episode_0004

The Dimensional Rift incident had a significant impact on humanity, and it wasn’t limited to human and material damage.

The numerous external dimensional attacks left great scars on humanity on a scale comparable to the world wars that broke out over a single gun, system, and ideology in the past, but the benefits that humanity gained from them were also considerable.

Materials that could only be collected from extra-dimensional sources and were not available on Earth before the incident.

For example, ruins, or plants, fruits, and drops or magic stones that can only be obtained from monsters in other dimensions that grow there, are all the result of active research, experimentation, and various studies that have contributed to the advancement of humanity.

Among them, the one called Magic Stone was a bit more special.

It exists in the bodies of monsters from another dimension, and it contains extremely hard and powerful energy. The wavelength that this energy emits is strangely very similar to the energy wavelength – mana – that comes from [Awakened Ones].

Yes, it was called a magic stone because it was literally a stone that contained mana.

These magic stones are usually consumed as materials or resources themselves when making various accessories, weapons, armor, and other Awakened equipment. They are graded based on quality, and the higher the grade, the rarer and more powerful the stone must be collected from monsters.

Because high-grade magic stones are needed to make quality equipment, demand is high, but because the supply is limited in proportion to the difficulty, prices for high-grade magic stones and above tend to skyrocket.

But if we say it the other way around, it means that low-grade magic stones are not rare and are in high supply.

At one time, there was research into using these surplus low-grade magic stones to utilize the mana contained within them as a future alternative energy source, but there were problems.

The point was that during the transformation process of the magic stone, weak extra-dimensional particles were generated.

Of course, the extradimensional particles that are generated are extremely small and their power is weak, so fortunately, they quickly dilute and disappear when left in the air.

Perhaps because it was not originally of this world, there was no particular problem with environmental pollution.

The problem is that, no matter what, if extradimensional particles are emitted close to the body, there is a high probability of exposure, and exposure to extradimensional particles is quite dangerous for ordinary people who are not awakened.

An even bigger problem is that using the mana inside this magic stone is impossible for ordinary people who are not awakened and can handle mana.

There are ways to hire Awakeners at the large guild or national level, but considering the cost of hiring Awakeners in private companies, it is still a waste of money.

Therefore, low-grade magic stones were products with low purchasing power, except for Awakened people engaged in production-related professions, or companies or countries with the financial resources and social trust to hire Awakened people.

But that is why these low-level magic stones were the perfect fit for Shihyuk.

‘The highest level magic stone is like a pearl necklace around a pig’s neck to me.’

Even if he were to force himself to purchase high-quality magic stones, they would be nothing more than a luxury item for him, as he is not a craftsman with the Meister title who can create [rare grade equipment].

It is only natural that even if you provide the best cooking ingredients to a chef at the level of a single-person household, he or she will not be able to escape the category of single-person household cooking.

In that case, it was bound to be excessive spending for Sihyuk. He liked efficiency and did not like unnecessary spending.

Shihyuk thought that it was a real nuisance for himself, other Awakened people engaged in crafting, and even in terms of energy consumption that an incompetent person was using a high-quality magic stone.

And he thought that the low-grade magic stone was exactly the kind of thing that a blacksmith would use. Common, dull, and of little use. Isn’t it exactly like Lee Si-hyuk himself?

That’s what I was thinking.

—

The ordered items arrived the next day around the time the sun began to set on the mountain.

Early in the morning, a 1.5-ton truck, commonly called a delivery truck, rode up a dirt road up a mountain. The delivery man got out of the truck and nodded his head in greeting as Si-hyuk opened the front door wide to the sound of a loud horn.

‘That’s fast.’

Since it was a large quantity, I expected it to take some time, but the delivery was fast. It seems that the company brought forward the delivery date because they were afraid of customers changing their minds after ordering surplus resources.

Shihyuk readily signed the receipt and non-refundable agreement form he received from the delivery company. The company’s eyebrows, which had been tense, relaxed a little, perhaps because he was worried about potential customers.

The merchant was a man of few words and of a rather timid build, but he was a very kind-hearted man.

As soon as Shihyuk finished signing, he even showed his kindness by moving the sacks of magic stones that were so full that it was worrying that the truck was overloaded to the basement.

It was obvious that the magic stones filled to the brim in each bag would be heavy as much as their volume, but the delivery man must have been an Awakened one as well. He lifted them with one hand to check their weight, then used his [Body Strengthening Skill] and carried them easily with his skilled movements.

Thanks to this, Sihyuk only had to carry two sacks on each waist, which was relatively small compared to the deliverymen who had to carry sacks full on both shoulders.

It was a very fortunate thing. The gap between Shihyuk and the deliveryman, who had poor physical strength, was so great that it was embarrassing to compare them to the same category of awakened people.

Si-hyuk, whose body was suffering from bone disease due to frequent overwork and unable to use his skills, would probably have to wait until noon to move all of the mountain of magic stones.

“Thank you so much.”

The deliveryman who was carefully checking the list of next delivery destinations and the signature of actual receipt glanced at Shihyuk’s gratitude.

“No, it’s work.”

It was a plain response. After the dealer confirmed that there were no problems with the delivered items or the checklist, he nodded his head and drove off in his truck.

Sihyuk watched the rear of the moving truck for a moment, then caught his breath, sat down, and slowly stretched his bent back. He had only moved two magic stones, but his back was already starting to hurt.

He pressed the erector spinae and tailbone area for a while, then when the pain subsided somewhat, he went down to the basement and turned on the light.

The underground blacksmith shop was spotless because Shihyuk had cleaned it yesterday. Everything from the shelves to the anvil, tongs, and whetstones were cleaned and placed in their proper locations.

In particular, the hammer that only Master Baekhyun used was shiny and reflecting the fluorescent light, perhaps because he had put a lot of effort into maintaining it.

“Good. I think we can start right away.”

After taking a couple of deep breaths, Shihyuk immediately poured an entire low-level magic stone into the mana melting furnace, then brought the palm that had generated mana into the mana melting furnace.

The melting pot, activated by Shihyuk’s mana seeping out of his hand, vibrated with a noise similar to the exhaust sound of a bus. The vibration was so strong that it made the hand holding it tingle.

Inside the working melting pot, the piled up magic stones shrank one by one like lit bags, and as their surface gradually became smaller, they began to emit something like a mist that seemed alive.

A dense black fog that was clearly visible to both eyes rose inside the melting pot, and occasionally, black extradimensional particles would pop out like sparks through the cracks in the melting pot.

It wasn’t a big risk. Originally, extradimensional exposure was something that the Awakened people would do as often as they wanted when attacking the gate or making equipment.

An ordinary person would have been terrified and retreated, but Shihyuk was an awakened person in his own right. He had the ability to endure this much.

Was it the initial symptoms of extradimensional radiation exposure? It felt like rusty iron from the root of the tongue, but the aftertaste was bitter like chewing spinach. It was a taste that was familiar to Shi-hyuk, but it was unpleasant no matter when he felt it.

Shihyuk, who suppressed the slight trembling that caused a rejection reaction in his body with a cough, turned the installed valve and guided the fog that had filled the melting pot into the mana furnace.

The fog, like a dark cloud, slowly traveled through the pipes on the wall to reach the mana furnace. Then, surprisingly, a flame appeared in the mana furnace, which had not even a kindling, let alone firewood, and in an instant, it grew in size and began to burn strongly.

Sihyuk stared at the flame flickering for a moment, then grabbed his master’s hammer, which was now his.

That’s right.

This was the most blacksmith-like ending that Shihyuk could think of.

Like Hyun-man before him, he also intended to die while making. He wanted to at least end his life as a blacksmith, even if it meant making half a penny.

“Lee Si-hyuk’s period ends here.”

As a blacksmith, I will spend the rest of my life here making equipment, and then I will collapse here and die of exhaustion.

Shihyuk’s indifferent voice, declaring that he would make this underground his last stop, was buried in the noise of the melting furnace. It was a lonely will that no one could hear.

Shihyuk grabbed a handful of magic iron and threw it into the furnace.

—