?


    Before the trio knew it, they were surrounded by a group of dwarfs, all eager for them to enter their specific workshops and smithies. Amid the chaos, they were pushed into a smithy without even realizing it.


    *m*


    A dwarf wearing a brown woolen tunic closed the door as he stood in front of it, looking at Lyrian and the others. After a few seconds, the sounds from outside dissipated.


    "Finally... there gone. They are like piranas you know" He said, breathing a sigh of relief.


    "Yea... haha." Alten nervously chuckled.


    "Well, I would be lying if I said I wasn''t either. Wee to my workshop, you three!" The dwarf suddenly announced, reaching for a clean, long ck apron, "A broken sword you say? My, you havee to the right ce." He said as he put the apron on.


    "Well, we really didn''t have a choice. But, are you sure you will be able to fix the sword?" Lyrian questioned.


    The dwarf paused for a second, having a second of realization as to what Lyrian first said, "Haha! I suppose you are correct, you really didn''t have a choice. And can I fix it? What kind of question is that! Haha! Of course, I can. I am a cksmith after all."


    On saying this, the dwarf walked further back. In the middle of the workshop was arge metal anvil sitting atop a short piece of log. To the sides were multiple cupboards and stands with many adorned tools, and at the very back was a giant forge.


    He made his way behind a table to the left side of the room and put his hands down on it as he asked, "So, what kind of sword is it? Let me see its condition."


    Lyrian took the hilt of his de and pulled it out from his sheath beforeying it down on the table. "I also hav--" He tried to say, reaching for his pouch that held the obsidian pieces, as he was abruptly cut off.


    "ck?" The dwarf said, quickly picking the hilt up as he inspected it in the air with a keen eye, "Obsidian!?" He said with a tone of shock.


    "Boy... where did you get such a de..." He then asked slowly, putting it back down on the table.


    ''Woah... is the de rare or something? To get such a reaction from a master cksmith.'' Alten thought to himself on observing the dwarf.


    "This de? I got it from my hometown."


    On hearing Lyrian''s reply, the dwarf did not hesitate to speak, "As I thought! Boy, this de is useless! What kind of smith creates a sword out of obsidian? I couldn''t think of a worse material for a de!" He suddenly blurted.


    "Wh--what?" Lyrian was slightly taken aback by this, as were the other two.


    "What indeed! Listen to me, the de of a sword is something meant to kill other people. It is not an instrument of fun, but instead chaos. For such a thing, the material needs to be powerful, durable! Obsidan on the other hand is not only cheap and scrappy, but it is no more durable than ss!" The dwarf said with dignity.


    Lyrian paused to think about this for a moment before speaking, "So... you won''t be able to fix it?" He spoke calmly.


    Hearing this reply, the dwarf also paused before speaking, "...No, I won''t be able to fix this. To bepletely honest with you, I don''t even know how. As dwarfs, we burn, bend, melt, and shape magnificent swords, weapons! We forge. Obsidian... cannot be forged. I''m afraid you''re out of luck here."


    Lyrian was slightly surprised to hear all this, but it wasn''t going to discourage him. He also knew that he didn''t want to waste a lot of time here in the dwarf vige, so he decided to move on.


    "Then... that''s alright." He said, sheathing the hilt, "Thank you for trying at least. We will go now." He said, turning around as the others did the same and followed.


    "No problem! If you have a metal sword or any weapon for that matter, I''ll be sure to help. Good luck!" The dwarf said on their way out.


    After they left, he couldn''t help but think to himself, ''That boy... he''s here for the exam, isn''t he? How has he gone so far with such a de? Such a thing is better off as a decoration piece than a weapon. How fearsome! If he were to get a real sword, I wonder what kind of damage he could deal...''


    ...


    "Yeesh! What a bummer. The guy boasted his ass off but couldn''t fix it in the end." Alten said as they walked through the streets, looking for another workshop.


    Leon replied, his viewpoint slightly different, "You can''t really me him. I don''t know much about smithery from my family, since I am only a swordsman, but obsidian is never even brought up as a useful element to forge with."


    Lyrian didn''t really care too much about any of that, "Eh, whatever. I''m sure we will eventually find one that can forge obsidian. I mean, even my old man did it. Would it really be so hard?"


    "Well that''s the thing, it''s not about it being hard, the process is just so useless that no one knows how to do it since they haven''t practiced it," Alten added just to say.


    "Well, nheless, we still have to try." Lyrian responded, as the other two nodded, "Okay listen up everyone!" He suddenly began to shout,


    "I still need my sword fixed! Who is the best cksmith here to help me!"


    Hearing this, Leon smirked, "Hah, Smart. Using what you have to your advantage."


    Out of nowhere, several dwarfs rushed up to the three again, all of them inviting the trio to their own workshops.


    "The best? That would be me! My work includes the Roaring Dragon Sword!" A dwarf in the group surrounding them yelled out.


    "No, I am! My prized creation is the Seven Serpent Spears!"


    "Catastrophe Scythe!"


    "Mings Rod!"


    "Spider w!"


    "Horse Shoe!"


    Hearing thest one, Alten suddenly eximed in confusion, "What? Horseshoe?"