Return of the Frozen Player - Chapter 45
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The Wild Forest (2)
The morning of the Wild Forest raid was bright. Cha Min-woo was among the crowd of people that were gathering in front of the Gate, wearing an armband. He scanned the players and quietly nodded his head.
âAs expectedâŠâ
âHuh? What did you say?â His team member asked. Cha Min-woo jutted his chin toward the other players.
âLook at the players around you. Thereâs not a single one.â
Most players were no longer considered beginners when they reached around level 25. If you didnât go around clearing Uncleared Gates like Seo Jun-ho, you needed to clear at least twenty Gates to reach that level.
That also meant you had to have at least ten near-death experiences. None of the people today looked inexperienced
âWell⊠this Gate only lets in players between levels 20 and 35.â
âThe energy is different from the players weâve seen in our country. Their equipment is good too.â
âWeâre on the stage of the world.â
Cha Min-woo was strangely restless as he looked around, as if looking for something. His team members noticed and smiled.
âYouâre looking for player Seo Jun-ho, arenât you?â
âYouâll hurt your neck.â
ââŠLeave him alone, heâs excited.â
Watching Seo Jun-ho fight the Cinder Fox had given him a new perspective.
Itâs embarrassing to think about how Iâve always taken the easy, comfortable paths.Â
After that day, Cha Min-woo had started to train himself. He wanted to show Seo Jun-ho a better version of himself if they met again.
ââŠHeâs over there.â Cha Min-woo whispered as he stared to one side. Seo Jun-ho looked much better than last time. âBut who isâŠ?â
Cha Min-woo tilted his head and walked over to Seo Jun-ho. As he got close, Seo Jun-ho blinked as he recognized him.
âHuh? Are you the one from the Cinder FoxâŠâ
âYou remember me. Let me introduce myself again. Iâm Cha Min-woo of the Cheong-hae Guild.â
âItâs nice to see you again. I heard that you helped me after the fight, but I never got to thank you.â
âI should be the one thanking you. You saved my life.â The team members standing behind him also bowed. âDid you have a problem? Your armor⊠I mean.â
âOh, thisâŠ?â Seo Jun-ho laughed bitterly and looked down. The leather armor that Kwon Noya had made him was ripped and messy. I got too greedy.Â
Seo Jun-ho let out a small sigh. The idea of going into a Gate to condition himself was good in theory. But heâd gotten too excited.
âŠI shouldâve only done one. Two Gates was a little too much.Â
During those four days, heâd cleared two Gates in the area. Thanks to that, heâd been able to reach level 23 to equip Black Dragon Fang, but his armor had been reduced to rags in the process.
âI warmed up before I came.â
âŠWhat kind of warm-up did he do to ruin his armor? Cha Min-woo doubted him, but he swallowed the question.
âAre you really going in with that armor? It looks really dangerous.â
âThereâs only five minutes left until we go in, so itâs not like I can do anything. Itâs fine.â
That was true. Cha Min-woo looked disappointed. He didnât really have any way to help him.
Vroom!
A motorcycle parked in front of them.
âMr. Seo Jun-ho, correct?â
âYes, thatâs me.â
âPlease sign here. Itâs an express delivery.â After he signed, the driver got off and put down a large carrier and disappeared. Cha Min-woo watched from the side.
âDid you order new armor by any chance?â
âNo, I didnât order anythingâŠâ
Seo Jun-ho tilted his head and picked up the carrier. Itâs super heavy. He put it down again and pressed a button on the handle. There was the sound of creaking cogs, and it opened. Inside it was beautiful black armor.
âThis isâŠ?â Seo Jun-ho stroked the surface, and his suspicion turned into certainty.
Iâm sure of it. The armorâs made of dragon bones. He picked up the note inside.
â This is a commission for Association President Shim Deok-gu. The name of the armor is simply âBlack Armorâ. I hope you like it. -Kwon Palmo.
âŠThereâs no way I wouldnât like it. The armor fit Kwon Noyaâs âBlack Dragon Fangâ perfectly.
Who would have thought that grandfather and grandson would make such a great set of gear together.
Seo Jun-ho suddenly realized what Kwon Palmo had said at the workshop. He said Iâd know soon, and it was this⊠Deok-gu, that rascal.Â
He grinned, far from disappointed. Deok-gu had used the dragon bones Seo Jun-ho had given him to gift him armor. It was an unexpected gift, but the timing was perfect. He needed armor now more than ever.
ââŠItâs beautiful,â Cha Min-woo whispered. He was staring at the armor like the soul had left his body. He swallowed.
The quality of this armor is much better than the ones we get from the workshop we have an exclusive contract with.Â
Armor made of bones were usually coarse and uncomfortable when you wore them, but the armor in front of him didnât give him that impression at all.
Even the joints are delicate. Theyâre made up of smaller bones.Â
The technique would be hard to imitate, even for a skilled craftsman. Cha Min-woo started to get curious. Which master made this? He looked around the carrier, but there wasnât a single brand logo he recognized.
However, the word âKwuan*â was written lightly, as if it was added as an afterthought.
(TN: This is written in English. Iâm keeping the romanization as is.)
âKwonâŠ?â He read the name without a second thought, but his eyes went wide as he said it out loud. There were countless blacksmiths in the world. But among the Kwon smiths, there were only two people who could make armor with this level of skill.
âOh, the Kwon workshop in AndongâŠ!â The clan had been blacksmiths for generations and was world-renowned. That was because it was the family of one of the best blacksmiths in the world: Kwon Noya. As soon as he said that, the faces of the nearby players changed.
âWhat? That armor is from the Kwon workshop?â
âNo way. I never heard that they made armor for rookies.â
âThere must be a mistake.â
As the people watched, Seo Jun-ho carefully raised the Black Armor. He looked down at the carrier to double-check, but there was only one piece of armor.
Armor sets usually have one set for the upper body and another set for the lower body⊠Did he leave out the latter because there wasnât enough time? Seo Jun-ho was slightly disappointed, but he put it on.
The armor expanded like a machine, covering him from head to toe.
âO-oh my god! Itâs Spread Armor?!â
âThatâs insane⊠Only ancient artifacts can do that!â
âThere arenât many people who can make Spread ArmorâŠâ
âWait, it says âKwonâ inside the carrier!â
âWhat? Then⊠it really was made at the Kwon workshop?â
All around him, people gulped. They were looking at Spread Armor from the Kwon workshop, giving it an instant market value. The players who realized this looked at Seo Jun-ho with envy.
âHup.â Seo Jun-ho moved his body to test out the armor and smiled.
I like it. Even if hard, heavy armor had magic attached to make it light, it was still hard to move in. But the armor that Kwon Palmo made didnât bother his movement in the slightest.
The options are great too. Seo Jun-hoâs eyes were bright as he finished reading the item info.
ăBlack Armoră
Grade: Unique
Stamina +15
âLightweight: Magic is attached to make this armor lightweight.
âDisruption: This armor can block tracking skills (C-rank and lower) aimed at the user.
Equipment Requirements: Level 23, 60 Stamina, 60 Strength.
It was a bit lacking compared to Kwon Noyaâs sword, but the armor was also Unique-grade. It was the best armor he could get at his level.
And since theyâre a set, theyâll be extra efficient.Â
Equipment with too little prerequisites usually had limited functions. If it had too many, players wouldnât be able to use it. But that didnât apply to these two items.
This is the perfect synergy thatâs created when a player and a talented blacksmith meet.Â
The required level of the Black Dragon Fang and Black Armor was low, but the required stats were high. They were made to push Seo Jun-ho to his limits. Thatâs what happened when he received items from an outstanding blacksmith.
âI didnât know that the Kwon workshop made deals⊠I guess thatâs the Association for you.â
Cha Min-woo thought that the Kwon workshop had made the armor because of the Association. Seo Jun-ho was an outstanding player, but the Kwon workshop had never done dealings with newbies.
âThe President used his power,â Seo Jun-ho smiled brightly at him and checked the time.
It was exactly eleven oâclock. It was time to go into the Gate.
âExcuse me, Mr. Seo Jun-ho,â Cha Min-woo said reluctantly.
âSpeak.â
âWell⊠is there a party you belong to?â
âParty?â
In Gates like the Wild Forest, no one went off on their own. The smallest units they went around in were parties. Seo Jun-ho was no different.
The Party Cap is 200⊠so there will probably be about a thousand monsters.Â
In a Gate like this, he also needed some people to watch his back. It wasnât impossible for him to go around alone, but it would be inefficient.
âNot yet.â
âTh-then, would you like to join our party for this Gate?â Cha Min-woo nervously looked back at his teammates.
The Cheong-hae Guild isnât a bad option⊠Actually, itâs good. They were a noble guild with elite members. Seo Jun-ho couldnât find any reason to refuse and accepted happily.
âThank you for asking. Letâs do this.â
11:02 AM.
Two hundred players filled the Cap and entered the Wild Forest Gate.