CHAPTER 09
“Oh.”
Kang-cheol looked around and let out a sound of admiration.
When the blacksmiths had apologized so dramatically, he had felt awkward.
But now that he was at the booth, he realized the location was much better than he had expected.
It wasn’t right by the entrance, but it was close to the restrooms.
A place where plenty of people would walk past.
“The spot is bigger than I expected too.”
Kang-cheol hummed cheerfully as he looked around.
The three blacksmiths, however, looked miserable.
How did things end up like this?
At first, they had been relieved that he wasn’t asking for money.
They thought they could calm him down, delete the dashcam footage, and be done with it.
They had come fully prepared to attract customers.
They had spent good money decorating their booth.
And now…
Some random guy had shown up with a shabby cardboard sign and announced that he’d be sharing their booth.
Worst of all…
The name written on the sign was Kang-cheol Workshop.
The people at the booth across from them…
The people at the corner…
Everyone kept glancing over with strange looks.
We should’ve known this would happen the moment he started hanging around the flea market…
“You’re not setting up?”
“Hmm…”
Kang-cheol’s voice interrupted their thoughts.
The blacksmith with the dialect hesitated before speaking.
“Well… we’re just going to pack up and leave.”
“What? Why?”
Was he really that clueless?
Or was he pretending?
They wanted to shout,
“Because this is unbelievably awkward!”
Instead, they simply opened and closed their mouths.
Kang-cheol answered casually.
“Well, if that’s what you want. Oh, before you leave, could each of you show me your ID?”
“ID?”
“Yeah.”
He only wanted proof of who they were in case the event staff came over later.
But once again…
The blacksmiths misunderstood.
“If that’s all, why’re you making us nervous?”
“Tch… You’re one scary young man.”
“How much are you planning to squeeze out of us?”
“Exactly. Anyone who says they don’t care about money is always lying.”
“What? No, that’s not what I meant…”
The system delivered the finishing blow.
“So you aren’t just good at threatening people. You’re also good at pretending to be innocent.”
“…”
“You’ve got talent.”
* * *
Contrary to their worries, the verification process was simple.
“Oh! You’re the one from earlier…”
“Oh? Hello.”
“So you were with them.”
The person checking the booth was the same receptionist Kang-cheol had met at the information desk.
She chatted with him for a while.
Then she left him her business card, telling him to contact her if anything happened.
“Looks like she’s only strict with us.”
“I guess so. Anyway, if you’re leaving, you can go now.”
“Unbelievable…”
“It’s kind of funny hearing you talk about conscience.”
The three blacksmiths began unpacking their equipment.
For Kang-cheol, the paperwork was finished.
Now all that remained was preparing for business.
The first thing he did was prepare water.
Waterstones had to be soaked before use.
And while sharpening, metal particles built up on the stone, so it had to be rinsed regularly.
Preparing water might not seem related to knives…
But it was actually the very first thing he needed to do.
“I probably don’t need to prepare water mixed with citric acid.”
Modern steels didn’t require it.
But if he were sharpening Japanese swords…
Especially antique Japanese swords…
It was essential.
Old Japanese swords could begin rusting while being sharpened.
Mixing citric acid into the water helped prevent oxidation and made the work much easier.
But those jobs were expensive.
They took a long time.
And nobody would bring such a valuable sword to a flea market.
Everything else was simple.
He soaked the waterstones.
Arranged his tools neatly on the table.
That finished his work setup.
He placed a stack of business cards where customers could easily take them.
That finished customer service.
Finally, he grabbed a cardboard box, tore it open, and quickly wrote a few words on it with a marker.
Advertising complete.
“Student… isn’t your labor fee too cheap?”
Kang-cheol had written:
3,000 won per 5 cm of blade.
The condition of the knife didn’t matter.
Still, he shook his head.
“If the price is low, it prevents troublesome customers right from the start.”
“So fancy equipment like theirs isn’t necessary?”
Behind Kang-cheol, the other blacksmiths were still arranging their impressive equipment.
Even though this was only a temporary event…
They had gone all out.
Kang-cheol nodded.
“The more services you offer, the more variables you have to deal with.”
Just then…
Someone called out.
“Excuse me.”
His first customer had arrived.
The customer had been about to walk away after seeing the busy blacksmiths.
But Kang-cheol quickly bowed politely.
“Welcome!”
“You’re open for business, right? You looked busy.”
“If you came because of my sign, then absolutely. What can I help you with?”
Calling a piece of cardboard covered in marker writing a signboard took some nerve.
The customer handed him a knife.
It was a Bowie-style knife with a blade just under twenty centimeters long.
It wasn’t in great condition.
Not only was it dull…
It had two large chips on the edge.
Repairing this properly would require grinding away the entire edge until the chips disappeared before sharpening it again.
It would take several times longer than ordinary sharpening.
Naturally, the labor cost should also be much higher.
Anyone would call this a repair job.
Yet…
The customer had come to a booth that clearly advertised sharpening.
“Sharpening.”
“Oh, damn.”
Unfortunately…
His very first customer was a difficult one.
Fortunately… or unfortunately…
The customer seemed to realize it too.
“So you’ll do it, right?”
Kang-cheol looked at him quietly.
“You’re saying you just want sharpening, even if I leave the chips there?”
“What are you talking about? I’m getting it sharpened so those chips disappear.”
“That’s a repair. Removing that much metal isn’t the same job, so it can’t cost the same.”
“I know that! Fine. If you won’t do it, give me my knife back.”
Without hesitation…
Kang-cheol held the knife out.
The customer reached for it.
Then Kang-cheol spoke.
“This knife protects your life. Don’t lie to yourself about it.”
The customer’s hand froze.
“You might find someone willing to repair it that way. But I can’t promise they’ll do an honest job.”
“Then…”
Was it fear?
Or frustration from past experiences with badly repaired equipment?
Kang-cheol didn’t want to meddle.
He already had enough problems of his own.
Instead…
“Ask them how much extra it’ll cost.”
The customer stared blankly at him.
Even though Kang-cheol was talking about extra charges…
He somehow didn’t sound greedy.
“…How much would it be?”
The customer’s tone had become polite.
Kang-cheol smiled.
“Just one thousand won more. And I’ll only charge you for a fifteen-centimeter blade.”
“So… ten thousand won? Nine thousand plus another thousand?”
“That’s right. If that’s okay, hand me the knife again.”
He held out his hand.
“Oh? That’s surprisingly generous, Student.”
“This is how you deal with troublesome customers.”
As soon as the customer handed over the knife…
Kang-cheol began working.
He connected his portable grinder to a power bank and switched it on.
Krrrkk! Krrrkk!
Bright sparks flew as steel met the grinding wheel.
Yet despite the noise…
The knife itself moved smoothly and steadily across the grinder.
“First, I’ll restore the edge line. After that, I’ll set the sharpening angle according to how you actually use the knife.”
“Huh? O-Okay.”
Holding the knife perfectly straight…
Kang-cheol moved with complete concentration, as though following an invisible line.
Watching him…
The customer couldn’t look away.
His arms traced straight lines and gentle arcs several times.
Then he switched off the grinder.
“The edge line is finished.”
“Already?”
The edge now formed a beautiful, flawless curve.
If not for the scratches covering the blade…
Anyone would believe he was making a brand-new knife.
Kang-cheol continued.
“For a knife this size, I normally sharpen it at about twenty degrees per side. That’s forty degrees total. It gives a good balance between cutting ability and durability.”
“I see…”
The customer clearly understood none of it.
“Honestly… I don’t really know anything about this.”
“What do you usually cut with it?”
“Monsters. Mostly goblins and orcs.”
“You have a tank in your party?”
The customer hesitated.
“Yes… I’m a rogue-type hunter.”
“Got it. Then I’ll sharpen it to about seventeen degrees per side. If you ever go somewhere else, just ask for 17 DPS.”
“D… D-P… what?”
“DPS. Seventeen degrees per side.”
Kang-cheol said it casually and turned back to work.
“…”
The customer had never even heard the term DPS.
Yet Kang-cheol spoke as though it was perfectly fine to tell another workshop exactly what angle to use.
The customer shook his head, trying to process everything.
Unlike what he expected from a flea-market blacksmith…
Kang-cheol was taking this incredibly seriously.
“First, I’ll restore the edge angle.”
The original edge had become completely flat while reshaping the profile.
Now he only needed to recreate the proper bevel.
Imagine a triangular edge.
Even if the lines weren’t perfect at first…
The goal was simply to rebuild the rough shape.
Once again…
Kang-cheol reached for the grinder.
Whiiiiiiirr…
A grinder was much faster than a whetstone.
But there was one important difference.
When using a grinding wheel…
The blade had to follow the tangent of the wheel’s curve.
Normally, he’d use guides in a fully equipped workshop.
“So that’s why you unlocked the Shaping skill, student… you’re more level-headed than you look.”
Krrrk. Krrrk. Krrrk.
The blade bounced across the wheel several times…
Before settling into a perfectly stable path.
“…Wow.”
After checking the grind marks once or twice…
Kang-cheol didn’t even need to look anymore.
He simply continued grinding.
When he flipped the blade over…
“Perfect.”
The sharpened edge reflected a faint blue shine.
It was perfectly straight.
Not a single flaw.
“With skills like this… how did you end up struggling so much?”
After finishing the opposite side…
The edge was perfectly symmetrical.
A clear sign of just how skilled he was as a blacksmith.
“You said it yourself. Skill alone isn’t enough.”
“Even so… this is unbelievable.”
Ignoring the comment, Kang-cheol picked up the whetstones.
“Since you mainly hunt monsters, I’ll give it a finer finish.”
Next came the stones.
From coarse
To fine.
Relaxing his grip…
He sharpened both sides evenly.
#200.
#400.
#1200.
#2000.
As the grit became finer…
The sharpening sound grew softer.
Finally…
He spread polishing compound onto a leather strop.
Then lightly drew the blade across it several times.
“Sharpening is finished.”
He set the knife down.
The customer gasped.
The blade itself was still old.
Still covered in years of scratches.
But the edge…
“Why can I see my reflection in it?”
“Because I polished it properly. Let me show you something.”
Kang-cheol removed the whetstones from the basin of water.
Then he placed a single tissue gently on the water’s surface.
“Cut it. Slowly.”
“The tissue?”
The customer hesitated.
Then lowered the knife onto the floating wet tissue.
The blade slid forward.
Ssshhh…
The wet tissue split perfectly in half.
No wrinkles.
No tearing.
Just one clean cut.
The customer stood there with his mouth hanging open.
Kang-cheol spoke as though it were nothing special.
“It’s sharpened properly, so be careful not to cut yourself.”
He wiped the water from his hands onto his apron and held one hand out.
“That’ll be 10,000 won.”
