Record of a Thousand Lives

Shaneth freaked out after realizing she had slept in the same bed as Kang Yoon-Soo. ‘To think I shared a bed with a man… Even though I was exhausted… I must’ve been crazy…’ She blushed at the mere thought of what had happened. She washed up and rubbed her stomach. ‘Did I cover myself with the blanket when I was sleeping? What if he saw my belly fat while I was asleep… I don’t even want to imagine it…’

It was already noon by the time Kang Yoon-Soo woke up, and he ate a late meal that Shaneth had brought for him. “Let’s stop by the smithy before leaving Hiledan,” he said.

“The smithy? What will you do there?” Shaneth asked.

“I’ll make a weapon for you,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“My weapon?” Shaneth asked, her eyes wide open in surprise.

Shaneth’s scythe had dulled after the battle with Ravian, and she had been using the same weapon ever since they left Kerlin, so it was about time for it to be worked on.

‘I’ve cleared the Chimera Dimension and received the legendary quest. It’s still going as planned. It’s time to craft a weapon and do the legendary quest,’ Kang Yoon-Soo thought. However, he was still not fully awake and his mind was hazy.

Shaneth had a worried expression and placed her hand on her stomach as she asked, “You didn’t touch my stomach while I was asleep by any chance, did you?”

“I did,” Kang Yoon-Soo answered indifferently.

At that moment… Memories of his previous life slowly started to fill his mind, and his surroundings started to fade away.

Shaneth looked more mature than she had been a moment before, and the interior of the room turned shabby, but it had a cozy and homely feel. Shaneth did not look like the beauty she was in the present, but rather, she was covered in grotesque burn marks. However, to Kang Yoon-Soo, she was still more beautiful than anyone else.

Kang Yoon-Soo observed his surroundings; they belonged to the memories of a life when he was not yet sick of living and he had not given up.

Shaneth was smiling as she held her puffed-up belly.

“What should we name our baby?”

He saw his past self, who had still managed to smile sincerely as he gently stroked her stomach.

“Our baby’s name is…”

Kang Yoon-Soo suddenly felt as if he were going to throw a fit of anger. ‘No. Don’t,’ he told himself. ‘Don’t make me remember it.

‘I have loved you.

‘I have loved that child.

‘But there’s no one now.

‘You can’t be the same person you were back then.

‘But what was love again…?’

“Are you alright?”

The world returned to the present, and Kang Yoon-Soo saw Shaneth looking at him intently with large, innocent eyes.

Shaneth was surprised; in fact, she was very surprised. It had only lasted a moment, but Kang Yoon-Soo’s face, usually indifferent and void of any emotion, had shown emotions for the first time. However, it was too short and subtle of a moment. She could not be sure what that emotion meant.

“Uhm… Are you angry…?” she asked.

“No.” Kang Yoon-Soo shook his head, but the distracting thought would not leave him anytime soon.

***

The pair left the inn and went to purchase daily necessities, then headed toward the smithy. The smithy was filled with the noise of hammering, and the hot air was eye-drying.

“How may I help you?” an old man with a long white beard asked. He was the owner of the shop, and despite his old age, he was a blacksmith who was very fit and sturdy.

Kang Yoon-Soo took out Ravian’s longsword, saying, “I want to purchase a sheath for this sword.”

The old blacksmith inspected the sword, and his brows rose.

[Ravian’s Longsword]

Rating: Rare

Attack Power: 52

A sword that was made personally by the homunculus Ravian. It will display extreme power if used by a homunculus. It can absorb intermediate magic to display its full ability.

*You can use the skill ‘Vitality Absorption’.

*The sword will absorb the tissue of enemies and increase its attack power whenever you kill an enemy with it.

*Wounds inflicted by this sword may weaken the enemy.

*The sword will transform if you kill an alchemist with it.

Ravian’s longsword had excellent attributes. Not only were the edges sharp and beautiful, but the material used to craft it was also different from normal steel, making it lighter than an average longsword. It was light and easy to swing, and had the ability to increase its attack power whenever it was used to kill an enemy.

It was not as good as the growth-type weapon ‘Spirit Sword’, a weapon that grew along with its user, but it would still definitely attract a lot of attention from people if it were placed in an auction house.

“It’s not an ordinary weapon. I’ll get you something befitting this sword; give me a moment.” The old blacksmith brought a sheath that was the same shade of black as the longsword. The size of the sheath was an exact match for the blade’s length and width.

Kang Yoon-Soo paid for the sheath and strapped Ravian’s longsword to his waist. He then said, “I wish to use the smithy.”

“One silver coin for three hours. The price of using the smithy in Hiledan is a bit more expensive than in other cities. However, since you’ve shown me such an excellent sword, I’ll discount it to eighty bronze coins instead. You can use that workstation over there,” the blacksmith replied.

Kang Yoon-Soo paid the old blacksmith and entered the smithy. Traveler Blacksmiths and Continental Enchanters were inside, smithing and repairing various different kinds of weapons.

Shaneth stared admiringly at the female blacksmiths, who had large, rugged muscles and wore only thin shirts as they hammered away at steel. There were surprisingly a lot of women who worked as blacksmiths.

“Give me the scythe,” Kang Yoon-Soo said. Shaneth passed her scythe with its chipped blade to him. Kang Yoon-Soo threw the scythe into the furnace and began melting it over a mold. As the scythe slowly started to melt, he took out a green ingot from his backpack.

“Hey, isn’t that mithril?”

“Hey, you punk! Where in the continent would you find a blacksmith who would bring such a precious metal to a backwater city smithy like this? It must have been dyed with the same color as mithril.”

“But what kind of benefit would you get from dyeing a metal?”

Two middle-aged men bickered as they watched Kang Yoon-Soo. The thing he had brought out from his backpack was a real mithril ingot, however. It was the ingot he had made by refining the mithril ore in Kerlin.

Mithril was called the blessed mineral. Even a small dagger made from mithril would be tremendously destructive while also being aesthetically pleasing. Armor made from mithril would have sufficient defensive power to resist being easily penetrated by most weapons, as well as very high durability. Mithril was often used by the church to bestow holy properties on swords or armor.

Kang Yoon-Soo melted one of the two mithril ingots he possessed into the mold alongside the melted-down scythe. The moment the molten metals mixed, the smithy was filled with a bright green light.

Some of the blacksmiths started to get rowdy in their excitement.

“Mithril! It’s really mithril!”

“Can he even handle that? That’s a very precious material!”

There were even some blacksmiths who dropped whatever they were doing and ran toward Kang Yoon-Soo.

A female blacksmith approached Shaneth and asked, “Hey, miss, that man… Does he even know how to handle mithril? Even master blacksmiths have a hard time handling that material. Why don’t you let me make the weapon instead? The properties of mithril can be ruined by even a small mistake, and there’s nothing a blacksmith would hate to see more than seeing mithril be ruined.”

“Well, that probably won’t happen,” Shaneth answered, smiling.

Kang Yoon-Soo poured the molten metals into the mold, and he started hammering away as soon as it started to take physical shape. The blacksmiths watching him were left in great suspense whenever he hammered the mixture, as they were afraid that a mistake would ruin the precious material.

“Isn’t he hammering too carelessly? The weapon will be ruined if he fails to balance the steel and mithril.”

“Tsk tsk. Look at him. That young fella doesn’t even know the value of what he is working with.”

Despite the murmurs surrounding him, Kang Yoon-Soo did not stop hammering away at the mixture. The sound of his hammering maintained the same rhythm, and there were no mistakes at all in the way he worked. Even experienced blacksmiths could not hide their admiration at the sight of him working.

“He seems to be young, but his hands aren’t trembling at all. He seems better than he looks, no?”

“Anyone would be nervous if they were dealing with a material of that caliber. He’s quite skilled, I'll give him that.”

The mixture slowly started to solidify as it began taking the shape of a quality weapon. Kang Yoon-Soo’s skills were excellent, and he was about to complete the weapon. However, he suddenly stopped hammering.

The mixture quickly began cooling down, and the blacksmiths started to fuss over it as if it were their own business.

“What?! Why is he stopping now after doing so well?! What the hell is he doing?!”

“Hammer it a bit more! It’s still not done yet!”

Some blacksmiths ran up with their hammers, intending to continue hammering the metal for him.

Kang Yoon-Soo caressed the handle of his hammer with his right hand; it was the hand he wore the ‘Ring of Life Suppression’ on. He said, "Release Soul.”

Gwaaaaaaah!

What came out was Lee Min-Chan’s soul that had been trapped in the ‘Ring of Life Suppression’. Kang Yoon-Soo had released it. The hazy soul wailed out in agony as it started to fly around the smithy, leaving the blacksmiths and Shaneth terrified at the sight of it.

“Wh… What is that?!” Shaneth asked.

“A corrupted soul,” Kang Yoon-Soo said.

“What?” Shaneth could not believe her eyes. She asked, “Why would you bring out something like that?”

“To use as material,” Kang Yoon-Soo said. He raised his hammer high, and the soul started to gather around the hammer. He then brought it down hard.

Clang!

The soul that had been gathered in the hammer was absorbed by the mithril alloy, and once Kang Yoon-Soo quenched the weapon in cold water, his work was finished. The result was a bluish-white scythe that had a very eerie aura.

[Death Scythe]

Rating: Rare

Attack Power: 47

A weapon that has been infused with a corrupted spirit. It has the power to inflict pain not only on the enemy’s body, but also on its soul. It was crafted by a skilled blacksmith who perfectly mixed a small amount of mithril into it.

*Inflicts fatal damage to spirit-type monsters.

*Inflicted wounds on enemies will not heal through normal means.

*Critical hits will randomly inflict one of the seven curses on the enemy.

[You have gained a tremendous achievement through your handiwork.]

[A new skill, ‘Craft Equipment’, has been created.]

[Craft Equipment]

Skill Level: Lvl1 (00.00%)

You can craft weapons or armor.

[You have crafted the weapon ‘Death Scythe’.]

[You have gained a tremendous achievement as a blacksmith.]

[The level of your skill, ‘Craft Equipment’, has massively increased.]

[‘Craft Equipment’ skill level has risen.]

[The chance of success when crafting a weapon has increased.]

[‘Craft Equipment’ skill level has risen.]

[The durability of any armor you craft will increase.]

[‘Craft Equipment’ skill level has risen.]

[Your hammering has improved. The equipment you craft will fit more easily.]

[‘Craft Equipment’ skill level has risen.]

[The chance of failure when crafting equipment has decreased.]

[‘Craft Equipment’ skill level has risen.]

[The equipment you craft may have a higher rating despite using low-level crafting tools.]

[‘Craft Equipment’ skill level has risen.]

[The durability of all equipment you produce will increase by one level.]

[‘Craft Equipment’ skill level has risen.]

[Your understanding of blacksmithing has increased. You will be able to efficiently destroy your enemy’s equipment.]

The skill ‘Craft Equipment’ had reached Level 7 as soon as Kang Yoon-Soo obtained it. An average blacksmith would have to work day and night for at least three to four months to reach the same level. The blacksmiths around him could only be startled.

“What the hell is that?!”

“I’ve never seen a soul being used as a material to craft a weapon!”

Kang Yoon-Soo gave the ‘Death Scythe’ to Shaneth, and she took the weapon and slung it onto her back. The edge of the scythe was very sharp, and its weight had significantly reduced compared to before.

Shaneth started to blush. It was only a weapon, but she could not help but feel touched by the fact that Kang Yoon-Soo had put in so much effort just to make it for her; however, she also thought that gifting her a weapon instead of flowers or a doll was very typical of him. A small giggle escaped her lips while she was lost in her thoughts.

Kang Yoon-Soo looked at her and asked, “What are you laughing about?”

“It’s nothing,” Shaneth answered, smiling awkwardly.

“Let’s go,” Kang Yoon-Soo said.

“Okay!” Shaneth replied.

The blacksmiths were so flustered and shocked by what had just taken place that they forgot to even ask the man’s name. Thus, the pair left the smithy.

Shaneth was beaming as she remarked, “I really think you’re amazing. You even easily managed to make such an amazing weapon.”

Kang Yoon-Soo slowly turned his head toward Shaneth, who was following him from behind. He planned to travel with her once again in his 1,000th life, but in the past, they had always failed to remain together. She had always disappeared like a candle in a gust of wind. It was because he had been unable to protect her.

An odd trace of emotion started to form in his eyes as he wished, the way he had always done over and over again, ‘I hope I’ll be able to protect you in this life.’