Chapter 387: The Blacksmith (1)

Stepping out of the door and leaving the spacious hall and the building behind, the streets were somewhat calm, despite being close to the peak of the day. A colorful crowd of people could be seen haggling at the streetside; townsfolk, adventurers, armor, knightly looking guards, studded leather armored folk from the various mercenary bands that are close by. 

Not-so-surprisingly, as the time crept closer and closer to the date of the War Games, more and more strangers arrived at the city. Famed and, with it, feared mercenary bands, shady groups of people have made this wayward city their home for the time being.

This wide and long alley being the 'Adventurer's Street' the main attraction, the central piece of attention was clearly the large two-story wooden structure, the Adventurer's Guild. Sporting at least twice the size (but most likely even more than that) of the inn Aiden's group resided in. 

All the surrounding buildings were clearly catering to the increased presence of these danger-braving souls, as was clearly apparent from the signs indicating the nature of all the shops lining both sides of the spacious, broad streets. Whatever your heart desired you could find it without much hassle: blacksmiths, tailors, general storekeepers offering even some exotic wares, bowyers, herbalists offering herbs and flora of all kinds, alchemist's stores specialized in the tools and exotic materials that could not be found in the other places…

Whatever the hearts of these daring men and women desired, whatever amenities they felt needed for their next audacious undertaking, they could find it here. These merchants would offer them even the stars as long as they could help unburden those heavy pockets, be it gold, or, in the case of the contracted stores, credits from the city's adventurers.

As their first stop, the group stopped in front of a peculiar shop. The Guild's log, the sword-and-board could be seen hanging next to the logo of an anvil at the top. The sound of a hammer hitting something with a metallic clinking sound, echoed from the back, reaching their ears. The smell of smelting metal and coal lingered even in front of the shop.

The reason it caught Aiden's attention was the fact that compared to the other blacksmiths filling the streets this one wasn't as clean-looking, noble-like as the rest. The window showcase was smeared with the years of dust, oil, and the constant dark vapor of coal that filled and corrupted the usually clean air around.

Unlike the rest, Aiden felt an uncanny honesty, a simple but powerful allure that resonated with him.

Stopping in front of the shop, the rest of the gang turned to look at the peculiar little emporium to their right with a mixture of gazes. While a frown couldn't be helped, as the store looked rather run-down, shabby, not to mention the lack of customers, they knew that Aiden had to have a reason to pick this one as their first stop.

They didn't need to wait for long, as before they could formulate a sentence and inquire about the abrupt halt on their little, afternoon shopping expenditure, Aiden turned towards the entrance and with calm, but swift steps walked towards the door and pulled it open.

The sound of bells rang a light tune as the entryway was opened, and the dark, gloomy inner cubbyhole was revealed in front of them.

Still, besides the obscure, dim light that battled against this shroud of gloom to give at least a sliver of illumination to the vary traveler, the more concerning the fact that there was absolutely nobody standing behind the counter, nor could any other living soul could be seen. 

"Ummm… Aiden? Are you sure that we should…" Confused by the boy's first choice, Drake couldn't stay silent any more. Stepping closer he took his friend's side and placed his hand on his right shoulders.

Worried that he may have just picked the place because it looked interesting to his adventurous soul, he wanted to reason with him.

"We might want to pick another sto-"

However, before he could finish, Aiden shook his head and pointed towards the open doorway where a small speckle of light could be seen from behind the walls. Shadowy tendrils danced against the yellow, orange, and red-colored flickering lights coming from further down the back hallway. The faint sound of the hammer hitting metal, the same they heard from outside could be heard once again.

As if they stepped through the thin veil that separated two distinct worlds; one was the outside world, where people lived their lives, and worldly matters ruled over all other, and this small slice, separated from that same malice. 

It was strange, also quite puzzling. Drake was absolutely certain that neither the flickering lights nor the echoing sounds could be heard just a moment ago. What happened then?

Puzzled and confused, he couldn't finish his thought. The group was mesmerized by the dancing light show seeping in from the doorway. Well, except for one person, who continued approaching the dustacious and chalky, neglected counter. Amidst the thick layer of dust, he hit the top of the small dome-shaped protrusion, which was then revealed to be a small bell, as its single high-pitched ding rang in the empty front of the store.

Although it wasn't loud, in fact barely audible, but apparently was still loud enough to catch the attention of the figure at the back. The hammering came to an abrupt stop, soon a low garbled grumbling could be heard approaching with steady steps, coming closer and closer.

A few moments later, an elongated shadow of a fuzzy head-like shadow appeared on the wall, gradually clearing and reforming its hazy shape as the clearly annoyed-sounding man crossed the hall.

A couple of instants later, to their great surprise, a rather unique-looking fellow appeared at the arched dome… filling up only half of its height.

A rather short, probably somewhere around 4'5" (AN.: 137 cm) tall burly, brawny-looking figure looked at the group with a rather displeased look. He had long, straight brown hair pulled into a single braid behind his back. 

His face looked darker-toned, although that could just as well because of the dim lighting or the dirt and grime of his previous work, both could be just as feasible. 

His edgy, bland face was showing clear displeasure in the form of a frown, as he gave a loud, and dusty clap with his disproportional large hands, and stomped towards the dusty counter whilst continuing his previous grumbling session, ignoring the looks of the youngsters.

He had a medium-sized, matching brown beard and a longer-than-usual braided mustache donning on his face. 

Under the heavy duress of stares of the group, the short man pulled out a white piece of cloth from under the desk as he got to the counter, and whilst continuing with his grumbling and growling, he carelessly hit the counter, kicking off a sizable cloud of dust, before finally, he turned his attention to the 'invading youngsters' and with an annoyed tone he called out. Matching his hair, his dark brown eyes focused on the golden-eyed young man, he squinted as he spoke.

"What da ya'll want?! Make it quick, I am busy!" He snorted, tapping his thick fingers on the desk, showing his impatience, and eagerness to get back to his work which, in his mind, was way more important than serving a bunch of snotty brats.

"Y-you… A-are you a dwarf?" Shocked to see a member of their race, Drake stuttered, pointing at the bearded blacksmith.

His words clearly annoyed and slightly offended the short master, he scoffed as he responded with rudeness and displeasure.

"D-d-d-d… What is your problem kid, are you weak in the head or something?"

This whilst earning a frown from Drake, also made the girls almost burst into a cacophony of giggles. 

Ignoring the silver-haired snotty human brat, the old man's eyes scanned the rest of the group, before finally returning to the golden-eyed, long black-haired youngster. A strange light flashed through his eyes as he asked again, this time clearly focused on the boy.

"So, what will it be? Make up your minds. If you are here only to annoy me, I'll beat the crap out of you and throw you all out!"

"H-How?! Shouldn't all non-humans be barred from entering the city?" Unable to process what he was seeing, Drake babbled once again.

This time, however, the dwarven blacksmith completely ignored him, retaining his attention at the exotic-looking young man and his masked attendant.

Finally, a small, thin-looking smile curved Aiden's lips. He gave a light greeting nod at the small figure, as he asked.

"Honored Master, we are looking to purchase some arms. Can you please show some of your wares?"

At first, there was no reaction of any kind from the master. A few seconds later, his eyes squinted again as he slowly scrutinized the young man in front of him. Eventually, he looked up and matched the youngster's calm look before he shook his head, responding and declining their request with coldness.

"No. There's nothing that would be of interest. Go and look at the other stores, I am certain they could offer you what you are seeking."