They continued to talk and take their time hand in hand until they arrived in front of the blacksmith shop. “Ah, Ardonis, I was actually just about to ask for you,” Nilons said as they entered. “It would seem Master has finished the preparations, and the next step in forging your blade is at hand.”
He nodded, “Perfect, it seems I did come at the right time after all. Lead the way.”
Nilons led them to the back where the forge, anvil, and other blacksmith magic happened. The clanging of a hammer could be heard and only became louder as they got closer to the source. A few moments later, they saw the Dwarf hammering away at a sword. Upon glancing up, he smirked beneath his beard and gave the sword one more hit. Then he picked it up and slowly lowered it into the vat of oil next to him. Causing steam to rise up along with a satisfying hiss.
“Just in time, we are in the final stages now, lad. All we need to do is pour your mana into the blade. However, the tricky part is that you must fill it up so much to the point it nearly shatters. Walking the very thin edge in a delicate balancing act. Unfortunately, it is a step that I cannot help you with, and you will have to use your own judgment. Remember, boy, if you end up failing this, I won’t be able to make another. I poured all of my highest grade materials, skills, blood, sweat, and tears into this fine blade.”
“And the material I mentioned, I will not be able to get back even a portion of for at least a decade. There are no second chances, lad.”
Ardonis nodded, “Then I will succeed.”
He grabbed the hilt of the sword, which was a material similar to leather wrapped in a type of dark blue fabric that trailed off the bottom of the hilt. The blade itself was double-sided with a reflective sheen, slightly larger than Ardonis’s forearm. The sword as a whole was the size of his entire arm and meant to be wielded in one hand. Grandmaster passed the sword off to Ardonis, who held it with a firm, yet gentle grip.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, when he opened them, the entire room became heavy with his aura in an instant. Focusing intently on the sword, he began pouring his mana from his subpool into it. Ten seconds, then twenty, thirty, he began to wonder in the back of his mind just how much of his mana the sword could take. He wasn’t sending in too much at a time, but most other swords would have shattered long before that point. Especially considering how powerful his mana itself was.
Then, at the forty-second mark, the sword began to change color. From the white sheen to a light blue, which began to get darker and darker. At the fifty-second mark, it had changed into a different blue, the color of his mana. Which was the same as his eyes. A deep galaxy blue.
At the one-minute mark, other colors were added in with the blue, ten seconds more, and bright dots formed sporadically throughout. Creating what looked like a galaxy on the blade. Finally, at one minute and thirty seconds, the blade began to vibrate. Ardonis sensed he was reaching the end, and was surprised to find that nearly a quarter of his subpool was depleted. He quickly refocused and continued pouring his mana into the blade at a slower rate than before.
The vibrating only got stronger with each passing second, until Ardonis knew he was at the breaking point. In that moment, something deep within called out to him, and he closed his eyes. Keeping the flow of mana to the blade, that was when he felt a new presence. An immediate understanding that it was the sword, he felt a connection to his subpool, then to his main pool form.
His own mana began to flow back into him from the sword, cycling through the connection in a feedback loop. He had reached full equilibrium with the sword. Sensing something, he poured all of his remaining mana from his subpool into the sword in an instant. The feedback sending in just as much as he gave out, and he could sense it; the sword had gained immense power.
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“This may sound strange, Grandmaster, but please, hand me your hammer!” he called out, reaching out with his free left hand. Once he felt the object placed in it, the blade burst into a powerful, dark blue flame. One that burned much hotter than the forge it was crafted in. By instinct, he moved over to the anvil and as he put the sword on it, hardly a moment later, he struck it with the hammer as hard as he could.
Unbeknownst to him, the entire room exploded with magical aura several times over. Matching the cycle of when the sword took in his mana, and the hammer. Each time he sent mana through the sword and struck it with the hammer, it grew in power. Until it matched that of his own raw mana. At last, after an unknown amount of time, he struck it one final time, pouring every last bit of his strength into it as well as all of his mana from his subpool before cutting off the mana flow between him and the sword. For only a brief fraction of a millisecond, the power was unrestrained, the sword being as powerful as the owner without the worldly restrictions. It was an unbridled power that very few weapons in existence had. Spreading out across the entire multiverse, making its existence known.
When he opened his eyes, the sword in his hand felt content and was no longer vibrating, nor on fire. The presence that was still there wasn’t a conscious or sentient one, but a bond. A bond from a blade that chose its master and was now bound to his very soul. The sword itself felt as powerful as he was currently.
He took a deep breath, wiping sweat off his brow that he hadn’t even realized had formed. “It seems the sword has the restrictions placed on it as well. Then again, I suppose that is a good thing.”
When he looked up from the sword, he saw the others all had wide eyes with their mouths hanging open. Grandmaster was the first to snap out of it and shook his head. “Do ye have any idea what ye just did, lad? You finished the sword yourself like a man possessed. I was supposed to do the rest of the work after you poured your mana into it. But to think… You forged not only the final piece of the sword, but a bond with it as well.”
“Not only that, what you hold is no mere divine weapon like it originally would have been. I don’t know if there even is a classification for that grade. Not one known to me anyway. My masterpiece, turning into something like that… this is the happiest day of me life.”
Ardonis took a deep breath, “Mythic… that is the only word that could be used to describe this.”
Lucy sputtered, “That… no, are you sure, Ardonis? That would put it leagues above even Dietic. I love you, hon, but in order for a mythic grade well… anything, would require a power we simply do not have, even unrestricted and combined. A grade that only the top Supreme gods in existence could make.”
He nodded, “I’m sure, I felt it. For only a very, very brief moment, but this sword made its existence known to the multiverse.”
“Ardonis-”
“Lucy,” he interrupted, “Do we know what the actual requirements are for making a mythic grade item? All we know, even in Celestial, is that there are very few in existence and that only Supreme gods have been successful in making them. Leading to the belief that only they could because of their immense power. But what if there are other requirements that must be met, and power itself is only one of them?”
“Even if there were more, as I said, you simply don’t have that kind of power to begin with,” she argued.
He nodded, “You’re right. But that isn’t necessarily what I meant. What if it isn’t just the immense power in of itself, what if it is the combination of their normal and divine mana? Not all of those with combined divine and normal mana are Supreme gods. But all Supreme gods have combined divine and normal mana. I mean, let’s not forget, combining such mana is usually a death sentence for a god. And those who succeed become immensely more powerful. I’m proof of that, right?”
She gasped, “So you’re saying, the power requirement isn’t merely the scale of it, but what it is as a base?”
He nodded again, “Precisely. Please, Lucy, trust me on this. I felt that power, even if just briefly, this blade is truly as powerful as I am myself with and without the restriction. Not even a dietic blade would be that powerful. Considering those are artifacts that even mortals wield.”
She sighed, “Well, there is one person we could ask who may know more.”
“Then let’s head back and see what she thinks about this.”
As if on cue, the door to the forge room burst open, and Viana rushed in. “Okay, someone mind telling me what the fuck that immense power I felt a few minutes ago was? I thought it was another attack by Milsa, but quickly rushed over when I realized the origin.”
Ardonis looked over at Lucy and grinned at her before turning back to Viana. “Sorry about that, Viana, that was my fault. I’ll explain what happened in detail…”
