Chapter 7

　　Inside the main castle, the gazes of the numerous players still waiting in line were all directed to one place.

　　“Hah… Huff…”

　　A player was trudging not toward the quest-giving NPC, but to the line for proving quest completion.

　　‘What’s with that bum…?’ a player thought.

　　‘He looks decent enough.’

　　‘Where did he roll around in the dirt?’

　　‘Why are his eyes so swollen?’

　　‘Tsk, tsk. Looks like he got beat up somewhere.’

　　His shabby cloth clothes, which couldn’t be torn or destroyed, were caked in mud, and the exposed skin on his arms and legs was covered in dark blue bruises, as if he’d been beaten. The worst of the bruises was on his face.

　　“Tsk, tsk.”

　　Sounds of clicking tongues could be heard all around. It was a problem that could be easily solved by visiting a clinic or drinking a potion, but Han Simin, in his sorry state, had no intention of wasting money on such useless things.

　　“H-here, the proof of the rabbits.”

　　“…You’ve been through a lot.”

　　The quest NPC gave him a pitiful look as he handed over a dagger, a clean cloth, a t-shirt, and pants.

　　“Thank you.”

　　Swallowing a surge of emotion, Han Simin left the area. He was moved, but he couldn’t stay long with so many eyes on him, feeling utterly embarrassed.

　　‘Haaah.’

　　Damn rabbits. They were as cunning as their reputation suggested, and smart enough to recognize an enemy weaker than themselves. If they weren’t literally basic monsters designed to help beginners adapt to the game, and if his stats hadn’t been boosted by the ‘Enhancement Master of the Khan Family’ title, he would have been just another player beaten to death by a rabbit.

　　Of course, an incident like this didn’t bruise his pride or make him humble.

　　“You little bastards. Just you wait.”

　　It was only because he’d been careless, was low-level, and had crappy items! And since games were all about item power, there was no need to despair. Han Simin, the world’s foremost expert in self-justification, quickly regained his confidence and headed for the enhancement shop.

　　As he slammed the door open, he was met with another clicking tongue.

　　“What’s with the shabby state?”

　　Simin casually ignored the comment, stripped off his dirt-caked clothes, and put on the ones he’d received as a reward. They offered little in the way of defense, but they were good items that saved him from running around in his underwear as a beginner. If he didn’t want to be killed by a monster, he would have to change into better gear soon, but what was important to Han Simin right now wasn’t the beginner’s top and bottom, but the dagger.

　　“I’ll get this in one go.”

　　His passion burned hotter than ever. His whole body still ached from the beating he’d taken from those rabbit bastards. He wanted to enhance his item as quickly as possible so he could toy with the rabbits and inflict a painful death upon them. That determination was transferred entirely to the sharp dagger he placed on the anvil.

　　“Item information.”

　　[Beginner’s Low-Grade Dagger]

　　* Grade: Normal

　　* Required Level: 1

　　* Attack Power: 10

　　* Option 1: All Stats +5

　　* Option 2: Unbreakable, Infinite Durability

　　It was an unremarkable dagger, but in Han Simin’s eyes, it shone brighter than any other item.

　　‘These kinds of items given out by the game company are always overpowered.’

　　It absolutely wasn’t because he was too cheap to buy another weapon. The eight gold coins he had were being saved for something absolutely necessary. Besides, the reason he was enhancing a weapon right now wasn’t to sell it, but to use it!

　　‘First, I’ll get this to +15 to catch up on the levels I’ve fallen behind, then head to a high-level zone.’

　　This was the plan he had formulated while playing the game for the past few days. Buying a weapon, enhancing it, and selling it right away wasn’t a bad method, but it was inefficient. No matter how hard it was to level up, how many people in the game would buy a level 10 highly-enhanced weapon for thousands of dollars?

　　“There’s probably no one but that crazy woman.”

　　Even Jeong Seolah had done the enhancement herself. The cost was about 20 gold coins. That meant it was cheaper than getting ripped off and buying one. So, he had to level up. The time when enhancement would truly shine would be when he reached a level where powerful items appeared—items that would make other players think, ‘If you have this, you must be a serious gamer.’ Besides, enhancement content was originally designed for high-level players who had finished farming.

　　‘Think long-term, Simin.’

　　He had no intention of making a quick buck and quitting. A life-changing ability had come to him, someone who had survived a near-fatal accident. How could he just throw it away?

　　The sound of his hammering, mixed with various emotions, echoed through the enhancement shop.

　　“Mwahahaha! I’m going to be rich!” Han Simin laughed like a madman as a light flared.

　　“Tsk, tsk.”

　　Watching him, Khan clicked his tongue.

* * *

　　[+10 Beginner’s Low-Grade Dagger]

　　* Grade: Normal

　　* Attack Power: 10 (+10)

　　* Option 1: All Stats +5 (+5)

　　* Option 2: Unbreakable, Infinite Durability

　　“Hehehe.”

　　Getting to +10 was smooth sailing. Considering the number of enhancement stones invested, he sighed, thinking it would have been much cheaper to just carry two daggers, but he didn’t regret it. For a gaming dunce who couldn’t even hunt a rabbit easily, the only way to catch up to the players pulling ahead was to invest.

　　‘It’s an investment, an investment.’

　　He could recover it someday. He was also jotting down ways to rip off other players whenever they came to mind.

　　“Another +10,” Khan remarked.

　　“It’s a piece of cake.”

　　“You monster.”

　　Khan, who had been watching from the side, turned his head away as if fed up. It was the second time he had seen it, but every time he did, he felt his very existence being negated. It was like everyone else was studying hard to take the college entrance exam, while Han Simin was just writing down the answers he had memorized.

　　“Well, +11 has only a 12% success rate.”

　　Assuming a rather difficult-looking yoga pose, Han Simin began to hammer again. A pain that felt like his groin was about to split shot through him, but he gritted his teeth. So what if his groin tore! It wasn’t like he had any use for it anyway, so he could endure it! Tears mixed with his hammering.

　　Clang! Clang! Clang!

　　He reached +11. He himself had claimed that even +15 would be no problem, but this was a realm he had yet to show Khan. Even Khan himself, in his entire life of enhancing, had created fewer than a hundred +11 weapons. With a 12% success rate, that meant he had failed ten times as often. There was nothing strange about failing.

　　But as if mocking Khan’s thoughts, Han Simin succeeded. A faint blue light, different from the pure white light that had burst forth until now, erupted.

　　“Wow. The effect changed. Betago really has the players’ psychology down pat, huh?”

　　Paying no mind to Khan wiping away a tear, Han Simin took the dagger from the anvil to admire the new effect.

　　“Master, isn’t this cool?”

　　Even without receiving a response, Simin steadfastly admired the blue light that seemed to overflow from the dagger. He had seen countless effects in online games designed to entice players into paying, but he could declare with certainty that none had been as beautiful as the light from the dagger Han Simin now held. He was sure of it. The allure came from the fact that this was another reality, and he was using it himself.

　　“Going for +15.”

　　The dagger was tossed onto the anvil as if thrown and immediately settled into place. Plus twelve had a 1% success rate, a 90% chance of being downgraded, and a staggering 50% chance of being destroyed. This was a stage no sane person would ever attempt. It was a moment that made you wonder if Betago intended for people to make +15 items at all, or if they were just supposed to use +11s.

　　Han Simin immediately prostrated himself and began to pray to the heavens.

　　“Oh, gods, please accept my humble will and grant me success in this enhancement!”

　　The higher the enhancement level, the lower the success rate, and the greater the penalties for failure, the more rituals were needed for success. They changed depending on the time, the place, the item, and so on, and he had to perform them without hesitation as soon as he felt the urge. At first, he’d been embarrassed, sighing even when no one was around and missing his window of opportunity, but once he recognized it was all for the sake of making money, he began to perform the rituals without reservation, regardless of who was watching. Embarrassment is fleeting, but an enhanced item is forever!

　　“Haah.”

　　After a long prayer, Han Simin stood up and gripped the hammer.

　　He swallowed hard.

　　His expression was tense. Closing his eyes gently, he began to bring the hammer down carefully and softly.

　　His hammer fell in a strange, gentle rhythm—strong, then light, then medium, then light again. The rhythmic hammering was incongruously gentle. Khan, who was witnessing all sorts of strange things, was so dumbfounded he was about to say something, when—

　　An impossibly dense blue light covered the world.

　　[‘Simin’ has succeeded in enhancing a ‘+12 Beginner’s Low-Grade Dagger’!]

　　A notice appeared to every player in Fantastic World.

　　“Hmm…”

　　Even Han Simin hadn’t predicted that, and he stared blankly for a moment.

　　“What the hell!”

　　Then he cursed. He was flustered. He knew this wasn’t a hologram only he could see; anyone who had thoroughly read the information released by Goggle Inc. would know. It was a server announcement! It meant his heaven-piercing luck was now known to the world!

　　“…Haaah.”

　　It wasn’t something to get furious about. It was a process he would have to go through eventually.

　　[You have obtained the title ‘First of the Twelve Stars!’]

　　[First of the Twelve Stars!]

　　* Grade: Unique

　　* Description: Take on the challenge and achieve! A token of luck for you who has earned it!

　　* Benefit: Luck +40

　　Besides, the benefit was quite surprising. In any case, as long as other players didn’t find out about his absurd ability to guarantee success, it would be fine. That was why Han Simin had no intention of doing enhancement services for others and planned only to sell the items he enhanced himself. He was just worried that it might lead to some annoying situations.

　　Ding!

　　[‘Jeong Seolah’ has requested a 1-on-1 conversation.]

　　Like this.

　　He had her on his friends list, and a beautiful woman was requesting a conversation. There was no reason to refuse, yet for some reason, his hand wouldn’t move.

　　‘What could possibly happen?’

　　Then, remembering that Jeong Seolah was a very wealthy customer, he pressed the accept button.

　　“Hello?”

　　—"Hello. Have you been well?”

　　The hologram disappeared, and her beautiful, clear voice echoed in his head as if on a phone call. It was such a soft and gentle voice that it made him smile automatically. Not only was her face pretty, but her voice was beautiful too!

　　“Yes, hello. I’ve been doing well.”

　　Even though it had only been a few hours since they parted, he found himself saying such words. He was, after all, a healthy twenty-five-year-old man!

　　—"The reason I’m calling is…”

　　It was obvious she wanted something, but he had no choice but to listen. As long as it wasn’t an absurd request to make a +15 item, he was thinking of giving her a small discount on the enhancement fee. He was even getting ahead of himself, secretly imagining she might ask him on a date.

　　But an intruder appeared, disrupting Han Simin’s pure thoughts.

　　[An impossible probability has occurred.]

　　[Self-balancing adjustment required.]

　　[Phenomenon cannot be analyzed.]

　　[Applying alternative measures.]

　　Ding!

　　[You have changed your job to ‘Ultimate Legendary Enhancement Master’!]

　　[You have learned ‘Absolute Enhancement (SS)’!]

　　[Legendary job class penalty (Required EXP +200%) has been applied.]

　　[You have received a reward (Sub-job Slot).]

　　“What?”

　　Han Simin’s goofy grin froze on his face.

* * *