I woke up alone in a relatively large tent. There were way too many knives in here. Literally every surface had at least one weapon. I sighed and tried to find my pants. I had ended up getting way too drunk yesterday after that woman pulled out alcohol that tasted like spiced whiskey. Not the cheap stuff either. I assumed she was some sort of worker at first but from the equipment strewn about I now assumed she was some sort of mercenary.

Maybe a therapist would have something to say about the fact that every woman I had slept with in my life seemed ready to stab me at a moment's notice but it wouldn't make much of a difference. I would probably still do it.

Once I found my pants and sandals I began to rush out of the opening, I would light an incense stick in honor of my shirt’s sacrifice.

As I got out of the tent, a bundle of cloth hit me in the side of the head.

“‘Bout time you woke up. I was going to throw you in the river if you slept much longer.” The tall redheaded woman was grinning at me. She had a massive blade sheathed on her hip.

“Sorry about that.” I tried to smile in the most disarming way I could and checked what was in my hands. It was my shirt. It seemed I wouldn’t need to hold a funeral after all.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Run away.” She shooed me off.

I was already halfway back to the smithy when I realized she had just sent me on a walk of shame. It didn’t really matter much but I still felt slightly indignant. I might not be some nobleman or anything but… nope. I am the exact opposite of a catch. I’m a dead broke blacksmith in the middle of nowhere. I sighed. Screw it. I needed coffee.

When I got back the old man gave me a knowing look but didn’t ask any questions.

The group of men working on the building next to us had increased in size substantially. With the numerous workers and merchants setting up around the village, there hadn’t been anyone hiring us. All the workers had brought materials with them and some of the merchants were selling cheap bulk purchased tools. It looked like before long this village would become a thriving little place. A few of the workers had even started plotting out their own land. It seemed the pay for this job was substantial.

“I moved here because it was small.” The old man sighed as he watched the workers busy themselves.

“Well, it will probably be a nice house at least.” I shrugged.

“You have no idea how much work went into this little place. You don’t know a damn thing about formations.” He gave me a look like I had kicked his dog.

I had to hold back a laugh. Sure I had started getting attached to this little place myself but after talking to the rich guy I was a bit excited to have a proper bed instead of sleeping next to the fire pit.

“Nope, what are they?” It probably wouldn’t come in handy but maybe there was a magic in this place I could do.

“It’s the way the structure flows. The designs and patterns can create phenomena when done correctly.” He knew I had trouble understanding the more philosophical bits so he tried to explain it simply.

“I don’t really get it, but can’t you just have them build it the way you want?” I raised an eyebrow as I asked him. His eyes widened and he pulled out a scroll and some charcoal. He began to scribble furiously. Mumbling to himself the entire time. He seemed to come to some sort of conclusion and rushed over to the workers barking orders furiously. I might have screwed up. An overly involved home owner could make the project take forever.

I glanced at the paper hoping to glean some sort of information about the ‘formations’ he was talking about. My eyes glazed over instantly. I couldn’t even read and this looked like way too many steps for me.

Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

I really wanted one of these flashy magic powers too damnit!

Hu came back not long after and watched alongside me as the old man pulled off one of his sandals and started slapping around the foreman.

“Poor guy.” The kid commented before he yawned and went to grab his training saber that he made for himself.

“I’m off to work out, you coming today?” He asked with a tired expression.

“Nah, I’m going to keep an eye on the place since the old man is busy.” I waved as Hu went to practice with his sword. I might be a pacifist personally but I can’t really bring myself to force that sort of thing on others. Especially in a world of warriors like this one.

I still plan to make sure Hu knows the rules of fighting though. Those were important.

Well, as important as arbitrary ideas with random numbers attached could be. Honestly I’m pretty sure my uncle made the shit up when it was convenient. Rule one would never change though. Do your best to avoid fighting. All other rules are subject to change depending on the situation.

“Hello?” A woman’s voice came from the side of the little house. I turned and saw a wild red mane.

Weren’t encounters like that supposed to be fleeting?

“Oh, didn’t expect to meet you here, big guy.” Her smile was sharp. I was the weird person around here for smiling so much but this woman seemed to have a tendency to do the same.

“How can I help you?” I tried to be as professional as possible. She was wandering around, inspecting every thing that entered her vision.

“I heard from a man with a shiny shovel that this was the place to buy good iron.” Her eyes lingered on my machete that was by the doorway. I still needed to make a sheath for it or something.

“Maybe for farmers but we don’t usually make weapons here.” It was best to be nice about it. The feeling of being watched by snakes had returned.

I continued to sip on my coffee to prevent myself from talking.

“But you could make me armor right? Especially after dishonoring a maiden like me.” Her smile never faltered as she mimed fainting and pulled out a piece of paper with a drawing on it.

I choked a bit on my drink as I took the paper. It was a simple armguard that covered the forearms. It wasn’t a full glove or anything so while I couldn’t read the writing it seemed simple enough. They needed thinned out more than the intricate carving that was implied by the artwork. These things would probably be a bit hefty. She certainly wasn’t a small woman. She was tall and the blade she carried around didn’t seem to affect her in the slightest. She was very well toned…

Shit! Snap out of it!

“Yeah, I could do this. Come back in a few days.” I had to distract myself with something. They wouldn’t be exactly as written but I think I had a good idea for these bracers if I could keep myself focused.

_______________________________

Elder Xinyi looked at the crescent spade that sat in the corner of his shack that he was staying in while visiting this little sect. It might not have garnered much attention, but he knew better. He had a brief thought of keeping it for himself. It could be considered fate that he found this young talent. It would be improper for someone of his stature to hold such an opportunity from her. He was however going to find that bastard and get something for himself next time. Once he could figure out how to break the stupid formations the surly old smith put up around the shack.

When he had first met Long Fa they were both wandering as young men. Out on their own for the first time in their lives.

While he might call the short man senior brother now, they had fought the moment they met each other. It wasn’t something to be brought up in their old age but Long Fa had been a true master of the demonic path. As corpses had piled up around him he always smiled. He had begun keeping his head shaved in order to prevent the bloody strands from getting in his eyes. He wielded twin sabers while laughing, earning him the moniker of ‘Smiling Asura’.

It never made sense to Xinyi but one day he simply shut himself away in his sect and began to forge. They had spoken numerous times throughout the years. They had fought against each other often and even shared wine more than once. No matter how bloody his hands had been it was difficult to call him evil.

Now that he finally found him he was actually relieved. He hadn’t seen the old monster so lively since he was on the battlefield. Though that formation was annoying. He made it so anyone searching for Long Fa would become lost. However if one sought out old Long the smith, they would be almost guided to him. A troublesome, but interesting formation. He would need to contact littlest brother for help breaking it.