Limits Chapter 210

I worked like this for couple of days, and accumulated enough Black Steel Ingots, to create about 100 daggers . Besides the Black Steel Ingots, I also learn more about smithing . The old Lizard, showed me how to create new ingots, such as Bronzite Ingot, which was very good for making shields, as it absorbed the impacts very well . There was also a disadvantage, when using equipment created from Bronzite, it would slow the wielder down, as the metal was very heavy .

I also learned how to create Flexium Ingots, and as the name suggested, the metal was very flexible . It could be used for bow making, as well as lashing weapons, such as whips . The Flexium had many more applications, not only in weaponry . He also described to me very rare ingots, that not only costed a lot, but were very difficult to get a hold of . One of such ingots, was Quicksilver Ingot . It was made using Mithril, a magical ore that was very hard to find . Another such rare ingot, was Lunar Ingot . It could be created only with the use of special materials, that rarely popped up in our world .

He didn't know much about those ingots, as they were treated almost as legends . They were that rare . I also got lesson from him about making weapons . He said that starting from swords, was the best idea, and we did just that . He showed me how to make a sword out of simple Steel . The process was much more complicated, than I previously thought . First, I had to go through the shaping process, where I would give the sword it's shape . Then I would need to temper it using, by cooling it down, and reheating it again . And then grind it at the grindstone, to give it an edge .

It required a great knowledge of swords, to be able to create one, that was at least useful . One had to know, where to strike and with what strength, in order to make a good sword . He said that casting, was for novices and it required molds . A lot of smiths, were not very well versed at making more intricate molds, that was why, he was so impressed by my daggers .

I tried creating a sword, but it wasn't easy . Even though I could create a shape, it was all out of balance, and not very useful . It could be used to kill something, but a proper swordsman, would throw it away, as a garbage . Nevertheless, it was my first attempt, and the old Lizard said himself, that I would get better at it, the more I practiced .

When I did another 3 Azurite Ingots, I went back to the room, and gave the ingots to the old Lizard . I said to the him "I don't need the materials anymore . I already have enough, to create a lot of daggers . I also stored some materials for later, if I need them" . He asked a bit worried "Do you want to quit the job?" . I shook my head and said "I still need to make my daggers, but I don't want the materials anymore . You can now pay me with money" . He seemed to relax a bit, and said "That is fine . I will give you the equal amount of money, to what the materials were worth . That will be 1 Black Hal and 26 Red Hals . Is that alright?" .

I was a bit stunned and asked "How much does a Grondon earn in one day?" . He said "They earn from 15 to 30 Red Hals, that is because they are making Azurite, and we need that done as much as possible, hence the pay" . I understood, why he was willing to pay that much for me . Not only could I create 3 ingots a day, I also made good quality ingots . This made me wonder 'Why would that Lazar be willing to pay 2 Black Hals, for the medicine? Was it really that good? Better than someone creating 3 Azurite Ingots a day?' . I didn't know how much Azurite costed, so I decided to ask .

"Can you tell me, how much does one Azurite Ingot costs?" . The old Lizard said "A Middle Grade Quality, would cost something like 6 Black Hals . As for the High Grade Quality, It would cost in excess of 10 Black Hals . The Top Grade Quality… In excess of 25 Black Hals" . I was stunned to be honest, my work was worth that much, yet I earn a lot more, with just one vial of my medicine . 'Something is broken here, is my medicine that much more expensive?' I thought, and decided to ask about that as well . "Say, is the medicine very expensive here?" .

The old Lizard thought about it, then replied "That depends on how strong it is, and how well it works" . I took out a vial from my bag, and said "How much would this cost?", then passed the vial with Healing Essence to him . He opened it, smelled it and asked the same question, as the Lazar guy . "Can I have a taste?" He asked . I nodded my head, and awaited his response .

The old Lizard took a sip, and immediately exclaimed "Is this real? Where did you get it from?" . He reluctantly passed the vial back to me . I asked instead "How much is it worth?" . He said "I never seen such a strong medicine, it must be worth at least 20 Black Hals" . 'That bastard, and he only gave me 2 Black Hals . That is 10 times less! No wonder that guy wanted me to come over again, to sell my medicine . It was a daylight robbery!' I thought .

The old Lizard asked, if I wanted to sell it, so I said "I will sell you that one . Only because you were honest with me, I will sell it for 10 Black Hals . How about that?" . He nodded his head, and paid me the whole price immediately . I then said "I will be back tomorrow, to make some of my daggers . Then I will take care of your ingots" . He didn't seem to care, and simply nodded his head . I left the room, and went back to the tavern .

After renting the room, I went upstairs and sat down on the chair . "Frosty, come out for a moment" I said, but Frosty didn't respond . 'Hmm? This is weird . Why isn't Frosty responding?' I thought, and called out again . "Frosty?" but nothing happened . I had no idea, why it wouldn't come out, but I could do nothing about it . 'I have to leave this place soon . When I learn more about smithing, I will try to acquire a better map of the North, then I will leave . Before that, I should contact that Lazar guy' I thought .

The Lazar guy, was the only creature in this place that I knew, who had contacts with that military leader . I wanted to inquire about my situation . I also needed to find some kind of food source, if I wanted to continue staying in the North . There was also the issue of my new strings, for the skill . 'I should visit Crow as well, and check out what he managed to find . Maybe he will know much more, than the Lizards' I thought, and went to sleep .

Chapter end