Unrivaled Sword Master

Returning to the bellows, Steve found the metal fully melted inside the crucible. A sigh of relief escaped him as he instructed Alan to halt. Using tongs, Alan extracted the crucible, skimmed off impurities from the molten metal's surface, and carefully poured it into a waiting mold.

To their surprise, the molten metal filled only a single mold instead of the anticipated two, leaving Alan in despair. However, Steve beamed happily, reassuring Alan, "It's okay, lad. It seems this star metal was meant for your sword, so don't be disheartened. I have no regrets over my decision."

"We can't proceed with the next step today. This metal took a lot of energy and time to get into this shape. Let it cool down, and we'll continue our work tomorrow," Steve informed Alan.

After washing their faces and hands, they stepped outside. Lucy looked at Alan in awe. "Is there something wrong, Lucy?" Alan asked with a smile. She shook her head, smiling back. Alan went home, had a satisfying dinner, and slept well that night.

The following morning, they resumed forging the sword, with Alan infusing his energy into the metal during the crafting process. Initially unaware, Alan gradually noticed the flow of his energy from his body into the metal. Steve provided inputs wherever he felt necessary.

Over the course of eight days and various processes in creating the blade, Alan began mastering the control of his internal energy. It felt as natural as breathing to him. Steve, amazed by Alan's newfound control, never imagined encountering a 12-year-old who not only could tap into his magical affinity but also control it with such finesse.

While Alan crafted the sword blade, Steve worked on the cross guard and the hilt. Having a strong intuition that his normal, low-quality earth-level energy stones wouldn't be suitable, Steve left a provision to fit a more decent type of stone in the pommel, keeping it empty for now.

The polishing process alone consumed two days, and the hardness of the metal made sharpening a formidable task. By the end, Alan's arms hung at his sides, aching with pain.

They assembled the cross guard, hilt, and pommel. Steve shared his theory about the placement of the energy stone, and Alan agreed, recognizing the sword's requirement for a substantial amount of energy, making a normal earth-level stone unsuitable.

After completing everything for the final inspection, Alan lifted the sword, feeling like a feather in his had, joyously and unknowingly he performed a couple of sword movements. Observing the fluid motion and the effortless momentum in Alan's hands, Steve became convinced that Alan would one day be an "Unrivaled Sword Master."

Alan then handed the sword to Steve for inspection. The balance and shape were flawless from every angle, and even Steve's master, Remus, would have struggled to point out any flaw. However, in Steve's hands, the sword felt remarkably heavy.

Questioning Alan about the weight, he learned that it felt as light as a feather to him. To confirm his theory, Steve brought a sword similar in size and shape to Alan's, called Lucy, and asked her to pick it up with ease. Then, he handed her Alan's sword. She stumbled for a second before balancing herself, stating, "It's so heavy, Master Steve."

Steve nodded, confirming his theory that the sword was meant for Alan alone and would be unwieldy in others' hands, except perhaps for a body enhancer. And the possibly of that was also very.... very small.

The sword was completly black in colour, shiny and when light falls to the blades edges it shimmered golden. Looking like a mixture of black metal and gold. It was the most simple yet beautiful looking sword Alan had seen. Even Steve agreed to Alan. It was really beautiful.

For its Scabbard, Steve took out one of his treasured collection of a black panthers hide. The combination was simply a sight to behold.

Alan, lad, let me warn you. The weapon in your hand is imbued with magic and is very powerful, very dangerous and deadly. As you had even learnt how to xontrol the flow of your internal energy, I suggest not use it casually. Use it only when it's absolutely necessary. If not, I suggest you to have a secondary normal sword with you at all times.

Alan was also having the same kind of thoughts and agreed to Steve's advice. "Master steve I will be getting a normal sword at the Academy in a couple of weeks, I think I will use it as my primary sword."

After that He bowed his head to Steve and came back home. Everyone was astonished by the sword he was carrying, even Rose who knew nothing about the weapon was awestruck by the beauty of this sword.