Len walked into the front of the Coiled Serpent.

“Here to meet a fella called Rick? Said he rented a space to work?” He asked the man at the front desk.

“He’s back here,” The man at the counter pushed up the divider and waved Len through. He pushed open a door to the heart of the smithy.

The sounds of metal hitting metal filled the space. An older man was forming a beautiful wrought iron gate. In the second stall Rick was wiping sweat away from his brow.

“Len!” He grinned, his uniform and clothes stained with his sweat and work. “Thanks Timothy!”

Timothy nodded and departed for the front of the smithy again.

Len ran his eyes over the place. A paper bag and two map cases, iron ingots a finished sword, two arm bracers.

A larger section of steel was heating up in the hearth. Breast or back plate.

“Heard a rumor on my way back to the Slumbering Willow,” Len said, moving into the workspace, checking out the tools laid out.

“Got you a knife and chisel,” Rick pointed them out.

Len nodded, picking them up, they were simple and well made. “Rumor was that someone from Valoria Academy beat up a duke’s son and his friends in the Hunter’s Bureau. Been making friends Rick?”

Rick shrugged and pulled out the armor plate. “Got more coins.”

Len grit his teeth, forcing out a breath through his nose.

“You’re a hundred and fifty-five and you’re beating up teenagers?”

Rick hammered the armor plate, yelling to be heard. “They started, I finished it! I’m getting spry in my old age! The sword is for you!”

The sooner we get out of here the better. Nobles and pompous fools rarely let things go.

Len picked up the knife and chisel, then a sharpening stone among Rick’s tools.

He moved around the other man as if they were of a single mind.

Both are made of steel so that’ll make things easier.

Steel would allow him to make two enchantments at the same strength as the one that used iron.

He used the sharpening stone on the chisel and knife, honing them to a razor’s edge

Always sharpen before you enhance it with strength. It was a bastard to sharpen when the material had been strengthened already.

The Reinforcement enchantment increased the base durability of the material it was applied to. A basic one would just enhance anything. Len picked out a version that was configured to steel. The more specific the greater the durability increase.

The second was Mana Blade. This would create a cutting plane formed from mana. One had to be very careful with the direction of it, so that it matched up exactly with the item it was used upon else it would fail. There wasn’t that much metal on either tool so the person using it would have to power it themselves.

Len used a pencil to sketch out the enchantment, altering it several times before he was happy.

“Knife first.” He carved into the metal, using small movements to clean out what he’d marked in pencil.

He finished on the mana blade enchantment, then flipped it over and worked on the other side.

Len blew the filings away, turning the knife over before sending mana through the mana blade enchantment. A thin blue light coated the blades edge.

“Still got it,” Len grinned, turning it over in his hand. The enchantment was small and weak as the knife had been so thin. But he’d precisely laid it over the edge of the knife covering it with minimal wastage.

“Sharpen up the chisel again. Probably should have just sharpened it after all that.” He set to honing its edge, the work calming.

Then came marking with his pencil, checking it and taking out his dagger. Len powered the mana blade and pushed into the metal. It cut in easily.

Enchanters worked to hide what their enchantment did and how it did it constantly. If someone was able to read one another's enchantments, they could figure out the effect of a weapon and work to undermine it.

Beasts weren't the only things that people fought in the apocalypse. With resources low for everyone, you were as likely to find another person's sword at your throat as you were to find a wolf at your heels.

Enchanting also had libraries of runes and lines that each enchanter used or understood. These libraries were the heart and soul of their craft. Learning another's library was akin to learning their deepest secrets. With a greater library and a diversity of runes, one could make a varying number of enchantments with ease.

They were as complicated as they were simple. The right rune, the right combination of lines, would allow an enchanter to bend the enchantment to their will, to change it as they desired. As one started off as an enchanter, they might have basic runes, basic lines, a basic understanding of the three pillars of enchantments. As one grew their library and their understanding, they were able to alter the enchantments as one might alter a spell.

Spells took one's imagination and understanding of concepts, their control of will, to impose their power upon the world. Enchantments were more rigid, but with a greater flexibility of runes and lines, one might make an enchantment that was as fluid as a spell. However, the skill required was near unimaginable and only very few enchanters had reached that level. Many that had, hid their libraries and information so that others might not copy them or know that their skill was so high.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Enchantments allowed one to take a shortcut using the mana of the world or cores instead of having to rely upon their own internal power. This could allow one to make such incredible feats and creations that would stand up against some of the most powerful beings after the apocalypse.

How long had Len hidden in the shadows, making sure that his enchantments were strong, but not too strong to show his ability? It had been a constant pressure upon his mind and something that he fought with even now. While on the outside his enchantments looked complicated and convoluted, internally they were simple. He'd stripped away the extraneous lines and runes needed to control things, going to the heart of each creation.

He'd made things inefficient, below his standard to not draw attention.

Why use the elements when he could bend the realities around him? Because bending reality costs more mana. Using the elements costs less. These kinds of calculations and thoughts passed through his mind every time he made an enchantment. Breaking an enchantment down to the basics made the power required and that output greater.

But now, if there were no other enchanters or enchanting had only just started and he was to pass his knowledge on to others? Just what would the future look like?

What happens when we destroy the obelisk? Do we retain our memories? Will we be wiped from this existence? What will happen to the things that we've created in this life that were never around in our last lives?

Len shook his head clear and focused on enchanting. He stopped his cuts from going too deep, else it get stuck and try to dictate his path. Len used small relief cuts to help.

“Nice to have good tools.”

It didn’t take him long to finish off the enchantments, powering the chisel, a mana blade at its tip.

“I’m going to need enchantment blanks,” Len said.

“Standard sizing ten centimeters by twenty by two deep?” Rick asked.

“That should work. I’ll need eight, but it would be good to have another ten or so for an alarm enchantment and just incase we need to make an enchantment on the fly. Made a mana blade so you just need to make up the sheets and cut them.”

“Good shit.” Rick pulled out a hot half-formed piece of iron. Two breastplates had been added to the workbench while Len had been enchanting.

He took a closer look at the gear

The armor were thick sheets that had been contoured to fit the body. Holes waiting for straps to hold them to the body. Each was smooth without any burrs.

Len checked the sword, it was simple in design. Though Len could tell its quality with a glance. It was just a meter long with the first half a one-sided blade, the second double sided.

He picked up the weapon. It was crude with only the top of a basket to cover the user’s hand. Though the steel had been compressed and worked into a fine edge.

The weight was really good, while Rick acted like an air head he was easily capable of making something of this quality.

He was hammering the ingot down, thinner than the armor, shifting its orientation around to thin and spread it further.

“What do you want me to enchant it with?” Len asked, studying the weapon.

“Usually for a blade I would go with reinforcement to strengthen the material or lightness to decrease the weight.” Rick said. “Though we’ve limited mana right now, so something that increases the effect of spells would be good. End of the day its your sword.”

“Then with it on our hips we can cast stronger spells no matter what we’re doing.” Len looked at the other items on the table, pieces of armor. A catalog of enchantments running through his mind.

“Shouldn’t take me long to get this all sized out.” Rick wiped his forehead, putting the steel into the hearth to heat. Rick snapped his fingers. “That’s what I was forgetting copper!”

“Huh?” Len asked.

“Copper, naturally anti-bacterial, great for making canteens out of. I’ll see if they have any,” Rick headed out of the forge towards the front of the smithy.

Increasing the spell effect and lightness. Being able to swing a dozen times more than your opponent had given Len the edge in several fights.

For power it would have some passive charge, though if he cast too many spells then the effect would begin to diminish.

For power he’d use a small gathering rune, the rest storing runes and lines. The direction was easy, tied to the hilt for the increased spell effect. The lightness tied into the weapon itself. The increased spell effect would use part of the sword’s charge to increase the cast spell just as he was releasing it. The lightness was tied to elemental concepts of metal, allowing him to cheat with that framework some.

Plan in mind he formed it with his will, creating a blueprint of visible blue mana laid out over the blade.

He moved some of the lines and runes around. Giving them enough space so the mana in one wouldn’t interfere with another or create a weakness in the metal.

That’ll work.

He grabbed his chisel with his mana. It traced through the blueprint, creating an etching on the metal.

Len withdrew his mana, the blueprint fading away and the chisel dropping to the table. Took a chunk of my capacity, but much better than yesterday.

“Ughh, labor,” Len complained.

Rick sorted, returning with copper sheets. “Doesn’t feel too bad when your bones don’t ache with every hit!”

He dropped off the sheets and grabbed up tongs and hammer, pulling out the steel that would be enchantment blanks, bringing it to the anvil to continue his hammering.

Len held the blade steady by the hilt and pressed the chisel into the metal. He worked quickly, shifting the blade around for better angles, turned it and finished off on the other side.

He added in several runes that were tricky and if not place exactly right would cause the weapon to explode. He also used mana in several places to create the real lines that moved through the sword instead of on the surface.

An enchanter had to learn how to make it impossible for others to copy their work.

Mana started to flow through the completed enchantments as he put it to the side.

“Always a good plan to put in at least a minor gathering rune,” Len said. Over time it would passively charge the weapon, though in a pinch one could infuse it directly with their own mana or that which came from another source.

“Want me to do your blade?” Len asked.

“Sure,” Rick pushed out his hip.

Len drew out the blade, turning it over. “At least it’s a saber instead of one of those pointy needle things.”

“Waste of good steel,” Rick spat to the side, picking up the steel sheet he’d made, eyeballing it from every angle.

“Same enchantments?” Len asked.

“Works with me,” Rick said, taking the sheet to cool off.

Len started in on the second, knowing his mana limitations and the enchantment, it took only a few alterations to work with the different sword design. It took him less than half the time it had taken with the first.

“Mana blade?” Rick asked.

Len drew it out, flipped it over and held it hilt first towards Rick as he was finishing up on the blade.

“Thanks.” Rick moved over to the side as Len finished the enchantment, checking the flow by spreading his will controlled mana through it.

He wiped the blade clean. “Okay that’s done.” He turned to Rick on the armor covered table. “Thoughts on what to do with the armor?”

“Wish we could put an enchantment on each piece,” Rick complained.

“Enchantment resonance would turn you into a walking bomb. Wouldn’t be that effective,” Len said. “Reinforcement, always good to have stronger armor. Then I’m thinking mana gathering,” Len said, already starting to figure out how to lay out the enchantments.

“Good classic combo. Simple and easy. Can even use it throughout the day to passively cultivate at this point.” Rick snorted. “Uncommon grade metal to increase our cultivations.” He shook his head.

“Been a long time since we were wearing just steel armor,” Len said.

“Quite a time.” Rick agreed, cutting up the sheet into smooth blank pieces of steel.

“Closing time soon,” the older smith next door walked over.

“Thanks Darnell.” Rick said. “What time you open tomorrow?”

“Just after dawn.”

“Thanks!”

Darnell grunted, looking about the place, frowning at the carved saber, he shook his head and went back to his forge.

“Hurry up with the blanks, we’ll need those to make a mana gathering formation,” Len said.

“You cut I’ll hammer,” Rick grabbed up steel and threw it into the hearth.

Len felt him cast a spell as he grabbed up his mana blade, putting one of the cut blocks against a sheet, using it as a template for the next.

Swords and armor were great, but without any damn cultivation they were just two teenagers trying not to fall over from wearing overweight armor.