Over breakfast, an awkward silence hung over the table. Algo and Leira blushed and exchanged timid glances from time to time, while the girls inexplicably observed their behavior attentively.
"Why do I feel like I missed something?" I finally couldn't stand it anymore.
"HA?!" Leira jumped as if struck by lightning. "I think everything is just as usual."
"Suspicious, highly suspicious."
"Oh, nothing special, just someone got a little closer last night, k'yaya," Ragni didn't finish her sentence due to a slight tingling from static electricity. "Boo, you mischievous thing."
With a snort, the dragoness demonstratively turned away.
"Hmm, should I continue asking or avoid attracting trouble like lightning?"
"By the way, Aileen, yesterday you offered consultations on certain matters. Do you have experience in that?" Seleria grinned suggestively and winked at the engineer, and it seemed to me that Leira blushed quietly.
"What? No, well, you've got me wrong. It's natural for us only between loving people," the girl adjusted her glasses, hiding her gaze behind the frames, and continued, "I was interested purely for educational purposes."
"Hmm, I thought people inquire about that when they love someone."
"No-no, there's no one I have in mind," she pushed her glasses down even harder.
"But I thought there was," I joined the conversation, sipping my tea from time to time. "The way you looked at Emperor Uraz when you found out he personally took part in the attack. I thought there was something between you two."
The girl lowered her head and pushed her glasses so deep that it seemed they would penetrate her brain.
"Hehe, no, what are you talking about? I respect him as a great man, that's all. He has done a lot for the empire. Not many can rule a state for so many centuries without descending into tyranny."
"Hmm, she lies, she lies as if it's second nature!" "Oh, yes-yes, I understand, respect and nothing more. Let's not dwell on it, or Leira will set the floor on fire soon."
The sorceress blushed intensively all this time, but when the conversation shifted to Aileen, she calmed down a bit.
"So, Imperial Engineer, how do you plan to carry out our task?"
We entered an old, dirty basement beneath the forge. Yesterday, I sorted through all the orders by material and made a note of what needed to be done and how much. In turn, Aileen crafted several cogwheels resembling the mechanisms in the clock tower at the Academy and connected them with leather straps to the furnace and a strange contraption resembling two hammers.
"It won't be that difficult, but we will indeed need some sturdy metal for the mold, something easily moldable yet with considerable weight," she said.
"Well then, ask the blacksmith for adamantium; I'm sure he won't miss the chance to show it off. But if you want to recast everything, it's better to use cheaper metal for the mold," I suggested.
"No-no-no, strength is crucial. We won't recast everything; we'll be stamping kitchenware," Aileen replied.
"What? Stamping?" I asked.
"Pay no attention. We use this method in the empire to produce standardized small parts that don't require high strength. Of course, we'll have to melt down the knives, but we can make forks, spoons, and pots in a day or two, tops."
"Don't you think these rusty pieces are unfit for reuse? Besides, it'll be very difficult to melt steel in such a furnace."
"No problem! We'll do a little alchemy, and the rust will go away by itself, and the fire will burn hotter than hellfire."
"Hmm?"
"Don't worry about that; I'll go look for the necessary substances today. I hope this city has what we need. In the meantime, you can shape a proper form for all the identical items and find some sharpening stone; I think it will come in handy."
"Yes, yes, ma'am, it shall be done. Damn, I feel like an assistant laborer."
"That's right, do as I say, or we'll never finish," with these words, Aileen left me to search for materials.
"Heh, one already ran off, and now you couldn't resist either," the blacksmith insulted me without taking his eyes off his work.
"Aileen didn't run off; she went to get materials."
"Furnace, hammer, coal, and metal. That's all you need. If you can't handle it, just say so."
"We'll manage everything. I was just drawn to your work, and I wanted to watch the master at work."
"Stop flattering. What do you want?"
"To be honest, I'm interested in adamantium. Maybe you could lend it to me temporarily, and I promise to return it later."
"Haha, you won't even be able to heat it properly in that tiny furnace. But as you wish, take two ingots, a token of my endless generosity."
"Thank you very much. And do you happen to have a sharpening stone?"
"Oh, well, since you're making knives there. There's an old one over there, although it might be too large for such a trifle," the blacksmith pointed to a large round boulder in the corner of the room. Usually, such stones were manually rotated for sword sharpening, but it seemed rather oversized for a kitchen knife.
"Is there a smaller one?"
"What do you think I do here? I'm a master of weapons, so all my stones are like that! There's a hatch in the basement; you can lower the stone through it."
"Thank you for your generosity," I sighed helplessly, imagining how heavy the stone would be, but my thoughts were interrupted by the creak of the door.
A man of distinguished appearance in luxurious attire entered the forge. The blacksmith immediately brightened with an incredibly friendly smile, one that neither Krito nor Aileen would have received even if they had knocked their heads on the floor.
"Master Everin, it's always an honor to have you here," said the blacksmith.
"Hello, Brim. I haven't visited you for personal requests in a while, but now seems to be such an occasion," the merchant smiled, though his voice was tinged with sadness. "I wanted to order a gift for my daughter from you."
Together with the blacksmith, they moved to the far corner of the forge, and I began to eavesdrop to catch the essence of their conversation.
"Anything for Lady Serena. If it weren't for her, I don't know how I or any of the town's residents would be living right now."
"Yes, ha-ha, she's quite something," the merchant awkwardly scratched his head. Despite his rich attire, his manner of speech and behavior were more akin to a peasant or laborer. "You know, she's been getting into metallurgy and blacksmithing lately. She's read all the books on the subject. So I thought of giving her something interesting made by the hand of a true master for her birthday."
"You flatter me; after all, I specialize more in weaponry. If you wish, I can recommend a few excellent masters in the capital who can create a true work of art."
"No-no, I don't have that much time, and I think she'll appreciate it more if the gift comes from someone local."
"But her birthday is still half a year away; everyone in the village knows that."
"No, please, make the gift as soon as possible. I'm afraid she doesn't have that much time."
"Ah," the blacksmith hesitated, "I'll do my best, don't worry."
"I'm counting on you. Perhaps you should personally talk to Lady Everin to find out her preferences."
"Yes, I think I'll send this impertinent apprentice to you. He'll find it easier to connect with her. Enough eavesdropping; get back to work."
"I apologize; I didn't mean to disturb you," I emerged from behind the shelf where I had hidden and smiled awkwardly.
"Here's the address. Talk to Lady Everin and find out what she would like. Just don't do anything foolish," the blacksmith escorted me out the door and returned to continue his conversation with the merchant.
"Now... acid is a bit tiresome, sulfur, coal, and resins, everything seems to be here. Although there might be something to optimize," Aileen strolled along the outskirts of the town, looking for anything else that could be useful for the forge. Only one place still caught her attention.
"Hmm, an old mine. They must have extracted some metal here, but I should take a look," she thought. Just as the girl was about to enter the mine's entrance, she heard some rustling and muffled voices from inside. As a precaution, she drew a dagger from her boot, but only a few seven-year-old boys covered in dirt emerged from the mine. "Phew, I guess not all mines are inhabited by scary monsters."
"Hehe, I found more than you!"
"But mine's the biggest!"
The children whispered amongst themselves, unaware of the watchful gaze of the guardswoman.
"Hey, what are you doing?" The children jumped in surprise upon hearing the girl's voice.
"Whoa!! We've been noticed. I told you we shouldn't have come!" The youngest boy attempted to flee, but Aileen easily caught him by the collar.
"Not so fast. I won't turn you in if you tell me about this mine. I wanted to investigate myself, but this way might be quicker."
"Eh," the boys exchanged glances. "True, you're one of those students who arrived in the city yesterday, so you don't know anything. But promise not to tell anyone."
"I promise, I promise. Why are you so afraid? Are you worried your parents will scold you?"
"No, you don't understand. For those who work in the mine without permission, the punishment is death."
"Oh, come on," the girl made a skeptical face. "The mine seems to be closed anyway."
"Well, you see, this is an old diamond mine. The elders said that the purest diamonds in Verania used to be mined here. But it's been centuries since they found any significant stones, so the feudal lord decided to close it. However, the mine still belongs to the lord, and if he finds out that someone is working here, they will be severely punished."
"Foolish laws, but still, won't you show me what you've found?"
"And you won't take it from us?"
"Don't worry, I won't take it."
"Alright then." The boys took out small leather pouches and emptied their contents. Inside were diamonds, although calling them that was a stretch. The largest ones barely reached the size of a pinhead, and most of them resembled diamond dust. Useless for jewelry, but even possessing such tiny fragments could lead to execution.
"Hmm, beautiful," the girl commented.
"This is our treasure."
"Really? And do you have a lot of it?"
"Why do you ask?" The boys squinted suspiciously. "We know that no one will buy it from us anyway."
"I need it for my work, and I would like to buy it from you."
"No, this is our treasure; we won't exchange it for some coins."
The boys nodded confidently and snickered in unison.
"Hmm, so you're not interested in coins... How about some special coins?" The girl smiled and took out an imperial gold coin, larger than the local Veranian coins, with a big dragon's head engraved on the reverse side. "This is an imperial gold coin, a rarity in your lands. Moreover, it contains more gold than Veranian coins, making it very valuable."
"Wow," at first, the boys were mesmerized by the gleam of gold, but something made them cautious. "Auntie, are you perhaps an empire spy?"
"No, I'm here on legitimate grounds. Though I am from the empire, I'm here with the Rector's permission, so everything's in order. But I wouldn't advise showing such a coin to just anyone."
"Hmm, we need to discuss this."
The boys stepped aside and began to whisper intensely while occasionally glancing at Aileen. After ten minutes of lively verbal battles, they reached their verdict.
"Alright, we agree. And how many do you want?"
"Hmm, if you have more, that would be great. I'd buy ten of these pouches, one coin each."
"Deal, we still have some at home."
"Great, then bring everything to the blacksmith's tomorrow. I work there part-time."
"Okay." The boys joyfully ran off to the village, leaving Aileen alone.
"I think I can find a use for these," the girl said with a satisfied smile. "I'll need to get some resin for glue, and everything will be perfect. What the..."
A glint of glass caught the guardswoman's eye.
"Someone was following me? I didn't expect them to have such technology. I should investigate," the girl headed toward a large three-story mansion from where the glint originated.
"A gift for the wealthy merchant's daughter, interesting," I thought while walking down the main street towards the Everin family mansion. "Maybe I can persuade them to give us that order."