It’s a far more intricate process than what he’s used to doing.

Usually, hammering away and smashing things into place is more of Hineni’s typical style of crafting. But the process for these specific items is far more artistic.

The man sits on the floor, hunched over as he works, using a bunch of ingots as a low-standing table.

He cracks his neck.

They really ought to get some chairs for the forge, but then again, they’ve never needed any until now.

And maybe having chairs around will lower their productivity? Then again, Sockel has a chair that she sits on for most of the day and she’s plenty productive.

Honestly, he doesn’t know. So he makes a mental note to ask Seltsam to look up the effect of chairs on productivity for him tomorrow.

Hineni lifts the metal rod, hammering it into the orichalcum again, to start deepening the indent more, so that it looks like the picture in the book, which he has open next to himself. The hardest part of the project was cutting out the rough shape of the whole thing. A skull isn’t exactly round and it isn’t exactly anything. There’s kind of an oval-like structure, but then there’s something more rectangular at the bottom-front for the jaw and making that out of metal is a challenge that he hadn’t been expecting to face.

But perhaps this is exactly what he needs, to develop more as a craftsman?

He needs to leave his comfort zone of swords and axes and start making real, challenging things again.

Hineni hammers away, awash in the mild glow of the fire.

“What’s your problem?” barks Eilig’s voice.

Hineni, his eyes dry and heavy, turns to look at the fairy. “Eilig,” says Hineni. “What’s up?”

“What’s up is that you’re making a ruckus and I can hear it all the way downstairs!” she yells at him. “I can’t sleep!”

Hineni blinks. “Sleep?” he asks. “Is it still nighttime?”

“What? Of course it’s still nighttime, dummy!” she snaps. He notices that she isn’t wearing her dress, given that she’s more or less just her usual shape of a semi-invisible blob. Presumably, she’s using the same reasoning that he had used against Selstam earlier.

He’s surprised though. He’s been so immersed in his work, that he was sure it would be a new day by now. But apparently, it’s still the same night.

He sighs. “Sorry, Eilig, I’ll…” He lowers the hammer. “Wait a minute.” Hineni turns his head to look at the fairy. “You can’t hear the forge down in the ice-cellar.”

The fairy’s wings buzz in agitation. “Shut up! Go to bed, you weirdo!” she says. “Like all of the normal people.”

Hineni rubs his face, smearing some metal-oil and some slivers onto himself by mistake. But he’s too tired to care. “Why is everyone lying so much lately?” he asks.

“Lying?” asks the fairy, sharply. She flies closer towards him. “You’re a weirdo and that’s the truth.”

Hineni shakes his head, understanding. “Thanks for worrying about me, Eilig,” he says. “I’m fine. I just got kind of obsessed with this project,” he says, pointing down at the half-finished orichalcum skull.

The fairy flies up away from him, having perhaps learned her lesson about being too close to him. “As if I would worry about you. My life would be five times better if you hadn’t come back!”

“You were dead before I came back, Eilig,” states Hineni.

“Exactly!” she exclaims. “Go to sleep,” says the fairy, buzzing away, back up towards the heating shaft.

Hineni watches her go.

She has her difficulties with being nice. But it’s nice that so many people are worried about him.

Perhaps it’s a little selfish to make them worry like this, honestly?

He looks back down at the skull.

The skull looks back up at him, its half hewn eyes glimmering in the vague firelight.

Hineni lifts the chisel and returns to his work.

“Wow, you look like shit,” says Sockel.

Finally, some honesty.

Hineni sits there, hunched over, rubbing the orichalcum skull with a rag. He had spent all night carving it, forming it, detailing it and now, polishing it.

“I pulled an all-nighter,” says Hineni, yawning. “Just taking some inspiration from your old work-ethic.”

“Old?” she asks incredulously. “I still work my butt off here too, you know?” she asks. “I just don’t have to pull double shifts anymore all the time.”

“Sorry,” says Hineni. “I didn’t mean it like that, Sockel,” he says, lifting the skull up. “You do great work here and I really appreciate it. Thank you.”

She rolls her eyes. “Put a shirt on, work hours are starting,” she says. “You know the rules.”

Hineni sighs, slowly becoming too tired to argue. As a professional shady-type, Sockel certainly knows how to accurately time her attacks. He reaches over, grabbing his shirt, that he had thrown off the night before, and crudely puts it back on.

She turns her head, looking at the shield, propped up by the door. “I mean, I guess it was a success,” she says. “But we just made thirty-thousand Obols last night. We’re not hurting for money, are we?” she asks. Sockel narrows her eyes. “You’re not financing a second wife in secret, right?”

Hineni rolls his eyes. “I’m a one-woman man, Sockel,” says Hineni. “As if I have the energy for two.”

“I won’t tell her you said that,” replies the elf.

Hineni drops the greasy rag, lifting up the skull to show her. “It’s not about the money, Sockel,” explains Hineni. “It’s about the job.”

- [Orichalcum Skull]{Whisper of the owl-god} -

- Quality -

High

- Composition - 100% Orichalcum

- Quality Effects -

High: 24% Durability

“Whisper of the owl-god”

Adds additional attributes to the attached weapon - Title Effect - “Whisper of the owl-god” +335% Radius When activated: Immediately begins draining the SOUL-POINTS of any entity within a radius of 10.05 Meters at a rate of 333/Second until deactivated. An orichalcum skull. Entwined with the lights of a deadly fire and the spirit of death, this magic-repelling skull radiates a horrible energy. ‘Made by weaponsmith Hineni - Chosen of the Owl God’ Weight: 0.5kg Durability: 50/50 Value: 15000 Obols

“Fuck!” hisses Sockel, looking around the forge. She snatches the skull out of his hands, hiding it beneath a cloth and wiping away the item’s status window. “You made this?” she asks. “Are you trying to get us killed?” she hisses. “Holy shit.”

Hineni blinks. That’s more of a heated reaction than he would have expected from the ever calm and cool Sockel.

“This?” he asks. Hinnei points to his side. “I made five of them, Sockel,” says Hineni, getting right to the point.

“Why?!” she asks, kneeling down. The elf taps her head. “This is big-league stuff. We’re laughing our way to the bank making some dumb swords and arrows,” she says. “Big-ticket items are trouble,” she explains, running over to snatch the others and hide them beneath the cloth too. “And these things? They’re big tickets.”

“I’m a weaponsmith, Sockel,” explains Hineni, getting up. “I make weapons. It’s what I do.”

“There’s a small difference between this and a knife,” she argues, her ears twitching. “Three hundred soul-points a second for everything in ten meters?” asks the elf. “Do you know what the hell this means?”

“Yup,” says Hineni, nodding proudly. “Always stand eleven meters away from a skull.”

She prods a finger into his chest, looking up at him. “Very cute. Do you know how many people in this city are going to come after these?” she asks. “If anyone finds out they exist, we’ll have generals coming to us, stepping over heaps of dead assassins!”

“Yeah,” says Hineni. “Sockel. We’re not in this to coast through it comfortably,” explains Hineni. “We’re in this to win this,” he says. “I don’t know what the frogs are up to, and if you and Rhine know, you both aren’t telling me,” he notes. Sockel’s ears twitch. “I’m taking measures into my own hands. We’re not playing small anymore.”

She rolls her eyes, tsking. “I’m trying to retire here, you know?” she asks. “Got a nice cushy desk job and everything.”

Hineni gets up, dusting himself off. “We’ll talk about retirement packages later,” he says, pointing at the skulls that she’s covered. “First, I need you to organize the construction of a vault for high-value items.”

Sockel sighs, rubbing the bridge of her nose. “A vault?” she asks. “I mean, I guess it’s better than leaving them laying on the table, but…” She groans. “Are you sure this is the road you want to go down?” she asks.

“I might be a homebody, but I’m not made for the cushy life,” replies Hineni, picking up his tools and putting them away. “And send a message to Avarice,” he says. “Ask him if he’s interested in making some money.”

Obscura clicks and hisses, poking and prodding him as he sits there at the breakfast table. “Foolish Hineni,” she hoots. “I fear that he will never grow wiser than he is.”

“Sure won’t,” replies Hineni, lifting up his glass of juice to look at it with his tired eyes. “Sorry I didn’t stay in bed,” he says. “But this project got stuck in my head and it was important for me to finish.” He takes a drink. The sour sweetness is more than his senses had been expecting and he winces, smacking his mouth and sets it back down.

“Should I run the forge today?” asks Rhine. “You can sleep.”

Hineni shakes his head. “You’re ready, Rhine. But I’m fine,” he says, yawning.

Obscura hoots. “Rhine will do the Hineni work and he will do the sleep.”

“I’ll go to bed early tonight,” promises Hineni, lifting a hand.

“Didn’t you tell me once that it’s dangerous to be in the forge if I didn’t sleep?” asks Rhine, rubbing his lip with the back of his thumb.

“Boy,” growls Hineni.

Rhine straightens up.

Hineni looks at him and then sighs, rubbing his own forehead. “No, sorry. You’re right, Rhine,” he concedes. Hineni shakes his head. “I guess not sleeping is making my temper hot.” Hineni gets up. “I’ll take a nap,” he says, looking down at his untouched breakfast. “You’re in charge while I’m asleep, Rhine.”

“Really?!” asks Rhine. Hineni nods. Rhine looks over to Sockel with a smug expression. “Guess who’s sweeping today?”

Sockel, sitting on the outside of the booth, squeezes herself in, squishing a complaining Rhine into the corner. She starts eating his breakfast. “Mm,” says Sockel. “Food sure is good today.”

Hineni leaves them to it, heading upstairs. A group of five adventurers walk by on their way out to the dungeon. “Good hunting,” says Hineni.

“Thank you, have a nice day!” replies the man, his party trailing after him.

Hineni yawns, heading to their bedroom.

He opens the door, standing in the door frame and staring at their bed, freshly made, with the blanket on his side tucked open, as if waiting for him to crawl beneath it.

He’s very tired.

Hineni takes off his clothes and gets ready for bed, but then doesn’t quite manage to find his way into it, still standing half-way across the room.

A pair of taloned hands wrap themselves around him from behind. “He fears the bad dream, yes?” asks Obscura’s voice. He didn’t hear her come in after him. He turns his head to look at her, feeling her rub her face into his back. “Come. I will lay until he sleeps,” says the owl-god. “Then I will work.”

Hineni nods, heading to bed and laying down beneath the blankets and resting his head on the pillow. Obscura lays down beside him and the two of them hold on to each other as Hineni closes his eyes, his exhaustion overcoming him.

He listens to the steady, strong beating of her heart. Its pulse moves through him as their bodies hold each other. One.

His muscles fall slack. He yawns. He’s very, very tired. It was a very productive night though.

Two. The heartbeat travels through his arms, wrapped around her.

The shield will for sure find a buyer and the skulls, he’ll be able to make some interesting bargains with those. Bargains that are worth more than just money.

Three.

Hineni sighs in relief, as his wakefulness leaves him and as he falls into a deep, deep sleep that his body desperately wants. He smiles. She’s

very warm.

- Four.

Hineni opens his eyes, looking at the green emeralds staring back at him.

“Ribbit~” says the big-frog, a four-fingered hand strokes his face.