Aqua's suggestion was quite good — the 『 Hero 』 Party had been inactive for too long.
However, before taking action, Adam needed to visit the party's blacksmith to have him forge another Nichirin blade, since his previous one had shattered when he instantly killed the White Whale.
When he arrived at Bill's forge workshop, he found the blacksmith leaning against the furnace, hammering away at a sword in his hands. The forge room radiated intense heat.
Despite the late autumn weather, a wave of heat struck you upon entering, making the workshop's scorching temperature unmistakable.
No wonder Bill didn't feel cold with his upper body exposed.
"Oh! If it isn't Adam! Long time no see!" Bill greeted them.
"Long time no see, Bill. How have you been? Has your craftsmanship gotten rusty?"
"Of course not! I'm the Hero Party's blacksmith — how could I let my skills deteriorate?!" Bill slapped his bulging muscles with a loud thump, as if proving his point.
"I knew you wouldn't let your skills slip." Adam affirmed with a smile, "I'm here because I need your expertise for something."
"My weapon shattered again, I need you to forge me a new one."
"Again?!" Bill frowned, "That weapon was made with adamantite ore, guaranteed for hardness. It's only been two months and it's broken already? It must have been through a fierce battle and broke at the last moment."
"No, it shattered because it couldn't handle my powerful magic."
"And it crumbled to pieces."
Adam's words deeply wounded the blacksmith before him.
He seriously wondered whether the problem lay with his forging skills or with how this guy was using the weapons.
That was the hardest ore there was!
Bill held his head and sighed.
"So what are you saying?"
"I want you to forge another weapon just like it."
"Even if we use adamantite ore, it still won't withstand your mighty power. That was already my limit."
"Ah, don't misunderstand — I'm not blaming you at all. Bill, your forging skills are excellent, there's nothing wrong with them!"
Adam realized Bill felt he had disappointed him by not making a good enough weapon, when that wasn't the case at all.
"Just forge another one, exactly the same as before."
"...Alright, I'll forge another one." Bill nodded, "This time I'll use all my skill — I'll definitely forge a weapon that will satisfy you!"
"Uh... you don't need to try that hard."
But clearly, Bill couldn't hear him anymore.
He immediately threw the sword that was still cooling in water into a corner, took out some adamantite ore, and started hammering it frantically, as if possessed.
Perhaps he wanted to prove himself?
Not wanting to discourage his enthusiasm, Adam left two more pieces of crimson ore before departing with the party members.
"Hey hey, shouldn't we go take on a quest now?" Aqua raised her hand, "It's still early, let's find a difficult quest!"
"Why not!" Rejected again, Aqua puffed her cheeks as she looked at Adam, wanting him to give her a convincing reason.
"I have something I need to discuss with Wiz, the quest can wait." Worried that she would be upset about him visiting the lich, he quickly added, "Don't worry, it won't take long, we'll go soon after."
But to his surprise, Aqua wasn't angry, and there wasn't even any hostility towards Wiz in her words.
"Oh, that lich? Sure, let's go see her, I haven't visited in a while anyway."
"Huh?" Adam was very curious.
Megumin explained, "Actually, while Kazuma was out doing quests, Aqua and I weren't just staying in the mansion — we often went to chat with Wiz too."
"You weren't bullying her?"
"Of! Course! Not!" Aqua huffed angrily, "I'm a Goddess, even if she's a Lich I'll show her compassionate tolerance, I would never be hostile to her!"
She had completely forgotten about the previous "300 million Eris" and "Dark Hot Pot" incidents.
Though Adam had no intention of reminding her — it was better if they got along well.
After winding through the streets, they arrived at Wiz's magic item shop.
They opened the door and stepped inside.
A familiar soft, delicate voice greeted them.
"Ah, Adam! You're back!" Wiz, the sickly beauty, gave him a gentle smile.
This clearly irritated Aqua, who stormed up from behind.
"Hey, you lich! Did you not see me come in, huh?!"
"Eek! I-I'm sorry, Lady Aqua, I was wrong!" The startled, timid girl immediately bowed in apology.
Though she had done nothing wrong, Aqua had forced her to apologize. The frightened, anxious look on her face was heartbreaking.
Hey, what happened to not bullying her?
"Stupid Aqua, don't come barging in and causing trouble — you're making us look like unwelcome guests." Kazuma scolded.
Adam nodded in agreement.
While they understood that Aqua, being a Goddess, naturally opposed the Lich Wiz, Wiz was a benevolent Lich who had never harmed humans and had even helped them before.
Aqua was clearly overreacting.
Yet when Kazuma defended her, Wiz simply smiled and said, "I know Lady Aqua isn't targeting me on purpose — we actually have a good relationship."
If Adam didn't know Wiz's true nature, he would have thought she was just putting on an act!
This girl was far too kind!
"Wiz, I came to ask if there's been any news about the Devil King's Army lately."
"The Devil King's Army...?"
"Yes, the Devil King's Army." Adam said meaningfully, "I heard recently that one of the Generals has gone missing, and I wondered if you, as a fellow General, might know who it is and where they went."
"A General? Missing?" Wiz touched her finger to her lips, thought carefully, then said, "I'm sorry, I haven't heard of any Generals leaving the Devil King's barrier."
"N-no! Lady Aqua, I'm not lying to you!"
"If you're lying, I'll purify you!" Aqua glared fiercely at her.
The timid lich girl was terrified, clinging to Adam and refusing to let go as she pleaded, "Eek! No, please! I'll do anything!"
Hey, don't say such provocative things!
Feeling Wiz's softness pressed against him, Adam's mind wandered to thoughts of how the lich girl might look in an apron...
Tch! How shameless of me!
Hey there, fellow procrastinators! Since you're already avoiding your responsibilities by reading this, why not procrastinate a bit more with your favorite translator?
I know what you're thinking - "Oh no, not another Enjoy reading on NovelHub - your free online novel platform. 90210 for Pokémon. Ever wondered what a Pikachu with abs looks like? No? Well, now you're curious!
2 - A Blue Lock story where our MC uses Thunder Breathing to play soccer - because regular soccer just wasn't anime enough. Plus, there's Kuroko no Basket characters thrown in (waifu Riko Aida), because why have one sports anime when you can have two?
3 - And a Harry Potter tale that's so good, it'll make you say "Harry who?" (Just kidding, please don't come after me, Potter fans!)
Still not convinced? You can follow for FREE! That's right, FREE - my favorite four-letter F-word!
Thanks for reading this far! You're breathtaking! You're awesome! You're... probably still not going to subscribe, but hey, I tried!
Catch you on the flip side! ٩(◕‿◕)۶