The Occult World’s Coveted Blacksmith - Chapter 82

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Occult World’s Coveted Blacksmith ◈

Chapter 82: A Jiangshi Practitioner Without a Jiangshi?

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“Ah, I need to make my debut soon too.”

‘...What?’

After showing off such a cool gun kata, she still had not even debuted? She was a complete newbie?

“What’s with that look?”

Kang Ha-na smiled at me over her teacup.

“Are you disappointed?”

“No. It’s more that... I’m surprised.”

“By what?”

‘Hmm.’

Weren’t Seeds basically trainees who had only just started training to be sorcerers?

But this woman was...

There was just something about her.

You know how people give off a certain feeling?

She had this real presence.

Like someone who had been through it all.

“...”

“What? It looks like President Noh really didn’t tell you anything.”

“Not really.”

“Let’s see. Where should I even start explaining...”

“So basically, you just haven’t made your debut in Korea yet?”

“That’s right.”

Hmm. Her explanation had been rather vague, but...

To sum it up.

She had been adopted as a child by some foreign organization, something like a Triad, and worked as an unofficial sorcerer before Noh Jin-hyeok brought her here.

Was that it?

Ah.

So she was an experienced rookie.

When I stayed quiet for a moment, Kang Ha-na seemed to think I did not believe her and gave a small laugh.

“Don’t worry. I’m confident in my skills. You’d be hard-pressed to find a better teacher than me.”

Well, if that was the case.

I had nothing to lose.

“So? I teach you talisman sorcery, and you help me make my debut. Think of it as a contract.”

Simple. I liked that.

“Yes, sounds good.”

“Good. Then come here by one tomorrow. It’s our first lesson, so don’t be late.”

Kang Ha-na fluttered a hand.

Apparently, she was telling me to leave.

“I have a class soon. Believe it or not, I teach the Seeds too.”

Oh. She was the Seeds’ talisman sorcery teacher?

Then this was perfect. Very nice.

It seemed President Noh had not introduced me to her for no reason.

“Ah, yes. Then...”

I had just grabbed the doorknob.

“Oh, right. There’s one more condition.”

“...Yes?”

“Don’t call me teacher.”

“Then what should I call you?”

“Call me noona.”

“...What?”

“I’m into younger guys.”

“...”

‘Hmm. That’s a little...’

If I called her noona only to find out she was younger than me, I would feel a little guilty about it.

‘It’s rude to ask a woman her age, but I don’t have a choice.’

“Um, could I ask how old you are?”

“...”

“Ah, perhaps I should ask your esteemed age?”

Instead of answering, Kang Ha-na rested her chin on the armrest.

“Well? How old do you think I am?”

There it was. That question.

‘Hmm...’

I gave Kang Ha-na a discreet once-over.

Her skin was pale, and her face was flawless.

She definitely did not look old.

The problem was her aura.

That smile in her eyes, that relaxed air...

No!

I was pretty sure the rule for moments like this was to guess younger.

“Twenty?”

“Oh my.”

Kang Ha-na covered her mouth and laughed.

She seemed pleased.

“Little brother, you’re good at this whole social thing, aren’t you?”

That actually worked.

“I’m twenty-nine.”

Oh, thank goodness.

She really was older than me.

“Understood, noona.”

“Good, little brother.”

* * *

“Huh? Where are you going? Didn’t you come with me to watch my training?”

The next day.

After having lunch with Su-a, we were on our way to the training rooms.

Since it was on the way, I had walked with her as far as the underwater training room.

“No, I have class too.”

“Class? You?”

“Yeah.”

“Is there something you don’t know? What kind of class is it?”

Su-a asked, looking surprised.

“Seeecret.”

“...!”

“Anyway, I’m off. Good luck.”

“W-What is it?! Why are you so excited?!”

I waved goodbye and headed toward the special training room.

‘Ttut, ttut~ Ttut-tut.’

This thing.

After all the hassle I had been through lately, it had somehow become a habit.

Ttut, ttut~ Ttut-tut.

Yeah, honestly, Su-a was right.

Maybe I was a little excited.

Learning a new skill in the game was no easy task.

First, I had to track down a craftsman who possessed the skill I wanted.

Blacksmith players became almost nonexistent at higher levels, so there were barely any clues online.

I had to scour forums for every other class, piecing together scraps of information.

Then I had to find them myself.

Crossing continents, crossing seas, climbing mountains, that was all standard.

Who said achieving ninety-five percent realism was a good thing?

In short, it was a complete nightmare.

Then, once I got there, I had to carefully cater to the whims of those eccentric craftsmen.

‘Well, I could understand them being picky. Those were skills they had devoted their whole lives to gaining.’

But what was this?

All I had done was say one word, and an expert had been delivered right to me.

Ha. Was this what power felt like?

Of course I was excited.

Ahem.

With that, I entered the special training room.

‘Hmm... This is more serious than I expected.’

In the middle of the shooting range from yesterday.

There was a movable blackboard and a single student desk sitting there all alone.

‘That must be where I’m supposed to sit.’

I naturally went over and took my seat.

‘Oh. She’s even wearing glasses.’

Kang Ha-na stood in front of the blackboard.

Black horn-rimmed glasses, and another black cheongsam today.

They suited her very well.

“Alright, I’ll take attendance.”

Kang Ha-na opened the attendance sheet.

“...”

Then she paused.

“...Master Do?”

“Yes~”

“Wait. Your name is Master Do?”

“Yes, well.”

“Your family name is Do, and your given name is Master?”

“...Something like that.”

“Pfft.”

‘She laughed?’

Well, there was a story behind this.

Now that I was going to start operating officially, I realized I needed a name.

So I gave it a lot of thought.

But no matter how much I racked my brain, I could not choose one.

I was good at coming up with weapon and pet names.

All I had to do was focus on their defining traits.

Even in the game, I had always struggled with character names. It was so bad that I used my real name, Lee Do-hyeon, in the game too.

So I decided to just go with Master Do.

What was wrong with that?

They said people grew into their names.

“...My mother gave it to me.”

That was a lie, but her mocking expression annoyed me, so I said it to make her feel a little guilty.

“Alright, then let’s begin class~”

‘Look at her pretending she didn’t hear that.’

“You said you wanted to learn talisman sorcery, right?”

“Yes.”

“Good. But I should tell you beforehand, my main specialty is jiangshi sorcery.”

“...Jiangshi sorcery?”

“Yep. I’m a jiangshi sorcerer.”

Jiangshi?

Wasn’t that the thing with talismans on their foreheads, arms held out, hopping around like Eastern zombies?

“Yes, that’s right.”

“...?”

‘No, wait.’

Did that mean she practiced sorcery that controlled corpses?

‘Is that allowed?’

That was cool as hell.

It was basically necromancy.

...That existed in real life?

“Most people freeze up or panic when I tell them that. You’re unusual, aren’t you?”

“So do you raise up a whole zombie army and go like this?”

I waved both hands around, and Kang Ha-na shrugged.

“Mhm. That’s hard to do in Korea.”

“...?”

“Little brother. Where would you find corpses in Korea?”

“...”

Come to think of it, I had heard ground burial was illegal these days. Everyone was cremated instead.

And that was not all.

The details differed from country to country, but sorcery that used corpses was almost entirely prohibited.

...Then what?

No jiangshi?

A jiangshi sorcerer who could not use corpses.

That was like a steamed bun without filling, a swordsman without a sword, fish-shaped pastry without a fish...

No, fish-shaped pastry did not have fish in it to begin with.

“Could you stop? I’m fine, you know? I have a unique constitution.”

“A unique constitution... You mean an Ultimate Art?”

“Yep, that’s right. My Ultimate Art is All Things Jiangshi.”

All Things Jiangshi.

It was an ability that let her control anything, whether it was a Ritual Implement, an object, a spirit beast, or a human, simply by attaching a jiangshi talisman to it.

She could even make them float in the air.

‘That must have been what I saw yesterday.’

The guns flying through the air and firing on their own?

Damn, that was cool.

“...Well, there is one very minor problem.”

Kang Ha-na trailed off slightly before changing the subject.

“So, why are you curious about talisman sorcery? You aren’t learning it just because. You have some kind of goal, right?”

‘Ah, right. I came here to learn talisman sorcery.’

It might have been obvious, but I was not a talisman sorcerer.

I was a blacksmith to the bone.

I had no intention of changing professions now.

So why did I want to learn talisman sorcery?

Naturally, to make Ritual Implements.

People had to grow!

I could not keep making only what I had always made.

...Though really, this was all because I wanted to find a way to use Giant Ink Squid ink.

“You want to know how to use talisman sorcery when making Ritual Implements?”

“Yes. For example... carving patterns into a sword blade like you would make a talisman. Something like that.”

“Hmm. Our little craftsman. You know how talismans are made, right?”

Of course I did.

I had an excellent teacher.

‘You Can Do It, Something-Something Talisman King.’

...I could not remember the name very well.

“Don’t you draw letters or patterns onto Gwaehwangji with Mirror Cinnabar while infusing it with Imprinted Intent?”

“You know your stuff.”

Kang Ha-na spun a piece of chalk around her fingertip.

Screech, screech.

She quickly drew a talisman on the blackboard.

“A talisman is, simply put, a vessel. A vessel for holding Imprinted Intent and Spiritual Power. But you can’t just put them into anything.”

A material that Spiritual Power could seep into and remain in.

That was Gwaehwangji.

“Do you know why talismans are written in red? Red holds yang energy. It has an outward nature. The Spell Formula stored within ignites and bursts outward.”

Screech.

She drew arrows radiating outward from the talisman on the blackboard.

“It doesn’t have to be Mirror Cinnabar. Any red pigment has some effect. That’s why chicken blood is used too.”

“...Excuse me, then.”

This was perfect.

There was something I had been wondering about.

“Does it have to be red? Can’t I use something like black ink?”

“Black ink?”

Actually, I had tried making a talisman with black ink on Gwaehwangji recently.

It could hold a massive amount of Spiritual Power.

I had thought it would make an amazing talisman.

But for some reason, it would not activate.

“That won’t work. Black ink is the opposite. Instead of releasing, it retains. The Spiritual Power gets trapped inside and can’t come out.”

“...”

No, wait a second.

“But wasn’t the talisman you used last time black? The one attached to that mannequin yesterday?”

“Oh, good memory.”

Kang Ha-na grinned.

“It’s not like black ink talismans don’t exist. Restraint Talismans, Sealing Talismans... It all comes down to how you use the nature of Spiritual Power.”

“Since we’re talking about it, I’ll show you.”

Then she suddenly began rummaging around inside her neckline.

Rustle. Rustle.

Uh, uh...?

While I quietly looked away.

Fwoosh.

A stack of talismans came out from her clothes.

Then she held out a hand toward the mannequins.

Shrrrk. Fwip.

The talismans flew over and neatly stuck themselves to the foreheads of the mannequins lying on the floor.

!!!

Whoa. She could do that too?