CC5 ~ 27!

~ 27 ~

“Well, kid, you’ve gone and done it now.” Havoc let out a sigh and a cloud of cigar smoke. They were back at what Joe had just learned was Havoc’s family estate in the Capital city of the Dwarves. “You let the abyssal gods loose on the world. We were so close to forcing Gaia out of here, and then the war would have been our own, instead of a great game for the bored people looking down from Valhalla.”

“And now people want to talk to me?” Joe guessed, going off the defeated air Havoc was exuding.

“Yes, people want to meet you,” The Dwarf spat, kicking a chair so hard that it slammed into the wall and shattered. Extra impressive, since it was wrought iron. “I need to give you your rewards first, so come with me. Also. A letter came for you, and it’s sealed with magic. So, here ya go, hurry up and read it.”

Joe glanced at the letter, but seeing Havoc’s interested leer, decided to open it later. This made Havoc’s mood worse, but he kept his cool as they walked, taking some time to go over the changes in Joe’s status. “You’ll be happy to hear that all outstanding debts are paid. Taking back that fort was almost laughably easy, and since the raid had been authorized in your name, you got all the credit.”

This made Joe remember that he would have received all the blame if he had failed, but Havoc powered onward. “That’s most of what we had to talk about. You’re all caught up. Adding an abyssal god to the mix changed this up as well, and paid off a chunk of my outstanding debts that had been made in your name as well. That’s why you likely got a reduced increase if you gained reputation. Oh, double check: you should have gained fifteen thousand experience as well for your double share of the raid.”

“That’s why I lost five thousand reputation with the Elves but only gained roughly three thousand with the council? You preemptively spent it?” Joe made another connection. “Hold on, how much was that worth?”

“Reputation is worth whatever you can spend it on,” Havoc replied evasively, quickly motioning at a massive forge they were walking toward. “Look, over there! That’s where we’re going right now. I have a set of gear on backorder at the enchanter’s right now, but you need to go in person to get a weapon made.”

“Why? Wait, no; stop trying-”

“Clothes can be worn by anyone, but the weapon used is an expression of the wielder,” Havoc interjected loudly, drowning out Joe’s arguments. “You need to go in there and leave a good impression on McPoundy. Just let him know you’re there because I sent you.”

“You’re not coming in?” Joe quizzed with great surprise. “Why didn’t you just send me here, then?”

“I’m only coming in if I have to come in.” Havoc’s words were a threat, and made the hair on Joe’s arms stand on end, as though the world had just become static-charged. “Go on. Don’t you dare accept the tripe he offers you.”

Joe looked at Havoc, then the forge, and walked inside with a long-suffering sigh. He had wanted Havoc to help him, right? The building was exactly as he had expected it to be: loud, hot, and full of Dwarves that clearly loved forging. A smile appeared on his face. “This is what I always expected joining the Dwarves to be like..”

“Good day, human.” A voice to the side called Joe’s attention, and Joe turned to find a mustachioed Dwarf smiling professionally at him. “I fully understand that the call of this workshop is a siren song to those that wish to improve themselves and better what they can create. I am so sorry to need to be the one to inform you that only the most talented of Dwarves get to study under Grandmaster. While your interest is appreciated, if you want a closer look at what we can do, you need to go around and into the shop.”

“Hello! So sorry for intruding, but I’m actually supposed to be here. I’m Candidate Joe.” Joe nodded to her in a friendly manner, but only got a grunt in reply as she turned away and started hammering a red-hot ingot. “I need to find… a Mr. McPoundy? I have a-”

Exquisite Shell: 1,823/2,346.

“Stupid Bro!” A hammer bounced off Joe’s head, and he whirled around, prepared to fight. Someone had just tried to assassinate him! He came face-to-face with a bearded Dwarf with wild eyes. “How dare you talk about the Grandmaster with such an irreverent tone! Did you walk in here hoping to prove yourself by making an enemy out of every true Dwarf-”

Joe punched the Dwarf in the face, hitting him with a Dark Lightning Strike at the same time. His enhanced strength stat, combined with the forced rigidness from the electricity coursing through him, sent the Dwarf flying back to land heavily against a standing anvil. Though Joe didn’t want to do it, he needed to stoop to this Dwarf’s level to prove his point. “How dare I? You sound like an Elf! How arrogant can you be, bro?”

“Enough.” A tired voice carried through the room as the red-faced Dwarf stood and prepared to bull-rush Joe. “He’s here for a quest, and Major General Havoc—his mentor—is standing outside just waiting for a reason to bust in here through the restraining order.”

“Restraining…?” Joe looked back at the door. Havoc was looming in the doorway, straining against a force that was blowing him back, no matter how hard he tried to push in. His eyes were bloodshot, and his face was shifting like someone caught in the wind during a freefall. Straining against the boundary, Havoc’s hands grasped either side of the doorframe. Seeing that the fight had ended, Havoc snarled and took a step back, pulling out a cigar and looking away as if what happened inside didn’t matter to him. The deep indents in the metal doorway said differently. Joe turned back to face the huge Dwarf that was speaking to him.

“I’m Grandmaster Iron McPoundy; hurry into my private forge. I’m working on a project, but you can’t wait out here.” McPoundy glared at Havoc and made a rude hand gesture. “That brat would find some excuse to come in and take some kind of petty revenge for the restraining order I got placed on him after his last visit!”

Joe walked through the small doorway that hung in the middle of the open space, and the wall sealed itself behind him. To the rest of the people in the forge, the doorway vanished entirely. Joe looked back and was surprised to see the general workshop as if he were looking through a window. “Is this a pocket dimension?”

“That it is.” The Dwarf started swinging a hammer instantly, the force of each blow creating a shockwave of pressure and sparks. Joe’s shield started deteriorating right away, and his eyes widened when he noted that the Dwarf showed no signs of stopping. “Impress me by surviving while I fix this enchanted sword.”

“What’s—*clang*—wrong—*clang*—with it?—*clang*.” Joe shouted his words in between hammer blows, and to his credit, McPoundy gave him a concise answer.

“I already enchanted it, but I fumbled a few of the formulae, so I’m just trying to pound some kinks out.” McPoundy was living up to his name, and Joe was about to ask more questions, when the sword spoke.

“I like feet.”

*Clang*.

McPoundy only hit the sword faster. “Quiet, you!”

“Harder.”

*Clang*.

“Ugh.” McPoundy sighed in relief as the words stopped coming out of the sword. “Any enchanted item is at least a little alive, and they only get more so as they increase in rarity and age. Sometimes forging the enchantment out and starting again is the only way to remove the impurities.”

You are receiving tutelage from a Grandmaster! Ritualistic Smithing and Enchanting (general) will increase at a high rate!

Joe’s focus narrowed, his entire self immersed in watching the process as McPoundy worked. He activated Essence Cycle and observed as the Dwarf worked seamlessly with flame, liquid metal, and mana. Joe snapped out of his work-induced haze only when he ran out of mana and his Essence Cycle turned off. He healed himself, turned off other passives, let his mana refill, fixed his shell and jumped right back into Essence Cycle.

Eventually, McPoundy smiled at the sword, crushed a Core in his hand, and sprinkled the dust along the new lines of enchantment formulae he had carved into it. Joe saw the skill get activated and gained some small insight into how the dust was formed and used. McPoundy sighed happily and held up his sword. “There. Finished.”

Skill increase: Ritualistic Forging (Beginner 0 -> Beginner VI)

Skill increase: Enchanting (general) (Novice IV -> Beginner 0). Congratulations on reaching the Beginner ranks! All Novice enchantments are 20% easier to create! All Beginner enchantments are 10% easier to create. There is a 5% chance of creating Apprentice-ranked enchantments.

Joe looked at the sword in astonishment. It had a glowing title, as McPoundy hadn’t bothered to hide any of the information.

Sword of Hamstringing. (Pseudo-Artifact) This sword no longer likes feet; instead, it only likes chopping them off! 50% chance to cleanly cut off a foot when attempting to do so. Created by Grandmaster Iron McPoundy.

“Still, a failure.” McPoundy sighed and threw the sword toward a garbage chute. Joe screeched and jumped to intercept it, slamming into the blade, which went right through his re-weakened shell and cut into him before clattering to the floor. McPoundy turned on the human with death in his eyes, “Lad, you must be utterly brain damaged. Put that in the trash right this instant!”

“Grandmaster… McPoundy.” Joe healed himself and straightened up, pulling the sword upright until he was standing with it point-down against the stone floor. “I knew I had heard your name before. Please give me a chance to explain.”

“Make a case for why I should help you any further than the minimum that Havoc blackmailed me into doing. Tell me why I should bother, now that you are planning on stealing and showing off a sword that I want disposed of. You have one sentence, or you’re going out.”

Joe collected his thoughts into a single, succinct statement. “I destroyed the Shield of Hate.”

“That’s…” McPoundy, who was already reaching for Joe’s neck, paused, stopped, and took a step back. “How do you know about that? How did you… I made that back when I was a mere Master, and I’ve told no one about that… item. You destroyed it? I couldn’t break it back then. How did you? Prove it.”

Joe gazed down at the sword in his hand, and a smile swept across his face. “It would be my absolute pleasure.”