Apprentice Blacksmith

Radiant Moon Calendar Year 138, Month of the North Wind.

Golden Valley Kingdom, Blackwater Territory.

Although it was already the dead of winter, the blacksmith shop in Baron Foslin's manor was still bustling with activity.

"Alright, you brats! Get your spirits up!"

Blacksmith Hawk weaved through the busy crowd, his rough voice rumbling like muffled thunder.

"The assessment is in three months! If you don't want to pack your bags and go home, you'd better put in some effort!"

Hearing this, the youths immediately redoubled their efforts with the tasks at hand.

But as they weren't even blacksmith apprentices, their clumsy skills naturally couldn't satisfy Hawk.

"Are you stoking the bellows so slowly because you're boiling bathwater for your grandma?"

"And you! How many times have I told you, you need to watch the timing when forging ore!"

Hawk shook his head, frustrated by their lack of progress, and continued to move through the crowd.

Suddenly, his footsteps halted, and a low grunt escaped his throat.

In his line of sight, a somewhat thin black-haired youth was pulling the bellows with all his might, each pull causing the furnace fire to leap up more than a foot.

The scorching heat caused beads of sweat the size of soybeans to form on the youth's face, dripping down his chin, yet his movements remained steady.

The moment the iron ingot turned from dark red to orange-red, the youth swiftly grabbed the tongs, flipped his wrist, and steadily clamped the glowing ingot out. With a clean turn, he placed it on the anvil.

The entire sequence was smooth and fluid, showing no sign of awkwardness.

"This kid..."

Seeing this, Hawk nodded in satisfaction. He then walked over to the youth and clapped him firmly on the shoulder.

"Your name is Roland, right? Good job!"

Though it were only four simple words, they caused the surrounding people to reveal looks of envy and jealousy.

After all, the usually strict Hawk had never praised anyone before.

"You flatter me, Mister Hawk."

Roland wiped the sweat from his forehead and gave a shy smile.

Hawk, however, waved his hand dismissively and turned to leave.

Unknowingly, a crisp bell sound suddenly rang out.

This was the signal reminding the manor servants that it was time for a meal.

"Hoo..."

After a long sigh, Roland stretched, picked up a nearby rag, and cleaned the ore debris around the furnace before jogging towards the dining area.

Two pieces of black bread, a piece of cheese the size of a fingernail, and a bowl of vegetable soup with who-knew-what mixed in.

If it were in his previous life, Roland would probably only consider such food when he was on the verge of starvation.

But now...

After wolfing down all the food, Roland found a secluded corner to sit down.

As he silently recited in his mind, lines of golden text slowly appeared before his eyes.

[Name: Roland] [Race: Human] [Age: 16] [Profession: None] [Strength: 1] [Agility: 0.8] [Spirit: 1.2] [Skills: Lv.2 Ore Forging (169/200), Lv.2 Bellows Pumping (174/200)]

"Looks like it won't be long before these two skills can be upgraded again."

That's right, Roland wasn't originally from this world.

After his vision went black during an overtime session, he had arrived in this completely unfamiliar world.

The only companion by his side was the golden finger before him.

This was a cheat tool he had downloaded in his first playthrough of a certain game, wanting to experience all its content.

Theoretically, as long as certain conditions were met, he could take on countless professions.

Unfortunately, this cheat tool hadn't yet triggered any prompts regarding job changes.

"If I had known this thing could follow me, I would have downloaded a more overpowered one!"

Just as Roland was patting his forehead in annoyance, a somewhat muffled voice suddenly reached his ears.

"Roland! I knew you'd be here!"

Looking up, he saw a tall young man walking towards him.

It was Roland's best friend, Sean.

"Sean, aren't you supposed to be practicing your forging skills right now? Remember, Mr. Hawk scolded you again this morning."

"Don't remind me!"

Hearing Roland's teasing, Sean scratched his curly brown hair.

"I don't have your talent. I'll probably have to leave here in a while."

"Then what are you going to do? Take over your dad's butchering business?"

"Butchering? I'd never do that boring work! Besides, my dad and Uncle Peyton have been arguing every day lately, I don't want to stay home anymore."

As if picturing the noisy scene at home, Sean sighed and said quietly.

"When I went home last month, my dad said the monsters in the Black Fir Forest were getting more rampant and had already attacked many villages!"

"That's why Baron Foslin had to order Lord Beckham to conscript soldiers to hunt them down! With my skills…"

He patted his thick arm, a proud expression on his face.

"I'm sure I can join Lord Beckham's ranks, and maybe even get promoted to Knight Squire! By then…"

He let out a loud laugh and clapped Roland on the shoulder.

"You'll have to bow to me when you see me!"

"Are the monsters in the Black Fir Forest that powerful?"

Roland ignored Sean's teasing, frowning as he spoke.

"They even need to send Knights to hunt them?"

"Who knows? But no matter how ferocious a monster is, it'll never be a match for a Transcendent Professional!"

Sean waved his hand dismissively, then changed the subject, asking with some concern.

"Enough about that, what about you? Are you confident about the assessment in three months?"

"The assessment…"

Hearing the question, Roland looked down at his scrawny body and shook his head helplessly.

Unlike the tall and strong Sean, he had no fallback.

His mother had died young, and his gravely ill father, before his death, had even sold their only adobe house to scrape together the money to send him here to learn a trade.

If he could pass the assessment, everything would be fine.

A blacksmith exclusive to Nobles, even an apprentice, had a very good treatment and a status several notches higher than ordinary free citizens.

But if he failed the assessment…

Thinking of his desperate situation, Roland couldn't help but shiver.

A Transmigrator dying in poverty and despair? That would be too pathetic…

It wasn't that he was worrying unnecessarily, but there were dozens of youths who came to learn trades this time, many of whom were from blacksmith families.

And there was only one spot available.

So even with a cheat system, he still felt a bit uncertain.

"You don't need to worry too much."

Seeing Roland's lack of response, Sean was about to offer some comfort when Hawk's loud voice suddenly echoed from a distance.

"You brats! Stop slacking off and get over here for roll call!"

"Let's go."

Roland brushed the dust off his pants, stood up straight with a crisp movement, and shook his head slightly. The confusion in his eyes gradually faded.

No matter what, I'll level up the Mining and Bellows skills first!

With that thought, Roland pulled Sean along and returned to the blacksmith shop.

Mining ore, pulling the bellows…

Although the process was incredibly tedious, the golden text that appeared before his eyes after each correct operation made the panting Roland even more motivated.

[You have successfully completed one bellows work, gaining one experience point]

[You have successfully completed one ore smelting work, gaining one experience point]

After an unknown amount of time, the unchanging text suddenly changed.

[Bellows skill has reached maximum level]

[Ore Smelting skill has reached maximum level]

[Detected: Basic Profession Apprentice Blacksmith can be taken]

[Requirements: Strength 1, Agility 0.5, two max-level forging-related skills]

[Do you wish to take the profession?]

For the convenience of all my foster fathers, update times are fixed at 12:00 PM and 8:00 PM.

Wishing all foster fathers good fortune in all seasons and success in all endeavors.