Strike 87

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“Let’s pretend our debts to each other never existed.”

With those words, Taesung left without any lingering attachment, driving away in his car.

The high-ranking individuals Hyun-soo knew were clear about forming and ending relationships.

The meaning behind the words he left:

“I will protect the last master craftsmen.”

After the accident, Hyun-soo checked through his primary physician, Jin-seop, and a national museum staff member whether he could receive help from the country.

Regrettably, due to various complicated processes and stringent criteria, he was ignored.

Taesung’s words meant he would take up the forge in his stead and protect their foundation with his own hands.

Hyun-soo’s heart raced.

“I want to hold it again…”

He looked at his right hand, now difficult to wield a hammer with, longing to grasp it in reality, not just in virtual reality, as Taesung had said.

Even if 99 out of 100 people pass by the Dragonlight Sword with indifferent faces, it will remain in the memory of one.

Chairman Taesung did not just materially support by providing the forge; he also offered immense emotional support to Hyun-soo.

Hyun-soo found a new goal.

-Even with rehabilitation, it’s uncertain how long it will take.

-You can manage day-to-day activities, but it’s uncertain if you can work in the forge again.

No hospital could give certainty.

That’s why he had eventually given up, ignoring his endless desire to create again.

‘Because I needed money.’

Not for rehabilitation, but for the money to treat burns and save his father.

Maybe, he thought, a blacksmith is truly unnecessary in today’s world.

Hyun-soo had never received treatment for his right hand before.

As he boarded the bus, the passing scenery caught his eye.

Smiling faintly, he captured those scenes.

“Doctor, this is Hyun-soo.”

He called his primary physician, Jin-seop.

“I want to undergo rehabilitation for my right hand.”

-As I said, I can’t be certain. And…

“I still want to do it.”

Hyun-soo spoke with a firm voice, and Jin-seop replied with equal firmness over the phone.

-I will do my best.

Hyun-soo smiled slightly after hanging up.

The real reason he hadn’t received treatment was all because of money and the vain regret of not pursuing blacksmithing in the first place.

But now, he could let go of all that.

Just then, Taeha called him.

[When will you log in? The appraisal for the Dragonlight Sword is complete.]

Believing he now had the strength to earn a lot of money, Hyun-soo was curious.

“How much could it be?”

Hyun-soo still needed over 2 billion for hospital bills, so he wondered about the value of the Dragonlight Sword appraised by Taeha.

***

Taeha was quite meticulous by nature.

Growing up as the son of a wealthy family, being thorough in valuing something had become a habit.

Taeha, having comprehensively evaluated various factors, was astounded at the figure displayed on the calculator.

“Wow… to think a day would come when an artifact would be valued at so much.”

Even to Taeha, the amount was astonishing.

He didn’t feel it was a waste at all. Rather, he thought it deserved that much value.

Soon after, Taeha called Hyun-soo and received a response that he would log in shortly.

Taeha logged in as well.

[Logging into Ares.]

Since the forge was their base, they naturally logged in there. 

It wasn’t long before Hyun-soo logged in.

“You can look forward to it.”

Lisel playfully smiled. Hyun-soo was quite nervous.

He felt the urgency to clear his hospital bills as soon as possible, especially for his rehabilitation in reality.

Lisel then said, “The price I’ve appraised for the Dragonlight Sword is 1.3 million gold.”

Hyun-soo felt as if his brain had momentarily stopped.

1.3 million gold.

In other words, it was an enormous sum amounting to 1.3 billion won.

Hyun-soo had never first proposed a price at the auction house or to King Bard, including Lisel.

The reason was that they usually appraised it higher than he had expected.

“That’s great.”

“It’s just a spoonful of gratitude.”

[You have received 1,300,000 gold.]

Now, about 800 million won was left in hospital bills for Hyun-soo.

Hyun’s forge still had rewards to receive.

“Could you help increase the subscribers for Hyun’s forge?”

Lisel nodded happily at Hyun-soo’s request.

“Of course. The growth of Hyun’s forge is now my growth as well.”

Hyun-soo immediately checked the current number of subscribers and ranking.

[Hyun’s Forge subscribers: 438,113.]

[Current ranking among Korean forges: 48th.]

“How can we do it?”

Lisel looked puzzled. In the domestic scene, there had never been a case where a user created a legendary-grade artifact.

‘Even the Dragonlight Sword…’

The Dragonlight Sword Lisel saw belonged to the upper echelons of legend. Just accessing the reviews and information on Hyun’s forge would be tremendous.

Then,

“Hello, it’s Nel.”

Nel had logged in.

Soon, Nel joined their conversation.

“I came because of that story, actually.”

Hyun-soo and Lisel looked at her, puzzled.

“How high do you think this artifact information can get us?”

“Maybe up to 40th place?”

The established forges and guilds were too solid.

Nel asked,

“Why do you think being the first in our country to make a legendary item only gets us that far?”

Hyun-soo immediately responded,

“Because a forge guild isn’t determined by just one blacksmith.”

Black Anvil Forge.

Golden Shield Forge.

Small Hammer Forge, etc.

The subscriber count within the top 100 forges isn’t determined by just one blacksmith.

There are countless corporate-type blacksmiths supporting a single forge and its demand.

99.9% of consumers realistically don’t have the money to buy the 0.01% of legends.

“Right. Even if we made a legend, the subscribers we can gain are those driven by anticipation.”

Why do 99.9% of many subscribers hit subscribe on Hyun’s forge?

It’s similar to the function on JoyTube.

Because they’re intrigued.

They subscribe out of anticipation, enjoyment, and vicarious satisfaction, knowing well they’ll never purchase it themselves.

“Hyun’s forge can’t meet the supply. Black Anvil produces nearly 300 weapons a month, yet.”

Rising on anticipation alone is a very difficult task.

“But we have a very powerful weapon, and we call that weapon a ‘business card.'”

Nel smiled charmingly, the manager of Guild Bright Future.

She was ready to show her true worth.

“My goal with this is to break into the top 25. Would you like to hear how?”

Hyun-soo and Lisel leaned in closer to her.

And soon, Hyun-soo was surprised by her words.

‘Could we really aim for the 25th spot?’

Hyun-soo was impressed.

***

AJ Internet Broadcasting’s Producer Kim was in a good mood these days.

Thanks to the Crazy Rookie and blacksmith Hyun’s appearance, the viewership had surged, earning him a lot of praise and bonuses from the director.

That moment was the catalyst for deciding to discontinue the Time Attack Dungeon segment.

They were preparing a new segment, but the impact left by the Crazy Rookie and Hyun was too significant.

It was a good thing for the broadcasting station.

Having significantly boosted the viewership once, they could switch to new content.

The problem was the gap.

A gap equivalent to about one episode had emerged, necessitating the preparation of a special episode.

The issue with these special episodes is that they’re usually dreadfully dull.

Special episodes typically mean “marathons” or “highlights,” but most viewers prefer the regular broadcasts.

So, they wanted to do something special this time, but could there really be such a thing?

Today, Producer Kim was brainstorming with the writers again.

Then,

“Huh?”

Producer Kim looked puzzled at the call from an unknown number.

-Hello, this is Nel, Hyun’s manager.

“Hyun?”

At that moment, Producer Kim remembered the business card he had given to the Crazy Rookie.

“Oh, yes!”

He reflexively stood up.

Somehow, the business card he had given to the Crazy Rookie seemed to have been properly passed on to Mr. Hyun.

-I heard you were preparing new content.

“Right, but why…?”

What does preparing new content have to do with Hyun?

-Normally, you prepare a special episode around this time, right?

Suddenly, Producer Kim looked puzzled.

‘Sharp…?’

She had eerily pinpointed the situation.

Who is this woman?

-Actually, Mr. Hyun has made a new weapon for someone. And the buyer was very pleased with it.

“Really?”

Producer Kim remembered that moment.

Hyun had suddenly announced he would not sell the thousand-pound bow.

The viewers went wild, and the broadcast became even more of a topic.

And both Producer Kim and the viewers were curious.

Hyun had promised to take on another person’s commission, and he had kept that promise.

What’s more astonishing is this.

‘Who exactly is the commissioner? And they were very satisfied?’

Curiosity was piqued. It was driving him crazy.

‘Ah, the curiosity is killing me!’

-Are you curious?

In that moment, chills ran down Producer Kim’s spine.

-Won’t the viewers be curious too?

At those words, Producer Kim absentmindedly nodded.

“Extremely curious. If the commissioner was satisfied, the viewers who watched back then would be very curious.”

Then, something clicked.

Why the sudden call, and what does this have to do with anything?

The person on the other line then said.

“How about showing it to the viewers?”

“Excuse me?”

“Let’s do a special episode with us. Like last time, we hope all the sponsorship money will be given to us, and the client is also very grateful and has agreed to appear on the broadcast. Oh, and we’d appreciate it if you could make an advertisement video too. How about this for a title?”

Producer Kim listened as if enchanted.

“Unboxing Hyun’s Creations.”

“Wow… perfect title… Ah, sorry.”

Producer Kim couldn’t help but admire out loud. The title was just too perfect.

However, Producer Kim soon shook his head.

“I’ll have to ask the director and call you back.”

After hanging up, Producer Kim hurried to the director’s office, sighing along the way.

The director he knew, Director Lee Taeho, was notoriously meticulous.

And now they had completely outsourced a special segment? 

Kim cautiously brought up the idea.

And sure enough.

“Producer Kim.”

After hearing the whole story, Director Lee took off his glasses, washed his face with his hands, and said,

“Are you crazy?”

“No, not at all.”

“Sigh.”

Director Lee sighed deeply and then shouted,

“Why are you hesitating on something this interesting!? The title is perfect, isn’t it? Unboxing Hyun’s Creations! We need to grab it before someone else does!”

It was an entirely unexpected response.

“Excuse me…?”

Producer Kim realized. The director had felt the same ‘curiosity’ he had.

“Start preparing the trailer right away. And that manager.”

Director Lee stood up.

“Who is she? She’s smart, isn’t she? I’m almost tempted to scout her.”

Producer Kim looked puzzled. He had thought she was smart.

But he wondered if she was really someone Director Lee would be interested in scouting. Then he said,

“Don’t you get it? Hyun’s Forge is advertising through our AJ Internet Broadcasting.”

Producer Kim’s eyes widened.

Director Lee then ordered,

“Start filming the trailer right away!”

“Yes!”

Producer Kim hurried into action.

***

The broadcast day arrived in no time.

The advertisement had been out for just a few days.

Nel’s plan was perfect, so Hyun-soo was hopeful.

[Nel: It’s about to start.]

Before the broadcast, the most important thing was the number of viewers.

The number of viewers was a measure of the anticipation for “Hyun’s Forge.”

And the more viewers there were, the more subscribers Hyun’s Forge would likely gain.

[Special Episode. Unboxing Hyun’s Creations broadcast begins.]

With that, Hyun-soo checked the number of viewers with a trembling heart, hoping for a tremendous advertising effect through this unboxing.

‘Please, let there be at least 100,000, please just 100,000….’

And then, Hyun-soo opened his eyes and rejoiced.

[Current viewers: 186,313.]

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