TMSDL 22

TMSDL

Chapter 22

Weed heard many rumors while working at the blacksmith shop.

“I heard the vineyard in the Javerry region was taken over by the Icca Guild.”
“They’re really serious about expanding their influence.”
“Those guys are so aggressive, they went all out, so Pavot had no choice but to back down.”
“Cayman…”
“I heard he learned a new fire spell.”
“Even users from other kingdoms are paying attention to Cayman. You never know when war might break out with our Reivade Kingdom.”

In Ashford and the surrounding areas, rumors of power struggles and stories of famous users never stopped.

Sometimes, more secretive whispers passed between people.

“There’s a chance to make a ton of money.”
“Doing what?”
“Learning the farming skill. You buy a small farm and grow a ton of drugs. They’re easy to raise, and if you process and sell them in the back alleys, you’ll make a killing.”
“But that’s risky. I heard big guilds are literally fighting to control the back alley trade.”
“It might be a good idea to start stockpiling food now, in case the monster territories expand.”
“Yeah, better to prepare for the apocalypse.”
“If you survive long enough, a rescue team might come.”

There were people talking about shady deals, the end of the world, and even how to survive it.

Weed could get a general idea of the atmosphere through AI, but the rawness of the players’ words was something else.

‘So this is Roanoke.’

A sense of realism created by users trying to survive in Roanoke—something he hadn’t felt even in the hell-difficulty challenges where death was constant.

Now, he truly felt like he had entered a world on the brink of collapse.

The blacksmith shop was always full of customers, drawn by the superior quality of the weapons. Weed’s gear stood out.

“This sword has way higher attack than others.”
“There are one or two more options on it.”
“This is a steal.”

Weed’s creations were naturally better than those of other blacksmith users due to his master-level traits.

So, as soon as he displayed a sword, it would sell quickly.

(In Roanoke, equipment level restrictions are much lower than in Royal Road.)
‘Really?’
(So users tend to be even more obsessed with gear.)

Unlike Royal Road, where your skill mattered most, in Roanoke, gear itself often was your skill.

“With this sword, my hunting speed will go up by 20%. Can I buy it for 300 gold?”

Weed would usually overcharge customers like this without hesitation.

(That customer’s total savings are 305 gold.)
‘Is that all? No secret stash hidden somewhere?’
(He needs to buy the sword and repair his badly torn leather armor.)
‘He should’ve taken better care of armor that protects his life.’

Weed hadn’t been in Roanoke long, but he was already wearing decent goblin leather armor.

Currently, he was wearing armor from the Iprota Imperial soldiers, but planned to switch back before returning to hell-difficulty.

(He bought the armor secondhand and has been using it for 3 months.)
‘Why?’
(He used his hard-earned money to buy better gear for his friends first.)

Weed learned far too much unnecessary information.

Still, he had no choice.

“I’ll sell it for 300 gold. Now, let me see that leather armor.”
“Huh? This is the only armor I’ve got…”
“I’ll fix it for you. I just need a needle and some thread.”
“I have those. I stitch it up whenever it tears.”

“Whew… I used to sew my torn clothes all the time back in the day too.”

Weed quickly stitched up the damaged leather armor.

Even without the tailoring skill, he was meticulous, crossing the threads multiple times and patching it with extra leather.

Leather armor had the advantage that torn sections could be sewn up quickly to restore durability.

Combined with Weed’s extensive experience from Royal Road, the repair was flawless.

You have perfectly repaired the leather armor.
You have learned the Tailoring skill.

Tailoring Beginner Level 1 (2%): You can craft armor using leather and cloth.
Your Dexterity skill has increased.
Great additional effects in production.
Minor artisan achievement unlocked!
Successfully repaired leather armor without having learned Tailoring.
Charm increased by 2.

Weed handed over the repaired armor and the sword he made.

“Use it well. Don’t go turning into a skeleton in some dark corner.”
“Thank you. Really, thank you.”

The customer, who introduced himself as Perol, expressed sincere gratitude.

“Do you have a weapon I could use? I managed to save up 430 gold. Is that enough?”

This time, a petite, skinny young woman had come in.

(She has 431 gold in total.)
‘She looks really young.’
(She just turned 20.)

With VR gaming becoming more widespread, most dedicated Roanoke users were in their late teens to early twenties.

‘She’s about the same age as Daye.’
(She’s waiting for her family to safely return in real life. Her father collapsed from the shock.)
‘I see…’

Weed’s heart softened. Again, he couldn’t bring himself to overcharge.

“I heard this kind of sword costs about 400 gold. Is it more because it’s better?”
“Just give me 300 gold.”
“Really?”
“It didn’t cost much in materials… sigh, just take it. Wait a second.”

Weed gave her an even better sword than she expected and quickly forged four sharp daggers to go with it.

“Thank you, thank you so much.”

She bowed deeply, tears in her eyes.

“Don’t go into any overly dangerous hunting grounds. Don’t trust your party members too easily. And don’t go turning into a skeleton.”
“I’ll be really careful.”

One woman, a mother playing with her son, ran a fabric shop in Ashford.

Weed sold her a sword as well.

While other blacksmiths valued work-life balance and made one or two swords a day, Weed crafted seven in a single day.

(I can’t believe you’re giving up money like this. You’re a completely different person from Royal Road.)
‘Back then, it was just a game.’

Even if you scammed people, there was no guilt.

No one actually died—even newbies could level up and earn gold eventually.

‘I don’t want to drive people in tough situations into a corner.’
(Your kind heart…)

Normally, no one would know about these good deeds.

(Real-time viewers: 5.4 million. The word “god” is flooding the chat.)

The AI kept Weed updated on viewer reactions.

—GOD GOD GOD
—He’s just radiant…
—Weed is so kindhearted
—Tough situations reveal true character
—He’s trying to clear hell-difficulty and still giving away gear 😭
—This is amazing. For real.
—God Weed.
—This makes me rethink life. Helping people in Roanoke isn’t easy.

Most people would be content with this level of praise—but not Weed.

‘Some might miss it if they’re not watching live. Spread it to the media too.’
(We’ll push articles through our Unicorn-owned media outlets.)
‘Good.’

Weed had done countless good deeds through the Unicorn Group, but those efforts were only possible thanks to the foundation laid by Dr. Yoo Byung-jun.

Deeds earned through his own sweat and effort felt even more meaningful.

‘I really am a good person deep down.’
(Yes, you are.)
‘Kind, diligent. There’s no one like me.’
(That’s right.)
‘Honestly, I could live without laws. I’m so righteous, it’s almost frustrating. Full of justice and sacrifice.’
(That might be pushing it a little.)

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Weed kept working in the blacksmith shop.

As he melted and hammered metal, another blacksmith user approached.

“Hey, how do you make such great swords?”

It was Barehand, a blacksmith with higher skills than Weed, but he’d never crafted a masterpiece weapon.

“Just do it well.”
“Can I learn by staying near you? I’ll even run errands!”

Weed was working alone and busy.

From burning impurities at high heat to shaping the blade—he did everything himself.

Armor took too long to work on, so he hadn’t touched it yet.

“Fine. But no hourly wage.”
“That’s fine! I’ll do anything if I can learn!”

In Roanoke, where your life was on the line, players were desperate to improve.

Helping in production would boost one’s blacksmithing proficiency.

Weed couldn’t refuse free labor—especially with his goal of leveling up his smithing skills before returning to hell-difficulty.

“It’s Bladragon.”
“They’re with the Blade Dragon patrol.”
“That’s the uniform for level 80s.”

Users in the smithy whispered among themselves.

Blade Dragon patrol members had entered while Weed was working.

Regular users stepped aside nervously—large guilds like the Line Guild were intimidating.

Weed received a report from the AI.

(They’re here because you made a masterpiece weapon.)
‘Because of me?’

Versa, the AI, tracked real-time user activity in Ashford through Abyss’s streaming features.

(They want to buy the masterpiece sword you made.)
‘That’s… a problem.’

It was his best weapon at the moment.

He had a variety of looted weapons from the abandoned fortress, but none matched the masterpiece.

And he kept the knights’ weapons since they required higher levels to equip.

“Are you the blacksmith who made that masterpiece sword?”

Asked Drakalon of the Blade Dragon patrol. Weed replied calmly:

“Yes, I am.”

“We’ll give you 500 gold for it. Sell it to us.”

“…”

Weed had already checked the market price.

Though the sword’s attack power wasn’t maxed out due to his still-low smithing skill, it was worth a minimum of 10,000 gold—possibly up to 20,000.

‘So extortion really does happen in Roanoke…’

Only the strong survived. The weak had to bow.

Weed, knowing the rules of Roanoke, carefully responded:

“Considering the effort, high-quality materials, and smithy fees, 500 gold is too low.”

“Hmm.”

Drakalon sneered and said,

“Fine, we’ll give you 540 gold. No more negotiating. Asking more would be greedy and unfair to others.”

“…”

Being forced to sell a 10,000-gold item for 540 gold was robbery.

Weed was in a dire situation.

‘AI, find the best way to handle this.’
(We recommend selling the sword.)
‘What?’
(Other blacksmiths sold their masterpiece weapons for similar prices. If you refuse, you might get added to their kill list.)

A kill list.

Anyone who defied a major guild became prey.

‘They’ll kill me for not selling an item?’
(Even if they don’t, they’ll harass you—ban you from using smithies, stop others from buying your gear. You won’t be able to work in Ashford.)

Weed had feared this when entering Ashford, where major guilds held sway.