Chương 170

Rudra stepped through the open doorway. The heat of the forge washed over his face. Instantly, his [Legendary Sage's Eyes] passively flared to life. Rudra didn't move. He didn't reach for his staff. But his eyes caught a massive, incredibly dense knot of dark mana hiding in the shadows of the wooden rafters right above the anvil. Someone was up there. And they were strong. Much stronger than a normal island guard. A bodyguard? Rudra thought, keeping his expression totally relaxed. Let's just play it cool.

He casually walked deeper into the shop, completely ignoring the hidden watcher in the ceiling.

"Excuse me," Rudra called out over the ringing hammer.

"Are you open?" The hammering stopped. The blacksmith turned around, wiping sweat off their forehead with a dirty rag. Rudra actually stopped breathing for a second. The blacksmith was incredibly beautiful. They had long, flowing black hair tied back with a simple leather strap. Their skin was pale and flawless. But it was their eyes that caught Rudra off guard—they were a striking, brilliant silver. They were tall and very lean, wearing a heavy leather apron over a simple white tunic.

The apron pressed tightly against a completely flat chest. Rudra was briefly smitten. He had met Marie Rose, the Vampire Duke, who could be considered to be the absolute pinnacle of beauty in Satisfy. Yet this blacksmith was easily in that same tier. It was almost unnatural. A runaway princess? Rudra thought, quickly calming himself down. That explains the bodyguard in the roof.

"Welcome," the blacksmith said. Their voice was soft, polite, and very welcoming.

"How can I help you, traveler?" The blacksmith stepped away from the anvil and walked over to the wooden counter. They picked up a small, freshly polished iron dagger to show off their work. As the blacksmith handed the dagger over, Rudra looked closely at their hands. He expected to see soft, manicured fingers. Instead, he saw thick, heavy callouses. The knuckles were rough, and old burn scars dotted the wrists. These weren't the hands of a pampered noble playing dress-up.

These were the hands of someone who worked the hot forge for ten hours a day, every single day. Rudra immediately dropped his runaway princess theory. He felt a deep sense of respect. He liked people who worked hard.

"Nice edge on this," Rudra said, admiring the dagger.

"You seem to have done a great work. But I'm actually not looking for a weapon today. I need to commission a custom tool set."

"A tool set?" the blacksmith asked, tilting their head slightly.

"I can forge hammers, tongs, or carpentry tools. What do you need?"

"I need a portable alchemy repair kit," Rudra said.

"Small enough to fit in a travel bag, but sturdy enough to handle high-heat melting. Can you do that?" The blacksmith looked surprised.

"Alchemy tools? I normally only deal in weapons and armor. But... yes. I can make that for you. It will take a few hours."

"I'll pay double if you rush it," Rudra smiled.

"I'm Rudra, by the way." If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Sir Rudra," the blacksmith smiled warmly.

"My name is Alex." Rudra nodded. Before he handed over the gold, he wanted to make sure this local smith actually had the stats to craft a high-precision alchemy kit. He didn't want his tools breaking in the middle of a repair. When his Insight stat had hit 1600 months ago, the system had auto-generated [Character Observation], turning a perk from the Great Lord's Sword into an innate skill. He casually tapped into it. A blue system window popped up next to Alex's face. Rudra started reading the stats.

Name: Alex Age: 112 Gender: Male Class: Blacksmith / Apprentice Alchemist Race: Half-Human / Half-Witch Title: Beloved of the Witches - Maximum affinity with all members of the Witch race. Title: The Cursed Hands - Crafting speed and success rate with Normal/Rare materials increase by 300%. The stats of basic items produced are doubled. - Crafting success rate with Unique/Legendary materials drops by 99%.

Title: Angelic Beauty - Even if there are no special intentions, there is a high probability of making the opposite sex fall in love. - The effectiveness of Charm-related stats and skills are increased by 10 times Level: 215 Strength: 1450 Stamina: 620 Agility: 800 Intelligence: 950 Dexterity: 3, 000 Charm: 7, 200 Skills: Basic Blacksmithing (S+), Witch's Alchemy (C-), Flame Control (A), Material Comprehension (S), Overwhelming Charm (SSS), Incomplete Legendary Breath (?).

Born from the union of the Witch Leader and a human who reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship and blacksmithing. Due to his mixed blood and a potential flaw in his father's seed, his incubation took a century, and he was born as a rare male witch. Despite his incredible beauty and overwhelming talent for basic materials, he suffers from a crippling bottleneck when handling high-tier materials. He travels the islands searching for a breakthrough, secretly guarded by his kin. Rudra read the window top to bottom.

His brain completely stalled. Half-Witch? Rudra thought. Okay, that's rare. 112 years old? Rudra kept reading. Okay, witches live a long time. The child of a guy who reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship and blacksmithing? Rudra frowned purposefully ignoring some parts of the description. Wait. That sounds exactly like Pagma. Did Pagma hook up with the Witch Leader? He kept scanning the text. He read the crazy 3, 200 Charm stat. He read the 'Cursed Hands' title.

Then, his eyes drifted back up to the top of the status window. Gender: Male. Rudra slowly lowered the blue system window. He looked at Alex. He looked at the flawless pale skin, the long flowing black hair, the soft, beautiful face, and the incredibly polite smile. He remembered feeling briefly smitten just thirty seconds ago. Rudra didn't flinch. He didn't gasp. His face remained completely blank. He just reached into his pocket and placed a small bag of gold coins on the wooden counter.

"Take your time, Alex," Rudra said, his voice completely level.

"I'll be back in an hour."

"Thank you, Sir Rudra," Alex smiled, bowing slightly. Rudra turned around and calmly walked out of the blacksmith shop. He stepped out into the bustling street, walked past a fruit cart, and turned into a quiet, empty alleyway. He leaned against the brick wall. He put his hands over his face. IT'S A TRAP! Rudra screamed internally. He took a deep breath, trying to process what he just read.

The most beautiful person he had seen on this side of the continent, who rivaled Marie Rose, was a 112-year-old male half-witch whose father was probably the legendary Pagma.

"Satisfy is a very weird game," Rudra muttered to himself. He shook his head, pushing the shock away. Gender surprises aside, Alex's status window was absolutely fascinating. The 'Cursed Hands' title was a brutal bottleneck for a normal blacksmith, but to Rudra, it looked like a massive, hidden opportunity.

"He can't forge high-tier materials," Rudra thought, rubbing his chin.

"But his stats with basic materials are doubled. If he stops trying to be a normal blacksmith..." Rudra smiled. He knew exactly what Alex needed. He didn't just want an alchemy repair kit anymore. He wanted to recruit a new Blacksmith Saint.