I thanked Ravir and left, my friends following behind me. Kinley shook herself out of her stupor and trailed behind us, reclaiming her position behind the counter as she furiously scribbled on a sheet of paper. When she finished, a muffled clang sounded from a drawer on the back wall and the paper glowed a faint green and vanished. She opened the drawer and grabbed what looked like a burnt metal plate, setting it on my status sheet from earlier. A flash of purple light later, and I was given my rank card. Kinley resumed her professional demeanor before explaining how everything worked.

"The ranks are copper, bronze, iron, silver, gold, obsidian, and ruby. You are the strongest we have here right now, at obsidian rank. You may take any requests at or below your rank, or apply for a rank up by completing at least two jobs above your rank. At the moment, I don't think that we have any ruby requests, and I would also recommend gaining a class." I nodded, Ava taking my card and putting it over my neck, before turning to the others.

They checked over my card while firing off suggestions on what class I should choose. [Assassin] came up a few times, with variations of a mage class mixed throughout. I sighed at the attention. Most of the mercenaries in the guild were sizing me up as the new obsidian rank beast, most of them deciding that it was not worth the trouble to challenge me.

Most.

A heavily scarred man with a gigantic sword stepped in front of me as I approached the door.

"Well, well, well. What do we have 'ere? A couple o' beasts, an elf, a dwarf, and a human? Quite the motley lot you got there, ain't it? Now, I don't know what trick you pulled to get obsidian rank, but it makes us gold mercs look bad, ya 'ere? Now, why don't you just hand back in that card and leave, all right? You wouldn't last four minutes in a real battle!" He goaded, trying to be intimidating, and failing. I simply gave him an even stare as I looked up at him. He was barely a few feet taller than me, but made up for that in sheer muscle mass. Leaning up slightly, I responded.

"If you wish to scare me, you'll have to try quite a bit harder than that. Really, I have faced off with the Alpha of the timber wolves, and I still have yet to feel fear. So, I ask you. What makes you think that I am a pushover?" By the time I finished speaking, I was nearly snarling, and he had backed up a step. All conversation froze, suspended by my declaration. His face changed through several emotions before settling on anger. In a smooth motion, he drew his oversized sword and swung. Everyone else gasped in fear, but I simply ducked under the blade and clawed him in the crotch. The gasps turned to squeals of sympathetic pain as he crumbled, the heap of metal falling from his hand. I stood there, shaking with rage and my wings slightly spread, until Ava gently guided me out of the guildhall.

That… piece… of… human… SHIT!!! An insult against me I can forgive, but a slur against Ava, and then attacking me? I should have hit him harder, maybe that would have knocked some sense into that testosterone of his! I swear, if I ever see him again, I'll-

"Vira! Calm down! He knows now, so please, just drop it!" Ava broke into my mental rant, shaking my shoulder. I blinked a few times before sighing. I slowly nodded.

"Yeah, you're probably right about that. Thanks for getting me out of there, I was about to do something we'd all regret, mostly him." I said, taking a few deep breaths as I tried to calm down. She nodded before hugging me. I could feel my face heating rapidly as I returned the hug with a wing. She pulled back after a few seconds, glancing behind me and waving. I turned to see the rest of the group standing nervously by the door.

"Are ye good, lass? Ye seemed pissed at tha' fucker in there." Corin says, raising his eyebrow. I nod in response to both statements, and the others relax.

"So, where do you want to see first? Seeing as you don't know anything, how about we just look around?" Marcus suggested. I thought for a moment before nodding. Eh, why not? I know literally nothing about the world, so any knowledge is useful. We wander around town for a while, with Ava and Marcus explaining things to me as I pointed them out. The [Tounges] spell wore off about halfway through the tour.

The sound of clanging steel made me pause as we passed a side street. The others looked at each other as I slowly walked towards the sound, as though in a trance. I felt completely detached from the situation, as though I was simply a spectator in my own body. I led them to an open air workshop at the edge of town, rhythmic clang of metal ringing out from a large, heavily muscled man hammering a length of smoldering steel. Ava tried to stop me, but I continued over to the man, or rather, the pile of ingots next to him. I felt my form ripple as I stepped forward, raising in height as I shifted into a more humanoid form without realizing. He looked up at my approach, and stared in confusion as I grabbed a bar and tossed it into the nearby forge. Grabbing a set of tongs from a rack, I paid close attention to the steel, only dimly aware of the conversation happening behind me.

"So, uh, what can I do for you folks and what's up with your friend there?" The smith asked.

"As for what you can do, I'm not really sure. You see, Vira here is a felvaxian, and we found her out in the Greatoak Forest. I'm not sure about the shifting thing, though. She heard the sounds of your smithing, and just froze. She walked over here, and we tried to stop her, but it's like she can't even hear us. I apologize for the intrusion, would you like payment for the materials?" Marcus explained.

"Naw, it's alright. I'm just as curious as you are as to what's happening. Besides, one bar of steel ain't worth all that much." He replied.

By now the steel was white hot, and using the tongs I quickly removed it from the forge while grabbing a nearby hammer. Setting it on the anvil, I began drawing the steel, using flat hammer blows to shape it into a basic sword. Partway through, I added a curve to the blade before straightening it out towards the tip. I blunted the tip, making the basic form of a sickle-sword, or khopesh.

A half hour later I had finished shaping the blade as everyone watched in either awe or confusion, the blacksmith and Corin the former. I quickly quenched it, the pleasant hiss of hot steel music to my ears. I ran a file down the blade, listening for any off sounds, and was pleased when there were none. I began polishing the blade, adding a wicked edge to it and a mirror shine. I could hear the blacksmith rummaging through a pile of handle materials before tossing a thick length of antler to me. I deftly caught it and began carving the hilt with my claws, adding a few hieroglyphs to it before attaching it to the sword with a hiss of burned bone.

It was a beautiful blade, but I couldn't help but feel as though something was missing. I went through a mental checklist of steps. I had shaped the blade, quenched it, polished it, and sharpened it. What was missing? Then it clicked.

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Magic.

I began using [Mage Needle] to weave my mana into the blade, removing the actual needle and instead just using the thread to enhance the metal. I faintly heard the gasps of my friends as a faint amber glow, like a setting sun, gathered around my sword. The metal warped and changed, turning from shining silver to a gleaming bronze. A few runes flared into being along the blade, and my mana began flowing into the hilt. The handle shifted, fitting perfectly to my hand, and the hieroglyphics became embossed with gold. I finally returned to the present, raising my blade so it caught the light. It was perfect. A few system windows caught my attention as I admired my work.

==================

Congratulations, you have created a masterwork magic item! Experience gained.

Title: Lady of The Forge has revealed a new ability: Polymorph.

Title: Lady of The Forge has revealed a new ability: Transmute Metal

Class requirements fulfilled: Blacksmith, Master Blacksmith, Runesmith, Enchanter unlocked.

Skills Acquired: Blacksmith's Eyes, Metallurgy, Fire Resistance.

Skill: Blacksmith's Eyes has been subsumed by Title: Lady of The Forge.

Skill: Metallurgy has been subsumed by Title: Lady of The Forge.

Title: Lady of The Forge has revealed a new ability: Forge Sight.

Title: Lady of The Forge has revealed a new ability: Domain: Forge.

Spell Upgraded: Mage Needle —> Mana Weaving.

Title Acquired: Steelshaper.

==================

That… is a lot. I read the class unlocks and, without hesitation, selected [Master Blacksmith]. I would check the other skills and upgrades later. I tried to use [Forge Sight] on my khopesh, and learned it worked like an advanced [Identify] skill for items.

==================

Unnamed

Relic

A khopesh sickle-sword made from eternal bronze and extreme skill without the assistance of the system, it is a masterpiece from an unknown ascendant blacksmith. It can cleave through flesh, bone, and steel alike with its indestructible blade, and call upon the purifying light of the setting sun's flame to rend foes asunder.

This blade is a faint mockery of it's true strength, but may one day be truly unleashed.

==================

That sounds incredibly powerful. I willed the blade to activate, and suddenly just knew what to do.

"[Sunder]." I intoned, the single word rolling across the silent forge with the weight of an anvil. A gleam of light heralded the blazing flame that engulfed the blade, and I somehow knew that if I tried, I could easily cut through the thick iron anvil nearby. I turned to my companions with a wide, slightly maniacal grin on my face. The blacksmith I interrupted was staring at my work with childlike wonder, while Ava was nearly vibrating with excitement. Corin and Marcus were admiring my blade, while Iven, who used bows, simply smiled. I turned to the smith as the flames subsided and bowed slightly.

"I must apologize for interrupting you earlier. I wasn't quite myself, you see, and I recognized the sounds of a smithy and lost it for a while." I explained, slightly embarrassed at my earlier zone-out. He quickly blinked himself back into focus and shook his head furiously.

"No need to apologize, lass. No harm, no foul, and it is payment enough to see a master at work. May I ask your name and class?" He responded. I nodded.

"I am called Vira, and my class is [Master Blacksmith]." I said.

"I see. May I see that sword of yours? I'm not familiar with the design." He asked politely. I thought for a moment before passing him the khopesh. I saw his eyes glaze over as he used [Identify] on the sword, and he nearly dropped it in shock.

"R-R-Relic?! This… khopesh is a relic?!" He exclaimed in surprise before gently handing me the sword back, almost reverent in his motions. I accepted my sword before trying to think of a name for it. As I thought, I grabbed a piece of leather from a shelf and started making a sheath for it.

It uses the sun and fire, so maybe something related to that? How about something in Latin? Hmmm… Ignis? No… Ardere? Maybe… Ah! Solis! Perfect. Now, how do I name it?

Another amber glow gathered around Solis just as I thought that, and the name slowly carved itself into the blade in ornate script. Huh, so that's how it works. I finished the sheath and put the blade in. The sheath glowed briefly before changing to match the blade, bands of the same eternal bronze flicking around and reinforcing it. As I sheathed Solis, I could hear a loud squeal from behind me before I was tackled to the ground by Ava, who wrapped me in another hug.

"You made a relic!?! That's incredible! Did you know you could do that, or did it just happen? And your form! How did you do this?!" She gushed, praising me as I looked to Marcus, silently pleading for help. He just smiled and shrugged, as though saying, She's your sheep, what do you want me to do? I could feel my face burn, and I was fairly certain that even my fur was turning red. I gently peeled Ava off of me, before standing up and strapping Solis to my back. I thanked the blacksmith and we left with my newfound abilities and weaponry.

Ava began gushing about my looks as we left. "Oh my gods! You are so pretty! Your fur gleams like amethyst, and your eyes are like twin amber! And your height! How on earth are you so tall!?" Ava continued even as we entered the town square. I glanced away, glad that my fur hid my blush. Corin just chuckled at Ava's antics. We returned to the guild to choose a mission for the next day, and Ava just continued.

I tuned back in to Ava and was surprised that she was still going on about my looks. Corin was laughing even harder, and it only got worse when he saw my expression.

"Hey, Ava?"

"-and.. Yeah?"

"Please stop."

"Oh… sorry."

"Thanks. You have been going on for about ten minutes. How in the nine hells do you have that much to say?" I joked. She giggled, responding.

"Well, all of it was true! You are absolutely beautiful!" I felt heat rush to my face and I turned away again, embarrassed. Iven chuckled before turning back to the crowd.

Nothing new happened the rest of the day, so we all decided to retire to an inn. Me and Ava ended up sharing a room, I tossed Solis into my storage and returned to my normal, beastly form. Ava looked both surprised and… disappointed?... when I transformed, but quickly changed moods when I jumped up onto the bed, curling up next to her.

She hesitantly started petting me, before continuing at my rumbling purr. I can see why pets enjoy this so much, it is truly bliss, I thought, leaning slightly into her hand. Before I faded off to sleep, I thought I heard her say something, but I couldn't make out most of it.

"I... you… goodnight."