Walking into town the next day had Frank feeling like a new man. He had just purchased a barbute helmet with a visor and was walking around trying to get used to the limited field of view. Much to his glee, after wearing the helmet for a few minutes his enchantment seemed to identify it as a part of the whole.
This had the mystical added effect of making it as if he wasn't even wearing a helmet. Not only did it feel weightless, his vision was similarly unobstructed. He regained his full field of vision as the helmet magically connected to the suit.
He became something akin to a living suit of armor and it made Frank feel not only safe but badass. There even turned out to be another feature of his [Arcane Armor] enchantment that he didn't realize—the ability to change the colors of his armor.
At first, Frank wanted to have an all-black look but it felt too 'edgy' so he went with a chrome finish on the splints and a dark brown for the leather. He wished he had a 'T' visor helmet but didn't want one that would show his face so he needed to find some material to fill in the opening.
Once he did, he could finally complete his look. With silent footfalls, Frank entered the barracks and stepped inside the captain's office. The man looked confused but with a thought, Frank was able to disconnect his helmet which he held on his side.
"Ah, the [Artificer]. It's good you came. We just got your next mission." The captain moved forward and deposited a scroll in Frank's hand. He put his helmet back on and took a look at his job.
"I have to kill a giant?" Frank looked confused and tilted his head.
Captain Whitmore nodded his head with a frown on his face. "The duke heard of how quickly you completed your last mission and deemed you ready for more difficult tasks. Also, he wished to remind you to settle your accounts with him, which is due at the end of next week. If you cannot, you'll have to suffer the interest rates."
Frank had almost forgotten about his debt and frowned under his helmet. "Alright, I shall attempt this mission then." He felt like the duke was trying to kill him, not only financially but physically by sending him off to his death.
He read over the details once more and sighed. In the mountain range he had claimed as his new home, there was a giant who had settled down. To make matters worse, it was a hill giant, something the paper noted could not be reasoned with.
Air escaped Frank's lips as he turned to leave. He had until next week to complete this particular task so he would take his time. First, he would have to get stronger. To do that, Frank traveled to the guild to turn in his old quest and get a new one.
As he entered the building, people turned to face him. To them he seemed like a new face. No one recognized the armor he wore and began to whisper about how strong they thought he was.
Frank ignored them and looked at the quests. There was an orc subjugation quest that caught his eye so he grabbed it and waited in Aslef's line.
Once he got to the front, Aslef smiled. "It's good to see you, Frank. I assume everything went well?"
Frank nodded and placed his copper tag on the counter, with Aslef grabbing it. "For the task of taking out a bandit camp rated for three copper parties I hereby declare you an iron ranked adventurer."
The tag in his hand glowed and changed from copper to iron. After hearing Aslef, recognition filled some people's eyes. Taking his tag back, Frank placed another quest on the table. "This one, please."
"Wait a moment, please. Let me fetch you the reward for the previous quest and I will process this new one immediately." Aslef grabbed the paper and moved through the back doors into another area.
Not long after he left, Aslef returned with a bag of gold and the paper, with the addition of a stamp. "Here you are. The quest offered 10 gold per person, but since you solo'd a task that was created for 12 people I pulled some strings so you would get 120 gold."
Frank felt a warmth spread from his center, "Thank you, Aslef. You're one of the good ones." He grabbed his reward and quest. He gave Aslef a lazy salute and left. During his walk through the streets he stopped and bought a kabob.
He asked the vendor, "Is there a shop that sells magic-related items?"
"Yes. There is one down the street and to the left. The sign looks like a wizard's hat." The man smiled as Frank handed him silver as a tip and headed towards the magic store. Seeing he had the right building, Frank noted the name before entering.
The Sleeping Owl was a nice little wooden building. It had two stories and the first floor held large open windows that allowed one to see almost the whole sales floor. Once inside, Frank noted the smell of berries and cinnamon.
Using his recently gained knowledge from his [Create Golem] skill, Frank grabbed everything he needed to make a golem core. The most expensive part was a diamond, worth 200 gold, that would act as the core.
Not wanting to spend any more than what was required for the materials, Frank headed to the counter. Once there, he noticed the clerk was a wooden golem. He gave it a puzzled look and placed everything he wanted on the counter along with 220 gold.
"220 gold coins, please." The voice was surprisingly smooth and sounded like a normal person.
Frank pushed the coins forward and the golem palmed them. "Thank you for your patronage. You may take your items."
He didn't have to be told twice; Frank swiped the goods into his bag. He had a few more errands to run before returning to his workshop to build more items.
…
Back in his workshop, Frank created a new table with some of the spare stones outside. He made it big enough to fit a large person on top and made sure the legs of the table were sturdy.
Then he placed piles and piles of stone atop the table in the rough shape of a person. He then used his [Shape Earth] to form it into a stone suit of armor. Frank was deliberate in his work and slowly began to make the stone decorative.
If it wasn't stone, the armor would have fetched quite the sum. With the golem's body created, Frank began working on the core. It was a delicate process and required him to carve the diamond.
On its own, it was hard enough. However, making sure to not make mistakes was another thing Frank had to weary of. It had taken him over 45 minutes, but he finally managed to create the core. Using [Shape Earth], Frank parted the chest and placed the core inside.
He then closed it back up and channeled his mana into the dormant stone. It took nearly every drop he had, but it worked. The golem twitched its stone fingers and sat up on the table. Frank, seeing this, began to laugh crazily.
"AHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHA! IT'S ALIVE!" Frank continued to cackle maniacally as the golem just sat there on the table staring at him. Once he finally calmed back down, Frank coughed into his hand.
"You shall be named Exodius the Eternal." The Golem's eyes flashed once named and Frank received a notification.
[You have bestowed a golem a name. Requirements to evolve have not been met.]
"Evolving golems? Interesting." Frank scratched his helmeted chin and nodded. "Good, we'll figure this out eventually. Exodius, I command you to follow me and protect me should I find myself in danger."
The golem rolled off the table and stood, moving behind Frank. Seeing this, Frank added another command. "I also command you to guard the entrance of a room whenever I enter it as an exception to your previous command."
Exodius complied with the order and moved to the entrance of the workshop. With the most important thing out of the way, Frank got to work on adding a functional foldable hand crossbow to his right gauntlet.
…
It had taken all day and an accidental use of [Flash of Genius] to complete the gauntleted hand crossbow. It was sleek and used an open rail design. The arms had three joints each and allowed for it to collapse against the body of the crossbow. The trigger required the arms to be deployed and for him to make a fist.
When both of those things were accomplished all he had to do was move his fist down and a bolt would be fired. He also enchanted it with [Repeating Shot] which made everything come together.
Frank reviewed the notifications he got from completing the weapon.
[Gauntlet Crossbow has been created!]
[[Arcane Crafting] has become lvl.3. Two unselected options.]
From the options, Frank chose [Enhanced Defense] and [Endless Water Flask]. [Enhanced Defense] was quickly added to his splint and the golem, bolstering their already impressive defenses.
For the Endless Water Flask, Frank would have to once again return to town for supplies. He was worn out though from all the crafting he had already done and returned to his room. The once-empty bedroom now sported a stone bed frame and a mattress he had purchased in town.
Frank plopped himself down and watched as the golem moved into his room, standing in front of the door.
"I wonder if Dr. Frankenstein's monster was a golem or a zombie. Really makes you think."