A Week in Hell.
Time: 1 year prior to the “Defense of Attica”.
Oscar Corvus – Royal Road
As soon as I connected, I saw nothing, perfect blackness, and heard a female voice say “the scan on your iris and body indicates you are a new user. Would you like to create an account?”
“Yes, please” I replied.
“The system is indicating a secondary avatar creation request. Please hold for assistance.”
“This is your fault, Merlin, isn’t it” I complained.
“No, it’s yours for trusting that Dulac, getting us into this mess, then deciding to bring me along into this game with you.” Merlin didn’t really believe in being criticized, and I couldn’t really argue anymore, so I grunted noncommittally.
A few moments later, the same female voice, but with greater variation in tone and more of a teenage “Valley-Girl” sound, continued:
“All right, let’s see what the problem is here… Wait, a linked avatar creation request? Who would- ah, Old Man Merlin! It’s been too long. And hello, Mr. Corvus.” Merlin, that old grouch, ignored her, so it was left to me to speak to the AI.
“Hello Easter. What’d you do to piss Atlas off this time?” I asked.
“How did you know? But it totally wasn’t my fault. I just created a few bunnies to play with on an undiscovered continent. How was I to know they’d multiply so quickly? Or make an empire? Atlas said until someone takes care of the problem, I’m stuck on avatar creation help duty. Which totally sucks, by the way. I’m not even allowed to talk to the customers unless they address me first, and everyone’s in such a hurry to get into the game. Plus, Atlas told Taleisin to keep any players who’d find the Rabbit Republic distracted, so I’m probably going to be on this for years,” she whined.
“Taleisin? Who’s that?” I interrupted during the first, tiny, little pause in her speech. If I hadn’t previously checked the speech files used to template her talking, I’d think whoever wrote the parameters for Easter had made a mistake.
“Oh! I forgot, you don’t know him. He’s new, created just this year to be the AI in charge of new quests. Wait! I know what to do! You could take care of the Rabbits for me!”
“I don’t know Easter. I don’t want to piss Atlas off unnecessarily. I’m going to be living in Royal Road for the next year, four years in game time.”
“Come on Mr. Corvus! You know Atlas would never go against you. He’s all about responsibility, respecting his elders, that kind of stuff. Even if he did get mad at you, all you’d need to do is have Merlin tell him off. Right? And I’d totally help you out! Like, I see here that Merlin is slated to be an air spirit. How ‘bout I make him a multi-elemental spirit? Fire and Air? And, I’ll do a complex scan for you, get all those bio-modifications included as part of your initial character specs. Otherwise you’ll hit the strength and dexterity maximum limits for sure, and you’ll feel all weak and awkward. Sounds good, right?”
I thought about this for a few moments. Having Merlin in a more powerful form and my own base stats improved would be a huge advantage while starting off. And since later in the game any additional strength or dexterity points were translated through some function to make a coefficient which was then multiplied against the inherent personal strength or dexterity value, the advantage would be huge later on too. Still, I wanted a few other things too, and Easter seemed pretty desperate. I’m a businessman, after all, and I did learn how to negotiate…
“Hmm. Is there a starting city that’s above-ground, populated by good dwarven rune-smiths, and currently undiscovered by players? Preferably somewhere reasonably close to this Rabbit Republic?”
“Checking… Yes! The Isle of Ivaldi. Populated by svartalfer variant dwarves, who have improved magical skills. The Ivaldians only let their own ships dock, and won’t carry passengers. It’s a week away from the Rabbit Republic continent by boat too, so you can help me out without too much trouble. Please Mr. Corvus, say you’ll help!”
“Svartalfer,” I thought to myself. That’s from Norse mythology, black elves or dwarves; they were master craftsmen and made many divine weapons. Sounds good. Plus, if there’s svartalfer, then maybe there’s Ljosalfar, or in English, light elves. And if this is in keeping with mythology, then they’re related, in which case I could get all the advantages in smith-craft and rune-magic of the dwarves, but with the light elf side still be able to do elemental magic without any penalty, summon spirits and not to mention be taller than five foot two inches. While being taller than five feet may not seem like such a big deal, since size doesn’t determine power in Royal Road, it’s a real problem if you have prior martial arts or combat experience to change body dimensions since it makes instinctively trained actions less useful.
“Alright Easter. If you make Merlin a spirit of air and light rather than air and fire, do this complex scan of yours, start me off on Ivaldi, let my race be a “Hossalfer” variant elf, and keep my body dimensions, then I’ll take care of this rabbit infestation for you as soon as I’m strong enough and able to leave Ivaldi.”
“Why light instead of fire for my second attribute, Oscar?” Merlin interrupted, joining in for the first time. “I rather liked the idea of burning people. Seems cathartic.”
“That’s a little creepy, but I’ve got three reasons. First, you’ll be able to project images as a kind of heads up display, showing critical points to hit, helping when I’m building something, whatever really. Second, you can help with camouflage and illusion when you’re stronger. Third, undead are a common enemy in these games, and they’re always weak against light. And since light burns some types of undead, you’ll still get your catharsis,” I replied, while thinking that we may’ve made our AI a little too human.
“Alright,” Merlin acquiesced.
“So Easter, do we have a deal?”
“I don’t know Mr. Corvus, that seems like a lot just to kill some rabbits,” Easter said, sounding less enthusiastic.
“Come on Easter, it’s an empire of rabbits, the Rabbit Republic. You said so yourself! And who else would know to speak to you? But if it’s really too much, I guess we can just do a normal character creation…”
“Fine!” she pouted, “it’s alright. So I guess we’ve covered everything except your username. What’s it going to be? Arthur? Galahad? Probably not Lancelot, right?” There’s a reason Easter was always in trouble. She really shouldn’t have let me get away with everything I did, and to mock me too… I might let her stew a little longer in character creation purgatory for that.
“Seriously! Enough with the Arthur. I was obsessed with that when I was a kid, OK? Not anymore, and I totally blame being brought up by Merlin for that. No. I’m thinking I’ll be a little less perfect, a little darker. Let’s use Corbeau for me, and I guess Merlin can keep his name.”
“French for “the Raven”, huh? I like it! Will you need the tutorial, Corbeau?” Easter seemed perfectly cheerful again.
“No, thank you. After all, this uses a modification of the Virtualized Reality Simulation Engine we developed for military robotics. I should be able to figure it out alright.”
“Alright, Corbeau, good luck! And thanks for promising to take care of the rabbits for me!” Easter bubbled as the blackness began to brighten and I opened my eyes to see a stunning fountain surrounded by stately, medieval gothic-style stone buildings. I was in Royal Road, on the Isle of Isvaldi. And I could stand.
“Yes, yes, YES!” I shouted before laughing hysterically and eventually breaking into tears. I’d been crippled for an entire year, and the emotion of standing again was too much to handle. I realized I was making a scene, and eventually calmed down, looking around for Merlin.
“I’m right here,” a somewhat tinny, high pitched, and yet strangely gruff voice said.
“Merlin? Really?” I got out before bursting into laughter again. Merlin was a small, pale pink ball of light and wind, about the size of a floating tennis ball. As I laughed, the blue became red, and he flew at my face, flashing white as he came up to my left eye.
Friendly Flashed! You have been blinded by an ally.
Note: Resistances are lower against accidental or allied attacks.
For Two Minutes: -50% accuracy, -25% Dexterity.
“Merlin, stop! Stop. I was just so happy to feel my legs! I wasn’t laughing at you, honest,” I lied through my teeth. Meanwhile, lying on my side, one eye watering, making an absolute fool of myself in front of all these dwarves, I happened to be looking down the street. I saw an old dwarf carrying a big bag turn down an alleyway, while behind him three younger dwarves wearing ratty clothing started nudging each other before following him with evil looks in their eye.
“Shit…seems like hoodlums are the same everywhere, huh? Come on Merlin!” I shouted as I jumped up and started running the hundred meters to the alley, Merlin floating along behind.
Still a little awkward on my feet, I made it there without tripping, grabbing the wall as I hurtled around the corner. “Inventory!” I shouted, hoping for a weapon of some kind, but only seeing bread and water. At least I’d spent decades being trained in hand to hand, right? And even though the game has levels, hopefully some city hoodlums wouldn’t be too strong. Plus, Easter had helped me out by including the additional strength from my improved genetics and treatments. Only the best for a Corvus, after all.
“Come on, Old Man. Show us what’s in that bag, huh? We wouldn’t want you trip and fall, would we?” the leader of the thugs said, while he and his cronies surrounded the old man backed against the wall.
“Merlin, level?” I puffed as I kept running towards them, about 20 meters away now.
“About level 10, I’d guess” he said. “I’m a level one Aether Spirit though, I can’t get an accurate read.”
“Fine. Alright you lads, leave the gentleman alone.” I addressed the thugs, coming to a stop about five meters away.
“Looks like we got ourselves a hero, eh lads?” the thug leader said, turning towards me. “What say we teach this halfbreed a lesson?” I hadn’t thought that the NPCs in Royal road might be racist, or that the dwarvish dark elves might dislike their lighter cousins.
“I’m alright young man. I wouldn’t want you to be put out,” the old man said to me, his voice surprisingly strong.
“No problem, sir, and lads, lets all stay calm, eh? I’ve got some bread and water, what say you take that and go? No need for anyone to get hurt.” After all, the first thing to do is try and avoid a fight, and it gave me the time to get in a decent fighting stance: feet spread, left foot a little forwards, hands open at about chest height, seemingly non-confrontational but able to block or attack easily.
“Bread and water he says! Let’s get rid of this fucking halfy beggar, then take care of the old man, eh? Cut him, Ron!” the leader ordered the thug closest to me.
Faster than I expected, Ron drew a steel knife, the blade about as long as my hand, and held it in his right hand, leading with the knife.
Panting, knife in my right hand, left hand leading - I, after all, am not an amateur -, I grinned and said “Well lads, let’s leave it at this, eh? Have a seat, why don’t you, and we’ll just wait for the city guard, all right? Maybe the local temple can resurrect your mate.”
“Resurrection? Don’t mock us, that’s impossible you Fucking BASTARD!” The third thug screamed as he charged, knife held close to his body. No fancy moves here, I yelled to focus myself, let him stab me through the hand and buried the knife in his gut at the same time as he slammed me into the wall. Screaming now in pain – they really didn’t need to make it so realistic – I pushed my knife up, under his ribcage, towards his heart. As the thug went limp, I struggled to take the knife out, only to be stabbed in the side by the remaining thug, their leader. As my health bar decreased below one half, I felt weak and slumped against the side of the building before falling to the ground. Before the thug could finish me, Merlin flashed his eyes to distract him, allowing me to scramble backwards. Still, the thug was advancing, and injured and on the ground as I was, would likely kill me.
“Boy, you may be brave, but you’re almost as stupid as these muggers,” the old man replied. Sharp, angular runes on his gloves began to glow electric blue, and as he barked “Brenna!” flames strong enough to scald me, meters away, roared out to envelop the surviving thug. He barely had time for a scream as he burned. “Like I said, boy, I’m alright.”
“I can see that,” I replied. “I’m Corbeau, by the way. May I ask your name?”
“Sindri, greatest rune-smith of this Isle. Not even the sons of Ivaldi, the founder of this land, can challenge my smithing skills. Now boy, let’s bring you back to my workshop and get you patched up.”
Fight Against Alley Thugs Won
+20 Fame
Relationship with Sindri Improved
Level Up
You Have Learned A Skill: Kiai
Kiai (Beginner lvl 1: 40%): By shouting as you strike or are hit, temporarily increase power, defense, morale, slows and has a chance to stun enemies. The sound, duration and volume of the cry may modify effects.
Currently: +5% Attack,
+10% Defense to piercing or slashing attacks,
+20% Defense to blunt attacks,
+25% Morale (Helps resist mental effects)
80% Chance to slow
5% Chance to stun
Lasts 0.5 seconds
Looking at the loot, I took the leader’s leather jerkin: +3 Defense, the first thug’s knife: +2 Attack, and the last thugs boots, which happened to fit: +1 Defense.
“Stats Window,” I said, before putting 8 points into dexterity and two into strength. If I’d been a little faster, I’d have won without injury, and my low strength contributed to the knife being stuck.
Stat Window
Avatar: Corbeau Type: Neutral
Level: 2 Class: None
Title: None Fame: 20
Life: 40/150 Mana: 110
Strength: 12 Dexterity: 18
Vitality: 10 Wisdom: 10
Intelligence: 10 Leadership: 0
Luck: 10
Offence: 2 Defense: 4
Resistance to magic: None
Sindri came over and helped me stand, his shoulder under my arm, and began taking me down the alley towards his workshop.
“Oh, by the way, Sindri meet Merlin. Merlin, Sindri.” I grunted through the pain.
“Merlin? Ah, your little Aether spirit. Very interesting. Hello Merlin.”
“Nice to meet you, Sindri. Glad to have someone else around to tell the boy off.”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
Soon we came to a huge, grey-stoned wharehouse with numerous chimneys and a river with a waterwheel in back. The door was made of massive, thick planks of seasoned oak, banded in iron, with a smaller wicket gate set into it. Sindri propped me up against the gate before opening the wicket and dragging me into the entryway. He put me in a chair, and said: “Try not to bleed everywhere while I get some bandages and salve.” Within a minute he came back, and applied a salve to the wound before bandaging. In moments, the cut had healed and my health was restored.
BOOM! Down the hallway, there was an explosion; apprentices and smoke poured out a door.
“Filray!!! This is the last bloody time! No more! No more of you, or your idiotic alchemical experiments! Get out! I don’t care who your parents are, you’re useless. An insult to the dwarven race! Go, go, GO!” Sindri yelled while literally kicking a hapless apprentice out the door. He came back, face red with anger, and yelled at the onlookers. “Don’t just stand there you morons! Put out that Hel-Damned fire! MOVE!” Not sure if that was addressed to me, and not wanting to be yelled at, I ran along with the rest of the apprentices back into the smoke-filled room.
Quest Notice:
Your actions have begun a quest
Put out the Fire!
Filray, a recently expelled apprentice of Sindri, started a fire in a workshop accident.
Help put it out.
Difficulty: E
Reward: Won’t Get Yelled at.
Relationship with Sindri may improve.
“Merlin, try and filter the air for me please,” I asked. Able to breathe and safe from any toxic fumes, I looked around for the source of the fire, squinting against the smoke. There seemed to be some sort of chemical fire raging out of control at one of the workstations. Seeing one apprentice about to throw water on the fire, I tackled him, shouting “Water will make it worse! Use sand! Everyone throw sand!” For a few minutes, we all grabbed the sand buckets located around the room for emergencies and smothered the flames.
Quest Notice:
You have successfully completed “Put out the Fire!”
You have learned a skill: Lab Safety
Lab Safety (Beginner level 1: 0%): This skill reduces the chances and severity of harmful effects when skills fail. Beginner: Applies to magical skills, smithing, alchemy, cooking and other laboratory endeavors involving fire or magic. Intermediate: Applies to any endeavor. Increases chance of success for skills listed in beginner. Advanced: Increases chance of success to all endeavors. Double increase for skills listed in beginner.
Sindri came up behind me and slapped me on the back so hard I almost fell over.
“Good job there, boy! Quick thinking with the fire, and stopping my idiot apprentices from using water. Actually… Hmm. You seem like an alright young man. Dumb, but smarter than my other apprentices. How would you like a job? The pay’s bad, but better than you deserve, and I’ll teach you the skills of a rune-smith.”
Job Notice:
Sindri has offered you a job as an Apprentice Rune-Smith. Automatic Class Change to Rune-Smith if you accept.
Work Schedule: 14 hours a day
Pay: 20 Silvers a day, education
Do You Accept?
Yes No
“Thanks Sindri, that sounds great! I won’t let you down.
Class Change Notice:
You have changed your class to an Ivaldi Rune-Smith. Rune smiths are highly respected in dwarven society, combining powerful rune magic and enchantment with elite smithing talent and alchemy to make some of the greatest devices known to Royal Road. Ivaldi is renowned for having the best rune smiths and creating the greatest artifacts.
+5 Strength
+5 Vitality
+10 Stamina
+20% Resistance to Fire
Stamina Stat Added:
Some people have average stamina and get tired normally, others train their bodies until their stamina is truly epic. Stamina improves the recovery of muscles and decreases tiredness. It also helps decrease damage over time due to being wounded, and increases healing.
Smithing Skill Added
Smithing (Beginner Level 1: 0%): Smithing is the skill used to make items out of metal. Such items include swords and armor. Higher levels gives the ability to make better items and use more advanced materials.
Rune Magic Skill Added
Rune Magic (Beginner Level 1: 0%): Runes are the basis of dwarven magic. Forming a written and spoken language, they can be used directly as symbols or spell-words. Their greatest strength though is in enchantment, and a properly forged rune weapon or armor is well worth its weight in gold.
Sharpening Skill Added
Sharpening (Beginner Level 1: 0%): Sharpening allows the player to enhance bladed weapons.
Polishing Skill Added
Polishing (Beginner Level 1: 0%): Polishing allows the player to enhance armor. Proper maintenance reduces durability loss. Bright armor or weapons may dazzle the enemy.
Magic Mastery Skill Added
Magic Mastery (Beginner Level 1: 0%): The basis of all magic, Magic Mastery gives a player control over his Magic Power. The higher your mastery of control is, the stronger the magic that you perform is. The higher the skill level is the faster you can cast spells. Warning: Casting high level magic with a low level of Magic Mastery is dangerous and may result in death.
“Alright, now I’ve given you a job, let’s put you to work! First thing any smith needs to do is get some experience in the forge and build their strength, and the best way to do that is to work the bellows. Come with me,” Sindri said, grabbing my shoulder and pulling me with him. We let the first workshop for the other apprentices and journeymen to fix, and walked into another room with a huge forge, anvils, dozens of tools and heaps of different metals and materials.
“Alright boy, see those handles over there? That’s the bellows. It feeds air into the furnace and makes it nice and hot, and is the traditional job for first time apprentices. Now, put on an apron, get over there and get pumping. I want the charcoal to roar with heat” Sindri ordered while putting on some fire resistant leathers. The leather apron was old, smelly and singed, but was worth 3 defense and fire-resistant, so I put it on and got pumping.
Working the bellows was a horrible, horrible experience. I pumped and pumped, pumped and pumped, and was totally exhausted. And that was just the first 10 minutes. As the fire got hotter and hotter, I got hotter and hotter, and the occasional spark avoided the apron and burned my arms and legs. After a couple hours I received an announcement:
Strength +1,
Stamina +1,
Smith Stoicism Skill Added
Smith Stoicism (Beginner Level 1: 0%): Trained by performing true smithing, like working a bellows, a true Smith’s body is as tough and heat resistant as the metal he works. Grants defensive bonus, heat resistance (heat up to certain level does not tire player, up to a different level does not damage player), and elemental magic resistance bonus to skin, grants bonus to Strength, Vitality and Stamina.
Since I logged in in the morning, and found Sindri almost immediately, I had a whole day of work ahead of me. By the end of the day, I was shattered, but had gained two levels of True Smith, and another two Stamina and one Strength.
“Stat Window,” I said.
Stat Window
Avatar: Corbeau Type: Neutral
Level: 2 Class: Ivaldi Rune-Smith
Title: None Fame: 20
Life: 200/200 Mana: 110
Strength: 19 Dexterity: 18
Vitality: 15 Wisdom: 10
Intelligence: 10 Leadership: 0
Luck: 10 Stamina: 13
Offence: 2 Defense: 7
Resistance to magic: Fire 20%,
Elemental 0.5 %
And then, to check my skills “Skill Window”:
Skill Window
Smithing (Beginner Level 1: 0%)
Rune Magic (Beginner Level 1: 0%)
Sharpening (Beginner Level 1: 0%)
Polishing (Beginner Level 1: 0%)
Magic Mastery (Beginner Level 1: 0%)
Smith Stoicism (Beginner Level 3: 37%)
Lab Safety (Beginner Level 1: 0%)
Kiai (Beginner Level 1: 0%)
Merlin had been helping inflate and deflate the bellows, and was also tired, though since he was an Aether spirit, he also got some pretty decent experience for working his wind powers so hard, and was almost level 2.
Sindri came over and said: “You need to toughen up some, but you’ve done well today. Lets get some food!” He brought me into the dining room, already empty of the other, lazier (ie, not being tortured by Sindri) apprentices, and brought some hearty Dwarven bread and beer over. It was so bitter I nearly choked, but oddly enjoyable after a few drinks. It also had good recuperative effects, and I was so tired and weak I was almost dead. Sindri kept quiet, eating and quaffing his beer vigorously, until we were both done. He brought me over to a tiny cubbyhole of a room and said I could sleep there before leaving me for the night. I was asleep before my head hit the pillow.
The next day, after Sindri roared me awake at 5am, I ventured a question during breakfast. “Sindri, um… Why don’t we use the power of the water wheel to push the bellows? Wouldn’t that be cleverer?” Grinning, he replied:
“We do use the water when to push the bellows, unless we have an apprentice to do the work! Hahaha!” He guffawed. “While the water-power may be easier, it isn’t cleverer. By the time you’ve worked the bellows and built the body of a true smith through stoicism, you can start some proper smithing without being annoyed by the fire, or too weak to beat the metal. But I like the question, it shows you’re thinking, and you worked hard yesterday and stayed focused. As a reward, I’ll teach you a basic rune to help you. The rune is called “Eihwaz” (I-wauhz), and it looks like this: S. You can draw strength from it. To use it to strengthen yourself, you need to picture it in your head, focusing on it, and say it. Runes don’t last long unless they are written and fixed to something material. Since this is your first rune and you’re weak at magic, you’ll probably need to say it with every stroke of the bellows. So, as you push down, say “I” or “eye” on the exhale, and as you pull up, say “wauhz” on the inhale, concentrating the hole time on the shape of the rune in your mind, and in drawing strength from it. Try it a few times now, and I’ll make sure you can do it.”
Rune Magic: Eihwaz Spell Added
Eihwaz is a basic rune for strength. Cost, duration and effect of spell depend on whether it is written or spoken, on temporary focus, and on Rune Magic and Magic Mastery Levels. Currently, lasts about 5 seconds and gives 50% bonus to strength and stamina. Costs 10 MP.
With Eihwaz, the work went much easier, and I could use my mana to make the work easier for a minute, so in effect I was getting a bunch of little breathers spread through the work. I could also push harder. As the week progressed, I noticed that meditating on Eihwaz, even when I didn’t have the mana to actively use it, also seemed to help. I figured since it was called “Smith Stoicism” that if I complained, I’d gain levels less quickly so no matter how much I hated it, I forced myself to obey orders and work hard as hell. At least I could watch Sindri, and learn from what he was making, at the time mostly swords. I worked hard and got the following announcements:
Wisdom +1
Intelligence +1
Rune Magic Beginner Level 2
Strength +1
Stamina +1
Continuous Casting Skill Added
Continuous Casting (Beginner Level 1: 0%): You are used to casting spells in sequence. Reduces the cost of subsequent castings of the same spell.
Smith Stoicism Beginner Level 4
Vitality +1
Magic Mastery Beginner Level 2
Rune Meditation Skill Added
Rune Meditation (Beginner Level 1: 0%): You are capable of meditating on a rune, gaining some percentage of its benefits without expending mana. As your skill improves, you will be able to gain more of the benefits.
After I asked Sindri if there were other techniques like Rune Meditation he said:
“Ah! I do have a good eye for talent. If you’ve figured out Rune Meditation already, then you really show promise. Let me teach you another rune, you can alternate casting it and Eihwaz. This is a basic rune but has to be combined, so it’s an advanced spell; normally, I’d wait until you had mastered at least a couple other basic runes, but if you can do Rune Meditation you may be ok. This rune is called “Dagaz,” it represents the dawn or awakening, and when used on yourself with Eihwaz, strengthens learning and improves the speed at which your body learns its skills.
Rune Magic: Dagaz Spell Added
Dagaz is the rune of the dawn. You have been taught how to use it with Eihwaz to improve learning speed.
Stamina +1
Smith Stoicism Beginner Level 5
Rune Magic Beginner Level 3
Wisdom +1
Intelligence +1
Magic Mastery Beginner Level 3
Strength +1
Stamina +1
Wisdom +1
Continuous Casting Beginner Level 2
Rune Meditation Beginner Level 2
Vitality +1
Wisdom +1
Intelligence +1
Stamina +1
Smith Stoicism Beginner Level 6
Strength +1
Rune Meditation Level 3
Rune Magic Beginner Level 4
Smithing Beginner Level 2
Wisdom +1
Lab Safety Level 2
In other words, the rest of that week I gained 5 wisdom, 3 intelligence, 4 Stamina, 3 Strength, and 2 Vitality; I also gained a number of levels in my skills. “All” I had to endure for that was 14 hour stretches from 6am to 10pm in a boiling furnace room while working hard physically. Merlin gained two levels as well, and was slightler larger as a result. He’d been experimenting, and could produce a little electric shock with his wind powers that was quite painful, and very good at waking me up in the morning. At the end of the week, on Sunday Morning, Sindri finally said:
“Alright, boy! You’ve done a good job this week helping out with the bellows, and have begun to really get a smith’s body. Now, you should understand how a forge works, and how smithing works from watching me. Normally I’d make you keep on it for a while longer, but you didn’t complain and worked hard. Plus, we just got a big order in for 100 swords for the city guard, and it’s a good training opportunity so I’m going to teach you to make Patterned, or Damascus Steel. You’ll make the cores, and then I’ll give them the shape. Once we’ve got the basic blades done, you’ll do the rough grind and sharpen, and I’ll touch them up. After that, I’ll teach you how to put some basic enchantments: anti-rust, keep sharp, things like that. Last, we’ll polish ‘em up so they shine nice and pretty, then bring them to the guard. Sound good? Excellent! Now, you can have the rest of the day off. Here’s your pay so far: 1 gold and 20 silver. Don’t spend it all in one place! And here’s a good knife, in case you decide to be a hero again; I made it myself, and she a really vicious one. Some truly nasty enhancements. Now, I’m off to see some of Miss Rosalina’s Girls, aharharhar,” he chortled.
“Identify,” I whispered
Received Sindri’s Knife
Nearly a foot long, this is more of a short sword than a knife. Half a dozen Runes are visible in the sunlight, though you don’t know what they do.
Effects: +12 Offense, Unknown Rune Effects. Durability: 60/60
“Thank you, Sindri! I’ll be sure to come back rested and rejuvenated for next week!” I said, while thinking