“What was he right about?” Gerold asked.
The Master Blacksmith pressed his fingers on his temples, which just exaggerated his exhausted face, sighing as he did so. “Without another set of armor, it’s quite possible that he won’t ever wake up. As I’m sure you know, the connection between yourself and your armor is a strong one, and when it is destroyed, it can be difficult to recover from. You, as much as it pains me to say it, were lucky to have only been in possession of it for a few months; King Mynag, on the other hand, had possessed his for centuries. That connection between a Shieldman and their armor only grows stronger as time goes on, and for something like that to be broken as abruptly as his was, the damage to the mind can be difficult to recover from.”
Something in what he said resonated within Sandra. For some reason, she couldn’t help but compare the Core shard inside of her mind with what he described King Mynag was suffering from: a sense of loss for something that had been with him for a long, long, time. This sense of loss could describe the mind of most Dungeon Cores, as they mourned the loss of their former selves, of course; it might also explain the shard’s loss of its Core “self” when it was destroyed. Now it was just a remnant of what it used to be, driven only by instincts to control a Core again, but not knowing exactly what was going on or why it wasn’t supposed to destroy any other Cores in the process.
Sandra felt like she was in as complete control as was possible, but the possibility was always there that the shard could reemerge and try to take over again. For all that she wanted to get rid of it, she didn’t think there was any way to eliminate the shard entirely. But perhaps there was a way to live with it, to co-exist in harmony. There has to be a way.
“So, what now? I know you agreed to come here with me…are you ready to see what she can do?” Gerold asked the Master Blacksmith, which pulled Sandra back to the conversation. There was silence in response for a few moments, which allowed her to look out and see the progress of the new Shieldmen. They weren’t quite to the battles yet, but they were close; her constructs she had sent out before had already started to make a difference against the Golems, but it was going to be an uphill battle to eliminate and contain what had already broken free.
What was worse, the small, “cheaply” made Dust Golems were spreading out far and wide, gaining even more Mana as they ventured around. There weren’t nearly enough to compare to her own gathering of Mana, but there were at least 200 or more that were out of range of the Shieldmen and constructs, and more were emerging every minute from both Golem dungeon entrances. They have learned and adapted. I have to stop them now, or this will spiral out of control. Hopefully, with the influx of Shieldmen and the additional reinforcements (which she was still adding to even with everything else going on), they could get it under control.
“I-I think I’m ready,” Master Jespin said abruptly, exhaling deeply before continuing. “Sandra? That is your name, correct?”
Yes it is. Do you have something you’d like to share with me?
He nodded slowly, before taking something out of his vest pocket; she couldn’t see what it was, however, because he kept his hand closed tightly over it. “It isn’t known to many, but we are running out of the ability to create our Shieldman armor and weapons. Gerry, here, asked me to come teach you how the secret process is done, in return for your assistance in protecting our Kingdom and clearing out the ravaging hordes of monsters.”
That is true, though my role is more one of support; I can provide many things to make it much easier, but the actual work is going to need to be done by your people. Just like it needs to be done by the Elves, the Gnomes, and the Orcs.
The Master nodded again. “Understandable. Honestly, we wouldn’t have it any other way.” He paused, before opening up his hand. “Tell me, have you heard of mithril?”
Chapter 38
New Monster Seed and Origination Material found!
Mithril
While Mithril can be directly used as a Monster Seed, it can also be used as a material for use in the dungeon or other purposes.
You now have access to:
Tiny Mithril Cube
Origination Raw Material Cost: 40000
Origination Mana Cost: 35000
Monster Min. Mana: 35000
Monster Max. Mana: 50000
The Mithril orb she absorbed when the Master Blacksmith placed it on the ground was impressive-looking all by itself, and it was definitely nothing that she had actually seen before. She had heard of it as a mythical metal that existed in the world, but either no one actually had access to it in Muriel, or it hadn’t been there in so long that it was more of a fable than anything. Not one Human she had talked to knew what it did, other than it being extremely powerful; how it was powerful, though, was anyone’s guess.
Now that she had access to it, she wasn’t even sure what it was good for. All she could tell for now was that it might be good for some of her more-expensive constructs as a Monster Seed, but what she was eager to learn about was how it could be used as a crafting material. A few seconds after she absorbed the shiny, oily-looking metal, she spent nearly 10,000 Mana to create a large bar of it on the floor next to the Blacksmith; it was definitely expensive to create it as a material, but not too much more than Dragon Glass was to produce.
Master Jespin’s eyes nearly bulged out of his head when he saw it by his feet. “Oh, Creator! It’s true!” Tears flowed silently down his cheeks as he picked up the bar, which appeared extremely lightweight; not only that, but it was soft – much softer than Gold, even. Jespin held the Mithril up to his face as he looked at it intently, the tears having stopped running almost as soon as he held onto the bar, all business now; he sniffed and then licked the bar of metal (which was extremely weird, but Sandra wasn’t going to complain), before pinching the corner of the metal and tearing off a small amount like it was clay or something. He rolled it around in his one hand like putty, forming a very similar orb like the one he had given to Sandra to absorb.
“It’s…perfect. It’s also amazing and the answer to our prayers.” He stood there apparently lost in thought as he rolled the Mithril around in his hand.
Uh…so, I can make a lot of Mithril, but it seems too soft to be a good metal for anything other than maybe jewelry; even then, it probably wouldn’t hold up well.
Her voice made the Master twitch in surprise, nearly dropping the bar of Mithril, but he held onto it with a little fumbling and smiled when she finished. “That’s because mithril, by itself, is practically useless. It’s only when used to create an alloy that its real properties come alive.”
How so?
“Allow me to demonstrate. Is that a forge I see over there? It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.” The Master walked over to the forge she had in her upper workshop, and Sandra quickly explained how it worked.
“It seems as though the wonders of your dungeon have yet to cease, my dear Sandra. Do you have any small orbs of copper available?” Gerold followed behind Jespin as the latter stared in wonder at the forge, which was certainly different from anything he’d probably seen before.
While she didn’t have any right there, she created a small bar of Copper near the forge. All of the tools he would likely need were already there, laid out for anyone to use, and the Master Blacksmith went to work immediately. The exhaustion on his face and in his posture seemed to disappear as he went to work at the forge, looking as if he was more at home in front of the heat and flames than anything else in the world.
“Normally, wasting mithril on something as mundane as this would be enough to exile me for life back in the strongholds, but with you able to create as much as we need, I think this is the easiest way to demonstrate the major principles here.” So saying, he took a very small pinch of the Mithril off of the bar she had created, placed it in a crucible with the copper bar, and then placed it in the forge. He jumped slightly when it activated, but he smiled when he saw how efficient and focused the heat was insi
de the Dragon Glass-coated forge, humming slightly to himself. It was almost as if the world was forgotten – such as the unconscious form of the King in the middle of the workshop. Sandra briefly thought about moving him somewhere more comfortable, but decided to wait until Jespin recommended it.
She watched with rapt attention that she remembered from her days as a Human, watching a Master of their craft demonstrate something for the first time. The feeling of discovery never got old; it felt the same learning the 10,000th recipe or technique as it did the first. If she had a choice, she would try to learn all she could from the Master Blacksmith, because she could see even in the way that he handled tools that he had centuries of experience around a forge. That experience was invaluable, and Sandra drank in every drop of knowledge, every movement that the Master made; even something as simple as creating an alloy was a lesson in efficiency for her. Without modesty getting in the way, Sandra had to admit that she was good – but she was no Master.
“So, you’ll see that Mithril melts at a much lower temperature, but never vaporizes into a gas; you could have heat that is hot enough to melt stone—hold on, is this? No way – is this Dragon Glass?” Jespin asked, deftly continuing to melt the alloy while running his hand along the forge.
Yes, it is. Nearly as expensive as Mithril, but worth it to prevent stone from melting, she added with amusement.
“I haven’t seen this much in almost four centuries; there are some excellent techniques in working it that I would love to experiment with…ah, I think it’s just about done,” the Master said, pulling out the melted Copper from the forge, looking at it intently without getting close enough to burn his face off from the heat.
“Do you have anything that will help cool this off quickly?” There was a barrel nearby that she told him about, though right now it was empty; she quickly filled it with icy-cold water using her Mana. Normally, placing such hot material inside cold water like that could result in cracks, especially in something like Copper, but the Master didn’t seem concerned.
Steam rose as the metal was rapidly cooled, and before long it was solid enough to see what the result was. When he placed it on the anvil, it didn’t appear too impressive, though it did have an oily sheen to it that it normally didn’t possess. It was only when he grabbed a hammer and started to beat it into a thin sheet that she saw the difference almost immediately.
It was much more durable than normal. The Master Blacksmith appeared strong, which was understandable given his profession, but his powerful hits were only having a fraction of the result she would’ve expected. She’d worked a lot with Copper and knew how relatively soft it was compared to Bronze, Iron, and Steel; not as soft as Silver or Gold, but still flexible enough that a thin sheet could be bent with bare hands if necessary. This Copper-Mithril alloy, however, was definitely not flexible.
“As you can no doubt see, and Gerry here has told me that you’re a bit of a Blacksmith yourself, the new alloy is much more durable. Not only that, but its impact resistance has been increased, and it now has a natural resistance to corrosion. It will never oxidize or corrode over time, and is moderately resistant to heat.” He placed the sheet aside when he was done, and Sandra was amazed at how quickly he had flattened and shaped the rectangular shape of the Copper-Mithril alloy, especially considering how much stronger it was than normal. She was also highly intrigued by this new alloy, and couldn’t wait to see what she could do with it.
“That isn’t the only thing it does, however; it also makes it so that it is more susceptible to manipulation via Earth energy, like this,” he continued, before picking up the Copper sheet again. He did something that she couldn’t immediately follow, and he bent the metal with his hands as easily as if it were a piece of paper. “This is the only way we Master Blacksmiths can manage to shape and craft the powerful gear our Shieldmen use; I’m sure you can imagine how strong high-quality Steel can be when made into an alloy with mithril.” Sandra could, and did – and worried that she wouldn’t be able to replicate the manipulation of Earth energy.
“As for the secret to the armor and weapons we make for the Shieldmen…well, I’m going to see how smart you are.” Jespin smiled again, looking at the forge. “Tell me what you know now, and how you think they are produced. I ask the same of all my apprentices.”
Great. A test. She would play along, though, because she really wanted to know. Besides, looking back out at the fight for the area around the Golem dungeon entrances, it was going much better than expected. With the additional support from the Shieldmen that arrived not too long ago, they were able to push the Golems steadily backwards, and they were gaining ground. The biggest difference came from First-shield Parten, who tore into the Iron and Steel Golems like they had personally offended him and he was there to exact revenge. For all she knew, that could’ve been exactly what happened.
Well, I know that each set is customized to each individual Shieldman and cannot be used by anyone else. They are tied to them in a way that the armor uses a portion of the energy inherent in the wearer to power it, making it even stronger and allowing them to create effects relative to their elements. I thought at first you must have many different Master Blacksmiths that specialize in different elements, but if they are all similar to you, that doesn’t make sense.
Steel seems to be the material the alloy is made from with Mithril, but how it is transformed into what I’ve seen with different elemental colors is the mystery here. There must be some sort of component I’m missing, one that would allow you to connect the wearer and the armor—
That was the word she needed to figure it out: connect. There was a connection between them, which only became more pronounced as time went on – which was why the King was in such a state. Gerold once described the experience of wearing the gear as feeling it as an extension of his body, which was an accurate description, if what she thought was correct.
The Master Blacksmith had a serious look to his face as he waved her onward, somehow understanding that she was working through it. “Go on.”
The only way I can see to connect the two things together, one an inanimate object and the other a living being, would be to have something in common. While it’s possible that someone like Gerold might have some sort of Steel or Mithril in his body, I doubt that is the case; more likely, something of Gerold’s is inside of the Steel-Mithril alloy. There was only one real explanation. My guess is you put some of his blood inside of the alloy.
Master Blacksmith Jespin clapped his hands abruptly, the smile back on his face. “Precisely, my dear! You got it in one try – very impressive.”
Thank you.
“I’m sure you’re wondering if there is any special technique to fuse the blood into the alloy, but I assure you…there isn’t. As soon as the blood, about a thimbleful is all that is needed, is introduced into the molten alloy, the mithril reacts with it and changes the color of the metal to reflect the elements that the Shieldman has access to, ‘keying’ it to them in particular. Once that process is complete, there is no changing it from there, as it is virtually impossible to turn the alloy back into a liquid with any amount of heat you can generate. It can soften and start to melt apart under extreme heat, such as a dragon’s breath, but it will never be able to accept another sample of blood.”
Gerold cleared his throat. “Wait, how did you get my blood for my armor?” he asked, genuinely shocked. It was apparent that even the Shieldmen didn’t know how they were created in the first place.
“From when you were in training to become a Shieldman, of course. You remember all of those sessions where you were left black, blue, and bleeding on the floor? While those are designed to toughen you up, they also allow any of the Blacksmiths to gather what we need; it’s especially handy if you get knocked out cold,” Master Jespin added with a chuckle.
Gerold looked thoughtful, as if he were indeed remembering such occurrences. In the end he shrugged, likely figuring it was worth it.
So, I’m g
uessing that’s why you wanted to keep it a secret – because there technically isn’t a secret to it. Though, one would have to know how to manipulate metal with Earth energy, I suppose.
“All true. That is the reason why it takes so long, as well; one of the attributes of the mithril is that once it ‘feels’ the touch of an Earth energy signature, such as one coming from a Master Blacksmith, it will only allow that signature to manipulate the metal. Therefore, the creation of a single set of armor can take anywhere between 5 days to an entire month, because it depends on the Master’s reservoir of Earth energy; none of the other Blacksmiths can work with it after that.” He looked down at his palm and the Energy Orb embedded in it. “Though, I’m guessing that could change with access to these Energy Orbs; they could probably get a set done in less than a day, in that case.”
Do you think you could? Because there is someone behind you that desperately needs one.
Jespin turned around in surprise to look at the King still unconscious on the floor; it was almost as if he had forgotten that he was there. “I…suppose that I could.”
Excellent! Would you like to do it here, or down below? Plus, I imagine that you’re hungry and tired, so I can find you some place to sleep.
“No sleep needed for me; I’m used to staying up for long hours working in the forge. Besides, I’ve never felt this invigorated before, discovering all sorts of new things I never knew existed before. Where do you want me to work?” Sandra described Kelerim’s forge down below, which was currently vacant as he was off getting some sleep. The efforts by the Master Blacksmith might end up waking him up, but he’d probably appreciate learning this as well.
The Crafter's Dominion: A Dungeon Core Novel (Dungeon Crafting Book 5) Page 38