Shinhwa Workshop.
Located within Shinhwa Guild’s skyscraper in Gangnam, it was a place filled with scorching heat and countless people coming and going.
“Stack the equipment for One Heart Guild over here!”
“Where did you send the things that were here?”
“I’m sorry, but I belong to White Tiger Guild, and we need a little more of this delivery…….”
Apprentices carried the weapons made by the artisans.
Artisans pressured those apprentices.
Then there were the employees of other guilds who had come to receive deliveries from Shinhwa Workshop.
Shinhwa Workshop was a bustling place every single day.
It was there that a middle-aged man who could be called the master of the workshop appeared.
“Ahem, it’s lively today too.”
Arriving at work with an expensive brand-name coffee in one hand, Workshop Master Kim Jun-hwan swept his gaze arrogantly over the workshop.
People flinched and lowered their heads whenever his gaze fell upon them.
Whenever he saw that, the smile on Jun-hwan’s lips only deepened.
But his good mood lasted only briefly.
“That bastard Bang Se-jin still has not given up, has he? Tsk, what a fool. I said I would raise him properly, yet he could not even wait and left the workshop.”
The moment he thought of Se-jin, Jun-hwan’s expression soured.
It was only natural from Jun-hwan’s perspective.
Jun-hwan had immediately recognized Se-jin’s talent when he joined Shinhwa Workshop.
But rather than reveal that talent to the world, Jun-hwan chose to monopolize it for himself.
He locked Se-jin inside the workshop and made him produce only the items he wanted.
Then he presented them under his own name.
Jun-hwan had treated Se-jin not as a person, but as a tool. When Se-jin resisted, Jun-hwan became furious and dismissed him from the workshop.
“Tsk, the Guild Master has been asking whether there are any new items lately…… He is going to give up eventually, so he should hurry back to the workshop. It is not as if he has anywhere else to go besides this place.”
Still, as someone who had used Se-jin’s talent to line his own pockets, Jun-hwan deeply regretted Se-jin’s departure.
That was why he made an effort every day to persuade Se-jin through people or text messages to return to the workshop.
Of course, if Se-jin returned, Jun-hwan intended to work him like a tool again and have him produce equipment.
Then—
“B-Bang Se-jin? You came back!”
The workshop doors opened, revealing Se-jin’s familiar face.
Jun-hwan dropped the coffee cup in his hand, but paid it no heed as he rushed toward Se-jin.
“Ha ha ha! Yes, you made the right decision. There is nowhere that treats you as well as our workshop. Work under me for a few years, and you will become the next Workshop Master right away!”
Jun-hwan reached Se-jin in an instant, embraced him tightly, and fired off his words like a machine gun.
As he poured out nothing but pleasant words, Jun-hwan already seemed to think that Se-jin had rejoined the workshop.
But that was only Jun-hwan’s assumption.
“I apologize, Workshop Master, but although I came today to rejoin Shinhwa Workshop, I have no intention of working under you.”
“……What?”
Jun-hwan stared at Se-jin in disbelief after Se-jin lightly pushed away the man embracing him.
For years, Se-jin had worked at Shinhwa Workshop without once properly standing up to Jun-hwan. Only at the very end had he barely managed to say a single word.
It was only natural that Jun-hwan would be taken aback when such a Se-jin declared with a confident expression that he had no intention of working under him.
But as always, humans were creatures who became angrier when someone they considered beneath them rebelled.
Jun-hwan was no exception.
“You bastard. You do not even know how to repay the grace of being fed, clothed, and given a place to sleep!”
“Yes, and in exchange, every piece of equipment I made was stamped with your name, Workshop Master.”
“That was only because it had to bear my name to receive a proper price! How many times did I tell you that I would put your name on it after you worked for a few years?”
“When I was in my first year, when I was in my second year. I believe you said the same thing right up until just before I left.”
“……How dare you keep talking back when an elder is speaking!”
But Jun-hwan’s face turned bright red at Se-jin, who laid out nothing but truths.
It was a situation perfectly suited to the saying that the one who farted gets angry, but Jun-hwan, who had only ever experienced situations where he won, thought Se-jin would lower his head.
Whenever he shouted, artisans, apprentices, and even employees from other guilds all groveled before him.
However, Jun-hwan was mistaken about one thing.
“Yes, I have listened to your bullshit long enough. Shouldn’t an elder act like an elder before expecting to be treated like one?”
“……And who the hell are you? Security! What are you doing while an outsider wanders around inside the workshop?”
“Um…… Workshop Master, that is Choi Shin-hyeok, Chairman Choi Cheol-ho’s fourth grandson.”
“What?”
Jun-hwan’s loud voice only worked on those beneath him.
Jun-hwan had been about to throw out Shin-hyeok, who had bluntly dismissed his words as bullshit, but he froze in shock after learning Shin-hyeok’s identity.
“H-Ha ha, what brings you to a place that smells so strongly of sweat? If you needed any equipment, you only had to call and tell us.”
Shin-hyeok looked at Jun-hwan as though he were filth as Jun-hwan did more than merely look at him. As though his previous attitude had been a lie, he smiled like a fawning flatterer and rubbed his hands together.
“No. I have no business with someone who can only make equipment as high as Rare Grade.”
“……What do you mean, only? There are only a few people in our country who can reliably supply Rare Grade equipment! On top of that, I am an artisan who has made Rare+ Grade equipment on several occasions. Take that back!”
That struck a nerve with Jun-hwan.
It was only natural, since the remark sounded as though it denied his entire life.
But Shin-hyeok merely laughed at those words.
“Is that true, Se-jin?”
“No. The Rare+ Grade equipment was made by me. The Workshop Master merely took my work and registered it under his own name.”
“That is what he says, Workshop Master.”
“T-That is a lie! That bastard was kicked out of our workshop because he had no ability!”
Because Jun-hwan’s accomplishments were no different from Se-jin’s accomplishments.
Se-jin finished explaining with a frown as he recalled the past. Shin-hyeok smiled at Jun-hwan, who pointed at Se-jin and angrily disparaged him.
“Then let’s make a bet.”
“A bet?”
“You and Se-jin will compete one-on-one. You may each use materials you possess or materials in the workshop.”
“What will I get if I win?”
“I will overlook the misconduct we just discussed. On top of that, I will not interfere with however you choose to treat Se-jin.”
“If that is the case, then—”
“But if you lose, you must step down as Workshop Master. Se-jin will have to take that seat.”
“……What!”
Jun-hwan was about to nod eagerly at the reward he could obtain if he won the bet, but he could not hide his disbelief at the penalty for losing.
“The position of Workshop Master is decided directly by the Shinhwa Guild Master. Even if you are the fourth young master of Shinhwa Group, you do not have the right to decide that as you please!”
“Yes, that is right. But would it not be possible for someone higher than the Shinhwa Guild Master?”
“……Pardon?”
Jun-hwan stared at Shin-hyeok with a blank expression at his next words.
Then—
WHIRRRR—
The firmly shut doors of Shinhwa Workshop opened smoothly, and dozens of men in black suits filled the workshop.
“W-What is—”
“The Chairman is arriving. This is for the Chairman’s safety, so do not make me repeat myself.”
“C-Chief of Security…… Are you saying the Chairman himself has come here?”
Jun-hwan’s face turned pale when he recognized the Head of Security standing at the front of the men in suits.
Jun-hwan had met Choi In-ho, the Guild Master, only a few times.
It was only natural for his breath to catch when Choi Cheol-ho, someone far above even In-ho, had come in person.
But Choi Cheol-ho did not spare Jun-hwan a thought.
“So this is Shinhwa Workshop. I came here once when it was first established and have not visited since, but it seems my grandson will give me an interesting show.”
Instead, he leisurely looked around Shinhwa Workshop and acted as though it were his own sitting room.
In truth, it was no different from his own sitting room.
Even every foundation stone of Shinhwa Workshop had been built with Choi Cheol-ho’s money.
After ignoring Jun-hwan and looking around Shinhwa Workshop for quite some time, Choi Cheol-ho sat in the seat that had been prepared for him and waved a hand.
“Then let us begin. If you win, Workshop Master, Shinhwa Group will support this workshop with all its strength. But if, as my grandson says, you lose, you will have to step down as Workshop Master.”
“……Gulp!”
It was a competition personally sanctioned by Choi Cheol-ho.
As Jun-hwan swallowed dryly at that fact—
“I am confident.”
“Heh heh, perhaps because you are young, but I like that spirit. The conditions are simple. Each of you will make a single sword using materials from the workshop or materials you possess. It is fine if other artisans or apprentices assist you during the process.”
At Se-jin’s confident declaration, Choi Cheol-ho’s eyes gleamed as he suppressed a laugh.
And the conditions that followed were clearly unfavorable to Se-jin.
Shinhwa Workshop was under the thumb of its master, Jun-hwan.
That meant Jun-hwan knew exactly what materials were available and which artisans and apprentices were skilled.
Nevertheless, Se-jin did not lose his confidence.
“I do not need other artisans or apprentices. It is enough that Shin-hyeok has agreed to help me. In addition to the materials I brought, I will use the White Lotus Steel in the workshop.”
“Consecrated Steel, huh…… A Unique Grade material that has only appeared a few times, along with White Lotus Steel, a Rare Grade material…… It is a decent combination.”
Instead, Se-jin declared that he would accept help from Shin-hyeok alone, without the aid of other artisans or apprentices.
On top of that, he said he would use only Consecrated Steel and White Lotus Steel to make the sword.
“Insolent bastard. Then I will mix Thousand-Forged Steel with Low-Grade Cold Iron.”
“Hoho, Thousand-Forged Steel, also Unique Grade, along with Low-Grade Cold Iron, a Rare Grade material. Are you saying you will compete under the same conditions?”
“Yes. Chairman, I will show that brat exactly why I am the Workshop Master of Shinhwa Workshop.”
“This will be interesting. Then begin.”
Enraged by Se-jin’s nearly arrogant words, Jun-hwan also chose materials of the same grades as Se-jin’s.
Their qualities differed, but the grades of the materials themselves were the same.
Of course, unlike Se-jin, Jun-hwan intended to accept help from other artisans and apprentices.
Once Choi Cheol-ho confirmed that, he gave the signal to begin. Jun-hwan and Se-jin quickly moved to their respective stations.
The competition to decide the master of Shinhwa Workshop had begun.