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Chapter 186: God Slayer (1)
The blood of a blacksmith flowed through the dwarves of the Golden Anvil tribe, and Jakiro was born with the greatest talent among them all.
When he first grabbed the hammer, Solardo, the tribe’s greatest artisan, said, ‘If you are a true craftsman of the Golden Anvil tribe, you would be able to see the finished product even before you melt the iron.’
Jakiro believed that he had understood Solardo’s words all this while. He always had a blueprint. The moment he wanted to make something, it was clearly drawn in his head what it would look like. All of his masterpieces had already been completed in his head first.
However, Jakiro realized that wasn’t truly the case. He wasn’t watching properly until now. He just intuitively saw it as a skilled craftsman, but he wasn’t truly seeing it.
“I know now,” Jakiro muttered while his mind got filled with the image of a weapon. He was able to see what shape it would be, what power it would possess, and how it would be crafted. He could even see what it would cut.
He wasn’t moving on his own accord. Something unknown, something that was filling him to the brim and penetrating his whole body, it felt like inspiration was moving him. He couldn’t wait to start working on it.
“You’ve come, Jakiro.”
“Yes.”
Jakiro’s body trembled. Rastard, the blacksmith guarding the Eternal Smithy, looked at Jakiro’s face and opened his eyes wide. He stared at him as if he knew something and laughed.
“That has come to you, huh.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“It’s something that comes once in the lifetime of a great blacksmith.”
Rastard looked around the Eternal Smithy. Aside from the fact that it was located in a temple that guarded the Eternal Fire, there was nothing special about it.
“Follow me.”
Jakiro followed behind Rastard. There was a door somewhere in the smithy. When Rastard opened the door, there was a flight of stairs that seemed to go down. There was another smithy when they went down. It was a little dusty, perhaps because it hadn’t been used in a long time, but the facility itself was good enough to be used right away.
“Use this place.”
“This is-...”
“This is the true Eternal Smithy. The one outside is just something like a secondary smithy.”
Jakiro looked inside. It was his first time seeing it, but somehow, it felt familiar. The inspiration that filled his mind and the familiarity of the smithy were intertwined.
“So, what are you going to make? What about the iron?”
“It will arrive soon.”
As he said, there was a small commotion happening above. They waited for a while and someone came down the stairs. It was Crockta. He greeted the two dwarves with a huge greatsword on his shoulder.
“Jakiro, here you are. Oh, you are? I am Crockta, a warrior.”
“I am Rastard, the blacksmith guarding the Eternal Smithy.”
“Nice to meet you. Are you alive?”
“It’s been a long time since I heard an orc’s greeting.”
The two shook hands. Crockta looked around the smithy.
“You’re going to fix my sword here?”
Jakiro smiled, “That’s right. You can look forward to it.”
“Well...”
Crockta looked at Jakiro and Rastard one after the other. Then, he scratched his head and put down the Ogre Slayer.
“In any case, I will leave it in your care. I’m sure you will do well on your own.”
“Don’t worry.”
“I have to go see the priest, so I will take my leave now.”
Crockta went up after grabbing the air a few times with his bare hands, perhaps because he felt awkward without Ogre Slayer. Jakiro and Rastard’s gaze turned to Ogre Slayer. It was an outstanding greatsword, except for the fact that it was breaking down.
“Is it this sword?”
“That’s right.”
“Hoho. That warrior just now, was it Crockta? I understand why your eyes are like that now.”
Outstanding warriors have always been the inspiration for blacksmiths since ancient times. The Golden Anvil tribe’s Solardo had a philosophy of differentiating between the weapon and the user, but even he would be excited to craft a weapon for a warrior like Crockta.
“Maybe this is all the Sun God’s arrangements,” Rastard murmured.
Jakiro silently lifted and moved the Ogre Slayer. He began working.
Rastard quietly watched him. Jakiro was a genius of the Golden Anvil tribe, the Slayer Maker who created countless masterpieces at a young age. What was he capable of?
In an instant, a hot heat warmed up the smithy.
“Ahhh...!”
He could feel it. The Temple of the Sun God was welcoming Jakiro. The heat of the Eternal Fire, which had not been granted to the craftsman for a long time, began to heat the smithy.
Rastard was in awe.
“Finally, a master blacksmith befitting of the Eternal Smithy has appeared!”
This energy was the true flame of the Eternal Smithy, which even Rastard had only seen a few times as a young dwarf. It was no longer granted since then.
The Temple of the Sun God, which worshiped the Eternal Fire, and the Eternal Smithy. A greatsword was being reborn there.
***
Crockta went looking for the priest along with Tiyo and Anor. While Ogre Slayer was being repaired, they wanted to look for traces of Hedoro as much as possible.
“We’ve learned about Hedoro.”
They took some documents from the temple’s archive room. They were only entry ledgers and sign-out records that remained.
“Seems like he researched a lot about the Sun God at the temple. He was an inquisitive gnome who asked me a lot about this and that. He was very curious about why the Sun God disappeared, as well as the circumstances of the Gods...”
“So, why did the Sun God disappear?” Tiyo suddenly asked.
The priest chuckled.
“We humans will never know the stories of the Gods in exact detail. It was passed down since a long time ago that the Sun God had fallen into a deep slumber, and the reason why he fell into a deep slumber was that some problem surfaced after a fight between the Gods in the past.”
“There was a fight between the Gods?” Tiyo asked.
“That’s right. The reason was not passed down, but there was a record of a conflict between the Gods. In the aftermath, a God died, while another became a Fallen God, and a God fell asleep.”
Crockta opened his eyes wide.
The priest said that one God died, another became a Fallen God, and one fell asleep. Wasn’t the Fallen God the Ashen God?
Crockta asked, “What kind of Gods are they?”
The priest laughed, “Haha, you only ask questions that are hard to answer. Allow me to tell you in advance, but these are myths passed down since ancient times, and they are not clear records. I have to tell you that before I continue.”
“It’s fine.”
“Naturally, the Sun God was the God that fell into a slumber; whereas the Fallen God was known as the Ashen God. Now, no one remembers what kind of Gods they were, or what kind of power they possessed.”
“...!”
The Ashen God. A system that created Elder Lord, connecting this place to Earth, and was plotting some sort of conspiracy.
When she fell, one God died while another God fell asleep. There was definitely a relationship between the Ashen God and the Sun God.
Their journey of finding Hedoro was gradually being connected with the answers to the world that Crockta wanted to find.
Crockta asked again, “Then, the God that died was...?”
“Ahhh. That God was said to be someone like a father figure, and at the same time, a mother figure to the Sun God. That God was...”
The priest pondered with his eyes looking up, and answered, “The Star.”
***
“There are many stars in the sky.” Yoo Jae-Han murmured.
He was sitting on the beach looking up at the sky. Although it was night, there were still a lot of young people roaming around the white sand beach. Occasionally, they would throw stones at the sea surface, laughing while crumpling beer cans.
“Imagine it.”
Suddenly, there was a voice. Yoo Jae-Han turned his head.
Before he knew it, a woman was sitting next to him. She was a woman with exceptionally white skin and bright gray hair. It was a unique appearance, but because she hid in the darkness of the night while wearing a hat, the eyes of those around did not notice her.
She was the Ashen God.
“The sight of stars disappearing from the sky,” she said.
“That’s horrible.”
“I have been watching it all the time.”
“...”
Yoo Jae-Han laughed, “That’s even more horrible.”
“Since I came to this world... It’s nice to not have to see things like that... But looking at the stars brings back memories of the despair of that time.”
“Do you want to drink some beer?”
“It’s fine.”
“I don’t usually offer people drinks.”
“You offered it to Jung Yi-An, didn’t you?” She rebutted.
“I mean to say that I only offer drinks to you and Yi-An.”
She rummaged through the sand on the beach with her hands.
Yoo Jae-Han asked, “How’s your plan going?”
“It’s getting by.”
“What about your influence?”
“The achievement points keep increasing. It’s thanks to Crockta, Rommel, and Cainz’s hard work. The rankers are better than I thought.”
“I see...” Yoo Jae-Han smiled bitterly.
“They won’t know what they are actually doing.”
“Oh, there’s better news. Do you know? When Crockta stood forward alone, I got angry and raised the assimilation rate to the maximum. At that moment, I think my power was reflected on Crockta a little. So I was worried... The Gods thought that Crockta had some sort of connection to me, and they passed down an oracle ordering people to eliminate Crockta and the orcs.” The Ashen God babbled on.
Yoo Jae-Han kept quiet and listened to her.
“Maybe if they stick together properly this time, Crockta won’t stay put... So, I might really be able to achieve my plan when it is over. It’s finally beginning.”
“Yes, it’s already close.”
“I know, right?”
The Ashen God stood up and patted her buttocks.
“So, when that time comes, please tell Jung Yi-An I said thank you.”
Yoo Jae-Han, who was looking at the distant sea, replied, “Only if until then...I will if he’s still alive until then.”
“Well, that’s true. Only if he is still alive. Thinking about it like that, I feel sorry.”
“Really?” Yoo Jae-Han doubted his ears.
“Really.”
Yoo Jae-Han grinned and nodded.
The Ashen God continued, “By the way, Gordon asked me to convey his regards.”
“Is he doing fine?”
“Course he is.” She replied.
“Gordon is quite the fellow, too.”
Suddenly, firecrackers went off from the beach. The dazzling fireworks rose into the sky in a long curve, scattering with the sound of an explosion.
Looking at the sight of embers spreading over the night sky, the Ashen God spread her arms wide.
“It’s beautiful.”
***
While Rastard was away, Jakiro took a piece of something out of his pockets. It was a small piece of gold-colored metal.
When he gained the title of Slayer Maker and rose to the status of master craftsman, it was given to him by Solardo, who led the Golden Anvil tribe.
‘Just once. Keep in mind. If you are not ready, it will be wasted. I also wasted it meaninglessly. There are only a few master artisans in the history of the Golden Anvil tribe who have used this correctly.’
Most of them were used in vain. However, all those who used it correctly have made the best weapons that remained in history. It was a piece of metal given to the master blacksmiths of the Golden Anvil tribe, and it was also the reason why Jakiro’s tribe was called the Golden Anvil tribe.
It was the Golden Anvil piece. It was said that a God gifted an anvil to the tribe, and the tribe split it into pieces, handing it out to their master craftsman. It was gradually running out, and it would soon disappear into history.
However, fortunately, Jakiro was able to receive it at a young age. Moreover, he felt that now was the time to use it. Jakiro held it in his hands, and he dropped it on top of Ogre Slayer, which had melted completely into molten iron and lost its shape.
The color of the molten iron began to turn red. However, the piece did not completely melt. Jakiro began to work the bellows intensely. Gradually, the temperature increased. Sweat began to trickle down Jakiro’s face and all over his body. His hands moved faster.
Then, at some point, a huge wave of heat swooped over him.
“...!”
He stepped back and tumbled down on the floor. I looked at the scene in front of him blankly. It was burning. The blast furnace was literally burning.
Jakiro raised his eyes, and he saw something shining above the furnace. It was a red crystal. It was a brilliant flame that looked like a ball and a block of flame.
Jakiro knew what it was. It was the Eternal Fire.
The Eternal Fire that should have been at the altar above the smithy had now descended below the smithy. Moreover, the fire was incorporating its own heat to the molten metal of the Ogre Slayer.
The smithy and the entire temple began to heat up. The temperature rose. It was an unusual occurrence.
Through the ceiling, the sounds of running footsteps trembled from above ground. People were rushing out of the temple. People shouting loudly could also be heard.
Jakiro clenched his teeth and endured the heat. The Eternal Fire, the essence of the sun left behind by God. It was melting the Golden Anvil piece and Ogre Slayer.
Jakiro laughed. He burst into laughter wholeheartedly while immersed in a wave of scorching heat that felt like his whole body was burning. His intuition, which was basically akin to foresight, was not wrong.
He had already witnessed this scene. He knew it would be like this. It wasn’t his doing, the world gave him a push.
The Sun—the greatest flames that melted everything. No one would be able to withstand it, even if it was God.
Looking at the molten metal burning hot, Jakiro clenched his fist. The sword he was making would become the greatest masterpiece he had ever crafted, and the best weapon throughout the history of the Golden Anvil tribe.
The purpose of the sword was brief and clear. Slay the Gods. The sword that was born with the flames of the sun would be able to even kill Gods.