In the world of the Awakened, accessories were extremely precious.
To begin with, the kinds and number of accessories that dropped from monsters were limited, and among those, they also needed to have abilities that suited the wearer.
Naturally, their prices were expensive as well.
Even so, people with plenty of money somehow managed to wear every type of accessory they could.
“Are there no more accessories I can wear?”
This man, for instance.
A man known as one of the wealthiest among the Awakened.
Just like Golden Ash, who was also known as the Gold Ranker.
JINGLE.
His body was covered in accessories.
Earrings, necklaces, rings, bracelets, and so on.
Every accessory that could be worn was already on him.
There was even a system restriction stating that, in the case of accessories like rings that could be worn in multiples, only one ring would function.
Yet he ignored that and wore different earrings on both ears, while also putting rings on every finger.
It was a strategy known as ‘switching.’
It allowed him to choose and use the ability he needed at the necessary moment during battle.
That was the kind of man he was.
“If possible, I would like something related to defense or evasion.”
He was looking for another new accessory.
Because he had focused too much on offensive accessories, he was lacking defensive abilities.
As he refreshed the Exchange.
[ Three-tailed Fox Fur Scarf ]
A new item appeared on the Exchange.
“A scarf?”
A new item had appeared on the Exchange.
A fur scarf, of all things.
Even for him, who remembered every kind of Awakened item, it was an item name he was seeing for the first time.
That was why, before he even checked the item information.
[ You have purchased ‘Three-tailed Fox Fur Scarf’. ]
He bought the scarf.
It might have been a poor item, but items like this usually sold quickly.
And since it was an item he had never seen before, he thought it would still be fine as a collectible.
Then he checked the item information.
[ Three-tailed Fox Fur Scarf ]Form: NecklaceGrade: ARequirement: -Description: A warm fur scarf made using Three-tailed Fox Hide.Ability: Evasion Lv 1
“This is good.”
It was a scarf with the Evasion ability.
Although it was only a level 1 ability, it had exactly the ‘Evasion’ function he had wanted.
Moreover, what about its appearance?
Among Awakened items, there were many that made it difficult to dress stylishly.
The necklaces he was wearing were no exception.
There were necklaces shaped like monster eyeballs, necklaces strung with rough molars, and the like.
Their abilities were usable, but their appearances were thoroughly displeasing.
However.
“It is pretty, is it not?”
This was different.
Despite being a necklace with an Evasion ability, it looked rather luxurious.
Just like the scarves from the luxury stores he often visited.
On top of that, once he wore it, he could hide the ugly necklaces beneath it.
Satisfied by that, Golden Ash.
“As expected, I cannot hide my eye for quality.”
Unable to hide his delight, he took a selfie.
A selfie that fully showed off the Three-tailed Fox Fur Scarf.
Then, soon afterward.
[ Everyone, shall I show you something incredible? ]
He began uploading his selfie to the Awakened Community.
And after that.
-Brother, is that fur scarf with that outfit actually real? haha
-Huh? It is not just a scarf, but an item?
-Wow, is this not a revolution?
-Does an item like that exist? I have never seen one before.
-I heard Steel Hammer made that?!
Due to Golden Ash’s influence and the performance of the fur scarf.
The Awakened Community blazed with excitement.
***
It was not rare for my name to appear on the Awakened Community.
Without a single bit of exaggeration, every time I opened the community, I saw at least one post about the name ‘Steel Hammer’ or the Standard series.
But today, it was especially severe.
The reason was, of course.
“The reaction is this big?”
The Three-tailed Fox Fur Scarf I had listed.
That was the reason.
From what I could tell, a fairly famous Awakened had bought my fur scarf.
[ Everyone, shall I show you something incredible? ]
When I found and read the post, I saw a selfie uploaded by a man dressed up in all kinds of luxury goods and accessories, proudly showing off his shining gold tooth.
Sure enough, the man was wearing the scarf I had made.
“Ah, so there has never been an item with this kind of appearance until now.”
There was a reason people were so enthusiastic.
Since Awakened items were all dropped by monsters, it was difficult to expect them to have an aesthetic appearance.
But the scarf I had made looked beautiful and had an ability attached to it.
It was only natural that any Awakened who cared even a little about appearance would be enthusiastic.
It also proved that I could make not only weapons and armor, but accessories too.
However, the reason people were excited was not simply because of the scarf.
[ With this, it seems certain that Steel Hammer is a Blacksmith. ]
After the Standard series, equipment made from monster materials.
And now accessories too.
With this, it is certain that Steel Hammer is a Blacksmith, and that all the items he has listed on the Exchange so far were made by him personally.
-The world’s first Blacksmith Awakened. Wow.
-No one believed me when I said it before.
-Really? The first in the world?
-Is it not still ambiguous?
-What do you mean ambiguous? It is certain. Every item Steel Hammer has listed is a new item that has never appeared before. If he did not make them himself, it makes no sense.
[ Earlier, the West Sea Guild ]
They openly offered Steel Hammer membership on the community, but since there has been no news, I guess they got rejected? haha
-But if it were me, I would try to recruit him too. He is the world’s first Blacksmith.
-Or maybe they are still negotiating the contract terms.
-He might have already joined a guild, and the guild could be hiding it.
-If that were the case, he would not have listed the fur scarf on the Exchange. haha
-That is true. hehe;
People were convinced that Steel Hammer.
In other words, I was a Blacksmith.
Well, it was a natural result.
I might have somehow glossed over the Standard series, but now that I had even listed the Three-tailed Fox Fur Scarf.
I had no intention of hiding the fact that I was a Blacksmith anyway.
Even so, the reason I kept listing items was simple.
‘And what are they going to do about it?’
It did not matter at all.
To begin with, Steel Hammer itself was anonymous.
It was a nickname from Final Gate, but I had never revealed my real name or address in Final Gate.
In this situation, even if they realized I was a Blacksmith.
They had absolutely no way to find me.
Perhaps because of that.
“Wow, this is no joke.”
Messages were pouring into my inbox without pause.
Fair enough. In the current situation, messages were the only way to contact me.
Naturally, I was bound to be flooded with them.
Their types were extremely varied as well.
First.
[ I am Lee Hye-jin, standing director of the Gaon Guild. ]
[ This is the Typhoon Guild! Steel Hammer, would you consider joining us? ]
[ This is the Gate Research Institute. ]
[ From Taesung Corporation……. ]
There were scouting messages, as there had been before.
Only now, their number had increased tremendously.
Previously, among the massive guilds, I had only seen the West Sea and Han River Guilds.
Now, the Gaon Guild and Mir Guild were included as well.
And that was not all.
Taesung Corporation, known as Korea’s top conglomerate, and even the Gate Research Institute, which was leading research into Mana Stones as a new energy source, had contacted me.
There was even.
[ Greetings, Steel Hammer. My name is Robert Vance, and I am contacting you as an agent of the U.S. Federal Awakened Administration. ]
First, I would like to offer my sincere congratulations on Awakening as the world’s first Crafter.
I am contacting you because we wish to walk together with you on the path of a Crafter who will pioneer a new era.
If you accept, we will not only prepare a safe naturalization process for you, Steel Hammer, but also secure world-class crafting support and infrastructure…….
[ This is Zhang Wei, Deputy Guild Master of the Heavenly Gate Guild. ]
Our Heavenly Gate Guild, which stands closest to the heavens even within the great nation of China, holds your ability in high regard, Steel Hammer.
If you join us, we will support you with hundreds of millions in funding and tens of thousands of guards.
In addition…….
“……What is all this now?”
The U.S. Federal Awakened Administration.
And the Heavenly Gate Guild, known as the largest guild in China.
And that was not all.
Japan, Europe, India, and more.
Recruitment messages had arrived from various countries.
I would have to verify whether they were genuine, but looking at the detailed contents below, they did not seem to be joke messages.
I had already been surprised just by looking at the Han River Guild’s contract terms.
But even looking only at the basic terms written here, which had not yet been finalized in detail.
“Wow…….”
They were enough to make my jaw drop.
The contents were tempting enough that I almost wanted to contact them right away, but.
“No. Hold back. I have to hold back.”
I was already struggling just to adapt to my newly Awakened ability.
I could not imagine going overseas and trying to adapt there as well.
“Even if I do it, now is not the time.”
I needed time to adapt to my ability.
Also, the value of my ability was certain to skyrocket as time passed.
In such a situation, there was no reason for me to rush into belonging somewhere.
It was not as if I urgently needed any major support right now.
So I skipped over the scouting messages.
Next, as expected.
[ Steel Hammer, could you perhaps make a leather armor set? ]
There is wooden armor and iron armor, and there is cloth armor too, but you do not sell leather armor. Sob sob.
I will pay properly!
Please, I am begging you!
[ Is it possible to reserve an item? ]
The items you list on the Exchange sell too quickly, so I cannot buy them.
If reservations are possible, please put my name first!
[ Could you make more of that rabbit spear? ]
Please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please.
They were crafting commissions.
Fair enough. The number of items I could make was limited, but there were many people who wanted to buy them.
It was only natural that there would be many commissions.
I had been raising the prices accordingly, but raising them any higher would be difficult.
Even if I raised them further, they would sell immediately.
But I did not want to tarnish the name Steel Hammer by profiteering just because I was the only Blacksmith in the world.
Even now, my items were already priced higher than the items that had been sold before.
If possible, I intended to maintain the market price at about this level.
However, when I looked at the requests at the top, their contents were somewhat different from the previous ones.
[ Could you make one more scarf? ]
[ Can you put other abilities into a scarf, by any chance? ]
[ There is something I would like to commission regarding the Three-tailed Fox Fur Scarf. Please contact me. ]
…….
Requests related to scarves, rather than ordinary equipment, were being added.
The Three-tailed Fox Fur Scarf must have stood out quite a bit.
As I looked at them.
“Should I accept one?”
I became interested.
Since I had already gotten a taste for Special Crafting while making dedicated equipment for Serin.
I began choosing a commission, thinking that I might accept one from time to time and carry out a Special Commission.