The legendary Moonlight Sculptor

V55C8P1 - Crisis in Morata

Ulgor Highlands.

It was a high, flat terrain located between Idern, Dale and Thor.

The wagons by Mapan Council and the dwarves gathered neatly at the predetermined location.

Each wagon was completely filled with treasures!

Mapan spoke as he walked with his chubby body heavily dependent on his cane.

"How is it?"

"I feel stuffed just by looking at them."

Weed had nothing else to say.

The stolen treasures were less than a third of what was inside the lair, but it sure was a massive pile now that they had them laid out across the Ulgor Highlands.

"Unfortunately, we lost 21 wagons during the transportation. Some encountered monsters and others broke down while rushing down the mountain. Changing routes due to the dangerous forest fire had a significant impact as well."

Weed received Mapan's heart-throbbing report.

The damages resulted from transporting while being chased by monsters down the steep Ulta Mountain Pass.

"How much inventory did we end up with?"

"About 4000 pieces of equipment. Metal alloys, mineral ores, magic ingredients. We scavenged a variety of goods."

"That number is excluding the shares to be distributed to everyone who participated in the robbery, correct?"

"Yes. Aside from the equipment to be handed out, the treasures and antiques are being checked for their value. There are too many and I estimate about a week for completion."

"Fufufu."

"Ke-heheh."

Weed and Mapan laughed together.

When they spoke about money, they appeared more similar than close family members.

'I have to be wary of this man. He could be more dangerous than Bard Ray.'

Close as they were, they were cautious!

If Mapan were to ask for a loan, he would gladly provide with conditions of interest and mortgage.

"Weed-nim, aren't these items sold at whatever price the seller sets? But, there aren't going to be that many users that could afford them."

Just because some people were high-level, it didn't mean that they stacked great fortune.

There were limited numbers of people that could afford equipment that easily cost over a million gold and most of them had already spent their life savings for the provincial lord positions.

Mapan was worried that the market price would decline when these items went to the auction.

"I'm not going to sell them."

"You aren't?"

"Yeah. I'm going to rent them out for now."

The high-level users will rent these items out even in debt, all in order to come out ahead in the competition against others.

They will hunt diligently every month and pay the rent.

The poor had no choice but to bow before the rich. .

Compared to the people who buy expensive cars and struggle to feed themselves, they had at least one positive point and it was that they grew as they trained in the hunting grounds.

"I'm going to circulate these items and make up for the rent fees and tax income."

"Darn, I still have so much to learn from you."

Mapan was truly amazed.

While he was expanding the Mapan Council all across the Versailles Continent, Weed claimed power.

Money and power went hand in hand.

"Fu-hahaha."

"Huhuhu."

Herman and Fabio too came running to Ulgor Highlands to observe the treasures.

"The properties on this sword are incredible. There are a lot of unique skills."

"The dwarf blacksmiths are truly skilled… These are made with such fine-tuning and effort."

There were items scattered around that even themselves as masters had to put in significant effort to achieve.

Blacksmithing was a job that studied metals and objects to the very limit.

Being masters, their stats increased just by observing the equipment.

"Can you fix up this sword of mine?"

Weed showed the two dwarves the nameless sword he picked up in the dragon's lair.

"So there was another sword like that one."

"This sword possesses a conscience, an ego sword. To craft one of these requires a secret technique of a blacksmith."

Herman and Fabio lifted the sword and nodded.

"The balance is great, no flaws to be seen."

"Wraps well inside the hand. The grasp feels clean."

They were short, middle-aged dwarfs with thick forearms, but when they focused on the sword they reeked the look of experts.

In real life, they lived very different lives but in Royal Road they were true masters of sword crafting.

"Misters, I know that you each have a secret blacksmith technique that you hid away."

"Gasp."

"Uh. How did you…"

Herman and Fabio's eyes opened wide in surprise.

Weed gave them a lukewarm look and spoke.

"I was only guessing, but judging by your reaction I was right."

"…"

For them to have been the most famous dwarf blacksmiths and not own a couple of secret techniques did not make sense. Weed was also aware to some degree of their skills traits.

'Combat type skills are simple. They're just more powerful.'

Sword secret techniques are destructive. However, they spent a lot of mana and had a steep growth curve in skill proficiency.

Art type skills had the power of bringing miracles, but they were difficult to acquire and required self-sacrifice with every use.

It was giving oneself for the arts.

These secret skills were obtained through difficult and unorthodox quests.

He thought that the path would be different for blacksmiths.

'It was a job class reflectant of effort, skill and the final product produced. The blacksmith secret technique will never be achieved without proficiency in crafting swords and armor.'

Each blacksmith would possess at least one secret technique as their speciality.

Even when Weed requested crafting for sword and armor, they never opened that last pocket in their pants!

"I understand. It must be a life's work for the master. It would never be easy to apply something you've acquired over years of training into someone else's item."

Weed nodded as if he was sympathetic.

He put them up for competition, but they still left their final card up their sleeve.

It was obvious that even Weed himself wouldn't have put in his best efforts in creating a sword or armor to be used by someone else.

'The stitches wouldn't have held back my jealousy.'

Any equipment crafted by blacksmith masters was excellent. But, a sword crafted in a day compared to another that took a month of sweat and effort are in two different dimensions.

The Sky Ruler's Armor.

It was an item that they melted themselves into, but their expertise was still in weapons.

Weed slapped his lips wet.

"This is my last request. Awaken this sword and realise its powers. If you can't accomplish

this request, I will not make any more."

***

Fabio and Herman were honestly offended.

They received the best treatments no matter where they went in the Versailles Continent.

"At some point, we are doing all of Weed's requests."

"Seriously. We never got the treatment we deserve after completing each task and we get scolded instead."

Normal blacksmiths would have been enraged and left the spot. However, they were prideful blacksmith masters and could not walk away.

To give up on a client not satisfied with their work was mocking their pride.

Throughout their time in Royal Road, they built up skill, honor and pride.

Herman brushed over the rusty sheath.

"A nameless sword. Aren't you curious about how it will turn out once we restore it to its original state?"

"I also think it's worth the challenge. Coincidentally, I have the secret technique for ego swords."

"I have the property of wind… I could add it in."

"Let's make this one into something that will slap his face. So that he will never question our skills again."

Fabio and Herman decided on restoring the nameless sword into the finest sword, thinking that it would be the best revenge they can take on Weed.

***

Weed assessed the situation up until now.

There was the half-elf Vishur's quest for the Brazier of Sacrifice!

There was also the progress of the savior quest and the dwarf race quest through Sculptural Transformation along the quest line.

"I don't know how much help this will be, but it seems to be related to the dragon."

Long ago, he encountered the dragon Ratuas and made a sculpture of the silver dragon Yuskellanda.

He pocketed the sculpting materials and made a hefty profit out of it!

< You do not meet the requirements to begin the quest 'Dragon Ratuas' Investigator'.

Minimum level of 480 is required.

Dignity and courage is above the minimum requirement of 400.

Essential combat skills haven't reached advanced level 7.

Quest cannot be accessed. >

Back then, he could not proceed with the quest, but now he was able to.

"Looking back now, this quest is very strange."

He thought of the conversation he had with Blue Dragon Ratuas.

- Human, how much do you know about Yuskellanda's death.

"I am a measly sculptor. I know nothing of it. If I ever did, I don't remember it."

- It is too early right now. Your abilities are not enough to stop what's coming.

If you wish for stories, come to me any time. Whether you step up or not, the event will arise. Oh humans that Yuskellanda tried to protect until the end…

Weed felt a tingling sensation.

"Yuskellanda's death. How it tried to protect the humans until the end bothers me. Maybe Kaybern wasn't born with its furious mind, but could there be a messed up scheme by the dragons behind all this…?"

Normally, his dangerous suspicions tended to turn out true.

It was just that the reason for his hesitation of going to Ratuas and carrying out the quest preemptively was because there was a possibility that it has no relation to Kaybern whatsoever.

To make matters worse, it may very well become two insanely difficult dragon quests in his hands.

"This is troublesome. Very troublesome."

Weed thought it was misfortune either way.

If the dragons were to be connected somehow, the scale of this event would be escalated greatly.

There were already monsters wreaking havoc across the entire continent and Thor region was devastated.

So why does it feel like the dragons will start a rampage on Versailles Continent?

"It can't be. Just my cursed imagination from lack of sleep. Yep. That's right… No matter how twisted and grindful my fate may be, it can't turn out that extreme."

Even so, the humans and dwarves were fully mobilized and moving into an all-out battle against Kaybern.

(To be continued…)