A week had passed since I declared my ambitions to Hephaestus...
Right now, instead of hammering iron, I was cleaning.
Where?
At the Hephaestus workshop!
I got in. I got in!
Perhaps Hephaestus had been moved after hearing my [Sincerity], because she said,
"Every single word is filled with sincerity. It has been a very long time since I've met a child this earnest."
Then she gave my back a smack... (///)
My Status was:
Name: Smith
Lv. 1
Strength: 0
Endurance: 0
Dexterity: 0
Agility: 0
Magic: 0
Ability: Blacksmithing G
Magic
[Noble Phantasm—NOBLE PHANTASM]
Chant
This is an illusion.
This is my imagination.
This is our ideal.
A dream that shall be eternal within fantasy.
It depicts all things in heaven and earth,
And contains every phenomenon beneath the heavens.
It shapes the illusion born of exquisite imagination,
And all creation blesses that illusion,
Solidifying its form as an idol.
Everything is for the sake of one single end.
-Forges armaments as close as possible to the illusion one seeks to realize.
-Cannot be used again until a single armament has been completed.
-Continuously grants additional bonuses to Dexterity, Strength, and Magic until the illusion is completed.
-Upon completion, a special ability of the user's choosing may be added.
-The higher the degree of completion, the more abilities can be added.
(Cannot be used due to the absence of the [Mystery] Ability.)
[]
Skills
[Tempering of Steel]
-Greatly boosts Endurance.
[Soul of Flame]
-Extremely high resistance to damage caused by flames and heat.
[To the Stars in the Sky I Looked Up At]
-Boosts Agility.
-Increases Magic recovery speed.
-Slightly increases Magic at regular intervals.
"..."
"...Lady Hephaestus?"
"Jackpot! It's a jackpot! A jackpot that doesn't lose to Loki's children!"
"No, what the hell kind of Status did I get for you to react like th—"
"..."
"That's me...?"
"Tsubaki brought me a real treasure!"
"What the hell is going on with my Status for Lady Hephaestus to act like that?"
"Would you like to see it?"
"That's all right. And even if you're the captain, you mustn't carelessly reveal your Status to others. Understand?"
"Yes, sis!"
"...You too?"
"Well, you know... everyone else calls you that, so it'd be kind of weird if I were the only one who called you something different..."
"In times like that, you need to show some manly spirit! Spirit!"
"Can't. This isn't the One Piece world."
"Was that an instant answer?!"
After bantering like that for a while, I began speaking with Hephaestus alone.
"As for your Magic, it's useless without [Mystery], but the fact that it's written there so plainly means there's a chance [Mystery] will manifest in the future. If I had to guess, probably around Lv. 2 or 3..."
"So I'm more talented than I thought."
"You're the first child I've ever seen who started out with the Blacksmithing Ability. Normally, it gets added as a bonus as you level up..."
"Let's set that aside for now. Even putting your Magic aside, your Skills are incredibly unusual.
"First, [Tempering of Steel]. It may seem unassuming, but for an adventurer, it's a Skill that could be called the best. Even a single ordinary bonus lets you block, to some extent, attacks from monsters one level above you. With a major bonus... I don't need to spell it out, do I? For reference, [Heavy Warrior (Ele Garm)] of the Loki Familia has a Skill with a different effect but the same major Endurance bonus, and he's currently one of the top tankers in all of Orario.
"[Soul of Flame]... As a blacksmith, there isn't a more precious Skill than this. No matter how my children, aided by Falna, reach the heights of mortals, they are still mortals. Once they exceed what their bodies can endure, they get hurt all the same. Well, the same goes for us Deus Dea too... Anyway, ordinarily, no matter how outstanding they are, if my children plunge their hands into bubbling molten iron, they'll be burned—or in severe cases, their skin will melt away. But even at Lv. 1, you could put your hand into molten iron right now and endure it as though it were merely a little hot.
"Lastly, [To the Stars in the Sky I Looked Up At]... I'll be honest. I've never seen a Skill like it before, and even just judging by its effects, it's an ultra-rare Skill rare enough that other gods would be desperate to kidnap you for it. [Spirit Healing] is the only Development Ability related to Magic recovery, and even then, there may only be one or two people in all of Orario who possess it. But this isn't a Skill that should have come from you... Do you have any idea what might have caused it?"
Stars... Stars, huh...
["Then I pray that the stars will be with your destiny. Goodbye."]
Could it be...?!
"Perhaps it's a blessing from someone I saved before coming here...?"
"...Why do you think that?"
"Before I came here, they said, ["Then I pray that the stars will be with your destiny. Goodbye."]"
"That has to be it... Just where and what were you doing to receive such a terrifying blessing?"
"You risk your life to save someone!"
"Are you insane?!"
"..."
"Deny it...!"
"Putting that aside, I think it would be better to keep my Blacksmithing Ability... hidden. What do you think?"
"I'm sorry to ask this of you, but... I think that would be for the best."
"No, I understand. If a newcomer who just arrived suddenly became a [High Smith] at Lv. 1, everyone would feel uncomfortable."
"Right. For now, like the other newcomers, spend around two weeks to a month learning the odd jobs and assistant work in the workshop. After that, we'll start you on proper work. If you make something good, you can sell it at Babel and earn money too, you know?"
"...Money!"
"Well, it'll be a shop selling inexpensive armaments for Lv. 1 and 2 adventurers, so you won't make a fortune. Still, earning money is what matters, isn't it?"
"I look forward to working with you, [Lady Hephaestus]!"
"Likewise, my child, Smith."
With that, the forge fire was lit.
I would melt iron with the bellows,
Heat steel and shape it into a blade,
Quench it in oil to harden it,
And from there, forge a beautiful illusion.
Here, my dream would... come true...!