The Occult World’s Coveted Blacksmith - Chapter 71

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Occult World’s Coveted Blacksmith ◈

Chapter 71: Shall We Go See the Sea?

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"Tch. I'm not giving this back until you answer me."

"……!"

Only then did Su-a seem to grasp the situation, her face turning deathly pale.

Slosh!! Slosh!!

The pool went pale right along with her.

This was ridiculously fun.

Right now, this pool was basically a free, twenty-four-hour display board for Su-a's innermost thoughts.

And I was holding the only power button.

"First question. What's been up with you lately?"

"I-it's nothing! Give it back already!"

Su-a hopped in place and reached for it.

Whoosh.

I raised the trident high over my head.

Height differences sure came in handy at times like this.

"I said I'll give it to you if you answer~"

"Grr…!"

"Is it because of the Hellfire Ghost? Are you losing sleep because you've realized you'll have to fight things like that for the rest of your life?"

"No!"

"Then did you not like the present?"

"……."

"Or did you like it?!"

As if that were her answer, the water sloshed wildly.

'Just as I thought.'

"Then what is it~"

"……."

Ripple, ripple, ripple.

"If you won't tell me, I'm taking this home after work."

"N-no!!"

Boom!

A column of water shot up in panic.

"……You."

Su-a lowered her outstretched hand and mumbled with her head hanging low.

"Yeah?"

"You… what even are you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why, why didn't you tell me…! You're super famous! I saw it all! On Goblin Fire! Everyone kept going on about Do Emperor, Do Emperor…!"

'Ah. So that was it.'

I'd heard in a meeting that, with her debut right around the corner, they'd completed the registration process with the Occult Management Bureau.

They must have made her a Goblin Fire account around then, too.

And she'd seen them.

The posts about me, about Do Emperor.

"And when I asked the training manager, they said you're a huge deal at the company too… That the CEO personally brought you in because you're so valuable…!"

"So?"

"W-what do you mean, so…?!"

Ahem.

No, I had to tease her a little more.

I had the power button in my hand, and this was way too satisfying to stop.

"Hmm~ So let me get this straight."

I slung the trident over my shoulder and deliberately dragged out my words.

"You got all fluttery because it turns out I'm famous?"

"What?! N-no, I didn't!"

Thump. Thump. Thump.

The surface of the pool began rising and falling in large, steady beats.

"……."

"Um, Senior. The water keeps swelling up."

"…!! D-don't look!!"

Su-a spread both arms wide and blocked the pool from view.

'Like that could hide the pool.'

"Aww, are you the type who's weak to fame, Senior? I'm disappointed. That's not very cool of you."

"It's not like that!"

"Then what is it~"

"Embarr…."

"Embarrassed?"

"I was embarrassed, okay?! Embarrassed!!"

Crash!

Behind Su-a, a hapless column of water shot up, then crashed back down.

Splaash….

"I didn't know any of that! I acted all high and mighty! Made you call me Senior! Told you not to speak casually! Said I'd tell the CEO on you…!"

The more she listed off her own offenses.

Slosh. Slosh. Slosh.

The pool heaved once for every item on her charge sheet.

'Oh. Look at the water cringing along with her.'

"How am I supposed to face you now…! …Sir."

A polite ending suddenly got tacked onto her words.

It was a complete mess, half casual speech and half polite speech.

'Seriously. Over something this trivial.'

"Pfft."

"D-don't laugh!!"

Splash!

This time, a wave of water came flying at me.

Whoosh.

I easily dodged it.

"Hey, you said I was such a big deal, but now you're throwing water at me?"

"…!! N-no, that was…!"

"Forget it. Let's clear a few things up first."

With the trident still over my shoulder, I counted off on my fingers.

"First. I never lied to you. I said I'd make you a present, and I did."

"……."

"Second. The Senior thing. I called you Senior because you joined this place way before I did. I've only been at the company for a few weeks. It's a fact that you outrank me in seniority here."

"B-but still…!"

"Third. A big shot? These days, startups are all about calling everyone by name, team leader or not. And my affiliation's different to begin with. I'm with an in-house venture company. Seed Kindergarten is a completely different team. So strictly speaking, I'm not even your superior."

"……."

"Conclusion. Neither of us did anything wrong. Right?"

"……."

Su-a pursed her lips and cautiously looked up at me.

Her round eyes peeked through her wet bangs as she gauged my reaction.

Her plump cheeks were still bright red.

'Ahem.'

She was ridiculously cute.

"B-but you're still Do Emperor…."

"Tch. First, no more calling me Do Emperor. It gives me chills."

"……T-then what should I call you?"

"No more polite speech, either. Just talk like you always did."

"……."

"Hey. Answer me."

"……Got it."

Su-a answered in a tiny, fading voice.

Good. Crisis resolved.

"All right, then down to business. Special training starts tomorrow."

"S-special training?"

"You saw the water columns earlier. This thing has way more hidden functions than you realize. My name's on it, so shouldn't you use it properly? Besides, didn't you say you wanted to become famous and let your mom live comfortably?"

"……."

"If you don't want to, fine~ Then I'll take this and go train some other Seed-"

"I-I didn't say I didn't want to!"

Ripple.

The water's surface fluttered with excitement.

'That means she likes the idea.'

She really was easy to read.

Ahem. That was fun.

"All right, you pass."

Only then did I hold out the trident.

Su-a timidly stepped closer and reached for it, then suddenly stopped.

"…Thanks."

"Hm?"

"The present… I really like it. A lot."

Her head was still bowed.

Ripple, ripple, ripple.

The whole pool shimmered and trembled as if it were ticklish.

Tap.

The moment Su-a took hold of the trident.

Swoosh….

The pool's surface calmed down as though nothing had happened.

Grin.

Yeah, I knew it.

"See? Of course it's good. I made it."

"Show-off…."

She grumbled, but I could clearly see the corners of her lips curling up.

'Good. Rapport restored.'

Still.

With nerves that fragile, how was she going to manage after her debut?

I was already worried.

* * *

'I need to finish the follow-up Ritual Implement soon.'

Right. My commission still wasn't over.

Su-a's problem was that her always-on Ultimate Art consumed too much Spiritual Power.

I'd made the trident as a controller for her, but.

'She can't carry a trident around all day, can she?'

Apparently, aside from training, she left the trident behind, so she was still faithfully taking a nap every day.

That was why I was planning to make an accessory version for her.

A bracelet or necklace should work, right?

It only needed absorption and circulation circuits, so its structure would be much simpler than the trident's.

It was for everyday use, not combat, so it didn't need a control system.

The problem was that, with its smaller size, the material needed enough purity to support it.

As a vessel capable of handling Su-a's Spiritual Power.

'Sea Heart Stone is still the best choice.'

It had already been proven in the trident.

But then.

"…Sea Heart Stone isn't available?"

"Yes. Things have gotten a little difficult."

Ji-an came by the workshop with a troubled look and held out her tablet.

"Sea Heart Stone can only be mined from trenches off the southern coast right now. The mining machine there broke down, so supplies will probably be difficult for a while."

'Hmm… that's a problem.'

As far as I knew, her debut wasn't far off.

"Oh, right. Come to think of it, there was a commission from that mining cooperative. Would you like to take a look?"

"A commission?"

Ji-an handed me the tablet.

― [Cheonghae Fisheries Special Projects Department] Urgent Sea Heart Stone Mining Machine Repair Commission.

[Commission Details: Repair and inspection of the Sea Heart Stone mining machine.]

[Notes: Urgently seeking a master capable of understanding the structure and conducting repairs. Compensation negotiable. On-site visit required.]

'A mining-machine repair.'

I flipped through the commission.

According to the attached material…

Sea Heart Stone was a Spirit Stone that grew while absorbing the spiritual energy of water for hundreds of years.

As that energy accumulated layer by layer over time, a unique grain formed inside the stone, like the rings of a tree.

The problem was that the grain couldn't be seen from the outside.

If it was disturbed even slightly during mining, all its Spiritual Power would leak out on the spot, leaving behind an ordinary blue rock.

That was why a special mining machine that used Spiritual Power to cut the whole stone out along its grain was essential.

"I heard the mining machine broke down because of water monsters that have started appearing recently."

Water monsters, huh. Something like vicious beasts or yokai?

They had physical bodies, so they weren't Cursed spirits. They were too ferocious to be spirit beasts. Apparently, creatures like that were called yokai or vicious beasts, and those that lived in water were also called water monsters.

"Then what about the place that originally handled the repairs…?"

"That's another problem… The elderly workshop owner who managed that mining machine passed away from old age not long ago."

"……."

"It was something that workshop owner had overseen alone for decades. It's so complicated that nobody inherited the knowledge, so they say no one else could touch it. It's just been left sitting there now."

On top of that, the water monsters had the whole area in turmoil, making other marine materials difficult to acquire as well. Prices were shooting up across the board.

'Hmm.'

To sum it up.

The material was at the bottom of the sea, the tool to mine it was broken, and there was no one who could fix it?

"So supplies will be difficult for a while. At least a few months, even under the best circumstances…."

"A few months."

Su-a's debut was right around the corner.

So the mining machine was the issue.

A massive mining Ritual Implement that the deceased workshop owner had managed alone for a lifetime because no one could inherit the technique.

There was nothing more fun than taking apart something someone else had made.

The only concern was the water monsters running wild in the area.

'…Come to think of it.'

Didn't I have someone who needed real combat experience and special training?