Chapter 103: Soul Eater
"Ya want me to start work on the armaments?" Grent asked, his eyes shining as he looked at Ren, who was standing inside his smithy. The entire place was now filled with tools and weapons, so much that they littered the floor, each one made with dragon scale, so they were the highest grade a person could realistically get.
"Yes, that’s what I want. To get a divine armament blessed, you have to get it perfect, so I’ll hand the blueprint over to you and ensure that you practice as much as you need."
Ren gave the offer like it was something casual, but Grent knew better than to take such a thing as it was. He knew for certain that Ren had something else he wanted to be done.
"That being said, for you to start having the time to make armaments, you’ll need to start training apprentices that will take on the normal blacksmithing."
"Ahh, I see, you want me to take in some of the monsters here and train them, oi?"
"Yes, exactly that. It won’t be an issue, right?" Ren asked.
"No, it won’t, but I’ll not be taking just anyone in. I’ll have to see the best of the best." Grent made his stance clear.
"Ahh, I see, then we can set something up, a smithing competition. But considering that most of them have zero knowledge, how about you run a weeklong training, and then the competition comes? The top performers take the crown and become your students."
"Ah, that would work, a week is enough to see those that have the talent," he said and then lifted his hammer, "but have them know that becoming a blacksmith is a skill that drills into your soul. It breaks you, and if you are not careful, it could leave irreparable damage. I’ve seen too much of that amongst my mates." His face dropped as he got to the last line, a heavy expression of someone that had lost a lot.
"We will try our best to not allow that to happen," Ren responded.
Grent smiled and nodded, then he turned into the smithy. "Before you leave, Master Ren, I’ve been working on something for you.
I have watched the way that you fight, and you either use magical abilities or get close, but your movements showed me an extremely nimble style that I was not expecting."
He pulled out a wooden case the length of a sword and held it with both hands. It was a smooth and very polished box, showing that it had been specially made.
"This may not be a divine armament, but it damn near might be. I learned this sword from my master long ago. He had made it for a cloaked man that visited many years ago and requested this particular weapon.
We had worked and failed on it so much that the sword got engraved into my memory. I decided to make it. Back home we used the strongest metal we had, but that pales in comparison to dragon scale.
The one I’ve built is far greater. You’ll be the first to try it out."
’He made a weapon for me? Whoa, now I’m eager to see it. But who could that cloaked figure he is speaking of be?’
He thought about the man that he had seen, but immediately tossed the idea out of his mind for now. That figure could be anyone, and so could the cloaked figure that Grent spoke about. It was far too broad to try and pinpoint.
He stretched out his hands and unlocked the sword, and immediately what he saw inside there blew his mind away. The inside of the case was lined with beautiful crimson soft padding that Ren had no idea where it could have possibly come from or how Grent managed to get it done.
The blade sat right at the center in a specially made groove. The black sheath was made of some hard black material. Ren could tell that it had dragon scale inside, but it did not seem to be made of metal, which was shocking. It was engraved in some very flowy, shadowy-like patterns that drew the eyes.
’Whoa, the energy I’m feeling off this sword alone is crazy. I’ve not felt a weapon that gave this off, even the divine armament.’
He stretched out his hand and grabbed the sword by the handle. It was black like the sheath and made very sleek. It had no bottom pommel, but the grip on the sword was enough to keep his hands locked on it.
He took it out of the box and it was extremely lightweight. It almost felt like he was holding onto nothing.
He pulled the blade out of the sheath, and much like he already expected, it was black as well. There was no guard on the sword, and it was just a smooth flow from handle to blade.
"This looks awesome."
"Oi, the look is not the best thing. Hold the sword and infuse some mana."
Ren did what he said and infused mana, and immediately the sword buzzed to life, having some sort of ripple around the metal. Ren did not need to hear more. He could already feel what was special about the sword. He looked at the other end of the wall at a specific location on it.
It was way out of reach for the sword, but with one slash the sword extended and moved through the air like it was made of liquid. It stabbed right into that point, with enough force to leave a mark, but not enough to damage the place.
"Whoa, this is crazy," Ren muttered, shocked at what happened.
"That’s only the start of what the sword can do. I suggest that you take it out and have a few swings on your own time and see what makes this blade special.
I named it the Soul Eater, and I’m sure you’ll find out why it’s named that," Grent said with a bright smile.