Toki dragged me out of the office, walking briskly back to the elevator.
As soon as we boarded, and after pressing the button for the ground floor, Toki finally released the tension on her face, sighing. "Sorry about that, Mahiro. You weren't injured, were you?"
In response to her question, I tried stretching my body. My arms and shoulders were moving fine, but I could feel a dull pain in my back. I guess I got a slight bruise from slamming against the bookshelf earlier.
"I'm fine; don't worry about it," I replied with a neutral smile. "Rather than that, your father looks young. How old is he?"
Toki smiled, noticing how I was trying to change topics, but still took the chance and replied. "He's turning fifty this year. I hear their family was just built that way, baby-faced even when they turn older."
*Ting!*
Just as she finished speaking, the elevator reached the ground floor and opened. As usual, the hustle and bustle on the ground floor was amazing, with dozens of staff running around busily and guests walking here and there.
"Right, do you want to have breakfast first? Or shall we head to the workshop?" Toki asked as soon as we stepped out of the elevator.
I wasn't that hungry, and I could even order food at the workshop, so I picked the latter. I guess taking a bath would be postponed until later. "Let's go to the workshop, then."
I looked down on my clothes, and even though they were formal, they were still easy to move in. I guess since Toki didn't say anything, she's fine with me using this attire while crafting.
We went out of the front door, walked back to the dismantling facility, and went straight for the workshop. As soon as we entered, there were already three figures waiting inside.
"Ah, Toki, Ruin! What took you both so long?" The red-haired one, Hailey, asked with her hands on her waist, an imposing stance. "We were waiting for half an hour already, you know?"
"Isn't it fine either way? Rather, Toki already told us that they'll be late, right?" The small blonde girl, Lily, interjected from the side.
The last one, Mina, disregarded the other two and walked straight for me, passing the material box that was in her hands. "These are the materials for my armor. I want a light armor that wouldn't hinder my movements."
"Ah! Mina, unfair! Me too, Ruin; I want light armor too!"
"A cape! Mine's a cape, and make it look fashionable too!"
Hailey and Lily quickly copied her, moving to pick up their own crates of materials and passing them to me.
"A-Alright, all of you. First of all, let me go to the work table."
I was slightly surprised by their enthusiasm. Well, they will soon have their very own hand-made armor, after all, so I guess they're just expectant. "I'm warning you beforehand, but things like Hailey's spear are made purely out of chance. I can't produce items of that level like pancakes."
"We know, we know. Just having a skill is fine. Then, what do we do first?" Lily asked, her eyes sparkling with anticipation.
"Hmmm... Well, first, I'll be taking your measurements." I took the tape measure from my [World Storage] at the same time as I placed the three crates of materials inside.
I turned to scan their appearances, and fortunately, the three of them were wearing clothes appropriate for going out. Rough and covers a lot of skin. It was similar to my favorite combo of jogging pants and a sweater, but for some reason, theirs looked more pleasing than mine.
Looking closer, theirs were composed of leggings and knit turtleneck sweaters. It was of the same design, so those clothes were probably from Toki, similar to the one I'm wearing, which I borrowed.
"Who's gonna go first?" I asked while stretching the tape measure in my hands.
The three of them stared at each other as if gauging who would go first. After a while, Mina went forward and volunteered. "I-I'll go first, then."
"Then please stand over here."
Mina walked with firm steps but a hesitant expression. I don't know what she's hesitating for, but anyway, I started taking her measurements. With the materials she gave, I can probably make a breastplate, two arm guards, and two shin guards.
I took the required measurements, like the width of her shoulders, the circumference of her arms and legs, and the size of her chest.
"Ugh...!"
While taking the last measurement, her face turned bright red and she started shivering, so it was slightly hard to get the precise number.
It didn't take two minutes to finish her size chart, so I turned to Hailey next. Similar to Mina, she was red in the face as I was taking her measurements. Is the room too hot for them or something? The thermostat was showing 20 degrees Celcius, so it shouldn't be the case, though.
After quite a struggle with taking their measurements, I then turned to Lily. Hers was just a cape, so I just took the circumference of her shoulders, the width, and the appropriate length from her shoulders down. As per her request, the cape would be just below the back of her knees, making it hang a little above the ground.
After I took the measurements and was about to start working, Toki suddenly raised her voice.
"Mahiro, what do you think of adding a color theme to their armor and cape?" she asked, a joyful grin on her face. "After all, we'll be building a guild soon, so wouldn't it be better if we had uniform armor?"
"Toki... nice idea!" Lily quickly supported Toki's suggestion, jumping up and down like an excited kid. "How about the old Guild logo's color theme? It was blue, black, and red, right?"
"Ah, but the main color of our armor would be black, then... the carapace is black after all." Hailey raised her voice, sounding slightly disappointed.
Mina shrugged her shoulders, smiling thinly. "Isn't black better? It wouldn't look too dirty even if it got covered in blood or dirt."
Of course, I didn't have any objection to having a color theme. I already have items with matching colors as the ones they raised, after all. Without wasting another second, I started working on their equipment.
The girls didn't leave the workshop; instead, they stayed at the bench at the other end of the room, looking at my work with curious gazes. I didn't have any problem with them watching anyway, so I just let them.
The crafting wasn't as easy as the wands, so it took me three hours to complete all three items, with the cape taking half of the total crafting time. I needed to dye each wing, after all, to change it from a clear and transparent color to the ones matching the color theme.
The greatest challenge was how to make the wings turn as soft as fabric since they were stiff at the beginning. In the end, I used the same idea as chainmails, creating alternating and crisscrossing slits along the wings. Since they were technically full of holes, I layered three wings instead to make up for the lower defense of each part. In the end, the final product was still able to get a passing mark from the recipient.
The cape's final form looked like rainbow-colored wings, glittering with light. The latch near the shoulder and neck area was lined with blue fur from a wolf monster, creating a high-class appearance.
For the armor, I used the beetle boss's hard carapace as the main ingredient. I added blue metal for the gaps, creating a mix of azure and black. Of course, since it would be worn for long periods when out in the field, I added a red breathable cloth lining inside, making it pleasing to wear and not stuffy at all.
The girls, excited by their new toys, quickly pushed me out of the room as they tried out the armor. After a few minutes, I was called back in with the three already wearing the armor I made.
Mina, with her black hair and eyes, matched the armor perfectly. For Hailey, her red hair creates a contrast with the armor, so I guess I messed up that one. I should've switched up the colors for her.
"No, it's fine like this. It looks cooler to the eyes with blue rather than red!" The person in question said so, so I didn't tamper with it anymore.
Lily wore the cape over her shoulders, with the blue fur completely hiding her neck from view. I was expecting her to look like a mature lady, but rather than that, the final output just made her look like a cute kid with a fluffy coat. Honestly, even I was almost pulled in, just like Mina and Hailey, who were hugging her even now.
Another reason for their jovial mood was because the armor came with an additional passive. The armor set had the same effect of adding 10% to agility when worn, while the cape actually increases defense, both physical and magical, by 50%!
Honestly, even though their default stats weren't that much different from any other boss-class equipment, these buffs were more than enough to please everyone.
*CLAP!*
Just as I sat down, about to rest, Toki clapped her hands loudly, gathering our attention.
"Everyone, now that you have your armor ready, why don't we go out and hunt? A test run for that new defensive equipment, and for Hailey's spear too."
"..."
I guess resting can wait.