The Next Step

With a bag containing empty vials slung over his right shoulder, Valyr had a wide smile on his face as he made his way to the village smithy. While on his way, he could not help but be curious about his current stats. After all, even though he had consumed three vials of each elixir, the changes were quite subdued due to his current level, unlike the substantial change he felt once he had gone from Level 1 to Level 2.

Ding!

With that, he opened up his stat screen, somewhat pleasantly surprised that he was only one point shy from reaching the double digit mark on most of his stats.

————

[Valyr Zeihardt]

Class: Civilian (Rank 0)

Species: Human

Level: 6

Power Level: 99 (C)

Unused XP: 301

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HP: 90/90

MP: 90/90

Stats: 9 VIT, 9 STR, 9 AGI, 9 DEX, 9 INT, 9 WIS, 9 PER, 6 LUK (6 unassigned points)

Remarks: If I were you, I'd try adding up my stats. It's quite a nice surprise, if you know what I mean.

————

Seeing how effective the elixirs were in boosting his stats, he could not help but imagine the time he had consumed 10 of each elixir type, allowing his stats to undergo a substantial increase. Wondering how strong he would be once the time, he continued to make his way to the smithy.

Ding!

[Your affinity with Vera has increased by 100 points. Current relationship: Acquaintance.]

"Wasn't the maximum affinity around a thousand points or so?" Valyr could not help but mutter to himself, slightly stupefied at the increase in affinity with Vera. Although he expected his affinity with Vera to increase with the kind gestures he had shown to her, never in his wildest dreams did he expect it to increase this much. After all, an increase of this level was only achievable through a couple special quests.

And he didn't even have a quest related to her.

Nevertheless, even though he was curious as to why his affinity with her increased so much, he decided to put the matter at the back of his head for now, considering it a lucky omen for what was about to come. With that, he increased his pace, utilizing most of his AGI to shorten the time it took for him to reach the smithy.

Growl…

"I should really grab something to eat along the way."

…

By the time the sun had gone past its peak, Valyr stood in front of the entrance of the village smithy, noticing that Tristan was hard at work once he took a peek inside. Deciding to take a few steps in while waiting for Tristan to finish, the latter turned his head around like an owl, as if he was already expecting Valyr to appear.

Placing the hammer he held on top of the anvil, Tristan got up from his seat before lightly stretching his back. Making his way to where Valyr was, he could not help but say, "To think you would exceed all expectations and reach my requirements in just one week. Are you that eager to start learning blacksmithing or something?"

"To be honest, I'm quite surprised I was able to complete your quest this early as well," said Valyr, feigning ignorance to the question hidden beneath Tristan's words. Lightly chuckling, he continued, "However, I am quite eager to learn how to forge."

"Alright, alright." Nodding in response to those words, a screen popped up in front of Tristan as he interacted with it for a bit. "Since you've kept your part of the deal, it's time for me to uphold mine. Though, of course, I'll be adding a bit more extra. After all, great efforts beget great rewards."

Ding!

As the screen in front of Tristan closed, a couple notifications resounded within Valyr's mind, prompting him to open up his notification screen. However, rather than be greeted by a couple of notifications, a string of notifications instead bombarded him, its contents bringing a light grin to his face.

[You have completed the quest 'Tristan's Trial'. Remaining time: 12 days, 10 hours, 34 minutes, 12 seconds.]

[Due to your exemplary performance, the quest giver has decided to double your rewards.]

[Your affinity with Tristan has increased by 60 points. Current relationship: Acquaintance.]

[Your reputation in Astarto Village has increased by 100 points. Current reputation: Slightly well-known.]

[You have received 2000 XP.]

[Talk to Tristan to gain early access to the Technology Tree.]

Satisfied with the notifications he had received, Valyr went ahead and closed the screen before looking at the man in front of him. Noticing the meaning hidden beneath the gaze, Tristan could not help but wryly smile as he asked, "I'm guessing you want me to unlock the Technology Tree, huh? Alright then, come with me for a bit."

Saying his piece, Tristan moved closer to the furnace as Valyr followed him from behind. Eventually, Valyr felt the scorching heat radiating from the furnace, making him close his eyes for a bit as he reminisced over his past memories when the warmth of the furnace would embrace for hours and days on end.

Seeing as Valyr had no reaction to the heat from the furnace, even going so far as to seemingly enjoy it, Tristan could not help but think, 'I think I got my hands on an unpolished gem here.'

Snapping his fingers to return Valyr back to reality, Tristan went ahead and asked a question Valyr already knew the answer to. "Now, before I unlock the Technology Tree for you, what's your understanding of blacksmithing?"

"Blacksmithing is a craft normally neglected by many, but it's what I consider the foundation for the civilizations we've come to live in," Valyr said just as Tristan was finished talking, making the latter's eyes widen in surprise. "Sure, it may be a thankless job just like any other occupation, but unlike the other occupations, it's what allowed us to be who we are today. If not for blacksmithing, we would still be vying for dominance with other species."

Although most of these words came from the description of the Blacksmith class he had gotten in his previous life, Valyr felt like it was the best way to describe the class as a whole. In fact, he wholeheartedly agree with the statement, knowing very well how many people relied on blacksmiths without them knowing.

After a moment of silence, Tristan placed his hands on Valyr's shoulders, looking at him directly in the eye with a fervent expression. Profusely nodding in agreement, he said, "Yes, yes, yes! That's exactly what blacksmithing is! Although it has been forgotten by many, it is the cornerstone of our civilization."

"And here I thought I'd never find someone as passionate as I am when it comes to blacksmithing," he continued, sniffling from the slight upheaval of emotions he had experienced. Taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down, he then gazed at Valyr once more. "Let's unlock that Technology Tree, shall we?"

Whoosh!

In an instant, a faint gray light started to radiate out of Tristan's body, gradually making its way to Valyr's body as it coalesced around his forehead. Soon, a small ball of gray light hovered a few centimeters away from his forehead, only to ram into it and disappear as a great influx of information quickly filled Valyr's mind.

Fortunately, as he was used to receiving multiple influxes of information in the past, Valyr quickly sorted the information he had received as a notification sound resounded not long after.

Ding!

[Tristan Melphon (Rank 2 Class — Experienced Blacksmith) has given you a key to access the Technology Tree.]

[Congratulations! You have gained access to the Technology Tree.]

[Due to your current class, your access to the Technology Tree has been limited to Basic level advancements. Please ascend to a higher class as soon as possible.]

Just as Valyr was reading through the notifications he received, Tristan told him something. "Now that you have access to the Technology Tree, you could choose to learn blacksmithing on your own and just come to me for Technology Points. Though, if you were to ask me, that would just be a huge waste of your talent."

"With that, how about you learn blacksmithing from me? Rather than rely on guesswork to get to the same point, I could you teach everything you need to know about blacksmithing and make sure you have a solid foundation," he suggested, to which Valyr nodded in response as he closed the screen in front of him.

Seeing Valyr agree to the suggestion, Tristan could not help but let out a chuckle. "Alright then. Since you're going to be learning under me, we'll be going through the basics first. But before that, I want you to do something for me."

Ding!

[You have received a new quest: An Experienced Blacksmith's Suggestion (1).]

Receiving a notification that he had obtained a quest, Valyr went ahead and read through its description. However, by the end of it, a frown could not help but creep up his face as he thought to himself, 'Are you kidding me?'

'What's the point of the previous quest, then?'