The moment the spatial gate opened, Hephaestus—who had been waiting in her office for Tsuna and Tsubaki to return—immediately looked up.
When she saw the enormous heart being carried through the portal, she already knew what it meant.
"Looks like the hunt was a success."
Her sharp eye caught the faint, pulsating glow radiating from the heart. "And that dragon heart... what incredible luck. You actually managed to get a Drop Item like that."
Dragon hearts weren't something you could just pick up in the Dungeon. They were among the rarest of rare drops.
Hephaestus studied the massive organ now exuding waves of mana—it was still alive. That alone made it a priceless treasure.
As the heart was carefully set down in her office, Tsubaki stepped out from behind it, followed by Tsuna, who walked in holding a handful of materials—dragon scales, dragon fangs, and two distinct types of power crystals.
Hephaestus leaned back slightly, letting out an amused hum.
"You two really had quite the run this time. Not only did you take down Amphisbaena, but you came back with a mountain of rare Drop Items."
Setting the heart aside, Tsubaki quickly waved her hands. "Lady Hephaestus, that wasn't my doing."
She wasn't about to take credit for something she didn't earn. She'd only delivered the finishing blow—nothing more.
"I was just support. Tsuna did all the real work. I only stepped in at the end to make sure Amphisbaena stayed dead."
Hephaestus didn't look particularly surprised.
Tsubaki's individual combat strength still far surpassed Tsuna's, but the boy's abilities were… different. His creations—born purely from imagination—were capable of matching monsters that should've been far beyond his level.
"Tsubaki's right," she mused. "He probably handled the fight with something ridiculous again."
Tsubaki nodded, eyes gleaming. "He made Silence."
"Pff—!"
Hephaestus nearly choked, spraying the sip of tea she'd just taken.
She'd assumed Tsuna had used some clever trick to deal with Amphisbaena, not that he'd gone and recreated Silence, one of the strongest legends of the past.
"You mean the Silence? The one I'm thinking of?"
She wasn't looking at Tsubaki anymore—her gaze snapped to Tsuna.
"Yes," he replied simply. "That Silence. I modeled her based on the information I've gathered, combined with my own reasoning and imagination. The result was a Level 6 Puppet version."
Hephaestus stared at him for a long moment, then exhaled.
"So it's a reconstruction, based on existing data and your perception?"
This ability really is absurd…
She was starting to understand the scope of what he could do—creating powerful beings purely from imagination and information. His skill wasn't just creation; it was reconstruction, adaptation, and evolution, all rolled into one.
And apparently, he could even recreate legendary adventurers.
As long as his imagination could grasp it—he could make it real.
"Complete replication, though… that's impossible," Tsuna clarified, shaking his head.
Hephaestus raised a brow. "Oh?"
"It's extremely difficult to fully restore any individual's exact power. The monsters or people I create with Annihilation Maker, or the Puppets modeled after them, are all incomplete versions."
"Partly because I don't have full data on them. But also because my imagination—and by extension, my power—has limits."
"When my own strength isn't high enough, my imagination gets bound by that same ceiling. So no matter how vivid the concept, there's a hard limit to what I can actually manifest."
Hephaestus nodded slowly. It made perfect sense.
A power that overpowered had to have restrictions—or else it would break the world.
Though, she thought privately, it wasn't exactly a permanent restriction. Once Tsuna's personal strength grew strong enough, that limiter would likely vanish.
When that day came, Annihilation Maker would probably evolve into something terrifying.
Even now, with a not-even-complete version of Silence, he'd wiped out Amphisbaena. If he ever created her in her full glory…
The entire Labyrinth City might need to start worrying.
She turned her attention back to Tsubaki, her lips curling into a teasing smile.
"So, what do you think? Up for working with him from now on?"
"Hell yes!" Tsubaki nearly jumped out of her chair.
She slung an arm around Tsuna's shoulder like a proud big sister. "He's perfect for me! As an team member, I mean."
"He's strong enough to handle high-level fights, and he boosts the rare drop rate on monsters! Even against Floor Bosses, he's a reliable partner. Seriously, he's the best assistant a smith could ask for."
Hephaestus couldn't help but laugh. Just a few days ago, when she'd first brought up partnering with Tsuna, Tsubaki had looked like she'd swallowed a lemon.
Now she was singing his praises like a proud mentor.
"Not complaining anymore, I see?" Hephaestus asked, grinning. "You looked a lot less enthusiastic when you thought he'd slow down your forging schedule."
"Oh, come on~ that was before I knew what he could do!" Tsubaki said with a shameless grin. Not even a hint of embarrassment.
"If you'd just told me the full story earlier, Lady Hephaestus, I wouldn't have complained at all!"
Tsuna, still half-pinned under her arm, shot her a flat look.
Now that he'd spent more time around the blacksmith, he understood her personality completely.
A pure, straightforward craftswoman. Her entire world revolved around forging and perfecting her skill.
Everything else was just background noise.
"Alright, jokes aside," Hephaestus said after a chuckle. "Let's move on to serious matters."
"Tsuna's situation is… special. His power has a strong connection to forging—he can manifest things, after all. But that means he needs experience and refinement in that field too."
"As he said himself, imagination is his weapon. So for now, aside from laying low under our Familia's protection, I want the two of you working together closely."
Her tone turned a little sharper. "And Tsubaki—don't let his identity slip."
"Got it!"
She gave a crisp nod. She already knew the stakes. From now on, any fieldwork, experiments, or Dungeon runs—Tsuna was coming along.
After the formal talk, Hephaestus's curiosity got the better of her.
"So," she said, eyes gleaming, "did you manage to get the Excellia?"
Tsubaki glanced down at the boy still beside her and smirked.
"Of course we did."
"Thanks to Tsuna's help, we actually managed to capture the Excellia."
"Perfect." Hephaestus's eye lit up in excitement.
"Both of you—come with me. I want to see it for myself."
The goddess of the forge could barely contain her curiosity now.
After all, the idea of forging with Excellia was far too tempting to ignore.