“I felt as if the flow of my mana was confused inside the sword, it was not a precise and smooth path like in the other weapons we tested. It was a much more complex and confusing path, it even seemed random. That’s what made it difficult to use the magic circles in the first test.” said Luke.

Crossing his arms, the half-wolf went on to explain.

“The third enchantment was the one that completely changed the game, it was a turning point, for sure. I only needed to activate that enchantment on the edge of the sword, and from then on everything went smoothly. By manipulating the internal structure of the sword’s mana flow, I was able to control the spells… Even the weight of the sword came into balance, it felt like a completely different weapon.

This explanation made Ezra’s eyes widen, he had thought that the problem was completely the way he had forged it. It was difficult for Ezra to produce a low quality sword these days, in fact it was practically impossible. When he received a guidance or sword diagram from Hephaestus, it was certain that a masterpiece would come out.

So Sleepy Rain was really an attack on the boy’s Ego. His honor as a blacksmith.

“What defines whether this weapon is perfect or not is only one factor. The user who is wielding it, so don’t worry, you just didn’t have anyone skilled enough to use your creation masterfully” Luke said.

However, there was still one thing to be understood. All swords had some function that connected the magic circles inside the item. So this meant that there was a reason why Sleepy Rain had a combination of that toxic smoke and an electric control circle.

This possibility was running through Luke’s mind, only two trials were not enough to give a definite answer regarding the sword. A final experiment would be necessary, a final test to understand that weapon.

This alone was enough for Luke to understand how the proposal he had given Ezra was a much more complicated task than he had imagined at first.

Producing a versatile sword capable of using the different types of elemental magic was not only an arduous task for the smith, but also for the user who would wield this sword.

This was probably the reason why nobody produced this kind of item. There is no sense in creating such a complex and difficult piece of equipment to produce if no one would be able to use it.

Ezra had lived his whole life as a blacksmith, no matter how young he really was, he had already seen all kinds of swords. But all of these had at most five different incantations, the most complex magic weapon he had ever known was a Greatsword that Hephaestus produced. And yet, sword possessed only eight enchantments.

In Ezra’s mind, when Luke gave the idea of a versatile sword capable of using every single type of elemental magic, the little boy thought of more than fifteen different enchantments needed. Not to mention the magic circles needed to stabilize that sword.

Producing such a complex weapon would truly be one of, if not the greatest challenge that little blacksmith had ever faced in his life.

*

In the other room of the forge at Melki’s academy, Hephaestus was a bit impatient. Again, this woman was coordinating the production of the forge, giving orders to dozens of blacksmiths.

She walked back and forth, her arms crossed. When necessary, she raised her voice to give directions to her apprentices.

“Yazuka, you are hammering too hard”

The redhead’s voice echoed through the warm room. The woman’s skin was already accustomed to the heat of the forge, yet she was still perspiring a little.

Her feminine beauty would normally attract anyone who looked at her. Her hair had a strong color, her large breasts bounced as she walked from one side to the other.

However, as much as she sometimes took flirting attitude, as was the case with Luke. She commanded the forge with an iron fist.

No blacksmith, no matter how old or experienced, was able to raise his voice or oppose Hephaestus’ presence. That woman was a leader with a powerful dominating gaze.

“You’re bending the blade Leon! That’s a rapier, not a Katana! You imbecile!”

Every direction was followed to the letter. And the voice of those blacksmiths was never heard inside the forge. The only time they could answer anything was after a direction from Master Hephaestus.

“Yes ma’am!” Spoke the young blacksmith, returning to work shortly thereafter.

“Nice throwing knife Dante! Make five more of those and I’ll let you produce a small dagger!”

“Ye-yes! Ma’am!” replied another blacksmith.

Many preferred not to answer at all, just following the orders for fear of upsetting the forge mistress.

All these commands were precise, she knew every detail of the different production processes needed to make a good item. This gave her a gigantic mastery, with extremely perceptive eyes, she could help all those blacksmiths evolve and produce incredible equipment.

That woman seemed completely focused on her task of managing the forge. However, the truth was that in her head only one question was echoing.

How am I going to deliver the gift to the brat?

Her memories kept flashing before her eyes. Memories of the not so distant past.

They were sweet memories of his time with his teacher, Ezra’s mother. But at the same time that this feeling of missing her former friend was prevailing, doubt and indecision was consuming this strong woman.

She had spent years preparing Ezra to become a real blacksmith. She followed her promise to the extreme, being extremely strict with little Ezra.

This behavior gave her both pride and grief. She never really knew how to take care of this little blue-haired blacksmith.

She knew that she should be strong with him, so that he would grow up good and skilled in the art of forging. She had always been extremely strict with Ezra and he had never, at any time, rebelled. No matter how complex the request, how intense the response to Ezra’s work, he always responded by working hard and smiling.

There was much about that child that reminded Emily of her master Livie. That legendary blue-haired Ferreira, but to Hephaestus she was more than a teacher, she was his best friend.

Hephaestus had thought for years about what that moment would be like. The day she would fulfill her master’s last request, to give this gift to her best apprentice, Ezra.

This was a simple task in her mind, but taking this action would be more complicated.

‘Fuck it, I’m just gonna give it to him today” Hephaestus thought, crossing his arms and sighing.

*sigh*

All the smiths around the forge master felt a chill run down their spines. Some broke into a cold sweat, getting chills.

It was frightening to them to hear Hephaestus sigh. For it could mean that she was annoyed by the attitude of one of the apprentices present.

This would mean several shouts and orders, perhaps extra work. But the truth that none of them imagined was that Hephaestus was just nervous.

Her heart was pounding, a nervousness that made her feel like a delicate lady.

Sometimes it showed her feminine nature, which she tried her best to hide under the mask of a powerful female blacksmith.

In the end, her mind was made up. She was going to give the hammer to Ezra today, probably after Luke had already left. That way she could have a moment alone with her apprentice.

That woman was taking much stronger steps than usual, walking like an angry soldier. All this stress was causing her to behave differently, which only terrified her apprentices even more.

The younger students were sweating with nervousness. As for the more experienced ones with more time working under Hephaestus, their faces were just pale, ready for much more intense challenges and projects.

*

Ezra and Luke were still talking about the feedback from Sleepy Rain. The half-wolf commented on his idea to test the combination of the two magic circles.

“I was curious what the result would be. Maybe it would be possible to electrify the smoke” Luke said.

“Theoretically that is possible…” Said Ezra, scratching the back of his neck as he looked at his notepad.

[Luke, I don’t believe it’s possible to use these two incantations together]

‘What? What do you mean?’

[I was just thinking, maybe it’s not possible to use just these two incantations]

‘What do you mean by that?’

[Not just these two. Try controlling the smoke with the external sword incantations. Controlling it to become a better electrical propagation medium]

‘I see… so I would need to use all three at the same time’

[Exactly. I’m almost one hundred percent sure that the function of the external enchantment is not just to stabilize the sword’s mana]

‘Got it, thanks Balance’

[Relax, now go ahead and test it]