Blacksmithing Is Child’s Play for a Dark Mage - Chapter 4

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 4
‘This is rather inconvenient.’
Tei thought to himself.
He’d come down here today intending to test the Imp’s power lightly.
To see just how impressive this Imp Butler really was.
But the magic proved more potent than he’d anticipated.
According to what he’d learned beforehand, an Imp could cast three types of magic.
Flame. Flame Infusion. Light Curse.
Flame was, literally, a spell that hurled fire at an opponent—burning them for roughly three seconds, he’d heard.
It inflicted burns and that was the end of it. It didn’t explode or deal Dot Damage like Adhesive Flame would.
Still, it packed decent offensive power, so it was worth using.
Flame Infusion.
It wreathed weapons in flame. Nothing spectacular, but serviceable enough, or so he’d been told.
Light Curse was much the same.
It inflicted light pain on the body, useful in combat, they said.
Even so, those three alone proved remarkably useful.
Most Black Mage aspirants transitioned from swordsmen, so the Black Mage themselves fought armed with a sword and shield, and if they had coin enough, armor as well, with an Imp perched on their shoulder—making them count as one and a half fighters.
That was the standard assessment.
But the Imp Butler was supposed to be more impressive than that!
So he’d come to test it, and sure enough, it wielded the remarkable Adhesive Flame spell.
He’d only seen it use that one magic so far, but there were supposedly several others in its arsenal.
He’d been planning to have it deploy those as well, hoping to steal and learn those spells.
But.
He hadn’t managed to steal them yet. And now, of all times, he’d run into another band of mercenaries.
—Ash. Hide behind my back.
With summoned demons, he could communicate like Telepathy, trading thoughts directly.
So Tei swiftly tucked Glashalavolias out of sight behind him.
After that, the others spotted them. There were three on that side.
A standard formation.
One wielded a shield and hand axe, another carried a shield and iron mace.
The third had a bow, and all three wore helmets with lanterns affixed to the crowns.
Lantern Helmets.
They freed both hands and proved handy for illuminating the surroundings.
Cheap mercenaries typically used them when clearing out the Sewers.
“Huh? What’s this. You alone, friend?”
“Just trying to turn a modest profit. Came down solo.”
“Damn, you don’t value your life much, do you? Don’t wander alone out here. You’ll get yourself killed quick.”
“That’s why I stick to the entrance. How’s the haul been treating you?”
“The haul? Not great, honestly.”
They drew closer as they spoke.
And in the moment when they’d drawn near enough to appraise each other properly—
The archer swiftly nocked an arrow to his bowstring.
Twang! Crack!
Tei yanked up his shield to block the arrow, then bolted inward at full speed.
“Hey! Jensen! You missed that shot!”
“The bastard’s getting away! Shut up and grab——”
“Adhesive Flame.”
“Shrieeeeeeeek!”
But.
They hadn’t seen the Imp clinging to Tei’s back, so they fell prey to the magic instantly.
As the Adhesive Flame latched onto the archer’s face and began to burn, he shrieked and clutched at his face, rolling across the ground in agony.
But the fire wouldn’t extinguish. It began charring his hands as well, and he thrashed about, wailing in what sounded like the torment of the damned.
—Ally has been afflicted!
—Screams of agony echo forth!
—Lowest-tier demon sighted!
—Exposure to Mental Erosion wavelength detected!
—Sanity check failed!
—Confusion status inflicted!
Had this been a game, such messages would have flashed across the screen at that moment!
When the archer fell, the two warriors in forward positions began to stammer—uh, uh, uh—before their eyes rolled back and they let out anguished screams, their minds shattered.
“Aaaaaahhh! Get away, get away! A demon! It’s a demon! Aaaaaahhh!”
One of them screamed and bolted, plunging straight into the sewage canal beside him.
Having thrown himself into water thick with filth, drowning was the least of his worries—disease would claim him regardless.
In truth, survival itself seemed questionable.
“Die! Die!”
The other, seized by a Berserk State, came charging after Tei as he retreated inward.
But Tei had already turned to face him, sword ready, and his magic was primed.
“Adhesive Flame.”
Whoosh!
The flame shot toward the mercenary’s face.
Yet the shield-and-axe mercenary, wild with berserking, blocked it with his shield and charged forward regardless.
That was when it happened.
“Darkness Obscuring Eyes.”
The Imp Glashalavolias deployed a new spell.
-The Measurement of Madness ability activates.
-[Magic Spell: Darkness Obscuring Eyes] acquired.
‘Jackpot! An extra spell!’
Tei surged forward with exultation.
Though locked in Berserk State, the mercenary hesitated the moment darkness swallowed his sight—and Tei closed the gap in a flash, driving his blade home without mercy.
Squelch!
The sword pierced clean through his neck.
“Gack! Ghhhk!”
The mercenary crumpled. Tei withdrew his blade, and the body collapsed.
“Phew… nearly bought it there.”
“Hmm. So humans are contemptible creatures, after all.”
“A demon lecturing me on morality?”
“Contractor. Do you harbor prejudices against demons, perhaps?”
What kind of nonsense was that, demon?
“Demons aren’t exactly virtuous, are they?”
Tei, exasperated, found himself saying just that.
Wait—what was a demon doing moralizing to a human!
“If you state truth so cowardly, how can I refute it?”
“Then don’t.”
Still bantering idly, Tei approached the corpse.
Time to claim his spoils.
* * *
One had been swept into the sewers; his fate unknown. Only two corpses remained.
Tei stripped them bare, pocketing anything of value and dumping the rest into the adjacent sewer.
Remarkably, the magical forces of this ancient ruin purified even the foulest waste.
The fact that it disposed of corpses was all the better.
Thus laden with plunder, Tei emerged with bundles of goods slung across his frame.
The guard at the sewer entrance—stationed there because monsters made their home below—deliberately looked away.
Humans killing one another in the sewers was commonplace; touching such affairs was an unwritten taboo.
-I’ve been away from the human realm for ages, and yet to see such decay… it strikes me profoundly.
-You know classical sayings too?
What was this—a fantasy world or a martial legend?
Tei thought it for a moment, then let it drop.
Glashalavolias was using Shadow Permeation, a spell only demon-kind could wield, to hide within Tei’s shadow—and true to his word, Tei could not steal this magic for himself.
-The spell cannot be acquired due to racial restrictions.
That was the message that appeared.
Pity.
Still, he’d stolen two spells today—a windfall indeed.
After all, mercenaries in debt service, especially Black Mages, had to pay separately to learn new spells.
It all came down to money, didn’t it?
In any case, laden with spoils, Tei made his way to the blacksmith he frequented.
“Welcome.”
“Yeah.”
“Wow, Tei. Did you kill someone? Why are you carrying so much?”
“Yeah. Killed a few.”
“Eeeek!”
Harundel was a sprawling commercial city, and with monsters infesting even the Sewers, mercenaries maintained a constant presence there.
Naturally, there were numerous blacksmith shops catering to these mercenaries.
Tei had once crossed paths with a small blacksmith and become a regular customer—this very shop.
It was run by a single stubborn man in his fifties.
And one twenty-year-old Apprentice, an orphan by origin.
Just the two of them operating the entire forge.
“So these are…?”
“Took them off some bastards who came at me wanting blood. Calculate the buyback price.”
“Wait, wait just a moment!”
The young man, lean-muscled as befitted one who worked a forge, bolted into the back room.
A broad-shouldered middle-aged man emerged in his stead.
He glanced at Tei and spoke.
“Still in one piece, I see.”
“Not dead yet, at any rate.”
“Is that so. Let’s have a look… The Iron Mace is salvageable—I can fix it up and sell it. This sword, though—scrap metal value at best.
“Whatever you think fair. It’s not as if this is our first dealing.”
“You keeping this helmet?”
“Buy it.”
“What… why is it scorched like this? This one’s scrap metal too.”
“Just appraise it as you see fit.”
Tei conversed with the Blacksmith in an easy, familiar manner.
He made no attempt to haggle, trusting the man completely.
“Tsk, tsk. You’re going to get yourself cheated one of these days.”
“You’ve helped me before—what’s a little loss to me?”
“Shameless, truly…”
Grumbling, the Blacksmith disappeared into the back, returning moments later with coin in hand.
“Here you go. I’ve told you a hundred times you should become a blacksmith yourself…”
“I already told you—I was a Crafting Hunter in my past life, but I was a fraud at it.”
Tei smiled crookedly as he spoke.
It was true.
He had been a Crafting Hunter in his previous life.
The problem was he’d never been a proper blacksmith!
“There you go spouting that nonsense again. Past life, my foot…”
“But it’s the truth.”
Tei took the purse and rose to his feet.
“Stay well.”
“You watch yourself.”
“Will do.”
Tei offered his farewell and left the blacksmith shop.
* * *
“Debt Repayment received.”
“Much obliged.”
Tei walked out of the Black Spear Guild’s counter.
Turning the tables on those who’d ambushed him and selling off their gear had netted him a tidy sum.
Even after paying his monthly Debt Repayment, he had a comfortable cushion left over.
So now he planned to seek out magical items.
Having become a Black Mage, it only made sense to acquire a Black Mage’s tools.
The great city had several shops dealing in magical wares, though Tei had never visited one—he’d been too poor a mercenary before.
So he went based on the guild’s recommendation and found a respectable three-story establishment.
-This must be connected to the Black Spear Guild out back.
-Naturally it would be.
-Hmm. Wouldn’t it be better to try somewhere else entirely?
-Perhaps. But I’d likely get cheated elsewhere. This place seems more trustworthy, all things considered.
Being a Black Mage was far easier than being a blacksmith
Author |
Automaton G
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(주) Samyang C&C
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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