Chapter 101: Skyrocketing Progress
Chapter 101: Skyrocketing Progress
After Reyn politely informed Lagre of Boris's intentions, she was unbothered by the idea of being watched and readily agreed.
Perhaps, in the eyes of Lagre, a master blacksmith, the local blacksmiths would struggle to learn much from observing her techniques.
Take the flux, for example; the precise ratio of fluorite and barbarian blood required was likely a daunting challenge for an ordinary blacksmith.
However, Reyn had a thought and quietly asked Lagre, "Lagre, aside from infusing the radiant stone, can the sword also incorporate star iron?"
"Oh, you mean meteor iron. I'm not sure what you barbarians call it," Reyn explained with gestures.
Lagre's eyes lit up, and she replied, "Of course. I was actually a bit concerned that using only the radiant stone might make the sword's hardness and toughness slightly inadequate. That's why I'd need to put in extra effort during the forging process."
"But with a small amount of star iron mixed in, I can assure you that your new weapon will be above standard even among our barbarian tribe's radiant stone weapons."
Reyn smiled mysteriously and said, "It'll be ready soon."
"Great! So, what now?"
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Boris, sensing that Reyn was about to decline, held back his words upon seeing Lagre's natural expression.
[Your Two-Handed Sword Forging skill has improved. Experience gained: +1]
Lagre had already mixed a considerable amount of clay and began constructing a small cylindrical smelting furnace, seemingly intended for melting Reyn's radiant stone.
[Your understanding of radiant stone weapon forging has improved!]
This made Reyn hesitate as he was about to stand up, and he could only continue pumping the bellows with determination, his gaze towards Lagre filled with both admiration and concern.
Lagre, her face slightly pale, quickly took out a white linen bandage and wrapped it around her wound.
Reyn was surprised to see that Lagre was using the 'reduction' method to melt the radiant stone, something that Boris, who was observing intently, couldn't comprehend.
Lagre then used a pair of tongs to remove the red-hot greatsword from the original furnace and placed a thin piece of radiant stone and star iron on top of it.
The price was set due to the size of Boris's star iron, which was only slightly larger than a fist.
"No, your strength isn't enough to further remove impurities from the radiant stone," Lagre said, shaking her head in refusal after glancing at Boris.
The reason the gas didn't flow back was that the pressed area had a check valve. When pressed, it closed, and when released, it opened, allowing air to enter the bellows.
Although the blacksmith shop had a regular smelting furnace, Lagre was already using it to melt the star iron and Reyn's original greatsword.
"Fold it?" Reyn asked in surprise.
Another piece was placed in the furnace melting the radiant stone, and immediately, Lagre cut her wrist with a small knife, causing a stream of blood to flow onto the radiant stone.
About half an hour later, Lagre began the most crucial step. She took out two walnut-sized white stones from her waist pouch, presumably fluorite, and placed one in the furnace melting the star iron, instructing Boris to pay close attention to the surface changes of the star iron.
However, after looking around and finding nothing to do, Lagre casually said, "Reyn, help me install the bellows and pipes for this small furnace."
"Install the bellows?" Reyn was taken aback. He didn't have that skill in his blacksmithing repertoire.
His mind raced, and Reyn finally came up with a reason, albeit not a very convincing one. He straightened his face and said, "Lagre, since this is my two-handed sword being forged, please assign me some tasks so I can be involved."
Reyn finally had a chance to check his system prompts:
However, Reyn soon realized from their occasional intense gazes that their motives might not be as simple as they seemed. After all, he had barely obtained permission to observe, and he didn't want to lose that privilege due to his own carelessness.
"I'll do it!" both Boris and Reyn said in unison.
[You have learned a new skill: Two-Handed Sword Forging]
Reyn then led Boris to a corner, and after some haggling and allowing Boris to observe, a condition he couldn't refuse, Reyn successfully purchased Boris's beloved star iron for thirty imperial gold coins.
After repeating this process several times, the final steps of shaping, quenching, and polishing began. These were delicate processes that Lagre handled personally.
Reyn's greatsword no longer resembled its original form; it had transformed into a rectangular iron bar about ten centimeters thick and thirty centimeters long.
[Your focus on Two-Handed Sword Forging has improved. Blacksmith Experience gained: +2]
"Yep, just put the radiant stone and charcoal inside," Lagre said confidently.
Finally, it was time for the familiar task! [Your understanding of bellows operation has improved!]
"Alright," Reyn said, vigorously swinging the bellows.
"Of course, pumping the bellows is my specialty!" Reyn nodded confidently.
"It's ready! I'm going to take it out and forge it," Lagre said, checking the sword once more before turning to Reyn.
"Fold it over."
Lagre placed the radiant stone, now emitting a gentle glow, along with the charcoal, into the clay furnace.
[Your focus on bellows operation has improved. Blacksmith Experience gained: +1]
Impurities in the radiant stone gradually melted, flowing out from the opening at the bottom of the furnace like lava.
Reyn, watching from the side, felt a bit antsy.
"Okay, you try it."
Each swing of the hammer sent sparks flying, and the radiant stone's glow seemed to intensify slightly. However, the white bandage on Lagre's wrist turned a shade darker.
About half an hour passed.
"Lagre, what should I do?" Reyn asked, a bit anxious from watching.
In no time, Lagra was done setting up, and she was slowly adding charcoal to the furnace.
It was a simple setup: a roughly two-meter-long, coarse iron pipe and a floor-standing bellows made from multiple layers of cowhide. With a pull and a push, the bellows could create a strong gust of air.
"Let's turn it into a sword blank."
Soon, Rain followed Boris into the storage room and brought out a set of bellows for the furnace.
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[You are forging a two-handed greatsword, and your understanding of the skill increases!]
"It's almost ready. Let's add some more charcoal to the fire and let the clay solidify before inserting the Radiant Stone." Lagra patted the clay in her hand and stood up.
"Okay, then!"
Rain originally thought that Boris, who was usually stingy, had unexpectedly given the blacksmith apprentices a day off. Logically, these apprentices, who often complained about Boris' stinginess, should have been overjoyed.
This made Boris feel a bit embarrassed, his face slightly reddening. After decades of blacksmithing, he was told by a young girl that his strength wasn't enough.
After all, not every blacksmith had the opportunity to witness the birth of a Radiant Stone weapon.
The Radiant Stone essence in the furnace had shrunk to the size of an egg, and its shape was as soft as clay, but the light it emitted was ten times stronger.
Lagra held the glowing Radiant Stone with a pair of fire tongs in one hand and a heavy hammer in the other, beginning to strike it.
As soon as Lagra finished speaking, Rain felt like a wave of blacksmithing experience was slipping away from him.
"I'll do it!" Rain, who had the Hammer Mastery skill, was quite confident when it came to using a hammer.
Lagra seemed to emanate an invisible force, as if narrating the birth of a Radiant Stone weapon, a necessary process.
"It's too heavy, be gentler!"
"Yeah, that's good. This weight is just right."
But when it came to infusing it into the greatsword to enhance its hardness and toughness, it was more than enough.
In the end, Boris forcefully chased away these blacksmith apprentices! Rain and Boris closed the blacksmith shop's door, hung a sign that read 'Closed,' and returned to the yard to assist Lagra.
"Don't worry! With you guiding me, I should be fine. And if I can't handle it, you can take over."
After repeating this process twice...
He only knew how to pull the bellows but didn't know how to install them! Boris, standing beside him, couldn't help but laugh at Rain's stunned expression. He chuckled and said, "Rain, come with me, and I'll show you how it's done."
"Rain, can you work the bellows?" Lagra asked.
[Your Bellows skill has increased, and you gained 3 experience points.]
Quickly, under Boris' guidance, Rain inserted one end of the iron pipe into the clay furnace and the other end into the bellows.
Once everything was ready...
[Your Radiant Weapon Forging skill has increased, and you gained 1 experience point.]
Just as Rain was about to stop working the bellows and rush over to stop Lagra...
"Lagra, didn't you say you only needed a little blood? Why are you...?" Rain was both shocked and touched.
"Ding ding!"
After a moment of thought, Lagra realized that there wasn't much Rain could help with, so she said sincerely, "Rain, you don't need to do anything. I can handle the entire process."
She then directed Rain to continue forging with the hammer.
Both of them were taken aback by what they saw, as Lagra had already started on her own.
Fortunately, this process didn't last long.
The same process was repeated for the Star Iron.
After all, he wanted to be specifically involved in the creation of a Radiant Stone weapon, and it was obvious that he would gain a significant amount of blacksmithing experience if he could participate in its forging.
It was clear that Boris was in a good mood.
"Don't stop now, or all your efforts will be in vain." Lagra's tone was calm as she spoke, her focused gaze still fixed on the Radiant Stone in the furnace.
But when Boris announced this news, the blacksmith apprentices exchanged glances, then quickly made up excuses to stay and continue working.
After losing some blood, Lagra did feel a bit tired. If she could conserve some energy for the later stages of forging, it would undoubtedly ensure a better quality for the greatsword.
"Ding ding!"
With each strike of the hammer, the greatsword's fusion with the Radiant Stone and Star Iron deepened.
Boris, with a mix of joy and heartache, immediately announced that the blacksmith shop would be closed for the day.
"Can you manage?" Lagra, looking slightly pale, glanced at Rain.
"Yes!" Lagra stepped forward, replacing Rain, and carefully stacked the Star Iron, Radiant Stone, and the sword body on top of each other.
Lagra didn't think much about this small request from her lifesaver and simply nodded in agreement.
"Good job!" Lagra took a look and nodded, indicating that Rain had done a decent job.
[You have learned a new skill: Radiant Weapon Forging]
"Is it done already?" Boris exclaimed in surprise.
This was the most primitive and simple method.
Although Lagra didn't know why Rain was so enthusiastic, what he said was indeed true—it was a normal request since it was his weapon.
This made Rain breathe a huge sigh of relief. Thankfully, he was finally involved!
This method was used to smelt the most common iron ores like hematite and magnetite.
Rain felt a strange sensation.
Although Boris didn't know the exact melting point of the Radiant Stone, he knew it was much higher than that of iron ores.
Considering the small size of Rain's Radiant Stone, the furnace had a diameter only slightly larger than a basin and a height of about one meter.
Rain emphasized the word 'my' when he said this.
After continuously forging for half an hour and removing most of the impurities, Lagra instructed Rain to shape the Radiant Stone into a thin, long strip.
Rain seemed to have enough strength, but it was unclear how skilled he was with the hammer.
[You are focused on Radiant Weapon Forging, and you gained 5 Blacksmith Experience points.]
[Congratulations! Your Blacksmith Level has increased!]
Indeed, Rain's blacksmith level had risen to level 3, and he felt as sweet as if he had drunk honey.
And there was an even bigger surprise waiting for him next.
(End of Chapter)
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