WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Occult World’s Coveted Blacksmith ◈
Chapter 46: A Mysterious Package
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Another underground arcade in Seoul.
It had a completely different atmosphere from the Goblin Market.
A private dining district lined with traditional tiled roofs and blue-and-red lanterns.
‘Come to think of it, this is my first time visiting somewhere other than the Goblin Market.’
Well, aside from the days I went out for commissions, I had been busy hammering away at the forge all day.
Seo Ji-an had said that every underground arcade had a distinctly different atmosphere.
When I had time, I should visit a few and look around.
Following Seo Ji-an, I entered a private room in a spacious traditional hall at the very back.
* * *
“Ahahaha! So that’s what it was.”
The man in a dark blue-black robe slapped his knee and laughed heartily.
“I thought the cheap Suppression Talisman I bought kept malfunctioning. I’d been wondering why ghosts had been gathering around me lately.”
“I’m sorry. I should’ve taken care of it beforehand. Were you ever in danger? Did you get hurt?”
“What? Hahaha. Of course not. I may not look like much, but I’m still a Grade-2 sorcerer.”
He waved a hand.
“There was no danger at all. Those troublesome Cursed spirits woke me up a few times, but it was nice to stretch my muscles for the first time in a while.”
“That’s a relief.”
“But I’d only heard the rumors. You really are incredible.”
The man turned the recently repaired Karmafire Dagger over in his hands, examining it from every angle.
Of the three successful bidders who had bought my items at the auction, he was the first we had managed to contact.
“I assumed you’d take it back to your workshop and return it after working on it for several days. But... I didn’t expect you to finish everything while I was in the restroom.”
He set the dagger down and looked at me.
“How did you do all that in such a short time...?”
“Ah, my hands are naturally quick.”
“...Is that so?”
He nodded as if he understood, then suddenly looked around the room.
“...?”
“What is it?”
“Where are your engraving tools...?”
“Ah, I don’t particularly need tools.”
“Pardon...?”
For a moment, he stared at me blankly.
‘It was only adding a suppression circuit.’
I had already finished planning the circuit to engrave into the dagger.
“Anyway, you should be able to turn your Spiritual Power on and off now.”
“Ah, yes. Yes.”
Only then did he seem to come back to his senses and pick up a bottle of beer.
“Well... now that your work is done, Master Do, please have a drink.”
“Ah, sure.”
The beer he poured with both hands filled my glass to the brim.
Clink.
Our glasses met.
I took a long drink of the cold beer.
Gulp. Gulp.
“Ahhh...”
I was not usually much of a drinker.
‘Why does beer taste so good?’
There was nothing like the thrill of cold beer after sweating in front of a forge.
Ah...
This was the good life.
And on top of that.
Smack, smack.
Why was the food so good too?
I had no idea what they had put into it, but everything melted in my mouth.
“Pungnyu Pavilion is known as one of the best restaurants in this arcade. Even elders with picky tastes come here often.”
I thought so.
I should not let my palate get too refined like this.
Neatly prepared dishes covered the table.
The seafood pajeon and charcoal-grilled bulgogi looked especially delicious.
I tore off a thick piece of seafood pajeon and took a bite.
The golden batter and savory seafood filled my mouth.
A crispy pajeon with a cool sip of beer.
Ah, beer really was perfect with pajeon.
As I savored it...
“Come on, Master Do. Pajeon goes with makgeolli. Right?”
Seo Ji-an immediately objected and turned to Oh Han-yul.
“Hahaha. You two have differing opinions. I should refrain from saying anything. Here, both of you, have another drink.”
Glug, glug.
“Master Do, you make incredible Ritual Implements, and you drink impressively too!”
As he refilled my glass, Oh Han-yul continued praising my Ritual Implement.
He said he could not use it often because he had to watch the family’s reaction, but it had surprised him quite a bit.
Of course it did.
Who did he think made it?
We continued chatting pleasantly for quite some time.
.
.
.
Ahhh...
I kept alternating between a bite of food and a drink of beer.
His name was Oh Han-yul, wasn’t it? He had a genuinely easygoing personality.
He was tall and handsome, and the way he spoke gave him a bold, open air.
Maybe that was why the drinks went down so easily.
Seo Ji-an and I had both relaxed and were enjoying the food when...
“But, Master Do. About that engraving with your bare hands earlier.”
Oh Han-yul suddenly brought it up.
“How exactly do you do that? I’ve seen family craftsmen engrave Spell Formulas many times, but I’ve never even heard of anything like that.”
He seemed extremely curious as he set down his glass.
“This?”
It was nothing special.
I picked up a wooden chopstick from the table.
“Like this.”
Gathering Spiritual Power at my fingertips, I lightly traced along the wood grain.
Bzzzz.
My Spiritual Power seeped into the grain, leaving behind a faint pattern.
“You just read the grain of the material and engrave the Spell Formula it needs.”
See? Easy.
Tap.
I placed the engraved chopstick against the edge of the table and pressed down with all my strength.
Naturally, the wooden chopstick remained perfectly intact.
“...That’s about it.”
I handed the chopstick to Oh Han-yul.
“Haha, you’re quite the joker. What could a wooden chopstick possibly...?”
He took it with a faint smile and turned it over in his hands.
Then...
“...”
The smile gradually disappeared.
Even as his grip on the chopstick grew tighter and tighter, it neither snapped nor bent.
“What is this...?”
His face, which had been flushed moments ago, turned pale as a sheet.
* * *
After the mood had softened considerably, something suddenly came to mind.
“But I heard you’re from House Oh.”
House Oh was one of the Twelve Great Houses, the family that symbolized the horse.
“Is it really all right for you to come meet us in person? You could have simply sent the weapon.”
At the moment, not only the Four Great Houses but even the smaller families beneath them were implicitly blocking any trade with me.
They had been keeping such a close watch on people, telling them not to buy from me. He had not only bought one of my items, but come to meet me directly.
Wouldn’t he be in trouble if someone found out?
“...!”
Oh Han-yul paused with his glass tilted toward his lips.
“...”
“Ah! Our Master Do is very straightforward!”
Seo Ji-an hurriedly cut in.
“He said that because he’s worried about you, Mr. Oh. He doesn’t want you getting into trouble because of us. Haha...!”
But then...
“Hahaha, not at all!”
Oh Han-yul laughed heartily again.
“Our Master Do says exactly what he means. He doesn’t beat around the bush, and I actually like that.”
Trickle.
“First, have another drink.”
He filled my glass with beer, then took a drink himself.
Wiping his mouth, he calmly said, “Anyway, I’m practically a child the family threw away. The people above probably don’t care what I do.”
What was this, someone like Jin Mu-yeong?
Well, considering how much he liked drinking.
It seemed every family had someone who had caused trouble and fallen out of favor.
I nodded to myself when...
“Actually, I was born out of wedlock.”
Pfft. Cough, cough.
Seo Ji-an nearly sprayed out the beer she had been drinking.
“The year my mother died, my father brought me into the family. Well, even though I’ve been there ever since, they’ve treated me like I don’t exist.”
He smiled as if it were nothing.
“At first, it hurt a little. But this situation isn’t so bad anymore. Since nobody above expects anything from me, life like this becomes comfortable in its own way once you get used to it.”
...Hmm.
So this was one of those stories you only saw in dramas, about the youngest son of a chaebol family.
.
.
.
“Then, Master Do! I’ll see you again next time.”
Oh Han-yul cheerfully held out his hand.
“Sure.”
The drinking party came to an end, and Seo Ji-an and I headed back.
“Hehe... I had no idea you liked drinking this much, Master Do.”
Seo Ji-an looked up at me with a fascinated expression.
“I only drink beer sometimes.”
Seo Ji-an’s face had already returned to normal.
Maybe she had paced herself well, or maybe she was naturally good at drinking.
“Then call me next time you have beer. I’ll be your drinking buddy.”
“...Sure.”
Seo Ji-an looked strangely excited.
Perhaps the night air felt nice, because there was a lightness to her steps.
“Anyway, I was so surprised when we contacted him. I can’t believe it was Oh Han-yul.”
“Is he famous?”
“Of course. He’s a member of one of the Twelve Great Houses. Anyone in the know would recognize him.”
Apparently, because he was handsome and had such a good personality, he was quietly popular on Goblin Fire as well.
“He keeps such a low profile that plenty of people don’t know him, but I do. Hehe.”
Well, he did seem like a good person.
I supposed not everyone from a family had a bad personality.
“Did you manage to contact the others too?”
“Well...”
Seo Ji-an made a slightly troubled expression.
“I contacted the other two through Gyeongseong Auction, but maybe they didn’t consent to having their contact details shared. They still haven’t replied.”
Hmm.
One of them was Noh Jin-hyeok, so there was no need to worry.
I had heard he had accepted another commission and gone overseas.
As for the other one...
Anyone willing to casually pay that much money must be someone important in the Occult World.
There was no rush.
* * *
Beeep. Beep.
With the signal, the bowstring was drawn.
Hoo.
A breath was held.
Then the bowstring was released.
Whoosh.
The arrow buried itself in the center of the target.
Ten points.
“Waaaaah!”
The stands erupted.
A name appeared on the scoreboard.
Han Si-u.
Individual Event Gold Medal.
The best high school archer in the country.
At one time, that had been Han Si-u.
.
.
.
Han Si-u lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.
It had already been several months.
Right before the national competition, his shoulder had given out.
A rotator cuff tear, they had called it.
He had surgery and went through rehabilitation.
By the time it was over, someone else had taken his place.
National-team selection was someone else’s concern now too.
Even at this very moment, other kids were probably getting up before dawn every day and drawing their bowstrings at the archery range.
...Just as he always had.
They had said he was completely healed.
But his skill never came back.
No matter how hard he clung to it, his old feel for the bow never returned.
If he pushed himself even a little, his shoulder started aching again.
Eventually, even drawing a bowstring had become frightening.
“...”
Dust had gathered on the bow case standing beside his bed.
When had he last opened it?
...He couldn’t even remember.
‘Should I start studying now, at least?’
He had only ever played sports since he was young. He did not know if he could do it now.
“...Sigh.”
He pulled the blanket over his head.
I should just sleep today.
Sleeping was the easiest thing.
Just as he was about to close his eyes...
Ding-dong.
“...?”
It was the doorbell.
‘Who could that be at this hour?’
His mother was not due home yet.
Han Si-u sluggishly sat up.
He trudged to the front door.
“Who is it...?”
There was no answer.
‘...A delivery?’
He had not ordered anything.
Click.
He opened the door.
“...What?”
A long box sat alone in front of the door.
It was a black box with no sender or address.
What was this?
“...?”
Han Si-u crouched down and opened the box.
Inside was...
“...A bow?”
A single bow lay inside.
A bright yellow, jewel-like stone glowed at the center of its grip.
Footnotes:
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