episode_0041

Old Man Gong came out into the yard and stamped his feet twice as if knocking on the ground.

And as he blew a strange whistle like a flute, waves of transparent mana began to spread from the old man to Sihyuk’s house, and began to surround him from beyond the wall.

Shihyuk, who had finished preparing for his craftsman’s work, looked up at it.

It wasn’t particularly harmful, but the mana curtain, like a transparent glass curtain or vinyl greenhouse, formed a dome shape, restricting all interference inside and outside his house.

“[Barrier Production] skill. It doesn’t have very good physical defense, but I installed it to suppress the wide spread of mana waves when you make equipment.”

Shihyuk simply nodded at the old man’s indifferent voice.

The old man continued speaking to him as he looked at the moon beyond the curtain to collect his thoughts.

“If someone like you really starts to generate mana, the country will be in an uproar. Even if you don’t necessarily activate it as a [Skill], if you control the mana with the feeling of putting a lid on your power, you will be able to create something like this later, so keep that in mind. And.”

“Take this,” said the old man, pulling a notepad out of his back pocket.

“Sihyuk, when you make the equipment, will you use the things inside it?”

The box the old man handed over seemed to be about the size of a loaf of bread sold in the market.

When I carefully opened the lid of the glossy, high-quality ink box, inside there were fine dust particles and pieces of dark magic stone.

The dust was as fine as cypress powder and as white as flour. If I poked my finger in it, it would leave a mark on the wrinkles of my fingerprint. In addition, the smell was so strong that when I opened the lid and inhaled the scent, my stomach got upset.

The dark, sculpted piece had no sharp or angular parts, so at first glance it looked like a horseshoe or a dried, twisted earthworm. When touched, the pitch-black magic stone, which did not allow even a single ounce of light to enter, left a sharp and tingling sensation on the palm of the hand, like drinking soda on an empty stomach in the morning.

“What are these?”

Even to him, who couldn’t use his skills, these were extraordinary materials.

In response to that question, Old Man Gong, who had been scratching his chin with his index finger, opened his mouth calmly as if it was nothing.

“These are the spoils of war that this old man won from his victories over powerful enemies when he was young. He kept them in case they would come in handy someday, but if not now, then when would they be useful? Please use them well.”

The tone I heard was very peaceful and light, like a dandelion seed.

Shihyuk just nodded, thinking there must be some kind of story behind them, but in reality, they weren’t such simple things.

If you were an Awakened who could use [Item Appraisal], you would be excited after looking at the information window, and if you were a crafting type, you would not hesitate to become a [Villain] and the names of the loot you would covet were as follows.

[Claus Solas’ Scabbard] [Unique]

A top-grade crafting material obtained by those who have defeated the boss monsters of [Erin], the British Gate, ‘Danu’s Clan’. Those who are not bold are not even allowed to see it.

[Head-crushing final words] [Unique]

A top-grade crafting material obtained from the shattered jawbone of the boss monster ‘Du-eok-sini’ of [Cheon-ye-rok], the gate of Korea. Those who lack courage will scream in agony.

Hana Shihyuk had no way of knowing that fact. He simply put the lids back on the precious materials, put them in his bosom, and bowed his head to the old man.

“We will do our best to create a work worthy of you, Mr. Gong.”

“Please.”

Old man Gong didn’t bother to follow Sihyuk down to the basement. He sat on the threshold and stared at the moon.

-.-.-

Before Sihyuk entered the blacksmith shop and created the mana crystals, he first laid out the materials he received from the elder on the shelf.

I briefly tried lighting up the five-colored flames and placing them on the ingredients, but the heated ingredients resisted harshly, making a sharp sound like a bird scratching its neck.

‘It won’t be easy.’

The materials, whose history was unknown, were things that Sihyuk had never touched or seen in his short life.

But it was clear that they were formidable men who dared to stand against the blacksmith’s hand that stood at the tip of his sword.

He took a deep breath to collect himself for a moment. Considering the Jeju Island situation and the future, time was of the essence, but even if these materials were Shihyeok, they had to be processed with extreme care.

These were things that would cause trouble if you touched them carelessly.

Shihyuk, who had wrapped the materials that made a threatening sound like a viper raising its head and hissing, in a ring of five-colored flames, decided to first light the magic stone and flames in the furnace and then start working on the crystals.

When he made the magic crystal this time, he didn’t melt it for as long as [Wildflower].

The crystals taken out from the furnace were transparent like gelatin, had a smooth surface, and were elastic but less sticky, reflecting his will.

The purity of the mana contained within it was not enough to satisfy his temperament, but for now, this was enough.

Those materials flying around in the ring of fire would make up for the lack of purity.

Shihyuk wrapped his hammer in flames. He then began to pound the crystal very carefully, cautiously, as if he were pounding tofu with a sharpened cleaver so as not to damage it.

The task of carefully controlling one’s mana, like throwing a stone into a calm lake without causing ripples, was dizzyingly tiring.

The [Magic Iron] he completed, even being careful about his breathing, was so thin that it reminded him of fish scales or plastic bags. The thin layers were stacked up like croissants to form a lump.

Looking at it, which didn’t even have a special ‘color’, Shihyuk let out a harsh breath that he had been holding in.

I felt a thirst that made my sweat pour down like rain and my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth.

[Magic Iron] was strong, but this was where it really started.

Shihyuk cut his palm and poured the blood onto the material.

He glared at the spilled blood and began to use his mana with all his might. The blood on the material began to burn as a transparent flame.

As the fragments of the soul contained in the flowing blood burned, the black and white materials screamed instead of making a threatening sound like before.

Not even a single leg, the materials trapped in the five-colored flames had nowhere to run. As the materials began to melt, the spreading smoke formed the face of a monster distorted in pain.

Shihyuk, who had made the ring of flame thicker, raised the hammer high, applying strength from his navel. Starting from his back, the bones all over his body cracked and made a painful sound.

Shihyuk did not shy away from pain.

He started to strike the materials recklessly like a madman, his eyes sparkling with flames.

His movements, as if he was beating the hammer frantically to tame a wild beast, only stopped when the two materials mixed together into a grayish-white mass.

“World.”

Shihyuk recited while wearing the production gloves he had made based on his experience in creating galactic weapons.

“This is equipment for those who have overcome trials and tribulations and moved forward.”

The gray mass gave off a terrible heat when held in his hands.

Even though he was wearing protective gloves, the intense heat burned the gloves, turning them black and sticking to the gaps between his fingers. Shihyuk gritted his teeth at the pain of Arahan’s body becoming colorless.

Shihyuk glared fiercely into the air as the world’s cries poured into his ears.

He forcefully swallowed the blood that was seeping out of his intestines, bared his teeth, and growled at the world.

“So shut up. Don’t open your mouth. Think of the number of times he sacrificed for you. Replace that noise with silence.”

Shihyuk placed the lump on top of the [Magic Iron] he had made. He tried to grab the hammer, but the remains of the glove stuck to his fingers were uncomfortable.

He tore off the piece of glove stuck to his wrinkled skin, along with a blood blister.

The blood he had swallowed mixed with the hammer in his windpipe, causing him to cough painfully.

In the midst of a painful cough, Shi-hyuk suddenly vomited out a lump of dark red blood.

The armor he was making now was probably a piece of equipment that would perform better than [Wildflower]. [Wildflower] was a three-day process, but the current Shihyuk shortened the production period by force.

It was inevitable that his body would be strained. Just as a car that was speeding suddenly stops would strain the entire body, Si-hyuk felt the burden with his whole body.

“I decided to make it for him… That’s it.”

Shihyuk opened his mouth hesitantly with blood running down his chin and struck the hammer.

The next morning, the sun was halfway up the mountain.

The old man, who was sitting on the threshold with his mouth tightly shut, had been up all night with his eyes wide open. The old man, who seemed neither tired nor anxious, turned his head as he folded his arms.

There was a noise coming from the basement.

Squeak, Si-hyuk opened the iron door to the basement and was covered in blood.

“Completed, completed, sir.”

He was washing his pale face with blood, as the world’s backlash and the accumulated fatigue and pain in his body had accumulated.

The voice that barely opened his mouth and came out was so cracked that it was painful to listen to, like sand was blowing into his eardrums.

“… You worked hard.”

Old Man Gong hugged him with reddened eyes for accepting his unreasonable request. Sihyuk let out a painful groan that squeezed his insides.

He was so weak that he couldn’t even endure the hug that was filled with regret and gratitude.

“! I’m sorry. I didn’t take into account Shihyuk’s condition.”

“It’s okay. Just rest for a bit and you’ll feel better.”

Shihyuk, who was leaning against the basement door, took a deep breath. However, his breathing was uneven and irregular. Anyone could tell that it was far from normal.

“Please check, try, it. I hope, you like it.”

Old Man Gong nodded heavily at Shihyuk’s words and went down to the basement.

As soon as I took three steps, my socks got soaking wet. It was sticky and smelled like blood.

The entire underground forge was covered in blood.

The amount that seemed like it would be enough for several ordinary people was covered in repeated bleeding as Shi-hyuk was injured, recovered, and injured again.

“… … .”

The old man kept his mouth shut.

It was because of the favor he had asked. The young man had suffered so much, even burning his soul, all because of him. So he had to make sure that his sacrifice was not in vain.

The old man did not turn a blind eye to the tragedy. He continued on his way through the bloody path until he reached the shelf.

And looking at the ‘work of art’ standing tall above it, I couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.

-.-.-

Even when the old man came out of the basement with the ‘work’ in his arms, Si-hyuk was still sitting there, unable to get up. He looked up at the old man with half-open eyes, as if he had a hard time opening them, and opened his mouth.

“Do you like it?”

“To an excessive degree.”

“Thank goodness… .”

The words that came out were half air, half sound.

Every time Shihyuk breathed, a sound like air escaping from a punctured bag came out of his lungs. Old Man Gong gently patted his shoulder.

“You’ve worked hard. Now, get some rest. When you open your eyes, it’ll all be over.”

“I’ll go too.”

The old man’s eyebrows furrowed at the unexpected words.

“That’s an absurd statement. It’s impossible. No matter how fast your recovery is, it’s impossible for you to go to the battlefield with that body.”

“Elder, I have to go.”

“Oh, don’t be so stubborn. Just close your eyes for now.”

The old man, who was about to turn around and leave, had no choice but to stop when a strong hand grabbed his trouser leg.

“Why on earth are you doing this?”

“If it’s one in ten thousand, one in a thousand, even. If I do it together. If it helps.”

Maybe Mr. Gong can survive.

The old man closed his eyes tightly when he heard those words. Pain appeared on his usually calm face, and his old voice began to tremble.

“Sihyuk.”

“Huh, Lesin?”

“I’m sorry.”

The old man reached out his hand to Shihyuk’s forehead, where his bangs were soaked in blood and matted. The mana contained in his finger hit his forehead, creating waves and slightly shaking the inside of his skull.

Shihyuk, whose body was so damaged that he couldn’t even stop that small interference, let go of his grip on the hem of his pants.

Elder?

The words I couldn’t bring myself to say rolled off my tongue and disappeared.

“That may be true. But it could also be a death sentence.”

Elder, please take me.

“How can an old man jump into danger with a young man just to save his life? I can’t do that.”

Where are you going, sir? Don’t go.

“But your grateful heart.”

Please, I beg you, don’t leave me alone.

“I will bury it in my heart and never forget it until the day I die.”

Elder.

“Don’t worry. I swear that I will save the galaxy and space sisters with my life.”

please.

Shihyuk tried to reach out, but he couldn’t even move a finger.

The old man left without looking back. Only blood-soaked footprints remained behind Inyoung as she walked away.

Shihyuk slowly lost consciousness. His son-in-law became dark.

Only darkness greeted him.