"So… traveling costs money."

Julian stood at the edge of the town, gazing down the long road that stretched into the horizon. He had made up his mind to leave Archon so that he could spend time inside a smithy again, but now, a problem presented itself—he had no money. It only hit him now that he gave all of his coins away. They were gone, along with the weapons that had been absorbed by that ridiculous quest.

He needed to get to the next city. Unfortunately, that wasn’t going to be easy. Carriages were expensive, and he was flat broke.

Walking was an option, sure—but where to? He had no idea where he was going, and if the journey took days, it would waste time. Days spent flipping between his clone in Artemia and his real body… where failure loomed over him like a storm cloud.

“Uuhh… [Guidance]?” he muttered, half-heartedly, “Where do I go?”

[…]

Nothing. Not even a flicker of direction. Julian sighed, deflating slightly. The [Guidance of Artemis] wasn’t like MEGAN. It wasn’t a friendly AI ready to guide him with snappy answers. No, it was more like… well, a system, something to keep things moving along, not a companion. It didn’t respond to casual queries.

Reaching into his Newbie Package, Julian hoped for a miracle. Instead, all he found was a healing potion and a map, neither of which was useful to him right now. The map, for one thing, was written in a language he couldn’t even read.

"Well..." Sighing heavily, he pocketed the items and stood there, trying to piece together a plan.

And then, as if the universe decided to throw him a lifeline, a group of adventurers walked by, talking loudly amongst themselves.

"These damn daggers are blunt again. I swear we just sharpened them before the hunt," one of them complained, waving a dull blade in frustration.

“Pft, no wonder the smithy closed down,” another adventurer scoffed, “They were going crazy about thieves stealing all of their [Rare] weapons. As if they ever had anything close to rare.”

And soon, their voices drifted away, but the spark had already ignited in Julian’s mind. A hum of realization passed his lips as a plan began to form.

‘Sharpen their weapons... I can sharpen blades for money,’ he thought.

But a new problem arose. He had no tools of his own—no weapon, no whetstone. His mind raced, searching for a solution. Maybe the smithy had something he could use.

Julian headed straight to the smithy, but what greeted him was…well, far worse than he’d expected. The shop owner was sitting outside the closed doors, crying—no, more like wailing for the whole town to hear. Cursing, crying, and calling for the thieves to show themselves.

Julian’s steps halted instantly.

“Okay…” He gulped, taking a slow, cautious step backward, hoping not to be seen or heard. Whatever the shop owner was going through… Julian definitely did not want to get involved.

If he was going to make money, he’d have to take a risk. Something reckless.

And then, it hit him. Perhaps it was time for a reunion with some old friends.

The goblins.

***

Moving carefully through the dense forest, Julian tried to keep his footsteps light, his senses heightened. He wasn’t blind anymore, but the terrain felt just as disorienting. Every tree looked the same, blending together in an endless maze.

He pulled out the map from his Newbie Package again, hoping for some guidance. To his surprise, the map had changed. A rough outline of the area appeared, along with a dotted trail marking his previous steps.

"Oh… I suppose it is useful," Julian muttered under his breath. He retraced the path he had taken with Marcus when they first came to Archon—fortunately, he was awake the entire time while he was being carried and dragged by him. And after a while, he stumbled upon exactly what he was looking for.

Goblins.

Two of the green-skinned creatures crouched near a clearing, seemingly oblivious to his presence.

“Hm…” His heart pounded in his chest as he crouched low, hiding behind a tree, gripping a large stone he’d picked up earlier. The memory of his fight with the Daemon rushed back, but these creatures were nothing like that monstrosity—they might as well be… children.

He waited, counting his breaths, watching the goblins closely. Then, when the moment felt right…

“!!!”

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…Julian sprang from his hiding spot, slamming the stone down onto the nearest goblin’s skull. The creature crumpled to the ground without a sound, only the snapping of its skull. The second goblin barely had time to turn before Julian was upon it, grabbing the weapon of the deceased goblin.

The moment his hand touched the goblin’s crude sword, something inside him snapped.

A strange surge of energy rushed through his veins, as if the weapon had flipped a switch in his mind. His breath quickened, his grip tightening around the handle. All at once, he felt the familiar frenzy bubbling up inside him—a wild, uncontrollable urge to destroy.

With a crazed gleam in his eyes, Julian slashed at the second goblin, his strikes rapid, almost animalistic. He didn’t just kill the creature—he decimated it, every blow fueled by a primal instinct he had no control over. The goblin barely stood a chance as Julian carved through its body with an unrelenting ferocity.

When the dust settled, he stood there, chest heaving, blood-splattered sword in hand.

“What…” The frenzied energy still lingered, but slowly, Julian regained control. His fingers twitched as he loosened his grip on the weapon, staring down at the lifeless bodies.

"I… I did it again. MEGAN’s… right," he muttered, a hint of the frenzy still evident in his voice as he pocketed the goblin’s crude swords. He looked at the mangled corpse again before just letting out a sigh and walking away.

With the weapons now in his possession, Julian made his way back to Archon.

***

“...Okay.” Julian sat cross-legged in the center of Archon’s plaza, the goblin swords laid out in front of him. He had no proper tools—no whetstone—so he had gathered a chunk of sandstone from a small river outside the town. It wasn’t ideal, but it would have to do.

He did not really need to call anyone’s attention—after all—his clothes were drenched in blood, people would be looking at him even if he did not want to.

As he worked, grinding the blade against the sandstone, the familiar rhythm of stone and metal calmed his mind. The crude swords weren’t worth much to anyone, but to Julian, they were metal—precious things to be honed and shaped. Every imperfection, every dull edge was a challenge, and he treated it like any other project—with utmost care and gentleness, and a smile lingering on his face like he was holding a baby.

Well, of course, you wouldn’t grind a baby’s face on a rough surface—but still, he treated it like a baby.

Julian’s hands worked with precision. His grip on the blade was firm yet delicate, turning the weapon at just the right angle to catch the stone’s coarseness. Each stroke of the sandstone against the blade sent microscopic sparks flying, the friction slowly wearing down the rough surface, exposing the cleaner, sharper metal beneath. He used his thumb to test the blade’s edge periodically, adjusting his technique as needed.

“...Why does it feel like I’m watching something I shouldn’t?” One of the onlookers could not help but comment, “This feels… sensual somehow.”

“Sensual…? It’s a goblin’s sword. You dumbass.”

"Yeah. Don't you see how he's rubbing that thing on that big, hard rock...?"

While others might see a worthless goblin weapon, Julian saw potential. It didn’t matter how crude the blade was—it was still metal, and metal could always be improved. Bit by bit, the sword’s edge began to take form. The grind marks disappeared, leaving a smoother, glistening surface that caught the light in subtle ways.

The crowd around him grew thicker, the murmurs growing louder.

"Is… he sharpening blades?" someone muttered.

"Pft, lame," another scoffed, not even bothering to stop.

"Why would it be lame?" a third voice chimed in, more curious than dismissive.

If Julian was any more knowledgeable about Artemia and its inhabitants, he would realize the difference between their words. Most players saw him as some newbie wasting time. The Hyums, however, were watching more closely, their interest piqued.

The goblin swords were crude—junk to most adventurers. But as Julian continued, the once dull, ugly edges began to smooth, the surface of the blade catching the sunlight as it gained a polished, refined sheen.

“W…what the…? Is that even the same sword?”

“Did he switch it somehow!?”

"Let… let me see that!" one of the onlookers exclaimed, stepping forward with wide eyes. "[Guidance]!"

As soon as the word left their mouth, their expression shifted from mild curiosity to shock. More people crowded around, each one muttering the same command. One by one, their faces lit up in surprise.

“What… are you guys doing?” Julian, confused by their reactions, examined the sword.

“...[Guidance]?” The moment he whispered those words, a screen popped up before his eyes.

[Item: Goblin’s Sword (Sharpened)]

Type: One-handed Sword

Grade: Common

Durability: 2/100

Sharpness: 1 + 30

Weight: 1.5

Special Effects:

Increased Sharpness

Skills:

None

Description:

A sword forged by a Hobgoblin. Crude, unrefined, fragile. But it serves its purpose. Sharpened by an unknown man in the small town of Archon. This blade has been sharpened to its utmost limits. Unfortunately, with its extremely low durability, the sword might snap after one use—unworthy of its sharpness.

[End of Description]

Julian stared at the screen, fascinated by all the details that were slowly entering his mind.

‘Maybe this is why people like playing video games,’ he thought. The stats, the description—it intrigued him in a way he hadn’t expected.

Before he could dwell on it, more people crowded around, suddenly shoving their weapons in his direction, something even right in front of his face.

"H… hey, man. Can you sharpen this!?"

"I have this dagger I bought from that stupid smithy!"

“Oi, I was here first!”

Julian blinked, momentarily overwhelmed by the flood of requests. But then he realized—this was what he wanted.

"I’ll… sharpen your weapons," he said, "but it’ll cost you. The price will depe–"

“Here! I can give you 100 Copper coins for this!”

“Broke ass, get out of here!”

He expected people to turn away at the mention of payment, but to his surprise, no one seemed to mind. They were eager to pay for his services, and soon enough, coins began to pile up at his feet.

The players did not even seem to mind the hyums, and at the same time, the hyums did not think much of anything as they also joined the frenzied customers.

Julian’s hands worked tirelessly, sharpening weapon after weapon, each blade leaving his hands sharper than it had ever been.

***

“W…woah. This has the same stats as a [Rare] weapon!”

“F…fuck, me next!”

As the crowd around Julian started to wither, a familiar voice called out from behind him.

"Newbie, what the hell are you doing?"

Julian turned to see Marcus standing there, his arms crossed, a confused expression on his face.

"I needed money," Julian said simply, "to travel to the nearest city."

“...Why would you travel to another city?” Marcus’s eyes widened, “I specifically told you to stay here, Newbie!”

“Oh, right…” Julian’s hands stopped moving, “...I forgot.”

“You… forgot? Marcus blinked, then scratched his head in frustration. "And you didn’t need to do all this. The scientists who are supposed to test your mana evaluation arrived earlier than expected, they’re here…

…and they’re taking you to the city in a carriage. For free. Like all of the newbies before you."

Julian froze, his hand still gripping the sandstone.

"...Ooh."