Thumbs Up, Level Up

Chapter 36

Due to this classification system, and the fact that the price discrepancies among categories were high, an average Hunter like Ji-Cheok could only purchase items from the Common category. By contrast, those born with a titanium spoon in their mouth, like Ji-Han, had the option of buying from the Numbered and Limited categories. If their family had a good relationship with a certain workshop, they would even be able to get their hands on Custom items.

Of course, if the Awakened Craftsmen did not like a particular family member, no matter how much money was involved, there would be no Custom item for them. However, even if that was the case, they would still have better items than Hunters born with wooden spoons in their mouths. This just went to show how different the item categories were from each other: like heaven and earth.

‘No wonder people say money is everything…’?

It was something as simple as a piece of clothing, but Ji-Cheok felt a tsunami of emotions from Ji-Han’s suit. He could not believe that just by spending money, a person could become this impressive. Ji-Cheok’s belief that ‘money is everything’ grew ever stronger.

Sensing Ji-Cheok’s admiration, Ji-Han tilted his head and pointed to his sleeve garter.

"Oh, you must be interested in sleeve garter. You have a good eye."

As Ji-Han was about to take off his sleeve garter from his arm, Cheok-Liang in his spirit form urgently warned Ji-Cheok.

?Don't fall for temptation, Master! Although he has a great deal of affection toward Master, we still don’t know his motives. For now, I advise you to respectfully decline.?

“N—No... It’s okay,” said Ji-Cheok, as he waved his hand frantically.

“But, still…” replied Ji-Han.

“It’s really okay. Thank you for your offer.”

After a couple more rejections, Ji-Han finally gave up.

“If you need it, please tell me. I have a few more of these.”

Ji-Cheok realized that even if he had a suit like that, it would only attract thieves to his home. Still curious, nevertheless, he asked Ji-Han about the suit.

“I haven’t seen this suit in the catalog. Where did you get it?”

“Oh, a very close craftsman friend of mine made it for me.”

Ji-Cheok was not even surprised that the suit was a Custom item. There was a rumor that a Custom suit was worth more than five billion won. Although it was just a rumor, Ji-Cheok knew it was actually worth much more than that, because Custom items could not even be seen at auctions.

“Do you want me to recommend you to the craftsman?” Ji-Han asked.

?...It’s a tempting offer, but even if we get to know the craftsman, our war chest isn’t full enough at the moment. We need to take care of the internal affairs first, Master.?

Ji-Cheok knew that Cheok-Liang was talking about self-improvement when he said “internal affairs”.

“It’s okay for now, I’ll ask you later.” Ji-Cheok declined politely.

?Oh, leading Ji-Han on for the future, that is a great strategy Master! I will give you 1 Like!?

Ji-Cheok knew that Cheok-Liang was considered one of his skills and could not give out Likes, but still, it was the thought that counted.

Ji-Han continued to speak.

“I understand. Anyway, the renovation of the alchemy room that you asked for also went smoothly. The whole thing was originally built for a Hunter, so there wasn’t much to touch up.”

“Thank you, you always take such good care of me,” said Ji-Cheok.

“No, it should be me thanking you. I’ve always been indebted to you. By the way, please don’t do anything stupid to endanger your life in this first expedition. Dying for the sake of others is not worth it.”

This had been Ji-Han’s advice since the first meeting, and he had been repeating it ever since.

When Ji-Cheok planned the strategy for the expedition with the help of Cheok-Liang, everyone was surprised at how great it was. Yet, Ji-Han kept reminding him that he should not endanger his life, that the best Hunter is the one that is alive, and that there was nothing more useless than dying for someone else. Even the first rule of the party was ‘Survive on your own.’

Others would probably say that this rule was absurd, considering that teamwork was key on expeditions. But Ji-Han was very keen on this ideology. He would give up on other rules, but was very firm on this one.

“Hahaha, don’t worry about me. I think you need to worry about yourself,” Ji-Cheok replied carefreely.

Ji-Han shook his head.

“I understand. I will trust you this time,” Ji-Han said.

The conversation between Ji-Han and Ji-Cheok was interrupted by the foreman, who was calling for them. It seemed like the renovation of the Alchemy Room was complete.

* * *

After Ji-Han left the house, Ji-Cheok was the only person in the room.

?Ji-Han might be annoying and bothersome, but I think he can be of good use to us.?

“I think you are the first to say that about him,” Ji-Cheok said.

?Is that so??

“Yes, that just shows how much Jungha Group means in this country,” Ji-Cheok replied.

?Well, I don’t think he meant any harm. I’ve also checked that nothing suspicious has been installed during the renovation, Master.?

“When did you have time to do that?”

?Virtuous people may easily win people’s hearts, but on the other hand, they have the disadvantage of suspecting others less. No need to worry. Being suspicious of people is what a soldier like me should do. Do not worry about it, Master.?

Ji-Cheok wanted to take Cheok-Liang seriously, but it was hard due to his cute fennec form.

He stroked Cheok-Liang and opened the door to the underground Alchemy Room.

Creak.

A huge magic amplification circuit was on the floor surrounding the large cauldron used for alchemy, and various pieces of equipment necessary for alchemy were hung on the wall. The storage space was also sufficient for large amounts of materials for alchemy.

?Shall we try the trick that we’ve talked about, Master??

“You mean making my own Custom items,” replied Ji-Cheok, remembering the conversation earlier.

?Yes, it might be unlicensed, and some might say unethical, but we don’t need craftsmen or a large sum of money to do it. Let’s start with giving attributes to the weapons.?

Ji-Cheok used the skill [☆★◇◆ Scrooge's Alchemy ◇◆☆★].

* * *

Ding!

[Enchantment successful!]

[[Dual Swords of the Unknown Craftsman] have been changed to [Yin-Yang Swords of the Unknown Craftsman].]

Ji-Cheok had successfully given Light and Darkness attributes to the respective swords. Cheok-Liang was utterly amazed.

?Only Master could succeed on the first try! Congratulations.?

“It was your idea to practice enchanting a discarded weapon a few times before getting right into it. I just did what you told me to.”

Discarded weapons, also known as Junk, were weapons broken in battle. Most of the time, these kinds of weapons could not be repaired by craftsmen and thus got disposed of. There were even cases where the cost of disposal was higher than the actual cost of the materials used to make the weapons. Cheok-Liang’s idea had been to buy these Junk weapons at cheap prices and practice on them before working on Ji-Cheok’s real weapon.

?This world uses materials easily and throws them away easily as well. After the industrial revolution, civilization has become too accustomed to mass production. There is no need to buy a new sword for practicing enchantment. Enchanting a new sword isn’t much different from enchanting a Junk sword.? Cheok-Liang said, proudly.

“We saved a lot of money because of you,” replied Ji-Cheok.

?No, this is also Master’s talent. As an advisor, I am proud to serve you.?

Right then, a message popped up.

[Using [☆★◇◆ Scrooge's Alchemy ◇◆☆★] has leveled up your Basic Alchemy proficiency.]

[You can now use high-level Alchemy recipes.]

Ji-Cheok immediately searched through the recipes.

“I can use second-stage enchantments?”

?If the first enchantment imbues the item with an attribute, the second enchantment is more along the lines of giving basic attack, agility, strength, and balance. But if the enchantment fails, the weapon’s durability decreases…?

“Then I have to do it right the first time, no? That’s why I bought those high-durability weapons.”

?Your decisions always astonish me, Master. Let’s have a go. But before we use it on your actual weapons, I recommend we try it on Junk weapons first.?

Ji-Cheok and Cheok-Liang spent almost half a day in the Alchemy Room working on enchantments.

Ding—

[Second enchantment successful!]

[Due to successful consecutive enchantments, bonus stats will be added to your item.]

Woooong.

Ji-Cheok felt the design of the weapon changing as a bright radiance that couldn’t be compared to the one before came flooding onto the weapon. After the radiance faded, a message finally popped up.

[[Yin-Yang Swords of the Unknown Craftsman] have changed to [Monoblade!]]

As Ji-Cheok was holding the two blades, he could see the light blade and the dark blade curved like ocean waves.

[Additional skills have been granted to [Monoblade].]

‘This is amazing!’

?You just made a Common weapon worth 500 million won into a Numbered weapon that can be priced up to one billion, Master! Taking into account the fact that it suits your cultivation as well, you can even call this weapon an unorthodox Custom weapon!?

Ji-Cheok started to wonder who this Scrooge really was. Who would have thought that the shady description ‘You too can be rich! Low investment ? High value◆ Opportunity to spend!’ was for real?

* * *

[Monoblade]

[Class: B

Type: Weapon (Artifact)

Two swords enchanted by Um Ji-Cheok using alchemy. The powers of light and darkness are contained in the swords and can be used in harmony. Due to its powerful characteristics, you can only unlock its true abilities if you have the related skills or cultivation.

Skills: Dark Blade, Light Blade, Mono Blade

Maker: Unknown Craftsman

Enchanter: Um Ji-Cheok

*This weapon can only be used by Um Ji-Cheok.]

Ji-Cheok realized that, unlike potions, enchanted weapons could not be resold to others.

“It’s such a shame that I can’t just enchant other people’s weapons and sell them at an auction.”

?I think you are asking too much here, Master.?

Cheok-Liang looked at Ji-Cheok as if he was the grandfather of Scrooge.

“I just thought since we’ve gained so much, why not try to amplify the profit?” said Ji-Cheok, jokingly.

Ji-Cheok pulled out the Monoblade and looked at it, fascinated to see that the previously plain blades now had a light sheen and a dark one, respectively, similar to the enhanced effects commonly seen in video games.

When looking at the skill description, Ji-Cheok almost didn’t want to read it as it was too corny. But the actual effects of the skills were no joke. They were too great to be considered B-Class.

[Dark Blade: The sword absorbs all surrounding light. Since all surrounding light is absorbed, the surroundings will become dark.

Consumes mana. Maximum radius: 10 meters]

When Ji-Cheok read the skill description, his first thought was about how fucking stupid it sounded. However, when he activated the skill, the blade indeed absorbed all the fluorescent light, and the room turned pitch black. With this ability, Ji-Cheok could still see the enemy while he was unseen to them. This ability was perfect for blocking out the enemy’s field of vision and launching a surprise attack. Also, the fact that it absorbed light indicated that it could be useful against beam-type skills like the last monster Ji-Cheok fought.

[Light Blade: It radiates the absorbed light. Can be stacked with Mana Blade, Sword Qi, and Sword Aura. The more light it absorbs, the more powerful it becomes.]

As Ji-Cheok activated the skill, the sword instantly looked like a lightsaber from a certain sci-fi movie. Not only did this skill increase the cutting ability of the sword, but it could also be used like a flashbang if additional qi was channeled into it. Just like the sun would temporarily blind people if they stared at it for more than three seconds, this ability could make use of the same blinding light to great effect in battle.

The most astonishing skill of all, however, was the Mono Blade.

[Mono Blade: Combines light and darkness when attacking and completely ignores the opponent's defense.

Can be used once per hour for 10 seconds.]

Ji-Cheok could not believe this was classified as a B-Class weapon. The downside was that some cultivation was required to activate the skill. Despite that, it could be treated as A-Class or above if it was put up for auction.

“I can’t believe enchanted weapons cannot be sold. How great would it be to sell this weapon? I’m sure I could get a bucketload of cash from it.” said Ji-Cheok, grudgingly.

?Master will one day rule the world. Please leave all the money problems to me and take care of yourself!?

“...Okay, I will stop talking about it. Anyways, can you find this Scrooge guy that made this skill book? Let’s see if he came up with any other skills.”

?Understood, Master. It should come up pretty soon…..?

Cheok-Liang’s tail trembled while searching.

?Huh? Master, I cannot find it. The alchemy skill book that was originally sold is also discontinued.?

“What? Is this even possible?” Ji-Cheok could not believe his trusted advisor, so he went on to the Likes Shop to search on his own. The result was the same. When he tapped Scrooge’s name on the screen with his finger, an unknown script came up. It was a completely unknown script—neither Korean nor English; neither runes nor Egyptian hieroglyphs.

?Ah ha, this is the script of the System. I think I can decipher it.?

Cheok-Liang tapped the air with his front paws.

Ji-Cheok could not believe his eyes. As unknown scripts unraveled, more and more appeared in front of their eyes.

1. This refers to the phrase ‘silver spoon in one’s mouth’, but in a much higher class since titanium>silver