Blacksmith.
A term that defines one of the most important jobs in the world. For those who had followed the path of strength and assimilated themselves in the concept of mana, that occupation meant the magic itself.
After all, even though the engineering of magic based on reason and logic existed in a world filled with miracles and unreasonableness, there was also a part of people who made their products with their passion and belief.
Rather than relying on the monotonous technology and techniques that stemmed from observation, they put their emotions and passion into their art.
Those people were called blacksmiths.
At least, that was how they were defined in the game.
The weapons they made couldn’t be mass-produced, and neither could they be understood by any normal logic.
Even if you had copied the exact way, exact range of motion, and exact force applied by any blacksmith while they were shaping the metal, you still wouldn’t get the same result they had.
That was how things went. After all, blacksmithing itself also contained mana as well as divination itself at some point. The blacksmith doesn’t only move its body, but it also moves the mana inside it to shape the materials.
There were countless researches made by the mage tower to understand the concept behind the blacksmithing and to apply them to any weapons, but at the end of the day, none of those researches were able to reach an ending.
‘This was how they decided to create the background for a fantasy world, huh?’
I thought as I looked at the article written on the page. The players wouldn’t want a monotonous game where they would buy a bunch of mass-produced swords. They would want a weapon special to themselves, as they self-inserted into the main character.
Therefore, the developers needed to have special blacksmiths to do the job. Of course, as the weapon you wanted to make increased in quality, a higher skill was required from a blacksmith to make such a weapon possible.
That was how things worked.
Then, considering the developers’ tendency, it was very easy to assume that they had a special type of blacksmith in the game as well.
And this is where I am heading right now.
-WROOM!
The metallic rumble of the train echoed through the bustling station as I approached the ticket counter.
The air was thick with a mix of excitement and anticipation as well as the busyness of the modern world, an atmosphere befitting the capital of the Human Federation.
I handed the attendant the required amount, receiving the ticket with a nod of appreciation.
“One ticket to Hikama Mountains, go ahead,” the attendant said, her voice cutting through the ambient noise. It was weird to use tickets as well as modern devices at the same time, but some of the railways didn’t have the necessary equipment and funds. Therefore, they didn’t have rapid railways.
I walked toward the platform, the clatter of footsteps and distant conversations filling the air. Even then, the train, an impressive blend of technology and design, stood imposingly on the tracks.
Its sleek exterior gleamed in the station lights, a symbol of the advanced civilization that coexisted with magic in this fantastical world.
The doors slid open with a hiss as I boarded, finding an empty seat by the window.
‘Seat 52, here.’
The hum of conversations, the occasional laughter, and the excited chatter of fellow passengers surrounded me as I settled in.
‘It is quite nostalgic.’
I wasn’t sure if this was their intention or not, but the atmosphere on the train was quite cozy, as it was already winter. Some people were drinking coffee while talking amongst themselves, and others were simply busy with their smartwatches.
‘This will take a while.’
The train wasn’t the one with high speed, so it would take a while.
Leaning back in my seat, I allowed my thoughts to wander.
The article I had read earlier about blacksmiths replayed in my mind while also referring to Earth.
‘Certainly, there are things that I can’t put a name on in this world.’
Not everything could be understood, and that was what made we called as magic. But, at the same time, one part of me wanted to understand everything. It was the innate desire to know things as a human being.
DING!
At that moment, a message notification came from my watch.
‘But, it is not the time to think.’
Deciding that thinking about the meaning of life wasn’t the right thing to do at the moment, I opened the message section.
[Horde: Sir, the mana-wavelength distribution map you have requested is here.]
It was a message coming from my trusted informant.
[Did you get it from the Association’s database?]
[Hode: Yes. As you have advised, we specified our research on the western server and were able to find the map.]
[Good work.]
[Horde: It is our pleasure.]
After I finished the chat, I looked at the attachments. The Horde had a special way of delivering the messages and files, as they used a unique program they coded on their own to decrypt the file.
-FUSH!
The train’s engines roared to life, a signal that our departure was imminent.
“Dear passengers, this train goes to Hikama Mountain Range…..”
-TOK! TOK! TOK!
The rhythmic clanking of the wheels against the tracks started, and the scenery outside began to shift as we left the station behind. The cityscape transformed into a bunch of walls protecting the railway, as the city traffic would be affected by the train.
As the train started moving, I also opened the file. The seat beside me was empty, so I was able to get more comfortable on the road.
Opening the mana-wavelength distribution map, I started putting the college knowledge of mine to work.
The vector calculus came in handy right at this time; as I combined the knowledge we gained from the [Introduction to Mana for Hunters], I was able to read the map with a little more detail.
Though, I still needed to study a little bit on the way.
Just like that, the train went as I tried to analyze the map in my hands.
*******
CRUNCH! HOWL!
The crunch of snow beneath my boots accompanied every step as I walked deeper into the Hikama Mountains.
The air was crisp, and the cold bit through my clothing, a stark contrast to the warmth of the train.
The snowfall painted the surroundings in a tranquil hue, muffling the sounds of my footsteps.
“Haaah…..Haaaaah….”
I had been walking for almost a day now, and the cold, coupled with my low stamina, was finally hitting me.
As an awakened, walking 9 hours should be nothing, but this was different if one wanted to climb.
KIEK!
The mountains echoed with an eerie silence, broken only by the occasional creaking of branches and the distant howls of magical creatures.
Raven, come out.
At those times, the recent bond I had acquired came in handy.
FLAP! FLAP!
With its wings flapping, I sent the Raven to the skies to scout around the place. I was moving while utilizing the shadows as much as possible to erase my presence, but even then, there were some monsters that had exceptional detection skills that I wouldn’t be able to bypass.
‘7 Rune bears, huh? I guess they are the ones occupying this territory.’
It was always advised to run away as fast as possible if one encountered a rune bear. Even Hunters wouldn’t want to deal with them since they are rather intelligent monsters.
‘I guess I should walk a little more.’
After marking the location of the bears in my head, I recalled the Raven and started walking once again while looking at the map.
‘If my assumptions are correct, it should be around here.’
I had been working on the map for a while now to infer the unnatural mana wavelengths. Of course, there were several different locations I had marked at first, but as I studied the topic more and analyzed the magic formulas, I finally narrowed the location to three points.
I had already checked the first and second ones, and this was the last one.
CRUNCH! HOWL!
The strong wind and heavy snow didn’t help as I continued my climb.
ROAR!
The cacophony of the mountain winds and the crunching snow beneath my boots was interrupted by a sudden roar. The ground beneath me quivered, and the mountains themselves seemed to respond to the powerful presence emanating from a distance.
Instinctively, I tensed as if something reverent was around me. The appearance of the new presence was so unusual that I momentarily stopped moving.
‘If it is this area, then it must be-‘
TISS! BOOM!
Before I could even continue my analysis, I heard the sound of hissing as well as something hard-hitting to another.
‘Somir.’
There was one monster that would hiss like that in this mountain range, and it was the peak rank-8 monster, Somir.
It was a strong Lizard-type monster that had a cold immunity and preferred cold places, but at the same time, it wasn’t a monster that usually showed itself.
‘But, considering the time I came to this place in the game, it was one year later than now.’
And that meant one possible thing….
‘There was another high ranking monster living here, and Somir killed it, winning the territory battle.’
As I reached the conclusion, I couldn’t help but curse my luck.
‘And out of all times, they are fighting now.’
BOOOM!
At that exact moment, an explosive shockwave echoed through the mountains, rattling the snow-covered peaks.
THUD!
Before I could even react, an intense force slammed into me, sending me sprawling across the snowy terrain.
“Kurghk!”
The air crackled with the aftermath of the explosion, and pain radiated from where I had been struck.
BOOM!
Then, another deafening explosion erupted from above, and I instinctively shielded myself this time.
The force of the blast knocked me back, and as I tried to regain my bearings, I realized the peril had multiplied. The mountainside, disturbed by the dual forces of the monsters and the explosions, began to shift.
RUMBLE! RUMBLE!
While trying to regain my bearings, I felt the tremors under the ground.
“Spit-!”
Spitting the blood in my mouth, I immediately grabbed a healing potion from my spatial bracelet, gulping it down.
‘Tch-!’
As if to add insult to injury, the tremors on the ground weren’t synced with the sounds of clashing.
Meaning a possible avalanche.
‘I can’t even return back.’
Dash.
Activating my skill, I felt strength coursing through me as I took the position to run.
SWOOSH!
And then, started racing against the time. After all, there was one possible location I could reach….