Leaving the Manor Again

Moonlight poured down like water as Roland walked slowly beneath the mottled tree shadows, his brows tightly furrowed and his mind filled with doubts.

"Silver Dust is a universal material used in alchemy, and Bronson not only knows about it but even has some on hand. Doesn't that mean Bronson has considerable knowledge of alchemy?"

"But alchemy..."

The scattered memories of alchemy that surfaced in his mind reminded Roland only of the wizards who often appeared as mentors or ultimate villains in those knight novels.

Yet when he thought of Bronson's poverty-stricken, timid, and pathetic appearance, he simply could not connect the man with the mysterious figure of a wizard. Besides—

"How could a wizard possibly work under a noble?"

If there was still some semblance of an employer-employee relationship between knights and nobles,

then wizards, whose power surpassed that of knights, would inevitably interact with nobles from a position of superiority, even if they maintained ties with them.

"There's still far too little information to be found in a remote place like this."

"Forget it. Even if Bronson really is a wizard, he has nothing to do with a minor character like me."

After letting out a soft sigh, Roland set these suspicions aside for the moment and opened the cloth pouch in his hand.

The silver powder glittered under the moonlight like crushed diamonds.

"I have the Silver Dust. All that's left is to go out and buy the medicinal ingredients, then cultivate the Mithril Body Tempering Method."

"But before that, I have to make sure I can pass the Knowledge Test."

Although the Body Tempering Method he had obtained so suddenly was exhilarating, Roland had never forgotten what mattered most at present.

That was passing the assessment and becoming an official Blacksmith Apprentice.

In the strictly hierarchical Golden Valley Kingdom, even if he successfully tempered his body and gained greater strength, without an official identity, he would ultimately be nothing more than a somewhat higher-grade expendable tool.

What was more, his Body Tempering Method was an inferior version that lacked the support of a Breathing Technique.

As for the path of joining the army and earning merit—

with his current abilities, he was more than capable of protecting himself, but he was still far from being able to fight on the battlefield.

Unless he had no other choice,

he had no interest whatsoever in following a knight to establish a career before possessing absolute strength. As for increasing his strength—

"Right, when I took the [Scholar] profession, I was so focused on studying the [Focus] state that I don't think I noticed whether this new profession resonated with the previous two!"

After lightly smacking his forehead, Roland hurriedly opened the Profession Panel.

At the very bottom, a brand-new line of text had appeared.

[Recruit + Scholar]

[Obtained additional enhancement: Theory and Practice]

[Theory and Practice: When you fight an enemy, you can keenly detect details in battle, thereby gaining additional experience]

"Doesn't this mean that, besides self-training, combat-related skills can also gain experience when fighting other people?"

"But I don't know how much experience they can gain, or whether it can stack with the [Battle Readiness] trait."

After analyzing the description of the [Theory and Practice] trait, Roland looked farther down.

[Blacksmith Apprentice + Scholar]

[Obtained additional enhancement: Standardized Production]

[Standardized Production: When repeatedly making the same equipment within a short period, success rate increases and equipment quality improves]

Roland's eyes lit up when he saw the description of [Standardized Production].

Even ordinary blacksmiths with rich experience still needed a bit of luck when forging tools.

Insufficient energy, substandard ore quality, or damp charcoal could all affect the quality of the final product.

"But if the description of [Standardized Production] is accurate, then when forging tools, I can completely ignore these external factors."

"As long as I keep forging the same thing, the success rate will continue to rise, and the quality of the finished products will keep improving!"

At the thought, Roland could not help but grow excited.

"It's a pity Mister Hawk said the final assessment only allows one forging attempt. If I could try several times, passing the assessment would be a certainty with this trait, wouldn't it?"

"But come to think of it, as long as I pass the assessment and become an official apprentice, this trait will definitely make Mister Hawk see me in a new light! By then, I'll certainly become a true blacksmith much faster."

With that thought, Roland walked toward the dormitory with light steps.

Over the following days, he maintained his usual study schedule, listening attentively to every word of Bronson's instruction.

That secret transaction seemed never to have happened. The two always maintained an appropriate teacher-student distance—neither distant nor overly familiar.

During this period, Roland began consciously making use of the [Focus] trait.

After repeated attempts, he worked out the optimal rhythm for using it.

He activated it for three minutes each time, then rested for half an hour, repeating the cycle over and over.

Although each period did not last long, the single-minded immersion he experienced while in the [Focus] state caused his learning efficiency to increase geometrically.

In just half a day of focused study, he mastered more written characters than he had learned in the entire three days before.

With such astonishing learning efficiency, ten days passed in the blink of an eye.

At dawn, under the somewhat chilly sunlight, Roland slowly unfolded a yellowed piece of cloth. His fingertips brushed over the neat writing on it, and a smile unconsciously spread across his lips.

"Black Iron Ore Trade Contract."

He murmured the title aloud, his voice especially clear in the empty dormitory.

"Party A, the Grayrock City branch of the Blacksmith Guild; Party B, the Northern Mining Guild..."

Each character flowed naturally from his mouth like a trickling stream.

Those unfamiliar symbols, once twisted like tadpoles, had now become utterly familiar to him.

When he came across technical terms, corresponding illustrations of ore even appeared in his mind by reflex.

"...If the sulfur content of the ore exceeds the standard value, the buyer has the right to deduct the payment proportionally."

Upon reaching this passage, Roland suddenly chuckled.

"It seems this [Focus] trait is far more powerful than I imagined. These clauses that once seemed like riddles—I can not only read them fluently after just ten days, but even understand the commercial logic behind every one of them. Incredible."

"With my current level of knowledge, I'm completely capable of handling Mister Hawk's Knowledge Test. But before that, I should ask for leave to go out and buy the medicinal ingredients. As for Marco..."

Roland lowered the cloth in his hand. When he thought of the blacksmith's son who always wore a gloomy expression, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

It was not that he naively believed the other party had suddenly changed his ways. Rather, Marco had genuinely been too busy to spare any attention these past few days.

Those blacksmiths' sons who had passed the Knowledge Test were no weaker than Marco in forging skill alone. At present, they were driving him to train frantically, leaving him no time to cause trouble for Roland.

What was more, in Marco's eyes, this failure who had not even passed the Knowledge Test had probably long since been classified as one of the "eliminated."

Even if Marco still held a grudge over their previous conflict, in this enclosed manor, there was no way he could repeat his old trick and arrange another hired assassination.

Roland knew very well that the previous assassination had been nothing more than Marco's personal act of madness.

If it had truly been Marco's family that wanted him dead, then given his father's influence in Blackwater Territory, Roland probably would not even have known how he died.

Therefore, going out at this time was precisely the safest option.

With that thought, Roland no longer hesitated.

After washing up simply, he opened the door and headed toward the Blacksmith shop.

Before he even approached, the clanging of hammering mixed with Hawk's roars reached his ears. Hearing that familiar voice, Roland cleared his throat softly and walked in.

"Hmm?"

Noticing Roland's figure, Hawk stopped shouting, crossed his arms, and turned around.

"Roland? What are you here for?"

"It's nothing important, Mister Hawk."

Roland awkwardly rubbed his fingers together and pretended to speak with difficulty.

"I just wanted to ask for three days off."

"Time off?"

Hawk's booming voice immediately drew the attention of several boys in the Blacksmith shop.

"Yes, Mister Hawk. I have some personal matters to deal with."

As he spoke, Roland watched Marco's reaction from the corner of his eye.

Just as he had expected,

Marco merely snorted disdainfully before continuing to swing his hammer. The resentful look he had worn before had long since vanished.

"You've learned enough characters already?"

When Roland silently shook his head, a trace of disappointment flashed through Hawk's eyes.

"Kid, let me make this clear first. You may have decent talent, but if you can't pass the Knowledge Test, I won't let you take the official assessment a month from now."

"I understand, Mister Hawk. It's just—"

"Enough! I'll give you three days off, but after you come back, you must... Forget it."

Hawk mistakenly thought Roland wanted an excuse to avoid the assessment, so he merely waved his hand carelessly before turning around to instruct the other apprentices.

"Thank you, Mister Hawk."

Since the matter had been settled, Roland said nothing more.

After leaving the Blacksmith shop, he shouldered the pack he had prepared long ago and walked straight toward the manor gates.