The heat inside the old forge was thick and heavy. It had been four long hours since they first lit the fire, and in all that time, they had only managed to produce one single dagger. The air was thick with the smell of burning coal, hot metal, and the salty scent of sweat.
Eon stood by the anvil, his face was covered in a layer of black soot that made his sharp blue eyes stand out even more. Despite his high elf stamina, the sheer focus required for the work was beginning to weigh on him.
Liam had left a long time ago. He had come back once in the middle of the morning to check on their progress, but when he saw that the first blade was still being hammered and shaped, he realized it would take much longer than he had initially hoped. He knew that the other elves needed training more than they needed him standing around watching sparks fly. He had returned to the practice field to keep training the others in hand-to-hand combat, leaving Eon and Kaelen alone in the glowing, orange light of the forge.
Eon wiped sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, leaving a dark streak across his brow. He knew from watching youtube shorts, that smithing was a job that required great patience, but seeing it from this close he understood, that this was much more slower and heavier work than it seems.
'If it took four hours just to make one small dagger, we would never be ready for the dangers that is coming. We need dozens of swords, spears, and shields to defend the mansion. At this rate, it would take weeks just to arm a small squad, and we simply dont have that much time.'
He turned to Kaelen, who was leaning against a stone pillar, his chest heaving. "Kaelen," Eon asked, his voice a bit raspy from breathing in the smoke. "Does it always take this long? Is it because the forge is old and the tools are rusty, or is this just the reality of making a weapon?"
Kaelen shook his head slowly and sat down on a small, rickety wooden stool. He was drenched in sweat, and his muscles were still shaking from the effort of swinging the heavy hammer.
"If this was a normal human weapon, made of cheap iron for a common soldier, I could finish it in thirty minutes," Kaelen explained, looking at his calloused hands. "But this is an elven dagger, Eon. Our weapons are different. To make a blade that can hold mana without shattering, we have to fold the metal hundreds of times. We have to talk to the fire and wait for the iron to reach the perfect cherry-red color. A sword would take the same amount of time per inch, or even a whole day for a single blade, depending on the quality of the metal and how hot we can keep the coals."
Kaelen looked at the dagger resting on the anvil. A tired but very satisfied look appeared on his face, a look Eon hadn't seen on him since they met. "I cannot tell you how happy I am right now, Eon. For years, I was just a slave, rotting away in that cold dungeon. My hands only knew the weight of chains and heavy rocks. I dreamed of this heat of the forge every single night before I went to sleep. I really was starting to think that I would never be allowed to touch a hammer again. But thanks to you, I am a smith again. I get to make my signature work once again, and I explain it to you in words, how alive I am feeling, for the first time in a decade."
As he spoke, Eon saw a single tear form in the corner of Kaelen's eye, trailing down through the soot on his cheek. The elf smith was thanked him from the bottom of his heart, his voice was cracking with emotion.
Eon didn't say anything grand in return; he simply gave Kaelen a warm, small smile. He himself was feeling that all of his effort and courage wasn't for nothing after all. All of those were for these type of satisfiction. He really felt happy now, after hearing Kaelens words of gratitude.
He picked up the dagger Kaelen had made. It was truly beautiful. It felt light in his hand, perfectly balanced, and the edges were so sharp they seemed to catch the light even in the dim room.
Hearing Kaelen's words gave Eon a new wave of motivation now. He didn't want to just be the one who provided the tools; he wanted to see what he could do with his own hands. He wanted to master this craft.
He knew now what he had to do next. As if his mind became clear all of a sudden. So He walked over to the pile of raw iron ore and scooped a fresh batch into the ceramic crucible.
As the iron began to melt into a glowing, bubbling orange liquid, a bright blue light suddenly flashed in front of Eon's eyes. It was a familiar sensation, the system was reacting to his intense focus and his desire to learn.
The system screen popped up infront of him.
-SKILL-
Smithing
Lv 1: 1/10
Composition gained: Elven short dagger(Rare), Dagger(Common)
Passive ability: Hosts perception and intuition about metal increases by just seeing it closely.
Active ability: Using this host can see any metal's composition in detail. Costs mana 10/sec. Use skill. Y/N
Eon's heart raced with excitement. This was the "cheat" he needed to speed things up. He focused his mind on the dagger Kaelen had just finished, wanting to understand the "recipe" for an elven blade. As he selected "Yes" to activate the skill, a new window popped up, replacing the skill window.
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Active Ability
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(Elven short dagger)
Rare Grade Item
Iron 96.8%: Bog Iron or Magnetite
Carbon 1.2%: Charcoal/Coal
Manganese 0.6%: Natural ore impurities
Silicon 0.2%: Sand/Quartz flux
Phosphorus 0.1%: Bone Ash or bog ore
Elven Mana 1%: Raw mana
Seeing the exact percentages made Eon feel like he had a map through a dark forest. He didn't have to guess the quality of the heat or the purity of the metal anymore. He started the process again, following the steps Kaelen had shown him, but this time he used his Active Ability to guide every strike and every addition.
He watched the molten metal through his system's eyes. He could see the impurities were too much in this compared to Kaelens dagger. So he kept the active ability on as he add and removed floating impurities from the molten metal. Then he poured the metal liquid on the mold and waited for it to cool down. After cooling will come the hammering.
He knew exactly when to add more charcoal to increase the carbon levels, and exactly when the phosphorus was low enough to proceed. Instead of relying on "feeling" the vibration of the anvil, he watched the numbers shift in real-time.
He worked with a terrifying speed. He didn't hesitate between folds. He didn't stop to check the color against the light. He just moved, his High Elf body working in perfect harmony with the system's data. In just one hour, a quarter of the time Kaelen had taken, Eon plunged the glowing, finished blade into the cooling oil.
SHHHHHHHHHHH!
The steam exploded upward, smelling of burnt oil and success. When the air cleared, Eon held up a finished elven dagger. It was sleek, dark, and hummed with a faint mana signature. Kaelen, who had been resting and watching with a confused expression, jumped to his feet. He was completely baffled, his eyes darting between the dagger and the small hourglass on the table.
Kaelen had gone outside while Eon was working. When he returned only to find Eon had finished making the dagger, he gasped, "One hour?", his voice was full of disbelief.
"Eon, I have been a smith for twenty years. I am a master of our craft. It took me four hours to find the rhythm. How did you finish the folding, the shaping, and the tempering so fast?"
Eon was also shocked to find that It took him only this much time for making the same dagger which took Kaelon 4 hours. "I was so immersed in making it that I didn't pay attention to the time." Eon replied with a confused look.
'Shit, i messed up. I should have watched the whole time. How can someone do it this fast? I know I am not a master smith. But even for a master a master smith, making a dagger of this calliber in just 1 hour is almost impossible. Even the best master smith would take at least 2 hours. But for a newby like Eon to do this feels almost cheating. Isnt it?'
As Kaelen was having an existential crisis moment, as his entire professional expertise was getting upside down by this. While on the other hand Eon was immersed in his own thought.' Is this the effect of that passive skill on the background. Did my perception and intuition increasing about metal is the reason I was so fast making this dagger? It was like my hands knew exactly where the impurities were before they even appeared! I still cant believe it!'
Kaelen took the dagger from Eon, his hands trembling slightly. His eyes went wide as he tested the edge against a piece of scrap leather. It didn't just cut; it glided through the material like it wasn't even there. It wasn't just a fast job; the structure of the metal was denser and more uniform than Kaelen's own work. Overcome with excitement, Kaelen immediately ran outside, waving the dagger in the air to show Liam and the other elves, shouting about Eon's "God-given talent."
But inside the forge, Eon wasn't celebrating. He collapsed onto the wooden stool, huffing and puffing as if he had just fought a war. His chest was heaving, and a sharp throb started behind his eyes. The Active Ability was incredibly powerful, but the cost was nearly unbearable. At 10 mana per second, his energy was draining away like water from a shattered bucket. The intense heat of the forge made the mana exhaustion even worse, leaving him feeling lightheaded and dizzy. He realized he couldn't keep the skill on for the whole process; he would have to learn to "flicker" it on and off at critical moments to save his energy.
However, he realized that even without the mana-heavy active scan, the Passive Ability was a game-changer. Even with the system window closed, he could look at a pile of raw iron ore on the floor and just "know" which pieces were high-quality magnetite and which were junk. It was a strange, instinctive gut feeling, as if he had been working in a forge for a decade instead of a few hours.
He rested for about an hour before going inside the mansion and took a bath.
"I gotta do something about this bath, fast. I cant go another day without a proper shower. All they do is just pour water on theri body. As if only pouring water removes germs."
After the bath he sat on the dining table and took out his newly made dagger and inspected it with his smith active ability. Its composition was not as great as Kaelen, he could tell right away with his passive ability. But it still showed Epic Grade for some reason.
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Active Ability
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Elven short dagger
Epic Grade Item
Iron 92.8% + Carbon 2.2% + Manganese 1.6% + Silicon 1.2% + Phosphorus 1.1% + High Elf Mana 1%
"Could it be just using different types mana makes this much difference in Items grading? If it is then wouldnt most weapon made by me would have slightly higher grade than other people's? Sweet." Eon whispered to himself, his voice tight with exhaustion.
The carbon was a bit too high, which made the blade incredibly hard, it could probably cut through a human's iron sword, but it also made it a little more brittle than he liked. One bad strike against a heavy shield might snap it.
He leaned his head back against the cool stone wall, trying to catch his breath while the forge continued to radiate heat. He had a mountain of work ahead of him, and his body felt like lead, but for the first time, he felt a spark of real hope. He began to think about what he should make next. Perhaps a longsword that could channel more mana, or armor that could resist magic. With the system's data and Kaelen's traditional wisdom, the forge was no longer just a room full of dust; it was the birthplace of their freedom. He just needed to rest for a few minutes before the fire grew cold.
Author note: Coming up next; Selena and The Shadow Mage.
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