HC: Pacifist | Ch. 303 - Allhorn (Patreon)

The 82nd floor smelled of hot metal and sweat. Hammers rang, furnaces blazed, and workers shouted to each other as all worked to complete the next piece of the [Dwarven Vanguard] set.

Roth wiped the sweat off his brow and followed the system-generated lines, steadily working the rim of the trap. Thin, red beams of energy cleanly carved the blue metal. The metal was incredibly resilient. It could endure a beam filtered through one of the most expensive rubies that money could buy in AstroTerra, a drop from one of the Fire Pits’ wild bosses. 

Magma Ruby (Epic)

Description: Lava turtles grown large enough create these rubies in their kidneys.

It was a glorified kidney stone. Roth would never have been able to buy it had he not used the guild’s special channels. This baby had set him back by 50k. It did make the laser operate more smoothly, though, and he needed every help he could get to keep pace with his fellow workers.

Once Roth created a perfectly square shape, he put the laser down and grabbed his glue gun. Roth rotated the dial and selected the flat rectangle shape to help him create flat mirrors. He double-checked that the sand cartridge was full and activated it. His energy bar, bolstered by [Badger Form], hardly moved from this small effort. The sand grew brighter, and Roth placed the three flat mirrors on three of the square’s corners.

He then rotated the dial to the only other shape available and selected the convex mirror. He put it on the last corner and, happy with the results, brought the chest plate to the vacuum maker. It was still finishing sealing the previous plate Roth had lighttrapped. That was good news. Roth was finally carving traps faster than the vacuum maker could seal them.

Vacuum Maker (Rare)

This machine applies an adhesive over an engraving and sucks the air out of it, creating a vacuum. This machine has been fixed and has regained its full functionalities. With the right precious materials, it can still be improved, though.

Effects:

Can seal light traps level 50 and lower.

After Red fixed the machine, the waiting time for these small traps was significantly reduced. Roth turned the machine on. It ran quietly and smoothly instead of the noisy, clanking sound it used to make. It could just be Roth’s impression, though. Given the loud noises around him, the machine might have been even more audible than usual. One thing was sure: the machine was running more smoothly. The quadrangular traps, which had previously taken 30 minutes to seal, could now be done in under 5 minutes.

The machine hissed and signaled the trap was now in a vacuum. Roth inserted the unsealed trap, got his laser, and pointed it at the convex mirror. The powerful laser quickly charged the trap, and he received experience again, finally letting him reach level 11.

Congratulations! You’ve crafted [Square Trap].

+200 [Light Trapper] XP. 

Light trapper level up!

You’ve learned [Pentagonal Trap].

The pentagonal trap was about adding one more bead to the pattern, so it wasn’t complicated. Roth was disappointed that nothing more complex would enable him to break through to the next level of complexity in the profession. Still, given how much work lay ahead, he couldn’t complain. 

Roth glanced over at Jack and the legendary item hanging from his belt. Why hadn’t Jack used the horn yet? Wasn’t that part of the plan? He wasn’t going to question Jack about this. From here, he could see that he was working harder than anyone else. 

Jack never stopped still. His hands constantly moved as he hammered the incandescent metal, his eyes continually scanned the forges, and he was never quiet. “Team C2, be careful when heating the magnitidium that much. Godsfried, slow down. You have more time than you’re thinking. Not you! Get hurried with those crucibles! We are running behind!”

How the dwarf could keep an eye on two forges and everyone else’s work simultaneously was beyond Roth. He didn’t know if he was just smelling everyone’s work using the dwarf’s inherent racial skill, but he wouldn’t be unable to do the same.

Roth’s eyes landed on the horn hanging from Jack’s belt. It had been already two hours, and he still hadn’t used it. What was he waiting for? Roth shrugged. This man had proven his worth many times already. He was sure he had a plan. He just had to focus on his task.

Selected the new shape, Roth started carving his first pentagon light trap on the next chest plate.

*

The Lord of the Oak inspected the different teams of workers as they opened another gallery under the Great Green. More than 50,000 treeant workers moved under the park on the 82nd floor. Only a few soldiers and workers remained behind in the holdings to protect the empire's paddocks and center. All workers usually devoted to foraging and scavenging were reassigned here. There is no time to sow or to build new pantries. This was a time to throw care into the wind and use the food in the larders. 

Most workers dug through the soil the old-fashioned way, with their bare mandibles, carrying off grains of soil one at a time. A significant amount of progress was accomplished thanks to the stinger drills. Despite one of them having been decommissioned after the benefactor’s burst of energy, all remaining stinger drills available were in use. Even though they could cut through thick glass with difficulty, they pierced the soil like a hot knife through butter, with much less energy expenditure, allowing the Lord to have all five drills working simultaneously. They dug galleries branching from the main tunnel, trying to reach new parts of the Great Green above. 

Other than the digging teams, there were also teams of bioengineers at work. They had made the first connection between a tree of the Great Green and the Oak Palace and were working to connect the second one. Whenever they came across one more root, no matter how big or small, they patiently braided it with the next ones, ensuring bioenergy could flow between them. The vitality of the plants in the Great Green was pitiful compared with the ones in the holdings. However, there were many more out here—hundreds of trees and hundreds of thousands of blades of grass. Together, would produce incredible results.

Other than the diggers, sting drillers, and bioengineers, the tunnel was occupied by much of the Leafies’ military. Mostly, they just helped to dig, using their more potent, longer mandiblades to pierce the hard soil and help their companions. But they were also here for another reason.

Contact!

The Lord zoned in on the finding. A team had stumbled on an earthworm when digging a gallery. It was much like the very first prey that the colony had hunted. It had been difficult back then, but it couldn’t be more straightforward now. The Lord sent ten soldiers to finish the worm off. There was no need to disassemble it and bring it to the pantry. The queen was well taken care of, and the brood was well-fed. This worm would be an excellent snack to revitalize the workers. The Lord also had the digging team follow the galleries opened by the worm under the Great Green. They navigated vast galleries, and the Lord despised wasting the creature’s hard work.

As the Lord’s mind scoured the Benefactor Tunnel, he thought back to the benefactor’s visit. It had shaken him. The Lord still couldn’t believe that only one individual could hold so much power. He had always thought that power came from unity. However, the benefactor singlehandedly produced a powerful energy beam and still had energy to spare to make the whole garden bloom.

Was he wrong? Was true strength not in unity? The Lord used his mind, thinking, and processing. Eventually, he concluded. No. He wasn’t wrong. Even the benefactor could only hold that much power because he was made of millions of tiny structures that could have that much energy together. True strength came from unity. That was truer than ever.

Having digested his doubts and ideas, the Lord kept diligently expanding the network. It was almost time to trigger the benefactor’s trap!

*

Jack swung his hammer, and he missed for the first time since they'd started crafting. It was barely perceptible, but he had felt it. He had accidentally struck a fragile, weak point in the metal, weakening it further. This would negatively impact the grade of the shield. This was the sign he was waiting for. If his concentration was starting to falter, everyone else’s was too.

He had never done anything like this, not with so many people. It was a new and pleasant experience that required him to pay attention to everyone else’s work—no wonder he’d made a mistake this soon. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, he scanned the workstations adjacent to his. Godsfried, every bit the professional Jack expected, showed no signs of slowing down despite six hours of crafting. He was hunched over his table, cautiously working on a pair of earrings. Meanwhile, the teams of dwarves under him followed his example.

Jack gestured to one of his assistants and then pointed at one of the teams working under Godsfried. "Ronir, give me the last set of jewelry they made."

The assistant took off immediately. Jack turned to his right-hand side and, at the biggest surprise of his day.

As Jack studied Roth’s focused look as he performed elegant gestures with a laser as if he were conducting an orchestra, he couldn't help but admire how much the man had changed. In his every encounter with the Slayer in New Earth, he had never seen anything hinting at this capacity for concentration. Back then, he had snapped at every insult and had shown remarkable impatience. It was a trait Jack had exploited more than once to get away from him. However, Roth was a different man now. 

His assistant returned with a sample of the jewelry. “Thanks, Ronir. Now, please get me one of the light-trapped chest plates,” Jack said, pointing at Roth.

Jack studied the set of jewelry made by one of the dwarf teams. The weakest crafting grade from the bunch was a B-. The jewelers were doing alright. Jack took a deep breath. It smelled of polished magnitidium and hot awnium. It smelled just right. The smithing team had also finished warming up. The dwarves had become comfortable with the recipe. 

Ronin returned with one of the chest plates. It had a brilliant red pentagon shining at its center. Jack inspected it.

Dwarven Vanguard Chestplate (Rare)

Description: This chestplate is a masterpiece, forged in the hottest forges of the dwarves and designed to withstand even the fiercest blows.

Effects:

+4(+2)% physical resistance;

+25(+4) strength;

+75(+2) hp;

+4%(+2) hp regeneration.

Restrictions: Warrior, lvl. 40.

Light trap effects:

+2 to all equipment’s stats.

+2 to highest stat

The light trap’s effects were impressive. And from the looks of it, Roth was becoming more proficient from trap to trap. It was the first time a light trap came with a +2 bonus to all stats. It looked like the famed Slayer didn’t only have a natural talent for fighting; he also had one for crafting.

Jack grinned. Everyone had finished warming up. If he had already made a mistake, everyone else was starting to make them, too. They were surfing the cusp of a wave that was about to crash. If he let it, mistakes would multiply, and frustration and subpar results would set in. He wouldn't let it happen.

Jack grabbed the horn from his belt and brought it to his lips. He flared his chest and blew it with as much strength as possible. A piercing sound echoed through the 82nd floor of Sapphira. Time froze. After a moment of stillness, the fires in the forges blazed and roared. The eyes of the craftsmen seemed infused with a new wave of energy.

The beautiful musical note helps you concentrate to an unprecedented degree. Previously impossible feats become more accessible, and inspiration fills you.

You’ve entered [Crafting Zone].

Jack felt his mind clear and the fatigue of the hours of crafting washing away. He could see every inch of the metal clearly, and every smell became even more distinct in his mind. He loved this feeling—an item that could help someone enter the crafting zone. 

Let the fun begin, Jack told himself.

Ch. 302 - Forcing

INDEX

Ch. 304 - Crafting Zone