112 Meeting The Craftsmen

"Would it be possible to change these names? Their blandness makes my skin crawl."

Upon hearing Isaac's deadpan request, Fels became speechless for a moment.

'The names that you chose aren't much better either!'

At this point, after so many years had passed, Fels was more than used to the gods' and their children's generally horrible naming sense. Only occasionally would decent or acceptable names slip through. The skeleton had long since given up and only impassively kept track of any new Aliases and monster names.

"I am sorry to have to disappoint you, Mr. Blackshaw."

Fels' voice sounded even more lifeless than usual to Isaac's ears. Before he could attempt to convince his ally with rational reasoning, however, they had already continued, clearly intending to change the topic as soon as possible.

"In any case, the reason as to why we can't openly divulge the confidential information which I just mentioned is simple. Back when the Zeus and Hera Familias were obliterated in the battle against the One-Eyed Black Dragon, the next strongest forces in the city were only at Level 5. Only one person, the King, had barely made it to Level 6. The Level gap between the two familias and the rest of Orario was massive. Just for reference, most of the Zeus Familia's members were at Level 7 or higher, while the Hera Familia's Captain had reached Level 9 years ago."

Surprise flashed in Isaac's eyes as he listened patiently. Level 9!? He honestly hadn't expected anyone to have made it there. The past rulers of the city were far more outstanding than he had originally thought. Still, he didn't feel discouraged even in the slightest - after all, he knew that he would make it to this point in the relatively near future himself.

"But even with forces like these, their battle with the dragon was completely one-sided. This was when the Guild decided to sweep the two familias' achievements under the rug, at least until enough adventurers had grown stronger. This was in an effort to avoid discouraging the populace, or even destroying the people's fighting spirit. Most adventurers never manage to make it to Level 3 in their entire lives, after all. Each progressive rank up gets more difficult, mainly because of the adventurers in question becoming more risk-averse. They already obtained superhuman powers, so they wouldn't want to end their lives prematurely. This is also why deaths are relatively uncommon in the lower floors of the dungeon, and why progress is so excruciatingly slow. If such people were told that even familias that could eradicate the current Orario in mere minutes, that could slaughter all of the millions that are gathered here with ease, weren't even able to put up a fight against the One-Eyed Black Dragon, then the majority would succumb to despair. Some people, undoubtedly, would only grow more motivated, but their numbers would be negligible. The more adventurers that arrive at higher Levels, the more the overall fighting prowess of the city rises. Considering all of these issues was what convinced the Guild to make this decision back then."

Even though Fels couldn't see him, Isaac showed a resigned smile and nodded. When confronted with a wall that seems impossible to overcome, only a miniscule amount of people would even attempt to scale it. And amongst those that do, would anyone ever succeed? There was no guarantee whatsoever. Still, should such a person appear, they would indubitably become an unfathomable existence, at least in comparison to the regular folk.

If Orario only had to contend against the One-Eyed Black Dragon, then this would be a viable path for the city to take. But unfortunately, there were many outside forces eyeing the massive community centered around Babel. The ordinary residents would suffer a lot if Orario didn't have a huge number of capable fighters. While solitary experts could potentially help out with the situation, it wasn't certain that they would appear. Raising the overall fighting strength of the entire city, even if most of it would be comprised of what those like Bete referred to as 'small fries', was a more responsible decision that took the needs of the entire populace into account.

"I understand. Don't worry, my lips are sealed."

When Fels responded to his assurance, their voice was more jovial than usual.

"Thank you, Mr. Blackshaw! I am aware that it would be awkward and difficult to keep such a secret from your familia, so you can share it with those in charge. Loki, undoubtedly, won't compromise the situation, and neither will the Braver. In a gesture of good faith, Lord Ouranos has included the Executives and above of the Loki Familia in those that will be allowed to be made aware of this information."

Some pleasantries later, Isaac returned to an earlier topic.

"Regarding our exchange later, please bring at least 50 million valis with you. Also, how do you plan to transport all that I will hand over to you? It's quite a lot."

Due to their shock at this outrageous amount, Fels kept silent for a few moments, but soon managed to gather their thoughts again.

"I will be sufficiently prepared, thank you for notifying me of the scale of the transaction in advance. Is there anything else?"

After he expressed that there was nothing else to discuss, Isaac bade farewell to his ally and stopped injecting mana into the Occulus. While reclining on his comfortable sofa, he closed his eyes and decided that it would be wise to get some more rest. With that said, he spent some of his focus on recovering the last of his internal injuries and severely strained muscles. At the same time, he added more drops to the mana flow on his mental layer.

Like usual, even though he was 'resting', he was still working hard. Only when he was with Ais did he ever truly allow himself to take a breather.

Time passed by quickly in this manner. Close to five hours later, shortly before 1 p.m., when he would need to be present in his cell for a moment to accept his food to continue the ongoing facade, he finally arrived at a familiar bottleneck.

With effort that would be excruciating or even deadly to most, he added the 30,000th drop. All of the discomfort that had built up was instantly washed away as if it had been a lie, and an ecstatic feeling of refreshment coursed through his entire body. While all changes had exclusively happened on his mental layer, his physical one also rejoiced in the process. Yet again, his mana channels expanded, and another shackle had come undone.

[ Mana Cultivation - Foundation Establishment (E): Enables one to interact with their surroundings by using mana. Reduction in mana expenditure: 7% ]

'It increased by two percent again this time.'

Making a mental note of this in passing, he opened his eyes, jumped off his comfortable seat and stretched. With a glance at the by now docile and slightly tired Titania, he spoke.

"While I'm gone, stay here and avoid getting noticed."

Only after the obedient plant had nodded did he teleport into his pitch-black cell. Less than a minute later, he could hear the sound of a small elevator making its way down with a barely noticeable load.

"Dry bread, a bit of salad and water, huh? Could be worse."

Murmuring to himself, he unhesitatingly dug in. Two minutes later, the now empty tray had already been placed back on the elevator. Until Fels arrived, Isaac patiently waited in the darkness.

Their transaction took close to an hour. First, the friendly skeleton led Isaac to one of the many secret warehouses underneath the Guild, one that had been emptied out in advance. Then, while Isaac continually placed magic stones and Drop Items from his inventory into it, Fels carefully assessed them and calculated the total amount of valis that he had to hand over. As Isaac had to wait for Ais to return from the dungeon anyway, he was in no hurry and only sat at the side silently. In the end, he was presented with a hefty bag filled with nearly 50 million valis - to be exact, he got 49,995,000 valis. To arrive at a better number, he handed Fels the magic stone of a Blue Papilio, then he put the now precisely 50 million valis into his inventory before getting escorted back to his cell.

Of course, he didn't stay in that dreary place and instantly teleported back to the dozing Titania's side and stealthily entered the baths to take a shower. While he had cleaned himself roughly when he had returned from the dungeon, he wanted to be proper now that he was about to go on a date. A bit after 2 p.m., Ais returned to the courtyard. She had already taken a shower as well, after coming back from protecting the kids during their daily grind.

With a bright smile, she took his hand in hers and pulled him along.

"Let's go!"

As he was currently a convicted criminal and Ais always was the center of attention wherever she went, Isaac blurred their existence somewhat, enough for people to entirely disregard them. This way, they could stroll through the city in a lovey-dovey manner and didn't get bothered. While they crossed the northern main street, they picked up some potato snacks, which Ais delightedly nibbled on all the way until they arrived at their goal.

The building complex in front of them wasn't located on the main street but adjacent to one of the many side streets that ran through Orario everywhere. From afar, one could already see huge amounts of smoke rising into the air from various chimneys and windows. The sound of loud hammering assaulted one's ears and the heat here made it slightly uncomfortable for the normal citizens that occasionally walked by. Only adventurers and those that were accustomed to warmer climates found this place comfortable. The two had mainly chosen this time, a little after lunchtime, for their date because most adventurers would still be in the dungeon, and it was highly unlikely that they would have to wait in line.

Although the buildings themselves were nothing out of the ordinary, tens of them were connected together, all making up the home of one of the city's most famous smith type familias - the Goibniu Familia.

With unhurried steps, the two entered the main workshop, which usually was occupied by the god himself as well as his most outstanding disciples. What entered their view were tens of forges and furnaces, manned by even more blacksmiths. Their severely focused expressions, tense and muscular bodies, the suffocating smell of sweat and soot… yeah, this place was anything but pleasant. Still, for some men and women with peculiar taste, this would probably be heaven.

Isaac quickly glanced through the crowd, before his gaze settled on a short old man with long, swept-back white hair and a beard that reached his bare chest. He wasn't as stocky as a Dwarf, but he definitely had a sturdy and strong build. His blackish-brown eyes were unwavering as he observed the other blacksmiths. He might not have stuck out too much in this place full of barely-clad metalworkers… if he hadn't been a god.

"Lord Goibniu."

Ais' voice attracted the god's attention, and he turned to face them in a calm manner. Isaac had already stopped blurring their existence from him, so Goibniu wasn't confronted with the ghastly situation of hearing Ais' voice but being unable to see her.

"Oh, Sword Princess. What brings you here?"

The old man raised an eyebrow at seeing the usually expressionless girl sporting a perpetual smile on her face and holding the hand of an unfamiliar young man. He sized him up and his eyes widened slightly in realization, before he shook his head and got rid of these unnecessary and distracting thoughts.

'It's obvious who he is, and he shouldn't be walking around in the open. But eh, it's not my problem.'

These thoughts were apparent on his face and also the reason why Ais hadn't felt like it would be dangerous to confront this particular god and his familia. They didn't have the habit of interacting much with anyone, or leaking information. In fact, they just didn't care about anything outside of their work. While there was always a danger that some of the members might spill something, there was an easy countermeasure for that. Isaac was still mostly blurring both his and Ais' existence from the rest of the blacksmiths, making them appear to be regular customers that they didn't need to commit to their memory.

After Ais gave him a glance, Isaac replied to the god's question in her stead. She mostly preferred to be silent and to observe from the sidelines, and it was him who they were here for anyway.

"I would like to request new equipment. Light metal armour, a vambrace and a one-handed sword."

Goibniu didn't show much of a reaction to this and replied with another inquiry.

"Then why come to me directly? Any one of my children can fulfill that request."

A slight smirk played across Isaac's lips.

"I would like to commission you directly, Lord Goibniu. Money is not an issue. Also, the quality of the products should be good enough to handle Level 7, if not Level 8 monsters. I need the best of the best. I will also provide the necessary Drop Items."

Surprise flashed across the usually a bit grumpy god's face and he looked at Ais with a questioning gaze. When he got an honest nod in response, he grew quiet for a while, before nodding to himself and focusing on Isaac again.

"Alright, then let me take your measurements. Follow me."

The old god led them to a side chamber and personally took a measuring tape to get all of the necessary information. All the while, Isaac answered his questions about how he would like his new equipment to look like, and which areas it should cover. Goibniu grew more and more flabbergasted the more he listened to him.

'How did he come up with all of this!?'

What Isaac put forth was so perfect in design that it stunned even him. Usually, armour would get in the way at least a little bit, or would negatively impact a person's balance. Isaac had accounted for all of that.

As if he wanted to try his best to give the old blacksmith a heart attack, Isaac also took out a few sheets of paper which were filled with sketches of the designs and lots of other information. They were so detailed and simply flawless that they seemed lifelike.

'Is he the secret descendant of a god of arts?'

Thoughts like these occupied Goibniu's mind and he couldn't help but evaluate Isaac even higher. Little did he know that the man in question had simply made use of his perfect bodily control and focus - drawing a lifelike design that was on the same level as the most advanced 3D models of his past world was about as easy as breathing to him at this point.

"Good, I'm finished here. Now, what about the materials that you mentioned? When can I expect them?"

With a polite smile, Isaac looked at the relatively small room that they were in and shrugged.

"I have them with me, but this place is a little too cramped. Can we enter an open area? One without too many watchful eyes would be best."

This only filled the god's mind with even more unanswered questions, but he nodded and led them to a secluded courtyard located further inside the familia's home. Some large crates full of Drop Items were stored here, but there was still plenty of space. Tens of square meters, to be exact.

"Perfect."

With a wave of his hand, Isaac placed various Drop Items on the ground. Almost all of them came from the Glacier Territory, except for a mound of Basilisk Scales. Then, to top it all off, there were the stars of the show - materials from the Monochrome Ti--- Baihu's corpse.

Yes, items in the inventory wouldn't change at all, but that didn't mean that Isaac couldn't influence them while they were in there. In fact, they were under his absolute control, so taking a tooth from the massive tiger's mouth and some fur from his back was as easy as flipping his hand.

Technically, this meant that he could just put his enemies in there by touching them, after which he could dismember them or do whatever else that he wanted, without them even being aware of it… But as this was too cheap of a way to deal with his troubles, he wouldn't resort to measures like these. A non-omnipotent person who came in possession of such power after a long journey would definitely make use of this all the time, but not Isaac. If he had actually had found a good place to pull out the towering corpse of his latest prey, then he would have just extracted his materials the normal way. For the time being, however, he didn't have access to a place like that, so he reluctantly had chosen to do it like this.

Even though it was one of the smaller teeth of the tiger, it was originally still more than ten meters long, so Isaac had cut off only a third of it… which was still massive enough to completely dwarf the god who now stood in front of it.

This time, abject shock was written all over Goibniu's face. Originally, he had expected some rare Monster Rex loot, which he could then refine to barely achieve what Isaac had asked for. But this? He recognized all of these materials, how could he possibly not? During the reign of the Zeus and Hera Familias, he had already been one of the most well-established blacksmithing gods. In fact, there was nary any craftsman in the city who wasn't aware of the fact that materials from beyond the current 'floor record' had been circulating widely back in the day. As those never leaked out of the two ruling familias and the circle of craftsmen, however, the secret had been well kept.

'This kid… he actually made it all the way down there?'

The eyes with which Goibniu now looked at Isaac were slightly different. While before, he had felt like he could still somewhat see through the man, he was now aware that he wasn't capable of doing so. A smile stole itself on his lips.

"Thanks to you, I can finally work with these again. I'm actually looking forward to your commissions now. It will take me three days until I'm done, so come back then. As for the price… as you provided the materials yourself, let's go with 100 million valis. Bring the payment when you come to get your finished equipment."

Even though that was more than what he currently had on hand, Isaac still showed a calm smile. He had so many more magic stones and Drop Items stacked up in his inventory that he could easily pay this price. He just hadn't had any idea exactly how much money he would need, so his preparations had been insufficient. In all fairness, items for higher Level adventurers were usually ridiculously expensive, and what Goibniu had offered him was still considered to be relatively tame. Most likely, due to his great mood thanks to the high-quality materials that he had gotten his hands on, he had given the promising young man a significant discount.

Inwardly, Isaac couldn't help but sigh in amused disbelief. It seemed like reputable craftsmen would never lack money in this world.

After saying their goodbyes, the two lovebirds were almost chased away by the enthusiastic old god, who couldn't wait to get started with his work. As for his thoughts related to the mysteries revolving around Isaac? They were already gone, he honestly couldn't care less - after all, he had a job to do! Goibniu's blood ran hot as he started to heat up his furnace.

"You still need new protective clothing as well as a bow and arrows, right? Then we need to stop by somewhere else."

Beaming happily at being able to spend more time together, Ais led Isaac further into the north-north-western district of the city, until they finally arrived at a massive store that took up the space of nearly five of the adjacent buildings. This time, only one of the chimneys exuded a lot of smoke, and it wasn't uncomfortably hot at all. A magically reinforced glass pane made it possible for people to easily windowshop. Hundreds of expensive pieces of equipment, ranging from nearly all kinds of weapons to a plethora of varying armours could be seen here, some with prices up to 40 million valis. An emblem of two hammers that were crossed over a volcano was all over the place - it was the emblem of the Hephaestus Familia.

Usually, people would flock in through the main entrance, but there was also a side entrance for VIPs. And as the Sword Princess, the cherished diamond of the Loki Familia, Ais - of course - had a pass for it.

As their existence was still blurred from the various passersby, she didn't need to bother with being stealthy and pulled out a golden coin with various engravings directly from her inventory. It was about five centimeters in diameter and had the Hephaestus Familia emblem on it, with the words 'VIP' written beneath it.

Isaac noticed that the 'engravings' were actually runes which he, even though he had an automatic translator in his system, couldn't read. Most likely, this was because they weren't actually a 'language' - he already had various theories about them and took note of the mana gathered within them, as well as their shapes.

When the coin was held in front of the doorknob, the runes on it resonated with those on the knob and the side entrance opened, allowing them to enter the shop unhindered. The door closed right behind them.

What greeted them was a cozy antechamber that had a few impressive pieces of craftsmanship lining the walls. Still, although it was a part of a shop, it looked more like a reception room or even a lounge. At the room's center, there were two red leather couches with a table in between. A magic stone-powered device made sure that the teapot atop of it maintained a perfect temperature, and two boxes, one full of tea leaves and one overflowing with cookies, were placed on the table, alongside the rest of a tea set.

While waiting, both Ais and Isaac ate a few of the cookies and relished in their taste - they were extremely delicious! There was no doubt that they were quite expensive, so it could be seen just how outstandingly well the Hephaestus Familia treated their VIPs.

It took about ten minutes, but then the door leading further into the store finally opened, revealing a red-haired woman that was of the same height as Loki but really couldn't be more different. While both of them had red hair, this one actually had a truly mature body. As for Loki… her state was too pitiful to even mention when put next to this bombshell. Even comparing Tiona to her sister Tione wasn't as extreme of a difference. There was no doubt that many men had fallen for this woman over the years.

She wore a plain white shirt that was drenched with sweat and covered in a bit of soot, black gloves that went all the way to her elbows, pants of the same colour and knee-high brown shoes with a bit of a heel that made her appear to be taller. Her hair was neck-length and tousled. A black eyepatch covered the right one of her crimson eyes. There were still some beads of sweat on her forehead. It was clear that she had been working, but made some time to see her VIP customers.

"Well, if it isn't the Sword Princess. It's nice to see you stopping by, Ais. And you…"

With a glance at Isaac, who had a calm but friendly smile on his face, she smirked amusedly and shook her head, before plopping down on the sofa on the other side of the table.

"Unless I'm going blind, you're Isaac, right? Loki told me about you, and I was wondering about when we would eventually meet."