Corvac Carrows winced as he strode out of the alleyway, sunlight blinding him. Once he'd adjusted, his eyes went wide as he took in hundreds of people walking the street that he emerged into.
His shoulder was bumped by a passerby, Corvac not reacting as he took in the sight of races beyond humanity walking the street, the old architecture of a time long since past, and arms and armor stereotypical of a fantasy genre holstered in sheaths or hefted on shoulders.
Men and women, dwarves and halflings, elves and beastkin, from all walks of life. From soot-covered smiths to warriors, rangers, and simple civilians.
'I'm in a fantasy world.' Corvac realized with a swell of dread. He'd watched Re: Zero, and as much as he admired Subaru for his suicidal grit and willpower, everyone could agree that no one wanted to be Subaru, as enviable as his isekai situation might be to some people, that was a hell Corvac wanted nothing to do with.
Corvac slumped against the alleyway's wall, slinking back into the darkness as he felt like a deer in headlights out in the street. His modern clothing didn't seem to get any more than a glance, which was curious, but Corvac didn't want to risk anything.
He got his breathing under control, his hands still shaking and an ugly feeling of isolation and cluelessness welled up inside his chest. The language they spoke sounded like some abominable mixture of Japanese and English, which Corvac realized he understood perfectly. His breathing evened out as that was all he needed to rationalize that something might have put him here.
If it was just dimensional transference, some glitch in a reality where he fell through the seams into another, he'd probably not gain the ability to understand the language here. Something was watching or doing this to him, although he hadn't a clue if they were truly malicious or if they'd at the very least help him out a bit.
Once Corvac calmed down enough to think rationally, he started patting himself down. The first order of business was to figure out what he had on him. He took an inventory check and found that he had his phone in one pocket, and checking it showed that there wasn't any infinite battery symbol or even interdimensional wifi. He wasn't the type to download anything important on there, other than music and some sauce, which wasn't really much help. At least he had a calculator for however long he could keep the phone alive.
He also had his wireless earbuds, which was a nice consolation. He then patted down his jacket pockets and found something crinkled in one.
He pulled out a slip of paper that was folded several times and realized it was a note. Curious, he unfolded the slip and found it to be written in a foreign language that he could read, likely due to whatever allowed him to understand speech.
The language was practically identical to English, just with a strange font. He started reading the note.
"Corvac Carrows, you've been transmigrated. You will get no explanation or reason for this occurrence. You have been awarded several boons, or 'cheats' as you might call them. They've been applied to your Status or Falna. Just that should get you to understand where you are. It is highly recommended that you join a Smithing Familia. To join one, head to the industrial district and look for work. Your body and genetics have been glossed up and refined to shonen levels, so back-breaking labor and brutal hard work won't send you to the ER and will instead develop some character. Work there and get accustomed to the life of an Iron Worker and Orario Citizen, then become a Smith, before hedging your bets and try to present a work that will get you accepted during an Exhibition. This is just a recommendation. Your life is yours to live, kiddo." - Robert Ocativan Bloatsomer.
Corvac read the note several times over, before letting out a relieved breath. He wasn't just left dry and hanging inside an alien world filled with superhumans. Corvac glanced back to the street outside the alleyway before heading into the crowds.
He mingled and eventually managed to find a loiterer nursing a mug of beer, a dwarf obviously, and one that looked fresh from the forges.
"Hey there," Corvac said as he waved to the dwarf.
The man looked up at Corvac and grunted, "What'd ya want?" He said with a noticeable accent and slur of his words.
"Looking for work in the industrial district, Dad said I needed to build character and muscle." Corvac lied. "May I have some directions?"
The dwarf squinted his eyes, "'May I have some directions'?" The dwarf mocked slowly, "Brat if you're going to work in the forges, lose the fop speech. You're an educated sort, obviously, why are you looking for that sort of work?"
Corvac shrugged, "Family fights, personal reasons, and an ambition to join a Smithing Familia." He answered.
The dwarf's brow rose, "Hmm, well you're right that them high-smiths don't just pick up anyone off the streets. Gotta show some amount of talent, even as a mortal. What kind of job are you looking for, a lot of 'em in the industrial district."
Corvac sighed, "The back-breaking kind."
The dwarf laughed, "Now that is a good answer. Hmm, you're a bit old to be a direct apprentice anyway, most look for the beefiest fifteen or sixteen-year-olds and set them up pumping bellows or tossing magic stones into the forges. I can show you to Oldstone, that grump is always looking for muscle. He'll toss you into the foundry though." The dwarf warned.
Corvac raised an eyebrow, "Foundry?" He asked.
The dwarf nodded, "Massive thing, a sweltering heat with dozens of forges active at all times, Crucibles being swung around by thick chains, and molten metal pouring into molds." The dwarf smiled with nostalgia, "They make wrought iron fences, structural supports for buildings, and tons of ingots of all types of steel for smiths to hammer into weapons. Drink a lot of water, and don't slack off lest you pour a ton of molten metal on yourself."
Corvac hummed, "Pay good?" He asked.
The dwarf nodded, "810 Valis an hour, last I checked. Likely more though, those were the Dark Years with Evilus running about. The economy was in the shitter back then, what with them terrorists."
Corvac stroked his chin, "How much is a potion? A basic one."
The dwarf raised his bushy brow, "Err, five hundred last I checked?"
Corvac smiled, "I need to get fit if I'm going to be working the forges, and let's just say that potions are an easy way to do that."
The dwarf huffed, "You do you, kid." The dwarf chugged back the rest of his beer and let out a satisfying breath. "Good beer. You drink, kid?" The dwarf gestured for Corvac to follow him and they made conversation while they walked.
"Whiskey, Scotch, Vodka, Gin, Bourbon, Tequila, and Mezcal. Beer, not so much."
The dwarf looked at him with wide eyes. He opened his mouth, then frowned, then opened it again and sighed, "I don't know what those are." He admitted almost painfully.
Corvac blinked, "Er, Whiskey is a spirit made of mashed fermented and then distilled grains; corn, wheat, barley, and rye mainly. Bourbon is the same, just predominately made with Corn and Rye from what I remember. Gin, I ain't sure about. Uh, Scotch is just whiskey, just made in a different place, Scotland - Scotch, brands basically." The dwarf gave an 'ah' and an understanding nod. "Mezcal and Tequila are made of the Agave Plant in a specific region of the world, a desert plant. Tequila is a distilled and smoother drink, clear and without color, but packs a potent punch while Mezcal is a traditional drink of the native peoples in the land the Agave plant grows on. It is roasted in a mound, and then fermented into a darker drink similar to Bourbon. Vodka is made of potatoes, and is a hard drink drunk in great volumes. All of the drinks I listed except Gin are technically spirits, which are harder alcohols with higher Ethanol percentages."
The dwarf looked at Corvac with wide eyes, "You from a brewing family, kid?"
Corvac looked at the dwarf with strange eyes and shook his head, "Personal interest. You said it yourself, I look like an educated sort. I have layman's knowledge, nothing like a professional brewer or moonshiner."
The dwarf whistled, "Well if that's what an education gets ya' sign me up." The dwarf muttered.
Corvac chuckled, "Try fourteen years of boring mathematics, language studies, pointless science exams, memorization of formulas, species of creatures, and biological facts that the average man would never need in his life. I like having an education, but the system I learned it in was a broken one."
The dwarf shivered, "Count me out then." He said with a shake of his head.
Corvac snorted in amusement, "What's your name, dwarf?" Corvac asked casually.
The dwarf smiled, "Hogin Rocksplitter, at your service." The dwarf slammed his large fist into his chest and gave a wide grin seen through his auburn beard. "Yours, friend?"
"Corvac Carrows. A pleasure." Corvac tilted his head down at the dwarf as if he had a hat on.
Hogin chuckled, "Where you from, Corvac?"
"Albuquerque." Corvac answered, "Small city, relative to my nation. Took the wrong turn and ended up here, I guess." He had on his face a mysterious smile that hid an inside joke
The dwarf gave an interested grunt, "Strange name." He noted.
"Means White Oak in a dead language," Corvac answered. "How about you, Hogin?"
"Born and raised in Solingen, Sword Smithing Capital of the world." The dwarf said with a frown, "Brutal place for smiths, cut-throat competition, business deals, corruption, nepotism," The dwarf spat on the side of the road. "Moved here, and Orario ain't perfect, but for a humble mortal smith, we're sidelined and left alone. Hell for the ambitious smith with desires for fame and glory crafted by his own two hands. Heaven for the humble smith, father of two, more than content to make horseshoes and nails."
"Oh-ho? Father of two? How old?" Corvac asked.
The dwarf puffed out his chest in pride, "Two and six. They're half-bloods, my wife's a beast-kin you see. Pride of my life, far more than any piece of metal could be."
"Made with your sword, not your hands, eh?" Corvac crudely jokes, getting a thick-belly laugh from the dwarf. "How's the half-blood work? Are they stout and short with fuzzy ears, or do they only get one of the parent's racial features?" He asked after the dwarf and stopped laughing.
The dwarf shrugged, "Only the gods know how the whims of life work. My oldest has my wife's cat ears, fuzzy little things that make her purr. The other's the spitting image of myself if my ma's to be believed. As for how they're growing, well, they're bending steel spoons so they've got my strength, but they're shooting up like weeds I tell ya'!"
"Strong kiddos, sounds like," Corvac said with a considering stroke of his chin.
"That they are." The dwarf said with pride, "That they are." Their conversation had led them throughout Orario, and soon Corvac and Hogin were standing before a massive building that belched surprisingly little smoke for the very present heat it was giving off.
Hogin seemed to get recognized by the security working around the place which had them easily let in. Corvac and him made their way along a massive cat-walk over magic-tech crucibles burning with molten yellow and orange metal being carried along by thick chains pulled by strong and stout dwarves and men.
They then came to an office and inside sat an extremely old dwarf with a stone-like face and brows that covered his eyes. The dwarf stroked his extra-long stone-gray beard covered in silver medallions and bands. The dwarf looked up from the paperwork he was doing and glared at Hogin.
"Oh, look who's back. What can I do for you, Hogin?" The dwarf asked as he sat back in his chair sized perfectly for him, as was his desk.
"Found this guy on the street, scrawny looking guy, but a sharp mind hides behind all that skin and bone. He'll pick up on yer' rules quick, and the lad seems to have a plan on how to get some muscle on them limbs." Hogin jabbed Corvac in the arm, getting no reaction from the human as he just met Oldstone's eyes.
The dwarf stroked his beard, "Why are you getting into this line of work? We're not the most welcoming of folks." The boss asked.
"Looking to get a start, really. I want to be a smith, and working with iron and steel seems to be the best way to get started."
"A smith you say? A high-smith?" The dwarf asked.
Corvac nodded, "No real reason for it. No desire to get myself some legendary glory or myth by making a masterwork. But, I feel like I can thrive in the work, so I'm less chasing my dreams and more chasing my capabilities and talents." Corvac said with twisted truths.
The dwarf nodded, "Not a dreamer lost in a fairytale, that's good." He muttered, "Well, I guess I can get you started. You'll be shadowing a few of my boys, learning the layout of the fab, figuring out what we do, and doing it well. We'll discuss your shifts soon. As for your pay, I can offer you 1125 Valis an hour for your work once you get some experience on your belt. As a starting rate, how about 950?"
Corvac stroked his chin, "How long is this starting rate going to last?"
The dwarf shrugged, "However long you need to learn."
Corvac narrowed his eyes, "Two weeks." He said.
The dwarf chuckled, "Very well. Head on down to the barracks, Hogin will show you the way. Show the lad how to suit up, then take him to Frank. He'll be his mentor."
Hogin nodded, "Come on Corvac, let's get going."
Corvac nodded, feeling like this was going to be a new chapter in his life.
/
Corvac blearily woke up inside his barracks. He yawned and stretched creaky bones and moaned at his sore muscles from the labor of yesterday's work. He slung his feet over his bunk and dropped down to the floor, nearly falling over as his muscles screamed in agony at being used right now.
Corvac ignored that and moved past slumbering dwarves, humans, and beastkin drunk or wasted from heading out to the bars or whoring. He'd been invited for the nth time, but always denied going. He needed to save his money, after all.
Corvac headed to his locker and opened it up, finding his work gear and giving it a sniff. He gagged at the smell of old sweat but sighed and took off his sleeping wear. He wore the black apron and thick insulated woolen gloves of Salamander Leather, Salamander Wool, and resin from a tree that burned constantly. He wore no shirt, as he needed to be able to sweat, safety be damned when a potion could heal any singe or minor burn. He grabbed his welder's helmet with tinted magical glass and then pulled on his insulated pants and work boots.
His physique, in the past month of hard work in the Foundry, had developed from a rather pudgy and weak-looking young man with an unhealthy pale shade of skin to a ripped young man with real muscle. His obliques were ripped with chiseled muscle, and his untied apron sagged slightly to reveal a set of eight-pack abs and strong pectoral muscles accented by strong shoulders, an extremely developed back, and twin arms of shredded tone and muscle. All of this development didn't come naturally though, although his new genetics were kick-ass.
He laced up his boots and then tied his apron back, before grabbing his lunch box and opening it up. Inside was an inactive cooling stone, his phone, and his earbud case. He grabbed a sack of goblin magic stones from his locker before placing them on top of the phone, earbuds, and cooling stone.
The stones turned into ash and he blew them off before pocketing the electronics and shutting the now-cooling lunch box. He tossed the magic stones back into his locker before clicking the lock shut and throwing his twin lanyard holding his key over his neck. Tucking the key into his apron, Corvac grabbed his lunch box and welder's mask before heading on over to breakfast.
Orario was just waking up, and Corvac was very much a morning person as he woke up well before dawn. The sun was just dyeing the sky a dull shade of purple and he pulled into a stand that he loved.
"Ah, Corvac, here for your usual?" A kind lady asked, well into her fifties.
Corvac smiled, "Fruit salad, a bowl of granola and yogurt, a side of bree, some crackers, a bundle of grapes, Caprese Salad, and a vegetable blended shake with three eggs added inside."
The old lady nodded and got to work, using a magic blender to produce his shake.
Covac destroyed the feast in an equal amount of time that it took to make it, patting his mouth down and swallowing a large gulp of water to wash it all down. Paying, he waved to the woman and then headed to the park.
The park was really the Graveyard, an adventurer Graveyard, but it was the closest thing that the city had to an outdoor area for him to exercise. He stashed his lunch box and mask on a bench before he got to work. Corvac started on light work as he waited for his food to digest, just simple calisthenics, yoga, stretching, and some jogging. Once he felt good to exercise and not vomit, Corvac ran several kilometers around the park, did difficult shonen calisthenics that left him leaking sweat, and before long Corvac was a tired and sweaty mess resting on a bench after an hour and thirty minutes of intense hard work.
Corvac then grabbed his stuff and headed out to another restaurant, this time heading to another stand.
It was a shop from the far east that made some excellent teriyaki egg noodles, chicken, and spicy oil. Corvac ordered that, and a bowl of vegetable dumplings, two egg rolls, and a fruit salad. The stand owner, a stereotypical Chinese stand owner, smiled as Corvac sat down at his stand.
"Corvac! Your usual?" The man, Wang Zu, asked with a foxy grin.
"You got it, boss man. Exactly how you usually do." Corvac pulled out a pouch of valis inside his pants and placed the required cash onto the counter. The boss was already cooking and in no time at all a practical feast of food was placed before Corvac.
Corvac ate more until there wasn't a bit of food left, his jaw working overtime as he swallowed his final calorie, stomach hating him for eating so much.
Corvac then opened up his lunch box and pulled out his secret weapon. He uncorked a half-empty basic potion bottle and then poured half of the already reduced volume into a pitcher of water.
Corvac swallowed it all and sighed in utter relief as his muscle soreness faded away. He paid the man and waved as he then headed back to work.
When he got there the place was waking up. Corvac put his lunch box back into his locker, before joining the factory floor.
He checked in today, before cursing. "Fuck!"
A hand slapped his shoulder, and a man that had an inch on him grinned down at him. "Chain duty!" He said with glee.
Corvac glowered at the man as he went away cackling.
Chain duty was an extremely tedious, mind-numbing, and physically demanding activity of guiding and pouring various crucibles of the foundry into their molds. It required one to pay attention, be in the splash zone, and battle fatigue as they fought through the hours of the day.
Corvac sighed before heading over to his station, grabbed some chains, and pulled a crucible over for it to be filled with ore.
Another day in the grind.
Corvac sweated throughout the day, hauling and pouring crucibles with attention to detail, and as time clicked away, hour by hour, the shift ended and Corvac collapsed inside the barracks leaking sweat as he chugged water like a madman.
As Corvac rested, his attention was taken by Frank walking in.
"There you are. Chain duty?" The man and his former mentor asked.
Corvac nodded, wincing as his shoulder popped. "Yeah."
"Figured. Boss wants to see you."
Corvac raised an eyebrow but knew he wouldn't be getting anything from him and stood up. He hauled himself over to Oldstone's office and opened it up.
The dwarf glanced up and smiled lightly, "There you are. How are you holding up, kiddo?" The dwarf asked.
Corvac shrugged, wincing when he did so, shoulders and back killing him. "Good enough."
The foundry owner nodded, "Good, good." He muttered. "Now, for why I call you here, you still want to be a smith, right?" He asked.
Corvac furrowed his brow and nodded, "Yeah."
The dwarf hummed, "Well, I'll be honest. The foundry is in direct partnership with the Hephaestus familia. We forge a large, and I mean large, majority of their ingots and do most of the menials for their more mundane work. They directly own the forges that refine Adamantium and produce Orichalcum, we do the more basic affairs."
Corvc nodded, having known that.
"Now, with that partnership, I have a bit of say. If I were to recommend you to Hephaestus, it'd really get listened to."
Corvac's brow raised, "Why'd you do that?" He asked, wondering what the dwarf got out of it.
"Prestige and reputation. My name will be distantly attached to yours as the one who recommended you. Say I was the one to hand Hephaestus Tsubaki Collbrande, well, I'd certainly have a reputation for my eye for talent. It'd get all kinds of workers and recruits for me to play with, all of them in hopes they become the second Tsubaki." The dwarf explained.
Corvac nodded, "You believe I can do that?" He asked.
The dwarf shrugged, "Maybe. Not really. I can't say that you're a diamond, but I can certainly say that you're someone that Hephaestus would enjoy in her familia. You don't gamble, you don't whore, you don't drink." The dwarf shook his head at the last one, "Despite sounding like a fucking expert in drinking and spirits, none of the boys can ever drag you to a bar." The dwarf stared at him weirdly.
Corvac deadpanned, "I make a decent amount of money, sure, but I only really drink in celebration or special events. I don't have enough trauma to want to waste my life away in the bottom of a bottle."
The dwarf snorted, "Always the wise one."
Corvac shrugged.
"Anyway, even if I was to recommend you to Hephaestus, you'd be a piss poor smith." The dwarf stated.
Corvac nodded at that. He had the theoreticals down, but he'd never been at a forge.
"So, I'm firing you." Corvac didn't react and just waited for the dwarf to finish. "You're no fun, know that?" Oldstone muttered, before he sighed, "I'll be sending you to a friend of mine. He's a level two smith of the Hephaestus familia and has been whining about not having any apprentices to boss around. You listen to him, learn some basics about high-smithing, and join the familia." The dwarf grinned, "Just remember your friends down in the foundry, you hear?"
Covac grinned, "I hear."
Oldstone nodded, "Head down to the ninth block, Firebrim Street. Ask around for Ironside's smithy. Tell him that Oldstone sent you as an apprentice and recruit potential."
Corvac gave the dwarf a sloppy salute, "Thanks, Oldstone." He waved as he left.
"Get, stinky brat!"
Corvac collected his belongings inside the barracks before he headed out to Firebrim Street. There, he asked around and quickly got pointed.
"Oi, Ironside? Are you here?" Corvac made a ruckus.
"Who's yellin' out there?"
"Oldstone sent me! I'm your new apprentice and a potential recruit to the familia." Corvac answered.
Out came a black-bearded dwarf who sniffed at Corvac, "Oldstone's huh? Well, you certainly smell like one of his."
Corvac snorted, "Well?" He asked.
The dwarf nodded, "Been needing an assistant. How experienced are you with the forge?"
"Novice, but I have the theoreticals."
The dwarf nodded, "Watch while you work the bellows. I'll show you how my work is done, then we'll start getting you making Guild Equipment."
Corvac saluted, "Show the way, new boss."
Ironside hummed, "Call me boss." He said. "Now come along."
Corvac was shown the inside of the forge, his eyes scanning the wall of tools, the forge, anvil, grinder, and the open backroom that showed a storeroom of ingots and smithing materials like leather, wood, and other materials.
The dwarf started the forge and nodded over to the bellows. "We want it nice and hot. I'm working on a High-Steel bracer right now for a set of armor, so we need the high temp." Corvac nodded and started pumping the forge and throwing in magic stones, feeling the heat he knew was needed to work with high steel.
"Good, you know your shit." The dwarf snorted, "Well, let's get to it."
The dwarf then proceeded to Smith. He stuck in an ingot of steel, got it nice and hot, hammered it out with supernatural strength, heated it again, and repeated until he had a nice plane of steel. He got a bandsaw and started cutting into marked sections of steel, chipping away until he had the shape he needed before heat treating it. Then he took out a drop item, a minotaur horn by the looks of things, and infused the item.
"How do people do that?" Corvac asked.
"Mind manipulation. Just gotta infuse or touch your mind onto the drop item and item you want to fuse it to, then it falls in." The smith answered.
Corvac continued to watch, and before long the dwarf was finally satisfied with the result of the bracer before lowering it into a magic-stone-powered kiln to temper.
"Come along. Smithing ain't just about metal, but also about wood, leather, and cloth. Lotta adventurers like the frills and fancy bits, not to mention the practicals like a leather lining on a breastplate not freezing yer nipples off." Corvac snorted, the dwarf showing him to the backrooms.
"You know your numbers?"
He nodded, "Then get measuring, use this clamp to figure out the width of leather, then mark it out. Here's the stencil I used. Get to werk."
Corvac nodded and got to cutting and shaping the leather.
/
Corvac hammered out a piece of medium steel out on an anvil, his eyes narrowing as he inspected the blade before smiling as he hammered the shape to his liking. He heated it up, before taking it to the temper, dousing it into a vat of oil. Once the blade was cooled he pulled it out and made sure there weren't any flaws, he then took the blade and put it back into the forge, this time lowering the temperature to heat treat it and really strengthen the blade.
He took it out and let it slowly cool down, and once it was he took it to the grinder. He turned on the machine, making sure the magic stone was well and good before the stone started making a fine edge.
Soon Corvac had a rough bastardsword in his hands and he got to work on the handle, pommel, crossguard, and rain guard of the blade. Corvac sighed as he held the finished blade in his hand, giving it a swing. Once he was done 'testing' the blade, he looked out the window to see that it was long since dark.
He cracked his fingers before placing the blade into a rack where they kept finished products. Corvac headed out of the smithery, a yawn on his jaw and a tired clip in his step.
Two months since he'd been isekai'd, and Corvac would admit to liking his new life. It was fulfilling, being a craftsman and producing products with his own two hands. He headed out into the city, tool belt clicking with a craftsman's tools, all of them made by his own two hands. Each he knew inside and out, from the hammer to the ruler, all of them he made over the past few weeks.
Corvac entered his apartment building, crawling up the stairs and jiggling his lock open before falling into his shower. He sighed as the cold water hit him, hot water was reserved for the extremely high-class manors or hot springs; not a simple water stone powered by a magic stone.
He washed himself anyways, enjoying the cool water as it kept him awake enough to clean himself well. He dried and then stumbled into bed, face hitting the pillows and his eyes closing as he drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
He woke up before dawn and got up, he blinked and then stood up and headed to his kitchen. He blended himself a shake, and scarfed it down, before heading out to work out. He hit the grass of the Adventurer Graveyard and went through his usual exercises before he collapsed on a bench and drank down his diluted potion mix. Then he headed to the forge and found Ironside hammering away inside.
Corvac glanced at what he was making, frowning as he nodded in understanding. "I'll get onto carving the handle." Corvac stated.
"No."
Corvac turned back and blinked, "No?"
The smith sighed, "You're a talent, you know that, Corvac?" Ironside glanced up at him, frowning down at his own work. "Level Four, maybe even Five. I know you have it in you. You're not some dreamer, some deluded fool who'll dream and fantasize about what they'll do and make, but never do it. No, you'll dream about your hammer technique and come in with a better one, you'll dream about how you could have done better and what to do better. You've got the brain and imagination for it, the inspired ideas, the unique perspectives, and all of the right qualities of a smith who won't burn themselves out like a raging forge, but instead heat metal like a warm sweltering one."
Corvac narrowed his brow, "Where is this going, Ironside?" He asked.
The dwarf sighed, "Go to Valka's Crimson Chamber." He tossed Corvac a medallion, "Show that to the guard, say Ironside sent ya'. Get an audience with the captain, she'll bring ye' to meet with Hephaestus. Join the familia, and surpass me, a burnt-out smith." The man said bitterly.
Corvac smiled, "Thanks, Ironside." Corvac then frowned, "You know, you should get into magic engineering."
The smith tilted his head, "Eh?" He said.
"I've seen your custom improvements to the smithery and grind wheel. Find an academy, and join it. You're a dwarf, you have hundreds of years to live. Get an education, and find a passion again. Don't wallow in this..dead craft." Corvac swept his hands to the forge. "You crave complexity, yet a blade can only be so sharp and complex when all it does is cut and kill. Make foundries, become inspired."
The dwarf's face became pinched, "Oh, I know that face. You dwarves and your stubborn pride." Corvac shook his head, "Try to find someone who's done it. Talk to them, and figure out what's in the making of the career. It's the future of the world, you've gotta have some place in that."
Ironside sighed, "What about the familia? We're a smithing familia, lad."
Corvac frowned, "So? Hephaestus is the god of blacksmiths, metalworking, carpenters, craftsmen, artisans, sculptors, metallurgy, and fire!" Corvac said with passion in his voice, "We are not just smiths, a title that the Falna and world brand us with. We are not just those who make weapons and nails, horseshoes and armor; we are the innovators of the world, that which shall cast all of civilization in a steel gleam of glass towers and concrete heights!" Corvac's hand tightened around Ironside's shoulder, "You are a brilliant mind, wasted in a pit of pride. Crawl out, you damned fool, and make something great!"
The level two's face became heated, not with rage, but with passion. A dead passion that he first had when he made his first blade, upgraded his foundry, and became a High-Smith. Then he stagnated, as he felt the craft became…stale. Better blades, stronger blades, better hafts, stronger hafts, more gleam, more gloss.
He locked eyes with the wild blue of Corvac and smiled, "Alright, I'll go. I'll crawl out of this pit." He sniffed, "Get out brat, you stink."
Corvac smiled and slapped the dwarf on the arm, "Make me proud, Ironside."
"Yeah, yeah. I should be the one saying that, wise brat."
Corvac waved as he left, soon hitting the streets and making his way to the familia home of his soon-to-be Goddess.
He found the place, a massive manor guarded by two adventurers in full-plate-wielding halberds. They crossed them as he came near.
"Halt, why do you approach Valka's Crimson Chamber?"
Corvac showed the medallion, "I'm Drin Ironside's apprentice, here to seek an audience with one Tsubaki Collbrande about joining the familia."
The guards glanced down at the medallion and nodded, "You may go. You can find Tsubaki normally in her office. Ask her secretary if she's there."
Corvac nodded and said his thanks, soon entering the familia home and asking a passing smith where Tsubaki's office was. He gave him directions before he climbed the stairs of the three-story mansion and soon came to a rather quaint room with a woman at a desk working away at a mountain of paperwork.
"Excuse me, would you happen to be Tsubaki Collerbrande's secretary?" He asked.
An elven woman, half-elf rather, glanced up at him. "Yes, my name is Noveria Ress, please call me Noveria." Corvac nodded.
"Corvac Carrows. I seek an audience with Tsubaki Collbrande about joining the familia."
The woman raised an eyebrow as she inspected the man, her tongue darting out to lick her lips. Corvac was a tall young man of twenty-one years of age, he had a full and well-groomed beard he'd grown out after heckling from the dwarves and plenty of strange serums they'd given him. He had thick goggles resting on his forehead, supporting twisting locks of brown hair and strong masculine features. His brown gave him a stoic look, supported by the masculine features of a strong man. The strong-man look was extremely evident, his biceps, shoulders, back, chest, and stomach were bulging with strong muscle, filling up a large and tight-fitting white wife-beater. Around his neck, a chain held his key to his apartment, while his tan pants were held up by a thick tool-belt chock full of tools. He had pitch-black tall boots hiding stains of soot and ash and stood at a menacing height of six-foot-four.
"She's open, please." The secretary waved to the door behind her.
Corvac gave a nod and made his way past her, entering the room and finding the captain of the familia behind a desk tackling a smaller, but nonetheless larger, stack of papers.
"Fucking tax report, ohohoh, you just wait until we start biting back, no good officials." He heard the mutters of a woman currently working her way through a packet of papers.
The door behind him clicked, and a single red eye glanced up at Corvac.
"Oh? Who are you?" She asked, sitting back in her chair.
Corvac moved forward and placed the silver medallion on her desk, the identity of a high smith of the familia. "Corvac Carrows. I'm Drin Ironside's apprentice, a former worker of the Foundry for Oldstone. Here to join the Hephaestus familia." Said as he placed his hands behind his back and spread his legs slightly as if presenting himself.
"Oh, former military?" She asked.
Corvac shook his head, "My dad was in the Navy, but he taught me little. Just a bit of decorum." He answered.
"Which navy?" She asked.
"The States." The states were an 'abbreviated' and slang version of The Empire, something that he abused relentlessly when speaking about his former home.
Tsubaki hummed and nodded, "How long did you work with Ironside and Oldstone?" She asked.
"One month each, give a few days. Twelve-hour shifts with Oldstone, sleepless nights, and hard overtime with Ironside. I produced most of Ironside's grunt work and lower-level commissions like Guild produce."
Tsubaki whistled, "And Ironside thought you were familia material?" She asked.
Corvac shrugged, "He called me a talent. Said I could reach level four or five."
Tsubaki narrowed her eyes, "Ironside said that?" Doubt was written on her face.
Corvac nodded, "He'll likely be coming by to ask for leave from the familia. I told him to head to an Academy. He's going to get an education as a Magic Engineer."
Tsubaki hissed, "Ironside as an Engineer?" Ironside had always been a bit of a disappointment, largely due to how brilliant he was and how stagnated he became once his passion died. Ironside as an engineer…that honestly scared Tsubaki a bit.
Corvac nodded, "The dwarf is a tinker, he craves complexity, but cultural, personal, and familial expectations pressured him into becoming and solely working as a Smith. As complex and detailed the craft is, smithing is as much an art as it is a science; and it is the latter's complexity and a nuanced depth that I think Ironside needs."
Tsubaki leaned back further in her chair, lost in thought. "I did hear Oldstone talking about an up-and-coming talent in his foundry. No drink, no play, no fun?" She grinned at him.
Corvac frowned, "Whores are not for me, as I wouldn't want to get a venereal disease." Memories of sexual education hammered into him throughout the American Education system played in his mind. "Drinking is something I believe should be handled in moderation, not excess. I love a nice glass of spirits during a time of rest and relaxation, but parties were never my crowd."
"Huh. So that's why Oldey kept calling you 'Wise Guy'." She muttered.
"I find it sad that having basic common sense and restraint makes me wise," Corvac said dully.
Tsubaki snorted, "Yup, you're normal enough to be strange, and that's what the Hephaestus Familia brings in." Corvac rolled his eyes. "Come on, I'll take you to Heph." The captain jumped out of her chain and grinned at Corvac, passing him by as he took her six.
"So, you from the Empire?" She asked.
"The States." Corvac corrected, having long since gotten into the habit of being technically honest.
"There's a difference?" She asked.
Corvac shrugged, "Cultural diversity." Rule two of lying to divines. Say little that could mean a lot.
"Huh."
Tsubaki opened a door and led him into a hallway with a more old-fashioned wooden door on the other end. Sounds of a forge being used echoed out. Opening the next door, Corvac was greeted by an indoor forge and met with the sight of a Goddess hammering out a length of steel on an anvil. Her hammerhead was a crystalline cylinder, very unique and likely magical to allow the mortal woman the ability to manipulate harder metals that usually required supernatural strength.
The woman glanced over to them, showing her sole crimson eye, much like her captain. "Tsubaki? Who's this?" She asked as he toweled down with a rag.
"This is Corvac Carrows. He's Ironside's apprentice. Got the dwarf to head off to an Academy to study Magic Engineering."
The goddess smiled, "Thank you." She said to Corvac, "It was always a pain to see such a brilliant child fail to live up to his potential."
Corvac shrugged, "Just gave the man the push he needed."
Hephaestus' eyebrow rose slightly, "A humble smith?" She asked Tsubaki.
The dwarf shrugged, "Guy's so normal he's weird. At least, that's what I read."
Corvac cleared his throat, "I'm standing right here." He said, a bit irate.
They gave him a sheepish look before Hephaestus pointed towards the couch, "Well if Tsubaki brought you here, it means she's confident of your stock. On the couch, shirt off."
Corvac did as asked, shucking off his shirt and then laying down on the couch.
He felt the goddess sit on him and then traced a wet finger down his back. A heat sprang from his skin, and a rush of cold flame ignited along his spine. His eyes spun and he saw a realm of imagination. From that realm, he picked out a concept, a random one that was instinctively grabbed and hoarded, his soul kidnapping it from the realm of conceptual ideas, before consuming it and claiming it as his own.
From that concept, his soul feasted, growing and brightening, running wild with ideas and understanding. Flushed with knowledge his eyes rolled back and his nose started to bleed as his biological brain synced up with the spiritual connection of conceptual knowledge and grounded neurons and facts. The human brain wasn't designed for this heavy lifting of data and inspiration, but the soul could be configured to do so.
Corvac's Falna sprawled out on his back, the Goddess merely blessing him and unlocking the Falna, not seeing anything wrong as she turned to face Tsubaki and took an offered paper. It was as she turned back to press the paper to the Falna, did she pause with a sense of bewilderment that quickly turned into horror.
Corvac's hands twitched and his head spasmed, blood leaking onto the leather couch as he cried tears of blood. Blank-white eyes stared at the forge across the room as the man suffered from what could only be some type of stroke or seizure. Any comparison would be wrong as this wasn't something in the hands of simple biology. Her hands moved for her, having done the action tens of thousands of times, and the Falna was imprinted onto the paper.
[Name: Corvac Carrows]
[Level: 1]
STR: 001 I
END: 001 I
AGI: 001 I
DEX: 001 I
MAG: 001 I
Developmental Abilities:
Magic:
Artificer Tools: Create arcane tools out of magic able to manipulate and work with even the most difficult of materials to work with. These tools can be anything that can be considered a 'Tool' by the user.
"By my hand, I shape the world."
Vulcan's Hammer: A fiery enchantment-type magic that causes a blunt weapon (including the fist) to burn with the fires of molten magma while also enhancing the attack's damage and strength significantly. The attack, if used on solid ground, causes the earth to fracture and magical lava to spew out into lava elementals that will attack the enemies of the caster. The second use costs significantly more Mind to use and may cause extreme environmental damage if used on or near a faultline.
"Vulcan be praised!"
Transmutate: The science and magic of equivalent exchange. Transmutate different materials into an equal volume of proton weight, drawing extra electrons and neutrons from Mind.
"Transmutate."
Skills:
Soulless Sentience: Grants that which has no soul the will to live and the ability to grow. Constructs are able to develop skills and upgrade themselves outside of their blueprints and design through conflict.
Conflict Engine: Combat and War, are where humanity learns the most. Through spite, through hate, through desperation, and necessity. Excelia is dramatically increased when gathering 'Combat Data'.
The Legion's Master: Constructs created or designed by their creator gather Excelia for them.
Inspired - Constructs: Grants the user flashes of insight and inspiration while designing and creating [Construct] related technology.
The paper fell to the floor, discarded as the Goddess and Tsubaki pulled the suffering man off his stomach and onto his back. He spasmed harder, the two panicking as this had never happened before.
"W-what's happening Heph?" Tsubaki asked, "I should go get a potion!"
"An Elixir!" Hephaestus shouted. "His brain…no his entire nervous system is hemorrhaging!" She shouted as she noticed spinal fluid leaking from his ears. She darted over to her forge and cracked open the ice chest, tossing her rag into it, scooping up the ice, and darting back, pressing the cold cloth against the man's burning forehead.
Tsubaki came back in a blast, the door flying off its hinges as she slammed through it. She uncapped the elixir and then pinched his jaw open, level five strength easily doing so although she was careful to not damage him. She then started feeding the potion down his throat, Hephaestus massaging his throat with practiced medical aid that only an immortal would have.
The man seemed to calm down, his eyes rolling back down to blankly stare at them before he collapsed into the couch, relaxing his entire body as he fell unconscious. Tsubaki felt his pulse, and fed him the remaining elixir, making him start mumbling nonsense as his eyes twitched beneath his eyelids.
Hephaestus backed away from the man breathing deeply as they both felt the worst was over. Hephaestus then noticed the page of his Falna on the floor, and simple curiosity compelled her to pick it up.
She nearly dropped it as she stared down at three magics and not one, not two, but four Skills. Unique, Rare, never before seen, exotic skills. She started to read them intently.
The first magic was interesting and extremely useful, reminding her of her own hammer; just infinitely more versatile.
The second magic was more like two spells mixed into one. The first effect of the spell was dangerous and extremely powerful, allowing the man to be a deadly combatant with a short chant spell dramatically increasing the amount of damage he could do. The second effect was simply insane, alluding to being able to cause an Earthquake or Volcanic Eruption if used near fault lines or volcanos. She wondered what Fire Elementals were briefly as she moved on.
The third magic made her confused. She didn't understand much of it, unsure of what protons, neutrons, or electrons were.
Soulless Sentience. Its mere name sent shivers down her spine and yet ignited an intense interest and curiosity in her heart. To create artificial life out of metal…was it possible? Her hand jittered, such was her restrained enthusiasm at the mere concept being whispered by the skill.
Conflict Engine was another skill that sent a different kind of shiver down her spine, this one holding commentary about the human race. It was curious that it focused on solely the human race and not the other mortal races. However, the Skills effects were dramatic. Increased Exelcia gathering speed. If such a skill were to get out, every god and goddess would be green with envy. She wasn't sure what it meant by Combat Data, but she could easily infer.
It was the synergy between the Conflict Engine and the introduction to what the Falna called Constructs that made The Legion's Master so terrifying. Corvac could reasonably never need to delve into the dungeon if he created what this Falna was alluding to, for she'd heard of the rumors of The Golems that master Mystery Users developed out of Adamantium and high-quality metals.
They were never really that impressive compared to First-Class Adventurers, however…
'These Skills. Backed with a practically shouted potential to develop Mystery, Blacksmithing, and the ever expensive, rare, and hard-to-obtain Orichalcum.'
This man before her possibly held the potential to manufacture Level 7s, possibly even higher.
A heady sense of greed captured Hephaestus' heart, the dying need to not let this Pioneer escape her filled her with a possessiveness that jolted her out of her shock. She glanced down at his most confusing and last skill, before looking over to the worried and fettering Tsubaki.
"Tsu." Hephaestus called.
The level five turned to face her and noticed the status in her hands, and the near-bone-white grip she had on the paper. "Uh, Heph? Everything okay?"
Hephaestus held the paper out and rigidly handed it to her captain, the one-eyed woman glancing down at the page before choking a gasp. A hand warped around her mouth and her eye darted to Hepheastus' own with wild shock. She snapped her head to the resting man, before turning back to the status she now held.
"Lock it." She blurted out.
Hephaestus needed no convincing as she rolled the man over softly and waved her palm over his back, the Falna disappearing. Hephaestus let out a deep breath of some illusory relief.
"What do we do?" Tsubaki asked, "His potential alone…forget Level four or five. This man belongs in Zeus and Hera's era! He'll shatter the Sword Princess's level-up record in a blink if he could even use a single one of these Excelia-boosting skills." She waved the sheet around.
"What even is a Construct anyway?" She muttered.
Hephaestus answered that "A golem, at least, that's what I think it is. It could be a thousand different things, but I think that he'll have the answer when he wakes up."
Tsubaki hummed in thought, "If it's a golem, don't those things require the Mystery Developmental ability and some crazy amount of resources to make?"
Hephaestus nodded, "His third magic, Transmutate. I've heard of the term coming from other gods, those skilled in the art of ancient Mixing known as Alchemy. A profession lost to the ages much like how Ancient Magic was. It is a profession that seeks to reduce the world to its purest form, while also trying to find the secret to eternal life. I think that our newest familia member has the former."
Tsubaki nodded in basic understanding, "What do we do then? Throw the kid a forge and let him go?"
Hephaestus frowned, "No, we invest."
Tsubaki cocked her head, "Invest?" She asked.
Hephaestus narrowed her eyes, "They'll want him." She said, getting a gulp from Tsubaki, "He's too unique, too potentially powerful. Ishtar would want him for his usefulness and his body, Freya likely much the same if she ever finds him worth collecting for her harem." Hephaestus tapped her finger against her anvil as she paced the room, leaning on the hunk of metal in thought. "We have the strongest claim obviously, but jealous and greedy gods would bullishly plow through such a claim if they have the strength to do so."
"So…" Tsubaki led.
"So, we attach him to the familia, give him... preferential treatment. We have no reason to go to a War-Game, and it'd be a damn shame to watch Orario burn when we start throwing our weight around if forced." Hephaestus grinned, "They dare try to take my Pioneer away? They dare try to smear his or our name? Well, if even a fraction of that page's potential comes true, we'll have a legion of economic and military might ready to fall on all of Orario's head."
Tsubaki gaped at her goddess, "You're ready to go to war." She spoke before a grin spread on her face. "Hell yeah!" She slammed her palm into her fist. "Let's raise us a Level Nine."
Hephaestus gained a strange look on her face, "Nay, a Level Ten." She muttered.
Tsubaki froze once more, "An Ascendant?" She asked with shock.
Hephaestus nodded, "A god. Bought damn time this dungeon raised one." She grinned at her captain.
Tsubaki chuckled, "Well all be damned, this just keeps getting more and more interesting."
Their conversation fell into a lull, and in that small time, Corvac stirred.
He groaned, gathering attention as he rolled up and rubbed his pounding head and skull. He found a cool rag on his face and felt sticky all over his face. Dried blood and internal fluids leaking from a stressed brain. The man took his rag and instinctually started rubbing himself off, blood shot out of his nose as he blew into it and groaned like the freshly risen dead.
He blearily opened his eyes and found two blurry silhouettes. A few blinks and soon he came face to face with two extremely interested women.
"What…happened?" He asked, "I feel like I got lobotomized." He muttered, his head pulsing with the mother of all migraines.
"Your status happened," Hephaestus answered.
She handed him a piece of paper and he looked at it with dull eyes, not having the cognitive capacity to read for a few moments before he started working through the words.
Slowly his eyes widened, and when he got down to the last skill, he winced. "Ah, fuck." He cursed as he held his head; images, blueprints, ideas, mathematics, concepts, inspiration, material analysis, instructions on how to enchant something with Mind the old fashion way, all of it and more rampaged around his brain making him want to vomit at how much abuse his gray-matter was undergoing. "Fuuuuck!" He whined as he laid down on the couch.
"Corvac, can you tell us what a Construct is?" Hephaestus said softly.
Corvac rubbed his brow, "Drones, Golems, Clockwork Soldiers, Living Stone, Autonomous Power Armor, fucking Mechs, a living and sentient sword!" He listed out.
Tsubaki and Hephaestus glanced at one another, barely understanding those terms.
"Can you make them?" Hephaestus asked.
Corvac whimpered, "Yes, yes, yes." He babbled, "I can make them. The world is mine to shape, by the power of the legions of brass and steel, of adamantium and orichalcum, of guns and sword, of artillery and mortar fire!" He rambled, curling up and digging his fingers into his pounding skull. "Not now, never now. Brain flex, brain pulse and churn. Neurons fire and burn, carving out pathways most delightful!" He chuckled madly, before lowering his voice into a whisper, "The realm of imagination reaches into my soul, it is a mad realm of fiction and reality, of grounded rules and chaotic nonsensical understandings." He explained in a rational voice. "By the hammer, we toil, by the torch, we meld, and by the atom's power, all we create and all that stands will fall! The legion understands, and it shall grow, one cog, one rune, and one enchantment at a time. Until that fateful day that nuclear fire reigns supreme!" He cackled.
The goddess and captain realized that this power had likely come at a very…significant cost.
The man kept laughing only to freeze and suddenly go stoic, "The mind is the self, the mind is matter, the mind is influenced and controlled by the metaphysical soul. Through these conclusions, one must strengthen the soul to strengthen the mind. To the dungeon, I go." The man robotically stood up.
Tsubaki's eyes lit up in alarm and she grabbed the man by his arm and wrestled him down into the chair, the robotic determination causing him to even dislocate his arm to try and slip out of her grasp. Eventually, Hephaestus managed to run and grab a length of rope from the storage facility near the Familia home and soon had the madman tied up.
He'd jump from horrendously rational and practically robotic, mumbling rational sense of needs, like 'get out of rope, go to the dungeon, become strong.' Or go into a cackling rant talking of realms unknowable, gods unthinkable, and methods of thinking that'd have even the Gods of Madness impressed.
As the hours passed and the Captain and Goddess fed him a few more potions, this time High-Potions, he simply fell asleep and would come back into more lucid bouts of reasonable rationality. Soon, as night fell, Corvac was relatively okay if nursing a killer headache, although nothing like what he was feeling previously.
Tsubaki and Hephaestus were tired as it was extremely late and they'd also been working on their paperwork today. However, with Corvac soon recovered, they both felt it was worth the effort.
All three fell asleep within the manner, and when morning broke, Corvac met the Captain and Goddess in the main hall for breakfast. Only Tsubaki lived with the Goddess, all the other familia members had their own smiths to run and would only come by for a request or update.
Corvac joined them for breakfast.
"I apologize for my…behavior last night." He said softly, a regretful frown on his face. "It was…unbecoming." He bowed.
Tsubaki grinned and Hephaestus smiled, "It was nothing, Corvac. Your falna and skills just had an unfortunate backlash." Hephaestus said, waving the incident away, "Now, if you could, I'd love an explanation on these Constructs. Yesterday, you explained them, but it was…hard to follow." She smiled weakly at the memory.
Corvac chuckled softly, a bit sheepish.
"Well, a Construct can be many things, and could simply be explained as an autonomous mechanical system. My skill connected me to something that I call 'The Imaginary Realm' a realm of dreams and ideas. Through this connection, I am constantly in a flux of inspiration completely targeted toward building and constructing anything considered 'Constructs'. Within that inspiration are technologies and concepts far beyond the current era, but all of them are geared toward construct creation. It would be entirely possible for someone to reverse engineer what I'd make, but as long as I'm working, I'm improving."
Where I stopped.