Christian accepted the surge of essence — be it in the form of the shadow attribute, lightning and fire, or even the space one drawn from the techniques he was currently training in calmly, along with the many other flows already coursing through him.
Already accustomed to this routine, he quietly welcomed the sharp rise in his strength.
And when he finished, Christian looked around, trying to sense if something was off.
Only when he was sure everything had gone smoothly did he turn his attention elsewhere.
He opened his status window.
Host: Christian White
Rank: Mortal, First Stage
Level: 67 (EXP: 27,500,000 / 98,000,000)
Advanced Trading Lv.2 (56%)
High School Knowledge Lv.10 (Max)
Expert Human Biology Lv.1 (0%)
Expert Hand-to-Hand Combat Lv.1 (30%)
Danger Awareness Lv.-
Breath of the Shadow Blade +4 Lv.2 (30%)
Mortal Concealment Technique Lv.2 (60%)
Mortal Talent Detecting Technique Lv.6 (10%)
Mortal Flawless Body Lv.5 (80%)
Intermediate Combat Android Lv.9 (85%)
Mortal Essence Manipulation Lv.7 (40%)
Expert General Mechanic Lv.3 (20%)
Mortal Blacksmith Lv.3 (5%)
Void Art (First Chapter) Lv.8 (10%)
Mortal Harmony Physique Lv.2 (12%)
Infernal Spark Lv.6 (50%)
[Idle practicing slots: (0/6)]
Looking at his status, at his attributes specifically, and feeling his body, Christian, who sensed that the second stage was closer than ever, couldn’t help but waver.
He wondered if he should have pushed himself to break through, reaching the second stage before switching the idle slots to General Mechanic.
But... would that really change anything?
He thought of the Iron Flame that Anastasia had pulled out so casually.
And in the end, Christian just shook his head.
He kept staring at the status window, though.
He looked at the changes in it, from small things like his age to the more substantial ones — his attributes, his skills.
And he was satisfied with his progress.
But when it came to facing Anastasia, it all felt useless.
The only grace was that, until this moment, his Danger Awareness skill hadn’t activated.
Meaning, Anastasia has not ever thought of harming him — not even after the argument that had happened between them.
Christian, with heavy eyelids, decided to stop thinking about it for now and finally give himself the long-overdue rest.
He dismissed the status window, laid down on the bed, and curled in on himself.
No one was beside him this time, like usual.
And in no time, he drifted into sleep.
It was then that, beside his bed, out of the empty air — Anastasia appeared.
Had she just arrived?
Or... had she always been there?
Christian, deep in his sleep, couldn’t ask himself that question.
And Anastasia, eyes fixed on him, simply watched.
A beaming smile touched her face, quiet and unreadable, before she vanished once again.
The next day arrived.
But instead of heading to the mechanical workshop, Christian, accompanied by Anastasia, was inside the forging room.
The fire had already been lit.
Christian, wearing light clothes this time instead of being topless like usual, was tending to the metal in the flames — preparing it for the next part, when he would begin forging the pieces for what would become her android.
He was focused, working seriously.
In his mind, the payment — the Iron Flame — was more than worth the effort.
Even so, Anastasia’s gaze kept bothering him.
It wasn’t the playful, and cheeky one, like usual.
"Why have you not built a battle forge?" she suddenly asked, genuinely curious, as her eyes scanned the setup in front of her — something that could barely even be called a forge.
And Christian, with patience, explained.
This forge — this one she didn’t like — was the best out there.
It truly was, as he had made many modifications to it after becoming able to hold some fire attributes within his body, and he could produce a better flame than before.
But still, it apparently couldn’t meet Anastasia’s standards.
She seemed ready to speak again, but then, Christian took the heated metal — glowing orange — out of the forge, placed it onto the anvil, and began hammering at it.
At that moment, she stopped paying attention to the forge entirely.
Instead, her eyes followed his movements carefully.
It was in the way he handled essence — how he wove it into the metal — that caught her attention.
Her expression changed.
The playful grumbling faded, replaced by something more serious.
Surprise was written across her face.
And how could it not be?
Even if Christian was handling the metal somewhat awkwardly, like an amateur, his essence manipulation was too refined to ignore. Googlᴇ search NoveI(F)ire.net
He was only at the first stage, yet the control he showed was comparable to that of someone at the seventh stage.
Anastasia’s eyes sparkled as she quietly nodded to herself.
And then, once again, she began asking questions.
She had already figured out that Christian was self-taught as a blacksmith.
So now, she wanted to test him more — see how far his knowledge went.
Again and again, she found herself satisfied with his answers.
Because when it came to theory, Christian seemed even more advanced than his actual forging skills showed.
He just needed more practice.
Unaware that he had just earned a silent praise from her, Christian, who felt puzzled by the sudden wave of questions, glanced at her and suddenly asked:
"Are you a blacksmith?"
And Anastasia tilted her head cutely as she asked back, "Why do you think so?"
"Well... your questions are just too specific for someone who isn’t a blacksmith. I just can’t imagine anyone else knowing all that. Even if they were really strong."
That was Christian’s reply.
But there was something else running quietly through his mind.
If she was a blacksmith, then with her strength, she had to be an incredible one.
Forging the parts of her android should have been far too easy for her.
She didn’t need him to do it.