Gol-4's words were, as usual, devoid of emotion, but they irritated Oscar and Orden as more creatures stabbed out from the walls. Naturally, Gol-4 did not possess the up-to-date knowledge, but Oscar felt the golem didn't need to be so direct and potentially sarcastic about it. However, he quickly threw his grievances about Gol-4 to the back of his mind and faced the intruders.

Oscar observed the creatures. The creatures lacked eyes and any other distinguishable features of a face; instead, they only had a sharp pyramid that rotated like a drill, allowing them to dig through the earth easily. Their long bodies resembled that of a snake or worm but clad in a metallic shell, like plates of armor.

"These are the Drill Worms. Nasty beasts who dig around and cause all sorts of havoc to the miners and workers. They never came close to Tectusen because of the reinforced stone used as walls. It looks like even the vines never reached far down here." Gol-4 explained while glancing at Oscar, indicating for him to retreat into the space pocket.

After stowing away Gol-4, Oscar snapped to his back and blocked a terrifying lunge from one of the Drill Worms, shocked that he could not remain still and was forced back by sheer strength. Even more grating was the loud, high-pitched noise from the spinning drill that was the worm's head as it tried to pierce through his bulwark. Sparks and embers continually spat out from the continual grinding of the metals.

What fearsome strength for a worm. The drill would probably skewer through my Silver Sheen without issue. But how about its toughness?' Oscar's eyes flared up.

'Shattering Wave'

The rampaging force of Reis reverberated through the drill into the worm's body. Oscar's physical power forced the Drill Worm back and sent it tumbling to the wall, causing more rubble and dirt to fall. Under the rain of pebbles, Oscar frowned at the Drill Worm that got back up without noticeable injuries.

'The inside must be almost liquid-like not to feel anything from the Shattering Wave, and the hard armor plating avoided serious injuries. Good grief, I'm still very lacking. The Shattering Wave should burst it from within, whether liquid or solid.'

Considering his shortcomings, Oscar dodged and deflected the Drill Worm's wild blows. He glanced to check up on Orden and his progress for a moment. Down the tunnel, Orden fought with his Meld powers, bashing the Drill Worm around, but the hard shell refused to budge, and the Drill Worm remained practically unscathed, minus a few scrapes here and there.

When the Drill Worm came over again, it rammed its head from the side, and Oscar nearly lost his balance from the rotating drill. His feet dug into the ground, and his forearms tensed as he opposed the force that tried to drag him in like a rampaging tornado. The hot sparks and embers caused his face to twitch, and Oscar let out a rousing shout.

'Flowing Mountain'

Oscar spun his body, going along with the flow of the sharp drill, spinning like a yo-yo, and his deer anima came forth from below. With a shining silver lance encasing his arm and his deer anima following up from behind, Oscar stabbed what would most likely be the dome of the Drill Worm's head. In a brutal blow, the Drill Worm slammed onto the ground while its spinning drill split apart the rocks, but only mere cracks formed on its armor.

"What sort of toughness is this?" Oscar leaped off the worm before it could spring up on him. His silver lance was covered in cracks that spread until it shattered. The worm started to wriggle around, its armor plates clinking against each other as it moved its trembling head.

"It's mad now. But what can I do? The best bet could be a Treble Lance or Omnireus, but they're far too exhausting." Oscar peeked at Orden, who had bashed his worm, causing a black liquid to spew from the many cracks he laid onto its shell. His deer anima grunted by his side and dug its hooves into the ground. Seeing his deer anima be ramped up, Oscar smiled. "That's right; we still have other ways to fight. I don't think I tried this out yet."

'Adamasreis'

'Silver Lance'

This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Oscar rode atop his deer anima in a fearsome charge like a knight in a joust, then another lance, larger than usual, formed on his deer anima's antlers. Scraping his silver lance along his deer anima's lance, Oscar combined the two into a single blow. Unlike his previous duo lances, which mainly consisted of both being formed on his deer anima, this came from Oscar and his anima together, a lesser version of Treble Lance.

Responding to his charge, the Drill Worm spun its sharp drill head, cutting along the mine walls in a show of force before lunging straight at Oscar. It held great confidence in itself and its prided drill.

'Duo Lance'

'Shattering Wave'

The endless screeching of metals scraping echoed across the mine tunnel, and the countless sparks spewed forth with so much light, the bright crystals that light up the mines paled in comparison. Within the epicenter of this heated exchange, Oscar's silver lances, infused with the power of Reis, pushed onward against the prideful Drill Worm's drill.

"Break!" Oscar shouted, and a straight split went down from the tip to the middle of the Drill Worm's drill, which fell apart into halves. His silver lances traveled further in and stabbed into the head, letting loose a river of black liquid. The Drill Worm roared and slammed wildly into the mine walls, but eventually, it fell, shriveled up into a mess of armor plates held together by a thin patch of skin.

"You finished?" Orden asked.

Oscar glanced at Orden, seeing the broken and bashed remains of the Drill Worm. "Yes. Though, these worms are tougher than I had thought. The armor is incredibly tough."

"That's for sure!" Orden picked up one of the armor plates and tapped it with his hammer, looking satisfied. "These plates would be excellent materials to use for fabrication."

"So you are a fabricator?" Oscar expected as much from seeing Orden's hammer anima.

"I am!" Orden puffed his chest out with pride. "I've been a fabricator since I became an Exalt, but my early days were quite bad because of my absurd strength. Damn near broke everything until I learned to control it." Rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment as though he had nothing to hide about himself. "I can't wait to get back and use these materials."

"If you're still alive." Oscar smiled.

"If? It's a certainty. Even if we fight, I can surely escape. However, I would love to have your armor plates." Orden smiled confidently, swinging his hammer around.

"I can't say I don't feel the same. These armor plates are astounding, and in a mine such as this, there should be ores of many different kinds" Oscar reached out and took out his hammer, obsidian black head with blue swirls and a deep brown handle. He also tapped on the armor plates.

"You're a fabricator as well?!" Orden stepped forward with his hammer stretched out. "What star are you?"

"Wouldn't two stars be obvious?" Oscar responded.

"You never know. I thought you were too good at combat and Prinstyct for you to shink your time into being a fabricator." Orden sat down on a large boulder to rest and recover his Ein.

"The same can be said for you." Oscar sat on another boulder to do the same.

"Nah, I don't have much in terms of combat. I was born with an incredible body, and achieving Meld isn't related to fighting but just mastery of anima. But seeing you, I need to step it up." Orden spat out some black liquid after he tried to drink some, making Oscar aghast.

"We still tied." Oscar scoffed as he got comfortable on the boulder. "When you use Meld Stage, you mainly use it for fabrication? What kind of purity can you reach with that refinement?"

"100 percent purity." Orden whistled in admiration of himself. "The instant twenty strikes helps to cut down the time, and the twenty-multiple Earthen Echo allows me to reach the tiny little stubborn impurities."

"100 percent….I can only reach 94 as my max." Oscar crossed his arms and frowned.

"I noticed one of your skills is similar to my Earthen Echo, but it was far more powerful and had a strange rippling effect. Is that what you use for your refinement?" Orden asked.

"Yup. Though I still haven't reached full mastery of it. Once I do, perhaps I can reach 100 percent purity." Oscar got up from his feet after having recovered.

Orden followed suit; his large feet created splashes within the black liquid that flooded the tunnel. However, he didn't care and focused on Oscar. "What do you think of when you start hammering in the formation? I can't help but be curious about other people's views."

"I see constellations and stars. My formation is a reflection of the night sky. What about you?"

"I see a person," Orden said.

"A person?"

"More specifically, I see what's in them." Orden paused. "I think of each of my armaments as a person, so they need organs and bones. So every node I make represents a heart, liver, lungs, femur, or knuckles."

"That sounds quite complicated." Oscar couldn't believe it.

"But it's what I see when I create my armaments. You see the stars. I see people. I wish there could be a workshop here to compare our skills." Orden placed his hammer atop his shoulder. "It'd be nice to know you as a fabricator before you die."

"Still saying that." Oscar shook his head. "We'll see."

Placing aside the topic of their deaths, Oscar and Orden talked about their life as fabricators and the various materials and ores they had worked with. Then they came upon a large chamber, one of the central hubs of the mines where many tunnels led to. They could see an elevator shaft leading up into an unknown area.

Oscar smiled as they had finally found a new way up.