As I leaned against Gael’s oversized bag, I spat, “Pfftt, pffft,” as fiery sparks flew at the guard and hilt of my body.

Slyly, Gael turned away from what he was doing to fake patting down the sweat building up on his forehead. Instead, that darn Gael gave me a sharp glare in response to my small noise-making.

I shrugged off the menacing look and complained in my mind.

Che. Who could hear me anyway with all that ratchet pounding you’re making, caped weirdo?

After sending me silent threats to keep quiet, that darn Gael turned back and continued dealing with his ‘customer’ issues.

Sweat flung off Gael’s face as he slammed hammer after hammer on the searing-red surface of a molten piece of reforged metal. Deeply focused on his craft, I admit the working man looked pretty cool.

He’d be even cooler if he weren’t so uptight. Did I say anything to warrant a death glare? No. I just spat away at the sparks Gael hammered in my direction. Technically speaking, wasn’t it Gael’s fault? Or maybe the fault of the breeze?

Hmpf. The things I put up with.

But being the big-hearted individual that I was, I forgave Gael. His helper, Nuria, did save me from the horrible turmoil plaguing all of my life thus far.

Fine. I told myself. I’m not the ungrateful type.

Besides, now I had even more questions that needed answers. Like, how do I control this new power of mine? I could now move to some extent. But that couldn’t count as my power. All my siblings could do that much. Then what is my power? Hopefully, Gael could help provide me with better answers. Like Father, Gael was an Artificer. Maybe I can train Gael in exchange for his aid? I have extensive knowledge of swordplay. That and the other things I learned doing odd jobs with my previous owners over all the years.

Maybe I could work out some kind of deal with Gael? He seemed to like deals. But I should be careful when making deals with the cunning peddler…

But until when do I have to wait?

Ugh! The line of waiting adventurers is getting even longer! Work faster, Gael!

His black sleeves rolled back, Gael’s arm muscles bulged and flexed as another downward strike smashed a flurry of sparks into the air. The harsh clash of metal on metal echoed through the crowd of adventurers along the dirt road and into the plains of swaying grass. Lifting the hammer above his head again, Gael swung down, precisely hitting marked areas on the metal onto the curved horn of the anvil. Each following strike bent the molten metal back into the shape of the arm guard it was once before.

Sure, Gael was great, I admit. He’s got a really good aim and fine control. But I’ve struck metal before, too. Cut most of them in half, I did. I bet I looked just as cool as Gael does now. Maybe even cooler.

But I had to give Gael due credit. His act wasn’t just about looking cool while smithing. Probably not at all. It was about making his day’s pay. The cunning fox likely planned this whole ordeal from the start. I knew not much about the smithing craft, but Gael certainly was a crafty one.

Hmmm… I found a clever owner this time around. I thought to myself as I observed Gael pause and grab something deep within his large bag of tricks. Ah… I now understand your game, my guy.

In his hand, Gael pulled out another bottled concoction and poured out the contents of a glowing, iridescent green juice over the reforged arm guard. The metal piece on the anvil fizzled as the liquid seeped inside and tempered the now-steaming item.

What is that green stuff? Seemed to temper metal similarly to oil or water but better.

I wanted to ask Gael, seeing how he repeated the process for a few adventurers already. But for now, I kept my curiosity to myself until fewer people were around. There were still too many adventurers gathered. If anything, more surrounded and watched us now than earlier when Gael first brought out the adorable Nuria.

Most of the onlookers stood waiting in a line that extended at least thirty people along the dirt road as Gael sold his services. I previously thought the once angry mob was going to give Gael a thorough beating.

Earlier, while Gael tried to reforge me, Nuria’s white flames burned the surrounding adventurers’ metal items. But now I’m starting to believe it was all purposely part of Gael’s plan. The angry adventurers were now eager customers waiting in a single-file line.

Quite an interesting marketing ploy by the caped weirdo, I must say.

Maybe my guy Gael deserves another title? A better and more fitting title. Like Crafty Weirdo?

“Done,” Gael said, after grinding and polishing off the now shiny silver arm guard that glowed in a nuclear green. “For unintentionally burning your belongings, the recovery enhancement I added to your other arm guard was free of charge. However, as you wanted a matching pair, and as we agreed, this one will be fifty Large Silvers.”

Rummaging through a clicking coin purse, the man with a face scar groaned for a discount as he prepared to take out some money. “Ahhh…come on, man. Ain’t it be weird if only one side glowed and da other didn’t? Hows about forty of ‘em silver coins?”

“Fifty.” Gael held firm with a smile, but I sensed the crafty weirdo held grudges. The man with a face scar was the first to doubt Gael and also spread it to the crowd. “Honestly, my services already are on the cheap end, good sir. Any enhancements or imbuements are at least two gold within the city walls.”

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“Yeah, yeah, alright. I knows. Still ain’t mean it’s cheap for some of us lower-ranked adventurers, ya know,” the man said with a click of his tongue, taking out five triangular silver coins, and handing them over with great difficulty to Gael. Having the coins snatched away, he gritted his teeth.

Gael consoled the man. “But for added recovery enhancements, it is well worth fifty Big Silvers to help survive tough situations.”

“That’s right by my book,” the guy next in line stated in agreement. He then questioned the man with the scar, “Ya done? I got monsters in the Dungeon wait’n for me to slaughter. Need my weapons fixed, ya feel?”

“Yah,” the scar-faced man said with an annoyed frown.

Huffing from being rushed and less four silver coins, he walked off to his buddy who waited for him after already receiving his enhancements. “Doil, we gotta make up fer da week’s lost lodging money at Penny’s place. Time ta kill us some hobgoblins, boi!”

“Aye, aye, Chast! I be feel’n real good with ma new sword and shield here,” said the buzzed blonde-haired man with a grin, all the while bashing the bottom of his shield against the pommel of his sword. “It be like me and ma weapons be hungry fer blood!”

Poor things, the sword and shield, I mean. I knew the feeling of being bashed around. Hopefully, Gael wouldn’t treat me like that.

But after the duo scampered off, I watched, rather amazed, how Gael continued turning a rather sticky situation that could have gone wrong into a relatively lucrative deal. All the adventurers whose metallic pieces caught on fire had their items reforged by Gael. As an apology, Gael imbued an added effect to only one piece of their items free of charge.

However, most adventurers wanted complimentary pieces that were both enhanced, which made sense because if you sold a pair of arm guards…

Umm… What would be a good analogy… Ah!

Who’d want to buy mismatched socks?

Gael happily obliged, charging for the extra service. As his services were extremely cheap, a line piled along the road to the Stygian Dungeon as Gael made his day’s pay. It was an ingenious ploy to earn business. Of course, at the risk of being beaten into a bloody pulp should it have failed.

But I was slightly confused by Gael's choice of place to run his business.

Weird. My guy seems decent in his craft. Why not open a real shop? Why is he peddling his skills on the roadside like some kind of vagrant?

More questions to ask Gael when the crowd disperses.

But unfortunately, I would not get a chance to ask Gael until the freaking sunset! Those darn adventurers—what kind of trusting bunch were they?!

Impatient of waiting, the adventurers left behind their damaged pieces with Gael to repair or enhance. They all then headed into the Dungeon without worrying if their items were going to be stolen. After one started, everyone else waiting in line followed suit.

Ugh! What the heck!?

Since when was the world so trusting? Or was it with just Gael? Did they somehow find him trustworthy? Or was he that well-known? I didn’t know. I never heard of Gael or his nicknames before.

Well, my new owner did not move away from his craft for even a second. Not even to eat or drink. So I guess the trust was founded. But there were simply too many who left everything to Gael!

Gael ignored me with a death glare any time I attempted to communicate with him. To my dismay. Ugh! And so I was forced to wait. And I waited and waited.

I’ve spent many days twiddling under the broiling sun with old man Dylan. But none was ever so grueling as today. My questions needed answers, but I was forced to do nothing but wait with years of accumulated anxiety squeezed into one day. Gael did not budge, and being my only lead, I was forced to stay by his side. Silently in agony. Never has my patience been so harshly tested.

Finally, after the grimy adventurers dragged themselves back from a long day in the Dungeon, they picked up their items before returning back down the dirt road that split the grassy plains. With nothing else to do, I watched group after group. The tired adventurers passed the fields of verdant crops that eventually replaced the grassy plains before finally entering towering stone walls in the far distance in the east.

The round bottom of the sun touched the horizon, and finally the last of the items given to Gael were picked up. Surprisingly, even after an arduous day’s work, Gael moved at lightning speed, haphazardly stuffing his mobile smithy back into his backpack.

“Nuria,” Gael called to his summoned helper. “Return to your first form. Let’s hurry home.”

The heck? Why the sudden mad rush?

But I think I knew why.

Looking around, the once busy dirt road was now silent and nearly empty. A few straggling adventurers still slowly walked back, but the area was mostly desolate of people. Gael, with his cunning performance, earned a decent amount of coin. If I was a thief, not that I was, he would be a prime target. Let’s just say, I had experience with owners who were.

“Pupuri!” Nuria nodded before seeping back into its guts of now long-hardened lava rock. Immediately, it burst with the blue flames of Hell’s Deep. Long round eyes with yellow slits blinked within the molten mush, wiggling and condensing back into a ball. Blazing red liquid then oozed from the top like a spilling volcano down the sides of the molten ball, forming a teardrop shape and encasing Nuria’s innards in a skin-like barrier.

While I watched Nuria's strange display, Gael hurriedly spun cloth around the lengths of my blade.

“Let’s go, Nuria. Before dusk brings out the scavengers.”

…

Up and down, up and down, I bobbed in the air while being held in one hand behind Gael. He sped down the dirt road with quick steps, jingling the heavy metal items in his backpack. With no choice but to be an obnoxiously loud, clanking target, Gael’s eyes were on high alert, scanning the tall grass beside the road and especially behind us for any unwanted surprises.

Gael suddenly tensed at a figure standing off the side of the road ahead of us. But he sighed in relief as he soon recognized the person. Quick leaping steps, and Gael arrived at the much-too-familiar man with a relieved smile.

“Aeron! I thought you left without me!”

“Course not, little brother,” said the man with similar yellow eyes as Gael. “We shouldn’t be seen together if we don’t want our customers to know we’re working together.”

I knew it! The duo was in on a scheme. Not the most evil of schemes, but it definitely worked in their favor. Gael set up a performance, and his brother hyped up the crowd and wooed in their potential customers. But were the two really brothers?

The only difference between them was their hair. One had curly brown hair and the other, straight black. Maybe step brothers then?

Hmm. After taking a better look, actually, the brown-haired Aeron looked human besides his unique eye color. Gael on the other hand? Hmmm… Gael’s face looked human, but because he hid in a black cloak, I felt Gael revealed less than he actually was.

“You go on ahead, Gael. I’ll take the rear. That detestful Iza showed up today, but we’ll be okay once we get to the fields of crops. The city guards should already be patrolling. Be always on high alert until we make it back inside the walls.”

“Will do,” Gael said, adding, “You too, Brother.”