Starting by taking out the loincloth from his inventory, Dorian washed it, scrubbing out clumps of dirt and the occasional dead critter that had died due to the smell. Squinting as his eyes watered and his sinuses ran, Dorian cut the loincloth into small pieces and put it into a new pot of water, almost hot enough to boil. Setting the pot next to the fire, he left them to soften while he worked on refining the other materials.

Looking at the water he used to wash the loincloth, he saw that it had turned black, with particles of sediment and who knew what else floating around in it. Tipping it out onto the street didn't seem wise, since he would he fined for pollution or causing damage to property, so, he put it in his inventory to throw out later.

[ you have obtained a jug of noxious liquid ]

This liquid is made up of very little water. It is a blend of various foul smelling materials and waste products.

> Throwing this on any living creature will cause blindness and incapacitation for 4 minutes.

> If ingested, it will cause severe poisoning and incapacitation until the status effect is cured.

- Don't drink this. Just. Don't. -

While the loincloth strips were soaking in clean water, Dorian moved onto the next part. Grabbing one of the goblin horns with tongs, he held it in the fire, watching as the outside slowly turned a polished grey colour in the fire. Taking it out, he held it over the anvil, beating it with heavy hammer blows, until it cracked into fragments.

As night arrived and Karsi moved to light the torches inside the forge, each bone shard shone in their flickering light. Taking each piece, he ground them into a fine powder, holding them once again over the flames. The powder, still mostly white at this point, slowly turned grey in the fire, glinting in the torchlight. This would act as a carbon source when he mixed it with the iron.

[ you have successfully processed the goblin horn ]

blacksmithing skill has gained xp! ]

you have gained Goblin bone powder ]

[ Goblin bone powder ]

One of the processed forms of Goblin bones that many craftsmen ignore.

- "Grind it nice and even now. No big bits." Forgemaster Valin -

With the loincloth strips stewing, and the goblin bone powder finished, Dorian started the furnace, putting the iron ore inside to melt down into its seperate pieces- pure iron and the slag that floated on top. Within minutes of pumping the bellows, he started to sweat. The fire, which had been a mild flame before, was roaring in the forge, almost translucent, and hundreds of times hotter than before.

Each breath he took burned his lungs, as even the air around the furnace rose in temperature. His hair was matted to his head, and his legs shook as he let go of the bellows. But still, it was far from complete. Opening a hole in the bottom of the furnace, molten iron poured out, flames leaping up as it trickled over a bed of sand, cooling rapidly into a bar. After it had cooled, Dorian picked it up, gingerly placing it in his inventory.

[ you have successfully refined iron ore! ] (5)

[ you have gained iron ingot ] (3)

The only other person in the forge was Karsi. Walking over to inspect the work, he nodded in approval.

" Looks like you've done some research before doing this." His grey eyes looked over Dorian, whose stamina had bottomed out repeatedly during this time. An almost indiscernible smile appeared on his face, hidden by his beard.

" If you need some help for the next part, I don't mind lending you a hand. "

Karsi grabbed Dorians shoulder, supporting his trembling body and guiding him to a nearby chair. Dorian had been working for two days without rest, continuously working on his plan. Karsi was about to start, when Dorian spoke up.

" Let me do it. I can do it. " Legs shaking, Dorian stood before Karsi, both of their eyes looking like hot coals in the fiery light of the forge.

" Very well. But I'm impressed. If you want, I can still teach you a few things. " Karsi shrugged, looking at Dorian expectantly.

[ Karsis' Lessons. ( A- ) ]

Quest description: Karsi has seen the spirit of perseverance in you. He will teach you his knowledge through hard work and practice.

Quest requirements: Very good affinity with Karsi.

Quest completion: Learn Karsis' Secret blacksmithing skills.

Quest reward: +500 Blacksmithing xp

+ 20 affinity with Karsi.

Title- Karsis' Apprentice.

Quest faliure: - 10 affinity with Karsi. This quest will not appear again.

' Secret blacksmithing skills? Most likely, this is the only chance I'll have to learn them. Damn. I've got to do it now. '

" Okay, but can I work on finishing this first? I've already been working on it for days, so....."

" Sure, actually this can be our first lesson. When you've finished refining your materials, come wake me up. " Karsi walked away, sitting down on a nearby chair to fall asleep.

' Okay.......'

[ received quest - Karsis' Lessons ( A- ) ]

After Karsi went to sleep, Dorian went straight back to work. Taking the water with the loincloth strips in it, Dorian strained the mix through a rough cloth, letting the liquid drip through into a bowl underneath, and then letting it cool.

[ you have obtained an unfinished product. Finish the production for the system to understand your creation. ]

Ignoring the system message, which felt like it was questioning his skills as a craftsman, Dorian took the iron ingots to the forge. By this time, the sun had started peeking over the horizon, casting long shadows in through the smithy. Closing the wooden shutters to block out the light, Dorian spread the bone powder over the ingots, beating them together until they became one long rectangle.

As they joined together, he stretched the ingot into a long rectangle, before folding it in half and flattening it again. Losing sense of time, he repeated this process, over and over again. After a while, even the system notifications weren't enough to disturb him. He didn't notice Karsi, who had woken up and was now standing behind him, watching with great interest.

[ you have successfully refined steel! ] (3)

[ you have successfully folded the steel ingot 10 times! ]

[ Great care has been put into this work. A slight bonus will be added to the finished product. ]

Tang! Tang! Tang! As the hammer fell down, Dorians' novice experience gradually filled out, and his strikes became smoother and more relaxed. Finished with the folding, Dorian lay just the tip of the rectangle in the forge, heating it up until it glowed in the darkened room. Tang! Tang! Laying the end over the anvil, he beat the shape of a point into it, starting with the end of the blade before slowly moving his way up to form the rest. His hammer kept going, stretching out the tang from the steel blade.

Grabbing a file, he started etching a fuller down the length of the blade, removing weight without sacrificing strength. After this, came the temper. Watching the entire blade turn bright orange, Dorian plunged it into the vat of oil, fighting the urge to flinch as steam and fire danced in front of his face. Leaving it on the anvil, he moved over to the [ unfinished product ], putting it near the fire to let the gel like substance dry, before grinding it into powder.

[ you have created Hide glue! ]

With the blade nearly done, Dorian heated it one more time over the coals, letting it cool down slowly in the air. By this time, the third night had already come, and Dorian was long past his point of maximum efficiency. However, his focus stayed on finishing the sword, forcing himself to keep moving. The system announcements were still coming, but he wasn't reading them. In fact, he hadn't even noticed them, focussing entirely on producing the blade.

Starting work on the crossguard, Dorian took some of the steel he had left, and stretched it into a simple bar. punching a hole through the middle for the tang, he shaped the crossguard, thinning the profile and streamlining the design.

After finishing the crossguard, he took a goblin horn, shaping it as a handle, before hollowing out the center, and applying the hide glue, to keep it attached to the tang after it slid through.

finishing up with a pommel, Dorian crafted a simple disk, slotting the tang through it as well, before heating up the end of the tang and beating it down in a rivet. finishing with a polish, he didn't notice Karsi step back from behind him, sweat on his brow, and the remnants of sparks dancing at his fingers.

Now that the sword was complete, Dorian felt fatigue so strong that he couldn't do anything except fall asleep. His stamina had fallen into the negatives, starting to drain his health instead. Closing his eyes, it didn't take long for him to fall asleep, missing the final notification as his avatar dissapeared.

[ Great care has been put into all stages of production. The end result will have a moderate boost. ]

[ You have been assisted in breaking past your limits. The end result will have a low boost. ]

[ Fire magic has permeated this item throughout its production, affecting the end product. ]

[ Your focus has been maintained for over 60% of production. The end result will have a moderate boost. ]

[ you have crafted the Steel sword of the Fiery Sunrise ]

[ Beginners blacksmithing has evolved into Apprentice Blacksmithing Lvl 1 ]

[ you have gained beginner knowledge of Mana forging. Speak to Karsi for more. ]

[ Level up! ]

[ SYSTEM WARNING - user has lost consciousness. ]

[ Logging out. ]

[ 0%.......12%........84%......100% ]

[ Goodbye, Dorian ]