Unexpected Gains, Windfall

"Weapons? Upgrading?"

Goibniu heard Liber's words, his aged face speaking with a voice full of vigor.

"Yes, a weapon that can grow stronger as it evolves alongside an adventurer."

Liber explained to Goibniu.

Liber, who usually had a tight schedule, suddenly found his morning free today.

He had originally intended to explore the Dungeon on his own during this spare time, but he worried that he might lose track of time and end up standing Lefiya up for their scheduled meeting.

Faced with this sudden break, Liber racked his brain trying to decide what to do.

Sensing the items in his inventory, he realized he was in need of a durable weapon.

Liber prepared to ask Loki for a recommendation on weapon shops, but on his way to the deity's room, he saw Tiona pass by him, looking cheerful.

After a moment of thought, he decided to ask her for shop recommendations instead.

"Weapons? Most shops are about the same for standard gear."

Tiona held one hand behind her back and tapped her lip with her index finger, saying, "If you want a weapon that truly suits you, everyone in our Familia commissions custom work."

"Most people commission the famous Hephaestus Familia for their forging, but our Familia basically relies on the Goibniu Familia."

"If you're going, I'll give you the address. The quality of items forged by the Goibniu Familia is on par with those from the Hephaestus Familia."

"But I'll warn you in advance, the prices for Goibniu Familia commissions are quite high."

Hearing Tiona mention custom weapons, Liber suddenly thought of the dagger from the original story that could level up alongside the adventurer.

Holding onto that thought and wanting to give it a try, Liber followed the address he got from Tiona and found the location of the Goibniu Familia.

"Boy, are you serious?"

Upon hearing Liber's words, Goibniu's already aged face crinkled into a ball.

"Of course I am serious, Lord God."

Liber replied to Goibniu.

Goibniu took a deep breath, his furrowed face gradually turning solemn.

"I don't know how you came up with the idea of a weapon growing alongside its user."

His voice grew louder.

"To a blacksmith, a weapon that grows on its own is nothing but a complete heresy!"

The old man's face grew angry, and the veins on his forehead began to throb.

"Such a thought is blasphemy and a stain to the children exploring the path of forging. It will lead them astray; you must never speak of it so casually."

"Kid!"

Goibniu stared fixedly at Liber, his tone unfriendly.

"For Loki's sake, I will pretend I never heard you say such things in front of me. But..."

He leaned his head toward Liber and lowered his voice.

"After you leave this room, absolutely do not mention this idea outside ever again. Do you hear me?"

Looking at Goibniu, who appeared as an old man with an expression revealing a mix of solemnity and anger, Liber hadn't expected to see such a reaction after sharing his thoughts with the god of forging.

Feeling the weight of the old man's presence growing heavier before him, he could only nod with a grave expression.

Seeing that Liber understood the gravity of the situation and nodded earnestly, Goibniu pulled his body back and sat upright in his seat.

He picked up the water jug beside him, took a long drink, and wiped his lips.

The stern expression on his face slowly calmed down.

After a long silence between the two, Goibniu finally spoke.

"I cannot blame you for having such thoughts; the children of the Lower World are free to have all sorts of ideas."

"However, your line of thinking is too dangerous for the children who dedicate themselves to forging."

"Hearing you say that, I now understand the severity of the matter. I will keep this idea to myself from now on. I am truly sorry for offending you."

Liber made a promise to Goibniu with a serious face.

"No, it was unbecoming of me to use my status to force a promise from another's child."

Goibniu shook his head in response to Liber's words.

He pondered for a moment and proposed an idea.

"Let's make a deal. Boy, what is your name?"

"Liber Miller."

Liber told Goibniu his name.

"Just this once, I can forge a weapon for you for free."

"Indestructible attribute, right? What type of weapon are you most proficient with?"

Upon hearing Goibniu's proposal, Liber's face lit up with joy as he replied respectfully, "A sword. A standard Broadsword style would be fine."

"A standard Broadsword? Understood. Extend your arm and open your palm for me to see."

Goibniu looked relaxed as he spoke to Liber.

Hearing this, Liber froze for a moment before obediently extending his hand.

Goibniu stared at Liber's open palm, then sized up his height before speaking.

"How old are you?"

"Fourteen."

Liber replied while keeping his arm extended.

Goibniu pondered for a moment and said, "That's enough, you can pull it back."

Watching Liber retract his hand, he continued, "Then let's treat this as a deal as I said. I will forge an indestructible weapon for you for free, and in exchange, you must completely forget about that previous idea of yours. Agreed?"

Having only asked as a probe, Liber hadn't expected to gain such a massive advantage. He struggled to suppress his grin and nodded vigorously.

Seeing Liber unable to hide his smile, Goibniu shook his head helplessly.

"Alright, since you've agreed, hurry up and get out. Once your item is finished, I'll send someone to notify you to come and collect it."

Goibniu waved his hand, shooing Liber out.

"Thank you, God. I shall take my leave then."

After thanking him and saying his goodbyes, Liber turned and left the room.

Watching the back of Liber as he bowed in thanks and departed, Goibniu fell into silence.

The god, left alone in the room to ponder, muttered to himself, "A weapon that levels up alongside its wielder?"

There was a hint of suppressed amusement in the old man's voice.

Liber walked out of the Goibniu Familia's gates and looked back at the busy scene inside the workshop.

Inside the workshop, everyone was pouring out their sweat and passion. The temperature was rising, yet no one stopped the work in their hands.

Looking at the bustling staff and thinking about the great bargain he had just secured, Liber shook his head as he compared Goibniu's serious, dignified demeanor with Loki's unrestrained and wild style.

Recalling the reason why he suddenly had free time, he couldn't help but sigh, "It seems that this sudden gap in my schedule isn't necessarily a bad thing."

Early this morning.

Liber had arrived at the courtyard at dawn, waiting for Ais to appear.

He watched the birds flying past the towers surrounding Twilight Manor, observing them at a leisurely pace.

"Tap, tap..."

Hearing footsteps coming from inside the manor, Liber shifted his gaze away from the birds and looked toward the source of the sound.

A fully armored girl walked out of the dim manor.

Liber looked at the fully armored Ais with some surprise.

The Rapier hanging at her side had been replaced by her signature weapon—the Despair Sword, an indestructible Rapier.

Seeing her like this, Liber was stunned into silence.

Watching Ais approach him, he spoke with some hesitation.

"You look like this, is it..."

His tone was puzzled, and his speech was slow.

Ais took the cue, standing before him and speaking earnestly, "Liber, you no longer need me to train with you."

"Huh?"

Liber let out a startled sound, his brow furrowing as he desperately tried to think if he had done something to displease Ais.

Seeing Liber fall into a state of self-reflection, Ais kept her expression calm, focusing intently on him.

She tightened her grip on the hilt at her waist and straightened her posture.

"Under the same conditions, I can no longer defeat you."

She recalled the defeats in their sparring matches over the past few days, looking at Liber, who was around her own age, and remembering that he had only joined the Familia a few days ago.

Ais felt the urgency of being chased, realizing that the recent sparring sessions were providing less and less improvement for Liber.

She decided not to waste any more of their time; she needed to explore deeper and for longer periods in the Dungeon.

"So, let's end our previous agreement today."

"I'm sorry, I can no longer afford to be as idle as I have been."

Watching the look of guilt on Ais's face, Liber's initially conflicted expression slowly smoothed out, and he waved his hand at her.

"Ah, it's fine. I'm already very grateful that you could spend so much time training with me."

"Time is so precious, so please, keep doing your best and push toward even greater heights."

A look of understanding appeared on his face as he spoke encouragingly to Ais.

Upon hearing his encouragement, the look of guilt on Ais's face eased slightly, and she nodded firmly at Liber.

"Thank you. I'm heading to the Dungeon now. If you have any troubles, I will definitely help you solve them."

Liber looked at the youthful appearance of Ais as she said this and nodded awkwardly.

With that, she walked toward the door.

Standing in the courtyard, he saw Ais look back at him from the Familia's main gate and waved to bid her farewell.

Watching Ais's disappearing back, Liber scratched his head.

"Having a Level 1 adventurer spend time training with me really did hold her back."

"My combat skills are quite handy now, so there's no need to spend dedicated time on this anymore."

"However."

He lowered his hand from his head.

"What should I do with this suddenly free morning?"

"Lefiya is studying with Riveria, and it wouldn't be right to drag her to the Dungeon first thing in the morning."

Liber thought for a moment.

"Forget it, I'll go ask Loki which weapon shop is the best and go stock up on more weapons."

After thinking it over, he headed toward Loki's private room.