Woooot spectral is back. let me tell you i enjoyed the time on es and i do intend to continue it infact il hopefully be doing a raw of es tmr but for tonight is spectrals welcome back ch :) its a little late but better late then never?
i want to give Full Pr credits to spectrals second voluntary pr SuperDoeDoe. draconis is still pring for me but he hasnt responded in a couple of days so hopefully he is ok and msgs me soon :D.
i will have a little writers note at the end of the ch to not bore you as it also contains spoilers for this ch.
oh yes more news i havent forgotten the poll regarding the pictures the artist is allready working on them as we speak :)
so for now Please Rate/Follow/Favourite enjoy ch 58 :D
p.s if you see any errors or loopholes pls pst them to me :)
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Although Avrin had gained an incredible boost in power he was not dumb as to rush into a storm to test his strength only to most likely be outmatched. For now he would play things out casually and enjoy this port city that most likely had quite a bit to offer him.
Avrin having made his way down the ramp that seemed to be made quite sturdy considering most of the supplies and such seemed heavy enough to use some sort of creature that could only be compared to a dinosaur in size.
“master im bored and hungry…” Asura spoke as he was sitting on a crate while waiting for Avrin. Gazing at him Avrin began to look at the city while walking towards Asura. “I’m also bored, as for you being hungry i’d be surprised if you weren’t “ Avrin snickered causing Asura to growl quietly at being teased.
“Master why did you go over there anyway?” Asura asked curiously as he walked beside Avrin after hopping off the crate to follow behind him. The people in their way could only move aside in fright at Asura’s size as well as the appearance of them. This was mainly because they both looked shady.
Avrin spoke. “ah about that...don't worry.” Asura then replied with a frown. “master i want to know, this human army thing seems very interesting.” Avrin stopped for a moment as he gazed at Asura he wondered why he would speak as such.
“-Hmm has he gotten smarter?-” Avrin began to ponder if his knowledge was continuing to sink into Asura and when it would end then again it was better to have an intelligent servant rather than a dumb one.
“very well. We can't head over to the central continent today it seems theres a mana tornado in the way.” Asura was clueless as he didn't know what a mana tornado was but he figured it was bad. “bah! This world is against us!” Asura nearly roared out.
While they continued to talk they both continued past the security checkpoint that separated the dock into sections from commoner/trade/military but they didn't enter another section they entered the city directly.
The guards seeing Avrin and Asura the two mysterious potentials that lord Gregson had found immediately parted way. There was some talk about these two as to why Gregson would want them. Rumors began to float around and they spread like wild fire between the cities guards and soldiers.
Avrin wanted to prepare himself for when he would take Gregson up on his offer. If he was to one day rule an empire he would have to learn military tactics as well as how warfare worked on this world.
Battles on land were nearly incomparable to battles in space, there were a lot of things that could be done and taken advantage. The closest warfare to space warfare would be battling on the ocean using ships but Avrin wasn't one to be a navy commander so he threw the idea out.
Other than that, he had a day or so to spend for himself. Making his way down the market area he was a little shocked to see how busy it was. With many many merchant stalls on the side taking up nearly every inch as well as carriages most likely containing people of noble birth as well as carriages transporting goods.
“Come try your luck and win an uncommon level necklace!! crafted using fine gold and a crystal that will mesmerize even the most fiesty of beauties!! Come one come all, try your luck to win this necklace to charm your lover!!!”
Avrin gazing at the man and the small crowd couldn't help but look curiously as a small crowd of ladies gazing at the dazzling necklace as well as their male counterparts. It seemed the crowd was composed of young individuals with only a few old ones.
Avrin no longer wasted any time as him and Asura continued on. Avrin stopped after walking for a few more minutes. His intentions was to sightsee, to get a feeling of what a real city of this world had to offer and to become accustomed to its atmosphere but he was now feeling somewhat excited.
“ A blacksmith…” Avrin had seen a blacksmith before but that was only a glance and he only saw that it was simple and small but this blacksmith was quite large the building it was held in spanned for several dozens of meters in width as for its length it seemed it stretched in for dozens more.
This caught Avrins attention he could see large muscular men in pairs hammering on a piece of metal that sparked whenever they hit it. His eyes focused on the metal as well as how they hit it. He turned to Asura who didn't seem to be impressed.
“Master i know you like fire and metal...let me go eat and you can enjoy yourself here hehe” Asura seemed to learn how to bargain Avrin couldn't help but laugh softly and nod. “Very well it will be quieter when you’re gone.” He formed a handful of gold coins under his cloak before handing it to Asura who already had his large giant like palm extended.
Asura was quick to rush off in the direction of what seemed to be the food quarter of the city which made Avrin shake his head in curiosity he hadn't even seen the food quarter until Asura headed off towards it.
“That creature…” Avrin raising a brow then settled down as he made his way towards the blacksmith. He approached the counter and saw a large man in his 50’s having a large unshaven beard with what seemed to be a bandana on his head. His eyebrows were thick and he gave the presence of a warrior.
Avrin could see scars gained from burns over his body. Avrin had seen many similar ones in his own duty as a general and had even sustained some. The man seemed to be examining a piece of metal with what seemed to be a monocle.
Avrin felt he should not interrupt him as he seemed to be so focused that even the sparks from the nearby hammering hitting his body didn't seem to make him budge.
“Good afternoon sir!” Avrin joyfully spoke as he figured first time impressions were everything. Being kind and respectful would get him far. The man didn't look at Avrin and only spoke. “Repairs are 2 silver for one handed weapons including fist weapons….5 silver for two handed...and for ranged weapons we only repair warbows if you want a bow or another ranged weapon repaired go visit to woodcrafters guild…”
The man spoke without hesitation as if sensing Avrin was someone he didn't know. Having gotten the first step out of the way Avrin replied. “Actually i was wondering if it was possible for someone here to teach me some blacksmithing?”
The forges as well as the men spanning for 10 meters stopped hammering as they looked up to see Avrin. They couldn't make his figure out but he didn't seem to be muscular or strong looking like them.
Then again Avrin wasn't really showing his presence much he wanted to seem normal. The man at the counter softly placed the metal on the counter removing the monocle like glass from his eye and gazed carefully at Avrin.
The man nodded as he looked at Avrin. It wasn't like he wasn't asked many times before he had developed a way to deal with these sort of people and break them on the spot with a test. “2 gold to take the test…”
Avrin blinked a few times 2 gold was indeed an enormous sum to a commoner even he started to feel the value of gold regardless of him being able to create it he felt he should treat every bit well.
He only gave Asura that much gold before because he knew he ate an enormous amount infact Avrin wondered if that gold would even be enough as Avrin went on he took two gold coins from his pocket and handed them to the man.
The man then led Avrin inside the building staying quiet and not talking to him. The workers didn't pay attention as they had gotten used to this but a few who enjoyed seeing failure kept quiet as they looked on.
The man led Avrin to an open area that had a circular table spanning 2 meters in diameter. He went over and pulled out a sort of crate from under it and opened it. He then took several sorts of rock looking ores and separated them on the table.
“boy…” the man spoke only because avrin sounded young. “Being a blacksmith isn't just about forging a fancy looking weapon and making money… a blacksmith has to know a lot of metals and spend many years training to know the components of the material. In this day and age where weapons and armor rarity are valued a blacksmith has to make the best use of materials.
Understanding the materials is cost effective because it saves a lot of hassle from trial and error. Can you tell me the name of this ore…”
He pointed to an orange rusty looking ore, Avrin nodded and spoke “that is iron ore…” the man then went on and pointed to a rock that had a mossy looking green rust. “that is copper.”
Avrin smiled his face hidden from view.
The man wasnt impressed and continued on. “this ore is?..” he spoke as he pointed to a near pitch black ore. Avrin blinked a few times as a drop of sweat formed on his cheek. “-haha he got me…-” he spoke.
The man hearing silence then went on. “this or then?.. what about this?.. or this?...” Avrin remained silent as he couldn't answer any. “-and here i thought it would be easy. I underestimated this blacksmith shop it seems they value their trade a lot-”
the large man spoke on. “knowing the names of ore is important but knowing facts and how they work is even more important. Tell me do you know how iron is smelted, or how copper is formed?”
Avrin remained silent again. “i apologize.” He spoke having felt he had done something quite bad. It was his own fault for underestimating the establishment he would indeed become better prepared.
“when you take my trade for granted you do me harm...i have seen many people like you think blacksmithing is fun but its how we make a living its how we make names for ourselves it isn't just about having fun the most important thing is putting in the effort to take it seriously… i hope i taught you something..”
Avrin nodded and quietly gave a bow before making his way back to the front. He ignored the snickering and laughs and the occasional mumble calling him out for his actions and stupid.
In front of avrin several meters 5 large men were working beside an enormous furnace that spewed flames it was enough that there were several magic runes that had to be set to weaken the flames passed a certain point.
One man spoke “ok slowly take it out...remember what the boss said...we only got one shot at the formula….” they were all sweating nervously in fact the commotion brought the attention of several of their friends.
One of them spoke “no way they can hammer flat azure iron in an hour…” a man beside him folding his arms spoke. “idiot these guys are our best….other than the boss who else can do it in an hour…. there are 5 of them to..”
Talk began to circulate and they talk the ingot out from the monster like furnace quickly placing it down on a giant anvil they took turns wielding the giant hammers that could crush a man's skull and smashed down against the glowing azure ingot.
The first blacksmith hit it but the shock made his hands go numb and he dropped the hammer and fell on his butt. “shit shit!...” he quickly tried to get up. “idiot up quick!!” one of his friends spoke as the others went on.
the same event nearly happened for them all. Avrin couldn't help but gaze at them working. The man who had tested Avrin folding his arms walked beside him and spoke. “see how they struggle...these guys other than our boss are our top blacksmiths...there bodys show scars and even they struggle to hammer down that thing. Boy there is a lot to learn from blacksmithing.
There isn't simple ores there are a lot of ores out there that are mysterious and powerful. Some are worth as much as kingdoms others can never be smelted by human hands… with your build and size you could never accomplish what these men are trying to do…”
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The ingot itself was a surprisingly small an inch and a half long and just an inch wide. “they must really be giving it their all…” avrin replied as he knew that 5 of the the best here were sweating around the monster furnace even the magic runes were barely able to hold.
The man spoke. “that ingot boy is worth 1000 gold itself its a rare ore called Azure Iron let me give you a tip as thanks for the easy 2 gold. Azure iron is formed when a volcano cannot erupt by itself the mana of the fire and magma in that volcano need a way to store themselves so they cling onto iron and over 50 years the mana fuses with the iron to make azure iron.
The flaming mana is so intense it makes the iron burn blue and only a furnace hotter then a volcano can smelt it. It takes an enormous effort to find it as for digging it up haha dont get me started…”
4 of the men had given up as they sat down panting heavily while rubbing their faces and stretching. The 5th man roared out . “fucking shit !!!” he then dropped his hammer and sighed.
The man who was talking the avrin rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed as he walked towards them and spoke. “guys you know azure iron can't be heated again otherwise it will lose more of the mana that makes it..”
the 3rd man spoke as he sighed. “Klin we know damnit we know...but its like hitting something that won't budge…” the 5th man gazed at the azure iron with a deathly glare. “how does the boss make it seem to easy…”
Avrin blinked as he felt that these men just weren't strong enough. Avrin smiled as he stepped forward. “so you just need to hit it until its flat right?.. can i have a go?”
the first blacksmith narrowed his eyes and all the people hearing Avrin spoke “the hell?..whos this guy…” Klin the man who tested avrin having his arms folded spoke “boy go for it since no one else but the boss whos away can smelt it this iron will lose its mana for every second until it turns into normal iron….”
the 2nd man stood up and roared out “forget that Klin!!! im not done yet!!” Avrin went over and grabbed one of the giant hammers as if it were as heavy as a toothpick and spoke “its clear that its not the metals fault right?.. these guys just aren't strong enough.
Slamming the hammer down the speed was shocking it caused the air in the room to burst away slightly. The hammers flat head smashed against the azure iron ingot of course the force of the blow instantly flattened it but the anvil itself cracked and crumbled causing it to tip over.
The ground under the anvil split causing it to crack for several meters. The head of the hammer seemed to suffer the most as it broke into brittle pieces. Avrin smiled as he went over and prodded the flat ingot that still glowed on the rubble of the anvil.
“hmm there we go…” Avrin then dropped the rod that used to be part of a hammer. He then began to make his way out of the blacksmith with a grin on his face he had at least showed them that the way a body is shaped doesn't mean power.
The stares and looks on their faces was like a child who had just seen a video game console commercial for the first time in their life. Jaws open eyes bulging as Klin’s body quivered from the giant like strength. He looked at the azure ingot as he began to sweat he quickly tried to compose himself. “h...hurry up and forge it the hard parts over!!!” he roared out as the other blacksmiths quickly rushed over to get it avoiding the crack in the ground.
Klin rushed out to Avrin as he had just underestimated the boy. Avrin had just exited the blacksmith as he decided to go visit the bookstore to buy books on ores and metal but he suddenly stopped at kilns voice. “boy wait!! wait!!” Klin rushed over with shock still on his face.
“hmm? sorry i broke your anvil do i need to pay for it or something haha? “ Avrin figured maybe he overdid it a bit even when he tried to hold back it seemed the sky metal infusion boosted him more than he had figured.
“no no not that. that was incredible...with one swing you forge azure iron...not only that the strength was monstrous just what the hell are you?..” Avrin was quiet and replied. “sorry i'd rather keep that to myself. “
Klin who acted more courteous to Avrin and felt that he had a talent with a bit of work wanted to try and turn things around. “boy you showed something incredible...with your strength and the effort we make to teach you about ore and metal you can be an incredible blacksmith even the boss will want to see…”
Avrin though had learnt two things. 1 was that Klin had taught him the true value of a blacksmith. The second was other than that Klin had no idea of the value of a person's presence and often broke the dreams of people who wanted to be a blacksmith he had no desire to learn from someone like that.
He had taken humorous personality and set it as the bar but Klin had failed. The master doesn't just choose the apprentice but the apprentice also chooses the master not only that Avrin had plans for tomorrow. Although klin was like that in avrins head avrin didn't hate him he figured it was normal.
“-maybe if its only a few tips and not a full job offer-” Avrin began to ponder. “tomorrow i'm leaving to the central continent i would only like to learn some basics of blacksmithing im sorry but i cannot offer you my permanent service.”
Klin listened carefully and frowned before smiling. “that is fine. we have a branch in every continent in fact this is good! our boss's boss owns the central continent branch. i can refer you to them after today?”
Avrin blinked and was a little impressed if there boss could smelt azure iron then the one above him must be something impressive. “im glad hehe”
as Klin showed avrin back in the blacksmiths saw him enter with him and quickly moved to the side a little afraid at the monstrous strength he showed. Avrin looked to the side to see several of the blacksmiths working the azure iron which now had a quite a bit of green to the point where it was all green other than a tinge of blue..
Klin saw this and chuckled “you saved us a lot of hassle boy when azure iron is flattened the mana is also crushed and does something mysterious it absorbs energy of one of the elements. In this case it was nature energy. Boy you're incredible i have seen the boss smelt azure iron before and he got his to stay as fire energy but the color was only a little red. you managed it in one go so you preserved a lot of the mana and made this double in price the contact will be pleased hah.”
Avrin felt satisfied for himself he knew that he had the strength of a blacksmith but he figured there must be technique as well as some other way since the azure iron wasn't completely green.
Klin led Avrin to his office and began to write a letter of recommendation. “i will let the boss know im sure the others here will back me up hehe. when you arrive in the central continent look for the Fafnir Forge the owner is a dwarf named Forge Master Broker he is our bosses boss so please show him respect i'm acting on impulse sending you there but i know if i send them someone amazing the boss will be pleased.” (A.N brokkr is a master craftsman in norse mythology i wanted to keep true to the races origin so to speak)
“i look forward to going there. im sure i will learn a lot” Avrin had already figured only the best talent works at this forge considering its on the central continent. “the man nodded oh yes its at the capital city the king himself personally pleaded for him to make his shop there.”
Avrin sighed in relief before nodding an idea then popped into his head. “is it ok if i make a small request while i'm learning the basics from you?.” In seeing the value in avrins future quickly spoke “of course what is it?”
Avrin was iffy about this mans change in personality but he didn't let that get in his way. ‘is it possible to have a plain white mask of iron forged for me i'm also willing to pay”
Klin was quiet and was a little confused before he began to think. “i see you must have your reasons then how about this. Since you are agreeing to go to the Fafnir Forge and even doubled the price of our azure iron ingot i'll do it for free hell i’ll even get one of our best to make it. “
Several minutes later as Klin left and returned he took Avrin to a room that had a small anvil and furnace as well as an assortment of ores and a small but sturdy hammer. “while the mask is being made i'll tell you boy even though you got the strength of a monster we need to work on your knowledge. I hope you will try your best to learn about the many different ores. Until then i'll teach you basic techniques.”
Klin then began to instruct Avrin. “when you hold the hammer the position you hold it in is crucial if your hand is too far up the shaft of it then that means you're giving softer more precise hits. Your hand on the middle of the shaft is a balanced grip this is mainly for work that has an average length of time.
gripping it near the bottom is where you intend to swing down with strength but be careful you have to be precise. the difference between these is the top grip of the shaft is intended for smithing things that are ready when you say they are. The balanced grip is for making things with a average length of time that don't need a rush.
The heavy swing is not only for rushed jobs but when it comes to higher tiered ores, to even dent them for detail you need to use a heavy grip”
Avrin figured as much he had gripped the giant hammer from the top so he felt good about himself he was actually grateful that the fragments did not injure or kill someone.
Avrin nodded staying silent as he absorbed the knowledge like a sponge. Klin spoke. “you told me you got all day thats good...you got the monster strength but how well do you control it i want you to forge me 5 iron ingots.”
Avrin smiled eagerly to himself as he looked at the pile of iron ore. Flin grinned forgeting an ingot was more important than avrin thought.
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Spectral regalia to me is a world that is constant and i try to do my best to improve my quality of writing which is why i dont like to rush it. because i put so much effort into its history i wanted to give the world more life and content. i wanted to focus on blacksmithing as it will be important later on. i felt that in a lot of novels black smithing is easily learnt the mc either allready knows it or its just a simple learn it with no effort.
i wanted blacksmithing in spectral to be more indepth with techniques aswell as methods on how to wield a hammer aswell as different types. if you see the azure ingot regardless of avrin hitting it one go the ingot itself wasnt perfect the only thing that he managed well was to flatten it to cause the reaction of absorbing natural mana/energy.
high grip/balance grip/heavy grip i wanted to make the basics a foundation something that will add to spectral something that 2 years from now (and yes i plan to make this story go on) people will be happy to read a story with an enormus ammount of detail for things that are interesting.
a rare ore bieng smelted easily forget that it isnt fun but a rare ore that has mystery and backround behind it needing methods to smelt it or risk failure that is what i wanted the manga toriko inspired me to make this sort of restriction for advanced ores but that is all i can say for now :)
i didnt want avrin to learn blacksmithing straight away i didnt want him to allready be a genius in it that is so cliche i wanted him to get proven wrong and then suprise people by showing him potential. starting from scratch to make a name for yourself is better to see rather then allready bieng at the top a perfect example of this is coiling dragon.
for now i hoped you guys enjoyed this ch of sr please leave your thoughts about this and ty for taking the time to read this little authors note of mine :p
(AN - ch 58 azure breaker, azure iron is said to form over hundreds or thousands of years, selerias age is not that old, so i reworded this to simply forming every 50 years))