The first thing I realized while looking at the Awakened Community was...
"I could have sold them for more?"
It was a feeling of regret regarding the prices.
From what I heard, my items were being evaluated highly beyond my expectations.
Of course, the fact that a goblin, which originally required two or three hits to fall, could be taken down in one hit was not simply about reducing the number of attacks.
Normally, one would have to engage in a fierce battle exchanging blows with the goblin.
If a goblin could be taken down in a single blow, one could quickly approach and stab it just once, and the goblin would fall immediately.
"What a shame..."
Well, it could not be helped.
I had just awakened as a Blacksmith today, and I did not know the market prices of the Awakened's weapons at all.
After finishing my meal like that...
"Ember, Forge of Time!"
RUMBLE-.
I entered my forge right away.
Although I had just been swinging a hammer right before eating...
To me, this hammering did not feel like labor at all.
Rather, it was fun, as if I were playing a game.
Just like when I first started as a Blacksmith in Final Gate.
However.
"There are only a few left now..."
I could see the iron ore piled up on one side of the forge running out.
Even if I made weapons with the remaining iron ore, it would be two or three at most.
If I ran out of iron ore like this, my precious source of funds would be blocked.
"Ah, cannot I just disassemble things from outside?"
I quickly came up with a method.
I thought I could just bring useless items from outside and disassemble them, or buy raw materials and disassemble them, but...
It is impossible.
"Why?"
The master of the 'Forge of Time' can only handle 'Items'.
Objects that have not been judged as items cannot be designated as targets.
Unfortunately, my plan fell apart with Ember's explanation.
Of course, if only items could be designated as targets for the skill, there was no point in buying iron ingots from outside.
"Then do I have to buy items from the exchange?"
This was also problematic.
Everything monsters dropped was finished products.
When monsters fell, they turned into mana and scattered, so no materials or anything of the sort were left behind.
Therefore, I would have to buy equipment, disassemble it, and then make something again with those items.
It was hard to leave a margin if I made items that way.
While I was troubled like that...
If you need a supply of materials, I recommend leveling up your unique ability.
"Level up?"
Ember's advice was heard.
Leveling up the 'Forge of Time'.
I thought my ability was just this small forge, but I did not know there was such a thing.
However, what surprised me was what came next.
Currently, the 'Forge of Time' is at Level 1.
If you raise the level here, additional open areas, the 'Blacksmith's Mine' and the 'Blacksmith's Forest', will be generated.
"Wait, Blacksmith's Mine? Does that mean I can mine ore there?"
-Of course.
Blacksmith's Mine.
To think I could mine ore there.
Then it meant I could gather materials myself, make items, and sell them.
In other words, did that not mean I could make and sell items without worrying about the cost of raw materials!
"Then I should do it right away!"
At this, with anticipation, I tried to raise the level of the 'Forge of Time' immediately, but...
-Materials are required.
"Materials?"
-To raise the level of the 'Forge of Time', one 'Lowest-grade Mana Stone' is needed.
-An unexpected material was needed.
A mana stone.
I knew what that was.
Because the main source of income for the Awakened when they hunted monsters was mana stones.
Rightly so, the uses of mana stones were incredibly diverse.
Awakened sometimes used mana stones when using their abilities or skills, and recently, mana stones were being researched as a new energy source to light up the future.
Anyway, as a Blacksmith, I could not just go out right now, hunt monsters, and pick up mana stones.
Inevitably, when I opened the exchange and searched for lowest-grade mana stones...
"O-One million won?!"
A mere lowest-grade mana stone was selling for a whopping one million won.
For me right now, it was money I could sufficiently afford, but for an ordinary citizen like me, buying a one million won mana stone was by no means an easy matter.
However, it was not like I could not buy it either.
That was because...
'Mine!'
Because of the newly opened area.
The Blacksmith's Mine.
Thinking about the future, that mine was essential to me.
"Right, this is an investment!"
Mana stones were expensive, but if I could steadily obtain iron ore, I could leave a much larger profit than buying items from the exchange, disassembling them, and crafting them.
Also, I could not just keep making level 1 weapons forever, right?
I needed to grow too.
To do so, investment was essential.
Having thought so, I...
[ You have purchased a lowest-grade mana stone. ]
I made a big decision and bought the mana stone.
One million won slipped straight out of my bank account, but thinking of the even greater amount of money that would come in later, I squeezed my eyes shut, placed my hand on the wall of the forge, and...
[ Would you like to raise the level of 'Forge of Time Lv 1'? ]
[ Y / N ]
"Yes!"
I shouted my consent.
That moment.
FLASH!
The lowest-grade mana stone in my hand emitted a bright light.
Simultaneously, one side of the forge's wall began to tremble.
"Uwaaat!"
I had expected some kind of anomaly, but as the vibration intensified, even I could not help but be surprised.
Surely this anomaly would not affect my studio apartment outside.
Lightly ignoring such worries.
RUMBLE!
The center of the forge's wall collapsed.
And what was visible was...
"A door?"
Yes.
It was a door.
As the door was generated, the short but intense vibration ended, and...
[ Forge of Time has reached Lv 2. ]
[ New spaces have been opened. ]
[ 1. Blacksmith's Mine ]
[ 2. Blacksmith's Forest ]
System messages popped up before my eyes.
It was a little disappointing that no changes occurred other than a new door appearing in the forge, but...
Was not the mine the important thing right now?
At this, swallowing hard, I carefully entered the door.
I was nervous because the door looked dark, but fortunately, something like a small lamp was illuminating the inside.
As I entered the door like that, a fork with two paths appeared.
The fork was incredibly short, and right in front were respective doors...
"So this is the mine, and this is the forest."
-That is correct.
-I could immediately tell their identities.
On the left was an entrance made of piled-up stones.
And on the right was an entrance made of standing trees.
I was curious about the mine, but honestly, it was obvious what kind of place the mine would be.
Unable to contain my curiosity, I first entered through the wooden door.
[ Blacksmith's Forest Lv 1 ]
And the place that appeared was...
"...It is an actual forest."
It was literally a forest.
A forest of a scale hard to believe was connected to my studio apartment.
Filled with dense trees, it was literally a forest.
Looking at that forest, I could feel anew the fact that this place was inside a subspace.
Because realistically, it was impossible for such a space to connect to my studio apartment.
Then, as I looked around...
[ Worn-out Axe ]
Type: Axe
Rank: F
Restrictions: Level 1 or higher
Description: An axe worn and rusted by the traces of time.
Attack Power: 5
Abilities: Logging Lv 1
I saw an axe.
A level 1 F-rank axe.
It was truly the worst item, but I had no choice for now.
At least the axe had the 'Logging' ability attached, so I thought I might be able to chop down at least one tree...
THWACK!
I swung the axe toward the closest tree I saw.
I was worried because it was an F-rank axe, but fortunately, it did not break and properly embedded itself into the surface of the tree.
It was a little shallow, but I thought it could not be helped since it was an F-rank axe, and...
THWACK, THWACK, THWACK!
I continued to swing the axe.
It was hard, but it was also fun in its own way.
Because it was a new experience I had never had in reality.
Moreover, since the tree I chose was the thinnest tree in this forest, the tree was being chopped down quite quickly.
Like that, at the end...
"Heueup!"
The moment I swung the axe forcefully toward the surface of the tree that was more than half chopped.
CRACK!
It broke.
"Ah, man."
...Not the tree, but the axe I swung broke.
The only fortunate thing was that the axe fulfilled its role at the last moment.
THUD.
The small tree fell.
Even if it was small, it was an overwhelming size to carry alone, but...
-If it is about transporting materials, there is a 'Blacksmith's Bag' in the forge.
-By using it, you can transport materials comfortably.
Ember gave me a tip.
Nodding at this, I returned to the forge.
[ Blacksmith's Bag Lv 1 ]
A subspace expansion bag used by Blacksmiths to carry loads.
-Subspace Lv 1
-Expansion Lv 1
-As Ember said, a bag was hanging on the wall of the forge.
It was old and frayed, but the Subspace and Expansion skills were properly applied.
I roughly slung the bag over my shoulder, went to the forest, and tried putting the tree in...
SWOOSH.
"It works!"
Ignoring physical limits.
A single tree slipped right into the bag.
Even so, the weight did not make much difference.
Excited, I returned to the forge, took the tree out of the bag again, and placed it on the anvil.
After that...
[ You have successfully disassembled the small tree. ]
[ A lowest-grade wood has been created. ]
"It works!"
I disassembled the tree into wood, and...
[ Using the Crafting skill. ]
[ Please select an item to craft. ]
I immediately began crafting the next item.
A normal longsword?
Or a short spear?
There were many things I wanted to make, but what I was going to make now was already decided.
"An axe!"
Right now, the axe I was swinging in the forest had broken.
To proceed with logging again, I absolutely needed a high-quality axe.
Among the item entries I could craft, there were not only weapons for attack.
Logging axes, of course, and various daily necessities also existed.
[ Please select the materials. ]
The required materials were one wood and two iron ingots.
As I selected the materials...
[ Crafting begins. ]
Points immediately popped up above the materials.
Wood and iron ingots.
As I rhythmically struck the points that popped up above the two materials...
WOOOONG-.
The wood and iron ingots slowly began to merge.
The wood formed the shape of a long handle.
The iron ingot transformed into a sharp axe head.
After the two materials perfectly took their form, the final point that popped up, looking large and solid...
CLANG!!
As I forcefully shattered it...
[ Crafting complete. ]
[ Crafting Evaluation: S ]
[ You have acquired a 'Standard Logging Axe'. ]
I was able to complete the logging axe.
[ Standard Logging Axe ]
Type: Axe
Rank: S
Restrictions: Level 1 or higher
Description: A logging axe made using appropriate wood and iron ingots.
Attack Power: 27
Abilities: Logging Lv 1, Vigor Lv 1
The rank was to my liking too.
Compared to the attack power of the F-rank axe, it was a whopping five times.
Furthermore, an ability called 'Vigor' was additionally attached to it.
"Hehe, with this, I should be able to chop down trees much faster than before, right?"
With wood, the variety of items I could make increased significantly.
Even the logging axe I just made, if it were made entirely of iron, its weight would have been heavy, and its performance would have actually dropped.
Even aside from that, most types of daily necessities were made of wood.
A high-performance axe was an essential item for me.
However, the important thing was, as expected...
"Next!"
[ Using the Crafting skill. ]
[ Please select an item to craft. ]
"A pickaxe!"
[ Crafting begins. ]
A pickaxe.
Because I needed a pickaxe to mine iron ore, and I needed iron ore to make weapons to sell to the Awakened.
I, having completely disassembled the last two iron ores remaining in the forge...
CLANG!
I immediately began crafting a pickaxe.
Did the crafting skill recognize my fluttering heart?
This crafting as well...
[ Crafting complete. ]
[ Crafting Evaluation: S ]
[ You have acquired a 'Standard Pickaxe'. ]
I was smoothly able to create an S-rank pickaxe.