"Using a Puppet's body as a vessel to contain Excellia? Now that's a fascinating idea."
Even Hephaestus couldn't help but marvel as she watched golden, mist-like energy flow inside the Silence Puppet.
Excellia—that mysterious force—had always been a crucial requirement for an Adventurer'sLevel Up. Yet until now, no one had ever actually seen it.
For the goddess of the forge, this was a first.
Who would've thought something so abstract could actually be captured—and with such a simple method, too?
It felt… wrong, in a way. Unreal.
But the fact remained—it worked.
"If you want to use Excellia in forging, you'll need a weapon good enough to handle it," Hephaestus said after a thoughtful pause. "By using Excellia's inherent power to elevate Adventurers, we could use that same energy to elevate the weapon itself."
After a short observation, she proposed the most straightforward method to make use of it.
Tsuna, however, had other thoughts.
"Lady Hephaestus, that's probably the simplest approach, right?"
"Indeed," she nodded. "It's the easiest way to apply Excellia's power."
Then she gestured toward the golden energy swirling within the Puppet.
"Actually, the best method would be to forge it directly into the weapon itself—use Excellia as a material. But capturing Excellia in the first place isn't easy, and turning it into a workable substance is even harder."
"Especially since it's in a gaseous form right now," she added, frowning. "Transforming something like that into a usable material… won't be easy."
"True enough," Tsubaki agreed. She shared her goddess's assessment completely.
Just thinking about Excellia as a material was already a groundbreaking concept. But trying to convert it into something that could be forged into a weapon—that was another level entirely.
Hephaestus's reasoning was sound, and Tsubaki's reaction was natural. But both of them were still thinking like traditional blacksmiths.
"I can do it," Tsuna said.
Those simple words cut through their confusion like a beam of light through fog. Both women froze, then blinked at him in surprise.
"…You're right."
What a ridiculous oversight.
If traditional craftsmen couldn't do it, that didn't mean Tsuna couldn't. He wasn't bound by normal limitations.
Hephaestus and Tsubaki caught on instantly.
"How exactly are you planning to pull that off?" Tsubaki asked, curiosity bubbling over.
"It's simple," Tsuna said with a grin. "I'll just create a space that can contain and control the Excellia."
Both women stared at him, dumbfounded.
It was such a simple answer—and yet, the implementation would be anything but.
No ordinary person would've ever thought of it, let alone made it possible.
But Tsuna Sawada wasn't ordinary.
When he finished explaining, he got straight to work.
In mere moments, a door materialized right there in the room.
He walked up to it and pushed it open. Beyond the threshold was… a forest.
"Hephaestus, Tsubaki—after you."
Driven by sheer curiosity, the goddess and her captain followed him through.
The instant they stepped inside, a rush of fresh air greeted them.
The forest air was crisp, rich with oxygen—it made their minds feel clear, their bodies light.
Tsuna moved past them, gesturing toward a building nestled among the trees.
"That's the rest area and material storage. A place to relax between forging sessions—keeps your body and mind in top condition."
He pointed toward a path paved with white stone bricks leading deeper into the forest.
"And this," he said, "is the heart of the space—the Forge Mountain."
"Follow me."
Under Tsuna's guidance, the two women walked the stone path until they reached the end—an entrance built into the base of a mountain.
Dim Magic Stone Lamps lit the tunnel walls. As they walked down the long passageway, the temperature steadily rose.
By the time they stepped into the open chamber beyond, the heat was palpable.
The vast cavern before them was breathtaking.
In the center, a massive molten hearth pulsed and roared with golden light, illuminating the entire underground forge.
Along the sides were rows of tools—some handcrafted, others mechanical—covering every step of the forging process.
And beyond them stood a special chamber, shrouded in a faint blue barrier.
Both Hephaestus and Tsubaki immediately zeroed in on it.
"Tsuna, is that the one?" Hephaestus asked.
He nodded. "Yes. The interior of this Forge Mountain—especially that chamber—is designed with a spatial boundary that stabilizes and limits Excellia's presence."
He gestured toward the blue-shrouded room.
"That's the refinement zone. Inside, we can process Excellia—adjust its density, refine its form, even experiment with merging it into physical materials."
"My current plan," he continued, "is to condense Excellia into a liquid state first, then try to infuse it directly into a weapon's structure."
He gave a wry smile. "Of course, that's just my theory. Whether it'll actually work—that's something you'll need to test yourselves."
Even Tsuna couldn't say for sure. All he could do was manipulate Excellia's properties enough to make experimentation possible.
To keep things safe, he'd built multiple containment barriers into the forge, just in case something went wrong during testing.
"I don't know much about the finer points of forging," he admitted. "So if there's anything you'd like changed, Lady Hephaestus, Tsubaki—I can reshape the space however you need."
Hephaestus's eye gleamed as she surveyed the workshop—a place capable of melting metal, tempering blades, and merging rare materials, all within a secure environment built to handle Excellia.
It was perfect.
"This is more than enough, Tsuna," she said warmly.
Even if his understanding of blacksmithing was incomplete, this space exceeded every expectation.
In fact, it was more advanced—and more comprehensive—than Tsubaki's own forge.
When Hephaestus turned to look at her captain, she found Tsubaki completely mesmerized, eyes sparkling with unfiltered excitement.
"Take a look at her," Hephaestus said, chuckling. "Does she look unsatisfied to you?"
Tsuna turned—and immediately bumped right into Tsubaki's face as she leaned in close, grinning wide.
"I'm super satisfied!" she shouted, eyes blazing with enthusiasm.
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You can read up to chapter 185 on patreon.com/NiaXD.