Based on the designs that I had imagined the night before, using mostly the materials from the roaming boss, the Raging Bull, I asked through the intercom for the metals I required.
[Please wait for two to three hours as we prepare the materials.]
Hearing the estimated time before they could complete the ordered materials, I decided to simply work on repairing the girls' armor first. Toki and Mina's armor was simply scraped here and there, probably from bumping around the underground mall.
Of course, I wasn't using the traditional method of repair but instead used the derived skill from crafting skill level 9. The repair skill can fill the lost materials using nanomachines, therefore returning the item to its previous glory.
However, there are still limitations to this skill. It was that too much damage would render it unable to be repaired. For that, I have no choice but to manually repair it first before applying the repair skill as a finisher.
By the way, the repair skill may be useful, but it consumes MP for each use. To ensure its continuous use along with World Storage, I dumped the 20 free stat points I had on intelligence, increasing my maximum MP by a little.
It took me approximately fifteen minutes to repair Toki and Mina's armor, while Lily's cape took roughly an hour. Mina's, which was the most battered, took so much time to repair that the ordered materials were already delivered before I finished. To think that repairs take much more time than crafting them... What a scam!
After I cleared the materials that were delivered and stored them in my inventory, I passed the completely repaired armor to it for safekeeping. Just to make sure, I gave it an order to pass the armor to Toki or any of the girls if they're nearby. I'm not entirely sure if this AI could understand what I said, but well, I'm not really expecting anything.
"Now, time to create weapons!"
The weapons I'm about to create are large, since they're a halberd and a large hammer. For the halberd, I plan on using the skull of the Raging Bull as the core, then some sort of newly discovered metal called Titracache, something similar to Mithril in fantasy settings. It was something made from nanomachines mutating titanium alloys into something else.
The one I chose was a Titracache variety, with an emphasis on elasticity. After all, if the halberd is made too tough, it will simply break after a few strikes.
The entire process of creating it wasn't something worth explaining anyway, as it was simply using molds, hammering, and tempering, rinse-and-repeat until the entire halberd's rough shape was completed.
The process was pretty time-consuming, though, since it was a pretty big construct. The most time-consuming part was me adding a "gimmick" to it, which could help the user in difficult times.
After the rough weapon was finished, I started working on the finishing touches. Sanding, sharpening, extra quenching, and adding the handle's decorations, made from the leather of the Raging Bull.
Right after finishing, I quickly checked the properties. However, it was a little, no, a lot below what I expected.
"I guess this one counts as a failure..."
[
Name: Raging Bull's Halberd
Type: Halberd
Attack Power: 625
Durability: 200/200
Ability: Increases blunt and slashing damage by 50%.
Description: A weapon made from the hard skull of the Ragin Bull at its core. It possesses extreme elasticity, lowering its chances of breaking from overuse.
]
"Well, it's better than the lance he lent me, at least."
The one that Kyouya let me borrow was barely at 100 damage, so this one is definitely much better than that. I wonder if it's better than the one he's currently using.
The ability was plain but extremely useful. If he attacked using a mix of blunt and slash, which was technically just using the axe-like part to smash the enemy, then he'd technically gain 2x the damage.
Learning from that mistake, I went and modified the design of the hammer in my mind for a bit. There's not much change, however, as I was simply modifying the ratio of materials for use.
After ensuring that I had everything planned out, I quickly moved on to creating it.
Using both horns of the Raging Bull, each about as large as I was tall, I cut off a truncated conical part near the base from each side. After doing so, I scraped off the bone marrow and sponges, leaving only the cortical bone, or "hard" bone.
"The mistake I made was probably from using less boss material than other materials, leading to that subpar halberd. This time, I'd be using as much as I can use!"
I spent an hour just cutting the two horns to pieces, creating a body for my to-be hammer. After that, I started carving the spine of the monster. If I use the spine as the central part of the hammer's handle, then it should give me some unbelievable effects... I hope.
After processing the materials, I started forging them. Using the same sort of metal as the one before, Tetracache, I used two versions. One was the same as before, focusing on elasticity for the core to absorb impact, and the tougher version for the outer surface for a solid finish.
I poured the elastic one on a smaller hammer shape, which was basically the core of the hammer. It wasn't difficult, given that the bone's middle was already empty. Rather, I was worried that the bone would crack or burn from the heat, but my worries weren't needed. The core was completed without any issues.
After that, I placed the core in the middle of the larger bones before pouring the tougher metal mixture. My arms went numb at hammering this thing just to ensure no bubbles got trapped in the gaps.
As I was nearing completion, the processing of the hammer became a lot more difficult. It was because each side of the two hammer's faces weighed approximately 50 kilograms each. The entire hammer, including the handle part, weighs 180 kilograms!
It was hell just holding it, much less hammering it. The anvil even cracked from the weight alone, requiring me to wait for 30 more minutes before a replacement anvil could arrive.
Still, looking at its effects, I was convinced that the hardship I endured was well worth it.
[
Name: Raging Bull's Charge
Type: Battle Hammer
Attack Power: 4,000
Durability: 2,000/2,000
Ability: Tremor. The user can shake the earth within 10 meters. Intensity depends on the amount of mana used for the function. Cooldown of 100 seconds.
Description: A masterpiece short of a miracle, created by a well-known crafter. However, it is too heavy to be wielded.
]
"Hmmm... Well, it fits what I imagined, so I guess this is a pass."
I'm a little peeved that it was "short of a miracle," though. I guess not all weapons I create would really end up as OP as the Staff of Destruction or the Rhinoceros Lance of Death. Still, 4,000 attack power and 2,000 durability. With this in hand, I can literally smash through any nearby hunting grounds!
"Humph!" But one problem exists. "Huuuuunnngggggh!"
Just lifting it up takes too much strength. I have roughly 300 strength, meaning I can lift about 300 kilograms of weight, but this hammer was already weighing near 200 kilograms! If I bring something like this around, then I may end up destroying the floorboards wherever I go.
Still, being able to lift it means one thing. I can place it inside the World Storage! After inserting it into the storage, I could feel a heavy burden lift off my shoulders, giving me an extremely light feeling.
"Nice~!"
*GROOOOWWWWL*
Just as I was about to focus on the last one on my crafting list, the crystal orb, my stomach suddenly roared in protest. I quickly turned to the clock and noticed that it was pointing at 3:30... Did I miss lunch?
I pulled out my phone to confirm and was surprised. I actually missed even dinner! It was technically already the next morning!
"..."
My body can still take it anyway, probably from resting for a few days. I ordered a light meal from the intercom before waiting to process the World Fragment.
As soon as the food came, I didn't waste time and ate. Of course, to not upset my stomach, I ate at a pretty slow pace, taking up about 30 minutes just to finish my meal. After resting for a bit more after that, I started working on the orb...
I don't know how long passed, but in the end, I couldn't find a solution on how to harness its powers. "Maybe if I check the destroyed portal, I can gain some clues..."
In the first place, this World Fragment was technically an OOPART. The technological logic behind it far exceeds what we can currently understand. Breaking space, opening a portal to another world, and connecting them. That's not something that science could explain as of now.
*RRRRRIIIIING!*
While I was lost in thought, my phone started ringing. I quickly pulled it out of my pocket and checked the caller ID, showing Toki. As soon as I picked it up, her voice echoed with a cheerful undertone.
"(We did it! The Three city councils approved of our guild! We can now build a city-recognized guild!)"
"What? Isn't that too sudden?"
Looking at the clock, it was only showing 10 a.m. The medal awarding ceremony, which should have been held today, should've just ended.
I'm happy that we were already city-recognized even before we built our guild, but something's smelly. "And... what's the catch?"
Such a great proposition should definitely come with a price. After a short silence, Toki's voice was heard from the other line once more.
"(It's simple. We just need to ensure the safety of cities A, B, and C.)"
... Simple my @ss.