Chapter 14: An Ability Beyond What Was Seen (2)

“It might be difficult to raise it by two levels before finding Caldein Flavan.”

He was the person I had in mind as my future magic training instructor.

I had commissioned the Eye of the Moon to locate him, but they hadn’t found him yet.

“Abilities are one thing, but these are also a problem. Pure iron isn’t really used around here. If I make that into steel and sell it outside, that’ll cause trouble, won’t it?”

The metals I had created through Decomposition and Extraction were scattered all over the place.

Common metals like copper or zinc weren’t an issue.

Of course, pure iron was the same in that regard, but it was still something that couldn’t possibly be produced with the current technology of this world.

However, pure iron—with no impurities, and being both flexible and ductile—couldn’t really be used for anything.

If it could be turned into steel or pig iron, though, its usefulness would expand enormously.

But even the greatest dwarven artisans couldn’t refine metal to that degree.

“If I were to sell it outside, I’d have to mix in a lot of impurities.”

Just as I was lost in thought, there came a knocking sound.

Knock knock.

“It’s Patrick. I’ve returned after finishing my errands.”

“You can come in.”

At my reply, Patrick entered, carrying a heavy-looking bag.

“This is the payment from selling the recipe. I used part of it to hire someone through Eye of the Moon.”

Startled, I quickly asked,

“You found someone? Who?”

“The magician, Caldein Flavan.”

“Really? Where is he now?”

“He’s in our Canel Kingdom. He’s apparently serving as a third-class member of the 13th Magic Division.”

I couldn’t help but be surprised once more.

“The 13th Magic Division? And a third-class member at that?”

In truth, the name Caldein Flavan would become famous across the entire continent eight or nine years from now.

That was because he would rise to fame as a great archmage of unknown origin who surpassed the Sixth Circle.

“You’re sure it’s really Caldein Flavan? There’s no one else with the same name?”

“If the person Your Highness is looking for isn’t the same one, then there must be someone else with that name.”

I hesitated for a moment. But it was rare for a magician to have the exact same full name—Caldein Flavan.

“I think I need to meet him. Is there any way you can bring him here?”

For now, it was difficult for me to leave Taron’s Palace.

And since the Magic Division was stationed inside the royal castle, entering there was no easy task either.

“Are you trying to learn another kind of magic besides the one you’re training in now?”

Patrick glanced around the room.

He had eyes, after all—he knew very well that I was practicing a rather unusual form of magic.

“Well… I suppose you could say that.”

“In that case, wouldn’t it be better to find a more skilled magician? A forty-one-year-old who’s still a third-class member probably isn’t very talented.”

Patrick wasn’t wrong.

The Magic Divisions were generally divided into first, second, and third class. Third-class magicians were the lowest rank—unable to even learn third-circle magic, capable only of a few simple support spells.

And at the age of forty-one, still being third class would make anyone assume he lacked talent.

But I knew—if he was truly Caldein Flavan, he would one day rise to greatness no matter what.

“It doesn’t matter. Bring him here. If it’s possible, hire him as my magic training instructor.”

“Understood. I’ll make contact right away.”

Seeing my firm resolve, Patrick accepted without further objection.

“That’s the revenue share from selling the recipe, right?”

“Yes. The total was 16,065 gold. After deducting the 150 gold for the deferred request fee, that leaves 15,915 gold.”

When he opened the bag on the table, piles of gold coins filled it to the brim.

Just from looking at it, I could tell it must weigh quite a bit.

And yet Patrick had carried it in effortlessly and placed it on the table as if it were nothing.

‘If I think about it, Patrick himself is the biggest mystery.’

I had never once heard about Patrick’s past.

All I knew was that he had joined my mother’s family—the Arenvatz Ducal Family—in his mid-twenties and had been serving as a butler ever since.

In some ways, Patrick might be the most capable of all butlers.

Whether it was cooking or cleaning, he pursued perfection and never failed.

Of course, the Patrick I knew from the future—or rather, the past—had gone out alone to hold back the enemies and met his death.

I pushed aside my thoughts about Patrick and focused on the gold coins before me.

“It’s quite a bit more than I expected.”

Roughly fifteen thousand gold—an enormous amount of money. And this was just the profit from shortly after the sales had begun.

“If sales continue like this, the cumulative funds will be considerable.”

“But it won’t last long.”

“Pardon? As far as I know, any restaurant in the capital that doesn’t use this recipe is going under. How could it not last?”

At his puzzled question, I calmly explained,

“Restaurants aren’t stupid. They’re already studying the recipes they’ve bought. Soon, they’ll start coming up with their own versions.”

“Ah… I suppose that’s true.”

“When that happens, we’ll just sell new recipes at a cheaper price.”

After all, not all the seasonings used in Korea existed on the Phalon Continent.

Especially the fermented ones—they couldn’t be found anywhere. And since I wasn’t a chef when I lived as Kang Inhyuk, I didn’t know much about them either.

Naturally, these recipes were nothing more than a short-term means to earn capital.

“I understand what you mean. By the way… is that iron over there?”

Patrick’s gaze turned toward the pile of pure iron on one side of the room. He walked over and picked up a lump of it.

Ting—! Ting—!

As he tapped it with his finger, his eyes widened.

“This is… an incredibly pure iron.”

“You can tell?”

“I’ve seen something similar before, but this looks even purer.”

That was because it was nearly 0% impurity—pure iron.

“I extracted it using my magic. Of course, selling it outside would be difficult.”

“Indeed. I’ve seen alchemists handle something like this before. They said they were using it for an experiment.”

That was how soft pure iron was—it was hardly worthy of being called iron at all.

“If I turn all of this into solid iron, the impact will be tremendous, don’t you think?”

The amount of pure iron before me filled one entire wall.

By weight, it must have been around two to three tons.

If I could harden all of it, even the royal foundries—no, the entire kingdom—would rush to buy it.

“All of this? Is that even possible?”

“Just watch.”

I took the lump of pure iron Patrick had been holding.

“Synthesis!”

When I uttered the incantation in Korean, two targeting points appeared on my screen.

I selected the lump of pure iron and the graphite piled on the side, then executed the command.

[Pure Iron (純鐵) and Graphite (黑鉛) have been selected.]

[To facilitate the carbon combination for Synthesis, you are given the following options.]

1. Pig Iron (銑鐵)

2. Steel (鋼鐵)

Pig iron, also known as cast iron, was brittle and easily broken. It was mainly used for furnaces and farming tools.

Steel, on the other hand, had high hardness and was commonly used to make weapons and armor.

“Select Steel (鋼鐵)!”

Once again, I spoke in Korean.

Naturally, Patrick, who was watching from the side, didn’t understand a word of it.

[Synthesizing into Steel.]

When the activation message appeared, I placed the lump of pure iron I was holding onto the worktable.

In that moment, the pure iron glowed red, then returned to its original color.

On the surface, it didn’t look any different from before.

“Did it work? Analysis!”

[Steel: Iron containing 0.035–1.70% carbon.]

The result of the Synthesis was a success.

As I lifted the newly formed lump of steel, I could immediately feel the difference—the weight was noticeably heavier than before.

“How is it?”

Patrick, who had been quietly observing beside me, received the lump of steel and lifted it himself.

Ting! Ting!

The sound was much deeper and heavier than that of the pure iron earlier.

“This is definitely steel. And it looks to be of the highest quality. To think that you actually created this yourself… truly remarkable, Your Highness.”

A sincere tone of admiration slipped from his mouth.

“This should be sellable, right?”

“How much are you able to produce? Surely you’re not planning to make all the pure iron here into steel?”

If I turned all the pure iron piled up in the room into steel, the quantity would be immense.

But if such a rare and difficult material as steel started circulating in large amounts, the royal palace would undoubtedly begin an investigation.

“It would be best not to sell this, to be honest.”

“I understand what you mean. I’ll just store it for now. I might have use for it later.”

“What should I do with this one?”

Patrick held up the steel lump he had been examining earlier.

“Leave it there for now. I might need it to make something later.”

“Understood. Then, I’ll take my leave to prepare your meal.”

Once Patrick exited the room, I was left alone again.

I gazed at the steel lump for a moment.

Then an idea came to mind—something worth making.

“Well, I do need one anyway.”

Having decided, I shouted toward the steel.

“Formation!”

[Steel (鋼鐵) has been selected. You can form it into any shape you imagine.]

With that message, I visualized the shape I had in mind—a sword.

[Shape confirmed. Commencing Formation.]

The steel was enveloped in a faint light and gradually elongated, taking the shape of a blade.

The sword’s design wasn’t particularly elaborate.

It wasn’t a large, double-edged fantasy greatsword, but rather a thick, single-edged Korean-style saber.

“This is quite nice. But I’ll need to wrap the handle in leather.”

Since the entire sword—from blade to hilt—was made of steel, it couldn’t be held barehanded. Wrapping it with leather was essential.

“I should make a scabbard too.”

Picking up a piece of wood, I used Formation again to craft a sheath that fit the sword perfectly.

Of course, the sheath’s exterior was plain wood, so just like the handle, I would have to reinforce it with leather before use.

—

A few days later.

Patrick had spent some time quietly going about his duties before finally going out. He boarded a public carriage and arrived at the royal castle.

When he approached the entrance, the knights guarding the gate crossed their swords before him.

They didn’t speak a word.

In response, Patrick drew out a metal identification badge from inside his coat.

Stamped upon it was the crest of royal service.

“I am Patrick, butler to the Third Prince.”

At his introduction, the knights immediately withdrew their blades.

“Our apologies. You may proceed.”

Once they stepped aside, Patrick was able to enter without issue. His destination lay in the outskirts of the royal castle—where the Magic Division resided.

Like the knight orders, only the top five Magic Divisions were stationed within the royal castle itself.

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