After a while, the old man and the boy went to the furnace, and the process began…
Borin: "Wear goggles and bring that hammer on the table."
The boy brought the hammer, wore the goggles, and Borin turned on the furnace.
Jin: "I have an idea. If it succeeds, this sword will become better than even Mithril, but it is a little difficult."
Borin: "Impress me with your ideas, lad."
Jin: "Look, after we forge the entire blade from Orichalcum, instead of digging the trench directly, we will split the blade into two halves from the top. This won't be difficult because its thickness is a full centimeter. Generally… after that, we will dig the trench in both halves, but more importantly, we will engrave random lines inside the sword. Those lines will increase the bonding of the steel with the Orichalcum; these will work like arteries in the heart.
More importantly, we will perform the entire smelting process using Dark Mana. It will be difficult because if Dark Mana condenses, the metal will erode, but if I can saturate the White Steel with it until its nature changes, then it will be perfect, and the darkened Orichalcum will accept the steel. If we smelted with normal Mana, the Orichalcum wouldn't accept it.
In the end, we will embed small Mana crystals in the inner and outer parts of the handle. The inner ones we will place inside the tang of the smelted blade. To connect the crystals well, we will replace the wood in the handle with normal Mana Tree wood instead of Black Ash wood. If we succeed, it will be better than even Mithril."
Borin got annoyed and shouted at the boy scoldingly: "Boy, are you a fool? Orichalcum cannot be smelted with Mana in the first place, and normal Mana crystals do not accept Dark Mana."
Jin: "But Dark Mana does not mix normally with metals; it causes erosion. Logically, the Dark Mana atoms will dominate the Orichalcum. And as for the crystals, normal Mana wood is neutral and accepts all attributes, and it is very compatible with normal crystals. So what prevents the crystal from adapting to the wood itself instead of the energy?"
Borin almost shouted, but he fell silent for moments, and his eyes widened as he drowned in his thoughts.
Borin: "You reckless fool, we must smelt the Steel and the Ori together to make it easy, but I honestly don't guarantee the idea's success."
Jin: "Let's try."
And the two began forging. Borin had taught Jin the basics of blacksmithing in the past, so Jin started the process of (Ori-Kashi) and tried pumping tiny amounts of Mana while smelting the Orichalcum, and it seemed fate held good luck for him; the idea succeeded!
And Borin was shaping the Mana wood; he was skilled in molding wood using his energy. After a bit of this, he asked Jin to pump his Dark Energy into the wood, and it went smoothly!
Borin started dealing with the metal; his skill was on another level. Even normal iron, if Borin forged it, would turn into a super weapon, and Borin was supporting it with Darkness.
They forged the initial blade, then split it. They used a scraper to peel the inner layer and dig the arteries.
Jin did not stop pumping Dark Energy throughout that period; the metal was completely saturated with it!
They merged the two halves and started defining the edges. They smelted the sword again, enhanced it with energy, and embedded the small crystals in the Tang. They placed the handle wood.
It wasn't just sword-making; it was an amazing surgical operation!
When the two halves cooled down, the arteries in them were like the arteries of a living being; their glowing purple color was stunning.
One hour passed.
Two hours.
Four.
Eight.
By the next morning, Jin had finished, and on the following day, Borin had finished making the sword!
In the Monsters' Forest on the 8th Floor of the Tower…
The old man whose youthful enthusiasm had returned, and the young man who had dived into the wonders of his thoughts, stood.
They stood in front of a small Orc village.
Jin looked at the sheathed sword; its sheath was matte black, wrapped in threads of antique gold and crimson red that flowed around the sheath with dazzling smoothness and beauty.
Jin: "What did you do yesterday? I feel the sword is different from when we were smelting it together."
Borin smiled with passion while holding his pipe: "You reckless one, draw that sword and try it, then speak. But wait, have you learned any draw techniques or fighting styles with it in the first place?"
Jin looked at him, then looked at the sword again and spoke calmly:
"I read some comic books; they will suffice."
Borin was stunned as he asked him: "Huh? What are you saying? Are you truly crazy?"
Jin: " was the smelting process successful?"
Borin: "Yes, it was a miracle. You truly deserve a patent, but what were you just saying?"
Jin did not speak again and advanced to the village calmly. The Orcs screamed and ran toward him.
This wasn't something worth mentioning for him, but he was intensely focused.
He took a perfect stance; his left hand steadying the sheath on his waist, and his right on the sword handle.
He closed his eyes, and Aura emerged. The boy breathed deeply while opening his eyes.
And he drew the sword from its sheath with amazing speed!
Horizontal Slash—
A blade of Dark Aura emerged from the attack; it was enough to cut dozens of heads in an instant.
Jin repeated that simple attack until he finished all the monsters.
He stood looking at the sword; the blade's color was a deep navy radiating with prestige, and the handle was wrapped in high-class silk of a blood-red color like the young man's eyes.
He contemplated the beauty of the weapon for a while.
It wasn't just a sword; it was a masterpiece. It was a weapon made with true passion and genius ideas even for veteran blacksmiths.
Jin spoke calmly while sheathing the sword.
"I will call it… Symphony of the Night."