"Ding! Achievement task randomly triggered: [I Am a Little Blacksmith]..."
What do you mean, little blacksmith? I don't have time to learn that stuff!
Ronan's mouth twitched in disbelief.
Just then, an inexplicable message surfaced in his mind.
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[Achievement: I Am a Little Blacksmith]
Mission Goal: Successfully forge a tool recognized by senior blacksmith Harry.
Reward: Strength +3, Body Coordination +3, Weapon Mastery +3
Penalty: None
Time Limit: One Month
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"You're so fussy for someone your age. Just say yes or no!"
Uncle Harry scowled when he noticed Ronan staring blankly into space.
Snapping back to reality, Ronan looked up at the burly blacksmith who seemed more fired up than usual. He straightened up and replied loudly:
"I'll learn! My dream is to become a blacksmith!"
"Hah! That's what I like to hear!"
Harry clapped him on the shoulder with enough force to knock out a mule.
Because he was so thrilled, Harry hit harder than necessary and gave him a few more hearty slaps. Ronan's body, now tougher due to his training, still wobbled under the onslaught.
Promotion pain... but the reward makes it worth it.
Weapon mastery. That was the real prize here. Strength and coordination could be improved through daily exercise, but weapon mastery was elusive—something that couldn't be trained easily without the right environment.
In the future, we'll be relying on blades to fight Titans. Getting a head start on this skill means a serious edge.
Although he would eventually receive formal training in the Cadet Corps, earning this skill now could widen the gap between him and others even further over time.
From that day on, Ronan officially became Harry's apprentice.
His daily routine expanded: hammering iron slag, shaping metal, learning temperature control—all with Harry looming nearby. The workload increased, but so did Ronan's motivation.
With each passing day, his physical condition soared. Strength, explosive power, coordination, and resistance to injury steadily improved. Despite his muscular build, Ronan's slim frame concealed it well—avoiding unnecessary attention.
Yet, as his body improved, his growth rate slowed.
What used to be multiple stat gains per day dropped to one. Eventually, even that dropped to one every few days.
The stronger you become, the harder it gets. There's only so much time in a day, and even less energy to spend.
Recognizing this bottleneck, Ronan adjusted his training—focusing on blacksmithing above all else. His goal was now singular: complete the mission.
Due to royal restrictions, the forge couldn't create weapons freely. Civilian smiths were limited to tools like kitchen knives and farming equipment.
No choice... Let's make a kitchen knife then. But I'll make it better than any chef has ever seen.
Forging was entirely manual: softening iron under high heat, hammering impurities out, reshaping, cooling—repeating the process until the form emerged.
Physical fitness, willpower, fine control... all were required.
Harry, as a certified senior blacksmith by system standards, had high standards. Ronan knew the knife would have to be nearly flawless.
He pushed himself to the edge in every step. His arms ached from repeated strikes. Sweat soaked his back. His vision blurred, but he didn't stop.
Shaping. Cooling. Hammering. Modifying. Again and again.
Even Aunt Martha grew concerned, hovering at the doorway, ready to intervene. But Harry stopped her with a hand.
"Look at that boy's eyes," he said softly. "From the start... he never once thought about giving up."
Martha sighed, giving her husband a warning pat on his half-bald head.
"If Ronan collapses from exhaustion, you're sleeping on the floor tonight."
Harry froze. "Huh?!"
Thankfully, it didn't come to that.
After what felt like a full day's war, the knife was done—his first real product.
A kitchen knife. My first official creation...
It wasn't even sharpened yet, but it held a clean, elegant form.
He let his body recover, then moved on to sharpening—another time-consuming task.
After half an hour, the blade glistened.
To test it, he plucked a strand of hair from his head, held it over the knife, and blew gently.
Swish.
The strand fell cleanly in two.
"Shame it's just a kitchen knife," Ronan muttered, face complicated.
At that moment, the system chimed again.
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Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the achievement task: [I Am a Little Blacksmith]!
---
A fresh surge of energy poured into Ronan's exhausted body. His muscles tensed—stronger, faster. He could feel the change.
As for weapon mastery and coordination, those would become clearer with more tests later.
But just when Ronan thought it was over—that he'd return to his usual self-training routine—the system rang once more.
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Ding! Achievement task completed. Advanced mission unlocked: [A Little Test of Skills]...