00768 Equipment, Appear—Done!
『Hammer of Wish』
(Description: A mystical hammer imbued with the power of Midget Smitht, forged and honed over his lifetime. With sufficient ore, a single strike from this hammer can manifest the user’s strongest desire into reality, simultaneously imbuing the crafted item with the hammer’s latent magic. Though it has no offensive power, this hammer—steeped in Midget Smitht’s experience and effort—is an unparalleled treasure, incomparable to any other divine artifact. It vanishes after one use, so caution is advised.)
“Wow, check this out! It’s called the Hammer of Wish?”
“Whoa, Clan Lord’s got it good.”
The area instantly buzzed with excitement. Since the ranged fighters were busy dispatching summoned monsters as soon as they appeared, the melee fighters—who had fewer chances to step up—quietly gathered to start an impromptu gear appraisal session.
For some reason, a few clan members even went out of their way to bring chairs and drinks without being asked, showing top-notch hospitality. Thanks to that, I could sit back comfortably and watch.
Boom! The third explosion thundered, rattling eardrums, and a flash of light pierced the darkness. Nam Da-eun, perhaps worried about my eyes, covered them gently. When she removed her hands and I looked again, sure enough—the monster had vanished without a trace.
Jin Su-hyun darted through the smoke, then emerged clutching something that shimmered with an icy glow.
“Hyung! It came out! It came out again!”
『Fragarach – Ver. Rapier』
(Description: A sword blessed by Lugh, the god of light, once wielded by a legendary knight of the glaciers. Its blade, laced with ice, is sharp enough to pierce anything. It has a binding feature that allows it to draw itself from its sheath or return to the user at will. Also known as the Answerer, it’s called the ‘counterstrike sword.’)
『Fragarach – Ver. Armor』
(Description: Armor blessed by Lugh, worn by the same legendary glacier knight. Enemies ranked B or below lose their strength upon approaching this armor, as if entranced by a sensuous woman, allowing the wearer to seductively defeat foes. The armor radiates intense cold and offers strong resistance to ice magic.)
A slender rapier exuding biting cold and a translucent, ice-hued light armor made a striking impression. The armor’s color was so sheer it seemed the wearer’s skin might show through, yet it looked beautiful. I wondered if the legendary glacier knight had been a woman.
“Wow…”
Someone breathed out in awe. Glancing over, I saw Nam Da-eun staring blankly, mouth slightly open. Come to think of it, I hadn’t really paid attention to her until now. Feeling a twinge of guilt, I made up my mind quickly.
“This sword and armor would suit our Da-eun perfectly.”
“Huh?”
I spoke softly, and Da-eun’s eyes widened in surprise as she looked at me.
“Will you accept them?”
“Y-yes…? Really?”
“Yeah. They seem more fitting for you than for me. What do you think?”
“O-oppah…”
Da-eun looked at me with eyes full of emotion, then suddenly threw her arms around me in a tight hug.
Since she’s a bit flat-chested, I’d always felt a little sorry for her, but at that moment, I was glad to see her so moved.
Just then, a soft thud came from beside us as someone slumped down weakly.
“W-what the… Our Da-eun…”
It was Ko Yeon-ju, looking utterly defeated.
“Some call me User Ko Yeon-ju… and others call her ‘our Da-eun’…”
She collapsed onto Jung Ha-yeon’s lap, knees drawn up, and burst into sobs.
“No matter how hard I tried, they stubbornly stuck to their titles… and now I’m not just behind Ha-yeon, but beaten by a junior like her…”
“That’s right, that’s right.”
“Ha-yeon, it’s so cold… so cold… I feel like a defeated dog…”
“It’s okay. Part—no, Yeon-ju. Now, close your eyes and fall asleep like this. And leave beautifully.”
Jung Ha-yeon gently stroked her back while Ko Yeon-ju whimpered like a puppy.
By the way, Yeon-ju? When did she go from Ko Yeon-ju Terrier to something else? I couldn’t quite figure it out, but I slowly reached out a hand. Clicking my tongue like calling a dog, Ko Yeon-ju immediately stopped and glanced at me.
“Come here.”
“Whine?”
“Good girl, our Ko Yeon-ju Terrier.”
“Woof woof.”
She scrambled forward on all fours, showering me with affection. I tickled her chin in approval, and she stuck out her tongue, licking me playfully. Then, with a soft thud, she collapsed again.
Curious, I looked around and saw Ha Seung-yoon staring at us in disbelief, eyes wide open.
“N-no way…”
“…?”
“How could the Swordmaster and the Shadow Queen… act so… silly?”
“Huh?”
Silly? They’re adorable and lovable! I lightly petted them, and the two women clung to me as if competing for attention.
Ignoring Seung-yoon’s piercing gaze, I kept teasing them, and tears welled up in his eyes. Eventually, he squeezed them shut and turned his head away.
Oh, right—he’d wanted to join our clan because he admired the Swordmaster. Seeing this playful side must have shocked him. I guess I unintentionally shattered his innocent image.
Boom!
At that moment, as we were playing around, the fourth explosion rang out nearby. Reflexively, I looked toward the center, and the excitement drained from me instantly.
A pale cloud of dust and smoke rose in the garden, where large, shifting shadows flickered ominously.
“Su-hyun!”
Ko Yeon-ju was the first to react. As if she’d never been pretending to be a puppy, she snapped to attention and thrust her right arm forward like lightning.
Swoosh!
A gleaming dagger sliced through the air—
Clang!
—but it bounced off lightly, failing to reach the smoky figure. Seeing this, I drew my sword and raised it vertically. The noisy garden fell silent in an instant. Fixing my gaze steadily ahead, the wavering shadow began to part the smoke slowly. Footsteps were quiet. Only one presence registered on the magic detection.
Just then, Hwa-jeong’s voice echoed, and the shadow finally took shape. Not a huge monster, but clad in thick black armor and wielding a massive greatsword, it radiated a formidable aura. Though I couldn’t see inside, the slightly open helmet revealed glowing red eyes burning in endless darkness. I instinctively knew—it wasn’t weak.
“Obello Knights?”
“Are they really that strong?”
The knight commander could match an awakened Kushan Thor? Impressive. But this one was a lower-ranked Obello Knight, so we should be able to handle it.
After organizing my thoughts, I gave quiet orders and began stepping forward. Though invisible to the eye, I sensed clan members moving into position.
At first, the Obello Knight stood still, calmly surveying the surroundings, as if confused by being summoned.
But as I advanced slowly, it turned to face me and knelt down deliberately. Was it preparing to attack or defend? Before I could decide, the knight lightly stomped the ground.
Klang!
In the blink of an eye, it lunged at me, swinging its sword. I had my sword drawn and managed to block reflexively, but I couldn’t hide my surprise. It hadn’t even pushed off hard—just a light leap—and yet it closed the 25-meter gap in a single bound. A sudden gust of wind brushed past my ear. That was incredibly fast.
Then—
Vrrrrrrrr!
A strange hum began where our swords clashed. A deep vibration pulsed through my hand, and my sword radiated intense hostility—not toward me, but aimed at the opponent.
“Krrr?”
The Obello Knight, gripping its greatsword, staggered back, seemingly startled. What was going on?
“…Sovereign?”
To my astonishment, a hoarse voice echoed from inside the helmet. This was my chance. I bent low and slipped inside its guard, slashing at its thigh.
Startled, Sir Obello raised his greatsword high and brought it down with full force. Though his reaction was swift, Lee Hyung-hwan easily dodged the strike. Moving to the side without breaking his lowered stance, he delivered a powerful kick to the knight’s shin.
Thud. A heavy impact struck near the ankle. Sir Obello staggered violently. The original plan had been to knock him flat, but at least his balance was disrupted. That was enough. Because…
“Hngh!”
“Haah!”
Simultaneously, two figures lunged in from either side. Heo Jun-young gripped his long sword tightly and thrust forward with all his might, freezing Sir Obello in place. At the same moment, Cha So-rim’s spear pierced the deck like a flash of lightning, causing the knight to tremble as if struck by thunder.
Following those two strikes, Nam Da-eun suddenly leapt into the air, raising a sword that shimmered with an icy glow high above her head. The dazzling blade flashed under the moonlight.
Krrrkkk!
The sound of solid metal splitting echoed sharply. In an instant, Sir Obello was cleaved cleanly in half from crown to crotch, collapsing to the ground. A flawless coordinated attack.
“Phew. Looks like his physical resistance wasn’t very high. Though his magic resistance seemed pretty strong.”
“Or maybe it’s just that you four are way too powerful,” Nam Da-eun said slowly as she rose, prompting Jung Ha-yeon to respond with a wry smile.
I quickly stood and examined where Sir Obello had fallen. It wasn’t just impatience driving me, but curiosity about the incredible speed with which he had charged me earlier.
Activating my Third Eye, I found what I was looking for.
『Obello Knight Boots』
(Description: The now-ruined Obello Kingdom was once renowned for its metalworking. The Obello Knight Boots are awarded only to heroes who have achieved great deeds. They incorporate the kingdom’s secret four-layer metal compression technique. Four sides are imbued with protective magic, three sides with lightening magic, two sides with automatic size adjustment magic, and one side with the ancient spell ‘Rapid Acceleration.’ When activated, Rapid Acceleration dramatically boosts the wearer’s charging speed for one second and recharges every 24 hours.)
Reading the description, I felt I’d hit the jackpot. Although my Orothros Boots have a passive ‘Rapid’ enchantment, now that my agility stat had risen to 101 points, it was practically redundant. Using the Obello Knight Boots, which contain an active speed-boosting spell, would be far more advantageous. Plus, I was just about due for new boots anyway.
“Big brother, you found something else?”
Soon after, An Sol approached quietly, tilting her head. I gently stroked the top of her head, then clapped my hands a couple of times to draw everyone’s attention.
“Enough playing around. There are only two boxes left. Let’s stay focused until the end.”
Just then, as the tension tightened, a faint vibration came from my pocket. Pulling out the source of the noise, I saw the communication orb glowing softly—it seemed I had a message. I didn’t know who it was, but it was probably my older brother. I’d asked him to contact me when he returned, and it looked like he just got back.
After telling Ko Yeon-ju to keep a close watch, I moved toward the edge of the garden.
---------------------------= Author’s Note ---------------------------
The current part of the story involves the protagonist acquiring new equipment and setting up important plot threads, so it’s not something that can be rushed through. The monster summoning box arc will wrap up around the early to middle part of the next chapter, so I appreciate your understanding.
Also, while replying to messages today, I noticed that although I had previously reduced the number of messages I accepted to four, the count has now ballooned to over twenty in just one day. And exactly seven of those were prank messages.
…Please, I ask again: try to avoid prank messages. Readers who send genuine messages often ask sharp, insightful questions. Some are so complex that even if I dedicate a whole day to answering, I can only manage about 10 to 14 replies.
For example, a message like “I love Royumi~ Heart, heart!” is cute and easy to take in stride. But messages like “I want to get Royumi pregnant~ Teehee!” leave me utterly baffled. I don’t even know how to respond. So once again, I kindly ask you to refrain from prank messages. I do read and try to respond to every message, but if prank messages keep piling up, it disrupts my ability to reply to genuine readers. This is my fourth request. ㅜ.ㅠ From your faithful reader, I Believe.
Regarding the user information you requested, I will begin organizing it soon. Whether I update it one by one or all at once, I’ll start the work. Since many users’ classes, stats, and equipment are still changing, I’ll wait until those updates are finalized before posting the full details. I’m also considering where to post it for better accessibility, especially for mobile users.
Wishing all my readers a wonderful day. :)