Chapter 14_ Blacksmith (4)

Lexus disappeared from where he was standing as he swiftly leapt forward and kicked off the ground. His speed was fast, and he descended from 10 meters above the ground before accelerating.

The air became turbulent and the earth shook. A legendary class who had the strongest stats compared to his level and had evolved his skills to the highest levels with his equipment.

And then, there was a clash.

*Rumble*

Lexus' level of skill was something Sir Chucksley had never seen before. Though his own swordsmanship still surpassed Lexus', the way Lexus handled the sword, the swings, and the basics of swordsmanship were fundamentally different from Sir Chucksley.

No, it could not be said that the basics of Lexus' swordsmanship were better than his own; he found this hard to believe. He didn't know that Lexus had trained his basic swordsmanship to perfectly utilize Madra's swordsmanship in the future, wherein a single crushing blow is the essence.

Every time he swung his sword, the atmosphere was torn apart like producing thunderous sounds, and the air swept through where his swords passed by, making the ground shake repeatedly.

His aura amplified with every explosion he created, further adding to the pressure that he was releasing. After creating the unique-rated item, all stats had risen by 12, and his total strength was now 252. The strength stat gave 0.1 attack power per one point, and with the title Sword Saint Candidate, it made all of his stats 1.3 times better.

Thus, 252 strength guaranteed 33 damage. Once the attack damage of the Blight of Misery was added together, his attack power was 533, plus the effects of Advanced Sword Mastery Lv.1, that increased attack power by 25% and the title effect of Sword Expert increased attack power by 25%.

With Madra's Mastery that increases attack power by 30%, the 75% increased physical attack power as a bonus physical attack amplification effect from his Blight of Misery and with Strength Augmentation which increases his damage by an additional fifteen percent. Then with the fixed 1,000 damage from sword aura, his physical attack damage can let Lexus deal at least 2,930 damage alone.

However, that wasn't the end. His sword was releasing an unexplained amount of heat as his Sword of Ember was currently active, giving Lexus additional magical damage and the effectiveness of the skill is based on the Intelligence stat.

With his 1,937 intelligence stats that gives Lexus 1,259 magic power and with Sword of Ember that boosted the magic damage by 125%, his magical damage alone was at 1,210.

If both physical attack and magic attack will be added, Lexus' attacks allows him to deal 3,140 damage. A damage that shouldn't be possible for his level at all!

(#A/N: Then imagine if Madra's Swordsmanships or Pagma's Sword Dance will be added to it. Well maybe both.)

However that was just if the defense of the opponent will not be considered; not to mention that there was still a huge level gap between Lexus and Chucksley.

Chucksley on the other hand was filled with many confusing thoughts. He saw that the sword in his hands had been damaged; it had many burned and slightly melted marks.

His cape on his back was torn apart. He was slightly confused because his cape was a rare-quality item and shouldn't have been easily damaged by mere slashes or simple attacks.

He thought that it was burned, but he didn't sense any burning on his cape at all. Even though he was a great swordsman, he still couldn't imagine that with Lexus' magical powers, which surpassed those of any swordsman, his sword would not only burn or erupt, but also eradicate whatever he touched to nothingness.

(#A/N: Even Piaro in his Great Swordsman days before he became a legend only has 500+ intelligence stats and his level was 360+ so Chucksley's intelligence stats was also within that amount.)

« Activate the Plunderer skill on the target Chucksley? »

« Confirmed. Due to the vast difference in level and abilities, unique skill Plunderer failed. »

Lexus sighed when he heard the voice of the Great Sage. He had already expected this, but it was really a shame for him to not be able to copy the skills of a Great Swordsman.

« Confirmed. Because of the vast difference in level and abilities, sub skill Appraisal failed. »

The level difference was so large that it rendered Lexus unable to utilize the full extent of his unique skill. However, he remained undeterred.

'He's not as scared as I thought he would be – even though he's not a Great Swordsman.'

Chucksley was slightly displeased that Lexus did not shrink back at all. He maintained his poker face on the outside, but a hundred thoughts ran through his mind. Why? How was his opponent so calm even as he faced off against a Great Swordsman?

Those who had not yet reached this level experienced great pressure when facing one another. The resulting nervousness would chain them during an actual fight, widening the skill gap between them even further than it needed to be.

Aiming for this effect, he was exerting himself to draw out his aura as if he were parading it, so Lexus would be aware of it. It was a form of intimidation by flexing his prowess as a Great Swordsman.

'Am I just needlessly wasting my energy?'

Chucksley thought without any idea that the pressure he was releasing will never affect a legend though he had no idea that Lexus was already a legend. Then, he saw Lexus rushed towards him and swung his sword coated with his aura.

Clang! Kang! Whoosh!

Lexus' red blade ruthlessly pressured Chucksley as if he intended to end this quickly.

"Ugh…"

A hint of uncertainty revealed itself on Chucksley's face as he continued the brutal assault. To others, it may have seemed like a one-sided attack, but Chucksley knew better as he continued to cross blades — his attacks right now were not bearing much of an outcome.

'What's this? He's rapidly getting faster!'

Chucksley narrowed his eyes as he noticed that in every strike of the red sword, Lexus' attack speed was becoming faster than the previous attacks.

Chucksley did not dare to receive the strikes head-on as he was uncertain about what would be the effects seeing how damaged his cape was, but rather stepped backward and deflected them aside at oblique angles. He negated Lexus' aura blades by subtly redirecting the course of his swings, as if he was conforming to the flow of a water stream instead of fighting against it.

Chucksley then smiled, very satisfied with the skills that Lexus had shown. He then looked at Lexus who closed his eyes. A quiet period ensued for a little while. It was like the calm before the storm.

•~×~•

Inside the smithy that where he had been before, Lexus was standing in front of a furnace.

[Intelligence has increased by 1.]

Seeing the system message, Lexus closed a very thick book in his hand. After the spar yesterday, Lexus was able to take a glimpse of how important the intelligence stats had became for his Sword of Ember.

Because of his high intelligence stats, he was able to thoroughly destroy Chucksleys item and it didn't take long for the sword to follow. Without any weapons left in his hand, Lexus' win was concluded.

He then remembered the system messages he saw yesterday right after the match ended.

[You have proved yourself and was acknowledged by Great Swordsman Chucksley, a person who had reached a high level of swordsmanship.]

[You have obtained Two Sword Style as an achievement reward.]

[Your level has risen.]

[Your level has risen.]

[Your level has risen.]

[Your level has risen.]

[Your level has risen.]

[Two Sword Style - Lv.1]

Rating: Uncommon

[While two swords are equipped, attack damage and attack speed will increase by 5%.]

Lexus smiled as his level increased by 5 at once and all he did was simply spar. Well, he did spar against a level 300 Great Swordsman, so it was only natural. Additionally, he felt delighted in obtaining a dual wielding skill.

Even though it was just an uncommon skill, just one rank higher than a normal skill, he was aware that almost no dual-wielding skills could be found in the novel. The protagonist couldn't find one, even after growing into an influential figure and searching for this skill; it meant that this skill was almost nonexistent.

Now that he could equip two swords at the same time without receiving a penalty, he needed to create a new weapon that was on par with Blight of Misery.

"Your highness, should I lock the doors for the meantime?"

Lexus turned his attention to the blacksmith who had worship in his eyes. He requested from the king to send him many smithing materials that he wanted, which puzzled King Wiesbaden for a moment before agreeing.

He didn't know what's on the mind of the king at that time but what mattered to him was that the materials needed to produce the piles of treasures in the Northern End Cave was now in his possession.

Being a prince that was greatly valued by the king was just that convenient. As he already had the production methods, Lexus could now freely create whatever he wanted. Just like blacksmiths, production classes require things like recipes to create something.

Success or failure was one thing. The next hurdle was to create a high rated item. For ordinary blacksmiths, the default rate of successfully producing items was at 1% and that was only at normal rating but it could be increased by using a better hammer or increasing one's luck attribute.

At such low odds, NPCs or players who solely got by crafting or production would find it ridiculously hard and challenging to survive on their. They needed an organization to support them.

Nodding towards the blacksmith, Lexus gripped the hammer in his hand.

Ttang! Ttang!

Once started, the flames in the furnace never turned off. Lexus also didn't stop his hammering. He solely devoted himself to the task, regardless of whether it was day or night. Because of the heat from the fire and his enthusiasm, it seemed as if the smithy were on the brink of an explosion.

Also, unlike before, Lexus didn't rely on Great Sage to take over this time; he wanted to try what his own smithing capabilities were capable of. The skills that he had shown when Great Sage took over were still fresh in his memory, and his smithing skill did not seem to have degraded as a result.

The hammering didn't stop until the sun set and the moon rose and faded again.

[The Legendary Blacksmith's Patience skill has been activated. Concentration, stamina and defense will rise to the extreme for one hour.]

Then when the chickens cried at dawn.

[The Legendary Blacksmith's Breath has increased the effectiveness of your production items.]

Time passed and it was almost night time again. After spending more than a day to produce the sword he had he saw at the Northern End Cave, a white longsword was finally finished.

[A unique-rated item was produced, all stats have permanently risen by +12 and reputation throughout the continent has risen by +300.]

[Brilliance]

Rating: Unique

[Durability: 550/550 Attack Power: 625

* Attack speed will increase by 1.5% for every attack that connects.

* There is a low probability of attacks dealing 50% critical damage.

* Sword Mastery Level +5.

A sharp and balanced sword made by the legendary blacksmith with great skills and potential, but lacks the reputation of a legend.

A weapon that will turn the wearer into a master of swordsmanship.

Condition of Use: Level 250 or higher. More than 1,800 strength. More than 900 agility. Advanced Sword Mastery. ]

The white longsword with three blue lines. Beneath the pale gold hilt is a sculpture of a courageous wolf and a decorative blue string. The handle is wound with a latticework of blue and white strings.

He was pleased by this outcome and smiled. Now looking at the sky through the small window in the smithy, Lexus thought that the grind shall now begin.