Chapter 18: Sin in the Alley
Chapter 18: Sin in the Alley
The next morning, Rayn declined his best friend George's suggestion to gather nuts in the forest and headed straight to the blacksmith's shop.
As he stepped inside, a wave of scorching heat washed over him. The blacksmith apprentices were busy with their tasks, and the master blacksmith, Boris Parton, was forging a long iron sword, which immediately caught Rayn's attention.
Just as Rayn was about to get a closer look, Drus, who was operating the bellows nearby, eagerly waved at him, "Rayn! You're here!"
Hearing this memorable name, the blacksmith apprentices, who had been focused on their work, suddenly tensed up. Several burly apprentices exchanged glances, each seeing a sense of urgency in the others' eyes.
The expressions on their faces seemed to say, "This brat is here again! And this time, he's not here in the afternoon, but early in the morning. What a nuisance!"
Master blacksmith Boris, for once, took the initiative to greet Rayn, "Rayn, you're here!"
"Yes, Uncle Boris! Wow, you're forging a longsword today!" Rayn pretended to have just noticed and took a few steps forward to observe Boris's forging technique.
The red-hot sword blade was visibly longer than a typical one-handed sword.
Rayn flipped to the second page of his blacksmith apprentice occupation panel. His progress was over halfway to level 3, which meant that if all went well, he would be able to advance to level 4 by next Sunday.
[Your Bellows Operation skill has improved. Experience gained: +3]
[Shoeing Level 1 (56/100)]
"Damn brat! Behave yourself!" a deep male voice boomed.
A sharp dagger, shimmering with a cold light, appeared before the boy's eyes.
"But you'd better not ask around too much, or you might not even know how you died!"
Thinking of this, Rayn felt a surge of hatred towards Hamilton, the newly appointed sheriff, for his interference.
No longer distracted by others, Rayn focused on his task of operating the bellows. [You have gained insight through your bellows work.]
"By the way, boss, we've searched most of the north side of Flashgold Town. In a few days, I'll start checking the south side."
[Blacksmith Apprentice Level 3 (265/500)]
"Damn it, Scarface! You'll die in a woman's belly one day! But you're right, after we get the money, let's head back to the capital city." The bearded man considered Scarface's suggestion and agreed.
However, after some thought, he added, "It's probably not the demand of the nobles in the capital city. I heard it's the Wilderness Brotherhood who's behind this."
As expected, within five minutes, Boris sent Drus away to melt iron ingots. Rayn couldn't help but smirk inwardly, as Master Boris was notoriously stingy with his skills, and without a substantial payment, he wouldn't teach Rayn anything worthwhile in a short time.
[End of Chapter]
If Rayn had money now, he could certainly speed up this relationship and perhaps even convince the stingy Boris to teach him how to forge some iron item today.
"Scarface! Is this something you need to worry about? It's the higher-ups' request. As long as the money is in place, we'll do our job, why bother with the rest!" Bearded Man retorted impatiently.
Rayn couldn't help but smile, guessing that Drus wouldn't last long before Blacksmith Boris assigned him other tasks.
"Is there a sudden surge in demand among the nobles for catamites and young girls?"
[Bellows Operation lv3 (395/500)] [Hoof Trimming lv2 (295/300)]
A thin boy was immediately tied up with a hemp rope, his mouth forcefully stuffed with a piece of coarse cloth, and then he was picked up by a pair of strong hands and thrown into a large black bag.
Rayn walked over to the bellows as Drus eagerly made room for him, "Rayn, you've already mastered the bellows last time. This is your job now."
"But... do the nobles really fancy these scrawny, stinky street urchins or the children of commoners?" Scarface seemed even more puzzled, turning to ask Bearded Man.
"Yes, today we're helping a friend with a half-sword!" Boris replied briefly.
"Be careful. The new sheriff, Hamilton, seems to be keeping a close eye on this matter. If he catches wind of it, we'll be in trouble!" Bearded Man warned.
"Boss, if we get the money this time, where should we go to have some fun? The courtesans in Flashgold Town are of poor quality. Let's go back to the Capital City for a few days to enjoy ourselves and lay low!" Scarface suggested with a sly grin.
"Hmm!"
Rayn also wanted to learn other skills like casting and forging iron nails and pots, but building trust between people takes time.
The results, however, were impressive!
Meanwhile, not far from Rayn, in a secluded alley, an evil deed was taking place. In a low-lying house, a thin boy was about to go out to buy something when suddenly, his mouth was covered with a piece of torn cloth! The thin boy began to struggle.
But alas, they were poor!
"By the way, Rayn, since you're familiar with the bellows, help Drus with it today," Boris instructed, quickly assigning him a task.
[You focus on the bellows, Blacksmith Apprentice Profession Experience +1]
Rayn realized that a half-sword was a type of sword between a one-handed sword and a two-handed sword.
"Okay, Uncle Boris!" Rayn agreed eagerly, even though it was still the bellows.
"Don't worry, boss! I push the snack cart around the streets, and I can spot the right kids with just one look!" Scarface assured, patting his chest.
As the day drew to a close, a slightly tired Rayn left the blacksmith's shop and prepared to return to the Habsburg Estate.
Unless you spend enough time in the blacksmith's shop!
Aside from going home for lunch with his family on Saturday, Rayn spent the entire day at the blacksmith's shop.
Soon, two burly figures with black bags on their backs quickly disappeared into the alley.
"Yes, boss!"
"This human skin mask is so uncomfortable, it's too tight! Boss, can you make me a new one?" The man named Scarface complained.
". . ."
Rayn paused to listen to some noise from the nearby alley but soon shook his head and continued walking towards the Habsburg Estate.
Unbeknownst to him, he had just passed by evil.
Chapter end
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