Heavy Metal: Chapter 56 – Back At The Forge. (Patreon)

Rusty had finally managed to reach the point he was after. It had been close to a month since the incident with Gleam. Before him stood the Soul Forge, where he had previously evolved twice. However, there had been some slight changes, just like before. In the middle of the main chamber stood three bodies, each different from the other. It was clear that he needed to make an important choice now, one that could dictate his entire future.

“That one looks similar to the floor boss in the dungeon.”

“Yes, it was quite the surprise that it just appeared there. Did the Soul Forge react?”

Replied Aburdon, the fallen demon lord, while his orb form floated around the three metallic frames in the middle of the chamber. The question was posed to the hero, Alexander. He was the one who had been given this blessing in his previous life, but the white orb of light was unsure.

“I don’t know, this place is different from the Soul Forge I used, but… perhaps if Rusty defeats stronger living armors, the forge could have copied the designs to some extent? Or maybe it's due to the monster parts? I think gathering new materials was a big part of this blessing…”

Alexander wasn’t quite sure as his memory of his past life wasn’t complete. Rusty nodded; right after the victory against the floor boss, he had quickly grabbed its parts and weapon. One of the evolutionary options was quite similar to the monster he defeated. It was taller than his regular metallic frame, the armor was thicker, and it had a somewhat more demonic design. Small spikes jutted out from the armor, and even the helmet had some horns, which seemed to make the demon lord quite happy.

“You’ll go with this one, right? It’s clearly better than the other two.”

Said Aburdon while floating around the demonic armor with evident admiration.

“Don’t rush him. This decision needs careful thought. Did you forget what is at stake?”

Alexander countered firmly and unyieldingly.

“Do you mean that ant? Are you still planning on going into the human city?”

Aburdon chuckled in a somewhat amused way. In the demon lord's mind, there was no possibility of Rusty’s plan working.

“My dear Rusty, you’re a monster. How about you start acting like one? Once you’re powerful enough, I’m sure you’ll be able to avenge your dear friend. For all we know, little Gleam could be no mo–"

“Shut up!”

The whole chamber quaked as Rusty shouted in anger. Aburdon was compelled to hold his words back. Alexander sensed the danger from this emotional outburst and floated closer to Rusty in an attempt to offer some support.

“Don’t let him get to you, Rusty. Focus on what’s important. I’m sure Gleam will be fine; there is still time.”

Soon, the quivering walls began to calm down as Rusty steadied his metallic nerves. He knew that the demon lord was an older being with much more knowledge. Aburdon was right to some extent; at least from the outside, the demonic-looking armor appeared to be the strongest option. However, there was one problem with choosing this path, and the hero quickly brought it up.

“If you choose this path, Rusty, I’m afraid infiltrating the city will be impossible.”

“Why?”

Rusty asked while also looking at the two other armor variants. The rightmost was the demonic armor. In the middle was one similar to the iron variants he saw within a dungeon. It was a direct upgrade of his bronze body and quite similar. To the left was something quite different - a body he didn’t truly understand. The top half was humanoid, but the bottom half belonged to some type of beast with four legs.

Rusty had never encountered this type of monster before, but he had seen some depictions of this beast on temple walls. If he wasn’t wrong, the technical term for it was a centaur. This form was larger than even the demonic one on the right but the lower body was that of a horse with metallic legs. It would turn him into a quadruped with a human’s upper torso. While this form looked imposing, it would probably have limited function within tight corridors.

“Those other two choices make you look too much like a monster. Only with the middle one will you be able to walk among them... and even then, I’m not too sure about it. I think some people adjust those monster armors to be used as regular armor, but once they get closer to you, it will be over.”

The living armor monsters were quite distinct and would be identified as monsters quickly by Rusty’s enemies. Once someone got close, they would notice the lack of a person inside. Even if he went with the most humanoid-looking one, it might still give him away. If this was the case, then perhaps going with the horned one was better, at least for the additional power it provided.

“Aren’t you two forgetting something?”

While deliberating on the choice, the demon king’s restraint was lifted, allowing him to speak again.

“Do you actually have some proper advice this time?”

Alexander responded in a mocking tone, which made Aburdon react in anger.

“What is that supposed to mean? I always give proper advice, but for some reason, it’s not appreciated!”

“Maybe if you weren’t plotting something dubious each time, Rusty would trust you more.”

“I’m not plotting anything. I just don’t want our precious friend to get injured...”

The two started going back and forth as usual, so Rusty decided to stop it. It seemed that Aburdon had some kind of idea, and if it helped him rescue Gleam, he was willing to listen.

“That’s enough. What did you have in mind, Aburdon?”

“Hah, you won’t regret it, Rusty! Now, where was I? Ah yes! Do you recall the skill you achieved once you reached level fifteen, my dear Rusty?”

“...The Possession skill?”

“Yes, that one!”

Rusty had received a new skill once he maxed out his level but had not been able to test it out.

“With the Possession skill, you might be able to fool those pesky adventurers, even if you stride through their precious guild.”

“Oh, is that true? Will I be able to do that?”

It sounded too good to be true but Rusty was intrigued. The Possession skill could potentially allow him to manipulate and control someone who wore him as armor.

“You want him to use one of the adventurers… like some kind of reverse inner suit thing?”

“That’s right, my dear hero. We both know that if he attempts to get close to any settlement, he will get killed… But! If he can manipulate one of those pesky adventurers well enough, then we can make the impossible possible!”

Aburdon cackled while explaining as if he was trying to formulate some type of dubious plan.

“Hm…”

Rusty contemplated, expecting Alexander to offer a counterpoint. The hero and the demon lord rarely saw eye to eye on plans. Alexander pondered Aburdon's suggestion carefully, his luminous form wavering slightly as he considered the implications.

“It could work but… will he be able to pretend to be an adventurer? Does Rusty even know how to behave like a human, won’t he be noticed if he acts like he does now?”

Rusty wasn’t sure what the hero meant by that but he continued to listen to their discussion with interest. If there was a way to safely reach this guild the two were talking about, then he would do it. Even with his new evolution, battling numerous adventurers would be challenging.

“ Perhaps but well, don’t we have a previous adventurer here with us? Someone that could guide our precious Rusty through all of that?”

“I suppose, I could do that… but only if the guild hasn’t changed much since then…”

“Hey, you’re the one that wants to save that ant, if you have anything better to suggest, now would be the time to do it.”

Alexander hesitated, he had just tried to reason with Rusty, a monster that was following his emotions to save a friend. While he appreciated the sentiment, he wasn’t entirely convinced of the plan's feasibility. Avoiding human settlements altogether still seemed like the safer option, but the Possession skill offered a potential solution.

“I’m not really too familiar with this skill, but would it be able to fool anyone?”

“Possibly but we won’t know until he tries but before that, he needs to make a choice.”

Rusty nodded thoughtfully as he evaluated the three evolution options before him. The one with the lower body of a horse was immediately dismissed; while imposing in size, he wasn't willing to transform into a creature part horse. This left him with just two choices, and only one if he prioritized Gleam's safety. The demonic variant appeared formidable, but it was a conspicuous form and would not allow him to blend in with other people.

“I’ll go with the middle one…”

“I see, are you sure?”

Asked the hero.

“Yes but before that, I need to prepare.”

The decision was made but he would not just enter the body and be done with this space. The Soul Forge was a place to advance his power and to strategize. His body had changed to iron and thus he would be able to advance into the iron age of smithing. All his bronze weapons needed to be discarded and remade into a better form. With the help of this new metal, he would be able to advance even further.

“Are you going to be forging weapons again?”

While Rusty walked towards the smithing chamber, Aburdon gave a sigh. Not keen on blacksmithing, he quickly floated away to the library area instead. The hero, however, joined Rusty on this new journey. Once the chamber doors were opened, Rusty noticed that the place had become larger and that some reconstructions had taken place.
Making Iron Age weapons was different from bronze. Instead of only using molds and smelting, he needed to use a forge alongside a hammer to shape the iron. The Soul Forge had helped him prepare the basic bronze weaponry before with an unlimited supply of bronze but this time, the challenge would be greater.

Rusty approached the forge, already lit and roaring with flame. Various tools and materials were neatly organized around the area, ready for use. Alexander floated nearby, offering some support and ready to answer any questions to the beginner smith that was about to unfold on a new crafting journey.

“First, let’s see what we have here.”

They examined the materials available. There was a generous supply of iron ingots, various types of wood for handles, and a collection of tools like hammers, tongs, and chisels. It was quite an organized setup but it was up to him to make use of this extensive smithy. Every weapon and tool he attempted to make would need to be made by his own two hands.

“There doesn’t seem to be any shortcuts in this one.”

Alexander quickly floated through the chamber and examined everything. It seemed that the previous area had been more of a tutorial and this was the true start. While there were some pre-made hilts for each weapon type, he would need to forge the blades, shafts, and assemble the pieces together himself.

Rusty took a deep breath, or what felt like one in his metallic form, and approached the forge. He selected a hammer and an iron ingot, feeling a strange sense of nostalgia despite the process being new to him. The forge's heat was intense, but he felt no discomfort. He placed the iron ingot into the fire, watching it glow red-hot, and then positioned it on the anvil.

“This won’t be easy.”

Alexander commented, hovering close to Rusty and giving him tips.

“Iron is a lot harder to shape than bronze. You’ll need to be precise and consistent with your strikes.”

Rusty nodded, raising the hammer and bringing it down with a powerful, deliberate swing. Sparks flew, and the ingot began to flatten under the repeated blows. Each strike echoed through the chamber, a rhythmic clanging that filled the otherwise quiet space. Rusty found a rhythm, hammering, reheating, and hammering again. The process was arduous, requiring patience and precision, but he persisted.

After what felt like hours, Rusty had shaped the iron into the rough form of a short blade. It was his first iron creation and he had already realized how much different this new metal was. The melting point was much higher than bronze which indicated that his body would be even more resistant than before. Soon, he formed the tang of his new blade which was the part that extended into the handle.

“That’s a good base, now let's begin the heat treatment.”

“Okay!”

To harden the blade needed to be heated to a high enough temperature and then quenched in water or oil to harden the iron. The Soul Forge provided him with all the required tools for this stage. To temper the blade further it needed to be rehearsed to a lower temperature and then allowed to cool slowly. This reduced its brittleness and also improved the toughness.

Once this step was finished he could move on to sharpening the short blade he had produced. Just like with the bronze weaponry he used a sharpening wheel to refine its shape and remove any irregularities. Then with the help of whetstones, and other polishing tools the edge could be finalized.

“Good, now just attach one of the hilts, make sure it fits in the palm of your hand just right.”

There were many wooden hilts around and also tools that would allow him to make them smaller. He was given various materials like wood, bone, and even antlers. For better grip, he could wrap it in leather or use some string. Each material was different and he was unsure what to use. Luckily, Alexander was here and gave him some good advice that he followed.

“Stag horn is tremendously hard and durable.”

Soon, the tang was fitted into the hilt, and the entire assembly was secured with simple rivets. In the past, he had begun with a basic knife, but for his first iron creation, he was more ambitious. Before him now lay a well-made short sword crafted entirely from iron with his own two hands. It had not been shaped from a mold but forged through his own skillful craftsmanship.

“Not bad for the first time, I could see an adventurer using this one in the dungeon.”

Alexander commented while Rusty nodded, feeling a sense of accomplishment. Then with a quick use of his identification skill, he realized that his skills had improved. The weapon that he made was quite good but this was just the beginning as many more had to be made.

Identification: Twilight Iron Short Sword

Rating:  Intermediate - High

Rank:  Uncommon