The Kicked Out S-Rank Appraiser Creates The Strongest Guild - Chapter 116

Chapter 116   Someone who gives me a push

Wayne had been hammering away at iron like a madman since morning.

For the past few days, he had been like this non-stop.

What lingered in his mind were the armors, abandoned and battered by adventurers.

(“Having adventurers discard my equipment… there’s no greater humiliation for an alchemist. Getting so wrapped up in revenge against Edgar and power struggles within the atelier that I ended up lowering the quality of my equipment to the point where adventurers would abandon it… It’s pathetic. When did I become such a coward? Was it after Edgar’s scheme? After losing to Aina? I used to aim purely for better specs back then.”)

Wayne looked at the finished armor and immediately set it aside.

“Damn it. This won’t do. I can’t even beat Edgar, let alone Aina with this.”

He immediately started making new armor.

Aina and Rody watched Wayne’s behavior in astonishment.

“What happened to Wayne all of a sudden?”

“He’s been like this ever since they returned from the dungeon. The equipment the adventurers came back with was in tatters, and Laurent collapsed. Who knows what happened down there.”

“But… what is he trying to accomplish?”

“Beats me. I have no idea.”

From the outside, it was hard to understand what Wayne was trying to do. Judging by his forming technique, it looked like he was trying to create A-class armor, but he didn’t have enough iron for that. The quality of the iron he was using was inconsistent. He kept making and breaking armor, and it was unclear what he was aiming for.

“Good morning, everyone.”

“Oh, Laurent.”

“Are you alright now? I heard you collapsed as soon as you got back from the dungeon…”

“Yes, I’m fine now. Sorry to make you worry. But what’s with this noise? Is Wayne working?”

“Yeah, he’s been like this ever since we got back, hammering away at the iron as if possessed by something.”

“It’s good to be dedicated, but he’s wasting too much iron. He’s making armor haphazardly. There were even signs of shoddy work on the equipment for new partnerships. It’s about time someone said something.”

“Wait, Aina.”

Laurent stopped Aina, who was about to caution Wayne.

“Laurent?”

“Something within Wayne is trying to change. Let’s watch over him for now.”

Laurent examined the armor Wayne had made.

(At first glance, these armors seem haphazardly made. But upon closer inspection, you can see he’s pursuing a single concept: specs. He’s trying to make high-power, high-durability equipment with as little iron as possible. An unrelenting pursuit of stats. This might be the switch to unlock Wayne’s potential.)

Laurent looked at Wayne.

Unlike his previously half-hearted demeanor, Wayne was hammering the iron with a desperate intensity.

(Those tears he shed at the end of the exploration… if they were genuine, it’s worth giving him a chance.)

Wayne had already made what would be his tenth piece of armor today, but none of them were satisfactory.

As he placed a new piece of iron on the workbench, he finally noticed something off.

(Huh? What the hell is this? It’s iron C. Damn it. What am I doing? Have I become so dull that I can’t even tell the quality of iron anymore?)

Wayne shook himself out of it and went to get iron A.

He took iron from a box labeled with an iron A sign and felt its texture.

(But I’m starting to remember. The old feeling. That’s right. When I used to focus on alchemy, my senses became so sharp that I could tell the quality of the metal just by touch. How could I have forgotten something so basic?)

Wayne’s senses sharpened more and more.

The feel of the iron, the sensation of the hammer strikes, the sound of the hammering, the changing colors.

He inspected the newly finished armor.

It was indeed thick and powerful armor.

(But it’s still not good enough.)

Laurent appraised the armor’s stats.

[Armor Stats]

Power: 90

Durability: 30

(Power is high, but the durability is too low.)

Laurent looked at the other armors Wayne had made.

They all had similar issues.

(He’s shaping the metal before sufficiently increasing its hardness. This keeps happening repeatedly. What should I do? Should I say something?)

Laurent observed Wayne’s demeanor.

Wayne also realized he was repeating the same mistakes.

(Damn it. Why do I always neglect durability? I just made a bunch of armors with low durability.)

Wayne took out new iron and began forging armor again.

(I’m shaping the metal before sufficiently increasing its hardness. I need to hammer it more thoroughly. I remember Aina hammering it faster and more precisely.)

Wayne recalled Aina’s technique and hammered the iron, trying to replicate her form.

Laurent noticed Wayne correcting his process.

(He’s figuring it out on his own. I’ll keep watching a bit longer.)

Finally, the armor was completed.

[Armor Stats]

Power: 80

Durability: 80

Weight: 80

(I did it. This is the best armor I’ve made so far. …But why?)

Wayne felt a slight unease as he looked at the finished armor.

(It feels like something is missing. But what?)

“Are you going to stop there, Wayne?”

Wayne was startled by the voice and turned around.

(Laurent… You’ve woken up.)

“That armor hasn’t reached its full potential yet. Are you really going to stop now?”

“What? Who said I’m stopping!”

Wayne turned back to the seemingly finished armor.

(It’s not yet at the forming limit. But this isn’t ‘metal forming.’ This is…)

Wayne took out his cutting tools.

(This is ‘Magic Stone Cutting’!)

Wayne used the tools to shave down the rough parts of the armor, smoothing them out.

As he trimmed away all the excess, a new brilliance emerged from the armor.

Laurent appraised the finished armor.

[Armor Stats]

Power: 80

Durability: 80

Weight: 60 (↓20)

Despite the weight being reduced to 60, it maintained 80 power and 80 durability.

This was an extraordinary result.

[Effect of ‘Magic Stone Cutting’]

By cutting the magic stone, the power of the stone can be enhanced.
Excess parts can be shaved off to lighten the equipment while retaining its power.

Wayne Melzer’s Skills]

‘Metal Shaping’: A (↑1)

‘Magic Stone Cutting’: A (↑2)

(The effect of ‘Magic Stone Cutting’ has been added and it’s now A-class. Wayne has finally awakened.)

Wayne trembled at the sensation running through him.

(What was that feeling? It’s different from the usual sense of skill improvement. It’s like I’ve leapt two steps forward… Is this Laurent’s skill? This never happened when I was with ‘Dragon’s Ember.’ Just having someone to support you makes such a difference in growth speed.)

(You’ve shown me, Wayne. Your growth. And at the same time, you’ve addressed the biggest weakness of this workshop. Now this workshop can finally move to the next stage.)

“Everyone, come here for a moment.”

In response to Laurent’s call, the alchemists who had been working gathered around.

At the same time, Laurent summoned Ranju, Arri, and Charl.

“Let me introduce some comrades from the headquarters of ‘Spirit Workshop.’ This is Ranju, Arri, and Charl. They will be helping us with our work here from today.”