Overgeared

by Park Saenal

  I laughed like a madman but he still saw me as a hero? This meant that Smith’s affinity with me was at the maximum. While it was true that I had escaped from the minus level, raised my affinity with two quests, and earned a reputation in Bairan Village of over 200, Smith’s attitude towards me was still overly flattering.

  ‘Even if my title has the attribute of being easily acknowledged…’

  I met Smith’s eyes, causing him to lower his gaze. This was the attitude of a student in the presence of his master!

  ‘Is this the effect of the dignity stat? It’s only at 10 points at the moment, but is it already having an effect?’

  It was possible, considering that Smith’s level wasn’t very high.

  ‘It might be different with high ranking NPCs. However, dignity seems to have an effect on normal NPCs, even with the number of points in it isn’t high.’

  I never imagined that his attitude would change so much in a day. It was an excitement beyond my current excitement.

  ‘…First, let’s calm down. Let’s calm down and try to figure out how the stat points work.’

  I worried about it for a moment. Over the past few days, hadn’t I acted in an impromptu manner without thinking deeply? Now that the situation was getting better, I needed to be more cautious. It felt like numerous threads were tangled in front of me that could be ruined with my rash behavior.

  ‘I already have a lot of stats at level 1, so there is absolutely no reason to distribute my stat points hastily.’

  I thought about the most important thing to me right now. It was…

  “Money!”

  Yes, money. I needed to make enough money in order to pay for the carriage to move between villages. Smith flinched as I suddenly shouted. I cut straight to the point,

  “Didn’t I say it when I first visited your smithy? I want to make and sell high-demand items that will make me as much profit as possible. What is the most appropriate item?”

  Smith pointed to a place where arrows were displayed.

  “This one.”

  An arrow?

  Unlike other equipment, arrows were consumables, so the price of it was naturally cheaper. No matter how profitable it was, if the sale price was low, it meant that I had to sell a lot of volume. My spirit deflated.

  Smith read my expression and explained,

  “This isn’t an ordinary arrow. It is a special arrow made by mixing a small amount of jaffa with steel, allowing it to ignore some of the enemy’s defense and cause damage.”

  Ignore defense!

  For archers who participated in the Guardian of the Forest raise, these arrows were essential. No, even if it were for players not participating in the raid, the demand would be high considering there were many golems living in the Grey Forest.

  “Jaffa…”

  Smith saw that I was interested and brought out a light purple mineral from the warehouse.

  “Jaffa is a mineral with a low oxygen content, making it easy to smelt, and is remarkably superior to iron. Its weakness is its durability and strength, making it unsuitable to create weapons with jaffa. However, when mixed with steel, the durability increases and the penetration power is maximized. It is normal for cavalry troops to be armed with jaffa-tipped spears.

  “It must be expensive.”

  “It is two gold per kilogram. Even top-tier iron ore is just cheap stone in front of jaffa.”

  “Expensive… Then, how can you produce dozens of jaffa arrows?”

  “No, it isn’t expensive. Only a small amount of jaffa is needed to create the arrow. The production cost of a single jaffa arrow is three silver, but the sales price is fixed at six silver. It is double the profit. In addition, this village has a high demand for jaffa arrows. How about it, do you want to learn how to make it?”

  If this were yesterday, I would’ve nodded since I could gain a quick understanding through the appraisal skill. But I wasn’t the same. After receiving a recommendation for a suitable item, I needed to learn how to make it myself.

  “Show me the arrow for a moment.”

  Smith handed me the arrow and I used the appraisal skill.

  [Jaffa Arrow]

  Rating: Normal

  Attack Power: 20~26

  An arrow made by mixing a small amount of jaffa with steel.

  Due to the effect of combining jaffa with steel, it has extremely high penetration and ignores some of the enemy’s defense.

  Weight: 0.1

  [A hidden function doesn’t exist.]

  [You have grasped the Jaffa Arrow’s material composition, production method, and intentions of its creator.]

  [Your understanding of the Jaffa Arrow is now at 89%. You will be able to use the Jaffa Arrow skillfully.]

  “……”

  Unfortunately, I couldn’t reach 100% understanding after using appraisal on the Jaffa Arrow. Therefore, the production method wasn’t added.

  ‘This arrow…’

  Smith looked at me staring at the arrow and asked again,

  “Do you want to learn how to make the Jaffa Arrow?”

  ‘If I use the item disassembly skill, I might be able to raise the remaining 11%… But one arrow is six silver?’

  I would need to pay six silver if I wanted to disassemble it. I couldn’t afford that type of luxury.

  ‘It isn’t too bad to learn how to make it on my own.’

  I nodded in agreement. “I will learn how to make it.”

  Smith was happy. “I thought so. First, shall we learn how to smelt the mineral?”

  Smith began with the structure of the old furnace commonly used by all blacksmiths in Satisfy, explaining in detail the elements necessary for the smelting process and the principles behind the process.

  Blacksmith jargon and chemical terms sometimes popped up, but I didn’t feel confused. While Satisfy pursued realism, it was still a game so the barrier wasn’t set high in order to allow more people to enjoy it. The blacksmith knowledge required by Satisfy was as easy to understand as the other classes.

  In addition, I came prepared. I had been unable to connect after receiving a penalty for dying twice in one day, so I used the spare time to research blacksmithing. Smith’s lecture wasn’t much different from the smelting method I read about. Thus, it was easier to understand.

  I realized the effect of preparation and review. It was fortunate that one of my friends from middle school had taught me the ‘preparation and review’ method.

  ‘But that guy wasn’t able to escape the second place ranking all through high school.’

  He was a pitiful guy who maintained his second rank in high school, never being able to cross the wall of a classmate who claimed to ‘only study in class.’

  On the day the results of the second semester final examinations were released, I was able to understand the feelings of my friend who stood on the rooftop and yelled ‘Why did a genius have to be born in the same year as me?’

  There were many talented people that I could never catch up to, no matter how hard I tried.

  ‘But now things are different.’

  I got a legendary class. This time, I would be the outstanding person. I would achieve as much as possible.

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 17

  I smiled as Smith finished the lecture.

  “Is it difficult to understand with just words? If so, then I will demonstrate it for you.”

  Smith poured in a certain ratio of iron, coke, and limestone before starting the blast furnace. (The fuel Coke, not the drink/drug)

  As Smith’s face and upper body became soaked with sweat, he controlled the hot wind coming from the bottom of the furnace and started burning the coke. At this point, the iron ore was gradually turned into molten iron due to Smith’s reduction interactions.

  The limestone reacted by separating the iron and into impurities to form slag. Smith alternated between filtering out the slag and maintaining the heat. The black debris gradually disappeared through holes at the bo
ttom of the furnace, while the molten iron became increasingly orange.

  When the iron solidified, it would become pig iron. Pig iron was very hard and brittle because it contained a lot of carbon. It wasn’t suitable for the crafting of weapons. In order to make it suitable for weaponsmithing, it was necessary to reduce the carbon content through a process called steelmaking.

  Smith, who was quietly immersed in his task, asked, “Do you understand what smelting is now?”

  I nodded and Smith sent me a satisfied expression.

  “Now that you’ve seen it, jaffa is easy to smelt. The jaffa ores have fewer impurities and a lower melting point, making it easier to refine than iron ore. The ratio of jaffa to coke to limestone is 12:2:4.”

  [Mineral Smelting]

  Difficulty: E

  Mineral smelting is the basis of production. Smith gives this job to you, who is dreaming of becoming a blacksmith.

  Quest Clear Conditions: Succeed in smelting the jaffa ore.

  Quest Reward: Affinity with Smith +30, experience +80, 300g of smelted jaffa.

  Quest Failure: It isn’t easy to perfectly smelt minerals in the beginning.

  Smith will understand if you fail.

  There was no reason to refuse. I accepted the quest.

  Smith prepared the furnace for me and added, “Don’t be bothered if you fail. It might’ve looked easy as you watched me smelt it, but in reality, it’s actually quite hard.”

  I placed the ingredients in the furnace and put my feet on the bellows. At that moment, a translucent arrow appeared and pointed to one side of the bellows.

  ‘Is this the class compensation effect?’

  I placed my foot exactly where the arrow pointed. The arrow pointed in another direction, where I aimed the bellows at. The arrow repeatedly blinked, giving me the appropriate tempo. In the end, I managed to heat up the furnace in five minutes, unlike Smith who barely managed it in 10 minutes.

  Then a notification window popped up.

  [You can sense the temperature due to the rapid changes in ambient temperature. 30 degrees. 31 degrees. 31.5 degrees. 32…]

  The strange, yet unwelcome voice was heard in my mind.

  [Pagma’s descendant is sensitive to changes in temperature. If there is a furnace in the vicinity, you can accurately measure the temperature inside the furnace.

  I placed my hand over the furnace.

  [700 degrees. 720 degrees. 740…]

  The constantly rising temperature was displayed in the continuously updating notification window.

  ‘1,000 degrees.’

  Iron ore was said to be suitable for smelting between temperatures of 1,150~1,250 degrees Celsius, but jaffa was suitable at around 950~1,000 degrees. As soon as the notification window read 1,000 degrees, I no longer needed to put effort into increasing the temperature.

  The jaffa slowly melted down. Compared to iron ore, jaffa had a lower concentration of impurities, so its orange glow was strong from the beginning. I immersed myself in filtering out the impurities. The translucent arrow told me the direction to move the metal pipes, so I was able to do it more quickly and accurately than Smith.

  Smith, who was concerned about whether I was doing well or not, became shocked as he checked my work.

  “H-Heok! Cough! Cough cough!”

  Smith was so surprised that he had trouble breathing. After a while, Smith barely regained stability and asked me in a trembling voice, “How are you so skilled at smelting?”

  His complexion was so pale that I was worried the old man might fall down.

  “Do you have experience smelting? This wasn’t your first time?”

  “…It is my first time smelting…”

  Smith looked like he saw a ghost.

  “Huh… it is really ridiculous… This is a talent that can’t be represented. A person with no experience is better than his teacher. It’s like I’m dreaming. Are you the reincarnation of Pagma?”

  The term ‘reincarnation of Pagma’ was the common term of praise for especially talented blacksmiths. It was usually the best praise! Any blacksmith would explode with joy if they heard that they were Pagma’s reincarnation.

  However, I was different.

  ‘I’m not a reincarnation, but a descendant.’

  In the meantime, the high purity molten jaffa was completed.

  [Quest success!]

  Smith smiled warmly and said,

  “Absolutely wonderful! You are a great friend.”

  [Affinity with Smith has risen by 30.]

  [Experience has risen by 80.]

  [Your level has risen.]

  ‘Good! Level 2!’

  There was no greater joy than an easy level up. At one time, I was level 80. Now I was delighted at just reaching level 2. I was very worried about what would happen when my level reached the double digits.

  “Bring it here.”

  Smith poured the molten jaffa into the molten iron, mixing the two metals at a ratio of 1:12. Of course, this meant that for every single part of jaffa, there were 12 parts of iron. Smith placed the mixture in the furnace and started to heat it up again. He didn’t forget to mix it together. He mixed it a total of six times before finishing the process by pouring the molten solution into a mold that he had prepared.

  We would have to wait 40 minutes for the molten solution to harden inside the mold. Meanwhile, Smith handed me some jaffa that had already been completed.

  “This is the first time you’ve smelted metal, so I will give this to you as a memento.”

  [3 pieces of jaffa have been acquired.]

  One piece of jaffa weighed around 700 grams to 1 kilogram. 300 grams of jaffa were worth one gold, so it was a considerable reward for an E-grade quest.

  ‘Smith, this person is really great.’

  I was liking this blacksmith more and more. Smith approached with a big hammer and started hitting the mold that the molten solution was poured into. In the mold, the hardened molten iron appeared in the shape of a thick wire.

  Smith picked up the wire and placed it to one side, where there was another, smaller mold. He placed the wire on the mold and started hammering. After that was done, he used a grindstone to sharpen the edge.

  After some careful work, a typical arrowhead with a sharp end was completed. Although it was thick and heavy, the end was very sharp and could penetrate armor with no difficulty. The completed jaffa arrowhead was then secured to a pre-created arrow shaft.

  I watched the whole process from beginning to end, then a new notification window popped up.

  [Your understanding of the Jaffa Arrow is now at 100%. You will be able to use the Jaffa Arrow perfectly.]

  [You have learned how to make the Jaffa Arrow.]

  Smith asked me, “How is it? Can you make it?”

  “Yes.”

  Smith laughed heartily.

  “Answering without hesitation… What great confidence. Like any weapon, particularly in arrows, balance is important. You need to balance the feathers, the arrowhead, and the shaft… If the arrows are even a little bit out of balance, they won’t be able to fly as far as they can possibly go. It is very delicate work. Even so, can you really make it? Despite only watching the production process once?”

  “I can do it.”

  “Hoh… then I will trust you again.”

  [Create a Jaffa Arrow]

  Difficulty: D

  The process of mixing two metals is never easy. It requires delicacy to make an arrow. For this reason, it is hard for novice blacksmiths to create a Jaffa Arrow.

  But Smith trusts you and leaves you with the expensive materials.

  Quest Clear Conditions: Produce 100 Jaffa Arrows.

  Quest Reward: Affinity with Smith MAX, experience +300, 50 Jaffa Arrows.

  Quest Failure: Smith’s disappointment.

  * If the client is disappointed, you won’t be assigned any new missions for a period of time.

  Smith supported me by giving me 100 completed shafts and one kilogram o
f jaffa. I could also freely use the iron ore. This was all thanks to my incredibly high affinity with the blacksmith. If it were the previous me, I would’ve just accepted these materials.

  “I appreciate the courtesy, but I will make the shafts myself.”

  I returned the 100 arrow shafts, but Smith couldn’t understand my actions.

  “Why bother? If it is because you feel burdened, there is no need to worry.”

  Tsk tsk, so this was why he was just a beginner blacksmith.

  “Are you going to support me with the shafts every time I make an arrow?”

  “No, I can’t… Oh, so you will use this opportunity to learn how to make the shafts properly?”

  “That’s right. If possible, please support me with the materials required to make the shaft.”

  Smith shrugged and gave me some sturdy branches and good quality feathers. “I was so focused on the smelting and making of the arrowhead that I didn’t tell you how to make the shaft. I’ll teach you how to make the shaft now.”

  There were limits to how much a beginner blacksmith could teach me. I told him I would take care of it and pulled out a thick booklet from my inventory. The title was ‘List of Items Production Methods.’

  When I opened the book, I saw that four things were listed in the table of contents. They were the production methods of an axe, a pickaxe, the Jaffa Arrow, and ‘Failure’. It might be empty and simple now, but there will a day when this ‘List of Items Production Methods’ book will be filled up.

  I opened the page on how to make a Jaffa arrow and read it. The method of making the shaft was described in detail, complete with pictures and text. I read it and read it again for a while before closing the book.

  ‘Okay, I can do it.’

  I was a little tense since it was my first time making an item. No, I was more excited than tense. I started making the arrow shaft. First of all, I straightened the branches into a straight line. The badly bent branches were lightly seared and then straightened. I cut the branches to a regular length and cut the top (a U shaped groove where the arrow would be placed against the bowstring) of the shaft. Then I finished by pasting on feathers.

  One, two, three.

  As the number of completed shafts increased, my proficiency steadily grew. It was a great effect as it combined my high dexterity that enabled delicate work with the correction effect of my class.