Chapter 110
Chapter 110
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 110
Chapter Title: Primordial Forge's New Master
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"Have the carriers arrived safely?"
The woman said once more. She was pretending to be confident, but deep down, she was anxious. She could only show such weakness in front of the man.
The man wrapped his arm around the woman's shoulders. He alone could comfort the great being in this way.
"They should have arrived safely."
The man replied once more. Then, as if changing the subject, he tossed out a question.
"By the way."
"Yeah?"
"What exactly did you put in them?"
He knew about the potions and scrolls, as well as the scale armors that were only in Carrier Number One.
The Holy Kingdom had nearly gone bankrupt preparing the first two items, and he had personally witnessed the woman excitedly making the scale armors.
But he had no idea what was in the rest of the carriers.
At the man's question, the woman suddenly flashed a playful smile. She lightly kissed his cheek and whispered.
"Something you'll like."
"Something I'll like?"
"Yeah, something you'll really like."
In truth, it was about the carriers themselves, not their contents.
"It's not just simple transformation."
"Wait, transformation? What do you mean?"
"Well, you see..."
The woman paused as if revealing a secret, then whispered into the man's ear again.
After hearing it all, the man gave exactly the reaction she had hoped for.
"What?! If that's the case, make one for me too! Come on?!"
"We'll see."
Laughing merrily, the woman squeezed the hand interlocked with his.
She prayed once more, as if it were new.
'I hope the carriers arrived safely. I hope Cheon-ho is safe.'
Instead of the impatient man, the woman watched the footage of her son, the angels, and the holy sword.
Her son, who had grown so much in the time she hadn't seen him.
Her son, whose golden eyes now shone brightly.
'I'll definitely find you.'
Not just as the great being who ruled the Tower of the Sun, but as a mother.
Having reaffirmed her resolve, the woman soon smiled. She chatted idly with the man to soothe her uneasy heart.
* * *
The Primordial Forge was enormous.
After passing through an entrance comparable to the gates of Aiterium, a vast cavern appeared. Near the edge was something that unmistakably resembled an elevator.
It seemed they had to take that down.
But right then.
As Cheon-ho looked toward the elevator, he hurriedly turned his gaze to Makina. A change had occurred in Makina's body.
It wasn't a visible change. But Cheon-ho could sense it.
Makina, who had stopped in place, let her body go limp. Then, Makina's voice came from elsewhere.
"Welcome to the Primordial Forge."
It was still a young, childish voice.
What stepped out from the small control room about a square yard in size next to the elevator was a child who looked to be in her early teens. Her hair was extremely long, and her androgynous features made it hard to tell if she was a boy or a girl.
"Makina has two bodies?"
As Lucille alternated her gaze between the limp Makina and the newly appeared one, the new Makina—in the form of a child—shook her head.
"That one is the combat body. This is the daily-use one."
From her tone, even this child form didn't seem to be her true body.
'Is it just transferring consciousness?'
Perhaps it was more like remotely controlling a terminal.
Cheon-ho briefly imagined a bespectacled girl sitting in a control room, manipulating countless monitors and controls.
It seemed like a plausible guess.
Of course, if Mitra had heard, she would have retorted, 'It could be a guy, you know?' But since it was just Cheon-ho's fantasy, he stuck with the bespectacled beauty.
Makina, dressed in a black butler suit, had silver hair and pale skin, making her look a bit like Eizel.
Makina took one more step forward and looked at Cheon-ho.
"Hero, you have passed the trial. Moreover, you have saved the Primordial Forge from crisis. However, with the Primordial Blacksmith absent, the only areas you can access are this entrance and the guest waiting room directly below."
After saying that, Makina took a breath like a human would. With a fairly tense expression, she finished.
"May I ask the purpose of your visit?"
Come to think of it, they hadn't even properly introduced themselves yet.
Cheon-ho conveyed the plain truth without adding or subtracting anything.
"I need to use the Primordial Anvil in the Primordial Forge to find Lady Evnail's divine artifact. The Goddess of Healing requested this directly."
Makina's face turned troubled at Cheon-ho's answer.
"Th-that... I'm truly sorry, but the Primordial Anvil is located on the lowest floor of the forge. And to use the anvil, you need permission from the owner of the Primordial Forge, the Primordial Blacksmith."
Breaking Makina without techniques had only been a test for entry permission.
Defeating Makina didn't mean he could do as he pleased in the Primordial Forge.
Eizel furrowed her brow and said.
"But the Primordial Blacksmith has... passed away."
Eizel had her bold side, but she was still an angel. Knowing her words could hurt Makina just by mentioning it, her voice trailed off at the end.
The Primordial Blacksmith was dead.
Makina now acknowledged that fact. So, in a dejected voice, she replied.
"But there is an heir. In this case, the inheritance rights pass to the imperial family of the Aiter Empire—specifically, to the Emperor of the Empire."
At Makina's explanation, the group exchanged glances, and Eizel spoke again.
"That is... um... the Empire has fallen too."
"......Pardon?"
"The Empire has fallen. The imperial family along with it."
Makina blinked. Her face showed she was extremely flustered.
"Th-the Empire?"
"Yes."
"The imperial family too?"
"Yes."
"Who is the next heir?"
Raguel added the last part.
Thanks to that, Makina regained her composure and answered immediately.
"The one who holds the succession rights to the Empire."
But right after saying it, Makina's expression darkened. With the Empire and even the imperial family gone, finding a proper successor was impossible.
She was following the rules, but Makina wanted to help Cheon-ho in any way she could.
And at that moment, Raguel smiled.
"Then things worked out perfectly."
Raguel's gaze turned to Cheon-ho—more precisely, to Mitra at his waist—and the others soon understood.
With the Empire fallen, Cheon-ho, the master of the Empire Guardian Sword Mitra, could be considered the successor to the Empire.
Moreover, Cheon-ho had the imperial family key he had received from the Winter King.
"It's the Empire Guardian Sword Mitra."
Cheon-ho quickly drew Mitra and showed her, and Makina nodded with an impressed look. Then she hurried over to Cheon-ho and knelt on one knee.
"The forge administrator Makina greets the new master."
After bowing very politely, she looked up at Cheon-ho. Her beaming face suggested she was quite pleased with how things had turned out.
[Hmm, she seems quite taken with you.]
From Makina's perspective, it was only natural.
If some unknown thug became the new master, she would resist in every way possible. But Cheon-ho was different.
They had conversed through the sword for three hours.
He had not only delivered the news of her master's passing but also protected the Primordial Forge. He was a benefactor.
And he was the master of the Holy Sword Mitra. A man admired by many angels, enough for the Goddess of Healing to make a direct request.
If she had to serve a new master anyway, Cheon-ho was the best choice.
"Mm. Looking forward to working with you."
As Cheon-ho replied while maintaining his expression, Makina smiled brightly, and the angels, led by Lucille, grew excited. Especially the combat angels, spearheaded by Aurael and Saschiell.
It felt a bit hasty, but in any case, Cheon-ho had become the new master of the Primordial Forge.
This meant he now possessed not just Makina, but everything in the Primordial Forge.
The Primordial Forge.
A dream place coveted by all who wielded weapons.
Without the Primordial Blacksmith, forging new equipment might be impossible, but there had to be pre-made items.
Given Cheon-ho's actions so far, he wouldn't just let it slide. He would surely re-equip the entire group.
"As expected of our Hero."
Eizel grinned widely, and Raguel and Aurael nodded together. Our Hero. Anyway, our Hero.
Cheon-ho smiled faintly at the angels' expectations. He greatly appreciated their always straightforward and honest nature.
"Makina, if I may ask once more—could you guide us to the Primordial Anvil?"
"Certainly. However, Master, please give me a moment. The forge itself has been silent for so long that restarting it will take time."
As Makina stood and replied, Lucille nodded.
"Hero, how about resting for now?"
They had expended too much energy defeating Cabracasa. An elixir could restore him instantly, but they couldn't waste the few elixirs they had here.
"I shall escort you to the lodging on Basement Level 1 first."
At Makina's suggestion, Cheon-ho agreed. Truth be told, he had something he wanted to do while resting.
They all boarded the elevator and descended to Basement Level 1, where a wide, vast space appeared, just like the ground level.
But unlike the barren ground level, beyond what could be called a reception area stretched a long corridor lined with over twenty doors.
"I'll contact you once preparations are complete."
After bowing, Makina let her body go limp. As Cheon-ho had guessed, her true body was elsewhere.
'In any case.'
They had entered the forge, and now had a place to rest. It was time to settle accounts.
Glancing absently at Lucille, he saw her looking at the golden statues atop the elevator with eager eyes. The other angels, heroes, and rock dwarves were the same.
They had all seen the first carrier together. So what was in the rest? What functions were hidden?
"Single file."
At Cheon-ho's low command, the golden statues reacted. They lined up in front of him and reverted to carrier form.
Twelve golden carriers.
Just looking at them brought happiness, and Cheon-ho gave the order.
"Open the lids."
A plain command.
But like a spell, it excited the angels and holy sword, akin to a quest.
The twelve lids opened simultaneously, emitting dazzling light.
* * *
His heart pounded.
The feeling of opening a gift box as a child.
Cheon-ho first re-examined the first carrier. He hadn't had time to inspect it properly amid the battle earlier.
The top compartment held potions.
But upon closer look, the varieties were far more diverse than before.
"Oh, transformation potions."
Cheon-ho's eyes lit up as he read the label on the green potion bottle.
Potions with the same effect as transformation magic.
"Transformation potions?"
"Yes, I've used one before back on Earth."
The first and last time he had joined his mother for a Halloween event.
Memories of turning into a real jack-o'-lantern flooded back vividly.
"You think of the target you want to transform into while drinking it. Finishing one bottle maintains the transformation for up to five hours."
"What if you want to cancel it midway?"
"You drink a transformation cancellation potion."
What Cheon-ho pulled out was the yellow potion set beside the green one.
"Wow, so you can transform into anything?"
Eizel asked with shining eyes, and Cheon-ho's expression turned ambiguous.
"The outer appearance can be anything, but transforming into a being with vastly superior power shortens the maintenance time drastically."
"Still, it means it's possible."
Raguel swallowed dryly as she spoke. Unlike the others who just found it fascinating, she understood how incredible the transformation potion was.
Duration aside, the sheer fact that transformation was possible made it endlessly versatile.
'The production difficulty is unimaginable.'
How on earth did they make something like this? The material costs alone must be enormous.
As Raguel marveled anew at Cheon-ho's parents' abilities and wealth, Lucille examined the remaining potions and said.
"There are only two transformation potions."
Just two among the thirty or so potions. They were clearly rare.
[Still, there are plenty of carriers left. There might be more.]
Mitra said in an excited voice.
Nodding, Cheon-ho checked the rest of the potions.
There were seven each of the basics: stamina recovery potions, mana recovery potions, healing potions, and disease-curing potions. And one golden potion he had never seen before.
"Pretty color."
Eizel gave her characteristically innocent impression, her eyes sparkling, and Cheon-ho smiled faintly. Raguel asked.
"It's not... elixir, right?"
The divine potion that recovered all status ailments and injuries: elixir.
It was the same golden color, but not an elixir. Cheon-ho read the Korean on the label and answered.
"It's a new one for me too... It says 'Miracle'."
Literally a miracle.
The immense power emanating from the potion made his hands move carefully.
[My liege, is there no usage instructions?]
"Just a moment."
The label with the name had another line of tiny print.
"Miracles happen, and that's why they are miracles. A potion that causes miracles."
A brief silence followed.
As everyone blinked, Raguel narrowed her eyes and asked.
"Uh... so what exactly happens?"
A potion that causes miracles.
What kind of miracle did it cause?
"Hmm."
Even Cheon-ho didn't know. But his mother wouldn't pack something useless, so it had to be valuable.
[Well, the power from the potion is extraordinary. It'll surely be the turning point in a dire moment.]
Mitra's voice was filled with trust. Though they hadn't even properly introduced themselves yet, Mitra had immense faith and love for Cheon-ho's mother.