The Occult World’s Coveted Blacksmith - Chapter 80

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

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◈ The Occult World’s Coveted Blacksmith ◈

Chapter 80: The Second Batter.

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[HOT] Whoa, I almost died off the Cheonghae coast just now, but someone saved me;;

I went out to catch Giant Ink Squid, got caught in the wrong current, and was swept away.

The engine broke down, and the waves suddenly went insane. The boat almost flipped over.

Then someone suddenly showed up, walking across the sea?

They swung a trident once, and the waves just split apart!

They even pushed the boat somewhere safe.

I tried to thank them, but they were already gone.

└ ????? What are you talking about? Walking on the sea?

└ LOL It was probably a Water Ghost.

└ For real, you got completely bewitched.

└ Wait, do Water Ghosts save people too?

└ Then what else would someone standing on water be if not a Water Ghost?

└ Did they have long, straight hair and no feet, by any chance?

└ They were wearing some kind of hood, so I couldn't see their hair. But they had a trident? Maybe they're some kind of Dragon King?

└ ??? A trident?

[HOT] ??? Isn't this the Poseidon Girl?

(Shaky video.)

Apparently, this was filmed in Cheonghae.

The trident and hood look exactly like when she caught that Hellfire Ghost???

(186 comments)

└ ?????? What is that?

└ Holy shit, that's insanely cool...

└ Damn... That's crazy.

└ How did she even do that?

└ It's obviously staged. Can't you tell from the fact that someone was already filming?

└ No, they said they were filming because they were trying to catch Giant Ink Squid.

└ Whoa, her disappearing into the mist was such a crazy touch LOL

└ This is ridiculously romantic T_T

└ What is she, seriously?

└ Huh, is she wearing a swimsuit under that hood? So cute...

└ Hehehe. Hehehe.

└ I'm into it LOL

└ I can't swim either~ Save me too

Su-a had said she saved several people while practicing with her new Ritual Implement.

It seemed she really had.

Public opinion was good, too.

She had become quite skilled at riding the board and handling the trident.

On top of that, Sea Heart Stone mining would soon resume.

The owner of Cheonghae Workshop had promised to pick out only the absolute best pieces as soon as they were mined and send them to Seoul.

“Ahem.”

Very nice.

‘It was about time to head back up.’

* * *

This was the restaurant in the Ocean Arcade where I had come on my first day.

The commission and training were mostly wrapped up, and I would be heading back to Seoul tomorrow.

I had stopped by to do the marine Ritual Implement shopping I had put off and treat the old man and Man-seon to a meal for all their help.

Snore...

Su-a, sitting beside me, had already passed out cold.

Her training was over, so I gave her a drink and told her to have some.

‘Ugh, it tastes kind of bitter...’

She frowned, but kept taking little sips whenever I handed her the glass. Then, after just two drinks, this was what happened.

Man-seon across from me was no different.

In the end, the only ones still sober were the old man and me.

As I looked down at the sleeping Su-a, I suddenly remembered something from long ago.

Back when I had wandered across several continents in search of hidden knowledge, an NPC I had traveled with for a while once asked why, out of all the professions available, I had chosen to become a blacksmith.

What had I said back then...?

I think I said that I simply liked making things.

That it was fun to hammer and carve a lump of metal that was nothing special, only to find that it had somehow turned into something worthwhile.

Honestly, I still felt the same way.

When I looked at something I had just finished, I couldn't help but grin.

Or maybe I just felt satisfied.

“...But.”

Glug.

I refilled my empty glass and continued.

“I think it's a little different these days.”

“What do you mean?”

“I still like making things, but...”

Well. How should I put it?

Like the Cheonghae Workshop workers hugging each other and jumping for joy when I repaired the Steel Whale.

Or Su-a running around in her new shoes with that bright smile on her face.

Everyone ended up looking like children who had just received a gift.

“...Seeing that kind of thing makes me feel good, I guess.”

Ahem. I was drunk, so all sorts of nonsense were coming out.

“Hoho. Is that so?”

The old man emptied his glass and looked out the window.

“Then you must be feeling absolutely wonderful today.”

“...What?”

Beyond the window, the marketplace was packed with people.

Rafts loaded with Giant Ink Squid passed in rows along the waterways.

Steam rose thick and white from every stall as they boiled the creatures.

“Come on, come on! These came in at dawn today! Try some blanched Giant Ink Squid before you go!”

“Ink pasta! This place serves the original ink pasta!”

Merchants hurried back and forth with carts piled high with goods.

The market was swarming with sorcerers who had come after hearing the rumors.

The atmosphere was completely different from when I had first arrived.

Was it because fishing had started again?

Everyone was smiling brightly.

“Thank you for helping me so much. You too, Man-seon.”

“Hoho, helping you? We were just doing our jobs.”

After I emptied my final glass, I said, “Shall we get going?”

I slung the deeply sleeping Su-a onto my back.

“Mmm... Do Emperor...”

The old man grabbed Man-seon by the back of the neck and hauled him upright.

“Ugh... B-big bro...?”

“Go home and sleep, you punk.”

As we gathered our things to leave, the old man stopped me.

“Master Do.”

“...Thank you.”

“This place is like my hometown. If it weren't for you, it might have been completely deserted by now.”

The usually blunt old man gave me a broad grin.

“Thank you. Truly.”

Um... I had only done all this because I needed Sea Heart Stones.

‘...And I made a ton of money, too.’

Being thanked so earnestly made me feel strangely awkward.

Hmm...

Well, all's well that ends well!

“...It's nothing. I only did what I had to do.”

* * *

“Where would you like these, Master?”

“Ah, stack those in the materials warehouse over there. Put these up on this shelf.”

This was No Corp's workshop.

Since early morning, employees had been pushing carts in nonstop.

Delivery boxes gradually piled up in the middle of the workshop.

Inside were the marine Ritual Implements and rare materials I had bought in bulk at the Ocean Arcade.

And the Giant Ink Squid bones and ink that Cheonghae Fisheries had sent over as a priority supply.

“Do-hyeon~ I've organized the business plan Cheonghae Fisheries sent over!”

Ji-an approached with a tablet in hand.

“First, the catch volume. They say the population has decreased a lot, so they think it's time to move on to Step 2.”

Giant Ink Squid were originally a rare species that lived in the deep sea.

But it seemed their population had exploded due to the recent anomaly, pushing the ones that lost the competition for food into shallower waters.

Originally, the plan had been to catch every last one until they were completely eradicated and return Cheonghae to how it had been before the incident.

But Giant Ink Squid had become an indispensable part of the spirit seafood industry.

And after trying it out, the lure rental business had turned out to be quite profitable.

The Cheonghae sea was already sealed off by a Barrier to prevent civilian casualties, so no one but sorcerers could enter anyway.

So they had changed their policy.

They would regulate the population and leave some in the deep sea.

Whenever their numbers grew and they were pushed into shallow waters, they would catch only those with lures.

They would monitor the population using the Steel Whale's detection Spell Formula now that mining had resumed.

In other words, they were setting up a natural fish farm beneath the Cheonghae sea.

“So now, they're going to limit lure rental passes to twenty per day.”

Prices had been cut in half because supplies were flooding the market right now, but once the catch volume normalized, market prices would gradually rise again.

They also planned to run Giant Ink Squid fishing tours for people who couldn't forget the thrill of the bite.

Mm-hm.

You weren't supposed to slaughter the goose that laid golden eggs.

And no wonder!

Giant Ink Squid had now become a Cheonghae specialty!

Sorcerers who heard the rumors had flocked to try Giant Ink Squid, and every Ocean Arcade had become so crowded that it was practically a tourist destination now.

There were Giant Ink Squid fritters, ink pasta, Giant Ink Squid buns, you name it.

In other words, every time Giant Ink Squid were caught from now on, money would keep flowing into my bank account!

Once the report was over, I started opening the boxes in earnest.

Riiip.

First, the biggest one.

When I peeled away the bubble wrap, bones as large as tabletops appeared, neatly stacked together.

Giant Ink Squid bones.

Wide, light, and buoyant.

A material that turned as hard as stone when Spiritual Power was poured into it, with limitless potential for use.

And I had secured a huge quantity of it.

Beside them, pitch-black liquid sloshed inside sealed jars.

Giant Ink Squid ink.

It didn't erase Spell Formulas unless it was sprayed by a living Giant Ink Squid.

But who knew?

Everything depended on how you used it.

And that was not all.

Deep-sea turtle shells, deep-sea fish inner cores, luminous coral extract.

“Hehehe.”

New materials and new techniques.

What should I open first?

“Are you that happy?”

“Of course I am.”

Mm-hm. I needed to hurry up and make the next thing.

* * *

“...”

Noh Jin-hyeok Corporation, CEO's office.

“...That concludes the report.”

The secretary set down the documents after finishing.

Noh Jin-hyeok had been replaying a video on his tablet for some time.

It was a training video.

A board unfurled beneath Su-a's feet as she walked across the water, then she immediately cut through the waves.

Every time the trident moved, waves rose and split apart.

“...”

Noh Jin-hyeok gave a quiet snort.

‘Master Do made something like this again already.’

“What about public opinion?”

“Mentions of the Poseidon Girl are three times what they were during the Hellfire Ghost incident. Her favorability is overwhelmingly positive. Posts speculating about her identity are continuing to appear.”

“Good. Very good.”

Mystique was formidable by nature.

The more curious people became, the more appealing it was.

‘Her training results are more than good enough, too.’

Now all that remained was to choose the most suitable time.

Noh Jin-hyeok tapped his fingers against the desk.

“Set up the pictorial team. Report to me as soon as the concept drafts are ready.”

“Yes, sir.”

“And.”

Noh Jin-hyeok smiled meaningfully.

“Shall we start preparing the second batter, too?”

“...Who are you considering?”