Blacksmith vs. the System 51-55

— Chapter 51

I had a large smile on my face, flipping and playing around with a coin in hand, using Observe to examine it. There wasn’t anything other than perfectly aligned microstructures inside the metal, surrounded by a complicated enchantment I couldn’t even begin to comprehend.

However, this time, my aim wasn’t to solve anything. I just wanted to push Observe to its limit, to get a better understanding of what was going on. It had been easy to empower the spear attack and the Fleeting Step. Ultimately, it was an external object.

The Observe Perk wasn’t as clear-cut. I didn’t even know where to target. The object I was observing? My eyes? My brain? The latter two, in particular, weren’t exactly easy concepts. I still remembered how close I came to killing myself when I had tried to reverse Meditation.

Pushing a burst of life energy that I had modified blindly to a weapon was one thing, my brain was something else. Still, even with the risks, it was hard to ignore the temptation —

My thoughts were cut short when I arrived at the gate and saw two people waiting. From the way their posture shifted, I guessed that I was the target. I shifted my shield slightly while I looked at them at the same time, trying to see what was going on.

Unfortunately, due to the dungeon mist blocking my view, when I saw them, they were already forty yards away. Not exactly a dangerous distance, but not safe either.

“Hello, friend,” one of them called loudly, their weapons in hand. It wasn’t exactly a friendly call.

I didn’t bother hiding my sudden tenseness as I looked at the two. I vaguely remembered seeing them at the dungeon, hunting monsters with a relatively decent success rate. They were not weak. However, unless they were hiding their power very well, they weren’t strong enough to threaten me.

Even with what I had revealed to the public — a strong warrior, capable enough to start his own guild — it shouldn’t be enough for the two to target me. Then, there was another problem. How did they know I would be at this gate?

It wasn’t the one I used in the morning. I chose to use different gates, as it made cleaning them easier. Then, why were they waiting here, where it was more dangerous, instead of ambushing me when I appeared on the other side.

It was already suspicious before one of them touched a ring, a thin line of mana appeared, and went through the door.

“So, what’s this about?” I asked, staying in place, trying to decide what to do. The message explained how they were at the gate, as obviously, they were just on the lookout.

“Since you are lucky while hunting, we thought that you might share some of your riches with the less fortunate,” one declared, trying to sound confident, but unable to hide his tenseness.

I didn’t need to read his tone perfectly to understand what was going on. This was a premeditated ambush, one that had nothing to do with the shells, or a mere payout of sixty gold coins. While that sounded like an incredible payout at face value, they had used an object that was capable of sending messages across dungeon floors.

While I wasn’t exactly familiar with the high-end magical item market, even the cheapest communication devices were measured in gold coins, which was the reason the world once again relied on letters and parcel delivery for communication.

To send messages between dungeon floors, which were famously isolated, would be expensive. Prohibitively so for two robbers who were weak enough to restrict themselves to a low-level dungeon with a hostile environment.

Meaning, they weren’t here for the cart. Still, it required one last test. “Fine, take it. I don’t need any trouble for measly sixty gold pieces,” I said as I started walking away, though I picked a diagonal route so that their target would be obvious.

“Hey, wait,” they said and started to move toward me, but before they could pick up speed, I was already running back. However, I didn’t run away.

No, I had a different plan in mind. Whoever planned the ambush was targeting me, and running away meant that I would be blind. Instead, I deliberately took a wide circle, the Fleeting Step allowing me to move easily. When I arrived at the gate, they were still searching for me in the mist, too loud.

I ignored them as I put the camouflage ring from my pocket, and put it to my finger. However, I remembered how the slight glow allowed me to discover its previous owner, and also hid behind a rock. Also, the camouflage effect was hardly flawless. It wouldn’t fool anyone with Perception if I waited out in the open.

I took a deep breath, trying to ignore the fact that I might end up taking another life. It was not the first time, and I was just trying to defend myself, but it was still an uncomfortable thing for me. Waiting for them to arrive while the two desperately searched for me made it even worse.

It felt more like cold-blooded murder than self-defense, and not for no reason. There was neither a judge nor a jury that would classify what I was about to do as self-defense, claiming that I had ample time to retreat. The legal system was long gone, along with the other conveniences of modern civilization, but for three years, I refused to embrace the Wild West mentality.

I would have retreated … if it wasn’t for my most recent discovery about the so-called peace wards. I could feel in my bones that their existence was a bane to humanity, but I couldn’t simply rely on past laws as my personal ethical framework.

But, I was also aware of how bad of a slippery slope it could be. A complicated question … one that I failed to resolve when six people stepped out of the dungeon door, only to see a full cart, but no sign of fighting.

The way they dressed was interesting. Their armor looked poor, and they were carrying a sword and a wooden staff, like they were here to hunt in the dungeon. However, the way they walked showed that they felt no danger from the dungeon.

“What’s going on?” their leader shouted while one of them split from the group, moving to deal with an approaching insect.

“Sorry, sir. He turned out to be a coward. He escaped,” the lookout shouted, and the leader started shouting about incompetence. However, seeing that the two lookouts were alive, their alertness had dropped significantly.

The two returned, and the leader chewed them up. Meanwhile, I carefully watched the one dealing with the monster, trying to get his measure. It was not a simple task, but as I watched him bisecting a charging monster easily, I could make a few guesses.

The first was his sword skill. With my own sword skill near the peak, I was able to read it relatively easily. It wasn’t exactly an accurate call, but it was at least a Rare one, with the potential to be even better. However, from the smoothness of his actual delivery, I would guess his proficiency wasn’t too high. Merely in the twenties if it was Rare, potentially even lower if it was even better.

Something I could use to my advantage. The higher the proficiency of a skill, the more it helped its user deal with more complicated situations, something I knew from experience.

I stayed hidden, now observing not the one dealing with the stray beasts, but the others.

Right now, with the distance between me and them, there was no benefit of charging forward. Whether I let them go while staying hidden or wanted to attack, time worked to my benefit.

Also, if I was being honest, I wanted one of them to confirm that they were here to kill me. Killing people was a more difficult decision than killing mindless monsters.

I waited and watched, trying to see where they had come from. The leader was clearly not too experienced, as he was wasting time chewing out failure when he could chase me. Of course, it would be the wrong move with me hidden behind them, but he didn’t know that.

Instead, I turned my attention to their weapons. Unlike their armor, their weapons were works of art. Smooth, made of an alloy I couldn’t recognize immediately, and clearly enchanted with something far fancier than a commonplace enchantment like Sharpness.

Not the kind of weaponry a bunch of bandits who wanted to make a quick buck would carry, which further confirmed a ploy. Technically, they could be here to make me an offer, but at best, it would be the kind that came with the dreaded ‘or else’ statement.

“Alright, just find him and kill him. I’m sure he went to the nearest gate,” the leader called soon enough. I smiled darkly. At least it solved my ethical dilemma.

I watched, waiting for them to act … and maybe learn how they discovered my identity.

*****

— Chapter 52

I watched silently as the group shuffled about. “How should we split?” one of them asked.

“Call me leader, you arrogant swine,” the leader responded, which gave me a clue about the state of their group. They had not been together for a long time. “Just for that, you have to go and find him alone.”

“You can’t be serious. You think you’re my owner just because you got hired a day before us?”

“I’m the only one that has an Epic skill,” the leader declared smugly. “Do you want to come and test it?”

I listened to them carefully, trying to understand what was going on. They were an interesting choice for a group of hired muscle sent for an assassination mission where someone level seventy had failed before. Though, maybe they had — rightfully — assumed that the steward had only died because of his carelessness, and a team of thugs would be able to kill me based on sheer numerical advantage.

But, if it was the case, they were clearly not briefed fully.

I wished that I was wearing the silver alloy set I had forged for myself. I left them below to keep under the radar, but it was clearly a mistake. I would have been feeling far more confident if I were wearing weapons that would hold against them.

Ultimately, as long as they split, and I can ambush the remaining ones, I would be able to deal with them soon enough.

“Leader, maybe we shouldn’t be taking it lightly. I don’t think he’ll be happy if we fail. It would be bad if he blames you for this moron’s idiocy,” one of the others intervened, showing common sense to deflate the tension.

I respected that attitude. Too bad it marked him as a priority target. The last thing I needed was someone calm and calculating to help.

“Alright, he can take the two idiots here,” he said. “Since they failed their only task, they can redeem themselves. He will be slowed down by the monsters, so you can catch up easily.”

They argued a little more, but I wasn’t able to hear all of it, busy slowly retreating. I kept the camouflage up until I was safely in the mist, and after that, I shifted my location, using Fleeting Step to look for a nice ambush location, merely two hundred yards away from the dungeon gate. I knew the general direction they would be taking, and finding them would be easy.

I just needed to follow the sound of fighting.

Still, I was happy that I cleaned the immediate surroundings, or, even with Fleeting Step, I couldn’t have avoided the monsters without making too much noise.

Once I found a nice ambush spot, I activated the camouflage ring once more, waiting for them to pass under me, shuffling slightly to make sure I would be merely a few yards away from them when I was forced to drop the camouflage field.

To make my job even easier, they were arguing as they ran, not paying enough attention to their surroundings.

I waited until they passed me and then attacked, targeting the one with the Rare skill first. To his credit, he managed to react to my assault in time, far faster than I had expected. His Dexterity score must have been amazing.

Unfortunately, he tried to parry my hammer strike with his sword.

[-50 Vitality]

My full-powered attack taught him the disadvantages of doing so immediately. His sword didn’t break, but merely deflected. He tried to throw himself to the side, but it was too late. It might have been different if he was wearing armor that matched his sword in quality … but he did not.

The other two weren't even able to react. Technically, a hammer was considerably slower than a sword in combat, but that was only true when comparing the skills of equal rank and proficiency. They died just as easily.

“Hey, morons, what’s going on?” the leader shouted. I frowned, unhappy that they had caught on to the fact that something was wrong. A mistake on my part, but I didn’t have the time to regret it.

“A monster swarm. We’re surrounded, and the idiots are already dead,” I shouted back, hoping that the panic would cover up the fact that I didn’t sound the same. At the same time, I grabbed one of the bodies and dragged it away.

It was a hasty plan, but not a terrible one. It was clear that they had been gathered together recently, and their hiring was obviously a hasty job, meaning that they weren’t used to their tactical acumen.

I took the sword, his cloak, and his pouches away, but touched nothing else. I threw the body to the nearest monster that was in a relatively concealed spot, and retreated more, gathering and agitating monsters near a hundred-yard radius, but killed none, deliberately turning them into a swarm.

Then, I once again ditched them by climbing up a steep cliff using the Fleeting Step. Once again, I activated the ring, watching them from high up.

“I can’t believe you broke another vial. You’re a disgrace,” the leader shouted. “I’ll make sure to deal with you.”

I had no idea what that vial was other than what I could derive from the context. I pulled open the pouches and found one bottle that was glowing with energy. I didn’t know how it worked, but a quick tap on the glass confirmed that it was breakable.

I threw it to a distance, right at the edge of my field of vision. A small flash of mana spread, and then I was hit by a subtle smell. Just like that, the monsters started gathering wildly. My eyes widened, wondering what would have happened if I used that on the fourth floor.

Maybe it would have gathered enough monsters to give me an Epic skill. However, at that moment, I was more than happy with wasting it. One against five, each with Rare skills with the exception of their leader, who had an Epic skill, was not a favorable confrontation.

I would take any advantage I could. The monsters rushed toward them, accompanied by the sound of fighting. Some of the monsters started to attack me despite my concealment.

“That’s a problem,” I said as I started running, ditching them. However, the smell of the potion they had used to trigger the swarm was still enough to make them chase more than they were used to.

Once again, I circled their approximate location, and once again prepared to attack them from behind. Ultimately, it was my best chance.

When I found them, they were already dealing with the monster wave, careless enough to spread so that they could deal with the monsters more smoothly. Currently, only two of them were visible due to mist. A mistake, one that I could truly leverage thanks to my newly discovered trick of enhancing Fleeting Step with Health.

As much as I wanted to, slowly getting close to them under concealment was not an option, as it wasn’t effective against the monsters.

Instead, I moved forward as smoothly as possible, using my newly acquired sword against the monsters to avoid making loud sounds. Though, it was certainly a smooth experience, both the quality of the sword and the enchantment made the task even easier.

Notably, even with its apparent quality, it still degraded as I killed the beasts. It was considerably slower, but it still did.

“Finally, you’re here,” one of them began talking as he caught me from the corner of his eye while I approached even closer, the cloak and the sword enough to disguise myself as my past victim. I walked closer, keeping the cloak tight around me.

Before I could kill the two, I entered the field of view of the third one. It was the one that I identified as the smart one. “He’s an imposter!” he shouted. The speed he noticed despite everything suggested he had perception.

A big problem. Luckily, without proper armor, they couldn’t just ignore the monsters and regroup. I caught up with the first one before they could. With our weapons equal, the proficiency difference proved deadly.

Before the others could arrive, I had already decapitated him. “Quick, gather together,” the calm one shouted, recognizing the threat. It was too late. I switched to my hammer even as I used the enhanced version of the Fleeting Step for the first time.

Covering twenty yards in an instant, making a loud noise in the process.

[-7 Health]

“He’s not a warrior, but some kind of rogue!” he shouted.

It was interesting. Not the part that he assumed I was a rogue, as he clearly misread the Fleeting Step. The interesting part was that he assumed that I was a warrior, and not a blacksmith. But, the implications of that, I could think about later.

He tried to defend himself, but he wasn’t ready for me to switch to a Hammer. And he was certainly not ready for a full blow.

[-50 Vitality]

Lack of information was always deadly. Health was useful against monsters, but against people, it wasn’t as effective unless it was paired with a strong set of armor to protect the vitals. Health wasn’t enough to recover from a body shattered into minced meat.

While the leader, with his Epic skill, was the biggest threat, I hunted the remaining three first, their unfamiliarity with the insect monsters making it a smooth achievement. The way they fought against in the midst of the insect swarm belied their unfamiliarity.

“You think you can fight against me? I own an Epic skill. I’m untouchable,” the leader shouted as I attacked him.

“Good point,” I shouted back even as I moved back, looted the four fallen ones out of their weapons and pouches, and retreated with a loud fanfare, using Health-Enhanced fleeting speed quickly several times.

At this point, the swarm had grown big enough to exhaust him. I retreated back to the gate, listening to him fight even as I forged myself an iron spear, using the benefits of my advanced Forging to my benefit. It was a thick piece of bulky garbage, but it didn’t look like it. It looked like something a king would use during a parade.

One with a nasty surprise hidden inside.

I worked on it until the sound from the insect swarm started to lessen, then, I rushed forward. “You again,” he growled, but his eyes widened as he saw my ‘amazing’ spear, glowing blue. “A magic spear!” he gasped in fear.

So, when I threw it against him, he treated it as a deadly plague. That was the other problem with skills. While they gave perfect combat advice, that advice relied on the perception of the user.

A deep, crackling wave of vitality energy gathered around the sword as he countered the spear, which shattered into pieces. It wasn’t a deadly explosion, nothing more than thin metal shards.

It was enough to make him close his eyes in panic. I closed the distance with another burst, one last hammer blow enough to bring the fight to an end.

I pulled his body from the middle of the swarm in case I needed the evidence, and I continued to kill the monsters.

I needed to come up with a convincing story.

*****

— Chapter 53

I barely came up with a reasonable method of action once I was done dealing with the swarm, which took more than strictly necessary as I continued to rip their broken shells even as I dealt with the last few monsters.

Technically, that part was not necessary to sell my story, but I didn’t want to waste the opportunity to bring a lot of forging material back to the guild. While I didn’t need them for my experiments anymore with my new setup, there was no harm in having them.

I could still use them to run experiments at night. More importantly, they would give me a convenient excuse to explain any sudden development I might achieve.

Of course, bringing all of it out meant that I couldn’t hide what happened from Eleanor, but luckily, that was not a good strategy in the first place. Most of the details, I had no problems revealing. The only tricky part was to explain how I managed to deal with five people with Rare skills, led by one with an Epic skill.

Ironically, the shells — both intact and fragmented — came in handy when delivering my story. A little story of arrogance, and how they started fighting about who would get what I had collected. So, they only sent one to kill me while the others continued to argue.

Then, a shield attack broke one of the vials while we fought, triggering a swarm. Their unfamiliarity with the swarm allowed me to pick them off one by one.

It was a good story. I even had the evidence … in the form of a half-filled vial.

Naturally, I kept some for myself. The moment I was sure that the swarm wouldn’t spill upstairs, I rushed down to the third floor, hiding one of the swords and two and a half vials there. And, while I was there, I even forged myself a sixth fake one just to keep the evidence complete.

Unfortunately, whatever they had used to communicate was a single-use device, and the enchantment was gone, leaving only an ordinary ring behind.

“A good story, but it needs one last touch to be believable,” I muttered even as I pulled my new sword, using it to kill the straggling monsters, mana dancing around the blade.

[Stalwart Guard (Uncommon) 79 -> 100]

[Perk Options — Stout Defense / Determined Swing]

I completed the progression, because a skill at the limit, alongside a Perk, would make the story of taking them down more convincing. Not to mention, as an added benefit, the exciting life-and-death struggle against the six enemies while being trapped in a swarm was exactly the kind of thing that might push me to my limits.

As for the perks, I picked Stout Defense. While the idea of having another attack perk was not exactly unappealing, my experience with Fleeting Step had changed my mind. The auxiliary abilities were certainly useful as well.

Stout Defense was a complicated thing, almost the reverse of Fleeting Step, which focused on enhancing mobility. My new perk seemed like it would allow me to stand against blows that would have otherwise sent me flying. However, it was just a feeling, as it was difficult to test it without an enemy.

Monsters would have made a good sparring partner to test it, but only if I was wearing my anti-corrosive set. Otherwise, their mandibles would just cut through my shield. Truthfully, even with an anti-corrosive set, it would be troublesome to practice. However, I still wanted to.

The special abilities were too convenient to be ignored.

“I was lucky those idiots didn’t have their skills any higher,” I said. None of them even used any special attacks, which made it likely that they hadn’t brought their new skills up to twenty-five.

A stupid enemy was a beautiful gift.

“A lot of work,” I grumbled as I walked to finish the last step, which was collecting the broken glass from the vial. Extra supporting evidence wouldn’t hurt.

Once that was done, I finally stepped through the gate, pulling a cart that was filled to the brim with shells behind me. The only reason it didn’t collapse was the few modifications I had added. The good thing was that there weren't a lot of monsters around the gate.

It was weird, as with the delay, it was already nighttime, which meant the hunting operations should have ceased. Of course, while the dungeons weren’t affected by the day-night cycle — at least, to my knowledge — with the current number of operators, it didn’t make sense to work in multiple shifts.

And, for the current setup, a certain number of teams working at the same time was critical, or the monsters started to group together, making the process cumbersome.

So, the sudden decreased density was troubling. I didn’t abandon the cart, but I was ready to do so in case of trouble. Fleeting Step gave me the confidence to retreat, but not enough to feel safe.

The realization hit when I arrived at the fortress that was defending the dungeon entrance, only to find a scarred mess. The walls were still in place, but I could recognize the deep marks in the stone.

“Halt,” the guard shouted.

I removed my helmet. “It’s me, Arthur,” I shouted, giving the fake name I used, which I was willing to admit was an homage to the famous King Arthur.

“Wow, you’re alive,” the guard responded. “Impressive achievement. Especially with all the load.”

“Well, I got locked in a swarm. I had been fighting for hours,” I replied. Together with the signs of insect bites on the walls, I was starting to get a good idea of what had happened. The door opened, and I walked in.

Was I feeling a bit tense? Certainly. But, I still entered for one reason. If my assassins could control the fort, they wouldn’t have bothered to set sentries at each gate.

 I was trying to find the best way to grill him, when a familiar figure burst in, but her exhaustion was clear. “De — Arthur. You’re alive!” she gasped, her relief clear.

“Yes, but it was a close call. I have a lot to tell —” I started, only for another familiar figure to walk from the mist. This time, one that was not as welcome.

Thomas.

The slight delay in his step was one of the two things he showed when he saw me, which would have already been enough for me to guess. But, his gaze lingering on the sword, with an obvious tint of recognition, was even more clear.

Not that I needed anything to be suspicious. The words of my attackers had already revealed that they were there to assassinate a guild leader and not a blacksmith. That had surprised me when I first heard it, but seeing the state of the fort, I had a good idea of what had happened.

They triggered an artificial monster wave. It was nowhere near enough to destroy the fort, but it probably killed most of the hunters, especially if they were caught unawares.

It was a transparent ploy, which was why I said nothing. Eleanor was not stupid, and there was no chance she wasn’t suspecting Thomas. And, she was more direct than me. The fact that he was alive meant that we couldn’t touch him.

“So, this is your friend that’s … brave enough to set a guild in this godforsaken town,” Thomas said, with clear distaste toward either my apparent age — I looked in my late forties with the bushy beard and the few silver, bleached hair mixing with the black — or the fact that his assassination plot had failed.

Eleanor’s expression twisted in anger for a moment before it smoothed. “I don’t see how that’s any of your business, Sir Thomas,” she replied, managing to keep her tone mostly smooth, then she turned to me. “It’s good that you’re alive. Follow me.”

“Wait a second, Eleanor. I want to hear it as well. I want to know how you failed in such a spectacular manner. I still need to report it to the family, along with the disappearance of the steward.”

“The latter is not my problem, Thomas. You have already questioned all the guards under your Charisma, and they confirmed that he left. I can’t be responsible for the security of any visitor,” she said, then smirked. “Especially since someone had taken all the family guards for a more important mission. Maybe you should explain that to the family head.”

Thomas didn’t look happy with the accusation. “Maybe I should interrogate him as well, just in case,” he said, and a familiar pressure landed on me. Charisma.

I hated it, but I was happy to note that, compared to the last time, it was much weaker. Previously, I wasn’t the target, yet I froze helplessly. This time, despite being the focus, it was just all of my instincts shouting at me to obey and kneel.

Being on a higher level helped significantly. Charisma was incredibly useful, but as a tool for subjugation, its effectiveness dropped significantly.

Admittedly, it was far from something easy to ignore. It was still a primal sensation, begging me to kneel just to avoid the feeling. If I tried to fight against him, it would be an incredibly difficult thing. It was why people with Charisma were treasured and feared in equal measures.

Yet, a chuckle escaped my mouth. I couldn’t help it. The fear effect felt too familiar.

It was a weaker version of what I felt whenever I tried to fly.

Thomas immediately pulled his Charisma at my reaction, his expression showing abject terror. At the same time, his two guards stepped forward, like they wanted to defend him, while Eleanor stood in front of me.

“I’ll report your failure to the family again, Eleanor. You can’t rely on hired help,” Thomas said as he turned and left, the two guards followed, keeping themselves between me and Thomas.

I watched them, not making a move.

Wondering what the hell had just happened.

*****

— Chapter 54

“Follow me,” Eleanor said, and we started moving toward the gate.

“What should we do about the body? It belongs to the attacker,” I said.

“Anything incriminating?” she asked.

“Nothing except this,” I said as I showed her the bottle, not trying to hide it.

She frowned even as she opened her hand. “A lure potion,” she said even as she examined it, then put it in her pocket. The pieces of glass were taken by the guard. “Follow me,” she repeated.

I did. I had enough presence of mind to keep my mouth shut about the sixty gold I was supposed to get from the shells. Everything had its time and place. Eleanor had dragged me to a room and pulled some kind of gem, which radiated a soft blue glow.

Suddenly, all the voices from outside ceased. “No one can hear us,” she said, her voice the most serious I had ever heard. “Now, what was that?!”

“What was what?” I asked. She looked angry, but I opened my hands in surrender. “I genuinely don’t know. We have too many things to talk about. The death of hundreds of people, the lure potion, the fact that I managed to deal with six dangerous assassins, the fact we had to let that monster go despite it being obvious he had done it?”

“None of them,” she said, her tone getting more and more serious. “It’s about how you rejected the weight of his Charisma. Only people of higher levels can do that. So, either someone trained you for a long time to resist the effects, or you have been lying about your level —” she started, only to stop.

Probably because I looked shocked. I had no idea why it was such a big deal. But then, I knew very little about the secrets of Charisma. “Wait, can resisting Charisma be trained?” I asked before I shook my head. “Sorry, scientist reflex. To answer your question, I didn’t resist the effect. I was scared shitless.”

She didn’t seem convinced. “What about that laugh? It was obviously not a fake. No one can really act under Charisma. It must have been genuine, or Thomas wouldn’t have bought it!”

“Wait, can he read my mind?” I asked.

“No, but he can sense your emotions,” she said, looking even more confused.

I chuckled again when I realized exactly what had happened. She was starting to look angry. “Sorry, but I promise you, you’ll find it amusing as well,” I promised.

“I doubt it,” she replied frostily.

I couldn’t help it. I started giggling. Realizing that after everything, potentially the biggest part of my problem had been solved by a misunderstanding was funny … in a hysterical sort of way. “You know how I’m … kind of tense when flying,” I asked.

“Frozen in terror,” she said.

“Yeah, being under Charisma reminded me of that. With the stress of everything, I couldn’t help but find that amusing.” Eleanor looked at me as if trying to see if I was lying. I couldn’t help it, I started to laugh even more. Absent-mindedly, I recognized it as not genuine amusement, but a hysteric release of shock. “Good … that … you … silenced …” I said, trying to speak.

I collapsed, laughing.

She watched me like I was crazy, but soon, she started giggling as well. I didn’t know how much time we spent, laughing like a couple of crazy people. I didn’t know how much time passed before we managed to calm down. She shrugged just as much, which was understandable. She was probably even more stressed. At least, I succeeded. She still needed to explain her failure to Maria.

Though, from what I had seen, Eleanor would have been beating herself far more than Maria would admonish her about an external sabotage.

The pressure did weird things to our minds.

“So, my involuntary giggle made him assume that I was a higher level than him,” I asked once we finally managed to calm down. She nodded. “But, why did he escape?”

“Using Charisma like that is an insult. You can challenge him to a duel for it, especially if he did so publicly, and I was there as a witness.”

“And his level is?”

“A hundred. It’s a known fact that he’s trying to pass the threshold. He just lacks the necessary resources” she said.

“People need resources for that?” I asked. “Do I need to prepare anything for level fifty?”

“No, only level hundred requires resources,” She said.

“What kind of resources?”

“I don’t know. Family secret,” she said. “Apparently, it differs from class to class. But, it’s well known that they are expensive. It’s why we bet everything on this dungeon. Otherwise, we can’t buy them for Maria once she reaches level one hundred.”

As much as I was tempted to question her from about six different directions, most of it related to the level hundred threshold and why it required resources, but I forced myself to focus. “So, they believe that I’m over level hundred, that’s a problem,” I said. “I doubt that I can fake it.”

She pondered for a moment. “Maybe not. Thomas doesn’t exactly have a reputation for bravery. We can probably say that you are at level hundred, but you’re unlucky enough to have a Militia class, it’ll be believable.”

Militia was probably the weakest class that was still classified as one. It only received three stats, evenly distributed between Strength, Dexterity, and Vitality. Of course, they compensated for this somewhat by having one melee and one ranged combat skill, which they could upgrade to their preferred weapon with a Stat stone.

It gave them much better combat flexibility compared to classes like Blacksmith with higher base stat gain, making them much more preferable as guards and other roles.

As my own experience had shown, Perks mattered. A lot.

I thought about accepting it, as it would make my situation more secure. That way, I could develop safely … but would it be truly safe? It had been a close call. “No, let’s not explain it further,” I said. “Maybe even let the guards gossip how Thomas had been scared of me.”

“Are you sure?” she said.

“Yes,” I said. “I prefer if he doesn’t send any more assassins. Today, I survived by sheer luck,” I said.

“Good, that was about to be my next question,” she replied. “How did you survive a group of assassins? I doubt they were weak.”

“Luck and incompetence,” I replied. “Mine, and theirs, in that order.” She looked intrigued, and I gave her a long, detailed tale of my imaginary fight. It was more or less what had happened, but some details like using the lure potion had turned into an accident, which allowed me to kill the first one and take their much better weapon, followed by a tough battle where I pushed my sword skill to the limit.

Including my ability to halfway copy a vitality attack; one with a corresponding tale of how close I had come to death before inspiration struck.

“Show me,” she said.

“Sure. But, I don’t need to tell you we have to keep it a secret, right,” I said. Knowing the Rare skills would come with one at twenty-five proficiency, and how combining it with a Perk helped, it felt like a good compromise.

With her bias for sword skills, she would have no trouble accepting it. Not only that, but it would also explain the rapid development I planned to show once I upgraded to Rare skill.

The best part, while it was an impressive achievement, it was nothing more than a pointless gimmick from her perspective. I even had planned a long explanation where I would reveal my Rare Nurture skill and how it had helped me to control my Health.

She didn’t even ask that, accepting my achievement as a display of my talent. “What a waste it is that you ended up as a Blacksmith,” she sighed deeply.

“And what a waste we don’t have time to spar,” I said, happy to end my story without any hard questions.

“Yes, I have a lot of things to do,” she said. “Who would have guessed that bastard can get his hands on pure lure potions.”

“I’m guessing it’s the thing in the bottle,” I said. “What exactly is it?”

“A controlled substance, made from a recipe,” she said. “The function is simple. It radiates a smell that draws the dungeon monsters at a certain radius to a target, depending on the dose and amount used.”

“I’m guessing it’s not usually used as a full bottle,” I said.

“No, usually, it’s used as a diluted mix,” she said.

“But it’s not forbidden,” I said.

“No. They are not really a risk to any mature dungeon operation,” she said.

“Because there are not enough monsters to create a swarm in a dungeon with continued hunting,” I said.

“Exactly,” she said. “Of course, we were supposed to have sentries preventing exactly that, but with the family guards gone, we’re already overextended. Still, I should have been prepared. I just didn’t expect that bastard to be vicious enough to kill that many people just to take over the command. That’s my mistake,” she said.

She didn’t seem particularly torn up about the deaths, and more about them representing her failure.

I didn’t like it. I wanted to blame her, but it wouldn’t be fair. She was fighting for a long time, and during that, she clearly saw a lot of death, to the point of losing her sensitivity to it. It was just how the human mind worked, so I couldn’t even blame the System for it.

We got used to it in order not to go mad.

She sighed. “I need to go and visit the caravan, to talk with Maria. We have a lot of work to do to keep the guilds investing in the area. But, some of them would try to pull back. Do you mind staying here tonight to keep an eye on the dungeon? It should be over, but I’ll feel better if you’re here as well.”

“Sure, just keep it in mind when I need a favor,” I replied, acting like the ability to stay in the dungeon without raising suspicion was not something I wanted in the first place.

Especially the alternative meant staying in the town, which didn’t feel as safe with both Maria and Eleanor gone.

“Deal,” she said as she squeezed my hand.

“However, I can only promise help about the monsters. I won’t get involved with the guards. That can get complicated if there’s a spy among them. I need to stay aloof if I’m to convince people I’m really strong. Maybe I can hunt some more monsters. I’ll be even faster with my new Perk,” I said.

“Good point. But, don’t tire yourself too much. We still have to spar once I return.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle as I followed her out.

She had only one track of mind.

*****

— Chapter 55

While I was asked to stay in the dungeon, I didn’t have command over the guards. However, I also went to a secret meeting with Eleanor after the crisis. She left in a hurry and I stayed back. It meant the guards had no idea exactly where I stood.

Thomas running after a confrontation with me complicated things further.

It was a problem because they didn’t know what they were supposed to do if I gave them an order. Of course, in a fair world, it wouldn’t matter, but life wasn’t fair. Making a wrong choice meant that they would be blamed.

“Don’t worry. I’m just here to keep an eye on things, and make sure that there’s no accident from the second floor,” I said, which simultaneously comforted them and explained my disappearance. “Just give me a new cart, and record the old ones,” I said.

“What should we do with the broken ones?” one asked.

“Just pack them and send them to the town. They’ll be useful for my guild,” I said. “Also, pass me a cart.”

“Do you need swords, sir?” one asked.

“No, those should keep me going for a while,” I said, pointing at the multiple swords I had on my waist. It was wasteful to use them against monsters, but luckily, it was not a problem for me. Their only use was to explain why I wasn’t coming back with a lot of destroyed weapons.

With that done, I left, dragging my cart away, and preparing myself for a sleepless night. “Well, maybe I can take a nap on the fourth floor if it gets unbearable,” I muttered, amused by the unexpected benefit. But, otherwise, skipping sleep for a night shouldn’t be too hard.

I was used to it.

However, as much as I wanted to go to the fourth floor and start working, I didn’t disappear immediately. Just in case, I wanted to show myself a few times first, in case there was a spy that would pull another trick.

Naturally, I didn’t waste my time. Instead, I pulled one of the swords, using Observe to examine the sword. It was a good opportunity to multitask, as not only was I curious about the secrets hidden inside a higher-grade weapon, but I would also be able to finally test Observe properly. I had been running around since I upgraded it, which meant I wasn’t able to test it properly.

A part of that delay had been a lack of need. Pushing myself to the limit while producing that gold alloy to trick the System had given me enough of a boost that just listening to the System directions and relying on Creative Forging to adjust the designs had been easier.

Technically, I had used Observe while building the atmospheric steam engine, but it was more about checking the macro details that even Analyze could have caught. Hardly a way to test the limits of my new perk.

More importantly, I was excited to learn the secrets of a weapon from the System Store.

However, as much as I wanted to start with something radical, I ignored that instinct. Instead, I started with using Repair, trying to get the path to Repair the weapon.

There was none.

It was not a surprise. The reason I was able to repair the other weapons was that the Sharpness enchantment was simple enough to be ignored while repairing a simple weapon, but even the more complicated bronze mana-alloy weapons I had been initially hired to mend required Warm Blow as a prerequisite.

I had basically bypassed that requirement by doing the repair manually. From the System perspective, what I had been doing was cheating.

Clearly, for the more complicated enchantments, the Mana Repair variant wasn’t enough, and I needed one — or possibly multiple, considering I wasn’t receiving a suggestion — perks.

I had Mana Control, which was enough to bypass the enchantment and work on the metal without breaking the spell structure, but Repair skill didn’t know that. They both might be Class skills, but the perks weren’t transferrable.

A pity.

Of course, that didn’t mean I couldn’t restore the weapon if I wished to do so. One trick was even obvious. I could strip one of the swords from its enchantments, and replicate the damage on the other one, then use it as a cheat sheet.

An absurd solution that was too cumbersome to be useful in any situation that wasn’t exactly specific. “Well, not so absurd,” I muttered even as I chuckled. Ultimately, what I had been planning to do wasn’t too different. I would strip the enchantment, essentially ruining the sword, then destroy it repeatedly in different methods.

Just a more comprehensive version of the first model.

I had to, because as much as I wished, the weapons couldn’t be repaired the same way. The differences between different materials; not just completely different ones like bronze and iron, but also two variants of the same main alloy.

Problems started at the base material level. Mechanical properties alone had many subsets. Just the ability to deal with external force had many categories of measurement, brittleness which defined the likelihood of shattering without deformation, hardness which defined its surface strength, fatigue which was about resisting repeated and long-term force, tensile strength was about the maximum force that could be applied, resilience which defined its ability to absorb energy while bending…

They were all about the ability to deal with external forces, and it wasn’t even a comprehensive list. There were manufacturing properties, the way it reacted to heat, and chemical features like reacting to rust or other external attempts.

Those features had changed wildly between alloys, meaning working with a new alloy without the System’s assistance was an incredible study.

They weren’t exactly a problem for me for two reasons. First, I had been relying on the System suggestions a lot to compensate for any problem. Second, I wasn’t exactly trying to maximize the potential of any alloy. As long as it was workable, I would be happy to use it.

After all, it didn’t matter whether a fork was made of silver or steel. As long as one avoided making one out of glass — at least, ordinary window glass — it would work.

Unfortunately, all those details meant that I needed to learn how to repair each weapon type from scratch. Some, like the case of bronze weapons, were doable. Meanwhile, it would likely not be really useful for more complicated, unique weapons.

And, in the case of the weapon I had in my hands, it was a bit more complicated. I had only six numbers, which wasn’t really enough to make it worth the trouble of learning. I could forge pure weapons that could surpass their enchanted performance as long as I was willing to spend the time.

Unfortunately, bringing them out in public without a source to explain their existence was troubling. I didn’t want Eleanor to be suspicious. While I trusted her about most things, I had no intention of testing her when selling me out would solve Maria’s problem.

It meant I had to spend time learning about them.

For the next hour, I used Observe, focusing on learning the nature of the weapon without the benefit of the skill. It was an iron-silver mix, and there was too much silver, enough to compromise the integral structure and base strength of the metal.

As for other stabilizing materials used, they were a mystery. I could break the enchantment to find out what they were … but, I could also go with a simpler route instead.

“An anti-corrosive plating.” It was a rough solution, one that would undoubtedly reduce the quality of the swords even more, even weaken the enchantment, but I didn’t care. The whole point was to explain why I could kill thousands of beasts without borrowing bronze swords to Eleanor.

Technically, I could have claimed the same without adding the plating, but this way, I could lend the other five to my future guild members without it being suspicious.

It wouldn’t have convinced any spies Thomas had, who would have known about the issue with the swords he had armed his assassins with, but it wasn’t too much of a problem. If he continued to believe that I was near a hundred, new swords weren’t exactly a problem.

I only needed to go to the trouble to convince Eleanor.

I spend the next hour at the first level, slowly adding a layer of coating to the sword. Since it was a process that was more reliant on mana than heat, I didn’t bother going down to the fourth floor. The dungeon was kind enough to give me all the supporting material I needed, and the iron, I could always take from the cart. As for silver, I used the fake sword I had brought with me.

The experiment lasted almost two hours, and the only reason I was able to do that was the Mana Control Perk, allowed me to slowly detach and reattach the mana links between the enchantment and the metal.

Even then, the first one was almost a spectacular failure. The enchantment lost the link with the metal, which turned completely useless. The enchantment was still there, just useless.

The others, I had various levels of success with. But, the real success was that I got more familiar with Observe. Not enough to dare trying to overcharge it, but still satisfyingly so.

“Customization for the win,” I muttered even as I walked toward the fort once again, wanting to show myself for one last time for the evening, casually mentioning how the assassins were kind enough to grant me weapons that worked excellently in the dungeon, knowing it would be eventually reported to Eleanor.

I had some real experiments to run. It was time to get a better understanding of Mana and Health.