Chapter 207

“Possibility?”

“Can I save the rest of the explanation for later? If we must fight together, I shall participate.”

James took a step back. What should he do? After a moment of thought, Seojin nodded.

“Let’s do that. But the process must be…”

“Normal. I’ve noted it down, so I won’t forget.”

“Now, go back and rest. And don’t reveal your identity.”

“I made a note of that too.”

“Good.”

James walked away.

He could wait on standby as a member of the Great Red guild, since Merhen had been informed. Externally, he seemed to have no special specs, but the other guild members seemed to ignore it, assuming he had some hidden skills.

Then, at that moment.

-I need to check something.

-Tell me.

-Is it within the realm of normal behavior to spend more money to buy equipment?

-Feel free to purchase as much as you need.

That was fine for Seojin. After all, the game system itself supported real-money transactions.

His level was low, and he might not have had much in the way of achievements, but just being equipped with powerful gear should be enough to make up for it.

‘That settles that for now.’

He had almost met everyone he needed to. The rest could be greeted later.

Seojin also decided to take a break. The divine minerals were melting away in the alchemy workshop, while the smiths were estimating how to process the moonstone.

During this rare break, there was a sound.

Ding!

*The curse on the villagers has been lifted (Complete)

All conditions have been met

Main Quest: Beyond the Bars, A Glimmer of Light has been completed

The main quest will be updated!

As the quest updated, a he got direct message from Merhen.

-I’ve just lifted the last one. Every single one of them.

* * *

Main Quest: The Root of Evil

*The chain of curses that bound the residents of Moonstone has been broken. They can no longer use the emperor’s gift, but now no one can use them as tools.

*You have confirmed that the hand of an evil god has stretched across this land. This darkness must be eradicated. Slay this evil god’s followers and restore the glory of light to Salevania.

*Objective: Slay the followers of the evil god

It was very straightforward.

The updated main quest presented Seojin with a single goal.

‘An evil god, huh? The source must be the imperial palace.’

That aligned with what he knew already. The main enemies of this quest could very well include humans wielding the power of darkness, and possibly even demons. That was why moonstone was necessary in the preparation process.

‘Beyond just being a divine mineral, the moment moonstone reacts to divine power, it becomes a complete counter to them.’

Though, he was yet uncertain as to what extent. However, just decking oneself out in moonstone should yield significant results.

‘The key is, how far does this darkness extend?’

The level of enemies they would face depended on this range.

What if the emperor was unaware of this? They could perhaps fight alongside each other at the beginning.

‘As they say, the enemy of my enemy is a friend.’

But if all this was orchestrated by the emperor himself…

‘Then the emperor is also an enemy. I’ll need to look into it, but not yet.’

The plan was already in motion, so deviating from it now could result in many casualties.

“Seojin!” A lively voice called out to Seojin.

It was BunnyRabbit. As she hurried out, she held in her hand what appeared to be a piece of white equipment made of plaster.

“I made the first piece! I wanted to show it to you first….”

“Made? How did you manage to without tools?”

“By force. As a result, a lot of the tools we had are now heavily damaged.”

BunnyRabbit laughed innocently.

Seojin got the gist of it.

Alio’s forge was stocked with high-quality tools, and they had been used as sacrifices for this first creation.

“You’ve worked hard. Let me see.”

“Yes!”

Seojin took the item.

It was a crude gauntlet. Made of moonstone, he could feel how solid it was, with just a touch.

As for quality,

‘It’s unique-grade.’

It was as expected. Even without imbuing it with divine power, it reached the unique grade. It wasn’t just because the material was moonstone.

‘The smiths are excellent.’

A legion of blacksmiths, led by Ferguson, whose skills were such that they could create masterpieces out of mere steel.

“Not bad. Unique grade. If we imbue it with divine power, we can expect even more.”

“Th-that’s right! I really worked hard!”

“Did you think I wouldn’t know? Was the gift I gave you before helpful?”

“Of course. My master was so happy….”

“Happy?”

“It’s embarrassing, but he said that I might even surpass him soon. That I could receive the title of master craftsman when the time comes….”

“Wow.”

This was surprising even for Seojin.

The title of a master! Unlike the title of artisan, which implied a sense of respect and admiration, the title of a master was like an official certificate that could only be awarded by an NPC of the king’s level.

“Now you really have no reason to go back to work, huh?”

“What? No! That’s not it! It’s not just about the salary. I’m so grateful to be able to help you in this way….”

“Wouldn’t you be enough help as just a smith?”

“Well, you helped me to become a smith, from start to finish. But the company is something where I applied to it and succeeded at by myself, so somehow it feels more fulfilling… that’s why I want to keep working there.”

BunnyRabbit smiled awkwardly.

With her sincere tone, Seojin didn’t press further.

“Since you’ve worked hard, let’s go together.”

“Huh? But where?”

“To see how the equipment you made changes. Everyone’s just waiting for the gear from Merhen’s side.”

It was equipment reaching a unique grade, even in its pristine state. They were on their way to see how it changed once divine power was infused, and how much of it was needed.

Soon after, in front of Merhen and the “divine profession group,” Seojin held up BunnyRabbit’s work.

“This is it. You guys will handle this.”

“This is… what do we do with it?”

“Do we need to do some kind of infusion? I’ve never used the skill, so I’m not sure.”

Merhen nodded, his brow furrowed in thought. Nothing was certain yet, and that was exactly why they had come.

“I’ll gather the guild members. You said priests and paladins would work, right?”

“It’s just a guess for now.”

“Then we should try it out. Just a moment… done. I’ve sent the message. They’ll all be here soon. Shall I try to mess with it a bit until then?”

“Do you have a skill for infusion?”

“I have something similar. More akin to a blessing than infusion… but let’s see.”

Merhen took the gauntlet from Seojin. The skill he intended to use was Heavenly Blessing, consuming a moderate amount of divine power to strengthen its target accordingly.

However,

“…There’s no effect?”

“None?”

“I’ll try something else.”

This time, he switched skills. A skill that consumed all the paladin’s divine power to fully restore the target’s health.

“What are you using now?”

“Prayer, sort of like asking God to save this person, something like that.”

“Does it apply to objects too?”

“Yes. Though I’m the one casting it, the structure is such that the deity is the actual caster. But after using it, I can’t do anything for a few minutes.”

Such an absolute skill, if this also failed, they would need to find a completely different method.

Flash!

An intense light burst from Merhen’s hands and transferred to the gauntlet. This light was his divine power.

Soon after the light faded, Seojin blinked.

“Is it done?”

“…Yeah, it’s done.”

The surprise was mutual. Usually, a target of Prayer could nearly rise from death’s doorstep and start running.

“Why did it only work this much? It seems like there was some effect though.”

“Yeah, it seems like it. So….”

The gauntlet returned to Seojin’s hands.

And then.

“Ah.”

Seojin realized the situation.

Clumsily Blessed Gauntlet | Unique

*Increases defense by 1% when facing demons.

*Its potential is not fully unlocked.

*Current charge: 1%

“Only 1% charged.”

“…What?”

“You said that was all your divine power, right?”

“…”

“Just do it a hundred times then. With so many people, it should be quick.”

Seojin concluded nonchalantly.

Merhen glanced at BunnyRabbit, who had been waiting.

“There’s not just one or two items though, right?”

“Um, at least hundreds… maybe even thousands!”

“…There you have it.”

This request was physically impossible to fulfill.

Seojin coolly accepted it.

“Guess we’ll need to pull some manpower from the temple. I wasn’t going to ask for NPC help at first.”

“The temple?”

“Archbishops, and that saint I mentioned before. If we get those folks involved, we should have enough to cover it.”

“Of course.” Merhen clapped his hands. “You had a plan all along, and not just making us do everything.”

“Of course. If it’s not enough, we ask for help. Wouldn’t need to if we had enough.”

“When’s that Saint coming?”

“Soon. Anyway, I’m off. BunnyRabbit, you go in too. Merhen, make sure the guild members are ready. Once the forge starts pumping out items, we won’t be able to keep up.”

“Where are you going now?”

Merhen called after Seojin’s back.

And the answer returned.

“To meet with the last person. Even with these numbers, we can’t just go against the emperor, can we?”

“I knew it. If it was you, you’d start by making the game bigger.”

Merhen wasn’t disappointed.

* * *

“Amazing.”

Odie Park let out a short exclamation. A complex mix of emotions was contained in that single word. Seojin’s story was of a kind that was hard to imagine at her level. And the reactions of Haydall and Roth, who had played the previous game, were even more overt.

“If our boss knew, he’d flip. Amazing. As expected of Blue Dragon! Always number one in my heart!”

“I admire you. Sincerely.”

To those uninterested in games, this praise might seem exaggerated. But anyone who had poured their life into gaming would agree. And naturally, Seojin was very accustomed to such praise. Excited but not forgetting what needed to be done, after a brief exchange, Haydall, as the representative of the three, took over the conversation.

“I’ll have to report to the CEO. He’ll definitely agree. Apart from personal feelings, it’s certainly not a loss for the company.”

“Right?”

“Rather, we should be thankful. To be allowed to use such a huge billboard for free.”

This was in line with what had been requested before. Seojin had asked to cast Odie Park as the protagonist of the advertisement.

However, unlike Haydall’s enthusiastic response, Seojin merely smiled calmly.

“The CEO’s consent is one thing, but the consent of the person involved comes first, right?”

“Eh? Oh, of course. Odie….”

“I’ll ask her myself.”

“Yep.”

Haydall stepped back slightly. The conversation returned to Odie Park.

Before Seojin could even ask,

“I’ll do it! I can! I’ll do really well!”

Eager for the opportunity, Odie Park clasped her hands together and spoke excitedly.