The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor

Chapter 7 : A Girl’s Life

Weed brought out the King Hydra and Imoogi leathers. Even after making stuffed animals and failed dolls of children, there was still quite a lot left. The very best of the leather was left, too.

For works of art, the first one made wasn"t always the best, and the last one didn"t necessarily have a high degree of finis.h.i.+ng. However, a sculpture that didn"t move the emotions wouldn"t be able to impart any emotions to the opposite party.

He had saved the best materials in case he came up with a sculpture that he really had to make!

"I should be able to make 40 dolls. It"s a shame, but this should be more than enough."

Weed cut the leather and started from making a sculpture of a newborn baby. It was a little girl who had just been born. Her skin was wrinkled, and she looked like she was about to cry, as if she had truly come into the world for the first time. She was small enough to be held in one hand.

"A living being within a few hours of being born. This is a baby that has made her first contact with the world after coming out of her mother"s womb."

Having already received information about Mandol and his wife, Weed took a little of their features when making the doll. Even so, however, there wasn"t a particular characteristic to the newborn babe.

"Alright. The first one is done."

Weed laid down the baby doll and raised the leather again. He needed to make the second doll now.

As he made the doll, Weed"s hands were very careful. "It"s a newborn baby. In her first year, she"ll start toddling, and changing her diapers will be awful then, too. From a parent"s perspective, it"ll be a time when they can"t help but be worried all the time."

Imagining the future of the little girl that Mandol"s wife would have given birth to, Weed made the doll very tensely.

"She needs clothes, too."

He had covered the newborn baby doll with clean cloth, but now he used Tailoring to clothe her in baby clothes.

He completed the doll of a little girl gurgling into a laugh at her first birthday party!

"Now she knows her mom and dad... it"s the time when she"s growing up like that."

The doll he made next had grown a little more. She was taller, and her fingers and toes had grown longer. She also had hair in cute pigtails.

"The age when she"ll learn how to speak and start acting mischievous."

He clothed the fourth doll he made in a kindergarten uniform. It was a doll of a young student wearing adorable clothes and even a backpack.

The fifth doll had grown up quickly; it was time for her to go to elementary school.

She had just been a baby-faced and cute kid until now, but from the sixth, she began to have a slightly feminine charm.

"The neighborhood boys will really want to flip up her skirt, and she"ll have grown into a girl with a pretty smile."

The little girl who made mischief and ran around like the queen of the neighborhood would grow up charmingly. Her eyes would be as playful as before, but brighter, and she would be taller.

Every doll he completed after that was taller and had longer hair. The hairstyles also changed several times, ranging from long straight hair men preferred to a lively pixie cut.

"This is also pretty hard work."

He had to go buy hair from the sculpting material shop and sew them all in; even so, he didn"t tire because his efforts were making something.

From the fourteenth doll, she had already graduated high school and had become an adult.

She had grown into a woman who seemed very energetic and talkative. As if she was going to suddenly bring her boyfriend over to introduce him to her parents, she had rosy cheeks and charming expressions. He even made pretty accessories like a hairband and necklace with through crafting. She only needed a book bag and a uniform in her high school years, but she was now a college girl. He had to make her a bag and heels, which were like the lifeblood of a woman.

"But luxury is still a no!"

He compromised with reasonably priced rabbit leather for the goods she carried around. Even so, she still gave off the feeling of a refined college girl. They were accessories that suited her expression, clothes, overall feel, and perfume. Like how a parent treasured their child, they were crafted with his utmost; the female student was as lovable as a real person.

It took an extremely long time to make the sculpture, but Weed was concentrating so much with every ounce of his effort that he didn"t realize it.

From the seventeenth doll, as if no one could capture the pa.s.sage of time, the small newborn baby that had to be cared for had found a job.

The eighteenth doll even went into volunteer work to help people in difficult situations.

In the nineteenth, she brought home a boyfriend, and in the twenty-first, she finally got married. He even made a reliable and thoughtful husband with her; they were a couple that matched each other like lovebirds. He made the wedding guests with materials like deer or rabbit leather, and they celebrated the couple"s future.

The twenty-third doll even had a child, and she lived in a happy home. She did the dishes with her husband, the laundry and cleaning, and went to work as she lived happily.

Every time a doll was completed, the woman would age, and the pa.s.sage of time became apparent as wrinkles appeared in her lovely visage.

Dolls that raised children and lived with her husband.

"It"s too fast; they say that a person"s life goes past as quickly as a growing sprout and can"t be turned back, but even so, it"s too regretful."

Past the young and immature days that had sparkled like jewels, the time that the doll experienced accelerated. From the thirty-sixth one onwards, the doll spent more time alone; her children had grown up, found jobs, and married. She became a grandmother and took naps, read books, and made yarn scarves for her grandson and granddaughter.

The Imoogi and Hydra leather that had been so abundant began to run out.

The forty-first doll happily and quietly closed her eyes. She was in a place with her family.

After making all the dolls, Weed sat still in deep despondency. The leather had completely run dry, and there was nothing more that he could do.

The message window popped up when Weed stood still without moving his sculpting knife.

The sculpture that covered the lifetime of a doll was finished.

Weed weakly shook his head. "I will not set a name."

He didn"t want to attach any name to the sculpture right now.

"It doesn"t matter. This was a work that I was not qualified to make."

Ding!

The reward was enough to make Weed"s mind go blank. It seemed that he would have to completely throw away the prejudice that a Sculptor wasn"t as good as a Swordsman or another profession now.

"Check Sculpting skill!"

His Sculpting skill proficiency had increased by a whopping 29%.

Thanks to putting in his utmost, Weed had ended up making a work that even he couldn"t understand.

"I just made dolls..."

Weed came to a deep realization. There was a reason why children and women liked dolls.

It was their instinct to find goods with value!

He had made the dolls for a request barely worth 1 Copper, but there was still a fault. The number of completed dolls was considerable. He had made them inside the roomy s.p.a.ce he was using as a workroom in the Lord"s Castle, but he had to move them to another place so that Mandol and his wife could look at it comfortably. He could use an empty room in Morata Castle, but he didn"t want to do so.

"There has to be a separate s.p.a.ce for the child."

Weed mumbled quietly. "Whisper, turn off chatting restriction."

Ding!

He opened up the whisper and chat functions that he had shut off while returning to Morata. With the restrictions turned on, he didn"t see or hear the guild chat, and when someone whispered him, he could only hear them if he gave permission. It was a measure that he"d set up because there were so many people looking for Weed.

It seemed the Travelers of the Wilderness Guild was in a special hunting ground.

Weed ignored most of the guild"s talk, because although the chatting restriction had been turned off, there were still as many lurkers as ever.

He sent a whisper to the Architect Pavo, who he"d met in the Northern Expedition. It had been a really long time, but he never forgot players that he could use.

"He was of a considerable level as an Architect."

Pavo was the Architect who had been busy making even the stairs that were good for viewing for the G.o.ddess Freya Statue in Morata.

Pavo hadn"t forgotten Weed either. Since he was the Lord of Morata, of course he couldn"t forget.

Pavo looked like he didn"t understand it very well. There was no reason for Weed, who had the Lord"s Castle, to need a house. For things like item storage or resting in a bedroom, he could just use the Lord"s Castle, after all.

Around the time when Weed finished his conversation with Pavo, he received a whisper from a player named Hon.

It was time for Weed to go to the underground prison for the quest.

* * *

The River of Lamentation basin that was connected to Morata by the movement portal! The second S-rank difficulty quest and the Rescue the Prisoners of the Matallost Church would take place there. When Weed returned to the River of Lamentation again with Yellowy, he could see people gathered in groups nearby.

"That person is Weed..."

"He"s the person called the G.o.d of War?"

"Shh! Talk quietly. He might hear, so be careful!"

They were people who had heard the news that Weed had stopped making sculptures and was leaving for the River of Lamentation from their friends in Morata and had been waiting in advance to look at him.

A considerable number of high leveled players in the North paid the toll fee and were hunting near the River of Lamentation. Considering its distance from Morata and the level of the monsters, it could be said that there was no better hunting ground. There were occasional cases where a party bravely ventured deep into the North, but instances where the entire party was annihilated from a slight mistake were numerous. Since help could be found from the surroundings at any time, the River of Lamentation was a fine hunting ground.

Weed looked around at the players with cold and frosty eyes. "There are lots of people."

In Morata, he had been a simple Lord who had sold food and j.a.ptem, but he couldn"t be that way in the hunting ground, too. There were already quite a few figures who were staring at Weed with challenging eyes. If these high leveled players came at him all at once, then even Weed wouldn"t be able to avoid death. He was even more sensitive because he had ultimate Unique items like the Necromancer"s Magic Tome, Talrock"s Armor, Ancient s.h.i.+eld, and Kolderim"s Daemon Sword.

"This isn"t Morata."

In Morata, people couldn"t even dream of challenging Weed because of the Soldiers or Knights. If someone raised a sword at the Lord, then they would either be subjugated by the Soldiers or the Freya Church"s Knights would thoroughly destroy them. However, anything could happen in a hunting ground. He could meet murderers and even drop an item.

In order to not be looked down on, Weed feigned nonchalance as he looked at the people.

"Pieces of trash everywhere."

"..."

The crowd was silent.

The WarG.o.d Weed they had imagined— it was an arrogance befitting of the strongest player in the Continent of Magic.

"Did they wait here without hunting to look at me? Though there are monsters everywhere... tsk tsk."

Weed tsked as he insulted them outright. Even people who had purchased food or sculptures from Weed in Morata couldn"t conceal their shock at his completely different att.i.tude.

The thoughts that occurred to them then!

"This might be the true Weed..."

"Is he acting politely to beginners or individuals alone? We"re gathered in a group and he"s actually criticising us... he might be a wolf in sheep"s clothing."

There were over 200 high leveled players gathered here, yet he disdained them all outright. A player"s pride originally went sky high once they pa.s.sed level 300. Their personal connections built from various places and the force they showed while hunting would become the object of envy. The number of players was immense because the Versailles Continent was expansive, but the higher you went up the ranks, the less players there were. A level 300 was at a level where they wouldn"t be disdained anywhere. At that position, they could join a prestigious guild and speak out some in a smaller to medium guild. The pride and ego of high level players was as high as a mountain, but there was no one here who would dare to interfere with Weed. They might attack him if they were alone, but it wasn"t a mood they could go forth in because the other people were staying put. Weed had dominated the atmosphere with a few composed words.

"How pathetic."

"..."

The people couldn"t even say a single word in reply. At some point, it had become natural for Weed to speak like this. He was friendly in Morata, but he revealed his extremely arrogant nature before the gathered high level players. It was the might of the absolute strongest, something they had dreamed of since who knows when.

However, a few people harbored resentment towards the continuing disdain. Having become stronger while wandering the hunting grounds, their compet.i.tive spirit flared at Weed, who was acting like an almighty maverick. It would be an honor even if they died, and they felt like wanting to challenge him.

A subtle change in mood was flowing in the repressed crowd.

Just then, Weed burst out with Lion"s Roar, "Bingryong! Phoenix! Why haven"t you come to greet me even though I"ve come!"

A sound spread like lightning!

At Weed"s call, Bingryong and Phoenix spread their wings wide and flew over from far away. With a size that rivaled a Dragon with his torso alone, Bingryong was fearsome enough to give people who were seeing him for the first time get gooseb.u.mps. Bingryong and Phoenix let loose a round of cries into the sky before coming down to sit on the rocky mountain.

ROOAAAR!

SCREEECH!

Cracks formed on the mountain"s stone and sand was falling.

"Master, I came at your call."

"Master, I have come."

Bingryong was good-looking-- he had heft like a Dragon, refined eyes, and a deft snout! With an air of indifference characteristic of a bird, Phoenix was cold, yet explosive power that seemed like it would burn everything lay dormant within. That Bingryong and Phoenix courteously lowered their heads to Weed.

"Ooh."

"Incredible."

The crowd felt some kind of wall separating them from Weed, who had tamed and was pus.h.i.+ng around those two seemingly wild divine beasts. The constantly complaining, timid and fearful Bingryong and Phoenix, who was so very stupid that it caused accidents! Unaware of their relations.h.i.+p with Weed, who enslaved them with frustration and bullying, the people could only see it as amazing. There would be no one who could challenge Weed even after seeing Bingryong and Phoenix bowing their heads to him.

"You idiots. I get angry just seeing you guys." Weed furrowed his brow.

Bingryong and Phoenix looked like they were accepting it without any resistance.

"What kind of dirty tantrum is he going to throw now..."

"Let"s just ignore it. There"s probably something we did wrong."

Weed said, "Incompetent and useless b.a.s.t.a.r.ds."

Bingryong and Phoenix rolled their eyes in pointless guilt and sorriness as they looked around. Every time Weed insulted them, there was some kind of decisive reason. If they talked back and snapped at him, this frustration and insulting would go on for much longer, so they didn"t ask for the reason or argue. They decided to do the same this time, too, and just waited.

Weed shook his head towards Bingryong and Phoenix as if it was annoying. "I don"t even want to see you pieces of c.r.a.p, so f.u.c.k off!"

Thinking it was their liberation, Bingryong and Phoenix unfurled their wings and flew away. They had to get far away from him before Weed changed his mind. They fled so quickly that the rocky mountain shook and harsh winds blew.

The crowd"s spirits sank even further. They were giving him looks of envy and respect rather than compet.i.tive or fighting spirit. With this much disdain towards Bingryong and Phoenix, whose matches were hard found even in the Versailles Continent, they were thinking that the disdain directed at them was somewhat natural.

Weed strode towards the direction of the Embinyu Fortress. The Rescue the Prisoners of the Matallost Church-- monsters were gathered in hordes along with an enormous labyrinth in the underground the Embinyu Fortress.

"Two people are better than one for clearing a dungeon like this."

Because of concerns regarding poisoning or curse magic, it was beneficial to have one or two teammates.

* * *

Holding a shovel, Pavo walked to the black castle with Gaston.

"Have you come to fulfil the Lord"s request?" asked the guard watching over the Lord"s Caste with a spear.

Pavo came to the Lord"s Castle quite often because of his Architect license and had acc.u.mulated intimacy, so the guard had recognized him.

"Yes, I have."

"The Lord has asked you to build a house to store a work. I will guide you to the place where the sculptures are located."

"Thank you."

Pavo and Gaston followed the guard into the Lord"s Castle. It was the Lord"s private s.p.a.ce, where people normally couldn"t enter. Not even a single simple decoration was hung on the walls, and they couldn"t even look at things like the valuables.

"There"s nothing special," said Gaston with disappointment.

As a Painter, his Art stat or insight would rise if he appreciated impressive artwork. It was due to their natural ambition that art professions wanted to appreciate many works.

"This is the room."

The guard opened one of the Lord"s closed chambers.

At that moment!

A brilliant light poured out from within the room.

As soon as the door was opened, the Fame that was so hard to raise went up by over 1,000.

That was before Pavo and Gaston were able to come to their senses.

Architects were a profession that required surprisingly high Wisdom. That was because they needed to know how to use simple magic in order to construct a building. However, even his Wisdom and Intelligence were insufficient to understand this work.

That was it for Pavo, but Gaston was as shocked as if he"d been hit by a lightning bolt.

A ma.s.sive increase in the Art stat!

In the case of magicians, an apprentice who learned from a teacher could grow much faster. However, artists could only prove themselves with their works alone!

The dolls displayed in the light looked so realistic that it was unbelievable that they were leather dolls. The clothes they were wearing, especially the b.u.t.tons, were made precisely; not a single thing was out of place.

"To think that these sculptures are Weed"s true skills..."

The Sculptor who made the dolls was unknown, but who else could have made them but the Lord of Morata, Weed? They were sure of it because Weed had asked them to build a house for works that were in the Lord"s Castle.

Pavo sent a whisper to Weed with a trembling voice.

Weed"s answer returned quickly.

It was something that Pavo and Gaston really couldn"t understand, despite being grateful for it. If he had made a sculpture like this, of course he should boast and let it be known.

If Gaston had painted a Mythical work, he would have gone around running his mouth everywhere.

He was too embarra.s.sed to attach his name after making a Mythical sculpture like this!

Weed"s modesty was enough to make them choke.