The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor: Dad is a Legend

Chapter 12

Weed’s companions in the Hellfire Difficulty Stage 3—Barton, Luria, and Sen—felt an unusual sense of unease after hearing they didn’t need to do anything.

“Is it really true that he doesn’t need our help and can clear this alone?”

“It seems like it. He’s not even paying attention to us.”

“He hasn’t asked about our jobs or levels. If he needed something from us, he would have asked by now.”

Doing nothing and still receiving rewards after the challenge? It couldn’t get better than that.

Stats, traits, equipment—any reward from the Hellfire Difficulty would be a jackpot. But with their lives on the line, they had a lot to think about. If the challenger failed, it would mean their deaths. They had to rely on Weed to clear Stage 3 for them to survive.

“He cleared Hellfire Stage 2, so he must have confidence. He wouldn’t have gotten this far otherwise. He probably has a plan for Stage 3.”

“But no one has ever cleared Stage 3 before.”

“We should observe for now. There’s no point in making the challenger uncomfortable.”

Barton, Luria, and Sen decided to tread carefully. They were camped far from the abandoned fortress, so they were relatively safe for now. They decided to spend a few days watching Weed’s movements.

Sen returned after observing Weed from a distance.

“He’s sitting on a rock, making something. It looks like a magical artifact.”

“Maybe a magic bomb or something. I’ve seen a mage do something similar.”

“So, he’s got a strategy.”

If Weed charged into the fortress recklessly and died, they’d all be doomed. Seeing him prepare calmly reassured them somewhat.

“Let’s eat.”

“Yeah, let’s prepare together.”

Since Roanoke became a deadly game, they made sure to eat well, just in case it was their last meal. They set up a simple tent, grilled meat, and prepared dinner.

“I’ll bring him some food.”

Barton went to Weed but returned with a face as pale as a ghost.

“He’s making a sculpture.”

“A sculpture?”

“What?”

In Royal Road, sculptors were looked down upon, but in Roanoke, they were considered completely useless.

As Weed sculpted Seoyoon, memories of his time in Royal Road came flooding back. It had been over 20 years, but as one ages, memories become sustenance.

‘I started Royal Road desperately to make money.’

At that time, many people saw games as a way to earn a living. Item auction sites were incredibly popular. People made money by selling gold and equipment through auctions, helping others with difficult quests as mercenaries.

‘It was all about survival back then. Even now, I’m in Roanoke to survive.’

As Weed’s carving knife moved, Seoyoon’s form began to emerge from the wood. The carving knife, something a Goblin had dropped and nobody else would bother picking up, was not sharp enough to fully express the wood grain or bring out the details.

‘Careful now. While a master chooses their tools, they can also compensate for their shortcomings with skill.’

Scritch, scratch.

The Goddess Sarasvati, who governs art, music, and wisdom, shows interest in your sculpture.

The Goddess Sarasvati blesses your soul.

Art has increased by 2.

As he sculpted, blessings from the goddess came through occasionally.

‘The goddess’s blessings are quite generous.’

(Given that Roanoke has a higher difficulty level than Royal Road, there are hardly any sculptor players left.)

(That’s probably why the Goddess of Art is taking such a keen interest.)

‘Freeloaders all say that.’

In Royal Road, the Goddess Freya only took notice of sculptures that were masterpieces or higher.

The Goddess Sarasvati, who governs art, music, and wisdom, marvels at your sculpture.

The Goddess Sete of Beauty admires your sculpture.

The god’s attention has created the Charm stat.

Charm has increased by 2.

As Weed continued to sculpt, message windows kept popping up. Weed reminisced about Royal Road as he carved.

A sculpture of Seoyoon at age 20—a youthful, mysterious, and incredibly beautiful form. Her appearance and proportions were so perfect that one might question whether she was even human.

‘I made a lot of sculptures of Seoyoon in Royal Road.’

Weed had expected to live alone his entire life. Marriage was reality, and with no confidence in supporting himself, let alone a family, he never thought he would marry and have children. But somehow, Seoyoon had come to like him.

‘Why? How?’

At first, he had suspected she was after his money, but her family was incredibly wealthy, so that wasn’t it. Eventually, he concluded she must have another motive.

‘I thought she was after my organs.’

It was an internet rumor that had become a truth in his mind. But despite all the misunderstandings, they had ended up together. He often found himself amazed by his circumstances—waking up to find an unbelievably beautiful woman lying next to him.

‘It was surprising every time.’

Even in his dreams, it was rare to find someone as beautiful as Seoyoon. No actress in dramas or movies could compare.

In fairy tales, the prince and princess live happily ever after, and through his marriage, he had come to understand a bit of what that meant.

When Weed finally completed the sculpture, a message appeared.

Ding!

Masterpiece! A radiant statue of a beautiful woman has been created.

A sculpture by an unknown artist.

On the continent of Ils, where many people live—from kings to nobles, to the lowest slaves—this statue could captivate anyone who sees it.

This statue will become a treasure of the Ils continent.

Artistic value: 5,600

Options: Those who see the statue will experience a 30% increase in health and mana recovery for a day.

Max health +7%

Magic resistance +10%

Immune to charm magic

Charm +10

Grace +10

A masterpiece that has drawn the attention of the gods.

Fame has increased by 400.

Art achievement: All stats increase by 2.

Charm has increased by 10.

The stat ‘Spirit’ has been created.

Spirit has increased by 2.

You have learned sculpting with astonishing talent.

You have created a masterpiece without having learned the Sculpting skill, gaining proficiency at Beginner Level 5.

You have created a historically significant sculpture, gaining 2 Legendary Points.

Messages flooded the screen.

The experiences and memories of creating sculptures in Royal Road had translated directly into the work.

‘It feels like the rewards are better than in Royal Road.’

(That’s likely because the arts have fallen into decline in Roanoke, so the rewards are more significant.)

(Spirit is particularly hard to gain. It’s a valuable stat that can enhance magic and summoning arts.)

‘Is that so?’

(In Roanoke, Spirit ultimately increases your very existence.)

Weed suddenly realized something important.

‘There’s a huge loophole in sculpting.’

Royal Road’s system evaluated the value of completed sculptures by considering the historical significance of all existing artworks, public opinion, and the market value of art. Roanoke, having been released over 20 years later, used the same evaluation system.

This created a loophole he could exploit.

‘If that’s the case, I could recreate the successful sculptures from Royal Road here and reap the same benefits.’

It was a chance to recycle his old masterpieces. By recalling and recreating the masterpieces, he could gain massive stat rewards from Roanoke’s art system. If he created sculptures consecutively, he could earn enough Legendary Points to learn the Abyssal Mirror spell before clearing Hellfire Stage 3.

It was a trick that only Weed could pull off.

‘What did the other challengers do in this stage?’

(Most tried to lure out soldiers from the fortress and take them down one by one. Some set traps or brought in monsters to assist.)

‘That must have been tough. They really struggled, huh.’

(Assassin Lan even managed to infiltrate the fortress and kill the knights. But the knights eventually formed a pursuit team and took him down.)

Weed had maximized his growth in Stages 1 and 2. According to his original plan, he would have to take down the soldiers in the fortress, evading the knights and fighting carefully. Even for Weed, being surrounded by armored knights and soldiers would be dangerous.

‘But I’d still have a high chance of winning. If I use the ten days to split them up and take them out.’

Defeating the dangerous remnants would involve assassination, luring, and ambushes. He’d have to take out the soldiers and eliminate the knights. However, if he learned the ultimate Necromancer spell, Abyssal Mirror, the situation would completely change.

‘With black magic, I could wipe out the entire fortress.’

Raising the undead, he could destroy all the soldiers and knights in the fortress. He could carry forward his perfect growth in Hellfire to the next stage.

‘Even just clearing the stage will grant substantial rewards, but if I take down all the enemies perfectly…’

(You’ll likely receive every reward possible.)

‘In a difficulty no one has ever cleared.’

(With your sculpting skill, I believe it’s possible.)

Experience points, loot, achievement rewards—Weed felt a newfound appreciation for sculpting, a skill he had once despised.

‘Sculpting is indeed

useful for scamming players or exploiting loopholes.’

A deep-seated prejudice against sculpting!

Weed was halfway through sculpting a figure of his daughter when Luria approached him cautiously with a bowl of food.

“Here’s your meal. Should I take it back if you’re not going to eat?”

She was careful not to upset the challenger. But Weed wasn’t one to refuse free food.

“Thank you, I’ll eat well.”

He put down the sculpture and began eating the meat soup.

Even though he had become a great cook while taking care of his daughter, nothing beat a free meal cooked by someone else.

You eat the meat soup.

Your fullness increases.

The food isn’t delicious, but it’s edible.

This was the first time he had sat down to eat since entering Hellfire Difficulty. Luria watched him eat for a moment before speaking up.

“But I think I understand why you summoned me.”

“…?”

“I know how men think. But just because Roanoke has become dangerous doesn’t mean I want to start a relationship with some guy I don’t even know.”

Roanoke had undergone a dramatic shift in a short time. Rationality and morals that had once maintained society had become outdated, replaced by a world where the strong took everything.

Luria, with her cute appearance, had received plenty of attention from men while working at convenience stores and capsule rooms, so it was natural for her to be suspicious.

Weed paused mid-bite and said, “I’m married.”

“Really?”

“Yes, there’s my wife’s sculpture right over there.”

Luria’s gaze followed his gesture to the sculpture. It was a masterpiece, so beautiful that it was almost shocking.