Chapter 12: The Price of Potential
The Research Division was quieter than the rest of the academy.
Most students spent their afternoons training in the combat arena or attending lectures. Here, the only sounds came from crackling furnaces, humming mana circuits, and the occasional strike of a smith’s hammer.
Kael stood beside one of the empty workstations, studying every tool in front of him.
Nothing here resembled the crude equipment he had built inside the shed behind his mother’s house.
Rows of enchanted chisels rested beside precision mana gauges. Several compact furnaces burned with pale blue flames that produced almost no smoke. Crystal conduits carried refined mana beneath the stone floor, supplying every workstation with a stable flow of energy.
Vice Principal Aldren watched him silently.
"Most first-year students spend more time admiring this place than learning from it," he said. "You haven’t stopped observing the equipment."
Kael nodded.
"I’m trying to understand why each tool exists."
A faint smile appeared on Aldren’s face.
"Good answer."
He walked toward a locked cabinet and removed a small metal box.
Inside were five identical pieces of damaged alloy.
"Every apprentice receives the same test."
He placed the metal on the table.
"Repair one."
"No blueprint?"
Aldren shook his head.
"No instructions."
"No hints."
"I want to see how you think."
Several researchers quietly gathered nearby.
News of the F-Rank Scrap Artisan had already spread through the workshop.
Some looked curious.
Others looked openly skeptical.
A young researcher folded his arms.
"He’s a combat prodigy, perhaps. That doesn’t make him a craftsman."
An older woman beside him whispered,
"Let’s wait before judging."
Kael ignored them.
He picked up the damaged alloy.
Immediately, the System reacted.
[Material Analysis Activated.]
Blue lines spread across the metal.
Tiny fractures became visible.
Chemical impurities.
Residual mana.
Microscopic stress points.
Information flooded his mind.
But Kael didn’t begin repairing it immediately.
Instead, he closed his eyes.
The researchers exchanged puzzled glances.
"What is he doing?"
"He stopped."
"Did he give up?"
Only Aldren remained silent.
Nearly a full minute passed.
Then Kael opened his eyes.
"I understand."
He reached for a different tool than everyone expected.
Instead of using the enchanted forge, he selected an old polishing stone resting forgotten on the corner of the bench.
One researcher laughed quietly.
"That thing?"
"He can’t be serious."
Kael ignored the comment.
The polishing stone wasn’t magical.
It wasn’t valuable.
But its surface contained almost no mana residue.
Exactly what he needed.
He gently scraped away the outer layer of the damaged alloy.
Gray dust fell onto the table.
One layer.
Then another.
Then another.
Only after removing the contaminated surface did he channel mana into the remaining metal.
A soft blue glow spread across the alloy.
Unlike ordinary Artisans, Kael didn’t force the material back into shape.
He encouraged it.
Mana flowed naturally through the surviving structure, reconnecting what remained instead of replacing it.
Small cracks disappeared one by one.
The alloy slowly regained its original form.
Five minutes later...
The damaged block rested on the table as though it had never been broken.
Silence filled the workshop.
A researcher hurried forward with an inspection lens.
He examined every side.
His expression gradually changed.
"No fractures..."
"Mana conductivity..."
He checked again.
"Ninety-eight percent efficiency?"
Another researcher grabbed the alloy.
"Impossible."
"We usually reach eighty-five at best."
Someone looked toward Aldren.
"He repaired it without melting the material."
Aldren nodded slowly.
"Exactly."
Kael finally spoke.
"If the original structure is still alive, destroying it completely only wastes energy."
Several researchers froze.
That sentence sounded simple.
Yet none of them had considered it.
One elderly professor stepped forward.
"You treat metal as though it’s alive."
Kael thought for a moment before answering.
"It remembers."
The workshop became silent again.
No one laughed this time.
Aldren carefully placed the repaired alloy back inside its box.
"I’ve seen enough."
He turned toward the gathered researchers.
"From today onward, Kael Vance has full access to Workshop Three."
Murmurs spread immediately.
"Workshop Three?"
"That’s reserved for advanced researchers."
"A first-year?"
One researcher objected.
"Vice Principal, with respect, academy regulations—"
"I wrote those regulations," Aldren interrupted calmly.
"I can also change them."
No one argued further.
Kael bowed slightly.
"Thank you."
"This isn’t charity," Aldren replied.
"You’ve earned it."
Before their conversation could continue, hurried footsteps echoed through the corridor.
A messenger wearing the academy emblem stopped outside the workshop, breathing heavily.
"Vice Principal!"
Aldren frowned.
"What happened?"
"The Guild..."
"The Royal Artificers’ Guild has arrived."
Every researcher looked toward the door.
Even Aldren seemed surprised.
"So soon..."
The messenger swallowed.
"They specifically requested a meeting with..."
His eyes shifted toward Kael.
"...the Scrap Artisan."
No one expected the Royal Artificers’ Guild to arrive so quickly. The Guild rarely visited Oakhaven Academy, and when they did, it was usually to recruit exceptional graduates—not first-year students.
Vice Principal Aldren looked toward Kael before giving a small nod.
"It seems your reputation is growing faster than either of us expected."
Kael remained calm, though his thoughts were racing. He had anticipated attention eventually, but not this soon. Attention brought opportunities... and risks.
"Show them in," Aldren instructed.
The messenger hurried away.
Only a few moments later, three figures entered the workshop.
Leading them was a tall man in his early forties wearing a dark crimson coat embroidered with silver gears. His movements were relaxed, yet every step carried quiet confidence. Behind him followed a young woman carrying several leather folders and an elderly craftsman whose sharp eyes immediately began inspecting every corner of the workshop.
The crimson-coated man smiled politely.
"Vice Principal Aldren."
"It’s been a while, Garrick."
"So it has."
The two men exchanged a firm handshake.
Then Garrick’s attention shifted toward Kael.
"So..."
"You’re Kael Vance."
Kael inclined his head slightly.
"I am."
For several seconds, Garrick simply observed him.
The patched coat.
The handmade equipment.
The strange mechanical frame resting against the workbench.
Nothing matched the reports he had received.
Finally, he spoke.
"I expected someone older."
"I’ve heard that before," Kael replied.
A faint laugh escaped Garrick.
"So the reports were correct."
"You stay calm under pressure."
The elderly craftsman beside him suddenly stepped forward.
"May I?"
Without waiting for an answer, he picked up the Hybrid Kinetic Cannon-Spear resting against the wall.
His experienced hands traced every joint and every reinforcement.
His expression gradually became serious.
"This wasn’t forged..."
"No."
"It was assembled."
He turned the weapon over again.
"The balance is unusual."
"But..."
He looked directly at Kael.
"...it works."
Kael nodded.
"I built it for myself."
The old craftsman slowly returned the spear.
"I’ve spent forty-two years making weapons."
"I’ve never seen anyone solve structural problems this way."
Several academy researchers exchanged glances.
Praise from Master Dorian was exceedingly rare.
Garrick opened one of the folders his assistant carried.
"We reviewed the report from the Green Mist Dungeon."
"Solo Boss elimination."
"Field crafting during active combat."
"Rare-grade equipment created by a Level Five Artisan."
He closed the folder.
"If even half of it is true..."
"It is," Aldren interrupted.
"I witnessed his restoration technique myself."
Garrick smiled.
"Excellent."
He reached into his coat and removed a black envelope sealed with silver wax.
"The Royal Artificers’ Guild would like to offer you provisional membership."
The workshop erupted in whispers.
"Provisional membership?"
"Already?"
"He’s still a first-year!"
Even Kael looked surprised.
"What would that involve?"
Garrick appreciated the question.
Most young crafters asked about prestige.
Kael asked about responsibilities.
"It grants access to Guild libraries, discounted materials, and certified workshops throughout the kingdom."
"In return?"
"You complete occasional commissions."
"No long-term contract."
"No loss of personal freedom."
Kael considered the offer carefully.
It was generous.
Perhaps too generous.
"What do you gain?" he asked.
Garrick smiled knowingly.
"We invest in promising craftsmen."
"And hope they remember who believed in them."
The answer was diplomatic.
Not entirely truthful.
But not entirely false either.
Kael understood enough about business to recognize mutual interest.
"I’d like some time to think."
Neither Garrick nor Aldren seemed disappointed.
"A cautious decision is usually the correct one," Garrick replied.
Before anyone could continue, the workshop lights flickered.
A deep vibration spread beneath the stone floor.
Every researcher immediately stopped moving.
Aldren’s expression hardened.
"That shouldn’t be happening."
Another tremor followed.
This one was stronger.
Some of the tools rattled across nearby tables.
A warning crystal mounted above the entrance suddenly flashed crimson.
A sharp alarm echoed throughout the Research Division.
Emergency Alert.
Emergency Alert.
One of the academy instructors burst into the workshop.
"Vice Principal!"
"We’ve detected a massive mana fluctuation beneath the eastern ruins!"
Aldren frowned.
"The sealed chamber?"
The instructor nodded.
"The barrier is weakening."
Master Dorian’s expression immediately changed.
"Impossible."
"That seal has held for almost two centuries."
Another violent tremor shook the building.
This time, everyone felt it.
Tiny cracks appeared across one of the workshop windows.
Outside, students stopped in the academy courtyard, staring toward the distant eastern hills where a column of pale blue light suddenly pierced the sky.
Kael instinctively looked in the same direction.
The System reacted before anyone else.
A translucent blue window appeared before his eyes.
[Hidden Quest Triggered]
Ancient Forge Awakening
Objective: Investigate the source of the abnormal mana surge.
Warning: Recommended Level Unknown.
Reward: ???
Kael’s breathing slowed.
An unknown reward.
His System had never displayed question marks before.
Whatever had awakened beneath Oakhaven...
It wasn’t an ordinary dungeon.
Beside him, Garrick quietly folded his arms.
"It seems," he said, watching the distant pillar of light, "our meeting will have to wait."
Aldren nodded once.
"Evacuate the students."
"Seal every entrance to the eastern district."
The instructor hesitated.
"...Vice Principal."
"The barrier already failed."
Silence filled the workshop.
For the first time since awakening his class, Kael saw genuine concern in Aldren’s eyes.
Far beyond the academy walls...
Far beyond the academy walls, beneath layers of forgotten stone, something that had slept for generations finally stirred.
Whatever had awakened beneath Oakhaven...
It was no ordinary dungeon.
To Be Continued...
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