Blacksmith of the Apocalypse

He didn't press her to find out who was waiting for him and simply thanked her before he turned to the elevator. He has some thoughts about who it would be, but the person sitting in the meeting room was-

“Hubert?”

Seated at the table was Hubert McCarthy, the dimensional merchant Seth came to know during the evaluation in Chrona. Seth had a short-lived commercial relationship with him before he simply vanished. Recently, Lydia and Ray had saved him from Emerald City, revealing the terrible darkness that hid behind the metropolis in the Unclaimed Mountains.

“Hello, Seth,” the man greeted him with a slight smile. He was very skinny, compared to the last time they met. The time in captivity had left its scars on him. Visible ones and implied ones.

“You have a present for me?” Seth asked surprised, as he still remembered the man as quite stingy.

“A present, yes. And a request,” Hubert added with a wry smile. Seth stared at him for a moment, before he sat down at the table, opposite him.

“Then let's see the present you have first. We can talk about the request afterward.” he finally said, not outright denying any quests the merchant may make. He decided to listen first. With a nod Hubert waved his hand and a crate appeared beside the table.

When he opened the lid...

<Tranquil Silver Ore, Crafting Material

Epic

A material found in the Resting Planes of Ishital. A highly sought-after ore because Materials refined from this have a strong calming effect on the mind.>

Epic Silver! It was a whole crate filled with ores of epic <Tranquil Silver>. It had been quite some time since he came across a material he could refine into <Olympian Silver>. This was a massive gift, indeed.

“I came across it during my... stay at Emerald City and thought I might be able get your help with it. In the end, I was saved by your people,” he said with a wry smile.

“So, now you are simply gifting it to me?” the bard asked. He wasn't going to refuse such a great gift. Especially since he was very interested in the effects of this new silver. What <Olympian Silver> would come out of this?

“Well, yes. And I hope it will influence your answer to my request positively,” Hubert added. The blacksmith was in a very good mood, it was probably time to hear Hubert out.

“I see, then tell me what your request is.”

“I wish to join Minas Mar. The guild, not the district or a subsidiary,” he came out with it.

The Dimensional Merchant asked to join Minas Mar. The months of imprisonment, facing his own weakness had made him realize that this world was too dangerous for him to be alone. He was not strong enough to walk alone with his head held high when he was not even a chosen one.

When choosing who to join, who was better than Minas Mar. Not only were they trustworthy and powerful. There was also a role he could play as a supplier of exotic resources, or resources in general. Seth could guess some if his intentions.

“Do you know what it entails if you want to join us?” Seth asked him. Surprisingly, McCarthy nodded.

“Leana and Mary already informed me. I will have to sign a magic contract with my soul on the line, right? I'm ready,” he said resolutely. His expression was determined, it seemed that he had taken his time to make the decision.

With Hubert joining Minas Mar, Seth would have almost the whole team that went to the evaluation under him. Aside from McCarthy, the mist demon Misto Pheles was part of the field teams. Yvette, Elza, Marcel, Brock, and indirectly Cade who had joined Minas Mar as Allies in the Tree Stations.

The only ones outside his grasp now were the Hero and the Slavemancer. The former he didn't want and the latter... well, Seth didn't have any interest in the Slavemancer's baggage. Even if he found the skills interesting, he didn't feel the urge to recruit him, who was currently working in Delta.

“Alright then,” Seth nodded. Since Hubert was prepared, he had no reason to refuse him. With a wave, a scroll appeared in his hand.

“This is the soul contract. You can read it and sign it if you agree with the terms. Mary will then take care of the magic contract,” he explained and handed it to him. It was the simple version everyone signed, that would come into play if they betrayed Minas Mar. Mary's contract would make sure that they couldn't successfully do it, even if they tried.

McCarthy read through the scroll meticulously. When he was done he nodded and signed it without hesitation. They didn't talk for much longer, the merchant knew that Seth had something else on his mind.

It wasn't just that he was eager to jump at the next project while his memory and inspiration of the Slughterer's Set was still fresh. It also had a practical reason: The storage rooms under Minas Mar were full of the things Hoen had made for him and hindered the work of others.

“Good, Welcome to Minas Mar. Mary and Leana will take care of the rest,” Seth said, shaking the merchant's hand.

“You know what I want from you for now. Speak with Leana and the others about the stuff they need. If you will excuse me, I've been wanting to get back to the workshop for a while.”

Saying his goodbyes, Seth left and returned to the workshops. He first went to his own, summoning all the crafting stations back in place. Once the forge and anvil were back in place, Cerberus, who had been tirelessly forging items for Minas Mar switched back from the substitutes to the real thing. After calling Sivri out, too, and leaving her to her own devices, he went to the door across the corridor.

This workshop looked quite a bit different from Seth's or that of a normal blacksmith. The workshop was about the same size as Seth's, which meant it was closer to a factory floor than a workshop Seth had made that space in his workshop so he or Cerberus could work on big golems, that didn't fit in the Golem Forge back then.

Hoen's Workshop was filled with a great number of furnaces of various sizes and shapes. The constantly roaring furnaces kept the temperature in the massive hall at a cozy 45°C. While it didn't bother Seth or the dwarf, the helpers they recruited were sweating profusely.

On the other hand, he had walls over walls with casting supplies for metal casting. As the dwarf from a world that veered off from the traditional image of dwarfs, he was specialized in casting magic items in great numbers. He was also the main supplier of their Copper Anvil Stores.

“Hoen, I'm back!” the blacksmith called out.

“Seth? Oh, finally!” the dwarf exclaimed relieved. “ The guys from storage were about to lynch me in the next few days,” he joked.

“Then let's go quickly and relieve them from their worries,” Seth laughed as he shook Hoen's hand and pulled him in a short embrace. As they bantered a little and talked about what Seth was up to in the past few days, the dwarf guided him down to the storage area.

It was part of the newer parts of Minas Mar, Seth had excavated, using the tower's drone workers. The hangars holding the golems for sale were also in this area. Hoen led him to a hall filled with crates and boxes.

“Which of them -?” “All of them. And another two warehouses in that direction,” he said, pointing his thumb down the hallway.

“Then let's see them,” Seth said, rubbing his palms.

Hoen broke open one of the crates, revealing the fruit of his labor. Rows upon rows of enchanted bronze plates. They glittered in the light of the magic lanterns that illuminated the room.

<Durable Olympian Bronze Plate of Magic, Crafting Material,

Epic

A plate cast from <Durable Olympian Bronze> the size of a hand and enchanted with a simple magic gathering circuit.>

This was it, the cornerstone for one of Seth's biggest projects, yet.

“I will need your assistance for the next few days, and we might recast a few of them, are you ready?” Seth asked, staring at the plate in his hand and then looking down the corridor, lined with crates like the one before him.

“I'm ready.”

“Good, then let's get to work.”