Liam went through his usual morning routine before entering the game.
He appeared in Striking Wood Town, waiting for the others. One by one his friends logged in.
"Morning."
"Hey guys!"
"Mirage! You're on time today."
The mood was joyful while the party gathered. Soon they were ready to continue leveling.
However, Silver Blade soon noticed Liam's hesitant movements.
"Mirage? What's up with you?"
"Sorry guys. I think I won't join you today."
"What? Why?"
"Expert, are we dragging you down?"
"My friend, did something happen?"
Liam frowned faintly as noticed the strong reactions of his friends. Originally, he was hesitant, but maybe it was good to take a break. The party's reliance on Liam might be going a bit too far.
Although Acacia performed well yesterday, he still lost his life twice, which was quite dangerous. One more death and he would've forfeit one of his permanent lives.
However, Liam might not always be there to take on the most dangerous tasks.
With such thoughts going through his mind, Liam resolved himself.
"I'm sorry. It's just rather dull. I need a short break from leveling."
The other didn't know what to say. Some looked at Liam skeptically.
However, he was indeed speaking the truth. Leveling purely for the sake of it didn't excite Liam. Leaving other players far behind took too much fun out of the game.
He would rather have others catch up to pose some challenge. Naturally the other party members couldn't understand him despite trying their best.
"Expert, didn't we agree to form a successful guild? Shouldn't we be able to endure some dry leveling?"
Looking at Cyclone's disappointment eyes, Liam felt a pang of guilt.
"Don't worry Cyclone. I haven't forgotten about it. With me here there is no way our guild won't reach the top. A few levels won't make much of a difference."
Cyclone didn't know what to answer, pouting and turning her head away.
Suddenly Silver Blade frowned. Watching the party members, she got a similar feeling like Liam.
"Guys, maybe this is not a bad thing."
"What do you mean?", asked Fortune.
"Maybe we are growing too dependent on Mirage. I think it will be good for us to make our own experiences."
Hearing these words the others also began to contemplate.
"I agree with the young lady.", said Watchful Eye dryly.
The others rolled their eyes. Of course, Watchful Eye would agree, he was paid by Silver Blade after all.
However, the others couldn't help but feel like there was some truth to Silver Blade's words.
The first to nod approvingly were Silent Acacia and Quickstep. The professional players knew that they couldn't neglect their personal growth.
Otherwise, such a leisurely attitude might not cause problems immediately, but when facing other pros their flaws would be revealed.
After all, no matter how well Liam directed the team, if they couldn't accomplish their assigned tasks, they would still lose against other teams.
With some people agreeing the others couldn't help it but think deeply as well.
Soon they had to admit that Silver Blade had a point.
Liam shot the female tank a thankful and appreciating look. Once more Silver Blade proved that she had great talent as a leader, noticing such a flaw before it could grow further.
Silver Blade nodded at Mirage before addressing the party:
"Then it's decided. Mirage will do his own thing today. We will continue leveling. Our warriors and thieves should all try to lure the wargs at least once."
The people called out by Silver Blade felt the pressure but didn't refute.
A short while later Liam watched the backs of his friends as they left the town. He did feel conflicted, but his mood improved when a message reached him.
[Mirage Fan #1: Liam, how long do you need? I'm waiting!]
[Bleary Mirage: On my way.]
Liam couldn't help but feel a warmth in his heart whenever he read his sister's name.
At first, he was surprised that this name was still available. However, he quickly admonished himself for this sign of unnecessary vanity.
It didn't take long for Liam to reach the elven novice village. A few players recognized him as he got off the hawk, prompting him to hastily get out of their sights before a crowd could build up.
Once again, his urge to find a tool to hide his identity increased.
But now was not the time as Liam approached Ebonora's house, finding a cute elf anxiously scanning her surroundings.
As soon as Serena spotted her brother, a smile bloomed on her face, and she waved him over.
"Liam, you're here."
"Of course."
"What are we doing today?"
"I just wanted to ask you the same."
Seeing Serena fall into contemplation, Liam couldn't help but ask:
"Don't you want to cook something?"
"Yes. But no."
"What… does this mean?"
"It means what it means."
Liam blinked his eyes in confusion. He could only regard it as the logic of a child.
"So, should we enter the kitchen… or not?"
"No.", said Serena as if it was the most obvious thing ever.
"I want to learn smithing."
"Smithing? How come?"
"Because all those strong people respect the smithing grandpa."
"Well… that's because smithing is difficult and exhausting. Are you sure you're up for it?"
"Of course! I'm really strong now!"
Liam couldn't help but chuckle watching Serena presenting her biceps. But nothing could be seen under the wide sleeves of her mage robe.
"Ok then. Let's go."
Liam quickly led the way. He was quite interested in smithing himself, having also learned it in his previous life.
There was a lot the profession could provide, especially in the later parts of the game.
Serena walked in front of Liam happily, leading the way in case her brother would get lost.
Soon, the siblings reached the village's smith. Despite the white hair and slight wrinkles around his eyes the old elven smith still looked dignified, showing little signs of ageing.
If it wasn't for the NPCs calling him old Reanadao the players might not consider the smith a senior at all.
When Serena and Liam arrived, he was lazing off behind his counter, not showing any regard for potential customers.
"Welcome."
"Greetings, Smith. Would it be possible to rent your Smithy for a while?"
The old elf didn't look happy speaking to Liam. He clearly didn't have a high opinion of nephilim. But at least he didn't chase the siblings out.
"3 silver per hour."
Serena's eyes opened wide, staring at the smith.
"3 silver? Where would we get…"
"Here!"
As Liam nonchalantly handed over 9 silver, Serena turned towards him with a baffled look. She peeked into her own inventory where a pitiful two silver laid.
With this amount of money Serena could already be considered wealthy for her level, having earned it from selling her baked fruits.
The smith took Liam's money, grunted, and nodded with his head towards a door at the side.
Taking Serena with him, Liam entered the smithy. An uncomfortable heat welcomed him.
The smithy consisted of the typical anvil and furnace. However, the various tools hanging from the walls would immediately surprise an experienced smith.
There were many extremely precise chisels, tools to engrave complicated patterns, and solutions to apply the desired sheen to the products.
Elves were known for the gorgeous designs of their weapons. Often times blacksmiths spent more time on beautifying than on hardening and sharpening.
This was often a point of conflict between the famous dwarven blacksmiths and the elven ones. However, in terms of pure power dwarven products indeed held the upper hand.
Comparatively elves stood out when it came to imbuing magic into objects.
All of this was far away from Serena and Liam, though. The two siblings took a few seconds to get accustomed to the air in the smithy before approaching the furnace.
Serena looked at everything with bright eyes. But she quickly felt awkward, realizing that she understood almost nothing about the work of a blacksmith.
A clever idea came to the young girl's mind. She put on a cute smile, turning to Liam:
"We only have one fireplace. Why don't you start?"
Liam chuckled upon hearing his sister's gracious offer. He didn't expose her.
"Sure."
Liam took out a recipe which had been waiting in his inventory for a long time. It contained instructions on how to forge a basic dagger.
"Here, take a look. First, we need a bar of iron."
Liam carefully explained each step. He took out iron from a crate at the side. The necessary 43 copper were automatically deducted.
Next, the material was held into the furnace. Serena took the job of counting the seconds.
As stated in the recipe they retrieved the iron after 20 seconds, when it burned white hot.
Liam held the iron with a pair of tongs. A dot was projected onto the material, telling the player where to hit with his hammer and how much power to use.
Following the instructions and drawing from his experience Liam worked quickly, watching the iron take form bit by bit.