S.
An item grade said to exist only six in the entire world so far.

And right now, I’m holding one in my hand.

‘Sure, my ability is SSS-grade, but making an S-grade item at level 3?’

“This makes no sense….”

I used A+-grade materials and added several tail scales, so I expected A+, maybe S- if I got lucky, but S-grade.
This result far exceeded my imagination.

An S-grade item was a strategic weapon capable of shaking the balance of power between nations just by existing.
And I had created such a thing in an instant.

“How much would I even get for something like this?”

No, this might not even be something that could be valued with money.
Just Seol Yuhee holding this would change the Hunter Guild’s ranking.

I lightly flicked my wrist and swung the sword.

It sliced through the air without making a sound.

‘Just how sharp is it?’

Curiosity struck me.
I had made an S-grade item, but chances to actually use this sword would be rare.
It would be better to test it now.

I took out the special box that had held the White Drake’s heart earlier.
It was a metal container reinforced with mana, expensive enough to store high-grade materials, capable of withstanding most impacts.

I lightly scraped the edge of the box with the blade.

Slash—!

As if cutting tofu, the box split cleanly without any resistance.

“Huh….”

A hollow laugh escaped me.
An absurdly sharp sword.
If an A+-grade hunter like Seol Yuhee wielded this… it would be a nightmare for her enemies.

Seeing such a sharp blade sparked a strange curiosity.
You know how, in movies, people test legendary swords by touching them with a finger.

‘Should I try too…?’

Just a little.
Just barely touching it.

I carefully brought the tip of my index finger to the blade.

“…Huh?”

I felt the sharpness the moment it touched my skin, but not a single drop of blood appeared.
Only a faint red mark remained, and my fingertip felt cold, but my skin was intact.

“Oh….”

I alternated my gaze between my finger and the sword.
Even as a wyrmling, a dragon was still a dragon.

‘Come to think of it, my body really is tough.’

Feeling a swell of pride in my abilities, I set the sword down.

Now that the sword was finished, I thought about leaving, but soon discarded the idea.
Making an S-grade weapon and walking out after just ten minutes would look strange no matter how you spun it.

‘I’ll kill some time before heading out.’

I perched on the work chair and pulled out my phone.
Then I started watching YouTube Shorts.

“Heh heh….”

I killed time watching videos of cats getting startled by their own tails and game highlight clips.

‘About three hours should be enough.’

That would be a perfectly reasonable amount of time.

…

About an hour passed.

Grrrkkkk….

My stomach growled.
The unmistakable signal of hunger.

‘Mm… I should probably stay another two hours, though.’

An hour felt too short, but enduring hunger was unbearably hard.

Ten more minutes passed like that.

Grrrkkkk….

My patience reached its limit.

“I’m hungry….”

Yeah, this much stalling should be enough.
It’s not like the item’s value drops just because I made it quickly.

If anything, dragging it out would be stupid.
I could just contact them.

[Golden Hand] Work is finished.

I ditched my plan to wait three hours and sent the message.
Without checking for a reply, I got on the elevator.

– Ding. The doors are opening.

As the doors opened, I spotted someone sitting right in front of them.

“Ms. Yoo Sojeong?”
“Mr. Lee Dayun. You’re out.”

She stood up and approached me.

“Have you been waiting here this whole time?”
“I remained on standby in case of any unexpected situations. Did the work proceed well?”
“Yes, it’s all done. I was just about to go eat.”

At my words, Yoo Sojeong fell silent for a moment.

“…You mean you finished all the items?”
“Yes. Why?”
“No reason. Do you have a preferred menu? I researched nearby restaurants.”

She took out her phone and showed me a list of places.
High-end Korean cuisine, French restaurants, sushi omakase… all kinds of options were listed, but none of them appealed to me today.

Something sweet and spicy.
That kind of stimulating food sounded good.

Then one dish crossed my mind.

“Tteokbokki. How about tteokbokki? I saw a snack shop on the way here. Do you like street food?”
“Yes. I do.”

After walking about ten minutes, we arrived at a nearby snack shop.
It was a bit early for lunch, so there weren’t many customers, but the place was filled with that distinctive, mouthwatering aroma.

“What’ll you have?”
“Um… level-one tteokbokki for two, assorted fried items, and sundae.”

The friendly-looking lady brought out the food.
Bright red tteokbokki, steaming hot.

“Thanks for the meal!”

Just as I was about to pick up my chopsticks, I noticed Yoo Sojeong holding her phone with both hands.

‘Ah, she’s taking photos.’

It did look good enough to photograph.
I tried to wait for her to finish, but for some reason, she didn’t put her phone down.

“Please eat. I’ll be taking photos for today.”
“Ah… right. You had that assignment.”

She’d said she needed photos for the report.
In that case, it should be fine for me to eat first.

I picked up one rice cake, blew on it, and popped it into my mouth.

Sweet and spicy flavors刺激ed my mouth.
And then—

“Hurk?!”

A fierce level of heat I never expected from level one assaulted me.

Gulp gulp.

I immediately downed some water, but the burning in my tongue only intensified.

“Hhh— hhrr….”

While I could only gasp for air, Yoo Sojeong calmly photographed me.
I knew there was nothing she could do, but I still felt oddly betrayed.

Then, salvation arrived.

“Oh dear, drink this. That’ll burn your stomach.”

The shop owner handed me a peach-flavored drink, already opened.
Only after gulping it down did the spiciness finally subside.

“Haa… th-thank you….”

Only then did Yoo Sojeong lower her camera.
There was a faint hint of amusement on her face.
I shot her a glare and refocused on the food.

The tteokbokki was spicy, but the fried items and sundae were delicious, and with the drink, the heat became manageable.

As I battled the tteokbokki with the help of the beverage, a news anchor’s voice came from the TV hanging on the wall.

– Breaking news. Just moments ago, Hunter Seol Yuhee reportedly acquired a weapon estimated to be S-grade. It has not yet been confirmed whether it is a dungeon drop or a crafted weapon, and a press conference is scheduled shortly.

“Eh?”

My sword was already on the news?
I’d finished it barely an hour ago.

– Hunter Seol Yuhee will be holding an emergency press conference at the Blue Rose Guild headquarters at 12:00 PM. Let’s connect to the reporter on site.

The screen switched to a reporter standing in front of the Blue Rose Guild building.
Behind her, countless reporters crowded together.

At that moment, Yoo Sojeong’s phone rang.

“Yes. Understood. We’ll prioritize personal protection.”

The gravity of the situation came through clearly from her call.

“Sojeong… is this dangerous?”
“It’s fine. The Administration has already grasped the situation.”

She said it was fine, but I couldn’t help feeling uneasy.

What if Seol Yuhee revealed my existence at that press conference?
Wouldn’t that make me a target for all kinds of shady people?

Ding!

This time, my phone rang.
The caller was Lee Jiyoung.

[Lee Jiyoung] Mr. Lee Dayun. I’m sorry. The Guild Master was being very forceful…. If it’s alright, may I speak with you briefly?

The call mattered, but the press conference on TV mattered more right now.

The time was already 11:58 AM.
Only two minutes remained.

Yoo Sojeong and I stared at the screen, holding our breath.
Each second felt like an hour.

At exactly 12:00 PM, Hunter Seol Yuhee appeared at the podium.

Camera flashes exploded, illuminating her bluish-white hair.
After several seconds of blinding light, her lips parted, and she spoke.

“I will take the position of Korea’s number one hunter.”

Seol Yuhee said this as she revealed the sword.

Click click click click!

A barrage of cameras assaulted her.

And then—

Step. Step. Step.

The press conference ended.

“Huh?”

It was shockingly short.
Two sentences.
Five words.

It wasn’t just me who was stunned.
Even the reporters looked around in confusion, bewilderment written all over their faces.

The only one maintaining composure was the expressionless Yoo Sojeong sitting across from me.

“She held another bizarre press conference.”
“Another?”

Yoo Sojeong spoke as if it were obvious.

“Hunter Seol Yuhee is famous for her eccentric behavior. She has held press conferences solely to declare war on other hunters before.”
“…What?”

Declaring war on other hunters?
What kind of thing was that?

“They agree to fight, and the loser formally admits defeat. She’s done it multiple times since her debut. She’s undefeated except for two people.”
“Huh….”

I knew she was aggressive, but this was on another level.
At this point, calling her a beast wouldn’t be an exaggeration.

‘At least my name didn’t come up….’

If my existence had been revealed there, all attention would’ve immediately focused on me.
People would line up to kidnap me, and as a fragile dragon, I’d become a scale vending machine.

As soon as the news cut away, my phone rang again.
The caller was Lee Jiyoung.

“Hello?”
“Mr. Lee Dayun, thank you. Truly, truly thank you so much for this weapon!”

Her voice was filled with genuine happiness.

“The Guild Master is extremely satisfied. Thanks to you, I was even granted some vacation days…. Really, thank you.”
“Ah… yes. I’m glad to hear that.”

Her joy eased my guilt, as if something heavy had been lifted from my heart.
Though she seemed happiest about the vacation part.

“There’s something else I wanted to discuss. Compensation for an S-grade weapon wasn’t specified in the contract, so I’d like to meet separately and negotiate when you have time.”
“Yes. We should.”

The moment had finally come.
I swallowed dryly.

How much would I get?
If A- was 100 million and A was 5 billion… would S be around 500 billion?
The number was so large it felt unreal.

“First of all… the biggest issue with S-grade items is that they’re hard to appraise. Since the baseline is several trillion won, it’ll be difficult to pay you in cash. If there’s anything you’d prefer, we’ll do our best to accommodate.”
“Y-Yes? T-trillion?”

My mind went blank.
Not billions, but trillions.
Dozens of trillions.
Money I could never touch in a lifetime.
No, 99.99% of the world would never come close to it.

“Yes. So please think it over slowly and contact us. Things will be busy for a while due to the press conference, so leave your schedule by text, and I’ll check when I have time.”
“Yes! Yes! I’ll think about it! Thank you!”

I forced my rising grin down as I replied.

“Understood. I’ll see you then.”

With that, Lee Jiyoung ended the call.

Beep— beep— beep—

Even after the call ended, I stared blankly at my phone.

Several trillion.
The unit itself kept spinning in my head.

“Hh… hehe….”

Laughter kept spilling out.
I couldn’t contain my happiness.

While finishing the meal, while heading to the Blue Rose Guild parking lot, even until I got into Yoo Sojeong’s car, my smile never faded.

Trillions!
With that money, I could build a gold-plated castle, make a diamond swimming pool, fill it with money, and swim in it!

I could eat premium steak and caviar every day and upgrade my computer with new parts every week!

“Ehehe….”

The more I imagined it, the more my brain felt like it was melting.
I sank into the soft seat, drifting deeper into fantasy.

‘Gold… yeah, I’ll make a bed out of gold. Even the blanket will be woven with gold thread…’

While I was lost in thoughts of how to spend my money, Yoo Sojeong spoke while driving.

“Mr. Lee Dayun.”
“Hah?! Uh— yes?”

I swallowed the drool pooling in my mouth and answered.

“This is personal advice, but it would be better to receive your compensation as shares of dungeon byproducts rather than cash or real estate.”
“Shares? Why? If I take cash, I can do anything.”

Yoo Sojeong calmly explained.

“There are two reasons. First, currency volatility. Do you remember the price of ramen before the Gate incident?”
“Uh… about 1,000 won?”
“That same ramen is now 3,000 won. Land and buildings are the same. Property near opened Gates inevitably crashes in value.”
“Ohh….”

She had a point.
If I’d taken money and land without thinking, I might’ve taken a massive loss.

“I understand. What’s the second reason?”
“The second reason is your ability, Mr. Lee Dayun. Crafting-type abilities can’t produce anything without materials. Top-tier materials can’t be bought just because you have money.”
“Th-that’s true.”

My scales regenerated just by eating, but I couldn’t make weapons with scales alone.

To obtain materials like the White Drake’s heart or thousand-year cold iron, I’d need to buy them from hunters, and materials above B+ grade rarely entered the market.

“So I recommend negotiating the contract carefully. Thirty percent of dungeon byproducts for ten years, a signing bonus of 5 billion won, and a 5% equity stake would be appropriate. Based on the Blue Rose Guild’s annual revenue, that’s about 3 trillion won in current value.”
“Ooh….”

The professional-sounding figures and terminology inspired trust.

All the way home after hearing Yoo Sojeong’s advice, money kept dancing through my head.

“T-trillions….”

Sunk deep into the back seat, I thought about it.
A number so unreal it felt fake.
Even winning first prize in the lottery a hundred times wouldn’t be enough.
A unit you’d only see in national budgets.

“Hehe….”

I wanted to sign the contract immediately.

“Have a good night.”
“Yes. You too, Ms. Sojeong!”

After waving goodbye, I returned to my room.

The unreal number of several trillion still echoed in my head, but as my tension eased, exhaustion washed over me all at once.

I collapsed onto my bed.
Too much had happened today.
Crafting an S-grade weapon, worrying about the fallout, having my heart drop because of the press conference, and then hearing about an unimaginable reward.

I thought about sleeping, but maybe because so much had happened, sleep wouldn’t come easily.
In the end, I reached for my phone by the bedside.

‘Times like this call for browsing the gallery.’

The moment I entered the Awakened Gallery, my eyes widened.

Posts were appearing at nearly three times the usual speed.
Every refresh filled the screen with new threads.

And every single one of them revolved around one topic.

—
[Anon (118.235)] So is Seol Yuhee’s weapon really S-grade?
[Anon (58.228)] Weapon name revealed ㄷㄷ It’s called Manhwaseori?
[IllegalIsIllegal ▣] Saw it at the training grounds, minimum A+
[Anon (121.168)] But didn’t they just buy it from overseas? Paid with national funds anyway
—

All of it was about the new weapon Seol Yuhee had revealed.

Testimonies from Blue Rose Guild insiders and all kinds of rumors flooded the gallery, plunging it into chaos.

And seeing that, my mood soared, naturally.

“Hehe.”

Everything they were talking about was a product of my own hands.

The entire world buzzing over a single piece of my work.
For a creator, there was no thrill greater than this.

I logged in with my familiar account, ‘King of the Unemployed.’
Then I decided to throw oil on the fire.

——
[Info] Seol Yuhee’s weapon is definitely S-grade and domestically made
[King of the Unemployed]
I saw it lol
——

The moment I posted it, comments flooded in.

[Anon] Source: trust me bro
[ThunderMan ▣] This b*stard again. Said he awakened but still hasn’t cured his attention addiction
[Anon (211.36)] No proof means what?
[Edge] Is S-grade a dog’s name? lol
[zlZoneMage ▣] No way. S-grade isn’t that easy to get

As expected, no one believed me.

But I didn’t feel wronged or annoyed.
Because that reaction was exactly what I wanted.

No matter what they said, that sword was a genuine domestically made S-grade weapon I had crafted myself.
Go ahead, curse more.
In the end, I was the only one who knew the truth.

The sense of superiority born from information asymmetry made me feel almost godlike.

“Heehee….”

I kept posting, fanning the flames, and while watching the gallery burn, I slowly drifted off to sleep.

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