Ves the Crown Maker

When Ves worked on the crown, he already had a suspicion that it would turn into a masterwork.

No. That wasn't the right description. He just knew it would turn into a masterwork!

It was not because this was his first proper chance to work with first-class materials and production equipment.

It was not because he was working under the threat of death because an ambitious, cold-hearted dwarf put a gun on his head.

It was not because he applied numerous interesting innovations to his crown design.

All of these factors certainly played a role in increasing the special nature of the end product, but they were not the decisive factor that gave Ves a certainty that he had passed the test.

No. The truth was that this 24-hour long pressure test had caused him to develop critical insights about the nature of masterworks and how it tied to his own work and design philosophy.