Chapter 7

I finally reached level 15.

After finishing the bear hunt, Muhyuk returned to the kingdom and stopped by the general store first.

The middle-aged woman running the store greeted him with a smile.

“Welcome.”

“Yes, hello.”

“Is there anything you need?”

“I’m here to sell some items.”

“Shall we take a look?”

Muhyuk poured out everything he had gathered from hunting in his inventory.

The store owner’s eyes gleamed as she looked at the items piled high on the table.

“Let’s see…”

She began to examine each item and calculate the price.

“Wolf claws are 3 silver each…”

Wolf claws, giant bear hide, giant bear teeth, giant bear gallbladders, and so on.

There were many types and a large quantity, so it took quite some time.

“Whew, that’s 6 Gold and 78 silver in total.”

“I’ll sell them.”

“Thank you.”

She paid the money.

After receiving the money, he left the general store and headed straight to the Black Wizard guild.

After entering, he went up to the 3rd floor and checked the skills he could learn.

[Bone Assembly]

[Corpse Dissection]

There were two.

“I’ll learn them all.”

“Alright. That’ll be 2 Gold.”

He paid the price and received the books.

The moment he opened them.

[You have learned Bone Assembly.]

[You have learned Corpse Dissection.]

He acquired the skills.

Muhyuk left the building and went to the blacksmith.

This was to learn crafting and acquire special stats.

Of course, he also planned to make and sell swords to secure basic funds.

Only Muhyuk knew.

That the higher the Strength stat, the better the options created.

That the higher the crafting skill, the more restrictions applied.

It started from level 4.

To put it simply, what if the crafting skill level was 3, but the Strength stat was significantly higher?

It meant that an item with excellent options without usage restrictions would be created.

Such items were traded at very high prices.

He planned to use that money as funds to buy the necessary armor.

“Excuse me.”

An old man who looked like a blacksmith came out and asked Muhyuk sullenly.

“What’s the matter?”

“Are you perhaps short-handed?”

“Short-handed? I’m always short-handed.”

Even at his still sullen appearance, Muhyuk smiled.

The period when you could learn crafting and repair at the blacksmith was level 15.

What was needed was to approach the blacksmith with a Strength stat of 8 or higher and continue the conversation with the keyword “short-handed.”

“I want to help.”

“Our work?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm, have you swung a hammer before?”

“It’s my first time. But I will learn diligently.”

The blacksmith old man pondered.

Muhyuk waited calmly even under his gaze that was carefully examining him.

Because he already knew what choice he would make.

“You look strong. Alright, I’ll give you a chance.”

At the same time, a quest popped up.

[The Blacksmith’s Test]

[Craft an Iron Sword (0/1)]

[Success: Acquire the ‘Weaponry Crafting’ skill]

[Failure: Cannot retry]

[Do you accept the quest?]

Of course, it was a yes.

There was a reason why he had to learn the crafting skill.

“Thank you.”

“Follow me.”

He followed him into the building.

There seemed to be a workshop inside. The sound of hammering gradually began to be heard.

It grew louder as he got closer to the iron door in the distance.

Tang, taang!

The old man who arrived at the door lifted the handle and then released it. A subtle sound spread widely.

He repeated lifting and releasing it two more times.

Only then did the old man stop his actions. After waiting for a moment, the iron door began to open.

The rough sound of metal spread, and the interior was revealed.

At the same time, the hot air that poked its head out reached Muhyuk’s skin.

“Hmm…”

It was hotter than he thought.

Muhyuk, who noticed the old man already inside the workshop, hurried his steps.

Kkaang! Kkang!

The sound of hammering echoed from all directions.

The blacksmiths were engrossed in their work, and a young man who appeared to be an apprentice was guiding the old man.

The young man was constantly looking at the old man’s face.

Anyone could tell that he was finding it difficult.

“Go and do your work.”

“Ah, yes!”

The old man stopped walking after dismissing the apprentice.

It was behind one of the blacksmiths.

“What do you think?”

Muhyuk watched the work silently.

After placing the iron on the plate and hammering it a few times, it miraculously took the shape of a sword.

It would have been impossible in reality.

It would take at least two months to make one sword.

The process was not easy either. The iron had to be melted to filter out impurities, and the hammering alone had to be continued for dozens of days.

But this was a game.

He couldn’t invest that long just for one sword.

That’s why the sword was being made so quickly that it was visible to the eye.

“Amazing.”

“Hehe, you have an eye for it.”

He admired it sincerely.

The old man seemed to have read that feeling.

“Follow me.”

The place where he stopped again was in front of an empty plate.

The old man took his place and put a piece of iron on the plate. Then he picked up the hammer that was placed next to him.

“I’ll only teach you once, so pay attention.”

“Yes.”

The old man’s work began.

Muhyuk widened his eyes to not miss a single thing.

The old man smiled gently at the sparkling eyes and explained.

“This is a special hammer for crafting. When you hold this hammer and start hammering, you can see the grain of the iron. You have to hit that grain accurately and strongly to create a good item. The more times you fail to match the grain, the lower the quality, so you have to be careful about that too.”

“Strength and dexterity must be important.”

“Oh, your head works pretty well.”

Muhyuk chuckled.

It was very basic information.

But it was not enough.

To get a better reward, he had to shake the old man’s heart.

That way, he would concentrate more than before, and that would lead to the creation of a better Weaponry.

The systematic elements gained while looking at that Weaponry would act as a plus and turn into an advantage.

It would be an additional increase in dexterity.

But this old man was too picky.

What should I do in this situation?

While he was thinking, the old man’s hammering was coming to an end.

Taang!

The iron was dented and changed shape.

The shape of the sword had already appeared. After hammering for another 3 minutes, a proper sword blade was created with light.

The old man smiled satisfactorily as he looked at the sword, then took out a rough-grained stone placed below and began to sharpen the blade with it. After that, he connected the handle placed in the box next to it with the sword.

Only after going through the process of preventing the handle from falling off, he handed it to Muhyuk as if it was complete.

“What do you think?”

Muhyuk checked the condition of the sword.

[Shining Iron Sword]

Attack Power 55

Strength +4

Agility +3

Durability 90/90

Usage Restriction: Strength 35, Stamina 20

The attack power was a whopping 55, and it even raised stats.

The stats were also quite high. Although the usage restriction was Strength 35 and Stamina 20, it was worth enduring that much.

“It’s amazing…”

“Hehe, is that so?”

The old man stepped back from his seat.

“Now try making one. I don’t expect you to make that much. At least you have to make an ordinary iron sword.”

“I understand. By the way…”

“What is it?”

“I couldn’t find this kind of Weaponry in the store. Do you not sell them?”

“Hehe, we don’t sell this kind of Weaponry to strangers.”

“Why?”

“Because they are not qualified yet.”

“Is that the only reason?”

“Of course not. Right now, we’re busy just supplying the royal knight order.”

Muhyuk nodded.

It means that you can sell it when the level is high.

Of course, the skills of blacksmith users will be higher at that time.

After finishing his thoughts, Muhyuk took his place.

He placed a blunt iron lump on the plate and grabbed the hammer.

“Hoo…”

He took a deep breath.

It was that moment.

[You are applied as a ‘Temporary Blacksmith’.]

[You acquire a ‘Normal Reward’.]

[A ‘Special Stat (Dexterity)’ is created.]

At the same time as the message appeared, the corners of Muhyuk’s mouth went up.

It was thanks to the creation of Dexterity.

The biggest purpose of learning the crafting skill was this.

The special stat, Dexterity.

This not only helps with crafting, but also has a big impact on the skill he learned today, Bone Assembly.

This was also information that was revealed quite a while after Illusion opened, but Muhyuk was taking all those advantages from the beginning.

But his eyes were not smiling.

Because he was disappointed.

If he had shaken the old man’s heart more.

If he had seen a better Weaponry, perhaps the Dexterity stat would have increased additionally.

It’s already in the past.

He shook his head and brushed off his disappointment.

There are still many things to take.

He just had to move forward little by little.

Of course, even so, there was no guarantee that he would be at the forefront.

Because the path of the gangster Necromancer is that difficult.

But one thing was certain.

It would be very fun.

Swish.

He raised the hammer. Then the grain became a little clearer.

He swung the hammer carefully because it was his first time, and a message appeared in front of him.

[You have matched the grain.]

[The destructive power is insufficient.]

[The progress (0.8 percent) increases with the correction of ‘Dexterity’.]

The progress increased. But after seeing the message that the destructive power was insufficient, Muhyuk struck the grain with all his might.

[You have failed to match the grain.]

[The progress (0.5 percent) decreases.]

His brow furrowed.

This time, he reduced the strength by just a little and increased the accuracy instead.

Fortunately, he matched the grain. This time, the progress increased by 1.2 percent.

He swung again to increase the progress, but the progress decreased again because he failed to match the grain.

Kaang! Taang!

With several ups and downs, the current total progress was 11 percent.

“Hoo.”

It was harder than he thought.

Let’s concentrate properly.

He turned off the message completely.

Following that, Muhyuk’s eyes, holding the hammer, sank coldly.

The grain is captured into the concentration that is extremely exerted before he knew it.

Only then did Muhyuk’s hammer swing.

Taang! Taang!

How many times did he match the grain?

A bright light was emitted.

The sword blade was completed.

He concentrated on sharpening the blade and inserting the handle. Only then did he open the message he had turned off.

He saw a message he didn’t expect.

[You have crafted Weaponry for the first time.]

[As a reward, ‘Dexterity (1)’ increases.]

He checked the made sword.

[Ordinary Iron Sword]

Attack Power 5

Durability 20/20

It was really an ordinary level sword. But it was not a failure, so he confidently approached the old man and handed him the sword he had made himself.

“Let’s see.”

The old man examined the sword in detail.

Soon, he makes a satisfied expression.

“Not bad.”

With that said, the quest was completed.

He also got the reward.

[You acquire the skill ‘Weaponry Crafting’.]

The old man said.

“Don’t mistake that you have learned crafting just by making a sword once. You have to train your skills enough to make proper Weaponry. Come to the workshop from tomorrow.”

You can’t refuse here.

Then the crafting skill will be forcibly canceled.

Muhyuk nodded.

“Yes.”

Anyway, in order for the Skeleton to become stronger, it was necessary to increase the Dexterity stat.

After that, he planned to grow the Skeleton with Bone Assembly with the help of the increased Dexterity and challenge the place he was aiming for.

In a special Dungeon that would definitely help with growth.