“What don’t you get about what I’m saying?” Rex asked as he pinched his brown. It wasn’t a particularly hard request, just unorthodox. Regardless, his tough-looking friend, Linn, should have been all for it. She had become a moderately popular blacksmith after it came out that she outfitted The Unnamed Team. Their relationship was what made her business boom. It wasn’t completely wrong to say she was the proxy mom of the group, or at least the estranged aunt. They close. Even still, Linn wouldn’t budge on the current topic.

“For the third time, I don’t understand what you’re asking for. All I know is that you’re looking to blow up my forge.” Linn said. As a blacksmith, she was familiar with all types of weapons. Recent events have also made her more knowledgeable about exotic weapons, like those of the Haqsian Empire. She prided herself on completing custom orders and mentoring Rex during his time as an apprentice blacksmith, but this was far beyond her level of expertise. A silent prayer yearned for the days when this idiot only wanted a stick.

“No, not blow up. Controlled explosions. I just need some Blast Rock and a hollow tube.” Rex said. He was rather thorough in his initial explanation, so it was annoying to go over everything once again. The plan was to make a modern weapon. He had always wanted to, but creating guns with the current medievalesque technology was rather difficult. There was also a noticeable lack of materials, namely gunpowder. It was the main reason Rex opted to create a simple grenade with items that he had a surplus of.

“How about this? You make it and pay for any repairs needed after this stupid little episode of yours.” Linn said. There was a good reason no blacksmith worth their salt would use Blast Rock. It was a highly unstable resource. Simply transporting the seemingly innocent red gemstones was a significant risk. The slightest upset could cause an explosion rivaling that of nitroglycerin, a modern explosive chemical that was far from being discovered. It was why no one dared to use it. Most flinched at the sheer mention of the substance being near.

“Fine by me. Just don’t come crying to me when I make millions off of the recipe.” Rex said before walking off in a huff. He had hoped that at least his teacher would support him, but that was the level of influence Blast Rock had on people. Why the merchant Rex bought it from was so eager to sell suddenly made sense. He even managed to get a good price on it and safely got it to the city. Of course, he had to hide what he was bringing from the city guards.

Rex entered Linn’s forge and carefully placed his bag on the ground. He was far from the young naive man that first entered this place. Gone were the days of making sticks with someone else’s materials. Now, he was a man. He was a real blacksmith. Kind of. He didn’t have the class [Blacksmith], so his skill level had a predetermined max well below what it would have been if had the right class. That didn’t mean he couldn’t forge anything. Rex had practically perfected the art of making sticks. Making a hollow one shouldn’t have been much harder.

Rex emptied his bag and spread its contents onto the ground. He immediately threw his spare and broken rods into the crucible. The room’s furnace was more than willing to accept it into its warm embrace. While the metal heated, Rex unwrapped his Blast Rock. He made sure to take extra care when opening the cloth that shielded the explosive material. It was the only measure Rex had taken to keep the Blast Rock from exploding. Fortunately for him, it worked like a charm. The red gems looked beautiful in the flickering light of the furnace. One could almost forget how dangerous these stones were. Before long, their new proper container was completed.

“[HOLLOW IRON ROD] CONSTRUCTION COMPLETE.”

It wasn’t incredibly difficult to make a [Hollow Iron Rod]. What was more tedious was placing a cover on the bottom of the metal tube. Rex had to carefully place some Blast Rocks into his newest creation and attach another cover to seal the whole thing shut. Now, there was no escape for the innards. The only way out was to blow the whole structure apart, which would then send shrapnel everywhere. Special care was needed to handle such a delicate weapon. The slightest nudge could set it off.

Which was why bumping into the weapon rack behind him was the worst possible mistake. Swords, axes, and spears fell from their previous idle positions. The room was filled with the sounds of metal clanging against the stone floor. Rex practically froze in place, completely halting the movement of his hands. His face was visibly pale. He wasn’t sure if he’d survive a blast from point-blank range. Thankfully, nothing extreme happened. Rex breathed a sigh of relief as he turned to the forge’s main entrance. Careful steps took him closer.

Only to be greeted by the door opening at an alarming speed.

“I heard a crash! Are you alright?!” Linn shouted as she barged into the room. The door slammed into Rex. His grip was loosened and the Blast Rock-filled metal tube fell to the ground. All of the conditions needed for ignition were present. The only thing the two could do now was react. Rex kicked the door shut, pushing Linn out, and braced for impact.

The resulting explosion was a fantastic display of why no one alive kept a surplus of Blast Rock in the same place at once. It was a true testament to the power and risk the material held. Tales would be told about the day that the city shook due to a naive blacksmith’s antics. The only bright side of the experiment was that no one was seriously injured. Except for Rex’s bank account which was emptied to build Linn a completely new forge and store.