Episode 30
030. Rare? Unique?
100,000 gold.
An amount equivalent to about ten million won in cash.
While not a small sum by any means, considering the sword’s value, it was a rather low starting bid.
After all, the ‘Viper’s Dagger’ used as material was an item valued at ten million won.
This was essentially just covering the cost of materials.
And Golden Hand wanted to gauge the market’s reaction.
He wanted to see exactly how much value his first piece for sale would be recognized for.
[Registered for 100,000 Gold.]
[Cancellation is possible until the auction day.]
[However, a cancellation fee will be incurred.]
The moment Golden Hand finished the registration and stepped back from the terminal.
A small notification window floated up before his eyes.
[Awaiting auction house approval…]
[Commencing item appraisal.]
The moment the greatsword was placed on the appraisal slate, a faint light emanated from the slate, beginning to scan the sword’s information.
Collector Calis, who was watching, let out a low exclamation.
“Hoho… You melted Moonlight Steel and the Serpent’s Poison Crystal together. To contain two opposing attributes within a single blade… that’s no ordinary skill. Those subtle wave patterns… are they traces of folding technique? It must have been folded and forged hundreds of times at least.”
Collector Calis accurately deduced the materials and crafting technique without even touching the sword.
True to the name ‘Collector,’ his eye for items was precise.
And it seemed the Moonlight Venomous Serpent Greatsword had caught Calis’s fancy.
Because a message appeared.
[Collector Calis is deeply impressed by your skill.]
[Collector Calis’s favorability has risen to ‘Maximum.’]
It seemed he liked not only Golden Hand’s character but also his skill.
However, the reception clerk still wore an indifferent expression as he stared at the monitor.
But the next moment, his eyes widened in disbelief.
[Scanning item information…]
[Grade identification failed…]
[Reconfirming…]
[Warning: Magic detected exceeding measurable range]
[Grade: Presumed Legendary]
“……Th-This!”
A trembling voice escaped the clerk’s lips.
He jumped up, blinking rapidly as he alternated his gaze between the greatsword on the appraisal slate and his monitor.
Then, after hesitating, he could only utter one thing.
“Th-This… could you, could you please wait a moment! I’ll fetch the head appraiser!”
The clerk scurried away in a fluster.
Amidst the commotion, a few players nearby began looking this way with curious eyes.
“What is it? Was… was the broadcast a scam?”
“I knew it from the moment they said they’d already crafted a legendary item. Figures.”
“Hey, record a video and post it live on Repinet! Got him! This guy! I said he was suspicious, right?”
“R-Really? That reaction doesn’t seem like it though…”
As attention focused from both players and NPCs alike,
From inside the reception area, a middle-aged dwarf with a mustache strode out with an arrogant gait.
It was Durin, the head appraiser of the Kratum Auction House.
Durin gave the Moonlight Venomous Serpent Greatsword a quick glance, then snorted derisively.
“Hmph, it looks decent on the outside, but the flow of magic is unstable and its durability is questionable. The combination of materials is incredibly crude as well.”
Unexpected harsh criticism.
The criticism continued.
“This is merely the result of a fool who doesn’t know the basics of smithing getting lucky. Something like this… Rare? No, at best, a Unique grade.”
One couldn’t help but be taken aback by Durin’s blatantly false claims.
But Durin, indifferent to that, continued.
“After deducting the appraisal and commission fees, you might get about 50,000 gold. How about it? An item like this cannot be put up for auction. Instead, we’ll purchase it outright at that price. Is that acceptable?”
Durin was openly trying to swindle him.
He seemed to be spewing nonsense, thinking Golden Hand was a clueless outsider.
Just as Golden Hand frowned and was about to step forward…
“Your pierced mouth is running off on its own, I see.”
The person who stepped forward before Golden Hand.
It was Calis.
Calis didn’t say much.
He simply.
Took out a small crest from his bosom and showed it.
“Th-That is!”
A golden crest engraved with a laurel wreath pattern.
It was a token only the royal family of the Arcadia Kingdom could use.
“Relay this to your master, Redbeard Dusar. Tell him the third laurel leaf of Arcadia has come.”
Upon seeing it, the faces of Durin and the auction house branch manager, who came running belatedly, turned deathly pale.
“Th-That crest…!”
The branch manager, the moment he saw the crest, prostrated himself flat on the ground as if about to press his forehead to the floor.
The head appraiser Durin, who just moments ago was pointing fingers and acting high and mighty towards Golden Hand, was no different.
His legs shook like aspen leaves, and his chattering teeth couldn’t even produce a proper sound.
“A-Arcadia’s… third laurel leaf…”
The golden laurel-emblazoned crest Calis presented.
To players, it was merely a crest they wouldn’t recognize.
But the NPCs.
The residents of this Lepion world had no choice but to recognize it instantly.
For its meaning was clear.
The eyes of the players watching the situation with interest from the surroundings widened in shock.
“What is it? Why are the NPCs reacting like that?”
“Is he some kind of noble?”
“That appraiser guy was being rude from the start, and now he’s met his match. Serves him right!”
“But why is that noble taking Golden Hand’s side? Do they know each other?”
The players couldn’t hide their excitement at the sudden reversal.
Their gazes now turned towards Golden Hand, Calis, and the two NPCs flat on the floor.
For dopamine-fueled players, there was no more thrilling spectacle.
“Have you forgotten my request? Or shall we verify the authenticity of this crest right here and now?”
“N-No, my lord! Right now! I’ll bring him right now!”
The branch manager almost crawled away as he disappeared into the inner part of the auction house.
Durin, left alone, was now on the verge of fainting.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Not long after, heavy footsteps echoed from within the auction house.
A dwarf with a physique rivaling the Iron Walker’s, and a fiery red beard grown down to his chest—true to his name—strode out with heavy steps.
A stature unimaginable for a dwarf.
His eyes blazed like furnace flames, and an imposing aura of a master craftsman emanated from his entire being.
[Ruler of Kratum, Redbeard Dusar Lv.350]
‘To think I’d see Dusar in person. He’s even more impressive up close.’
Golden Hand inwardly marveled as he identified the other party.
Dwarves, due to their racial traits, are born with innate talent for blacksmithing.
The fact that such a dwarf was the managing director of this massive city’s auction house meant his skill was beyond imagination.
Moreover, Dusar was an NPC Golden Hand had never met in his past life either.
This was the Dusar who wouldn’t even show himself to just any player.
Yet, the moment Dusar spotted Calis, he dropped to one knee in a formal bow.
“You have traveled a long way, Third Leaf of Arcadia. The humble Dusar offers his greetings.”
His voice was low and resonant.
Only then did Calis relax his stiffened expression and wave a hand towards Dusar.
“It has been a long time, Dusar. Rise, please. I did not come to receive such formalities from you.”
Calis bowed his head politely first.
“First, I apologize for causing a disturbance in this sacred space you oversee. However, that individual’s actions were so utterly deplorable that I could not bear it.”
Calis gestured with his chin towards Durin, still flat on the floor.
As Dusar’s gaze turned to him, Durin’s body trembled as if in a seizure.
“Look at this sword.”
Calis handed Golden Hand’s Moonlight Venomous Serpent Greatsword to Dusar.
“The one who calls himself your head appraiser evaluated this sword as Rare grade, at best Unique. He even added insulting remarks, claiming the material combination was crude and the maker’s fundamentals were pathetic. Then he attempted to deceive this young artisan, saying he would purchase it for 50,000 gold after deducting fees.”
Calis calmly relayed exactly what Durin had said.
However, a cold anger was contained within his words.
“Well then, Redbeard Dusar. You who represent Kratum, the city of blacksmiths, speak yourself. Does this sword also look like a mere cheap blade in your eyes?”
Dusar silently accepted the greatsword.
His rough, calloused hands gently swept along the blade.
His initially indifferent expression began to twist the more he examined the sword.
“To fuse Moonlight Steel and the Serpent’s Poison Crystal so perfectly… The conflicting magical attributes aren’t clashing but are instead amplifying each other’s power! That alone is remarkable, but…”
Dusar continued his calm appraisal of the Moonlight Venomous Serpent Greatsword.
The more he did, the more it seemed Durin’s cold sweat was soaking the floor.
However, Dusar’s appraisal was not yet finished.
“These wave patterns… are the ‘Dragon Scale Patterns’ that only one who has reached the pinnacle of folding technique can engrave. Traces that appear only after folding and forging thousands of times at minimum.”
His eyes lingered on the serpent-scale pattern etched into the blade.
His breathing gradually grew heavier.
“A craftsmanship that perfectly understands the essence of the materials and draws out their potential to the limit. And yet… what was it? Rare, Unique?”
Dusar couldn’t continue.
The hand holding the sword trembled violently.
It wasn’t mere admiration.
He was struggling to contain the boiling rage at the fact that a great work had been insulted.
“Even the measuring device points to a grade beyond that…”
After also checking the monitor used for measurement, Dusar’s gaze slowly, very slowly, turned towards Durin, who had his head pressed to the floor.
