“You.” Snow rolled her eyes.
Falcon grunted as he arrogantly smiled. “You won’t get another good blacksmith like me anywhere for another thousand years.”
Snow shook her head. She couldn’t refute his words. Falcon was the best that she has seen so far. There have been budding Players who have acquired such skills and have been making a name for themselves.
“See, you got no words for it.”
“Well, thank you for your work.” Snow pulled the box of swords.
Her magical tattoo on her face reappeared. The magic swept out from her body, wrapping itself on the case and the armor. Within seconds, both the armor and the weapon disappeared.
“Every time I see that, I can’t help but get the jitters.”
Falcon shivered, rubbing his arm up and down. He then squinted, twitching his beard a few times as he shook off the feeling. He then glared at the tattoo and crossed his arms.
“What do you mean?” Snow opened her eyes. She tilted her head, wondering what he meant. She was a bit uncomfortable at the way he stared.
“I don’t know, but the magical energy around it makes my skin crawl. I don’t know what it is, but I don’t like it.”
Thinking over what he had said, she tried to remember when she had gotten this item. The tattoo was an ancient item she had grabbed from a black-market auction. It wasn’t much to it as when she had found it, it was in the form of glasses. Nobody really cared for such a trivial thing until she came by and took it upon herself.
At first, she didn’t think much of it like the rest, but something in her gut urged her to buy it. Without thinking, she purchased the item cheaply, which she was glad for. After she got it, it became something special that she didn’t want to give away and took it with her whenever she got.
Eventually, since the first dungeon dive, it has decided to turn into a tattoo that decorated half her face. She could still feel it “alive” for the better term of words, knowing that it was always there to assist her. She didn’t know why this item shifted into such a form, but she didn’t complain. The headgear, the tail, and claws were all amazing additions that she used every chance.
Plus, every time that Falcon created or updated the armor, the item's will would enhance it a bit further so it would fit her form. Lately, her wrist, ankle, and neck had a strange itch that she couldn’t quite get rid of, and the tattoo was reacting to it as if it was the one that caused it.
“Well, I like it.” Snow said, not really caring if he liked the item or not, but for a master blacksmith to state that something was off about an artifact brought curiosity. She had always seen the item as nothing more than a protective item, a small weapon and armor storage, and a tattoo. Other than that, this was all she knew about it.
“I know you do. It’s useful.” Falcon said.
“It is.” She agreed; she wouldn’t give it away for something else so easily. “Why, do you have something on it that I should know about?”
Falcon thought over for a moment. He took a good look at the glowing tattoo, starting to fade away as time went by. “Do you mind?”
Snow summoned up the claw in her hand, allowing the glow to come back with a more brilliant force. She raised up her claws for him to see.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Falcon came over; he reached over to touch her claws as he brought it upon himself. He then moved it around, tapping it a few times.
“It’s made of Mythril.”
Snow was surprised to hear it. “Wait, you don’t mean the Mythril that is hard to find these days.”
“Yes, that Mythril. All your swords and armor are made of it.” Falcon raised his eyebrows. “I only play with the best kind, Snow. Plus, I can't let you go around swinging your sword with an iron blade.” He snorted. “You are my best customer.”
Snow opened and closed her mouth.
“But these days, Mythril mine have been found, so it's not terribly expensive as you think. The dungeon provides it, and the Players are the one who brings it. Though it's still limited, Mythril doesn’t grow as quickly or as easy as one thinks.” Falcon brought out a small dagger that would fit in his hand. He tapped it a few times, which caused Snow to feel a bit uncomfortable. It was as if every time he tapped the back of his hand, she felt a small energy prick.
“Peculiar.” Falcon looked up when he saw Snow slightly flinch. “Magical energy is imbued directly into the metal, which has high conductivity, but another metal is mixed into it, which I have never seen before.”
Snow brought up her other hand, figuring out what he saw that she wasn’t. It looked all the same, her white claws that were dyed slightly with light blue. She could see the intricate coloring of blue mana running and up and down her claws, back of her hand, and up to her elbow that it covered.
Falcon squatted down to check the claws on her feet. He tapped it a few times, which the claws extended out even further. Racking into the very ground itself.
Snow always thought that the claws were a part of her. She could feel the very end of it extending and retracting with just her will alone.
Getting back up, Falcon then took a good look at her. “Could you show me the tails and the helmet?”
Snow nodded. She summoned up the tail and the helmet. Her tail whooshed back and forth. It also retracted its sharp spine, allowing Falcon to grab a hold. He brought it up, tapping it at the end, amused at the strangeness of it.
“I never saw such intricately made weapons,” Falcon said with awe. “It’s almost as if it's living.”
Snow agreed with him. “I thought the same thing at times.”
“Like?” Falcon curiously peered towards her.
“The armor has a mind of its own.”
“Really?? That’s fascinating.” Falcon let go of her tail. Then he shuffled his way around her, taking a good look at the helmet that she had on. It had slightly changed, the horns were the same elegant swerve with bony structures, but now there were a few smaller horns that sprouted next to it with feathers growing out from the side. The familiar dragon-like helmet was present, giving it an intimidating look, but there was some holiness to it.
“A draconic look?” Falcon asked. He then stepped back to take a good look at her as the armor that Falcon had made covered her from head to toe. “Did it always come looking like this?”
Snow thought it over for a moment; she wasn’t sure. “No. It was glassed in the beginning when I first bought it. After the first dungeon that I was trapped in, it changed forms completely. Plus, the color was black before it changed to white.”
“Hmmm.”
“Glasses? It could have been hiding.” Falcon mumbled under his breath. “Also, change in color?” Falcon then reached up to touch the tip of her horn. When he was done, he pulled away.
“Yes, when I died. It changed colors.”
Falcon was surprised by what he had learned.
Snow couldn’t help but wonder if there was something wrong.
“This is definitely not a normal item.” Falcon took a step back. “From what I know, I think it's an old artifact that predates during the time of dragons.” Falcon had said carefully. He was scratching his beard, thinking about the legends he had heard about. “I only have handled a few items that brought unease to my very soul, and yours is one of them. I believe the artifact had some kind of connections to dragons.”
“Dragons?!” Snow blurted out. “All dragons are dead.”
“Yes, in our history, they are. We slew our last dragon a thousand years ago, but that doesn’t mean that they are completely gone.” Falcon said. He seemed to be hiding something that made Snow curious about what he knew. “if we are unlucky, we might rub up against one in the dungeon.”
The thought of meeting a dragon brought unease to Snow’s heart. It was a known fact that all dragons in history brought calamity to the environment and only a very few brought benefits. Was what she had a part of dragon history? The curiosity in her piqued at the thought of the item that she had acquired.
“Your’s might just have a piece of their body, maybe it’s their heart?” Falcon spoke, taking a moment to collect his thoughts before he continued. “Dragon magic is always interesting.
Shaping and warping the magical elements of nature, but yours…..it only takes upon the form of a dragon: the claws, the tail, and the helmet. Just small fragments of it, so not much could be used except to follow the hardness level of their scales and bones. My only thought about it changing its form in a dungeon is that it could have activated its magic, allowing it to form into what it is today.”
Snow was amazed at how old such an artifact could be. She had heard legends and myths of such items, and their rarity was one in a million chance of obtaining one. Most legendary items didn’t compare to such history, mostly because the power imbued in them didn’t even come close to it.
Nowadays, the recently created legendary artifacts were a third of such power compared to relics created since the dawn of time.
“Then I’m guessing because it's a piece of it, the armor and weapon that you make is just compensation for the rest?”
“That’s my thought as well. Dragon magic is a whimsical thing.” Falcon chuckled, understanding her confusion. “I have seen similar instances where magical items imbued with dragon parts devour other items for its own.”