Jesús: "I, Am, So, Sorry for the long wait. To be completely honest I didn't work on this chapter for damn near two months now. I was trying to finish my other story's chapter since I was working on the last one, but that took longer than I wanted it too and It didn't turn out how I wanted it to either. But enough about that, I'm back and with my other story out of the way there will be more updates on this story, Yet I still don't assure the will be weekly updates but more constant none-the-less. Anyway, Enough ranting about nothing. On with the story..." [Disclaimer] "...I don't own the RF series nor any of the Anime/Manga/Videogames referenced in this story. All credit for them goes tot heir respective owners."

Ch. 39

Raguna POV

Two months since the beginning of my "Intense" training. Currently we, as in students, are on break and have been for a couple days now. Cinnamon and I have been hanging out a lot and she has taken this time to train me on Magic control, I finally got Water down and have progressed surprisingly fast on Wind. Throughout these two months I even found a new dungeon, On the way to Lake Poli there was some sort of wreckage of some sort and it turned out to be the entrance to another set of Ruins, which my Great-Great Gramps had written off in a book. Inside the Ruins there were all sorts of dangers, starting with the ground...The ground of all things. There were spots every here and there in which the floor had broken through and opened a small Lava pool.

I didn't have much time to check the Dungeon over the last couple months, but Hey...it's break time and so I have all the time I want and need...Luckily Cinnamon decided to go Fishing at Lake Poli today so if there is any trouble and need quick treatment I can find her quickly.

"You know...I think I said this last time I was here, but I'm glad Cinnamon gave us these scarves." I said to Kin. "I swear, this place feels as nice as the beach in the middle of summer."

Kin gave a small bark in reply as she wagged her tail meaning she agreed with what I said. I started doing some research through the books left in my Great-Great Gramps' books and found out that Silver Wolves have no elemental affinity and take extra damage from all elements. In other words, Cinnamon's scarf makes Kin a Silver Wolf without that setback.

Traveling through the dungeon so far we've made it to the third floor and dealt with all sorts of monsters; Red/Black Ants, Ghost, Elefuns, Ignis, Golems and we even found a Mimic. Though I have to say, sometimes Kin and I were too hesitant to continue since we had to use some sort of Gunpowder filled containers to explode some walls open. In any case, fourth floor now and Kin and I can't figure out what to continue on.

"I'm done…We've checked the same room three times and all we see are boulders and debris." I yelled in frustration.

Kin came to me and nuzzled me.

"I know Kin, No use getting upset. Maybe Gramps left a hint of how to get pass these problems." I said and got ready for the return spell.

Kin and I went back to the first floor and then made our way out. Cinnamon was walking by right when we walked out.

"Any Luck?" I asked

"Funny, I was about to ask the same?" Cinnamon said

"In that case, you go first." I said and we all started walking side by side

"The fishes weren't biting much, but I did manage to catch a few Bonitos and a Chub." Cinnamon answered. "How about you?"

"Fourth basement floor. Can't get pass these two rooms. There's some debris I can't just get around and some huge boulders. If I'm not careful I'm sure to get hit/Smashed by them." I replied

"So then? What will you do?" Cinnamon asked with a sense of worry in her voice.

"I'm on my way home to check Gramps' books. Maybe he left a hint on how to pass all of these obstacles." I replied

"Sounds like a good idea, always check for past experiences." Cinnamon said

"Yeah, well then my house is that way. Kin, do you mind walking Cinnamon home?" I asked my Silver Wolf and it barked once in reply meaning "OK"

I made it to Great-Great Gramps' secret room and started going through the books.

"Bestiary…Farm tools…Farming methods…Dungeon secrets…Food rece- wait that one could work!" I yelled grabbing the dungeon secrets book again.

I started to read through it and it had some things about the Green Ruins, like the fact that there was a group of rocks in the first floor of the ruins that once broken with a Sturdy Hammer, such as the Silver Hammer, lead to a room with up to three treasure chest that contained Rice, Flower, Emeralds among many other things. In the book it also said that Copper, Iron, Silver and all other types of ore could be found within rocks in the Dungeons and that by breaking said rocks one could find the ores and use them to make Weapons/Tools or re-forge Weapons/Tools already owned. Re-forging would cause the weapon to get slightly heavier, but it would also pack about twice the damage depending on how it was enhanced.

"Well all of this is good to know, but I need to know about the Lava Ruins…Here" I said as I found the section in the book that explained about the Lava Ruins.

"The Lava Ruins are highly dangerous with many Lava Pools. The monsters in this dungeon are highly resistant to Fire attributed magic or weapons, but weak against Water attributed Magic and Weapons. One thing to keep at hand during this dungeon's exploration is a Hammer, preferably a Silver Hammer or stronger to take care of some Hard Rocks. One more Tool that comes in handy here would be a Hoe or some sort of Digging Tool. Deeper into the dungeon one can find enormous Boulders being held by some dirt. If this dirt is removed or for the most part disturbed the boulder will roll and maybe open paths or help with some monsters down the line. Note: Sometimes catapults holding Powder Kegs can be found and hit with a hammer to shoot the powder keg. These can help open paths by destroying debris like the boulders. Note 2: Some of those Catapults can also be turned/and thus aimed for different targets." I read out loud from the book.

"Anyone down there?" I heard my Dad's voice.

"Hey!" I called back to let him know I was in here.

"What are you doing here?" Dad asked seeing as I was just sitting on a desk with a book open.

"Lava Ruins got on my nerves and so I came down here to check if Great Gramps knew of them and how to get through them." I said

"I hear ya. The guys at work and I have been going through the School's underground Dungeon along with Kain and some of his guys searching for secrets in them. So far nothing." Dad said rubbing his temples

"Hey dad, by what I read in here I may need a Hammer, you know where I can get one?" I asked

"Depends, if you can get by with any hammer I can just make a Battle hammer for you in a couple hours." Dad said

"I need something a little sturdier. A Silver Hammer or harder." I said

"Silver Hammer? What does the Old man has you wanting?" Dad said and yanked the book I had to read it.

By the way, completely disregarding the fact he referred to Great-Great Gramps Raguna as "The Old Man"

"I see, well I know that we have an old Gold Hammer but like I said, is old and can break any second. I suggest taking it to Ganesha up in Damascus Forge. She's an acquaintance of the family for ages and I'm sure she can help you." Dad said

"Really? Alright, do you think she'll mind if I go right now?" I asked

"Don't know, she's a really cool Gal, I'm sure you two can become friends quickly." Dad said

"Alright, I'll go over there right now." I said and after Dad gave me the Gold hammer I went over to Damascus Forge.

This forge was well known throughout the city as well as the world. It was said to just be a small village forge up until about a hundred years back, but the owner of the place, Ganesha, started making more, House friendly tools such as Kitchen Knives. And all of a sudden her name and her forge's went all over the place. To think that such a person is a family friend…WOW…

I arrived at Damascus Forge and knocked on the front door.

"I'm coming, I'm coming…" I heard from inside and then the door opened. "Hey, Raguna. What are you doing here?" the young elf I knew well named Marco said

"You know I could ask you the same." I replied

"I live here. Grandma Ganesha took me in after my parents passed away. I've been living here even since." Marco replied

"Who are you calling Grandma?" a woman that seemed to be in her mid 20's yelled at Marco as she knocked him on the head. Upon closer inspection, she had elf ears and thus I came to the conclusion she was Ganesha. "I've told you plenty of times; I'm more in the Aunty range considering I'm an Elf."

"But you are my father's mother." Marco replied and Ganesha just started to give him a nuggie while playfully smiling.

"Anyway…" Ganesha stopped her 'attack' on Marco and turned to me. "…Nice to meet you, I'm Ganesha, as you can tell and may already know I'm the Elven blacksmith of this place. Wow, you look just like someone I knew a while back."

"Hello, my name is Raguna Strife." I introduced myself.

"Well I'll be darned; you even have the exact same name. come to think of it, I haven't contacted any of the families of them, for all I know you are…" Ganesha started and I cut her off…

"Actually, Raguna Strife was the name of my Great-Great Grandfather." I said

"Wow, alright then. So how are things in the Strife family coming along lately? I haven't contacted anyone in roughly 120 years." Ganesha asked

"Wow…I know is really rude, but if you don't mind me asking…How old are you? You don't seem like you're anywhere near 30 years of age, but you seem to have known my Great-Great Grandpa." I asked

"Not rude at all. I'm almost 400 years old. The bodies of us elves freeze at a certain age for about 700 years, usually the bodies freeze around the ages of 18 and 30, and then we start aging again and most usually die of old age at about 1000 years." Ganesha answered.

"So by that standard you'd be about 59 years old if you were a Human?" I asked

"Sounds about right. Considering the lifespan of a human and the lifespan of an elf, we elves age 6.67 years slower." Ganesha explained

"Amazing…" I replied in amazement.

"In any case, what brings you here?" Ganesha asked

"I need this hammer fixed." I said and handed over the Golden Hammer.

"Hmm…this is been unused for about 85 years by the look of it…" Ganesha said examining the hammer.

"I think it belonged to my Grandpa." I replied

"Grandpa? What's his name? I may be able to know who you're talking about." Ganesha asked

"His name's Grana." I replied

"wait, are you telling me and little Grana found himself a girl? Man, the way that kid used to be I doubted he would find a girls that would bear with his silliness." Ganesha said and laughed for a few seconds. "I'll have your hammer fixed by tomorrow. I can even have Marco take it to you if you'd like."

"That's called child Labor." Marco complained

"Oh yeah, How about you take this knives to the Weiss family. Cari asked me to fix them for her." Ganesha said

"F-fine, I'll take these to them." Marco said while blushing.

Marco left the forge and Ganesha just started laughing. Suddenly I noticed tear started flowing down her cheek.

"Is everything OK?" I asked worried something happened.

"Sorry…" Ganesha started and whipped her tears. "…You see, seeing you reminded me of my son. He always talked to Raguna like he was his elder brother. And now Marco seems to be the same with you…you heard Marco mention how his parents passed away and I took him in right? Well, his mother was a sickly young girl, full blooded elf in fact her name was Faina. Marco, My son, was a hunter. On one of his expeditions with your father he was trying to obtain an item usually left behind by Ignis in the Lava Ruins. This crystal turned to dust was supposed to at least help Faina's condition for a couple more years. When Marco managed to obtain the Dust it was too late…Faina had passed away and he raised his Son, this Marco, alone. In time the depression hit him too hard and his Lifespan shortened so much he just passed on himself, just one day he didn't wake up. Marco was staying with me at that time and I got a call from a friend of my son's letting me know that He had died that morning…" Ganesha's tears flowed again.

"Does Marco knows about his parents?" I asked

"My son told him about his Mother, he obviously sugarcoated it a bit. When his father died he knew already and although he wanted to he never shed a tear. He kept telling himself, "At least he left me with such a trustworthy grandma like you." All this time I've been trying my hardest to live up to his expectations…Is been nearly three years since already." Ganesha finished

"I'm sorry to hear all of that." I said

"Is fine, I actually kinda needed an Honest person to talk about that. I frequent the bar, but I can only find Drunk old friends there. And considering I don't drink anymore for the same reason I try not to bother many of my friends with this…Anyway, you wanted your Hammer fixed right? Usually I'd tell people in your family to fix them yourselves, but you are too young to be allowed to use the forge so I'll take care of this." Ganesha finished once again and went back to the business at hand.

"OK, How much will it be? Should I pay it upfront?" I asked

"Don't worry about the Money, just give some materials you find within the dungeons from time to time and we'll cal it even, in fact I can fix whatever you want as long as we have that deal." Ganesha said

"Sounds good to me. Not like I can use a Forge." I replied

Ganesha and I shook hands signifying an agreement between the two and this she told me she'd have the hammer ready tomorrow.

In other words, Tomorrow the Lava Ruins shall be defeated…or at least attacked into further progress.

Jesús: "Sorry for taking so long. Nearly three months right? Anyway, I moved out of my parent's home and are now living with a couple of friends so I've been busy. I've also kinda not been in the best of moods due to depression of leaving my family to continue my life so there is also that. I'm feeling better so I'll try to get this done in time for next time. if I don't get it done in time then expect a random update because I will now update the story whenever I finish the chapter, After checking for any problems of course. In any case, Hope you all enjoyed it and come back next time for another update. Please leave a review telling me what you think. Once again Sorry for the long delay and I'll see you all next time.