The Blacksmith's Confidence
Sweat and heat filled the air of the Workshop District.
If you were a hunter, the single most important thing was finding a craftsman in the Workshop District whose temperament matched your own and building a rapport with them.
The craftsmen here repaired and produced hunters' weapons and armor. In that sense, they shared the closest relationship with hunters of anyone.
I recognized Matillo, who had once been Antico's blacksmith NPC.
The only workshop in Antico that players used in the game. The place where a retired Master Hunter hammered away at iron while concealing his true identity.
It had looked rather shabby the first time I saw it…
But today, for some reason, it was bustling even from a distance.
Most of them were hunters. A fair number looked like mid-rank hunters.
Had word gotten out that this place was some kind of hidden gem of a workshop?
"Scram. Not open for business today."
But Matillo wouldn't open the workshop door.
He just stood there like a stone guardian, shaking his head. With his massive frame and corded muscle, people tended to back off without much protest.
I watched from a distance as Matillo turned the hunters away.
What he'd told me before — that he only accepted special commissions — was a lie.
Matillo simply lacked confidence in his own equipment. Honestly, wasn't that the pain of every creator?
He wanted gear that could perfectly protect the hunters who so easily lost their lives. If someone wearing his armor died, it would devastate him.
Matillo couldn't stand that.
I knew this behavior came from the fact that he had once been a hunter himself. Having a hunter's spirit of challenge was important, but the need to act only on certainty was what bound Matillo the blacksmith now.
Having a workshop only I could use was nice. But Matillo's behavior wasn't good.
He'd become a blacksmith to make equipment for hunters, yet he still couldn't have confidence in his own work.
I hid in a distant alley and waited a long time until everyone left.
Only after the front of the workshop grew quiet did I show myself and stand before Matillo.
Matillo scratched his head when he saw me. I held out my greatsword and bow.
"Your weapons are still a total mess today. What's with the quiver? Armor's clean, though. Kid, was the Galori easy?"
"Yeah."
"Right. For you, it would be."
Matillo shrugged.
He kept calling me kid, but deep down he seemed to acknowledge me to some degree.
Only then did Matillo open the workshop door. I slipped inside after him.
Matillo closed the door again in case anyone else came in, set the greatsword on the workbench, and sat down in front of it. He immediately wiped off the dried blood and began sharpening the blade while I stood beside him, watching in silence.
"……"
Matillo worked without a word either, so the atmosphere was a bit awkward. I chewed on my words for a moment before speaking.
"Lots of customers today."
"Yeah, and whose fault is that…"
"…Whose?"
"Never mind."
Matillo shrugged and kept working the greatsword with long strokes. He didn't look particularly pleased.
Maybe it was because of the customers.
"You could take customers, you know."
"…What?"
Matillo looked up at me.
"Matillo's equipment is good."
I meant it — not empty flattery. Thanks to the leather armor he'd given me, I could freely use my greatsword for in-fighting, and I could swing my weapons until the edges were completely gone without holding back.
Of course, Matillo was the one who had to suffer repairing them…
"It puts my mind at ease."
I ran my hand over the face of the greatsword on the workbench. Matillo looked incredulous, then a faint smile slipped through.
"Ahem. Talking nonsense."
He coughed, trying to hide the smile, and brought a hand to his mouth.
Sorry, but I already saw it.
"Well, I've got my own thoughts on the matter. It's not the time yet."
"Is that so?"
"…But if you prove it, that might be a different story."
Matillo murmured so quietly I almost missed it. Before I knew it, the shadow had left his face. He seemed brighter. No matter how he pretended otherwise, my words had clearly made him happy.
"So is today just repairs? Still not planning to make any new gear?"
"No, I'll make some now."
"…Oh, so you're finally going after stronger ones."
Matillo grinned.
"Well then, want me to make you some armor? Or overlay some materials on the sword?"
"That too… and make me essence sockets."
"…You already got essences?"
I nodded.
The power of an essence could be used by embedding it in a socket drilled into a weapon. Staffs were a special case that couldn't be used without essences, so those were exceptions…
"Hah… well, I'll be."
Matillo stopped touching the greatsword, looked at me, and laughed hollowly.
"Whether you're lucky or you've just been killing that many monsters…"
I think it's still the former.
I stared blankly at Matillo. Having said that, he stopped sharpening the greatsword's edge and turned toward me.
"So, did you bring the essences?"
"I've got two."
"…Two?"
"Here."
I reached into the secondary bag at my waist. I'd left the miscellaneous materials at the inn, but I always carried the two essences with me in case of thieves. Essences were such precious materials that you had to be careful.
I pulled out the Luga-lac essence and the Galori essence and set them on the workbench. Matillo examined them carefully through the magnifying glass attached to the bench.
"…Both in good condition. Just need processing. One's Luga-lac, and the other… avian?"
"Galori."
"Hmm, Galori."
Essences were rare orbs that could be obtained from monsters. They were the core of power.
Monsters all had them basically, but they could shatter by the end of a fight, making them hard to obtain. When they shattered, it was usually when death was near and their power weakened. An essence broken by unstable power almost never recovered. In practical terms, you could just consider them dead.
But the power of those that didn't die naturally accumulated in the essence over the years. Then the essence grew harder and more solidified with time than before.
So skinning an aged monster gave a higher chance of obtaining an essence — though they were correspondingly stronger than regular monsters. But in the cycle of the ecosystem, it wasn't easy for a monster to grow old.
Aged specimens became special variants. Like the One-Eyed Luga-lac.
The essence from the One-Eyed Luga-lac was one such case. It had survived countless battles without dying, growing ever stronger, and left a hardened essence in its body. So there was a setting that the chance of it being destroyed mid-combat was lower than with regular specimens.
Of course, being One-Eyed didn't mean the essence itself was different from a regular Luga-lac's. It was closer to a special mob designed so players who couldn't get a Luga-lac essence would have a chance at one.
"…Whatever you use, the Luga-lac one would be better. Galori's nothing special, but Luga-lac performance is solid."
"Hmm."
The Luga-lac essence, true to the Luga-lac's nickname of Mad Wolf, granted a berserk buff as its exclusive skill. The performance was decent enough, and it was an essence you absolutely needed for the looks.
Setting other effects aside, activating the essence made your eyes glow like a Luga-lac's and tinted your whole body red. That was the most important part.
It looked cool, after all.
The reason the One-Eyed Luga-lac even existed was because of Hunter Land players' complaints. Players said the essence from killing Luga-lacs looked awesome, so why make it so hard to get, and they tanked the game's ratings.
The developers announced the One-Eyed Luga-lac at that year's update presentation. After the One-Eyed Luga-lac, other aged monsters started appearing one by one to make essences easier for players to obtain.
But apparently just giving out essences still hurt, so they deliberately twisted the patterns and made them filthy hard before updating. Those creatures were monsters born from the developers' desire to kill every player who'd lowered their ratings.
The problem was that those monsters ended up killing even the casual players who just wanted to enjoy the game. Casual players got excited when new monsters appeared, only to be blindsided by Hunter Land's signature "if you don't know it, you eat it" patterns and fighting-game-style combos.
That was why even Noah's party of fairly seasoned hunters got wiped. Thanks to that, I fought with garbage iron weapons and no essence. I remember being covered in wounds — a total mess.
If I'd made one wrong move, I might have died right there.
"Sockets I can attach quick enough, but shouldn't you change the weapon materials first? How long are you planning to keep using iron?"
"Mmm, true."
Essences weren't the only important thing. If essences were additional abilities, the weapon was the base foundation. Overlaying monster materials onto a weapon to upgrade it raised the weapon's own attributes, edge sharpness, and attack power. It was an unavoidable process if you wanted to cut through tough body parts.
But I still hadn't obtained the materials I wanted.
"I don't have the materials yet."
"What are you thinking of making it with?"
"…Ekriki?"
"What? At least make a weapon with Kakari materials before you talk to me. Two kills should give you enough materials. You already got one last time, didn't you? Just go get one more."
"Mmm…"
Well, that might be better. Fighting the Kometras had taught me that maybe I should pay a little more attention to my gear. Armor aside, upgrading the weapon tech seemed essential.
I already didn't want to waste time killing the same mob multiple times, but maybe there was no choice.
"Just the sockets for now."
"Fine. Which weapons?"
"All of them."
"Are you insane?"
"I can swap the essences around, right?"
Matillo stared at me with an incredulous look.
Essences weren't permanently bound to weapons like other materials, were they? Couldn't you swap one around between weapons?
"Yeah, I know that. But doing it that way is hard on me. Do you think I'm made of iron? And I'm the one who has to swap the essences for you. Trying to work me to death?"
"Please."
"…Then pick two for now."
Matillo grumbled but didn't refuse.
But two? What was he talking about.
"You've got two essences, so two weapons only. I'll do those two quick, and the rest of the weapons slowly. I need some rest too."
Alright, compromise here. I nodded at Matillo's words.
Two. Two, huh.
I touched my lips, thinking. Kakari couldn't fly, so I didn't need a bow. One greatsword was enough. Since I planned to hunt Ekriki as soon as I made Kakari weapons, I should pick any two weapons suited for Ekriki and put sockets in those.
"…I've decided."
"What?"
"Dual shields and the greatsword."
"…The greatsword I get, but dual shields? Seriously?"
What. Dual shields are better than you think.