Chapter 42
I gulped and swung my staff.
Clatter clatter!
[Skill: ‘Summon Balanced Skeletons’ (Grade C) is used.]
[Consumes 10 Energy.]
[‘Bone Six’ appears.]
The arrival of Bone Six!
“Hm?”
Dagnard paused at my sudden action.
It was understandable since I’d done it in the middle of a conversation.
I smiled brightly.
“Dagnard?”
“What’s going on? Why summon that all of a sudden?”
“You mentioned it before, didn’t you? That you’d never forget a favor and would definitely repay it.”
“Ahem, I did! Dwarves don’t make empty promises. To uphold their word, they even risk their lives in the name of the Great Dmir.”
“Oh, I see.”
Wait, the Great Dmir?
Who’s that now?
Wasn’t the chairman’s name Volcanus?
“Hoho, your expression is very honest.”
“Excuse me?”
“You look curious about Dmir, don’t you?”
“Ah, yes.”
What the—he a mind reader?
I feel like I’m surrounded by psychic old men.
“Dmir is a legendary figure among dwarves. The father of all blacksmiths. A hero of the Rock Tribe and our spiritual pillar.” (T/N: Why do I have a feeling that it’s Bone’s Six’s past life?)
“……”
As he spoke about Dmir—
It seemed like Bone Six twitched slightly… was I imagining things?
If not, that would be amazing.
It’d mean Dmir was someone powerful enough to stir a reaction even from the dead.
“All of our blacksmithing skills as dwarves come from him. Anyway.”
Dagnard stroked his long, straight beard.
“Why bring up favors all of a sudden?”
“Ah.”
I smacked my lips.
“About that pile of minerals over there.”
Then I glanced over greedily at the piles.
“Would it be alright if I used them?”
“Those?”
He looked confused.
“As I said earlier, it’s fine… but what would you use them for? I’ll just say this out of concern—if you can’t extract metal from those piles, they’re useless.”
“I’m aware.”
I grinned and stepped aside for Bone Six.
The skeleton looked visibly excited and began scanning the surroundings.
Then, instinctively, he found a furnace.
A small makeshift furnace.
“How do you get this thing running?”
“…You light a fire beneath it. But… surely you’re not thinking of smelting those minerals yourself?”
Dagnard looked like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
Of course he would. A non-dwarf claiming to use their lost technique?
“Well, I’ll just show you instead of talking.”
[‘Bone Five’ uses skill: Fireball (Lv.Max).]
Fwoooosh!
I used Bone Five to ignite the furnace.
At the same time, Bone Six began to move naturally.
Creak!
He grabbed a pile of iron ore nearby and dumped it into the furnace.
[Skill: ‘Intermediate Smelting’ (Lv.1) is used.]
[Creating ‘Iron Ingot.’]
[Creating ‘Iron Ingot.’]
[Creating ‘Pile of Scrap.’]
[Proficiency increased by 1.]
Then, slowly, iron ingots began to pile up.
“W-What?”
Dagnard was in shock.
“This makes no sense! Normally, smelting involves ridiculously complex procedures! How are you just dumping it in and getting perfect ingots?!”
“I don’t know. Let’s just say it’s our race’s technique.”
I couldn’t explain the skill system, so I just played it off as a special method.
“What utter nonsense!”
Dagnard stared wide-eyed, speechless.
“Ahh, perhaps you really are a hero sent by the Rock God in these turbulent times!”
And then his eyes sparkled.
“You there.”
“Yes?”
“Do you, by any chance, know blacksmithing?”
“Blacksmithing? Let’s see.”
I rummaged through my inventory.
I searched for the blueprints I had acquired through alchemy.
Blueprints were rare, so I kept every single one I found.
‘Hmm.’
Since dwarves mainly use hammers…
‘This is it!’
[Item: Sturdy Steel Hammer]
[Grade: C]
[Type: Blueprint]
[Description: A schematic for crafting a ‘Sturdy Steel Hammer.’]
[Effect 1: Allows crafting of ‘Sturdy Steel Hammer.’]
[Effect 2: Requires 10 Iron Ingots, 2 Wood Shards.]
Simple materials.
And being Grade C, it already looked way better than Dagnard’s current hammer.
“Bone Six.”
Creak?
I handed the blueprint and iron ingots to Bone Six.
As for the wood shards—those could easily be gathered by dismantling some of the worn-out pickaxes lying around the mine.
He nodded and grabbed a bone hammer, moving toward a nearby anvil.
“Dagnard.”
“Y-Yes?”
I smiled softly at the dwarf who hadn’t closed his mouth the whole time.
“Please wait a little. I’ll give you something much better than the hammer you’re using.”
“Y-You mean you can actually make it? For real?”
And so began the actual crafting.
[Skill: ‘Intermediate Item Crafting’ (Lv.1) is used.]
[Using blueprint: ‘Sturdy Steel Hammer.’]
Clang! Clang!
Bone Six began hammering the iron ingots.
[Completion: 30%]
The completion slowly climbed.
[Completion: 50%]
The hammer gradually took shape.
[Completion: 99%]
After about an hour, a fine hammer was completed.
[Completion: 100%]
[You have acquired ‘Sturdy Steel Hammer’ (C Grade).]
[Proficiency increased by 1.]
‘Item crafting is definitely more labor-intensive.’
Unlike smelting or weaving, this required time investment.
‘High money, high time cost…’
Now I understood why high-ranking production Hunters were considered rare and valuable.
“You really made it. And in such a short time! I felt like I was watching the god of blacksmiths!”
“I’m not that great. Still a beginner.”
That was true.
This was my first time crafting something.
“May I take a look?”
“Go ahead.”
I handed Dagnard the finished hammer.
[Item: Sturdy Steel Hammer]
[Grade: C]
[Type: Hammer]
[Description: A sturdy hammer forged from high-pressure steel. Crafted by ‘Bone Six.’]
[Effect 1: Strength +10.]
[Effect 2: 0.1% chance to break weapons Grade C or lower.]
“Ooooh, impressive!”
“It’s not that big of a deal.”
“Of course, it doesn’t match the level of our old dwarven craftsmanship. But still…!”
Dagnard slowly nodded.
“If you can produce weapons of this caliber in that short a time, it could give us a real edge in the war against the elves.”
“Are the dwarves’ weapons really that outdated?”
I was puzzled.
This item, while decent…
Wasn’t exactly rare or legendary by Earth standards.
“Yeah.”
After thinking briefly, he nodded.
“Most dwarves are using weapons as old and weak as mine… It’s a bitter reality. That’s why—”
Hope lit up in Dagnard’s eyes.
“Would it be alright if I asked a favor? I know it’s selfish, but our situation is desperate.”
“Go ahead.”
“We’ve forgotten blacksmithing over the past hundred years. And with the chairman’s stubbornness, we’re forced to focus solely on training. But in that situation… could you perhaps make weapons for us?”
“…!”
I cheered inwardly.
This was an opportunity.
A golden one.
A fully legal way to use someone else’s materials and endlessly grind proficiency!
But—
I couldn’t agree too easily.
Even if it was a chance for me,
For the dwarves, it was a matter of survival.
That meant I had the right to ask for compensation.
And system-wise, I was already their benefactor.
“I’m willing to do it.”
“Really?”
“But those who want weapons must bring their own minerals from the field.”
“You mean they should mine it themselves? That’s a given! Is that really all you need?”
“Well… it would also be nice if I got a little something in return.”
“Payment?”
That’s how the world works.
People respect something more when they pay for it than when it’s free.
“Yes, well… maybe some blueprints. Or blueprints. Or, I don’t know, maybe… blueprints?”
“Blueprints?”
“Yes, the ones you mentioned trying to recover.”
I hadn’t forgotten what Dagnard said.
—It’s too late for regrets. Even if we try to restore the past through old records, there’s no answer. Skills are best learned through the body.
Those past records—
That’s what I was aiming for.
If they were dwarves, they probably had one or two tucked away in their homes.
“Hmmm… I’ll ask around.”
—
After Dagnard returned to the village—
The dwarves began to gather one by one.
“O benefactor of our tribe! Can you truly make weapons?”
“My hammer’s lost all its edge. I can’t use it anymore! Can you repair it? Or better yet, make me a new one?”
“Me too! Make one for me too!”
At first, it wasn’t many.
Just early adopters, so to speak.
Most of them approached hesitantly, not fully convinced.
I smiled at them.
“Yes, I’ll take requests in the order received. Also, the minerals must be freshly mined from inside, not the ones already piled here.”
I’d heard the minerals here were communally owned.
So this was just a labor fee.
A kind of time-saving fee?
“Understood.”
“If you can make us weapons, we’ll do anything.”
“Dagnard said you’re quite skilled, huh?”
“I won’t believe it until I see it with my own eyes! How can a different race use our techniques!”
“Me too! I won’t believe it without proof!”
I had a good feeling.
Just getting this much attention early on was already a great result.
They’d all be valuable clients in the future.
Clang! Clang!
Bone Six continued hammering away.
Time passed, and sturdy steel hammers began to pile up beside him.
“Ooooh, it’s real!”
“Never thought I’d see blacksmithing again in my lifetime!”
“I’m—why am I crying?!”
After mining the required amount, the dwarves each left with a hammer in hand.
The word spread.
All I was doing was—
Smelting, crafting items,
And training with my skeletons.
“…You really set up quite the operation.”
The old man clicked his tongue as he took it all in.
“I didn’t realize you were this passionate about blacksmithing.”
“Aw, come on, Elder. That hurts. I’m just as passionate about the Legacy of the Ten Thousand Arts.”
“I’m not criticizing. I mean it as a genuine compliment. Using this world’s structure to grind proficiency like this… you’re one terrifying guy.”
“…Doesn’t sound like a compliment to me.”
I didn’t skip my training with the old man either.
I made sure to call him at least an hour a day for instruction.
Bone Six was important.
But so was my mastery of the Legacy of the Ten Thousand Arts.
About a week passed.
[Proficiency increased by 1.]
[Skill: ‘Intermediate Smelting’ (Lv.1) leveled up.]
[Skill: ‘Intermediate Item Crafting’ (Lv.1) leveled up.]
Finally, those two stubborn skills both reached level 2.
On top of that—
“You there, could you… take a look at this blueprint?”
“This one’s been passed down in my family for generations… Do you think you could craft this weapon?”
One by one—
People began entrusting me with their blueprints.
‘Finally!’
I cheered inwardly.