Chapter 6 - Learning

I knocked on the door. Twice. The sun had just risen, and the sounds of chirping birds traveled to my ears despite being in the city. The door opened, and Armon said in a grumpy voice, "You're 10 minutes late."

"Sorry," I said scratching my head, "The streets were bustling with people, could hardly get past the morning rush."

"Hmpf" The old man stared me down and after a few seconds he said, "Come on, the faster you do the chores, the more you can learn..."

I hurried inside. I began with cutting the lawn. Unfortunately, this world hadn't invented a lawn mower here, something I would have killed for right know."

It took two whole hours doing all the chores required for today. The only slightly funny part about it was feeding the fishes. They were on a different level than the ones at home on Earth. They practically leaped from the water surface, catching the fish-food in the air.

After doing the chores, I went inside the forge. I saw Armon forging. It was a sight I would never forget. Under the frail appearance of a geezer, there was an athletic physique resembling a Greek god.

Bang. Bang Bang. Bang. Bang

His strikes were twice the speed of mine. No, trice. After a few minutes, the sounds ceased. Armon picked up the sword blade and examined it, "Have I becomed so rusty?"

He threw it away in a corner and turned around, "Already done?"

"Yes, Teacher" I puffed my chest.

"Cheeky bastard," He muttered and said, "Well, come here, let me teach you the components of a sword..."

I hurried over before examining the sword blade that Armon had made.

Iron Sword (Blade) Legendary

An incomplete sword made by a master blacksmith. Imbued with the essence of might. A peerless masterpiece.

Special effect: Sharpness X, Bleed III

Extra skill: Moon Slice

250-265 damage

I swallowed saliva, "Holy cow..."

Armon and I sat down on the floor. The old man's eyes suddenly became serious as he took up white chalk and made four pictures on the floor. He pointed at the first one. It was the shape of a blade.

"The first component of a sword is the blade." Armon said and continued, "This component is the largest one and has two essential parts worth mentioning: The Edge and the back,"

I engraved them into my memory and continued to listen.

"The edge is what makes a sword sharp. There are two common ways: Either single-edged or doubled edged." Armon said before asking me, "Can you guess some advantages of them?"

"Hmm..." I took a few seconds before I made a guess, "Doubled edge is faster?"

"Bingo," Armon smiled, "The double edge has more penetration power, and is faster than the single-edged due to less weight. It also has the benefit of having two sharp sides, giving the wielder more flexibility."

"However..." Armon looked me straight in the eyes, "Everything has its pros and cons. A double-edged sword weights less and therefore the durability is lower. Also, the force you can generate becomes stronger the more weight a sword has, meaning, the single-edged wins in a power contest when compared to the double. edged."

Armon let me take a couple of minutes rest so that I can analyze what he said. After thinking about it for a while, I broke the silence and spoke, "Let's continue."

He nodded and said, "The back and the flat are simple. The flats are sides of the blade: They should be completely flat to minimize air resistance. The back only appears on the single-edged sword and is rather interesting."

Armon brought his fist up in the air and slammed it down into the ground. The floor nearly cracked under the force as Armon declared "The back is useful for variation, switching from cutting strokes to mighty crushing blows can be a deadly technique if learned correctly.

"Now..." Armon began to disclose the rest of the parts.

The hilt. The guard. The pommel and the blade. I had learned the four parts of a sword.

"John.." Armon said to me, "For a true blacksmith to recognize the value of these parts and techniques he needs to experience them..." before pointing at side right side of the forge, "Take that sword and follow me to the lawn..."

I picked up the swords as instructed and followed him out.

He picked up one of the swords and announced, "Watch closely.."

He stood quietly as the wind blew. His eyes opened, and he drew the sword forward in an upward motion. The blade danced around him in slow-motion in order for me to learn. The strokes were with filled with might, emitting the essence of a mountain. Sturdy and unwilling to compromise.

I mimicked his movements. It took some time before I felt strength flow through my arms as I swung my sword. My whole body was full of sweat and I laid down on the grass, gasping for air, after barely a minute.

A blacksmith's legacy

Blacksmiths forge with might. Their sword techniques are hammers raining down the sky.

Grade: Epic

"Hmm..." Armon ran his hand through his beard and said, "Your strength and endurance are far to low if you want to become a great blacksmith or a swordsman..."

I nodded my head. I only had 10 in all of the attributes when I came to the world. I had earned three more in strength, and 4 in endurance after the forging yesterday, putting my strength at 13 and 14 in the latter. Far too little...

"After you complete your sword, you should go into the forest just outside the city and kill some monsters, "Armon and suggested, "You could sign up as an adventure as well, earning a few points from a slime-slaying quest."

We called it a day, and I passed through a shop and bought a few vials of monster blood: 2 from wolves and one from a bear. After entering my room, I was excited to try out my Inscription skill. I put the brush in the blood and began to draw. I imagine a wolf. Fast and agile. Hunting prey with speed and finesse.

Inscription failed Inscription failed Inscription failed

After countless of tries, I finally succeeded. I looked down at the symbol that excluded a feeling that reminded me of wolfs.

Silver Wolf Glyph (16%)

Empowered by the silver wolf's blood. This glyph boost agility.

"Interesting.." I thought after reading the description, "I suppose bear gives strength and endurance, using that on an armor would help me significantly with my forging and practice of sword technique.

I switched the silver wolf blood for the bear blood and imagined a huge bear; trashing around in the forest. Tilting trees as I hunted, how it ripped animals with massive power. The feeling of strength flowed through my mind into the glyph. It flashed and a notification popped up on my first try.

Brown Bear Glyph (18%)

Empowered by the brown bear's blood. This glyph boosts Strength and endurance.

"Awesome..." I seemed to have more affinity with the bear. I furthermore guessed that fighting monsters make it easier to inscribe their power and condense them into glyphs. I set aside the Inscription skill for now and thought about the future once again. I wanted to learn some other professions. Enchanting would be interesting, as well as alchemy. Leatherworking and tailoring didn't interest me so much, but a life-saving potion sounded pretty good in my ears.

My goal should be to complete my sword and some armor. Then Inscribing them with the bear glyph. Enchanting them as well, but I'll set that aside for now, since I have no clue how to do it.

I felt tired so I cleaned up and laid down on the bed. It had been a long day and my body was still sore from the sword practice. Day 3 so far. I blew out the candle and soon snores filled the room...