40 Birth of a Dagger

The next day, I was eager to cast my dagger, but waited until Grond left for his break. He didn't need to know about it. Moreover, I didn't ask for permission to use the materials. Since that would be considered stealing, there was no need for others to see. The mould itself was easy, and didn't take me much time. On the other hand, I had to make some steel before Grond returned.

Thankfully, my body wasn't that weak anymore, and steel was softer compared to purified steel. Moreover, I didn't have to make a complete ingot, but rather melt the metal and pour it inside the mould. Once that was finished, I decided to sharpen and polish my dagger later that day.

The sharpening and polishing process took me a while. Moreover, I had to make sure the dagger's handle was smooth, but not sleek. Otherwise my hand could slip, in case the dagger had to be used on an actual fight. The blade was the hardest to sharpen. Not only were there two edges, but also the hook like teeth required a more manual sharpening with a file. The polishing process was a lot easier, though time consuming.

I was able to finish my dagger late in the afternoon, and was satisfied with my work. The dagger wasn't too thick, which of course would add weight. It felt right in my hand, since the handle didn't have any sharp edges. The blade itself was really sharp, though with continuous use, it would need to be sharpened at some point. Nonetheless, my dagger was completed. Since Nick wouldn't know when my dagger was ready, I decided to visit him, and simply tell him about it.

"You seem pleased with your dagger. Go on then, show it to me", he said. I passed him my new dagger, and awaited his verdict. "... I'm not sure... Well, it is unique for sure... The balance isn't bad either, and feels alright in hand. You were going for something thinner and smoother, am I right? I'm just not sure about these hook like teeth at the top". Nick seemed genuinely intrigued by the dagger, and didn't seem to dislike the design.

"Well, the reason for those hook like teeth is quite simple. Since they are curved towards my hand, there shouldn't be any problems when they penetrate something. The difference would be if you were to take the dagger out, especially moving it upwards. That'd deal a much more severe injury. Besides, I wanted to add something akin to saw teeth, and came up with this", I explained.

"I guess that idea does work. Alright, you have your dagger, how about your practice with the metal rod?", Nick asked next. "I mean, it will take a while before being able to do something similar to you. Anyway, what sort of training are we doing then?", I asked instead. "You'll practice your aim, as well as collection. You can't carry unlimited amount of daggers, besides the more you have the heavier they'd get. Therefore, you'll learn how to retrieve your daggers during combat", Nick explained.

"Are you going to be my target?", "Hehe, you'd like that, but I'm going to disappoint you", he replied and retrieved a sort of human sized scarecrow from his bag. "This is your target", he added. "Then it's not that difficult. I mean, a non-moving target isn't that hard to hit", I said, but Nick shook his head. "Who said it wouldn't move?".

I was lost for obvious reasons. "Yes, yes, I'll explain. This puppet will be controlled by me. Hence it will move. Don't underestimate this training, I can imitate the movements of a human with this puppet with ease. For that, I'll use these", he explained then showed me something in his hand. The item in Nick hand was a very fain and thin thread. "You want to control this puppet with such thin threads?", I asked confused.

Nick laughed at me for some reason, then handed me the thread and said, "You really think this is a normal string? Try breaking it then". I tried really hard, but the string simply dug itself in my hands, making them bleed a bit. "What the hell is that string?", I asked in disbelief. "Told you, this ain't a normal string. Apparently this is a natural string, but where it comes from? I've no idea. Even my master didn't know the answer to that. Moreover, it was passed down to the next generation for ages... I suppose there used to be more in the past. The amount my master had was enough to control five puppets only, and at the range of five metres", he explained.

"Wait, so you can control five of them?", "Yes, and you will learn that as well. Remember that Art of Hidden Weapons requires great flexibility, control, as well as clear focus and state of mind. Hiding your weapon around your body will come naturally, it's sewn into the fabric of the art itself. You'll learn more about that later, for now, we will focus on your aim and ability to retrieve the dagger. With time, you can make a few more daggers, which of course means different strategies and such", Nick described.

After that explanation, we began our training. What came as no surprise was my inability to hit the puppet even once. The dagger was new to me, but that was a poor excuse. Nick's control of the puppet was simply indistinguishable from a human being moving about. Moreover, after each throw, I had to collect my dagger, but even that wasn't simple.

"Your opponent will not let you simply come over and collect the dagger. You have to be able to either evade, or fight back without a weapon until able to retrieve your weapon", Nick said during the practice. Each time the puppet slammed into me, or grazed me, Nick would repeat the same sentence. "You just died". At the end of the night, I was sick of hearing that. "It's not easy, but it is the basis of good control and adaptability. We will practice that a lot, and with time, I'll be adding more puppets", Nick said while hiding his puppet.

"Great, I'm sure this will take me some time... Well, there's that wedding approaching too", I said. "Hehe, yea. You should be able to sneak in... Though there might be something you could do to prepare better", Nick said, then added, "Remember your task of watching people?". "You mean the judgement part of the Art of Stealth?", "Yes, this can really help you with sneaking into villages, or buildings without being questioned or recognised. Groups of people either look, behave or feel a certain way. If you could mimic that mood, no one would even bother you", Nick explained.

"In what sense?", "How to say this... When you see a farmer, you can tell that person is a farmer, right? You don't have to see that person working in the fields, to be able to tell. That's the mood I'm talking about", he gave me an example. "Oh, I see. So if I'm able to copy someone's behaviour, look or as you said the mood, it will be easier for me to enter somewhere". "That's correct. You'll have to figure out who's behaviour to copy as you said. If you were to copy a merchant, they'd find you out. First of all, your clothes don't match, and where is your cart? Therefore, remain realistic about the person you'd want to copy. There shouldn't be any issues with entering Grasshill Village, but you'll have to get inside the mansion somehow", he added.

"Alright, if my thinking is right, I should be able to achieve something like that", I said before we left. Nick wasn't wrong. The best way to hide, was to become one of the people in the crowd. People wouldn't pay any attention to a worker, that goes in and out of the village everyday. Familiarity wasn't an issue either. With large villages, there were people who came and went. New people would arrive, take some jobs and whatnot. Though clothing made it a large part, how people behaved and felt also played a crucial role. I decided to test that out the next day at the tavern.