"Hello, I'm Finn."
Noah shook Finn's outstretched hand, his expression barely changing.
He replied calmly, "I know. It's impossible for anyone in Orario not to have heard of the Brave's reputation."
The two released their handshake and stood facing each other.
"While that might be true, it's still a bit embarrassing to hear it said straight to my face," Finn said with a cheerful smile.
Looking at him, it was hard to believe he was actually a grown man in his forties pretending to be a young boy.
Tsubaki, noticing how warmly Finn was treating Noah, stared at him intently, as if trying to read his thoughts.
Finn noticed this as well.
"We'll gladly take our ten percent of the spoils, then," Tsubaki said, rolling up her sleeves.
"Of course. That was our agreement from the start," Finn replied generously.
"Hehehe, Noah-boy, no need to hold back—pick the best ones!"
The two blacksmiths opened the storage vault with gleaming eyes.
After the commission, the Guild had sorted and displayed all the spoils.
This was the first time Noah had seen such a huge amount of materials outside his own Familia.
Just the collected dungeon coral alone was worth tens of millions of valis.
However, this expedition had a total of 24 members, and they had to account for the cost of consumables and tools.
The real profit would only come after deducting those expenses.
"Hey, Artisan Spirit, there's something I'd like to ask of you."
Noah, who was in the middle of appraising the quality of the materials, suddenly heard Finn's voice from behind.
He gently set down the moonstone in his hand and turned to face him.
"Just call me Noah. I'm not really used to that title yet. Besides, if we're going to interact more often, it'd be more convenient to call each other by our names."
'Interact more often, huh?'
'Just as Riveria said, he's quite thoughtful for his age.'
Finn nodded in agreement.
"Understood. In that case, please call me Finn as well." Finn hid his hands behind his back and lightly pinched his thumb as he continued.
"Noah, the staff you crafted for Alicia and that... ahem, special armor you made for Ais—I think they're both excellent pieces."
"Thank you."
"Mm. So actually, I'd like to ask you to craft exclusive equipment for the newcomers in our Familia. What do you think?" At this point, Finn specifically emphasized. "Of course, they're all promising individuals within our Familia."
And it was from the Loki Familia, no less, with Finn himself making the request.
'This was... quite interesting.'
Although it was for newcomers, it still meant he was building a good relationship with one of the most powerful Familias in the city.
For a blacksmith, this was also quite important.
Although the problems he was worried about hadn't appeared yet, that didn't mean they wouldn't show up later.
The main issue was materials.
Very few Familias could explore the deep floors, and solo diving was almost impossible.
Top-tier materials would only end up in the hands of the strongest Familias in the city.
They would sell the materials to the Guild, which would then mark up the price and resell them at a higher cost.
If intercepted by merchants and sold at black market auctions, the prices would skyrocket.
To obtain such materials without getting overcharged, the best way was naturally to build good relationships with top-tier exploration Familias.
Noah thought for a moment and replied, "I can't take on too many. Is that alright?"
His schedule was already fully booked.
Although he could refuse, if he refused everything, bad rumors would start spreading right away.
It would also put his Familia in a difficult position.
After all, it was a system set by the Familia and at least on the surface, it had to be maintained.
So he decided to pick three to five people from his appointment list and accept their custom requests.
This meant his energy was very limited and his time even more so.
Even for Finn's request, he could probably only take on two or three more commissions.
"Don't worry, it's just three people. However, they're all quite unique in personality. I hope you won't mind."
"The proportion of normal people in the Loki Familia is pretty low, isn't it? I know, don't worry."
Finn had no rebuttal to that.
Indeed, due to their eccentric god, their Familia had gathered quite a few eccentric individuals.
And they were all experts at causing trouble!
"Then I'll leave it to you. If it's convenient, I'll have those three visit your workshop this afternoon."
"No."
Noah refused, then explained, "Have them come in a few days. I'm about to set up what you'd call a workshop."
Finn was slightly taken aback.
Only then did he realize that this rising star didn't even have a workshop yet!
But this was also an opportunity.
"In that case, let me introduce you to someone from the Goibniu Familia. They're experts in construction. For our sake, they should offer you a discount."
Noah's eyes flickered.
'Not bad.'
'So this is the benefit of having connections.'
'Whatever you want to do, you can find a way. It not only provides convenience but also reduces costs.'
'As expected, even in another world, society is still built on relationships.'
"Thank you."
"You're welcome. This is for our own benefit as well."
...
Noah, with a large quantity of materials in his hand, returned to his base.
Looking at his small bedroom filled with materials to the point where there was no space to even stand, he began to feel stifled.
After lying on the bed for a while, he got up and headed to the smithy.
Clang!
Clang—!
As he approached the smithy, Noah heard the clear ringing of metal.
He quickened his pace and, after turning the corner, saw the smithy he had used for so long.
At that moment, a familiar figure was holding a forging hammer, striking a poorly made iron sword.
Noah stepped forward, surprised.
"Head Chef? What's going on?"
"Oh, it's Noah-chan. You're back."
"Yes, I just returned yesterday. But this is...?"
He looked at the Head Chef's hands.
With just one glance, he seemed to understand everything.
These were the hands of a blacksmith.
A fellow craftsman could tell at a glance.
Since he always wore white gloves in the kitchen, this was the first time Noah had seen them.
So, this smithy had a strong connection to the Head Chef, or it might even be his.
Otherwise, there was no explanation for why no one had returned here for so long.
"Hahaha, it's nothing. I haven't exercised this skill in a long time, so I'm just warming up a bit."
"I believe you."
"Mmmm, After starting the forge again, I've confirmed once more that I have no talent for blacksmithing. Mediocre, no—perhaps I should say I'm useless." The Head Chef's smile was somewhat bleak.
But what he said was likely the truth.
Just looking at that poorly made sword was enough to tell.
The Head Chef's skill wasn't just bad—it was terrible.
This kind of poor craftsmanship wasn't the result of a novice's inexperience but rather the manifestation of a seasoned blacksmith who, despite systematic training, still couldn't grasp the essence.
"Since you're here, I'll head back. I need to buy all the ingredients before sunset."
The Head Chef was terrible at blacksmithing, but his talent in cooking was extraordinary.
He excelled at creating exquisite dishes—not only were they beautifully presented, but their flavors were incredibly enticing.
"This shop—I'm giving it to you." The Head Chef suddenly left with these words.
"This..."
Noah wanted to say this wouldn't do, but before he could speak, he saw the Head Chef raise his rough hand, signaling him not to refuse and then walk away without looking back, heading toward the market.
"That old man is really cool..." Noah sighed in admiration, then picked up the forging hammer the Head Chef had set down and began striking the garbage iron sword.
With each strike of the hammer, the iron sword gradually took on a gleaming luster under Noah's hands.
A dazzling radiance enveloped the entire blade.
Seeing this strange phenomenon, Noah's face instantly filled with shock.
'It actually triggered!'
'Truth Seeker's quality improvement actually triggered at a time like this?'
In other words, from any perspective, what the Head Chef had crafted could only be called an iron bar, not a sword.
Otherwise, it wouldn't meet the condition of being "handcrafted."
The radiance faded as a snow-white longsword, sparkling with crystalline specks, appeared before Noah's eyes.
"Appraise."
"Iron Sword" (Quality Improved)
・Creator: Noah
・Sharpness greatly increased
・Material slightly enhanced
・The first three enhancements on this weapon are guaranteed to succeed (due to Truth Seeker's effect)
・Deals additional damage to enemies of the same race as the wielder
'It actually says the first three enhancements are guaranteed to succeed...'
Noah examined the iron sword in his hand, his gaze growing dazed.
Compared to ordinary equipment, the other attributes were already quite strong, but this sword had actually activated a special trait due to the quality improvement effect.
Guaranteed +3!
He didn't know if this trait was random or something else.
Because Crimson Guardian didn't have this trait back then, though it also gained a more powerful skill due to Truth Seeker's effect.
A +3 iron sword wasn't particularly rare.
What mattered was this discovery.
Although this iron sword had greatly increased sharpness, slightly enhanced material, and even a special effect against the same race, the materials used to make it were simply too poor.
That was something that couldn't be changed no matter what.
In any case, he should first test this trait to verify its authenticity!
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