episode_0026

“The purpose is······ um.”

Deep in thought, Basel ponders while leaving Tei and the craftsmen who remain silent.

Where should I use it?

Due to its original large size, the volume will still be substantial even after processing.

It would be too heavy to attach to a ring or bracelet.

I’m not a wizard, so it’s vague to make it into a staff ornament.

There’s no other choice.

“I’ll embed it in the handle of a sword.”

The only way is to embed it as a decoration on a sword.

Although there are necklaces and pendants, it’s awkward to wear such things around.

Lost in these thoughts, lips seem to have something to say from all directions.

Ah. Come to think of it, I forgot something.

“I will refuse any involvement of other artisans. It would be great if this child could complete it with her own hands.”

“C-Customer. It seems you are mistaken. This child is still an apprentice and not a full-fledged artisan…”

“It doesn’t matter. Will 100,000 gold coins suffice for the commission?”

“What? Customer. That’s not the issue…”

“I asked this girl.”

Tei still stares blankly at me.

Rather than answering my question, he just freezes up.

At this point, Tei must have lost a lot of self-esteem being called an incompetent artisan.

He probably wants to accept this commission desperately.

He must be too bewildered to speak.

“Accept it. Thank you. When it’s completed, contact me at this address.”

“Customer!”

Handing Tei a paper with the address of the workshop and hotel, I leave the workshop.

There’s some commotion behind me, but I pay it no mind.

After all, the genius artisan Tei will handle everything well.

There’s no need to worry.

“Now, shall I go earn some money?”

So, where did the commission fee of 100,000 gold coins, which is 1 billion won, come from?

There’s no way I would have such a huge sum.

Selling both low and mid-grade magic stones only gave me about 30,000 gold coins.

I have to start earning the commission fee from now on.

There are plenty of dungeons around Basel, so it shouldn’t be a problem.

[Attribute: Reputation]

[Check your reputation value.]

[Yujin: 0.02%]

[Known to a few people. Very low presence.]

[???: 12.0%]

[Starting to gain notoriety. Presence is increasing.

Meanwhile, ‘???’s reputation has increased again.

It seems that passengers who rode in the carriage are spreading rumors about the unknown swordsman enthusiastically.

Even in places where it doesn’t seem visible, the reputation value is increasing in real-time.

Although it says it’s starting to gain notoriety, I have no intention of further increasing the notoriety of the mysterious swordsman.

This level should be enough for checking the performance of the attribute of reputation.

From now on, I should create a fake identity and operate with it.

“Customer! At least tell us your name!”

A receptionist’s urgent voice comes from behind.

“I’ll leave it as undecided.”

“Undecided?”

“Yes. Well then, I’m busy, so goodbye.”

“Customer! If you leave like this…”

[Undecided: 3.8%]

[Receiving mild admiration.]

[*Caution. Impersonating others.]

Okay. Confirmation complete.

Even impersonating others increases the reputation value.

The possibilities for utilizing this attribute seem endless.

***

“What’s going on here?”

“I heard an Injok man handed over a top-grade magic stone to Tei out of the blue…”

“What kind of person is he?”

I’m at a loss.

What just happened?

In my confusion, the Injok threw the magic stone and disappeared in an instant.

“Is this really a top-grade magic stone?”

“It is. I appraised it, so there’s no mistake. It boasts significant purity even among top grades.”

“But then why would he give it to Tei…”

“Could it be that I misjudged the person?”

“That seems plausible…”

The craftsmen gathered together, continuing their discussion.

Although they were uttering words that were beyond disrespectful, I found myself in complete agreement.

It’s true.

It’s clear that person has seriously misunderstood something.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t entrust me with such a high-grade gemstone.

“Let me say it again. It seems like there has been a misunderstanding.”

“Cough, cough… I went to this address and found the hotel room empty. Should I wait until they return?”

“Yes. Hey, you. An order came in, and you’re not planning to act on it right away. What are you doing?”

“Yes…?”

At that moment, a glint of realization appeared in the master’s eyes.

What are you saying?

“Hahaha. Elder. It seems like our customer has mistaken the tei for someone else…”

“Mistaken? What! Didn’t you look at this incompetent fool’s face properly before speaking? There was no room for misunderstanding! Accepting an order and needlessly wasting time is unbecoming of a craftsman! Tell the others to stop chattering and get back to work!”

“M-Master! Are you telling me to take on this gemstone? Really?”

“I didn’t tell you to take it on. That unfortunate-looking person did.”

“Oh, no. Something doesn’t seem right. I’m just an apprentice. I can’t even handle high-grade gemstones properly, how could I handle the best grade…”

“You’re making too much noise! If you’re not confident, then just reject the order!”

That’s right.

I should reject it.

No, I must reject it.

There was definitely a misunderstanding.

Someone like me would only end up ruining such a precious gemstone.

“But Tei.”

“Yes?”

“If you reject this order, you will have to leave the workshop now. I can’t keep carrying around a parasite who can’t even do a single job.”

“M-Master…!”

A thunderous declaration.

If I reject the order, I will be sitting on the street.

But if I accept the order, I will turn this potentially infinite gem into a worthless rock.

Trembling, I knelt before my master.

Please don’t kick me out, I begged.

But the master simply turned his head with a resolute expression.

When the master makes a decision, he never speaks of it again.

It was a foregone conclusion.

If I don’t want to be kicked out and starve on the streets, I must work on this top-grade gemstone.

“Master, please, just a little help…”

“I can’t. He said you must carve it with your own hands.”

“Then at least some advice from the side…”

“Tei. I won’t say anything to you. Forget all the teachings you’ve had so far. Just touch the gemstone as you see fit. Do you understand?”

“Ah…”

Tears welled up.

I was completely abandoned by my master.

It seemed embarrassing even to have a disciple like me, and I was forbidden from using my master’s teachings.

If I ruin this gemstone, it will be entirely my fault.

Without any intervention from other craftsmen, it will be solely my responsibility.

Only then did the weight of that responsibility hit me, making me feel suffocated as if my body would burst.

“Aren’t you working yet!”

“I-I will. I will, Master…”

Shaking and trembling, I rushed back to my place.

An open space where everyone could see, with nothing but old toolboxes…

I sat down at my spot and placed the top-grade gemstone on the workbench.

It was such a beautiful gemstone that one could easily lose themselves in its beauty.

From now on, I had to handle it.

I had to ruthlessly shatter the value of this gemstone with my own hands.

As I thought about this, tears streamed down my cheeks.

“The elder seems quite angry these days. Looks like I’ve become the target for their outburst.”

“They endured and endured until they exploded. How frustrating it must have been for them.”

“Tsk. What a waste of a high-grade crystal. Do you know how precious top-grade crystals are these days? To think that it was just thrown away.”

Murmurs of disapproval from those around.

Frozen in place, tears streaming endlessly.

But no matter how much I stay like this, no one comes to help me.

It’s only natural.

No one wants to share the blame for a task that was bound to fail if even a word was said.

‘Why me of all people…’

They’re probably ridiculously wealthy nobles.

So rich that they can afford to throw a top-grade crystal at a child who looks like a beggar and enjoy watching the reaction.

Unfortunately, today I was the chosen one.

“Sob…”

“Oh. The task for the crystal begins.”

There’s no choice.

I wipe away my tears and get to work.

Having never seen a top-grade crystal before, nor learned about its properties, I have no choice but to dive in blindly.

Starting by examining each unique frequency of the crystal.

‘I have no idea what to do. It’s so overwhelming.’

I don’t know.

I can’t grasp how to refine the beauty born from this irregularity.

As tears flow, negative thoughts keep creeping into my mind.

My hand has always been a cursed hand.

Unable to just finish something and move on, I always end up seeing things through to the bitter end, trapped in a curse that demands closure.

Even when everyone else finished processing lower-grade crystals, I couldn’t let go and kept touching them.

I couldn’t understand the standard of ‘just finish it’ that everyone talked about.

What does it mean to just be done with it?

Isn’t it an artisan’s job to bring out the full potential of a crystal, preserving its strengths while refining its flaws?

Isn’t that what craftsmanship is about?

How can you present an unfinished crystal and still accept money for it?

I could never do that.

My cursed hand, my nature, wouldn’t allow it.

Even when handling high-grade crystals, my need for closure distorted everything.

High-grade crystals inherently require an incomplete finish, yet my cursed hand kept cutting and cutting until I ended up with a result much smaller than the original.

Even if the quality was high, if the size diminished due to my actions, it was all meaningless.

My hand wasn’t meant to handle high-grade crystals.

‘Why am I so rough…’

Just the fee for processing is 100,000 gold for this crystal.

Despite handling it carefully, I was still short, and this damned hand of mine was carving away at the crystal as it pleased.

The beautiful colors were gradually being distorted by my hand.

While irregular in structure and unique in characteristics, high-grade and lower-grade crystals are entirely different entities.

Yet my hand moved without hesitation, as if familiar, as if handling lower-grade crystals.

It seemed plausible only in terms of hand movements on a subject I knew nothing about.

My hand moved as if possessed, with no regard for consequences.

“Oops.”

At that moment, my hand froze.

Lost and wandering in empty space.

I quickly realized what the problem was.

I had no tools.

The tools needed for delicate work inside were not in my possession.

“Oh no.”

“Master?”

Thud.

Startled by the loud noise, I turned to see the master’s shelf lying next to me.

Wondering why it was there, I looked up to find that the master had thrown the entire shelf at me from their workshop.

Before I could say anything, the master turned their back and left without a word.

“Work during work hours, you lazy woman!”

Just as the master said.

Even gratitude feels like a waste of time.

It’s too much for me, dedicating my soul to this overly generous piece of marble.

Even if I were to sacrifice everything, it wouldn’t be enough.

This might just be the final project of my life as a sculptor, so I must give it my all to avoid any regrets.

“What’s this? Have you been working all night?”

“Tsk. It’s a shame. Spending so much time ruining top-grade marble…”

“Huh? Did Tei work on this? Why does it look so oddly colored?”

Of course it looks odd.

I’ve been working entirely on my own terms.

18 hours into the job.

My eyes are starting to blur, but I maintain focus.

A slight mistake could cost tens of thousands.

How many more hours have passed while I’ve been engrossed in my work?

The cursed hands that moved freely finally come to a halt.

It wasn’t because something was lacking this time.

There was nothing left to touch.

It was finished.

As the realization hits me, tears stream down uncontrollably.

“This is not it…”

I messed up.

I knew I would ruin it from the start, but this time, I really messed up.

I could have done much better.

I could have brought out the potential and beauty of this marble even more.

I feel like I could do much better if I were to start over.

I could work on a far superior piece of marble than this.

But it’s too late now.

Having ruined such top-grade marble, there’s no turning back for me.

I will be driven out of the workshop now.

“Elder! Please take a look at this! Tei processed it!”

“Tei!”

“Sob, sniff! I’m sorry! I’m incompetent! I can’t even do what I’ve learned! Sob…”

Surprised by my creation, the master and craftsmen gather around me.

Perhaps they didn’t expect anything from me, so why this disappointment?

Maybe deep down, they harbored expectations of me creating an incredibly remarkable piece of marble.

Or perhaps they dreamt an unattainable dream.

“Oh, customer.”

“I thought the work might be finished soon, so I came to check.”

At that moment, with the sound of the door swinging open, a familiar voice reaches my ears.

It’s the handsome Injok man.

I can’t bring myself to look up.

Feeling ashamed and sorry, I can’t show my face.

Sitting quietly, lost in my thoughts, on the verge of tears.

The Injok man’s elegant boots stop right in front of me.

Then, the marble on the workbench is lifted up.

“Is this the finished product? Hm. It’s less impressive than I thought.”

“Is he an Injok? Are his eyes deceiving him? Where can you find a more excellent piece than this?”

“Master?”

At the Injok man’s indifferent remark, the master suddenly gets angry.

Why is the master…?

“I can’t make anything better even if I try! No, none of the craftsmen here can! Even without considering that Tei is handling top-grade marble for the first time, this piece surpasses excellence by far and is a work of art in itself. What nonsense are you talking, human!”

Spitting out his words vehemently, the master expresses his outrage.

I’ve never seen this side of the master before.

Only then do I lift my head to behold the color of the marble I created.

I admire its appearance, unseen to me due to my intense focus on work.

Under the sunlight, a brilliant light bursts forth from the marble.

The galaxy trapped within now emerges, painting a three-dimensional picture in the air.

My mouth slowly falls agape.

In return, the Injok man also smiles as he looks down at me.

“I seem to have misunderstood. When I said it’s less impressive, I meant compared to the works this girl will create in the future.”

“Pardon? What do you mean…”

“Here. Next commission. This time, it’s a ring, so do your best to craft it.”

“Oh…!”

Thud.

I accept the pouch the man casually tosses to me.

Soaking the brush in ink, I peered inside and nearly lost my mind.

Without needing to feel, it was a definite top-grade mausoleum.

“I need to make this one even better. Do you understand?”

“Ah, yes······.”

Tears welled up.

After that, I don’t remember well what I did.

I was so sleepy, distracted, and overwhelmed by emotions······.

One thing vividly stands out in my memory: the scene of me embracing Injuk’s waist and crying my heart out.