Chapter 17. The Blacksmith

There are many clubs in the academy.

Among them, there were five major clubs in total.

More specifically, there were three practical clubs and two production clubs.

'The clubs in this academy are not just ordinary clubs.'

The clubs in this academy went beyond the level of students simply gathering for activities.

They were power institutions where the more members they had, the stronger they became.

Powerful positions like the academy's student council president or the head of the disciplinary committee are created through voting.

And there aren't many cases where these votes are made purely by individual will.

The clubs were the main representatives of expressing that will.

This could be seen just by looking at the Swordsmanship Club, which could be considered the largest club.

'They receive the most money, and the vice student council president and head of the disciplinary committee are all from the Swordsmanship Club.'

Moreover, not just internally, but depending on which club you belonged to, your treatment after graduation when becoming a hero would also be different.

Among these clubs, the production clubs.

One of the clubs that could represent the academy was

This Workshop Club right here.

"Hey! Quickly bring the star iron! The fire's dying!"

"Water! Quickly spray water!"

Clang! Clang!

If you were to pick the hottest and noisiest place within the academy, it would be this place.

This huge workshop was filled with sweltering heat and overflowing with vitality, deserving of such sounds.

"It's really huge, and full of fire energy."

"In terms of size alone, it's not inferior even to the Swordsmanship Club."

The Workshop Club's building was enormous.

It seemed to be twice the size of that huge auditorium.

Inside, there was a massive furnace and intense heat.

It would probably be larger than even the other major production club, the Alchemy Club.

I immediately entered the building.

There was no need to wait outside as the noise was too loud to hear any knocking anyway.

"Excuse me."

After entering the building, I immediately headed to the place I had in mind.

It would be a violation of school rules to enter the workshop's furnace or other main facilities without permission.

But it's fine to just walk around as long as you don't touch anything.

"My lord, where are we going now?"

"The third floor. There's someone there who might accept a request."

Although it's still questionable whether that person will accept, I plan to go and see first.

I have a method in mind too.

So as we climbed the stairs to the third floor, I felt that the commotion had lessened compared to earlier.

Clang! Clang!

Even so, the sound of hammers striking iron was still constant.

<Third Year Area>

In this novel, there wasn't anything like a 'first-year with hidden talent'.

Strictly speaking, there was one, but he's not an academy student now but an outsider.

So the person I was going to see was a third-year student with proven skills.

Among them, the person called the best in the original work.

That's when one of the third-year students hammering iron noticed me and called out.

"Hey! Why are you here?"

"I'm Kang Shin-woo, a first-year at the academy. Is Senior Joo Kang-hyuk here?"

Joo Kang-hyuk.

One of the third-year students at the academy, and the person called the best blacksmith in the original work.

He's probably one of the most promising blacksmiths currently.

The current best blacksmith was his master.

'But there's no need to meet his master.'

The best-case scenario would be to directly meet his master and make a request.

In the absence of that, it was the right choice to make a request to him, who was the easiest to contact.

I thought so, but...

"Kang-hyuk? He's having a one-on-one with the master who just came."

"The master?"

"Yeah, they're over there if you want to go."

Why is she here now?

Looking where the senior pointed, there was one male student and one woman.

"Not there! I told you to hit here! How many times do I have to say it, you idiot!"

"Oh, shut up for a moment! You old hag!"

"What did you say, you little shit?"

The gray-haired male student holding a hammer angrily, Joo Kang-hyuk, and

A woman wearing a thin tank top and tattered jeans.

The woman shouting at Joo Kang-hyuk with a cigarette in her mouth was his master and

The current best blacksmith, Nam A-yun.

She must be over 30 years old, but she still looked similar to someone in their early 20s.

Although her shabby attire detracted from that somewhat.

"Their language is quite rough."

"That's just their personality."

Both Joo Kang-hyuk and Nam A-yun,

In the original work, they were practically synonymous with being rough and unrefined.

When the two were together, it became even more intense, and this was the result.

"Damn it!!"

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

Seemingly quite frustrated, Joo Kang-hyuk swung his arm quickly, striking the iron.

But strangely, all of it hit exactly the right spots.

It was an amazing sight even to me, who knew nothing about metallurgy.

"That's it! Is it done now, you old hag?"

"If you had done it like that from the start, it would have been done!"

The two continued their verbal sparring afterwards.

After watching them for a while, I couldn't wait any longer and spoke first.

"Excuse me, I came to make a request."

"Hm?"

When I spoke from the side, Joo Kang-hyuk, who had been arguing intensely, turned to look at me.

"A request? Before that, the academy prohibits outsiders. Especially girlfriends."

"G-Girlfriend...! This concubine is seen as an outsider like that!!"

Joo Kang-hyuk looked at me for a moment, then pointed at Hwa-ryeon beside me and said that.

It seemed he perceived Hwa-ryeon as a person.

"Don't worry. She's not a person, but my familiar spirit."

"Familiar spirit? ...Ah! You're that shaman!"

"Shaman?"

When Joo Kang-hyuk shouted and pointed at me, Nam A-yun, who had been quietly watching from the side, changed her expression slightly and said that.

"Well, then it doesn't matter. So you came to make a request?"

"Yes. But... would it be okay to ask the Golden Lotus Master?"

Golden Lotus Master was Nam A-yun's nickname.

I turned my head towards her and bowed.

After looking at me for a moment, Nam A-yun opened her mouth.

"No."

"May I ask why?"

"I'm a bit expensive. To the point students can't afford it."

That's true.

Ordinary students, even if they're from wealthy families, would find it difficult to make a request to her.

But I'm different.

"Please name your price."

"What?"

"I'll match it."

Well, if it's an unimaginable price like over 2 billion won, I'd have to back down.

But if not, I was willing to pay.

Her weapons were worth it.

Thinking about the original work made me even more convinced.

Each piece of equipment made by Nam A-yun showed insane performance.

"Ha! You think you can match the price?"

"Yes, I'm confident."

"Then... alright. Just give me 500 million won. Do you have it?"

500 million won.

She lowered the price more than I expected.

It seemed she lowered it thinking there's no way I would have that much money.

"I have it. Should I transfer it right now?"

But unfortunately, I could afford that much.

"You have it?"

"Yes, I do. I can transfer it to you right now."

"Damn it! If it wasn't for this old hag, that money would be mine!"

The last comment was from Joo Kang-hyuk.

He glared at Nam A-yun as he said that, but she ignored him and looked at me with a surprised expression.

"You really have it?"

"I'm telling you I do."

"Then transfer it now."

Nam A-yun said, calling out her account number.

And transferring the money I mentioned earlier to that account wasn't a difficult task.

Ding-

The phone sound rang immediately.

Although she hadn't checked it yet, knowing that I had no reason to lie here, she had an expression of utter disbelief.

She threw away the cigarette she had been holding in her mouth into an ashtray and said to me,

"Wow, you're really crazy."

"I get that a lot."

"Hah... Fine, since I gave my word, I'll make it for you. The materials?"

"Here they are."

At her request, I handed over the Soul Light Stone I had been carrying.

It was a high-quality crimson mineral even at a glance.

"Soul Light Stone, huh. Where did you get this?"

"Somewhere. I was thinking of making it into a longsword."

"Hmm... Alright. Stay still for a moment."

After examining my body for a moment, she approached me and started kneading my body.

From shoulders to arms, waist, back, and legs, thoroughly.

Her touch felt a bit rough.

"P-Please take your hands off my lord...!!"

"Don't worry. I have no such thoughts about a young kid."

In terms of age, Hwa-ryeon would be hundreds of years older.

As I smiled faintly and stayed still at that,

After a while, as if she had finished measuring, she took her hands off my body.

"Done. It'll probably take about 3 days."

"Thank you."

"I'll send the finished product through this guy, so receive it."

"What? Why me, then give me money too."

"Shut up and just do it."

Joo Kang-hyuk looked at Nam A-yun as if he really couldn't believe it.

But ignoring his gaze easily, she left the place as she was.

A very brief silence.

The one who broke the silence was Joo Kang-hyuk.

"Hah... Why did I become that old hag's disciple."

"I've heard a lot about you too, Senior Joo Kang-hyuk."

"Huh? Ah... thanks."

Saying that, he who had been hammering the sword handed me one item.

It was a dagger that looked quite high-quality.

"It's a kind of gift, you could say. Recommend me to your friends. I need to build up achievements for graduation grades, and there's nothing better than first-years for building achievements."

"I understand."

After receiving that dagger in my arms, I immediately left the place and exited the workshop.

So where should I go now?

"Home."

It was finally time to return home.

"My lord, today let's take a bath together for sure."

"That won't happen, so don't worry."

"Just once...!"

And at this point, I didn't know.

That I would really end up taking a bath with Hwa-ryeon.