Blacksmith of the Apocalypse

Ora was on high alert for the next few days. Seth and Tored had secluded themself in their workshop as they did not feel like dealing with any of what was happening outside. Instead, Seth made new items for the group part of his training. He knew they were past level 50 and had chosen their secondary classes but they could not tell him about it before he reached the point himself. They could only tell him their primary class and what they wanted or lacked at this juncture.

For the most part, he simply repaired and improved the item he had made for them. For Mina, he went as far as using 3 mid-sized souls. He made her a robust dagger made from <Dark Steel> to match her shadows assassin class and layered everything he had onto it.

<Feasting Dagger

Rare (Growth)

Damage:550

Durability:1500

1. Will absorb part of the target's blood to heal and strengthen itself

2. Will absorb part of the target's blood to heal and strengthen the user

3.+10% Affinity to Darkness

4.+15% Damage in dark places

5.+50 Damage Mana Cost: 15/sec

A black dagger with a dangerous aura made by an aspiring blacksmith. It has a demonic desire for blood and has the potential to grow past its current rating.>

On top of that, he made 2 rings from <Dark Steel> that each raised affinity to darkness by 5% and mana by 130 each.

For Bulko he made a mace from the blessed <Mana Steel> that was leftover from making weapons for the army. He used <Soul Infusion> during the forging since a demonic ballad was obviously not fit for the weapon of a priest. Besides the option to increase mana that came from the soul he also enchanted it like a staff with mana efficiency and magic damage amplification. Technically it was now a staff that would really hurt if someone was hit with it. Even more than a regular one.

Mike's sword was broken in the siege and Seth had to make a new one from scratch. Mike had become a magic swordsman so Seth used regular <Mana Steel> for the sword and gave it similar enchantments like Bulko's mace. He didn't know what kind of magic Mike would be casting, so he kept it neutral instead of giving it fire damage again.

Turning normal weapons into something rivaling a casters staff without a magic focus was possible thanks to <Soul Infusion>. It was Al the Lich who explained the concept to him. Normally a staff would have something like a crystal as a focus where mana could be collected and amplified. By turning the whole item into a body housing a soul, it could take on the same function.

Melee weapons for caster classes were not an uncommon thing, but Seth could save a lot of money by not needed this most expensive part. This didn't mean he would suddenly start selling such items. The souls were too precious to be wasted on random strangers for some gold.

His <Blacksmith> only rose by a few percent after doing all this. <Enchantment> was not much better. Only <Goldsmith> budged a little. He knew this feeling, all of them had entered the level range just before the rank up and it became ultra-hard to level them, even with the right materials.

As for Lixiss and Fin, he would have to visit Nädel to repair their robes. His sewing skill was way too low to touch them. This came at an opportune time. Seth estimated that there was now enough <Celestial Bronze> for an upgraded version of his gambeson. He would bring the man the material when went to ask him to repair the robes.

Sweat running down his forehead Seth sat down and finally took a break. He had finished everything in just two days, he had gotten very fast even without using his <Soul Smithy>

"Yo! You are finally taking a break?" the dwarf walked into the workshop.

"There are is someone waiting for you outside," he said with a raunchy smile. Seth stepped out a saw Mina waiting in the shop. Today she wore a rather normal outfit, almost prim for her standards.

"h-hi, I wanted to invite you to a meal?" she slightly stuttered and even blushed. Just what had happened to her?

He agreed to come with her after he washed up and wore a fresh set of clothes. As they left, she even tucked her arm into his and leaned against him. They wandered through the streets of the hall of stones and finally entered a small but nice restaurant. The meal was nice and the catgirl awkwardly tried to start a conversation which soon turned into a pleasant dialogue.

Mina tried really hard to hold back and actually have a nice and normal date with him... but it soon devolved into a drinking competition that once again ended with them waking up in some small room at an inn. It finally broke out of her, with a reddened face and close to tears she admitted that she had attempted to have a normal date with him.

"A prim Mina is nice for a change, "he hugged her tightly, "But I prefer the one that tries to drink me under the table," he said with a grin as he saw her blush wildly.

After spending the morning with Mina, he went back to work. He visited Nädel's shop with all the <Celestial Bronze> Puffles had made so far and the two robes Fin and Lixiss had left with him.

"Seth! Are you okay?" the old man greeted him. Ora was in an uproar after what happened recently and had not completely calmed down yet.

"oh yeah, everything fine. I came because I have something for you."

He smiled as he saw the tailor's eyes starting to shine. Nädel obviously expected the <Celestial bronze>

"Can you fix these for me?" Seth brought out the two golden outfits. The old man's eyes dimmed as his hopes were shattered.

"Oh, of course," he said with a weak smile to hide how disappointed he was.

"Oh yeah, and can you make me another under armor with this?" he said and brought out the bundles of <Celestial bronze>. The fire in the man's eyes was instantly relit.

"You are such a mean man, Seth. To break this old man's heart just for fun. Of course, I can make you another one. This should be more than enough and it can guarantee that it will be epic rated!"

After a short talk, Seth left the tailor alone with the thread. He felt a little disturbed watching the old man handle the material like a long-lost lover.

As if by chance he met Fin who came to have lunch with him and Puffles. She acted normal and they enjoyed visited the dwarven restaurant Toed had shown him for a meal. This time the chef was mentally prepared and fought valiantly, but Tored was just a light eater compared to the fairy with the bottomless stomach.

The party took a long break in Ora after this terrible quest and Seth had a lot of opportunities to meet them during the breaks he took. Tored's tasks for items became more and more demanding and he direly needed these breaks. But it was worth it as his proficiency kept growing despite becoming closer and closer to the rank-up. <Enchantment> had also reached lv.9 and <Goldsmith was close to it.

Seeing his skills growing Seth worked in the workshop with rekindled motivation. Just a little more. He worked tirelessly. The recent incidents had given him a feeling that he might not have much more time. Whether this meant the situation in Ora, or the return to Urth, he was not sure. All he could think of was finally finishing the goal of this arduous journey. Step by step, he would then forge his equipment once his skill broke through.

Seth realized that his time in Ora was soon coming to an end. Now that he had brought the <Celestial Bronze> to Nädel and his skills grew, it would soon be time for him to think about his own gear.