Chapter 33.
A Logging Camp for Lumberjacks
The company running Illusion was called The Black.
In the first operations team, team leader Kim Junha looked up from his monitor and asked his teammate, Oh Kyungtae:
“Status?”
“Faster than expected.”
“Hah… things just got complicated.”
Junha sighed deeply.
So far, Illusion had been progressing exactly as planned — a few minor variables here and there, but nothing outside what they’d accounted for.
But this time was different.
“I never imagined a player would find that hidden piece this early…”
Even if someone did, he’d expected it to take much longer.
A player who repaired a house without relying on skills? That was unheard of.
Junha stroked his chin.
‘What’s done is done. No way to undo it now.’
“Oh, he’s incredible. You should take a look at this.”
Kyungtae tapped the keyboard, pulling up footage of Aren, who was in the middle of constructing a lumberyard — with his bare hands.
“Skills are just support. He’s doing everything manually.”
“Damn… I never thought someone would actually try that.”
Normally, any sane player would use construction skills for convenience.
But Aren didn’t.
It made no sense — why suffer through that kind of manual labor?
“What’s his Dexterity stat?”
“Over 100 is impressive, right?”
“It’s 177. Raw value.”
“…!”
Junha’s eyes widened.
Aren’s level was only 40.
At that stage, such a stat was practically impossible.
“Could it be a hack or a cheat program?”
“Nope. Checked everything. It’s all legitimate. Apparently, his dexterity rises faster because he builds everything by hand.”
“By hand… huh.”
‘That’s not something you can fake.’
Sure, manual crafting could raise dexterity faster than using skills — but that didn’t make it easy.
Some production players had made fifty swords to raise dexterity by one point.
Others made ten and gained one point.
The difference? Quality.
‘It’s not quantity. It’s craftsmanship.’
That meant the system itself recognized the superior quality of Aren’s creations.
Even the top-ranked production genius in the current leaderboards hadn’t reached such dexterity at that level.
So what do you call someone who achieves the impossible?
A genius? No—
“A monster has appeared.”
A monster had been born.
“Check this out!”
[Star’s Bag]
Grade: A
Description: A special bag usable only by the Carpenter of Stars.
When used, it merges with the user’s existing bag.
Requirement: Carpenter of Stars.
“Star’s Bag, huh…”
“That sounds unique. What’s it for?”
“No idea.”
Aren examined it closely.
If it merged with his current bag, it likely referred to his inventory system.
‘Let’s see what happens.’
He activated the bag — it wasn’t like he could do anything else with it anyway.
[Would you like to use Star’s Bag?]
“Yes.”
[You have used Star’s Bag.]
[Star’s Bag merges with your current bag.]
A flash of light burst out from the bag, quickly absorbing into Aren’s body.
[Ding!]
[Bag Upgrade Complete!]
[Bag → Star’s Bag]
[Capacity greatly increased: 100 → 200 slots.]
[Item restrictions removed for Carpenter of Stars.]
‘Wait, the capacity increased?’
Opening the bag, Aren gawked.
“Whoa…”
The capacity had nearly tripled.
‘So bag expansion is possible!’
This was a big deal.
He’d seen endless forum posts about bag limits:
“Please, devs, increase bag capacity! I spend more time walking back to town than hunting!”
“Just sell expansions for cash already, it’s painful!”
“I’m an archer! My arrows take up half my bag space!”
Everyone had complained.
The devs, however, had never responded.
But now he realized:
‘The answer was hidden inside the game all along.’
“Nice. Carrying materials back and forth was a pain anyway.”
He smiled — but one line still bugged him.
“Item restrictions have been lifted… what does that mean?”
After a moment of thought, something clicked.
He went to a nearby forest, eyeing a massive tree trunk.
Normally, trees that large couldn’t fit in his bag unless cut down to size.
But what if the restriction was gone?
‘Let’s test it.’
He reached out — and the tree slid into the bag without resistance.
“Whoa, it worked!”
Before, such an item would’ve triggered an error message. Not anymore.
‘So I can store full logs now? That’s huge.’
This change would make material transport dramatically easier.
“Looks like we’re good to go.”
Alfredo, his companion, grinned ear to ear.
“So no more hauling heavy stuff, right?”
“Basically.”
“Ha! Finally! No more breaking my back!”
Aren chuckled at his joy.
‘Maybe I overworked him a bit…’
Now that the lumberyard was ready, Aren checked its details.
[Lumberyard for Lumberjacks Lv.1]
Grade: B
Description: A lumberyard personally crafted by a master carpenter.
Can grow various trees.
Higher levels allow the cultivation of special tree types.
Staff: None (Recruitable)
Maintenance: 60 gold
Durability: 650,000 / 650,000
Options:
-
Durability +
-
Logging Speed +10%
-
Growth Speed +20%
-
Yield +20%
-
Wood Quality +30%
Hidden Option: -
Noise Reduction +40%
As he confirmed the details, a glowing circle spread outward from the lumberyard.
‘This must be the work area radius.’
Satisfied, Aren was about to recruit some workers when—
“Aren!”
“Hm? Oh, it’s the villagers.”
They rushed toward him, breathless, and suddenly—
They knelt before him.
“What are you doing?” he asked, startled.
The eldest spoke up.
“Sir, we can’t just sit around doing nothing anymore.”
“We feel ashamed relying on you like this.”
[Ding!]
[Quest Generated: Villagers Seeking Employment]
Quest: Villagers Seeking Employment
Grade: C
Description: Your villagers wish to work and earn their own living.
Help them find employment so they can pay rent and taxes.
Goal: Hire 10 villagers as lumberjacks (0/10)
Reward: EXP, 10 gold, -10% hiring cost, increased satisfaction
Failure: Decreased satisfaction, increased unrest
“Please let us work!”
“I was a lumberjack in my old village. I can do this!”
“Look at these muscles! They called me the Tree Slayer back home!”
They began showing off their biceps, posing dramatically.
Aren couldn’t help but laugh — especially when he spotted a familiar face.
“Hansel.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Why are you here? You want to be a lumberjack too?”
“Haha, no, sir!”
“Then why?”
“I sensed powerful muscle energy in the area and came to investigate. Excellent physiques, all of them!”
“…Just… go back to work.”
“Haha! As you command!”
Once Hansel left, Aren turned back to the villagers.
“You’re all hired.”
“WAAAH!”
Cheers erupted.
[Ding!]
[Quest Villagers Seeking Employment completed!]
[EXP gained.]
[10 gold acquired.]
[Villager satisfaction +10%.]
[Discontent -10%.]
[Hiring cost for lumberjacks -10%.]
“Thank you, sir! We’ll work hard!”
[Ding!]
[Experienced Recruits Hired.]
[Workers will give their best for you.]
[Work speed +10%.]
[Yield +15%.]
[Wood Quality +10%.]
The new lumberjacks eagerly entered the yard, grinning from ear to ear.
Aren smiled faintly.
‘Self-sufficiency, finally.’
With a steady supply of materials secured, he turned his gaze toward the horizon.
“Next up… I should build a palisade.”
And with that, Aren strode forward again —
still plenty of work left to do.
