The Game Difficulty
Is Crazy
When the morning sun rose, young Felix followed him to the forge.
The hot heat felt every time they passed through the alley and the sound of hammering were nice.
But what Felix liked the most was the look of admiration that the guild’s blacksmiths showed when they looked at the man.
The man was called a genius who would not be born twice on this land.
Even though he had not made a single sword yet, they praised him, saying he would surely complete a masterpiece that would rule the world.
—You brat. That’s not how you hammer iron. Watch closely.
Kkaang— Kkaang— Kkaang—
Looking up at the man’s broad shoulders and back, young Felix thought:
He wanted to become like this man, to live while receiving everyone’s admiration like this man.
Kkaang— Kkaang—
That day too, he came out to the forge and was hammering iron without meaning.
But what Felix saw was only the man’s increasingly thin back.
The man who once lifted him with one hand had become pitifully skinny.
It had been more than three days since he last saw his face.
But Felix did not force himself to check the man’s face either.
He just bit his lips while looking at the small back of the man who was obsessed with hammering.
At the same time, in one corner of his heart, he prayed desperately.
Please let the life of that endlessly shrinking man not be a wrong answer.
Time kept flowing, and the number of discarded blades kept increasing.
—Do you know what the guild people call him?!
—They say he’s an incompetent blacksmith who can’t even make one sword!
He did not answer.
He only silently raised the hammer and struck the lump of iron.
In the end, the man left behind not a single sword and was found cold on the forge floor.
Once, the man had said that when everything was over, Felix would understand him then, but Felix ended up never understanding those words.
—So this is what you wanted to show me with your entire life?
Muttering in front of the man’s shabby gravestone, Felix made a vow again.
That a master craftsman was nothing but a vain dream that could drive even a sane person mad.
That he himself would never devote his whole life to something like that and die meaninglessly.
From that day on, Felix turned his back on the man’s grave while holding a hammer.
He used the talent the man passed down to make money and became the best blacksmith in Wordsworth.
From time to time, he was mocked by colleagues as a guy who was crazy about money and lowered the dignity of blacksmiths.
But.
Those words sounded rather welcome.
Because it meant that life was flowing exactly as he had planned.
Felix was extremely satisfied with the life he had after cutting that man out of it.
“……”
However, the moment he saw a single sword placed on the shelf, all the lies he had built up until now completely shattered.
Felix slowly reached out his hand.
The rough hands of the blacksmith, trembling faintly, stroked the beautifully extended blade.
The cool sensation of the blade touching his fingertips made his head spin.
Any blacksmith could tell.
This sword went far beyond even the category of a masterpiece.
If there were a god of blacksmiths, even that god would not spare praise for this sword.
The fact that this outrageously beautiful sword was born from the hands of a failure who could not make even one sword in his entire life made his breath catch.
“……”
Only then did he understand why the man, showing his thin and small back, had hammered iron so quietly.
The man remembered as a failure had finally achieved his lifelong wish.
Moving his blurred vision up to the ceiling, Felix bit his lower lip.
My father was not a failure.
He was an immortal master craftsman who left behind a sword that history would remember.
Shouting that in his heart,
Felix cried silently.
“I want to get the sword back.”
It was what Felix said after staring at the ceiling and blinking for a long time.
Glen tilted his head and pointed at Einheria.
“This one?”
For a moment, he wondered if Felix was saying he wanted the sword his father made back.
“Not that one. I mean the sword I made for you, my lord.”
“Oh, that one…? Of course not.”
Why should he return a sword he paid a lot of money to have made?
And that too, a hero-grade sword.
“I beg you. I want to make a better sword for you than that one.”
At that moment, a clear light flashed briefly in Felix’s eyes.
“A new sword?”
“What I gave you is something I’m ashamed to even call a sword.”
“Ah.”
From the look of it, he seemed to have been deeply stimulated after seeing Gortrel’s sword.
He probably felt ashamed of the sword he gave Glen and planned to throw it into the furnace and make a new one.
That admirable heart was appreciated, but—
“Still no.”
“……”
“I’m leaving here today.”
Two swords and war supplies.
And the support forces from Haven City, including the Canary Knight Order, plus even holding back the Black Cult as a bonus.
Now that all his goals were achieved, Glen had no reason to stay here any longer.
“You’re leaving? Where are you going?!”
“To the battlefield?”
“What?”
“Didn’t you see the recruitment officer in the plaza? We’re at war with the demon race. I’m going there.”
“Y-you, my lord?”
Felix’s eyes widened.
Even if he was a noble, a boy who looked like he had just finished his coming-of-age ceremony going to the battlefield must have sounded strange.
“Anyway, I’m taking the sword you gave me. I understand that you want to give me a new sword because of your craftsman spirit, but…”
“Then I will follow you, my lord.”
“Huh?”
This time, Glen widened his eyes and looked at Felix.
“I will follow you and make a better sword for you!”
“No, why?”
“Because I want to make a true sword!”
In the end, Felix flattened himself on the floor and bowed his head.
“No, you can do that here. Do you really need to follow me? And according to rumors, you were originally a guy who lived moderately without caring about craftsman spirit and such.”
“The money-crazy blacksmith Felix died after meeting you, my lord.”
What kind of nonsense was this now?
As Glen was about to cut the conversation short and leave, Felix spoke in a low voice.
“After seeing the sword my father made, I wanted to create, with these hands, something that surpasses it.”
Felix looked at Impeus, which he had made, then lowered his eyes with a red face.
“Now that sword is my shame. I do not want to give a sword no different from shame to someone like you, my lord. So please give me another chance to make it. My lord!”
“…Do as you like.”
“M-my lord?”
“But I’m not returning the sword.”
Glen lifted Impeus, held it in a reverse grip, and stabbed it into the ground in front of Felix.
Then, looking down at the bewildered Felix, he spoke firmly.
“You said this sword is your shame, right? Then face it properly. Compare your disgrace and your father’s sword every day and push yourself. That’s how you make something better.”
“M-my lord! Thank you! Yes! Of course I will!”
With an expression as if he had been saved, Felix repeatedly bowed his head.
Looking down at him, Glen gave a bittersweet smile.
‘Gortrel’s son, huh…’
Bringing along one blacksmith wouldn’t cause any loss.
‘And who knows.’
This rough man might invest the talent he inherited from his father in the right direction and create an unbelievable sword.
Running a happy imagination about his decision, Glen nodded repeatedly.
After recruiting Gortrel’s son, the blacksmith Felix, Glen immediately sent him to Avenue Fortress.
Felix wanted to accompany him, but because of the issues with Magina and Romina, Glen decided to send him to the final destination in advance.
To wrap up his schedule in Haven, Glen went to the territorial warehouse of Haven to find the transport unit that had come from Avenue.
“Have you been well, young master!”
Derrick and the Gray Wolf Knights all saluted at once.
“Yes, well… I’ve been fine. For now.”
“That’s a relief. Hearing that something happened to you these past few days made us very uneasy.”
“Thank you for your concern, Sir Derrick. So, how is the transport mission going?”
“Yes. By today, high-quality weapons and armor have been shipped. The mission is currently in its final stage.”
The final stage of the transport mission.
It was probably the process of inspecting the condition of the shipped war supplies.
The transport unit did not have many people, yet the mission seemed to be progressing quite quickly.
‘Nice. Unlike that yellow chick knight order, they’re very capable.’
With a satisfied look, Glen nodded repeatedly.
However, the person Glen praised did not look very bright.
“What’s wrong, Sir Derrick? Is there a problem?”
“No. There is no issue with the mission. The condition of the shipped war supplies is also excellent. It’s just…”
Derrick looked at the transport wagons with worried eyes, and at the same time, Glen’s eyes shone sharply.
“It’s because there’s a limit to how much supplies can be transported, isn’t it?”
“Yes. That’s right. You told us not to worry, but I couldn’t help thinking about it.”
“I understand. Since nothing was explained, it’s only natural to be curious.”
Patting Derrick’s shoulder, Glen smiled gently.
“Young master…”
“Still, all I can say is to trust me completely.”
“Yes. Yes… I understand.”
Perhaps he thought Glen would explain something, but Derrick lowered his eyes with a disappointed look.
Still, he soon fixed his expression and quickly gave the next orders to the transport unit.
Before long, the transport unit loaded the shipped war supplies onto the last wagon and finished preparing to return to Avenue.
Even though ten transport wagons were filled with war supplies, there were still quite a lot of supplies left in the warehouse.
“As expected, we can’t take everything.”
Derrick muttered while looking around at the supplies left in the massive warehouse.
“It seems we’ll have to come back immediately after returning to Avenue.”
“There’s no need for that, Sir Derrick. Just focus on your assigned mission.”
Just because the transport mission ended did not mean the transport unit would have free time.
Once they returned to Avenue, they would have to redistribute personnel, reorganize supplies, and deploy them on the walls, among other additional tasks.
“If we form another transport unit in Avenue, the number of people preparing the defense will decrease.”
“Kuh…! Understood. It’s truly regrettable that there isn’t much time left until the demon race attacks.”
Derrick clenched his teeth.
“I told you, Sir Derrick. There’s no need to worry. You just need to lead the transport unit back to Avenue first. I’ll take care of everything else.”
“Young master… yourself?”
A question appeared in Derrick’s eyes, but seeing Glen’s outward smile, he gave up asking.
“Then I will see you in Avenue. Until then, I wish you safety.”
In the end, without hearing any explanation, Derrick left Haven leading the transport unit.
He would have to make a strange report to Jaber, saying that Glen would bring all the remaining supplies later, but that was not Glen’s concern.
‘Good luck, Derrick.’
Wishing the departing transport unit success, Glen entered the warehouse alone.
Then, walking toward the remaining supplies, he began to act.
“Alright, shall we sweep it all up?”
Stretching lightly, Glen opened his Lunatic Inventory with his usual sly smile.
