֍ Elsewhere on the continent of Merahs ֍
.
A charming man with bright crimson hair that stretched down fair beyond the lavishly crafted wooden throne, looked out towards his bustling city and its people from the comfort of his chair.
Looking over through the untinted glass windows from his office window, the man with deep red bloodied coloured iris eyes turned to stare unpleasingly at the file of paperwork on his handcrafted wooden desk.
Roughly measured at 2 and a half metres long and a metre wide, the desk combined style with functionality with its many draws and creative irregular oblong desktop.
His disgruntled face quickly changed after seeing a specific scroll on his desk that he'd recently read.
Surprised by the revelation revealed in the contents of the scroll, the man couldn't help but smile for once.
He'd long forgotten how it felt to express such an action, though the message within the scroll helped shine some light on his dreary heart.
The man's right hand tightly clenched onto to the arm rest, caused the wood to slightly splinter under the pressure from the crimsons man's grip.
"Has it been confirmed…"
"Indeed, it has Your Highness…"
Silenced filled the room, with the Crimson haired Lord unaware how to proceed after receiving conformation from his trusted butler.
His deep bloodied red eyes were stuck on the scroll, unmoving from the aged sheepskin soon to be burned along with the rest of his important documents that shouldn't see the light of day.
Looking out of the large window panels, the crimson haired man thought about his people and Kingdom.
Looking out at the people walking on the busy streets, he saw countless people walking and living their days in peace.
Families shopping in markets, people eating, others shouting, and some were laughing happily together.
The crimson haired man watched on silently from his office high above in his palace, deep down coming to a decision about the future of his people.
"… We don't have much time it seems…
Begin the preparations for our people…
Once they are ready, they must leave immediately and not stop until they have reached their destination.
Is that understood…"
"As you wish, Your Highness."
Very soon, the crimson haired man was alone again, staring out towards the city, wondering about the fate of his people.
"… Hope.
That's all we have left now..."
.
֍ Back in Alynthn ֍
.
The sounds of hammers clashing against hot iron sounded throughout Vals Workshop, with the heat from the furnace burning brighter than ever before.
Ben overnight processed all the iron that was stored in his inventory, turning it all into Medium – High Grade Iron Ingots.
He was planning to use the iron to forge the weapons ordered by the Withering Roses, however Ben still lacked material to bring his vision for their equipment to life.
Nor did he wish to rely on the System Store and acquire a blueprint to help him with the forging.
Ben decided to go in the morning to the open market and search for the remaining materials before starting his crafting work on the ordered equipment.
But before he went to the market, Ben first travelled to Vals workshop, only to find his Master had already gone out early on and purchased a large sum of materials while out at the open market, shopping freely till he ended up stumbling home drunk.
When Ben asked his Master why he went on ahead without him, Val simply replied.
"Because of you Boy…
Your unpredictable… someone more refreshing and daring than the result of a thousand drunken oak barrels…"
Val happily smiled as he ruffled Bens black hair with golden and crimson streaks.
The old Smith looked at Ben as if he were looking at his own child.
"I trust you Boy…
Like you trusted Tia and me with your secret…
You did not have to say or show us anything, but you did…
You did not hesitate, you just did it naturally… that kind of trust… I thought it was long dead."
Val sighed as he closed his eyes.
He was thinking of the past, the images of the ones that were gone ran through his mind again and again.
Memories of recent events were also prevalent as the bearded Smith remembered the time Ben cleared up the history of his past and explained how he somehow ended up controlling the end of the known world.
When Val opened his eyes, he noticed Ben's gaze, an unyielding fire of fury could be seen in the Boys eyes.
.
"Remember I am your Master, Boy,… and you're my disciple, I'll do everything in my power to help you grow to your very best.
Whether that is by teaching or providing you materials, I'll support you Boy.
Just promise me… you wont ever break someone's trust.
A man can spend an eternity trying to earn someone's trust, but another can lose it in just mere seconds…"
Ben had silently listened to his master words, nodded back after swearing in his heart not to do wrong.
Seconds later he dived into the pile of materials, eager to find the remaining goods to start his many projects overdue for the Withering Roses.
.
Vals words may not have seemed like much to anyone who might have been listening in on the Master and student duo, but to Ben it felt as if his responsibilities had increased tenfold all of a sudden.
He had the support and trust of so many people, it felt daunting at times, but Ben wanted to live up to the expectations because he felt it was necessary if he wanted to pursue a peaceful life for his loved ones.
Ben felt the responsibilities had affected his psyche in a small way, but nothing ever seemed significant enough that Ben felt his personality being manipulated.
Tia happened to notice changes in her father as well, with his mood overly improved overnight, even displaying a side that Tia had never seen before.
At first, Tia felt that she had not done enough to make her father happy or proud enough for him to display such emotions.
Only after she sent the early morning shopping with her father in the morning, did the young Tia finally understand there was a small misunderstanding between the two of them.
Val had noticed Tias sour face for some time now, seeing her mood affected her work and personality more by every passing day, as if someone was repeatedly beating her down.
Day by day…
Whilst he had made note of Tias mood for a while now, Val felt troubled on how to deal with his young daughter.
Even though he had been with her since she was a baby, having raised Tia with his bare hands for the most part, he was still troubled.
As a parent he tried to shower her with love, care, and compassion but his own miserable state made it quite difficult.
Val could tell his health and mindset had improved ever since Ben had arrived at the workshop and become his disciple, but he had pushed aside his daughter quite a lot to focus on Ben's development.
He could feel that a gap was forming between the two of them if he kept pushing her aside.
.
"Tia"
"Hmm" she muttered under her breath, with her head down as she twiddled with her thumbs.
"I'm sorry…,
Dads been focusing too much on Ben that he pushed you aside.
I know I shouldn't have…
I never meant for it to happen, but I unconsciously did it regardless, my baby.
However, in this world only you matter to me, my little pumpkin.
No matter what, I only live and breath for you my little Tia.
You are my daughter, my child…
I am really sorry for my recet behaviour.
I promise that I won't do it again."
Tia looked at her father, tears pouring down her faces, as she struggled to reply, only mumbling back and slightly nodding.
As much as a child she appeared, deep down she could feel the pain and sorrow of her father.
She had seen the countless nights where her father would scream in his sleep, unable to get away from his nightmares.
Other times he would be drinking and crying in the back of the workshop, sitting beside the furnace fire to watch the time pass.
It only changed when Ben arrived, and he promised 'Revenge'.
It was the first time she understood that her father was miserable and depressed for his lack of ability to payback those who'd harmed his family.
Powerless to do anything until Ben finally arrived, he promised to help achieve revenge that Val had long desired.
Even though he was a stranger, he promised her father.
His hardworking attitude and determination were all the proof that he would fulfill his promise.
Further yet Ben had shown them his strange ability.
Tia felt that she had to repay that trust, not only for her father's sake but for herself.
Without them meeting, none of this would have happened.
Without Ben, her father would still be wallowing in pain, unchanging from his miserable past.
Tia knew she had to support Ben just like her father.
If not, she had to be someone that could stand by his side when her father could not.
Her determination igniting something deep down in her soul, kickstarting her passion for something greater.
.
Back at the workshop, Ben had processed the pile of materials, quickly sorting them with the Inventory Spaces help.
Originally, they were all the lowest grades or slightly better in quality, nearing Low-Medium.
He thought of using only a portion of the materials to improve with his ability, just enough for his forging, but he found Tia working hard by the heat.
To his delight she was focused on crafting a dagger, but it seemed quite different to the one he crafted.
Where he focused on durability and lightness, over intricate design, Tia was forging what seemed like an artistic masterpiece, that could sit in the halls of palaces, displaying its beauty.
.
Ben walked over to watch her, but his mood was ruined after seeing the quality of the materials Tia was using to be Low-Low grade.
At first, Ben thought Tia might have sourced her own materials and bought bad materials by mistake, but Ben found he was completely wrong, instead he was astonished at what he saw.
Tia had grabbed some materials which suddenly started to glow faintly in her hands.
As she worked on the material for her projects, the glow retained itself, further yet it improved and became brighter.
This left Ben confused and wondering if she had ability of her own that could improve materials.
Gladly though the system had some sort of answer…
Well somewhat of a horrid answer.
.
*Ding*
[Hidden Myth/Legend found!]
[Unlocking Hidden Quests and Future Rewards...]
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