I head up to Vasavir's workshop to find the old man writing a book. I bet it's another erotic one since I see lewd drawings on another desk nearby. This place has actually changed significantly since I was last here. Before there were a lot of potion stands and weird rune markings on all the tables, but those have been replaced by books and a small easel that painters use. He probably can change this place in a snap to meet his needs. I need to finish learning about manipulating space so I can use magic for mundane things like cleaning.
"Hey, old man, I was wondering if you knew any good smiths in Colonus. I need some better equipment before I go on my first or... second quest? Not really sure if killing a death mantis counts as the first, but I think it does," I declare.
"Hmm. Maybe not in Colonus, but I may know of one pretty good one. I wonder if he's still alive, the geezer's as old as I am," Vasavir ponders.
"How old are you?" I question.
This guy can't be that old, or maybe if he is he's using magic to extend his life.
"I believe I am at least 2000 years old, if I remember correctly. I may have forgotten to celebrate a few birthdays here and there so I'm not that accurate anymore."
Wow, this guy is super old. If he were around in my old world he could have witnessed Jesus.
Vasavir gets up from his chair and walks over to me. He places his hand on my shoulder and suddenly we are teleported to what appears to be a smith's workshop where I can see the back of some 10 foot tall elf guy hammering away at a piece of metal.
This guy is huge, but he's not wearing anything except goggles and an apron so we can see his butt. I'll try not to look at that. On the bright side, this place definitely looks pretty impressive as I can see axes, swords, lances, knives, you name it. There's even an ominous scythe in the corner that I'm getting bad vibes from. Vasavir comes up behind him and announces our presence.
"VULCAN, MY FRIEND I HAVE COME TO REQUEST YOUR SERVICES!"
"AHHH—Oh, it's you. I swear Vasavir, do you do this with everyone you meet?" the large elf states as he turns his attention to us.
"Vulcan, this is my apprentice Will. Also, he is the hero of the prophecy the people in the empire have been going on about if you haven't heard."
"Oh, then this is the mighty "restorer of the world". I don't really care about the humans' empire and their prophecies you know, however it is good for business at least. The boy doesn't look all that impressive yet, but what can I do for ya?" Vulcan questions.
"I would like to ask you to forge a weapon for me if you don't mind? Also why don't you care about Westphalia? Wouldn't it be better if the empire was restored?" I prod.
"That's because I'm not a citizen of the human empire. Kid do you know where you are right now?"
"Umm nope, got here through teleportation."
"Well you're currently standing in the workshop of the greatest magical smith in the Elven Confederacy," Vulcan asserts.
Wait, I'm in the f*cking land of the elves right now? Holy crap, Vasavir teleported us far.
"How in the world were you even able to bring us all the way here?" I ask Vasavir.
"Remember markers? Those can also be used with teleportation. I have been here before, many times in fact. Vulcan here happens to be a fan of my work, thus I take time to bring him my most recent novels," Vasavir answers.
By work does he mean those perverted stories? Does that make Vulcan a pervert? I should've guessed it when I saw the naked apron.
"Ahem, back to the matter at hand, if I'm going to make a weapon for you then I'm going to need as much information as possible on your fighting style," Vulcan notes.
I wonder what I should tell him. I don't even know the name of my specialization or the details of my new abilities. Maybe I can use Vienna's ring on myself, I bet it would produce rather interesting results. I focus on myself and activate the analytical power of the ring.
Name:
William
Class:
Niten Ichi Ryu
Defense Level:
Medium
Elemental Affinity:
Wind, Spatial
Luck:
Chaotic
Aura & Magic:
Balanced Aptitude for Both
Unsurprisingly my luck is chaotic; I didn't need the ring to tell me that. Hmm, well none of that stuff seems new, but at least I know the name of my specialization now. It sounds familiar and for some reason I know that title translates to Two Heavens as One. It must refer to two swords being used in unison. I proceed to tell everything I know to Vulcan in order to give him a better idea of how I currently fight.
Heck, I don't even know how I'll fight once training is done. I thought Vasavir was just going to recommend a good standard smith who would forge me a sturdy weapon, not some legendary smith who could make a mythical weapon.
"So, a dual wielding swordsman who can use wind and manipulate space. Very interesting indeed. I should make two weapons for you in that case. I'm getting excited just thinking about what to forge. Maybe I'll even throw in a set of light armor as well, real quick—let me get some measurements," Vulcan says as he pulls out a few measuring devices.
The giant elf starts to take a bunch of measurements, my height, weight, maybe a few unnecessary things like hair length and the color of my eyes. This is starting to be an invasion of privacy as he's enjoying this whole process way too much.
"By the way, kid, how are you going to pay for all of this? I would rather take my payment in rare materials rather than imperial gold," Vulcan declares.
Ah poop, I only have about 180 gold on me at the moment and I know for sure that that's not going to be enough.
"Ummm I don't actually ha-" I say but I get cut off by someone's voice I barely recognize.
"I think all of this should count as sufficient payment."
I turn around to see a small mountain of materials and the loli goddess herself sitting atop of it.
"Well, well, if it isn't the Goddess of Fate herself. I am honored to be graced with your presence once more," Vulcan expresses.
I have this dumbfounded look on my face right now. Why is the goddess who summoned me here? Can she even come down from the realm of the gods and goddesses? I guess these two have met before and apparently she's also paying for my gear.
"Don't look so surprised Will, I do come down from my realm whenever I get bored of observing you," Vienna states.
Did she just read my mind? Can she do that? I should test this. VIENNA YOU'RE SUPER CUTE AND I WANT TO HUG YOU.
The goddess blushes at my attempted flattery. Yep, she can read my mind.
"Geez, Will, are you actually a lolicon? I knew that time with the thief girl was a prank, but you're starting to give me doubts. Anyways, I'm going to answer the question I know you're going to ask. No, I can't read your mind, but the ring you are wearing allows for a direct communion with me," Vienna says as she floats over to me and gives me a pat on the head.
So basically every time I swear or make a thought involving God—it goes to her. That's not good, that means she's definitely heard all my immature and childish prayers.
"Honestly, Will you complain to the Gods way too much, however I do think you can be really cute at times. Especially whenever it's about that one blonde girl. Lilith was it?" Vienna teases.
"Alright shut up, stop poking your nose in my business," I say, trying to hide my embarrassment.
"Despite your perversions, I decided I would do something nice for my child, you are my hero after all."
Have I just been unlawfully adopted? I'm not going to start calling her mom from now on. Vienna turns her attention to the elf smith as he's begun collecting all the rare materials she brought with her.
"Vulcan, it would be nice if you could make his armor have a purple and black color scheme similar to mine. I want everyone to know which Goddess the hero belongs to," she exclaims.
"So you're showing off to the other Gods and Goddesses now are you? I've forgotten how prideful the Gods can be. I'll see what I can do," Vulcan claims.
"Wait, have you two met before, why are you talking to a Goddess so casually?" I ask.
"Well, of course we know each other. Vulcan here has forged the weapons and armor of many legendary heroes in the past. Where do you think your ring came from? He is the only smith I know who can craft items powerful enough to hold my enchantments. He has mastered the life skill after all. Since the ring is still partially cracked it doesn't even have its full power yet," Vienna states.
I wonder what is the full power of the ring? I'm guessing she won't tell me. Maybe in its final form it could even tell me a girl's three sizes. Oh God I hope that's the case. Wait. Ahhhh, stop using the G word me.
"I heard that, you know!"
"You heard nothing!"
Vulcan gives us this weird look since he didn't hear my perverted thought out loud.
"Alright, you two, this whole order is going to take at least two weeks since my work has been piling up as of late," Vulcan declares.
"And why is that, my friend?" Vasavir asks scaring everyone with his presence.
I swear this guy is a ninja wizard or something cause he's always jumpscaring people. I even forgot he was here for the last 5 minutes.
"That's because of the prophecy. I've been receiving commissions from everyone as of late and it's hard for me and my assistants to keep up with the demand. If you need a weapon now, you can look at that pile of junk weapons over there. The person who commissioned those died to a thunder dragon a few days ago and they're not worth selling to the general public. Plus they're not of my best quality since they were made by my newest assistants," Vulcan tells me as he points to a stash of weapons in the corner.
I walk over and begin to examine what he calls junk weapons. Some of these look pretty good in my opinion but I'm not a smith so what do I know? All of these are steel weapons and they're starting to gather a lot of dust on them. I decide to pick up what looks like a celtic sword and I grab three daggers as well. I take a few practice swings with the two weapons and I unconsciously activate my aura. With the next practice swing I feel like a gust of air accidentally comes out of the long sword and knocks down a large lance in the workshop. The loud clank of the lance hitting the floor gets Vulcan's attention.
"Whoa, kid, watch where you're shooting those things," Vulcan warns.
"Sorry, it came out by accident" I apologize.
What just happened? Did I accidentally imbue a weapon with aura? All I did was think of the sword as an extension of myself. Maybe that's the key. I try to do it again, but my aura only goes as far as the hilt of the sword. Oh well, I'll try again later when I'm not in a dangerous workshop.
Vasavir comes up to me and tells me it's time to go back.
"Alas it's time we head back, my apprentice. Vulcan, we'll be back in a fortnight. I bid you adieu as well, my Goddess," Vasavir says as he prepares to teleport us back to Colonus.
"Good night William, and good luck with that girl you're planning to recruit," Vienna states while giving a thumbs up.
Vasavir ends up teleporting us back to Colonus and I end up heading back to my room in the castle. I wonder if I should tell Quincy that I met God again; I wonder how he'd react. Hmm, on second thought maybe not, I'll keep this a secret for now. He doesn't need to know. Now that I've got some good weapons and armor lined up it's time to start party recruitment. I think I'll start with the best girl.