When Gregory awoke, he first went to the rest of the group to ask about blacksmithing. From what he read, it took someone of master level in a crafting based profession skill to teach it to another. Before heading to a city to learn of blacksmithing from somebody else, he wanted to see if anybody in the group could train him in it.

“Hey, is anybody a skilled enough blacksmith to train me in it? I have a few weapon ideas, but I need blacksmithing skill to be able to make them. From what I have seen, metal staves are common as well for magical classes, especially if using a high-class enchanted gem.”

Everybody from the original group looked at Atlas, who gave a small sigh before straightening up all the way.

“Yes, I am actually a very skilled blacksmith, so much so that I had reached grand-master, and am even on the close, in retrospect, to reaching the divine tier. The divine tier is the final level, and one that grants an immense bonus to crafts. It also makes them much stronger, sturdier, and allows me to freely summon a fully equipped divine forge, to be used at will. An advantage to you learning from me, is that the first masterpiece you create will grant both you and I full experience for it, which can sometimes help me in reaching the next tier if it is unique or powerful enough.”

Gregory paused for a minute before replying back with a question about what Atlas had said.

“So, more experience is gained for crafts that are unique or more powerful?”

Atlas grinned, seeing that Gregory had figured out what it meant.

“Crafts that have never been attempted, or are powerful or rare due to design and function, will grant more experience. In fact, I have heard of people reaching from Novice to Master with one craft when it is a piece of work that they put their all into, and is completely unique to this world. The maximum potential power of a craft is based upon the rank you have when you finish it, as well as the rank of the benefactor when you finish it. If the craft pushes my rank to divine, you will have a craft that can be improved to be a divine tier craft. A craft that is made by a novice, will always be a novice craft, though it can be altered and improved to the limit of novice crafts.”

Considering Atlas’ blacksmithing skills were probably almost unmatched, Gregory was surprised that he wasn’t in a city making armor or weapons. Gregory was also surprised that Atlas wasn’t much older, or far more proud of his accomplishment.

“Can you train me to become a blacksmith? I would really appreciate it, it would save me a bunch of time and searching if I don’t need to go anywhere special to learn blacksmithing.”

Atlas smiled, glad that he was getting praise as a blacksmith. He nodded his head, not even bothering to speak at the moment. The first thing Atlas did, was using a high-cost spell to summon a grand-master class forge. This would be where he’d train Gregory in the art of blacksmithing.

“Do you have any ores? You will need some if you hope to be able to complete your first craft and gain the blacksmith job.”

Gregory reached inside his inventory, which was just about completely filled, and pulled out a decent number of iron ores. Atlas looked a little surprised, wondering how Gregory could have obtained so many in such a short time, but knew that there was an abundance of such inexpensive and more common ores in the training area they had just graduated from. Atlas himself had obtained a number of very expensive and rare ores in the area, so thought very little of the sheer volume that Gregory had of the more common ores.

“The first step to turning iron ore into a metal, is to heat up the ore using the forge. You will need to first get it hot, using coal or charcoal as a fuel. You should have plenty of that as well to get started.”

Gregory reached into his inventory again, pulling out an amount of coal as well now.

“Very good, place the coal in and get the fire started. Once you have done that, you will need to use the bellows to heat the fire enough to melt down the iron.”

Gregory got started, doing just as Atlas told him. It was hard work, and time consuming, but worth it to gain a new job.

“Now that you have it going, you will need to add the iron. This is a blast furnace, and you are using only charcoal, so you will get just liquid iron as a byproduct of the production.”

Gregory added as much iron as he could fit, and continued making as much liquid iron as he could before the forge couldn’t run as hot anymore. Atlas was watching impressed, Gregory was definitely doing a fantastic job for his first time, though his stats enabled him to do the work at a very quick pace.

“Once you have smelted it, you will need to cool it, and then begin gather it before you can begin the production of a product. You will need to most likely wait for the ore to cool, unless you have a spell that can cool it from the inside first.”

Gregory smiled at this, knowing just what to use to cool the entire thing completely. He first entered his most dragon-like form, which was now basically a full dragon at a human size, and then unleashed a very high intensity burst of cold. It had quickly worked to cool the metal to the core, without allowing the outside to crack because only it cooled. Atlas was pleasantly surprised to see such a use of Gregory’s Dragon’s Breath, but didn’t dwell long on that as there was more work to be done.

“I recommend grabbing one of the hammers off the wall, and using the iron to create a hammer of your own. It may make sense to use the iron itself to make the handle for the hammer, as I am not sure you would be able to use a wood handled hammer unless it was a high-tier wood.”

Gregory began hammering the metal, using the techniques that Atlas was describing as he worked. It was not easy, but he could see progress, even if small progress, being made with every swing. By the time Gregory finished, Atlas was visibly tired, worn down from the amount of time they had spent awake. Forging that many ores into useable iron took a long time, even if the cooling process was greatly sped up due to the dragon’s breath. Creating the hammer was quick, but the overall process still took some decent time to complete.

“Do you realize that you’ve been up working for almost a week now? I understand that it is because of your constitution, but that is still very impressive. I know you’ve taken some breaks for water, but you have worked very hard to unlock the blacksmith job. Now, what rank of the blacksmith job did you unlock from that insane motivation and hard work?”

Gregory smiled weakly, his shoulders slumping once he had finished this. He knew he was working feverishly, and at a high pace, but to have been working for a week on this seemed impossible. Still, he was definitely adequately rewarded for it. He had gone straight to the intermediate level of blacksmithing. Even if the subskills for blacksmithing were all at Novice still, the job itself had reached an intermediate level. He would need some rest now, but he knew that he could start on creating the weapon he had in mind now.

“I reached the Intermediate level, which may not be great, but I did entirely skip the novice rank.”

Atlas was impressed, but knew that he and Gregory both needed sleep, so would quit with any further lecturing and just see what Gregory had in mind once he finished creating it. The rest of the group had watched what just happened, not wanting to skip out on missing Atlas teach something he really enjoyed. What they witnessed though was nothing short of impressive. Gregory had shown immense dedication and will in the craft that he had created. Even though it was only an iron hammer, he didn’t let even an ounce of focus be lost on other endeavors or thoughts. He was absolute, as if unable to focus on anything else in the world. When they immediately headed to get some sleep after this, nobody could fault them, and they even encouraged it.

Elise was surprised, she was falling for Gregory; even though he was originally a human, he had shown characteristics that she thought were impossible for a human. Jessica on the other hand was falling for Atlas, the man who had carried her while she was undergoing the changes to her body and could not defend herself. A human had fallen for a non-human, and a non-human had fallen for a human. Neither of these two came from this planet, that much was blatantly certain. No human of this planet would ever be open-minded enough to even consider a non-human person enough to fall for. Gregory was a bit the same way, no human from this planet would ever act in such a way that was so open, and be so willing and able to learn things that most humans refused to grasp.

The next day saw the entire party relaxing, nobody wanting to work hard after the week long marathon that Gregory and Atlas had inspired. They had seen a lake the day before, and decided that once Gregory had finished his blacksmith training, they would all go. Elise and Jessica also decided to go follow Gregory and Atlas respectively. Elise saw that Gregory was already sleeping while in his most dragon-like form. She laid down right next to him, resting her head on his wings. He really had become a magnificent person, in all of his forms. His next most dragon-like form was a form that was very similar to those of the beastkin, except that it was draconic instead of based after an animal. She could tell that Gregory and Atlas were similar in some ways, both were very similar in that neither one seemed to want anything in return for what they did. Gregory almost refused the training when he found it was free, which is something that Atlas would’ve done as well until he was absolutely certain the trainer didn’t want money.

Jessica on the other hand found Atlas still awake, though very weary. She laid down next to him, and began talking about how much she appreciates everything he did for her while she was asleep. She knew that it wasn’t necessary of him to do that, but he went above and beyond to keep her safe. She felt indebted to him, but he denied that she owed him anything. He was very much a gentleman in regards to his personality, and refused to believe or accept that anybody owed him anything for what he did. Jessica began liking him even more for this, but refused to let Atlas know that, and instead just cuddled closer to him before going to sleep.

When Gregory awoke, he began spreading his wings only to feel a weight on one. As he looked to his side, he found Elise’s head resting on it as she slept.

‘Did she sleep there all night long, I hope it wasn’t too uncomfortable.’

He smiled to himself, admiring how beautiful she looked. Despite being covered in fur, she still had a very feminine shape to her, and he couldn’t deny that she was very attractive as a woman. She was curled up next to him, her tail gently moving back and forth, still sleeping soundly knowing that Gregory wouldn’t let anything hurt her.

When Elise finally woke up about an hour later, she stood up and saw that Gregory quickly transformed into his form that looked very much like a beastkin, but draconic with wings. Both of his final two draconic forms were similar, but his most draconic form adjusted bones a bit more to prevent standing on two feet, or paws, and made him what would be at least an extra three feet taller if he were able to stand.

“We are going to the lake today; Caitlyn found it, and we all decided it would be good to relax for a little bit. Especially seeing as how all of us have been ignoring having fun ever since getting out of the training area.”

Gregory smiled, but nodded at the comment. It was true, they all had been working hard, and had been forgoing a true break. This would be a good chance to relax and forget some worries for now. Not only a good chance, but a much needed chance considering their astronomical growth had been wearing them down physically and mentally.

Despite Gregory’s wisdom, he had only prepared to enter this place on the Earth side. He planned on being able to use magic to hunt and get food. While that held true, it didn’t change the fact that he didn’t do pack anything when coming here. Jessica was a bit different, she completely emptied all Earthly accounts and plans, packed all of her clothes into suitcases which she stored in her inventory. In them, she had a few different bikinis that she handed out to Kat, Elise, Lily, and Aurora, all of whom roughly shared her sizes. Caitlyn was noticeably shorter, being a gnome, and wouldn’t fit into any.

Aurora and Caitlyn ended up just wearing some undergarments as swimwear. Gregory and Atlas were able to wear some shorts that Gregory had brought along. Tim on the other hand just wore undergarments as well, which were just a pair of light pants he wore underneath his armor. Reaching the lake, Gregory was shocked to see normal Earth clothes being worn by nearly everybody. He knew Atlas would be wearing a pair of shorts that had been brought from Earth. His own shorts were designed based on Earth designs, but to see nearly all the girls in Earth swimwear was very shocking. Such a sight made Gregory miss Earth, but at the same time knew that if this were real, that Earth would soon be merged onto this planet.

Gregory leapt into the water, using his wings to fly up a bit before diving down. He caused gills to form on his neck, using adaptive physiology to make the changes happen. When he came back up, he caused his body to revert back to its regular form. He watched as the girls followed him in, with Atlas and Tim jumping in right behind them. Gregory had his eyes trained on Elise, who he found even more attractive with the bikini on. It was white, with black accent lines. It contrasted her gray fur, making her stand out even more in the incredibly clear water. Jessica was wearing a black bikini with yellow accents, and had lent a red bikini to Lily, who actually took a liking to it. Kat and Aurora didn’t particularly stand out, but good in their own ways. What really surprised Gregory, was that Jessica had brought so many swimsuits to this planet.

They really did all do their best to enjoy this time of relaxation, and even had food prepared to be eaten during a break. When Gregory got out of the water and laid down on a root of a tree, Elise climbed up and laid next to him. She felt a bit awkward wearing so little, but also felt that Gregory was one of very few people who wouldn’t take advantage of any situation like this. The food was quickly prepared, which they all went to go eat. As Gregory sat down on the same tree root he had been on earlier, Elise sat next to him.

“I know we haven’t really talked on a personal level yet, but I would like to get to know you better. You seem like a really caring person, and I have been falling for you ever since we met. I really hate to admit it, but it is true that my feelings for you are only growing as I get to know more about you.”

Gregory blushed, though it was covered by the scales since he was in his draconic form. He swung his tail onto Elise’s lap, and then looked over at her.

“I care about you as well, and I know we need to get to know each other better before we can really admit that the feelings are truly real.”

“I know you probably have different likes than I do, especially since you were born and raised on a planet that is far different from mine. On this planet, the children play by fighting and competing in combat related games. We spar each other, and train often in doing so. Our education is based partially on practical knowledge, but also on training some classes to levels that can be used in combat in the outside world. I am not expecting you to understand that, or to understand that what I find fun would be competing with you in archery or magical accuracy. I want to know what you would find fun.”

Gregory was surprised by Elise’s words, and understood the competition part of what she said. Everybody was competitive to a degree, but here it was not only for enjoyment, but to stay alive.

“I consider video games fun, well did anyways. Now, I am not really sure if I would still find them enjoyable, or if I would get more enjoyment out of training as you mentioned it. Video games are something that are done with a small handheld device on a window with moving pictures. At least, that is the best way to explain it without using Earth specific terms. The kind of games I played would actually mimic a world like this one, though I don’t suppose that really interests you especially.”

Elise was shocked to hear what was done for entertainment on Earth. Some people live their lives pretending to be on a world like this one, except that it was just something they pretended to actually be doing. At the same time, she would probably find something like that enjoyable as well, so completely understood where Gregory was coming from with what he said.

“I probably would find something like that enjoyable if I were on a planet like yours, but I grew up on this planet. It has changed how I view the world in comparison to you, what I find enjoyable or interesting, and what I would find uninteresting and a waste of time. It sound like people on your planet are mostly equal, at least physically, so it would be hard to say that I’d have needed to do any special training like I did on your planet. Honestly, I think I’d have done the same things you did for enjoyment if I were born on your planet.”

Gregory smiled at how understanding and agreeable Elise was being with what he said.

“I think if I were born here, I could definitely get into what you find enjoyable as well. In fact, I would probably find it enjoyable now, though it is hard to say for certain without some time doing things like that. We could start having competitions starting tomorrow to see if we both enjoy competitive sparring. Although, you would probably have a huge advantage over me in actual physical power.”

Elise laughed a little at what Gregory said, knowing that he was right about what he said.

“I can go easy on you too you know, it isn’t like I need to put all my strength into every swing.”

Gregory responded quickly to this, blurting out his response almost immediately.

“I would love that, we can definitely get started tomorrow… if you would like to.”

Elise laughed again, excited that Gregory was so eager to do something that she found enjoyable and anxious to see exactly what he could do in a fight.

“I would like to as well, let’s see what you are capable of tomorrow.”

Elise then ran down to the water and jumped in again, waiting for Gregory to join her, which she found that he was only in the water a moment after her, and had snuck up from behind her before she had a chance to realize that he wasn’t in the water.

‘He is fast too, ridiculously fast. Maybe I won’t need to go easy on him after all.’