Chapter 4

Everyone has first impressions, and Cheol was no different.

After spending three years supporting his family through the work he loved, the word “scammer” made him think of someone dishonest and greedy, someone who shamelessly stole from others.

So naturally, when he imagined a scammer, he pictured someone whose face looked just as rotten as their personality.

But when Cheol opened the door and saw the man who had sold the fake steel…

“…Seriously? Mr. Kim Doyoon?”

He almost said out loud, “This guy is a scammer?”

To be honest, he looked handsome enough that an entertainment company would probably feed and house him without him ever needing to scam anyone.

His face, his clothes… he looked more like an actor or an idol trainee.

“Huh?”

“No, I’m just saying you’re really handsome.”

“…I’ll leave you a good review after the transaction. Let’s just finish the deal. You don’t seem very used to complimenting people.”

Watching him awkwardly brush it off, Cheol simply thought, What a weird guy.

Kim Doyoon walked into the forge.

Scrrrk.

The sound of something heavy scraping across the floor followed him.

“Everything on this cart is CPM steel. Stainless steel like S30V, tool steels like D2 and 3V…”

“Wait… you brought all this here yourself? I didn’t even hear a car.”

“What’s wrong with pushing steel here on a cart?”

Cheol clicked his tongue.

At first, Kim Doyoon had insisted on a non-face-to-face transaction.

To lure him out, Cheol offered to buy everything he had.

When Kim said he didn’t own a car, Cheol offered a good price, and the deal was made.

But he had actually pushed a handcart carrying around 200 kilograms of steel all the way here.

“Alright. Time to pay. Five hundred thousand won per sheet. That’s fifty million won in cash.”

Fifty million won.

It had been a long time since Cheol had dealt with that much money.

Pull yourself together. This isn’t the time to relax.

Awakening had allowed him to discover that the steel was fake.

But that was all.

He still hadn’t completely saved his forge.

“Of course. But let’s inspect the steel first.”

“Ins… inspect it?”

“Well, sometimes steel has defects inside.”

Cheol picked up one of the steel bars from the cart.

Then he grabbed the hammer tucked into his work clothes.

“I’ll tap a few pieces and check them.”

“D-Do you really have to?”

The scammer visibly panicked.

His reaction alone confirmed the steel was fake.

Still…

Check steel information. Cost: 5 Coins.]

By spending one Coin, he could inspect one piece of steel.

By spending five Coins, he could use that skill freely for the entire day.

Steel Information: This steel was not smelted through a proper manufacturing process.

Creator: Kim Doyoon.

Just as expected.

The creator matched the one who had made Park Youngjun’s steel.

There are even more hollow spots than before.

Many parts of the steel glowed brightly.

Just like the previous defective steel, the glowing areas indicated empty spaces inside.

The only difference was…

There were far more of them.

Compared to this, Park Youngjun’s steel almost looked acceptable.

And it wasn’t just one piece.

Every single piece Kim had brought showed the same defects.

He had really hit the jackpot.

At that point, everything else was just a formality.

Ting! Ting!

Once the hollow sound appeared, Park Youngjun would come out.

Then Cheol would simply split the steel open in front of both of them.

The moment Cheol struck the steel with his hammer—

Crack.

“…Huh?”

“…!”

The steel snapped in half.

It couldn’t even survive a few light hammer strikes.

Their eyes met.

“G-Get out! ”

“This is my workshop.”

The scammer immediately abandoned the cart and turned to run.

Just as he reached the entrance—

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Park Youngjun blocked the doorway.

“You! That idiot!”

“Huh?”

Apparently Kim recognized him too.

Looking back and forth between Cheol and Park, he suddenly laughed.

“Heh… so you two teamed up to trap me.”

“You’ve got some nerve after scamming people! I’d hate for my daughter to grow up learning from someone like you!”

“So it’s fine for a bunch of people to gang up on one person if you’re raising a daughter?”

Park Youngjun’s face turned bright red.

—Wow… that guy really isn’t good at arguing.

Before the notification even finished speaking, Cheol stepped in.

“Um… sir.”

“What? The Awakened are talking. Since when does a blacksmith get involved?”

“Well… I wasn’t planning to interrupt dangerous people talking.”

Cheol scratched his head and smiled.

It was the smile of someone deliberately trying to annoy another person.

“If a Hunter keeps falling into traps outside the Gates, doesn’t that just mean they’re a complete loser?”

“What?”

“I mean, every Hunter who visits my forge has expensive equipment, good manners, and looks successful. Meanwhile someone else is busy running scams on Gaji Market—”

Before he could finish—

A kick came flying toward him.

Cheol barely dodged.

The workbench behind him exploded into pieces.

“Huh? You dodged?”

“Well… if I get hit, I’ll die.”

“You’ve got quite a mouth. I like you even more now.”

Park Youngjun stepped in front of Cheol.

“Fighting’s my specialty. Let me show off this time.”

“Why are you interfering now, you idiot?”

“He called me an idiot again!”

“What else do you call someone who gets scammed on Gaji Market?”

Park looked at Cheol, hoping for support.

Cheol answered honestly.

“…He’s got a point.”

“Seriously…”

The moment Park looked away—

The scammer charged.

Even though he looked refined, he was still far stronger than an ordinary person.

Someone who could smash apart a heavy steel workbench with one kick.

“Here we go.”

Boom!

Park threw one simple straight punch.

The scammer was launched across the forge.

He flew through the air like a ball before crashing into the far wall.

“You shouldn’t be punching civilians.”

Cheol stared with his mouth open.

“D-Didn’t he just die?”

“Come on. He’s Awakened. Someone that strong will get back up.”

Just as Park said—

The shadow in the corner moved.

But something looked strange.

Park’s confident expression slowly changed.

“What… is that?”

“Do people grow bigger when they get hit after awakening?”

“I’d laugh at that joke if…”

The scammer stood up.

He was much larger than before.

He looked nearly ten centimeters taller.

Neither of them moved.

Then the scammer suddenly charged again.

As sunlight from the window hit him—

Cheol finally realized what was wrong.

“His body’s covered in iron?!”

“Damn it! Does he have some kind of defensive skill that uses nearby metal?”

The same ability he’d used to make fake steel…

He was now using it to wrap his body in iron.

“So that’s why you became a scammer.”

“Huh?”

Park quickly understood.

It matched what Ayeon had said.

His combat ability wasn’t particularly impressive.

“If he’s got a skill like that, he’s supposed to be a tank. If the steel really had hollow spots, then he would’ve never been able to do his job properly.”

If the steel he created had empty spaces inside…

His defense would naturally be weaker than expected.

A tank who couldn’t protect his team would slowly be pushed aside.

If he couldn’t make a living anymore…

Using that ability for scams made sense.

“You’re the one who got scammed!”

The scammer rushed forward.

Boom!

They collided again.

This time—

“Huh?”

“…I see.”

The scammer grinned proudly.

Unlike before, the two were evenly matched.

In fact…

Park Youngjun seemed to be getting pushed back.

“What? I thought your defense was terrible.”

“Sir! We’re inside a forge!”

“…Damn.”

Only then did Park realize.

This was the perfect battlefield for the scammer.

A forge was filled with high-quality steel.

Even if he were normally a weak tank…

Here he had endless materials to strengthen himself.

His defense was almost back to its peak.

Boom!

The scammer’s punch missed Park and smashed into the wall.

The speed hadn’t changed.

But with the added mass of iron…

His fists hit like siege weapons.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

“Hahaha! So you’re angry because you got scammed by someone weaker than you?”

“…Tch.”

While blocking attack after attack, Park shouted,

“Hey, Boss!”

“Yes? Should I run?”

“No! Just… ah! Can I fight seriously now?”

“No! You’re not paying for the damage!”

After defending several more exchanges, Park shouted again,

“I’ll pay!”

“Really? You’ll sign for it?”

“I’m a Guild Team Leader! My business expenses are covered! Agh!”

“Deal! Go ahead!”

The moment Cheol gave permission—

Park’s movements completely changed.

Crack!

He pushed off the floor so hard that the reinforced factory flooring shattered beneath his feet.

“Gah!”

Boom!

In an instant, he recovered all the ground he’d been losing.

Instead of retreating…

He started pushing the scammer back.

But…

That was all.

The thick iron armor covering the scammer absorbed almost all the damage.

While the two Awakened fought fiercely—

—There goes another storage rack. That’s going to be hard to repair.

—Kid… he just melted your power hammer. Oh dear…

—What a shame. That anvil was such a good one.

The notification sounded as heartbroken as Cheol himself.

…I’m already miserable enough. Stop giving me a play-by-play.

Even if Park paid for everything…

The forge would still have to close temporarily.

Without equipment…

He couldn’t make or repair anything.

The repairable machines would take time to fix.

The destroyed ones would have to be replaced.

I doubt they’ll compensate me for all the business I’ll lose while we’re closed.

Cheol nervously bit his fingernails.

Then—

Huh?

Something caught his eye.

A faint red glow.

The same glow that had revealed defects in the fake steel…

It was shining from the iron covering the scammer’s body.

Hey. Question.

—Suddenly?

You said I paid five coins to use the skill all day.

—Right.

So every time I inspect a new piece of steel, I have to check it individually?

—Exactly.

But once I’ve already inspected a piece, I can recognize it immediately afterward.

*—That’s right. You’ve been paying attention, kid.

A smile spread across Cheol’s face.

The glowing iron covering the scammer…

Was the same defective steel he’d used in his scams.

Which meant…

Those glowing spots were weak points.

“Sir!”

“What?! I’m a little busy here!”

Cheol shouted,

“Can you trust me and hit that bastard right in the side?”