I Became a Genius Mechanic at the Academy – Chapter 1

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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I was good at exactly two things.

One was mechanical engineering.

The other was [El Pandor Runterra.]

But now, one of those two things was about to disappear.

The game I had been playing for the past 11 years, ‘El Pandor Runterra,’ had posted a server shutdown notice.

[El Pandor Runterra, Restart Burning! New Character Creation Event!]

Even though it was ending, I intended to go all out until the very last moment.

60 days remained until the server shutdown.

For the remaining 60 days, they were holding a ‘New Character Creation’ event for the veteran players still in the game.

The event details stated that upon dismantling your main account, its value would be transferred to a new character in the form of special abilities and items.

While dismantling my cherished main account was heartbreaking, there was no reason to refuse the opportunity to obtain new skills and items.

As a player who loved this game, I wanted to try something new until the very end.

And so, I boldly dismantled my main character.

-*Ding!*

The results were, as expected, a jackpot.

My account was ‘Engineering Top Student,’ was the rank 1 player in El Pandor Runterra.

Being rank 1 meant the rewards were tremendous.

I had obtained two [Eternal] grade items, something no one had ever achieved before.

Humming a tune, I transferred all the items to my new account.

My new account, ready for the final 60 days, was starting with two unique items.

“But what’s that?”

There was a strange item included.

An ‘El Pandor Runterra’ Official Server Entry Ticket.

What in the world was that for?

This game only had one server.

Curiosity piqued, I used the item.

“Uh oh!”

Just like that, I was transported.

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Two months had passed since I was transported.

During that time, I’d learned several things.

First, this place I was transported to *was* ‘El Pandor Runterra.’

And I had been transported into the early game ‘Academy Part.’

“Ed! Are you almost done?”

I also realized I was transported into a third-rate extra who had never appeared in the game’s story.

The extra’s name was ‘Edgar Fix.’ He was usually called ‘Ed,’ short for ‘Edgar.’

Two months had already passed since my arrival, so being called ‘Ed’ had become somewhat familiar.

“Yes, Father! Almost finished!”

Father. Edgar had a father who was a blacksmith. His father’s name was ‘James.’

At first, calling James ‘Father’ felt incredibly awkward, but as I tried to adapt to this new world, it gradually became more natural.

Personally, he felt more like a teacher than a father, but in any case, I was adapting well.

“Haha! Are you trying to make your old man impatient? I’m dying to see my son’s masterpiece!”

However, during these two months, James had become incredibly doting. Edgar, who had never shown any interest in the forge before, suddenly began to show an interest in crafting equipment, and within a month, he displayed remarkable talent.

‘Of course, that’s because I possessed him.’

It was all thanks to me. Because I had the ‘Creator’s Hammer’ and the ‘Mechanic Blueprint’ obtained by dismantling my main account. As a result of attributing those unique items, I gained a natural talent for crafting equipment.

The Creator’s Hammer, the item that led me to become a crafting genius. It had three hidden attribute effects, all related to crafting equipment. It was no wonder that even Edgar, who had never swung a hammer before, quickly became a crafting genius. James seemed to think it was because I inherited the blood of a blacksmith.

-*Ding*

Phew! The equipment I had been working on for the past week was finally complete. My third ‘Rare’ grade equipment was born.

I remembered the first time I crafted a Rare grade piece of equipment. Along with the message that my skill level had increased, the ‘Sealed Creator’s Hammer’ had been upgraded to the ‘Incomplete Creator’s Hammer.’ At the same time, the new skill ‘Lv.1 Magic Engineering’ was added. It allowed me to imbue equipment with magic to create special effects.

*Click*

This gauntlet was the first one I had imbued with magic. I inscribed it with a spell using the lowest-grade magic scroll James had procured. Imbuing equipment with magic wasn’t something just anyone could do. No matter how experienced a blacksmith, if they didn’t understand mana, they could never imbue equipment with magic.

*Whoosh!*

But I had done it in just two months. I lightly swung the gauntlet, and the effect of the ‘Lowest-Grade Wind Wave’ I had imbued activated. Wind erupted from the tip of the gauntlet, scattering all the parts on the table onto the floor.

“Son! Have you finally finished it?”

With the clatter of falling objects, James burst through the door and entered the workshop. I grinned and shook the gauntlet on my hand, and James rushed over to examine it.

“Ooooooh!!!! You are the pride of the Fix family! How could you create such a high-level piece of equipment in just two months!!”

High-level equipment. From my perspective, it was merely practice. I still couldn’t even create the lowest-level components of the [Mechanic Blueprint]. So, to remind myself not to get complacent, I opened the [Mechanic Blueprint]. A holographic screen appeared in the air.

Ah…. Still a long way to go. I hadn’t even created a Mana Storage Device yet, so I couldn’t be satisfied with just making a Rare grade gauntlet. My current goal was the Plasma Beam Titanium Alloy Gauntlet—that stylish gauntlet, resembling Iron Man’s, was my objective. Not this crude Rare grade gauntlet.

“Hahahaha! Ed! You’re going to be the best blacksmith in the Empire!”

James seemed satisfied with my current level.

‘Anyway, I need to start making the Mana Storage Device soon…’

By creating the gauntlet, I had succeeded in creating a prototype for my goal. If the ‘Plasma Beam Titanium Alloy Gauntlet’ emitted a plasma beam, the gauntlet I just made emitted a wind wave. It was time to start making the lower-grade materials. I clicked on the ‘Mana Storage Device [Lv.4]’ and checked the required combination formula.

Hmm. Even this wasn’t easy. The materials needed for the ‘Mana Storage Device’ were all expensive. Mana Stones and Sapphire Stones were both found in high-risk dungeons, making them difficult to acquire. So, I decided to look at the ‘Mana Stabilizer’ first.

Finally, a material I could make: Purified Iron. Through relentless training, I could produce iron with almost 0% impurities. The ‘Mana Absorption Scroll’ would require learning the skill or finding a scroll, which was difficult right now. The ‘Finely Crafted Glass Tube’ seemed achievable with a little more practice. I decided to look into that first.

The lower combination formula was easier. With sand and simple tools, I could make a glass tube.

‘If I can freely manipulate glass, I could apply it to other equipment.’

Glass, a cooled liquid, had high light transmittance. In this world, mana had the properties of light, so glass was suitable for containing and releasing mana. It was fragile, but with proper engineering, that weakness could be overcome.

‘If I incorporate glass into the Rare gauntlet I just made…’ the spell’s efficiency would increase. Currently, a weak wind wave was emitted, but adding glass to the output could amplify it.

“Kuh-huh-kuh. This kid. Lost in thought about making equipment again.”

James ruffled my hair with a benevolent smile. His eyes were practically dripping with honey. It was a little embarrassing.

“Ahem. More importantly, Father, shouldn’t we be getting ready? Today’s an important day.”

Today was the bidding competition for the training equipment for the newly established ‘Imperial Academy.’

“Haha! Dad’s already prepared everything!”

This day was also important for me. The ‘Imperial Academy’ was where the main story unfolded. To prepare for the future ‘Doom’ scenario, I needed to gain strength there, even if it meant auditing classes.

“Are you ready, son?”
“Yes. I don’t really have anything to prepare.”
“Kuh-huh! Then let’s go.”
“Yes, sir.”

The Imperial Academy training equipment bidding competition. The Empire’s renowned blacksmiths would gather, but I didn’t think I would lose. James was the only blacksmith NPC at the Imperial Academy. Unless something unexpected happened, his products would win the bid.

‘And I’ll enter the Academy as his assistant.’

I planned to stay at the forge inside the Academy, assisting James, though my main goal was to audit classes. I planned to attend ‘Fundamentals of Mana Studies,’ taught by ‘Elena,’ the Empire’s strongest mage. Mastering mana would make crafting much easier.

‘Alright, let’s go.’ Today was the first step towards achieving all of that.

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