"Oh, Arl Eamon! You must give me more time! Look at these imperfections! There is a twist in the chain mail, right here, and - come, come! See this chest piece? No inlays! Ohh!" An exasperated Wade threw up his hands. "How could you expect me - me! - to work in this cottage?"
"A smithy is a smithy," scoffed Owen from the back of the room, as he tried to finish his work.
Wade turned on his heel. "A smithy is a- Oh! That attitude explains why your armor is garbage. Garbage!" Wade pointed an accusatory finger at the older blacksmith, to which Owen responded to with a roll of his eyes.
"Pretentious Denerim folk," Owen muttered. "Don't know how to make do with what they got…" Wade began to go red in the face.
"Now, now, Wade. The Arl here did not commission you for your temper or biting insults," Herren finally intervened, as he tried to calm the eccentric blacksmith.
Arl Eamon sighed and glanced at his brother, Teagan. Teagan begrudgingly stepped out from behind the Arl, and cleared his throat before speaking. "Master Wade, your work is unrivaled by any in Ferelden. You've been provided with the materials you requested. Surely even your worst armor is a sight to behold."
Wade scowled while Herren nodded. The Arl decided to speak next, "Our Ferelden soldiers require armor. You would be doing a great disservice to this land were you to delay any further." Arl Eamon's kind voice and friendly but strong demeanor caught the master blacksmith's attention.
"O-oh… Well, if given one more hour, I could improve the strength of the pieces already made. And, yes, if I tweak this piece here…" As Wade wandered towards the forge, Herren recognized the look of determination on his partner's face. It reminded him of the time when the blasted Warden brought drake scales into the emporium a few months earlier.
"Great!" Herren exclaimed. "Arl Eamon, Bann Teagan, I assure you, Ferelden's men will be equipped with the finest armor outside of Orzammar!"
"Master Wade, one hour," the Arl called out sternly. He nodded to Herren, then turned to Owen. "Master Owen, continue your work." Owen nodded quickly, striking his hammer against the iron plate armor.
With a final glance around the smithy, Arl Eamon turned to leave. Teagan gave him an amused look. Wade's complete disregard for the situation at hand had briefly lifted the Bann's mood.
"I'm thinking it wouldn't hurt to say a prayer for that poor Herren," Teagan whispered with a chuckle. Arl Eamon could only nod in agreement.