Chapter 2018

Song Juseop was very prideful. He had been practicing kendo from a young age and used to be the best in the country during middle school and high school. Even though he started focusing on his studies later than his peers, he graduated from a prestigious university. He turned his life around by realizing the potential of Grid's skills during the First International Competition...

In many ways, he was not an ordinary person.

Even Song Juseop himself often wondered, 'Could it be that I made some great contribution in my previous life and received a blessing from God?'

This was why he was a devout Christian, Catholic, and Buddhist.

...In any case, he was always full of confidence. He never felt intimidated when he had to prove himself in front of others.

But now it was different.

Failure was one of Grid's first symbolic weapons. Juseop was very tense as he stood in front of the iron armor with a replica of Failure. He tried to control his breathing and concentrate, but he couldn't calm down. Shin Youngwoo was standing right next to him. Youngwoo was just a young man wearing a simple tracksuit. He seemed ordinary at first glance, but was actually an extraordinary individual.

This was the person whom Song Juseop had longed to meet for so long. Could Song Juseop really talk in the same room as Grid? Swing a sword in front of Grid?

This was a dream come true. Juseop had always hoped for this day to come, but he never thought this would ever happen.

"......"

Youngwoo remained silent. He had become accustomed to others admiring him and was considerate of Song Juseop's feelings. He knew why Song Juseop was nervous and didn't offer him advice or encouragement. Youngwoo's words could become a heavy burden for others.

'It's not like I have anything to say anyway.'

Song Juseop's posture was flawless. It was a pity that his shoulder muscles were somewhat strained. His back and leg muscles weren't relaxed either. However, this was a problem that could be solved if he relaxed a bit.

The problem was that he couldn't relax...

'Um.'

Even after a few minutes passed, Song Juseop's trapezius muscle was still tense. Youngwoo couldn't waste any more time. The more time passed, the more anxious Song Juseop felt. Youngwoo picked up a nearby broom, looked at Song Juseop and swung it.

"......!"

Song Juseop, who was trying to stop being tense and concentrate, trembled. Finally, he managed to focus. He captured a certain trajectory at the edge of his field of view. This was the perfect sword trajectory that Song Juseop had pursued for over twenty years.

He reacted reflexively.

He swung the greatsword in a straight line and struck the shining silver armor. A loud sound filled the room and vibrations traveled up Song Juseop's arms. Pain flared in his muscles. Even though he wore gauntlets he himself had crafted, the tremendous shock passed through his fingertips, traveling all the way to his shoulders.

He frowned in pain and looked up in surprise. Youngwoo's iron armor was intact except for a slight dent in the shoulder area. Just as expected. There was a reason the tremendous backlash had come close to shattering Song Juseop's hands.

"Ha... Haha... Really... Really amazing."

Song Juseop was half-mesmerized and very impressed with this piece of work. Youngwoo had crafted the armor in the same environment as him, using the same tools and materials. It had taken Youngwoo only nine hours to smelt iron, forge it into the desired shape and work on it to make it a nice silver armor.

It had taken Song Juseop thirteen days of work to craft his masterpiece—the imitation of Failure. However, his weapon didn't stand a chance against the armor made by Youngwoo. Even after years of sharpening the blade every single day without exception, the most Song Juseop could do with his greatsword was scratch this piece of armor that had been crafted in less than half a day. It was a good piece of armor.

Instead of being disappointed, Song Juseop was simply thrilled.

He was impressed with Youngwoo's skills which resembled Grid's in Satisfy, even though this was reality.

"I didn't expect your first work to be so great. All I can do is be impressed with it."

It was said that people were impressed by things they weren't familiar with. The established theory was that the more one understood what they were looking at, the more blurred their admiration would become.

Thus, Song Juseop was worried. He had admired Grid from a distance for many years. He was thrilled to finally meet his role model, but he was also worried that he might end up disappointed and harbor disrespectful feelings toward him as a result of his disappointment.

These predictions had turned out wrong. Contrary to Song Juseop's worries, Shin Youngwoo's first piece of work was really well-made. Song Juseop had swung a greatsword that was over two meters long, but all he managed to do was scratch Youngwoo's armor...

"...Grid?"

Song Juseop, who had been overtaken by admiration and delight, was suddenly worried. Youngwoo looked gloomy as he examined the armor. He seemed disappointed. Song Juseop didn't understand why, but it made sense for Youngwoo to be disappointed.

'Isn't this armor just good?'

Of course, Youngwoo had to take into consideration that it was made from mere iron. But it was really just armor. Could he withstand an onslaught of monsters without feeling any pain if he wore this? No way. He would still get heavily injured.

Youngwoo frowned and picked up the armor. The log that held the armor in place revealed its disastrous appearance. The place where Juseop had struck with Failure was caved in and there were cracks along the grain in certain places.

'Even though I didn't put leather on the inside of the armor...'

Youngwoo imagined getting hit by the previous blow while wearing the armor. His collarbone would've cracked at the very least. Youngwoo was just human unlike his character in the game.

'Where can I learn Impenetrable Skin from...?'

The anxiety that he had gotten rid of suddenly resurfaced. His brows furrowed as he felt a headache creeping in.

Song Juseop noticed this and carefully said, "Uhm... Wouldn't this level of damage be easily repaired without having to go through a complicated process? I know this result isn't satisfying your standards, but I think it's good enough from a general point of view."

Song Juseop misunderstood why Youngwoo was uncomfortable. Youngwoo smiled awkwardly and felt sorry when he realized the other man was observing him and offering comfort.

"You're right. I'm quite satisfied with the state of the armor."

The armor really had no flaws. This was significantly more impressive considering that this piece of armor had been perfected only thanks to Youngwoo's high dexterity and his abundant experience. He had not relied on a skill from the game.

Rather, the problem was that his so-called perfect armor could only reach this level in reality.

Youngwoo suddenly became angry. He wanted to get rid of the useless armor in front of his eyes. "Let me borrow your greatsword."

Slash!

"......!!"

Song Juseop was shocked. After Youngwoo swung the greatsword once, the powerful armor split in half like tofu. Song Juseop was worried that Youngwoo had hurt his hands from the impact because he wasn't wearing any protective equipment. Youngwoo glanced at the other man and saw his pale face and shaky eyes. He finally calmed down.

"Boss, you seem to have forgotten something because you've practiced kendo for so long, but... You don't strike with a sword. Stabbing or slashing the target is the best way to use a sword."

"Ah..."

Song Juseop came to his senses. That was why he had been unable to leave anything more than a dent in the armor. It wasn't the sword's fault. He was simply lacking skills.

In other words, the armor that Youngwoo had crafted wasn't invincible. That was why Youngwoo was disappointed. Song Juseop had spoken without thinking.

'But what do I know...? I've never had to strike a piece of armor with a sword before.'

Song Juseop was too embarrassed to look Youngwoo in the eye. However, Youngwoo bowed his head respectfully and said, "Thank you for today."

"I'm grateful and honored that you stepped foot in my smithy. Uhm... Grid, if you don't mind, you can come and use this place anytime you want. I mean it. I really hope you come back."

"If you call me by my first name instead of Grid, I'll think about it."

"Huh...? Ah! T-That's right! I-I made a huge mistake..."

"Why the honorifics? I simply suggested you use my first name because I want to be friends with you, boss. If you call me by my real name, wouldn't it be easier for us to talk more comfortably as buddies?"

"B-Buddies...? What are you saying..."

Song Juseop was only embarrassed, not happy. He probably needed more time to adjust to this turn of events.

Youngwoo shrugged and left Song's Workshop. On the way home, he contacted a construction company he had worked with before. It was the best construction company in South Korea that had designed and built Grid's buildings.

"CEO Kim? Let's go tour some smithies for a while."

***

Before going home, Youngwoo visited Jishuka's house.

Beep beep beep beep.

He entered the password for the door lock they had set up together and headed straight to the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and found it full of ingredients Youngwoo had just recently bought.

"Lululu~"

Youngwoo's hobbies didn't include cooking. However, he was good at cooking because of his outstanding dexterity. His very developed five senses helped him know for how long he needed to cook every ingredient and how to exquisitely season every dish.

In other words, even though he didn't usually cook, he was naturally gifted at it. As his love for Yura and Jishuka grew, he eventually started cooking for them more often...

'I can't believe I'm such a romantic.'

Even though he shook his head, the smile never left Youngwoo's face as he cooked. He hummed happily as he prepared a bunch of Jishuka's favorite dishes. A delicious smell filled the house.

"Youngwoo~"

Jishuka came out of the bedroom. Her eyes were only half-open as she rushed to hug Youngwoo from behind. She had endured fighting a difficult war for several months just to enjoy the happiness of this very moment. In real life, she was able to spend precious time with Youngwoo.

"If you open a restaurant, you can easily get three Michelin stars."

Jishuka's expression melted as she chewed the chicken that Youngwoo spoon-fed into her mouth. Youngwoo was amazed every time he saw her like this. Where did the sexiest woman in the world disappear to and when did this girl who was as sweet and cute as a freshman university student appear?

Youngwoo said, "I will leave on a business trip in two days."

"Have you finally scheduled a tour of the smithies? I'll come with you!"

"No. I am going with CEO Kim of Seonwu Construction.

"So you aren't going with Yura?"

"If I was going with Yura, I would take you too. You are both busy anyway. Starting tomorrow, you will probably not even be able to keep your eyes open."

It was hard for Youngwoo to tell because he had been so focused on his personal activities, but the busiest period in a war was the period after it was finally over. There were so many problems left to sort out. Jishuka and Yura had a lot to deal with considering their duties.

"...Yes."

Jishuka looked tired for a fleeting second. Youngwoo didn't miss it.

"Jishuka. Let's eat later..."

"A-Ah..."

Two hours later, Youngwoo returned home after spending precious time with Jishuka and lay down on the bed instead of the capsule. He was monitoring the situation in Satisfy. He could accurately distinguish between situations where he was needed and situations where he wasn't.

'I'll be in really good condition tomorrow.'

His eyelids fluttered closed. Youngwoo quickly fell asleep with a wide smile on his face. Spending time with his loved ones always kept him happy and healthy.