Blacksmith of the Apocalypse

The moment Seth took the flute out from the waters of Styx, it started to play an eerie tune that started to summon the illusion of a dark and misty forest.

~Stop that, Gleobem.~

~But I am so happy to be free, Benefactor! Your tune had truly widened my horizons, if only I had been stronger I wouldn't have fallen off the edge and died.~ the floating panpipes kissed up to him.

It seemed that the satyr minstrel had quickly made the connection between Seth and the Benefactor that gave it a new lease on life. Judging by its fawning attitude, the satyr didn't take the ruse to heart.

On another note, that the panpipes were immediately able to cast illusion magic with music showed that the enchantment not only worked, but Gleobem could use the power instinctively. This was a very good result.

~Oz, I have to go somewhere, can you show the newcomer the ropes?~ he asked the demonic lyre to indoctrinate the new member of their band.

It seemed like a pain in the ass and Seth wanted to go to Delta and deliver Ember her new flute. He had made her wait for quite some time.

~Sure, I will take care of it.~ the demon reassured him before he left the workshop. Training in the morning, working in the noon. It was early evening when the blacksmith arrived in Delta.

…

"Oh wow, the great Tower Master really remembered poor little me!" Ember greeted him.

She was standing in the door of her room at the dorms of the bard college. Seth had not visited here often, which led to him visiting a few wrong doors before the right demon girl opened.

"Come on, don't be like that. Waiting roughly a week or two for a custom product made by a sought-after craftsman, it's not that long."

"Yeah, yeah, always an excuse ready. Come on in."

She finally stepped aside and invited him in. "Do you want a cup of tea?" she asked after seating him in her living room.

"No, it's okay. It's already getting a little late. I just wanted to deliver your flute."

He brought out a long, narrow box of polished wood from the Hangingtree and placed it on the table between them. Ember looked at the box in anticipation as her finger fingers carefully lifted the lid. Seeing the glint of joy in her eyes and the smile on her lips, Seth felt very satisfied.

A craftsman's greatest reward was to see the joy of a satisfied customer. To see one's work truly valued. Candidly she lifted the shining silver flute from the passing. After her eyes wandered along the instrument, she immediately lifted the flute to her lips.

A beautiful melody filled the room. The demon girl performed a playful tune and everything seemed to her satisfaction. Then the music changed, became colder and more cutting. For just a moment, a cold breeze filled the room. Then the tunes immediately stopped.

"Why did you stop?" the blacksmith looked up. He had been listening to her play and not watching her. Seth resisted laughing out loud.

Ember was staring at him angrily, her fingers and lips were frozen to the flute.

"Don't look at me like this. You wanted a flute like this. You will have to learn how to play it correctly."

She rolled her eyes and pointed at the door.

"I should leave? I understand, you probably want to have some alone time with your new baby. I get it, I get it. I'm leaving, calm down." he chuckled and got up to leave.

He was about to leave when he felt her hand on his shoulder. She had managed to release her lips from the flute.

"I didn't mean it. Thank you for making it for me," she said with a genuine smile.

He reciprocated her smile.

"I'm glad you like it. It's already late. I'm returning now."

The blacksmith really just wanted to deliver the flute and keep his promise for the peace of his mind. Now he could fully concentrate on what was to come. He felt that things were on the right track. The plans for the future were clear.

Tomorrow he could set off to take a look at Karina's work and a few days later they would officially announce the recruitment for the expansion of the trade route. In the meantime, he would be able to work on the Faer 2.0. Once he had them, he felt more than prepared for the-

<Ding!>

Suddenly a system window opened before his eyes and interrupted his thoughts.

<----Server Announcement------

Congratulation to all players. Over the past two years, you have used the opportunity given to you by the system god. You have struggled, you have grown, you have survived.

As of now, Urth has synchronized with the Pathworks and fulfilled the requirements for the next chapter of your journey. The World Quest: "Age of Gods" is now available.

All players who accept it, agree to be watched by the gods in exchange for a chance to become a chosen one and inherit a divine class.--->

Seth faltered when he read the announcement. What was with this timing?! He was not ready, yet. He still had so much to do, so much to...

"Pff." he couldn't help but laugh. It was getting dark and he stood in the middle of the campus, laughing to himself at the sight of his greatest worry suddenly coming true. There was so much to worry about and so much to do and suddenly this World Quest had secretly snuck up on him like a thief. It was simply too ridiculous.

He had taken his worries as a sign of his precognitive skills, but now he found that with all his hurrying he had not finished in time anyway. What had he even worried about so much?

It was different from the morning when the apocalypse happened. His problems didn't suddenly change. Merchants vying for business opportunities. A bunch of criminals framed them a little. A mysterious continent of weird people loomed in the distance.

He was afraid of powerful champions, but it wasn't like they would suddenly appear out of nowhere, with incredible powers, and smash everything in their way.

The system prompt also made him realize something he had not thought of. Something he had forgotten, yet was very worried about. A much easier solution. Everyone had a chance to become a chosen. This included his friends, the people, and the Lords of Minas Mar.

He was sure the chosen ones would lead to a reshuffling of the current power structure, but nothing stopped him from recruiting them or promoting his friends to become chosen ones.

The blacksmith realized that he had slightly strayed from the correct path.

Originally, Seth had chosen to collect companions because he wanted people he could trust, so he wouldn't have to deal with everything alone. But... ever since he found out how to create golems, he had worked and planned for ways to do everything alone and get his friends out of harm's way.

In the end, he had not been able to fully trust their abilities and tried to protect them, out of fear of losing them.

Now it finally dawned on him, that he shouldn't create an army to protect them, but try and make them more interesting to gods. The best protection was quite simply to have them be the tyrants of this age. So what if there were chosen people out there? What could they do against chosen ones in relic and legendary armor? Who was going to be their match?

Even if they weren't going to be chosen, Seth didn't doubt that there were other benefits that could be gained by the world quest. He had to hurry back and make sure everyone accepted it. It was just a shame, that he wasn't eligible anymore.

When he tried to accept the quest, he was notified that he was already chosen by gods and no other gods would be able to spectate him without the consent of his patrons. Although it was a shame, it helped get rid of one of his doubts, which was that gods might be able to spy for their champions.

Wearing the full Scorpio set, Seth ran back to the church. The streets were almost empty, with most people standing in a daze, staring at the announcements in front of their faces. He just arrived at the church's doors, when he heard another announcement.

<Ding! Leaderboards are now online. Players below lv.100 can view the ranking at your local system church or government building.>

Together with the notification, a window popped up in front of his eyes.

---You are Nr.1 in the overall Blacksmith Ranking. The proficiency gained by crafting is tripled. Would you like to publicize your name on the leaderboard? You can choose to postpone this action to a later time. Publish/Postpone----