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“I’ve mentioned the Cyclopes workshop, right? It’s truly a different world. They recreate all the magic that gods and humans can imagine with their hands and make what exists only in imagination into reality.”

Yet, their greatest feat, he said, was none other than turning things that even imagination couldn’t reach into reality with a few words and designs.

“Maybe if you just let a few words slip about the techniques of Hyperborea or the magic used there, it would be reproduced in the workshops in no time.”

“Is it really something to boast about?”

“Do you even need to ask?”

What flashed through my mind were electronic devices from the 21st century, now just a faint memory, like smartphones or TVs.
If this eccentric craftsman was saying that, then maybe…?

‘Nah, that’s a bit too much.’

No matter how incredible the magic and technology here were, reproducing electronic devices would be tough.
Even if they managed to make similar communication devices, what about the internet or electronic information?
Lost in these idle thoughts, I chuckled and turned my attention back to Hestosias’s story. He was now almost done with his work.

“In that sense, how impoverished are the minds of those boring people who come looking for me? They only pester me to make sharp metal objects they can hold and shake.”

So, when I first visited the smithy, thinking I came because of his reputation, he enthusiastically recommended any weapon to drive me away.

“Why is a man who looks like he should be pumping bellows and hammering metal not taking orders and instead playing the role of a merchant? That’s what I thought.”

“I was already working just enough to meet my quota, but the idea of taking on another custom order made me feel sick.”

I’ve met many so-called divine craftsmen and renowned artisans in my time.
Hestosias was the most unpredictable person among them.
He wasn’t an old master nor a skilled veteran.

Ah, I’m done with this drudgery. It’s boring, not doing it anymore, bye.

So, he was saying he just slacked off until a fresh challenge came out.

“Hey, it’s not like I just slacked off, okay? Do you think there’s anyone else among those blacksmith blockheads who can handle accounting besides me?”

“Did I say anything…? Why are you getting all defensive on your own?”

“You’ve got ‘pathetic’ written all over your face, but you sure talk well.”

Despite grumbling to himself, Hestosias continued to work with delicate and quick hand movements.
He inspected the barely visible strings of the gayageum, checking for any cracks or uneven parts.
He meticulously examined the body, checking for any cracks, leaking sounds, or uneven parts, and only after confirming there were no issues did he carefully hand it to me.

“How about it? Isn’t this comparable to the old instrument you lost?”

“……”

I could only accept it silently from the boastful Hestosias.

Just as I had imagined, just as I had expected.
The gayageum instrument, born for the first time on Greek soil, was nothing short of mythical.
The raw bark left intact, the mysteriously shimmering strings with a milky sheen.
Though it appeared rough and crude, its natural beauty was so evident that it seemed as if a single tree and the spring water flowing beneath it had been transformed into the form of an instrument, exuding an air of mystery.

What is this ticklish feeling?
A flood of tears seemed to fall, bringing a faint, nostalgic feeling.
The familiar yet unfamiliar image of the gayageum was vividly imprinted in my mind.
Beyond the heavy weight and the rough texture of the bark in my hands, life pulsated.
The familiar yet unfamiliar appearance of the gayageum.
The unfamiliar but unchanged appearance of myself.

Because of me, the gayageum that had been asleep in my memory was brought out into this world in a form both similar and different from me.
Along with the old emotions I had tried to bury.

“Even if spring returns, I have no place to return to. Even if I climb the mountain and look east, I cannot see that place. Only the old gayageum longs for that place. The place I miss and long for.”

-Ding…

The unfamiliar-looking gayageum that I lightly plucked softly resonated with the same tone I remembered.

There were a total of three gayageums that passed through my hands.

One was a Central Plains style guqin1 given to me by a musician who said he couldn’t handle the instrument that produced such a melody after I demonstrated my skill once at the Cult Leader’s banquet.
Then, to commemorate the eradication of the corrupt Cult Leader’s faction and my complete control over the Heavenly Demon Cult, a Gayageum was lavishly crafted with jade and metal strings by the cult’s top artisan.
And lastly, the sacred instrument, Finger Piano, dedicated to me when I ascended to the position of the Heavenly Demon.
It was the final gift from Gwi Hyun-sa, who vanished abruptly as soon as everything was settled.

After everything was sorted and even the imperial family acknowledged our Heavenly Demon Cult as the dominator of Central Plains martial arts, it became my sole companion as I wandered between the Central Plains and the Great Wall.

When it finally succumbed to the ravages of time, I thought I would never again hold an instrument in my lifetime.
I couldn’t believe that I had come back to life in such a distant land and was holding a gayageum again; it was a feeling hard to describe.

“Hoo…”

When I came to my senses, I was walking through a deep forest, holding a gayageum in both hands.
Thanks to the wriggling constellation stars and the brightly shining moon in the distance, the forest wasn’t too dark, and my rapidly advancing level had already surpassed the point where light intensity limited my vision, so it wasn’t too difficult.

-Ding…

“Yes, are you looking for the place to tune the first note?”

The gayageum, which was quietly crying alone, seemed to have a will of its own, nestled gently in my arms, and whimpered, asking to go this way and that way.
Like a child throwing a tantrum while holding their father’s hand.
I wondered if it was possible for a newly made object to be imbued with qi.
The object was crafted from a living tree, imbued with divine fire and magic, so by now, I had just come to accept it.

Anyway, as I walked and walked to the sound of the gayageum, a wide clearing bathed in moonlight gradually appeared.
Below a flat rock, a small spring flowed gently, and the forest animals, big and small, drank from it under the moonlight, scattering hastily at the sight of an uninvited guest like me.

“…This is the moment to release the first glorious note, but it cannot be revealed hastily to others.”

The delicate and sacred moment when the first note is played by a newly born gayageum.
The Longing Ghost Sound told me that one must handle the gayageum as one would handle a lover, especially when playing the first note, approaching it softly and carefully as a bridegroom unties the sash of a new bride.

‘Anyway, as expected of a Sound Arts fanatic.’

I couldn’t understand how he did it, but seeing him holding his beloved instrument(?) even in death, I could guess the extent of the Longing Ghost Sound’s passion and obsession with his instrument.
However, if there was something I could relate to…
It was a profoundly special moment for anyone, whether a martial artist or a musician, to wield something for the first time in their hands.

“Now, then, shall we pluck a tune?”

The moon in the sky was beautiful, and the surrounding forest was indescribably serene.
Large and small audiences gathered out of curiosity among the trees and grass, holding their breaths and listening intently.
Were they curious about what this unfamiliar foreigner intended to do with this unfamiliar instrument?
It was supposed to be the moment to present the first secret and sacred note, but my new friend seemed to be more enthusiastic about performing with an audience.
There was no better place than this.

-Diing…

“Oh…”

The pearl silver thread tempered by Hestosias was warm and soft, in stark contrast to the heavenly thread of the Heavenly Hall.
Nevertheless, the tension felt at the fingertips was as firm as the heavenly thread, and the sound was even deeper, almost as gentle as stroking a woman’s skin.

“I’ve received an incredible item once again.”

No, after all that hardship, if it didn’t turn out at least this good, it would truly be a scam, wouldn’t it?

“No, even if I went through several times more suffering, it’s a treasure that cannot be easily obtained…”

Even the courtesans and musicians who recognized the value of the instruments were eager to obtain it.
The yet unnamed gayageum was divine and mysterious in both appearance and the qi it emanated.
And above all, this sound.
A sound so clear and deep that no other gayageum in the world could produce.

Just plucking it lightly made my heart tremble with that sound, so I paused for a moment and just listened quietly.

“Hmm… good.”

It would have been nice if I had a glass of clear liquor.
Thinking such trivial thoughts, I slowly tuned the gayageum.
Hestosias had done his part in fixing it, but he was a craftsman, not a musician, so it took a little time to loosen and tighten the strings just right.

– Dittidididing~

“This should… do it.”

Testing the strings, I found the tone even more refined and clearer than before, which excitedly made my shoulders bounce and my hands spontaneously start dancing on the gayageum.

Before long.
The wind, the stream, the whispers of animals, and the chatter of trees made the forest seem both quiet and noisy, but it gradually fell silent, and amidst that, a single melody began to flow slowly.

With a sound so beautiful and pure, even the gods would be enchanted.