Arwin’s hamr rang so much that it might as well have been an entire chorus of bells. He worked the tal relentlessly. Steadily, it grew closer and closer into the shape that he wanted.
The armor he’d made for Lillia had given him a number of ideas. He didn’t want to copy the exact sa structure – he got hit far too often to want to rely on sothing that fragile, but using multiple segnted plates for moving sections felt like a good hinge chanism.
He used the horn of the anvil to make several small, curved plates that would beco the coverings for his knees. He then ford the front top half of the greaves out of a single piece of tal, repeating the process for the front of the other leg. He quenched and cleaned every piece as he made it, making sure that it was properly prepared for later assembly before moving on to the next step.
The lower parts of the greaves followed a similar pattern, and he finished by making the plates that would make up their back. Arwin extended the tal coming out of the bottom halves of his greaves to form cups that would be positioned over the segnted knee joints to protect them from direct blows.
He laid everything out, testing to make sure it fit together as well as possible. The sh had guided a fair amount of his work through the process but he hadn’t followed it completely. His armor was a mixture of his own desires and the sh’s suggestions.
That seed to be the best way to make anything, but it ca with an increased risk of making an amateur mistake. Arwin spent around an hour working out the smaller mistakes in the tal and making sure everything fit together properly.
He then set about making the clasps and connecting the pieces together with pins. Every piece in the joints was checked to ensure it wouldn’t lock up or catch on anything before he moved on.
The armor was starting to truly take shape. With every new piece that Arwin validated, it grew closer to becoming a completed set of greaves. The sh started to swirl within the tal as he worked, but there was still more to do before it could be considered complete.
Arwin took the leather that he still had remaining from his previous work and cut it apart, inserting it into the insides of the greaves and pinning it in place. Smoke hissed as he used [Soul Fla] and [Scourge] to heat and pinch off the ends of the tal right at the edge of the leather, squishing them into smooth disks to ensure they wouldn’t dig into his skin.
The day crawled on and night swallowed the sky, and still Arwin worked. He slid straps through the clasps and added designs into the greaves – not so much as to draw attention, but enough to make them both look and feel complete.
And then, finally, his work was done. He lifted his hand from the glistening tal. His eyes traced the swirls of ivory running through the silvery tal like tendrils of pale fla. It glistened in the light of the hearth.
The sh erupted forth.
[Ivory Executioner Greaves: Rare Quality] has been forged. Forging a magical item has granted you energy.
Your Tier has raised by 1 rank.
Arwin grinned. He’d finally reached Apprentice 5 – which ant it was ti to select a skill to specialize in. With all the Achievents he’d gathered that upgraded the quality of his next skills, he was greatly looking forward to seeing the options that he had to choose from.
But, before he could get around to that he turned his gaze to the greaves that he’d just finished to see what rewards his efforts had sown.
[Ivory Executioner Greaves: Rare Quality]
[Dread Montum]: Forged in the image of the Ivory Executioner, this item hungers for blood. After this item’s wielder kills an opponent, it will draw a portion of their magical energy into itself and convert it into movent speed for its wearer that lasts until their next blow or natural dissipation. Energy gained increases with consecutive kills within a short period of ti.
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[Forged For One]: This item was forged specifically for Arwin Tyrr. Its abilities will not function for any other users.
[Executioner’s Silence]: This item’s properties are concealed from others.
[Armor of the Executioner]: This is a set item of [?] pieces. When the entire set is worn, a concealed property will be unlocked.
Arwin’s grin grew as he saw the last two lines. The sh had recognized the greaves as part of his set. They functioned very similarly to the helm in that their ability only activated after he got a kill. He wasn’t sure if that counted as a detrintal trait or not, but he suspected that it did. Having equipnt that only started working after defeating soone else was a bit of a risk.
The reward was more than worth it. The greaves were simple, but they seed incredibly effective. He got faster with every kill for the duration of one blow. It was an item ant for dealing with large groups of relatively weak enemies.
If he approached battles strategically, it would let him ramp up aggressively throughout the fight. Taking out opponents in order of weakest to strongest would let him – at least in theory – steamroll through the stronger enemies before they could properly defend themselves. It was an item entirely focused on montum, just as the description noted.
Arwin nodded to himself as he slipped the greaves on to ensure they sat properly on his body. He was unsurprised to find that the fit was perfect. The sh had helped him make them specifically for himself, so it would have been odd if they were uncomfortable.
That didn’t stop him from doing a few test moves, just to make sure nothing felt amiss. Everything felt great. More than pleased with the results of his work, he activated [Arsenal] and bound himself to the greaves before dismissing them.
Arwin couldn’t help but notice that the Ivory Executioner set hadn’t been completed. That wasn’t really a surprise. At the bare minimum, he was going to need to fix the chest piece. It had been the set’s nasake, after all. He’d find out if he needed gauntlets or boots after that.
Full body sets were pretty rare, so I’d be willing to bet this is a 3-piece set. I certainly hope it is. I want to see what benefits I get from completing it as well as the full strength of the helt.
That can co later. I need to get magical greaves for Rodrick. Maybe a magical weapon as well. I need our other frontliner able to stand beside without getting taken out in the first blow or two.
That can co later, though. I’ve done enough smithing for tonight. The work is done. It’s ti for the fun part. Let’s see what you’ve got waiting for , sh.
Arwin summoned his status with a thought. Golden letters swirled forth eagerly, as if the sh had been waiting for the mont to show itself.
Na: Arwin Tyrr
Class: Living Forge (Unique) (Tier: Apprentice 5)
New Skill Specialization Available.
Arwin selected the final glowing ssage with a thought. Words shifted and faded away as new ones took their place.
Choose a Skill to specialize in.
[Awaken]
[Molten Novice]
[Soul Fla]
[Arsenal]
[The Hungering Maw]
Arwin’s eyes traced over the options. The first few were exactly as he’d expected, but the last one ca from the Challenge that he’d earned. A frown crawled across his lips. [The Hungering Maw] wasn’t a skill.
It was a title. Titles couldn’t be upgraded. They were flat boons – or curses – that stuck around and remained unchanging. He hadn’t been certain how the option would show up, but the sh was treating as if it were just any other skill.
That made for an interesting dilemma. There were a number of skills that Arwin would have liked to specialize in already. [Arsenal] was functionally the only skill he wouldn’t havewanted to choose.
[Molten Novice] seed like it would have a lot of potential once he got it working, but it was such a big question that he didn’t want to risk specializing into it – not to ntion that it didn’t actually give him any benefits yet. It was just too much of a risk.
[Soul Fla], on the other hand, was an incredible option. He already used it extensively for just about all of his work. Specializing in it would give him more combat and crafting options alike.
His other good option was [Awaken]. It would have been his first choice if not for the unsettling potential drawbacks of advancing it too quickly. But, even with the risk it posed, it was still imnsely tempting.
But… upgrading a Title – that was new. The upgrade ca from a Challenge called Curb the Hunger, which implied it would be related to controlling [The Hungering Maw]. If upgrading it gave him more insight or control over the ability, it would be invaluable.
Then again, there was the chance that upgrading it would just result in a more powerful maw that demanded even stronger items to let him survive in exchange for so other boon. In that case, choosing it would be the sa as signing his own death warrant.
Arwin crossed his arms and stared at the glowing letters before him. They shimred innocently, lying in wait so he could determine his future.
Which one do I choose?
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