I JUST WANT A PEACEFUL LIFE

"Ahh… I am sorry. I don't know if this is the same old man that his excellency talked about." added Aulia in a hurry.

"Hmm… Did that old man look like a stubborn old fool that reeks like I will do everything my way." said King Leon, not answering Aulia's directly.

"It… It seems so. He looked like a stubborn old man." replied Aulia shortly.

"Hmmm… Interesting. Curtis, bring some of your men and escort this lady towards that old fool." said King Leon before walking away.

"Yes, my lord." replied the Royal Guardian nearby.

As King Leon walked away and left the area, "Then, Lady Aulia. Please follow me." said the Royal Guard Curtis.

"Y-Yes." replied Aulia, still not recovering from the sudden change.

Meanwhile, Angus is grueling in hammering every material and turning them into a liquid state. After hours of non-stop work, the relentless Angus also slowly feels tired in mind and body. Every move he makes needs to be calculated and precise.

Yet, Angus also couldn't just stop and rest either. The winter solstice time is approaching and he needs all the prep work to be done before it. *CLANG* *CLANG* *BRRMM* In the middle of his hammering, he notices the surrounding metallic tower suddenly dimly lit and changing.

'This is… Damn, the winter solstice is approaching. It's a little bit too early.' said Angus as he accelerated his hammering speed.

Jayna also noticed Angus' struggle but couldn't do anything except try her best to control the surrounding fire and heat. Fortunately, her practice and training while mastering Phoenix power works well and increases her ability to manipulate fire.

Jayna's last fight against the fake Patimura also increased her ability to wield the phoenix fire. As she continues, she slowly realizes how powerful a fire phoenix is. Mastering phoenix fire is not just changing shape, becoming hotter, or creating explosions out of nowhere.

The absolute master of fire phoenix could make their fire burn everything. Theoretically, there is nothing in this world that couldn't be burned. Even if something couldn't be burned, all they need to do is increase the power or heat. At that time, nothing could withstand it.

Achieving this result usually requires a lot of power, resources, or energy. However, phoenix is different. They are the embodiment of fire. They are already magical beings that are capable of wielding fire effortlessly.

This magical power is also why phoenixes are hailed as eternal beings. Their fire was so intense that it couldn't be put out or withstand. It is like an eternal fire that will keep burning everything forever.

While controlling the surrounding fire, Jayna somehow feels more familiar with the surrounding fire. It is a unique and new feeling that couldn't be described.

For her, the fire surrounding her feels warm as they are the closest family or siblings. Jayna feels like a mother being surrounded by countless curious children.

'Is this what the Fire Phoenix means by tending the fire.?' thought Jayna inwardly.

"Jayna, I will accelerate the process. Increase the fire as high as possible." said Angus.

"A-Are you sure?!!" replied Jayna worriedly.

"Huft… We don't have any choice." said Angus with a rough breath.

Through their [Allegiance] bond, Jayna knows the Winter Solstice is approaching faster than their prediction. Still, if she raises her fire higher again, Angus's fire resistance may not cope with it. Although it will not kill Angus, the heat and fire may slowly roast him.

With his own absurd regeneration and healing capabilities, he will continuously be burned alive. At that time, it would be pure torture for Angus. As the embodiment of fire that already inherited part of fire phoenix memories, she knows the pain of being burned alive.

For those with eternal bodies or high regeneration, continuously being burned alive is one of the worst situations for them. Jayna didn't hesitate and revealed her worry. She even shows part of the phoenix's memories through their bond in a split second.

However, Angus didn't flinch and continuously reassured Jayna. He even quoted one of the famous song lyrics from his past life. 'What doesn't kill you makes you stronger'.

Knowing it is useless to persuade Angus while also not wanting all of Angus' work to go to waste, Jayna decides to increase the temperature in the surrounding area. *WHOOOSHH* Bathed in fire, Angus gritted his teeth while hammering the materials faster.

After a few hours of getting burned alive, Jayna couldn't help but cry in tears after seeing her beloved man getting tortured under her fire.

However, she also does not lower the temperature either or stop him. Through their bond, Angus keeps assuring her that he is fine while hammering down the materials.

Despite his busy work and exhaustion, Angus still manages to reassure Jayna to not worry about him. This action clearly touches Jayna's heart. All she wants is to embrace Angus and stop his self-torture.

"Please…" said Jayna while sobbing.

No one could know that she pleads for Angus to stop or succeed in his work. Fortunately, the fire and heat in the surroundings seem to hear her plead. At this moment, Angus no longer feels burned alive.

The fire is still hot at a high temperature. However, it no longer harms him. It is as if something is covering Angus' entire body and protecting him from the heat and fire. He glanced at the crying Jayna momentarily before silently nodding at her.

With the pain of being burned alive, Angus could concentrate more on hammering down the materials. *CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG* After another hour of grueling work, the whole tower suddenly makes a movement.

The ceiling part of the tower is slowly open. The ceiling is covered by a unique magical lens and reveals the bright sky outside. Seeing this, Angus knows the time is coming. Fortunately, he finished turning all the materials into liquid. Now, he takes out the last two main materials.

The first one is the Red-Veined Wood that is impervious to any heat, while the other is none other than the phoenix feather. Under Jayna's care, the phoenix feather somehow becomes lustrous and more vibrant.

Its size also becomes bigger and longer. At first, it was around a human adult hand. Now, it could easily cover a human forearm. Putting the two main materials on top of the anvil, Angus took a deep breath to regulate his body while waiting for the winter solstice, basking the two materials.

There is a huge reason why Angus insisted on getting the winter solstice. It is not just enhancing the sword with unique properties and magical abilities. It is also to melt down the red-veined wood.

Unlike the elf liquify technique that used a secret control technique, Angus melted down the materials to turn them into a liquid state. This is to bring out the fire elemental in the materials. However, red-veined wood is genuinely impervious to the heat and fire.

Even the full-powered fire phoenix couldn't do anything to it. Fire Phoenix was many times stronger in the past than the current Jayna and Angus combined. Yet, it didn't even get damaged a little bit.

Therefore, Angus needs external help to melt this material without damaging it. After a lot of research and hearing Nabe's suggestion, he decided to use the Winter Solstice to melt the whole Red-veined wood.

In fact, this move is very gambling as no one knows how much power Winter Solstice could produce. If they are lucky, it could be powerful. But, if they are unlucky, it will only be bright warm sunlight without any danger.

Seeing the bright light in the sky, Angus couldn't help but remember Nabe's words.

"Winter Solstice? Isn't that too gambling?" asked Angus.

"Gambling… Brat, it seems you underestimate the power of nature. In this world, everything that is strong and truly magical is created by nature. If you want to create a good artifact sword, you should involve the power of nature as well." said Nabe.

"Fine." replied Angus shortly.

Seeing Angus is not convinced by her words, "Brat, let me tell you one of my secrets. Do you still remember the Plargos plague that I created?" asked Nabe.

"Yes." replied Angus.

"Did you think I just created it on my own? If that is the case, I will never call it one of my masterpieces. That plague was created by some sheer magical coincidence with the help of nature." said Nabe.

"I doubt I could recreate the same plague without those magical coincidences. You should never underestimate Fate, brat." said Nabe.

Wake up from his memories, 'I guess I could only leave it at Fate this time.' thought Angus inwardly.

Suddenly, Angus notices an intense light and heat coming from the ceiling. Noticing the Winter Solstice is at work, Angus immediately puts the phoenix feather hovering above the red-veined wood. At the same time, all the liquefied material is also basked in the bright light.

The sunlight passed through the liquefied material before hitting the phoenix feather and finally hitting the red-veined wood. As time passed, the phoenix feather shone brightly and illuminated the whole workstation.

In this split second, Jayna somehow could see an unknown woman covered in a fire silhouette hovering near a phoenix feather. Jayna could see the sharp phoenix eyes on the woman looking at her for a moment before entering the feather.