"Here is the blade you asked for." Albor respectfully held the beautiful-looking blade out to Dorian.

Dorian took it and held it firmly in his grasp, his gaze immediately mesmerized by the beauty of the blue sheath and the incredibly crafted handle.

Albor was a known and talented blacksmith, but a creation like this would quickly leave anyone surprised and intrigued just from the sight of it.

"Insane…" Dorian let out, running his fingers along the smooth edges of the sheathed blade.

"Indeed. I made sure to pour my heart and soul into it. I knew you'd like it, haha." Albor didn't waste the opportunity to show how proud he was of his work.

The girls watching from the side could not tear their eyes away from the weapon. The sheer beauty of the blade was a captivating force, making it almost impossible to ignore.

"Hmm, I agree. You have truly outdone yourself, old man. This is incredible," Dorian smiled, lifting the sword upward. It wasn't heavy, nor was it light. It was simply the perfect weight, guaranteeing it could cut down anything in its way with just a single, fluid swing.

"What is the name of this masterpiece, Old Man?" Dorian asked, a glint in his eyes.

Albor chuckled heartily. "I simply call it 'Stormbringer,' for it was created for just that."

Dorian nodded, a grin spreading across his face. "Stormbringer. I like it. This will certainly be an invaluable addition to my arsenal." He turned the blade, admiring how the light caught its polished surface, a faint blue glow emanating from within.

The craftsmanship was beyond anything he had ever seen, even from Albor, who was already renowned.

The balance felt perfect, like a natural extension of his own arm.

Then, Dorian held the blade out to Maria. "Here, I hope you like it as much as I do," he uttered.

Surprised, Maria took the blade from him sluggishly. "Is this mine to keep?"

"Yes. I noticed the sword you had with you has been destroyed, and I don't know why you refused to change it, but I believe you won't refuse this one, no? Your old man helped make it."

"Wait, Lord Dorian, I didn't know it was for Maria," Albor interjected. "I assumed you wanted to use the blade yourself? That's the only reason I used the best dragon ores and mana dust."

The room was silent, with shock etched on their faces.

"Hold on, this was forged with mana dust?" Maria asked, her brows furrowed a bit.

Seraphina had the same look, but there was no need for her to speak since Maria had already asked the question that popped into her head as well.

Before Albor could reply, Dorian chimed in.

"Yes, mana dust." His legs were still crossed, while his eyes were glancing at Maria.

"That skeleton monster defeated at the hands of Ciel… unfortunate, as I could have saved it." He sighed. "I intended to bury it in order for it to have peace, but since it had a mana stone, its body would dissolve into nothingness. I simply gave your father the mana stone for him to form into dust."

"T-that makes sense…" Seraphina smiled.

Mana dust was just as rare as it was expensive. Only high-level or special-level monsters were known to have mana stones of the highest purity, capable of making high-quality mana dust, which people sold for exorbitant prices.

It was not only used as an ingredient to make magic potion recovery but was also well known as a critical component for crafting magical weapons and armor used for adventuring.

Albor was no different. Using the mana dust Dorian gave him, he was able to make the Stormbringer sword.

And as an alchemist, just like every other blacksmith, he added a few spells to it—enchantments that would continue to run as long as the mana dust was still present on the blade.

"So what you're saying is, I am holding a high-level magic weapon right now?" Maria hinted, a bit scared to hear the response that would follow.

"You better believe you are. It costs 1500 gold coins at least, and that's being considerate."

When Maria heard the price from her father, she quickly looked to Dorian, bowed her head, and stretched the blade towards him. "I didn't know I was holding something this expensive. You can take it back."

"Don't be so dramatic, you'll love it. Old man, tell her the abilities of the blade."

"Abilities?" Maria raised her head. "The blade has more than one ability?"

"Insane, right?" Albor grinned proudly. "I had the same reaction as well when Lord Dorian told me it was possible. He even managed to increase my rank to a Grandmaster Alchemist. That was the only way I was able to place so many spells on that blade."

"I… see…" Maria looked to Dorian, though his gaze seemed to be fixed on the demi-humans.

For the longest time, Maria was certain her father had done all he could to raise his rank from an Adept Alchemist to something higher. He was a great blacksmith, but he was a horrible alchemist.

Because of this, he was never truly able to add magical sparks to his inventions like other blacksmiths do.

It got so bad that he needed to rely on others just to make a simple magical item. And yet now…

Maria smiled.

She wanted to say thank you to him, kiss him, hug him, and let him do whatever he wanted to her.

In that moment, she truly wanted to please him. But she was before her father, which meant she needed to compose herself.

"So, what are the abilities, Father?" she asked, slowly rising back up. Seraphina listened in as well.

"Well, I added 12 different spells on that thing…" Albor pointed. "First was magic enhancement, then self-repair, then body shape… honestly, I can't remember them all, so I'll just give you a manual or something."

"Thank you, I appreciate it," Maria smiled a bit, her head slightly bowed.

"You should thank your husband instead. He was the one who gave it to you, anyway." Albor raised his brows teasingly.

Embarrassed, Maria's cheeks turned red as she glared at her father.

"Okay, if we are done here, we can keep moving…" Dorian stood up from the chair.

"Are you leaving already?" Albor had a sad tone in his voice.

"I am afraid I only came to check on the weapon. Seraphina will hand you the other project so you can start."

To which Seraphina quickly moved closer with the blueprint and handed it to Albor.

"Do you ever run out of ideas, my lord?" asked Albor with a small smile.

Dorian smiled back. "Not when I want to make more money."

"Valid."

…

Once they were done with Albor, the team made their way out of the barony and headed for the Forgriam barony to meet up with the Monteli family.

...

[A/N]

The next chapter will be set in the Forgriam barony, the first time it's happening. There is a bit of warning here and there, so if you can handle tough scenes, please read with care. Also, thank you for reading and don't forget to show your support if you like this book so far.

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