“Are you in love? You’re in love. After all, you can’t help it in front of them. It would be fun to know what you’re thinking.” Kang Shin-hyuk was in an unexpected meeting. Lee Manwoo stood behind him with an expression he had never seen before. It was so different that Shin-hyuk barely recognized him.
“Ah, sir. You’re here. I was nervous that you were actually a beautiful girl who was pretending to be a grandpa.”
“…Your attitude seems to be changing slowly these days.” Lee Manwoo’s eyes narrowed at Kang Shin-hyuk’s joke. He looked back at the girl staring at him. Wearing a school uniform from the Magic Department, with a blue tie representing the second grade, she had tanned brown skin and silver hair shining like the Milky Way. Her red eyes shone ominously. Kang Shin-hyuk had a faint memory of meeting this person before, in front of Biryong Hall.
“Hello, senior. Long time no see.”
“I remember you…what about your debt?” Debt? Kang Shin-hyuk recalled he must’ve said something like that at the time. It must’ve been when he was contemplating getting help from Baek in joining a club; she had passed by him.
“Thanks to Mr. Lee Manwoo here, I managed to get by without accumulating any debts.”
“In the end, you take more care of a craftsman with a hammer in hand than your granddaughter with no ability.”
“I’ve already said that doesn’t matter.” She spoke coldly as she stared at Lee Manwoo, but he quickly responded with a laugh. But wait, granddaughter? Before Kang Shin-hyuk could ask, she pushed on.
“My close grandfather.”
“Ah, your father was Korean if I remember correctly…”
“You’ve got a good memory. Are you interested in me?”
“Well…” He just recalled it by chance. She wasn’t interested in his answer, however, as she tapped at the desk near her for them to sit down. Kang Shin-hyuk gently smiled and sat down.
-Huh, there are so many foxes in the world.
‘This is normal, you know. Normal.’ Kang Shin-hyuk once again had to calm down the administrator before turning to Lee Manwoo.
“Is this the enchanter you mentioned?”
“You’re quick to notice.”
“The one that was kicked out.”
“Well…as you know, this is Lee Na-hee. I would bet you wouldn’t find a better enchanter her age.”
“I’m convinced the granddaughter of the Great Chief is a genius enchanter.”
“When I hear that from you, I feel like I’m getting ridiculed.” While Shin-hyuk and Lee Manwoo were acting close, Lee Na-hee looked at him suspiciously.
“Is he that great? Enough to make my grandfather pick up a hammer again?”
“No, I just thought of helping this guy a little. Also, call me teacher at school.”
“What kind of teacher are you?” Kang Shin-hyuk couldn’t help but smile as he watched this grandfather struggle in front of him. This was a normal relationship, not having an older granddaughter who called you grandpa in a childish voice and clung to you.
“So, anyway.” Lee Na-hee turned back to Shin-hyuk.
“He said you participated in the World Rookies Artifact Contest in July.”
“Yeah.”
“Then let’s take a look. I want to see with my own eyes how great your abilities are.” Kang Shin-hyuk looked at Lee Manwoo for confirmation. The old teacher nodded.
“We’ve talked about it before…you seem to be interested in creating artifacts with Alite, which doesn’t accept magic very well. So show off. Let this guy know that the world is big.”
“Well.” Kang Shin-hyuk nodded with a small groan. Given how he was talking, Lee Na-hee was as great of an enchanter as she was beautiful. If such a skilled enchanter helped him, it was no dream to create amazing artifacts. For Kang Shin-hyuk, that would be invaluable.
“The only issue is that the artifact you created uses Alite. Additional enchantments will be difficult as it repels mana…cooperation will be a problem.”
“Are you thinking about returning to the club? If you don’t like the way things are here, there’s no way.” Lee Manwoo laughed at his granddaughter’s harsh words.
“Who is the one that can’t read the situation?”
“I just wanted to see this cheeky child who hogged the attention of the Great Chief.”
“I don’t know anyone with such a strange nickname!”
“Grandpa, my grandfather, is rather shy.” Kang Shin-hyuk averted his eyes. It was normal for your personality to change when you were around family, he supposed. He felt like his understanding of Shin Eunah deepened.
“Here you are.”
“Ah.” He stepped forward to interrupt the conversation, the B- rank Perm’s Javelin in hand.
“Where did that come from?”
“Subspace artifact.” Kang Shin-hyuk thought such a lie would be alright after seeing Douglas Payne summon that sword out of thin air. Lee Na-hee made an even more ridiculous expression at his words, however.
“Grandpa, is this the heir to some big company?”
“No, but I’m getting the sense he’s sacrificed a lot.”
“Wow…” Lee Na-hee made an unpleasant fade. Was a misunderstanding being born before him?
“It’s not like that.
“I see. Yes, no, I believe you.”
“Wow…” Lee Na-hee’s expression only grew worse, giving him no room to correct the misunderstanding. He let out a sigh and handed the javelin.
“Examine it carefully.”
“Yeah, yeah. This is the work of your student…hmm…” Lee Na-hee accepted the spear with a laugh. The javelin, which emitted a subtle golden color, was of a simple design, but it had solid craftsmanship. As soon as he accepted the gear, her expression became serious as she examined it closely.
“Wow…huh…?” She looked over the weapon with sharp eyes, looking every bit the craftsman. Just one look in her sincere eyes was enough to tell; they were the same as her grandfather’s.
“No…wait a minute. What is this…” Her expression soon distorted, and she looked at Lee Manwoo, who, for his part, was looking like he was holding back laughter.
“Grandpa, you knew.”
“Of course I knew. Who do you think taught you emotional skills? Well done though. Now that you’ve figured it out on your own, I can’t teach you anymore about it.”
“Oh, you…this is nonsense.”
“Uh, hello?”
“Ridiculous, nonsense…” Kang Shin-hyuk had no idea what they were discussing amongst each other. He waved in front of them.
“What makes no sense?”
“You…” Lee Na-hee looked straight at him, a spark in her eye.
“It’s said you can’t handle mana…”
“Yeah? Why are you bringing that up?”
“I should’ve noticed then…no, it doesn’t make any sense. You’re the Rookie King, right? I thought I was dealing with mana now. Ahhh…” Lee Na-hee put the spear down and rubbed her head. He wondered if there was some sort of effect on the javelin he hadn’t noticed, but she exploded before he could consider it.
“You still can’t handle mana, right?!”
“Yeah.”
“I thought as much, I can’t feel any mana in it.”
“Yeah…ah? Is that not because it’s made of Alite?”
“Alite resists mana which makes it harder to work with, but all artifacts in the world must have mana. Even ones made of Alite. But this artifact has no mana!” She yelled at him.
“Aren’t all artifacts made with metallurgy alone like that?”
“No, artifacts made my metallurgy still have mana too. It is extremely unusual for it to have no mana despite being an artifact.” Lee Manwoo shrugged and offered an explanation. Kang Shin-hyuk felt like smacking himself with a hammer as he listened. That was why he was so amazed at the beginning.
“There are no such artifacts in the world, other than what you’ve made. These miraculous artifacts with an unknown energy…” Lee Na-hee paused.
“If you can add enchantments with mana to it…it would become a multiple enchantment, not a reinforcement. It’s like a bicycle versus a unicycle, understand?”
“Kind of, yeah.”
“Grandpa, be quiet. Kang Shin-hyuk, right? Listen carefully. With your abilities, you can create artifacts that challenge the realm of gods. Can you imagine that?” It shouldn’t have surprised him all that much, given the reputation Anvil had built up before.
-I mentioned blacksmiths who deal with spiritual power are very valuable.
-I’m sure you’re a blacksmith with the greatest potential in the world. No, in the Hero Universe.
‘Okay, okay, stop praising me. I feel so dizzy I could die.’
“You.” Lee Na-hee grabbed his hand, causing him to stop. He could feel the hard calluses on her palms, which had seemed so small and soft at a glance.
“Do it with me.”
“Huh?!”
“Calm down, granddaughter. He’s not a reasonable guy.”
“No, not that!” Because of her excitement, she had omitted some pretty important words. She gripped his hand even harder.
“Make an artifact with me!” Lee Na-hee shouted at him in a sincere voice.
“Yes.” Shin-hyuk had no reason to refuse. He could tell Lee Manwoo was smiling from behind him. No doubt, he had expected this since the beginning.
“Then let’s start right now.”
And so, his first collaboration with an enchanter began.