I’ll take a rain check. I’ll double up tomorrow.”
“What? You little—!”
“See you tomorrow, Master. Please understand.”
“You damned…!”
I dismissed him before he could rant any further.
Bone Six’s class.
To the old man who dismissed “blacksmith” as lowly, this was my little act of rebellion.
—
Gotomall had everything.
From dungeon loot to hunter-made gear.
Hunters bustled everywhere, and mysterious items lined the stalls.
Tourists flocked here too.
“Wow, never thought I’d be back.”
The day I first received my innate ability, Cursed Necromancer, I’d bought a cheap staff here.
[Item: Summoner’s Worn Staff]
[Rank: E]
[Type: Staff]
[Description: A staff imbued with faint magical energy. Worn down by time.]
[Effect 1: Reduces skill cooldown by 2%.]
[Effect 2: Increases power of summoning skills by 3%.]
“……”
I still used it to this day.
Wanting to boost my skeletons’ strength even slightly, I’d spent a hefty 500,000 won on it.
‘It’s about time to replace it.’
But nothing caught my eye.
Bone Five’s Dragonfire Staff had spoiled me—everything else looked second-rate.
“Hoo.”
I exhaled and glanced around.
Clang! Clang!
The sound of hammering iron.
Creak! Whirr!
The lively hum of looms weaving cloth.
‘Still crowded as ever.’
I clicked my tongue at the endless stream of hunters and tourists.
Soyul had followed me but stayed hidden nearby.
As a celebrity, moving in stealth was second nature to her.
‘First things first.’
I chose a nearby smithy.
A shabby old sign, the kind of place that looked like it only sold cheap junk.
‘Well, I’m broke anyway…’
And there was another reason.
[Smith’s Forge]
[Beginner Blacksmiths Welcome!]
[Rent anvils, bellows, artificial wells, and more at low cost!]
[Plenty of rooms available for training!]
That phrase—“Beginner Blacksmiths Welcome!”
‘Bone Six may be intermediate, but…’
Without a mentor, he needed to start from the basics.
The fact that this forge had no hunters around was also a plus.
“Hello there.”
I stepped inside, greeting the man who looked to be in his early fifties.
“Welcome. Looking to buy something?”
“No, I saw the ad out front.”
“Ah, so you’re a blacksmith? What rank—F? Or E?”
“E-rank.”
I flashed the white badge on my waist.
‘Guess it’s about time to update this.’
The Association required re-registration every six months.
If you hid your true rank for longer than that, you’d be flagged as fraudulent and penalized.
I still had four to five months left, so I was fine.
“Got it. So you’re here to rent a room?”
“Yeah, can I see one first?”
On the way, I had skimmed the hunter bulletin board for production-class info.
It was basically like a game.
Skills like forging, weaving, and alchemy leveled up naturally with practice.
‘And crafting—item creation—that’s the real flower of blacksmithing.’
By gathering materials with those basic skills and combining them with dungeon blueprints, you could forge items.
“Take a look around. If you like it, you can rent it.”
The room was simple.
Nothing but the essentials—an anvil, tools, and workspace.
Like a factory for grinding proficiency.
“Hmm, how much?”
“Two a month.”
“Two hundred… as in two hundred won?”
“Ha! You’ve got a sense of humor. Of course it’s two million won. No daily rentals here.”
“……”
No wonder the place was empty.
It was way too expensive.
Even after farming C-rank dungeons, I didn’t have much saved.
[Checking Account Balance]
[Account Holder: Joo Donghoon]
[Hunter Priority Account, E-rank]
[Balance: 8,602,000 won]
About 8.6 million.
Renting this would cost a quarter of my entire net worth.
“Don’t like it, don’t rent it. But you won’t find cheaper anywhere. Do you know how expensive it is to set up anvils, bellows, and all that? We even have a loom and alchemy table.”
“Hm.”
I hesitated.
I wasn’t usually the gullible type.
But he wasn’t wrong.
Most production classes were supported by guilds, so they didn’t need places like this.
With no demand, almost all rental workshops had gone out of business.
This was probably one of the few still standing.
“Alright.”
I nodded.
This was an investment in my child.
Once Bone Six grew, he’d repay me tenfold, a hundredfold.
“I’ll rent it for a month!”
I handed over my card with a grin.