Blacksmith of the Apocalypse

"Ah, sorry, I heard you had arrived, but I wanted to finish something I wanted to show you."

"Show me?" she asked surprised and quickly caught something he tossed to her.

Looking at the thin in her hands was a fine, almost filigree gauntlet. It was made of a brilliant silver metal and studded with milky gems, that had a blue hue like the sea. Or the...

"Moon Stones?" she asked surprised.

She had seen quite a few of Seth's works, but they never struck her as lavish. This gauntlet on the other hand looked more like a piece of jewelry than a piece of armor. A little clueless she appraised the item he had thrown to her.

<Hand of Lunacy (L)

Lunacy Set 1/X

Epic

Phys. Damage: 100

Mag. Damage: 600

Phys. Def. :1000

Mag. Def. :1500

Durability:2500

1.+29% To all stats in the Moonlight

2.+60% Power of Spells

3. Encroachment of Lunacy

4.+12% To all stats in any Light

Lunacy Set Effects: To be updated

Part of a yet-to-be-finished set. It is a glove made of Ithildin, created by Master Smith, the first Master Enchanter, Master Blacksmith, and Master Goldsmith of Urth.>

Leana was stumped looking at the item. The effects were already very powerful for a single glove, yet it was still lacking any sort of enchantment. The princess could tell that all effects were the results of Seth's skills and the materials used.

What really stood out was the "Encroachment of Lunacy". It was an effect that indirectly scaled with willpower. It used the vague term of conviction instead.

<Encroachment of Lunacy:

1. Improves the power of the wearer based on their Conviction in their actions.

2. Strengthens Conviction in their action based on Willpower>

Leana quickly understood how terrifying this effect could be. It was madness, as at no point it made any judgment about the wearer's convictions. As long as they were convinced, they would gain strength, and become even more convinced. It was an effect that could outright turn someone into a lunatic, a zealot even.

All this, and this was just one item. What kind of things would a "Lunacy Set" be able to do? Seth showing this to her held several meanings to the princess. What calmed her the most, was that it was a huge sign of trust. It felt like he finally accepted her, maybe because their positions changed? Would she finally be able to find out more about this mysterious place called Minas Mar?

He also showed off his skills to her and that he was still growing, despite reaching the master ranks. Leana could tell, that the Tower Master had started delving deeper into the theory behind the synergistic relationships of materials based on the fact that he placed moonstones on the gauntlet, which was most likely the reason behind the fourth effect.

Maybe even his ambitions to walk even further on the path of a blacksmith?

"What do you think? It's the first piece of a new set I'm working on. When it's finished it will be an armor specialized for mages," he stated proudly.

"But what is this "Encroachment of Lunacy"? It's not an enchantment."

The blacksmith seemed to deliberate for a moment before he continued.

"Since I hope for your full cooperation in the future. I will not hold any secrets from you," he said with a grin as if what he was going to tell her was something amusing.

"So what is it?"

"It's the special trait of Urth's <Ithildin>, " he revealed. "Can you imagine it? Our moon's special aspect is literally madness. <Ithildin> refined with the power of Urth's moon can turn you into a lunatic," he said with an ironic laugh.

Leana didn't voice it, but after seeing everything that happened in this world, it seemed kind of fitting that this world's moon drove people crazy. Maybe not just people but the world as a whole. Of course, this was just her having a mean thought and not an actual reason for anything.

"Yes, really ironic. You managed to find the method to create <Ithildin> on Urth?"

More surprising than the Moon of Madness, was the revelation that Seth already found out a method to refine <Mithril> and create native <Ithildin>. It was hard to imagine somebody could succeed so quickly in a world that did not know magic before.

"Well, Al did, with some help from the Theocracy of Chain," he said and explained how he looted a few chunks of failed <Ithildin> from their stronghold, which the sorceress used to find a functioning method.

"If it was the Theocracy, that makes sense," she mumbled

"They are quite the metallurgy freaks. Anyway, I guess Mary already brought you up to date?"

"Yes. Quite the chaos and it is partially my fault. The Scene completely evaded my attention," she lamented. She had to admit, that she had been too occupied by the overall situation, to even fathom that there was someone behind it.

"No need to blame yourself. We also only heard about it recently. Do you have any plans already?"

"I don't know what you take me for, but I'm not a god. I need more time to get into the thick of it all, okay?"

"I was just asking. You can take your time since we will take ours to break past lv.90 in the Holy Land."

"Wait, you are already lv.90?" "Didn't you know? Most of us are."

"Did you already talk with someone about... your plans once your level rises?

"Bement offered some nebulous stuff, but I declined. I'm pretty sure something happens at lv.100, right? However, from Bement's stuttering, it sounded like it would be better not to know beforehand," he explained and also had to explain Bement's identity.

"I see. If you have a question after lv.95 you can ask me. Regarding the Holy Land, I think you should invite the Adventurer Guild for Negotiations. It would be best to find a peaceful solution early on."

"You do already have plans after all," he smiled happily.

"Let's ask the guild for a meeting tomorrow. You should use the night to some good rest. You look terrible."

"...Thanks," she answered sarcastically.

"Good night. Tomorrow will be a big day."

With that, he left her standing alone in the corridor.

"Yeah, good night..." she mumbled.

What did he mean by a big day?

…

The answer came the next morning, in the shape of a breakfast with the Lords of Minas Mar and a piece of parchment placed beside her plate. She looked up shocked, after skimming through the document.

"This is!"

"Yeah, it's a simple soul contract. Please don't take it as a sign of distrust. Many of us have great trust in you, this is just to cover all our bases. Who knows what would happen if you get captured, or Chrona puts pressure on you? In that case, it will also be a good excuse and save you from committing treason against your dad."

Leana fell silent when Seth explained it. She had really seen it as a sign of distrust towards her, but in the end, it was really just a contract that blocked her from relaying sensitive information about Minas Mar. One with her soul at stake even, which made it very hard to break the oath with outside means.

Taking her silence as a no, Seth took a breath and try to explain again, but Leana cut him off by simply signing it after a short sigh. Seeing that, all the expressions on the table relaxed and turned to bright smiles.

"Now then, can you tell me how in the world you are able to use soul contracts? And what do you even intend to do with my soul if the worst comes to the worst? What is there even that you have to hide from, that necessitates these actions? And-"

Before she kept going, a small golden something flew at her face. The princess caught it by reflex and found that it was a small golden ring with the crest of Minas Mar on it.

"The Adventurer Guild will come by at noon. Fin will give you a tour. If you still have questions afterward, you can find me at my workshop."