Three days. That was all the time the king had given him to forge an impossible weapon. Three days to turn his destiny into steel… or be cast into chains.
Duncan knew one thing: he couldn't create anything extraordinary with the rusty iron they'd shown him in the castle workshops.
He needed rare materials, pure ores, alloys no common blacksmith could obtain.
It was Kael, once again, who offered him a way out.
"If you stay within these walls," the boy said with a wry smile, "they'll only give you scrap metal. But there are those who trade what the nobles pretend not to see. People… let's say 'antivas,' who don't recognize the king's power. They're risky, but if you want real ore… you have to go through them."
That same night, Duncan followed Kael into the dark alleys of Grenswick. The back streets led them to a hidden trapdoor behind a seedy tavern. Down there, a different world opened up: an underground market, lit by torches and crystals that glowed.
Hooded men bartered forbidden items, secret contracts, and glittering stones no ordinary miner would ever see.
The air smelled of spices, sweat, and metal.
A merchant with lined skin and sharp eyes greeted them.
"Welcome to the Circle of Ashes. Nothing here is free, and nothing is legal. But he who pays… gets what he desires."
Duncan scanned the counters: ingots of the purest silver, shards of blue crystal that vibrated with energy, even a black mineral like obsidian that seemed to absorb light.
His blacksmith's mind raced: with these materials, he could forge blades that would make entire armies tremble.
"How much for this?" he asked, pointing to the blue crystal.
The merchant smiled. "Not gold. Not money. Here, we pay with debts. Favors. A sword for a baron, a reparation for a murderer, a kept secret for a thief. Are you willing to pay that price, stranger?"
Duncan met Kael's gaze. The boy was tense, but determined.
The blacksmith clenched his fists. "I am willing. If this is the cost of forging the future, I will pay it."
As he made that dangerous bargain, he could not have known that he was tying his fate not only to the king... but also to the shadow that lived beneath the kingdom.