Chapter 6

Chapter 5

Item Creation

"Looking for level 130+ mages to join the Muvaide Ruins!"

"Looking for players to hunt in the outskirts of the Gray Forest! Level 103 warrior and level 96 cleric waiting!"

"Mass recruitment for the Forest Guardian Raid! High-level players, including a level 190 archer and a level 181 martial artist, are joining! No class or level restrictions! Everyone is welcome!"

When I logged in, I found myself standing in a village square.

Due to my conflict with the Yatan Cult, I no longer respawned at the Yatan Temple.

'Villain Village?'

This is a place I visited once before while completing Asur's quest.

Recalling the past, I frowned.

"I'll have to go back."

The monsters near Villain Village are all above level 100 and are aggressive, attacking first.

Players who come here are at least in the mid-80s and always form parties to hunt. It's a dangerous place where players below level 120 can't even venture out alone.

In the past, I wandered around alone, trying to find the cave at the northern end, and died countless times in this area. The memory of my boots and gauntlets breaking from the durability loss made me shudder.

"Of all places, why did I have to respawn here?"

I must have been a foolish god in my previous life. I insulted the Goddess of Fortune and, as punishment, had my memories erased and was exiled to the human world. Since then, I've had a life far from fortune.

'It must be true. I couldn't be this unlucky unless I directly wronged the Goddess of Fortune.'

I stood there, forehead pressed against the wall, grumbling about my past life for a while. But I couldn't stay like this forever, so I gathered my resolve.

"Let's go to another village first."

The most urgent thing is to level up. I want to get out of the minus levels as soon as possible. There's no reason to stay in a village where I can't hunt.

I spotted a carriage driver waiting for customers with his carriage parked in a corner of the square and approached him.

"Which is the safest village nearby?"

"Winshton Village. It's a place where many beginners visit. Would you like me to take you there?"

"How much?"

The driver held up one finger.

What a thief.

Indeed, carriages are a mode of transportation only the rich can afford. For a debt-ridden person like me, it's a luxury comparable to ordering a whole roasted chicken and eating it all in one meal!

But what can I do? It's impossible for me to move to another village on my own.

If I venture outside the village, I won't even be able to walk a few steps before dying.

I paid 1 silver with a pained expression.

The driver glared at me.

"What are you doing? It's 10 gold."

I feigned surprise as if I really didn't know.

"Wh-What? 10 gold? Not 10 silver, but 10 gold?!"

"Is this your first time riding a carriage? The basic fare in safe zones is 5 gold. In a place swarming with vicious monsters, we need to charge at least double to risk our lives. This is already a discount. Winshton is relatively close, so I'm only charging the basic fare."

"Are you trying to rip me off by saying it's a matter of life and death just for driving a carriage?"

"Tsk tsk, that's why beginners are no good. Do you even know that all the monsters around here attack humans on sight?"

"I do! And I also know that there are no monsters fast enough to keep up with the carriage's speed!"

The driver flinched. I hit the nail on the head.

He cleared his throat and tried to act nonchalant.

"Sure, the monsters around here are slow. But they know the terrain well and have a natural hunter's instinct, so you could be caught if you let your guard down."

Where are you getting this from?

"Just don't let your guard down."

"Hmm... then pay 9 gold."

Good. The price negotiation has started.

The basic rule of negotiation is to try to cut the price as much as possible first!

"10 silver."

"..."

"Excuse me?"

"..."

What's going on? Why isn't he saying anything?

His reaction is different from what I expected.

'10 silver is too cheap, so let's go for 8 gold,' would be the normal reaction, right? Then I would offer 20 silver, and he would counter with 7 gold. Next, I would offer 30 silver, and he would counter with 6 gold...

I planned to repeat this process until we settled around 2 gold.

But the driver ignored me, disrupting my plan.

"Are you not going to negotiate?"

"Who would negotiate with a thief like you? You shameless brat! There's a limit to how much you can haggle. You're asking for 10 silver when I said 9 gold? If I were you, I wouldn't even want to negotiate! Who would deal with a scoundrel like you unless they were blind?"

"How dare you speak to a customer like that! I can report you to the Carriage Drivers' Union and make you unemployed!"

"Go ahead and report me, then! Do you think the union will take your side? Get lost! You're a disgrace!"

In Partian, I had nearly maxed out my reputation with all the residents, so my aggressive negotiation style sometimes worked. Even if it didn't, I could laugh it off. But here, as a complete newcomer, they won't even deal with me.

This is a big problem. If I can't negotiate, I might not be able to ride the carriage. My current funds are only 3 gold and 11 silver.

During Asur's quest, I spent a lot of money on potions due to the extreme difficulty.

"Please, I beg of you... I have a sick old mother in Winshton Village... She's on her last days, and if her only son can't be there to see her off, it would be a tragic act of filial neglect... Please, have mercy and negotiate a bit."

I made a pitiful face and told a heart-wrenching story.

But the cold-hearted driver just snorted.

"Pathetic lies. You weren't planning to go to Winshton Village from the start, so why would I believe you now?"

"Damn, you're smarter than you look."

"What, what! You insolent brat!!"

There's no point in getting entangled with an impossible opponent. I turned red with anger and fled from the driver, who was chasing me like he wanted to eat me, and looked for other drivers.

But even if I negotiated carefully, it was impossible to get a ride for less than 3 gold. No matter how much I tried to evoke sympathy, the best I could get was 8 gold and 90 silver.

I couldn't help but feel frustrated by the stingy nature of Satisfy's residents, which was as bad as in modern society.

"What should I do?"

Am I doomed to spend my life in this isolated island called Villain Village, stuck at minus 3 levels?

"That can't be."

I have a way to earn money and level up simultaneously.

Item creation!

Creating items grants a certain amount of experience, and the items can be sold to the shop if they are of normal grade, or to players if they are of rare grade or higher, for profit.

I opened the skill window and first checked the information of the "Master Blacksmith's Technique" skill.

<Master Blacksmith's Technique>

Level: Master

Creates equipment items for which the creation method is known.

There is a certain probability of creating rare-grade items.

There is a low probability of creating epic-grade items.

There is a very low probability of creating unique-grade items.

*The effect of the Master skill increases all stats of the created item by 10%.

*When a rare-grade item is created, all stats permanently increase by +2, and reputation across the continent increases by +30.

*When an epic-grade item is created, all stats permanently increase by +4, and reputation across the continent increases by +80.

*When a unique-grade item is created, all stats permanently increase by +12, and reputation across the continent increases by +300.

"Amazing..."

According to the top-ranked blacksmith, his current blacksmithing skill is only at an intermediate level.

Despite creating thousands of items and reaching level 110, he barely made it to the intermediate level, lamenting how difficult it is to level up the creation skill.

However, I have the "Master Blacksmith's Technique" skill, which is a higher grade than the "Advanced Blacksmith's Technique" skill, already mastered.

If the top-ranked blacksmith knew of my existence, he would be so frustrated that he might quit the game.

'Comparing him to me, the greatness of a legendary profession becomes apparent.'

I then checked the information of the "Legendary Blacksmith's Technique" skill.

<Legendary Blacksmith's Technique>

Level: 1

Creates equipment items for which the creation method is known.

Can create equipment items using the "Legendary Blacksmith's Creation" skill.

There is a certain probability of creating rare to epic-grade items.

There is a low probability of creating unique-grade items.

There is a very low probability of creating legendary-grade items.

*All stats of the created item increase by 10%.

*When a rare-grade item is created, all stats permanently increase by +2, and reputation across the continent increases by +30.

*When an epic-grade item is created, all stats permanently increase by +4, and reputation across the continent increases by +80.

*When a unique-grade item is created, all stats permanently increase by +12, and reputation across the continent increases by +300.

*When a legendary-grade item is created, all stats permanently increase by +25, and reputation across the continent increases by +1,000.

*Every 5 times a legendary-grade item is created, a special event occurs.

"Wow..."

The "Legendary Blacksmith's Technique" skill is only at level 1, yet it surpasses the "Master Blacksmith's Technique" skill, which is already at the master level. I can't help but be amazed.

Excited, I immediately checked the "Legendary Blacksmith's Creation" skill.

<Legendary Blacksmith's Creation>

Every time the "Legendary Blacksmith's Technique" skill level increases by one, you can create 3 equipment item creation methods.

Currently, you can create 3/3 item creation methods.

*When an item created using this skill is produced, the creator's name is automatically engraved on the item.

"Create a creation method? What kind of process is this?"

It's hard to understand just from the description. I'll have to try it to see.

Without hesitation, I used the Master Blacksmith's Creation skill.

[What item would you like to create?]

I think the most important item is a weapon. A good weapon can make fast hunting possible, which directly leads to rapid leveling.

Among weapons, the best is undoubtedly a greatsword.

Thick, large, and beautiful...

Isn't a greatsword the ultimate dream of a man, capable of sh