After Hanma cleaned his shop it was time to go to town for supplies. Cleaning was the only task that wouldn’t make one faint to the immense heat wave that hit the country. A lot of people chose to close their shops around noon because of it. Most of the elderly people kept their shops open. Hanma was running out of ore rather quick after making a special sword for the costumer of this morning so he had to buy more. Luckily the ore merchant was an elder so that would mean he could go shopping at any moment of the day.

Walking the long road to town was very peaceful. Along the path were great forests, large fields, and lots of cattle roaming them. Every now and then someone would walk by and greet him as one does in the countryside. Greetings ranged from simple good evenings to them bowing depending on their status. The rich always feel like they need to show more dedication to everything they do. As always Hanma would check if the signs pointing out the location of his blacksmith shop were still standing. Sometimes the youth would knock them over for fun.

After a while, he could see the town in the distance. It is a fairly big settlement with a population of around two thousand people depending on the season. They were either explorers or merchants. This town called “Cairn” was one of the few mercantile towns in the country. Cairn was located at the center of the country. Because of this, roads that go out of it lead to many different regions and cities. Merchants and explorers would come and go so whenever Hanma visited he would always see new faces.

He greeted the gatekeepers and took a straight right into a small alley. He was visiting a shop that was only well known by the locals. This certain shop sells ores and other materials related to artisan jobs. Because the owner used to be a very skilled explorer and admired the artisans that would enable him to be one he set up this particular shop. It’s been twenty years now since he came to the town.

“Hello? Gregory! Are you here?”

“Good evening Hanma, how nice of you to come by. In need of supplies I reckon?” said the old man with a smile.

“Yes, I have had quite a few requests for handmade weapons these couple of weeks. I am burning through my metals faster than my forge can keep up.”

“I see. I am sorry to inform you but I think we may be running out of ore soon. You see, the local mine I get my minerals from has spawned a dungeon! It is too dangerous for the miner crew to go in at the time. I already asked the city council to deal with this but they told me it would not take priority. I should simply buy my stock from other merchants they suggested.” the old man his smile fainted away and he had a rather sad look on his face.

“Getting them from the mine is cheaper right? That would mean the prices would increase… isn’t there a party interested in clearing it?” Hanma asked.

“The guild has not set a bounty yet, and I have been told it is a low-level dungeon so the rewards aren’t that appealing for most explorers. Maybe if some starters would get notice of it they might make up their mind to try but as long as nobody talks about it nothing will happen”

Suddenly a tall white-haired man appeared from around the corner of the store. He was fairly tall but also really slender, wearing a white coat with a white shirt underneath. His pants and boots were black. With a better look, Hanma noticed the man was actually a young adult. Maybe two to three years older than himself.

“Did I hear the words low-level and dungeon? Ah! Finally a chance to show my worth! I have been trying to join expeditions but none of them would accept me. They all said I was too low of a level. I was on my way to the guild anyway to look for some quests so this seems like an encounter of fate!” The man looked like he found water after spending 2 days in the desert. Hanma thought to himself; “I do not understand people can be this happy about exploring dungeons. The only things that come out of it are treasure or death. Usually more death than treasure.”

“You do know that the guild is at the other side of town? Even if you came through the eastern gate you are taking quite a detour, sir… eehm.” the old man said while almost visibly shaking his head in disappointment.

“How rude of me. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Garth! A rookie explorer always looking for an adventure. I have my trusty sword by my side so I am unstoppable! This dungeon you speak of will be no challenge at all.” He looked way too overconfident for a rookie. It sounds like he has never completed a mission at all.

Hanma took a good look at his outfit and weaponry. It looks like he’s wearing leather armor but everything above his waist is painted white and everything down his waste is painted black. From the looks of it, his sword didn’t seem very sturdy.

“Can I see your sword?” Hanma asked Garth.

“Well, of course. You’ll notice that this may be one of the finest in the kingdom!” Without hesitating he took the sword further out of the scabbard and gave it to Hanma. He analyzed it for a bit and came to a conclusion rather quick.

“Your sword is dull. The edges are not sharpened and I can see some cracks in the metal work. If you were planning on exploring a dungeon with this it would break in no time. Want me to fix it for you? It would cost money of course. Nothing is for free.”

It looked like all of Garth’s spontaneous energy disappeared for a moment after hearing Hanma say that. He was quick to regain his composure and asked Hanma something.

“I don’t have any money on me anymore. That’s why I wanted to find some simple quests to do.“ Garth stood silent for a few seconds and it suddenly looked like he had a grand idea. ”How about this. If you fix my sword and accompany me into the dungeon I will give you half of all the loot I find! Is that a deal?”

Hanma hated expeditions. The thought of dying didn’t suit him at all and having to go through immense lengths to navigate, fight, and survive just was way too much for him to deal with. Of course, there also was the matter of his father.

“No. You can find somebody else.” he quickly answered. Now turning to the old shop owner. “Sorry I have to make this visit short, but I am getting rather tired just looking at him. Can you sell me the usual?”

“Coming right up!” The old man went into the back of the shop to get some more materials that weren’t displayed upfront in the store and when he had everything Hanma handed over the money.

Garth was still dumbfounded about what was happening. His pride just took a huge blow. He never expected someone to decline his proposal. He was a noble after all, just not a very smart one. Hanma collected his materials, properly paid the old man and waved his goodbyes.

“Don’t feel too offended.” The old man suddenly said. “He lost a loved one inside a dungeon. From that moment on he didn’t want anything to do with them. It did do something else on the contrary. It made his love for his trait even bigger. With a good smith comes good tools which protect their wielders.”

“Makes sense. I’ll take my leave as well.” Garth walked away with a look of determination on him.

“Not even a goodbye. The youth these days are getting bolder by the days.” The old man stumbles back to his chair. He was worried about the increasing cost of restocking his shop.

That dungeon needs to be cleared fast or I’ll be out of business in no time. That and Hanma needs to buy his materials for far more and up his prices as well. It will surely hurt his business, people are used to his low prices by now. He should have figured that out by now, I shan't worry too much.

Hanma chose to walk the same route home, but one thing he did not notice was a very white figure following him along the way.