Chapter 117: Level 2 Smithing House
After spending a little more time together, Hera returned to her work while leaving Edgar with his thoughts.
The young boy was having multiple thoughts in his mind, and not all of them were good.
’...What am I supposed to do?’
Edgar let out a tired sigh before he stood up from the edge of the Agricultural House.
’Can I really believe what Semele said about the ritual?’ he wondered to himself. ’What if she is lying?’
From everything Edgar knew, the Nightmare that had proclaimed itself King wanted Hera as its bride.
Why such a creature would care about something like marriage remained completely beyond his understanding.
Still, he couldn’t ignore the possibility that there was some connection between the two.
If a ritual truly requires a sacrifice, then perhaps the sacrifice being a virgin actually matters.
’Urgh, what am I even thinking...?’
Edgar rubbed his face and put those thoughts aside for now.
The condition of Hera for the upcoming battle doesn’t matter. The Nightmare will attack the Fortress regardless.
’...And it’s not like the Nightmare can tell whether she’s a virgin.’
"Huff..."
Letting out a deep breath, Edgar put aside all those thoughts and walked down the ramp.
He looked around the Fortress and began planning his next course of action.
’But first....’
Edgar looked around and found the veteran soldier, who looked young, on top of the Fortress Wall.
The blonde boy walked toward him, which Gordon took notice of.
"Something I can help you with, young lord?" he asked as soon as Edgar got closer.
"Actually, yes." Edgar replied, stretching his body. "I would like to know more about Sornja Flowers."
Gordon blinked. "...Sornja Flowers?"
The soldier looked really surprised by the name. He scratched the side of his beard while thinking.
"It’s been years since I last heard that name."
Edgar patiently waited, leaning against the battlement and looking at him.
"They’re unusual flowers."
The veteran pointed toward the distant mountains. "They bloom mostly around high cliffs and also glow during the Eternal Night."
Edgar’s eyes narrowed slightly. "...Glow?"
Gordon nodded. "Not brightly, but enough to notice them from a distance. They’re actually quite beautiful."
’Huh, who would’ve thought a flower related to the Sun Class could actually glow.’ Edgar grumbled inwardly while thinking about the flower.
He also silently committed every word to memory.
"Do you know where I can find a hundred of them?" The question made Gordon stare at him.
"...A hundred?" the veteran frowned. "What in the world do you need that many flowers for?"
Edgar’s thoughts raced for a brief moment. He quickly made up the first excuse that came to mind. "I’m experimenting with runes. I need them for that."
Gordon looked unconvinced. His eyes had that ’I know it’s a lie.’ look.
The veteran let out a helpless chuckle, thinking about his own younger days.
"I won’t ask if you don’t wish to tell me."
He became thoughtful again. "If you’re truly searching for that many, the best place would probably be the Norwood Mountains."
Edgar immediately remembered the enormous mountain range.
The mountains that were famous for holding the treasure of a Level 10 Builder. "...There?"
Gordon slowly nodded. "I’ve seen them growing along several cliffs there."
Though thinking about the mountains made Gordon really uncomfortable.
The color on his face began to drain.
The figure of the giant head that he had seen was etched into his mind like the scariest Nightmare.
Edgar noticed that and deliberately changed the subject. "Have you noticed anything unusual around the Fortress?"
Gordon nodded almost immediately. "Scouts. They’re keeping their distance, but they’ve definitely been watching us."
Edgar wasn’t surprised when he heard that.
After the death of Bravi, it would’ve been stranger if no one had come. Without another word, Edgar quietly connected himself to the Soul Network.
His vision instantly divided. One after another, the perspectives of multiple Soul Guardians appeared inside his mind.
One Guardian hidden high within a pine tree caught his attention.
Through its vision, Edgar saw three figures crouching inside thick bushes nearly two kilometres away.
Each wore dull green cloaks designed to blend into the surrounding forest.
The blonde boy opened his eyes and looked at Gordon.
"Make sure none of them get anywhere close to the Fortress." He ordered the veteran and the Soul Guardians. "I don’t want any leaks that can be used against us."
Gordon lowered his head and said quietly, "I will do my best, my lord."
Edgar nodded his head and walked down the Fortress Wall.
’I guess I need to make some changes to my plans.’
The blonde boy had been planning to visit the mountains on the eastern side to get more ore, but he decided against it.
Now wasn’t the right time to move while the Fortress was under watch.
Instead, he walked toward the Smithing House and found an empty plot.
He then examined the place before deciding to create another Smithing House right there.
Looking at the system screen, Edgar willed it. Ten Nightmare Stones broke apart, and the white liquid leaked out of them.
They moved upward and began to take the shape of a house.
In just a few minutes, a new one was built just beside the previous one.
But Edgar didn’t stop there. Taking out thirty more Nightmare Stones, he decided to upgrade it.
A familiar screen appeared before his eyes.
======
Choose the Upgrade Path:
1. Refinement Workshop
2. Master Forge
3. Alloy Foundry
======
Edgar quietly read through every option as he more or less understood what they meant.
The Master Forge would allow Steven to create better equipment.
The Alloy Foundry would become invaluable once rarer ores became available.
But neither of them was his priority right now.
’What I need now is speedy refinement.’
Thousands of tons of ore still waited in the mountains.
If they couldn’t even turn raw ore into usable metal, improving the forging process wouldn’t accomplish much.
Without another moment of hesitation, Edgar reached toward the first option.
"...Refinement Workshop."
The screen immediately dissolved into countless particles of light.
The thirty White Nightmare Stones before him simultaneously shattered.
White liquid poured across the ground before racing toward the newly constructed building.
The entire Smithing House began glowing as changes began all over it.
New sections emerged from both sides of the structure as though the building itself were growing.
Wide ventilation shafts appeared along the upper walls.
Inside, brand-new refining furnaces gradually formed one after another.
Heavy stone crushing mills emerged beside the entrance.
Long channels designed for transporting molten metal stretched throughout the workshop.
The ordinary wooden planks disappeared beneath thick stone slabs capable of enduring tremendous heat.
After several minutes, the completely new Smithing House stood before him.
And just as he had sensed, the sound of hammering stopped from the adjacent building, and an old man walked out.
"My lord!"
The old blacksmith froze the instant he stepped outside.
His jaw slowly fell open. "...This..."
Edgar smiled and said loudly, "This is for you. Now start working."