Chapter 64

Two weeks slipped by.

Clang, clang!

As established, Baek Jinwoo managed his other responsibilities, but his primary focus never wavered from the Rune Dwarf.

• Rune Dwarf, how is the crafting progressing?

• Ooh, Drill Sarge! Ha-ha-ha! It’s going smoothly!

• Hey, your grip on that hammer is skewed again. I recalled warning you about that recently. The temperature looks adequate, but you remember the rules, correct? You must add more fuel to the fire at regular intervals.

• Ha-ha-ha! Understood! Slipped my mind again, appreciate the correction!

He consistently dispatched the Drill Sarge to overlook the process, ensuring training was never neglected.

It was all driven by the desire to unlock the hidden talent.

Wow.

It really was an unusual sight.

A blade-master Drill Sarge instructing a natural-born craftsman, a dwarf, on the finer points of smithing.

The mountain of resources gathering before the Rune Dwarf grew taller with each passing day.

He was striking that anvil incessantly now, keeping at it around the clock!

Yet the raw resources just kept piling up.

Whispers had begun circulating among the Big Three.

They whispered that hunting monsters specifically for runes was a losing game.

They realized that collecting raw components and having fresh items forged was far more efficient than purchasing ready-made runes from the Market.

After monitoring the situation for a while, Baek Jinwoo finally chose to intervene.

“Rune Dwarf, you should pause and rest once in a while.”

• What? Young master, how could you utter such painful words!

“Beg pardon?”

The Rune Dwarf appeared genuinely offended.

• How can you expect me to sit idle when all these magnificent components are waiting right here! That is a dreadful suggestion! There is no telling when I might be tossed back into Quarantine! I intend to strike this anvil every single moment I am able!

“……Do as you please.”

It seemed to stem from deep-seated distress.

He was an individual whose entire existence revolved around swinging his hammer, and they had kept him isolated for so long… The fear of returning to that state terrified him.

“Well, proceed however you like.”

It only meant higher earnings for me anyway.

Regardless.

As a direct consequence of this development, rune values actually dropped a bit, while the cost of raw components began to climb dramatically.

Every single combatant within the Big Three ceased purchasing ready-made runes, redirecting their funds toward hoarding raw resources instead.

As the cost of domestic components skyrocketed, global market prices followed a similar trajectory.

Local combatants were raiding foreign Markets, buying out every piece of material available!

Naturally, every single one of those components…

• Ha, ha-ha-ha-ha! Is this reality? Tell me I am not dreaming! Ha-ha-ha!

…ended up stacked high in front of the Rune Dwarf.

Without an end in sight.

Soon, a full month had flown by.

• Craft (Lv.4): Utilizes diverse components to forge a chosen rune at a designated success rate.

He had at last advanced Craft to level 4.

The likelihood of a successful creation had climbed to 2%.

As a point of reference, the probability scaling across levels operated as follows.

The absolute limit was 25%.

Attaining that tier would likely require several years of effort.

Realistically, reaching roughly level 7 was enough to make the process sustainable.

Because at that stage, an individual could reliably forge top-tier runes while consuming far fewer resources.

Naturally, upgrading them was an entirely separate dilemma.

Aside from a Rare rune, obtaining the perfect distribution of attributes was incredibly rare…

Which guaranteed that demand would never truly vanish.

Every combatant carried the ultimate goal of assembling their ideal, final rune configuration.

Throughout that entire month, Yubaek actively marketed high-grade runes across both local and global trading floors without favoritism, pulling in massive revenues.

Predictably, the central office became incredibly frantic.

“The purchase requests are overwhelming! They are coming in non-stop!”

“Are there any extra runes available? The inventory cannot match the current demand!”

“The request volume for STR runes is breaking records!”

“We absolutely need to recruit more personnel, don’t we?”

The shortage was severe enough that they resorted to a pre-order system, but there was no alternative solution.

The speed of the Rune Dwarf’s hammer strikes remained entirely uniform.

Could they utilize Ramba to accelerate his movements? They decided to test it.

• Argh, YAAAAAH! What is happening to me! Halt! Turn it off immediately! My limbs are moving entirely against my will — how can I possibly forge anything with precision like this!

The Rune Dwarf became so incredibly agitated that they were forced to call him back to the reserve instantly.

Yu Jia, capitalizing on this massive wave of commercial success, brought on additional personnel for the sales department and went so far as to establish regional hubs in foreign Markets.

A massive commercial enterprise was officially underway.

At that very moment, over in England.

A woman with golden hair stood gazing up at the massive skyscraper known as The Shard in London.

She was known as Rachel.

Ding!

[Sugoi: Rachel, are you truly attempting the challenge today?]

[Xenos: Conquering the 30th-floor guardian and immediately proceeding to the 50th-floor guardian? Are you certain about this path?]

The multiplayer messaging channel was buzzing with activity.

Rachel had broken her prolonged period of inactivity to announce her intention to ascend the Tower of Trials.

She had spent her time away conducting rigorous preparations.

In the original mechanics of Battle of Summoners, failing an ascent on the tower carried no permanent consequences.

But in this reality?

Falling short meant losing your life.

For that reason, Rachel had excavated her recollections of the past, striving to reconstruct the layout of the tower and perfecting every single plan down to the smallest detail.

And now.

The groundwork was entirely complete.

[Rachel: Alleviate your concerns. My certainty of success stands at 100%.]

An unwavering conviction in her victory — that exact instant had arrived.

[Baekcheon: Wow! Just as expected, Elder Sister. You are truly marvelous!]

[Rachel: Did I not remind you recently? I have no desire to be addressed as ‘Elder Sister’ by someone who has crossed the sixty-year mark.]

[Baekcheon: And I reiterated my stance. Whoever possesses greater power than myself is my Elder Brother or Elder Sister.]

[Rachel: Be quiet.]

[Baekcheon: On a separate note, have you caught wind of the recent updates?]

Updates?

Rachel curled her lip slightly and prepared to lock her display.

Because once Baekcheon engaged in conversation, he rarely knew when to stop.

He was likely just sharing another trivial piece of gossip.

Right as she was about to dismiss his messages to concentrate entirely on the spire.

[Baekcheon: Baek Jinwoo, that combatant from South Korea.]

Oh?

Rachel paused before locking her device.

Baek Jinwoo…

The individual she privately suspected of being the legendary JinuGod.

Someone worthy of close attention!

[Baekcheon: The firm representing him, Yubaek, has recently entered the market selling runes.]

Runes?

What variety of runes?

[Sugoi: Ah, that situation?]

[Baekcheon: Oh, you are already aware of this, Elder Brother?]

[Sugoi: Indeed I am. I acquired a small batch myself quite recently.]

Oh?

Sugoi was informed about this as well?

And he had actually made purchases?

[Baekcheon: When looking at the properties of those runes, does a specific summon not spring to mind?]

[Sugoi: So you picked up on it as well?]

[Baekcheon: Naturally, I picked up on it.]

The two high-ranking combatants shared a silent realization.

These individuals!

Keeping it entirely to themselves!

Irritated by their vagueness, Rachel injected herself into the discussion.

[Rachel: What exactly did you pick up on?]

Sugoi provided the explanation.

[Sugoi: Rune Dwarf.]

[Rachel: What?]

[Sugoi: Yubaek is distributing runes that can exclusively be crafted by a Rune Dwarf.]

[Rachel: Are you serious?]

[Sugoi: To put it plainly. An STR rune that carries both Critical Rate and critical damage properties simultaneously.]

[Rachel: Wow, that is an absolute masterpiece.]

Experienced combatants through and through.

That lone detail conveyed everything she required to comprehend the situation.

That is massive.

In all honesty, she had recognized the disparity within her own gear.

She had filled her equipment slots with Rare runes wherever possible, but even so.

The contrast between owning gear shaped by a Rune Dwarf and lacking it was night and day.

[Sugoi: Baek Jinwoo was already known to command a Drill Instructor and a Wind Fairy, correct? Every single one of those summons had been placed into Quarantine through system updates. And the Rune Dwarf was similarly a summon sealed away by historical patches. The probability is 100%. Baek Jinwoo is in possession of the Rune Dwarf.]

Wow.

She had harbored her doubts, but…

He had managed to claim that entity as well?

[Sugoi: You all recall how it went. I depleted an unbelievable quantity of high-tier and apex-tier summoning parchments attempting to call forth a Rune Dwarf. And I never succeeded once. Yet that newcomer at Yubaek commands one. Curse it all. I am incredibly envious.]

Not only did he possess the entity.

He was already leveraging it to conduct commercial trade?

He possessed an incredible talent for maximizing the utility of his resources.

Does this mean he truly is JinuGod?

Deep down, she wished to communicate with him directly.

She wanted to discover the truth.

However.

The wait would not be much longer in any case.

Barely four months remained before the commencement of the World League.

Once that event arrived, an encounter would be mandatory whether they desired it or not.

There was no purpose in tracking him down and causing unnecessary tension if he preferred isolation.

Nonetheless.

The detail that troubled Rachel was this.

Sugoi mentioned he had secured a few items recently, correct?

That implied the Five Emperors who were silently monitoring the channel were likely aware of the situation as well.

If the Rune Dwarf was truly a asset unique to Baek Jinwoo?

The worth of those forged items would only continue to skyrocket.

If Baek Jinwoo possessed any business acumen, he would strictly manage the market availability.

Under those circumstances?

Securing them immediately represented a flawless investment!

Prior to testing her limits against the tower.

Rachel initiated a voice call.

Reaching out to the secondary commander of the organization she commanded, Red Rose.

• Standing by, Guild Master.

“Investigate whether an enterprise named Yubaek is offering runes on our regional trading board.”

• Understood, give me just a brief moment!

A short interval of silence followed.

• There is an active storefront, but they have completely exhausted their current inventory and are exclusively accepting pre-orders!

Just as she suspected.

The perceptive individuals had already cleared out the stock!

Rachel let out a weary breath.

The data collection department of Red Rose… Those individuals.

Perhaps it was time for an internal reorganization.

How could they identify a piece of intelligence this vital and fail to deliver a report?

“For the time being, secure pre-orders for every available slot and acquire everything the exact moment new inventory arrives.”

Moving her head in disapproval, Rachel marched forward toward The Shard.

The loftiest architectural structure in Europe.

The United Kingdom’s Tower of Trials.

“This is a massive hit!”

Baek Ajin shouted with joy.

She was well aware that the fresh rune commerce venture was experiencing massive growth.

However.

[Red Rose — “We wish to submit a pre-order request.”]

Amidst the endless sea of organizations and high-ranking combatants who had flooded their communications portal, she noticed an incredible name.

“Red Rose — that is Rachel’s organization, is it not?”

“That is correct.”

The company representative standing nearby verified the detail.

“The emblem of England is the red rose, after all. Whenever individuals observe that specific floral insignia, Rachel is the immediate figure that springs to mind.”

“Wow, an international powerhouse guild of that scale is looking to acquire our merchandise?”

She felt incredibly touched.

This was the exact instance where her brother’s status broke past domestic boundaries and resonated on a global scale. It was impossible not to feel overwhelmed!

Furthermore.

“Yoshida Hikaru from Japan is requesting to buy an even greater quantity of runes.”

“W-we have received a transmission from Xenos in America as well!”

“Baekcheon from Taiwan is reaching out too!”

Purchase requests were flooding the system all at once from the regions recognized as the global Big Five and from legendary combatants.

Agreements requesting consistent, long-term procurement partnerships were manifesting regularly as well.

This is truly mind-blowing.

Baek Ajin showed her amazement silently, sticking her tongue out.

It felt like only yesterday she was surviving on what people crudely referred to as low-tier rune trading. She had never envisioned an era like this would manifest.

The reality that these major figures were approaching her directly signified a singular truth.

The assets distributed by Yubaek were the absolute pinnacle of premium runes available anywhere.

And she personally retained a 20% cut from every single item distributed.

A literal goldmine.

She was practically drenched in incoming revenue.

Even with that being the case.

With a consumer desire of this magnitude, it was likely the correct moment to implement a price surge.

Elementary market principles.

When consumer desire is immense and market availability is scarce, you elevate the pricing to re-establish market equilibrium.

She could not foresee how Yubaek’s rune enterprise would transform moving forward.

But at this current tier.

As an introductory phase, these outcomes were nothing short of miraculous.

The reputation of the business would steadily radiate outwards from this point on.

Recognized universally as the singular destination that provided elite runes that wealth alone could not secure.

And at that exact coordinate in time.

• At long last!

CLANG!

The Rune Dwarf, who had been hammering away without a single moment of rest, launched his smithing tool aside with all his strength and released a thunderous roar of laughter.

• I HAVE FINALLY ATTAINED UTTER MASTERY!

The exact capability that the individual who called him forth had desired so intensely!

The latent capability, completely unlocked!

• Masterwork Crafting (Lv.1): Utilizes diverse components to forge a designated rune with a guaranteed 100% success rate.

Masterwork Crafting!

The Rune Dwarf had achieved complete mastery over the skill.

One month.

And exactly two weeks following that period.