Roughly twenty minutes later, Kaito completed his sixth forging attempt—only to meet with failure once again.
The resulting weapon was still Mysterious Iron grade. While there was a slight improvement in the stats compared to his previous failures, it was far from satisfactory.
Undeterred, Kaito pressed on.
He continued the forging cycle—refine, hammer, shape, and generate. Attempt after attempt, he poured in time and materials, losing over 2 gold coins worth of resources in the process.
By the time he reached his seventh attempt, Kaito felt confident. His familiarity with the forging process had solidified, and his precision had improved.
This time, he made a bold choice—
He used Dragonic Steel.
The moment the red-hot alloy hit the anvil, a subtle energy shimmered around the blade. Kaito refined the materials carefully, hammering the molten lump with measured force and unwavering focus. Sparks scattered in all directions as the form of the blade began to emerge.
Then, he clicked [Generate].
The weapon began to solidify, glowing faintly with a light red hue. Mysterious dragon-like runes emerged along the blade, faintly pulsing with magical energy. They weren't decorative—the flow of mana through the lines gave it a living, breathing quality.
With just a glance, it was clear.
This was no ordinary weapon.
Kaito's heart skipped a beat.
This isn't just a normal success… I hit the jackpot.
He quickly tapped to reveal the weapon's stats.
The system took longer than usual—a full 10 seconds—before delivering the verdict.
System Notification:
Dragonic Steel Effect Triggered — Weapon rank increased by 1
Dragonic Buff Triggered — Passive effect imbued
You have successfully forged [Dragon Fang]
Forging Proficiency +3
Experience Gained: 10,000
Kaito was momentarily stunned.
He had only made a few tweaks to the original Shadow Fang blueprint—adjusting the balance and curvature to suit his personal combat style. He never expected both Dragonic Steel effects to trigger at once.
Normally, even with a hundred attempts, it would be rare to trigger just one.
But both?
That was nothing short of miraculous.
The Dragonic Steel had not only increased the weapon's rank—it had also added a powerful passive enhancement. If standard Silver-grade gear could be upgraded to Gold through raw stats, then this weapon was already on the threshold of Dark Gold.
And at this stage of the game, only Growth weapons could rival it's value.
Kaito slowly raised the completed weapon, its crimson glow reflecting off the furnace's fire.
He couldn't wait to see the full stats.
[Equipment Panel – DragonFang]
DragonFang
Gold Rank – One-Handed Sword
Level Requirement: 10
Equipment Requirements: Strength 45, Agility 80
Attributes:
Attack Power: +80
Strength: +20
Agility: +20
Attack Speed: +1
Durability: 70/70
Passive Skill – Dragonic Power
Allows the user to temporarily possess the power of the Dragon, increasing HP by 200%, Strength by 100%, and Defense by 200%, and grants immunity to all controlling effects for 2 minutes.
Cooldown: 3 hours
...
The stats alone made Dragon Fang an exceptional Gold-tier weapon.
But with the Dragonic Power passive?
It pushed far beyond ordinary gear—comparable to a true Dark Gold-grade weapon.
The design was perfect for Kaito: a seamless blend of speed and strength, tailor-made for his combat style. The more he stared at the weapon, the more he felt a growing attachment to it—as if it were meant for him alone.
In Glory, this kind of forged gear always outclassed loot dropped by bosses.
While dungeon drops were often randomized and generic, forged weapons could be customized—designed specifically to complement a class's strengths, or even a player's exact combat rhythm.
That's why Master Forgers were so highly sought after.
Top-tier players and elite guilds alike preferred hiring trusted forgers to craft personalized gear, even if it meant paying extra. Custom weapons might not look much stronger on paper, but the synergy they provided in real combat was unmatched.
In fact, most experts in Glory would go out of their way to befriend a master forger—sometimes even offering rare materials or services just to earn a favor.
Because of this, Master Forgers held serious weight in the game's hierarchy. Nobody dared to cross them without cause.
Who knew which legendary player they had crafted for?
Annoy the wrong forger, and you might find yourself hunted across the map by a small army of experts.
After all, custom gear meant more than raw stats.
It meant power.
It meant connection.
It meant exclusivity.
Even if forged weapons were only marginally stronger than dungeon drops, the performance advantage they granted was enormous. That's why they were often referred to as exclusive weapons—crafted with one individual in mind.
And the Dragon Fang was exactly that.
A weapon crafted by Kaito, for himself.
Exclusive. Unmatched. And the first of many.
In the hands of an average swordsman, Dragon Fang would function no differently than a standard Gold-ranked weapon.
But in Kaito's hands, it was something else entirely.
With his precision, speed, and fighting style, Dragon Fang's true potential was unleashed—its performance rivaling even Dark Gold-tier equipment.
It was more than just a weapon.
It was a perfect extension of his combat instincts.
In his previous clash with Nightshade Vale, Kaito had realized a crucial gap in his loadout—he lacked a proper secondary weapon. That moment of weakness had cost him the battle.
Now, that gap had been filled.
With Dragon Fang, he finally had a weapon that could carry him through the upcoming stages without worry. He wouldn't need a replacement anytime soon. Not for many levels.
The sense of security that came from forging his first personal, custom weapon filled Kaito with quiet confidence.
Without delay, he resumed forging additional Shadow Fangs.
Having successfully crafted a Gold-tier weapon, the process felt noticeably smoother now. Every step—refining, shaping, merging—was faster, sharper, more precise.
Time slipped by.
Before he knew it, two hours had passed.
After two straight hours of forging, Kaito had exhausted every material he had prepared for crafting the Shadow Fang.
The final tally?
Seven successful ShadowFangs. One DragonFang.
The rest… failed attempts.
Satisfied with the result, Kaito began organizing his inventory. It was time to visit the Auction House—to offload a few Echo Core Ember Plates and acquire more forging materials for the next batch of Shadow Fangs.
But as he stepped outside, he noticed something strange.
The streets of South Glade Town were unusually quiet.
The members of Everhold Dominion, who once prowled the main square with arrogance and numbers, had seemingly vanished.
Did they… disband already?
Kaito frowned in confusion. He then called up the Official Bounty System, a feature maintained directly by the game's internal administrators.
In Glory, bounty transactions didn't require player-to-player confirmations. As long as a kill was verified by the system and proof was submitted, the reward was issued automatically. It was fast, secure, and lethal.
Kaito had previously deposited 5 gold coins and 1 million credits into the system—enough to cripple Everhold Dominion's South Glade branch for weeks.
But when he opened the bounty ledger…
He froze.
Gold Remaining: 0
Credits Remaining: 826,000
All five gold coins were already claimed.
Whether the bounty was collected through 500 kills of regular members or 50 elite kills, it meant one thing: Everhold Dominion had been wiped out.
And the extra 174,000 credits spent?
That was over 1,700 additional kills—a number so devastating it likely forced many members back to Level 0.
In just over two hours…
The fallout was staggering.
It was no wonder the streets were empty. The guild had suffered a crippling blow, far worse than what Kaito had originally intended. With such heavy losses, their foothold in South Glade Town was essentially obliterated.
He sifted through the system logs and watched a few of the submitted combat replays, analyzing the death records.
Only one word echoed in his mind—
Awesome.
Among the bounty hunters, one player stood out.
A female assassin.
She had personally claimed over 50 kills, all on unique targets—no repetitions.
Kaito's interest piqued.
He pulled up her footage—and was stunned.
Her movements were fluid and precise, her timing impeccable. She executed skill chains without delay and struck with lethal intent. Every ambush ended in a clean kill.
She wasn't just good.
She was elite.
Kaito read her name at the top of the bounty leaderboard.
NyxBlade.
He quietly repeated the name, narrowing his eyes.
Strange. I don't remember anyone with that name becoming famous in my last life…
As he continued watching her footage, his thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a call request.