BGOH 08

Chaper 08 …

The Genius Blacksmith Hunters Are Obsessed With

The flea market they finally arrived at.

—Kid, something about this place feels really strange.

“Right? I think…”

The moment Kang Cheol reached the venue, he stood there speechless.

The first thing he felt was overwhelming awe.

The scale of the place far exceeded anything he had imagined, leaving him completely stunned.

“…I don’t think I’m going to make any money here.”

Just because it was called a flea market didn’t mean it had to stay small forever.

Once all sorts of things got added to it, it was only natural for it to grow.

The problem was that it had grown far beyond his expectations.

—When they told you to come to the stadium, they literally meant they rented the entire stadium? Kid, the world you live in is seriously insane.

It was normally a baseball stadium.

And the entire stadium had been rented out just for this flea market.

“I-I guess I should at least look around first and see how everything works.”

Leaving his belongings in the car, Kang Cheol began looking around.

—Oh, damn.

Only three minutes into walking around, Kang Cheol realized something.

He had been completely fooled by the words flea market.

Normally, when people heard “flea market,” they imagined a wide empty lot with makeshift stalls and old, dusty goods casually spread out wherever there was space.

Instead, every vendor had somehow built actual walls and roofs onto their temporary booths.

For an event that only lasted a few days!

“And I don’t think I can honestly call that a flea market, even out of politeness.”

Among the booths were even several well-known mid-sized companies, standing out like bulgogi toppings on a pizza.

There weren’t just a few respectable businesses either. Some booths were so crowded that you couldn’t even see their signboards.

There were companies offering on-site re-heat treatment by installing portable furnaces inside temporary shops.

Others even provided thinning services—something Kang Cheol had ruled out because it was too difficult to perform in the field.

—Isn’t that just an entire company that packed up and moved here?

“…I’m so confused that I can’t even tell anymore.”

He couldn’t help nodding in agreement with the notification window.

After looking around for a while, Kang Cheol headed over to the event headquarters.

“Excuse me. I have a question I’d like to ask.”

“Please take a waiting ticket first.”

“…Ah, yes. Sorry.”

A waiting ticket… for a flea market information desk.

Grumbling to himself, Kang Cheol waited before finally getting his turn about five minutes later.

“Isn’t this way too big for a flea market? I’m a blacksmith, so I was wondering if I somehow came to the wrong event.”

“Hehe, it’s a bit chaotic, isn’t it? Is this your first time? Or…”

“Uh, I came once with my father. About… four? Maybe five years ago.”

“Ah, then it would definitely seem different now. Everything changed around three years ago.”

The staff member began giving a lengthy explanation.

Before then, the participating blacksmiths had essentially regulated themselves.

Even though it was a low-budget event, incompetent blacksmiths were driven out, and hunters who caused too much trouble would simply be refused service by the blacksmiths.

The blacksmith leading those efforts had tremendous influence within the industry and exceptional skills, so everyone willingly followed his lead.

—Huh? This story sounds awfully familiar…

Then, at some point, the blacksmith workshop that had led those self-regulating efforts stopped participating in the flea market.

That happened three years ago.

After that, low-quality blacksmiths flooded in without restraint.

Large companies saw the opportunity and started sending their apprentice employees, causing the number of blacksmiths to explode.

As more blacksmiths gathered, hunters naturally followed, and the event rapidly grew into what it was today.

“It was called Gangcheol Workshop. It was a really famous place. When the owner disappeared, it even made the news. It was a huge incident.”

—Whoa…

“Ah…”

It felt strange.

Even though he had attended with his father before, everything the staff member said sounded completely unfamiliar.

“Oh! Right, you said you’re a blacksmith! If you’re planning to open a booth, would you like me to help you register for the event?”

Kang Cheol hurriedly waved both hands.

There was no way he could introduce himself as Gangcheol Workshop here.

Just from the staff member’s expression, it was obvious she still regretted losing the role that Kang Cheol’s father, the owner of Gangcheol Workshop, had voluntarily taken upon himself.

“Oh! N-No. I’m not really opening a proper booth. I’m only planning to do sharpening. Before I came, I figured I could just sit wherever there was some empty space.”

“Ah, you were thinking of the Free Zone. Hehe. Here’s a map. We’re here, and the Free Zone is over here…”

The staff member repeatedly warned him that the Free Zone was particularly chaotic and difficult to keep orderly.

After chatting with her a little longer, Kang Cheol left.

* * *

—So what are you going to do, kid?

The notification window urged him.

He had come here intending to assess the situation.

Instead, everything had completely exceeded his calculations.

Doing anything at this flea market suddenly seemed much more difficult than expected.

“Sigh… I never imagined it’d be like this.”

Just then—

“So it’s really you, damn it. Never thought I’d run into you here.”

A rough, unfamiliar voice pierced his ears.

Even without listening carefully, the tone wasn’t friendly.

“Ain’t this just bravo, huh?”

Three pot-bellied middle-aged men who practically screamed I’m a blacksmith swaggered toward him.

Not a single one of them was someone Kang Cheol recognized.

“That’s him?”

“Yep. Says Gangcheol Workshop right there on the car.”

“…Who are you?”

The blacksmiths chuckled among themselves.

It was obvious they were seeing Kang Cheol for the first time as well.

Yet their expressions contained nothing but hostility.

The biggest one stepped forward and shoved Kang Cheol in the chest.

“Us old men got ourselves a debt with your father.”

“…A debt?”

“Yep. Your old man did us real dirty. Real baaad bastard. So now…”

“Uwaaah!”

He never got to finish.

Kang Cheol casually gave him a light shove.

The giant blacksmith slid backward several meters before crashing onto the ground.

“If you’re an adult, does that mean you got some kind of license to badmouth someone else’s father?”

“The hell? You little brat! How dare you while grown-ups are talking!”

Another blacksmith, the one with the biggest belly, swung his fist.

Normally, Kang Cheol might have wondered whether getting punched would at least earn him some compensation.

But—

“…Too slow.”

The punch looked like it wouldn’t even hurt him.

It would probably just be annoying.

After Kang Cheol effortlessly dodged several punches in a row, the man staggered around before running out of breath.

“Damn it!”

The last man rushed in.

He was holding a long pair of iron tongs used during heat treatment.

“Waaah! That’s dangerous! …Huh?”

Despite shouting dramatically, Kang Cheol easily grabbed the man’s arm and took the tongs away.

Then he noticed something strange.

“…That’s odd.”

They should have been made of iron.

Yet they felt unbelievably light.

Could this be one of those prank shows?

Maybe these are fake props, and there’s a hidden camera somewhere.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Kang Cheol struck the tongs against the ground.

They bent like soft taffy.

“…These are props, right?”

“…Why’s nobody saying anything?”

The notification window interrupted.

—Come on, kid. That’s because you’re the strong one. I told you already—your physical abilities would never hold you back from doing your work.

Kang Cheol was shocked for an entirely different reason.

So the tongs hadn’t been defective.

He had simply bent solid iron through pure strength.

“I don’t remember ever needing to use this much strength before…”

—You’re a metalworker, kid! Back in my day we mined and carried iron ore ourselves!

There wasn’t even a basic Strength stat on his status window.

He hadn’t realized just how physically powerful he’d become.

Apparently, there was quite a difference between the system’s standards and modern people’s common sense.

Kang Cheol turned back toward the blacksmiths.

“Ahem. A-A blacksmith should speak through his skills. What exactly are you doing? These are tools you’re supposed to use while working, yet you’ve made them so shabby.”

—You’re the one who ruined the tongs. Where’d your conscience go?

Did “shabby” refer to how poorly they were made?

Or to the fact that he’d bent them until they were unusable?

Listening to himself, Kang Cheol realized it could almost sound like a threat.

He scratched the back of his head.

“Anyway, let’s talk. If you run away or refuse…”

He lightly tapped his car.

The dashcam happened to be pointed at them from the perfect angle, its indicator light blinking meaningfully.

—Oh, kid. You’re pretty good at threatening people.

‘I’m just trying to have a conversation. How is that a threat?’

—You’re good at justifying yourself, too.

“…”

Kang Cheol listened as the three blacksmiths explained themselves.

They had painted his father as some terrible man.

In reality, it was exactly the opposite.

All three of them had apparently been scolded by his father in the past.

Judging from what the information desk employee had said, they’d been on the receiving end of his father’s “self-regulation.”

“So… you came here planning to cause trouble again?”

Either way, he couldn’t simply pretend nothing had happened.

Sure, he’d destroyed the tongs with ease.

But they’d still tried to hit him with what was basically an iron club.

“So… what are you planning to do now?”

“W-What do you mean?”

“You came here to participate in the event, didn’t you? It’ll be awkward if we just run into each other again later, so let’s settle this properly.”

An apology and a promise not to start trouble again would’ve been enough.

Unfortunately…

They completely misunderstood him.

The three blacksmiths huddled together, whispered among themselves, then proudly put their hands on their hips.

“So you’re saying you wanna squeeze the guts outta a flea, huh?”

“…What?”

When Kang Cheol looked genuinely confused, another blacksmith answered.

“If we had money, why the hell would we be at a flea market?”

“Just spit it out already. You’re saying you’ll keep quiet if we pay you a settlement.”

“…A settlement?”

“There ain’t no fairness in this world!”

The word settlement left Kang Cheol utterly dumbfounded.

They were talking as though demanding protection money was the most natural thing in the world.

Worse still…

They sounded like they were about to negotiate the amount.

“Just what kind of life do you have to live for your brain to work like that?”

—Not easy. Looks like your father really gave them a good scolding.

Turning them over to the event organizers or the police wouldn’t have been unreasonable.

—Since things turned out like this, why not make a little money off them?

‘What are you talking about? Are you even human?’

—That’s a strange question, kid. Are you asking whether I’m human or not?

“…”

While Kang Cheol argued with the notification window, the blacksmiths continued misunderstanding things.

“Look at those snake-like eyes. That brat’s dangerous.”

“Ain’t he even nastier than his father?”

“What if he suddenly demands something ridiculous?”

“What do you mean what? We run! You wanna stand there and get squeezed dry?”

The three blacksmiths shook their heads.

Whether they did good deeds or bad ones, they worked for one reason.

Money.

Trying to hit someone with iron tongs was one thing.

But losing money?

That was completely unacceptable.

They exchanged glances, nodded once, then shouted at Kang Cheol.

“We ain’t paying no settlement!”

“We’ve got kids to feed too! We’d rather become servants than hand over money!”

They were trying to sound resolute.

Kang Cheol simply stared at them blankly.

“…Okay. But I never asked for a settlement.”

Now it was the blacksmiths who felt awkward.

“W-What?”

“That’s right. I only said we should settle things properly. I never once asked you for money.”

The three men looked at each other in confusion.

It made absolutely no sense to them.

The three of them had picked a fight.

They’d lost to one person.

Anyone could see they were in the weaker position.

Which also meant…

This should’ve been the perfect chance for Kang Cheol to shake them down for enough money to skip work for several days.

Yet the young man standing before them didn’t seem interested in money at all.

“Then… what about reporting us?”

“I don’t know. We haven’t settled things yet.”

Gulp.

The same thought flashed through all three of their minds.

‘He’s a sucker.’

If they played their cards right and talked him into it…

They might get away with everything.

Or so they thought.

“You gentlemen came here to do business, right?”

“Of course. If I don’t make money, my wife’s gonna kick my ass.”

“You already reserved booths too?”

“Obviously! Running a business takes investment. That’s why we keep saying we can’t pay you. We’ve already spent plenty.”

“Ahh… so you reserved the expensive booths.”

The blacksmiths nodded enthusiastically.

Even putting on the most pitiful expressions they could manage.

Kang Cheol grinned.

“Then…”

“Let’s share it together.”

As if responding to his words, the dashcam light blinked once more.