The 18th day in this town has turned out a very very happy day, as I got to spend the entire day smelting! To be clear, it isn’t because I am addicted to this warm and fuzzy feeling okay?

Due to my improvements in both skill and ability, I managed to make 15 [Bronze Ingots] and 6 [Iron Ingots] in just 1 day! Talk about bliss! The saddest part was calling it quits at dinner time! Why does something like dinner exist?!?!

I even got a bigger shock the day after when I realized I was out of things to smelt after only making 4 [Iron Ingots]! Conspiracy?!?!

Of course by completing 50 extra ingots, I again managed to complete a class quest and got another +1 PER.

So now the moment of truth, I claimed my 1 [Iron Ingot] and 2 [Bronze Ingots] and began my attempt at an [Iron Blacksmithing Hammer]!

It took me the entire day to smith the hammer, as it was the most difficult thing I have ever made so far. That said, I already had insight into Iron and making hammers from Doran. On top of that my skills and [PER] also improved. Interestingly enough even [END] helped keep me steady in making precise motions in my smithing.

Iron Blacksmithing Hammer

An average blacksmithing hammer made out of iron

+25 STR +5 DEX -30 AGI +4 ATK

+10% improvement for Blacksmithing

[Made by Shiro]

Durability: 1000/1000

Quality 5.0003/10.0000

Eureka!

Thus I retired Johnny, which by the way is what I named my [Bronze Blacksmithing Hammer], and put the freshly made Tommy in service!

Too bad it was the end of the day, so I could not take Tommy for a spin…

Only the next day did I finally put him to good use. My first aim was construction of a helmet. The biggest weakness of all humanoids is the head, and any attack on the head from a blind spot means instant death!

Normally making a full helmet would require 3 [Bronze Ingots]. But my requirements are much simpler since not only am I smaller than a typical full grown adult, I also don’t need a full helmet.

The helmet I need has to not get in the way of my agility and I only needs to cover the most vital parts. Which is the top of the head, back of the head and the neck. Though I have to also account for is my ears. I don’t want to press them down, neither do I want to leave them vulnerable...

So what I am thinking is something along the lines of one of those city guard helmets you see in shows where the top of their heads are covered in plate, with chainmail on the sides going around the neck. Except mine will have room for my cat ears which will be plate on the back side, and chainmail on the front.

The issue is that normally I would still slightly lack the materials to pull it off...But this is where my [All-Observing-Eyes] come in, and in more ways than one. First of all, using it I can tell where the weak points are on a beastkin’s head are. I can then fortify those areas with more fortifications, while skimping on materials in other areas. The only remaining factor is to insure structural integrity of the item, which is again where my Unique Skill along with my high [PER] shines.

Different from making a Blacksmithing Hammer like before, it is important to think about what attributes I wish to imbue it with. The probability of getting more of those attributes increase if I also use materials that reflect those attributes. Otherwise, the attributes will either be spread out or random. There is also a way to make the item stronger by setting restrictions on it. Similar to how the hammers have higher stats than normal, but in retrospect give negative of other stats.

In my case, what I am aiming for is an item which is focused more on agility since my number one importance is survival, aka running away.

The restrictions I am thinking of is the stat bonus would mostly be limited by the creator and requires a minimum level of 10. I would set it to 13, but the requirements are only possible in denominations of 5.

Overall though, setting these kind of restrictions is rather rare. Mostly because not only are the benefits minor, usually you would want to have the equipment sold to someone else later, especially if you are a blacksmith who gets XP from it. But in my case, where in the world would I find a 12 year old catkin who needs a helmet for combat? Even if I gave it away for free to a stray catkin I find somewhere, they’ll most likely sell it for scrap metal...

After spending an entire day on it, I was finally able to make it.

Catkin’s Specialized Bronze Plated-Chainmail Coif of Minor Agility

An average helmet made out of bronze that has been specialized by its creator to fit a young catkin while focusing on protecting vital areas.

+2 AGI +1 STR +1 DEX +1 VIT +25 DEF

Restrictions:

Minimum Level:

Level 10 – Benefit: +1 AGI | Penalty: 90% reduction in stats

Owner Restriction: Shiro

Benefit: +1 AGI | Penalty: 90% reduction in stats

[Made by Shiro]

Durability: 100/100

Quality 5.0007/10.0000

The results are a bit disappointing as I was hoping for Greater Agility. But in reality it came out better than expected. I was literally customizing a helmet with my own design, which speaks a lot since this is my first helmet, not to mention wanting stats. I wouldn’t have been surprised if quality fell below average and I got completely random stats. So considering the results, it was pretty good.

I am literally being hard carried by my skills and stats, then backfilled by my vague knowledge.

Of course when I finished it, the expected blue quest box appeared as well.

[Creationist] quest unlocked!

[Creationist] Armor creation

Produce 10 armors with at least a quality score of 1.

Type: Continuous 1/10

Status: 1/10

Reward: 1 [PER]

With this I am done with pretty much everything except making combat gear out of Iron. The next quarterly competition is within only 15 days. To win that competition and become an Intermediate Disciple, I need to steal the skills of an Advanced Disciple. If I fail to win this competition, I will need to wait another 3 months for another attempt, or 6 months until the yearly test which is more guaranteed. But personally I prefer to move up by winning via the competition, not only is it faster, there is another awesome perk attached!

I walk up to the dwarf sitting at the counter.

“Uhm… Hello, I would like to sign up for my yearly lesson with an Advanced Disciple please” I request.

“Didn’t ya just have a lesson with a Intermediate Disciple just a few days ago missy?” questioned the dwarf in confusion.

“Yes, I am done with mastering Iron, and am ready to go further for the competition” I reply while also showing off Tommy, my [Iron Blacksmithing Hammer].

“Ya gotta be kiddin’ me right missy?” exclaimed the dwarf while carefully examining every inch of Tommy.

“Nope! I am ready to take things up a notch!” I assure in a confident matter-of-fact tone.

“...I don’t know what to say missy, it is really hard to believe...But...the evidence is right here ha?...I will make a request with ya’r assigned Advance Disciple and see if he is open. Be warned though, as it gets closer to the competition, things can get rather booked.” advised the dwarf.

“I understand, thanks a bunch mister!” I reply and leave the counter.

Now then...until I get my confirmation, I should move on to the next step. That being making money! With my helmet finally made, and my combat skills overall improved, I should now attempt to face some monsters.

And I probably will need a decent amount of money...the reason is pretty simple. While the competition may seem fair at first, it is far from it. Not only are we separated by skill level, we are also separated by attainment level. An Intermediate Disciple can get access to steel. While at best, I would have to compete with iron. It is said that your skills are what is taken into account, not the material. But even that is BS to an extent. Steel is more difficult than Iron, so the hurdle in itself is higher. So even if I make the best Iron item I can manage, I would still lose out to a quality steel based item.

There is of course some respite in all this, steel fundamentally is made out of [Iron Ore] and [Coal]. So technically speaking, all I need to do is buy coal and combine it with my iron. But if I really want to show a good performance, I may need to actually buy higher quality [Iron Ore] and [Coal Ore] to attempt to make a higher quality steel item.

This is why from tomorrow on, I need to start making money via herbs and killing monsters!

Of course it was already too late for today, so I head out to have my poor excuse for dinner and get some shut eye for the long tomorrow.