A masterpiece. No other word to describe that piece of metal. The material this time round did not glow with the familiar bronze hue, but it gave off a brilliant silvery color. Just looking at it, one could tell it was different and sturdy.
The hilt had a golden overlay of a beautifully sculptured lion's head. The sculpture looked so lifelike one would think it could reach out and take a bite. That and the soft rubbery handle made it extremely comfortable to handle, almost as though one was not using a sword.
The blade itself was 110cm (1.1m) long. It was double-edged and had a mean look to it. On the body, there was a beautifully calligraphed inscription. On one side it read 'DARK FLAMES' and on the other: 'COMMANDER'.
Lady Ellen was lost for words. She couldn't bring herself to hold such a weapon, afraid that she didn't deserve to have it. Gritting her teeth, she reached out and caressed the blade's edge. Logically, when a sword had just been made, it was not supposed to be sharpened. That would come later. However, when she ran her hands through the sword's edges, she was cut.
Shocked, she looked closer to examine. To her amazement, she realized that this blade was built to be sharp. There were many kinds of blades. Some swords, like the greatswords, weren't built so much for their cutting abilities but their size and hacking abilities. This sword was with a perfect balance between slashing and hacking.
Slashing and cutting needed a sharp edge. Hacking needed power. This sword could be used for both. This versatility made it ideal for training a wide range of sword skills and techniques. It was the perfect gift.
Lifting it, Lady Ellen was shocked just how well balanced it was. From the handle, she could suspend it with one finger, balancing either side. The handle was so perfectly fitting that it felt as though it was built specifically for her. The grip on its handle and the feel of the material were not as oppressive as ordinary swords. The effect of this was that one could keep fighting or longer with minimal damage to the hand.
The sword was slightly heavier than she was used to, but she felt that that was a price worth paying. Just holding it, she grew more in love with it. She swung it a couple of times just to get a feel of it.
"Help me with your sword," Barda said. Lady Ellen felt like a child who had just received a new toy and had to give it back, but she complied, handing the sword back to Barda.
"No, not this sword, your other sword," Barda said. He wanted to prove a point. On receiving the sword, he said, "now attack me."
Lady Ellen knew well that Barda was a good archer, but she liked to think that she was better with the sword than he was. She had never seen him swing his sword, and even though she had heard of the rumors on his prowess on the sword, she didn't put much stock in them. She was Purple-ranked, which put her at the peak level. Hence she hesitated, but only for a moment.
Katcha!
When the sword was swung, Lady Ellen didn't know what to expect. She just moved as per instinct. Her thrust was not so powerful due to considerations to Barda's skills, but even then, she never expected to see her trusty sword, one that she had used for many years and through many battles, to simply break off.
Not only her, Phoenix, who was among the elite, was beyond shocked. She was well aware of how sturdy that sword was, and in terms of quality and performance, there was no better equipment in all of the Dark Flames Adventurer Team. Despite that, it had broken like a twig. Just how sharp and sturdy was the new sword?
Seeing the shocked looks he was being given, Barda smile knowing his mission had been accomplished. His demonstration had served its purpose nicely.
That morning, while he was thinking of ideas on enhancing his department, Barda had had a stroke of genius. He thought that if he made a good enough equipment, he could show the value of a logistics team and further ingrain himself to his teammates. However, he needed to think of a good weapon to make.
Of all weapons available to him, he knew he could make a masterpiece from a bow and arrow, but so did everyone else. If that's all he could make, then there was no value there. The other weapon he had firsthand experience working on was the sword. He had to deliver a quota for the Crane city officials under Markell.
Using that as the foundation, Barda next did a comprehensive search on his entire database for any sword making designs. He had ended up with hundreds of designs absorbed from the reading materials.
To analyze properly, he generated 3D models of the finished products. With this, he could see each of the swords and their outline. None of them immediately caught his eye, so he did something extra.
Barda picked out the top 3 designs and analyzed them properly. Studying each of them, he understood how the parts joined together, their merits and demerits and how to modify them. He then proceeded to combine the models in his head, trying out various computations and simulations until the right sequence was established.
This was also a form of tradecraft as well. Barda didn't know who had access to the information obtained from the library, but he did know that they were very touchy about their information. They wanted to safeguard and protect it at all costs.
If he came up with a sword that looked exactly like the one in the books, that would be very suspicious if someone found out. Then he wouldn't know what to say about where he got the sword design from.
There was one last thing Barda did. Wrought iron is common and easy to mine. It was the easiest to obtain from the iron ores. Unfortunately, it is brittle and easily breaks. Plus, it was full of impurities and not the best to refine.
By now, people had discovered that if you paid a little more attention in the refining process and added carbon element to the iron, the resultant metal, steel, was very hardy and easy to work with. Adding carbon, unfortunately, was easier said than done.
Most steel available out there was stainless steel. It is easier to work with, has good corrosion resistance and holds it's edge well. The carbon level ranged from around 0.2% to 0.3%. They were a good innovation and an improvement on the wrought iron, but to Barda, this was not quite enough.
The sword's steel had a whopping 5% carbon level. Even in contemporary times, that figure is still ridiculously high, making it high carbon steel.
Carbon, in this case, was an impurity, which meant that the sword was susceptible to corrosion if not properly maintained. However, blades made from this material were generally harder and retain their sharp edge well, which was what Barda was going for.
"Thank you." Lady Ellen said simply. She was still lost in a daze, and she didn't know what the proper words to say at that moment was. The sword was by far the greatest gift she had received, and one she would treasure all her life.
"Where's mine?" Phoenix blurted out giving Barda a hard look. "I want one that looks exactly like that!"
"Too bad, only one was made, and it already has an owner," Barda said with a smile which made Phoenix grumble to herself.
"There are other weapons on the table," Barda said gesturing, "try them on."
Phoenix did not like the idea of being a commoner, as the statement Barda made it sound like she was. However, since she was not the commander, she made her way to the table to pick out a weapon of her own.
Using the same principle of making the High Carbon steel, Barda had done the same for the other materials. Hence, every weapon present there was extremely durable and extremely hardy. Also, the sharp edges were easier to maintain.
Soon, the elite squad was fully armored from head to toe and ready for the tough assignment. Lady Ellen had had misgivings about this, and she wanted to make Barda tag along for this excursion, but on seeing the weapons prepared, she no longer worried. If her team could not perform with such equipment, then they didn't deserve it.
Following this, she made her way to the top floor of the building, where she went to pick the quest. When she got back to the forging room, she took the team and led them to the start of the quest.