4.1 Service

200 F.Y.

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*CLANG*

"Rouge, sweetie~ Can you make me a new rapier?" a muffled voice echoed from beyond the wooden door.

"Of course, Ma'am!"

*Drip*

Beads of sweat trickled down my cheek before I turned my attention back to my work. The fires from this forge weren't as blistering as the ones down at the Furnace, but it was still dangerous if left unattended. My mind, however, was still the same old wandering dog that keeps getting distracted at the slightest hint of new stuff. Or was it not like that already back then? Either way...

How long has it been?

*CLANG*

I honestly forgot after the umpteenth time that Aria requested that I make another weapon for her. I think I've been at this for just shy of a year, what with Lise actually starting to grow a bit bigger for her old clothes. When did she get so big?

"Hey, Big Bro!"

"Good morning, Lise."

*CLANG*

I smiled at my little sister in all but blood. She'd learned much after we got out of the Furnace. Technically, she could already hold her own in terms of being a decent Nenner, but anytime our illustrious Madam broached the subject, Lise just seemed to fail every job that she got.

Quite the clever pretender, if I did say so myself.

*Drip*

"Hey, Bro," Lise greeted as she walked into the smithing room, her blue dress billowing behind her. "What'cha making?"

*CLANG*

"Well," I trailed off as I stared blankly at the molten thing pinched in between my tongs. "I guess it's going to be a rapier now."

"Can I help?" The not-so-small-anymore girl asked me with a twinkle in her eye. "I mean, only if you want to."

I fought the urge to agree for as long as I could-

"Okay, Lise. Same routine?"

But I quickly thought against it. How could I deny such a precious little flower, after all?! Well, she wasn't as small anymore, but who was reading my thoughts anyway?

Beaming, she hefted her trusty hammer with both hands. "Of course!"

I relented to my baser instincts as I ruffled up the top of her head. I then grabbed the glowing metal from the furnace using the tongs and laid it out on the anvil.

"Ready?" I asked my apprentice.

"Ready."

*CLANG*

The molten piece of metal bent to our will as Lise struck it with her hammer. Sparks flew as we hammered onto the metal, our arms our way of expressing ourselves through the art of smithing and inscribing the Seigels necessary for this piece of equipment to work.

*CLANG*

Huh. Haven't had a thought like that in a good while, actually.

*Drip Drip*

I ignored the sound of dripping water from my face as I turned the now cylindrical piece of glowing-hot iron for another round of good old whacking.

"Lise," I called for the girl's attention before her hammer descended down onto the anvil. "Don't flatten the blade too much. it's a rapier we're making, after all."

"Of course," she nodded without any other form of childlike expression.

*CLANG*

I noticed her lack of expression just now. Huh... When did she start acting like that?. I suppose it was after about a few months since we got drafted by Madam Aria? All of a sudden, she was very professional-like whenever we were working.

*Drip Drip Drip*

God, why was I so sweaty today? Ugh...

I scrunched my brows as the thought stuck to me like peanut butter on the roof of my tongue. It was almost annoying me to the point of just stopping and cleaning myself up to make it stop.

"Something wrong?" Lise paused as she turned her head to face me.

"Nothing. Nothing..." I waved her off with my other hand as I turned the forming rapier. "Just wondering when did you get so professional."

*CLANG*

"Silly you," my cute sister flashed me a smile as she hefted her hammer above her head once more. "I learned from the best."

*DRIP*

The best? Who was she talking about? "Really?"

Lise squinted her eyes at me. "You taught me that we must always respect our craft," she elaborated with a knowing look on her face. "That our job demands that we maintain a steady focus to make sure that our product comes out all 'quality-like,' as you put it."

*DRIP DRIP DRIP*

I paused for a brief moment before pulling back the thin rod to begin working it near the base of the hilt. The sound of trickling water was also starting to get louder for some reason. "I did?"

"Don't you remember?" Little Sis replied with a hint of worry coloring her face. "That was one of the first things that you taught me back at the Furnace."

*CLANG*

I glanced back down on our work as I felt my mind try to recall the event. Back at the Furnace... So... little over a year ago? Strange... I feel like I was forgetting something...

*TRICKLE*

*CLANG*

I almost jumped at the sudden ring of clashing metals. In front of me, Lise had already set her hammer aside. Having seemingly deemed that we've done enough forming and straightening on the metal, she pulled out her chisel and began the slow process of manually etching Seigels onto the thin piece of weaponry. Her technique was slow, and yet she glided through the length of the blade with an eerie familiarity. Almost like...

"Lise..." I slowly turned to face her, concentration affecting my face a tad too much for my liking. "Who taught you how to etch Seigels like that?"

"What do you mean?" she asked, puzzled. "You did."

*TRICKLE.....*

I felt a few gears click in my head as a realization dawned on me like a sore thumb.

*Thud*

The dull thud of my own hammer hitting the floor seemed so far away compared to the current realization that was bombarding my mind.

"Bro?"

My memory was getting spotty... I was forgetting things I shouldn't have forgotten so easily...

*GUSH!*

"Brother?!"

Fvck! What was wrong with me?! Even I knew my memory wasn't this bad!

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