Masterworks could differ enormously from each other.
Each of them represented excellence in material production in one fashion or another, but there was never a single correct outco.
That was inherently anathema to the traditional craftsmanship community.
Different professionals could never completely agree on what constituted a good work.
For example, Gloriana highly valued technical consistency and perfection. The closer a ch resembled the ideal ch design, the more exquisite the result!
Ves on the other hand thought that such an overly sterile and standard outco was too boring to earn a good score. What other people considered flaws, he tended to view them as colorful personality traits.
Their diverging standards were reflective of their design philosophies.
It was impossible for Gloriana to co around and appreciate Ves' tolerance towards chaos and imperfections.
Likewise, Ves could never bring himself to evaulate Gloriana's bland and flawless work highly.
Despite their fundantal differences in philosophy and opinion, the two were nonetheless able to work well together.
They did not have to agree with each other on every matter in order to produce a masterwork. It was enough to understand their differences. So long as they amicably agreed to work around each other, they could avoid stepping on each other's toes while focusing on completing the assignnts that fit their inclinations the best.
Unlike the previous masterwork chs that Ves had fabricated alongside Gloriana, the Bitter Scimitar was much more reflective of his own style.
Ketis' own approach towards craftsmanship and sword forging only added a different accent to the result.
The fact that Ves managed to succeed further validated his own quirky approach towards craftsmanship.
Controlled chaos was not a fantasy that led to a dead end. The more proficient he beca in adopting this strategy, the more he was able to craft increasingly higher quality works despite the retention of so many physical 'imperfections'!
After the pair of ch designers scanned the newly created masterwork and wrote down their notes of their observations and experiences, they were finally ready to begin the final and most crucial process.
Confidence coursed through Ves' body as he beheld the Bitter Scimitar and the Demon Mixer that contained the Bitter Swordsman.
"We have prepared the ingredients as best as possible. Our second attempt will be a lot better. I can assure you of that. Almost everything is ready."
"Almost? What are we missing?"
"I need to have a good talk with the forr expert candidate." Ves replied as he approached a certain demich. "If I can influence the process of demonization by bargaining with the demon, then it doesn't hurt to try. Who knows whether this will make the final form of the Bitter Scimitar more effective than before."
Ves closed in on the Demon Mixer and pressed his palm on its demonized surface. "Hello there. I know you can hear sohow. Let's talk."
If the demich was not being restrained at the mont, it would have attempted to squash Ves even though it stood no chance of inflicting any actual damage!
Perhaps the Bitter Swordsman may have gained a bit of rationality due to an uncertain factor, but it had not shaken off its fundantal nature as a demon!
Ves imdiately knew that he could not reason with the Bitter Swordsman like a normal human being. He imdiately decided to switch his strategy and adopt a firr deanor.
"Fine, then. If you want to be like this, then let make my point clear in terms you understand. You are a loser. There, I said it. You were a pathetic ch pilot in life. You managed to promote to the rank of expert candidate, yet got butchered like a pig on the battlefield due to overestimating your abilities. Qualified expert pilots have been able to survive their vulnerable periods as expert candidates without issue, but you have failed to asure up to that standard, so you deserve to die a worthless early death."
The Demon Mixer began to shake more violently against the restraints!
The provocative words infuriated the demon!
Ves smirked as he continued to feel the mounting anger and fury inside the machine.
"So what if you're pissed? You can't do anything as long as you are attached to this useless demich. Did you know I purposefully designed it so that you would still amount to little more than a nuisance when you demonized it? Heh. You must be feeling endlessly frustrated. You were a loser in your first life, and now you are a loser in your second life. Do you like feeling so powerless? Are you content with remaining a loser despite the fact that you have grown stronger than before?"
"..."
"I thought so. All I am offering is a solution for you. As long as you cooperate with and allow yourself to undergo a transformation that will help you integrate with that powerful ch scimitar over there, your new ho will subsequently be transferred to a high-tier expert ch. For once in your life, you will be able to redeem yourself and prove your worth in a battle against powerful and relentless aliens. If you happen to establish a closer form of cooperation with the expert pilot, he may even be able to advance to the rank of ace pilot. Your proximity and assistance will allow you to earn a share of the rewards. You will gain so much high-quality energy that you can beco a lot stronger than you could ever imagine back when you were an expert candidate."
"..."
"Do not think that it is pointless for you to fight on behalf of your new wielder. The more you assist your new owner, the stronger you will beco. He will welco that, as a stronger blade will allow him to challenge stronger opponents. Isn't this a good way for you to attain the glory and success that your enemies denied you in your first life?"
"...!"
"Okay, that's fair. No ch pilot wants to be reduced to an enslaved tool if he can help it. You don't have any choice, though. You died, and this is your new afterlife. You have beco damned and forgotten by your old state because you were too much of a loser to survive and breakthrough on the battlefield. You don't deserve anything better because you are too weak to matter."
"...!!!"
Ves smirked wider. "Oh, did that upset you, loser? Instead of raging about it like a useless tool, you should instead embrace the opportunity that I am offering you. You can do a lot more with strength. As long as you grow strong enough, you can break the limitations of your new shell and free yourself from your physical cage. You can also attempt to overpower the pilot that has co to rely on you and maybe even take over his mind and body. Think of it as your only chance to resurrect yourself. Doesn't this sound better than experiencing two different lifetis as a pathetic loser?"
The Demon Mixer shook with anger!
"What are you doing, Ves!?" She angrily hissed. "Why are you feeding dangerous ideas into this demon? Are you deliberately trying to endanger Joshua?!"
"Relax. It will be fine. Have confidence in your husband. He may have fallen to a low point at the mont, but he will definitely recover. Every hero does. Joshua needs an additional source of adversity to grow. By wielding a D-arm that embodies both power and loss of control, Joshua will constantly have to struggle to ta and pacify this weapon. It is best if he can reduce the Bitter Swordsman hostility and attain true symbiosis. However, even a temporary cooperation is enough. This will keep him on his toes and continuously temper his willpower."
"If you want people to stop calling you a loser, then you need to project strength instead of pointless temper tantrums. I am giving you a chance to gain what you need. The Demoncasting process that I will be subjecting you to will hurt you a lot. I can guarantee you that you will experience so much pain that you will feel tempted to resist to the best of your abilities. Don't. For once in your life, you must demonstrate as much willpower as an expert pilot and do your best to accept and conform to the changes brought by this process. As long as you accept the changes, then you will beco bound to the Bitter Scimitar in your strongest state. The weapon will better reflect your new role and properties. So long as you accept these changes, you will retain a greater portion of your effective strength, which you will need to one day contest your wielder's control over his own body."
Ketis moved forward and clutched his arm.
"What are you doing, Ves!?" She angrily hissed. "Why are you feeding dangerous ideas into this demon? Are you deliberately trying to endanger Joshua?!"
"Relax. It will be fine. Have confidence in your husband. He may have fallen to a low point at the mont, but he will definitely recover. Every hero does. Joshua needs an additional source of adversity to grow. By wielding a D-arm that embodies both power and loss of control, Joshua will constantly have to struggle to ta and pacify this weapon. It is best if he can reduce the Bitter Swordsman hostility and attain true symbiosis. However, even a temporary cooperation is enough. This will keep him on his toes and continuously temper his willpower."
"He can do that without you setting the Bitter Swordsman up for a betrayal!"
"Oh, co on, Ketis. We're talking about a demon! Betrayal is in their nature! Their blackened souls can permit nothing else! Since a struggle for dominance cannot be avoided, then there is no harm in stoking it. At least I can exert a asure of control over the competition. Besides, have so faith in your husband. Joshua is not a typical expert pilot, but that makes him all the more precious and unique. He can be strong in his own way. He just needs the opportunity to showcase his own advantages."
After settling Ketis' concerns, Ves moved over to the Demoncasting Forge and approached the rack where all of the molds had been placed.
While the Demoncasting Forge provided dozens of different Demoncasting Molds, Ves did not feel satisfied with the limited selection.
There was only one generic attack enhancent mold that could be applied to any weapon, no matter whether it was a sword or a rifle.
Although this generous purpose mold had a low chance of failure when used on a weapon, Ves had little idea on what exactly grew stronger.
This was yet another indication that Ves should eventually learn to develop his own Demoncasting Molds.
He could design more specialized ones that specifically enhanced different weapons in very specific ways.
However, that was too far away for him. He did not even have access to enlightennt fruits or any other source of information that could teach him the principles and design specifications of these weird molds.
After he swept through the other molds and confird that nothing else was more suitable, he commanded a bot to take out the Attack Enhancent Demoncasting Mold and place it in the appropriate slot over at the Demoncasting Forge.
"Alright, let's start."
Anticipation welled up inside Ves as he began the Demoncasting process.
He first used the workshop controls to toss Demon Mixer 5 into the demonic flas!
A loud scream erupted from the demonized demich as its ch fra literally lted in a matter of seconds!
All of the tal got vaporized or disappeared entirely, leaving nothing else but the Middle Demon, who strangely burned at a much slower rate!
"That is handy." Ketis looked impressed. "How did you know the demonic flas would allow you to separate the demon from his bonded vessel?"
Ves chuckled. "I didn't. I just made an educated guess. These flas are extraordinary. They give a sense of acute danger whenever I hover too close to it. Besides, I did not want to go through the trouble of manually separating the Bitter Swordsman from his forr gu container. My solution is much rougher and has a much greater chance of damaging the demon."
He had made the right bet, as the demonic flas liberated the Middle Demon from his physical shell, only to get roasted without any physical protection!
The Bitter Swordsman roared in pain as his weaker and less stable aspects slowly burned away.
Over ti, his form beca less defined and more amorphous.
Ves paid close attention to the Middle Demon's state. He eventually trusted his gut feeling and pulled the Bitter Swordsman out at a relatively early timing!
He wanted the demon to retain most of his cognition!
While this would definitely cause the demon to generate greater resistance and increase the chances of a backlash, this was exactly what Ves had in mind for the Bitter Scimitar!
The weapon had to be almost just as dangerous to its wielder in order to serve its noble purpose!
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