Chapter 48
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 48
Chapter Title: Goblin Hater (4)
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The martial art for sensing and awakening the dragon veins flowing through Mother Earth: Earth Vein Resonance Technique.
And the martial art that lets you converse with metals born from that earth and hear their voices: Steel Communion Method.
Having mastered these two, I could now hear the voices of metals I'd never encountered before in my life.
But,
Fuck, what the hell is this?
Suddenly, my life had turned into the Truman Show.
"How is it? From the flow of energy alone, it looks like a success."
Goblin Hater sis, who had been watching, asked.
Succeeded?
It seemed like it had, but...
'Is this really a success?'
Holy fucking shit.
If this was what a metal's voice sounded like, I could understand why the guy who'd heard the voices of all things just laughed it off.
"Um, Goblin Hater sis... by any chance, can you not hear this guy's voice...?"
I asked cautiously, and
"Judging by your reaction, it must've succeeded. That's right—if someone succeeds with the Steel Communion Method on a metal, no other blacksmith can commune with it. The Steel Communion Method isn't a universal language that works with all martial arts; it's more like establishing a dedicated channel between one specific entity and one blacksmith."
That explained it.
Now I saw: the Steel Communion Method wasn't tuning into a public frequency; it was creating a private one.
So Goblin Hater sis's ears were spared this bullshit voice.
"Surprising, right? That metals have their own wills. But in a way, it's only natural. All things in the world have will and temperament. You've just awakened one of them."
With that, Goblin Hater sis pulled a blood-red metal chunk from her bosom, just like the blood ironstone I was holding.
The earth's veins faintly flowed through the air, and a blood-like red energy stream connected between the blood ironstone and Goblin Hater sis.
"I've just succeeded in Steel Communion with this one too. I can hear its voice now."
"H... how is it?"
"Ah, I get the vibe. Pretty sharp and keen, isn't it?"
Sharp?
Keen?
"Nine hundred ninety-nine out of a thousand blood ironstones have similar temperaments. Just like the name, they're full of a bloody scent. It might feel oppressive at first, but for a novice blacksmith, it'll actually help. It quickly tells you its weak points."
'Goddamn it!!!!'
I couldn't focus!! Couldn't focus!!
The shitty narration overlapping with Goblin Hater sis's explanation kept destroying my concentration.
And full of bloody scent, she said.
Did I beat one-in-a-thousand odds or something?
As I spaced out, Goblin Hater sis spoke up.
"Alright, explanation's over. Shall we try it in practice?"
"Huh? Right now? I don't even know how to swing a hammer..."
"Don't worry. I'm not expecting master craftsmanship from you anyway. The material itself will guide you. All things in the world ultimately seek the form that best suits them. Want a demonstration?"
Goblin Hater sis picked up a hammer.
Moments later, the hammer heated up on its own, glowing red-hot.
'No way, it heated itself.'
With Earth Vein Resonance Technique active, I could see it.
Heat flowing from Mother Earth through Goblin Hater sis into the hammer.
The condensing heat reached scorching temperatures, turning the raised hammer glowing red!
"That's?!"
"Crimson Flame Tempering Technique. As you guessed, it converts heat from the dragon veins into internal energy within the body, then transforms it into suitable forging heat. Not only does it deliver pure heat on impact, but you essentially become a portable forge yourself. You could even smash the ground to erupt lava in combat, but its main purpose is blacksmithing."
Damn, that's awesome.
Feels like I can enjoy shop-tier gear without even going back to town.
Anyway.
With preparations complete, Goblin Hater sis began hammering enthusiastically.
Clang clang clang clang!!
Metallic rings echoed nonstop.
Each strike on the blood ironstone sent shockwaves bursting through the air,
and lava bubbled up from cracks in the earth.
Amid it all, Goblin Hater sis's voice rang out.
"Most forging breaks down into seven main steps. First is material prep—smelting ore into usable iron. Second is heating that metal to a forgeable high temperature. Third is hammering it like this. Fold and hammer the heated metal repeatedly to densify the structure and remove impurities."
The fourth was shaping.
For making a dagger, forming the blade, spine, core structure, adjusting thickness and curve.
I knew this step alone took considerable time, but Goblin Hater sis whipped up even the tang for the hilt in seconds.
It looked like kneading clay, not hard ore.
Just smash the hammer down, and it shaped itself?
"Next is heat treatment. Quenching—heating to extreme temps then rapid cooling to increase hardness—and tempering—heating to lower temps and slow cooling to relieve excess hardness, remove internal stress, and gain elasticity. Normally you'd use cold water or oil for this, but we've got Crimson Flame Tempering Technique, right?"
Rumble—
The blood ironstone, now a red-hot dagger, cooled rapidly.
Like some absorption art in action, all the heat got sucked straight into Goblin Hater sis's grip!
She repeated quenching and tempering several more times.
How many rounds was that?
"This should be good enough."
Satisfied with the shape, perhaps.
She gave the now clearly dagger-formed blood ironstone one final hammering.
"Now for straightening any warps or bends. Then sharpening the edge and polishing the surface. Scabbards, engravings on the blade—those are nice bonuses."
A forging process that felt both short and long passed.
An ultra-simple forging only possible for someone like Goblin Hater sis, who toyed with heat at will.
When I came to, a sleek blood-red dagger gleamed there, boasting its sharp blade.
"Your turn now."
How about it? Pretty easy, right?
Goblin Hater sis, who'd printed out a dagger like a 3D printer, passed the baton to me.
'Me, do that?'
Honestly, it was absurd.
I seriously wondered how to even imitate it.
But that didn't mean I'd dodge it here.
No one felt the importance of weapon forging more intensely than I did.
'Let's give it a shot.'
As I steeled myself, the blood ironstone cheered me on.
Goddamn, Bloodstone!
One more reason to rush through this.
I wasn't a mechanophile or an agalmatophile, for fuck's sake.
Motivated now, my actions sped up.
I grabbed the endlessly babbling blood ironstone with tongs and dunked it into the lava flow before me.
The blood ironstone heated red-hot.
No gloves needed.
The heat flowing through the tongs converted to internal energy via Crimson Flame Tempering Technique.
And that's where Steel Communion Method shone.
It had the downside of constant shitty noises, but the blood ironstone told me exactly how hot it needed to get.
The rest followed suit.
I pulled out the heated lump at its cry and mercilessly hammered it with the hammer Goblin Hater sis provided.
Fuck, this was seriously fucked.
Was I forging or doing it doggy-style?
Every hammer strike made Bloodstone scream moans, polluting my ears.
If only the voice sounded nice.
But hearing that deep, hairy-leg orc-dude timbre spouting crap made my eardrums rot.
Still, the results were undeniable.
"Newbie, you've got some talent? You're hitting the exact spots with impurities."
Because I hammered only where Bloodstone called out its weaknesses, the forging progressed quickly.
Next, shaping.
The mere iron lump that was Bloodstone took on a convincingly dagger-like form.
Then quenching and tempering.
Repeated rapid cooling, reheating, slow cooling to secure hardness and elasticity.
Finally, straightening, sharpening, polishing, finishing—
"Done!! It's complete!!!"
After six straight hours of eardrum terrorism, a sleek dagger was born.
I proudly showed off the result, and even Goblin Hater sis looked intrigued.
"Ho, not bad."
"Hehe. What do you think?"
"Not bad at all. No innate talent for blacksmith finesse, but you preserved the material's true nature well. Probably thanks to the Yin-Yang Five Elements Scripture. For a first try, this is solid."
Like a dish with no fancy techniques but the ingredients' flavors shining through.
Yeah, comparing it to Goblin Hater sis's blood ironstone dagger—made from the same stuff in far less time—mine was clearly lower quality.
Hers was way sharper and deadlier.
Still, my blood ironstone dagger exuded an ominous vibe that was anything but ordinary.
The blood ironstone dagger didn't hide its urges either.
In that case,
"Shall we test it?"
"Sounds good."
Clang—!
I'll make your wish come true.
Die already.
"Overwhelming."
"Can't be helped."
I clashed my blood ironstone dagger against Goblin Hater sis's.
The result was, predictably, total defeat for mine.
But,
"Still impressive. Look at the edge near the hilt. Tiny chip, right?"
"Whoa, you're right."
Bloodstone met its end just a minute after birth, but
it succeeded in leaving a mark on Goblin Hater sis's prized dagger.
A tiny but definite chip.
That was enough.
"This qualifies as real talent. Pretty bold, too. Most people get attached to their first creation."
"Psh. It's not even my real first."
I didn't feel bad about it.
Not just because Bloodstone spewed nonstop crap.
Couldn't take it out of here anyway—gaining the experience was win enough.
So,
"I'll cut you some slack. Time to head down the mountain. Time to forge your own weapon."
"Yes, sis!"
Now, the real deal begins.