I wanted to ask Raishin if he wanted to join me in a walk, but suspicious sounds were coming from their room... Let's ignore that!

  It was noon, and the city was bustling, so many new races.

  Is that a frog beast kin with horns? It's more frog than humanoid. How would that be called? But a horny frog, eh? There were also a lot of humans. Just humans, not other common races.

  I even saw a couple of a human woman and a bulky six-armed ogre-like creature. He was nearly 3 meters tall. How do they… never mind, not my business.

  The crystals were glistening in the sun, and a pleasant earthy smell pervaded the streets.

  What a beautiful day. Finally, a day without worri…

  A loud crash and swords clanging on the ground. A large mammoth with 2 trunks had knocked over an electronium-powered cart, causing its cargo to fall off. They were bickering in some unknown language.

  Why do those swords seem familiar? The bickering turned hostile as the mammoth stepped on some swords, which pissed off the vendor. Curiosity drew me in. These swords have my initials. No wonder they looked familiar.

  “Ooh, you have a good eye, this sword is special, it ..”

  A well-dressed bullshit story flowed out of the mouth of the vendor. He pissed me off as he was selling my low-quality swords for 5 gold per sword. They should be 90 silver to 1 gold max.

  Hey these swords are a scam, they're worth 1 gold at best.

  “I thought that you had good eyes, but I must have been wrong. It's not as if you could make something better.”

  Oh a challenge, sure, point me to a blacksmith and I will make better swords.

  New race or not, they should know that challenging a mythical beast will end up in their loss.

  The terms of this bet were set. I would craft 10 swords and 4 others would do a quality check.

  The local blacksmith was made aware, and I talked to the owner, a nice old man. He had an apprentice of about 8 years old. It reminded me of my youth.

  Good day, Zio. Would you mind handling the small tasks? You might pick up some cool tricks if you're observant.

  Zio, the apprentice, was enthusiastic. I only realized this now, but apprentices in this profession are priceless. Blacksmithing in a world filled with magic is nearing redundancy. The amount of people picking up this profession continues to decrease. But it's still needed, as the Yttroz Industries still needs artisans to function. The independent artisans are slowly disappearing but if Yttroz Industries can't find enough to stay afloat, everyone gets fucked over. This is luckily not my problem. I empathize with Barusu as this is his problem.

  Anyway this situation made me realize how precious I must have been to Philip and Hera, they did treat me like a son. Maybe I should have felt a bit more upset about Boshi town disappearing.

  I started to smelt and hit metal. Not to start creating swords, but to get accustomed to the setup and tools. I hop into my dimensional pocket weekly and do some blacksmithing in there so my muscle memory is tuned to my own setup.

  Zio was preparing everything so that I could start.

  I had a week to produce those swords. It showed that this vendor had no idea how long it takes to create swords. It shouldn't be a problem for me, but any other blacksmith might struggle without Elgards eyes and the amount of control I have over my fire magic. I might have to forgo some equipment and heat the metal myself because of this time limit. The metal heated up a bit slow, suggesting that the forge was dated.

  Hey Zio, I'm going to do a stunt that they don't teach. You might not be able to do this yourself but being aware of it might change your career. Everyone can use basic fire magic so the effectiveness of this stunt relies on this.

  Zio was a quiet and obedient kid with sharp eyes. This blacksmith lucked out with this kid.

  I quickly and efficiently prepared the prerequisites. Created some special oils for quenching and started smelting without a forge but with fire magic. I let the melted metal drop on a coated anvil in a wavy pattern.

  The metal cooled a bit and did the same with a different metal, and covered the previous metal in a wavy pattern, which opposed the pattern of the first metal. I heated them with fire magic and started beating the shape into it and the impurities out of it. Heat was applied to every strike and I made sure to get rid of impurities of as many wavelengths as possible. The blade was finished after 3 hours and I sharpened the blade after tempering it. The blade was laid in a water bath with abrasives, and water magic was creating currents and grinding the edges.

  Zio was carefully observing and prepared to create the hilts. He had free rein as I wasn't using the forge and most equipment. It was an efficient process.

  We finished 2 swords at the end of the day. Zio was of a 4-armed race, which helped him immensely. The few words he said were praising my speed and efficiency despite having only 2 arms. I understand his praise. I normally use my tails to help out, 2 arms are limiting.

  The owner had invited me to stay over, and I almost accepted. As for why I didn't accept…

  Yv located me and came to pick me up. My team was wondering where I had disappeared to and worried that I would get in trouble again. How rude, I can look after myself! She seemed relieved that I was just blacksmithing the whole day.

  “Can we watch you tomorrow?” She asked as we were walking back to our accommodation.

  It will become crowded…

  “Noelle probably also wants to observe, as she likes watching artisans at work.”

  I figured… it's not a circus, though we're on a strict schedule, so I won't have much time to talk or explain.

  “That's fine, I don't mind watching!” Yv said as she happily skipped around.

  Giana, Raishin and Noelle were dining in the VIP lounge and noticed our arrival.

  Wow he didn't get into trouble!

  Rude! And technically I did… this jerk sold my shitty swords for 5gold a piece. I commented on it, and he challenged me to make better ones in a week. Which is what I've been doing this whole day. What did you do today, Raishin? Besides Noelle. Hehe…

  Huh how do you know that!

  I wanted to visit you, but I could hear that you were busy. Most of us have good ears, you know…

  Raishin and Noelle turned red. They finally got together, which is a worry less.

  Yv and I sat down.

  How have you been, Deca?

  “Worried, but I'm fine now.”

  Good coz we need to talk! All of us. First thing, we need a different leader for team Hourai!

  The team protested and held an unfair popularity vote, and I got re-elected as the leader.

  You guys are jerks… fine! Don't complain if I get us all killed! The second and most important issue… what do we do about Greg?

  Can't we just forgive him?

  I was thinking that too but… this is more up to the idols.

  “I…will forgive, but not forget. Getting sealed away was dark and lonely… I might be able to ‘forget’ if my fear of the dark and of being alone disappears. I'm also unsure if I can treat him as I treat Deca or Raishin.”

  Noelle grabbed Giana’s hand, indicating her support. “I will do my best. He will get punched if he does something like that again.”

  We all expected that and looked at Yv. “I'm sorry… I don't think I can forgive or forget. I will go with whatever you guys choose, though. I can suck it up…”

  I think that's reasonable. He is in so much trouble if he does that again without clearing prerequisites.

  “And what does that mean, Deca? Sealing someone away is always bad!”

  While you're correct… If I were to seal you away. What would you think when you get out?

  “What reckless plan you cooked up to the point you had to seal me away!” Giana said getting upset at the thought.

  See! Nowhere did you think that I sealed you out of malice.

  “Well you would only seal me away if you want to do something I don't agree with but have the ability to stop you. Like a situation similar to the spirit stalkers…”

  And that's what I mean with prerequisites. Tell me team, who would be mad at me if I sealed them away?

  “I would be sad… I have the feeling that you would be dead if I got out of my seal… I agree with Giana on this, you could have made the spirit stalker situation easier by leaving us behind or sealing us away although… you probably wouldn't survive…”

  Hey come on Noelle. Don't be sad. I would be able to run away with you two sealed.

  Noelle slammed the table. “I don't care! You would more likely seal us to protect us, rather than contain us! You sealed Greg for the same reason, right!? You protected him from yourself, me and Giana, because I sure was ready to rip him to shreds before you sealed him away!”

  Giana and Yv sang to calm Noelle.

  Well there you have it, Deca, that’s why sealing someone only works after you have some sort of relationship with that person.

  “I guess…I hadn't thought about that…”

  I turned to Yv.

  Now how would you treat Greg? That's an important question.

  “I…I will avoid him unless I have no choice. He doesn't seem to think anything of me…I tried so hard, but I can't take continuous cold behavior…” Yv said as her ears drooped.

  Sadly enough, Greg might not even notice if Yv avoided him.

  How about you Deca?

  “I will act normal as long as someone is with me in Gregory's proximity. Please don't let me be alone with him.”

  Oof, that's understandable.

  Raishin was holding his hand up, but everyone knew what he was going to say so he could go last.

  Noelle?

  “I will treat him normally. He might earn more punches than normal if he does something unacceptable, but that's all. But don't get me wrong lil’ bro. I'm doing this for Raishin and you and not for him!”

  Uhh, what do I have to do with this?

  Noelle pointed at Giana and Yv. “We are close friends, remember? And friends talk. Giana told me about some of the burdens you face as a leader. Being our leader must not be easy, and we apologize… so I will do my best to act as normally as possible.”

  Thank you. Raishin?

  I will treat him like I always do!

  Well, everyone knew that. At least that is done. I want to ask them when they plan to release Greg, but I trust them. I can't quantify the amount of frustration they had with Greg, but they can, and it will be reflected in how long they will leave him in that seal. My seal is quite pleasant, so it should have no adverse effects on him.

  Thoughts went out. My seal is pleasant .. what if I just seal myself away when this all gets too much for me? My seal is getting close to the type of seal where people would actively choose to stay in it. It's one of its strengths, as many people prefer beautiful lies to ugly truths.

  Well then, thanks for participating. That's all. I need to get up early tomorrow.

  “What about you Deca?”

  Uhh what about me?

  “How will you treat Gregory?”

  I have to get used to half the team calling him ‘Gregory’ instead of ‘Greg’.

  I'm with Raishin, I will treat him like I always do.

  I got up and walked to my room. Raishin and Noelle stayed behind while Giana and Yv followed.

  “Deca, your room is here.” Giana said as she pointed at their room.

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  There is so much I need to get used to. One of these is staying sharp. I tend to relax around Giana. But I'm an easy target for ambushes when I relax. The charm user is still at large. I can't relax too often.

  I'm sorry but…

  I opened my door, and recoiled as it was still pink.

  Shit! I forgot about this! Deca, help?

  Giana smiled maliciously. “I don't know… maybe I can get rid of that tomorrow, but oh… where would you sleep then? If only someone would take you in for the night.”

  I'm sure you will say the same tomorrow…

  “Will I now?” Giana grabbed my hand and led me into their room. “I will get rid of it tomorrow, I promise. I just want to sleep in your tails tonight. These beds are terrible.”

  The morning came early, and I left the vixen’s den. The sleepyheads were fast asleep so I had to move them to the bed. So far from their resolve to wake up early and watch me craft swords.

  Noelle was grinning in front of her door when I left my room and was moving her eyebrows up and down. “Had a great night?”

  Luckily it was a quiet night and not with Yv there… We're not horny animals like you two. Let me guess, Raishin is still sleeping?

  “You mean that YOU are not a horny animal! I know Giana well enough to know otherwise. And he's still sleeping, yeah, I guess it's just us two. The siblings’ day out!”

  Noelle dragged me along, as she had more energy than I did. We arrived at the workshop, and Zio opened up.

  “Whoa another hot woman. How many wives do you have?”

  Not funny kid. She might punch you, this is…my sister…

  “Yes! This is my little brother! I came to admire his craftsmanship!”

  Zio pointed at me and addressed Noelle. “Why are you more excited than he is?”

  Because she doesn't need to do anything… let’s go Zio. We might be able to finish 3 swords today, which means we get more days to relax.

  “Everything is ready, we can begin immediately!”

  My stomach growled and Noelle folded her arms. “Unbelievable, you didn't even eat!”

  I would wake people if I baked pizza!

  “Who eats pizza for breakfast!? Go start, I will borrow your kitchen.” Noelle stomped off towards the kitchen.

  “Your sister is right, who bakes pizza for breakfast, fries are the only true breakfast.”

  Don't let me kick your ass. Anything potato-related is unviable for consumption.

  We bickered but still worked efficiently. Their dimension didn't have potatoes. Sounds like a paradise. Only ‘animals’, buildings, and structures got merged with us. All the plants got lost in the process so they had to adapt to our food, for the most part, was what Zio explained.

  Noelle returned with the worst-looking sandwich ever.

  “Is your sister trying to kill you?”

  Nah, it probably just looks bad but tastes great. Her friend makes food that looks great but tastes bad.

  I took a bite, spat it out, and coughed.

  Huh what? Noelle? Why is there sand in my sandwich… you didn't take the name seriously, did you?!

  “So she did try to kill you…”

  You might be right…

  I was still trying to get the sand out of my system. I couldn't get mad, as Noelle seemed to feel bad. “I'm sorry lil’ bro. I tried, but meals are the only thing I can't make… I tried…”

  Ugh, just don't use sand, you can only improve from this point.

  And that's how I went without breakfast after Noelle's failed, unintentional assassination attempt.

  She didn't feel bad for long, as she got all ‘proud sister’ after the crafting commenced. She started bragging about my achievements as if I didn't know about them. The owner was also in the workshop as Zio had told me that I don't use the forge so he could work with hardly any disturbances, and he heard Noelle brag about me being the Silver Torrent which caused awkward situations as I'm some sort of celebrity here because the Yttroz Industries are just like Noelle, they like bragging about me… Maybe it's a craftsman's pride.

  Giana, Yv, and Raishin came to spectate in the afternoon.

  Hey guys, you're taking up too much space!

  Hehe Agnis it's not nice to call the chicks fat!

  Do you want me to kick your ass and then kick you out, or do you want to get kicked out and then your ass kicked? You're the one who takes up most of the space! Stop touching everything!

  But these things look so cool! Ouch! This is hot! Giana, can you heal my hand? I think I burnt it…

  That's enough! Noelle!

  “Come here!” Noelle grabbed Raishin by the scruff of his neck and dragged him away.

  The day ended with us finishing the 5th sword just in time. We didn't have time to clean up, but the owner was nice and would handle that. He had gotten some ideas by seeing me at work. He had 2 arms like me. He also had 4 horns, so no real advantage regarding crafting.

  My VIP room was charm-free, as Giana had promised. It had been a while since I was alone and Nilah came out. I wanted to brush her, but she started to inspect the room.

  What is it girl? Looking for vixen traps?

  She blasted some spots with frost, got pink highlights and spat out clouds of pink. They were indeed vixen traps and not spots Giana missed while de-charming my room.

  I haven't heard back from Shim and Dehlia has also been quiet. It was subtle, but more humans started appearing in the city. At first, it was rare to find one, but it’s getting more common. This isn't a bad thing but… this city was made for the new races. What's the point if more humans inhabit this place than the new races? Maybe Shim is busy addressing this problem.

  Nilah finished and requested cuddles.

  Hey Nilah, why are you so bitchy? Where did you pick up that personality?

  Nilah didn't respond and was focusing on getting pet and cuddled. Maybe she's like that because I keep spoiling her. I must have turned her into an entitled brat. But she is quiet and well-behaved around me. She then suddenly started to give me a lot of mana.

  I guess this means I will get into trouble soon.

  I suppressed my mana as I was giving off a mana pressure, suiting a mythical beast. I'm sure that everyone in its area of effect just shat their pants.

  A little warning might be nice next time…

  Nilah ignored me and fell asleep. What a troublesome fox.

  It was noisy as everyone in this city block was on edge. This is all my fault, but it was an accident. I just want to sleep… I plugged my ears and closed my eyes.

  Yet another nightmare. Tomato goddess was back and after my tails. She had become a bit smarter and didn’t use confrontation. It was annoying, but not as dangerous as my previous encounters. Maybe it was a pleasant nightmare?

  Another early morning, and Noelle was ready again while the rest of the team was still sleeping.

  “Hey, lil’ bro. do you by any chance know anything about that enormous mana pressure last night? The experts are stumped as in their description, it was ‘pure mana’, something they’ve never encountered. It was quite similar to the mana pressure you used to suppress Gregory.”

  I had an oopsie, don’t worry about it, let’s go.

  Noelle had been helping in checking if there was any structural damage last night, but to everyone’s surprise, nothing had been damaged, not even electronium-based devices.

  So, what I released was similar to an EMP?

  “The magical equivalent yeah… although not really, as it didn’t fry anything. Maybe because it was pure mana?”

  So, if I introduce impurities, I can cripple the whole city?

  “Don’t go and become a terrorist now.” Noelle said as she patted my head and smiled.

  Taking this sister role seriously, eh?

  “Of course, this city will be in danger if nobody keeps an eye on you.” Noelle’s face got serious. “That mana wave you let out, it means we’re getting in trouble soon, right?”

  Yeah but… how do you know…

  “My big sister instinct! Your behavior changes slightly before something strange happens! Did you learn how to predict the future?”

  Would things happen like they do if I could? It’s more like a feeling and it's Nilah who often warns me by either stealing a lot of mana or giving me a lot of mana.

  “I see… do you think that is the problem?” Noelle pointed at a large crowd around the blacksmith workshop.

  We could one shot them in no time, I don’t think they’re the problem.

  Noelle gave me a worrying stare. “Let’s save that for after they cause trouble. Let’s find out what this is about.”

  Excuse me what…

  “It’s the Silver Torrent!”

  “He’s here!”

  Oh shit! Noelle! This is trouble! Can I one shot them now?!

  “You… you can’t be serious… Of course not!” Noelle stomped and the area shook. The chatter died down. “Clear away! He has work to do! I will come out in a moment and address any inquiries or issues you have with him!”

  She stomped again, and created a crystal road with transparent crystal walls to the side, giving us easy access to the workshop.

  Wow, I feel like a celebrity with a competent bodyguard.

  “Don’t be silly, I’m not a bodyguard, this is what big sisters do.”

  Really? As far as I know, they just burn down any obstacles.

  “I’m not a phoenix…”

  We made it safely to the workshop. Noelle had made 1 mistake. She was a celebrity too, so while she meant well, she made the situation worse as she had to reinforce the workshop to not let any fans inside.

  So ehh, about one shotting them?

  Noelle gave me a knuckle sandwich. No sand this time. “Just get to work, I will figure out something.”

  Zio tried my stunt with a side project. His mana control was severely lacking, but he got the basics down.

  Several stomps shook the workshop during the day. The rest of team Hourai didn’t join on this day, probably because Noelle didn’t let anyone in.

  Zio and I finished 3 more swords and we could relax. We had 4 days to make 2 more. We had worked hard and would take a break tomorrow.

  Talking about tomorrow. We couldn’t leave this place. I could hear Noelle’s venomous tongue from here. What is going on…

  Zio and I went outside and encountered Noelle unleashing her venomous tongue on Dehlia. An enormous crowd had gathered.

  There was a crystal barrier between them, but she had made holes in it allowing her voice to reach the other side.

  “Oh, lil’ bro, We might be stuck here as this thieving cat won’t leave. Fuck off Dehlia, he already has someone.”

  “I just want to talk to him. He’s the only one that seems to know Protia.”

  I know what protists are, but what does that have to do with me?

  She started writing a familiar rune on the crystal wall. I reacted by doing the same.

  “ Bagpe”

  Abghare-hadi!

  The crystal wall didn’t break, so we were safe. Unfortunately, this confirmed that I knew Protia, what a pain in the ass.

  “I got my confirmation; I will come back another day.” Dehlia made a polite bow and left.

  “Why does everyone have it out for you?”

  So, Raishin made an interesting theory. I might be attracting charm users…

  “Great… at least that’s good to know. That woman…nobody knows what her race is. Well, they know it as ‘Treyah’ but nobody knows what that means.”

  Uhm.. it means ‘three’ in primal language. She seems to be able to split in 3.

  “She can change the appearance of those, she is the main reason why it took us so long to become the number 1 idol group. She is a 1-woman idol group.” Noelle stomped and scared the onlookers away. “We might have to stay here for the night. Raishin, Yv and Giana came by but letting them in was risky with all these people.”

  She knocked on the crystals. “It’s not perfect, but it blocks charm magic.”

  Wow what a reliable sister!

  “Yes! Praise me more!”

  But nobody knows what race she is… Giana has issues matching her charm magic…

  A concerning and terrifying idea popped up. I had no evidence, but it sounded plausible.

  I’m sorry Zio, we might have to stay here for the night and I need to talk to my sister, do you mind?

  “That’s fine… I’m already glad that I get to see a legend at work!” He ran off toward the workshop.

  At least call me a myth…

  “What do you want to talk about? Do I need to make a crystal hut?”

  I nodded. Noelle stomped, crystals emerged from the ground and formed a neat crystal hut. Noelle’s mana control is probably the second best in our team.

  We went inside and got comfortable.

  Noelle, I have reason to believe that Dehlia is from a forgotten mythical race.

  follow if the story is interesting enough.

  Moorland Menace