One More Hammer… For you.

Two more years had passed since Ashen started learning blacksmithing from his father, and if he had to name one thing that changed, it would be their relationship.

Their mentor-disciple relationship had unexpectedly brought them much closer. At least when compared to the other children.

Ashen had come to appreciate the man, not only as a father or a mentor, but as a man; a man whose values and philosophy toward life he respected.

Year by year, he saw how Adam carried the tribe on his shoulders no matter what. No matter what catastrophe or tragedy struck them, he carried on. He warded off starvation and death and brought hope for a tomorrow.

When others despaired, he was not allowed to.

When others gave up, he was required to keep going.

When others cried, he made sure not a single tear left his eyes.

Because all of them looked up to him as their guide and strength. Everyone else was allowed to falter, but not him.

He was the pillar that the family leaned on to take a break from the horrors of life, but no one was his pillar when he was too exhausted to keep standing...

How could Ashen not respect a man of this caliber?

‘Showing respect to such a man is not enough. The proper way is to shoulder the responsibility alongside him.’

Ashen knew admiration alone served for little. He thought more of rising into another pillar, just like the example put before him.

‘Don’t they say that sons always aspire to be like their fathers?’

He smirked.

‘I guess they are not far off...’

But he was only twelve, and no matter how fit his body had become due to training and the mana nourishment he had undergone over the years, it was still underdeveloped.

Even if he were allowed to go out and join the warriors, he would either hold them back or get himself stupidly killed.

So instead, he busied himself with things he could currently do in preparation for the future where he would stand beside his father.

And that was why he was here at the blacksmithing room yet again.

‘After two years... I’ve gotten pretty good at this...’

Ashen thought so as he arranged the mithril ores before him.

But that was an understatement.

With his Insightful Trait, coupled with his Patient Eye and mana manipulation skills, his skill had progressed rapidly, to say the least.

By the time he was eleven, the quality of the weapons he created was enough to be distributed among the warriors, and now, at twelve, the only thing holding him back was a moment of inspiration.

One would think that blacksmithing was a methodical and straightforward craft, so where would inspiration be needed?

But that was only when it came to mundane actions.

When mana was added to the equation, things became much more interesting.

In fact, the three essential components his father had taught him; temperature, force, and timing; were merely the foundation for understanding the fundamental steps, ones that would eventually be replaced by the use of mana.

By now, instead of manually tending to the flames, he seeped mana into the fire to control its heat.

The same went for his hammer strikes. Mana was always imbued into the hammer to regulate the force of each strike.

Even the metal itself was engulfed by mana, giving Ashen constant feedback that allowed him to know the timing of his strikes and where he needed to strike.

This practice opened another possibility for forging... intent.

Whenever mana was present, so was the intent guiding it. And the combination of mana and intent had always brought about miracles.

Forging was no different.

And currently, as he inspected the ores before him, Ashen was feeling an unprecedented sense of serenity. Maybe it was the years of living with patience and peace of mind?

Something had accumulated within him, enough to make him feel like he could do anything right now. He knew it was just an illusion, but some irrational feeling kept pushing him to do something...

So here he was, deciding to hammer away.

◉◉◉

[ PATIENT EYE ]

Target: Mithril Ore

Age... Approximately 100 Years

Exposure... Prolonged proximity to Null Stones

Material State... Stable

Observed Conditions:

Prolonged exposure to Null Stones has produced an unexpected alteration within the ore's structure.

A latent property has emerged: the metal does not develop

brittleness as it hardens.

When forged correctly, a paradoxical phenomenon occurs.

The hardness of the metal continues to increase without a

corresponding increase in brittleness.

Continued hammering may therefore allow the material to become progressively harder while retaining its resilience.

◉◉◉

“Now... where the fuck did this come from?” Ashen’s mouth hung wide open.

He was inspecting the ores brought back not too long ago, and now he had just stumbled upon this absurd piece.

“...Should I leave it to father?”

He tilted his head and, in less than half a second, banished the thought.

“Finders keepers. Sorry, pops.”

Ashen cleared all the other ores and left only that particular piece.

Normally, he would refine and forge various metals for each part of a weapon, depending on the hardness and resilience needed for each section. But with this ore’s properties, he could get the best of both worlds across the entire blade, so there was no need to overcomplicate things.

“Now... what do I want to forge?”

He was sure this weapon wasn’t going to be like the other ones, so he actually wanted to make something that would be used later, rather than simply being thrown into the armory because of how “unique” he made it.

“A spear...?”

Ashen’s first choice was a weapon for himself, but the moment he pictured himself holding the weapon, his brows couldn’t help but crease, as he felt a resistance to the image in the recesses of his mind.

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“I can’t believe I’m still hung up on Mel... this is too much even for me.”

Ever since he stopped using Mel, all he had used were disposable spears. And in the two years he had spent forging, he had, intentionally or unintentionally, never thought about forging a spear for himself.

“This is getting ridiculous... what am I waiting for...? For it to be magically fixed and fall into my hands?”

He shook his head.

“Get your head out of the gutter, Ashen...”

It was true that the spear had helped him escape insanity when he faced loneliness beneath the boulder for a hundred years.

It had helped him train with its mischievous trait.

It had accompanied him through the majority of his battles, facing death alongside him, encouraging him, greeting him, cheering his victories...

“Okay... maybe it’s not that ridiculous to get this attached on second thought.”

He muttered bitterly.

Looking down at the glowing mithril ore, his mind settled on another weapon.

“Since I’m currently being a bitch about wielding a proper spear, let’s make something for my dear little sister.”

And so, the sis-con in him reared its head and solved his dilemma at once.

“A katana it is.”

◉

After rampaging through the collection of ores, Ashen found more than enough of the same property as the first mithril ore to make the katana.

He collected them all on the metal bed and started cracking them, separating the rocks from the mithril before driving the metal pieces into the fire.

This step in the refinement of the ore would normally be straightforward enough: roast the ore to drive off moisture, sulfur, carbonates, and other unwanted substances, making the material easier to reduce.

But the ore he was currently working with was special. It had developed a strange internal property, so he had to be careful not to destroy that property during roasting.

Thankfully, Patient Eye was able to display the needed information in real time while observing the ores, allowing him to get the timing just right.

After that, it was time to reduce it.

After spending some time in the furnace, the ores finally transformed into metal and slag.

Ashen looked at the slag, and his hammer was picked up at once.

‘Time to turn you into proper metal...’

Ting—! Ting—! Ting—!

He heated and hammered the raw mithril metal until every bit of the slag was squeezed out and expelled. He then inspected it with Patient Eye and evened out its composition until it finally became properly refined mithril, ready for forging.

“Now then, on to the fun part...”

Ashen put the lump of metal back into the fire, then seeped his mana into the flames.

The intent within his mana made it act as nourishment for the fire, increasing its temperature until it reached exactly what he needed.

When the mithril gained a deep red hue, he pulled it back and picked up his hammer.

“Hup—!”

CLANG—!

‘Ah... finally... peace.’

CLANG—!

CLANG—!

CLANG—!

With an empty mind, he hammered away.

By now, his body knew when to stop so as not to ruin the metal, when to heat it, and when to continue hammering.

Every part of the process was connected by mana that kept giving him perfect feedback. Even Patient Eye acted as part of his instincts instead of giving him a comprehensive analysis.

So Ashen was free to turn off his brain and focus on that one movement.

CLANG—!

But perhaps because of the metal’s strange properties, no matter how much he hammered, he didn’t feel like it was enough.

CLANG—!

The cycle of heating, hammering, inspecting, and reheating stretched on for a little too long.

CLANG—!

The initial shaping had been done long ago, as the curved blade gradually manifested beneath his repeated strikes.

The tang, spine, edge, point, ridge, and curvature... everything was perfectly aligned under Ashen’s perfectionism. And since this was a blade born from a single metal, the composition was that much more pleasing.

As for refinement, he could already feel that there wasn’t a single impurity remaining in the metal.

CLANG—!

So why was he still hammering?

CLANG—!

When the cycle repeated itself more than two hundred times, his quiet mind answered.

‘It’s getting harder still. This metal…’

CLANG—!

This answer made him happy.

But the happiness did not come from the miraculous property manifesting itself.

It was just… this was the first time he could hammer to his heart’s content without worrying about the metal losing its toughness.

While his mind was mostly empty, his instincts and body were always coiled in focus, maintaining the perfect balance between hardness and resilience.

But now… there was no need for any of that; he could really let go completely and focus on that one sequence alone.

Heat. Hammer. Inspect. Reheat. Hammer. Reheat. Hammer…

CLANG—!

And as he did, somewhere down the line, an anticipation began to grow.

CLANG—!

‘I wonder what the final result will be?’

CLANG—!

‘I’m sure it’ll be a legendary blade. Lapis would surely be happy if I gave it to her.’

CLANG—!

‘I hope it will protect her well when I’m not around.’

CLANG—!

‘But for that to happen… I have to give it my best now, don’t I?’

CLANG—!

Ashen’s expression turned somewhat hazy, with only a lingering smile remaining as he repeated the same cycle.

Either way, it was clear that the concept of time had long escaped his mind. Despite more than ten hours having passed, he did not stop to rest even once.

What was stranger was that his usually empty mind had become quite active somewhere down the line. But possibly because it was filled with thoughts of his sister, Ashen did not feel like he was losing the freedom he always chased after.

On the contrary, he was feeling content and joyful.

He was making something that would protect his sister, make her smile at him, and allow him to fulfill his duty as the big brother.

‘Ah yes… this is the joy of a big brother… one that only happens when you know that what you’re doing is going to bring a smile to that cute face…’

CLANG—!

The mana inside the blade clashed with the mana inside his hammer for the thousandth time, and unexpectedly, this time, it created an interesting reaction.

Like fireworks bursting all at once, a pink spark resonated across the blade before receding.

CLANG—!

…and it came back right after the next hammer.

CLANG—! CLANG—! CLANG—!

Each time the hammer fell onto the blade, the pink spark remained a moment longer… until it finally stayed permanently, dying the edge of the blade a pale pink.

Ashen simply looked at it and kept hammering, too lost in his own thoughts to care.

What he did not realize was that the more he kept thinking of his sister, the richer the pink color became.

To him, it did not matter much. The instincts bolstered by his Patient Eye had whispered to him that this was a good thing, so he simply focused on hammering one more time.

But the hours accumulated until it was time for the family to eat dinner, and then it went on until it was time for the body to rest and the mind to sleep.

And Ashen came here at dawn.

By now, he had felt that his body had reached its limit long ago, but he did not want to stop.

He felt it keenly… the moment he stopped, the metal would consolidate, and he would no longer be able to increase its hardness.

The only saving grace in this was that his father was currently away on the surface, and none of his sisters were allowed into this place without the patriarch’s permission.

And it wasn’t like he had never spent a night in the blacksmithing room before, so his mother was unlikely to panic enough to knock down the metal door he had firmly closed.

Lapis would probably do it, but he had already informed her that he would be late, so she could probably wait.

What he did not take into account was his body betraying him in such a manner.

So Ashen thought of the only way he could push himself a little further.

The reason he was doing this.

By now, it was no longer about his peace of mind; it was all about her.

‘For you, who stood with me when I was nothing but a sloth, I will hammer one more time.’

CLANG—!

‘For you, who never gave up on me, even when I gave up on myself, I will hammer one more time.’

CLANG—!

‘For you, who changed your life to keep up with mine, I will hammer one more time.’

CLANG—!

‘For you, who risked your death to guarantee my life, I will hammer one more time.’

CLANG—!

‘For you… who gave me unconditional love no matter who I became… I… shall… hammer… one… more… …time.’

CLANG—!

Whenever he felt his body about to stop, all he had to do was think of her, and one of the countless things he loved about her.

And his body would miraculously move on its own, striking the blade and making it sparkle pink one more time.

Like a poor man who had discovered a gold mine, Ashen latched onto the method and used it to hammer away.

No matter how tired he became, whenever he brought up those memories, the hammer struck down on its own.

The cycle kept repeating endlessly, but nothing was truly endless in the end; at least not blacksmithing.

Though it was not his body that gave in, nor was it the countless memories of his sister…

It was the mithril metal that had finally reached a hardness that would no longer increase, no matter how much he hammered it.

Tack—!

The hammer finally left his hand, and Ashen finally allowed himself to inspect the katana before him.

Maybe it was because it was his own creation? It was the first time he had seen Patient Eye show this much detail.

◉◉◉

[ PATIENT EYE ]

Target: Unfinished Katana

Creator… Ashen Hunt

Material… Mithril

State… Unfinished

Forging Time… Two Days, Interrupted

Origin:

Forged with the heartfelt love of a brother toward his sister;

born from his desire to see her smile, and his wish to protect her

when he could not be there himself.

Observed Phenomenon:

A miraculous reaction between clashing mana, the properties

of the metal, and the creator’s intent has caused a nascent

Concept of Love to bloom within the blade.

Material Properties:

The blade possesses hardness and resilience incomparable to

ordinary katanas.

Its structure is extraordinarily resistant to chipping, warping,

and breakage.

Conceptual Properties:

The nascent Concept of Love responds to the mana of its intended recipient.

When the recipient of the Concept feeds mana into the blade,

its cutting power increases in proportion to the mana supplied.

When wielded by the recipient of the Concept, the blade’s mana

conduction surpasses that of ordinary magic circuits.

Mana may therefore be manipulated through the blade with greater ease and precision than through the wielder’s own body.

Current State:

The blade remains unfinished.

Filing, grinding, polishing, sharpening, and fitting remain necessary before it can be considered complete.

◉◉◉

Ashen smiled faintly.

Then…

His eyes closed on their own, and his body fell backward from his chair onto the ground.

thud—

The manaless, sleepless, exhausted boy passed out at once.

[You have gained a new Trait: Pure Heart]