CHAPTER 1.7:

I struggled to eat throughout dinner. Having Lady Mina near me was really bad for my digestion. The butterflies in my stomach seemed to chase away any hunger I felt earlier.

Throughout dinner, Lady Mina recounted her examination as well as Lord Fordgraine’s initial reluctance to pass her given the destructive consequences of using her power at full strength.

“You can maintain a corporeal mana blade, huh?” Paul asked with great interest.

Lady Mina seemed a little taken aback at his excitement on the matter. “Ah, yes. It was one of the solutions I’ve been working on with Master Dean for my lack of an artifact.”

Abram nodded sadly at that. “Aye, my lady. It is a pity, but rest assured that we are working on a solution.”

Lady Mina shook her head. “It’s fine, Abram. I’ve long come to peace with it. It has never hindered me before.” She gave us all a serene smile which made me feel worse for not being able to help her more.

“Well, we should have some encouraging news at least, and soon, right, Adi?” Abram prodded.

“That’s right, my lady.” I said confidently, determined to do my part in sharing the burden of the Valera family.

“Thank you.” Lady Mina nodded at us.

Lady Vanya looked back and forth between us, clearly out of the loop. Her delicate eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

I guess Lady Mina hasn’t divulged the services I’m rendering for them.

I decided to change the subject.

“What about you Lady Vanya? Do you also require some equipment for your sortie mission? I’m sure we could get you a sizable discount with Guy.” I offered.

Lady Vanya was caught off guard by the sudden shift of attention. “Ah, no. Thank you, Adi, but I’m fine. I don’t really require much aside from my shield.”

I saw her in a new light. “You applied to be a Support Defender?”

Lady Vanya nodded. “I don’t have the talent Lady Mina has for combat. But my affinity and temperament are well-fitted for a support role.”

That’s usually the job of retainer families. It takes a lot of humility to take the backseat like that as a noble.

“If you don’t mind us asking, Lady Vanya… Is your father aware of your choice?” Paul asked, picking up my train of thought.

Lady Vanya looked away, in visible discomfort. “It is not his business what I choose to do.” She replied curtly.

Lady Mina shot Paul and me a reproachful look. “Let’s leave it at that.” She reached out and gently touched Lady Vanya’s arm. The latter seemed to relax and sighed.

“It is fine, my lady. I know the Finches are honorable and they wouldn’t slander my family even if I told them the truth.” Lady Vanya remarked. “The truth is, I’ve been estranged from my father for a few years now, ever since I applied to the Heroes Guild. He wanted to betroth me to a high-ranking noble in East Watch and I adamantly refused.”

Paul and I exchanged looks. I knew we both regretted dredging up these feelings in her.

“We apologize, Lady Vanya.” I said softly.

She shook her head. “It is fine. I’m sorry for putting a damper on our supper.”

“Not at all, my lady.” Abram interjected. He gave her an encouraging smile. “If I may be so bold, I believe you showed wisdom and strength beyond your years in forging your own path. If you ever require support and assistance, the Finches are at your service. Any friend of Lady Mina, is a friend of ours as well.”

“Well said, pa.” Paul added.

“Thank you, everyone.” Lady Vanya replied meekly while struggling to keep her voice from cracking. “I can see why you like making the journey here, my lady.” She turned to Lady Mina.

Lady Mina smiled warmly at her and then to us. “They are more than friends. I consider them my family. They have assisted me in countless ways throughout the years. Their allegiance and support are incomparable.”

“You honor us, my lady.” Abram bowed.

“Anyway, shall we retire for the evening?” Lady Mina asked as she stood up.

“Please go ahead, we have to take stock and prepare the shop for tomorrow.” Paul answered.

“Oh, may we assist you?” Lady Mina offered with some eagerness.

“No, no, my lady, please. Just rest up.” Abram countered immediately.

I looked at the time and realized I was going to be late for my evening work. “Ah, and I have to get going as well.”

Lady Mina and Lady Vanya looked at me curiously. “Where are you going at such a late hour?”

“Oh, I work the forge with Guy in the evenings.” I answered absent-mindedly.

The two noble ladies exchanged looks.

“You work until late?” Lady Vanya said with some concern.

“Hmm… Not really late. I usually finish by nine in the evening. So I’ll be back here a little after then.” I replied as I wore the evening coat hanging from the back of my chair.

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“Please do not overexert yourself.” Lady Mina gave me a worried look.

I felt giddy seeing her so concerned for my well-being. “Of course, my lady.”

Behind the two noblewomen, Paul was shooting me an amused look which I tried to ignore.

“I’m off then.” I did my best to keep a straight face.

Everyone gave me a wave and I exited the house.

At around a little before eight, I arrived at Leery’s Forge. I went to the backroom where Guy had already laid down several tools that needed enchanting.

“Are we starting with enchanting right away? I thought you wanted me to work on the South End order.” I asked.

Guy shuffled in carrying a small box. “You think of yourself as some prodigy? You need as much time as you can get to learn this skill.”

I scowled at his deprecating comment.

“You’ve done your homework, right? What’s opal used for?” Guy questioned.

“It’s a general enhancer. Improves the overall quality of a tool or weapon, whether in terms of power, durability, or special effect.” I answered mechanically.

“Aye. Exactly. What is it most often used for?” Guy continued without missing a beat.

“For artisan tools.” I answered.

He nodded. “Enchantment doesn’t require physical exertion from us unlike forging. It just needs us to cast the right spell. For this, you need some measure of creation affinity, which shouldn’t be an issue for you. Now, what separates a master enchanter from a novice?”

I thought about the question carefully and ventured a guess. “Uhh, the efficiency?”

Guy considered me for a moment and then shook his head. “Generic. What else?”

I looked at him in annoyance. “I don’t know.”

Guy gave me a smirk which made me feel even more incensed. “Why can’t you stack enchantments on tools or weapons?”

“Because enchantments don’t overlap.” I answered.

“Aye. The difference between a master and a novice is that a master is able to utilize the minimal amount of reagent required to bring out the full effect of an enchantment. A novice can use more of the reagent but only achieve a partial effect.” Guy expounded.

“Basically, what I said…” I muttered under my breath.

Guy shot me a murderous look and I laughed nervously.

“Now, the process is fairly simple. You sprinkle the tool or weapon with the recommended amount of gem dust. You channel mana into your fingertips. You imagine the dust melding into the object like a sponge absorbs water, and then you imagine the object glowing.” Guy approached the table where we kept the jeweler’s burnisher and hammer that we forged yesterday. He opened the small box in his hand and sprinkled a pinch of opal dust on both tools. He gestured for me to approach.

“Uhh, right away? What if I ruin the tools?” I confessed my worries. “We can’t have do-overs like when I first learned forging.”

“Heh. Then you better get it right the first time then?” Guy said mercilessly.

I looked at him helplessly and refused to move.

I’m not going to waste opal dust. My savings can’t take a hit like that.

Guy sighed and rolled his eyes at me. “Stubborn as a mule. Relax, kid. The jeweler who placed the order is pretty new herself. These are just her training tools so she doesn’t care about reaching the maximum enchantment effect.”

I still hesitated and Guy got impatient.

“Fucking… Get a move on, lad! We don’t have all night.” Guy growled while brandishing his walking stick menacingly.

I ducked to avoid a few swings aimed at my head. “FINE, FINE!” I held up my hands.

Guy huffed and took a step back. He took a flask out of his pocket and took a swig.

I made sure he wasn’t going to swing his stick again before closing my eyes.

Come on. I can do this.

I started channeling mana into my fingertips. I imagined the dust liquefying, completely coating the tools in a thin film. I could see in my mind’s eye the tools absorbing the coating and emitting a strong pearly white glow reminiscent of actual opal. I intensified the mana on my fingertips and thought about what Paul taught me regarding mana execution. I tried to be sensitive to the mana exiting my body. In a heartbeat, I felt mana leaving my fingertips.

Did… did it work?

I slowly opened one eye. Guy was holding the tools in his hand, examining them with a critical expression – the dust on the tools was completely gone.

“How’d I do?” I asked anxiously.

“Hmph. Better and worse than what I expected.” Guy grunted continuing to examine the burnisher. “You intentionally tried to enchant both at the same time?”

“I… I’m not sure? I think so.” I answered.

“Well, the hammer is well-enchanted. It has about a 25% increase in quality out of the possible maximum of 30%.” Guy explained. “But the burnisher is at 10% enchantment.”

I felt disappointed.

“It’s cause I tried to enchant them both at the same time?” I asked.

“Aye. Seems like more mana was focused on the hammer.” Guy explained. He closed the small box containing the opal dust and began storing the enchanted tools.

“Um, Guy. You think I can try again?” I tried to suggest casually.

Guy froze and glared at me. “I hope I heard you wrong, lad.”

I jumped out of the workbench and created some distance between Guy and me. “I mean, wouldn’t it hurt our reputation to complete an order half-baked?”

“Heh. YOU completed the order half-baked, kid.” Guy sneered at me.

I gave him an annoyed look. “Yeah, but it’s not my insignia on them and it’s not my name out front.”

“Not a concern to me. I told the jeweler that I’m letting my apprentice handle this order. I promised a small discount if it wasn’t up to her standards.” Guy explained dismissively.

I was getting agitated.

I really wanna re-do the burnisher…

“How much would it cost to re-do it?” I said decisively.

He looked at me with genuine surprise. “About three silver.”

I started making computations in my head.

Damn it. With the two silver I lost today, I won’t be able to buy all the other stuff I need for Lady Mina’s birthday if I lose three more.

I looked down dejectedly. “Never mind, that’s too much.”

Guy considered me for a while and shook his head. “Fine. I’ll give you one more shot, kid. Go melt it down and re-forge the burnisher. Just this once, I’ll cover the cost.”

“Really?” I said excitedly. I quickly grabbed the burnisher from his hand before he could change his mind. I ignited the forge and got to work.

The entire time, Guy just sat on the stool in the corner watching me.

After I finished quenching the small metal tool and branding it with the insignia, Guy stood up and hobbled over. He sprinkled a small amount of opal dust and jerked his chin to signal me to start.

I started channeling mana and crafted the same imagery in my head, of the opal liquefying and coating the burnisher. I imagined liquid seeping into every surface of the tool. Then I imagined the same strong pearly white glow emitting out. I poured a lot of mana again and felt it release. I opened my eyes.

Guy was already holding the burnisher in his hand, examining it. “27%.”

I leaped out of the workbench and jubilantly pumped my fist.

“Heh. Not bad, kid. A few more tries, and you should be able to enchant the lady’s sword with the ruby dust with no issues.” Guy remarked. “When are you bringing it in for me to inspect?”

I paused and looked around the room awkwardly.

“What?” Guy pressed.

“Well, the thing is… It’s not done yet.” I explained.

Guy was taken aback. “What?”

“I’m stuck at 98-99%.” I revealed my predicament.

Guy threw his arms up in the air in clear exasperation. “The hell am I gonna do with you, boy.”

“I can do it! I’m so close. I feel it.” I said with as much bravado as I could project.

“Just make sure you bring it in two days before you actually give it to her.” Guy warned. “If you’re going to ask for my help, it’ll be on my terms.”

“No problem, Guy.” I answered, still maintaining my confident smile.

“Aye. Now make five more spears before we close up. We’re still a little behind.” Guy instructed.

“Sure, let me just turn up the heat in the forge.” I replied.

I tried to channel mana into my hands and immediately felt weak. My knees buckled and I sank to the floor.

“Wha- what happened?” I asked in confusion.

Guy looked at me and shook his head. “You used too much mana in enchanting.”

I looked helplessly at my hands. I tried to draw more mana, but felt nothing.

“Get up.” Guy said shortly as he picked me up from under my arms. “Go home. You’re no use to me like this.”

Three enchantments and I’m already at mana exhaustion?

As I closed the door behind me, I could hear the forge coming to life. I felt frustrated by my own limits as I slowly shuffled home.