47 Return to the Quiet Death Valley
Tang! Tang! Tang!
Dusk in Death Valley. The rhythmic sound of someone forging metal resonated from Kirana's Shop. Specifically, from the forging room, where Cien was hammering hot material.
Tang! Tang! Tang!
The sound of iron clashing continued beautifully until the sunset, illuminating the room solely with the flickering flames in the forge.
Cien halted his strikes, plunging the hot material into water to cool it down. Then he switched on the lamp hanging on the wall.
"Sigh…"
Cien let out a long breath, grabbing a cloth to wipe the sweat off his face and body.
"Damn, late again for watering."
Cien grumbled, heading towards the cave to water the plants in his garden.
It had been around three days since Legia and Jamie left his shop.
Ever since Jamie was beaten up by Legia. The two of them stayed at the inn of the shop for the next three days.
During those three days, Jamie not only recovered from his injuries, but he also managed to increase his power level to Rank 4 Upper Class, bringing him one step closer to reaching Rank 5.
Although his power had increased, when Jamie was challenged to fight by Legia again, the man immediately refused without hesitation.
Truly, at that moment Jamie could still feel the pain on his face. Having to face Legia, and add that pain? No, thank you.
After that, Legia and Jamie said farewell to Cien and left.
However, before that, Legia, who had witnessed and even tried Rupture's abilities, became interested in having a weapon from Cien.
The woman finally ordered a spear. At that time, she didn't have any money, so Legia would collect her order in the future.
Cien accepted it. He then revealed the materials he had on him at that time and asked Legia to choose the main material she wanted. Flower Blood Boa and Mythril were the main materials chosen by Legia.
Cien immediately tried to recall the recipe for a spear that he knew at that time. After learning various recipes with the materials he had, there were one or two spear recipes that he could work on.
After remembering them, Cien explained several spears he could make and the potential power that would be present in those spears. Legia made her choice. Then, they agreed on the price to be paid later.
The two customers, Legia and Jamie, then left the vicinity of his shop, leaving the place quiet as before.
Now, three days have passed. After carefully studying the spear weapon he was going to create, Cien began working on it two days ago in the forge. And during those two days, he was a bit neglectful of other tasks.
'It would be really nice if there was someone willing to help again.'
Cien thought as he watered his garden and hummed a tune.
The cave was dimly lit by several lamps that Cien had hung, allowing him to still see the healthy plants clearly.
Done with the plants. Cien returned to the shop.
After taking a shower, he prepared dinner. In the evening, before falling asleep, Cien occasionally called Legia or Jamie to listen to their situations.
If there were any conversations or information slipped in, Cien would be very happy to hear it.
However, until now, he hadn't heard anything useful. Of course, to ensure that he wasn't overheard by the person he called, he turned off the microphone on his phone.
"No luck again today, huh... it seems like stalking—uh, I mean eavesdropping on them isn't very effective. When I think about it again... it's true, they won't talk about useful information every day. Sigh... I need to find another way besides this."
Cien couldn't possibly spend the whole day listening to those people. It would not only bore him to death, but it would also be a waste of his time.
There were still many recipes on his phone that he wanted to try. And making those was more interesting than listening to people's conversations.
With a long sigh and a slightly regretful feeling, Cien decided to check on Legia and Jamie at specific intervals. Not every day, maybe once a week or once a month.
After all, he still needed information from the outside world. Especially if it was related to his family.
Cien ended the call. Then he closed his eyes to end the day.
The next day, after hunting, having breakfast, and taking care of his garden, Cien continued making the spear ordered by Legia.
Since it was his first time working with Mythril, Cien had to go through many trials and errors to be able to start shaping the body of the spear.
The body or staff of the spear would be made purely from Mythril without any mixed materials. This is done so that the mana flowing from the user can flow more smoothly, and the spear's power can be released faster.
Mythril is the most efficient metal in absorbing mana, unlike any other material. Indeed, it is very suitable as an important material in crafting magic items.
When Cien offered the weapon she would make to Legia, she gave the woman two options: whether it should be made into a magic weapon or not.
Of course, in the end, Legia chose to have a magic weapon if Cien was able to make one. As for the price, Legia would gather it.
For the next five days, Cien was busy making the staff or handle of the spear. Considering the balance, weight, and other factors was not easy. Once that was finished, he intended to make the spearhead.
For the spearhead, Cien would still use Mythril, but will mix it with bone from the Flower Blood Boa, Mana Core powder, and Silver Wolf fangs. All of these would be combined, making the forging process even more difficult.
On the fourth day, Cien was almost giving up and considering reducing some materials. But in the end, he persevered and decided to try again.
About a week passed.
The body and spearhead were successfully united. Cien tried it, thrusting and swinging it, paying attention to the comfort of the grip and the ideal balance of the spear that should be felt.
After making a few modifications to achieve the ideal structure, Cien was satisfied.
However, it wasn't over yet. There were no skills from a monster core, and no self-supplying energy from a Mana Core.
The spear was still not in the form of a magic weapon ordered by the customer.
The next day, Cien continued the production to the next stage.
He took five pieces of Mana Core that had been cut. These five pieces were about the size of ordinary diamond stones seen on wedding rings.
Cien affixed those five pieces to the surface of the spear, rotating them precisely at the border between the spear's head and body.
Once finished, Cien carried the staff to the alchemy room in the basement. It was a room he had never used before.
Unlike the weapons he had made before, this time Cien had to use alchemy to perfect his spear.
Cien didn't know and was unsure. All he could do was follow the instructions on his phone. He only hoped that this final step would not fail.
In the middle of the alchemy room, there was a large cauldron for brewing potions.
Cien set aside the large cauldron, creating an empty space in the room.
After that, Cien began to draw a large alchemical circle on the floor's surface. Honestly, he didn't know what he was drawing. Cien was truly like a student following the orders of his teacher without knowing what the order meant.
One large circle. One small circle inside it. Then there were five other small circles on the outer line of the large circle. Inside all those circles, Cien wrote a language he couldn't even read.
A language with worm-like letters, making Cien extremely stressed because he had to be precise in following exactly what was on his phone.
When midnight came, Cien finally finished drawing everything. Whether the drawing resembled anything or not, he could only hope that everything would function according to the instructions.
After completing the large circle with all the intricate details that made him dizzy, Cien drew another line connecting the large circle to a smaller circle at a considerable distance.
This time, he didn't need to write that strange language again.
Oh, for information. The ink Cien used for drawing the circle came from the blood of a Flower Blood Boa mixed with the Monster Core of that creature.
Done with the drawing. Cien thought about grabbing dinner, then sleeping and continuing the next day. But curiosity overcame his hunger and drowsiness.
Cien immediately brought the materials he needed from the storage room in front of the alchemy chamber.
One bowl of Flower Blood Boa's blood, one pot of Inferno Bear's blood, one bucket of Silver Wolf's blood, one large glass of Forest Rat's blood, and finally, one cup of Lesser Earth Dragon's blood.
He placed all the blood of various monsters in five small circles surrounding the large circle.
In the small circle at the center of the large circle, Cien placed the newly crafted spear. Around the alchemical circle of the spear, Cien kept three intact Monster Cores.
Two Monster Cores from Flower Blood Boas and one from a Forest Rat.
He then walked to the small circle that was slightly distant from the main circle and placed a block of Mana Core there.
Preparations were complete. Now Cien just had to activate the alchemical circle, or it could be called the alchemical circuit.
"Silami isa nak tifka. Hokok hubut U tasdi janem banrok! Nab ijaa ek kuda paan juk tun. Mibu Pargem naka yang tajasen kan rilah!"
The incoherent mantra was uttered by Cien. The alchemy circuit immediately lit up and began the assimilation process.
The five kinds of blood and three Monster Cores would be absorbed by the spear. Thus, a new weapon beyond comprehension would be created.
The Mana Core within the small circle outside the process acted as a battery to keep all the processes running smoothly.
The presence of the Mana Core meant that Cien didn't have to supply mana himself.
According to the recipe, the duration of the process was unknown. It depended on the materials used in the assimilation.
The recipe only required two mandatory materials: blood and monster cores from the Flower Blood Boa.
As for the rest, Cien chose whatever he deemed suitable to be combined. Or maybe... he just randomly selected them when entering the storage room.
He simply took the materials in front of him.
Cien glanced at his phone screen, reading the newly spoken mantra.
He frowned at the sentence because, honestly, it gave him a headache. He muttered it loudly to activate the circuit...
Oh boy~ fortunately, there was no one around. They would probably think Cien had been infected with a mental illness.
Cien felt that he couldn't bear the embarrassment.
'This is like a sentence for someone with eighth-grade syndrome! Even they wouldn't be as absurd as this! I don't know why, but I feel like God is mocking me..."
