"Die, damn you!!!!!"
And so, Fron's cheerful days began again...
----------------------------------
"Ding, ding, ding!"
In the narrow room, the faint light of the magic stone lamp flickered.
At this moment, the main focus was the roaring furnace fire. Its blazing flames illuminated the side of a person's face, and the shadow cast on the wall danced with the movement of his arm.
"Phsst..."
The tempered sword blade began to look more and more refined. The faintly flowing black magic within gave it a sinister allure.
"Is this good enough?"
"Ah, as a consumable, there's no need for unnecessary parts like the hilt."
What he held was a strange one-handed sword without any decorations, consisting only of the hilt and the blade. Calling it a sword might even be a bit much.
Its rough and rugged form resembled the feeling of the 'Grotto Labyrinth'—rough, steadfast, and unrefined. Its only merit was its elegant shape.
Upon close inspection, one could see the blade seemed to hold condensed black flame and lightning—scorching and savage.
[Magic Sword].
The first commemorative magic sword forged by the individual known as [Fron Argon].
The red-haired young man picked up the magic sword named 〖Fire Lion No. 1〗and examined it closely.
"Tsk, should I say it's just as expected from the holder of 'Mystery'? The power of this magic sword is already quite strong."
As for what "quite strong" meant, that depended on interpretation.
The magic infused into the magic sword was all from the magic power of the swordsmith himself.
Fron's magic level was exceptionally high.
Once the destructive black flame sealed within it was released, it would be on par with a high-level annihilation spell.
"Roughly... the destructive power of Lv .4. I don't know what's up with you, but even in our familia, swords of this quality are rare. The number of people who can forge them can be counted on one hand."
Fron raised an eyebrow and tilted his head:
"Maybe... it's just talent?"
"You... so naturally smug."
"Ha, well, it's not as exaggerated as Crozzo's magic swords anyway."
"Hey, don't bring up that name again, okay?"
"Aye aye, whatever you say."
"Since you've succeeded, I'll be heading back."
"Ah, thanks again for the materials!"
"It's not like you asked me to forge a magic sword, so it's whatever."
The red-haired youth waved his hand and left Fron's forge.
Watching his retreating back, someone stroked their chin with a distant gaze, deep in thought.
"[Crozzo's Magic Swords]... others don't know the real reason for their insane power, but I do."
"During the forging process, elf blood was mixed in. That's what gave them such explosive power."
"This forging method is similar to the 'little black knife', though the end results differ vastly. An almost 'divine technique', huh?"
Fron deeply craved such unknown knowledge.
However, for him at the moment, it was still far out of reach.
"Four days left... I'll forge another one. I also need to prepare my own weapons and gear."
...
...
A few days flew by in focused forging.
Worth mentioning, 〖Short Sword No. 4〗was officially completed, and he also managed to barely repair the damaged [Aquamarine Staff].
Lastly, using the precious—or rather, super rare—tough hide of a Black Goliath, Fron carefully crafted a stylish open coat cloak, a pair of gloves, a pair of boots, a double-layered belt with side pouch, two thigh straps, and a support backpack.
In other words, the entire set of gear that had been destroyed during the Goliath subjugation had now been completely replaced with high-grade equipment.
Compared to last time, his craftsmanship had improved tremendously—not just because his "Smithing" had leveled up from H to G, but also due to increased experience, skill, and perspective.
On this new gear, he engraved certain patterns with mithril powder.
This was to use "Mystery" to grant the equipment additional "stats".
Boots gave "Agility", gloves "Dexterity", belt "Strength", cloak "Magic Defense", and the backpack and leg pouches "Endurance".
With this, Fron's stats improved to some extent, and he now had greater defense and utility.
Donning the new gear, Fron returned to headquarters.
"What? You want to update your stats again???"
Loki spat a mouthful of wine straight into Fron's face, and the young man calmly wiped it off, speaking matter-of-factly:
"Yeah. The 'Expedition' starts tomorrow, right? There's still time, and you probably aren't too busy right now, so I came early."
"...Is that the point? Isn't the point that you just updated your stats a few days ago?"
"Ah, that. I've learned a lot over these few days. My forging skills have improved significantly. Most importantly, I can now forge magic swords."
"Nani? Magic... magic swords!???? You're already a magic swordsmith?"
Loki's eyes sparkled as she grabbed Fron's shoulders and shook him furiously.
"Yeah, I've got a basic grasp. But it's nowhere near the level of [Crozzo's Magic Swords]. Just average."
"Even so, that's great! If you can make your own gear, we'll save a ton of money! Poor me, I can finally stop drinking the wind from the windows!"
The goddess hugged Fron, sniffling and sobbing with exaggerated sadness.
"Aye aye aye, I get it already. I'll prepare the future magic swords, alright? So stop crying."
"Really?"
"Really."
"Hehehehehe!!! Now I can afford Soma's wine again!"
"..." Some habits never change. This drunkard.
...
...
Divine blood dripped onto his back, renewing the stat chart with a new blessing.
Coincidentally, Ais passed by Loki's chamber with a bundle of clean clothes. The faint conversation from within made the girl pause.
Then... she elegantly brushed her golden hair behind her ear, revealing a curious expression as she tilted her head to listen.
And then... phrases like "only gained a little over 1000 points," and "it's only been 5 days" — these outrageously monstrous, maddening statements — made her face go completely blank.
"He got stronger again... I have to work hard too."
To outsiders, if even the "Sword Princess" still felt the need to work hard, anyone else would just feel like disappearing into the background.
This is the truth of the strong—the stronger you are, the stronger you become.
Those who only care about making some quick coin on the upper floors and then waste away in taverns will never know the color of the sky beyond the well.
The day before the 『Expedition』 countdown.
It was already late at night, yet the 『Twilight Manor』 was still brightly lit.
The magic stone lamps in the courtyard glowed, illuminating the members busy preparing for the expedition.
Most spectacular of all was the long line in front of Loki's chamber—everyone was queuing up to update their stats one last time before the expedition, hoping to show off their growth.
Watching the growing excitement among the group, Fron stood in the skywalk above, a smile spreading on his lips.