Chapter 65: Learning to Forge 1

After leaving the Adventurers’ Guild, Adam headed towards the artisans’ quarter.

His body still bore the marks of the two hours he had spent with Selene.

His shoulders ached.

His legs felt heavy.

Several areas of his torso remained sensitive despite the light care the tiger-woman had given him.

And yet, he continued walking without slowing down.

The Gradual Charge Bracelets still weighed heavily on his wrists and ankles.

His mana remained compressed in the center of his body.

This time, Adam hardly needed to constantly monitor his breathing.

A part of his mind naturally maintained the pressure.

The flow still fluctuated when he moved too quickly or when a sudden pain drew his attention, but it no longer collapsed at the slightest change.

"Vespera will probably consider this reason enough to complicate my training even further..."

Adam sighed deeply.

He walked through several bustling streets before reaching the Artisans’ Guild building.

Unlike the Adventurers’ Guild, whose hall was filled with armored warriors and monster tracks, this one was dominated by the sounds of tools.

The steady hammering of metal.

The creaking of mechanisms.

The conversations between female artisans.

The faint sounds of explosions coming from some of the alchemy workshops.

A scent of wood, oil, hot metal, and chemicals hung in the air.

Adam headed toward the reception desk.

The receptionist recognized him immediately.

"Good morning, Mr. Adam."

"Good morning. Is Elaria in her office?"

"Yes. She’s waiting for you." "

The young woman then indicated the corridor leading to the upper floors.

"She asked that no one disturb her while she worked on the new games. But that instruction doesn’t apply to you."

Adam smiled slightly.

"Thank you."

He crossed the hall, went up the stairs, and then reached Elaria’s office.

The door was ajar.

Adam knocked softly.

"Come in," the elf’s voice replied immediately.

Adam pushed open the door.

Elaria’s office was even more cluttered than during his last visit.

Plans covered almost all the walls.

Several wooden boards were laid out on a large table.

Boxes containing black and white pieces were stacked near a cabinet.

A square board with regular lines occupied a second table.

Adam immediately recognized the first prototypes.

The Reversi was finished.

The board had a dark surface divided into perfectly regular squares. The pieces were made of two different materials joined in a single disc: one black side and one white side.

Next to it was the Go board.

The board was larger, covered with a grid of fine lines. The black and white stones were stored in two elegant bowls.

Elaria, leaning over a third table, was now working on chess plans.

Several piece shapes were drawn in front of her.

Rooks.

Knights.

Bishops.

Queen.

King.

Pawns.

She was comparing different sizes and shapes so they could be easily distinguished, even by someone learning the game for the first time.

Adam entered.

"Hello."

Elaria looked up.

"Hello, Adam."

Her gaze briefly fell down to his body.

She noticed the marks left by practice.

"Selene used you as a target again."

"She calls it teaching."

Elaria adjusted her glasses.

"Technically, both descriptions could be true at the same time."

Adam remained silent for a second.

"You two really do spend too much time together."

The elf didn’t reply.

But the slight movement at the corner of her lips indicated that she understood the joke.

Adam approached the prototypes.

He took a piece of Reversi.

"Have you already finished the first two games?"

"The working prototypes, yes."

Elaria showed him the board.

"I chose a wood reinforced with a simple enchantment against moisture and warping. The pieces are designed for quick production, but this version is still too expensive for ordinary taverns or families."

Adam turned the disc over in his fingers.

"It will take several scales."

"That’s also Shiora’s conclusion."

Elaria indicated several notes.

"A common version in simple wood. A reinforced version for guilds and schools. A prestigious version for nobles. And perhaps a magical version for official competitions."

Adam put the piece down.

"With an enchantment capable of detecting forbidden moves?"

"Or recording the games."

Adam immediately looked at Elaria.

The elf pointed to the Memory Crystal plans lying further away.

"It won’t be possible immediately. But if we manage to create a stable memory cell, we can start by recording the state of a chessboard."

Adam nodded slowly.

"It would also be a good test for the Runic Calculator. The number of positions is limited, and the rules are precise."

Elaria quickly jotted down the idea.

"First experimental program: checking the moves of a game."

Adam examined the chess plans.

"How are you doing?"

"I’ve finished the dimensions of the board. I’m working on the pieces now."

She showed him several drawings.

"I want each shape to be instantly recognizable, even from a distance."

Adam pointed to the queen.

"This one must appear larger than the others without being easily mistaken for the king."

"I’m working on it."

"And for the rider, you can use a stylized horse’s head."

Elaria wrote a short note.

"I had considered a symbol representing a mount, but this shape will be clearer."

Adam then examined two models of fools.

"In this world, perhaps you could give them a form related to mages or priestesses."

"Shiora advised against religious symbols."

Adam immediately understood why.

"Because of the Sacred Empire."

"Yes. She doesn’t want a game produced in Valoria to be accused of ridiculing a religious function."

"She’s right. Let’s just call them mages in the local explanations."

Elaria nodded.

"That will be more suitable."

She then put away the plans.

"We’ll continue later. Your lesson today isn’t about games." "

Adam looked at the various workshops visible behind a large door.

"What are we going to work on?"

Elaria stood up.

"The forge."

Adam looked at his already tired arms.

"After Selene’s heavy weapons?"

"Yes."

"You arranged this intentionally?"

"No."

Elaria paused briefly.

"But now that you mention it, the sequence is effective."

Adam closed his eyes briefly.

"Obviously."

They left the office and descended to the lower levels of the guild.

The further they went, the higher the temperature rose.

The sound of hammers grew louder.

Enchanted conduits ran through the walls to vent the smoke and heat.

Elaria finally opened a large, reinforced door.

Behind it was a workshop entirely dedicated to blacksmithing.

Several hearths were lined up against one wall.

Anvils of varying sizes occupied the center.

Hammers, tongs, chisels, files, and molds were arranged with perfect precision.

Containers of different liquids stood apart.

Some were filled with water.

Others with oil.

A third contained a cloudy solution whose composition Adam couldn’t identify.

Finally, several enchanted furnaces were positioned at the back of the room.

Their walls were covered with red, blue, and gold runes.

Elaria handed him a thick apron and a pair of gloves.

"Put them on."

Adam got ready.

"I thought the blacksmiths of this world primarily used magic."

"Magic doesn’t replace the principles of forging."

Elaria picked up a hammer.

"It allows for more precise control over heat, pressure, and the material’s properties. But if the craftswoman doesn’t understand metal, she’ll simply produce a poor-quality object more quickly."

Adam nodded.

"Like using an advanced tool without understanding what it does."

"Exactly."

She approached the first forge.

"Traditional forging relies on several essential steps: heating, shaping, refining, cooling, and then applying the necessary treatments depending on the desired result."

She grasped a small iron bar with tongs.

"The first challenge is recognizing the correct temperature."

Elaria placed the metal in the forge.

She activated the bellows.

The flames intensified.

"For ordinary metal, an experienced craftswoman can estimate the temperature by its color."

Adam watched the bar.

It gradually changed from gray to dark red.

Then to a brighter red.

"Dark red for the initial light work," Elaria explained. "Cherry red for more significant shaping. Orange for the main forging. Yellow when the metal is approaching a very high temperature."

The bar turned orange.

Elaria removed it.

"Too cold, the metal resists and can crack. Too hot, its structure deteriorates. In some cases, it can even start to burn."

She placed the bar on the anvil.

Then she gave it several precise blows.

Clang.

Clang.

Clang.

The metal gradually flattened.

Each strike landed exactly where it needed to be.

Elaria didn’t seem to be using much force.

But she was perfectly utilizing the weight of the hammer and the rebound of the anvil.

Adam immediately understood the connection to what Selene had taught him.

"You don’t lift the hammer completely after each blow."

Elaria continued her work.

"No. The anvil reflects some of the energy. I guide the rebound instead of fighting against it."

Adam smiled slightly.

"Selene told me almost the same thing about maces and hammers."

"The physical principles remain the same. Only the objective changes."

She finished flattening the bar.

"In combat, you transfer energy into a target. In the forge, you distribute it throughout the metal to alter its shape without destroying it."

Elaria set the hammer down.

"Your turn."

Adam took another bar.

He placed it in the hearth.

"Maintain your mana compression," Elaria reminded him.

"I already am."

"Good. You’ll have to continue throughout the exercise."

Adam looked at the hearth.

"Even when I use the magic forge?"

"Especially then."

Adam didn’t press the matter.

He carefully observed the color of the metal.

Dark red.

Cherry red.

Orange.

He removed the bar when it reached a color close to the one Elaria was using.

"A little too soon," she remarked.

Adam activated Eyes of the World.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Eyes of the World

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Material: Ordinary Iron

Temperature: High

State: Forgeable

Mallability: Medium

Crack Risk: Low to Moderate

Optimal Temperature: No hit

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

"The difference is small."

"But important if you want to produce a precise piece."

Elaria moved the bar closer to the forge for a few more seconds.

"First, learn to use your eyes and your experience. Eyes of the World should confirm your judgment, not replace it entirely."

Adam nodded.

The remark made sense.

If his skill was blocked or unusable, he still needed to be able to work.

He then placed the bar on the anvil.

Then he picked up the hammer.

The first blow was too strong.

The metal flattened sharply on one side.

Elaria immediately corrected him:

"You’re striking as if you were fighting Selene."

"She trained me with hammers for two hours."

"Here, the metal isn’t trying to attack you."

"That’s already an improvement."

Elaria ignored the remark.

"Reduce the force. Control the direction. The hammer shouldn’t just come down. Its angle determines the movement of the metal."

Adam struck again.

This time, more gently.

"Better."

He continued.

But the bracelets made the movements more difficult.

His arm descended with an added weight.

His compressed mana added a second constant burden.

After several strikes, the density of his mana began to fluctuate.

Adam slowed down.

Breathed.

Then stabilized the compression.