Blacksmith Association.
Examination hall.
Mu Xi stood at the forge in a fresh set of clean clothes, her high ponytail swaying behind her.
With steady, practiced movements, she secured the metal onto the anvil and moved through each step at an even pace: heating, quenching, tempering, repeating the cycle without a hint of rush.
Then she picked up her hammer.
The first strike rang out like thunder.
She swung again and again, her blows fast and precise. Each hit landed exactly where it needed to, the sharp clang echoing off the walls. Under her relentless rhythm, the metal visibly compressed. Impurities were forced out piece by piece, the inner structure tightening and refining with every impact.
Arthur and Mu Xi's father, Mu Chen, stood off to the side, watching.
"She's almost there," Mu Chen said quietly. He knew better than anyone that as long as Mu Xi kept her rhythm, completing the Thousand Forges was only a matter of time.
Arthur nodded. "Yeah."
A complicated look crossed Mu Chen's face. Memories surfaced of a stubborn little girl who had insisted on learning the forge even when he hadn't thought she was ready.
And now she'd come this far.
"Speaking of which." Mu Chen suddenly reached over and clamped a firm hand on Arthur's head, squeezing hard enough to make a point. His tone sharpened. "If I remember correctly, Mu Xi was still lacking in raw strength not long ago. I didn't expect her to improve this much, this fast. Arthur, any idea why?"
Arthur widened his eyes in exaggerated surprise. "Really? I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Is that so?"
Mu Chen narrowed his eyes. He wasn't convinced for a second.
He had noticed that Mu Xi had recently been buying Whale Rubber in secret. He'd told her before that she wasn't ready for it yet. So who exactly had persuaded her to go against his advice?
What a mystery.
In the end, he let it drop. Whale Rubber wasn't inherently bad. His only concern had been that it wasn't ideal for kids her age.
He'd always believed in building a solid foundation first. Shortcuts and rare materials could wait. But now that Mu Xi had already used it, and given her current level, it probably wouldn't cause any real harm.
"Clang!"
Her final hammer strike rang out.
The Thousand Forges were complete.
The echo lingered in the air.
"I did it!"
Mu Xi wiped the sweat from her forehead, practically bouncing in place as she shouted in excitement.
She had really done it.
All those long days at the forge. All that grinding effort. A Third-Rank Blacksmith at thirteen. Even across the entire Federation, that was rare.
She took off running toward her father, unable to contain herself.
Mu Chen laughed and opened his arms, ready to catch her.
The smile froze on his face.
Mu Xi ran straight past him and threw herself at Arthur instead.
"Did you see that, Arthur? I did it!" She hugged him tightly, her excitement filling the room.
"Thank you," she said earnestly. "If it weren't for you, who knows how long it would've taken me to finish the Thousand Forges."
Arthur's heart nearly stopped.
Please don't say that here.
His eyes went wide as he frantically tried to signal her with subtle looks. "Hey, hey, this is all you. What does it have to do with me?"
Mu Xi suddenly remembered her father was standing right there.
She let go immediately. "I just meant thanks for keeping me company. And for cheering me on."
Mu Chen watched the two of them smooth things over with suspicious ease. His expression darkened.
He had been prepared to overlook Arthur's influence regarding the Whale Rubber. It wasn't a huge issue.
But his daughter's first instinct had been to run into that blond kid's arms instead of his.
That was another matter entirely.
Mu Chen's gaze grew sharp.
"Well, I've got some things to take care of," Arthur said quickly, sensing the shift in atmosphere. "The exam's over, so I'll head out. Goodbye, sir. See you, Mu Xi!"
Mu Xi didn't try to stop him. Instead, she turned and buried herself in her father's arms.
"Dad…"
Now that she'd truly completed the Thousand Forges, she had so much she wanted to say to him.
---
Outside the Blacksmith Association, Arthur stepped onto the street and immediately spotted someone waiting by the roadside.
Gu Yue.
She had switched up her look again today. Twin pigtails. A light, breezy outfit. A white short-sleeve top paired with denim cutoffs that showed off her long legs.
"Oh? Arthur, what a coincidence." She blinked at him, looking pleasantly surprised. "You're here too."
Arthur did not believe that for a second.
There was no way this was a coincidence. She had clearly come on purpose. But he couldn't exactly call her out on it.
He just couldn't figure out what she was trying to do.
Was she trying to get closer to him? Build some kind of connection?
That didn't feel quite right either. He had never seen anyone approach friendship like this.
"Yeah… what are the odds," Arthur said, scratching the back of his head.
"Oh!" Gu Yue suddenly pressed a hand to her forehead as if something had just occurred to her. She pulled two movie tickets from her pocket and tilted her head in an almost theatrical display of cuteness.
"I was just about to see a movie. It'd be kind of boring to go alone. Since we keep running into each other, and I happen to have an extra ticket… want to come with me?"
Arthur stared at her. "Sorry… what?"
The Silver Dragon King is asking me to the movies?
Am I dreaming?
"I said, let's go watch a movie together." Gu Yue stepped closer and hooked her arm through his. "It's the weekend. Let's have some fun."
"Uh… sure."
Arthur's brain had effectively shut down. He still couldn't make sense of what she was planning, but before he knew it, he was being pulled toward the cinema.
As they walked, he kept sneaking glances at her.
He really could not figure her out.
Gu Yue felt his eyes on her and internally praised her own brilliance.
Over the past few days, she had conducted careful "research," rotating through different hairstyles and outfits while quietly observing Arthur's reactions.
She had noticed something very clear. Whenever she dressed in lighter, more casual clothes, he looked at her more often.
More importantly, through what she considered genius-level planning and exhaustive experimentation, she had crafted a strategy.
Today was the day she would win him over completely.
They walked down the street with Gu Yue half a step ahead and Arthur following behind, lost in thought.
A breeze swept through at the perfect moment.
The back of her white top lifted slightly in the wind.
Sunlight spilled across the pavement. The gentle sway of her legs beneath the denim cutoffs caught Arthur's eye, and he felt a little lightheaded.
Gu Yue's features were delicate, but there was something about her presence that felt otherworldly, as though she didn't quite belong to the ordinary world.
Then, as if on cue, her twin pigtails brushed against the tip of his nose, soft and ticklish in the breeze.
He stared at them swaying in front of him.
At the same time, he became acutely aware of his fingertips, still warm from where her arm had been linked with his.
The sensation was so vivid that whatever suspicions he'd had about her intentions completely slipped his mind.
They passed a dessert shop, and Gu Yue stopped abruptly. She turned back, eyes bright.
"Arthur, wait here a second!"
Before he could respond, she had already hurried inside.
Standing on tiptoe at the counter, she pointed eagerly at the display case while speaking to the shopkeeper. Her pigtails bounced left and right with every movement, like a small animal excited over a treat.
Arthur stood outside on the sidewalk, watching her through the glass.
And a thought slowly formed.
All those outfit changes over the past few days.
People don't dress up without a reason.
Could she be dressing like this… because of me?
Does she like me?
No.
Arthur frowned.
He knew himself well enough to reject that idea.
Unless the Silver Dragon King had never separated from Nael to begin with, something like that was simply impossible.