Blacksmith of the Apocalypse

989  988. Hardwig vanished

Feeling the burning hot fabric on his bare skin was invigorating. He could immediately feel the effects of <Fire Absorption EX>. The fatigue that had built up over the day was quickly melting away. It was not like he was incredibly tired, but it still felt like he drank a coffee, or an energy drink as he felt wide awake again. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Looking at the aura of fire surrounding him, quickly melting the stone below his feet and threatening the wooden workbenches in the room, Seth decided that testing the power here was a bad idea and unwillingly stopped the Salamander Skin from operating.

Apart from the effect, he also found that the Salamander Skin actually felt more comfortable to him, than the <Sky Silk> set. Maybe Kin of Fire was not a one-directional effect and Seth felt better when surrounded by flames, thanks to this trait.

Despite looking like a skin-tight combat suit made from a flickering golden-yellow fabric, Seth felt as comfy as wearing pajamas. From now on, he would go into battle, wearing pajamas under his armor. It was a funny thought, but the comfort was undeniable.

As comfortable and powerful as it was, Seth was glad that it wouldn't be almost invisible once he wore the full Scorpio armor. The camouflage effect of the Heka Cloak would make it even harder to be spotted, as long as he wore it.

"Are you finally done?" a sultry voice greeted him when he came back to his quarters.

"You really made us wait~" A cheekier voice added. When he came home, he met his two girlfriends in their very own "pajamas"

…

Having finished the Salamander Skin scratched an itch Seth had for the past 6 weeks, ever since he got the idea of using the fire thread for a new item for himself. It was just a shame that the usability for the thread, in general, was rather lower, unless he went through the whole ordeal of making a full armor set, like he did with the death set. Otherwise, the thread was useless for anyone not immune to fire. Even then, the <Sky Silk> items were a better cloth product.

"Don't you want to stay in bed a little longer?" the blacksmith asked. It was morning. Having finished the target project, he felt quite relaxed and wanted to spend some leisure time before he started grinding again.

"We can't. We already have an appointment with Lyxiss and Bulko. You should also get ready; you have an appointment with Leana," Mina denied him, while she was languidly putting her clothes on in front of him.

"Right, the four of us are going to Little Gamma," Fin added. She was not as much of a tease as Mina and was getting dressed in their fairy form.

"I have? I didn't know about that. Why Little Gamma?" Seth asked a little confused.

"Right, you came so late last night, we might have forgotten to tell you~ Leana will explain it," Fin proved that she could be as much of a tease as Mina and left the bedroom. Mina just gave him a look and a mischievous smile, before also leaving the bedroom.

"Tsk, fine. Then I guess I will get read, too…" the blacksmith crumbled and rolled out of bed. While the girls had used <Lifestyle Magic>, Seth took his time in the shower. Drying himself by bathing in a column of fire, he equipped some normal clothing and got on the way to meet Leana.

"Tower, where is Leana now?" he asked after leaving the bathroom.

~Lady Leana is currently residing in her office above the surface. ~ the Tower ego answered him quickly. Seth sighed and entered the elevator to the surface. Had the princess been in her room inside the tower, he could have teleported there. Since she wasn't he had to take the elevator that took quite a while to reach the city above.

During the minutes the elevator took, Seth thought about asking the Tower whether she currently had any visitors, but he realized that it wouldn't really change what he intended to do. He was going to knock on that door, either way.

"Seth, did you forget about me?" someone suddenly approached him as he was on the way to Leana's office. It was some gaudy goat walking on its hind legs.

"Nope, I was just busy doing stuff. Tano, what can I do for you?" Seth halted and asked.

"Ah…errm, nothing. I just thought of talking to you when I saw you," the demon suddenly answered embarrassed.

"Aww, did you miss me?" the bard asked with a grin.

"It's nothing like that! ...Okay, a little. I'm having a hard time contacting my associates with Bragmomal on my tail. I'm bored…" the demon said a little down. It was the first time Seth found the goat actually depressed. At any other time, one could have called Tano'Mol a bubbly personality.

"Do you maybe want to get out of here once in a while?" Seth asked slowly. The demon's hopeful eyes were answer enough. A way to give the demon some relief from monotony without revealing his whereabouts... He had just the right idea.

"How about moving to one of the Tree Stations and helping to raid dungeons together with members of the Oathguard?" he asked carefully. He didn't want the demon to catch onto his scheme.

"You just want me to go outside and collect souls for you!" He failed to hide his scheme miserably.

"However, it would remind me of the time when I started my business 15 centuries ago. It might bring back some thrill and nostalgia. Okay, I'm in." Somehow his scheme succeeded anyway.

"Great decision. I was already on my way to Leana; I will bring it up with her. I'm sure we can find a place for you at one of the smaller Tree Stations where you can help with the raids," Seth assured him happily.

"Then I don't want to delay you any longer!" Tano said and left, happily smiling? It was hard to tell whether that was a smile, but it was definitely a positive expression. With the demon out of his way, Seth had no excuse to procrastinate and longer. Following his initial plan, he knocked loudly and confidently on Leana's office door.

"Come in Seth," it came from inside. "How did you know it was me?" the Tower Master asked surprised, sticking his head into the office.

"I'm not waiting for anyone else today," she answered offhandedly.

"I see," he said and entered the room, sitting down at the opposite side of her desk. " Fin and Mina told me this morning that you had business with me?"

Leana sighed and nodded slowly. Next, she stood up, locked the doors, and even closed the window shutters. When she sat down again, the office was surrounded by a soundproof barrier.

"Hardwig vanished," she finally revealed with a heavy voice.

"What?" Seth asked confused. He needed a second to remember who it was. Hardwig was Leana's Brother and one of the candidates for the throne of Chrona and their best informant and ally in the empire's capital.

"I just got an answer from Idyllan Moe. Things in the capital aren't looking good. My brother disappeared and the few people I could call my friends were under heavy surveillance. The other princes are scheming something, and they are targeting us, me."

"I see… What could they be planning?" Seth mumbled seriously. He understood why she had taken all preparations to keep this a secret between the two, for now.

"It seems to have something to do with the new ambassador that will be sent. Since Hardwig is out of the picture, they used the chance to push for a change in representatives. One thing is for sure, the new guy is no good news," she said depressed.

"Are you worried about your brother? Do you think they actually managed to-"

"No! No. I doubt they could have gotten rid of him. My guess would be that he went into hiding until he is certain of his victory." Leana interrupted his question.

"For now, we should worry about ourselves. I originally asked for a meeting, to give you an update on the progress for the Pythian games. "

"Oh, can we already announce a date? Is that why Mina and the others went to Little Sigma?" Seth asked surprised over the sudden turn to a happier topic.

"Yeah. We are ready so far. We can decide on a date and start firing up the promotional campaigns, now. That's what I originally wanted to talk to you about before getting the message from Mo," she answered with a nod and sorted the papers on her desk.

Leana was the one in charge of the Pythian games since she was also the one with the best understanding of the Pathworks, its worlds, and the people of Chrona. She knew the best how to draw in these people.

After Seth arrived in the late morning, they talked until late evening over the rough outlines of rules and regulations pertaining to the games and their tournaments.