"Ugh..."
After who knew how long, Bear Cub lay sprawled on the floor of the mine tunnel.
His belly was round as a ball.
"Yip!"
He looked at Mercer with pitiful little eyes, clearly so stuffed he couldn't eat another bite.
Mercer found it fascinating.
"You really can't eat any more?"
Bear Cub nodded, then stuck his right paw into his mouth and began pulling things out. One by one, irregular lumps of dark iron came tumbling out.
"Appraisal"
[F-Rank Alloy (Low Purity)]: A mixed iron ingot compressed and refined inside a certain living being through a special ability.
"How did you do that?"
Mercer looked astonished. He hadn't expected Bear Cub to already be able to produce alloy ingots like these.
Lolling his tongue out and looking completely exhausted, Bear Cub began to yelp and wave his paws around.
Mercer rubbed his chin and nodded now and then. "So, after you swallow them, you grind up all the ore, then mix and compress it according to what you have in mind?"
Bear Cub nodded hard and blinked at Mercer. "Yip?"
"Good, that's exactly right. Keep doing it that way from now on. But will you be able to make this kind of alloy again in the future?"
Bear Cub tilted his head, then thought it over. Less than two seconds later, he gave a confident "Yip!"
Seeing that, Mercer felt relieved. It looked like a renewable resource, not a one-time deal.
Mercer pointed at the alloy and asked, "Can you eat these and refine them a second time?"
Bear Cub gave a confused "Yip," as if he didn't understand.
Mercer explained, "This alloy isn't high enough quality. Can you improve it further?"
This time, Bear Cub understood.
He took a few deep breaths, swallowed the pile of alloy again, and began chewing.
Through the gaps between his teeth, Mercer could see the alloy being ground into tiny pieces. Then Bear Cub swallowed it again.
Before long, Bear Cub seemed to decide it was ready, and pulled out lump after lump of black alloy from his belly.
This time, though, there was clearly much less.
"Appraisal"
[E-Rank Alloy (High Purity)]: A mixed iron ingot compressed and refined inside a certain living being through a special ability.
Mercer's eyes lit up.
But greed got the better of him, and he asked again.
"Can you improve the quality any further?"
Bear Cub understood right away this time.
He hurriedly shook his head, howling and gesturing as he explained.
After watching for a while, Mercer understood. The iron ore here wasn't high-quality; it was just ordinary iron ore.
That was why Bear Cub couldn't refine a better alloy.
Mercer reached out to rub Bear Cub's head, thinking to himself:
Maybe it also depends on Bear Cub's strength and how far he's developed his Devil Fruit ability. After all, his strength and Devil Fruit levels are both pretty low.
"Appraisal"
[Overall Evaluation: E- (A remarkable panda. His looks are better than his fighting ability!)]
Mercer's lips curled into a smile. Bear Cub was almost three years old. Though he was nearly 1.6 meters long and round all over, he was still just a child.
And because of the Munch-Munch Fruit, his species had changed to some extent, too.
In this world, an organism's lifespan often depended on its size.
Mercer fully believed that with Bear Cub's Munch-Munch Fruit ability, he might live an incredibly long time if he just kept eating.
On top of that, he'd learned the Free Breathing Method, which had developed his digestive system as well.
Mercer had no idea what Bear Cub might become in the future.
After resting a while, Bear Cub felt ready to go again, and started tackling the iron ore.
After three more near-vomiting bouts, Bear Cub finally refined at least three cubic meters of E-rank alloy.
Mercer patted Bear Cub's head. "All right, that's enough for today. Let's head back."
"Put the alloy in your belly for now. We'll take it out when we get home."
Bear Cub's eyes widened.
Who knew how many times he'd had to eat something and then spit it back out today?
His ears drooped.
Obediently, Bear Cub spread his arms and gathered the alloy into his embrace, opening his mouth extraordinarily wide.
One big gulp.
He couldn't swallow it all at once, so he finished it in three mouthfuls.
"Oh!" Mercer said, impressed. "Looks like you could be my storage warehouse from now on, Bear Cub."
Bear Cub shuddered.
He stared at Mercer in horror. "Yip, yip, yip?"
Mercer gave an awkward laugh. Even he thought the idea was a little too cruel.
"I'm only joking."
Bear Cub finally relaxed.
But talking about storage made Mercer think of those few Devil Fruits.
His eyes narrowed as he pondered, Maybe I should try my luck if I get the chance.
It'd be best if I could get one. If not, I could kill the ability user and wait for the fruit to reincarnate?
Forget it. I'll see when the time comes. We haven't got any grudge against each other right now.
Mercer considered himself to have a decent enough moral compass.
He led Bear Cub out of the mine tunnel. The sky outside had already begun to darken.
Mercer thought, Oh no.
I didn't say how long I'd be gone today. Doctor Doriel might be worried.
He swung onto Bear Cub's back.
"Let's hurry home."
Bear Cub let out a low growl.
With his toes turned inward, he wiggled his rump and raced down the road.
They sped along the way.
Bear Cub wasn't slow, but he did crash into a few trees.
Fortunately, Mercer was nimble and managed to dodge them by anticipating the collisions.
Before the sky had gone completely dark, Mercer made it home.
As soon as he stepped inside, he heard Kureha's voice.
"Where have you been all day?"
"I never see you around anymore."
"Do you think you've grown wings just because you turned a year older?"
Kureha came out of the kitchen and saw Mercer and Bear Cub covered in soot. The corner of her mouth twitched.
"Did you two go digging for coal in a coal mine? Or get blown up by black powder?"
She pressed a hand to her forehead, looking exhausted. "Go wash up. Then you'd better explain everything to me."
"Oh, all right."
Mercer answered calmly.
It was worth mentioning that they used the fireplace at home for heat every day.
So taking a bath was easy, too.
Bear Cub went to the corner first and took the alloy out of his belly, stacking it neatly.
Then Mercer took Bear Cub into the bathroom. They washed each other and scrubbed each other's backs; it didn't take long.
Mercer dried himself off with a towel, while Bear Cub solved the problem of his wet fur with a quick bout of self-digestion.
At the dinner table.
Kureha glanced at the dark alloy ingots gleaming in the corner.
"So you two spent the whole day making all this alloy?"
"Yes."
"What are you going to do with so much alloy?"
"Planning to open a blacksmith shop?"
"Uh, feed it to Bear Cub?" Mercer reconsidered and decided against it, in case he scared Bear Cub. "I've learned a new skill lately."
"Forging."
"I plan to make our weapons myself from now on. Bear Cub is practically made for refining ore.
"I think I might even be able to handcraft your experimental equipment for you someday."
"Then work hard," Kureha said. "I'll be waiting for that day."
Mercer grinned and nodded, then ate heartily from the meal Kureha had cooked. Bear Cub did the same.
He didn't seem to have any trouble eating, either.
Maybe he'd gotten tired of the old flavor, or maybe his belly was empty again.
They'd had a tiring day, so after dinner and washing the dishes, Mercer and Bear Cub went to bed early.
The next day.
After breakfast.
Mercer took Bear Cub out early again.
They headed to the nearest Drum Mountain, to the east.
Five hundred meters above the ground.
A cave in a sheer cliff face.
Mercer and Bear Cub appeared there.
The cave they were in was ten meters long, ten meters wide, and ten meters high.
It covered an area of a hundred square meters.
Bear Cub had painstakingly gnawed it out over the past few months.
They stood at the edge of the cave, beside an opening two meters in diameter.
From here, they could see most of Drum Island.
The cave faced away from the settled areas, and its secrecy made it feel completely secure.
Bear Cub took the alloy ingots stored in his belly and stacked them neatly in the corner.
Following the principles of ventilation, they had also gnawed a long ventilation shaft half a meter in diameter into the ceiling near the back. It went upward for a hundred meters, until it broke through ten meters to the right of the cave entrance.
This allowed air to circulate throughout the cave.
Near the vent, they had carved out a simple furnace.
It had been made to the standards of the blacksmith shops outside.
High-temperature coal was burning in the furnace.
Several alloy ingots inside glowed red-hot.
On the forging table beside the furnace sat an anvil one meter long, half a meter wide, and thirty centimeters high.
Nearby stood a large vat filled with clear, cold spring water Bear Cub had brought.
It had come from a spring in Bear Cub's hometown, the Purple Bamboo Forest.
A forging hammer, a pair of iron tongs, and all the other tools needed for forging were ready.
Bear Cub lay quietly nearby, dozing with his eyes half-closed.
Wearing proper blacksmithing clothes, Mercer used the tongs to take a fist-sized piece of alloy from the furnace and place it on the anvil.
His breathing rose and fell, and his whole body grew still.
He gripped the forging hammer in his right hand and raised it, then brought it down.
Clang—!
Dazzling sparks flew everywhere as the blow dented the alloy.
The moment he started, an uncanny sense of familiarity welled up inside Mercer. He swung the hammer and began striking with all his might.
Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang. Clang.
Using a special technique and rhythm, Mercer entered a state of Unity of Heaven and Man. Combined with Observation Haki, it let him sense the alloy's aura, along with the veins and patterns inside it.
He struck along those veins and patterns, blow after blow.
The alloy's structure grew denser.
He hammered it into a long strip, folded it, and hammered it again. He repeated the process, swinging the hammer without pause. The force of his blows kept the alloy at a suitable temperature.
Since it was already a mixed alloy, there was no need to add any other materials.
As he hammered it, Mercer analyzed the alloy's properties.
It had good hardness and toughness, making it suitable for weapons.
This time, Mercer used the folding technique. Since it was made of only one material, no layered blade pattern would appear—only delicate, ring-like patterns resembling the rings of a tree.
He kept folding and hammering, refining the internal structure and veins. As he worked, Mercer could clearly sense the metal's aura changing.
The reconstruction of the internal pathways connected them, and a faint spirituality quietly gathered.
As time passed, a dagger shaped like a short sword took form. Mercer finished shaping the curve of its edge.
Once he had completed all the steps, he gripped it with iron tongs and plunged it into a vat of water.
"Quench."
Hiss!!!!
A thick cloud of white steam billowed upward.
The dagger cooled rapidly. Mercer sensed that, at that moment, its spirituality had suddenly become whole.
A distinct Aura appeared.
Mercer picked up the dagger and examined it. Its lines were smooth, and its silver-white blade bore delicate, growth-ring-like patterns.
"Just a few more steps. Let's finish them all at once."
"Temper."
He put the quenched dagger back into the furnace and heated it gently.
That step was done.
"Sharpen."
Mercer took out a whetstone and began honing the edge. With a rasping sound, it grew smooth and sharp, shining with a deep gleam and a chilling glint.
The final step was to attach the dagger's handle. Mercer used wood made from bamboo that Bear Cub had refined.
He also had a matching bamboo sheath.
Once everything was finished,
an exquisite dagger shaped like a short sword was complete.
It was 33 centimeters long, three centimeters wide, and 0.3 centimeters thick.
Everything had gone as smoothly as water flowing along its natural course.
"Appraisal."
[D-rank Dagger (Quick Blade): A freshly forged quick blade dagger with astonishing hardness.]
Mercer sheathed the dagger.
"As expected, the quality of a Quick Blade is D-rank."
[An item with a legendary trait has been detected.]
"I was right. Famous blades can be used to extract Merit Points."
A faint smile tugged at Mercer's lips as he toyed with the dagger in his hand. With its sheath on, it looked like a green bamboo stick.
It seemed entirely ordinary.
"I'll call it 'Bamboo Tube'—a dagger hidden inside bamboo. Hmm, I'll let the first one go. I won't extract Merit Points from it."
He tucked the dagger, Bamboo Tube, behind his waist, stood up, and stretched lazily. Then he glanced at the sky outside.
"Hmm, it's easy to lose track of time when you're too focused. It's already afternoon. Let's head home."
"Bear Cub, come on. Let's go home."
Bear Cub opened his mouth, his eyes brimming with delight.
Mercer added coal to the furnace and sealed it up, leaving only a tiny crack to keep the fire from going out too easily.
He took off his work clothes and changed back into what he'd been wearing when he arrived.
Together, they went down the mountain along a narrow path.
Breathing in the fresh air, the two strolled through the Snow Forest.
Mercer was in an excellent mood.
He glanced at Bear Cub beside him, a smile appearing on his face.
He released his Observation Haki and sensed his surroundings. Then, at one moment, an idea struck him.
"Come on. Let's catch something tasty."
"Ying?" Bear Cub's eyes lit up, and he immediately let out a cheerful string of "Yingyingying~"
Not long after, Mercer spotted a white-furred yak. It was a local specialty, a Snow Yak. He rushed over, and Bear Cub eagerly hurried after him.
Once they were close, Mercer held a Surgical Knife in each hand. Despite the Snow Yak's fierce resistance, he severed the artery in its neck in just a few seconds.
Then he backed away to avoid the yak's death throes. A short while later, the nearly three-meter-long yak had been hunted down.
[Obtained F+-rank Soul Crystal *1]
A grain-sized Soul Crystal appeared as well, and Mercer picked it up.
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