AK - The Alchemy Kingdom

Chapter 140: Blacksmith workshop

Year 4, Spring, Third Month, First Week.

The strong smell of burning confirmed that Karl was going in the right direction. The crafting section was surprisingly bigger than he expected, through the tree trunks deposit, the wood processing area, and the polishing site, he walked for almost ten minutes before he left the area. The fact that he was curious about everything and stopped now and then to check didnt help, the same for the poor marking and separation of the areas, it all looked like a giant messy shop instead of areas for different tasks and processes. Maybe he should suggest a better separation to Alfeur, or maybe he should just stay out of his fellow Councilors managing.

The scene of the blacksmith tutoring some youngsters on how to do his craft put away the worries from Karls mind. Seeing the man who was once an outsider interacting with his fellow citizens was a relief to him, even better if he was making disciples. The Alchemist knew too well the dangers of concentrating knowledge in only one person. As much as people like to be the hero of a story, real saving came with empowering everyones growth, otherwise, wouldnt the rest just crumble after the hero was gone?

Once Arnold realized someone was staring at them, or better saying, once he realized who was staring, he quickly dismissed the apprentices and greeted Karl extremely excited.

Boy, you finally came I have so much to show you and dozens of requests to make. That fellow Alfeur always agrees with everything I say and ask, but doesnt solve anything It has been a month since I asked him to call you

Karl laughed awkwardly, as much as he would like to share the guilt with others, he couldnt stain the mans image.

About that Alfeur told me and I said I would come shortly, but things just kept piling up... Either way, Im here now Lets talk about everything! I have the whole afternoon available

The Alchemist felt a little ridiculous trying to match the blacksmiths excitement, but it shouldnt be that strange, right? After all, his mother always complains about how he wasnt acting like a young man should, energetic and happy, whatever she meant by this. However, the young secretary accompanying Karl noticed the strange behavior, she would surely report it to the big Boss later.

I finally found something to solve the cable problem.

As they walked through the ores and metal samples, Karl felt a headache just remembering about the problem. The Alchemy cable was the best option to connect Arrays through long distances and transfer magic energy, it even became one of the mass-produced materials of the department, together with magic ink, brush and slates. However, they soon started to have problems with both the straw fiber and thread cables. The long cables were rupturing because of the quality of the materials, sometimes they even had to be replaced months before the redrawing maintenance.

By the way, I followed your suggestion about researching, you really are too wise for your age, my results improved a lot and now I can carry different projects at the same time

To be fair, Karl had always been very creative and smart, but in terms of methods, Master AI was responsible for most of his knowledge, while the practice of Alchemy had also improved his intellect by leaps and bounds. Because Arnold was often stuck in a problem, Karl suggested some changes of method and approach. First, the blacksmith shouldnt research alone. One would often become trapped in an obstacle that could easily be overcome by anothers perspective or even an unspecialized overview. How many times Reiner had helped to solve something without even knowing how to draw an Array?

So, Karl told Arnold to create a blacksmith department and guaranteed the Council would supply all the personal and material needed. One of the specif suggestions was to request a secretary who would document all steps of the research, helping Arnold keep track of everything without worrying about forgetting something.

Another suggestion was to work with some of the disciples interested in the Alchemy-blacksmithing dynamic. The Alchemist could offer timely support and bring a new perspective. Finally, he suggested for Arnold to conduct a couple of projects at the same time to give him some leeway when he was stuck, so he could focus on the other project and revisit the problem later with a fresh mind.

Surprisingly, the blacksmith went further than Karl expected. He got the secretary and two young interested Alchemists, who came by two times a week, but also got three apprentices, one aide and an operator to help him use the magic tools better. In terms of cost, he increased the costs of the blacksmith shop by several multiples, but the gain in productivity was worth it.

Arnold, who was searching for something, finally found the sample. He handled a very thin metal stick to the Alchemist and urged him to pour some spiritual energy into it. Karl agreed and then, his eyes suddenly lighted up.

Holy Origin! How

The blacksmith smiled proudly before answering:

I noticed one of the magic ores from the crystal cave, absorbed energy quite easily, but the same ore didnt seem to lose the absorbed energy, so I decided to study it. First I tried some methods until I separated the metal component responsible for the absorption. Then I carried some tests of energy transfer and even asked one of the Alchemists to imprint a line on it.

Karl analyzed the metal cable before trying to imprint a line on it. Unexpectedly, the metal easily accepted the imprint, offering just a little more resistance than magic ink would do. The result really surprised the Alchemist, he knew that many materials would conduct magic energy, but he was used to the inks properties, which made it difficult to imprint after drying, so they could only imprint on it in the liquid state. However, the metal seemed to accept imprinting in the solid-state, with more resistance than the ink, but that could easily be overlooked.

Unfortunately, aside from the Alchemy line, they wouldnt be able to use the solid metal to draw other things. The line was the first and easiest concept of Alchemy, as it only marked a direction for the magic energy to flow inside the material. Even so, if the metal was a good replacement for the fragile cables, it would be enough for them. Seeing that Karl, had finally calmed a little, Arnold continued:

Once I was sure the metal was perfect for the transferring job, I spend another two weeks combining it with other metals to forge an alloy that wouldnt weaken its conducting properties while allowing it to be thin and flexible enough to be used as a cable. We can still improve it, but as you saw, the alloy already works. I already expected it, but I also confirmed with tests that the amount of energy it can absorb its proportional to its thickness, while the percentage of the transfer metal also influences how much it can transfer. This thickness is enough to transfer the same amount of energy used in the Path, and these other two can be used with LQ and MQ energy crystals.

Karl checked the other two thinner cables, excitedly. His only concern now was the cost of producing them and if they could get enough magic ores. Arnold didnt need to hear it to know what Karl was thinking.

Fortunately, to match the efficiency of the magic ink, only six to nine percent of the metal is needed, so the costs in terms of the metal arent excessive. However, we still need to find a stable source for it, as we also need common metal. Importing it through Keller isnt worth it, so we need to find another source. Im not a mining expert but if the Green Mountains are as rich as you describe it, it would probably have an abundance of ores. Maybe, even other types that could also further improve the cable and our weapons

Which brings me to the enhanced iron found in the Tunnel. After thinking about your suggestion to make us less dependent on materials, I started to look at it as a model to enhance common iron. I used the analyzer you crafted, to check for all properties, simple and complex, from the earth element present in the metal. Although I didnt identify all properties that enhanced the iron, Im confident I understand some of them.

Now, were doing some tests to see if we can enhance common iron by ourselves. We left some samples in different settings next to the powering system and were checking for changes weekly. We have exposed samples, buried samples, we even got a MQ earth crystal from your department to simulate the properties enhancement

Arnold continued to tell his ideas and ask Karl to modify a few tools for him until evening came. Even then, the blacksmith didnt release him and insisted on accompanying Karl through a meal in the famous Grannys Stake House. It unknown what time Karl was finally allowed to sleep on that night. However, he didnt complain, after all, with the help of the excited and eager blacksmith, Alchemy would go even further.