"Lord Berinon, your honor me with a visit," Barda said as the King of Alpine entered the warehouse under the palace, which now doubled up as his workplace.
"The honor is mine in this case," Lord Berinon said. One thing Barda knew about him was that he was the uptight kind. He was the kind of person that would get slighted at the wrong word, and apparently, respect and decorum were high in his list.
Not that it was not undeserved. This was the top mage in Alpine. He commanded an entire Kingdom, one capable of fighting Gumina to a standstill. That was saying something.
"So this is where the magic happens, literally?" Lord Berinon said as he walked around the warehouse. He had a wide grin on his face, like a kid in a candy store. Everything in the room excited him.
As an accomplished mage and a scholar too, Lord Berinon had an appreciation for the inventions, although he only knew of non-magical. There was also another more propelling reason.
Barda's fame had spread far and wide. It could be said that the better part of the known world. It could be said that Barda's name and Tristan's victory were intertwined.
Among all the heroes in the war, he stood out not only as a skilled inventor whose inventions were able to turn the tide in the war, but also a powerful mage whose personal power was enough to stop a city destroyer.
From the flying ships to the firesticks, Barda's invention had captured everyone's attention. While most people were inspired by the imagination and novelty, many heads of states saw these weapons as a shift in the balance of power.
Lord Berinon was just the first to come. Plenty of scavengers were lining up. However, most powers at this point had chosen to adopt the wait and see method.
While Tristan was coming in the world stage, many powers had destabilized. It remained a wonder if Tristan could make it past the next couple of years. Only then did it qualify to connect and delegate with the large powers, the movers and shakers.
To great powers such as Gumina, Tristan, and the other city-states had been little more than villages. Of course, Gumina was interested in conquering these villages for resources, but most would rather just trade. It was easier that way.
The problem was, with the cities uniting, a lot of the business conducted was going to be overhauled. Such disruption was not all bad since everyone knew it was coming, but only the smart ones had made preparations.
"You'll find there is no magic in my inventions." "So I heard?" Lord Berinon, "I have to wonder. Since you are a mage as well, can you enchant?"
"I have done a few things, My Lord," Barda's statement shocked many who were gathered. Even Kia and Batoo, seated nearby, did not expect that.
"Do you have anything like that here? If you are you willing to show them to me, then I shall gift you this," The King pulled out a very broad-looking sword. The runes inscribed on it made it look magical, but it did not contain any of the Elements he was familiar with.
It was pitch-black and had a feeling of great danger. One would feel intimidated by the cutting edge of the blade. The blade of the sword measured 1.5 meters and the hilt covering 30 centimeters (the length of a foot). The blade was a whole centimeter thick.
Taking the time to admire the sword, Barda felt just how heavy it was. Normal human hands would probably not wield it easily.
"This is the great Hassium Shadow Sword. Invented by the legendary arch-mage, rumored to have reached a level above arch-mage in his life. This sword allows anyone to possess The Shadow-Elemental powers in every strike. Powerful people can even summon Shadow-Attacks."
The King of Alpine knew what he was asking. It was not a small thing to ask a man to reveal such secrets, and so as a sign of respect, he had to show him his own as well.
This was also a hidden trap. If Barda accepted the gift, then he would have to return the favor. King Berinon could not wait to see what Barda would offer. He had a feeling it was not going to disappoint.
Barda did not care much for decorum, but this man deserved respect. Hence, since he had led with respect by offering him this olive branch, Barda naturally could not piss him off.
"My Lord, you honor me so much for a simple demonstration, so I shall gift you what I show you," as Barda spoke, he pulled out a glass-looking object.
"What is that?"
"This, My Lord, is an ice-golem core, but not just any golem core. This golem can be used in training soldiers, Batoo, bring me a bucket of water."
The moment the King heard that it was a golem core, he was not that impressed. Golems were impressive as robots or servants, but they were not exactly uncommon.
It was impressive to make one, but even Lord Berinon could too. Perhaps Barda was not as impressive in magical enchanting as he was in innovations. Barda clocked it, so he decided to raise the stakes.
"My Lord, among your guards present, who excels in swordsmanship?" Barda asked eyeing the guards. The King did not answer but turned to his men.
One, a tall man with long hair and an ugly-scar extending from the edge of the eye, down the cheek to the beard. It seemed whoever caused the scar was not planning on leaving behind a face. Amazingly, this guy still had both his eyes functional.
"It is I, Lord Frewin, Captain of the King's guard in Alpine," The man boldly proclaimed.
When Batoo returned, Barda threw the core into the bucket. The sight od the golem core shaping up made Batoo and Kia, who were completely unfamiliar with a golem, gawk with eyes wide open. This was truly a sight to see.
Finally, a 6-foot ice golem stood holding an ice sword in one hand. It looked fully formed, a stable humanoid Ice-sculpture. It even had a handsome face on it, much like Barda's, only translucent.
"Captain Frewin, commence the attack to activate it. Remember, while it is a training golem, a casual attack you receive will be extremely painful, while a powerful strike can even lead to frostbit" Barda said.
The captain cast a glance at the King before moving forward. In his mind, this little ice statue was better served decapitated into several pieces.
Taking down a golem did not need someone to go overboard and decapitate everything. However, Lord Frewin felt this man had disrespected his King. After such a powerful gift, a golem was nothing to return.
He needed to earn respect for his King. If he took down this mockery, then the blacksmith would have to come up with something better. He was not planning on holding back since this was an inanimate object.
The ring of the sword meeting with ice could be heard following Lord Frewin's first strike. The ice golem had responded perfectly, blocking the incoming attack.
What Lord Frewin did not know was that this was one of the new top-of-the-line training golems Barda had come up with.
Controlling a Golem using a neural link was probably the best option, but it came with a minimum range of 500 and a maximum count, depending on the percentage in the Golems.
Hence, there was another way. A way of adding a control module to the golems, making them autonomous. This sounded grand, but for most mages, it was an impossible task.
For those mages who could do it, they required patience, concentration, and intense mental acuity. Even then, the kinds of golems they could create were hogwash at best, capable of very little. That was why the Alpinians were skeptical of the Golem.
This was not to say that there were no exceptional golems. However, these types had to be made by very skilled makers. They had specialized tasks such as guarding and other kinds, rarely used in training.
Training golems were meant to train soldiers to fight and end lives. Easy to build since there was a template, and easy to kill.
Little did the Alpinians know was that Barda had made this golem especially for training his top people.
After observing Catalina, Manga and the others fight, he knew they needed much training. Since he would not be available to train, he would use the training golems, that was his plan.
Now he would get a specialized fighter to test his creation. He could recreate another, but this was a chance to test the capabilities of the golem he had made.
Barda had a lot of knowledge and experience as a warrior. He had also collected several fighting styles that he did not use since he was too overpowered to find an enemy who could lead him to unleash his all.
Now, he had a chance to teach his people. Even with guns, swords still promised to play a major role, and having commanders with sword skills was not a bad idea.