"Looks like you got a bit banged up." Clause used some measuring tape and hooked it around Davi's waist, taking note of his outfit. "Did Ragna take you guys on a hard mission?"
Davi let out a slight hum. He stood on a stool in a backroom that was in one of the train carts. The place was apparently Clause's workshop, and it looked like a weird mix between a blacksmithing shop and a fabric store.
The cart was open, and just outside the door was a mini forge set up, with an anvil, an oven, a grinder, and anything else Clause would need to make armor and weapons.
Inside the train were various fabrics, leather, a sewing machine, and tables of iron or steel that were lying around. Tools were set up along the wall, some scattered on the ground, and there were racks of half-baked projects that would never see the light of day.
The place was a mess and not one that should have been able to function, yet Clause seemed to have a system for knowing where everything was and what it did.
Currently, he had Davi standing before him as he measured the other man. Team Ragna had just arrived back at the base after going through two different dungeons. It wasn't shocking that, along the way, both Davi's and Olivia's clothes had gotten a bit torn. Olivia's more so since she had been thrown around and didn't have armor she could hide in.
Her leather had been burned, slashed, and torn up, barely holding together by the time they arrived. She had been the first sent to see Clause, and now she was waiting in the other cart, dressed in new leather armor, while Davi took his turn.
"What was it like?" Clause asked.
"What do you mean?"
"Going on your first quest." Clause chuckled and walked over to a table, writing down some notes and making notes about Davi. "Did you like it?"
"I guess."
"You're a very quiet person, aren't you, Davi?"
"..."
Clause let out a snort. "That's okay. We all have our quirks around here." The man stated. "I hope you did enjoy your time with Ragna. Sadly, this old body doesn't get to go on very many missions nowadays." Clause patted his back and grunted as he attempted to snap it back into place. "Old age… Well, that and the guild would never let someone as important as me go. Who would maintain all their gear?"
"Have you been in the guild for a while?" Davi asked.
Clause shook his head. "Nope. To be honest, I'm a bit green still. Less than five years."
Davi gave Clause an odd look. "So you became a Knight out of your prime?"
Clause noticed his look and gave a sheepish smile. "No, no, nothing like that. I was a young strapping lad, much like you, a while back. I was part of a different guild. I served in Pantheon."
"You were part of the Pantheon guild?"
"That's right." Clause gave a nod. "I served in them for about eight years. When I reached the rank of Title Knight, my body fell out of prime. Sometimes, guilds will drop members whom they don't want to waste resources on. Pantheon viewed me as useless because of my age. They said I couldn't serve anymore. I didn't want to give up this job, though. I made my choice. I became part of Phoenix Flight. Technically speaking, I'm the only member of this guild to have a title." Clause gave a slightly smug grin, and the elderly man pointed his thumb at himself. "They called me Kronos."
Davi listened to the man speak and gave a polite nod. Clause's story still seemed a bit weird. The man was at Pantheon for eight years, then at Phoenix Flight for about three. With how old he was, did that mean he became a Knight in his late sixties? No wonder he was out of his prime.
"We didn't really get to talk last time." Clause hummed. "You were unconscious, so I whipped something up for you. Now that you're awake, is there anything specifically you want for your new outfit?"
"I'm fine with whatever. The robes were comfortable."
"Glad to hear it." Clause nodded and went to grab some fabric. "I'll make a better set for you this time. Same as before."
"Yeah." Then Davi stopped. He stood there for a moment, contemplating something. His mind drifted, and he glanced down at the clothing he was wearing. Black robes. "Actually, there is a change I'd like you to make."
"Oh?" Davi explained his idea, and Clause gave a nod of understanding. "I see. Yes, that shouldn't be an issue. I'll have it for you in a bit."
True to his word, Clause whipped up the clothing in record time. His magic allowed him to weave metal and fabrics together, bending steel and turning iron into a substance that the cloth absorbed and became one with. When it was done, he gave the clothes to Davi, who stripped off his old robes and put on the new ones.
"How do they feel?" Clause asked.
"Good." Davi gave a nod.
"Glad to hear it. You're looking good. Why don't you go show that friend of yours?" Clause said suggestively, though it went over Davi's head.
Davi stepped off the stool and walked to the door. Stepping into the next cart, he found Olivia waiting for him. She was seated in a chair, dressed in her new leather armor, reading the book Crowe had given her. The outfit Clause made for her was identical to the one he made her last time.
She looked up when he stepped into the cart and went to say something but stopped. "Oh."
"Oh?" Davi raised an eyebrow.
"You changed the color?"
"...I did."
"Why?" Olivia asked.
"...Because."
The last robes he wore were black, with a bit of white across them. The current ones he now had on flipped that. They were white with a bit of black. Usually, he only wore black, but this time he had decided on something different.
Olivia gave a soft smile and stood up, tucking her book away into the bag she had at her side. "It looks good on you."
"Does it?"
"Yeah. White suits you better, I think." She nodded. "It's more… Bright. You looked cool and badass in those black robes, but you look more casual and collected in these ones. Is there a particular reason you wanted to change?"
"I guess I got tired of it," Davi said quietly. "After enough stares, being compared to the Ebony Knight was getting old. I can't change everything, but I thought maybe wearing something in a color set not related to him would be nice. I'm not the Ebony Knight. I don't want to be anything like him either. I'm me."
Olivia smiled at him. "You don't have to worry about that, Davi. You're nothing like the Ebony Knight. You're you. You're a hero. You're my friend."
"I know. Still, it's nice to try something new out." Davi gestured at himself and gave a rare smile. "I like this look."
"It's a good look. So, what now?" She asked. "We stopped by Clause. Anything else we need to do?"
Yesterday, she got to see Rosco and the others in her village. Despite how far away Phoenix Flight was, it only took a day to return back. This was because Ragna picked her and Davi up when night began to fall and carried them all the way to the base. He was so freakishly fast that it took no time at all.
When they did arrive back, they had gone straight to bed and slept off the exhaustion of the mission. While they did that, Ragna went to speak with the captain and turned in all the Bells they got and some other trinkets, such as the Wendigo Spirit Core, which he had pocketed. When they did wake up, most of the guild were happy for their first quest, and Mama Herta made them a big breakfast before finally sending them to see Clause to get their outfits fixed up and remade.
Usually by this time, Ragna would demand they follow him to the beach to train, but neither she nor Davi had seen the man all day.
Davi gave a lazy shrug. "I need to stop by and see Olem."
"Oh? Oh! Yeah, I remember why." Olivia nodded and smiled. "Let's go see him!" She took Davi's arm, and together the two of them walked through the carts of the train before they finally arrived at Olem's medical ward.
The place was just as Davi remembered it being—an almost pure white with many beds and curtains. Ghost was seated on one, kicking her feet back and forth, and her eyes lit up when she saw them.
"Davi! Liv! You two came to see me!" The girl said excitedly.
"I actually came to see Olem," Davi responded flatly.
"Aw! You should have at least lied." Ghost pouted and rolled her eyes.
"I came to see you!" Olivia rushed over to Ghost and hugged the girl, the two giggling.
In the back, Olem stood, but he slowly waddled over as he heard them enter his room. "Davi, I'm glad you came. I took a look at it like you asked me to." Olem placed a familiar sword down onto the table. Davi looked at the purple eye in the center, which stared back up at him. "You found one hell of an item."
"Is that an enchanted item?" Ghost said in shock. "No way! Most of the people in our guild have regular enchanted gear, but you actually managed to get elven-grade enchanted gear? That's almost as good as the Knight Gear Clause has."
"Clause has Knight Gear?" Olivia asked in surprise.
"Yeah." Ghost nodded. "He's the only member of our guild with a Title and Knight Gear. The Captain, Vlad, and Tea all have elven-grade items, but for the rest of us, we all got stuck with generic stuff. I can't believe you actually found one on your first mission."
"Not just any particular one," Olem cut in. "This item is very unique. I think it was a treasured item held by a noble of the elven kingdom. Even amongst elven enchanted items, it is superior. Probably the fifth strongest one I've seen."
"Way to go, Davi!" Both Olivia and Ghost looked excited, but Davi kept his expression blank and continued looking down at the sword. He had a bad feeling.
Olem ran his stone finger over the blade. "The passive enchantments are all that I expected, but they were woven together in a way that puts this item above all others. Would you like to know its name?"
"Sure." Davi took the sword, and he picked it up, letting it mold itself into his hand. "What is her name?"
"Her? Anyway, the sword is called 'Storymaker.'" Olem explained. "With an item that has an active enchantment woven into it, you have to flow your mana along the item and let it absorb your energy. Then you have to drag its mingled energy into your body and announce its name. If the sword accepts you, it'll become one with you."
"I need the same type of magic as the sword for that to happen, right?" Davi questioned.
"Correct." Olem gave a nod. "You need the correct type to use both its passive and active effects since it's an elven item. In this case, the passives placed onto it are interesting. The enchanted rune of sturdy allows the sword to be harder than a normal blade. Sharp keeps the weapon from dulling. Maintain keeps the sword from rusting. Cut allows it to slice through that which it normally can't. Empower allows its energy to mingle with whoever is using it, causing a boost in power, and finally, Growth allows this weapon's true strength to rapidly develop and get better. The enchantments will become stronger the more the user becomes stronger."
"That's so cool," Olivia said with stars in her eyes. "So the sword is literally made to make the person using it stronger, and the stronger that person becomes, the stronger the sword will become? What a cheat item!"
Olem kept his gaze focused on Davi, who was studying the sword. "Indeed. It's a powerful item. I'd rank it as an A grade item."
Since enchanted items used a different system, that means it was actually at the level of A1. Of course, Davi knew that he had an imperfect Core, and so he couldn't draw out even half the power. For him, the grade would likely be just S- or S. Maybe E1 if he was lucky. That was still good, though. Because of the nature of the item, it would grow stronger over time, and the boost it would give him would also grow. All his physical stats would be boosted by an S- grade increase at the lowest or an E1 at the highest, which would allow him to hit as if he had the level of a C1 or even B1.
It was no wonder that powerful enchanted items were sought after by so many Knights, and why Knight Gear was such a big deal. It allowed a Knight to hit well above their weight class, letting them tap into grades of power they weren't even close to reaching.
"Davi." Olem's tone changed slightly. "I would suggest finding someone to sell this item to."
Olivia's smile faded, as did Ghost's. "Sell?" Ghost cocked her head to the side, then her eyes widened with realization. "Oh."
"I don't get it?" Olivia frowned and shook her head. "Why would you suggest he give up such a good item?"
"He can't use it," Ghost said quietly.
"What?"
"The type…"
Davi stared into the eye of the sword. Olem watched him in silence. "An item like this is still a great boon. The Branch family itself would pay a fortune for this. You'd likely never have to worry about work again, or you could use the Bells they give you to find a slightly lesser enchanted item of a type that works for you. I bet Father himself would buy this blade off you."
"What type is it?" Davi asked.
"Davi…"
"What type?"
"Light." Olem sighed. "A specialty of the Helios family. Almost all of them have that type. They'd love to get their hands on this blade."
"It wouldn't be used by them, would it?" Davi said softly.
Olem shook his head softly. "A sword of this grade? They'd want to use it for Knight Gear."
"So it would be reduced down to its parts, broken and destroyed so that someone else could become stronger." Davi ran his hand along the blade and shook his head. "No. I don't want that to happen."
"Davi-"
Davi's mana surged. Blue fire seemed to erupt around him, and the entire room became so cold that ice started to form on the ground. His shadow seemed to expand and grow, morphing into a pair of wings as he shoved everything he had into the blade. "Storymaker," he called out.
"Davi, you can't," Olem warned, but Davi didn't listen.
He didn't want to listen. His energy kept surging, getting brighter and brighter, and he felt it mingling with the sword.
Why?
Why did he care so much?
That was a question he didn't even know, but he did know that part of him didn't want this sword to end up on some noble's shelf or be forged down into parts so some asshole would gain a powerful Knight Gear. This sword was old. Older than any living person currently alive. What had its glass eye seen? If it could talk, what would it say? Would it ask for help? He thought it likely would. And so he wanted to help it.
He didn't like swords. They weren't something he wanted to hold. They weren't tools he was comfortable with using. A sword had been placed into his hands because his mother told him to keep it. If given the choice, he would always prefer to fish instead of fight. For some reason, though, this blade was different.
This wasn't a weapon for war. This was Storymaker. It was more like a quill rather than a blade. How he knew this, he did not know, but that was the feeling he got.
His mana fully connected with the swords, and it seemed to respond. A white glow began to run along its blade, and the eye in the center surged with power.
Then…
Rejection.
The mana imploded in on itself. Davi was kicked off his feet as the connection was severed, and the light along the blade shut off. He rammed back first into a wall, hitting it so hard he nearly split his head open. Blood ran down his face, and his vision blurred. He was vaguely aware of Olivia and Ghost screaming his name, but he didn't pay them any attention.
Davi lifted his arm and stared into the glass eye on the blade. It looked back at him.
The sword had rejected him.
He couldn't help it. It couldn't help him.
He tried. He really did. He gave it his all.
Sometimes that wasn't good enough. Sometimes a person was doomed to fail.
Davi's energy surged again as he tried to connect. "Storymaker-" The implosion hit him again, and he was shoved further into the wall, cracking the metal and some of his bones.
"That's enough!" Olem was at his side and placed his arms on Davi, steadying him. "Davi. Stop. It won't work."
"What do I do then?" Davi asked. "How can I help it?"
"You can't. It's not anything you did. The sword just won't work for you. Olem's grip grew tighter. Please. Just move on."
Davi looked from Olem and then to the worried faces of Olivia and Ghost before finally settling on Storymaker. "Move on?"
How could he do that? Something in front of him needed his help. As to what that help was, he did not know. He couldn't just let it go. He was a robot. One built by his mother and his father. His mother's curse made him charge toward the dragon headfirst without any precaution. To fight it and die was his destiny, but in some ways, his father had left behind a curse just as cruel.
The curse of an ideal. A goal. A mission.
His father told him to help people. Help them so they can help themselves. His father's last message to him. The final thing he had been taught.
Davi's knuckles turned white as he gripped the blade. "No." He said.
"Davi…"
"I'm not ready to give up. Not yet." Davi forced himself to stand, and he held his sword. "I'll find a way to connect with it. This sword, which was locked away, so lonely and by itself, will finally get to experience the world. I'll help it."