Sprinting across the deforested scalp of nature, I reminded myself of the places where the Crawling Husk were fought, since a tiny bit of their bodily liquid might inflict necrosis in just a moment of touch.
Didn't help that I'm running semi-barefoot all this time.
I noticed that there were a couple of new Calamity Objects, but they weren't much of a threat in comparison to the Shardfiend and the Sandstalker, so I just ignored them.
And just as expected, both Verina and Lupina covered for me from afar with long-range support and artillery, probably out of sheer worry and confusion.
Because blood is money, time is blood.
When I reached the remains of the Sandstalkers, I brandished my makeshift tools and began carving out the necessary parts of the Sandstalkers.
After I hurriedly yoinked the items I needed, I ran ablaze to the fortress again.
"I have so many questions, but please refrain from scurrying away to the non-bastion zone," Verina scolded, albeit severely lacking in the anger department.
It might be obvious at this point, but a lot of the aggressive Calamity Object wasn't capable of spawning or manifesting directly within the 'bastion' area.
To make this clear and fast, bastion area refers to the place that was filled with great activity and footprints of non-Calamity Objects.
If one were to simply run around back and forth in a single line for an entire day, that very line would become a bastion area.
The act of existing shed an essence, marking the history where a soul once frolicked.
It was as if human activity itself deterred a Calamity Object from existing.
There were many nuances to this concept, but it is much simpler to just deem 'bastion' as the place where humans hold the line against the Ordeals.
Which I found uniting, that despite the huge list of humanoid races in Carcosa, they were all regarded as part of humanity in this world
All because the Calamity Objects gave them the reason to unite for the sake of survival.
"So, is there a reason for heating the Sandstalker's metal to a high temperature right below the melting point, then cooling it?" Verina asked as she performed what I was bidding.
"After cooling, the molded metal is very hard but lacks ductility. We can improve the characteristics of the metal by tempering it, which is what we're doing, lessening brittleness and reducing internal stresses."
Courtesy of the sage known as the Internet.
"You're lucky that the Calamity Objects chose to rest at this timing, miss fairy, otherwise I wouldn't be able to focus on doing this."
After setting a poor-man smithy within the inner walls, I ordered Lupina to scout around the bastion in case that the Calamity Object felt a little bit playful again.
Although, regardless of the amount of break we got here, it was still crucial for me to complete this sudden project before the Ordeal of the Midnight arrived.
As such, with Verina as my portable furnace, I began my smithing career with a high-quality metal delivered by the kind claw-like remains of the Sandstalker's themselves.
To ensure that Verina didn't overheat by using her innate power as a kilnalan, I sacrificed a portion of my blood so that she wouldn't be hesitant to follow every instruction that I spouted the moment it was declared.
"I also still found it creative that you used the ground itself to mold the molten claws into metallic bars."
"It's less creative, and more of a low budget turnaround."
Combined with these impossibly dexterous hands of mine, crafting complex components and mechanical parts needed was easier done than said!
"You know, miss fairy, Lupina and I have been really quiet about it."
"Go on. While you're at it, please heat this section. I'm going to permanently connect these two parts to the wood."
Verina did exactly what I told her to, all while continuing her rambling, "Your existence feels very ethereal, miss fairy."
"I thought so too."
"You can cook, you build and craft things ten times faster than the average person, and now you become a professional blacksmith out of nowhere."
"I doubt that I'm qualified to become a blacksmith."
"I just want to say, it's rather hard to believe that we somehow stumble into you out of all places."
"True, I find it hard for people to stumble into me."
The forced info-dump that I got early into this world gave me the mental imagery of the map and landscape, and a couple of landmarks that were related to the overview of this world's lore.
If I recall, the place where I'm currently at was extremely secluded and far from civilization.
It wasn't even within the intersection of two civilizations. Normal people wouldn't go here unless that place was their destination.
Which gave me a rather weird conclusion.
How did Lupina and Verina even manage to stumble in the first place?
Verina looked rather taken aback after hearing that comment. "... I assume that you already know the big picture."
Nope, not a single piece of it.
It would take them days to arrive here from a place of civilization, so their Logs didn't tell much outside of the fact that they got robbed in the daylight.
But then again, why are only two of them traveling here? Where the hell did that robber come from??
Nobody would just rob people in a place far away and secluded.
At least not this far and secluded.
Everything smelled fishy, and I didn't even grill one because I couldn't find any on the river.
"We'll talk about this topic after the black sun arrives," I casually spoke out, not even a single groan or a sign of discomfort escaped.
"... You're an interesting individual, miss Narcissus."
"Just call me Narcissus, don't be so formal with me now."
Despite the implication, I started to don't mind having it as my name.
"Okay, Narc," Verina nonchalantly replied, not a single remorse in her eyes.
"... That sounded worse than I thought."
I didn't want to get my head filled with these riddles.
My current goal is to survive, and trying to solve the discrepancy between Verina and Lupina's reasons and past whereabouts won't help me survive the Ordeal of the Midnight.
"It fits you, though, because you're a 'narcotic' for our eyes," Verina said with the most plain voice and face, while gesturing a 'heart' symbol with her fingers.
"I regret giving you the friend pass."
"I want our relationship to be more than a friend."
"Have a stable life and generational wealth first, then I'll reconsider."