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Chapter 14

“Workshop Safety Rule #8: Always have a supervisor overseeing the forging process when using materials of the Hero tier or higher.”

There were built-in safety mechanisms present in the workshop that could address any issues while forging with Rare-tier materials or lower. However, materials of the Hero tier and above had a high, erratic potential to cause danger, which made it hard for the safety mechanisms alone to prevent any hazards.

Thus for safety reasons, it was imperative that the forging was done under the supervision of a professor or teaching assistant. However, given the value of these materials, requests for supervision from freshmen were almost non-existent, as most of them hadn’t received their budget yet.

[A request for an intermediate-level forging session has been received from first-year student Lee Se-Hoon. Those wishing to supervise, please proceed to contact us.]

And now, for the first time in years, that rare occasion happened today.

I wonder how many will accept the request this time...

The administrative staff, who had sent the message to all the professors in the department, looked at the panel with curiosity. The general consensus among the professors was that supervising a forging process was troublesome. It involved having to spend multiple hours monitoring and staying alert for accidents that could occur at any time and in any way.

Hence, rather than the professors, it was usually the teaching assistants who took on this responsibility. When it came to a student with high grades and no affiliated organization, however, the situation changed.

Ring!

“Wow... one came right away.”

Less than a minute after sending the message, a reply had come.

The person who replied was none other than Professor Kim In-Cheol, the head professor of the Department of Blacksmithing and the person who arguably had the highest authority within the department.

“As expected from an honor student...”

The reputation of those who teach, like professors, came not only from themselves but also from the disciples they were able to nurture. In that sense, as the first honor student of the Department of Blacksmithing after twelve years, Se-Hoon was a disciple any professor would want to recruit.

Ring! Ring! Ring!

As if to prove Se-Hoon’s popularity, replies arrived one after another. Now, it was easier to count the professors who hadn’t replied than those who did.

It seems no professors who are affiliated with Vice Dean Michael have replied.

It seemed like the atmosphere around Michael was not good after his son had been pushed down to second place in the grade.

Judging that most of the replies had arrived, the administrative staff reviewed the list of professors who had expressed their intention to participate as supervisors.

It’s probably better to assign it randomly this time around.

If there were no specific requests for a supervisor from the student’s side, the supervisor would be picked according to a predetermined order to ensure equal opportunities for recruitment. However, considering the large number of professors, all eager to recruit, participating this time, it was more appropriate to assign the role randomly.

But just as the staff was about to open a ghost-leg game[1] website to choose the supervisor, a response came in.

[The Dean would like to supervise Lee Se-Hoon’s intermediate-level forging session herself.]

“Ah.”

The professors were all suddenly faced with unjust authority.

***

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you, Lee Se-Hoon.”

“...”

Arriving at the workshop with the gathered materials, Se-Hoon was bewildered upon seeing the red-haired Eun-Ha waiting for him. He thought that some random professor would end up being his supervisor, but to his surprise, the Dean herself had come.

Once she’s hooked on something, she never lets go. She’s just like before.

Considering that it was still early in the semester and that this was her first year in office, she should be fairly busy. Yet, seeing as how she was here as the supervisor, which made it seem as if she had eagerly been awaiting this session, it seemed she had fairly high expectations of Se-Hoon.

“Aren’t you quite busy nowadays? Why did you bother signing up as my supervisor...” Se-Hoon asked her.

“I wasn’t that busy. Also, as the Dean, it’s my duty to assess your abilities as a student.”

He knew that she was probably just curious about the taste of his equipment, so Se-Hoon just nodded in agreement.

“Well, I guess I’ll have to put in some extra effort then.”

“Um. If I’m being a burden to you, maybe...”

Although she brought up those words out of consideration, she couldn’t bring herself to suggest calling someone else for supervision. Seeing her lingering reluctance, he smirked inwardly.

“No, no. I don’t have any problems with it. In fact, I think it would be helpful if you were the supervisor. I will greatly appreciate your guidance.”

While most blacksmiths would be unsettled if the notorious Gourmet oversaw their forging process, Se-Hoon, who routinely experienced it before the regression, didn’t mind at all. If anything, having her observe would likely add some tension, improving his concentration even more.

“...”

She looked at him with a slightly surprised expression. Nobody had ever said that having her watch from the side would be helpful; hence, she was never allowed near any occupied workshop. She was accustomed to only this kind of treatment.

“I see.”

Seemingly finding Se-Hoon’s attitude a little bit pleasing, her previously expressionless face softened ever so slightly.

“If there’s anything you want to do, please go ahead. As long as I’m supervising, there won’t be any harm coming your way.”

"Then I will trust you and leave it in your hands.”

Given that she was Ryu Eun-Ha and not any other professor, it was assured that she could perfectly safeguard herself, no matter the circumstances.

Though there will never be a case where she has to protect me.

He took out the inkstone ore, which he received from Ludwig, and a pre-made cast and placed them both on the workbench. After examining the two items, he reviewed the forging process.

I should portion out the material first.

Having already estimated how much inkstone ore he was going to use, he promptly brought a water container, placed the ore inside, and closed the lid. He was going to use a method that was not as well-known as the conventional methods.

Eun-Ha looked at him with surprise due to his choice of method.

“Have you handled inkstone ore before?”

“I only know the method in theory. This is actually my first time trying it myself.”

His composed response only left her more puzzled.

He’s using that method even though this is his first time handling the ore...

There were various methods for separating inkstone ore, but among them, the most challenging one was shadow isolation, the method Se-Hon was currently using.

That method involves placing inkstone ore in a space completely devoid of light and separating it using only mana.

Though it may sound simple, dealing with inkstone ore that was shrouded in darkness was practically like rebuilding it from start to finish since it tended to spread like water. This was a difficult method, and novice blacksmiths who hastily performed this method could end up lowering the quality of the ore.

Tap tap tap tap.

However, Se-Hoon tapped the container and infused his mana into it unwaveringly. After a moment, he opened the lid and took out the ore.

“...!”

A portion of the inkstone ore had been precisely cut off and into a square shape, about the size of a golf ball. Seeing that its form was flawless without a single sign of misproportion, Eun-Ha found herself at a loss for words. Se-Hoon looked at the piece of ore as if he had done no surprising feat.

About one-fourth, I believe.

Although he was reluctant to use this much, if he were to use even less, the finished equipment wouldn’t perform as desired. There was no choice.

Setting the remaining inkstone ore aside, he lit the furnace, then gripped the ignition stones with his hands and clashed them together.

Cr-crackle!

Sparks flew from the ignition stones as they were heated up. Normally, he would have tossed them in the furnace at this point, but he needed a much more substantial flame to melt inkstone ore.

Scarlet Flame

Fwooosh!

Scarlet Flame, his fire-attribute elemental mana, enveloped the ignition stones. Soon, its form changed.

It flowed like water in various directions, following his gestures while still keeping the nature of Scarlet Flame. He looked inside the furnace, and then immediately reached in with his left hand to pluck out flames of different colors.

Hiss!

He continued plucking out flames as if he were separating egg whites and yolks. Suddenly, there was a shift in the internal balance and the flames swiftly turned green.

Fwoosh.

Unlike the initial vigorous blaze, this new flame burned calmly.

“This is an unusual flame,” she commented, intrigued.

“This flame is called the Hoya Flame. Its characteristic is...”

With a gesture, he sent the Hoya Flame into the furnace. It instantly dyed the interior like flames spreading across a field.

Confirming that the entire furnace was now ablaze with a green hue, he continued explaining calmly, “maintaining the temperature at which it started. It’s a useful flame when the control of temperature plays a crucial role in the outcome.”

There was a limitation in that it couldn’t surpass a certain temperature, but for inkstone ore, which wasn’t particularly sensitive to temperature, this flame was perfect.

“You sure know a lot of different techniques, Lee Se-Hoon.”

Who would believe that this was the skill level of a freshman who just entered the academy this year? Faced with Eun-Ha’s inquisitive gaze, he shrugged it off by saying, “It’s just because of my skills.”

“...I see.”

Considering that she was someone who literally devoured metal due to her skills, she found his explanation reasonable. Successfully dodging her suspicion, he examined the inkstone ore in the furnace as it began to heat up.

Faintly distorted flames danced around the ore. As he inspected the flames that were expanding and slowly cooling down, he quickly grabbed the hammer and the chisel placed beside him.

Clang! Clang!

He pounded the ore with the hammer and chisel in order, starting where the ore entered the furnace. As he struck each part, it seemed to lighten in color, and the region where the flames were distorted seemed to diminish. The reduction of the distortion indicated that the ore was too busy absorbing the impacts from his hammering.

Let’s get started, then.

Repeating this process was the forging procedure for inkstone ore. With his two eyes flashing, he assumed the least physically taxing posture and began to repeat the process.

Clang! Clang!

The forging process was methodical. He heated the ore at the right moment as he struck with the exact amount of strength and mana. Although it could be mundane, Eun-Ha could not pry her eyes away.

It’s surprising that he isn’t showing any reaction when he’s moving like that in front of the furnace...

Unless he was unable to perceive pain at all, he would have naturally reacted to the pain. However, Se-Hoon moved as if he regarded the pain as a given.

This kind of behavior was only found in those who had honed themselves throughout a long endurance of suffering, and not those with talents alone. To reach a level at his age, what kind of life did he need to endure?

“...”

Recalling that Se-Hoon’s parents had been slaughtered at the hands of the demons, Eun-Ha looked at him with somber eyes. The serious atmosphere persisted throughout the entire forging session, and Se-Hoon was soon covered with sweat, his arms shaking.

The inkstone ore, its color unchanged since the start, had started melting slightly. The distortion phenomenon had also diminished.

It had been four hours since the start of the session, yet the properties of the ore had only now begun transforming.

Now, it really begins.

If he were to show any hesitation during this step, the ore would return to a worse quality of its original form. The thought of failing to forge it and downgrading its quality made him churn and act quickly.

Using tongs, he pulled out one of the containers that held the molten inkstone ore. Holding the container, he headed towards the cast.

Eun-Ha, watching by the side, was taken aback.

Casting?

Casting was a blacksmithing method that involved pouring the molten metal into a cast that was in the shape of the equipment.

Although it was a method that was simpler than smithing, it had its shortcomings. The main one was that the work that would be put into adjusting the magic array would be significantly lacking, which would lower the durability and performance of the equipment.

Why is he using that method on inkstone ore...

While there was a selection of materials that worked well with this method, inkstone ore had particularly poor compatibility.

She contemplated whether to intervene and stop him or to just trust him and let him be.

Blub blub blub.

Before she could decide, Se-Hoon had already poured the molten inkstone ore into the cast.

“Ah.”

She knew there was no going back now. He should have his reasons if he hadn’t shown any hesitation up to this point. She gazed at him in curiosity.

“Hgh!”

Bracing himself, he shoved his right hand into the cast.

“Wa―wait...!”

Eun-Ha sprang from her seat in surprise at his completely unexpected action. She knew prior that he was resistant to flames, but the temperature of molten inkstone ore was on a completely different level. To change properties, the inkstone ore had to absorb heat to its limit, which resulted in a ridiculously high temperature.

Hiss!

As if to prove the absurdity of the temperature, violent sounds resounded from the cast with fuming smoke.

While hurting other parts of the body was acceptable, the hands were the only body parts a blacksmith must never injure. Eun-Ha couldn’t stand by any longer and moved to pull his right arm out of the cast.

But before she managed to pull it out, Se-Hoon’s mana flowed out.

The reason casting was not compatible with inkstone ore was that the absence of light inside the cast would instantly change the properties of the ore before it was engraved with magic arrays.

Thus to use the casting method, he needed something to slow down that change in property.

Cling!

To put it simply, he needed something to keep it together.

The cast, now infused with mana, shined brightly. The spell that was inscribed on the surface activated immediately.

He was using what he learned from the dispelling technique that had destroyed Robert Parry’s barrier to prevent the inkstone ore from reverting to its original state after expelling all the heat.

Hiss!

Due to the technique, the temperature of the ore that should’ve been dropping by now was fixed at the highest level. Naturally, Se-Hoon felt the excruciating pain in his hand.

Yet, he smiled amidst the pain. With the temperature constant, he knew that he had succeeded in maintaining the changed property of the ore.

Now let\'s get the rest of it over with...!

Recalling the schematics he had in mind, he swiftly began to intricately carve the interior of the ore. His mana delved inside without any waste, gradually constructing the circuit.

Craaaack-

As its presence seemed to fade, the inkstone ore, squirming like a dying fish, intensified its absorption of the surroundings. Under the vigorous suction, the spell inscribed on the surface was gradually absorbed.

And at that moment, the magic circuit and the spell seamlessly meshed together, as if they had agreed upon it beforehand.

Crack!

The cast shattered into pieces, revealing the completed equipment.

[Weapon ‘Inkstone Bracelet’ has been completed!

Sometimes it takes an unconventional challenge that doesn’t spare one’s body to shatter prejudices! While the potential of the material has not been fully drawn out, the blacksmith’s craftsmanship, which unearthed new possibilities, is undoubtedly top-notch.]

The tier evaluation for ‘Inkstone Bracelet’ is ‘Rare’.]

[Skill ‘Black Weaver (D)’ has been acquired.]

The bracelet had a matte black color like inkstone ore and was engraved with web-like patterns. Its tier seemed to be decent, and it looked well-crafted, but he could only know for sure after inspecting it more closely.

To examine the details of the bracelet, he tried to raise his right arm, but he felt a strong sense of resistance as if someone was pulling his arm downward. While the forging session had completely burned out his body, he felt like that alone couldn’t explain this amount of weight.

Despite it, he determinedly raised his right arm and pressed on the bracelet to inspect its information.

[Inkstone Bracelet]

[Tier: Rare] [Quality: Average]

[A bracelet forged from inkstone ore.

It has the ability to absorb the wearer’s mana. The weight of the bracelet increases proportionally to the amount of mana stored.

*Absorbs and stores the wearer’s mana

*Enables the use of the skill ‘Adrenaline’]

... It worked.

The bracelet was forged exactly the way he intended. He smiled in satisfaction after reading the bracelet’s information.

Growl-

“...”

“...”

He heard an embarrassing sound from behind.

1. The ghost-leg game is also referred to as "ladder climbing game" if you are more familiar with that. ☜