Chapter 4

Chapter 4

After the exam, Se-Hoon immediately visited the infirmary and the doctor treated his wound.

“This is minor enough that it shouldn’t leave a scar. I’ll begin the treatment.”

A greenish glow emanated from the doctor’s hand, covering Se-Hoon’s wound on his right hand. Moments later, the wound disappeared completely.

So this really is the past.

The scarred, cut-up hands were gone, replaced by pale white hands with only a few calluses. He was sad to see the proof of decades of hard work gone, but a part of him was happy. Before his regression, his hands were in such bad shape that they often got in the way during smelting.

I’m going to have to take a little more care this time.

The injuries on his hands had been mostly from the trials and errors he had gone through during forging, so things should be different now that he had memories of his pre-regression experiences. He walked out of the infirmary, his mind racing as he browsed through his memories, contemplating how he should move forward from here.

“Are you okay?” asked In-Cheol, who was waiting outside the infirmary.

“Ah, yes. I’m fine.”

“Good to hear. There’s a saying that scars are badges of honor, but having too much of anything can be burdensome.”

“Yes.”

In-Cheol conversed with Se-Hoon in a friendly manner, as if the Five-Flame Sword had impressed him. However, there seemed to be other motives beyond that.

An offer for recruitment... no, he doesn’t seem like that kind of person.

For some reason, the faces of those who were deeply entangled in power struggles seemed to have a greasy, oily look to them. But in front of him, Se-Hoon saw only the hot, fiery temperament of a blacksmith who was dedicated to honing his skills.

Is he going to ask me to become his disciple or something along those lines?

This would be an incredible offer if he were an ordinary trainee, but Se-Hoon was reluctant, as he had risen to a higher position than In-Cheol before his regression.

As Se-Hoon pondered how to address this situation, In-Cheol spoke up, setting the mood.

“Hey, do you know the process of selecting the honor student of a college for incoming students at Babel Academy?”

Se-Hoon fumbled through his memories in response to In-Cheol’s question.

“To my understanding, the results from the additional test taken in each college are compared to determine the honor student.”

Babel Academy divided its students into three colleges: Aqar Quf, a college focusing on combat; Ur, a college focusing on support; and Borsippa, a college focusing on technical skills. And within each college, there were dozens of departments tailored to the students’ aptitudes. The entrance exam Se-Hoon had taken earlier was for the Department of Blacksmithing of the College of Borsippa.

“That’s right. Only the top two students from each department will participate in the additional test. That means it will be even more competitive than the test today.”

After explaining the structure of Babel Academy, In-Cheol sighed as if he wasn't sure if he should say what he wanted to say.

“Though it’s a bit embarrassing for me to say this with my own mouth, the Department of Blacksmithing hasn't had an honor student in twelve years. And so, our budget has been shrinking year after year.”

“...”

“What’s even worse is that as word of our situation spreads, the quality of applicants drops further. It’s a vicious cycle, and it’s also the reality of the Department of Blacksmithing.”

As he ranted on and on, Se-Hoon showed a strange expression. The reason for it was that not only would the department slowly lose its foothold, but eight years from now, the Department of Blacksmithing would no longer exist.

The reason was that the department was simply not up to Babel Academy’s standards, and all it did was discredit the academy’s name.

Since then, several attempts had been made to bring back the department, but every single one fell through, which caused the department to be lost in history. It seemed like In-Cheol was somewhat anticipating that future.

“Hm. This story is for another time, but... in the end, there’s one thing I want to tell you.” In-Cheol looked at Se-Hoon with a determined expression on his face.

“If you want to succeed as a blacksmith, you should go to Vulcan Academy. The application period is already over, but I have connections that I can link you up with.”

“...”

Se-Hoon was surprised at In-Cheol’s suggestion.

Isn’t Vulcan Academy considered the top institution for nurturing blacksmiths?

Vulcan Academy’s rank was not that much higher than Babel’s. But once the Department of Blacksmithing in Babel was gone, Vulcan Academy would gain the reputation of toppling Babel Academy, which would allow it to reign supreme.

In-Cheol, despite being a professor at Babel Academy, was now suggesting that Se-Hoon should study at Vulcan Academy since it was clearly a better option when considering the potential growth Vulcan Academy’s education could bring him.

Is he thinking of transferring over to Vulcan Academy? No, that doesn’t go with his personality.

Se-Hoon could tell by the subtle regret in In-Cheol’s eyes that he wasn’t trying to be manipulative. He was genuinely offering guidance as a sunbae in the blacksmithing industry.[1]

...He seems like a decent person.

He hadn’t heard of In-Cheol before the regression, but he was a likable figure.

“Well, is there a need to do that?” Se-Hoon replied after organizing his thoughts.

“You have talent. To fully harness it, you should be in a better environment...”

“Choosing the best option is obviously ideal. But wouldn’t that only apply if Vulcan Academy was actually the best?”

“You’re right, but the fact is that Vulcan Academy has surpassed us and it will only get better in the future.”

In-Cheol was about to explain himself again, thinking that Se-Hoon didn’t really get what he meant, but Se-Hoon smiled wryly and took over the conversation.

“Why should I bother lowering my head when the academy I choose to enroll in will naturally become the best?”

“...”

Wherever he went, it would become the best. This sounded excessively arrogant, yet somehow, it didn’t feel like empty claims.

In-Cheol was left speechless for a moment. He had indeed hoped that Se-Hoon would decide to stay, but this reply surpassed his expectations.

The new students at Babel Academy would have on average C stats. My stats are...

The numbers were low enough to make him rightfully suspected of foul play in the entrance exam. And it was heartbreaking that the skill tab was practically empty, with only the Master of Flames skill.

Well, this should be a fair bargain considering I went back in time.

There’s a saying that money can't buy time; it's the one resource people can't replenish. Given that the only price he had to pay for returning to the past was starting over, this was actually a good deal.

Forget about the stats... let’s look at my unique skill.

[Blacksmith of Bonds] 『Unique』

[Bonds have the power to change one’s heart. By establishing a bond with a subject, you can extract it into a piece of ore.

*Bond Extraction: Extract ore from the subject you have established a bond with]

The explanation is still unhelpful. Unique skills were supposed to be more complex than common skills, but Blacksmith of Bonds was one of the hardest to understand. It explained how to extract bonds, but it didn't tell him how to form bonds with people in the first place, nor how to use the extracted bonds.

But it’s different this time.

With his right hand infused with mana, he reflected on his memories of In-Cheol. The first image that came to mind regarding him was that of a twisted, dead tree. It was a picture of weariness and emptiness.

But when In-Cheol had witnessed Se-Hoon’s talents and potential, he had fired up like never before. Although he looked powerless, there evidently was a spark inside In-Cheol’s heart. That was how he understood In-Cheol. His image of In-Cheol was based on nothing more than surface-level observations, but it was enough for now.

Se-Hoon’s hands faintly glowed as a material was formed. It was a light gray Fatestone with wavy patterns that looked more like a block of wood.

“Hm. This is decent.”

There was no flaw in this Fatestone, showing he had a decent understanding of In-Cheol. Smiling with satisfaction, he browsed through the status message.

[Fatestone - Flame-Infused Metal]

[Tier: Advanced] [Quality: Average]

[A metal infused with flame.

It has the same properties as wood.

*Flames can be stored within]

Is it a wood-like metal?

The outer texture felt like wood, but it was definitely iron when he tapped it. After examining the texture and properties, he had a rough idea of how to smelt it, but the issue was that the piece of ore was only about the size of two fingers.

This is the problem with level-one bonds. He clicked his tongue in frustration.

Its small size made it difficult to use as a main material, but mixing it with other materials made it difficult to preserve its characteristics. That was why he needed the right properties and materials to forge a proper weapon.

I don’t think I’ll be able to get those materials with my current stats... I’ll need to level up or get strong support from Babel Academy.

It was a bit disappointing, but time would take care of it, so there was no need to rush. Setting the Flame-Infused metal aside, Se-Hoon suddenly glanced down at his body.

I should also take a look at my Fatestone.

If his memories served him right, the name of the synesthetic mindscape skill that was imbued in the last dagger he made before the regression was ‘Return to Origin.’ Although he didn’t know the exact effect, given the name, there was a high probability that it was related to his regression.

If that kind of power is hidden in it, I should utilize it.

With his eyes lit up, he immediately placed his hands on his chest and began the Bond Extraction.

[Extracting bond from subject ‘Lee Se-Hoon’]

[The bond with the host is Lv. 1.]

“Huh?”

His eyes widened in surprise when he saw the number one in the bond level section since before the regression, it had always been blank.

No way...

Stunned, he looked down at the Fatestone in his hand. On the surface, it was a colorless ore, the same as before the regression. However, upon closer inspection, he could see the faintest hint of something else mixed within it.

Impurities... no, it feels different.

With his heart racing, he opened the status message immediately.

[Fatestone - Relationship-Null Metal]

[Tier: Normal] [Quality: Poor]

[An empty metal that holds nothing.

It has many impurities, so it’s much lower in strength than normal iron.]

His face turned sour when he read the information.

“It became even worse...”

The description used to say that the ore’s strength was slightly inferior to iron, but now it said that the metal was much worse.

To his dismay, there wasn’t a single piece of information about the regression in the status message. However, just as he was about to give up, an unexpected message appeared.

[The host’s bond has reached Lv. 1.]

[Skill ‘Bond Imprint’ has been added.]

1. Upperclassmen are referred to as sunbae in Korean. ☜