Overgeared

Blacksmithing was a profession that had been abolished more than a hundred years ago in South Korea. Since there were so few people applying for this job, the national qualifications for blacksmithing were removed as of the year 2000. There was no way that a job that made things by hand would be able to compete against a factory that produced the same items but faster. Ten years after the possibility of becoming a blacksmith disappeared, the 3D printing industry also became popular.

In any case, a hundred years had passed since then. Only very few blacksmiths still remained. There still existed some craftsmen who made a living by taking commissions from the rich, who sought handmade products just for the sake of romance.

But the world had changed drastically in the last few years. Not just a few rich people, but the vast majority of people dreamed of becoming blacksmiths in their search for romance. And Grid was the cause of this.

“......”

Song Juseop was thirty-seven years old. It was because of Grid that he quit the company he used to work at for and opened a smithy. To be precise, this was because of the events of the Second International Competition. Back then, Grid had participated in an event called the Blacksmithing Crafting Competition. [1]

At that time, Satisfy was already a global sensation. People were much more interested in the International Competition than the World Cup or the Olympics. Watching Grid hammering on iron in front of so many people was very enjoyable. The other players had looked nervous, as if they were obsessed with honor and wealth in the game, but Grid was the only one who hammered with a smile, even though he was sweating profusely in front of a hot furnace.

Song Juseop vividly remembered watching Grid’s bronzed muscles flex every time he worked the bellows or swung his hammer. This form of beauty couldn’t be found anywhere else. One could even call it sublime. This was the nobility of a craftsman who had crafted tools to protect people.

At that time, Song Juseop saw some pride in Grid’s smile, and was so fascinated by it that he quit his job and taught himself to be a blacksmith.

***

‘Does the smithy look like this because the owner is from a privileged background? He has quite a classic taste.’

According to the content of the document sent by Secretary Jang, there had been a proliferation of smithies over the past few years, but most of them were equipped with modern equipment, such as furnaces that maintained the desired temperature at the click of a few buttons, casting machines that automatically completed all the processes from tempering to casting when ore was thrown in, mechanical hammers and anvils with AI-correction effects so that users didn’t make mistakes, and so on.

In other words, the real smithy that Youngwoo wanted to visit was hard to find. There were only seventeen places across the country that met the standards of a smithy that Shin Youngwoo was looking for. One of them was Song Juseop’s business, Song Workshop, which was set up in a huge building. In terms of size, it was larger than Grid’s private smithy inside the Overgeared Empire’s Imperial Palace. Plus, it had classic facilities, not modern ones. If it was possible to transfer it to Satisfy, it would fit right in.

This smithy didn’t exist for the purpose of making money. It was simply a business that showed off the owner’s passion to become a real blacksmith. Even the location was close to Youngwoo’s neighborhood, which was notorious for being the most expensive area in South Korea. The smithy was located on the outskirts at the foot of a mountain, but a huge amount of money had surely been spent to purchase so much land.

“It looks like there are no employees... Did you build this place purely for your hobby?”

Was the owner from a rich family? Youngwoo speculated this, but there was no particular emotion on his face. He didn’t really care about rich people. Shin Youngwoo had more money than wealthy families. If he put his mind to it, he would become one of the world’s ten richest people because he was the ruler of the great empire that dominated Satisfy.

Even if Youngwoo didn’t craft and sell items, he would be the second richest person in South Korea just by exchanging the profits generated by the empire into real money. He couldn’t become the richest person in the country. The richest individual in South Korea was also the richest person in the whole world.

Regardless, Youngwoo wasn’t intimidated by the owner’s background. He treated everyone equally. That was the right thing to do since he was an influential person. Therefore, he was always confident. After all, he had overcome severe trauma in just two days.

“I’m embarrassed to say this in front of you, Grid, but... To me, blacksmithing is too precious to simply be dismissed as a hobby.”

Youngwoo liked blacksmithing. Well, the word ‘love’ was more appropriate. Youngwoo himself had started as a blacksmith and became successful because of this profession. In the process, he had compared notes with many blacksmiths.

benefited others. Of course Youngwoo was interested in what Song Juseop had to say now that the

“Can I ask why?”

firewood in the furnace was burning red. Even though the size and thickness of the firewood were all slightly different, all of them burned in sync. Phenomenal. Youngwoo had clearly used some kind of trick. The firewood that seemed to have

mesmerized for a bit

used to be an ordinary office worker. I studied hard like everyone else, was lucky enough to graduate from university, and got a job at a company that I wasn’t particularly interested in. For the next few years, I went about my daily routine. I only looked at the salary deposited into my account every

in life the most was to open

all in the

the First International

him to suddenly turn serious. Maybe he looked like this because his eyebrows were burnt from the years he had spent in

glimpse of an artisan’s spirit in the other man’s eyes. He noticed that the man in front of him wasn’t ordinary and

by betting all my money on you when you fought against Bondre and

“......?”

as he listened. He was flustered. The great story he had been anticipating suddenly

to get a haircut recently. He pushed back the black hair that

lucky enough to become rich, so of course you developed an

it? This story wasn’t going to be emotional like the one between

waved his

“Yes, that’s right!”

Song Juseop’s story was about. There were

come to admire everything about you. But the thing that warmed my heart the most was seeing you stand in front of the furnace.

Juseop’s trivial story ultimately brought a smile to

so? In your eyes, blacksmithing seems cooler than slashing

came to admire you during

a job he liked and he got to do what he enjoyed. Even if Grid had impacted him along the way, that wasn’t an important issue. The important thing was

the furnace rose to an appropriate level. Youngwoo moved the iron ore he had been eyeing and started

would like your guidance

have to guide someone like you? I am here to just watch

first time doing this

Youngwoo smelting and forging the iron… he looked just like Grid in the game. Youngwoo was reproducing Grid’s techniques, which Juseop

skills in Satisfy could be

***

even though this was reality. Youngwoo had always dreamed of a day like this, and the experience turned out to

don’t

if he crafted a sword without possessing a sword-carrying license. He’d wanted to craft armor from the beginning to test whether he could alleviate pain in reality

any chance? A kitchen knife

wait