Hyunsoo stared at the sudden quest alert, puzzled.Before playing the game, he had done a bit of research.Quests were divided into Normal Quests, Hidden Quests, Class Quests, and Legendary Quests.Normal Quests were the ones you could get commonly.And Hidden Quests…He’d heard that getting three in a year was considered a lot.Out of roughly fifty quests, you might see one or two—if that.And one of the most important parts of any quest was its grade.The higher the grade, the harder it was to clear—but the rewards were that much better.He’d even heard that the rewards for Hidden Quests themselves were far better than for Normal Quests.[Hidden Quest: Help Ren Grow]Grade: ARestriction: Those who have received Ren’s request.Reward: Beginner Zone’s Top-Grade Iron Ore.Failure Penalty: Affinity with Ren decreases.Description: Ren wants to put Instructor Hans—who crushed his pride—in his place. Help Ren grow.The reward was the Beginner Zone’s top-grade iron ore.Most things obtained in the Beginner Zone carried the label “Beginner Zone’s.”Anything with that label was typically much worse than what you could get outside—a low-level substitute.For example, if Beginner Zone’s iron ore could make a sword with 30 Attack, ordinary iron ore could make one with 100 Attack.There was one certainty, though.Even if it’s labeled “Beginner Zone’s,” top-grade iron ore is something you simply cannot get here.He had forged his first sword.But whether he could break the Wooden Dummy with it was still unknown.Still, he did now have the advantage of forge access.“Please, I’m begging you!”Hyunsoo looked down at Ren.The truth was, plenty of people who’d picked up some weird blacksmithing tricks used to come looking for his father, Kang Hyuntae.The funny part? Ten out of ten of them ran away after two days.Blacksmithing wasn’t as pretty as it looked.Back-breaking repetition in blistering heat pushed people to their limits.Under his father’s influence, Hyunsoo didn’t pass down technique lightly.And because Hyunsoo and his father had to survive as blacksmiths, they also learned how to bargain.“Hmmm…”“I want to make a better sword!”Hyunsoo liked Ren.As a blacksmith, to kneel in front of a stranger just to forge a better blade—It meant he was desperate.“May I use the ores in this forge as I see fit?”Twitch—Hyunsoo felt Ren’s body flinch.But Ren quickly collected himself.If I can learn better blacksmithing, what’s there to be stingy about!?Becoming a better blacksmith was priceless.“O-Of course!”Hyunsoo smiled faintly.“Then I’ll teach you everything I can while I’m here.”Since he would be receiving a lot, Hyunsoo intended to help him in return.After finishing his talk with Ren, Hyunsoo immediately took Hyun’s First Sword and headed to the Wooden Dummy training yard.Now, instead of a wooden bokken, he raised a blade with a sharp, murderous edge and began to strike.Phe-euut!Pheuuut—Peut, peut, peut—Even the impact sound was on a different level from striking with a wooden sword.My body’s lighter than before, and I’m overflowing with strength.By forging this sword, several of Hyunsoo’s stats had gone up.Dexterity, in particular, had risen quite a bit.At the tenth and final strike, Hyunsoo lowered his stance and, for the first time, activated a skill.It was the special effect attached to Hyun’s First Sword.[Quick Draw][Slash the target swiftly with additional attack power equal to 22%.]Hyunsoo slid the blade into its scabbard and bent his knee.“Fuuuu.”With a trembling exhale, he drew at blistering speed and slashed the Wooden Dummy with all his might.Pheuuuuuuu-ut—!A heavy impact boomed out.The Wooden Dummy shook violently in Hyunsoo’s eyes.Hyunsoo’s expression soon clouded with disappointment.[Wooden Dummy Durability 511/1,000][You failed to break the Wooden Dummy.][You can try again in 30 minutes.]No wonder even national team athletes failed…At this level, wasn’t it beyond common sense?But Hyunsoo shook his head.They weren’t going to hand out a 50-million-won capsule easily.Let’s see…He organized his thoughts.First, he needed to forge a weapon better than the first one, and he had to obtain anything else he could get his hands on.Anything that can raise stats or attack power. Secure everything possible to strengthen the character and the gear.Do that, and his character’s damage would naturally rise—letting him shave more durability off the Wooden Dummy.What options did he have?Just then, he spotted the Instructor who had explained the basics to him.He too was pounding away at a Wooden Dummy, absorbed in his own training.After a long series of blows, he frowned at his dulled blade.“Because Hans and Ren are at odds, we’re getting dragged into it too. I can’t keep swinging garbage like this…”Hyunsoo’s quest to help Ren mentioned trouble with an Instructor named Hans.Ah…It seemed all the Instructors here were taking collateral damage from that dispute.Just look at that dull blade!When Hyunsoo saw a sword like that, he felt an urge to sharpen it on the spot.Huh…?Then he caught himself.He remembered.A way to grow stronger here—and secure more for himself!He was the man who’d become a master of bargaining thanks to all the penny-pinching grandmothers who nagged him to sharpen their kitchen knives!He approached the Instructor slowly. ****Instructor Jack clicked his tongue as he looked at the dulled blade.Why should the other Instructors suffer because of a pride match between Hans and Ren?If I keep swinging this, it’ll snap. Should I use a wooden sword for a while?A swordsman, using a beginner’s wooden sword?There was no humiliation like it.Then—“Hello, Instructor!”“…?”A stranger approached and bowed politely.He looked familiar.During the day he had chosen the Ebony Wooden Sword, and now he wore ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) a fairly good blade at his hip.Without realizing it, Jack had been keeping an eye on him.But there was something Hyunsoo didn’t know about the Beginner Zone.Never try to ask the Instructors private questions—or start a private conversation!Because the Instructors here were extremely unfriendly.Strictly speaking, they had become unfriendly because of the users.“Hey! Do you know who my dad is!?”“Didn’t your mom tell you?”“…!?”“Beat it.”There were floods of players who talked down to them, assuming they were just NPCs—and seeing hundreds of those every day wore them down.And there were also plenty like the one before him.“Yo, you think we can get a Hidden Piece from an Instructor?”Sycophants hoping to catch some crumbs!Utterly disgusting.Enough to make you sick.And Hyunsoo had picked the worst target.Jack was the most skilled among the Instructors—and he was notorious for the foulest temper.“What do you want.”Jack’s face hardened into a thuggish scowl as he answered lazily.Is this one trying to wring something out of me too?Damn foreigner, like all the rest.But then the stranger pointed at the blade in Jack’s hand.“It’s just… your edge looks very dull, Instructor.”Jack frowned.True enough—but there was no reason to point it out.“I’m fairly handy with weapon repair and forging. May I take a look?”“What?”Jack’s expression twisted.A mere foreigner, claiming he’s handy with weapon repair and forging?Jack had seen many talents.Foreigners whose swordplay surpassed his own.Foreigners who shot impossible arrows.And weird foreigners who did nothing but eat.But a foreigner who could judge weapons?I’ve never seen that.Naturally.There were barely even ten real blacksmiths left in the world—and there were hundreds of Beginner Zones.When he continued to eye Hyunsoo with deep suspicion, the man tapped the hilt at his waist with a crisp snap.“I made this one too.”“…!?”Jack’s eyes flew wide.Where had that blade come from?Within the bounds of his knowledge, there was no one in this Beginner Zone who would hand out such a sword.Which meant someone had forged it.But Jack also knew exactly how pathetic the zone’s lone blacksmith, Ren, was.So the man’s words served as a kind of proof.“Is that true?”“Yes. If I didn’t make it, how would I have it?”Hyunsoo wasn’t stupid.He presented proof when he had it.“I came to see if my humble skills could be of use to a fine Instructor like you.”“Hmm…?”“It must be rough, right? It’s hot, strange foreigners keep making a mess, you still have to train, and your blade’s gone dull on top of it.”“Haha, you understand me perfectly.”What was this—this silver tongue that charmed the heart?[Affinity with Jack has increased.]Hyunsoo had dealt with many penny-pinching grandmothers.Every time, he’d throw out lines like:“Goodness, my lady—turning sixty tomorrow and still so elegant. Don’t I look like your handsome grandson? If you take one today, I’ll take extra care of you next time!”“Hohoho, you rascal. You do look like my grandson—fine, I’ll buy one!”Why had a blacksmith become a master haggler…?He felt a brief pang of emptiness—but his patter worked on Instructor Jack as well.“Shall we try it? Still… it wouldn’t do to just hand it over.”Jack hadn’t dropped his guard completely.“If the sharpening satisfies me, I’ll pay the usual 50 silver fee I’d pay the forge. But if you do a poor job, I think I’ll be very disappointed in you.”Hyunsoo had earned 10 silver from the first tutorial—Pounding the Wooden Dummy.There were shops even within the Beginner Zone.This was exactly the angle Hyunsoo was aiming for!He had even taken a whetstone from Ren’s forge into his inventory.It’s been a while…Memories rose fresh in his mind.At ten years old, Hyunsoo had begged his father to teach him blacksmithing.His father had told him to sharpen knives for a year first.Probably to make him give up the grueling monotony of repetition.But guess what?Because of that, his father ended up producing the world’s greatest child prodigy at sharpening.I’ve sharpened over ten thousand things with my own hands.Kitchen knives, swords, axes for splitting firewood—so many.Receiving the sword, Hyunsoo immediately began sharpening it on the whetstone right there.Ssak, ssak, ssak, ssak—Then the same strange alerts he’d heard while forging returned.[An illogical action inconsistent with level parameters has occurred.][The dulled edge is being sharpened to an unbelievable degree.][Dexterity +1][Something special might happen.]The flattened edge evened out.As he finished, the blade that had lost its shine began to gleam again.After a long, steady sharpening, he completed the work.[You have sharpened the sword with masterful skill.][Attack Power +2% and Durability +5% for the sword.][Dexterity +1]

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